Failure wasn't just an option; it was a guillotine hanging over his neck.
Yoo-jin walked back into the small, cramped office of the Special Projects Team, the system's terrifying ultimatum seared into his mind. Failure Penalty: Your 'Star-Maker's Gaze' will be permanently sealed.
The team looked up as he entered. The leftover joy from their victory celebration had faded, replaced by the quiet, nervous energy of what came next. They were waiting for orders. They were waiting for their next impossible mission.
He dropped Jung Sae-ri's tablet on the central table. It landed with a heavy, definitive thud that made everyone flinch.
"We have a new project," Yoo-jin announced, his voice devoid of warmth. This wasn't a time for encouragement. It was a time for war. "Alongside the dual solo debuts, we will be producing the entire original soundtrack for a major motion picture."
Silence.
Then, chaos erupted.
"A movie OST?" Kang Min-hyuk exclaimed, his voice a gruff bark of disbelief. "Are you insane? We barely have the manpower to produce two solo albums. You want to add a dozen more tracks to that workload? We'll be sleeping in the studio."
Go Eun-bi's eyes, however, were wide with a different emotion. "A movie? Whose movie?"
"Jung Sae-ri's," Yoo-jin said simply.
The name dropped like a bomb. Eun-bi gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. Ji-ho, who had been silently observing, finally looked up, his expression a rare mix of shock and intrigue.
Only Hana seemed unimpressed. She was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, a cynical smirk on her face. "So that's it? You set up this grand rivalry between me and Mina, and now you're distracted by a shiny new toy. Is this your plan? To dilute your focus until we both fail?"
Her words were sharp, and they hit their mark. Yoo-jin saw Mina flinch out of the corner of his eye.
He turned his gaze to Mina, and his upgraded skill activated, flooding his mind with painful clarity.
[Name: Choi Mina]
[Emotion: Disappointment]
[Hidden Motivation: Fears being overshadowed again.]
[Dormant Feeling: Affection (Wounded)]
The system's feedback was a punch to the gut. He had just saved her from obscurity, and already, she felt like he was abandoning her.
Hana wasn't done. "Who gets the main title track? I assume you'll give the big opportunity to your precious SSS-Rank discovery. Is that it?"
He looked at Hana, the system dissecting her defiance.
[Name: Lee Hana]
[Emotion: Aggressive Defiance]
[Underlying Emotion: Fear of being sidelined.]
[Hidden Motivation: Demands to be seen as an equal, not a tool.]
They both felt threatened. They both thought he was choosing a project over them. Over their careers.
He had to change the narrative. Immediately.
"You're both wrong," Yoo-jin said, his voice cutting through the tension like a razor. "I'm not choosing the project over you. I'm using the project to make you stronger."
He looked directly at them, one after the other, his gaze hard and unyielding. "You want a war? You want to compete? Fine. Let's raise the stakes."
"The main title track for Jung Sae-ri's film... is now the grand prize," he declared. "Both of you will work with Eun-bi and Ji-ho to create a song. We will produce two complete, master-level demos. And we will present both to the film's director. Whichever song they choose becomes the official title track. The winner gets the glory. The loser's song becomes a B-side on their album."
The office went dead silent again.
This wasn't just a rivalry anymore. He had turned it into a formal, high-stakes duel. He was pitting them against each other for one of the biggest opportunities of their careers. It was ruthless. It was brilliant.
A slow, dangerous smile spread across Hana's face. The fear in her system readouts was replaced by a sharp, thrilling spike of ambition. "Now that sounds interesting. I accept."
Everyone turned to Mina. She was still staring at the table, her hands clenched in her lap. She had the raw talent, the SSS-Rank potential. But did she have the killer instinct to fight Hana head-on in a direct competition?
Slowly, Mina lifted her head. Her eyes met Yoo-jin's. The wounded look was gone, replaced by a flickering ember of defiance he'd first seen when she sang "Monster."
"I accept too," she said, her voice quiet but firm.
Yoo-jin felt a sliver of relief, but the system's quest window floating in his vision was a constant, cold reminder. This wasn't just about their careers. It was about his survival. He was gambling with their dreams to save his own power.
The guilt was a bitter pill, but he swallowed it. He had to win.
"Good," he said, turning to the creative team. "Eun-bi, Ji-ho. You'll split your time. Work with both of them. I want two distinct concepts, two unique sounds. Push them. Min-hyuk, you oversee the technical side for both. I want flawless production."
Eun-bi, still reeling from the news, nodded eagerly. She stepped forward and picked up the tablet. "What's the movie about? What's the title?"
She swiped the screen to unlock it, and the script's title page appeared.
ECHOES OF A MARIONETTE
Eun-bi froze. The tablet slipped from her trembling fingers, clattering onto the table. Her face had gone completely pale.
"Eun-bi?" Min-hyuk asked, concern in his voice.
She looked up at Yoo-jin, her eyes filled with a storm of emotions he couldn't even begin to decipher without his skill. Hope, disbelief, and a deep, soul-crushing dread.
"'Echo'..." she whispered, her voice barely audible. "My song. The one that was rejected 17 times. It was called 'Echo'."
It was a coincidence. It had to be. But in their world of fate and hidden potential, Yoo-jin wasn't so sure. This project felt less like an opportunity and more like a destiny they couldn't escape. It was a chance for Eun-bi to reclaim her masterpiece.
"Then this is your chance to make them regret ever turning it down," Yoo-jin said, his voice softer than before. "This is your redemption."
A fire lit in her eyes. The fear was still there, but now it was fuel.
"Okay," Yoo-jin said, clapping his hands together, the sound sharp and final. "The competition starts now. First, we meet the director. Tomorrow morning. Everyone be ready."
"Who is it?" Hana asked, already back to her cool, calculating self. "Who are we trying to impress?"
Yoo-jin looked down at the tablet, scrolling to the director's name. He read it, and a chill that had nothing to do with his system quest ran down his spine. He knew the name. Everyone in the industry knew the name.
He looked up at his team, at their hopeful, determined, and terrified faces.
"The director," he said slowly, "is Yoon Tae-min."
Min-hyuk's face went white. "Yoon Tae-min? The 'Dream Crusher' Yoon Tae-min? The man who publicly fired three different composers from his last film? The man who is notorious for destroying careers?"
A new, frantic energy filled the room. The impossible mission had just become suicidal. They weren't just competing against each other anymore. They were walking into the lion's den.
And Yoo-jin suddenly realized he hadn't just accepted a challenge from a Muse.
He had just marched his entire found family onto a firing squad.