"Good. Contestant Park MoonDae-ssi, I will support you."

"Thank you very much."

CheongRyu politely accepted my negative answer without further comment.

I had planned to talk more and get some cuts where I would show my desperation, but I didn't expect him to be my opponent.

'In fact, just mentioning his name is enough to assume that it is something very important.'

Since he and his group won a big music award last year, there was too much difference between us. Rather, it is very likely that they will see me as a pathetic person for rejecting him.

"Then I will destroy this contract."

CheongRyu took the contract, held it clearly in front of the camera, and ripped it in two.

'He seems to be acting.'

Perhaps he had predicted that I would refuse it and already knew what he would do in front of the camera.

"You worked hard to make a difficult decision. I wish you all the best in the future."

"Thank you. I hope that CheongRyu sunbae-nim can finish his promotions in a healthy way."

I shook his hand and leaned my back towards him like an ocean wave to show my respect.

"Ah, are you aware of our promotions?"

"Eh? Yes."

Shouldn't we have finished this filming? I don't know why, but we continue the conversation, so I'll reply politely.

"I really enjoy listening to your album."

"Wow~ what's your favorite song?"

Are you doing this on purpose? He's trying to embarrass me just because I refused, right?

"Well, I especially like the song 'Look at the Star'."

I carefully chose the song. I haven't actually listened to it yet, it was a song I saw in a post a fan shared on social media while looking for comments mentioning me.

"Oh, I wrote the lyrics to that song."

CheongRyu smiled happily as he pointed to himself.

'He is taking advantage of this moment to promote his album more.'

He is doing it so perfectly that he couldn't do better. This idol is a hidden gem.

"Aha, I guess you said that on purpose because I'm here."

I could only laugh, it would be weird if I denied or gave another answer, so there was nothing else I could do.

CheongRyu gave me a big smile and suddenly walked out the door as if he had remembered something urgent.

'What happened?'

CheongRyu came back with a product box in his hands.

"It's not a big deal, it's red ginseng, but I brought it to tell you to consume it and not lose your strength."

"Oh, thank you very much."

The gold logo printed on the red box was clearly visible on camera, so there was no doubt that this was actually a PPL.

'Red ginseng is always welcome anyway.'

As soon as I accepted, CheongRyu took his leave again.

"You can do it. fighting!"

"Yes, fighting."

The filming ended when we smiled at each other.

Immediately, the staff came in and started tending to CheongRyu.

Some adjusted the camera and manipulated the tablet, but it was clear that several were CheongRyu's personal staff. It seemed to be the staff that took care of VTIC.

'They take too much care of him.'

No matter how hard they tried to do their job, it was already over the top for me.

After confirming that his staff had collected the microphone attached to his clothes, CheongRyu approached me and spoke to me in a low voice.

"MoonDae-ssi."

"Yes?"

Unlike before, he was no longer smiling.

That doesn't mean that he spoke to me with a hard or stiff expression, but rather that he spoke to me normally.

"It's hard for you to believe me if I say so myself, but LeTi is a good agency. They made a good deal. If a special situation arises after the program ends, I will contact you."

"...!"

That means he will contact me if I get cut from the show and don't debut.

'Are you serious?'

If he's not an executive from his agency, why is he recruiting trainees on this show?

'Oh, could it be that he has shares in his company?'

It's the only thing that would make sense.

Still, I don't know why he told me that, but ... maybe there isn't a main vocal that can be used in the next group that might debut under his agency.

I nodded without saying much.

"Yes, thank you."

"No problem."

That's where the conversation ended. I followed the instructions of the staff and left the room to go to the waiting room.

Perhaps to prevent the spoiler from leaking out, it seems that we were isolated from the participants who had not yet received this psychological test.

"Hyung!"

As soon as I entered, Kim RaeBin, who was sitting down, spoke to me.

"What agency suggested you sign with them?"

"It was LeTi."

"LeTi called me too!"

Just as I thought, more VTIC members came.

Unexpectedly, RaeBin was very excited and he told me about his meeting with another VTIC member. As he heard and nodded, Ryu CheongWoo, who was walking in with a tired face, approached us.

"Oh, you guys finished first."

It was enough to look at his face to know that he had a mental conflict.

'Perhaps another member of VTIC has also touched him.'

But it would be too good if they called three out of ten participants, so I doubt it.

I heard the conversation of other participants next to me.

"Hyung! What agency called you?"

"From ... Wonder Hall."

It was T-HOLIC's agency. It is a company famous for a long time for selecting the idols that debuted very well.

"That was a good option."

I heard the person who asked the question exclaim. On the other hand, hearing that, CheongWoo sat up with a smile and shy expression on his face.

'He must have wanted to sign with that agency.'

It's strange that he wants to quit the show even though he's almost certain that he's going to debut, but he must have the circumstances of it.

The participants returned to the waiting room one after another. Soon, the top ten people gathered.

'Until now, we have all rejected those agencies.'

To be honest, I thought at least one or two of the lower ranked participants would quit, but to my surprise they didn't. This is because the lineup of agencies calling us was better than I thought.

In the second round of ten people, everyone went back to the waiting room. At this point, several were proud that they had been tempted by such good agencies.

"H-he seemed to be a good person."

Seon AhHyun, who came back a little later, muttered with a bright face. It seems that a singer who is working as a solo artist gave him some kind words of encouragement.

"But still, you refused."

"Uh?"

AhHyun was startled and looked at me in amazement.

"O-of course, I'm going to be in Icorpo until the end...! I-if I go... we wouldn't debut together..."

"..."

