“This…”
Is this guy completely out of his mind?
Yoo Sung tightened his grip on my collar.
I grabbed Yoo Sung’s wrist in return, but he was so strong that it didn’t budge.
“Answer me.”
“Keugh…”
No, how am I supposed to talk when I can’t even breathe?
Whether he read the look of dissatisfaction in my eyes, Yoo Sung loosened his grip slightly.
“Cough, cough!”
The moment my airway cleared, a burst of coughing erupted.
Yoo Sung glared at me without saying a word.
Rolling my eyes to look around, I let out a dry laugh.
‘Right, there are no cameras in the bathroom.’
The scene of Yoo Sung grabbing me by the collar probably wouldn’t make it to the broadcast.
However…
“Are, cough… are you okay?”
I forced down the coughs rising in my throat and spoke.
Yoo Sung’s grip tightened again.
“Don’t even think about changing the sub—”
“Probably not.”
I pointed a finger at my mouth and the camera outside the bathroom, speaking quietly.
“You might… cgh… not know this well. But camera microphones are really good these days…”
Yoo Sung probably thought it was fine since he wasn’t wearing a microphone on his clothes.
But like I said, camera microphones these days are so good that if I yelled here, the camera outside would record everything.
Realizing the situation, Yoo Sung roughly let go of my collar.
I sat on the edge of the bathroom bathtub, rubbing my neck.
Yoo Sung stood with his back to me, staring into thin air.
‘This is more of a headache than I thought…’
I was already at a loss for how to handle this wary, beast-like guy.
Yoo Sung was one of the trainees who received a PD’s pick early in the program.
His initial buzz was also consistently good enough to rank in the top three.
An S-class trainee from a major agency who lacked nothing in terms of skill and visuals.
However, he ruined the stat evaluation stage due to discord with trainees from his own agency, and he frequently clashed with other trainees.
It was hard to find a trainee who drove both haters and fans this crazy.
‘If I just tame him a little, gathering initial buzz will be easy…’
I smiled softly toward Yoo Sung and said,
“You’re curious why I picked you, right?”
Yoo Sung turned his head to look at me.
“You’re wondering why out of 80 trainees, I chose you.”
I spoke as gently as possible to avoid provoking him, but Yoo Sung’s expression only grew more hostile.
‘Uh-oh…’
Yoo Sung glared at me as if he wanted to tear me apart.
The moment Yoo Sung took a step toward me.
—Trainees who have finished changing, please gather in the auditorium on the first floor. We announce once again…
An announcement played from the speaker on the ceiling of the room.
“Tch.”
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Yoo Sung pulled off his shirt and changed his clothes.
I had prepared myself to take a hit, but it ended rather anti-climactically.
Of course, with cameras around, he wouldn’t actually hit me.
‘But why is he angry?’
I meticulously retraced every single word and action I had directed toward Yoo Sung.
No matter how much I thought about it, nothing seemed to be a major issue.
‘Did I step on a landmine or something?’
Yoo Sung, who had finished changing first, spat out a final line before leaving the room.
“I don’t care what your scheme is, but you better not think about using me.”
Bang!
Yoo Sung slammed the door so hard it felt like it would break, and left.
‘That might be… a bit difficult.’
Because I need to use you for me to take first place.
While changing my clothes, I pondered how to tame Yoo Sung.
* * *
Trainees wearing the provided blue t-shirts and black sweatpants gathered closely in the first-floor auditorium.
On their left chests, they wore the stat stickers they received from the stat evaluation stage.
Vocal C-, Dance D, Appearance A, Charm A+.
It was just when I was inspecting the sticker on my own chest.
The MC, having changed from a suit to casual clothes, stepped up to the podium.
“From now on, I will explain the first main quest, which is the first evaluation.”
The large screen above the podium changed.
[The first Main Quest has arrived.]
[Main Quest: Theme Song Evaluation]
Ooh.
The trainees began to buzz simultaneously, as if by prior agreement.
“It is none other than EX-Class K-POP Idol’s theme song evaluation! Before getting into the detailed explanation, shall we check out the theme song you must be most curious about?”
As the MC finished speaking, the title of the theme song appeared on the screen.
[HUNT THE STAGE]
It was a title completely faithful to the program’s concept.
The MC continued with a smile.
“Hunt the stage. Isn’t this the perfect title for you trainees aiming to become an EX-Class K-POP Idol?”
“Yes!”
The voices of the trainees echoed through the auditorium.
The response was thunderous, even though the majority of the trainees likely hadn’t grasped the program’s concept yet.
“Excellent. Then let’s listen to it right away!”
Following the MC’s words, the guide vocal and choreography video for ‘HUNT THE STAGE’ played on the screen.
[Boom, boom, boom…]
A massive drumbeat resounded at regular intervals.
The man on the screen in charge of the guide choreography bent the elbows of his raised arms and obscured his eyes so his palms were showing.
A hybrid orchestra sound utilizing electronic elements exploded forth.
The man moved the hands that were obscuring his eyes as if prying open a massive gate.
‘The gate has opened.’
The massive drumbeat heightened the tension, and the grand, intense hybrid orchestra sound depicted the exact moment a gate opens.
[“In pitch-black darkness. A ray of light shining before me.”]
