Chapter 11

Chapter 11.

“First of all... I watched your performance.”

A few days later.

Inside a spacious practice room, where the sounds of heavy breathing echoed softly.

Seo Jihyeok was the first to speak amid the quiet tension.

Without the sunglasses he always wore, he seemed less intimidating than usual.

Perhaps it was because his gentle-looking eyes contrasted with his personality.

However, to the trainees facing him, nothing was more frightening than those uncovered eyes.

Perhaps because they were the ones being evaluated, one of the eight trainees standing before him was even trembling as he held his hands politely clasped in front of him.

Even though this was merely a checkup and practice evaluation before the competition.

“...Your hands are shaking quite a lot.”

His gaze had settled on Rubin.

“I'm not trying to scold you, so stop shaking.”

“Pardon? Ah, yes... Yes! Yes, I'm sorry... I'm nervous...”

Although Jihyeok had intended it as encouragement in his own way, Rubin remained thoroughly intimidated.

But when Yuseong glanced sideways at him, gently raised his eyebrows, and smiled, Rubin immediately relaxed the tension that had been gripping his shoulders.

Well, would you look at that.

Jihyeok stroked his chin, keeping his arms propped against the table.

“First, what I'd like to ask is... who came up with the idea for this concept?”

As soon as he asked, the other seven trainees immediately turned their eyes toward Yuseong.

The person being singled out glanced from side to side, gestured toward both sides with his hands, and answered without hesitation.

“It was the result of combining everyone's opinions, including mine. We really did come up with it together. Chan was in charge of the arrangement.”

Of course you'd say that.

Jihyeok chuckled inwardly.

There weren't many people who would eagerly raise their hands and boast that they had done something themselves.

Having anticipated this answer, he nodded casually.

It had been the same with <​Chicken Stock Soup>.

Yuseong hadn't revealed that he had done the arrangement, so Rubin had been the first to insist, his eyes blazing, “Yuseong hyung handled the arrangement for us~ One hundred percent!”

He even remembered Yuseong denying that.

It had happened during the behind-the-scenes interview for the cover song.

In any case, Jihyeok didn't place much importance on the mere fact that someone had arranged a song.

This industry was overflowing with people who could do that much with their eyes closed. He himself was one of them, so naturally, his standards were high and his ears were discerning.

However, that also meant he was genuinely passionate about discovering talent. His interest lay not in the finished product Yuseong had presented, but in the size and shape of the unpolished gem he possessed.

'He doesn't seem particularly aware of it himself... but I think he'd be good at producing.'

It was also the responsibility of a senior in the industry to pave the way for talented juniors to develop their abilities to the fullest.

Jihyeok had already chosen Yuseong as someone he wanted to guide down that path.

“I think changing the concept was a good decision. You should be finding what suits you best... That's why I asked.”

Seo Jihyeok continued, looking at Yuseong.

“It could easily have become excessive, or even boring if handled poorly, but you adjusted it appropriately. I think it'll be a performance that not only you, but also the fans watching, can enjoy together.”

Therefore, this praise was undoubtedly directed at Yuseong.

Since they had managed to respect the original song while satisfying what people wanted to see, Jihyeok believed the performance would attract considerable attention once it was revealed.

As soon as he finished speaking, the trainees loudly expressed their gratitude.

It was rare for such a positive evaluation to come from Jihyeok,

And since some teams had received criticism so harsh that their sincerity about pursuing careers as idols had been questioned, his praise felt all the more meaningful.

“...And the fact that this was possible... Mr. Soyuseong. I believe your role as leader must have been significant. The reason this team was able to bring out this level of teamwork and potential is that someone dependable was there to hold everything together.”

Although whether this scene would make it into the broadcast was up to the producer, Jihyeok did not forget to considerately provide an opportunity for the editors to focus on Yuseong.

Rather than unconditional favoritism, it was a judgment based on the influence Yuseong had exerted over the entire team.

Hwanyeong, who had delivered a comparatively stable performance here,

And Rubin, who had spread his wings after the <​Chicken Stock Soup> cover and secured the position of main vocalist, were both people whom Yuseong had directly influenced.

The same was true of the other team members.

There was Juan, who habitually began his answers with “Yuseong hyung~” whenever additional questions were asked, and Dael, who stood especially close to Yuseong.

Even Patrick, who nodded at everything Yuseong said with a pleased expression, openly displayed his boundless trust and affection for him.

Though Jihyeok wasn't entirely sure about Kang Chan, who maintained an excessively neutral attitude.

