RT Entertainment has a regular meeting scheduled every Monday at 10 a.m.
This schedule was set within the last few months as the company’s system became more established.
The attendees include the CEO, Kang Beom-jun, as well as the directors of each department.
Until two weeks ago, the meetings were very active due to the preparation for RT Entertainment’s historic first audition.
That is, until Kang Beom-jun suddenly canceled the audition.
This time, upon his request, the meeting time was pushed all the way back to 4 p.m.
From the directors’ perspective, this situation leaves no doubt that they have plenty of grievances to voice.
“Even with the meeting time changed, do you really think it’s the right decision to suddenly cancel the audition at this point? We skipped last week’s meeting too… I have no clue what our CEO is thinking.”
Creative director Oh Do-hwan crossed his arms and complained aloud.
Nearby, Management Support director Cha Min-seok smirked slightly and replied.
“Our CEO asked for time until today, so let’s wait a little longer. He’s not the type to waste time frivolously. After all, the reason we all came to RT Entertainment in the first place was because of his passion, wasn’t it?”
“That… is true.”
Oh Do-hwan nodded in agreement.
Indeed, all the directors currently participating in the meeting were personally recruited by Kang Beom-jun himself after much effort. Because of that, they all understood how deeply he cared for RT Entertainment.
Someone like that must have a good reason for suddenly canceling the audition.
In fact, there were already a few people in the meeting room who knew the actual reason.
“Speaking of which, the marketing department has seemed unusually busy recently…”
Oh Do-hwan glanced at marketing director Yoon Soo-a and made this comment.
In response, Yoon Soo-a replied with a face filled with fatigue.
“Yes, we’ve been extremely busy dealing with a request from our CEO.”
“What kind of request requires so much attention?”
“We’re currently working to prevent a video of a middle school girl’s stage performance from spreading on social media.”
“Huh?”
Yoon Soo-a gave a somewhat detached smile.
At that moment, the meeting room door creaked open.
“Sorry to keep you all waiting. Despite being right on time, seeing everyone already seated makes me feel like I’m late. I apologize for rescheduling the meeting—I had very good reason.”
Kang Beom-jun entered the room with a faint smile.
As Kang Beom-jun took his seat, the meeting officially began.
To clarify, a meeting is a discussion about certain topics among multiple people.
In that sense, this meeting…
“As I mentioned before, we won’t be holding the audition. It’s simply unnecessary now.”
“Why is that?”
“Because we’ve just managed to cast some very interesting individuals.”
This announcement felt more like a declaration.
But rather than sparking dissatisfaction or sorrow, it naturally sparked curiosity in the listeners.
“Some very interesting individuals have been cast?”
This statement meant that Kang Beom-jun had personally brought in someone so unique that he judged there was no longer a need for an audition.
Not just one person, but several.
At this point, Kang Beom-jun stood up and headed toward the door he’d entered through.
He confidently twisted the doorknob and began speaking.
“Well, let me introduce you to someone who will become our cornerstone star at RT Entertainment…”
“Hi, I’ve been told to introduce myself dramatically, so I’ve been waiting outside. My name is Ryu Won.”
“Hello! My name is Baek Ye-rin! Nice to meet you!”
Ryu Won and Baek Ye-rin had opened the meeting room door and entered prematurely, before Kang Beom-jun could introduce them.
Kang Beom-jun looked somewhat exasperated as he said,
“Guys… wasn’t this earlier than we agreed on?”
“Starting with too much buildup would be boring. Also, there’s a lot we need to explain to these people, right?”
Ryu Won scanned the meeting room, noticing that almost everyone looked slightly dazed by their unexpected entrance.
Maybe they were skeptical since the two recruits clearly looked like students.
“Um… just how old are you?”
Creative Director Oh Do-hwan cautiously asked their age.
“To both of us, we’re 15. But we’re turning 16 in a month.”
At that moment, the directors finally understood why the meeting had been pushed back to the afternoon.
It had simply been timed to coincide with the students’ dismissal time.
It’s quite common for young students to become trainees at an entertainment company.
However, RT Entertainment is a very new company just starting out, unlike the larger established agencies.
That’s why the debut of their first artists would be crucial.
Was it really fair to place such expectations on 15-year-old middle schoolers?
Most of the people in the meeting room thought so.
At least, until they listened to the material Ryu Won and Baek Ye-rin had recorded over the weekend.
Kang Beom-jun skipped the detailed explanations and immediately played their work.
Rather than explaining a hundred times by mouth, it was better for everyone to listen firsthand.
Kang Beom-jun delivered this conclusion as if it were obvious, and as the first song began playing through the speakers, a soft melody gradually filled the meeting room.
“Cherry Blossoms Like You.”
The lively rhythm of the guitar in the intro blended harmoniously with Baek Ye-rin’s clear and fresh voice.
“Cherry Blossoms Like You” is an upbeat yet sweet song.
Walking through a cherry blossom-lined street on a warm spring day is incredibly beautiful. Walking with “you” must be heartwarming and joyful.
