The Idol Who Returned from Hell Chapter 62

“Oh, you must be a subscriber!”

At first, it felt somewhat strange receiving goods from someone she had never seen before in her life.

But the Ryu Si-hwan slogan that the individual fan operating the [HwanFather] NeoTube channel had given her was such high quality that it made all such thoughts completely disappear.

Song Ji-won kept stroking the smooth velvet material slogan while smiling brightly.

“Did you pay for all this yourself? It’s good enough to sell, you know?”

“Well, since Si-hwan’s face is on it, it would infringe on portrait rights. There are quite a few homemasters who think it’s okay to make goods without permission and sell them using photos they took themselves, so I’m trying my best not to do that kind of thing. Also, it’s only natural to give this level of gift to Si-hwan fans who come to see him in person.”

“Oh my, thank you so much!”

The operator, who appeared to be around her age, kept saying it was nothing while waving her hands.

“So you’ve been a Si-hwan fan since episode 1…?”

“Huh, you too?”

“I was hooked the moment I heard the intro to 〈Spotlights〉!”

The earnest fan talk that followed flowed as naturally as a river.

Song Ji-won was so immersed that she almost completely forgot she had come with companions.

“Gasp, what time is it already—! I actually came with friends.”

“Then you should hurry back to them. If you come to future recordings, check my announcements and come find me! I’ll give you self-made goods each time.”

“Oh, of course! I’ve been really enjoying watching the videos uploaded to your channel too.”

“Hehe, thank you. You’re still keeping up with voting once a day, right?”

Song Ji-won was about to say ‘I’m the person who also sent the All Team Members Designation Rights’ but managed to hold back.

Instead, she laughed heartily while saying she had voted this morning too and bid farewell.

“Sister, why were you so late?”

“Oh, there was an individual Si-hwan fan who runs a NeoTube channel…”

While Song Ji-won was explaining the whole story to Kang Eun-young, the familiar sound came along with all the stage lights going out at once.

Having reached the 3rd team battle by now, this signal meant only one thing.

“Hello, national managers!”

“Kyaaaah!”

“Sister, you’re so pretty today too!”

Countless pterodactyls launched screams toward Go Hyeon-ju, who walked out from backstage wearing a bright smile.

Go Hyeon-ju, the MC, boasted tremendous popularity that rivaled any of the participants in 〈Idol Stove League Season 2〉.

Already a promising actress gaining momentum, this one MC career had launched her even further.

“〈Idol Stove League Season 2〉 has passed the halfway point of its grand journey and is now rushing toward the second half race. Today is the 3rd team battle day. Everyone, are you ready to witness the results of the stages mixed with the trainees’ blood and sweat?”

“Yessssss—!”

“What great energy! Now, before the main stages, I should explain today’s stage concept and voting method.”

Upon hearing those words, all the audience members tightly gripped the remotes hanging around their necks.

Once again, the trainees’ fates would be determined by their choices.

“The 3rd team battle concept is 〈Showcase〉. If the trainees debut, this concept is meant to capture the feeling of how they might appear before you national managers. A total of 5 active composers directly produced songs that were given to each team. The genres are diverse and the identities are all different, so please look forward to them!”

“Now you need to tell us the important part, MC.”

A classmate who liked Seong-hwi muttered quietly from behind.

“This 3rd team battle voting will also be conducted with dual selection. You vote once for the team you think did the best. Here’s the important part. Even if it’s not the team you chose, you can select a total of 3 trainees who you think did the best overall on today’s stages.”

Not just one, but three?

And you can pick from other teams besides the one you thought did well?

“…This could either turn into complete chaos or lean completely one-sided.”

“Or maybe it’s purely giving individual fans a chance. So that even if their favorite messed up the stage, they could survive through individual voting.”

“Wouldn’t this actually make the team voting benefits more concentrated?”

“Well… I need to know what those production bastards are thinking to figure out what to do.”

Not just Song Ji-won’s group of four, but people throughout the audience were seen scratching their heads.

The main stages hadn’t even started yet but their heads were already throbbing.

As if this scene of agony pleased her greatly, MC Go Hyeon-ju showed a beautiful smile and raised her right arm upward.

“Then let’s start the stages right away! The first team is with Korea’s top hip-hop artist and composer…”

And once again, endless waiting arrived.

Though she couldn’t know what principle determined the trainees’ order, the 〈ISL 2〉 production team, who loved exploiting people’s interest, would likely push Ryu Si-hwan’s team as far back as possible again.

Song Ji-won tried to keep her heart as cold as possible while waiting for the first team’s stage to end.

This team, which had been assigned a hip-hop genre song, wasn’t bad either. No major mistakes were visible and their harmony came together quite well.

“Obviously they’ll come out last again…”

“Huh, sister? I see something over there!”

“What?”

When the trainees were bowing their heads and leaving the stage, Kang Eun-young, who had brought binoculars, looked toward the opposite staircase and spoke urgently.

“S-silver hair! I see silver hair!”

