Chapter 127
Chapter 127
Translator: Penny
Chapter 127
"They're definitely making us do the Random Play Dance. Since it's a project group, they'll probably play each group's representative songs. We should practice beforehand, right?"
"Guess I'll have to ask Dobin for help. But what's the criteria for 'representative songs'?"
"For KICKS, Syndrome, and Intro-Gene, it's pretty obvious. But for us and Revolution, it's ambiguous. Reve might be 'One Chance,' but for Revolution, it could be either 'One Chance' or 'Come to My Universe'... Just practice both Revolution songs."
"Having to learn other idols' dances? This is so annoying... Can't we just wing it? It's not even our song."
I grumbled pointlessly. I wasn't as bad at dancing as Seo Yehyeon, but I'd been eliminated from my first audition at a large agency because of my dance skills. Plus, rap was more about gestures than actual dancing, so I never really liked dancing anyway.
A lackadaisical attitude and mindset detected.
Original Intent Score -1
Aya, can't I even say I'm annoyed?
"Hyung, unless you're Dobin Hyung, you need to practice. Even if your dancing is above average, you can't just watch others do a routine and immediately copy it perfectly."
That was true. I knew my limits well enough to nod in agreement.
"And if you half-ass it, our fans will be embarrassed. Imagine everyone else dancing perfectly while you're the only one messing up the choreography."
In fact, I suspected this damn System was actually Ryu Jaehee in disguise. Before the regression, he used to nag me endlessly, grabbing me by the collar and lecturing me about why I shouldn't be lazy and why I needed to work harder. The possibility seemed entirely plausible.
"No, that's not it."
"Uh, yeah, right."
"It would be good to familiarize yourself with the basic information of each group, like how many members they have and their debut dates."
I nodded vaguely at Ryu Jaehee's advice.
"Since this is the first time a project group is being formed, I'm not sure how it will proceed."
Ryu Jaehee looked genuinely troubled, but at least it wasn't a team we'd have to stick with permanently.
I had naively planned to treat this like a casual outing, but now I was just amazed.
"How do you know all this?"
"I figured Reve would be getting invited soon, so I analyzed previous seasons. I didn't expect you to get invited first, Hyung."
As I always say, Ryu Jaehee was truly remarkable for doing this entirely of his own volition, without the System's manipulation.
"By the way... now that I think about it, Hyung, you're the youngest member of the team, right?"
"Yeah, Yunseong's birthday happens to be in June, so I'm the youngest."
"At Idol Showcase, they always make the youngest member do aegyo. It's no problem for me since I'm a natural, but for you, Hyung..."
Aegyo is a problem for an idol with seven years of experience plus one more?
I scoffed, then paused. Aegyo follows trends.
If you bring out outdated aegyo, it can look cheesy and old-fashioned. But if you introduce aegyo that's popular after the current time...
I could become the trendsetter, forced to perform that aegyo everywhere. A horrifying thought.
What kind of aegyo is trending these days...?
"The 'Gwiyomi Song' is really popular right now, Hyung. Do you know the 'Gwiyomi Song'?"
As if reading my mind, Ryu Jaehee answered the question I was just pondering.
This uncanny timing only strengthened my belief in the Ryu Jaehee System conspiracy theory.
No.
Ugh, I said I knew it already. Geez, so blunt. You're making me feel awkward.
"Of course I know it."
Though I'd never actually done it. After all, the 'Gwiyomi Song' craze had died down by the time we became famous before the regression.
Still, I was relieved the trending aegyo at this point wasn't the baby-faced version of "I Had a Ghost Dream."
I nodded confidently, but Ryu Jaehee narrowed his eyes and asked suspiciously, "Really?"
"Yeah, I told you I know it!"
"Do you really know all six verses? Or are you just saying that to skip ahead?"
"Yes, you idiot! I know all six verses! Have you been living under a rock?"
"Alright, then! One beat rest, two beats rest, three beats rest, and one, two, three, four!"
"Dobin! Teach me the dance!"
Seeing Ryu Jaehee trying to coax me into acting cute, I jumped up and urgently looked for Kim Dobin.
"Ah, Hyung! Hurry up and show us your aegyo! If you can't do it, we'll have to give you special training before you leave!"
"I'm great at aegyo! I'm the Aegyo King!"
I struggled to take each step, dragging Ryu Jaehee, who was clinging to my pant leg and whining.
"If you're the Aegyo King, why can't you do it in front of me?"
"At my age, do I really have to act cute in front of my younger brother?! Kim Dobin! Get out here now!"
My furious shouting startled Seo Yehyeon, who had apparently overslept for once. He stumbled out of his room, rubbing his eyes and muttering, "Kid, your taste is so weird... Out of all the things to watch, you want to see Yoon Eden act cute?"
"My taste is perfectly normal!" Ryu Jaehee retorted, his voice rising in anger. "It's not like I want to see Eden Hyung act cute—it's for the broadcast! Stop making me sound like I have some weird fetish!"
