Chapter 388
Chapter 388
The day of the Wise shoot arrived.
This time, there were no shots of the CEO interfering from the stage. Instead, the show jumped straight into the main content as soon as the Elite and Lower Classes were announced at the dorms.
‘Not the stage performance where people get eliminated, but the idol-style event that comes before it.’
Following the public service announcement and the pictorial shoot, the next task was…
“This event is a street guerrilla concert.”
“Whoa!”
“No way…”
I had a feeling some kind of deal had been struck with the local government, but regardless, it meant we would be performing on a temporary stage set up right in the middle of Myeong-dong.
[Oh, this looks like fun!]
It might be for the viewers. But from a participant’s perspective… well.
[Wait…? Uh, weren't we just going to redo the stages we’ve already done?]
That was true.
‘But the members have changed.’
Some people were eliminated, and new people were brought in, so there would be a lot of adjustments to the choreography and parts.
“This coming Friday, at 6 PM!”
See? Based on the filming schedule, they were only giving us two days.
‘They’re basically telling us to pull an all-nighter.’
[……. What a brutal job….]
Since that was the case, overtime was guaranteed once again.
Even if those of us with memories could pick things up quickly thanks to our experience, it wasn't like we could just go in and sleep. We had to sync our movements with everyone else.
‘Of course, there’s someone who’ll work even harder than me.’
I was talking about the guy currently chatting with me as I unpacked my bags on the bed. The one who essentially led the dance practices for this agency’s debut group.
“Welcome back, Hyung. I knew you’d be back soon, I really did.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Shin Jae-hyun, warmly welcoming Ryu Gun-woo back to the Elite Class for today’s shoot, reached out his hand without turning his back to the camera.
‘As expected, he never misses an opportunity.’
I shook hands with Cheong-ryeo, who occupied the bed next to mine and had never once moved out of the Elite Class bedroom, providing the editors with a perfect cutscene.
‘Is he planning to stick with this image?’
The perfect leader who never drops out of the Elite Class.
Well, if he’s that consistent, it becomes a narrative in itself and solidifies his character.
“The classes assigned by the program are just temporary divisions. Regardless of that, let’s work hard with the mindset that we’re all debuting together.”
“Yes…!”
I wondered how many times he’d recycled that touching line by now.
I spent the next two days watching him grind the other trainees to their limits while pretending to look after them meticulously.
And then, the day of the event.
[Ooh…! There’s already a huge crowd gathered!]
Well, it was a "guerrilla" concert in name only, with the announcement made three hours prior, so that was to be expected.
It seemed the viewers had rushed over as soon as the news hit the internet.
‘Even without them, quite a few tourists have gathered.’
Since it was Myeong-dong, the place was packed with foreigners interested in K-Pop.
This was an era where the trend of capturing footage of foreigners cheering was still preferred. They probably aimed for that, too.
In any case, whether it had been a long time or it was their first time, the participants were quite excited in front of the open outdoor stage.
“Let’s do our chant before we go up.”
“Yes I am! Wise, fighting!”
And then, we stepped onto the small stage where a violin recital for some university had been held just moments ago.
Waaaaah!
Raw cheers. Visceral reactions ranging from supportive slogans to unrefined screams.
The sunlight, the wind, the smells.
Performing on an open outdoor stage after so long had a different flavor to it.
‘It feels like we’re doing an event gig.’
Of course, it felt a bit strange that the setlist wasn't filled with our own songs, but entirely with other people's.
And it seemed I wasn't the only one who felt that way.
Just outside the range of the backstage camera.
“I kind of miss it.”
Ryu Cheong-woo, a five-year idol veteran who had managed to master the theme song and fill in the gaps for the team performance in just two days, muttered to himself.
Cha Yu-jin grumbled.
“I want to do our songs.”
Both of them were experts at speaking without subjects, just in case their microphones picked anything up. I nodded slowly.
“Gun-woo Hyung!”
“Hmm?”
Kim Rae-bin, who was warming up beside me, whispered with a serious expression.
Wait, come to think of it, this guy doesn't have his memories, so I might have accidentally given him a suspicious impression…
“Is it possible that the theme song was abruptly removed from the setlist?”
“…?”
“If the ‘our song’ Cha Yu-jin referred to points to the common performance song we all do together, it would be the theme song. However, using the expression ‘want to do’ presupposes that we are currently unable to do it.”
“…….”
“Therefore, I have reached the conclusion that it has been excluded from the setlist….”
I barely managed to open my mouth.
“He probably means he wants to do it sooner. We’re doing the theme song last.”
“…! I see! Thank you for the kind explanation.”
He really was one of a kind. It was almost a waste that the camera didn't catch that.
‘If he had his memories, he’d definitely be suffering from a guilty conscience, thinking it’s unfair, and it would be obvious to everyone.’
Even if Kim Rae-bin appeared in the colleague gacha right now, I’d have to wait until after this program ended to awaken him.
The mini-concert continued for a full 50 minutes.
The deathmatch stage I did with Jin Chae-yul while wearing marine looks was also recreated toward the end.
Of course, we weren't wearing marine looks but just some baseball jumpers, but it seemed the CEO, having compromised with public opinion, couldn't bring himself to remove the song from the list.
It was a capitalistic decision truly worthy of an agency CEO.
Chae-yul seemed a bit excited, perhaps simply thinking he’d been recognized.
“I guess CEO Kim Tae-in recognized our true value since he’s watched our stage several times! He might even like this performance as soon as he sees it….”
“Right, right!”
The way he was giggling with Shin-o was exactly how he used to be in VTIC.
It seemed like this guy gained fans every time his bright, innocent side was shown on broadcast. They said he looked untroubled.
Even during his VTIC days, data that captured these kinds of moments used to be expensive… well, anyway, he was a guy with clear demand.
‘He’ll pass without a hitch.’
After reaching a brief conclusion, I waved to the crowd and stepped down from the stage.
And as the performance neared its end.
“Thank you!”
Kyaaaaak! Aaaah!
By the time we finished the theme song performance, the crowd had grown so large that it was obstructing traffic. It was the herd mentality of a crowd drawing in more people.
‘I guess they just find it fun to cheer….’
“Gun-woo-ya! Aaaaah, you’re so handsome!”
Yes… thank you.
Anyway, I reacted whenever my name was called. No one feels bad about being complimented.
Once the camera had captured enough of the crowd’s response.
Finally, a surprise event that hadn't been pre-announced to the participants was triggered.
“We will now invite the passionate viewers who came all the way to today’s guerrilla concert up onto the stage~!”
“Gasp!”
“Right now?”
It was a surprise fan meeting.
‘I figured as much.’
I’d noticed them picking out a few people and sending them to the front before we went on stage.
“Ahem.”
“Welcome…. Or something like that.”
I inwardly shook my head as I watched the participants’ faces, which were starting to look more excited and nervous than the fans.
‘It’s been a while.’
Ever since I got hit by a plastic bottle during our debut showcase, I’d rarely done spontaneous drawings from an unspecified crowd for fear of an accident.
Soon, people started coming up in groups of two or three. Each headed toward the participant they supported.
“Waaah! What do I do!”
“You can come over here and say hello to me.”
“Ugh!”
I shook hands and gave light hugs to the few people who came up to me.
Most of them were trembling, whether from excitement or nervousness. It was probably because it was a public place. This… wasn't much different from when I was Park Moon-dae.
Then, what was the difference?
“Ehehehe, you’re so handsome…”
“Thank you. ……I’ll take good care of my looks…?”
“Ah, I love this so much….”
The frequency of "you're handsome" was overwhelmingly higher than "you're cute."
And… they didn't really ask for things like a cheek poke.
‘…Is it because it’s a spontaneous drawing?’
Or was it because it wasn't just hardcore idol fans but a general broadcast audience? I couldn't tell, but they seemed to treat me with more caution.
To put it another way, they were a bit less comfortable.
‘…Is it because Ryu Gun-woo looks intimidating?’
No, I wasn't saying I was disappointed.
Anyway, whether the production team had screened them appropriately or not, there was no unfortunate situation where a participant was left without anyone.
Even Ryu Cheong-woo, whose screen time had only just started airing, had people coming to him.
[This kind of thing…… is the sort of experience you look back on years later and realize was incredibly lucky, right?]
Hey, you shouldn't still be here years later.
[Ah.]
Whenever there was no one in front of me, I chatted with this guy while waiting for the next person.
“We’ll bring up the last group now~!”
And when the last three or four people who had waited the longest stepped onto the stage.
“…!!”
I immediately recognized the first person to set foot on the stage.
That person was….
[Oh? Hyung, it’s your fan!]
That’s right.
It was a person who had been a fan of me… that is, TeSTAR’s Park Moon-dae. How did I recognize her?
‘…Because she was my first fansite master.’
She was the first master who had intensely requested a cheek poke at the Idol Inc. production presentation.
And I’d met her when I went to verify the advertisement while wearing the dog mask. It would be hard to forget her at this point, and I’d seen her consistently after that.
[Wow~ we’re seeing her here too!]
…Indeed.
I momentarily tightened my posture, which had almost relaxed. Then I maintained my expression.
‘I’d be a madman if I recognized her.’
Let’s stay quiet. Quiet.
[I’m the one who’s happy to see her! I was only around when I was a status window!]
Since this guy was being fussy on my behalf, there was no need for me to do it too.
The fan walked toward the participants standing on stage with a fairly brisk pace and came right in front of me.
And then she passed me by.
“Hello!”
…Toward the spot next to me, where Jin Chae-yul was.
“I’m really, really rooting for you. You’re totally cute, cool, and the best. Chae-yul, do whatever you want to do.”
“Ugh! Thank you!”
“…….”
I quietly adjusted my stance.
Ryu Gun-woo’s guerrilla fan meeting ended just like that.
I knew it.
Ryu Gun-woo and Park Moon-dae had quite different impressions, and even if they’d blended a bit, there was a difference in appearance.
Was it just appearance? There was also a difference in their public images.
‘The demand is bound to be different.’
In other words, there was no rule saying that someone who liked Park Moon-dae would necessarily like Ryu Gun-woo.
[Hyung…….]
It’s fine.
Coincidentally, after the guerrilla concert ended, there was a gap of a few hours for filming preparations before the performance content began.
I was just… using that time to organize my thoughts.
And to realize the reality of the situation.
‘Am I a complete idiot?’
This isn't reality, so why did I naturally believe things would flow exactly the same way?
And even if it were reality, whether an individual continues to support an idol or not is entirely up to them, isn't it?
There was nothing more to think about.
…As an idol, Ryu Gun-woo is not Park Moon-dae. Let’s not forget that.
[I think you’re cool no matter what you look like! Really!]
That’s only because you’re so selfless and lacking in greed that you seem to have no pride.
In fact, even if someone knew we were the same person, they might still prefer one over the other. In a situation where you’re supporting someone unilaterally rather than having a real interpersonal relationship, isn't that only natural?
[That’s not necessarily true! You definitely have that specific idol vibe that only you possess, and even if your appearance changes, your hear—]
“…….”
As I read the pop-up diligently typing out words of comfort, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
No matter how selfless this guy was, wasn't this… a bit much?
Especially considering his own position.
‘Don’t you… even hate the fact that I’ve taken over your body again, even after you passed the civil service exam?’
[…….]
Even if he didn't hate me, he should at least feel some repulsion toward this situation.
He was floating around without a body while I was using both.
The pop-up trembled.
[But… I really don’t mind.]
As I watched the pop-up appear letter by letter, I felt a strange sense of dissonance.
He wasn't saying this to comfort me; he truly meant it.
And he himself felt the dissonance in that.
[Is this strange? I’m not sure. Maybe it’s because I’m not human anymore…….]
‘You are human.’
I cut him off immediately.
‘How can someone who worries about others that much not be human?’
[N-No, it’s just that we’re… not strangers ㅠㅠ sob sob anyway, thank you…….]
The pop-up returned to its usual atmosphere as if relieved, but my mind, though I didn't show it, became even more complicated.
‘Can this be summarized as the phenomenon of losing humanity intensifying?’
Perhaps because I was the only person he could talk to in this situation, and even with me, we rarely talked about him, the process was accelerating.
‘…I need to have a proper talk with him.’
But damn it, my own head was so messy right now that I didn't know where to start.
‘Pathetic.’
I sat quietly in a hallway without cameras, leaning my head back and closing my eyes. I planned to stay like that until my brain could make sense of the current situation.
How much time had passed?
“Um… are you okay?”
I heard a low voice. Not a participant—was it a staff member?
Seeing some guy spacing out in the hallway, they must have spoken up just in case.
“Yes.”
I gave a slight nod, meaning I’d head back in once I pulled myself together.
Surely they wouldn't bring a camera over just because I looked like I was in bad shape… no, if they were broadcast people, they were more than capable of that.
And sure enough, I heard the sound of light footsteps running down the hallway, only to return shortly after.
Did you bring a camera?
“Here.”
But what brushed against my face was… warm steam.
Mist rising from the heat.
I opened my eyes.
“I find that when I’m not feeling well or I’m out of energy, drinking something warm helps a bit.”
I saw a hand holding a white paper cup, though I didn't know where they’d gotten it.
Inside the steaming paper cup was a dark liquid.
“Of course, it’s different for everyone… but the warmth is the same. Please, have some.”
I took it and took a sip.
…It was hot chocolate.
I looked up.
“How is it?”
Black hair.
“I’ve heard that even people who don’t like sweets find it okay at times like this. Would you like some more?”
A Seon A-hyun in his mid-twenties was standing there.