Lycoris (3)
Lunatic Entertainment.
This was the newly established company’s name created by the Blood Alliance for this project.
Of course, setting up an entertainment company required meeting various complicated conditions, but for the Blood Alliance, which possessed both power and money, it wasn’t a difficult task at all.
With unlimited funds, Lunatic Entertainment quickly established a credible presence soon after its formation.
A whole building with a café was given as their headquarters, and talented individuals recognized in the industry were being scouted one after another with exorbitant salaries.
“Hey, did you hear the news? I heard that Team Leader 3, who recently resigned, moved to that new entertainment company…”
“Really? I thought he’d definitely get an executive position within a few years, so I wondered why he quit. But to go to a new company? Did they offer him the president’s position or something?”
“But that new company isn’t just any new company. They say the capital invested is astronomical, and they seem to be pushing for it hard from the conglomerate. Not just Team Leader 3, but they reportedly offered exorbitant salaries to all the recruited employees.”
“Wow… I mean, no matter how good the money is, going to a place with such an uncertain future…”
Naturally, this news caught the attention of industry insiders.
While many entertainment companies pop in and out of existence every year, not many are as aggressively expanding with such lavish capital.
Additionally, Jin So-Ran, the second-in-command of the Blood Alliance and the architect of the project, wasn’t just putting in capital.
‘Our vampires’ future depends on this. I’ve already gotten the Lord’s approval, so there’s no need to hesitate any longer.’
For those with sick family members, she provided healing abilities and potions—mysteries that money alone couldn’t buy. For those with unfair grievances, she mobilized power and connections to help avenge them.
To build loyalty among those on the same boat, and to ensure they gave their best to this project.
Lycoris, an unprecedented girl group composed entirely of vampires, was the fruit of such numerous efforts.
[Countdown to the debut of the new girl group ‘Lycoris’ prepared by Lunatic Entertainment.]
[Vampire Idol?! The entire member lineup of this girl group made of vampires is set to debut, and netizens are ‘abuzz’.]
[Lunatic Entertainment unveils the member profiles of Lycoris! This is what charm should be!]
As all preparations were complete and the debut date drew near.
The sudden press release that was spread as part of the promotions made waves in society as expected.
-What? An idol? Who? A vampire?
-LOL, you’re kidding. Not falling for that.
└No, for real? How is this not bait??
-If they’re vampires, then they’re demons, right? And they just declare they want to be entertainers?? This country’s insane!
└I know, right? What are the Guardians and civil servants doing? Why aren’t they arresting these guys?
Though they had some warning, the reactions were not very favorable.
While the image of vampires had improved somewhat over the years due to various incidents, the stereotype rooted in society was too deep to accept a public figure like an entertainer who is a symbol of light.
It was commonplace to see complaints in online communities, along with outright accusations and curses directed at those involved, directly or indirectly.
The silver lining was that, despite everything, it wasn’t all negative reactions.
-Wow…; But everyone’s visuals are nothing to scoff at. I’m infinitely replaying the music video teaser. I can’t break free…
└I was staring blankly and finally snapped back to reality. Is this what they mean by being enchanted by a fox?
└FoxX VampireO
└The visuals are stunning, but the synergy with the song is no joke. The music in the teaser isn’t even long, yet I’m sucked in. I want to hear the full version quickly;;
-Wait, if you think about it, isn’t this a good thing for us? I mean, we’re never going to get to hang out with actual entertainers, so whether they’re vampires or not, isn’t it just fine if they look good?
└LOL, true
Of course, there was a slight, very slight influence of opinion manipulation behind it.
But the fact that not everyone was negative was still true.
“Hmm, likes… Here’s another like…”
The lead vocalist and cutest member of Lycoris—a girl named Nahee—was sprawled on the couch in their dorm, peeking at her smartphone.
Of course, there were far more negative comments than positive ones, but she merely clicked ‘report’ without a second thought and showed no further reaction.
‘Well, I’m used to being criticized just for being a vampire.’
All the members of Lycoris were talented individuals selected with great care.
Since mental resilience was a considerable factor in their evaluation criteria, she managed to pass through this without losing her cool at such a young age.
“Nahee! You’re searching for us again? Didn’t the company tell you not to look at that stuff?”
“Ah!”
At that moment, the disapproving voice of a woman snatched Nahee’s smartphone from her hands.
Still lying face down, she flailed toward her taken phone, only to give up and slump back onto the couch.
That she, a Level 4 vampire, didn’t even sense the presence of the one who took it demonstrated that if the opponent wished, retrieving her possessions using her strength alone would be nearly impossible.
The leader of Lycoris, Yoon Seol, who was also the main dancer and embodied sexiness—a Level 6 vampire—let out a deep sigh while holding Nahee’s stolen phone.
‘There’s nothing good that comes from exposing yourself to such negative words. Even if things seem fine now, jarring memories tend to linger deep within.’
And when the moment comes where one’s heart weakens, that’s when the floodgates open, exploding with all that pent-up emotion.
Knowing this through experience, Yoon Seol looked at the young Nahee with concern.
As is common with recently debuted idols, the ages of Lycoris’ members weren’t particularly high.
The oldest, Yoon Seol, had just turned twenty-two.
On the contrary, the youngest, Nahee, was merely a middle school student, making their average age around the late teens.
However, this ‘age’ had one glaring flaw…
‘Three out of the five of us are returnees, so we have far more experience than our age suggests, but Nahee is just a kid of that actual age.’
It was based on the age calculated according to Earth, not their actual experienced age after becoming vampires.
Another high school member who had become a vampire in the past was quite diligent, working as instructed by the company to ignore public opinion, yet here was the youngest, Nahee, who couldn’t suppress her curiosity, fostering concern.
‘Should I just confiscate her phone… But doing that only to Nahee feels a bit… Ah! That’s a great idea.’
At that moment, a good thought flashed through Yoon Seol’s mind.
She gazed gently at the girl stuck to the couch and slowly opened her mouth.
“If you keep this up, I’ll tell Director Ha that you’re not following company guidelines.”
“Ugh! Director Ha?”
“Yeah, it might be better to leave this phone with Director Ha. You can just ask for it when you need it.”
At those words, a look of burden flooded Nahee’s face.
It was only natural.
The Director, who had recently joined the Lycoris team, was not an ordinary person.
“Unnie! Please don’t…”
The person known as Director Ha had no one knowing his real name.
He was just Director Ha.
Even the president of Lunatic Entertainment likely wouldn’t know.
He held that special position.
Unlike the other busy staff members running around preparing for the quickly approaching debut, he did nothing at all.
He simply ate incessantly and leisurely kept an eye on the situation.
But that very trait made him seem even more extraordinary.
‘Even a parachute has its limits. There’s no way such a person is just an ordinary manager.’
He was perceived as a supervisor sent down from above or a high-level ability user prepared for emergencies.
There was no way anyone could treat him casually.
…In fact, they were simply overwhelmed by his appearance and aura, making it impossible to speak out.
“I’ll let this slide just this once. But if I catch you again, I’ll really do as I said.”
“…Got it.”
Finally, Nahee could do nothing but nod in submission to Yoon Seol’s warning.
There was no way she wanted to land on the bad side of that scary guy just to satisfy a little curiosity.
Yoon Seol retrieved the smartphone and smiled wryly at Nahee, who was pouting.
She thought about how, considering her age, she was still quite childish.
‘They’ve matched us with someone like him because… they expect that trouble will arise once we start our activities.’
Proudly blessed with the grace of Lord Heinz, the members of Lycoris had indeed become stronger than before.
Yet she sighed as she thought of Director Ha’s level, which was beyond her own estimation, even as a Level 6.
Hoping that no significant trouble would emerge, she thought to herself.
And so time passed.
Finally, the day of Lycoris’ debut dawned.
*
“Hmm, is it finally the real start?”
With a sleek back hairstyle, a gruff face like a man, oversized sunglasses, and a black suit ready to burst, Harley softly stroked his chin.
Then he slowly surveyed the stage area right before the debut showcase was set to begin.
It looked like his efforts in shaking things up in the press paid off, as the tightly packed crowd showed the immense interest directed toward Lycoris.
‘Well, it’s not surprising.’
After all, they were the world’s first vampire idol group!
Even while his mind worried about potential risks, something about their alluring charm urged him to see it firsthand, regardless of the danger.
As a celebrity reporter, it would be hard to let go of such a buzzworthy subject for views.
‘Of course, not everyone here came for such noble reasons.’
Harley closed his eyes, enveloping the surrounding area into his realm.
With all senses except vision beginning to wildly bounce around;
‘As expected, it seems like there are more than a few friends who are less than pleased with this event.’
Sitting calmly in the midst of all the hustle, he let out a light chuckle.
But he didn’t physically move.
The vampires of the Blood Alliance, who had thoroughly prepared for this day, swiftly and discreetly eliminated those exhibiting suspicious behavior.
