Chapter 86
Chapter 86
Translator: Penny
Chapter 86
"It feels so strange not having anyone pick a fight with us."
"Hyung, were you actually enjoying the rivalry with KICKS?"
"I don't know, maybe I was."
Back during our My Universe promotions, Reve couldn't even dream of performing at the Sanok Music Festival; he only got in as a last-minute replacement. Now, Sanok schedules had become routine.
Remembering how we had devolved into a flop idol group by this point in our pre-regression timeline, unable to even set foot on public broadcast music shows, our current growth was truly remarkable.
True to the song's upbeat vibe, the choreography was relatively simple, lacking any intense sections. Yet Seo Yehyeon seemed far from pleased.
"Aren't we going to get mocked again for bringing such easy choreography?"
"I understand you want to prove you're not a dance hole anymore, Hyung. But a hardcore routine wouldn't suit this song. Besides, you're still a long way from perfecting synchronized choreography without genuine passion."
"What do you mean by 'desperation'?"
"Like our rivalry with KICKS, or Hajun Hyung's Conqueror's Aura."
"But we can't just keep battling KICKS every time I need to improve my skills."
"True."
Despite their "master and disciple" act, Kim Dobin and Seo Yehyeon seemed to have grown quite close.
The fact that my Affinity Score with Kim Dobin remained stubbornly at 48% irked me.
No matter how well I treated him, the score never budged. Eventually, I gave up and went back to treating him as before.
"Dobin's right. But for the next album cycle, I'll let you showcase your improved skills to the fullest. We'll go all out with intensely synchronized choreography then."
Since sticking with a refreshing concept for the next track would inevitably lead to public fatigue, we needed to switch to something different.
"Do you think we can get first place again this time?"
"I don't know. Our competition this time is pretty tough. We can't expect another Empty House Raid like last time."
To make matters worse, our comeback coincided with the 활동 period of a girl group known for their strong digital performance.
Reve, still shedding their rookie image, was up against a third-year girl group with a solid fanbase.
If my memory serves me right, the song they were promoting had achieved a triple crown on music shows—meaning it had topped the charts on all three major terrestrial broadcasting stations for three consecutive weeks. It was probably the biggest hit of the second quarter this year.
This comeback will be the real test of my abilities.
Our previous success had been almost guaranteed. The song was already proven before my regression, we faced little competition in the Empty House Raid, and our rivals, KICKS, had released a weaker track.
It had been a long time since I'd felt this thrill.
The sensation of releasing a song to the world, a feeling I hadn't experienced since before my regression, stirred a strange mix of emotions.
I had vowed to avoid failure and regression by only releasing songs that were guaranteed to reach the A-list, and to target periods without established hits.
Yet here I was, after just one comeback, facing off against past hits with a brand-new track. How could I not feel conflicted?
I chuckled, recalling an old acquaintance's pre-regression assessment: "If he weren't making music, he'd be gambling."
Seeing how I was acting even with my entire career on the line, perhaps that assessment wasn't entirely wrong.
"Reve, let's move!"
At the staff's call, I shook off my thoughts and stood up. It was the first week of our comeback, so I decided to focus on enjoying the stage rather than worrying about the rankings.
"Wow, is this a slump...?"
During a break in my schedule, I muttered to myself, slumped over my desk in the studio.
Whether it was the pressure of having to create a song that surpassed my previous work, or something else entirely, I couldn't seem to make any progress on the track.
I had already selected enough songs for the regular album to meet the quota I could handle. All that remained were the candidates for the title track.
I couldn't allow the regular album, which required so much time, capital, and effort, to perform worse than the repackage album.
The repackage album had done quite well.
Moreover, despite being a repackage, it had achieved First-Week Sales of 80,2** copies—20,000 more than the previous album—and was currently dominating the music charts, holding the top three spots.
Perhaps that's why I felt even more pressure about the full-length album now.
Success or failure was no longer the issue. It was simply a matter of whether I could surpass my previous performance.
Have I always been this afraid?
Since my mind was blank and no new songs were coming, I decided to use the Random Tickets that had gained an expiration date with the System's upgrade.
Use Random Ticket? Yes/No
After tapping "Yes" three times in a row, three Status Windows appeared one after another.
Item 'The Someday USB' acquired!
Item 'Lucid Dream' acquired!
Item 'Potion of Truth' acquired!
I opened the three Random Tickets that were about to expire within the newly added one-month expiration period.
The Someday USB, similar to the previous one, contained my work from before the regression. The Lucid Dream item allowed me to rest physically while continuing to work in my dreams.
The Potion of Truth, as its name suggested, was an item that drew out the deepest truths from one's heart.
The song on the USB had even won the Digital Music Main Prize before the regression, but I didn't want to use an old track as the title song for my first full-length album.
In the end, none of the three items helped me overcome my creative slump.
Come to think of it, this was the first time I'd ever experienced a slump.
Was it because I wasn't the one performing the song before, so I felt less pressure?
Should I ask G1 for advice on overcoming this slump?
That guy is surprisingly firm. He'd probably draw a line and tell me it's something I need to figure out on my own.
G1 disliked hearing personal matters from people he wasn't close to.
He couldn't afford to sever the connections he'd worked so hard to build over something so trivial.
