Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols

Chapter 314: University Festival (1)

Preparations for the comeback, riding the wave of buzz thanks to the dance line, went smoothly. In a flash, it was April, and on the way to work… no, on the way to practice, flower buds began to form on every tree along the street.

“Do you know what the meaning of cherry blossoms is?”

“I’m not a college student, but I know. Midterms, right?”

Lee Cheonghyeon answered confidently.

I smiled gently and said.

“Wrong. It’s value-added tax filing.”

Lee Cheonghyeon looked at me with a fed-up expression.

After the month of VAT filing ended, May came around. When the midterms were over and the weather was warm.

Around this time, universities hold their festivals. I thought Spark wouldn’t be invited to those kinds of events, since university festivals usually favored rappers, ballad singers, and girl groups.

“An offer for a festival performance?”But life, as always, was unpredictable.

To a university festival, where male idols rarely went to unless they were extremely famous, Spark, who had just entered their second year, was invited.

And of all places…

“Kaist…?”

A school in Daejeon, Park Joowoo’s hometown.

“My brother goes to that school…”

To the school where Lee Cheonghyeon’s hyung was enrolled.

* **

Celebrities were indispensable for university festivals.

The tier of a university could change in an instant with the festival lineup. One successful booking, and suddenly everyone’s talking about how that student council made the best use of their tuition fees.

‘Who’s coming to which school’, ‘Our school got some no-name singer’, ‘That other place even hired security because of their guest lineup…’

For students who had finished their exams, watching a celebrity’s performance up close was practically a duty. This was due to a reward mentality of having to play as hard as they had worked.

So when Spark’s name started going around as a guest performer, it wasn’t exactly the kind of news most schools would get excited about.

Thanks to the contract having just been finalized, the booking news was delivered in a very hot state. Park Joowoo looked slightly pleased. At least until Lee Cheonghyeon mentioned his hyung.

“Do you think it’ll be awkward?”

Jeong Seongbin asked cautiously.

“No. That hyung has no interest in festivals, so I probably won’t even see him. I’d be lucky if he doesn’t file a complaint about the noise.”

Lee Cheonghyeon tried to raise his voice.

“And hey, right? If I keep avoiding things, how am I supposed to work? We’re still rookies! We have to work hard!”

It was a comment that highlighted his original passion. Though it was bitter that a kid who was only nineteen was saying it.

“It’s a wonderful determination, but if doing it makes you sick, you shouldn’t push yourself.”

If you do, you might get an upset stomach. I knew well because I’d experienced a stomach ulcer. There was a reason I once crawled out of the Hanpyeong Industry restroom half-dead. If you ignore the warning signs, it won’t end well.

As I was trying to protect his stomach, which must be as pink as rose quartz by now, Lee Cheonghyeon’s eyes widened. The other guys’ expressions were similar.

“What is it?”

“I’m surprised.”

“About what?”

“I thought you would say something like, ‘Cheonghyeon, you know how precious one stage is, right? Once the stamp is on, fulfilling the contract is a must and a duty. Think about how many people it takes to run a single festival performance.’”

“…Do I really have that much of a psychopath image?”

“I’m kidding. But I didn’t know you would tell me so directly that I don’t have to do it.”

I was seriously contemplating the need to improve my image, but that was a relief.

Looking at me sweeping my chest, Lee Cheonghyeon said.

“But I’m really fine.”

He even sounded confident.

“I can go and enjoy it!”

Lee Cheonghyeon smiled brightly. It was a smile so bright that it was hard to imagine the image of him in tears in front of Jeong Seongbin, which I had seen in the past data.

* * *

The reaction after the news of Spark’s appearance was, well, as expected.

≫ So who is Spark?

≫ Damn, where did all my tuition go ㅋㅋㅋ Give me back my money

≫ Guess I’ll just swing by for a bit at night

There doesn’t seem to be anything else to see

≫ Look at the student council

Is this the best lineup you guys could manage?

Even compared to other schools in Daejeon, this is embarrassing

You might’ve booked one decent headliner, but the rest is so weak

I figured nothing good would come from reading more, so I turned off my phone.

Anyway, the students who were actually happy that Spark was performing wouldn’t dare post about it — they’d just get accused of only caring about their own interests. But still… students who like Spark are students too, aren’t they…?

To become an idol that the Sparklers would not be ashamed of, I had to work myself to the bone. Didn’t Manager Song also say it herself? That an idol who made their fans embarrassed of ever liking them deserved to die. I couldn’t bear to see Spark’s fans being ashamed.

As I was putting together a setlist with Jeong Seongbin, Lee Cheonghyeon stealthily approached. He rested his body on my back, pressed down with his weight, and said.

“Hyungs, hyungs.”

“Yeah.”

“Do we have a comment time too?”

“We have to put one in because we need to drink water. But we’ll keep it short. Why do you ask?”

Talking too much mid-performance only wrecked your voice. Besides, I’d rather be known as ‘Spark — the most cost-efficient idols alive!’ than as ‘the group that stalled time with banter’.

So I had come to an agreement with Jeong Seongbin. But Lee Cheonghyeon hesitated and then said.

“Can you give me just 5 minutes in the middle?”

“I can. Should we put a chair right in front of the stage for you? Or maybe a footrest so you can stand tall and command the center spotlight?”