"Hey, is that really something to get so worked up about?" Seo Yehyeon countered. "Is wanting to see me act cute really that strange?"
Stunned, I stopped walking and asked what was going on. Ryu Jaehee retorted with an indignant expression, "Yehyeon Hyung is twisting things!"
"Yeah, you little punk. Go ahead and watch all you want and collect your weird fetishes. One plus one is—"
"Ugh, life's already tough enough this morning, seriously..."
The moment I pressed a finger to my cheek, Seo Yehyeon let out a deep sigh, rubbed his eyes, and retreated into his room.
"What's wrong with my aegyo?!"
"No, Hyung! It suits you perfectly! You were so cute! Don't pick on Yehyeon Hyung for no reason—let's keep going!"
Ryu Jaehee desperately clung to my waist, blocking me from chasing after Seo Yehyeon into the room. This is my room! Why can't I go in?!
It was the day of filming for Introducing My Idol.
Gathered in the studio, we were doing our best to recreate the warm, friendly atmosphere we'd had in front of the cameras during the behind-the-scenes filming.
Under MC 2's lead, we continued the conversation with simple self-introductions and stories from our On Top filming days. Suddenly, MC 1, who had been quietly observing us without participating, stroked his chin and remarked, "Ah, you all seem a bit awkward, like you haven't seen each other in ages?"
"No, we're close!"
"That's right! We got so close preparing for On Top!"
Sion frantically waved his hands in denial, and the rest of us chimed in to support him. But as if it were written in the script to play a game to break the ice, a game was started under the pretext of resolving the awkwardness.
Because we were about the same age, had similar seniority, and were a popular pairing on the internet, my game partner was Kwon Yunseong.
What's with the money? Why do I have to hug my ex-friend, the jerk I just cut ties with, and play a balloon-popping game?
I struggled to keep my eyes from turning into dead fish eyes, forcing them to stay in their natural state.
We stood side by side: Kwon Yunseong and I, Kanghan and Sion, MC 1 and Junhyeok.
The team that popped the most balloons while hugging each other for five minutes would win. I immediately sensed I'd be dead last.
To pop the balloons, you had to press as close as possible, but there was no way Kwon Yunseong and I could do that.
There's no prize for winning anyway. I'll just half-ass it.
I kicked at the balloons scattered at my feet, barely touching them, when MC 2 spoke up in a sly tone.
"Here, we're united as On Top, but you're all leaders of your own groups, right?"
As we nodded in unison, a staff member brought something over. MC 2 took it and showed us a box.
"That's why we've prepared this! A Hanwoo gift set! Ta-da!"
"This is a perfect opportunity to establish your authority among your members! Opportunities like this don't come twice."
The amount of beef was enough to feed all five members of Reve until they were stuffed.
I remembered how the members always waited for me to pick up my spoon before starting to eat. Suddenly, my sense of responsibility as the leader and patriarch of this team surged back to life.
Wait for me, members. This leader is bringing home Hanwoo tonight.
MC 1 and Junhyeok were the first to start the game. Despite Junhyeok's lack of enthusiasm, they managed to pop an impressive 18 balloons in just five minutes.
"There's a trick to this," MC 1 said, puffing out his chest and grinning as he patted Junhyeok on the back. "It's not just about speed. Junhyeok here really knows the technique."
Next up were Sion and Kanghan.
"Alright, let's win that Hanwoo!"
"Fighting!"
They faced each other, brimming with determination...
"Agh! Where's it going?! Where did the balloon go?!"
"No, the balloon's pushing us! It won't pop!"
They kept dropping the balloon, which bounced between them and flew into the air. Constantly being pushed back by the balloon's movements, they only managed to pop six.
"So, we just need to get more than 18 balloons, right?"
I met Kwon Yunseong's gaze and quickly calculated the number of balloons needed to win.
As soon as the buzzer signaling the start sounded, I swiftly grabbed a balloon from the ground and placed it between us.
Our arms awkwardly circled each other's waists. Even with the balloon between us, Kwon Yunseong made no move to get closer.
"Ah, just get closer!"
We had to bring that Hanwoo beef set back to our rabbit-like members waiting at the dorm! This was my chance to earn their respect!
I yanked Kwon Yunseong's waist with my arm, pulling him flush against me. The balloon between us immediately popped with a loud bang!
"Fuck, we've got Hanwoo on the line. Does our broken bond even matter now? Just think of it as hugging a balloon-popping doll."
I immediately grabbed another balloon and pulled Kwon Yunseong into a tight embrace again.
Kwon Yunseong flinched at the balloon's pop, but I quickly grabbed another and pressed myself against him. Who had time to be startled by balloon noises now?
"Aren't they being a bit too aggressive?"
"Seriously, what's with that speed? They're practically human hydraulic presses!"
"This is almost a new Idol Showcase record! They might break the record today!"
"Hanwoo's power is truly something else."
The final exclamation came from Junhyeok, the leader of our four-year-old group.
After witnessing us grabbing each other by the collar and trading insults, such a reaction was understandable.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny