Chapter 59
Chapter 59
The participants' very first stage was the new theme song.
As the season’s popularity exploded beyond all expectations, the production had hastily thrown in a second theme song just to round things out.
‘I feel like I’ve heard this somewhere before.’
Park Moon-dae fervently hoped it was because he had heard the song in the future. Otherwise, it meant it was plagiarism.
Regardless, even though it was an unfamiliar track, the audience's reaction was explosive. They were simply thrilled to see the participants moving and breathing right in front of them.
Of course, the reaction from the viewers watching through their screens was a different story.
Comments screaming for their favorite participants scrolled past in an instant, refreshing so fast they were almost impossible to read.
“Haaah.”
“I’m sweating.”
The participants, coming down from the stage after performing in front of thousands for the first time, were gasping for breath but looked delighted.
‘I don’t even know what I just did.’
Having learned it in a rush at the last minute, Park Moon-dae, who had focused every nerve on not making a mistake, twitched an eyebrow.
There seemed to be a lot of people, but because of the distance from the stage, they felt almost like holograms. It didn't feel real.
And before the participants could even process the reality and let the nerves settle in, they were forced to run around busily changing costumes to stay on schedule.
Meanwhile, the MC appeared on stage to keep the proceedings moving.
“Ah, that was truly a magnificent opening stage!”
Since it was a live broadcast lasting over three hours, different people took turns hosting each segment to minimize fatigue as much as possible.
“We still have many prepared stages left! Everyone, please stay tuned!”
The MC, a veteran of various audition programs, skillfully ad-libbed to stall for time until the VCR was ready.
“The team stages the participants prepared for this finale—just how was the order decided?”
Soon, a lighthearted video of the participants playing mini-games to determine the order was played.
‘We filmed that at midnight, so I didn't get any sleep.’
Hearing the audio from beneath the stage, Park Moon-dae recalled the situation.
Of all things, they had chosen a primitive method like a chicken fight, and Ryu Cheong-woo had achieved a complete victory.
‘I suppose it was a predictable result.’
The surprising part was that Seon A-hyun had held his ground well. Thanks to him staying in until just before Ryu Cheong-woo, Park Moon-dae’s team secured the second priority.
Of course, it wasn't a simple matter of picking an empty slot. The production team made it so that the last-place team picked first, and subsequent teams could "push" them out of their spots.
It was that classic method that inevitably appeared in any survival show trying to be a bit cruel.
Naturally, the participants, who were already seasoned veterans of the show, skillfully avoided the trap. They reacted with exaggerated gestures and laughter, keeping the atmosphere light.
[Park Chan-ju: Oh, o-oh?!]
[Keun Se-jin: Aigo~]
Park Moon-dae heard the sound of Keun Se-jin chuckling as he pushed a team out of their slot echoing from above.
He also heard the members of the opposing team, who had been pushed into an undesirable slot, making confused noises.
“Wow, that’s scary.”
Keun Se-jin, who happened to be moving his microphone to his new costume next to Moon-dae, shook his head at the sound.
Even though he was on an upward trend, his debut wasn't a certainty yet, so he was extra nervous ahead of the team stage.
Rarely for him, Keun Se-jin’s hands were shaking. Moon-dae clicked his tongue.
“I heard Kim Rae-bin has some herbal sedatives.”
“I’m good~ I’ve never even tried them before.”
As Keun Se-jin waved Moon-dae off, the other teammates, fully changed, came running up behind him.
“Team Park, moving up~!”
A staff member shouted while running past. Because staff were needed both on and under the stage, they were short-handed, and gaps were appearing everywhere.
“We’re going now, right?”
Just as the participants were about to follow on their own, Seon A-hyun raised his hand abruptly.
“W-wait, let’s do a… a cheer before we go!”
“Shall we?”
Moon-dae held out his hand without a word.
The other teammates quickly piled their hands on top. Keun Se-jin added his hand as well, albeit a bit reluctantly.
“Fighting!”
The shout, which wouldn't be broadcast, ended quickly.
“I want to say something profound, but we don’t have time, so let’s run~!”
Letting out a hollow laugh at Keun Se-jin’s playful remark, the teammates ran down the hallway with all their might.
*
At the same time, in the concert hall.
After the VCR ended without showing the final order, the MC finally moved the program forward.
“Introducing the first performance team, decided after a fierce battle for the lineup…!”
Instead of the VCR, the participants' profiles appeared on the screen.
[Seon A-hyun (2), Kim Rae-bin (5), Park Moon-dae (6), Lee Se-jin B (7), Keun Se-jin (11), Kwon Hee-seung (18)]
“Team ‘Challenger’ will be the first to take the stage!”
The profiles vanished, replaced by a staged clip of the participants high-fiving as they saw their team name placed at number one.
