I’m Debuting With The Bias I Killed Chapter 79

Chapter 79

 

“Congratulations, trainee Kang I-yul!”

At that moment, Kang I-yul couldn’t hear a single sound.

Code 1.

It was a position that had always felt so far away.

Even after spending so many years as a trainee, first place had never once been his.

Perhaps that was why, when his name was actually called, he didn’t even know how to react. Was he supposed to smile or cry?

Suddenly, he remembered the faces of Joo-han and Yoo Seong-woo made when they moved Code 1. But even when he tried desperately to make the same expression, he couldn’t smile as they did.

That was when it happened.

“……?”

Yoo Seong-woo’s face reflected on the electronic board caught his eye.

‘Why is hyung crying?’

He didn’t seem to have cried even when he himself got first place. For some reason, that thought made the tension in I-yul’s body ease a little.

“Trainee Kang I-yul, let’s hear your thoughts.”

“…….”

“Trainee Kang I-yul?”

“Ah, yes. First of all, I sincerely thank everyone who voted for me. Honestly, I thought it was already a miracle just to be a candidate for first place.”

Even as he continued speaking, his gaze kept drifting toward Yoo Seong-woo on the electronic board.

“Um… the fact that there’s someone who would cry because I got first place…”

His throat suddenly tightened.

It was strange. More than being Code 1, more than the fact that everyone was looking at him, that was what overwhelmed him right now.

After clearing his throat a few times, he finally managed to continue.

“I think that’s what makes me happiest.”

“That’s another one of the charms of a survival show.”

Kang Se-jun smiled.

“The trainees’ close-knit friendship. It’s really nice to see.”

“Ah, just one more thing……”

“Of course. Take your time and say everything before you go.”

When he glanced slightly behind him, Yoo Seong-woo was covering his face with both arms out of embarrassment.

Seeing that, a laugh escaped I-yul.

“I owe Seong-woo hyung too much. I don’t really like being indebted to people, you see.”

Laughter erupted from various places.

“But this time, I owe him so much that…”

He paused to catch his breath.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to repay it all during the survival show.”

“Oh…”

Only at Kang Se-jun’s exclamation did Kang I-yul realize what he had said, and he became a little embarrassed.

“So from now on, I want to stay by his side…… and keep paying him back.”

In truth, if Yoo Seong-woo had taken first place again this time, I-yul thought perhaps he would finally feel a little more at ease.

But once again, an unbelievable miracle had happened. And Kang I-yul knew all too well that this miracle would have been impossible without Yoo Seong-woo.

“Then, we’ll proceed with the name tag exchange ceremony.”

Choi Un-jo stepped forward first. He took a few light steps before stopping in front of Go Jae-seong.

“You worked hard, Jae-seong!”

They say you can’t spit on a smiling face, but Go Jae-seong merely stared silently at the Code 5 name tag that was leaving him.

Kang I-yul carefully began walking as well.

“Seong-woo hyung, are you still crying?”

His eyes were so swollen that they looked about half their usual size.

“Sorry. Did I surprise you?”

“What if–”

Kang I-yul deliberately put on a serious expression.

“You’re crying because I’m taking your name tag?”

“You little shit…”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding.”

Even while sniffing, Yoo Seong-woo grabbed the jacket with the name tag attached and tugged at it. He was telling him to hurry up and take it.

Pop.

The name tags came off easily, and each of them attached the other’s number to their chest. Their numbers had switched.

“Thank goodness.”

Yoo Seong-woo muttered quietly.

“What?”

“There’s something like that.”

At the lame excuse, Kang I-yul smiled once again.

“Come get it again later.”

“……?”

Leaving Yoo Seong-woo behind with a dumbfounded expression, Kang I-yul took his seat in first place.

The highest position.

“Wow…….”

An exclamation escaped him without his realizing it. Everything at the venue could be seen at a glance.

“So this is what it feels like.”

He had thought it was just a joke, but the air really did feel different.

“Is this real…?”

Kang I-yul covered his face with both hands.

When he closed his eyes for a moment, his wildly beating heart gradually settled down. When he slowly lowered his hands, the number Code 1 finally began to feel real.

“Now, we only have the Code 10 position remaining.”

The Code Announcement Ceremony was not over yet. Kang I-yul wiped his face once and looked toward the electronic board.

“The candidates for Code 10 are…”

The screen showed Jang Hyeon-jun and Song Woo-joo. Both looked surprised, as if they had already expected to be eliminated.

There was no team benefit and no individual benefit. It was the final position decided solely by the fans’ votes.

There wasn’t a single person who didn’t desperately want it.

“I will now make the announcement.”

Jang Hyeon-jun closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Song Woo-joo repeatedly moved his eyes as though trying not to cry.

