“What, what’s that?”
All members except for me turned their heads toward the direction of the sound, startled.
Perhaps feeling a sense of duty as the leader, Kim Seonghyeon was the first to jump up and approach the door.
But when he tried to pull the doorknob, it just rattled without opening.
“It won’t open.”
“Just now, what…”
Jeong Dajun said, his eyes wide and stumbling over his words.
“A scream, isn’t that dangerous? Call, call…”
Then—
“Aaaaaaaah!”
Yet another scream echoed, followed by—
“Uwaaaaaaaah!”
“Aaaah!”
Then, something fell from the ceiling with a thud.
The leader and the maknae—the two scaredy-cats—covered their eyes and screamed like mad.
“Waaaaah! What, what is it?!”
” Go back, guys, go back! Go back…!”
“What do you mean, go back….”
“Ahaha.”
Kim Seonghyeon tried to flee to a corner, pulling Kang Ichae, who flinched slightly, along with me, who remained impassive, and Seong Jiwon, who, far from being scared, actually burst into laughter.
But then Seong Jiwon tilted his head for a moment and boldly approached the object swinging from the ceiling.
“…It’s a mannequin?”
Kim Seonghyeon timidly spread his fingers apart, peeking through to see with his own eyes.
What fell from the ceiling was a red-painted mannequin resembling a person.
“…A mannequin?”
While Jeong Dajun and Kim Seonghyeon clung to each other, trying to calm their pounding hearts, Kang Ichae discovered a mission note pinned to the mannequin’s clothing.
“It’s a mission?”
Kim Heeyeon, I knew it would be something like this.
Somehow today, the laughter seemed particularly hearty, and everything appeared livelier.
After all, it was as rare as a unicorn for a PD to have a bright and lively smile, considering that overtime and pressure were as common as three meals a day.
It just didn’t exist.
Ding!
[Wow… Birds of a feather…]
What was I supposed to do about it?
Though on the verge of tears, Kim Seonghyeon asked calmly,
“What, what does the mission note say?”
“I’ll read it~.”
Correction: The leader was not calm.
Kang Ichae slowly read what was written on the paper.
“Shining Star Season 2, the first mission begins. ‘Find the note in a haunted broadcasting station’ mission!”
“…Excuse me?”
Still unable to shake off the shock, Jeong Dajun, who was sitting in a corner and shivering with fear, suddenly perked up at Kang Ichae’s words.
“The face-off will be divided into dance, vocal, and rap units. Perform on stage in front of the public wearing masks and hats, and the person who receives the most votes will gain a special benefit. What song to perform and how many minutes you have will vary by the note.”
“…?”
“The notes are hidden in ‘Ahh! The broadcasting station is so, so scary.’ Two members must explore the broadcasting station filled with resentful ghosts during the night to find the note.”
“Two members!!”
Jeong Dajun stood up with a fist clenched.
“Then, Hoyun-hyung and Jiwon-hyung should go!!”
“…”
It had not even been a year since someone said, “I said I wanted to be helpful to the hyungs,” and that someone was already trying to kick me out with bloodshot eyes.
“Those two didn’t even blink an eye! Even Ichae-hyung shivered!!”
“Bangbang-ah, hyung is scared too.”
“Hoyun-hyung, if you’re going to lie, at least wet your mouth first!”
“I’m scaaared.”
“…”
After wetting my mouth and speaking, Jeong Dajun gave me a deathly glare.
“Ah~, I don’t mind going.”
Seong Jiwon said, seemingly disappointed.
“But it seems like we can’t do that?”
“What, what is it?”
Seong Jiwon glanced at Jeong Dajun’s eyes before continuing to read.
“The participants for this exploration are the two who screamed the loudest. The production team will decide based on the measured decibels.”
“…!”
Jeong Dajun’s mouth fell open.
For reference, there were only two people here who had screamed loudly.
At that moment, a strange mechanical voice flowed through the meeting room speaker.
“[96dB Jeong Dajun, 88dB Kim Seonghyeon, please come out.]”
“…!!!”
And so, their faces turned pale.
.
.
.
[Aaaaaaah!]
[Waaaaaaaaah! Jeong Dajun! Come here!]
