TDOCD Chapter 90

Chapter 90

Suddenly? At the Center of Controversy?

'What is this?'

My appetite suddenly plummets.

No, I was feeling great about getting first place today. Why give me such a mission now? Couldn't they let me enjoy this moment a little longer?

Controversy? What kind of controversy are they talking about?

The first thing that comes to mind is the recent worry about Ryu Ji-ye's identity being revealed, leading to suspicions of collusion with Start Plan.

'That's probably the most likely scenario.'

I haven't done anything else particularly controversial.

Hmm, ah, since Start Plan is currently airing, maybe there's an issue with the editing...

Timing-wise, Episode 2 of Start Plan would have aired during our training camp, but I haven't had a chance to check the reactions yet.

I wasn't too worried, assuming Ryu Jae-geum or Choi Gyo-young would inform me if there were any problems with public opinion.

'It would have been nice if they'd been more specific about the nature of the controversy.'

But perhaps that's asking for too much.

 As Seo Ra-eun practically drags me along, I anxiously scan the mission window to the very end.

 That's when an unfamiliar sentence catches my eye:

Reward: 2,000G, Enlightenment Path Unlocked, Group Management System Unlocked

'Enlightenment Path?'

I roughly know what the Group Management System does from when I browsed the Cash Shop before and read the description.

But Enlightenment Path? This is completely new to me.

I wanted to know more about it, but unfortunately, there were no additional tooltips or guides available.

It seems I'll only find out what it is when I actually receive the reward and unlock it.

"Ji-ye?"

Lost in thought for a moment, Seo Ra-eun gently taps my arm, perhaps sensing something's off.

"Are you very tired?"

I quickly close the system window and shake my head at Ra-eun.

"I guess I was a bit tired. I'll walk properly now."

As I snap back to reality and look straight ahead, I realize we've already arrived at the Western restaurant Han Da-min and Seo Ra-eun mentioned.

'It must have been hard for her to bring me here.'

Ra-eun must have thought I was acting this way out of fatigue, supporting me all the way here without showing any signs of difficulty.

'She's such a kind person, as always.'

With a slight smile, I head into the restaurant with her.

***

Han Da-min and Seo Ra-eun had chosen a restaurant with good reviews but not overly famous, aiming for a quiet atmosphere.

True to their word, the place exuded a calm and relaxed ambiance.

Peaceful, spacious, and charming - it seemed perfect...

"Oh my, oh my! What a surprise!"

...or so I thought, but the owner clearly had other ideas.

"To have such a famous talent in our restaurant! Unbelievable!"

The moment the owner recognized us - or more precisely, Choi Song-yi - her face lit up, and she promptly ushered us into the VIP room.

Good grief, we just wanted to eat quietly and leave.

"Student Song-yi~ I've been watching the show. You're the first celebrity to visit our restaurant. Would you mind giving me an autograph later? I'd love to display it."

It looks like we'll be under the owner's watchful eye throughout our stay.

"Ah, sure."

Song-yi, seemingly accustomed to such situations, casually agreed and scribbled her signature on the paper the owner brought.

She even thoughtfully added 'P.S. Wishing you prosperity' at the end before handing it back. The owner, visibly moved, accepted the signed paper and treated all five of us to complimentary ades.

"Song-yi, wow!"

Min Ha-young and Seo Ra-eun gazed at Choi Song-yi with admiring eyes.

"A celebrity. There's a real celebrity right in front of me. I'd almost forgotten."

"You're so cool, Song-yi..."

"What's the big deal? It's just because of the show."

Choi Song-yi grumbled indifferently and grabbed a menu.

"Unnies, choose your dishes."

At Song-yi's prompt, the members all huddled around the menu.

"Wow, look at these photos. Everything looks delicious."

"Should we get this? What about you, Ra-eun?"

"I'm thinking, um, risotto? Let's order a few dishes and share!"

"Great! How about pizza too? What do Ji-ye and Song-yi want?"

"Salad pasta for me."

"I'll have the gambas."

Everyone seemed quite hungry after the competition, excitedly choosing various dishes to order.

Soon, the food arrived.

"Come to think of it, none of us are on a diet, huh?"

"That's a good thing. If anything, our members need to gain some weight. Everyone's too skinny."

"Well, even if we were, today would be a cheat day."

Click, click.

Han Da-min enthusiastically took photos of the food before setting her phone down and raising her ade high.