“I asked for time, not stardom!”

“It’s the same thing. Give you a little time, and the stardom follows automatically.”

“Why is this hyung hyping me up so much? Is it because it’s close to the deadline?”

Lee Cheonghyeon rolled off my back by himself. His expression, as he lay on the floor, was strange.

“Anyway, you just mean you want to talk during the show, right? Go for it.”

“Thanks! I’ll work hard on my brilliant eloquence!”

After making a confident declaration, Lee Cheonghyeon left.

Jeong Seongbin, who was quietly watching Lee Cheonghyeon’s back, called me quietly.

“Hyung.”

“What?”

“By any chance… Cheonghyeon isn’t going to say something like he’s coming to Kaist as a freshman next year, is he?”

For a moment, a heavy silence filled the room. Then, without another word, Jeong Seongbin and I bolted out the door, sprinting after Lee Cheonghyeon.

* * *

Spark’s group trip to Daejeon was extraordinary from the start. Upon hearing the news of the maknae’s hometown visit, Park Joowoo’s noona immediately contacted him.

— Jjoo! I heard you’re coming to Kaist! Are you going back to Seoul right after?

“Yeah… probably?”

— Why? You should stay the night!

“There are a lot of us…”

While Park Joowoo was getting his makeup done, Jeong Seongbin held his phone for him. With a remarkably delicate wrist angle.

— Are you at least stopping by the bakery?

“I’m not sure… will we have time?”

The sharp-eared Lee Cheonghyeon exclaimed, “That bakery?! I want to go!” It seemed the kid had become a dopamine addict after doing nothing but composing in his room.

The noona’s ears were no less sharp, as a resounding command was heard from beyond the phone.

— Park Joowoo, what did noona tell you to buy if you go to the bakery?

The form of address had also changed from ‘Jjoo’ to ‘Park Joowoo.’ It carried a sense of gravity.

Then, from the mouth of Park Joowoo, who had been the epitome of leisure, the names of breads poured out like a spell.

“Pollack roe toast, Gyeryongsan echo, kimchi barley rice ball, green apple brie cheese sandwich, croquette and apple pie… and get points with aunt’s number when you buy them all.”

— Good.

The call ended with that. Everyone around him smiled with fond indulgence, as if looking at a young child.

“I think we’ll have to stop by the bakery at this rate.”

Jeong Seongbin said with a smile. Lee Cheonghyeon had already started searching for the recommended menu of Daejeon’s representative bakery on his phone. The event hadn’t even started, but everyone was only interested in the side dishes. Guess they really are still kids.

“Wow, Daejeon’s mascot looks just like Joowoo hyung.”

“Awesome.”

The maknaes were sitting side by side, busy admiring the vacant-looking local mascot, and Choi Jeho was struggling to hold his head straight among the stylists who were contemplating whether to put his hair down or up.

It felt like taking five kids on a field trip. I was already getting tired.

* * *

Today’s Spark was plastered in blue. The symbolic color of the school we were visiting was blue. Luckily, it was a perfect match with Spark’s personal color. To emphasize the characteristics of the school, a few points reminiscent of a researcher were also added to the outfits.

Since Spark didn’t have that many songs to begin with — and our latest and best-performing track was a winter season song — we filled the setlist with some fun cover songs that would suit a lively festival atmosphere.

I had made all the preparations I could in a short time, but my mind was not at ease.

Spark had always sung in places where there were fans. Sometimes the number was small, and sometimes it was large, but at least it was a place where we were sure there were fans.

Conversely, it meant that the current Spark was heading to an unexplored land. Even if we sang with all our might, people might not show any interest, and in a worse case, they might even show a clear sign of wanting us to get down quickly and for the next singer to come up.

I, for one, had become indifferent to dismissal, neglect, and persecution after being strongly trained at the Hanpyeong Industry, but I didn’t know how Spark would handle it.

‘At least I hope they don’t get hurt.’

It’s not like you can not get hurt just because someone tells you not to. I sighed inwardly.

“Wait a minute, there are no cherry blossoms at all?!”

“It’s May, they must have all fallen.”

“They said this was a famous cherry blossom spot!”

Unaware of my inner turmoil, Lee Cheonghyeon was busy chanting about cherry blossoms. I watched Lee Cheonghyeon bouncing in the back seat, then turned on my phone and searched for Daejeon’s famous places.

≫ Daejeon famous places

≫ Daejeon places for kids to play

≫ Daejeon night opening

≫ Daejeon places to visit

“I couldn’t even buy bread! This is all Jeho hyung’s fault!”

“Why is that Jeho hyung’s fault? We were late because the back of his shirt was torn and had to be repaired, so you can’t blame Jeho hyung for that.”

“It would have been fine if that hyung had just put the stingray he’s raising on his back on a little diet!”

Lee Cheonghyeon was almost sobbing. I couldn’t understand what was so unfair. While I was worrying about their post-stage morale, these guys were already losing focus before going onstage.

≫ Daejeon Expo Hanbit Tower Music Fountain 3 days ago

I went to the music fountain with the kids~ The weather was cool, so it was perfect for playing

Parking information is below~

Well, it couldn’t be helped. If they looked too beaten up after the festival, I’d just have to take them to see the music fountain afterward.