[Hyung, hyung! Don’t leave me behind! Seonghyeon-hyuuuuung!]
[What, what? Then what am I holding onto right now… Aaaaah!]
It was complete chaos.
The remaining three were led to another meeting room by the staff, where they were treated to tea and desserts while monitoring Kim Seonghyeon and Jeong Dajun in real-time.
“The dance line is really romantic~.”
“Look at Dajun holding a ghost’s arm instead.”
“But they didn’t give up halfway.”
We were simply enjoying ourselves.
Laughing heartily, I picked a Shine Muscat grape from the top of a piece of cake with cream.
The scene where Kim Seonghyeon (half-crying) serenaded a ghost hiding in the third bathroom stall with aegyo to get a note was a masterpiece.
“Ahaha, Seonghyeon sings well.”
Seong Jiwon, who seemed to have picked up a bit from Kang Ichae and me over the year, was also enjoying himself.
Next to him, Kang Ichae was laughing out loud, hitting the table with his hand.
The staff member standing opposite whispered to Kim Heeyeon after seeing that.
“They’ve been the most annoyingly mocking among the group so far….”
“Good, good~.”
Eventually, running as if chased by ghosts until the very end, Kim Seonghyeon and Jeong Dajun arrived at the meeting room.
“We’ve arrived!!!”
“Arrived!!!!”
After tumbling and falling, they both had grimy faces.
“Wow~.”
“Congratulations~.”
Clap, clap, clap.
The staff and members gave them applause that lacked any soul.
Ding!
[This lukewarm congratulation…]
“It took about 1 hour and 21 minutes. Congratulations on finishing.”
“I want to cry….”
“Me, me, someone hug me.”
Two scaredy cats came sniffling over.
Being so innocent, they probably didn’t even know what fun the others members had in the waiting room while waiting for them.
Naturally, I ignored the two and just extended my hand.
“I, I don’t want to do this….”
“What did you bring?”
“…”
“…”
“What did you bring?”
“It was really bad….”
As they didn’t seem to plan on moving while only sticking their mouths out, searching their pockets revealed three pieces of paper: vocal, dance, rap.
Obviously, the titles of the songs were written on the notes.
Unfolding the paper labeled as the vocal unit, I scanned the contents with my eyes.
“We’re going to sing this at the face-off meeting, right?”
“As a duet representative, yes.”
“…Oh.”
It was a song I had seen somewhere a lot.
After reading all the notes, I looked at Seong Jiwon.
Jeong Dajun also looked at Seong Jiwon once, then glanced at Kang Ichae and stared at me.
“Huh?”
Seong Jiwon hung an ambiguous smile on his lips.
“Isn’t this too mean?”
I thought so too.
Not because it was a familiar song.
[Seong Jiwon, under the influence of Seo Hoyun, might have gotten slightly corrupted but is still kind, angelic, a good member whom Seo Hoyun wants to be with forever.]
What?
I skipped the useless content and looked away.
Anyway, it as quite mean.
[Singing: S0
Dance: A+
Variety: C-
Acting: B-
Charm: A-
???: ???]
Seong Jiwon’s singing stat.
***
“Hey hey, what’s that?”
Pedestrians walking by the Han River turned their attention in one direction.
Many people were busily setting up cameras and organizing an outdoor stage, with a few handing out something to passersby.
“Looks like there’s a performance?”
“Really? But aren’t there any posters or banners?”
“Must be a nugu then.”[1]
Though I sounded indifferent, I was actually quite interested since I was looking for something to do.
An hour ago, after eating and with nothing else to do, I was loitering when someone approached and said to me,
“We’re having a guerrilla concert today. It’s a masked king concept, so each duet will sing their songs in turn, and you just have to pick the duo you like the most.”
“Oh~.”
Interest piqued, I nodded and entered the outdoor concert venue with my friend.
It seemed to be just the start time, as the spotlight on the stage was turned on.
“If they’re nugu, they probably won’t sing that well.”
“Eh, better not to expect much.”
It appeared to be a not-so-famous broadcast as a staff member came out instead of an MC.
However, as soon as the first song’s melody played, everyone in the audience gasped.
“Hiding this increasingly shabby heart of mine,
I keep staying up all night.”
