While the production team was preparing the music, a huge screen on the opposite side of the stage displayed the live chats from the JBS Plus service.
— I’m really looking forward to the Catch Me team this time ㅠㅠ. With the Top Two in the same team, I think they can definitely take first place. Captain, fighting!
— Ah, Han Seungbeom’s team is last in the order? The team with the Captain is always like this. Wake me up when their performance starts.
— Nicholas was really looking forward to being on the same team as Seungbeom, and finally his wish came true hoho Of course, I’m looking forward to it too.
— Danbi, do well today. This Grandma is cheering for you.
— Amen, amen, amen, amen, amen. God, Buddha, Han Seungbeom, please let Danbi’s ranking go up this time. Please let him get the benefits. Our Danbi’s next ranking announcement is really so close…. Now, there is, no, more, place, to, back down.
└ What?
└ God, Buddha, >>Han Seungbeom<< HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Most of the chats expressed anticipation for the upcoming performances. However, due to the nature of real-time chat, it was quite difficult to filter out aggressive comments, so there were occasional harsh words.
— Honestly, Baek Kiryang is getting annoying, and I kind of wish he wouldn’t show up anymore. He’s such a nuisance that I feel like I’m getting stressed every time he’s on screen. I hope he doesn’t make it to the final debut lineup…..
└ I respect your personal opinion, but please be careful with your words.
— I don’t understand why Baek Kiryang has such a solid core fandom. If you went outside and asked random adults if they know who Baek Kiryang is, I bet not a single person would know.
— If being an idol doesn’t suit you, just quit already. He seems like someone who should’ve been doing classical music in the first place, but ended up in the wrong place.
— I also think hiding his family was a bit of narcissistic of him. Did he think people would be shocked if it was revealed? No one cares about him ㅜㅜ
└ You idiot, he probably hid it because of people saying things like “He should’ve been doing classical music” like that person above you, and other nonsense. It’s none of your business, so shut up. Every time you open your mouth, the average IQ of South Korea goes down.
└ Ah, this person is really good at roasting, but why is it so funny that your nickname “BabyHanSeungbeom“? Is it okay to be this scary? Even as a baby’s fans?
└ Why are Han Seungbeom’s fans always so angry?
└ The weight of the crown.
└ Is it so heavy that you take it off and beat someone with it?
— He basically built his entire fanbase around crying in front of Frick lol Don’t Baek Kiryang’s fans have eyes? If you’re going to watch the competition, you should be ready to evaluate fairly, not just give all your votes blindly to your favorite. It’s really annoying. I think Frick also left because of all the hate from Baek Kiryang’s fans.
└ My friend isn’t a Baek Kiryang’s fan, but she went as the on-site evaluation audience and voted for Baek Kiryang. She said that after hearing Baek Kiryang perform in person, she was really impressed.
└ Ah, is that so? But I don’t really care, haha…
└ You blabbered so much baseless opinions, but when I refuted it, you suddenly acted like they didn’t care.
‘The timing is bad.’
It seemed that the additional preview released before this competition began, which showed our team experiencing conflict during practice, played a big part in this negative public opinion.
‘That preview included the scene where Baek Kiryang rejected my suggestion.’
“Anyway, when I’m on stage, I can’t really see the chat well. So it doesn’t bother me if there’s some cursing. I’m busy looking at my fans and focusing on the performance, so when would I have time to read all of that?”
“I check sometimes, and I can feel the support from fans who aren’t at the venue, so it gives me a lot of strength.”
“I purposely don’t look at malicious comments because they bother me. Ugh!”
The trainees each had different reactions to the real-time chat, but as for Baek Kiryang, he was the type to search through them and get hurt by the comments.
‘But the current Baek Kiryang won’t be shaken.’
I glanced at the VIP seats of the on-site audience without any anxiety, then calmly waited for the stage to start.
“…….”
“…….”
The stage was quiet. The on-site evaluation audience probably had the highest expectations for our team among the three teams.
A tension that made my skin tingle filled the air, and with the signal from the production team, Baek Kiryang, who had perfectly immersed himself in his character just like during rehearsal, walked out to the center.
“Hi, it’s been a long time
I was waiting for your call, my friend.”
“WAAAAAAAH!”
— ?
— ???
— ?
— Woah, is that Baek Kiryang?
Then, the on-site evaluation audience screamed, and the chat window, which had been a dogfighting ring, was completely wiped clean by people’s surprised reactions. The exhilarating sight caused the member standing next to me to let out a small gasp.
“I still can’t believe it even after seeing it again, how could he change so much in just one day … both of you are really amazing.”
It was a reasonable doubt.
Reality didn’t flow as easily as fiction.
Cramming was just cramming, and people didn’t change overnight. It’s impossible to suddenly gain enlightenment from a small trigger and undergo a dramatic transformation or awaken as a Super Saiyan.
When I was training Zen, I systematically invested time from start to finish, progressing step by step, because I was certain that if I didn’t do it that way, the performance would 100% fail.
‘At that point, Zen didn’t know anything.’
However, there were cases where even injecting just one, very small change could lead to a great achievement.
“If you’re envious, then you should practice hard too.”
It was a case where they already had a solid foundation.
Baek Kiryang had such a strong foundation that he had enough strength to withstand sudden changes, and could absorb the many pieces of feedback given all at once.
I knew all too well how much effort and talent it would take to have singing skills like Baek Kiryang’s. If I hadn’t found these qualities in him, I would have never placed my bet on him.
BANG!
With the sound of a gunshot, Baek Kiryang’s cold face was fully reflected on the screen with the effect of shattered glass. At that, the on-site audience still stared at him with their mouths open in astonishment.
“Catch me
I won’t run away.”
