The Idol Who Returned from Hell Chapter 123

CENTIX’s fan community was still swaying weakly.

The quick cutting had managed to silence the aggro, but they couldn’t quiet even the people who had witnessed it.

Some ghost accounts flowing in from outside were still stirring up MILLENNIUM’s nerves by rolling around outdated flame bait.

—Why is it especially chaotic today

—I seriously don’t understand why this is such a serious matter that it needs to burn this much?

└Nope, it’s just randoms taking a dump and leaving, no need to react to each one

└I know we shouldn’t feed them but T_T

The MILLENNIUM, who had maintained a cheerful atmosphere until just recently, had perhaps consumed too much energy in the wrong places.

It wasn’t enough to revive this saltily cooled excitement.

Just as the regeneration rate was gradually dropping.

—Oh what, a Stargram post at this hour??

—Gasp, gotta go check it out right away

—Refreshing this page was getting kinda boring but the timing’s good

A notification popped up that a new post had been uploaded to CENTIX’s official Stargram account.

The dried-up MILLENNIUM immediately rushed to Stargram like they’d found an oasis.

What greeted them was Ryu Si-hwan’s selfie.

[official.CENTIX: Even though it’s morning, let’s be bright!]

Morning schedules are always tiring T_T All the members are sleeping soundly behind me haha MILLENNIUM, did you sleep well? The weather’s cloudy but I hope you start your day energetically! Love you♡ Miss you so much!

#CENTIX #CENTIX #Si-hwan #sihwan

—Wait a minute, Leader Ryu took a selfie???

—Hwan-father who always only posted half-body shots or more on the official account, what’s this, is it a bug

└I welcome this kind of bug anytime, damn he’s so handsome

└I can only see light, what are you guys looking at to say he’s handsome

—Ah Si-hwan’s close-up selfie is so good T_T Next time don’t just take two photos, take ten and post them completely filled, got it? ^^

└Scary…

└That’s the kind of eye smile that makes it seem like you’d come with a knife if he doesn’t take them

For some unknown reason, Ryu Si-hwan had virtually never attached selfies to his own photos that went up on CENTIX’s official account.

Even when selfie-like things went up, they were all group selfies taken by other members.

So MILLENNIUM was already startled by this fresh shock alone.

—Wait our kids are going to another schedule?

—Oh right, I just read the caption lol what are they going to film?

—Usually when they film self-content, don’t they borrow the company building or a nearby studio

—If they’re getting in a van and moving at this hour, seems like they’re going pretty far, what could it be

MILLENNIUM, who discovered the word ‘schedule’ in Ryu Si-hwan’s briefly written caption, completely regained their energy.

An idol’s activity period isn’t just about touring music shows.

They also appear on various broadcasts where they can fully display their charm and spread their names widely among the general public.

If it’s a group with outstanding variety sense and skills, it brings even greater effects.

CENTIX had already shown the scale of their impact through 〈Weekly Idol〉.

The existing core fanbase could strengthen their loyalty by watching members who perfectly handled even variety shows.

People who had never known them before came to know the idol called CENTIX through the recognition of major variety programs.

For rookie groups that need to raise their stock value, major variety programs are truly like leaps in growth.

MILLENNIUM, who knew this importance well, were extremely pleased by the news of CENTIX’s additional variety filming.

—Any MILLENNIUM have a sense of which variety it might be?

└First, it probably won’t be WI-related since going on the same thing two weeks in a row would be boring

└Speaking of WI, didn’t the Law of the Jungle production team set their sights on them after seeing Ha-ru’s raw food eating show? LOL

└That might not be bad…… but CENTIX still has a lot of domestic schedules left so they probably can’t go overseas

└What if it’s domestic though?

└Then the story changes but I don’t think it’ll be Law of the Jungle

—Why is everyone only thinking about TV programs, I think they’ll appear on a NeoTube channel this time lol

└Oh I was thinking that too, honestly these days I watch NeoTube more than TV

└Same same

└222

└True, if they properly tear it up on a NeoTube channel with over 1 million subscribers, seems like they’d gain a lot of overseas fans too?

└What are the big idol channels

Among the various speculations flying around, the most appealing was the comment about appearing on a major NeoTube variety show.

The current era’s trend of using phones more than TV. And NeoTube, which had become much more massive than before within that trend, is also a useful platform for idols.

Watching a single 10-20 minute NeoTube video that cuts off cleanly is much less tiring and more accessible than watching a variety show that goes over an hour.

The spatial advantage of being able to watch anytime, anywhere with just a phone also plays a part.

Time passed and Friday arrived.

[(ENG SUB) Is this really a freshly debuted idol? Did they all regress as a group? #Shorts∥Born to Be Idol]

A 1-minute preview video was uploaded to MuLike, a mega music channel with a whopping 1.55 million subscribers.

Born to Be Idol, a NeoTube variety show independently created by MuLike, which holds various music-related promotions.

It’s a self-proclaimed “free-range variety show” that invites famous idol groups and just lets them loose as they are.

True to its title, it provides an unrestricted environment where idols can show off their natural charm to the fullest, with the motto that showing idols’ raw selves is the most interesting.

In short, they minimize scripts and missions to let idols display their inherent appeal without restrictions.

How successful this content was among fans was clearly revealed by the latest video view counts.

