Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols - Chapter 140



Only Noblemtl

| Episode 140. 4th Competition: Emergency Response Meeting (1)

X is done.

I told him to leave the royal palace, but he couldn’t make the announcement because of me. I don’t know what the hell is going on in my head.

‘If you’re injured for 8 weeks and your accumulated fatigue level is 95%… … Did you really almost die?’

At that moment, the words of the system that had been irritating me until recently came to mind.

+

[SYSTEM] Work instructions from ‘Manager’ have arrived.

▶ Manager Kim, why are you doing something I didn’t ask you to do? Don’t you have any work to do? Should I give you more work?

[SYSTEM] Work instructions from ‘Manager’ have arrived.

▶ Mr. Kim, you really make things difficult. Why do you keep doing things you’re told not to do?

[SYSTEM] Work instructions from ‘Manager’ have arrived.

▶ Manager Kim, standing out in society isn’t the answer.

+

At that time, I clearly… … .

‘Who dies when Spark leaves the royal palace? The flow of the weather changes?’

… … I thought so.

But I really almost died. The countdown was a warning to be careful.

Just looking at this, I could tell that the system was kind to me. At least it didn’t completely ignore the crisis that was coming to me. It also prepared follow-up measures called the 4 major insurances.

Additionally, based on the system information that just appeared, it seems that the penalty imposed on the A Royal Family was aimed at preventing this incident.

Only then did the whole puzzle seem to fall into place.

Even considering the unusually reduced budget and the bad parts, there was an unusually high amount of negative reactions, and even the controversy over his character that led to calls for his departure not long ago.

They didn’t directly inform me, but they kept trying to get me to get off through penalties and countdowns.

So does that mean we shouldn’t do anything that the system doesn’t tell us to do?

That being said, when I appeared on ‘Do.Life’, there were no tasks or sanctions. It meant that not everything was divided into ‘things that can be done’ and ‘things that cannot be done’.

‘And… … When are you going to become number one if you just do the work you’re told?’

I couldn’t hesitate, not even knowing how many KPIs were left.

The only thing that was certain was that it was in one’s personal interest not to do what the system told one not to do. Figuring out how to find loopholes was a new challenge.

Why do you have to go to all these lengths to make me an idol?

My head was in a state of confusion. My thoughts were so tangled that I thought they might explode.

‘Fuck.’

I hate thinking about problems that have no answers. I just close my eyes.

If only the switch of thinking could just be turned off like that.

Disorganized thoughts floated through my head like oil floating on cold bone soup.

I don’t know. For now, I should be thankful that I didn’t die.

There was still plenty of time to think ahead, but the A-Wang finals were just around the corner. This was an opportunity that would never come again if missed.

‘When the explanation of industrial accident insurance appeared, wasn’t there something else underneath?’

When I first heard the explanation of industrial accident insurance, I was in a state of panic and only read the words that caught my eye, but looking back, I think there was something more written below.

I brought up the workers’ compensation insurance explanation again.

+

[SYSTEM] The ‘4 major insurances – industrial accident insurance’ is notified to ‘乙’.

.

.

.

▷ During the period of application of ‘Industrial Accident Insurance’, ‘乙’ can choose between ① relief of pain caused by work-related accidents, and ② rapid recovery from injuries caused by work-related accidents (this may vary depending on the severity of the injury).

▷ Insurance benefits can be changed only once.

+

The system clearly stated that the injuries sustained at the time could be recovered within two weeks.

If it took two weeks for a split head to heal, it could take even less time now that you’ve had the surgery.

‘The finals were probably postponed anyway, so he can just say it was a miraculous recovery and go up.’

Since I was already recovering, I wanted to promote muscle growth, so I turned off the job support service.

If I leave this on, my muscles won’t grow. I was going to use this opportunity to completely reduce my fatigue and be reborn with a new body.

As I was looking at the part that said it could be changed, a new phrase appeared.

+

[SYSTEM] Work instructions from ‘Manager’ have arrived.

▶ You can’t receive duplicate benefits? Just because something looks flashy doesn’t mean it’s okay, so pay attention to the substance as well. Then, good job!

+

Then 3 seconds later.

I felt the headache I had just had a few hours ago coming back.

‘Fuck, my body is like this XX, so don’t worry about them, XX, XXX… …!’

All I could think of was curses. This was the first time I had experienced something like this since the chemical, biological, and radiological warfare incident.

* * *

The next day, Jeong Seong-bin came to the hospital room with Choi Je-ho.

I greeted the guys with a very haggard look.

“Why is your face like that?”

This new X is a fucking slut. He’s handsome, you know.

“Are you in a lot of pain, hyung? Your complexion doesn’t look so good.”

Look at Jeong Seong-bin. Even though he says the same thing, he is so gentle and affectionate.

“It’s okay. Thanks for coming, both of you.”

It wasn’t okay at all, but if I got caught, I knew they’d surround me and nag me again. I desperately put all my effort into acting.

“Nothing else, what I wanted to discuss today was… … .”

“Sorry to interrupt you, hyung. But I have something to tell you.”

Jeong Seong-bin came in, rarely interrupting. When I asked him to speak, he hesitated for a moment, then spoke firmly.

“Brother, we’ll do the final competition among ourselves.”

It was a completely unexpected statement. These guys are taking a step forward towards the five-member group Spark on their own!

In order to prevent Spark’s royal departure, I thought I had to somehow appeal that I was better and go up on stage.

But these guys were strangely telling me that they would do the stage themselves so my brother could rest.

I almost cried tears of joy, but I held them back. My head was already hurting so much that tears were on the verge of flowing. If I let my guard down, my tear ducts and wounds would burst.

“Is that okay?”

