The First Broadcast (1)

The moment of the first episode’s broadcast, Friday, August 2, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at 10:50 p.m., arrived before anyone quite had time to feel it coming.

Idol Travel was set to air simultaneously on the cable channel FLu and the OTT platform Pluing. Episodes 1 through 5 had been specially scheduled for one hundred minutes each.

Won Hasin’s apartment was crowded with the contestants Neoul had invited. The members of the first-round team that had performed with him, Ha On-ha, Yeo Do-bin, and even Baek Yuri were there.

Once all eight of them were packed into the room, even the spacious living room seemed to shrink.

Why are there so many of them?

There was an old saying that when you disliked someone, you still had to give them an extra rice cake. Still, since the sea creature Neoul had appeared on television and even brought along people he knew from land, Won Hasin decided, with a little reluctant approval, that maybe he deserved a treat after all. He had been planning to make sweet potato gangjeong, but silently revised his plan.

“Delivery ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is the best! Everyone! Order whatever you want!”

“Waaah! Thank you!”

Woo Cheong, Ha On-ha, and Baek Gi-yeom shouted at once. The others offered neat thanks as well, all of them brightening up.

For a moment, Won Hasin felt a stab of confusion over why he was buying food for contestants in a show run by his grandfather’s company’s rival.

But a rival was still a rival, and he couldn’t exactly let kids visiting his place starve over a petty reason. Besides, they had come all this way.

He placed a large order for delivery food, and separately ordered crab and other shellfish for Dong-dong.

The moment unfamiliar humans rang the doorbell in a crowd, Dong-dong had jumped in fright and scuttled into his room.

In truth, Neoul had told him in advance that guests were coming today.

“Your Highness, I usually disguise myself with camouflage, but I’m short on patience. If anyone touches me or I get angry, I’ll instantly revert to my true form.”

“And?”

“The Sea Witch has instructed me not to let any human other than a ground fish discover who I am. If I’m careless and my true form is exposed, she said she’ll slice me up into octopus sashimi and eat me, so when guests come, I shall quietly hide in my room.”

That was how he had volunteered to disappear.

Still, Dong-dong seemed to want to watch the broadcast with Neoul.

Won Hasin clicked his tongue, started the show on a laptop for him, and left the crab in the delivery bag so Dong-dong could take it in as it was. Then he went into his own room and turned the broadcast on from his computer.

That left only the contestants who had gathered to film their reactions in the living room. Baek Gi-yeom looked puzzled and propped the camera in place.

“But why did they tell us to film this? It’s not like it’s going on the actual broadcast.”

“It’s probably going up on Mytube as behind-the-scenes footage~”

Ha On-ha answered with easy confidence, saying that was probably a 99 percent likelihood.

“Oh, it’s starting!”

“No! Wait! The food setup isn’t done yet!”

“Ah, no! It’s still on commercials! They said it’ll start in a minute!”

“Huh? What’s this, who ordered the chicken breast salad…?”

“Ah, that was Baek Yuri!”

“Aaaah! What do we do? I feel like I’m going to die of nerves!”

After the brief uproar died down, the contestants sat in a ring around the large living-room table in front of the sofa.

Their faces were each colored with tension.

Excitement that the first broadcast was finally airing, worry that they might have no screen time at all, fear that the editing might be maliciously twisted in some way.

There was plenty of delicious food on the table, yet no one dared pick up their chopsticks. Only Neoul, unbothered, bit into a pizza and glanced sidelong at the screen.

Baek Yuri had opened an open chat on his smartphone and was checking the live reactions. He was startled by how many people were in there.

“Are there a lot of viewers?”

“Seems like it.”

When all eyes turned to him after Baek Gi-yeom’s question, Baek Yuri held up the open chat screen and showed it around.

Ding-

The inside of an airplane appeared on the screen. Along with subtitles, a lively in-flight announcement sent their hearts thudding.

The sound gradually softened, and the first to stride into the airplane corridor was judge Woo Yongdam, dressed in a sharp pilot’s uniform. He saluted smartly as he entered.

[Woo Yongdam: Hello. I’m Woo Yongdam, the pilot in charge of your journey. Trust me, and are you ready to soar high with me?]

He finished the line with swagger, then immediately made a face as if his hands and feet were curling in embarrassment and turned away to stare at some invisible far-off mountain.

A subtitle appeared beside his conflicted expression.

There were too many awards to list in full, so only a few of the more recent ones were mentioned and the rest were left out.

Tense, action-movie music kicked in, and then Hala walked in like a model, snapping into a salute.

[Hala: No, senior! The captain of this airliner isn’t you, it’s actually me. I’m the one responsible for your safe flight.]

[Hala: Preparing for takeoff! Gong one two three! All clear! Goose squid! Goose squid!]

After baiting Woo Yongdam, Hala tossed out the phonetic code nonsense with an utterly shameless expression, as though she felt no embarrassment whatsoever. Then she struck a series of different poses and stepped aside.

The choreographer Miles Kim appeared next, also dressed as a captain. Lifting his oversized sunglasses, he struck a confident pose.

[Miles Kim: The pilot of the Idol Travel edition is me! Miles Kim! I’ll never hand over my controls to anyone!]

— Why are they all captains lol

— Three captains on one plane, whoa. I’m getting off.. save me..

