Chapter 201
Chapter 201
The day of TeSTAR’s Seoul encore concert.
The graduate student, having successfully entered Gocheok Sky Dome, wore a faint smile.
‘I finally… made it to the first day…!’
Thanks to the encore concert starting on a Saturday, she had barely managed to clear her schedule. Finally, it was time to enjoy the concert without any spoilers!
She was a graduate student standing at a crossroads—whether to become a "Dr. Know-it-all" or just find a job with her Master’s—but today, she had only one concern.
‘I’ll be able to see Moon-dae well, right? This seat really is the best, isn’t it?’
Indeed. The graduate student had successfully ticketed an incredible seat: right in front of the extended stage. It was the very same section that had caused a stir during the last concert when it was occupied by the Idol Inc. Season 4 contestants.
Her friend, who usually took photos of Park Moon-dae, had congratulated her while practically weeping with envy.
The graduate student replied to her friend’s message, which had arrived tens of minutes ago, and took her seat. Her heart really did feel like it was about to leap out!
Encore concerts usually had similar setlists and venues, so she could already do the math.
‘I’ll get to see at least four songs on the extended stage!’
Clutching her lightstick in anticipation of seeing Park Moon-dae’s performance right before her eyes, she waited for the show to begin.
And a short while later.
“Waaaaah!!”
“Aaaagh!!”
Amidst the crowd whose adrenaline was exploding from the relentless performances, the graduate student was also screaming at the top of her lungs.
‘Ah, I love this so much!!’
Watching the concert from a prime spot right in the center was an experience that bordered on the artistic.
“Park Moon-dae!! Moon-dae-ya!!”
Park Moon-dae’s solo stage, which had just ended, was a perfect example.
For this performance, the chair used during the tour had been removed. Instead, he performed a feat of floating in the air with his bare body. Seeing it from the dead center made the artistic intent feel even more vivid.
A chaotic dance of primary-colored fabrics, like a vortex of emotion.
In the center, under the lights, a fleeting affection drifted through the air beyond the falling cloth.
The graduate student nodded silently, whispering her praise.
‘Park Moon-dae… is a genius.’
And it wasn't just the good seats that made all that emotion feel so clear.
‘Moon-dae is just too good.’
A chilling power, even greater than before.
The acoustics should have been the same since it was the same venue, but there was something about his voice—an raw, evocative quality that felt strangely more vivid, as if it were touching something deep inside.
If the graduate student had checked social media, she would have seen similar sentiments from people watching the live updates.
As the level of immersion changed, the quality of the emotional lines on stage had shifted. It was the effect of ‘Time of Indulgence (S),’ proving even more potent than Park Moon-dae himself had anticipated.
And Park Moon-dae, who had just removed his stage gear backstage, was feeling it too.
“…Whew.”
His hands were trembling. It wasn't from pain or a cramp, but from the lingering aftereffects. The sense of emptiness and refreshment—as if he had been submerged in a pool of pure emotion up to his hair and then pulled back out—was overwhelming.
‘Still… it was a better choice than I expected.’
He was satisfied with the performance he’d just given. Immersion that triggered instantly without a conscious entry phase made the high even more intense. It was especially true since he had performed a song with such an eerily desperate emotional core by himself.
‘It’s stronger than usual.’
Moon-dae drank an ionic drink to regain his composure and steady his brain.
“M-Moon-dae-ya! Are you feeling okay anywhere…?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“I-I see. That’s a relief…. B-but if you feel uncomfortable at all, you have to tell me!”
“I will.”
“O-okay! …Ah! Flower Dark Moon just now was really cool…!”
“Yeah, thanks. You were great too.”
While listening to Seon A-hyun—who had already changed costumes—offer worries disguised as a brief conversation, the time drew near.
‘Group songs follow, then the impromptu stage, then a somewhat long VCR….’
“Seven minutes left!”
‘The units right before the encore.’
Moon-dae thought that time passed by much faster than expected during a concert. That was why he had to stay even more focused.
‘I’ll do this right.’
Hardening his resolve, Moon-dae moved down the hallway to wait under the stage again. Then, timing his entrance to the chorus of Ryu Cheong-woo’s final solo stage, he began to immerse himself in the performance once more.
Waaaaaaaah!!
In truth, it was an environment where it would have been difficult not to be immersed.
*
After several title track performances and a cute impromptu stage, the audience was fully soaking in the joy of an offline experience they hadn't had in a while.
At the same time, everyone knew. Based on their past experiences, which they had reviewed through VODs, the concert was now firmly in its final act.
This meant that the ‘unit stages’—which had been teased at the end of TeSTAR’s hit reality show—were about to begin.
‘The setlist hasn’t changed much!’
‘I knew they’d put a lot of effort into the unit stages….’