“Are you the type of person who cares about that? If they tell you to rest, just rest.”

Even Choi Je-ho kindly stopped me.

This is a monumental event. I will mark today as my second birthday.

“Thank you for your consideration. I’m sure it would be cooler if you guys did it together.”

“……yes?”

It’s because the plan is poor, but in the past, Spark guys did their job incredibly well. This time, since I’ve given them the items, they’ll do well on their own.

‘Is this the first time you’re showing the stage of the five-member Spark?’

If only the guys do well on this stage, the aftermath of my withdrawal will be a little less.

When that time comes, there will be a reaction like, ‘I saw it last time, so Kim Yi-wol wasn’t needed.’

“It’s an important stage, so I have to do well. It might even turn out well. If you need help with anything else, just let me know.”

Memorizing the damn choreography is just going to take up a ton of time, so a quick-witted person like me might be better off working here on my laptop.

The kids won’t have to consider my level of choreography either. And if I subtract my share of the costume and prop budget, I’ll be able to spend more money.

I was about to ask Jeong Seong-bin if I could just get him a shared laptop, but his expression was not good.

“What do you mean, ‘It turned out well,’ hyung?”

“Wouldn’t it be higher quality if you guys did it among yourselves? It was a good thing I let you and Joo-woo rest during the last position battle. Or maybe I should’ve given Gi-yeon more parts… … .”

“Wait a minute. I don’t understand why you think that. Why do you think it would be better without you?”

“I told you last time. Do I have to tell you twice?”

Then Jeong Seong-bin’s expression hardened.

“So, if you have any spare laptops, could you bring one over? And my diary too. I left it next to the pillow.”

“… … No, please rest well while you are hospitalized.”

“huh?”

“I’ll think of a way for you to participate, even if it’s only for a short time. Just think about getting better quickly before the final competition.”

I don’t know why he suddenly changed his stance, but Jeong Seong-bin was firm. You could see that his mood had calmed down.

“I told you this kid needs 8 weeks of recovery. He can’t be discharged before that.”

Choi Je-ho joined the conversation, but Jeong Seong-bin didn’t budge.

“There’s a way for six people to stand on stage. So let’s just say there’s no talk of hyung being left out.”

With those words, Jeong Seong-bin bowed and left the hospital room. I motioned for Choi Je-ho to quickly follow him.

‘System, can’t you give us something like a video of the 5-member Spark stage?’

If you show it to him just once, Jeong Seong-bin won’t say things like that.

But the system was merciless.

+

[SYSTEM] Work instructions from ‘Manager’ have arrived.

▶ Speak some sense. Manager Kim, you have a tendency to try to use tricks, don’t you?

+

The dizziness I had been trying to suppress came rushing back in front of the guys.

I’m sick like this, I don’t have any unpaid leave, and Jeong Seong-bin keeps berating me. I’m so sad.

* * *

“Should we put Lee Wol-hyung’s part in the second half?”

Lee Cheong-hyeon was shocked by Jeong Seong-bin’s report. Park Joo-woo and Kang Ki-yeon’s expressions were not much different.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t things go well with your brother…?”

“That’s not it.”

Jeong Seong-bin had no other answer to Park Joo-woo’s question.

The members waited for a long time in front of the operating room door before finally being able to see Kim Yi-wol. However, no one opened their mouths when they saw Kim Yi-wol.

A face covered in blood and difficult to recognize, lips crusted with blood from having been chewed, and even needles stuck all over the back of his hands.

Even the feeling of the weapon was so powerful that everyone thought of death when they saw Kim Iwol.

Park Joo-woo, who had been holding it in, cried nonstop until he heard that Kim Yi-wol was recovering steadily. Lee Cheong-hyeon, who had been crying and stopping repeatedly, burst into tears as soon as Kim Yi-wol opened his eyes.

As the members returned to their dorms, each had many thoughts as they left behind Kim Yi-wol, who had fortunately overcome the crisis.

And the next day, Jeong Seong-bin called the members together.

‘My manager told me yesterday. If it’s too hard, you can leave Awangsil.’

‘huh…….’

‘I wonder what the members think. I hope they can each talk comfortably.’

Jeong Seong-bin had a direction he wanted to take. Even if the members had opposing opinions, he spent the whole night thinking about how to persuade them.

But those worries became meaningless.

‘This is the program that Lee Wol-hyung tried to persuade us to come out of. He’s not the type of person to give up halfway. I think he has to see it through to the end.’

Because everyone agreed with Kang Ki-yeon’s words. Unanimously.

‘You’re saying that it’s 8 weeks before you’re discharged, but even after you’re discharged, you’ll still have to receive treatment. The five of us will have to perform on stage, is that okay?’

Jeong Seong-bin confirmed it again. The members who had been worried as much as Jeong Seong-bin the night before also agreed.

So now I’m trying my best to ease some of the burden on my brother and allow him to focus on recovering without worrying.

‘It’s an important stage, so I have to do well. It might even turn out well.’

Why did those words make me so angry?

At that time, Jeong Seong-bin overlapped Kim Yi-wol with Kim Yi-wol, who was caught practicing alone late at night.

‘I’m doing this because I’m so inferior to you guys.’

Jeong Seong-bin clearly remembered what Kim I-wol had said.

That statement was so absurd that anyone at UA would say it was ridiculous.

It also didn’t make sense that I said thank you for thinking of me that much during the argument with Kang Ki-yeon.

Isn’t that something to be expected? He’s a fellow member, we’ve been through thick and thin together, and he’s the brother I rely on more than anyone else.

“That’s what Lee Wol said.”

Jeong Seong-bin spoke out about something he had been pondering in private for a long time.

“Don’t you think that your self-esteem is strangely low?”