Chapter 9

If you can't debut, you'll get a disease that will kill you - Chapter 009

The stage for the theme song was arranged in a fan shape, with participants from the Platinum grade at the center. Naturally, the higher the grade, the closer to the front and center they were positioned.

Apart from this, the only privilege of the Platinum grade was that there were parts in the performance that only Platinum groups could participate in.

However, since being captured by the camera even for a moment could change the initial rankings, everyone seemed to be paying attention to their grades.

Moreover, the producers and trainers spoke and acted as if the grades were of great significance, which made it easy for the young participants to be swept up.

What this meant was that the number of participants who approached after getting the Platinum badge increased fivefold.

The overt social hierarchy, which I had never experienced even in high school, made me feel a bit cynical.

Creating such an atmosphere, I wondered what these excellent producers would do next...

Fortunately, even the ruthless producers had some sense of direction. Among the Platinum grade participants, those with a dance score of A or higher were placed at the start and during the dance break, positioned further forward in the choreography.

And those with relatively weak dance skills were subtly placed at the back. Of course, I was in this category.

My dance break choreography was slightly behind even the Gold participants, as I could see Ahn Ah-hyun and Lee Se-jin (Gold) standing right next to me.

By the way, the young actor Lee Se-jin had received a Silver. Looking at the public trend, it was doubtful whether he would debut.

"Isn't it a bit disappointing?"

So, I casually brushed off Lee Se-jin's (Gold) friendly overtures. The suspicion had somewhat subsided, and my guard had lowered.

"Not really."

I answered calmly. He must be talking about the stage position, which isn't that great for a Platinum grade participant.

"Wow, I would have been really disappointed."

"You have a reason to be."

"Huh? Why do you think so?"

"Because you dance well."

Lee Se-jin's dance score was A-, and his vocal score was C+. If he hadn't gone off-key in the high notes, he might have entered the Platinum grade instead of me.

"Ugh, thanks!"

Anyway, Lee Se-jin seemed to be in a good mood and smiled broadly. At that moment, another voice abruptly cut in.

"Can't dance?"

It was a Platinum grade participant standing right in the center. His expression was blank, and he didn't seem to have any ill intent.

The problem was that he had been the top-ranked participant in the initial evaluation and, as far as I knew, the final top-ranked participant as well.

His name was Cha Yu-jin. He was famous enough to have appeared a few times on the TV in the boarding house where I stayed.

But he was stranger than expected. Even with the microphone on and the camera rolling, he asked such a question?

He must have managed to become the top-ranked participant with this blunt personality.

Of course, his performance in each evaluation was clearly outstanding, and the broadcast editing was likely to have been favorable. I didn't want to get entangled in this kind of material.

So, I deliberately chuckled.

"Didn't you see my evaluation?"

He looked taken aback. Perhaps he was the type who felt guilty in such situations.

"We had to prepare for our own performance, so I didn't really see it."

"Then, you can judge when you see it next time."

"Understood."

Cha Yu-jin nodded and turned his gaze forward. Lee Se-jin laughed, looking bewildered.

"Maybe it's because he's from abroad, his tone is unique?"

"Yeah."

Lee Se-jin also seemed to be aware of the camera, so the conversation didn't go further.

Instead, I looked at the staff outside the stage. It seemed they were almost done.

"Rehearsal starts!"

The staff shouted. It seemed the setup was indeed complete.

I suppressed a sigh.

It was already hard enough to wait on the street, gathering equipment, but I had to do it myself now.

The current time was 6:00 AM.

And the main stage recording was at 4:00 PM.

It was going to be a grueling day.

* * *

And now, it's 8:00 PM.

The main recording has been completed.

"Great job, everyone~!"

As expected, it was no easy task.

"Phew..."

"A... I'm dying."

Participants groaned and collapsed on the floor one after another, drenched in sweat.

I was in no better condition, but there was no space to sit as the floor was already covered by the collapsed participants.

It was a ridiculous situation.

'Completely drained.'

First, we rehearsed all morning until we were exhausted. After that, we got a short break for lunch.

