Prince from another dimension becomes an Idol chapter 12

“What’s going on?”

Jung Heeyoung asked an employee, glancing nervously at the Vice President.

The employee quickly whispered to Jung Heeyoung in a low voice.

“Maam…”

Upon hearing the employee’s words, Jung Heeyoung’s face turned pale.

“What? Really?”

“Yes. They’re here at the office.”

“Oh my…”

“What’s going on?” The Vice President asked with a stern face.

Jung Heeyoung hurriedly relayed the news to the Vice President.

The expressions of the Vice President and Manager Kim Seokchul , who were nearby, quickly hardened.

Dojae and Louis had no idea what was happening.

The situation was so confusing that they couldn’t fully feel the joy of passing the audition or the sorrow of failing it.

A little later, Jung Heeyoung spoke as calmly as possible.

“Sorry for the sudden disruption. Something came up. You both can go home now. We’ll contact you later.”

Since the results had already been announced, there were no issues.

Dojae and Louis quickly said their goodbyes and left the audition venue.

By the time they stepped outside, the sun was already setting.

“Do you think something happened at the company?”

“I don’t know. I hope it’s nothing serious.”

Answering Louis’s worried question, Dojae observed Louis’s mood.

His bright-colored eyes, rare for a Korean, sparkled transparently in the sunlight, but he didn’t seem too upset.

Dojae asked carefully.

“What are you planning to do now?”

“Me? Well… Don’t you have another agency in mind if you didn’t get in here? I was just planning to follow you wherever you went. Or should I try to become a trainee here? I could at least do that, right?”

“That’s not necessary…”

Despite his disappointment, the faith Louis showed felt burdensome.

When Dojae tried to dissuade him, Louis furrowed his brows and muttered.

“I thought everything would work out if I followed you… I really felt it would.”

“Think it over carefully. You have a good chance with a major agency.”

“Yeah. It’s just that you won’t be there.”

Louis joked in a whiny voice, making Dojae shake his head and chuckle.

“Let’s go home and rest today… We’ll talk again later.”

“Okay!”

With that, the two parted ways and headed home.

***

Meanwhile,

Jung Heeyoung and the Planning Team 2 members were going through emotional stages similar to the five stages of grief.

Specifically, they had moved beyond denial and anger to bargaining and depression.

“So, both you and your mother are absolutely not going to change your minds?”

“Yes, Team Leader.”

“I’m sorry…”

The middle-aged woman, who looked like a wealthy matron at a glance, replied firmly.

They had been trying to persuade and cajole for an hour.

Team Leader Jung Heeyoung sighed deeply.

“Ha…”

Planning Team 2 was in charge of the second idol group being planned by Kingdom Entertainment.

They were responsible for everything from casting to determining the concept and members.

Jung Heeyoung had transferred from Seonyul Entertainment, one of the top three agencies, to Kingdom Entertainment and was recognized for his abilities, leading to the formation of Planning Team 2.

For the past two years, they had been striving tirelessly to create a major idol group on par with the top three agencies.

‘Just when I thought everything was set…’

Jung Heeyoung pressed his throbbing temples.

“I’m sorry, Team Leader. But please let me go…”

Lee Heemin, who had dyed his hair yellow, spoke hesitantly.

Lee Heemin was one of the key members of the upcoming group planned by Jung Heeyoung.

He was cast when he was fifteen, now seventeen, young but immensely talented.

Initially, it was difficult to persuade him to stay with Kingdom, as he received many offers from other places.

Eventually, he stayed, and Jung Heeyoung’s future group always included him.

‘With only five members, it wasn’t enough… It took a long time to gather six.’

But just earlier, Dojae had been accepted.

The news that had caused a chaotic situion turned out to be Lee Heemin’s immigration news.

It was a thunderbolt out of the blue for Jung Heeyoung.

“Madam, Heemin’s debut is really just around the corner. In fact, with today’s audition, the team is complete, and we just need to prepare.”

“I’m sorry, Team Leader Jung. I trusted you and left my child with this agency… But how many times have you said it’s almost time?”

“Heemin, you know better than anyone that we just needed one more member. Do you have any problems with your group?”

“No, it’s not that… I’m just… the training is too hard…”

“You’ve endured well for two years. Don’t you think it would be a waste to give up now?”

“It’s been so tough… I think it’ll be hard even after becoming an idol… I just want to study art.”

Lee Heemin answered with his head down.

“My child is still young. Two years is just life experience. We plan to send him to study in the US.”

Jung Heeyoung barely held back his words.

The Planning Team 2 didn’t put in two years of effort to give Lee Heemin life experience.

Heemin’s mother spoke decisively, as if to end the discussion.

“We came here to inform you that he won’t be coming anymore, as we need to prepare for the move next month.”

They had already made all preparations and were just here to notify.

It was an entirely unseen situation.

