The S-Rank Paparazzi Reincarnates as an Idol Chapter 101

Chapter 101 

 

For a moment, silence fell.

Only the tense background music continued to play as the MC slowly opened his mouth.

“Congratulations! The monster rookies, Lucy Star Boys, have taken first place!”

Looking at the detailed score breakdown displayed in small print, I saw that the broadcast points we had earned through all that back-and-forth with Yoo Haein on the radio had become the decisive factor.

BANG—!

The deafening sound of confetti cannons exploded through the venue.

Colorful flower petals scattered through the air like glittering scales under the stage lights.

“WAAAAAAH!”

“Hyung! We got first place!”

Yoo Hoseung wrapped his arms around my waist, his voice trembling with tears.

Even Kang Chan, who usually maintained a perfect poker face, covered his face with both hands and collapsed to his knees.

‘They’re all crying?’

I looked around.

Every member was cheering with tears and snot running down their faces.

“Everyone looks genuinely happy. Could we hear a few words about winning first place for the very first time?”

The MC awkwardly held out the microphone and trophy.

In the end, I was the only one who wasn’t crying, so I had no choice but to accept them.

“…First of all, to all the fans who supported us… thank you from the bottom of our hearts. This first-place win was only possible because of your love.”

My voice trembled without me realizing it.

“We’ll become a team that repays your love with everything we’ve got. No matter what happens, we’ll do our best to deliver the greatest results and achievements possible. Thank you sincerely!”

The moment I lowered the microphone, the tearful members charged toward me all at once.

“Gahk!”

“We actually got first place…!”

“We love you, fans!”

“Waaah… thank you so much!”

The encore stage was a complete mess of tears.

But it was also the moment a monster rookie group that had claimed first place only one week after debut was born.

 

☆☆☆

 

Our success only continued to snowball.

The response to our debut song, “First Greeting Hello,” was so explosive that we swept first-place trophies on every music show we appeared on that week.

The cheers that erupted during our performances lingered in my ears like an afterimage.

Back in the waiting room, we wrapped our arms around each other and laughed freely.

Their faces were soaked with sweat and tears, yet they looked brighter than ever.

‘Sweeping first place just one week after debut…’

It truly felt like a miracle.

“Did… did we really get first place?”

Hoseung asked in a voice that was still thick with emotion.

Beside him, Kang Chan ruffled his hair and nodded.

Watching the pure joy on their faces naturally made me smile as well.

‘At this rate, Rookie of the Year doesn’t seem impossible anymore.’

At first, it had felt like an absurd quest.

But the results in front of me were steadily turning hope into certainty.

“Siwoo hyung, aren’t you happy?”

“Me?”

The sudden question caught me off guard.

“Of course I am. This is something we earned through blood, sweat, and tears.”

Even now, when I remembered the cold weight of the trophy in my hands, my heart started pounding.

“Then why aren’t you crying?”

“Yeah! You’re the only one who hasn’t cried even once!”

The younger members protested.

“You little punks. A real man only cries three times in his life.”

“Boooo—! There he goes again with his old-man nonsense.”

“Hyung, what’s wrong with men crying? If you want to cry, just cry.”

I roughly ruffled the maknaes’ hair, and their complaints immediately subsided.

“Seriously, Siwoo. You look normal, but you’re weirdly old-fashioned in the strangest places.”

“I agree!”

“What do you mean old-fashioned? Why are you guys joining in too?”

The waiting room was filled with lively chatter when the door suddenly swung open.

“Everyone, congratulations on first place! I’m so proud of you all!”

Our manager walked in, waving his phone with an excited expression.

“Thank you.”

“Thank you, Manager!”

“And take a look at this.”

He showed us his phone screen.

It was filled with social media feeds exploding in real time.

 

—

[Real-Time Trending]

#LucyStarBoys_FirstPlace

#LSB_MonsterRookies

#WhatsTheFandomName

—

 

“The fans are going crazy right now! Before we head to the next schedule, how about giving them something to calm them down a little?”

He had a point.

When excitement reached a fever pitch, it was important to communicate with fans and manage expectations properly.

“Do you know what the fans are most desperate for right now?”

While everyone else thought about the answer, I spoke first.

“A fandom name?”

Exactly.

Because of our insane debut schedule, one thing we still hadn’t finalized was our official fandom name.

Everyone in the room immediately turned to look at me.

“Correct! Social media is flooded with people asking us to announce the fandom name.”

‘It is about time.’

“The company thinks it’d be better for the bond between you and the fans if you chose it yourselves.”

The manager handed us a whiteboard and some markers.

“Alright, Lucy Star Boys. What kind of fandom name do you think would be good?”

The sudden naming session sent everyone deep into thought.

“Hmm… Since they’re stars who love Lucy Star Boys, how about ‘Lucy Stars’?”

Kim Sunyoo spoke first.

As the experienced member, he had probably been thinking about this for a while.

