Chapter 91
Chapter 91
Translator: Penny
Chapter 91
An idol's mukbang was traditionally a reliable gauge of fan loyalty.
If they ate cutely or looked like they were enjoying their food, it meant your affection for your idol was still strong.
But if their eating looked like they were just stuffing their faces, it was time to admit your affection had waned and start considering leaving the fandom.
This also depended on the idol's performance during the mukbang.
Showing gluttony on camera? Out.
Eating ravenously, sloppily, or too quickly? Out.
Picking at their food in an unappetizing way? Out.
Talking with food in their mouth or otherwise violating basic dining etiquette? Out.
Fortunately, the Reve members all ate at a moderate pace and with good appetite.
Yehyeon, whom Ms. Kim had been somewhat worried about, successfully avoided criticism for being overly picky by showing himself eating chicken (though he only chose the breast meat).
"This is a behind-the-scenes story that didn't make it into the music video's making-of film, but Eden Hyung's backward fall during the dunk was slightly staged."
"That's right! In the first take, he didn't even reach the hoop and faceplanted. He almost cracked his head on the goalpost!"
Ahahaha! Let's go with this version!
We need to protect Eden's human rights too!
Eden's expression is totally zen!
I thought he nailed it so perfectly that they added a comedic touch for a fan service cut!
Not to be outdone, the exposé battle began.
"Dobin dove into the pool so forcefully that his clothes ripped off—"
"Aaaah! I can't hear you! I can't hear you!"
Top or bottom?
"Jaehee messed up the skateboarding scene ten times! He kept falling!"
"Hey, why are you suddenly throwing your own teammate under the bus? And it's all in the music video's making-of film, right? I have nothing to be ashamed of!"
"They cut it down to three takes for the final cut because of time constraints."
"Well, what about Dobin Hyung?! Hyung...!"
"Eden Hyung already said it, didn't he? Unlike some people, my Breaking performance had zero mistakes!"
Although the Maknae Line dominated about 70% of the audio, the other members, including Ms. Kim's favorite, Eden, chimed in with appropriate lines, ensuring no one felt left out.
Wow, these guys can really eat.
The mountain of food that had seemed endless was rapidly disappearing.
Now I understood why Yehyeon had imposed a strict no-eating-after-6 PM rule.
"What was the hardest part of fulfilling our number one promise? Personally, I'd say today's challenge. Jaehee was heavy!"
"Huh? I thought today's pledge was the easiest."
"Of course. You were the one being carried, not the one carrying."
"I had to do a solo dance..."
"Why? Yehyeon Hyung's dance skills have improved so much! Right, Daydream?"
"Ah, look at Kim Dobin's smug face."
Eden looked surprisingly calm for someone so heavy.
Dobin said he'd teach Eden to dance, and now look at that proud teacher's smile. LOL
Yehyeon, give Dobin a carnation on Teacher's Day!
Just hire a proper trainer already! When are you going to stop pushing this onto the kids? ᄋ3
"Hey, shouldn't we film a visit to the Labyrinth of Hell? Isn't that the super scary haunted house in Japan? Hmm, I'm okay with it, but the other members besides Jun..."
"I saw the reviews too. I'm curious, but it definitely sounds terrifying... Still, I kind of want to go at least once..."
"No, Dobin! You're going to faint! The hyungs will have to carry you out!"
"My ears already hurt. I can practically hear the screams."
"Just hearing about it is already hilarious! ㅋㅋ"
The Reve members were buzzing with excitement, clearly relishing their first taste of worldly food in ages.
Now, they were recreating the trophy celebration photoshoot, pulling out the first-place trophy they'd received earlier that day.
"Dobin, you're not the type to finish a photoshoot in one take. Hurry up and strike ten poses like you did earlier!"
"What are you talking about, Hyung? I'm a professional idol who always nails it in one shot."
"Wow, look at Dobin Hyung lying without even blinking, with four witnesses right here! They should cast him in a drama."
"Actually, we were planning to expose this by recreating the trophy commemorative photo shoot. We wanted to show everyone just how much effort went into getting this single, fresh, and natural-looking photo of Dobin."
Is this a drinking stream?
How much has Eden been suffering?
I heard Eden handles most of the photoshoots. Dobin must have been giving him a hard time, lol.
The live broadcast, which had been going on for so long as if they were trying to fill up the upcoming hiatus all in one day, was finally coming to an end.
"Guys, you're not ending it already, are you? We still have six more hours left!"
"Let's do an all-nighter!"
A flurry of chat messages filled with disappointment surged across the screen.
Even though Ms. Kim knew she should let them go, she couldn't help but type, "Don't leave yet!" out of sheer reluctance.
Reve waved his hand in front of the neatly stacked empty food boxes.
"We'll visit you Daydreams often so you won't get bored!"
"Will you come back tomorrow? Daydreams who want to see Yuje tomorrow, raise your hands!"
"Dream of me, Daydreams!"
"See you again! Bye!"
"Sweet dreams, Daydreams."
-OA Live has ended-
Perhaps it was because HI-Light's activities had been even more successful than I'd imagined, ending on a high note, but my creative slump persisted.
If the project had flopped, I would have gritted my teeth, fueled by resentment, and forced myself to churn out a track somehow. But the pressure to surpass my previous success weighed me down, making it even harder to break free.
"You really not thinking about joining Drop the Beat? It'd be so much more interesting if you were on."