“Humble Confession!”
It was the OST of a drama that had heated up the last year.
Being a fan of Min Jiheon, I had listened to this song incessantly, so I felt a special kind of nostalgia.
Though I didn’t know who sang it, I did remember that the sweet voice combined with the drama-appropriate lyrics had stayed on the charts for quite a while.
“Wow~, they sing well.”
However, my actual impression of the song was just that—they sang well.
But lacking was the unique sentiment of “Humble Confession.”
I wonder if many people will choose it because it’s a famous song.
The song ended, and the focused lights went off.
Instead, a curtain that was hidden beside it dropped, revealing new lights, and the second and third duets came out to sing different songs.
Even then, I thought they sang cleanly, but I still didn’t feel a strong appeal in their performance.
“Everyone’s not bad.”
“Indeed….”
I nodded in agreement with my friend’s words, and then the curtain fell for the fourth time.
“Say you love me.”
The song this duet performed was “Say You Love Me,” a mega-hit by Yu Jia.
It was a rock ballad brought in for an image change, and it received tremendous love from both men and women.
The song was characterized by lyrics that pretended not to know, wanting to hear the words of love from the other person.
Huh?
“Wow~! Amazing.”
“I’m asking because I don’t know.”
The concert hall became slightly noisy.
“Wow, this person’s vocal color is amazing.”
There was no fancy technique, but the pitch of the notes was accurate, and the timing was perfect.
Even the high notes were cleanly hit, making the audience’s eyes go wide.
Moreover…
“Crazy. They didn’t change the key?”
They were singing “Say You Love Me” in its original key.
Though considered a low range for a female song and high for a male, the singing remained stable.
“I love you more than you love me,
Yes, only a little bit more.”
While everyone was being mesmerized by the tickling tone, someone felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
As someone who had watched Please Take the Camera almost a hundred times just to see Min Jiheon’s face up close, a tingling sensation pricked up.
What’s this??
The man standing next to the singer, even though covered with a hat and mask, showed a relaxed attitude and silhouette without a hint of nervousness….
It seemed very familiar.
“But I don’t want to say it easily, you like it when I act like this.”
“Wow, it’s stable all the way to the end.”
“These guys are the best.”
Everyone else, excluding myself, just kept nodding their heads to the delightful stage.
Then, the man who had been quietly standing there the whole time lifted the mic.
“Since you don’t know, I have no choice I will say this only once.”
“…!!”
Goosebumps ran up my spine.
“Again! Say it once more.”
The transition from falsetto to full voice was very natural.
Amid the murmuring of the audience, the two singers gestured with their hands as they harmonized, reminiscent of idol gestures.
“Say you love me again!
If you care for me, once more.”
“Wow, shit, what’s this…?”
It was impossible to describe it as just singing well.
The thrill I felt at the first famous singer’s concert I had ever attended was conveyed to me just the same now.
“This is insane….”
“Hey! Hey, hey!”
Before this, I didn’t even have the slightest expectation, but now, I was gaping and staring only at the stage.
Then, my friend hit my arm repeatedly.
I looked annoyed at first, but my friend was too excited to notice his surroundings.
“That person, it’s him!”
“What?”
“The ‘Humble Confession,’ him!”
“…What?”
“If you really don’t know, once more.”
Listening carefully, it indeed seemed like it.
“…Eh?”
Having watched Please Take the Camera, the OST had been drilled into my ears countless times.
Distinguishing a familiar voice was easy.
“Can’t help it, I will tell you until you know.”
“Right! Right!”
“It seems right?!”
Excitement grew with the realization.
The expressions of those around seemed to indicate that they too were thinking the same.
“Say You Love Me—”
“Crazy, crazy!”
At that moment, I screamed and frantically pressed the vote button.
As “Humble Confession”-Him duet reached its climax, the numbers displayed above the screen surged crazily.
[109]
First place.
Although the fifth team still remained, compared to the previous teams, the voting score was overwhelmingly high.
Soon after, the fifth performance also came to an end, and the scores were tallied, but the rankings remained unchanged.
“Ah, it has to be, right?!”
“Told you! Who else would draw this much attention??”
