Chapter 52
Chapter 52
After the eliminated contestants packed their bags and left, the remaining participants changed into their training gear and regrouped at the dorms.
Just moments ago, they were all tears and snot while seeing their friends off, but now, the atmosphere was thick with a strange sense of elitism.
‘Well, I suppose it’s inevitable.’
Having made it to the finals with the support of an unspecified multitude, it was only natural for their egos to inflate. Unless someone had an incredibly resilient mindset, it was easy to get drunk on the atmosphere—especially at their young age.
The MC was nowhere to be seen, likely having clocked out for the day. Instead, Young-rin took over the filming.
“The twenty participants who will complete the final stage of Re-listing! Idol Inc. Congratulations. Shall we give ourselves a round of applause?”
“Yes!”
Clap, clap, clap. The sound of applause filled the room. But right now, these pleasantries weren't what mattered.
‘Why is there nothing here?’
This was clearly the timing for the final team selection, yet the set was empty. Not a single prop was in sight. All that remained was the electronic display. What were they planning?
“First, we will reveal the songs you will be performing for the Final Stage.”
[Hello! We are Igler.]
“Whoa.”
A composer team appeared on the screen to greet them. They were a well-known team that had worked on several title tracks for famous idols. As snippets of familiar music videos flashed by, the participants grew excited.
[We, Igler, will now reveal the song we’ve prepared for the participants!]
‘A new song.’
They finally gave us a song that could actually be included in a debut album now that we've reached the finals. I could finally grasp the scale of the budget they had before the season started.
[Lalu~ lali~]
Regardless, the song was good. It was catchy and didn't seem like the type to just flicker on the charts briefly due to the show's popularity before vanishing.
The problem was that I couldn't understand a word the guide vocal was saying.
‘It sounds like they’re just singing whatever comes to mind.’
Wait, could it be?
“The title of this song is ‘Final.’ And as for the lyrics… there are none!”
“What?”
“No lyrics?”
Reactions poured out from the participants at Young-rin’s words. Soon, one of the composers on the screen struck an awkward ‘fighting’ pose and read from the script.
[Please exercise your creativity and complete the demo version of ‘Final’! Fighting!]
Young-rin spoke as if picking up where the video left off.
“That’s right. ‘Final’ is an incomplete song.”
“…!”
“The participants must write the lyrics yourselves, complete the choreography, and give the song a suitable subtitle. Furthermore, arranging the track is also permitted.”
I knew it.
‘Is this show haunted by the ghost of self-production?’
No matter how popular self-producing idols were these days, I didn't expect them to pull this even in the finals. Did they not see how everyone except the ‘Moon Rabbit’ team completely botched the production part during the third team match?
The ‘Husky’ team only took first place because of Cha Yu-jin. If you just listened to the audio, it was mediocre.
‘The finale is a live broadcast, too. What are they thinking?’
Feeling dubious, I continued to listen to the final stage song playing from the display.
One thing was certain: I had to be on the same team as Kim Rae-bin. Lyrics and arrangement? There was no need to look further; I had to grab him no matter what.
‘So, how exactly are we supposed to form teams?’
As if answering my thought, Young-rin made an announcement.
“And the team composition for the stage… is completely up to you.”
“…!!”
“The production crew will not interfere regardless of who you team up with or how you organize yourselves. You just need to form a team of up to seven members and begin practicing.”
Oh boy.
‘It’s going to be a mess.’
If anyone handled this poorly, they’d become a controversy-generating machine right at the finish line. I knew they had laid plenty of landmines for the live finale, but I didn't expect the preparation phase to be a minefield as well.
“And the benefit for winning the Final Stage is… ten million won.”
“Whoa!”
Gasps erupted from all sides. Everyone seemed taken aback by the sudden cash prize.
“To ensure fair competition, the production crew has decided to leave the final debut lineup entirely in the hands of the Shareholders.”
I didn't care about that insincere sentiment, but ten million won… after taxes, it would be roughly 7.8 million won.
‘Whatever happens, I want to take that home.’
For the record, I still haven't received the refrigerator I won at the talent show. Surely these guys won't delay the prize money and then act like it never happened.
I calculated the numbers while listening to the rest of Young-rin’s speech.
“Then, the team formation for the Final Stage… starts now!”
The moment she finished, the participants scrambled into action.
“Moon-dae.”
“Hyung.”
People spoke to me from both sides immediately. It was Keun Se-jin, ranked 7th, and Kim Rae-bin, ranked 5th.
Keun Se-jin glanced at Kim Rae-bin and gave a thin smile. I guess he figured their positions didn't overlap.
“Should the three of us go together for now?”
“I would like that.”
“Sure.”
The agreement was reached in an instant. Meanwhile, Seon A-hyun, who had been standing in the 2nd place spot, approached us hesitantly.
Well, it was Seon A-hyun… including him wouldn't hurt, so it was fine.
“Want to join us?”
“Y-Yeah!”
Seon A-hyun’s face brightened. The other team members nodded without any objection.
That made four.
I furrowed my brows.
2nd, 5th, 6th, and 7th.
‘Is this a bit much?’
If we weren't careful, we’d be criticized as a ‘power clique’ of high-rankers who only stuck together. It felt like we needed to add someone who was skilled but had a relatively lower rank and no prior close ties to us.
“Hyung. What about Cha Yu-jin…?”
“Hmm.”
Kim Rae-bin broached the subject. I checked over where Cha Yu-jin and Ryu Cheong-woo were already talking.
1st and 4th.
Ah, that wouldn't work.
“How about we just stop here?”
“Pardon?”
‘Even if I refuse and suggest we take in lower-ranked members we aren't close with, it won't fly.’
I cleanly gave up on further recruitment.
Keun Se-jin immediately jumped in to back me up. It seemed he had already grasped the situation as well.
