Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols Chapter 481 - Part-time Job (1)

≫ Kim Iwol has always been at his peak, but he’s somehow reached a new peak.

While other members have songs that fit them like a glove, Iwol’s always felt a bit like he was just performing a mission. Then Alight came along and stamped the confirmation seal with a loud bam.

Kim Iwol’s personal color is ‘Classic Sexy’. This will be on the test, everyone. Take notes.

└ Because of his physique, his dance lines have weight + the cool expressions unique to the older members are just perfect ㅠㅠ. We rarely get to see him sweating, but the choreography is so intense that we’re being blessed with damp Iwol everywhere…

 

≫ I figured the older members being in charge of the sexy concept was just a long-standing tradition in the idol world, but Choi and Kim seem to have different vibes.

Because Spk as a whole has sharp features, they look more mature than their actual age (not saying they look old, I’m not an anti, please).

When looking at the maknaes > Is this really the maknae line? Their sexy talent is endless.

When looking at the main vocals > The maknaes were just being cute, the older brothers are truly on another level. If they sing this well and dance that well too, the agency should carry them on their backs.

Then Choi appears and it’s usually, ‘Whoa, damn… that was insane…’ But in Alight, Kim Iwol takes the spot of the Final Boss.

I’m sad my vocabulary is this bad, but… he has that ‘Adult Sexy’ vibe.

└ It’s not an exaggerated expression made just to sell a sexy concept. It’s natural, but somehow seductive, so you keep watching. Kim Iwol, hand over your ID already and stop lying about your age.

 

≫ I like that Iwol seems happy these days.

Aside from the song being great and the concept/styling setting a new legend every day, he genuinely looks like he’s having fun.

└ Right…? He was always such a professional idol that never showed exhaustion, so I didn’t realize before. But seeing him smile now, there’s a difference between a nice smile and one that just bursts out uncontrollably.

└ Is he dating?

└ Do you seriously think dating is the only reason someone can smile? I can already tell how miserable your life is.

 

≫ What’s up with KIW?

Dude’s flying aroundㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

└ It’s like he awakened.

└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋ The concept suits him so well. It must have been so hard for him to hold back this sexy concept under UA.

└ It’s surprising they haven’t done a sexy concept with CJH and KIW until now. Is it because of image consumption?

└ Isn’t it because once you do a sexy concept, you can’t go back to ‘refreshing’? I thought they were just testing the waters during Mission and then backed out.

└ Since it’s a full album, they went all out for the image transformation, but I think they tried to maintain some of their original tone with Dreamer.

 

≫ When the Alight MV first came out, everyone said the song and choreo were more intense than Dreamer, but the conceptual parts and MV visuals were weaker. Yet, the view count for Alight is rising faster than Dreamer.

These guys are seriously smart.

└ Drama-type MVs are fun to watch the first time, but compared to short MVs, you don’t revisit them as often.

└ Considering the group name and how they’ve always put flames and sparks in their MVs and lyrics, Alight is more fitting for the group identity… I understand why they pushed this as the title track.

└ The choreography, moving precisely to the beat, was a god-tier move… Alight feels much more optimized for music shows and fancams.

 

≫ For idols, the challenge is finding a color that suits every member while remaining difficult for others to imitate.

In Spark’s case, they’ve focused on the ‘refreshing youth’ band sound, but I think their strength is that they can handle a combination of hardcore rock base + restrained sexiness + dance.

‘Youth’ gets weird if a member looks too much like an older man (cognitive dissonance), and ‘Sexy’ makes people say ‘Do this concept when you’re older…’ if a member has a baby face. But these guys are still in their early 20s, and their overall visual colors are similar, so no matter what you give them, their faces match well and they pull it off.

└ Totally agree… Plenty of idols bulk up until they look more like personal trainers than idols, but somehow Spark avoids that despite all the exercise they do.

└ The fact that they take faces that look perfect for decadent, dangerous sexiness and instead push a restrained, tasteful version is honestly genius.