“Too ordinary?”

He scratched his head almost immediately.

“What about ‘Luminary’? Something that means a shining existence?”

This time it was Kang Chan.

The fact that he had an answer ready right away meant he had clearly spent time thinking about the fans too.

“Luminary sounds nice. Anyone else?”

“Me! What about ‘Lucy Princesses’?”

“That sounds good!”

The word ‘princess’ might be a little embarrassing, but fans would probably love hearing their favorite idols call them that.

While the self-content cameras recorded everything, idea after idea flew around the room.

Everyone was sincerely trying to think of a name the fans would love.

No one was treating it lightly.

‘Wow. Why is our team so serious about this?’

Just as I was starting to feel proud, a disturbing formula suddenly crossed my mind.

‘Wait a second. According to the Law of Conservation of Crazies… something feels off.’

The cruel truth that every group inevitably has one weird person.

‘And if there’s no obvious villain…?’

That only left one possibility.

‘…No way.’

I quietly looked around.

Everyone seemed normal.

No…

They were ‘too’ normal.

‘Come on. There’s no way I’m the villain, right?’

After thinking about it for a moment, I shook my head.

‘I’m not a villain. Maybe a hidden hero?’

One thing was certain, though.

No one was more serious about this team’s success than I was.

I looked back at the whiteboard.

‘Is there a name the fans would genuinely love?’

My thoughts spiraled further.

Those who chase stars.

‘What am I really chasing in this idol life?’

The paparazzo who once chased provocative flashes of light in the darkness.

And the idol who now stood on stage as the light itself, receiving the love of fans.

After thinking it through, an idea finally came to me.

I raised my hand.

“What about Lumina?”

Everyone’s eyes turned toward me.

“Lumina? What does it mean?”

Sunyoo tilted his head.

I calmly explained.

“Our group’s name means shining stars, right?”

“Yeah.”

“But stars can never shine alone.”

“…!”

“For a star to truly shine, there has to be someone who reflects that light and loves even the shadows that no one else can see.”

I looked at the members, the manager, and the cameras recording our content.

Then I spoke sincerely.

“Lumina means ‘light,’ but it also carries the meaning of ‘the one who illuminates.’ The fans who complete our light and embrace even our hidden darkness… they’re our Lumina.”

Everyone in the room widened their eyes.

“Siwoo…!”

“Siwoo hyung, that honestly moved me.”

“The meaning is so deep. And it sounds beautiful too.”

Kang Chan nodded firmly.

“I really like that name. It fits our group’s identity perfectly.”

Even the manager gave me a thumbs-up.

At that moment, a translucent blue system window suddenly appeared in front of me.

Ding!

[Cha Siwoo-nim, this is so touching T_T]

‘…What are you?’

The system had done absolutely nothing when I was being attacked by that purple window.

Now it suddenly showed up.

[You’ve grown this much… You’ve finally become human! This system is genuinely moved!]

‘You little punk. I was always human.’

[Not everyone who is a person is truly human. At last, you’re displaying a genuinely human and heartwarming side.]

Ignoring the nonsense spouting from the system window, I forced a smile toward the members.

“Well, now that we’ve chosen the fandom name, should we tell our Lumina right away?”

“Sounds good!”

“We still have a little time before we leave. Let’s do a quick livestream!”

“Good idea!”

 

☆☆☆

 

“One, two, three!”

“We are the shining stars! Hello, we’re Lucy Star Boys!”

In one corner of the waiting room, we greeted the hastily set-up smartphone camera.

We sat gathered around our first-place trophy.

Our faces were still flushed with excitement.

The moment we started the livestream, the viewer count surpassed 500,000.

Then it shot upward almost vertically.

‘Is… that number even possible?’

The chat was already moving too fast to read, flooded with congratulatory messages.

“Wow, this many people are watching us live right now?”

“Everyone! There are over 500,000 viewers!”

Hoseung’s eyes widened as he practically screamed in amazement.

“Fans, thank you all so, so much!”

Even Kang Chan, famous for his poker face, couldn’t hide his happiness and smiled brightly.

Sunyoo once again volunteered as MC and smoothly took charge.

“Everyone, we’ve achieved a dream-like first-place win only one week after debut! This was all possible thanks to the fans supporting Lucy Star Boys!”

The members took turns sharing their thoughts and gratitude.

I also spoke sincerely toward the camera.

“Everyone, before heading to our next schedule, we wanted to share this happiness with our fans as quickly as possible, so we started this livestream in a hurry.”

Seo Hayul, whose ears had turned bright red, spoke next.

He looked genuinely happy.

“I never imagined this many people would be watching. Thank you once again.”

After Hayul finished, every member bowed ninety degrees from the waist.

“Actually, we have a surprise announcement today!”

At Sunyoo’s words, we all straightened up immediately.

The long-awaited moment to reveal our official fandom name had finally arrived.