It seems that AhHyun highly values ​​having friends or acquaintances who accept him for the first time in a long time.

'If he had been treated better these years, maybe he would have signed.'

I felt a little sorry for him and nodded.

"That's true."

"Y-yes!"

AhHyun happily nodded and RaeBin, who was next to us, looked at him like he saw something unbelievable.

At that moment, the third round of participants entered the waiting room.

"It's a pity! I got called from LeTi~ It's a pity!"

Keun SeJin came back and said that when he sat down with us.

So this guy also got an offer from LeTi.

'So, until now LeTi has called RaeBin, SeJin and me.'

It may be a coincidence, but it was quite interesting to see the trends of the agency.

What Keun SeJin said was even funnier. He said it was a pity...

'He's saying something that he doesn't really mean.'

His goal was to debut as soon as possible, so there was no way someone so aware of himself and his state would want to go to training and wait longer at LeTi.

However, when SeJin confirmed that there was no microphone and the camera wasn't filming us, he muttered under his breath.

"Ah~ Should I change agencies? It's a bit disappointing..."

Does he seem to be more worried than I thought?

In fact, that was a unique opportunity. Actually, in other circumstances it is impossible in the industry environment to transfer to a better agency without fulfilling the contract period.

The transfer of trainees who participated in Icorpo to other agencies was thanks to the tyranny of a broadcasting company (radio and television).

In other words, it was the gangster leader.

The agencies had to obey their orders even if they didn't want to, but since they were trainees who won't be able to debut, they broadcast it on the air as if they were given a great opportunity in the future, although in reality they were just recycling them.

'The agencies do not refuse in order to maintain a good relationship with the broadcasting company.'

Since this season of the show is doing so well, there seems to be a subtle pressure to voluntarily drop out and stay with the agency.

I remembered the words I heard from SeJin when we were taking a break from a previous shoot.

"Yeah, I've been hearing that lately. "Wouldn't it be better to debut with the dongsaengs who practiced with me?"... The audience is having a lot of fun."

Although I would like to have more benefits in another agency, the public does not like the idea that we give up the program.

"I'm kidding. I'm going to debut here~"

Even though he laughed and said it was just a joke, he was actually very worried.

'It's surprising that the guys who are at the top of the rankings also have a lot of insecurities.'

It didn't matter to me. Will there be any participants who are willing to give up and reduce the rate of competition? I do not think so.

Unfortunately, that did happen. One of the lower ranked guys quit.

"Contestant Choi WonGil will be leaving "Idol Corporation - Reincorporated!" starting today in response to a casting call from his new agency, Traveler."

I was impressed.

'He analyzed his situation well.'

He must have known that he would be eliminated in this ceremony after seeing the public opinion on him.

Perhaps because he was young, he seemed unable to control his emotions; although he didn't leave with a smile, he was able to use his brain very well.

"M-my agency?"

I heard Gold 1 mutter embarrassedly behind me.

'Oh, so he was a Traveler trainee.'

He had mentioned that he had a hard time rejecting the proposal from the T-HOLIC agency. I think he is fond of his original agency.

'I think he had the guts to keep trying to win on this show.'

And just like that, the "Casting Call" event ended.

I felt a little angry for not having achieved my purpose very well, but there was one thing that I was sure of.

'They're not going to cut VTIC footage.'

There was no way they were going to consider it a waste and delete it.

The production team filmed some of the trainees' reactions to Choi WonGil's departure and immediately began preparing for the rankings ceremony.

Due to the "Casting Call", we had all waited sitting and bored for a long time, but this time, it seemed that everyone was busy talking because the topic of conversation was flashy.

"Oh, that agency?"

"Is awesome."

"Wow, what does CheongRyu look like in person?"

Even the tension was reduced before the ceremony.

"Wow~ The agency lineup was no joke. There must be many trainees in conflict with themselves for refusing to sign those contracts."

Keun SeJin whistled and recited the agency names one by one. Then, looking around him, he whispered with a strange smile.

"Hey, did you see that thing?"

"What thing?"

"I'm talking about that guy. The hyung I share the same name with is sitting over there. From what I see, he also seems to have his mind in chaos."

He seemed to be referring to Lee Sejin, the former child actor.

'Come to think of it, he was the last to arrive in the waiting room.'

Lee Sejin had arrived around the same time as the news of Choi WonGil's departure. I didn't pay attention to it because I didn't have much interest in him... Well, even now he doesn't attract my attention.

Keun SeJin did not have a good feeling for Lee Sejin for a long time, but unlike him, he did feel comfortable with me, so he smiled and slowly released his true thoughts.

"If he comes from an acting agency, does he really want to become an idol?"

"That's possible."

I think they'll cut him out, but if he really wants to continue his career as an idol, it would have been worth considering transferring agencies.

Unless he wants to debut right away due to his age, it's hard for him to train at another agency.

'We'll see how he works it out.'

SeJin realized that I wasn't interested in him, so he didn't think about it anymore.

"Is that so."

Our break time ended and the filming for the Rankings Ceremony began.

* * *

As the contestants prepared to kick off their ceremony, the celebrities who made a surprise appearance at the "Casting Call" event had already left out due to their busy schedules.

The same thing happened with VTIC, which counted the minutes remaining to start their other activity.

Two of the members were in their truck silently staring at their phones. They only exchanged words when they chose dishes from the menu that their staff gave them for lunch...

"How was it for you, hyung?"

"It worked just well."

CheongRyu answered bluntly.

"Hyung, out of the three people you saw, did any of them stand out? I think the three I saw were good guys."

"Well...."