“We have to think about our individual screen time on stage, too~ Since it’s the last one, wouldn't it be better to show a lot of ourselves? Our current positions are actually perfect!”
“……”
There was no denying that. If Cha Yu-jin joined, there was no telling how the editing or screen time would be skewed.
Kim Rae-bin remained silent for a moment with a contemplative look, then soon nodded calmly.
“You are right.”
It was a wise decision.
‘It’s not like votes are on the line; it’s just prize money.’
I didn't know the voting method yet, but even if we were at a disadvantage for the win because of individual voting, it didn't matter. Ultimately, the screen time on stage was more important.
Four people were enough.
With the situation settled, Keun Se-jin turned around energetically.
“Then we’ll report this as is—”
“Excuse me. Hyungs!”
Just then, someone interrupted Keun Se-jin. It was Gold 2.
“Ah, could we… join you?”
To my surprise, Gold 2 approached us along with Lee Se-jin, the 11th ranker.
‘How did he manage to rope him in?’
Gold 2 was trying his best not to show how anxious and nervous he was, but honestly, it was plain as day.
“……”
How could we reject this without getting hate?
I stole a glance at Keun Se-jin. He was wearing a pitying smile. He was definitely squeezing his brain for a rejection line. He probably thought it was a nuisance since we had already set up a decent small elite group.
But Gold 2 was spirited. I mean that in a somewhat sad way.
“I really! I’m confident I’ll work hard! No matter what part I get, I’ll do it well without complaining!”
This was making the picture look weird.
It would have been fine to reject Cha Yu-jin if he had come and asked to join. We could have just framed it as a rivalry with a bit of humor.
But to reject an 18th-ranked high schooler who was acting like this? Especially when the majority of this team was in the same group as him during the first team match.
‘This is going to give them editing material.’
I suppressed a sigh.
I should have ended it quickly with something like, ‘Sorry, the four of us decided to stick together,’ the moment he spoke. But I suppose no one wanted to be the one to take the bullet.
In this case, it was better to just accept them, but I had just rejected Cha Yu-jin using screen time as an excuse. It would be awkward for me or Keun Se-jin to be the ones to say yes now.
“C-Can’t we do it together…?”
Fortunately, the softest-hearted guy among us surrendered first. Seon A-hyun spoke up while tentatively gauging everyone's reaction.
‘Good job.’
Now the key was persuading Kim Rae-bin…
“I think it would be fine.”
Huh?
‘He accepted that easily?’
Kim Rae-bin had nodded quite readily. I wasn't sure if he was reacting sensitively because he’d already tasted the bitterness of ‘evil editing,’ or if there was some other reason.
“Umm, what about you, Moon-dae?”
“It’s fine.”
“Okay. Then shall we do it together?”
“Whoa! Thank you!”
Gold 2 raised both hands in a cheer. Behind him, Lee Se-jin bowed his head with a stiff expression before looking up again. It was truly amazing how he could still act so rigid.
“No need for thanks, let’s do our best.”
Keun Se-jin quickly wrapped up the situation and headed toward Young-rin. After a brief exchange, text appeared on the electronic display.
[Group 1 Confirmed!]
[Seon A-hyun (2), Kim Rae-bin (5), Park Moon-dae (6), Lee Se-jin B (7), Lee Se-jin A (11), Kwon Hee-seung (18)]
It was official.
I felt a bit uneasy because the team had been formed more haphazardly than I expected. I didn't particularly want to include a potential landmine like Lee Se-jin A, either.
But I suppose it was better than being branded as unlikable jerks who only wanted to play among ourselves.
Just then, Cha Yu-jin’s voice, filled with regret, echoed from behind.
“Ah, I missed them!”
“……”
It seemed that team had been discussing ‘Park Moon-dae’ as their main vocal. Group 1 had been formed so quickly that they didn't even get a chance to approach.
“Hyung! Let’s work together next time!”
“I’d like that.”
I replied to Cha Yu-jin, who was waving his hand vigorously from among the participants, while thinking to myself:
‘This is the finale; there is no next time.’
Cha Yu-jin was truly a soul with a perpetually sunny brain.
“Wow, we formed our team so fast that our practice time has increased significantly!”
Keun Se-jin led the conversation with a beaming smile. Since we had made it to the fourth round, it was nice that we didn't have to waste time on the useless ‘getting to know each other’ process.
“First, let’s pick a leader and get right to it!”
“Oh~”
The others kept looking at Keun Se-jin with exclamations. Since he had been the leader in every team match so far, they seemed to assume he would do it again.
Keun Se-jin laughed and shook his head.
“Ah, I won’t be running for leader this time!”
“…!?”
“Wh-Why?”
To the shocked team members, Keun Se-jin blinked his eyes exaggeratedly as if he were being shy.
I really want to poke his eyes out.
“I… want to be the Main Dancer!”
“……”
It wasn't like those two positions were mutually exclusive, so I didn't know what kind of nonsense he was spouting now.
‘You did both during the second round.’
Was he planning to use that statement when he aimed for the Main Dancer position? Along with some cheesy line like, ‘I even gave up being the leader!’
Surprisingly, Lee Se-jin, the actor, spoke up.
“You can do both.”
“Ah~ that’s true. But this time, I want to challenge myself with my whole heart and soul.”
Keun Se-jin clasped his hands together with a smile.
“Besides, there’s a lot to organize this time. Hmm, I thought about this during the third round too, but I think it would be better if someone with creative talent became the leader!”
At those words, eyes turned toward Kim Rae-bin.
Kim Rae-bin stared blankly at Keun Se-jin, then noticed my gaze and spoke with an ‘Ah’ of realization.
“I would like to nominate Park Moon-dae hyung.”
“……”
That’s not it.