The meal was just rice rolls wrapped in aluminum foil, as they hadn't secured any product placement yet.

After a quick lunch, the stylists and related staff entered the shooting site.

-Oh, there's no place to put anything~

-Bend your head this way!

-I'll do it quickly.

They applied makeup and styled the participants' hair mechanically in the poor conditions of the makeshift waiting area.

Honestly, no one underwent a dramatic transformation, but they looked presentable enough for the broadcast.

Then, we changed into the broadcast uniforms.

At this point, the camera focused on me.

-Do you like the outfit?

-...Yes.

Would anyone say no here?

-What do you like about it?

-Well, the design combines a uniform and a school uniform, so it can be used for various concepts.

It was a bit disappointing that I couldn't express my true feelings: the 77 participants all wearing the same outfit made it feel like I was back in high school, which was a bit creepy.

As soon as I finished speaking, other participants chimed in.

-I like that I can match various accessories~

-Ah! I also like how it goes well with the badges.

Even though my appearance would only be a passing shot, everyone was incredibly enthusiastic.

And the main recording.

Honestly, I don't know how the editing will turn out.

-Let's do it again~

-Ugh...

Dancing in a group in a place as hot as this, it was impossible to think about anything else. I heard praise, criticism, and motivational speeches, but they were all a blur in my mind.

Honestly, my memory was hazy. I didn't know which shots the producers would use out of the thirty takes.

I tried to focus and listen to the PD.

"Everyone, you did a great job..."

The main PD, who had appeared quietly near the end of the main stage, gave a hollow speech but then provided some useful information.

"...And this stage will air on Music Night this Friday. You will start recording again the next day. Rest well until then, and remember, this is an incredible opportunity for you. You need to seize it."

Anyone watching would think that if the participants work hard, they can seize the opportunity.

The participants responded enthusiastically to the PD's words, who could tailor the opportunity as they saw fit.

"Let's work hard and give it our all."

"Yes!!"

"See you next week. Great job~"

"Thank you for your hard work!"

Everyone squeezed out their remaining energy to cheer and clap. I clapped as well, my hands trembling.

"..."

Until the next Music Night monitoring, I need to build up my stamina.

* * *

A week passed in a flash.

My plan to build up my stamina was only half successful. After the first recording, I suddenly developed a fever and spent four days in bed.

Park Moon-dae's body couldn't handle the intense labor over the past few weeks.

After getting up on the third day, I increased my food intake aggressively and started practicing dance and strength training.

Even while watching Music Night, I was holding dumbbells, so I guess I was quite dedicated.

So, let's say it was half successful.

[Shiny, did you enjoy SoulWe's energetic EDM performance?]

[Of course, Shiny, it's so refreshing!]

[Are you joking? Ugh~]

[Ugh~]

On the screen, a pair of idols were hosting the show cheerfully.

They seemed to be reading the prompter diligently but still managed to deliver the awkward script with a good sense of humor.

They were putting in effort despite their busy schedules.

[Shiny! Now, let's introduce the next performance, which is no joke.]

[Yes. Have you heard the news, Yoon-ji?]

[What news?]

[The news that the fans have been eagerly waiting for! The 'Idol Corporation' is back on the market!]

[Wow!]

It's about to start. I put down the dumbbells and lifted my smartphone to open the page I had preloaded.

It was a viewer forum created by a major portal site, the best place to check general internet reactions.

Since it wasn't a major artist's comeback week, the page was filled with discussions about the 'Idol Corporation.'

['MusicBOMB' talk talk!]

-Back on the market, huh? Is this real?

-All kinds of crazy ideas.

-Wow, Season 3 of High-Kick!

-Haha, no, it's not a relisting, it's a delisting.

-What's going on here all of a sudden?

└A new season is being made.

└Oh...

-Haha, is anyone here just to read the comments instead of watching the boring stage?

As expected, various reactions were flooding in.

With each refresh, a new wave of mockery poured in. It seemed more people had gathered than the regular Music Night viewers.