Looking around, it seemed that most people were as engrossed as they were in figuring out if the person they expected from the fourth duet was the right one.
– “Alright! Voting is now closed. Please remove your masks in order!”
Following this, starting from the very left to the third group, they took off their hats and masks in time with the instrumental of the song they sang, greeting the audience.
“Aaaah!”
Seeing the cheers erupt from around them, it seemed like they were idols.
However, my friend and I were waiting for a different introduction.
“…? ♩♬♩♪”
Just then, the first part of the song sung by the fourth duet played.
As the spotlight came back on, two tall men wearing hats and masks stood on the stage.
– “Team D! Please remove your masks!”
Following the staff’s voice transmitted through the speaker, one of them took off his mask and hat first.
A brown-haired man with a slightly smiling, gentle face appeared, causing his friend to mutter almost absentmindedly in awe.
“Crazy, holy shit….”
The man, backlit by white lighting that seemed like a halo, looked like an angel to even those who knew nothing.
“Hey, what the… He’s freaking handsome?”
“Damn, crazy! I’m searching him up now!”
My friend quickly took out his phone and started searching “Humble Confession” on a web portal and soon compared the photo of the singer he found with the face of the man standing before them.
“Seong Jiwon? Hey, it must be him!”
“It is, it is!!”
But our chatter couldn’t continue.
Because screams erupted from around us.
“Aaaahhh!!”
Turning our gaze forward, the other person next to the angel also took off his black hat.
It was a face all too familiar to me.
“…Crazy.”
Please Take the Camera—that PD.
Lee Jeonghun.
The material for a supporting male, that supporting actor!!
“What an asshole PD!!”
Without realizing, I yelled, forgetting even to maintain appearances.
But this wasn’t embarrassing since everyone around found themselves in a similar situation.
The PD from Please Take the Camera and the angel exchanged glances, smiled slyly, and waved lightly toward the audience.
“Wow, this is totally goosebump-inducing.”
“What, what, is this a drama??”
I was excitedly making a fuss with my friend.
“Aaaaaah!!”
A cheer and admiration unlike any before filled the air.
Turning our heads, two men at the very right end were removing their masks.
“…Huh?”
He was an idol, familiar even to the uninitiated.
.
.
.
Shit…
I fluttered my eyelashes rapidly.
After the preliminary meeting, there were various calculations.
In fact, if it came to a “Humble Confession,” taking first place was almost a given.
To appeal to the public while keeping one’s face hidden, it was important to produce “a familiar song with a familiar voice,” and securing such an advantage in the competition was only natural.
However, …
It would be boring to win first place with just “Humble Confession.”
If it seemed too easy or selfish, the picture painted wouldn’t be a good one.
So, to create a decent board within an appropriate line, I had to use a bit of cunning.
With Seong Jiwon, whose voice was quite well-known, leading, and my participation which could bring an issue afterward, I was confident that we could definitely secure the topic of conversation later.
If we had Seong Jiwon, with his S-rated singing stat, I was confident we could take first place with any song.
Damn it!
Yes, winning first place up to the face-off was possible.
“Ahaha, hello.”
That was unexpected.
“High Five!”
High five.
The next-generation representative idol group, super rookie, monster newcomers.
Whatever words were added, it made sense, being a junior group directly under Black Call.
They clearly weren’t in the initial lineup and didn’t actually need to be…
It was the arrival of a group that didn’t match our level.
Joo Woosung, this guy, somehow didn’t tell me…
No matter how much I pestered Joo Woosung this time, I got no answers.
“Shining Star contestants? I really don’t know~.”
“Then, goodbye.”
“…Consistently rude little shit.”
No matter how much I pestered the guy who rattled off about Shining Star Season 2, he wouldn’t open his mouth about the cast.
He just shrugged his shoulders shamelessly, playing dumb.
I knew it would be like this.
A High Five member looked this way and slightly waved their hand.
I also smiled back at High Five.
Of course, my mind was cooling down quickly.
At the same time, Kim Heeyeon’s words came to mind.
“You should aim for first place.”
Hey, Kim Heeyeon.
You’re telling me to compete with these guys and win first place?
[1] A “nugu” refers to a group that is yet to achieve popularity.
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