I'd been summoned to G1's studio to help with beat production.
The last time I'd visited was a month ago, and already several pieces of equipment had been upgraded to the latest models.
Lee Jiwon, leaning back comfortably in his chair and wearing his signature yellow sunglasses, casually tossed out the question.
"Drop the Beat 2," a season destined to fail, was about to start filming. The audition announcement had already been posted online.
The first round of auditions involved uploading videos to the website, followed by a live second round where participants would be eliminated.
Our naive Maknae Line had seen the announcement and urged me to audition too.
Even when I explained that winning would get them nothing, they didn't seem to understand.
"Wow, I can already predict the reaction. I'll definitely get unanimous nominations for the diss battle."
From "You're doing hip-hop with your face" to a few lines of diss lyrics already popping into my head.
"You're supposed to be strong at freestyle, right? If you crush the diss battle, Round 2 will be a piece of cake."
"Is the situation really so dire that they need to bring in an idol rapper?"
"This bastard's an idol rapper himself, yet he's subtly dissing idol rappers."
At the light scolding, I scratched my black hair, which had returned to its natural color.
"It's not about dissing them. It's just that the outcome is so predictable. So predictable."
I deliberately dragged out the word "predictable" for emphasis.
An idol rapper thrown into a group of hip-hop-proud rappers? Perfect for generating buzz and media hype.
"I didn't think you'd be like this, Hyung. Trying to sacrifice me for ratings."
I grumbled good-naturedly, and Lee Jiwon chuckled.
"If you change your mind later, let me know. There's still time before filming starts. I'll personally guarantee you pass the first preliminary round."
"But it's just sending rap videos online anyway. They should let us through the second preliminary round, the one done live."
"That's up to your discretion from there."
With that, we returned to our work. Thankfully, the slump wasn't affecting my beatmaking.
"Hyung, have you ever been in a slump?"
Lee Jiwon, who had been resting his chin in his hand while clicking his mouse, swiveled his chair to face me.
"Why? In a slump?"
"Something similar?"
"A slump is a slump. What's 'something similar'?"
Lee Jiwon picked up a vitamin drink from beside him, took a sip, and shook his head briefly.
"Hmm, I've had days when I couldn't write songs, but I don't think I've ever had a period long enough to call it a slump."
Man, I envy his mental fortitude.
"Hyung, don't you feel any pressure to surpass your own hit songs?"
"Not really. I didn't start this to make money anyway. As long as I can create the songs I want, why should I care about hit songs?"
True enough, even before his regression, this guy had stubbornly clung to his unique musical style.
This was a dilemma I had also wrestled with.
Should I temporarily set aside my own style and musicality to cater to popular tastes, or should I pursue the music I truly wanted to create?
Back when I was working as a producer before my regression, every song I made in my own style achieved at least moderate success.
Part of that success might have been because these weren't songs for our group; they were intended for other groups anyway, so there was no pressure to avoid failure.
But since I had promised to return those songs to their original owners, their past success was now meaningless.
One Chance... Blame CEO Kim Nodam, juniors. I'll repay you with a great song.
Of course, I'll probably do at least moderately well no matter what I do. The vast amount of data I've accumulated proves that.
The real question is whether my next project can surpass this one. And even if it does, can I handle the weight of that success without being crushed by it?
With the penalty of regression hanging over me, I had to be cautious.
"Just do what you want, what you really want. When you're stuck on a song, throwing everything you want into it is the best way to break through," Lee Jiwon advised me, noticing my troubled expression.
What I want... I nodded, mulling over his words.
"Or just take a trip to clear your head."
"Actually, I'm leaving for a trip tomorrow."
"Oh, where to?"
"Jeju Island. But I probably won't get much rest. It's a filming trip. They call it a 'healing vacation,' but how relaxed can you really be in front of cameras?"
"I envy celebrities. They get sent to Jeju Island for free for 'healing vacations.'"
Lee Jiwon chuckled. Since there was no malice in his words, I playfully retorted, "It's not too late to debut yourself, you know? You're not even in your thirties yet. There's still hope!"
"Hey, who do you think you're teasing?"
I let him roughly ruffle my hair before getting up at his suggestion to grab some food.
"What do you want to eat? Anything you're craving?"
"Let's just get some gukbap."
"Fuck, you're a gukbap addict too..."
Back at the dorm, preparations for tomorrow's trip to Jeju Island were in full swing.
"Hyung, do we need passports for Jeju Island?"
"Just look it up online."
"It says passports aren't required, but we need our resident registration cards or driver's licenses. But I'm still only 18, so I don't have my resident ID yet."
"Puhahaha! You don't even have your resident ID? I got mine in January!"
"Then the youngest member should bring his passport."
"They want to film us traveling around Jeju Island without the manager, if possible. If no one can drive, we'll have to skip it. Anyone have a driver's license?"
"Me."
I confidently raised my hand. Getting my driver's license as soon as I turned twenty had finally paid off.
Currently, Reve's licensed drivers were me and Gyeon Hajun. And Gyeon Hajun's license was, of course, a "closet license"—meaning he never actually drove.
"You're not a 'closet driver,' are you? You can actually drive well, right?"
"Seriously, you worry about the strangest things."
I nodded confidently at Seo Yehyeon's anxious question.
Even before my regression, I had bought a car and driven it everywhere. What's the big deal? I'll just show them my seven years of accident-free driving experience.
📝 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