Fans who were thinking of typical competition programs were momentarily flustered before quickly realizing the situation.
Since voting was already open rather than starting after the performance, going first was an absolute advantage.
Of course, that was only if you were confident you’d do well!
The viewers' reactions shifted in an instant.
Besides, choosing to kick things off required a considerable amount of guts.
The audience watched the stage preparation process with high expectations.
[All Team Members: Thank you for the food~]
The broadcast first showed the participants sitting in a franchise cafe—a PPL (product placement) spot—drinking beverages and chatting.
The tension in the comments briefly relaxed along with the low-stakes footage.
On screen, the participants were talking quietly.
[Park Moon-dae: First, is there a concept you want to do?]
[Kwon Hee-seung: Me, me! I want to do something I haven't done before!]
[Keun Se-jin: Me too!]
[Seon A-hyun: Me too!]
[Park Moon-dae: Hmm… okay.]
A caption reading <Teacher Park of the Rabbit Class> scrolled by.
Of course, they looked even milder on screen because they were re-filming for the PPL after already deciding on the concept.
[Kim Rae-bin: I would like a concept that fits the working title ‘Final.’]
[Keun Se-jin: Wow, that’s good too!]
[Lee Se-jin (Actor): So, what kind of concept do you think would fit?]
A brief silence followed those words. The caption <Team members lost in thought> appeared.
It was Park Moon-dae who broke the silence.
[Park Moon-dae: Among the images of ‘the end,’ how about we lean into the feeling of… ‘the final stage’?]
[Keun Se-jin: Ah, like ‘only one left’? That kind of feeling?]
[Park Moon-dae: Yeah, but without being too heavy. It would be better if the audience can enjoy it without it feeling too serious.]
Then, Seon A-hyun raised his hand. For the record, after the production team had been cursed out for several episodes, Seon A-hyun’s stutter was finally no longer being transcribed in the captions.
[Seon A-hyun: Then… how about something like ‘■■’?]
Exclamation marks popped up over the participants' heads all over the screen.
[Kim Rae-bin: I want to do that…!]
[Keun Se-jin: Oh, me too! That sounds fun.]
[Kwon Hee-seung: That’s so good!]
The broadcast even showed Lee Se-jin nodding in agreement.
[Park Moon-dae: Then our theme… will be ‘■■.’]
“Whoa!” With exclamations and applause, the screen transitioned to the smiling faces of the participants.
And the theme keyword was never mentioned again.
Only a few cuts of the participants practicing and being praised during recording were shown.
[Igler (Composer): Your voice is really good!]
[Seon A-hyun: Thank you….]
Seon A-hyun, his ears turning red, bowed repeatedly before returning to his seat. Then came Park Moon-dae, whose part received an ‘OK’ in a single take.
The composers looked at each other and chuckled before making a request to Moon-dae.
[Igler (Composer): Could you perhaps try singing it again from beginning to end?]
[Park Moon-dae: Yes. I’ll try.]
Of course, they didn't show him singing it from the start; instead, an interview cut with the composers was inserted.
[Igler (Composer): I like everything. This team is really good. Even the arrangement is like, ‘Oh~ this is so good.’]
[Igler (Composer): There’s almost nothing to fix. I think they’ll (do great) just as they are.]
A few more heartwarming recording scenes of the other members were spliced in.
Since it was the finale, the editing didn't feel malicious, as they refrained from forcing in any strange cuts.
However, because they had ghost-like precision in picking out only the most generic parts of the lyrics for the recording segment, the theme remained a mystery.
As a result, the viewers were rolling around in frustration, dying to know the "bleeped" word.
While the viewers chattered, the VCR showed Team ‘Challenger’—who had even decided on a main dancer without any conflict—practicing their choreography endlessly in fast-forward before abruptly ending.
Along with the text: <Check it out on stage right now!>
Just as the viewers were feeling a bit taken aback by the blunt ending, the screen back at the concert hall captured the backdrop of the stage.
The black screen flickered with blue and red glitches before white text appeared.
[Challenger]
: One who challenges.
: A person who tries to defeat the previous champion in a contest, fight, or sporting event.
A moment later, the screen cut out with a sharp mechanical screech.
And the theme melody of the song began to fill the hall.
Transformed into 8-bit.
Beep— Beep-beep— Beep— Tring!
The blatant electronic sound started with a single melody and gradually built up with layers of harmony.
As if a classic game series was evolving into a modern console game, the melody became three-dimensional in an instant.
And the moment that theme melody completed one full loop, the screen at the back of the stage slid open.
Shuuuuu—
From within the dark stage, the participants walked out amidst blue and red lasers.
As they took their positions, the 8-bit melody shifted into a variation and faded into a quiet accompaniment.
“…….”
The audience reflexively stopped cheering and fell silent.
The silhouettes on stage slowly moved into formation.