Chapter 36

If you can't debut, you'll get a disease that will kill you - Chapter 036

The production team's explanation was simple.

Relax and have fun while getting a prize.

In other words, it meant this:

“Show off a bit and enjoy the vibe of a school trip, and while you're at it, take the PPL product from T1 as a promotion.”

Everyone probably got the gist, but the atmosphere was better than right after the ranking announcement.

The prizes were good, and the rules were loose.

“There are no rankings, and it’s done on a voluntary basis~”

“Ah…”

“Once you come out, you can definitely get one of the prizes by drawing!”

“...Yes!”

The voices in response were much more relaxed.

Because it was a setup where there was nothing to lose.

‘The fact that there’s no MC also made it feel like a bit of a break, I guess.’

...To be honest, I was also tempted by the dryer.

It was a one-room apartment, so there was nowhere to put it, but I didn’t expect a large electronic product to be a prize for a hastily planned event.

‘The program must be doing really well, I guess.’

While looking at the photo of the kimchi refrigerator included in the prize, I thought that. Then, the product photos on the screen disappeared, and large letters appeared.

[Long-term talent show: Random Dance]

[The last person standing is the winner!]

‘They didn’t even touch the font.’

The Hamcholong font was dazzling.

Regardless of my thoughts, a 5-second countdown soon appeared on the screen.

Then, a few people who were in relatively good condition started to line up.

[Start!]

And famous K-pop choruses flowed one after another without a break.

“Ooh.”

“Hey, you got it wrong! You have to go in!”

“Ah, what?”

At first, the participants joined mechanically due to the volume, but by the end, they were almost like a comedy show to determine the winner.

After about 12 songs, a winner emerged.

“Ah, thank you~”

It was Daesejin.

“No one asked, but I’ll share my thoughts. I think I honed my skills in the PR live for this day! Hahaha!”

“Ooh~”

Daesejin, who had done similar content during the PR, laughed boldly and quickly drew a slip from the lottery box.

“Here, my prize is...”

[(Jin) Grilled Boneless Chicken Feet 1 Box]

“I’ll give you a door mat.”

Daesejin’s quick shift in attitude made the participants burst into laughter. Even the staff covered their mouths to laugh, so there was no way to scold him as he winked at us.

‘How long will this chicken feet image stick with him?’

If it keeps being mentioned like this, I have a feeling it will follow him until he retires.

Anyway, because Daesejin gave a big laugh and went in, the atmosphere became even more relaxed.

“Next, please!”

“I’m really taking this one.”

After a few more rounds, most of the participants were genuinely into the talent show.

And a few expensive home appliances were still left as prizes.

And the sixth talent show appeared on the screen.

[Talent Show: Random Karaoke]

[The person who sings the first verse completely is the winner!]

“This is a category for me.”

“Wow, I really want to participate, but I already won? What should I do?”

I ignored the boasting Daesejin, hesitated for a moment, and then stepped forward.

“Oh~~ Do you have confidence, Moondae?”

Actually, I had no confidence. I didn’t really want to do it.

It was just a defensive move to avoid looking arrogant by showing a passive attitude after my ranking went up.

…If I win and get the dryer, it would be even better.

With 7 prizes left, there’s a 14% chance, so it’s a probability worth hoping for.

I waited with four participants I only knew by face for the countdown to end. The production team had quietly placed a microphone on the floor.

[Start!]

As soon as the screen changed, the prelude started.

Thump thump thump thump thump thump~

An addictive trot melody filled the hall.

“...?”

“Huh?”

The participants’ faces, who expected K-pop, were stunned.

That’s right. What came out was a K-trot karaoke accompaniment.

“...”

“Wait, wait.”

The participants listened to the prelude with confused expressions, but they couldn’t figure out what song it was just by listening to the prelude.

There were many trot songs that started with an upbeat trot rhythm.

“...”

I hesitated, then quietly stepped forward and picked up the microphone.

“...!!”

“Moondae is doing trot...?”

Gold 1’s muttering could be heard from here.

“Maybe he just grabbed it?”

“Bro, do you really know that song?”

I didn’t answer the many voices and started singing as soon as the prelude ended.

“Rain is falling on the streets of Seoul, but I can’t find the person I’m looking for~”

“...!!”

The participants murmured.

“Wow.”

“How did you know?”

How did I know? I know it because I’ve seen it a lot.

If you go to a few event shoots, you’ll see a lot of trot performances.

Especially when they are placed right before idol performances, I’ve heard a lot of popular songs among older people.

I’ve seen the original performance of this song... well, I’ve seen it a lot, sometimes twice a day.

Later, the singer recognized me and even winked at the camera.

The memory of uploading the straight cut to YouTube for conscience’s sake came back vividly. Well, it’s helpful.

“Oh~ The one I was looking for~ The one I wished for~”

It’s a fairly famous song, so when the chorus started, the participants joined in. I wondered how the singer felt at the event.

“Left Seoul~”

“Oh.”

I sang the first verse with enthusiasm, and the participants applauded with admiration.

This was more like... the reaction to a magical scene in a magic show.

It was a bit embarrassing, but since I succeeded, I decided to focus on the prize draw.

I greeted the participants a few times, put down the microphone, and grabbed the lottery box.

When I unfolded the drawn slip, a glimpse of a silver body appeared in the photo.

‘Can’t be the dryer...!’

[Kimchi Refrigerator]

“...”

