The S-Rank Paparazzi Reincarnates as an Idol – Chapter 11

Author: Cireng

Chapter 11

As I pushed strength into my legs and planted on the floor, the chair scraped backward with a dull sound.

‘It’s finally time to show them.’

I was about to move, but Seo Hayul, who was sitting beside me, remained seated with a vacant expression.

“Seo Hayul. What are you doing? Filming’s started. Hurry up and get up.”

“…Siwoo hyung.”

“Why?”

“…”

Seo Hayul sat there silently for a long moment.

‘What’s with him?’

“B-rank trainees, please come up onto the stage quickly!”

A staff member’s voice echoed from afar, urging us on.

“Let’s go first.”

“Ah… okay!”

Coming back to his senses, Seo Hayul hurriedly got to his feet.

‘He said he was going to the restroom during the break. Why’s he acting like that?’

“Hey, what’s wrong with you? Are you sick?”

“It’s nothing.”

‘He was perfectly fine earlier.’

His expression had visibly stiffened.

‘He was only gone for a restroom break. How does someone’s mood drop that much?’

“Hm.”

Following the staff’s continued urging, I stepped onto the stage.

We lined up in a row beside the screen on the wall, and the B-rank trainees began being called one by one.

‘There’s definitely a much bigger gap between A-rank and B-rank than I thought.’

About halfway through the B-rank evaluations, a familiar name was called.

“Next, trainee Seo Hayul, please come forward.”

Seo Hayul walked stiffly toward the center stage.

Cold sweat covered his forehead.

‘What the hell is wrong with him?’

Considering he’d gone to the restroom during break, only one possibility came to mind.

‘Did something actually happen?’

“Trainee Seo Hayul looks really nervous, doesn’t he?”

“Ah… no.”

“Did you practice a lot?”

With a stiff expression, Seo Hayul answered in a small voice.

“…Yes!”

“You’re aiming for the rapper position, right?”

“That’s correct.”

“From what we saw during practice, you’re very good, so our expectations are high.”

“…Thank you.”

“Then let’s begin Seo Hayul’s theme song evaluation.”

“Yes.”

The familiar instrumental flowed from the speakers.

“…”

Quite a bit of time passed after the music started.

But Seo Hayul didn’t move at all.

He simply stood there.

‘That idiot…! What is he doing right now?!’

His fingers twitched slightly, but aside from that, he remained frozen.

His pupils shook anxiously.

‘He was flying during practice with me. Why is he suddenly like this?’

The atmosphere turned ice-cold.

When the theme song finally stopped, Seo Hayul lowered his head.

“No, Seo Hayul!”

“…Yes.”

“You performed well during lessons. What’s going on now?”

“…”

“Do you think the stage is a joke? If this were a real performance, would you just stand there and do nothing?”

“…I’m sorry.”

“Haah… We know you’re a talented trainee, which makes this even more unfortunate.”

“Seo Hayul’s rank is…”

“…!”

“E-rank.”

“…Thank you.”

His eyes bloodshot red, Seo Hayul returned to his position by the screen.

‘A guy with enough skill to make A-rank makes a mistake like that?’

He stood there with his head lowered, biting his lip tightly.

After that, the B-rank evaluations continued.

“Hm. Is this really your best?”

“B-rank.”

“Maybe it’s because we just watched the A-rank trainees, but why is the difference so large?”

The evaluations for the B-rank trainees were so harsh that simply maintaining B-rank felt like a victory.

“Next, trainee Cha Siwoo, please come to the center stage.”

“Yes.”

Near the end, my name was finally called.

I slowly walked to the center of the stage.

The judges were looking at me as if they’d just found prey.

“Hello. I’m Cha Siwoo, a 20-year-old independent trainee.”

“When I saw you practicing singing, I noticed that whenever someone teaches you something, you absorb it like a sponge. That’s why I’m looking forward to your performance.”

“Thank you.”

At Park Chaeyoung’s praise, the dance trainer shook his head and picked up his microphone.

“But compared to the other trainees, your dancing is still very lacking.”

I remembered the shocked expression he had worn when he’d first seen me dance.

“You’ve practiced, sure, but I’m curious how much you’ve actually improved in only ten days.”

The choreographer, who looked unimpressed, lifted his microphone in agreement.

“Honestly speaking, I have absolutely no expectations for your dancing.”

Looking at the judges nodding in agreement, I put on my professional social smile.

“I’ll do my best to meet your expectations!”

“You really are impossible to dislike when you talk.”

“Then let’s begin Cha Siwoo’s theme song performance.”

The pounding instrumental made my chest throb.

I let myself move with the rhythm of ‘Cheer Me On’ as the intro began.

—

I’m going to tempt you

—

The first line came out smoothly, as if I’d coated my throat with butter.

‘Just one increase in my singing stat makes this much of a difference?’

Every note I imagined in my mind floated naturally into the air.

—

Every moment is filled with you

Even after this night passes, I’ll only look at you

I’ll give you everything I have, so choose me

—

Moving with the instrumental, my body flowed naturally through each motion.

