Chapter 73

### Chapter 73: If You Can't Debut, You'll Get a Terminal Illness

During the tedious waiting time for the pre-recording of a music show, one of the VTIC members, who was fiddling with their smartphone according to their preferences, called out to Chingrye.

What was shown was the 9th most popular live video on YouTube.

[Top 1 Idol Hit by Water Bottle at Showcase!]

[On the evening of the 18th, a debut showcase for an idol group was held at Red Square. This was the same group that had recently caused a stir on the internet with the audition, 'Idol Corporation'...]

The issue-focused YouTuber was enthusiastically discussing the water bottle incident at the showcase, adding personal opinions.

"Is that her? The very one."

"...Ah."

Chingrye looked at the screen and remembered the absurd psychological test.

"Bak Moondae."

[You're quick.]

At that moment, a low-quality, ambiguous live clip (attached due to copyright issues) appeared in the video. It showed Bak Moondae calmly defusing the situation.

"Is this guy really smart?"

"Yeah."

"But it's a bit unfortunate. Just our luck to debut at the same time..."

The other members, who had been casually watching, chimed in and clicked their tongues.

"Tnet has been overstepping for a while now."

"Too bad they didn't get first place with such good metrics."

Their slightly sympathetic tone was based on the assumption that they would win for the second week.

In fact, it was inevitable.

[#1 Night Sign / VTIC]

This was the current top of the daily chart on the largest domestic music site.

Since the real-time chart was no longer visible, it was nearly impossible to immediately break through the existing chart and reach number one unless something extraordinary happened.

'No matter how fast, it takes at least a week.'

The same would apply to Testa's music, which would be released at midnight.

For Testa to expect a number one on a music show, they would need to outsell VTIC's second-week sales by at least a triple score, but unfortunately, their initial release periods overlapped by about a day.

Unless one side set an unprecedented record, losing was a foregone conclusion.

Of course, even for an audition-born male idol, talking about a number one on the music chart was absurd.

"Ah, forget it! If you have time to worry about juniors, let's focus on us!"

"Right!"

VTIC quickly returned to their own interests.

Chingrye, resting her chin in her hand, thought to herself.

'...We might lose.'

* * *

The debut showcase concluded successfully in a fervent atmosphere.

However, there was no special after-party.

"We just debuted, so we can't appear on TV like hot buns. It's a bit much to feast us so heavily~"

"Hot buns are delicious though!"

"You need a good face to be so plump and tempting."

"Oh!"

Cha Yujin immediately understood. I admired the amazing communication skills of the large Sejin for a moment before the topic shifted again.

"But Moondae's achievement really deserved a celebration."

"Y-Yeah."

"Excellent."

"...Yes, thank you."

"Haha, this guy is blushing!"

"..."

I... Since the showcase ended, I've been hearing variations of 'Bak Moondae's quick thinking is world-class.'

Now, it's more awkward than embarrassing.

Especially, it seems like large Sejin is doing it on purpose to make me more embarrassed, which is secretly annoying.

"Everyone has worked hard, so let's... take a short break."

"Yay~!"

"Finally."

In any case, they received a short break instead of an after-party. The members scattered to their rooms, showing a range of reactions from relief to joy.

For reference, I slept. My roommate, Lee Sejin, also slept, improving his sleep quality.

'I miss the ability to not need sleep.'

However, the reality camera was still rolling. After a short personal time, they had to gather in the living room again.

"Everyone seems to have rested well."

"Hehe."

Cha Yujin, who clearly had snacks, smiled.

Then, they all huddled around Ryu Cheongwoo's smartphone.

"It's already the release day, which is quite surprising."

"I, I'm nervous..."

Kim Raebin firmly stated.

"It takes over an hour to compile the 24Hits chart."

"An hour..."

Lee Sejin let out a sigh and disappeared into the kitchen, probably to get some water.

'...The chances of it not showing up even after an hour are high.'

They had to compete with the one-hour performance among other songs that had been compiled over 24 hours.

Even VTIC entered the 24-hour chart at 87th place after an hour.

Kim Raebin seemed about to explain this but, making eye contact with me, he quietly closed his mouth.

"..."

This time, it would have been okay to explain.

Large Sejin, trying to ease the tense atmosphere, said with a smile.

"Then, how about we watch the 'Magic Boy' music video first?"

"Oh."

Right. We haven't seen that yet.

Due to the short break after returning to the dorm, we hadn't thought about it.

'The reality production team asked us to film our reactions to this.'

"Good idea."

"Let's watch it on a big screen!"

Cha Yujin quickly grabbed the remote and switched the TV to YouTube.

The music video was already at the top of the real-time chart.

[Testa (TeSTAR) 'Magic Boy' Official MV]

"Yay!"

"Wow."

The members, looking at the screen in disbelief, finally came to their senses.

"Oh. The thumbnail is Moondae."

"Y-Yeah, it looks good."

The thumbnail showed Bak Moondae turning around in front of a classroom window. Behind the white curtains, the sky was tinged with crimson and purple, glowing in the backlight.

'Is this the treatment for a number one?'

I looked at the thumbnail awkwardly and pressed the play button with the remote Cha Yujin was holding.

"Ah!"

Against the background of Cha Yujin's surprised voice, the 'Magic Boy' music video started.

The video began with the thumbnail scene.

[...]

In an empty classroom, Bak Moondae was looking out the window at the setting sun.

The moment he turned around and made eye contact with the camera, the song began.

-Tomorrow's you

I've been thinking about all day

Dreaming of a sky as blue as the day

The scene changed.