Behind the hybrid orchestral sound followed a synth sound with a minimal beat.
The melody was easy and the pitch changes weren’t drastic, making it not too difficult to sing.
The only problem was…
‘We have to sing that while spinning in a circle.’
The man in the screen did a 360-degree spin and moved his upper body like a wave.
When a slightly tricky move appeared, tension washed over the trainees’ faces.
[“Hunt the stage, win the stage!”]
The chorus, the highlight of the song, began.
High notes from the guide vocal burst from the speakers, and the man on the screen showcased a dazzling dance break.
[“Break the stage, win the stage!”]
The man on the screen jumped, crossing his legs, and spun 180 degrees.
Landing stably, he seamlessly mixed basic steps with high-difficulty breaking steps, continuing the dance break.
Powerful vocals pounding the ears, complex upper body choreography, and non-stop stepping.
[Boom, bang!]
The song concluded with an intense gunshot sound at the end.
It was the timing for cheers and applause to burst forth, but the dumbfounded trainees were merely staring blankly at the screen.
“That was EX-Class K-POP Idol’s theme song, HUNT THE STAGE! Magnificent sound, a sophisticated melody, and intense, impactful choreography! Perfectly fitting our program’s concept…”
Despite the MC’s passionate explanation that followed, the trainees only showed perfunctory reactions.
I looked at the trash-like stats on my chest and thought.
‘I’m f*cked.’
* * *
Memories from preparing for the 1st evaluation in the first regression came to mind one by one.
I had done it desperately with the mindset that I could sleep when I was dead, but the result…
‘It’s fine. There’s a way.’
I deliberately erased the rising memories.
Since the song and choreography were already in my head, it would definitely be smoother than the first iteration.
“Please move to your designated practice rooms!”
The trainees who had been sitting in the auditorium rose from their seats and began to move.
Everyone looked discouraged, perhaps shocked by the theme song’s difficulty level.
I checked which lessons I would be taking.
Stats A and B were assigned to advanced. Stats C and D to intermediate. Stats E and F to beginner lessons.
‘Since I’m Vocal C- and Dance D+… they’re both intermediate.’
As I was about to leave the auditorium to head to the practice room, a staff member standing near the entrance approached me.
“Trainee Kim Chowol, Trainee Yoo Sung. This way for a moment…”
The staff member gestured toward Yoo Sung and me.
My eyes met Yoo Sung’s, who was heading out of the auditorium.
Yoo Sung frowned reflexively, but his complexion looked much better than when I saw him at the lodging.
‘It means he’s confident he can do well, right?’
Unlike the other trainees who were intimidated by the guide track and choreography video, he seemed to have gained confidence.
As the first evaluation was an individual evaluation demanding a high-difficulty performance, Yoo Sung had always achieved unrivaled results in the first evaluation.
“This way… I’d like to do a quick interview before lessons start.”
It was about time for an interview.
From the stat evaluation stage to guild creation.
They must have a ton of questions.
“We’ll start with Trainee Kim Chowol. Please sit here.”
A set for the interview had been set up a short distance away from the auditorium.
I sat on the prepared chair against a white background.
“Nice to meet you, Trainee Kim Chowol. We’ll start the interview now, but don’t be too nervous and just answer comfortably. Got it?”
“Yes.”
The PD conducting the interview was a woman with a gentle impression.
The PD told me to speak comfortably, but I absolutely shouldn’t.
I had to carefully choose everything from sentences down to every single word.
“First of all… you changed your song selection right before going up on the stat evaluation stage. Is there a reason for that?”
“That was…”
The interview proceeded in a relaxed atmosphere.
Because I had thought of expected questions and answers beforehand, the words flowed smoothly.
There were light questions like special skills and hobbies, as well as questions about the assigned dorm or the theme song.
“The next question… I’ll ask a few things about the guild created by Trainee Kim Chowol. First of all, is there a reason you decided to create a guild?”
I glanced at Yoo Sung, who was watching the interview from a short distance away from the set.
“Because I want to make a good stage.”
Seeing my smile, Yoo Sung furrowed his brow.
“A stage is ultimately something everyone does together, isn’t it? I thought that if we formed a team in advance before entering the full-scale evaluations, we would be able to show the viewers a high-quality stage.”
“Then is there a special reason you chose Trainee Yoo Sung out of 80 trainees?”
“The reason I chose Trainee Yoo Sung as a team member is…”
The biggest reasons were that his buzz was in the top three and that he was a PD pick trainee, but honestly, Yoo Sung wasn’t the only PD pick trainee.
Even without Yoo Sung, there were a few other PD pick trainees who were easy to handle and had decent skills.
If I had chosen them, I could have safely debuted around 5th or 6th place.
But what I wanted was 1st place.
I absolutely had to take 1st place.
That’s why I chose Yoo Sung.
Because I coveted Yoo Sung’s outstanding dancing and singing skills?
Because I liked his visuals and charm that captured the public’s eyes?
No, that wasn’t it.
The decisive reason I chose Yoo Sung was…
“Because out of the hundred trainees, he looked the most desperate.”
Yoo Sung wanted to debut desperately.
Just as much as I, who had gone half-mad through dozens of regressions, did.
And no matter what the story is, it’s always entertaining when there’s someone desperate in it.
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