Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut! Chapter 22
Chapter 22. The Most Effective Way to Defuse a Bomb (7)
Director Son Hyeonggu finally started noticing the strange atmosphere drifting around the company.
Information seemed to be circulating—carefully, deliberately—while avoiding him.
Like he was the only one missing something crucial.
I’m already irritated enough. What the hell is this now?
Only recently did he realize that the father of the “parachute” trainee—the one handling his private funding—along with several surrounding investors, had begun ignoring his calls.
And that damn Cherry brat came back too… tch. Nothing ever goes smoothly.
But soaked in complacency, Director Son failed to recognize that these subtle signs were the beginning of his complete collapse.
It started with the parachute.
“You’re withdrawing the investment? What do you mean, suddenly?”
“How would I know? You keep whining about money instead of debuting me like you promised. My father’s probably sick of it.”
“I told you—it’s soon! You need backup members to debut with!”
“You think we gave you that money to build backup dancers? You were supposed to build me up. Not them.”
“……”
“You couldn’t even get rid of one Seo Taehyun properly, and you expect—”
The parachute turned on him overnight.
Losing his biggest investor, Director Son grew desperate. He’d already been reckless—laying groundwork to start his own company, leaving financial messes everywhere. To clean that up, this plan had to succeed.
Damn it. If I hadn’t lost those Upia kids, I could’ve held out longer.
He missed the days when he leveraged Upia’s casting power for lavish dinners and side money. Even siphoning company funds had reached its limit.
At this rate, I need to lock down Joo Eunchan and Dan Haru at all costs. Or at least… Seo Taehyun.
Just as he prepared to threaten trainees again with “debut” as bait, his phone vibrated.
Missed calls and messages had piled up.
A chill ran down his spine.
He opened the latest message—from one of his subordinates.
Hyung, this is bad. An article about Miro’s next project just dropped and investors are calling nonstop. Please contact ASAP…
Miro’s next? An article?
Impossible. Miro wouldn’t release anything without him knowing.
He opened the headlines.
Miro launches next-gen boy group survival show… targeting second-half debut
“Boy’s World” Seo Taehyun joins Miro survival… second Cherry Boy boom?
Upia’s Seo Tae-il participates as producer for Miro survival… “Many promising trainees,” he says
Alarm bells rang in his head.
Then the office phone rang.
“…Hello.”
—Come upstairs.
It was the CEO.
Something had gone terribly wrong.
How Do You Destroy a Director?
Going to the press directly? Useless.
Unless it’s a celebrity, the media has no interest in exposing a mid-level industry executive.
Sue for fraud?
An idol trainee entangled in legal scandal before debut? That’s suicide.
…Crack his skull and regress?
Tempting. But impractical.
So how do you destroy him?
Simple.
What if I don’t attack him directly?
A storm swept through Miro.
I distributed the evidence strategically.
First: Ji Suho.
Armed with what I gave him, he went straight to the CEO. The CEO practically foamed at the mouth as he swung the knife.
From trainee poaching to siphoning company funds disguised as entertainment expenses—evidence piled up.
Director Son Hyeonggu was immediately sued by Miro for embezzlement.
Next: the media.
We aggressively promoted Miro’s survival show.
We leveraged our headliners:
Seo Tae-il of Upia
Seo Taehyun of Boy’s World
At the same time, we subtly released lineup information that excluded Director Son entirely.
Investors caught on fast.
“Director Son? His string’s been cut.”
Then I anonymously tipped off a social-justice outlet.
Headline theme:
“Is Abuse Toward Entertainment Trainees Acceptable?”
No direct names. Just enough implication.
Industry insiders connected the dots instantly.
Then came unexpected luck.
Former Project W member Ato spoke out publicly.
“I was a victim too.”
A real victim—someone forced into endless schedules under Director Son—stepped forward.
Once the spark caught, it spread on its own.
Director Son was removed from Miro.
By day: investigated for embezzlement.
By night: chased by creditors.
Perfect.
Meanwhile…
“Anyway, where did Seo Taehyun go?”
They said he was practicing somewhere.
I wandered near A-Room—the special class area.
“Oh.”
“Ah—sorry.”
I bumped into someone.
Usually when I bump into people, they go flying.
This time, I bounced back.
…What is this bear?
The guy was slightly taller than me. Solid build.
“Excuse me.”
“No, it’s fine. I wasn’t watching either.”
He passed by.
Then—
“Excuse me.”
“…?”
He called out from the practice room doorway.
“Are you Kang Hajin?”
“…Yeah.”
“Taehyun’s probably in the rooftop garden. He said if a hyung with black hair and scary eyes came looking, I should tell him.”
Seo Taehyun, you little—
“Thanks. Practice hard.”
I left, planning to flick Taehyun’s forehead.
I didn’t know then that the bear-like trainee had watched me for a long time after I walked away.
Rooftop Garden
Seo Taehyun sat alone, drowning in his own thoughts.
“Why is my life like this.”
“What are you doing?”
“……”
“If you sigh like that, the ground’s not gonna collapse. At least do it properly.”
He didn’t turn around.
He knew it was me.
“You’re supposed to tell me not to sigh. Not to sigh louder.”
“Why? Deep breathing’s good for you.”
“Hyung, you’re seriously weird.”
“Thank you.”
I sat beside him. He shifted slightly to make room.
We’d only known each other a week.
But words came easily around me.
“What, you here to arrest me? Afraid I’ll run again?”
I stared at him.
He shrank slightly.
“Taehyun.”
“……”
“If you’re going to run, stay inside Seoul.”
“…I’ll try.”
“Gangwon almost killed me.”
He almost smiled.
Then—
<System Alert: Companion ‘Seo Taehyun’ status — Quite Depressed>
That red notification wouldn’t disappear.
So I asked directly.
“What is it?”
“What?”
“Why are you depressed?”
“Hyung… do you have psychic powers?”
“Get to the point.”
“…Cha Minseok.”
“That lunatic? What about him?”
“…I think maybe I should apologize.”
I blinked.
“For what?”
“I went on Boy’s World because of him. He was supposed to go. His parents stopped him.”
“And?”
“I knew he was struggling. His parents. The Enderway lineup. His back injury. I knew all of it.”
“……”
“And I did cause a scene at Rene. Maybe I should say sorry.”
“What nonsense.”
“Huh?”
“What are you apologizing for? That he chose to spiral?”
“Well… he did cover up the mess I caused…”
“By that logic, you owe me more. I went to Gangwon to drag you back.”
“…Ah. That’s true.”
“Then thank me.”
“…Thanks.”
“Good. Do better.”
“…Okay…”
He blinked.
Something felt off to him.
And I could already tell.
This wasn’t over.