"Anyway, girls! Great job on the Round 3 competition!"

All the members followed suit, raising their glasses. We toasted together.

"It was tough fighting so fiercely with the members!"

"Good work, everyone!"

"Let's keep up the good work!"

We all took a sip of our ades and raised our glasses once more.

We had one more reason to celebrate.

"And congratulations to Flora on our first, first place!"

"Yeaaah!"

"Congratulations to us!"

Clink! The cheerful sound of glasses clinking resonated, and the members took another sip before digging into the food like it was drinking snacks.

"Isn't it amazing? When we first started, we never even dreamed of getting first place."

"Right. First place seemed like such an impossible rank."

Seo Ra-eun said as she refilled Choi Song-yi and Han Da-min's empty plates with pasta.

Han Da-min nodded vigorously.

"Yeah, first place was unthinkable. I never achieved it even when I debuted. It seemed so out of reach."

She then stirred her ade with the straw silently for a while.

Finally, she spoke up.

"To be honest, when I entered the individual audition, I wasn't aiming for first place or re-debuting."

"Huh, really? Why not?"

"We thought you were definitely going for a re-debut, unnie. You were the best among all the trainees who participated then."

I nodded in agreement with Min Ha-young's words.

From what I saw in Episode 1, she was practically flying on stage.

She stood out the most, and her skills were undeniable.

Even if I had watched the broadcast without knowing the audition results, I would have thought Han Da-min was a sure pick.

So, she wasn't aiming for a re-debut after giving such an impressive performance?

"Well, I'm not that young anymore. And all the individual participants were so pretty and talented. I thought I might stand out enough to try my luck on YouTube... That's actually why I participated."

"Ah, so you ended up doing so well that you passed and even got first place. Right, unnie?"

Han Da-min smiled at Min Ha-young's comment.

"That's right! Thanks to having such great members, I even got to experience first place!"

She then placed pieces of steak on my and Seo Ra-eun's plates, as if changing the subject.

"It's all thanks to you two getting first in the stage evaluation~"

"Oh no, it wasn't me. It was Ji-ye..."

"Why are you giving me only credit Ra-eun unnie? We all did well together."

I quickly popped a piece of steak into my mouth as I spoke.

Oh, the food here is really good.

Seo Ra-eun then promptly added another piece of meat to my plate.

"Let's keep doing well together. If we keep getting high rankings like this, with a bit of luck, even if we don't win, we might all debut together!"

"That's right! Even though they say the winner is already decided, it would be great if there was an agency willing to debut us with this exact lineup. Is that too unlikely?"

"You never know if we survive till the end!"

As emotions of gratitude, excitement, and anticipation filled the air, a sulky voice addressed Han Da-min.

"Damin unnie, who has such great members, seemed to find the Red Sun members cuter."

It was our adorable maknae Choi Song-yi, who had just tried gambas for the first time in her life.

"...Huh?"

Han Da-min looked at Choi Song-yi in confusion.

Song-yi finally put down the baguette topped with gambas.

"Are the Red Sun members cute? Unnie, you were being so cute with them, calling them 'unnie'. Do you prefer young ones who act cute?"

It was adorable jealousy.

"Ah, no... I like you and our members more."

The corners of Han Da-min's mouth twitched as she answered.

She likes it.

I smiled slightly as I put another piece of meat into my mouth from my plate, which had somehow been refilled again.

That's when Choi Song-yi's gaze turned to me.

Huh, me? I didn't do anything wrong.

I mean, I did have fun hanging out with the Flo&U members, but that wasn't shown in the VCR.

Choi Song-yi opened her mouth.

"Unnie, is it true that you got a casting offer from MN?"

This time, her tone wasn't tinged with jealousy like when she spoke to Han Da-min. It sounded like she was asking out of pure curiosity.

"...Huh? How do you know about that?"

I had no intention of hiding it since I received the offer publicly in the waiting room where everyone could see, but...

How did she find out? I glanced around at the members.

Min Ha-young spoke up.

"Yeah, I heard that news too and really wanted to ask. Is it true?"

Huh?

"Actually, me too. I heard that Director Kim Ja-in came in person? She's really famous, isn't she? She was Senior Rena’s manager for 10 years after personally casting her."

Huh?

Even Han Da-min?

Wait, the atmosphere suggested that all the members already knew about this.

...How on earth did they find out?