At that moment, the dance trainer’s eyes widened.

—

I hope this moment lasts forever with you

—

It felt as though something deep inside my body was awakening.

‘I understood it in my head before, but my body and muscles couldn’t keep up.’

Now, however, the dance I pictured in my mind flowed smoothly into rhythm and melody through my movements.

As I bounced in time with the beat, my heart began pounding hotly.

—

Cheer me on as I shine

—

I cleanly hit the triple high note in the highlight section.

A chilling thrill coursed through my entire body.

I had never felt anything like this before.

A refreshing exhilaration spread through me as though my airways had opened.

When the performance finally ended, a wave of heat surged through me.

‘Wow, I’m out of breath.’

As the instrumental ended, the dance trainer picked up his microphone with a serious expression.

“Cha Siwoo.”

“Yes.”

“Be honest.”

‘What? Did I mess something up?’

I forced my breathing to calm down.

‘Don’t tell me they somehow figured out the stats?’

“You were lying when you said you’ve been preparing to be an idol trainee for less than a month, weren’t you?”

“No.”

“No, seriously. Does that even make sense?”

“…”

‘It’s not like I can tell them it’s possible if you raise your stats.’

If I told the truth, I’d obviously be kicked off the show and sent straight to a psychiatric hospital.

Then the quest would be over.

And so would my life.

“How can someone’s dancing improve this much in only ten days?”

The judge looked genuinely concerned, as though wondering whether I’d taken some sort of drug.

I answered calmly.

“I think I improved because I learned from excellent teachers and practiced hard alongside good teammates.”

After hearing my socially acceptable answer, the dance trainer’s stiff expression gradually relaxed.

“Ahem. You’re good with words too.”

As the judge smiled faintly, I couldn’t help letting out a sigh of relief.

‘Giving credit to others earns points and improves my image. Killing two birds with one stone.’

“Wait… by teacher, you’re talking about me, right?”

“Of course! The instructors who taught me dance and vocals are truly my teachers.”

The corners of Park Chaeyoung’s mouth and the choreographer’s mouth rose slightly.

After all, in society, if you can gain goodwill and benefits through your words, there’s hardly a better return on investment.

“Then who are the teammates you mentioned?”

“Trainee Seo Hayul.”

‘He gave me Heartping bread and helped me build a solid foundation in choreography.’

“Ah… Hayul really was excellent during practice.”

“Yes. He helped me a lot with dancing.”

“Hahaha. Well, your dancing is still lacking, but you’ve shown greater improvement than anyone else in a short period of time. I have high expectations for you moving forward.”

Honestly, the praise exceeded my expectations.

I’d definitely worked harder than anyone.

But society values results more than effort.

Within the world of an idol survival show, however, “growth” and “development” were practically cheat codes.

“Cha Siwoo’s final rank is…”

‘Please. I really worked my ass off.’

“A-rank.”

‘Yes! I did it!’

Ding.

[Congratulations. You have completed Sub-Quest (4): “Receive an A-rank in the theme song midterm evaluation.” ]

‘Oh yeah!’

[Would you like to receive your reward?]

‘Of course.’

[Reward: +1 stat point. You may allocate it to any stat of your choice.]

‘I’ll think about where to put it later.’

“You barely slept for ten days and practiced harder than anyone else, to the point where you earned the nickname ‘Practice Machine.’ Your effort was incredible.”

“More importantly, Cha Siwoo’s rapid growth potential is truly astonishing.”

“The ability to learn and adapt quickly is one of the most important qualities of an idol. It’s impressive.”

As the dance trainer set down his microphone, Park Chaeyoung immediately picked hers up.

“My disciple… I mean! Trainee.”

“Yes.”

“Your pitch, rhythm, and even the triple high note were excellent. More than anything, I really like your vocal tone.”

“Thank you.”

“Compared to when you first started, your rate of improvement in singing is remarkable too. You started trainee life late, so there are still many things you’re lacking, but you absorb things so quickly that ‘sponge’ really suits you.”

‘That’s thanks to the status window.’

“You’re the kind of disciple… I mean, trainee… that’s fun to teach. Since this is a survival audition, growth potential is an important evaluation factor, and in my eyes, Cha Siwoo has more growth potential than anyone else here. I’m looking forward to your future performances.”

“Thank you!”

I bowed ninety degrees toward the judges.

Even if my skills were still lacking compared to the other A-rank trainees, my narrative of rapid improvement had clearly worked.

‘Let’s keep building this image as the hardworking growth-type character.’

If I could ride one of Korea’s most popular storylines on television, I’d definitely move one step closer to debuting.

‘I don’t need first place. I just need to debut somehow.’

Doesn’t it all come down to reaching your destination, regardless of the route?

Following the staff’s instructions, I returned to my original spot by the screen.

Jealous and wary gazes flew toward me from all directions.

‘These guys are really on guard now.’

After my turn, two more trainees were called.

When the storm-like evaluations of the B-rank trainees finally ended, we descended from the stage according to the staff’s directions.