“Code 10 is trainee Jang Hyeonjun.”

“Ah……!”

Kang I-yul’s gaze naturally turned toward Yoo Seong-woo. Even though he could only see his back, he could see his body shaking violently.

“I thought I’d be eliminated…”

Jang Hyeon-jun never managed to raise his head as he barely finished his brief acceptance speech.

“Trainee Song Woo-joo. Unfortunately, you have been eliminated by a very narrow margin. Please give us your final farewell to Boys Code.”

The corners of Song Woo-joo’s eyes were already red and wet.

“I came here thinking this would be my final chance to challenge myself……”

Yoo Seong-woo couldn’t raise his head for a long while.

“I learned so much. I prepared for every stage without regrets.”

As Song Woo-joo continued his speech, his hunched back somehow tugged at my heart.

“So…… although it’s disappointing, really disappointing!”

His voice trembled faintly.

“I’ll cheer you on from behind, especially you, Seong-woo hyung.”

“…….”

“Hey, lift your head.”

Even while sniffing, Song Woo-joo kept trying to smile until the very end.

Only then did Yoo Seong-woo finally raise his head, and the camera caught him. He couldn’t even properly open his eyes, and pitiful sighs escaped from various places in the venue.

“I’m really grateful, and I don’t think I could’ve made it this far without you. You have to debut. I’ll vote for you.”

Goodbyes never became familiar, no matter how many times you experienced them.

 

***

 

The Code Announcement Ceremony had ended, but I couldn’t easily get up from my seat.

I never expected Song Woo-joo to be eliminated until the very end. Even when his name was placed alongside Jang Hyeon-jun’s among the final candidates, a part of me had secretly hoped Song Woo-joo’s name would be called.

But it seemed that Jang Hyeon-jun’s votes had temporarily surged after the scene of him betraying Go Jae-seong aired on the broadcast.

Before my regression, Song Woo-joo would eventually become a successful choreographer. Perhaps not debuting as an idol could be the path that protected that future.

Even knowing that, I couldn’t stop crying.

Maybe…

“You’re going to keep preparing, right?”

Perhaps, without realizing it, I had hoped for a future that was different from the one before my regression.

But Song Woo-joo slowly shook his head.

“No……?”

“I really came here thinking this was my final chance.”

“…….”

“Now I’m a little lost about what I should do…”

The words came out of my mouth before I knew it.

“You’re good at making choreography.”

Song Woo-joo blinked.

“Right. I only realized that for the first time thanks to you, hyung.”

“You’re definitely going to do well.”

This time, I didn’t hesitate.

“Don’t worry.”

Song Woo-joo looked at me in surprise before the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward.

“Since you said it, hyung, I guess I have to believe you.”

I didn’t know whether Song Woo-joo would have the same future in this world. Even so, I hoped that someday, the day would come when I could receive your choreography.

“Yeah. When have I ever lied to you?”

“Never.”

The two of us stood facing each other, sniffling.

Sniff.

The sound of us sniffing came out at exactly the same time. In the end, even in the middle of all this, we burst out laughing.

I quietly nodded my chin toward the back.

“……?”

Kwon Gi-hyun was waiting there.

“What’s with Code 11?”

His eyes were already thoroughly red, yet the moment Song Woo-joo approached, he grumbled.

“You said we’d definitely go up together…”

“You barely made it up yourself.”

“Seriously…”

In the end, tears fell from Kwon Gi-hyun’s eyes too. They were both only eighteen.

Before long, Ji Dong-seok joined them as well. While they hugged for a long time and cheered each other on for the roads ahead, Song Woo-joo muttered,

“Still, three people from our team made it to the final.”

“Ah…”

Back during Round 2, who could have imagined a future like this?

At first, I thought my only goal was to save Kang I-yul and debut alongside him. But it wasn’t only my future that had changed.

“I’m going to come watch the final, so prepare well.”

“Yeah.”

And so, one page of the survival show came to an end.

 

***

 

As soon as the eliminated trainees left the venue, the staff began giving instructions.

“Surviving trainees, take a short break and then we’ll move straight to the studio and continue filming!”

“Yes…”

Perhaps because the aftereffects of the eliminations hadn’t faded yet, the atmosphere at the venue was heavy and subdued.

I hurriedly rubbed my eyelids. Even if the schedule was tight, I hadn’t expected filming to continue without even giving us time to compose our emotions.

‘I was asking for too much.’

Even after changing into our group practice clothes, I could barely open my eyes.

“I’m screwed…….”

“Hyung, are you still crying?”

“No.”

I hurriedly waved my hand at I-yul’s concern.

“I’m trying to get the swelling down. They’re completely swollen.”

“Wait a second.”

He ran toward the corner of the filming site. After rummaging through his bag, he came back holding something.

“This is supposed to be good for getting rid of swelling.”

What Kang I-yul held out was a yellow rubber band.

“This is…”

“Ah, you do it like this.”

He demonstrated by hooking the rubber band around his own ears. The moment I saw him, memories from before my regression came rushing back. Even during Impactor’s activities, I had often seen him doing this on behind-the-scenes cameras.

“I swell up really badly, so I carry these around all the time.”

“I swell up really badly too.”

“……I know.”

“Huh?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

With familiar movements, I hooked the rubber band around my ears.

“Like this?”

“That’s right.”

Maybe it was just my imagination, but my eyelids felt a little lighter.

“We’ll be moving now…”

Following the staff’s instructions, we moved to the studio, and as befits the final, it was obvious they had spared no expense on the production budget.

A flashy stage, a huge LED. In the middle of it, Kang Se-jun shouted energetically.

“We now reveal the Boys Code final mission, which will put the finishing touch on our approximately three-month journey!”

At that moment, a video began playing on the giant screen.

“Waaaaah…”

Groans and cries of embarrassment erupted from all around. It was the opening video from the very first broadcast.

Even though it had only been three months, so much looked different from now. Some trainees covered their faces, calling it their embarrassing past.

I also subtly covered my eyes. At the time, I thought I had come out pretty well, but my cheeks had been much chubbier than I remembered.

“Seong-woo, you had such a baby face!”

“Be quiet…”

In the first broadcast, they had only shown us walking toward the door.

But this time was different. They began showing what happened after we opened that door.

 

[DECODE – Our journey to decode the code is]

[LAST CODE – Running toward the final code alone.]

[NEW ERA – Who will be the five to arrive in a new world unlike anything we’ve seen before?]

 

“Oh……”

The trainees’ eyes widened at the flashy CG.

“Three new songs will be revealed for this final mission.”

“Three songs?”

“Ah, the words that appeared in the video……”

The mission appeared on the screen.

 

[1. Team New Song Mission]

-TEAM A: DECODE

-TEAM B: LAST CODE

[2. Group Song Mission]

-NEW ERA

-A final mission in which Team A performs the first verse and Team B performs the second verse on one stage

 

“Then, let’s listen to the mission songs.”

The first song revealed was ‘DECODE.’

It was a song based on future bass mixed with trap sounds. Whenever orchestral elements were added throughout the song, the tension and grandeur were maximized.

The trainees couldn’t keep their mouths shut at the constantly changing formations. The signature choreography involved movements that looked as though they were drawing lines in the air and inputting a code.

 

♪ There is only one answer we’ve been searching for

♪ Let’s decode

♪ The same Heartbeat

 

The next song revealed was ‘LAST CODE.’

It was an intense song that layered EDM over a rock sound. A sophisticated sound that grabbed the ears from the very first line. The chorus in particular was powerful enough to instantly raise the atmosphere if the audience sang along at the venue.

 

♪ The time has come

♪ I can’t wait any longer

♪ At last, we’ve discovered our LAST CODE

 

The choreography was equally impressive. The formation constantly changed around the center. Naturally, all the trainees had the same thought.

That what completed the stage was the center’s ability.

Finally, the group song ‘NEW ERA’ was revealed.

It was a song that blended the atmospheres of the two previous tracks, with the characteristic rhythm of UK GARAGE, while feeling both dreamy and fast-paced.

“Insane……”

 

♪ A Horizon we thought was a dream

♪ It’s not a dream

♪ We won’t stop

♪ A new world

♪ NEW ERA

 

As a group song, the choreography mainly consisted of paired formations split five and five.

In particular, the synchronized choreography in which they faced each other like mirrors and moved in opposite directions made the entire studio erupt in admiration.

“All right, has everyone decided in their hearts which song they want to be on?”

“Yes!”

I looked back and forth between the titles of the two songs.

[DECODE] and [LAST CODE].

This choice was different from before.

There would be no saying that you could make up for it in the next round if you chose wrong, nor any consolation that you could put on a better stage next time.

This song would be the final competition stage I would stand on in Boys Code. And it was also the final choice that would determine the five members of the debut lineup.

Suddenly, I remembered the day I first entered this place.

Code 20. I had started from that position and made it all the way here.

All this time, I had chosen countless songs, chosen teams, and prepared stages.

And now, only one final choice remained.

Kang Se-jun slowly raised his hand.

“Then, from this moment on.”

The entire studio held its breath.

“We will begin Boys Code’s final team selection.”

At the same time, lights illuminated the titles of the two songs.

 

[DECODE] / [LAST CODE]

 

I slowly stood up from my seat.

It was time to choose the final code.