—I’ve never deeply followed an idol before CENTIX so this was my first time seeing that, but what’s with those view counts… Why are all the uploaded videos 2-3 million

└Born to Be Idol is one of the fundamental programs lol this is insanely popular, ah I was hoping for this more than WI personally and they’re really appearing

└I heard overseas fans watch this a lot too lol that’s why the view counts are no joke

—Kyaa, we can see CENTIX in their raw state

└Actually wasn’t WI already raw state too? LOL

└That was just the tip of the iceberg

└But for sure if you let these guys loose without any restrictions, they’ll play incredibly well among themselves lmao

—I love that they keep appearing on major variety shows, Hyeong-seok please just keep going like this

└For real for real, please don’t create weird variables and just maintain this state

└Saying that when they fucked up QS so badly makes it hard to expect easily…

└As someone who got on the QS-CENTIX line, if they create a bad ending this time too, I’m gonna find Hyeong-seok and dump shit on him

└Damn screenshot complete

When their wish for appearing on a major NeoTube channel became reality, CENTIX’s fans enjoyed a festive atmosphere to the fullest.

The timing was also extremely appropriate. Next week is CENTIX’s 〈Chronic〉 activity week 3, meaning the optimal timing when all the built-up momentum would mesh together.

MILLENNIUM all had the same thought.

This was a good opportunity to collect more trophies.

Not just getting 1st place on their home base KNet, but if they confidently take over terrestrial broadcasts too, it would truly become a flawless debut album.

However, even the hardcore fans who had been rolling around the idol scene for years didn’t expect CENTIX would grab their first terrestrial 1st place this very week.

* * *

I never thought we’d get 1st place on MBS 〈Show! Music Time〉.

As usual, we finished our stage giving our best and were leisurely waiting for the results announcement.

The moment I heard CENTIX being called with flashy fireworks, I ended up making an even more spaced-out expression than last week.

‘Next week wasn’t even next week, but this week 1st place? Us?’

My head was dazed even while greeting the MC who handed me the trophy with a lively smile.

The 〈Born to Be Idol〉 video probably hasn’t even been uploaded yet.

To come this far with just the firepower of 〈Weekly Idol〉 that aired last week alone…

I recalled the online/real-time text voting scores that briefly flashed by when the points were being revealed one by one.

‘…It was possible after all.’

Of course, our competitor Zefa hadn’t appeared on music shows for several weeks, but from the fans’ perspective, they would have conducted united voting to give us even one more trophy.

Despite those efforts, the fact that our voting score difference was over 2000 points meant, yeah.

It leads to the conclusion that the fandom size supporting CENTIX had grown much larger.

So this is the taste of major broadcasting.

I nodded to the MC asking me to say a few words.

“First, our MILLENNIUM who sent us unchanging support today as well! Thank you so much. We’re always able to stand on stage with bright faces thanks to all of you. And our team leaders and……”

Having done it once, the words flowed smoothly without getting stuck.

I passed the microphone to Ma Si-hyeok next to me and briefly looked at the trophy in my hands.

CENTIX engraved under the transparent body of the trophy, and our debut song 〈Chronic〉.

The terrestrial 1st place that used to seem like just an empty dream has now changed into reality unfolding before my eyes.

“—Every moment feels like a dream, but if this is really a dream, I want to work even harder so it never breaks and climb to even higher places. We’ll be a CENTIX that never loses our original intention, thank you!”

Seong-hwi’s sentiment, as if he had read my mind exactly, reached my ears.

When the encore accompaniment for 〈Chronic〉 started playing, I grinned and waved the trophy at the dozens of MILLENNIUM who had come to the venue.

The deep-seated afterglow that hit me today didn’t disappear until I returned to the dorm.

“Brother Si-hwan, I still can’t believe it. Terrestrial 1st place, is this real?”

“I honestly don’t feel it’s real even while touching the trophy.”

“Come on, come on. Everyone stop shaking your hands. We need to display our trophy up there. Si-hyeok, can you help?”

“I, I’m shaking too much, what if I drop it.”

“You won’t drop it, so just come over quickly.”

Seong-hwi thoroughly comforted Ma Si-hyeok, who looked like his soul had left his body.

When I handed him the trophy, Ma Si-hyeok really started trembling with the momentum to drop the trophy any second.

“Co, co, co, cold.”

“The shelf is just uselessly high so only you can reach it, you brat. Stop shaking.”

“This isn’t something I can control—!”

“Okay, okay. I’ll catch it from below even if you drop it, so don’t worry about anything and just put it up there.”

“……Really?”

If Ma Si-hyeok had adapted to Seong-hwi’s rapid-fire way of talking, Seong-hwi seemed to have mastered how to handle his timid roommate.

After much trouble, CENTIX’s first terrestrial trophy found its place on the top shelf of the living room display case.

Kang Seon-woo, who brought an apple from the kitchen, cheerfully took a bite and patted my shoulder.

“This is why all that hard work felt worthwhile, right?”

“I was happy just with what we got from 〈Music K Showdown〉.”

“But happy?”

I lightly pressed my roommate’s bulging cheek and smiled.

“Getting terrestrial 1st place too makes me happier and more greedy.”

“Hahaha! Ah, when words like ‘greedy’ come out of Ryu Si-hwan’s mouth, the game’s over?”

“There are still two more broadcasts we need to conquer.”

“That’s also true. Want a bite of apple?”

“What kind of context is this.”

Still, since the apple was delicious, I didn’t refuse.

While the members were gathered in the living room enjoying a rare moment of rest.

The sound of the dorm door opening came along with our manager rushing in with ragged breathing.

“Huff, huff, guys, emergency!”

“Yes?”

“Suddenly an emergency?”

“Yeah, emergency! Everyone quickly come over to the next building. Ah, and we need to film K-Live so dress properly!”