"Let's take a short break."
Dyrk said as he turned his attention away from the cameras.
The other teams moved away from their seats, nearing their managers as they took a break themselves.
The same was true for the members of Blue Daisy as they approached me.
"So, ehm..."
"Save it for later."
I shut Mia up before she could speak any further and handed each girl a water bottle.
Gulping down the water, Joana suddenly looked around us and nudged with her chin.
"I think we stood out a little too much. Everyone is staring our way."
"Don't bother with them."
"Well, I'm not particularly bothered, but it's not like I can ignore it when they are looking at us like that."
"If you don't like these types of stares, then next time, don't stand out so much."
"That's not possible."
"Then get used to it."
I had noticed it mid-way through the first half of the interview, but as the situation progressed, the gazes at which the managers from the other groups stared at me seemed less than friendly.
Not that I couldn't understand their sentiments. The girls were, after all, taking away all the attention from the other groups and directing it toward themselves with their antics.
The way the other groups looked at us made sense.
But...
"Keep doing what you're doing."
I wasn't going to let them have any of the attention back. I wanted the girls to be the focal point of the interview.
That way, they'd benefit the most from it.
"When you mean keep at it, do you mean...?"
Joana cast me a hesitant glance.
I nodded.
"Yes, keep being yourselves. Well... so long as you girls don't overdo it."
Their normal behavior was attracting a lot of attention. So long as they didn't cross any lines, which they knew better since Dean had lectured them the entire morning, they could do as they pleased.
"Well, you should've said so from the start."
Energetic, Olivia passed her water bottle back to me and stretched her fingers. Her gaze slowly settled over to Mia who visibly flinched under her gaze.
"I've got a little bone to pick with a certain someone~"
"What? What? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"You know exactly why I'm looking at you like this."
"No, but... I was just getting revenge."
"And that's fine... that's totally fine. You can do that. No problem."
"Then..."
"I only held back because of the manager. Now that I can act however I please..."
Nope, never said that.
"Heik!"
Shrinking under Olivia's gaze, Mia hurriedly ran toward me and hid behind my back.
"M,manager. Tell her to stop. My.. reputation. I can't have it destroyed before I can even build it up..."
"Don't worry about that."
Olivia grinned, seemingly taking pleasure in the situation.
"I'll make it so that you can never build it. That way, none of us will be harmed by it falling."
"Manager!"
Mia clung to my back, her face next to my hip. I tried to push her away, but she clung to me like some sort of octopus.
"Mia, let go. Everyone's looking..."
"No! If I go down, you'll go down with me."
"No, why... How does that even make sense?"
"I don't care! We're both in it together. I die, you di—Hiek! Sarah! What are you doing!"
Like a ghost, Sarah appeared next to Mia and poked her on the side of her ribs, forcing her to let go with a small shriek.
When did she get here...?
I hadn't even noticed her before she suddenly appeared beside Mia.
In any case.
"Thanks."
I thanked her, and she returned a nod. Then, with a flat expression that failed to hide the expectation hidden within, she asked,
"Was it good?"
"...What was?"
"The candy."
Ah.
So it was about that.
Her gaze trailed to the side, and she again, asked.
"...Was it good?"
"Ah. Well..."
Should I tell her it was a little too sweet for my taste?
In the end, I chose against it and nodded.
"It was good."
With a casual nod, she walked back to the other girls. As she turned, just then, I swore noticed the faintest of smiles spreading across her lips.
But it was hard to tell as it disappeared within moments.
Was I imagining things?
***
"Let's make some changes to the program."
Jack Bannali said all of a sudden. As the main writer and planner of the show, it was well within his authority to be able to make changes to the show on a whim.
Typically, sudden changes would prompt the team and the staff to panic, but that wasn't the case today.
Simply put, they all understood the reasoning behind his actions.
"Blue Daisy. They're quite fun, aren't they?"
Dyrk said as he took a sip of his water bottle.
"Fun? Just that...?"
Jack let out a small laugh.
"They were more than that! They were everything that I needed them to be, and then some."
"You're not wrong. They were quite easy to work with even for me."
"I could see. Unlike the other teams that forced banter, it seemed to come flawlessly with them."
Holding no expectations for Blue Daisy, the two of them were pleasantly surprised with what they witnessed. At first, they just wanted to introduce them and ask them about their viral clip and how they felt about it.
But things were different now. The girls had captured the attention of everyone in the studio with their witty, and funny answers.
Their chemistry was obvious for all to see.
Dyrk thought the same as he laughed brightly.
"Hahaha. Those girls. They probably didn't even mean to be funny. What we saw, is what they are. There's no fakeness in them, unlike some of the other groups."
"Yeah. That's probably it."
With a nod, Jack Bannali suddenly turned his head to face a certain direction and laughed.
"No, it isn't probably. It's exactly how they are."
"Oh? Where are you looking at?"
Curious, Dyrk looked at where Jack Bannali was looking, and then he caught sight of them. Recognizing Mia, and Olivia, he saw them run around their manager who looked around helplessly. Dyrk too let out a small laugh.
"You know it's genuine when they act like this even without the cameras on them."
"Mhm. Their manager isn't too bad too. He's got quite the chemistry with the girls."
"Oh? Is that so? I did notice it briefly when he was brought in by the girls."
"Yeah... Hmm."
Jack Bannali caressed his chin as he pondered. Then, casting a glance toward one of the cameramen, he ordered.
"Hey, have one camera directed his way."
"Excuse me?"
"Make sure you keep the camera focused on him and record his reactions."
"Oh. Oh. Yes, understood."
Though flustered by the sudden orders, the cameraman shifted the camera angle and directed it toward Blue Daisy's manager.
"Make sure you keep recording him the entire time. Take in all his reactions."
"Understood."
"Good."
"Do you have something prepared?"
Dyrk curiously asked, glancing at the camera and the manager in the distance.
Jack nodded his head, a smile tugging at his lips.
"You'll see later."
Dyrk's eyebrow arched upward.
"I'm starting to grow curious now."
***
The break lasted no more than fifteen minutes before the program started again.
But there was an evident change in the program compared to the first half. Unlike before, where the spotlight was on all the groups, it now leaned more towards the girls. They didn't even try to hide it as they blatantly kept their focus on them.
The focus was now directed toward Lyla as Dyrk started asking her questions.
"Lyla, you just turned eight, is that correct?"
"Um."
Lyla nodded, her large eyes blinking slowly.
"You're quite young for being a Tier 1 Star Chaser. You must be quite talented, then... Can you tell me what it's like living with your sisters?"
I flinched at the question, and so did the girls.
"About that... Can we change the question?"
Joana suddenly interjected. Mia hurriedly nodded her head beside her, casting a wary glance in my direction.
I waved my hand at the girls and placed both hands on my throat to signal them to change the topic quickly.
'Shift the focus away. Quickly!'
"Yes. Yes. Let's change the question. Lyla is quite shy so it's best if we don't involve her."
"Hm?"
Their odd reactions were taken in by Dyrk, who seemed even more eager.
"...Lyla, you don't have to worry. Talk."
"No... It's fin—"
"No freedom. No human right."
Smack.
My forehead stung as I smacked it.
'I knew this was going to happen...'
We had even tried to make a deal with her earlier, promising to return the TV if she behaved today. However, it seemed the deep-seated resentment she harbored was too big.
Worried that her words may have caused some misunderstanding, I glanced at Dyrk, but the moment it did, my worries subsided as his lips curled upward in amusement. The same went for the writer and cameramen around us.
"Oh? No freedom? No human right? What happened? If you have anything that you want to share with us, now is the time for you to let the world know."
"Hahaha, she was joking. Joking."
Mia hurriedly covered Lyla's mouth as she struggled in her grasp.
"Ouch!"
In the end, all it took was a single bite from her to force Mia to let go. With a frown covering her delicate features, Lyla crossed her arms while arrogantly looking around her.
"...They took away my freedom. My rights. My beliefs. My identity."
'Someone stop her!'
'We're trying!'
'Not good enough!'
I conversed with the girls using hand signals, but none of them managed to stop Lyla who continued her rant.
"Made me sell my soul to the devil."
In the end, we all just gave up.
"Is that true?"
"No."
Joana shook her head.
"All we did was take her TV rights because she spent too much time watching Justice Man. She now sees all of us as some sort of supervillains."
"Pft."
Unusual sounds echoed from the backstage area as some of the cameramen struggled to stifle their laughter.
"H,ho? I,s that so?"
Even Dyrk was struggling to keep his face composed as his gaze hovered over Lyla who shook her head.
"No. They lie."
"Lyla..."
"Hmph!"
'See what I'll do with you when we get back.'
I could already imagine the earful that I was going to receive from Dean the moment the interview was going to be aired.
"I'm sure things are rough for you Lyla. You have our sympathies."
Nod.
"I accept."
"...W,well. Let's move on to the next group.
Stifling his laugh once more, Dyrk flipped his card over and finally directed his attention toward another group. He started asking them questions to which they responded rather well, and professionally.
Then, he shifted toward another group and asked them different questions before eventually returning to the girls.
"Ho, ho. We're finally back with you."
He flipped one of the cards away, at which point his hand paused. The corner of his lips curled, and I suddenly felt an ominous premonition.
"...If you had to describe your manager in one word, what would it be?"
The studio went quiet all of a sudden and I felt multiple gazes directed my way. I turned to match those gazes, and pointed at them in warning, 'Don't do anything funny.'
But my warning seemed to have fallen on deaf ears as smiles bloomed on the girls's faces. Even Sarah seemed to enjoy this as her back straightened.
"Tyrant."
Lyla started.
"Oh, that's a good one."
Mia nodded beside her.
No, that's...
"Since it's used, I'll go for Dictator."
...?
"Not a bad choice. Since I can't swear, I'll go for Oppressor."
What...?
I rigidly turned my head to meet Joana's gaze. Pressing her hands together, she mouthed, 'Sorry, but I'm just going to play along.'
"No, don't—"
"Demon."
'I give up.'
The girls had already made their minds up to play along with Lyla's antics. There was no point in threatening them.
I thought it was going to end with all the girls calling me a demon in one form or another, but things took an unexpected turn when Sarah's voice chimed in, and I paused.
"Cool."
I abruptly raised my head to see Sarah sitting comfortably in her chair before repeating.
"Manager... He's cool."