This was exactly the kind of innocent imagination captured straightforwardly in the song “Cherry Blossoms Like You.”
Ryu Won closed his eyes and listened to the music.
This piece was inspired by a stroll he had taken under a cherry blossom avenue alone, and it had been quite a hit for him in his previous life.
People often described it as a song that naturally drew you in every spring.
And now, with Baek Ye-rin’s voice harmonizing with it, how will it be received this time?
Ryu Won slowly opened his eyes.
As soon as he did, he noticed the directors struggling to close their mouths in astonishment.
“Did you really sing this song?”
Director Oh Do-hwan’s eyes widened in surprise as he urgently asked Baek Ye-rin.
Baek Ye-rin smiled brightly and confidently nodded her head, replying, “Yes!”
On the other side of Do-hwan, Cha Min-seok sat with a serious expression as he turned to Ryu Won with skepticism.
“And you wrote, composed, and arranged the entire piece?”
“Yes.”
“Wow… Mr. CEO, where in the world did you find these prodigies?”
“I wasn’t really doing anything; the messages just came in on their own.”
“Huh?”
“Before anything else, we still have three more songs to share with all of you.”
“Three more songs?!”
Cha Min-seok instinctively swallowed hard upon hearing this shocking news from Kang Beom-jun.
If the next songs were the same level of quality as “Cherry Blossoms Like You,”…
Such an expectation wasn’t exclusive to Cha Min-seok alone.
Each of the directors listened to Ryu Won and Baek Ye-rin’s songs with newfound seriousness.
And after listening to three consecutive songs, culminating with “Rewind,” they arrived at an overwhelming realization.
Perhaps they were at the center of an event that would stir the music industry and entertainment world.
“So, is there anyone who still thinks we need to hold our historical first audition?”
Therefore, no one responded to Kang Beom-jun’s question.
If anything, they couldn’t answer and could only offer wry smiles.
It was quite a malicious question, after all.
*
The duo, Ryu Won and Baek Ye-rin, guaranteed their own success just by existing. But how much further they could expand was up to RT Entertainment.
This inspired an endless stream of ideas from the directors, and the meeting room was quickly filled with vitality.
The most popular opinion, as expected, was to release an album as soon as possible.
The previously showcased four tracks, along with one track that couldn’t be recorded due to time constraints, would form a mini-album to announce Baek Ye-rin’s grand debut.
It was an idea so solid that there was barely room for counterarguments—it was something that had to be done right away.
Even debuting with a mini-album was rather unusual in the current music market.
After all, producing and purchasing tracks to fill an album could be costly.
Why would anyone take such an inefficient risk with an unpredictable new artist?
But Baek Ye-rin clearly possessed the talent to deserve such special treatment.
Moreover, with Ryu Won’s compositions already available, there was no need to weigh profits and losses.
However, the biggest issue remained.
“Mini-album?”
Ryu Won wasn’t entirely satisfied with the idea of a mini-album that was becoming the default plan in the meeting.
After all, shouldn’t they release something more extravagant for Baek Ye-rin’s big debut?
“Maybe it’ll feel a bit underwhelming.”
Ryu Won, having prior experience in the industry, knew all too well the best methods and most practical approaches.
And the people in the meeting room now, as well—everyone here was a well-known name in the industry, so their thinking was close to conventional wisdom.
But conventional wisdom is merely the most appropriate judgment given a specific situation.
What if that very situation were altered?
“Is this greed?”
It could indeed be considered greed, and it might end up placing undue pressure on her.
As Ryu Won was deep in thought, he felt a gaze from the side.
It was Baek Ye-rin.
In a voice that wouldn’t interrupt the meeting, she softly whispered to Ryu Won.
“Is this a worry or a secret?”
“?”
“Just like last time, your expression was serious.”
Ryu Won suddenly remembered their second meeting.
Back then, she said this: something you can share with others is a ‘worry,’ something you can’t, is a ‘secret.’
Looking at his current situation through that lens…
“This is a worry.”
“Is it? Why?”
“In truth… I think you deserve a more grand debut. But I’m worried because it might put pressure on you.”
With that, Ryu Won candidly spilled his concerns.
Of course, if things grew too large because of his ambition, it might place a considerable burden on Baek Ye-rin.
However…
“All you have to do is ease that pressure. Sound good?”
With a bright smile, Baek Ye-rin simply countered.
Ryu Won felt as if someone had struck him on the head with a hammer.
Upon reflection, it was a perfectly logical point.
After all, everything had started with his ambition, so he bore the responsibility to support her.
How?
“I’ll try.”
With a firm tone and changed gaze, Ryu Won’s expression shifted.
Baek Ye-rin instinctively noticed this and was intrigued.
After all, Ryu Won had suddenly begun counting on his fingers.
Once he confirmed something, he loudly clapped his hands in the meeting room.
In the ensuing spotlight, Ryu Won made a sudden announcement.
“I apologize for interrupting mid-meeting, but there’s something important I must address.”
And undoubtedly…
“In reality, there are around twenty more songs similar in quality to the ones you just heard.”
This was a statement capable of altering the entire situation.