└ Um, I don’t know if I’d call this ‘mild’ sexiness;;; During Mission, I was like ‘Oh, first sexy concept~’ but this time, I had to watch the MV hiding in my room.

└ I keep making that otaku-grin, so I have to watch it alone at home.

 

In the posts related to the Alight promotions, there were particularly many comments saying my complexion had improved. People said I looked brighter, that the corners of my mouth were practically hooked to my ears.

 

‘Is it really that obvious?’

 

I touched my face a few times. Still, those people saw my face more often than I did, so maybe the fans were right.

 

‘To be fair, I really do get annoyed by the system’s attitude a lot less these days.’

 

After the meeting with Manager Nam, the system had gone wild, throwing digital confetti everywhere.

 

[SYSTEM] A work instruction from the ‘Superior’ has arrived.

▶ Assistant Manager Kim, congratulations~! I always knew you’d succeed!

 

Strangely enough, it didn’t feel particularly offensive. The tone wasn’t as annoying as before. Even the emotions that surfaced whenever I thought of Manager Nam felt significantly diluted. 

I’d been worried that seeing him might ruin my concentration. Instead, I felt refreshed afterward and could focus on work better.

 

Today, Spark was dressed like children of the darkness, draped in silver accessories. Unsurprisingly, we looked like the toughest group at this broadcasting station.

We had brought Dreamer along as well so we could return to a cheerful and friendly concept at any time, but I wondered if Spark could ever go back to being refreshing idols again…

 

“Hyung, you’re a vampire, is it okay to wear a silver ring?”

 

“They said it’s fake.”

 

“Who said that?”

 

“Lee Cheonghyeon.”

 

I heard a ridiculously stupid conversation from a distance. Even with voice modulation, I was confident I’d recognize Choi Jeho and Kang Kiyeon.

 

Lee Cheonghyeon, the one who passed on that frustrating pro-tip to his hyung, was currently away for a photoshoot with L’aînesse, a brand that made accessories out of platinum, not just sterling silver. Since he was scheduled to arrive just before the live broadcast, there were only five of us in the waiting room.

 

“I wonder if the photoshoot is going well…”

 

“Cheonghyeon will do great…!”

 

Having heard my mutterings, Park Joowoo approached and patted me on the back.

 

“What if the outfit doesn’t properly show off Cheonghyeon’s visuals…”

 

“So that’s what you were worried about…”

 

Park Joowoo walked away with a groan. L’aînesse… if you failed to prepare a proper pedestal for Spark’s white porcelain moon jar, you will pay a fitting price. I’ll curse you so that even if you take 100 photos, the new product won’t stand out…

 

While I was getting my makeup done with such dark and impure thoughts, the waiting room door opened. Manager Chanyoung was suddenly called away.

 

“What is it? Did the filming order change?”

 

“Please, no.”

 

With the stylist’s sigh, everyone in the waiting room became busy. With the mindset of not being a hindrance, I kept my ears perked to follow instructions instantly—whether to open or close my eyes, tilt my head down or up—when the manager returned.

 

“Iwol.”

 

“Yes!”

 

“Can you fill in as a temporary MC?”

 

Pardon?

 

…That’s what my brain thought.

 

“Of course!”

 

But a certain mouth was faster than the speed of thought.

 

Three minutes after agreeing, a music show cue sheet was dropped into my hands.

 

* * *

 

For ages, music-show MC positions had traditionally gone to idols with a certain level of name recognition.

 

Spark had received offers for several members. However, by the time we were famous enough to get love calls, all the members were already busy with their own solo activities, so we had to politely decline permanent MC roles.

 

Lee Cheonghyeon was an exception. Having drawn attention for his revolutionary looks since debut, he was often called as a special MC, if not a fixed one, from early on. Through that connection, he had recently been filling in whenever a regular MC was absent for personal reasons.

 

However, Lee Cheonghyeon wasn’t here today. If the absence had been planned, there would’ve been time to find a substitute, but unfortunately…

 

‘Acute appendicitis, of all things…’

 

…It was a sudden situation no one could have predicted. Jeong Seongbin concluded the news with, ‘I hope they have a speedy recovery’.