A dilapidated and broken schoolyard was vividly revealed under the midday sun, then suddenly turned purple, with sparkling soap bubbles pouring out.

♫♪♩♪-♫♪♫♪-♪♩-

Then, scenes of the members performing unusual actions in ordinary school settings appeared, each in their own part.

-Even if the world is cold

Dreams are sweet

Even if reality crumbles

Dreams are vivid

Cha Yujin was sitting on an intact desk in a completely destroyed classroom.

He lined up animal-shaped wind-up toys in a corner and wound them up. Due to the shadows and lighting, the toys looked like small creatures.

-I don't want to drown

I want to fall asleep

Drawing dreams

But reality is breathing

All the time...

Seon Ah-hyeon, sitting on a bed in the infirmary, tore open a pillowcase. Shimmering dandelion-like fluff, instead of cotton, flew out and sparkled in the air around the bed.

-All that time.

Maybe it was what I needed

Magic to the future

So I

Ryu Cheongwoo shot flowers in the garden with a toy gun. Instead of BBs or water, beams of light burst, and blue petals flew.

Then, a zoom-out on the rooftop as the purple sunset spread.

-Cast a spell

Make a wish come

true true true

-Sink into the future quietly

-Cast a spell

Make a dream come

true true true

-Fall asleep in dreams, turn blue

After the chorus, the instrumental break featured a more complex and flashy dance break.

The midday rooftop scenes were cross-cut with the mysterious purple background, deepening the atmosphere.

"That makeup must have been a lot of work for everyone."

"Right! If you look closely... The outfits and makeup are different between the midday and sunset scenes!"

Large Sejin explained to the camera.

It was true.

The midday scenes were closer to natural faces, while the sunset scenes had added glitter and a rosy blush under the eyes.

The outfits also had more accessories for the sunset scenes.

'Trying to shoot all that in one day must have been a nightmare.'

Fortunately, the effort paid off, and the shots came out well.

♫♪♩♪-♫♪♫♪-♪♩-

Then, the second verse began.

After the hypnotic finger movements, Kim Raebin appeared from behind.

He delivered a melodic rap in a slow, complex, and very mysterious rhythm.

In the cross-cut scenes, Kim Raebin was sitting on a pile of broken cabinets in the hallway, throwing and catching a needle.

"Wow!"

"Great voice."

"...Thank you."

Kim Raebin, slightly embarrassed but proud, replied.

"But why did you choose something as menacing as a needle, Raebin?"

"...Because it's cute...?"

"..."

Large Sejin's mouth dropped open at the unexpected answer. I happily answered for him.

"Let's go with that."

"Right. Cute, Raebin."

Relieved that the video looked good, the reactions became more relaxed.

In the following scenes, Lee Sejin appeared as the last performer.

Lee Sejin was standing inside the school building, looking at the main entrance. The schoolyard was visible through the glass doors.

Then, the final pre-chorus began.

The music box melody lowered in tone, and the vocal melody followed suit.

-What can't be hidden

Is probably magic

Breathless and trembling

Dream.

Lee Sejin shattered the glass door.

At that moment, the sound of film rewinding was heard, and the scene cut back.

A strange whisper, like rewinding tape, passed, and a cut without music was inserted.

Bak Moondae walked into the schoolyard from outside.

[...]

Finally, stopping in front of the entrance, Bak Moondae extended both hands to grab the doorknob. And.

Click.

He locked the door.

... Click.

As the film rewound, the final chorus burst out with the choreography.

-Cast a spell

Make a wish come

true true true

-Sink into the future quietly

-Cast a spell

Make a dream come

true true true

-Fall asleep in dreams, turn blue

The rooftop, where the choreography was performed, had transformed into a more surreal space.

The railing surrounding the rooftop shattered and turned into transparent crystals, distorting the light like a prism.

The choreography became more complex and curved, like the light disrupting the background.

♫♪♩♪-♫♪♫♪-♪♩-

At the end of the choreography, the members naturally formed a circle. As they lay down in a circle on the rooftop, the song ended.

Pop.

Purple soap bubbles burst.

[...]

Then, a black screen appeared.

A slowly arranged instrumental version of 'Magic Boy' played as classic end credits rolled, like a short film.

Finally, the members started talking again.

"Wow!!"

"It looks so good?"

"Thank you, director."

"It, it looks great... "

Everyone spoke simultaneously, creating a chaotic situation where no one responded to each other.

But everyone was too excited to care.

"Very, very meaningful and interesting."

"Fans will enjoy finding various details."

"I hope the fans like it as much as we do~"

The atmosphere was as warm as it could be.

'Starting off well, it's worth celebrating.'

Thanks to this, the tension when checking the music chart was not as high.

And the result.

"Wow! We entered the chart~"

At 85th and 88th places.

'...One is slightly higher than VTIC.'

The open popularity of the well-received audition was more than expected.

'Insane.'

However, because more members were used to terms like 'real-time number one,' they were just moderately happy.

Intellectually, they knew, but visually, it was in the 80s.

So, the more intense reaction came next.

"A, all our songs...?"

"Wow."

On other music sites where the real-time chart was still active, Testa's title tracks took the 1st and 2nd spots.

[1st Hi-five / Testa] new!

[2nd Magic Boy / Testa] new!

[3rd Night Sign / VTIC] ▼2

[...]

Even all four songs from this album were in the top 7.

Of course, they would be quickly overtaken by VTIC soon, but it was an insane momentum.

Realizing this, the members were stunned and kept looking at their smartphone screens.

"Let's, let's take a screenshot."

"Good idea."

This was a good omen from the very beginning of their activities, even before appearing on music shows.