"Well, this too shall pass," he sighed deeply, burying his face in his desk again.
But the slump I'd dismissed so lightly...
Fuck, I made the same mistake as Seo Yehyeon.
Stage mistake detected.
Original Intent Score -7
I frantically changed my footwork, but the Original Intent Score had already been deducted—a full 7 points.
It stung even more because this was the first time I'd seen the Status Window since my second playthrough.
After several sleepless nights, I unconsciously reached up to rub my dry, gritty eyes, then remembered I was wearing makeup and lowered my hand.
This damn slump had even given me insomnia as a bonus.
I couldn't even use the Lucid Dream Item, fearing I'd just sit there blankly in my dreams, just like in reality.
The only silver lining was that we still had about a month and a half before the meetings for the regular album's title track and concept.
I breathed a sigh of relief after reviewing the footage and seeing that the camera's focus on my upper body had safely concealed my mistake. But the relief was short-lived.
"Eden, you haven't been sleeping well lately, have you?"
As always, Gyeon Hajun was the first to notice my condition.
Thanks to the System's forced inclusion of body management in my Weekly Quests, I was otherwise perfectly healthy, aside from the sleep deprivation. Apart from some dark circles, I looked perfectly fine on the surface.
Even my dark circles were barely visible under makeup.
"No, I've been sleeping fine," I insisted.
But I was too proud to admit in front of the other members that my slump had led to insomnia, so I immediately denied it.
"Yehyeon Hyung, has he been sleeping well in the room lately?" Gyeon Hajun asked Seo Yehyeon, my roommate, but he couldn't answer.
That was understandable. Seo Yehyeon strictly adhered to his seven-hour sleep schedule, snoring peacefully through the night regardless of whether I was tossing and turning.
Seeing me rub my dry, irritated eyes as soon as I removed my makeup, Gyeon Hajun sighed deeply and said,
"If you keep pushing yourself like this, you'll collapse again. What's the point of getting a thorough checkup at the university hospital when you're the one making yourself sick?"
With that, I was forbidden from working in the studio for the day.
Of course, I could have ignored him and gone anyway, but I was already tired of the endless cycle of sitting blankly in the studio, accomplishing nothing. So I obediently stayed in the dorm.
Whether I was doing nothing in the dorm or the studio made no difference.
The only difference was that without the equipment in front of me, the pressure to do something felt less intense.
Kim Dobin and Seo Yehyeon went to the practice room to work on their dance routines, and Ryu Jaehee tagged along to watch them, leaving only Gyeon Hajun and me in the dorm.
As I sat blankly on the sofa, Gyeon Hajun handed me a mug of chamomile tea and sat down beside me.
"You need to rely on others more. We're a team, but you always try to carry everything yourself."
"Me?"
"Yeah, ever since One Chance."
I guess I've been running nonstop since then to avoid the Infinite Regression.
Being this busy is still better than the forced hiatus I had before the regression. But I shouldn't be longing for my flop idol group days, no matter what.
I took a sip of chamomile tea, and my hazy mind cleared slightly.
"I can't write any songs. I think I'm in a slump."
Since Gyeon Hajun wasn't someone I needed to maintain my pride around, I confessed readily.
"That explains it... So that's why your insomnia's back?"
"Probably."
I nodded slightly in half-agreement, and Gyeon Hajun patted my back lightly.
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Even if this album flops, no one at Reve will blame you. And look at the CEO—he completely botched his last album, but he's still kicking and hasn't lost his spirit."
"Isn't that a bit extreme? I was just imagining it might not do as well as the last one. It's my song, after all; it can't possibly fail."
"Good to see you haven't slipped into depression yet."
Gyeon Hajun grinned at me with genuine relief.
"If you really can't handle it, you can always hand it over to another producer. Oh, but definitely not one the CEO knows."
I chuckled at his hasty addition.
"Of course not. You think I'd bring another 'My Universe' to a full-length album?"
"If it's the CEO, he's more than capable of doing that."
"Agreed. If I really can't handle it, I'll just send an SOS to G1 Hyungnim. He told me to contact him anytime I need a song."
Before we knew it, the chamomile tea was gone.
Just venting my feelings didn't suddenly spark musical inspiration or completely resolve my slump, but sleepiness washed over me like a wave.
As I nodded off, Gyeon Hajun took the mug from my hand and pushed me into my room, insisting I sleep when I was tired.
The moment the door closed, I drifted off, finally getting a good night's sleep after days of restless nights.
Waking up refreshed for the first time in days, I stepped into the living room and immediately spotted Seo Yehyeon curled up asleep on the sofa.
When I shook Seo Yehyeon awake, he pulled the blanket over his head.
"Why are you sleeping out here instead of in your room?"
"Hajun told me not to go in there since you finally fell asleep after so long. He said he'd sleep on the sofa, so I just stayed here."
I was touched by their consideration, even giving up their beds just so I could sleep soundly.
"Thank you."
At my words of gratitude, Seo Yehyeon lowered the blanket slightly and squinted at me.
"You're not possessed by someone else's soul, are you?"
It seemed hanging around Kim Dobin had rubbed off on him.
I quickly pushed aside the memory of having similar thoughts just a few weeks ago.
Thank goodness I didn't say that out loud back then. I'd have sounded like a total weeb.
📝 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