Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols-Chapter 191: Preparations for the Follow-up Project (2)

UA had spent quite a bit of money on this comeback. It felt as though they were trying to pay off IDC’s debt or had finally realized they needed to strike while the iron was hot.
As a result, Spark ended up wearing two different suits each for the group dance scenes. Normally, we’d get by with just one outfit, but this time they broke it down meticulously to really show off our looks.
Why was I suddenly talking about this?
“Guys, let’s change clothes! Make sure to check your name tags!”
“Kiyeon, don’t forget to get your hair styled again after changing!”
Because I was given this ridiculous idol look called a cropped jacket.
And I had to wear it with nothing underneath.
‘Cropped jacket?’
I almost fainted when I first saw the costume concept art in the meeting room.
The jacket even had a cutout in the back. A very large one right in the middle.
They must’ve designed it to show off the erector spinae muscles. The problem was, if I wore that, it would turn into a full-on scar reveal show.
Jeong Seongbin stood next to me, his mouth agape, unable to speak.
Should I ask to switch outfits with Choi Jeho? But he was just wearing a harness under his jacket. Wouldn’t it be just as embarrassing either way?
Exposing my back and stomach, or exposing my chest, which would be better?
I racked my brains, but couldn’t find an answer.
I finally raised my hand cautiously.
‘I have scars on my back. Would it be okay if they’re visible in the music video or on broadcast?’
‘Scars? If you don’t want to show them, we can cover them up with makeup! We can edit them out in the MV.’
‘No, it’s just that…’
My hand instinctively went to my back. If they had to manually edit all of that out, the video editor would probably want to kill me.
Seeing is believing. I called Jeong Seongbin over and pulled the clothes I had tucked into my pants.
With his help, I lifted my shirt in the meeting room and strongly asserted, ‘I cannot wear a cropped jacket’…
‘Should we avoid any outfits in the future that show your back?’
‘It doesn’t have to be like that. I don’t mind too much! If it’s what’s best for the team’s image…’
‘Then let’s cover it with a sticker.’
‘Huh?’
…We decided to put a tattoo sticker of a bouquet of flowers on my back.
I felt like flowers on a guy’s back were a bit much, but when they said the fans would love it, I couldn’t refuse.
Jeong Seongbin cautiously asked if I was okay with it, but since I wasn’t desperately trying to hide the scars, I didn’t really mind.
“Iwol, I’m going to spray water now! It’ll be cold, but you have to stay still!”
Or maybe I did mind.
It was incredibly embarrassing to be the only one sitting half-naked on the sofa, clutching a blanket while they put stickers on my back.
I couldn’t tell if the stylists were spraying water or if they were spraying my tears. It was mortifying to think this would be uploaded as a behind-the-scenes video.
Never in my life as an office worker had I imagined I’d end up styled like this.
Back then, I thought the only parts of my body that would ever see sunlight were my forearms.
As expected, there was nothing in this world you could be certain about.
“Wow, hyung, isn’t this your most revealing outfit yet?”
Lee Cheonghyeon asked, approaching me.
He was wearing a turtleneck and a harness, so why was I…  No, I shouldn’t be jealous of this.
“It is. Most revealing, and most humiliating.”
While applying the body oil the makeup artist handed me, I cried silently inside.
Regardless of my internal sobbing, Lee Cheonghyeon gave me a thumbs-up.
“But it’s very idol-like and cool!”
“Thanks.”
Choi Jeho watched our wholesome exchange from a distance. As Spark’s unofficial ambassador of exposed skin, he didn’t seem too impressed.
Led by exposure enthusiast Choi Jeho and exposure newbie me, Spark began filming the second group dance scene with more daring outfits.
To avoid accusations of favoritism for being the only one with flowers stuck on my bare skin, I made sure the others were equally accessorized with dried flowers, tattoo stickers, chain accessories, and so on.
As a result, the whole time we danced under the lights, my eyes kept catching glints from all the bling. It felt less like a studio and more like a jewelry store.
We danced until our footwork synced perfectly with the heavy beat, and finally got the OK sign.
I immediately bent over, my arms instinctively covering my stomach.