Especially when a VCR from the previous concert appeared, their minds raced with calculations even amidst the excitement, as if it were a break period.
And not failing those expectations, the unit stages appeared at the perfect time.
[Falling—Like a falling autumn star, to you I fall, fall, Fallen.]
First were Seon A-hyun and Ryu Cheong-woo. The audience watched the stage with fresh eyes, enjoying a combination they hadn't seen much of before. The two of them delivered a refreshing rendition of a debut song by their famous senior male idols, T-Holic.
‘Oh~ nice!’
That was the assessment of the graduate student, a fan of Park Moon-dae.
Next was the stage featuring Bae Se-jin, Lee Se-jin, and Kim Rae-bin.
[Aiming for you, my Target, I won’t miss my enemy.]
They had taken a girl group song with an intense ‘hitman’ concept and distributed the parts appropriately.
‘That’s cool.’
As expected of a graduate student with the sensibilities of an ordinary person (excluding her bias for Moon-dae), she gave it a favorable review. Both unit stages were much larger in scale and felt more like a grand stadium performance than they had during the first concert.
Thanks to that, she naturally straightened her back.
‘Now only Moon-dae is left…!’
Since the previous two stages had been so excellent, expectations swelled for what kind of stage Park Moon-dae and Cha Yu-jin, who were handling the finale, had prepared.
‘Everyone on social media was looking forward to this too!’
If one looked a bit deeper into the fandom, there were plenty of opinions worrying to the point of biting their nails, but the graduate student wasn't that deep into the internet yet. So, she faced the final unit stage in a state of 100% pure anticipation.
[…….]
After the previous stage ended, a short video played on the screen, and the stage went dark.
Ding—
The chime of a grandfather clock rang out, and the lights suddenly flashed back on.
On the black-and-white stage, the silhouette of a tall man stood in a sharp choreographic formation with eight dancers. It was Cha Yu-jin.
‘Where’s Moon-dae…?’
Before the graduate student’s thought could even form a full sentence, the music began to surge. It was a pop melody that sounded familiar.
Pa-pam-pam-pam-pam!
Over a light and nimble electric swing sound, Cha Yu-jin began his movements, leading the dancers. Among all those people, he was the only one dressed head-to-toe in a black shirt, harness, and jewelry chains. He looked every bit the solo artist.
Cha Yu-jin was spectacular. The way he used the flashing lights, his cheerful voice, and even the glitter effects exploding in the background as part of the choreography was jaw-dropping. Cha Yu-jin was enjoying the stage as if he were possessed.
The screams of the crowd were non-stop. It was only when he stepped away from the center and strode toward the left side that the graduate student finally snapped out of it.
‘No, but really, where is Moon-dae??’
However, Cha Yu-jin ruthlessly entered the chorus. Thanks to the song’s hook-heavy nature, it was an iconic part that repeated four times in quick succession.
Amidst the dancers, Cha Yu-jin alone executed the incredibly complex choreography with a light, snappy precision. It was as if he were sucking in everyone’s gaze.
After a sharp, rising movement, Cha Yu-jin traced a line across his lips with his index finger and smirked.
“Whoa….”
Even the Park Moon-dae fan marveled reflexively.
But at the very moment that impressive first chorus concluded…
The accompaniment suddenly changed.
Vroooom—!
‘Huh?’
The sophisticated arrangement that had used ultra-modern electronic instruments vanished as if it had been swallowed up. In its place, a violent band orchestra stormed in.
“…?!”
“…??”
Before the confused murmurs from the audience could even spread, the background opened up with a brilliant, flashing light in the center of the stage.
“…!!”
And a golden chair, like a throne atop a massive blue carpet structure, began to emerge. Sitting languidly on that grand chair was… Park Moon-dae, wearing glasses and a school uniform with a prominent knit vest.
‘What is this??’
Park Moon-dae began to sing with a perfectly nonchalant, agonized expression.
The lyrics were the Korean translation of the pop song. Park Moon-dae led the song with a clear, distinct voice. It sounded somewhat more exaggerated and emotional than usual….
‘Wait, hold on.’
The graduate student, who was about to fall for it, realized that this arrangement of Park Moon-dae’s was also quite familiar. This wasn't just a translation.
‘…This is a musical!’
That was it. This pop song, ‘Monster Baby,’ was also one of the famous numbers from a certain musical created using that singer’s discography.
Park Moon-dae continued to sing, sitting arrogantly in his chair in his neat school uniform. He was performing the role of a modern student who had gone a bit mad after being stranded in a bizarre 17th-century castle.
And that wasn't the end of it.
Woo, woo-woo, woo-woo-woo~
Silhouettes in flamboyant early-modern attire appeared around Park Moon-dae and began to dance while providing chorus vocals. Anyone could see they were a musical ensemble.
Thanks to that, whether they knew the background or not, the audience could roughly guess: they were recreating a musical scene.
‘Heol.’
It was a stage that abruptly showed the same song in two completely opposite forms, but because the power behind it was so immense, the audience forgot their confusion and were drawn in.
While Park Moon-dae performed choreography on the giant golden chair, the structure itself was moved here and there by the hands of the ensemble to match the lyrics and story.
Amidst the clashing of colorful lights, feathers, and dizzying, frantic period-piece elements, Park Moon-dae’s vocals sliced through the venue. It was the taste of an explosive, dramatic musical.
“Waaaaah!”
The audience reflexively clapped again. The quality was enough to give them goosebumps. However, it didn't really feel like a ‘unit’ stage.
‘It’s almost just… a solo stage battle?’
‘It’s not really a unit, though.’
Just as a few people were predicting that talk would break out the moment they escaped the concert’s high…
Zzzzt!
The interlude trembled, and from the darkened lights on the left side of the stage, silhouettes dressed in sophisticated black-and-white suits pushed their way into the center stage in a swarm.
“Eh?”
It was Cha Yu-jin and the dancers. And they pushed Park Moon-dae and the ensemble—who were singing atop the chair and carpet structure—all the way to the right!
“…??”
The musical set was pushed aside as if it were sliding away…. And then.
Pa-pam-pam-pam—pa-pa-pam!
To the rhythm of the returning synthesizer and brass, Cha Yu-jin and the dancers pulled out sticks this time. The sticks were connected and disassembled according to their movements, adding intensity and flair to the choreography.
“Whoa.”
The moment the sticks flashed with neon colors, countless lights swarmed in from the air to assist Cha Yu-jin’s movements. It was an LED drone performance. Cha Yu-jin smirked lopsidedly, effortlessly handling the drones as if they were alive.
The moment the chorus grandly concluded once more…
This time, without a second’s delay, Park Moon-dae’s side surged back into the center of the stage. Park Moon-dae, standing on the golden chair with his arms crossed as if he refused to lose, had boldly attached a massive chandelier to the structure.
Then, as if declaring war, he struck a high-pitched harmony with the ensemble.
The lyrics were exquisite. The chandelier sprayed light everywhere, assaulting the dancers’ eyes.
‘Crazy!’
Now the audience began to laugh. But it wasn't laughter from not knowing what to do; it was the comfortable laughter of enjoying a completed stage and anticipation. A somewhat meta, humorous quality that crossed genres was being shamelessly executed on stage.
Because the parties involved, Cha Yu-jin and Park Moon-dae, were so perfectly nonchalant, the stage became incredibly fun instead of awkward.
Drrrrr—!
After bickering like that, the two of them finally ran out to the extended stage together for the final chorus, engaging in a wordless battle of nerves as they performed. As the synth sounds and orchestra merged, the song became as loud and grand as something used for a festival or carnival.
The original lyrics and the translated ones mixed. The dancers pushed in between the ensemble. Cha Yu-jin climbed onto the golden chair and changed his singing style, while Park Moon-dae danced with the drones. A sense of runaway momentum, ruthlessly invading each other’s territory, heated up the stage.
Pshhh!
Fireworks of every color exploded as the harmony and choreography reached their climax. The two disparate elements of the stage violently brought out each other’s destructive feel as they reached the ending.
Uwaaaaaagh!!
Beyond the sound of the fireworks and the electric accompaniment, the screams of the people shook the venue like part of the performance.
“Yeeaaaah!!”
The graduate student also found herself hitting her lightstick against her palm as she clapped. She didn't yet know that an hour later, on her way home, she would be shocked to realize this stage had only been 4 minutes and 20 seconds long.
*
“It was daebak! Daebak!”
“I get it.”
Cha Yu-jin shook my shoulder, repeating the same thing throughout the VCR. He seemed to really like the stage we just did.
I could understand. I was a bit surprised too.
‘It actually worked.’
It was a composition that would have been hard to immerse oneself in unless you had a thick skin, but I didn't feel a single shred of embarrassment.
‘I thought it might be a dud, but I guess it was worth the S-rank.’
In fact, I felt like I wanted to keep performing without stopping for a VCR or anything….
“Let’s do it again! Let’s do it a hundred times! Daebak!”
Of course, not to that extent. Let go of me.
“Yeah. Let’s get in formation first.”
“Yes!”
I couldn't afford this kind of sudden stamina drain. I had to keep my head straight tonight. Because besides this unit stage challenge, today’s main event still remained.
‘…Is it really almost over?’
About 30 minutes left until the end of the concert.
The lifting of the status effect was truly right in front of me.