— Lol Hala Bear is so hyped

— The lineup is insane

— Look at Yongdam turning away to stare into the distance because he’s having a crisis lol

— Ah, Woo Yongdam... that outfit fit is crazy tho T_T

— T_T T_T T_T

— I love Yongdam (heart emoji)

— Unnie, you’re pretty T_T

— Isn’t Black Roulette a little too small a name to be judges...?

— Miles is serving

— Whoa, how did they even book Kim Miles?

— Why does Hala get her name spelled in English, but Miles is written in Korean like M. I. L. E. S. K. I. M.? lol

— Wow

— Damn.. these are all people I love, my heart’s pounding T_T I want to squeeze in among them. Do they not need a co-pilot?

— Why are they taking the concept so seriously lol

Comments flew past, each person saying whatever came to mind.

As the three pilots stood side by side, the screen cut back to the airplane entrance.

MC Jeong Ondo came in carrying a flag printed with the Idol Travel logo, his face bright with a smile. Wearing a small speaker on a strap around his neck and a microphone headset, he was cast in the role of the travel guide.

[Jeong Ondo: Nice to meet you! I’m Jeong Ondo, your fresh little travel guide, here to lead you through a pleasant and comfortable journey!]

Compared to the judges with their glittering careers, his profile was modest indeed.

Jeong Ondo was a rookie actor with no MC experience at all. And yet, drawing on the confidence and composure he had gained from his brief time as an idol, he carried on smoothly.

[Jeong Ondo: I’ll be the one to explain the rules of the journey and guide you along the way. Please take good care of me!]

[Woo Yongdam: Excellent. Then off we go, to the place with the harsh sun, the cool summer sea, and the stars crouched together as they dream!]

[Hala: Let’s set out together on a journey full of song and romance~ Shall we hold hands and go?~]

[Miles Kim: Okay! Let’s go!]

The screen flashed, and black-and-white clips of the pre-application auditions were stitched together in quick one- or two-second bursts. They were videos of the trainee contestants.

“Ah! That’s Cheong!”

Woo Cheong’s dancing flashed by in a brief clip. A subtitle appeared.

[65 preselected trainee contestants]

[And....]

This time, the scene shifted to Jeju Island, where additional participants were being cast.

[An accidental encounter at the travel destination]

[15 additional general-public contestants selected]

[Current number of participants: 65 + 15 = 80]

[One story woven from fate and chance.]

[It begins now!]

The first landscape to appear on the bright white screen was a beach somewhere on Jeju Island, the site of the first shoot.

[Ticket issuance: Busking mission]

After ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the explanation of the partner search and busking mission, and after the additional selection round ended, the contestants ran toward the beach.

The various props they were carrying stood out. Not a single one was repeated.

“Wow...! I didn’t realize it when we were filming, but I guess they really put a ton of effort into preparing the travel concept.”

Watching the screen, Woo Cheong murmured in admiration.

The scenes of them running around searching for partners had been edited to feel tense and exciting, though now and then there were contestants who seemed almost leisurely.

A few contestants strolling slowly and enjoying the sea breeze were the general-public participants. Their calm contrasted sharply with the frantic effort of the trainee contestants.

“Oh! It’s Gale Neoul!”

Baek Gi-yeom nudged Neoul’s shoulder as he watched the screen.

Neoul, who had been busy sampling one unfamiliar food after another apart from chicken, finally looked up.

Neoul’s entrance scene was striking. He was the only one dripping seawater, soaked from head to toe. And on top of that, there was the bizarre, mismatched combination of hanbok and work pants.

He was clearly speaking without a microphone, but it was impossible to make out what he said. Every bit of his recorded audio had been swallowed by the waves and the noise of the crowd.

Only Baek Yuri’s reply, complete with voice and subtitles, came through.

[Baek Yuri: Um... that’s The Story of Sim Cheong, right? But didn’t he seem like he’d fallen in the water? Are you okay?]

[Gale Neoul: (blub blub)]

— ??

— ?

— He’s insanely handsome, but why won’t they let us hear his voice T_T

— ?? Does anyone know what he’s saying?

— Sim Cheong! Isn’t he Sim Cheong?

— No, that’s what Baek Yuri asked him lol

— What’s the name of the really tall guy on right now? I don’t know who he is, but he’s squeezing my left atrium and right ventricle to death..

— Gale Neoul!

— Gale Neoul~

— His mouth looks like it’s saying, “I’m not, right?”!

— Does Neoul speak in a dialect?

— Is Gale Neoul a mermaid princess? lol Why can’t we hear his voice T_T

— lol mermaid princess

— LOL he’s like a mermaid prince, then lol

Baek Yuri, while watching the broadcast and glancing at the comments, was so startled that he bit his tongue instead of the chicken breast and lettuce.

Ack...!

— He really does look like a prince lol

— Ah... he looks like the savior who came to ruin my whole life

— Mermaid prince suits him so well T_T

— He seems like he’d smell like a cool sea perfume

— Maybe because his hair is black, he doesn’t feel like a Western mermaid prince, more like a Korean-style mermaid...? Like he belongs in the Dragon Palace lol

Baek Yuri nearly bit his tongue a second time.

Yes, pretty sharp...

---