The Idol Who Returned from Hell Chapter 67

“Hmm…….”

At first, she hadn’t intended to settle down like this.

For the homma, 〈Idol Stove League Season 2〉 was just a means to grow her NeoTube channel.

However, she was painfully realizing that such an early judgment had been extremely naive.

She hadn’t known that Ryu Si-hwan, whom she intended to use as a means, would wield this level of influence.

The homma was waiting for the video titled [Ryu Si-hwan Episode 9 Moments] to finish encoding.

The video itself was cleanly completed. Her skills had naturally improved from continuously using editing programs.

But the reason the homma wore a far from satisfied expression had a lot to do with the video’s length.

3 minutes and 14 seconds.

This was the amount of footage that came out after cutting and pasting Ryu Si-hwan’s scenes that appeared in episode 9.

There were quite a few useful sources like the Punch King selection filmed for variety purposes and the sudden Avengers team formation scene.

But it meant there weren’t many situations where Ryu Si-hwan appeared for particularly long stretches.

—Ugh, somehow this episode felt tasty yet tasteless at the same time T_T

—Honestly, we can’t expect abundant screen time every episode…… we have to accept this

—Guys, this is a common pattern, you know? Practice narratives all get released when it’s time for stage videos, it’s been the same every time

└But going toward the latter half makes people more impatient

└For real, for real, that’s exactly how I feel. Should I say I’m getting nervous for no reason? I’m sure my kid is doing well, but I’m worried he might slip up at the end

A faint sense of anxiety was forming among Ryu Si-hwan’s individual fans who hung out on the homma’s website due to this latter-half episode screen time.

Evidence of such behavior had already appeared quite a bit in public.

This was precisely because during 〈ISL Season 1〉, a trainee who had been popular enough to hit first place until the second ranking announcement ended up dropping out due to lack of momentum.

Of course, it wasn’t that the trainee’s skills had drastically decreased or that he caused problems.

It was simply because fans had become complacent.

It was a result of being overconfident that someone flying so high could never drop out.

Recalling that there had been many observations that the trainee’s individual screen time had clearly decreased compared to before after taking first place, the anxiety felt by Ryu Si-hwan’s individual fans was far from strange.

Therefore, episode 10’s content would play an even more important role.

The homma brought up the photo editing program she had minimized at the bottom of the screen.

Several fancam shots of 〈3rd Stage Ryu Si-hwan〉 that were in the middle of editing work appeared.

‘He showed this much. Common sense says good editing has to come out.’

Unlike the fans residing on her website, the homma wasn’t doing any extreme worrying.

After all, she was in the position of having directly seen this live stage with her own eyes.

She could still vividly remember the audience’s insane response and enthusiasm that could be felt at that scene.

If that completed main stage was combined with appropriate practice narratives……

They could smoothly advance to the final round.

As always, the wait until episode 10 started was very difficult.

But thinking about the numerous amounts of Ryu Si-hwan screen time that would be recorded on her computer today, the homma maintained a comfortable mindset.

Then the promised 11 PM arrived.

“I hope they produce editing that properly captures the live atmosphere.”

Listening to the BGM of 〈HIT〉, which she wouldn’t hear for many more days, she muttered a brief wish.

On her fully set up tablet PC, newly generated community posts and 〈ISL 2〉 website live talk were appearing non-stop.

Everything was similar content, giving the feeling of cells undergoing mitosis.

—Can I just eat dinner and come back in an hour? They probably shoved our kids at the very end again ^_^

└What dinner, sir? You could take a nap and come back and they still wouldn’t be out lol

└Ugh, for real, these damn KNet bastards. I want to not watch them, but they’ve properly taken hostages so there’s nothing I can do

—They definitely said Avengers was second at the scene, right?? Seriously, they’re going to keep aging it until it becomes kimchi lol

└—Fermentation Complete—

└LOL, seriously. We all know they’re going to show it at the end anyway, so they could have just pushed the order back too and had a clean closing, dammit KNet

└As someone who went to the live recording, I couldn’t understand putting that legendary stage second instead of last……

└Actually, doesn’t this mean they didn’t rig anything? Looking at how they’ve determined order so far, it’s all been random. If Si-hwan’s team came out last exactly, it might feel like they’re deliberately pushing them

└That’s also true…… So they’re draining our souls while at least maintaining their conscience, is that it, KNet

└Right, at least it’s better than rigging lol

└For real, for real

—I don’t really want to give them credit for this editing lol. It’s too malicious with the obvious intent. They deliberately put the process of deciding members to show today into last week, advertising like ‘This is how the members will turn out!’ lol

└What can we do…… If I were a PD, I would have decided to suck every drop of sweetness out of such a combination

└No matter how much we curse the production team, nothing will change. We just have to think that since they’ve used it this much, they’ll give abundant screen time and editing

└The comment above is right. The kids already did amazingly on stage lol. We just need to trust and wait

The appearance of Ryu Si-hwan that many had pointed out was indeed continuously pushed back.

All 7 members belonging to the 〈Winning Shot〉 team had powerful individual fandoms, so without considerable quality, people’s attention and focus couldn’t be drawn away from that topic.

Sure enough, the 2 stages that came out earlier were very bland in terms of flavor.

The homma started running her recording program while watching people clamoring ‘Please show them now!’

They’ll come out soon.

When the national managers’ rationality had reached its limit.

[The ‘All Team Members Designation Rights’ that symbolizes the sponsorship store’s renewal]

[The protagonist who gained that glory is none other]

[Ryu Si-hwan) ……In my head, I was just thinking ‘no way?’ But the MC next to me told me that item had been given to me. I was wondering what this was about…… haha.]