I’m crazy.

“Hey! Kimchi refrigerator!!”

“What’s with Moondae’s luck~!”

“The one Moondae was looking for was a refrigerator.”

The participants swarmed around me, excitedly talking. I looked at the slip in a daze and suddenly realized the reality.

‘...Is the prize given after tax?’

I didn’t have the money to pay the tax.

I guess I’ll have to sell it second-hand as soon as I receive the prize, pay the tax, and fill my bank account.

Anyway, it felt good to get something expensive.

Daesejin, who was congratulating me, whispered subtly.

“Moondae, shall we swap prizes...?”

“No.”

“Okay.”

Just eat your chicken feet.

* * *

After the last chicken fight, the talent show ended with a grand finale, and the team battle shooting started with a much more relaxed atmosphere.

The MC, who seemed to have a hard time due to the adjusted shooting schedule, surprisingly had Young-rin take over and announce the new team battle.

“‘Re-listing! Idol Corporation,’ it’s already the third team battle. Participants, please congratulate yourselves for making it from 77 to 30.”

Although it wasn’t with the MC’s lively voice, Young-rin calmly and seriously progressed the situation.

Most importantly, as a successful idol, the participants seemed to take her words more seriously.

Gold 2, right next to me, was already grinning and stroking his own hair. It was quite a sight.

“This third team battle is formed in a somewhat unique way.”

Let’s see, so far the teams have been formed based on the participants’ choices, so it was about time for other factors to come into play.

But the factor was a bit unique.

“It’s the big data algorithm.”

“...Yes?”

“Big data?”

Suddenly, a concept from IT news appeared, and the participants looked at Young-rin with puzzled expressions.

Young-rin smiled and continued.

“‘Re-listing! Idol Corporation’ analyzed the patterns of how you, the shareholders, buy your stocks. Therefore, the teams are formed based on the stocks that many shareholders bought simultaneously.”

In short, it means that the teams were decided based on the participants that the paying viewers collectively liked.

“You can check the detailed analysis data on the ‘Re-listing! Idol Corporation’ website. Participants, are you ready to meet your teammates chosen by the big data of the shareholders?”

“Wow.”

“So amazing.”

The participants murmured with dazed expressions and started looking around to see who they might be with.

I also looked around the participants.

‘First... Seon Ah-hyun and Daesejin will probably be there.’

These two were obvious just by looking at their SNS. Sure enough, Seon Ah-hyun was already looking at me with bright eyes and waving her hand slightly.

Daesejin went even further, patting my back and saying,

“Hey, nice to work with you.”

“Yeah, sure.”

Daesejin laughed alone at my indifferent response. It seemed he was just trying to tease me.

“You seem ready. Then, come out in order and take your boxes.”

Behind Young-rin, a table with black boxes lined up was set up.

“The box contains a badge. After receiving the box, move to the corridor and enter the room marked with the shape of the badge.”

And Young-rin started calling the participants in alphabetical order to hand out the boxes.

Of course, ‘Park Moon-dae’ was called quite early.

“Participant Park Moon-dae, please take your box.”

I took the box with ‘Park Moon-dae’ written on it and went out the door.

Of course, a staff member with a camera was waiting in the corridor. I opened the box in front of them, and a rabbit-shaped badge appeared.

“...Rabbit?”

I muttered a bit bewilderedly, then closed my mouth, aware of the camera.

I looked up and checked the rooms lined up in the corridor. Each room had a nameplate.

〈Chick〉

〈Cat〉

〈Deer〉

〈Dog〉

〈Bear〉

And at the last room, I found the name I was looking for.

〈Rabbit〉

“...”

Overall, the naming sense was like a kindergarten classroom.

‘Well, it’s just dividing the teams.’

I guessed it was meant to be humorous and immediately opened the door.

Since the participants who might be on the same team would be called later, I wasn’t too nervous.

‘I’ll probably be the first one here.’

But the moment I opened the door and stepped in, someone sitting on the floor lifted their head and looked at me.

“...?”

It was Kim Rae-bin.

Why are you here...?

“Senior Park Moon-dae.”

Kim Rae-bin got up with a happy face and moved his seat to the side.

It seemed he was making room for me to sit in the middle.

Why bother...?

“I didn’t think we would be on the same team again. It’s really nice to see you.”

“...Yeah, nice to see you. Good luck.”

“Sure.”

We had a calm conversation, but my mind was running through complex reasoning.

‘Why is Kim Rae-bin on the same team?’

The only scene where I interacted with Kim Rae-bin was in the previous 7th episode.

So, does that mean the voting rate after the 7th episode was significant enough to influence the ‘big data algorithm’?

‘Of course, if only the stock from the previous ranking announcement was considered, it’s possible...’

I tried to gauge the possibility and then realized a simple fact.

‘Ah.’

It was because Kim Rae-bin was rarely involved with other participants.

I don’t know how they weighted it, but it seems quite plausible that I and Cha Yoo-jin were the only participants with a connection to Kim Rae-bin, which is why I ended up in the same team.

‘Well, it’s good to have a high-ranking participant.’

I tidied up my thoughts and sat on the floor. Kim Rae-bin immediately spoke again.

“Senior, the song you sang in the talent show, I also like that song.”

“...Really?”

I didn’t think I needed to know that Kim Rae-bin liked trot, but I passed the time by chatting until the next team member came in.

After quite some time, the next team member opened the door and came in.