Summarizing the reactions, it was clear that Season 3 was a risky move and was bound to fail. Season 2 had self-destructed so spectacularly that the series was now seen as a failed program.

Sure enough, there were also references to Season 2.

-Will it be a male-only explosion this time? Will it be an even bigger Korea?

└Same-sex marriage isn't legal in Korea, so it can't surpass Season 2's peak. Haha

└F*ck, haha

The main reason for Season 2's self-destruction was this. They had mixed genders and held a mixed-gender idol audition.

Thinking about it now, it was a bizarre idea.

I wonder what the producers were thinking.

If they had stuck to the standard and made Season 2 a male version, or even a female version, it wouldn't have ended up like this.

What happened was...

-Someone might get pregnant before marriage and become a legend in the idol audition world.

└Haha, two seasons in a row, what a surprise!

└Now it's funny, but it was a real trauma back then. What the hell were those crazy people doing, coming out in an audition show and pissing off innocent viewers?

└Eek, sudden acceleration;

└Over-invested in the variety show, huh~

└No, it's not just a variety show, it's a money-grabbing audition.

└Thinking about how they tried to create a legendary romance, I still shudder.

Indeed, a pre-marriage pregnancy scandal had erupted...

Even in a love story, a pre-marriage pregnancy is fatal.

And it happened between participants.

The bigger problem was that the two participants involved were popular figures who had been driving Season 2.

The producers probably thought it was better to use the scandal for hype and then quietly remove the participants rather than immediately disqualify them.

So, they must have tried their best to edit the remaining footage to make it look like a romantic reality show.

But it didn't end there.

-Pre-marriage pregnancy with multiple partners, a crazy guy like no other.

-Really, the producers are legendary... No, not the producers, but the failed producers, haha.

One of the male participants involved in the pre-marriage pregnancy scandal was actually dating another female participant.

The female participant, who had initially planned to endure it for her career, saw the pink-tinted broadcast and reported the chat history to the media.

After that, it was a disaster.

The portal's real-time search, entertainment news pages, and SNS were all in chaos.

Simply put, Season 2 of 'Idol Corporation' was prematurely canceled before reaching the final.

And with such a massive scandal still fresh in the minds of the audience, it was inevitable that the show would be mocked in the early stages.

I put aside the memories and focused on the screen again.

In contrast to the chaotic comment section, the Music Night MCs were still smiling brightly.

[Idol stocks waiting for your investment!]

[Shine your star!]

And here comes the famous catchphrase.

[Invest in the idol about to take off!]

At that moment, the number of comments tripled.

-Take off, stocks... A dream of a huge rise... ↖Take... off↗

This was once a popular internet meme. It was often used when a participant expected to do well but ended up failing.

A few complaints passed through the sea of mocking comments.

-Wow, they're using this again.

-Who decided the wording? It's really out of this world.

-It feels like a washed-up old man trying to be hip and failing.

-You crazy producers, don't make Shiny say such lines. 😭

I chuckled.

"Still, people are watching."

They're watching to criticize.

It was hundreds of times better than indifference. This initial audience would definitely contribute to the early word-of-mouth. Since I had already experienced the success of Season 3, I knew that most of these people would end up (in the words of 'Idol Corporation') holding someone's stock and crying by the final.

But not from the first stage.

I was eagerly waiting to see what kind of reaction it would elicit.

As the MC finished speaking, a few seconds later, the TV screen showed the stage.

Yeon-rin was standing on the stage, with a spotlight dramatically casting shadows on her well-defined face.

Well, originally, 'Idol Corporation' was a B-grade style with a humorous position, full of black comedy and memes. But after being mocked so much, it seemed they were trying to change their image.

They were going for a solemn approach.

[Dear shareholders! Do you remember the delisting?]

"..."

My prediction was shattered as soon as Yeon-rin opened her mouth.

[Turning your stocks into scraps of paper... I am truly sorry!!]

A large subtitle appeared in front of Yeon-rin, who was delivering a powerful speech.

[※This is the production team's apology. Yeon-rin is not to blame.※]

[※We are still receiving compensation claims on our website.※]

"..."

Are they in their right minds?