Devil’s Music

As they arrived in front of Fantagio's building in the van, fans surged forward to catch a glimpse of the singers.

While the bodyguard checked their IDs, Soojeong waved to the fans pressing against the window almost instinctively and cracked the window slightly, to which fans eagerly peered inside.

There's a lesson taught during idol training about providing proper fan service without letting the fans get overly excited to the point of creating a dangerous situation. Soojeong, as always, opened the window just enough to flash a smiling eye.

"Ah, what a disappointment. It's just East Asian girls."

"Shoot, it would've been great if it were Snep or Neminem, but looks like they're just dancers. Let's go back."

"Ugh, how many hours has it been? Are we really going to see Kay today?"

"Wait up, you. Kay comes to the office every day."

It was okay for them to show disappointed expressions, but Soojeong blushed due to American fans not recognizing them and closed the window. The other idols also looked embarrassed and bowed their heads.

Team Manager Lee, who had been checking identities, clapped to focus their attention and then said,

After the bodyguard opened the barrier, the path to the parking lot cleared. The parking lot was vast but only had about ten cars parked, so Team Manager Lee parked the car as close as possible to the entrance before cautioning them again.

"Remember what we talked about earlier, our goal is Kay. Don't rush up to him the moment you see him, try to build some rapport. You don't have much in common with him aside from being Korean, but if you talk about the music aspect, a conversation could happen. He's still a student but considering the time he has been presenting music, he's a senior to you all, so respectfully call him 'senior.' Got it?"

"Yes, Team Manager~"

After scanning the idols, Team Manager Lee engaged in a discussion with Soojeong, while Soa leaned over to Yunhyeon and whispered,

"Yunhyeon, was Kay a senior to us?"

Soa asked cautiously, noticing Team Manager Lee's attention.

"'If I could change the world' is officially registered as a track, you know."

"Yeah, I knew about that song before 'Fury'... wasn't that music released about a year and a half ago? Soojeong unnie hasn't debuted for over four years, has she?"

"Yes, but... you know how it is in this industry, popularity counts as age. And honestly, even if Soojeong unnie were to stand before Kay, how could she claim to be a senior unless the age difference warranted Kay treating her as such, since she isn't even active in Korea?"

"Mmm... that would really complicate things if Kay were active in Korea."

"What's there to complicate? I've heard Kay is really nice. He'd probably just call anyone older than him 'brother' or 'sister.'"

"But there are those younger ones with terrible attitudes who debuted early. They might clash."

"That won't happen. Who would dare go up to Kay and demand seniority unless they're out of their mind?"

"Mmm... really? But yeah, if they did something like that and Kay responded even a bit, it would be the end for them. Plus, the company is Fantagio."

"That's right, Fantagio isn't just any company. There are already over thirty cases where journalists tried to approach Kay without formal requests and got sued. After that, no one tries to approach Kay without permission."

"Phew, but are we really okay doing this? If it goes wrong, could end our lives."

"I'm a bit worried too... but you know, from experience, if we fail, we just pretend we never did such a thing, and if it succeeds, it's game over for them too; it's just as over if it gets out."

While Yunjeong and Yunhyeon had their small talk, Yunjeong looked worriedly at Jinyeon.

"Is this really okay? Now that I've seen Kay in person, I can't do this."

Jinyeon firmly held Yunjeong's hand and reassured her,

"Me too, but after being with him yesterday, he's not someone who'd want this sort of thing. We're bound to fail, so let's not worry too much."

"Right... that makes sense."

"Exactly, you can tell by looking at someone. There's no way Kay would fall for this."

Recalling yesterday's drinking session, Yunjeong felt somewhat relieved as they waited for the conversation between Team Manager Lee and Soojeong to end. Team Manager Lee then exited the vehicle and said,

"Still

wait. Once the Fantagio staff in charge of escorting us arrives, then you can get off."

"Yes, Team Manager~"

As Team Manager Lee stepped out and lit a cigarette, a few bodyguards frowned at him for smoking in a non-smoking area, but knowing he was a guest, they did not intervene.

Seeing the automatic doors of the building open, Team Manager Lee quickly flicked the cigarette ash and pushed the stub under the car.

The person emerging from the automatic doors was a blonde woman with her hair tied up, wearing a black pantsuit. Holding a chart in one hand, she walked towards Team Manager Lee with the sound of her high heels echoing.

With a too-clean appearance for someone working in an entertainment agency, more akin to a career woman in finance, Team Manager Lee was slightly intimidated by her aura. The woman approached with a friendly smile.

"Hello, I'm Clara Anderson from Fantagio's American branch, Music Business Department. We spoke on the phone last time, right?"

Team Manager Lee, surprised by her fluent Korean, recalled that she was the woman who had answered when he first called Fantagio, and he bowed slightly in delight.

"Ah, yes. Nice to meet you. I'm Lee Yong-wook, team manager at YDN Entertainment. You're very fluent in Korean."

"There's no office worker at Fantagio who can't speak Korean. If they're not proficient in Korean, they can't even get an interview. Except for the bodyguards, think of it as everyone can."

"That's impressive."

"Since the company is a Chinese company, they must also be proficient in Chinese for communication with the headquarters. But I only got introduced to you as Team Manager Lee Yong-wook. Which team are you affiliated with?"

Though just a team manager in name, Yong-wook quickly named any team.

"Ah, yes. I belong to the Domestic Business Division 1."

Clara noted something on her chart.

"Domestic Business Division 1... so you're talking about Korean business, right?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Understood, please enter with the musicians."

"Yes, thank you. Everyone, let's get off!"

As Yong-wook opened the rear door, the beautiful idols all filed out and bowed in unison at ninety degrees, greeting in unison.

"Hello!"

Clara looked surprised at the idols' synchronized, traditional Eastern greeting but smiled and said.

"It seems you're all from one team, I knew Eastern idol groups greeted this way, but it's still refreshing."

Team Manager Lee chuckled awkwardly and introduced the idols.

"Yes, it's become a habit. This girl next to me is Soojeong. She's the leader of the girl group ATP from Korea. Next to her is Soa from RedLovelyz. Next to her is Yunhyeon from LizSisters, and next to her is Jinyeon from B to C, and the last girl is Yunjeong from BlackGirls."

Clara took note of the idols' names and their teams, then smiled and extended her hand.

"Nice to meet you. Please come this way."

Beyond the automatic door, there was a small window, and inside was another security room.

Since they had already received permission to visit, Clara received several passes all at once and distributed them to each person.

"Please hang these around your necks, and if you touch the passes to the sensor, you can freely enter and exit, but please be aware that the 2nd, 4th, and 5th floors are off-limits."

After making sure everyone had their passes around their necks, Clara touched her pass to the sensor to enter, then said,

"For record-keeping, you must enter one at a time. Touch your pass to the sensor after the door closes. You only have to do this at the entrance, so please bear with us even if it's a bit cumbersome."

Following Clara's instructions, they entered one by one through the automatic door. When Yunjeong was the last to enter, Clara spread her arms and welcomed them.

"Welcome to Fantagio, everyone. The first floor is a space for staff, musician interviews, and hosting external guests. The space behind the glass wall you see to the right is exactly that."

Everyone looked to the right to see a large area. Contrary to the modern space, the space beyond the glass wall was an antique, circular room.

The room had white and red walls with arched windows, and the ornate furniture was also antique.

Clara explained with a smile.

"This room was created based on Kay's idea to clearly hear the performances or songs of musicians during interviews. It replicates the ballroom of Slane Castle in Ireland."

Team Manager Lee folded his arms and nodded.

"That's where Professor Sharon, Professor Leontine Price, and I used to busk in Ireland."

"Yes, that's correct. The ballroom is not accessible to the public

, so it was conducted in front of the castle, but before that, the three of them had sung in this space. Especially Professor Leontine Price often visits and spends time in this room. Now, please look to the left."

As they turned to the left, they saw what looked like a massive dining hall.

The dining hall was decorated with charcoal-colored marble on the floors, walls, and ceiling, and all the tables and chairs were integrated with the floor, with about fifty tables and over two hundred chairs.

The kitchen area was divided into three sections, with ladies in different outfits preparing food in each section. Jinyeon and Yunjeong looked at the dining hall with envy.

"Wow, it's like an employee cafeteria. Our company is big and has many singers, but I wish they'd build something like this."

"Yeah, I'm tired of ordering food all the time."

Hearing their conversation, Clara smiled and explained.

"This is the cafeteria where the employees eat. Musicians often eat here as well. The food is served as Western, Korean, or Chinese cuisine, but since most of the staff are American, Western food is a staple, while Korean and Chinese dishes are sometimes replaced with Japanese or other international cuisines. Today, instead of Chinese, Indian cuisine is being served."

After touring the cafeteria, Jinyeon and Yunjeong were about to leave when they saw Team Manager Lee's face.

He seemed to be signaling them to linger and kill time, so the two hesitated before moving toward a planter in the corner of the dining hall and pretended to be interested in it, allowing them to scope out the surroundings. Meanwhile, the other idols scattered throughout the dining hall, each exploring something different.

Clara, unaware that they were stalling for time, simply smiled proudly.

>

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