If only they had decided sooner.

If only they had informed before the member confirmation.

It wouldn’t have felt so futile.

Thinking about filling Heemin’s spot again, reassigning positions, and redefining the group’s concept was exhausting.

‘As soon as we fill one spot, another one opens up… What should we do? We can’t delay the debut plan any longer.’

While the company’s issues were significant, the other members now had to wait again for their debut.

They had all been trainees longer than Lee Heemin.

However, Team Leader Jung Heeyoung had no grounds to hold onto Heemin.

Trainees do sign contracts with the company, but it’s not the same as an exclusive contract.

It was more common for the company to release trainees than for trainees to leave on their own.

‘I don’t know when another problem might arise if we hold onto him now…. Yes. I should be thankful this happened before the exclusive contract. Let’s think positively. Positively…….’

Team Leader Jung Heeyoung quickly moved through stages of depression and acceptance.

“I understand. I respect Heemin and his mother’s decision.”

With a sigh and a nod, Jung Heeyoung responded to Heemin and his mother.

After organizing the situation, Jung Heeyoung immediately reported it to the higher-ups and called a meeting with the entire Planning Team 2.

In a tense atmosphere, a very long strategy meeting was about to begin.

***

However, the meeting ended sooner than expected.

“Wow. I can’t believe a spot opened up because someone suddenly moved abroad. I’m such a lucky guy, right?”

It was thanks to Louis.

The meeting discussed whether to fill the spot with an existing trainee or hold a new audition.

The existing trainees lacked skill, and holding a new audition was uncertain and thus hesitated upon.

‘The youngest position…. Someone with the skill to replace Heemin…. Can we find someone like that easily?’

Before Team Leader Jung Heeyoung could delve deeper into her thoughts, Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon asked.

“What about Kim Louis, who auditioned today?”

Louis’s skill was more than sufficient to replace Heemin.

However, a concern was whether his strong individuality would fit well with the team.

This was the main reason why Team Leader Jung Heeyoung ultimately chose Dojae over Louis in the audition.

However, it seemed that Dojae could manage Louis.

Though calling him back after rejecting him initially seemed a bit awkward, there was no time to be picky.

Thus, Louis found himself back in the Kingdom Entertainment office within days, along with Dojae.

“I knew everything would work out if I just followed you, hyung.”

“As the saying goes, life is like a horse of a Saiweng…. You never know how things will turn out.”

(Saiweng, the old man from a common Chinese proverb.)

With his hands behind his back, Dojae murmured to himself.

“If you go that way, you’ll reach the meeting room.”

“Yes.”

The two followed Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon, getting a tour of the Kingdom office.

After seeing two offices for Planning Team 2 and the practice rooms, Dojae had this impression.

‘Cozy.’

Compared to New Entertainment, it felt smaller overall but seemed to have everything necessary.

To Dojae, Kingdom’s no-frills office was a better fit than New Entertainment’s overly flashy one.

“For now, you’ll join as trainees, and in a month, you’ll proceed to sign exclusive contracts with the other members. It would be good to get well-adjusted by then.”

Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon’s explanation made both Dojae and Louis nod quickly.

Though it didn’t show, Dojae was as excited as Louis.

‘A trainee, huh…….’

It was a first for Dojae.

It was strange and exciting to enter an agency through an audition he took himself.

‘To be part of something without the Imperial Family’s permission, outside of the Imperial Family… it’s really new.’

With Louis joining, Dojae hoped everything would go well.

Two men were approaching from the opposite end of the hallway, making a lot of noise.

Seeing Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon, the two men bowed in greeting.

Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon immediately showed a welcoming expression.

“Oh! Just in time. I thought it’d be good to introduce you before the meeting……”

Dojae discreetly observed the two men within the bounds of propriety.

Judging by their looks and style, they seemed to be trainees at Kingdom.

‘Judging by the introduction request, they must be the selected members of the next group.’

“Here are Kang Dojae and Kim Louis, our new members. You’ll be in the same team.”

Just as he thought.

As Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon introduced Dojae and Louis, the two men’s eyes briefly lit up with curiosity.

It wasn’t an unpleasant look.

However, the dark expressions they had while walking down the hallway bothered Dojae.

“This is Woochul……”

Assistant Manager Lee Jungyeon introduced Park Woochul, standing on the left.

“I’m Park Woochul.”

When Woochul nodded in greeting, Dojae naturally extended his hand for a handshake.

He realized a bit late that outside of very formal occasions, young people typically didn’t shake hands, but it was a deeply ingrained habit.

Woochul awkwardly took Dojae’s hand with a grim expression.

“Welcome to hell.”

At Woochul’s greeting, which was hard to tell if it was welcoming or cursing, Dojae was momentarily at a loss for words.

Whack—!

The next moment, the person on Woochul’s right smacked him hard on the back of the head.

“Ouch!”