Jihyeok concluded the evaluation by advising them to take good care of themselves and saying he hoped they would deliver a good performance.

The atmosphere was warm and pleasant.

_____________

The day of the first mission performances.

「Everyone brought slogans? I'm standing here completely empty-handed.」

「Maybe I should've brought a Kingblade or something. Or would that have been too much?」

「Don't they call them Kingblades in idol fandoms? What was it again? It's been so long since I last followed 3D idols that I can't remember.」

「Whatever, they're letting us in now,,」

Amid the tightly packed crowd surrounding her.

She felt an awkward sense of not belonging.

This was the studio where the competition performances would take place.

A woman who had been standing apart like an isolated island amid the commotion over fan giveaways and other activities suddenly raised her head at the shouts and gestures of the staff.

She stopped posting one message after another on social media and hurriedly joined the organized line.

The presence of the long procession stretching behind her felt overwhelmingly heavy.

“Excuse me, are you here to see someone in particular?”

“Y-yes?”

A woman standing behind her, whose face practically had the letter 'E' written across it, spoke to her.

When she reflexively asked again in surprise, the other woman apparently thought she hadn't heard and slowly repeated herself.

“Who, are you, here to see?”

“Ah... Oh, Soyuseong.”

“Really? Oh, thank goodness. I was handing these out over there earlier. Would you like to take one?”

The other woman opened the shopping bag she was holding and showed her the contents.

Inside were three yellow slogans, folded into rounded halves so that only the single syllable 'Yu' was visible.

It was the same color that more than half the people here were holding.

So this was the person handing them out.

“Oh, ah... But I don't have a fan account or anything yet, so I can't even provide proof...”

“It's fine~ I wasn't asking for proof in the first place.”

“Thank you...”

She accepted one with a bewildered expression and thanked her.

The three syllables spelling 'Soyuseong' were coated in silver, giving the slogan a smooth, glossy shine.

If she had been the only person holding something like this, she would undoubtedly have stood out, but perhaps because everyone here had come to support their favorites, it didn't feel out of place at all.

'...The amount of effort is insane.'

Printed on the back of the slogan was a photograph of Yuseong's upper body, with fox ears and nine tails drawn onto him in a sketch-like style.

And not just an ordinary fox, but a cute, stylized nine-tailed fox.

When the program had first introduced that title officially, she had wondered whether they were pushing things too far, but the moment she saw Yuseong's face, she understood.

He's handsome.

So handsome...

That face was the reason she had ended up standing in line outside the studio to attend Play ON's first competition.

Even though she'd promised herself she would never take an interest in real men again.

As admission began, she shoved her bag, which still bore the marks where she'd removed its pin badges, into a storage locker.

One side got crumpled because she was in such a hurry, but she didn't care at all.

Even after checking all her belongings, it took another thirty minutes before she could finally sit down in the audience.

Quite a few people here and there were holding light sticks bearing the names of trainees.

She realized that even if she'd brought the one she had at home, it wouldn't have suited this place.

“Wow~ The audience is sparkling!”

Before the event began, the host came onto the stage.

“Hello! I'm Hyun Kangoh, your operator partner for <​Top Play ON>!”

He was a musical actor she had seen in a few television dramas.

When he bowed politely, everyone responded with cheers.

The woman also lowered the slogan she had been awkwardly holding onto her lap and applauded.

“Has everyone eaten? Ah, you couldn't because you were waiting... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked.”

After some small talk about trivial subjects, he moved on to the announcements.

The point emphasized most strongly was the warning that the first competition would not be revealed until several weeks after the broadcast began, so all spoilers were strictly prohibited except for the song list and positive impressions.

She already knew that, so she let the words go in one ear and out the other.

She wasn't the type to post lengthy reviews on social media or online communities in the first place,

And her concentration had also begun to wander after she realized that Hyun Kangoh, who was known as an 'extremely handsome musical actor,' was only moderately good-looking in person, causing her expectations for Yuseong's real-life appearance to fall as well.

The reason she had come all this way was a fancam of Yuseong performing as the center that had appeared on her social media recommendations tab.

She had grown sick of every male idol she supported repeatedly turning up in the crime and scandal sections of the news, so she'd switched to being a fan of 2D characters.

But even that fandom had become embroiled in controversy, and she'd angrily abandoned it long ago. Then, out of nowhere, someone named Soyuseong had appeared in her life like a new wave.

A powerful wave she could do nothing but watch as it surged toward her.

It felt like only yesterday that she'd declared she would never support another real-life male idol, yet before she knew it, she'd even applied to attend the recording.