“If it’s silver hair, it can only be Kang Seon-woo—.”

“B-behind him! I can even see Hwi behind him!”

“What? Hwi’s coming out already?”

The moment a classmate who was a Seong-hwi fan covered her mouth and screamed.

“Next team! Please give a big round of applause to welcome the 7 trainees who prepared their stage with composer Kang Hae-soo’s 〈Winning Shot〉!”

Song Ji-won was slightly dumbfounded seeing Ryu Si-hwan’s name briefly appear on the big screen.

It seemed they had really utilized the ‘All Team Members Designation Rights’ she had sponsored quite efficiently.

The team composition had a large concentration of top-tier trainees.

But even this amazing lineup couldn’t erase the doubt in Song Ji-won’s head.

‘What is this completely meaningless order?’

She felt like she had been completely played by the production team’s schemes.

To put such an insane team in this completely mediocre position that’s neither opening nor ending!

First, escaping from the initial shock, she quickly scanned their outfits before the entire stage went dark.

Leather riding jackets.

Red bandanas.

Black blazers with ripped jeans.

Baggy white shirts.

‘Looking at just the outfits, it’s a coexistence of street and hip vibes.’

Composer Kang Hae-soo’s name was quite familiar too.

She wondered what kind of song had fallen into Ryu Si-hwan’s hands.

The last lights went completely out and the trainees stopped in their respective positions.

The moment Song Ji-won’s heart felt like it couldn’t hold back any longer.

Powerful moombahton sound began bursting from the speakers like a siren.

Then all members except the trainee guarding the center knelt down as if worshipping a god.

「Welcome to the Showdown」

Chae Ha-ru, who had been fixing his parted hair with a headband since the 1st team battle.

This time he used a rebellious red bandana to even capture the point color.

Around the eyes of this person who had always looked like a wistful male protagonist from a pure romance manga, dark eyeshadow was applied.

「Even though we might lose

We aren’t giving up」

The moombahton sound that struck the eardrums hard from the intro seemed to intensify even more with Chae Ha-ru’s gestures.

It wasn’t just the sound waves coming through the speakers that were alive and moving.

Every time the moombahton bass resonated, the trainees who had been kneeling stood up on both feet with fierce eyes.

When Ryu Si-hwan, positioned right to Chae Ha-ru’s left, roughly shook off the black blazer he was wearing, Song Ji-won wanted to scream internally.

「Take my Winning Shot」

The moment Chae Ha-ru, who appeared to occupy the center position, delivered the last English line, a different feeling beat was added over the moombahton bass.

It definitely sounded like ordinary house bass, but it had more techno-like sensibility and the tempo was much faster.

And following that rough rhythm, the trainees who had completely straightened their postures began literally flying around the stage.

‘A dance break from the very beginning?’

It was so intense that Song Ji-won, who was just watching, felt like it was harder to breathe.

The fact that the song hadn’t even entered the first verse yet was even more shocking.

「Okay, now I’ve come toward the end

This moment when my heart beats becomes enjoyable」

Ryu Si-hwan’s voice, hitting the exact beat without a single disruption, completely erased that shock.

Really, could there be a more perfect opening fairy than this?

Immediately the triangular formation split into a straight line as Ha Sang-hun, who had been in the middle, fluttered his leather jacket and walked forward.

「Even if my wounds increase one by one

My body grows even hotter

But my two eyes that have grown cold only look straight ahead」

The bass beat that had been hitting continuously subsided, and in its place brass synthesizer sounds filled the space.

As the weight lightened and the melody made them feel like their bodies were soaring upward, Yu Ha-woon crossed the stage with foot steps from the end of the straight line formation.

「Now, it’s time for destiny

One last shot, it’s the final chance

Put your hands on your waist and get set!」

While Yu Ha-woon drew all attention from the front, the main group’s formation changed again.

Now in a perfect triangle formation, Seong-hwi gathered both hands in turn to match the beat.

With his left arm, the left team members stretched their bodies long.

With his right arm, the right team members moved along.

Along with the energy-gathering motion, Seong-hwi made his trademark maniacal smile while preparing to fire his gun.

「Ready, Halt, Fire」

Bang!

With the sound of a real bullet being fired from a gun, the chorus struck their hearts.

The magnificent melody created by all seven voices together captured everyone’s minds like a black hole.

「I won’t die, I won’t back down

cause this is my Winning Shot

I’m not afraid, I won’t give up

Because this chance will never come again」

But even within this mixed sound, there was one voice that uniquely pierced through and lingered in Song Ji-won’s ears.

At a glance, while performing this insanely difficult choreography, Ryu Si-hwan was building harmonies an octave higher than the others.

‘Really Si-hwan, are you even human?’

When the intense impact chorus section ended, the beat weakened again, leaving only the basic bass line going thump-thump-thump.

「No matter how much you curse me, nothing changes

I only walk straight, only look far

I advance only on the predetermined path to victory

Pain? Huh, that’s nothing

Failure? That’s not scary either

Grit your teeth and run, run, run!」

Kang Seon-woo’s low voice.

