"What the hell is taking so long?! Do you people even know who you're dealing with?! This is unacceptable! I demand to speak to your leader—"
The man's ranting stopped the moment he saw Advik Bhardwaj step into the room, followed closely by Sandeep and Leshana.
The room was relatively spacious, a repurposed hotel suite converted into temporary housing. The four members of 9NE5 were sitting on the couch, looking uncomfortable as their manager stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed, an expression of frustration on his face.
The manager was a short, stocky man in his late forties, with neatly combed black hair and an expensive-looking suit that was now wrinkled and stained from weeks of surviving in a collapsed world. His eyes immediately locked onto Advik Bhardwaj.
"You! Who are you? You're just a kid! Are you kidding me?"
Advik Bhardwaj's expression remained neutral as he stepped forward, hands in his pockets. "Advik Bhardwaj. Supreme Commander of this settlement. I was told you wanted to speak with me?"
"Wait—what the heck? Are you joking with me right now?"
Sandeep clenched his fist, feeling the urge to punch him in the face again. "Lower your tone, you are speaking to our Supreme Commander. Any more insulting words coming out from your mouth and I will swear I am going to land a punch on the other side of your face."
"Now now—that's not proper, Sandeep," Advik Bhardwaj said, calming Sandeep down, he waited for a few seconds for silence, and it was granted to him. "If you're done throwing your tantrum, let's get to the point."
The four members of 9NE5 sat stiffly on the couch, clearly uncomfortable with their manager's behavior. One of them, a young woman with shoulder-length brown hair, subtly nudged the manager's arm as if telling him to calm down. He ignored her.
"I've been telling your soldiers—" the manager spat the word as if it disgusted him, "—that we need to get back to Korea immediately! We are not meant to be stuck here. My clients are superstars! Do you have any idea how valuable they are?"
Advik Bhardwaj's expression remained blank. "And?"
The manager blinked, caught off guard. "And you should be prioritizing their evacuation! You have an army, don't you? You have helicopters, planes, tanks for God's sake! You should be doing everything in your power to get us back home!"
"What makes you think that you can order me like that? Don't you realize that we are the ones who rescued you. If it was not for us, you would have been a feast to the zombies. You are all staying here in this complex. There's no safe place in the world other than here. But if you still want to leave, I can let you live, but you'll be on your own. Do you want that?"
One of the 9NE5 members, the young woman with shoulder-length brown hair who had nudged the manager earlier, suddenly stood up. She was visibly distressed, her hands clasped together as she bowed deeply in front of Advik Bhardwaj.
"I-I'm so sorry about our manager!" she said in accented but fluent English. "He doesn't mean to be rude! Please forgive him!"
The other three members quickly followed her lead, standing up and bowing as well.
Advik Bhardwaj sighed, already knowing how this would play out. He recognized them now—9NE5, one of the biggest rising K-pop groups before the outbreak. He had listened to some of their songs before, and while he wasn't a die-hard fan, he knew they had been famous.
Looking at them up close, they truly lived up to their idol status.
The woman who spoke, likely the leader, had a refined beauty with soft brown eyes and a graceful posture.
Next to her, a tall woman with platinum blonde hair and piercing blue eyes had a more mature, commanding presence.
Another member, with dark hair tied up in a stylish bun, looked the youngest and had an elegant, almost doll-like appearance.
The last member had striking jet-black hair with bangs framing her sharp features, giving off a more intense, charismatic aura.
Despite their beauty and grace, it was clear they had suffered in this apocalypse. Their clothes were worn out, their makeup long gone, and there was a weary exhaustion in their eyes that no amount of fame could shield them from.
The manager, seeing his clients bowing and pleading, looked flustered. "W-What are you all doing?! We don't have to beg—"
"Shut up, Mr. Kang!" The leader snapped at him in Korean, her usual polite demeanor cracking for a moment. She then turned back to Advik Bhardwaj, her eyes filled with sincerity.
"We are really grateful that you saved us," she continued. "We will follow whatever rules you set for us. We just… we didn't know what was happening outside, and our manager still thought things were like before."
Advik Bhardwaj observed them carefully. Unlike their manager, they weren't arrogant or demanding. They understood the reality of their situation.
He exhaled, then turned to Sandeep and Leshana. "Well, at least some people here still have common sense."
Sandeep smirked. "About time."
Advik Bhardwaj looked back at them. "I'm not heartless. I understand why you'd want to go back home, but right now, that's impossible. The world as you knew it is gone. The safest place for you is here. Do you understand?"
The leader nodded immediately. "Yes, we do."
"Good." Advik Bhardwaj then glanced at the manager, who had his head down, avoiding eye contact. "And you? You got anything else to say?"
The man hesitated before mumbling, "I… I understand."
Advik Bhardwaj smirked. "Louder."
The manager clenched his fists, swallowing his pride. "I understand."
"Good. I don't want to hear another complaint from you." Advik Bhardwaj turned back to the idols. "As for you four, you'll be treated like any other survivor. That means you'll be assigned housing, rations, and potential work duties if necessary."
"We understand," the blonde one said with a small nod.