Though she had never expected to be selected.

'Lower your expectations... Your expectations.'

After being betrayed so many times by things she'd believed in, even the slightest suspicion was enough to cool her enthusiasm.

So she had decided to strip away as many expectations as possible, eliminating any chance of later disappointment and regret.

Rather than come all this way only to have a disappointing experience, it would be better to go home without thinking too much about anything.

Before the mission began, its rules were explained in a video that looked rather like a PowerPoint presentation.

Setting aside the aesthetics, which made the producer's personal tastes painfully obvious,

The content itself matched the 'reinterpretation' keyword used in Catch One so closely that she immediately began to worry.

The rules were simple: change the original song into a different concept, and demonstrate how well you could pull it off.

“The first performance will be presented by Team 1 of <​ASMR>...”

Just as she had lowered her expectations so thoroughly that she was beginning to feel almost detached, the competition began.

The fluttering sounds of slogans waving here and there surged like waves.

The trainees who had drawn good combinations of songs and concepts delivered excellent performances,

While some of those who had drawn even one unsuitable element ended up producing such bizarre performances that they practically destroyed the original songs and became objects of ridicule.

Still, perhaps the producer had learned something from Catch One,

Because this time, the teams had been given the right to 'Pioneer' their concepts in whatever direction they wanted, and the audience had been informed in advance that several teams had exercised this option.

But another problem arose here.

“Now... at this point! There's something I need to announce. That's right... a 'Hidden Rule' that will make the performances even more exciting. I'll explain the details after all the performances are finished.”

Before the second <​ASMR> performance began, the host dropped a bombshell.

There was another hidden rule that hadn't been disclosed to the trainees.

Judging by his statement that it would only be revealed after every performance had ended, it was obviously going to be something disadvantageous to the contestants.

“And that concludes the performances of all the <​ASMR> teams. Now... subscribers, please press 'Like' for the team whose performance you enjoyed the most!”

Voting for individual contestants would take place after every performance was finished, while team voting would be conducted in a tournament format.

After thinking about it for quite a while, the woman gave her vote to Team 3, which had worked hard to Pioneer its concept.

They hadn't performed badly, but she hadn't particularly liked them either... Still, they had put in the effort.

When is Soyuseong coming out?

As she rested her elbow on the armrest, she happened to notice that the woman sitting beside her was holding a black slogan.

That color... Wasn't it Seong Iseong's?

That pretty-looking boy...

“The second song is... Play ON's remake of <​You You>, originally remade by 'Tencent' from 'Dodo's' <​You You>!”

Speak of the tiger, and it appears.

After Team 1 of <​You You>, which had chosen a hip concept, finished its turn, the face she had been waiting for finally appeared.

Soyuseong.

The moment she saw him, the woman froze with her mouth hanging open.

The slogan she had reflexively started raising stopped at chest height.

A total of eight people had run onto the stage, but among them, only one shone particularly brightly.

Not only were all the expectations she'd lowered instantly restored, they soared higher than ever.

'This is insane...'

Her first thought was that his eyes were incredibly beautiful.

And the mole just beneath his left eye looked like a star.

Even from a seat that wasn't particularly close, the way he looked around with eyes so captivating they naturally drew her gaze was like a scene from a movie.

'A nine-tailed fox is walking around...'

Well, nine-tailed foxes are supposed to walk around.

After thinking that and immediately arguing with herself, her second impression was 'the aesthetic beauty of a well-matured adult man.'

But that thought lasted only a moment before the leader, Yuseong, began their greeting, snapping her back to attention.

“Hello! We're Team 2 of <​You You>—C-type?”

The team members standing in a straight line simultaneously raised their handheld microphones.

“No!”

“8-pin?”

“No!”

“The original is?”

“24-pin!!”

“Hello, we're <​24-pin>!”

Waaaaah!!!

The fans welcomed them with cheers far louder than those for any of the previous teams.

Without realizing it, the woman was swept up in the noise and let out a deafening roar herself.

“I heard Team 2 applied for Pioneering this time~”

“Yes, that's right.”

“Then let's see exactly how they succeeded in Pioneering their concept!”

And the lights went out.

- This is 24-pin in 21 century

Soon, a voice distorted with Auto-Tune announced an unusual beginning to the song.

An intro with a familiar sensibility etched into her blood. The first thing to emerge from the darkness, contrasting with the highly saturated stage lights, was...

- Let's play on TOP

Yuseong, wearing a strange pair of sunglasses.