‘Right, the ones claiming to rule the night in Korea shouldn’t fall for such shallow tricks.’
From the middle-aged man loitering around the event venue with a bag containing a bomb, to the woman attempting to infiltrate using the guise of a reporter, to the audience picked by lottery and workers hired for stage preparation.
Those who were either plotting something or were unknowingly used by someone were all detected.
‘Tsk, did vampires face this much hate?’
Harley frowned and clicked his tongue lightly.
The level of each of these attempts was rather low.
They were all swiftly subdued by the observant vampires before they could even execute their plans.
This indicated that no powerful hidden organization was pulling strings but rather, it was their own concocted schemes to interfere with the vampires trying to step into the light.
‘…Could it be because of this?’
Just then, using Machina: Callicas, Hesperon found information ripe for the picking in the sea of data.
While sifting through the internet records of those who had been subdued, they uncovered a secret community.
-To the monsters that suck human blood, eternal death.
-I think it’s time to meet my daughter. Thank you all for the time we spent. As a reward, I’ll take at least one parasite with me.
└It’s a curse.
└I’ll follow soon after.
This was a community for victims who had lost family or friends to vampires.
They were people whose hearts were already completely closed, who looked cynically at whatever the Blood Alliance did.
‘…This is.’
However, the fact was that the reason the Blood Alliance had shifted to a more moderate stance stemmed from Heinz taking power.
Merely a year ago, during the height of hardliners, the vampires of the Blood Alliance were nothing short of terrifying demons.
Yet, what good would it do to tell the victims of that time, “We are different now”?
‘…Unfortunately, there’s nothing I can do about it right away.’
There was no way to negotiate with those whose grudges had built up to the point where they were eating away at their very selves.
At least the silver lining was that no matter how much they struggled, it was all for naught.
It was the same even for those from that community who were awakened.
The Blood Alliance was undeniably the dominating power of the Republic of Korea’s nightlife.
It was highly unlikely that anyone could interfere with an event they were risking their lives to conduct, not even transcendent beings.
‘Just in case of any potential involvement from the Buncheon Society, I’m here too.’
After a smooth start for the showcase,
It was finally time for the debut song to be revealed.
“Is it finally starting?”
Essentially, this was the most critical part of the entire event.
This was the moment they would first present ‘Lycoris’ to the public.
~♪
As beautiful melodies flowed through the venue,
This was a piece crafted with utmost effort by High Elf Harris from the Elven Kingdom and his friends, who even participated in the instrumental performance.
The peak of ‘harmony’ embodied in that music penetrated the hearts of the audience.
“Hmm, this…”
“Wow, I thought it was fantastic just from the teaser, but…”
Emotions began to be pulled in uncontrollably.
It was so sweet and melodious that one would question how it was recorded; one could even call it a heavenly performance.
Following that feeling, consciousness was drawn into the performance.
Then at the moment when the storm-like wave of melody intertwined with the captivating and lethal voice began,
“…!!!”
“…!”
The reporters who had been frantically typing on their keyboards to submit their stories halted.
Those secretly live-tweeting their thoughts on social media froze their fingers, locking their eyes on the stage.
The power of the evident prejudice evaporated from their bodies, leaving an eerie silence behind.
Was this akin to the song of a siren leading sailors to their doom?
The synergy between the elves’ harmonious music and the enchanting vampire voices was enough to completely captivate the minds of Earth’s inhabitants, who had little resistance to such sound waves.
At the same time, the debut song ‘Amaryllis’ by Lycoris was released on music and video platforms.
*
Of course, the reactions to the debut song were explosive.
Even those ready to critique couldn’t bring themselves to utter a single word.
Every indicator shot straight up into the sky.
Fueled by that popularity, Lycoris…
“Look over there, it’s really Lycoris? They’re even prettier in person!”
“Shh! You idiot, please keep your mouth shut! Even the smallest girl there could tear you apart with her bare hands!”
“Gah!”
They had come to the broadcasting station for a public broadcast music show airing nationwide.
“…I won’t tear anyone apart.”
Surrounded by the overly embarrassed gazes, the smallest girl, Nahee, pouted and murmured softly.
Although they might have intended to whisper, not a single person present missed those words.
Like witnessing a feral beast outside of its world, the clear fear woven into those words left the members of Lycoris smiling awkwardly.
“Hahaha! Isn’t this fascinating? I’ve come to see the broadcasting station! Oh? What’s that? It looks interesting!”
Of course, the ever-energetic Director Ha was blissfully unaware.