“What’s wrong, hyung? Do you have a stomach ache?”
Jeong Seongbin approached me. It wasn’t a serious enough reason to receive such concern.
“Not really…”
“Then what? Is there something else wrong?”
Jeong Seongbin persisted. I confessed, feeling as wretched as a hamster whose hidden sunflower seeds had been discovered.
“I want to change clothes quickly.”
“Why! It suits you well!”
Lee Cheonghyeon said playfully, but he also bent down and gently pulled down my jacket, which had ridden up.
* * *
By the time we finished filming the drama scenes, the date had changed. Several times over, in fact.
Most of the members were exhausted, leaving only Jeong Seongbin and me still standing.
Choi Jeho seemed to have collapsed after filming the wire action scenes, which was unusual for him, and Jeong Seongbin… he must be holding on with sheer willpower out of a sense of responsibility. He’d probably collapse as soon as he got in the car.
“Hyung, aren’t you tired…?”
Park Joowoo asked, swaying. I put a neck pillow around his neck and replied,
“I told you I’m fully recovered. Right now, I’m in the best condition out of all of us.”
“Sounds like you really are…”
Park Joowoo gave a faint smile. I accepted it as a smile, but to anyone else, he’d still looked expressionless.
I wished people would recognize that this was his smiling face.
I smiled back.
“I don’t lie.”
Kang Kiyeon stared at me intently. Maybe it was just my imagination, but he’d been looking at me like that from time to time lately.
“What? Got something to say?”
“…No.”
I asked jokingly, but Kang Kiyeon didn’t react.
Maybe he was just out of it from exhaustion. He and Choi Jeho had filmed every single action scene.
“If you’re that tired, should I get you some energy drinks?”
“It’s okay. Hyung, you should rest, too.”
“I’ll rest when I get tired. I’m fine for now.”
“…Really?”
“Of course.”
Besides, imagine if all six of the youngest members collapsed in the middle of the set. How would that look? Everyone here’s been pushing through for days already.
Just for today, I’ll be the endorphin of this shoot.
“Spark, we’re going to check all the filmed footage one last time and then wrap up!”
“Yes!”
Finally, the time had come for the final, final, final check.
I answered energetically on behalf of the exhausted members. I could hear them scrambling to their feet behind me.
* * *
Once we got back to the dorm, everyone collapsed one by one.
Even the energetic Lee Cheonghyeon murmured, ‘Hyungs, love you. See you tomorrow…’ and fell asleep before he could even climb into his bunk bed, that alone said it all.
As expected, Jeong Seongbin passed out as soon as he got in the car. He didn’t open his eyes until the manager carried him inside.
Park Joowoo fell asleep without drying his hair for the first time since I started nagging him about it. He was usually a light sleeper, but he didn’t even wake up when I held a hairdryer to his head and turned on the warm air.
After Kang Kiyeon fell asleep, and even Choi Jeho turned his back to me and slept, I finally had a moment to breathe.
I’d been waiting for this. There was something I wanted to check.
‘Where did I see the explanation about accumulated fatigue?’
I planned to properly read the side effects section that I had skimmed over before. Even though I’d been distracted by all the strange things happening, it was true that I had only glanced at it without much thought.
Soon, the system displayed the familiar text.
+
[SYSTEM] ‘Subordinate’ is being notified of ‘Additional Work Support Service’
.
.
.
▷ Physical side effects may occur due to various reasons such as prolonged use of the service, excessive accumulation of fatigue, or if the temporarily reduced fatigue exceeds a certain level.
+
Physical side effects may occur due to various reasons.
What a vague way to put it.
But after reading it carefully, I realized it had nothing to do with my dark circles. I had dark circles even right after I regressed.
There was something else odd.  The words ‘physical side effects’ were glowing.
As if possessed, I tapped the words, and a new section appeared.
+
[SYSTEM] ‘Subordinate’ is being notified of ‘Physical Side Effects’.
▷ Physical side effects refer to the physical manifestation of damage, including ‘Superior’ unilaterally synchronizing ‘Subordinate’s previous and current bodies. (Current Synchronization Rate: 33%)
▷ Physical side effects may occur if ‘Subordinate’ infringes on ‘Superior’s authority or violates confidentiality clauses.
▷ Various forms of physical side effects may occur if ‘Subordinate’ uses the Additional Work Support Service.
+
‘So there’s more than one way this thing is chipping away at my life, huh.’
Simply put, there was a broad category called physical side effects, and one of its subcategories was the side effects that occurred from prolonged use of the ‘Additional Work Support Service’.
I had been using the Additional Work Support Service intermittently, turning it on and off. That was probably why the accumulated fatigue only resulted in a nosebleed…
But what did it mean by synchronizing my previous body with my current one?
Weren’t the conditions similar enough already? At most, my physical condition was a bit worse than when I was in my early twenties.
‘Synchronization has already progressed to some extent.’
There was no further explanation about synchronization. And if something went wrong, it’d just lecture me, saying ‘Assistant Manager Kim, you should have listened to me.’ I know everything, you piece of sh*t.
Or maybe my dark circles were a result of the synchronization. Then I’d have to figure out whether the 33% directly translated to dark circles, or if dark circles were just part of that pecentage…
I had a splitting headache. I never thought I’d be taking the headache medicine I pretended was vitamins at the Hanpyeong Industry so often here as well.
I opened my resume again and checked my total fatigue. Perhaps due to the MV filming, it was a bit higher than usual.
If I took it easy at work, I didn’t know what would happen to my sister, and if I didn’t, I didn’t know what the system would do to me.
At times like this, I wished I were a bit smarter.
There had to be a better way. There had to be someone who could solve this problem more rationally than I could.
Similar thoughts kept swirling in my head.
However, I wasn’t as depressed as when I saw the memory data. This must be what it meant to minimize the perception of negative emotions. Quite convenient.
I sighed inwardly.
What other choice could I have, now that I had already traveled back in time?
I just had to do well. Without complaining. I had to work harder.
I steeled my resolve. My mind was racing with all the things I had to do, and I couldn’t fall asleep.
* * *
Baek Haewon stayed up all night.
The concept photos released over the past few days had done this to her.
It wasn’t just Baek Haewon who was in a frenzy. Spark’s name was trending on every online community.
≫ Just saw the maknae with teal hair and it felt like a glimpse of heaven
Iwol’s saying, ‘The country prospers when a handsome man dyes his hair’ is undeniably true
└ It’s so weird. Kiyeon is younger than me, but I want to call him ‘chief’
└ Beep, that’s normal
≫ Today’s male idol who bleached his hair platinum blonde:
Subject: Spark’s Joowoo
He was famous among fans for having light hair colors,
But this time, he went full-on platinum blonde
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The white hair, white shirt + white gloves, the tone-on-tone is amazing
His light eye color adds to the atmosphere.
└ Wow, doesn’t his hair get damaged? He must have hair privilege
└ Hair privilegeㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ What’s the transparent thing in his mouth??
└ Looks like a syringe cap?
≫ The ultimate dilemma has arrived:
Black-haired Cheonghyeon vs. Blonde Cheonghyeon
└ As of today, I, Kim Fireworks, officially withdraw my support for Blond Cheonghyeon. While Blond Cheonghyeon and I are no longer one, any attacks against him will still be considered attacks against me
└ I no longer fear romance fantasy adaptations
└ Wow, the highest praise
≫ Emperor Jeho’s reputation remains unshaken
I’m looking at his photo once every hour
Unable to function in daily life. His image haunts me like the last plate I gave up on at a buffet
Looking at the leather gloves in his mouth, I keep imagining, ‘Whose body did he bury today?’
└ Living up to his name…
└ Whose body did he bury todayㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ His thick eyebrows are so ‘manly’
└ His shoulders didn’t even fit in the frame, but the fact that you can infer the vastness of the Pacific just from the angle of his shoulder line is insane
└ As expected of a man with a size 115 shirt
And above all…
≫ No, Iwol, what kind of role are you even playing?
…The moment Baek Haewon saw Kim Iwol’s concept, she forgot everything her homeroom teacher had begged her to memorize for the upcoming exam.