He delivered rap that stuck in their heads from the front of the formation scattered in an X shape.

Following that beat, the X formation’s axis led by Kang Seon-woo moved forward.

「Only do what’s right

Following my heart

I only believe in myself

Wherever I go becomes the path

No matter how much they say no, I won’t fall

Stand up tall, cause we are one!」

The opposite axis also moved forward following Ma Si-hyeok’s rap.

The tremendous destructive power provided by his basic physique made the audience automatically open their mouths.

As soon as they met with the other axis that had already positioned forward, the trainees led by Ma Si-hyeok smoothly switched positions while creating a straight diagonal line.

And at the end of that line, main vocalist Ryu Si-hwan showed off his overwhelming vocal power while slowly advancing.

「Even if my body breaks down, I move forward

Burning all the passion that remains

Because this pain will soon end too」

While advancing to the very front of the stage, Ryu Si-hwan had very brief interactions with the members he passed.

Like the high-five he shared with Chae Ha-ru or lightly tapping Kang Seon-woo’s shoulder as he passed.

When he finally reached Ma Si-hyeok’s turn.

「Now I’m facing destiny

Face to Face!」

Ryu Si-hwan strongly grabbed Ma Si-hyeok’s baggy shirt and crossed with him.

Right then, the camera director’s footage being transmitted to the large LED panel behind the stage captured their faces in close-up.

The moment Ryu Si-hwan grabbed Ma Si-hyeok’s shirt, the two top buttons of the tightly closed dress shirt ripped off with a pop-pop-pop.

Through the gap where the buttons came undone, Ma Si-hyeok’s sturdy shoulder line and collarbone briefly passed by.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

Song Ji-won couldn’t suppress her internal exclamation after seeing that scene with her own two eyes.

For a moment she worried if she had screamed too loudly.

“Si-hyeooook!”

“Huheuk!”

“Heooooh!”

The screams bursting from around her proved she wasn’t the only one who almost got a nosebleed.

The second verse passed and the chorus came once more, with the song’s atmosphere soaring even higher toward the sky.

Now she could clearly see the trainees’ faces, thoroughly soaked with sweat, even from below the stage.

She wanted to keep applauding the fact that they were still doing live vocals amidst this hellish choreography, but it wasn’t time yet.

「Erase memories of defeat

The canary in the cage was freed long ago」

Following Seong-hwi’s lead as he burst to the center, the team members showing heavenly harmony moved like a single organism.

Following the synthesizer’s humming, the moment they quickly fell into a triangular formation.

The moombahton drum beat rolled thump-thump-thump.

At the perfectly timed moment, like riding a wave, the 7 trainees simultaneously rolled their arms while arching their backs.

The national managers responded with heated cheers to the thrilling perfect group dance.

「Break it up, Burn it up

Until all breath burns away

Burn everything, break everything

Get, Set, Halt, and Fire!」

Ryu Si-hwan, rising majestically from the center of the triangle, thrust both hands forward while making the motion of firing dual pistols.

At the same time, high notes that could pierce through the studio ceiling burst from his highly excited throat.

Song Ji-won felt the sensation of hair standing up all over her body.

She had never been electrocuted, but this must be what that feeling would be like.

Could those really be the vocal cords of someone who had lived as an ordinary person until 〈ISL 2〉?

「I won’t die, I won’t back down

cause this is my Winning Shot

I’m not afraid, I won’t give up

Because this chance will never come again」

Brilliant catharsis ran wild on the stage rushing toward its climax.

The lighting devices split into hundreds of colors flickered more gorgeously than ever.

As if they had resolved to burn everything and finish the song just like the lyrics said, the seven trainees raised their pitch even higher and sang passionately.

The movement lines, which were hard to follow even with a clear mind, changed for the last time.

Maintaining the triangular formation that had appeared when the stage first started, center Chae Ha-ru took position for the finale.

Brushing his bangs over the bandana that had become disheveled from the intense choreography, he recited in a mid-low voice.

「Ready, Halt, Fire」

The final gunshot split the air above, and the seven warriors who had literally shattered the stage flicked their two fingers upward like firing pistols.

The national managers, whose hearts had been properly pierced by that gunfire, responded with voices 10 times louder than any cheers they had made so far.

“Waaaahhhhh—!”

“This is insane, the best!”

“Kyaaaahhhhh!”

And Song Ji-won, standing in the middle of this frenzied scene, beat her chest while crying out like she was wailing.

“I! I created this stage! You guys! This is me!”

“Sister, your judgment was really amazing! Totally amazing!”

“Ji-won, how fortunate that you didn’t listen to this fool! Wow, really! How does a stage like that even come out, seriously!”

“I! I gave birth to these kids with my heart!”

Song Ji-won watched the trainees greeting the fans as they went down from the stage, despite being exhausted.

Especially among them, Ryu Si-hwan sparkled more than any jewel in the world.