 

There wasn’t even time to revise the script from a three-person format to a two-person one. And that was how I got dragged into this. When I asked if it would be okay since I had no experience hosting a live broadcast, the reply was, ‘But, Iwol, you’re smart, aren’t you?’ In other words: Figure it out.

 

And so, I…

 

“Wait, where’s Taeseon? Why is Mr. Iwol here?”

 

“Today, I, Spark’s Iwol, will be joining you as a special MC!”

 

…made my cute and adorable MC debut.

 

Fortunately, there wasn’t much to memorize. They said I could look at the prompter if necessary, but there weren’t so many lines that I couldn’t commit it to memory.

 

The problem was elsewhere.

 

“I’m so nervous my heart is racing, but I’ll work hard, so please watch over me kindly!”

 

“Of course, of course. I, Sei, will be right here! Doing my best! To help Mr. Iwol’s successful MC debut!”

 

“Oh? Mr. Sei, are you already acting like a senior?”

 

The hastily assembled introduction and music-show-style theatrical dialogue felt like a bizarre hybrid of awkwardness. It was even worse because my role was the ‘100% nervous, innocent maknae-style MC who’s hosting his first live broadcast’.

 

I couldn’t complain because they had written it that way so that viewers would understand if I stumbled over lines or looked unstable. I had no choice but to play the giant rookie MC who worried too much. Even after covering my face with five layers of shamelessness, it wasn’t easy. I admired the senior MCs’ ability to deliver those lines nonchalantly.

 

After struggling through the introduction of the first few stages, I was about to step off the MC platform when I locked eyes with a Sparkler in the audience. The expression of the Sparkler, who must have traveled a long way to watch the intense, sparks-flying Alight recording…

 

Was one of pure shock and horror.

 

Yet, even in the chaos, the fans’ love and support were steadfast. Those holding the familiar lightsticks gave me a thumbs-up from the darkness.

 

All I could do for them was bow at a 90-degree angle with tears in my eyes.

 

* * *

 

Who was it that said college freshmen spend their days and nights drinking and partying like crazy?

 

Most of her classmates did, but Baek Haewon was different. As usual, as soon as her lectures ended today, Baek Haewon ran straight home. She then turned on the TV channel and headed to the bathroom to wash up and prepare.

 

‘Music show schedules are the absolute best…’

 

The weather outside had grown bitterly cold, but her passion hadn’t cooled at all. Why would a Sparkler feel cold when Spark was burning so bright? Baek Haewon was confident she could survive the winter without an electric blanket.

 

‘They’ll upload selfies after the stage, right? It looks like they’ve run out of outfits to wear. I wonder what they wore today? When ideas are lacking, I cry out for faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is mesh…’

 

After washing up with plenty of bubbles, the fresh and clean Baek Haewon went straight to the fridge. She poured a large glass of cold mango juice—the product Park Joowoo filmed an ad for after returning from the deserted island. She bought it out of fan loyalty, but it was so delicious she stocked up in bulk during a sale. As drinking, a familiar voice reached her ears.

 

『Gasp, could it be their turn already?!』

 

The smooth, clear voice was definitely one Baek Haewon knew.

 

But it was strange. The owner of this voice had never spoken in ‘this’ tone in his entire life.

 

Besides, it wasn’t time for an interview yet. Spark had become popular enough that they usually appeared near the end of the broadcast now.

 

Sensing something was off, Baek Haewon ran out to the living room holding the mango juice bottle.

 

『Oh my goodness, I’m so excited I don’t know what to do!』

 

On the large screen, Kim Iwol was shyly covering his face with both hands gathered together. Baek Haewon clearly saw the MC tag attached to the tilted microphone.

 

“Ah! Since when has Kim Iwol been MC-ing?!”

 

Baek Haewon let out a lion’s roar. Regardless, Kim Iwol reached out toward the camera, saying they should go meet someone Baek Haewon had absolutely no interest in.