After Baek Kiryang finished the acappella part of the song, Lee Hwayoung, who was waiting, walked to the center of the stage. As he passed by Baek Kiryang, a heavy beat flowed out through the speakers at the exact timing.
‘It’s the opening.’
Then, starting with me, the members who were waiting on the side all rushed out at once. Simultaneously, the criminal organization team and the detective team locked eyes, coming to a standstill in a tense confrontation.
“Hi again
Did you miss me?”
At the signal of my introduction, every member of the detective team drew their pistols from their holsters and aimed them at the organization team in front of them. Then, in sync with the beat, the organization team also drew their pistols from their coats, pointing the barrels at the detective team. The audience erupted in cheers so loud it was deafening.
“HAN SEUNGBEOM!”
“WOAAAH!”
“I was worried because I couldn’t see you
I was afraid you might disappear forever
But you know, don’t you?
We can never forget each other.”
As we had practiced, I smiled and sang as if to provoke Lee Hwayoung in front of me. In response to my provocation, Lee Hwayoung lifted my chin with the tip of his gun and retaliated.
“Catch me!
Our inescapable fate
Shall we skip the long greetings?
It’s just boring to me.”
I almost burst out laughing at Lee Hwayoung’s unexpected ad-lib. But with a nonchalant lift of his eyebrow, Lee Hwayoung just turned his back and left to prepare for the next formation. To put it simply, he casually threw the first punch and then ran away.
“Oooh!”
As the tension in the atmosphere instantly built up with Lee Hwayoung’s ad-lib, the on-site audience cheered on, encouraging the energy. With just that one short action, Lee Hwayoung heightened the audience’s immersion.
‘This brat…..’
This kind of sense wasn’t something you could learn by being taught.
As I told Baek Kiryang, that guy really had the talent.
‘….This is fun.’
My blood pressure spiked rapidly and I felt light-headed, but I had to calm down.
The performance would still go on for a while.
.
.
.
Wooooo!
As the dance break was completed smoothly, an alarm sounded, and a fast-paced beat that instantly lifted the mood began to play.
It was time for Lee Danbii’s rap to kick off.
“Freeze!”
With a police baton slung over his shoulder, Lee Danbi cheerfully shouted and ran out between the two divided camps. Lee Danbi, who had completely erased his anxiety about his first rap, confidently began to rap.
I smiled in satisfaction as I listened to him.
‘You don’t show any signs of inexperience. You practiced hard.’
Although it couldn’t compare to the rap that Lee Chise had shown me in Cha Woon’s studio, Lee Danbi was still quite impressive. His naturally gifted pronunciation and the sense of tempo he had honed through practice really shone through.
The audience applauded with excitement as the rap, skillfully arranged with Lee Chise’s touch, unfolded rapidly along with Lee Danbi’s unique, precise diction.
“AAAH! LEE DANBI!”
“Crazy! He’s so crazy!”
There was no way that those who were so invested in the program that they signed up to be part of the on-site evaluation audience were unaware of Lee Danbi’s short rap career. When such Lee Danbi delivered a rap performance that outshone the rap position members of the other teams who had performed earlier, everyone couldn’t hide their surprise.
‘Lee Chise really exceeded my expectations. Same with Lee Danbi.’
As I listened to the rap that carried Lee Chise’s distinct vibe, I felt a strange sense of nostalgia. It was an emotion that only the members of Prism, who had spent many years with Lee Chise, could feel.
But before that lingering feeling could even fade, I felt something ominous.
Tick. Tick.
‘….What the?’
Then, suddenly, a popping sound overlapped with the beat, and the MR for a different part, ot the one that was supposed to play, started playing.
It was a sound accident.
‘Damn it! Why did this mistake have to happen during the rap part!’
If it were a singing part, it might be different, but for the rap that’s fast-paced and without pause, even forgetting a single lyric or missing the beat could cause everything to go off track. This applied to seasoned rappers too, so imagine how it was for someone like Lee Danbi, a complete beginner who had only rapped on stage a few times.
It would be nearly impossible for Lee Danbi to handle this incident on his own.
“…….”
“What is this?”
The on-site evaluation audience, sensing something was wrong, started murmuring. No matter how well the trainees tried to hide their agitation and maintain their composure, the popping sound of the MR glitch had already reverberated throughout the entire stage.
The production team, having grasped the situation, were seen pacing back and forth, not knowing what to do. However, I had no particular expectations that they could do anything to salvage this situation.
‘Don’t expect the production team to fix this situation. The performance has already started.’
This competition wasn’t just a recorded broadcast, and the performance would continue as it was.
The important thing was whether the trainees on stage had the ability to skillfully resolve this situation.
‘I’ll take over….’
In that fleeting moment when everyone was confused, Baek Kiryang’s eyes met mine.
“…….”
“…….”
The moment felt similar to when he finished the recording in one take.
It was the feeling of Baek Kiryang’s competitive spirit bubbling up from within.
My eyes widened a little in surprise, but then I nodded.
‘What are you hesitating for?’
I told you, didn’t I? I believe in you.
You can support this translation through Buy Me a Coffee!
Translator’s Corner:
God please send me a Han Seungbeom … I’m still young it’s never too late to send me one please…. just one Han Seungbeom……
also happy 100 chapters~ I don’t have anything to say to defend myself anymore
I was planning to be happy when I reached chapter 100 but I just wake up from a really nice dream, so I’m really unhappy to be back to this cruel reality … real life doesn’t even have Han Seungbeom … and the rain still pouring … it’s perfect occasion to play I’m Unhappy by aespa …… I’m hungry too since I wake up in midnight … please morning come fast……
But still thank you so much for reading this with me! I really like reading your comments but I’m a shy person so most of the times I don’t know how to reply …. I’m really glad that people are reading my tls T_T sorry for any mistakes, my eyesights not that good so sometimes I missed typo and other things
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter