Chapter 442
Chapter 442
I tapped the armrest of the sofa.
At the same time, a cheerful greeting flowed from the smartphone radio app in my hand.
[Hello! Take your star, we are TeSTAR~!]
And a few seconds later...
The internet pages were refreshing at lightning speed.
I pressed my hand to my forehead.
If we had announced the radio appearance in advance, it probably would have garnered less attention. Usually, people watch WeTube; they don't go out of their way to listen to the radio.
‘At most, a few clips would have circulated later.’
But because it had the "unannounced surprise appearance" attribute attached to it, the amount of buzz had actually increased.
It’s a similar phenomenon to how a movie you happen to catch while flipping through channels feels more interesting than one you specifically look for on an OTT service.
‘That’s exactly what I was aiming for, but damn it...’
It had come back as karma.
And whether my head was throbbing or not, the radio broadcast moved right along from the greetings to the "how have you been" talk. The internet pages continued to refresh just as fast.
[TeSTAR~ I’m sure you have some wonderful plans for this year as well. Being in the same room as a Grand Prize-winning group makes me quite nervous.]
[Haha, we’re the ones who are more grateful and nervous for the invitation. And... yes. We’re currently preparing our absolute best so we can see everyone more often this year.]
[That’s right! We’ll be coming to see our fans with a great image. And that’s why we’re here today. We’ll do our best, DJ-nim!]
[Oh my~]
Ryu Cheong-woo was likely a seasoned pro at these kinds of talks. Even Cha Yu-jin had become quite good at speaking when necessary.
The atmosphere was warm and filled with laughter.
The problem was what came next.
‘...According to the script, it’s my turn.’
[Oh, thank you. Then, shall we start our segment? Ah, by the way, have you ever listened to our Midnight Radio before...?]
Just in case, I decided to display a pop-up for him. He could just say it directly.
“We...”
And the voice of Ryu Gun-woo that I produced overlapped with Keun-dal’s voice coming through the app.
[...Since we spend a lot of time in the car, we naturally ended up listening to it. Later on, we even tuned the frequency specifically to find it. Because we liked it so much.]
A calm voice.
[Really?]
[It’s true~ We’re all such big fans that we personally requested to come on the show, Song DJ-nim!]
[That’s right!]
“...Phew.”
I leaned back against the sofa.
Good. Passing grade.
Surprisingly, Keun-dal knew how to mimic my way of speaking quite convincingly.
‘Which means... just how much TeSTAR content has that guy been watching?’
[Hyung! How was I??]
“You did well. It sounded just like me. Keep going like this.”
[Yes!]
...Wait. That doesn't mean you should suddenly perk your head up so noticeably!
“You...”
Fortunately, the moment Park Moon-dae on the app tried to straighten his neck, someone threw an arm around his shoulder.
It was Keun Se-jin. He was pushing Park Moon-dae’s head back down.
“...”
Thanks.
‘Damn it.’
I pressed my eyes.
“You don’t need to be frozen in place, but it’ll look weird if you react to my pop-ups and move.”
[R-right. Yes!]
I understood. Between the host’s words, the cameras, the script, and now having to look at my pop-ups, his head must have been about to explode.
I felt the same way, trying to manage the app, the shared vision, and the viewers' reactions all at once.
‘But there’s no other way, so we have to do it.’
And if we were going to do it, we had to do it right.
I quickly checked the favorable viewer reactions and, while listening to the radio, scanned the surroundings through Park Moon-dae’s eyes.
Occasionally, Keun Se-jin seemed to look at Park Moon-dae with a smile that looked like his eyes were about to twitch, but it was fine. I’d let it slide.
And finally, we got to the main point.
[Monday is back. <Weekly... Lucky>!]
[Wooo!]
[This is the segment where we listen to stories about unusual Mondays that were different from the daily routine. ]
There are two things often done on the radio.
Reading stories. And skits.
What were we doing here? The explanation was simple.
Both.
[Today, some friends from a high school music club will be reading the stories for us. Shall we have our friends introduce themselves?]
[Yes~]
[Mom, I’m on the radio!]
...Incredibly, TeSTAR was pretending to be high school students from the same club while reading the stories.
For the record, that last line was Bae Se-jin. He didn't even change color.
Does it make you cringe? That’s just how skits are the moment you become conscious of them. Bear with it.
[To think you haven't been able to sleep for three days since the weekend because you've been working on a project... that must make you feel really exhausted and drained... Given our profession, we can really empathize with the story you sent.]
[You’re high school students, but you empathize because of your profession?]
[Oops.]
[A-ah?]
[...Of course~ Because Se-jin is a high schooler! Since he’s a youth with many dreams, he has great imagination and empathy~]
Nothing major happened until the stories had gone around once. It was even fine when the idol persona occasionally slipped out in a funny, uncontrollable way.
Keun-dal, in Park Moon-dae’s body, also successfully handled his assigned story.
‘Now, stall for time with some exclamations.’
[Hmm... User 9503 says a friend they didn't get along with transferred schools today. None of us are transfer students, but...]
Keun-dal successfully read the pop-up I sent, getting through the longest unscripted situation.
He didn't even stutter.
‘Phew.’
“Well done.”
[Yes!!]
I rubbed the bridge of my nose.
Perhaps Keun-dal had lowered his level of anxiety and tension a bit, as his vision was more stable than before.
‘Good.’
This nerve-wracking ordeal was almost over.
Soon, the radio segment reached the allotted time for guest promotion.
[The last story for today is... a story brought to us directly by our friends who attend high school.]
[Wooooo!]
[Yes! It is a great honor to be able to tell the listeners about the unique incident we experienced until today...]
Kim Rae-bin’s way of speaking was a bit too formal for a high schooler, but since he was like that even when he actually was in high school, it wasn't a character error.
And then TeSTAR began to tell the strange story that happened in their school dormitory.
Seon A-hyun spoke calmly.
[I-I decided to throw away an item I had on my desk last week and cleaned it up...]
[I see. And then?]
[It keeps... coming back.]
[...Pardon?]
[It comes back... onto the desk.]
[......]
[It kept happening until today, Monday.]
Silence fell.
To summarize, it was a ghost story about Seon A-hyun’s aroma plaster doll that kept returning no matter how many times he threw it away.
[...Hyung, is that r-really true?]
“Yeah.”
It was reconstructed into a high school version. It actually happened at the dorm not too long ago.
[It’s a true story, everyone.]
[That’s right. As A-hyun hyung’s roommate, I witnessed it myself.]
The reactions were buzzing at the fairly intense story.
Of course, if I were to report the most shocking true story involving TeSTAR today, I would undoubtedly be number one.
‘Who could beat a body swap?’
But even if I said it, no one would believe me or they’d just faint, so let’s move on.
Anyway, like the seasoned broadcasters they were, the guys were carrying the atmosphere quite well. And the host smoothly created a radio-like mood.
[The listeners are sending in a lot of opinions right now. ‘Is it a ghost?’, ‘What shape is the doll?’, ‘Where did it come from?’]
[Ah, it’s shaped like a deer.]
However, Kim Rae-bin made a sudden remark here.
[I witnessed Moon-dae hyung helping him pick it out during our tour... I mean, our school trip!]
[Did I? Moon-dae, do you remember when that was?]
The turn had suddenly shifted to Park Moon-dae. Damn it!
‘Don’t panic.’
I tried to quickly pull up a pop-up.
But surprisingly, Park Moon-dae’s calm voice flowed from the app first.
[That’s right. A-hyun bought it himself in Japan last year. At a second-hand prop shop without a sign...]
“...!”
The members and the host made a fuss, saying it had become even scarier, and internet reactions poured in.
I opened my mouth.
“How did you know?”
...Because, amazingly, it was the absolute truth without a single error.
A pop-up appeared proudly.
[Hehe... It was in the behind-the-scenes video from last year’s tour! Hyung, you picked the one with straight antlers over the one with split antlers!]
Even I didn't remember that kind of detail. Just how much had he watched?
“...Right. You did well staying calm. It’s beyond my expectations.”
[Really?! Hehe, yes...]
Anyway, Keun-dal seemed to have found his confidence, as his vision was no longer shaking. It was an unexpected score.
‘Not bad.’
I let out a small smirk and focused back on monitoring.
[...So! When was the first time A-hyun saw that deer doll again~?]
[Mhm, it was midnight that day.]
In any case, the story, which perfectly captured the eerie late-night atmosphere, proceeded smoothly. It ended on a moderately comedic note, preserving the essence of a skit.
[Yeah, actually, everyone is the culprit!]
[...?!]
The circumstances of the case were as follows:
Not knowing that Seon A-hyun was throwing it away, the members who weren't his roommates would find the plaster doll in front of the front door and take turns kindly returning it to his desk.
Even Seon A-hyun, the person involved, wasn't particularly scared, so he just thought it was strange and went along with it.
Thanks to that, it was a heartwarming story where only his roommate, Kim Rae-bin, suffered.
[I even checked the year the dorm... I mean, the dormitory was built.]
The host burst out laughing.
[Why, were you worried there was some story behind it before it was built? Goodness!]
[So, how was it, Rae-bin?]
[A cow lived there in a peaceful rice paddy...]
The guys, who were having a great time going back and forth, eventually began to lead the conversation toward the truly important part.
[You know, there’s a superstition that if a ghost appears in a recording studio, the album will be a hit!]
[Mhm, it wasn't a real ghost, but it was a similar incident...!]
[Yes. Although we’re still just a school club, we want to think of it as a sign that we can have great musical activities!]
At those words, Bae Se-jin (I don't know why he chose such a character for the skit) replied in a lively voice.
This was the main point.
[That’s right! Oh, did you know? TeSTAR is also making a comeback early this year.]
The internet page refreshes exploded again at the sudden declaration that flowed so naturally.
‘Yeah. TeSTAR’s comeback is soon.’
Actually, it was obvious. It had been quite a while since we released an album, and since we had been dropping hints on social media, it was a plan the fans had already anticipated.
Still, isn't it more fun to have a surprise announcement through an unannounced radio appearance rather than hearing it through an article?
I smirked and adjusted my grip on my smartphone.
And for the first time, Park Moon-dae’s vision wavered in a different way. Rather than being nervous... it was as if he was out of breath.
‘Is he surprised?’
Well, come to think of it, this must be the first time Keun-dal is hearing this news too.
Anyway, Park Moon-dae didn't have any lines here, so it was fine for him to just listen to the TeSTAR news comfortably. I stretched my legs.
[I heard they’re stealing something.]
[Wow~ Is it a Phantom Thief concept?]
And here, Ryu Cheong-woo was supposed to wrap it up with a line like, "No, they're stealing the fans' hearts~"
But suddenly, words burst out.
[Is... is TeSTAR’s concept a Phantom Thief this time?!]
It was Park Moon-dae.
...Keun-dal had gone off the rails.
Without any prior agreement.
[......]
[......]
For a moment, a suffocating silence fell.
Keun-dal covered his mouth.
‘Don’t do that.’
That makes it even weirder.
Kim Rae-bin looked at Park Moon-dae with an expression as if he had seen a ghost and opened his mouth.
[Pardon?]
I pressed my hand to my forehead.
‘We’re screwed.’
At that moment.
[Mhm. Moon-dae, you’re really interested in TeSTAR.]
“...!!”
[Are you... by any chance, a fan?]
Seon A-hyun... caught it?
‘How?’
But before I had time to ponder that question, I immediately scanned the viewer reactions.
They were...
Surprisingly, they were good.
Because they had been doing the skit with the ridiculous high schooler setting earlier, it was accepted as part of that.
In that case... wait.
“...!”
I touched my chin.
Is this... actually a gain?
[...That’s right~ Moon-dae loves TeSTAR! Hey, I know all their songs too~]
On the radio, Keun Se-jin was in the middle of masterfully handling the situation. He was setting it up so that if they just played along, the flow would naturally return to normal.
‘But...’
Hmm.
[Hyung, I’m sorry, what should I...]
“No.”
[Pardon?]
I sat back down on the sofa.
“Keep going like this. Just react naturally.”
[...?!]
And a short while later.
On the live-streamed radio app, Park Moon-dae spoke with a serious face.
[That’s right. Actually, I’m... a huge fan of TeSTAR.]
[...??]
[I’m telling you, I’m a real fan of TeSTAR.]
I’m leaving the rest to you, Keun Se-jin.