—Ahhh Si-hwan, I really missed seeing you T_T T_T

—Can I stop holding my breath now? Can I breathe now?

—Didn’t someone say they were going to sleep earlier lol. Wake up quickly

└That person is me, thank you, I woke up safely

└Damn, you should have stayed asleep

└Yeah, I set 10 alarms in a row ㅗ^^ㅗ

Finally, the long-awaited practice process of the 〈Winning Shot〉 team hit the airwaves.

Ryu Si-hwan, who gathered the members with eyes half calm and half troubled, conducted his individual interview with a slightly awkward expression.

[Ryu Si-hwan) I really didn’t think about rankings or anything when I chose. But after gathering them and looking, everyone was so high-ranked.]

[Production team) Then what did you look at when choosing team members?]

[Ryu Si-hwan) Before the final round, this is our last chance to show our value. I thought that above all, the members’ chemistry had to match well to make a good stage, so I chose focusing on people I’d worked with before as much as possible.]

[(Satisfied nodding)]

As Ryu Si-hwan said, since they were members who already knew each other well, a harmonious atmosphere was naturally created from the beginning.

Then another big name appeared and drew attention.

[Finally! Finally, my boys have come!]

[Huh?]

[Now, let’s create a masterpiece together!]

[Huh?]

Kang Hae-soo, who composed major songs for X2 Entertainment.

The trainees’ expressions, blinking their eyes at his aggressive behavior, were captured in very funny close-ups.

—My head is so dizzy

└LOL. Composer Kang Hae-soo has always had that concept, he appears on variety shows often too

└The kids’ confused expressions are so cute lmao

—I already got a meme (Yu Ha-woon going ‘huh?’ meme)

└No, everyone else is making weird faces being shocked, but Kang Seon-woo in the back is laughing alone LOL. Look at his crumpled face (Kang Seon-woo meme crumpled like a mask)

└Seon-woo, please lmao. You need to be an idol, if you want to laugh just laugh normally instead of holding it in and making weird memes T_T

└Wow, you caught that, amazing eagle eyes

└Actually I’m a Seon-woo stan so I was only watching Seon-woo, but it was so shocking and funny that I brought it

Following Kang Hae-soo, choreographer Shin Jae-hoon also showed his face, making the producer lineup truly Avengers-level to match.

Of course, Shin Jae-hoon smiling like a devil upon seeing the trainees he’d be in charge of was quite scary.

—Did anyone else see Shin Jae-hoon just now licking his lips LOL

└I don’t think he made that scary of an expression, but they edited it like some otherworldly final boss LMAO. I’m going crazy

└I’m already scared…… What kind of choreography will unleashed Jae-hoon make……

└People who went to the live recording said the kids were flying around on stage

└This wasn’t an idol training league? Why does it suddenly feel like Shaolin Soccer?

As if responding to the national managers’ fear and terror, Shin Jae-hoon showed extremely difficult choreography directly in the practice room.

The 〈Winning Shot〉 team members could only send blank stares again toward him, who was happily going wild as if all the choreography that had appeared so far didn’t satisfy him.

[Never has our Jae-hoon looked so happy]

[Is this really the same person who always made expressions like this (frowning while watching stages) or said things like this (scenes of harsh criticism)?]

[Shin Jae-hoon) I was so happy. I don’t usually say things like this, you know. But when kids who could perform the choreography I gritted my teeth to create entered this room, I was truly happy.]

—Someone bring that emotion analysis thing. In my opinion, Teacher Jae-hoon’s happiness level is maxed out right now

—If it were me, I would have already given up and made a fuss during that opening dance break…… What even is that

—Something’s weird lol. Why can’t I see any scenes where feet are touching the ground even 30 seconds after the song starts?

Despite the difficulty level that made all viewers stick out their tongues, the trainees didn’t yield at all.

Instead, scenes of them checking the brutal choreography level and burning with flames of determination were inserted in large numbers.

[Guys, we can do this. It’s fully possible.]

[First, overall choreography familiarity seems important, so Hwi and I will learn the basic movements first.]

[Since the work won’t finish quickly, should we practice vocals first while Si-hyeok and Hwi learn the choreography?]

The 〈Winning Shot〉 team members sweated regardless of day or night.

When scenes of them even exercising from dawn to build stamina for live performance appeared, the community started going wild.

—Kids, really stop working so hard. Watching this, grandma’s heart is tearing more T_T

—Wait, so their daily schedule is waking up at 6 AM, exercising for over an hour, eating breakfast and starting morning practice right away, eating lunch at 12 and practicing again, eating dinner and practicing again? Until 3 AM? Are they crazy?? Seriously???

└Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest? Don’t they rest?

└The comment is insane lol

└Wow, I never thought I’d feel doubt about life while watching an idol program…… Ha-ru, I’ll live diligently starting today too

The homma was also emotionally invested while watching episode 10, not having known such effort had gone into it.

Seeing Ryu Si-hwan, who had become her unwavering favorite, wearing the leader sticker and earnestly directing team members made her feel full to bursting.

And when she actually checked how much recording time had passed.

‘What, it’s already been almost 20 minutes?’

Ryu Si-hwan’s screen time in episode 10 was also abundantly satisfying.

She hadn’t even imagined they’d push the narrative this much when the main stage video hadn’t even appeared yet.

Moreover, it wasn’t useless variety content but narrative filled with ‘desperation’ that any survival program superfan would definitely go crazy devouring.

Just when everything was unfolding as she wished.

The 〈Winning Shot〉 stage officially began.