Be My Muse
The mid-check began right after lunch the following day.
Seated at the evaluation table were one vocal trainer, one dance trainer, and one rap trainer from Choose My Prince — and, just as the trainees had expected, the composers of the concept songs.
"Hello. I'm Kim Su-jeong, composer of Raindrop and Domino."
"I'm PiPiPi, composer of For Seven Days and Sinabro."
"MJ, composer of Count Down and Auspicious."
Ye-chan studied the three composers sitting side by side in turn. Kim Su-jeong, dressed like an ordinary office worker in a neat suit, and MJ, whose flamboyant outfit screamed I am an artist at anyone who looked — the contrast between them might have been striking, if not for the giant smile mask worn by PiPiPi in the middle, which swallowed every other impression whole.
The trainees were thrown by the composer in the enormous smile mask, but Ye-chan alone remained unfazed; he was already long accustomed to that bizarre appearance.
All three of them will skyrocket into stardom off the back of Choose My Prince. In the timelines where the show had flopped, that rise had simply come a little later.
Carrying a faint sense of debt, Ye-chan had, in past resets, commissioned a few songs from them for Lee:Spirit or other well-known artists to help their careers along. This time, riding the coattails of a more successful Choose My Prince than ever before, they would make their names faster than in any previous life — so he decided to set down the burden of that private debt for good.
"Has the performance order been decided?"
"Yes. We drew lots this morning."
A staff member answered Vocal Trainer Hyeon Ji-yeong. The order, determined by each team's leader drawing lots, would also be the order for the main stage. Team Sinabro was fourth.
Ye-chan sat in the waiting area and watched the first team preparing — the hip-hop concept group for Domino. The center was Lee Min-gyu of Central, one of the manufactured trainees.
If someone like Lee Min-gyu is center, this is basically the weakest team of the lot.
Beside a visibly tense Im Chae-jin, Gi Tae-rang was saying something. The two of them had ended up on the same team again, and some unexpected, solid friendship seemed to have taken root between them.
"All right. Begin."
A funky, upbeat intro poured from the speakers. What followed, however, was lyrics no one could reasonably sit through. Childish, choppy, completely disconnected from the title Domino itself.
Ye-chan snuck a glance at composer Kim Su-jeong.
"……"
Her mouth was forced into a smile, but the corners of her eyes behind her glasses were trembling — she looked thoroughly displeased.
When the song ended, the trainees turned toward the trainers and composers with taut faces.
"Shall we start the evaluation with Composer Kim Su-jeong, who wrote this track?"
"Hmm. Shall we?"
Kim Su-jeong squeezed out a strained smile and turned a bright one on the trainees. It took less than a minute for the courage that smile had given them to drain from their faces, leaving them pale.
"……I've gone on too long. The bottom line is, I couldn't feel any understanding of the song at all. I'm disappointed."
After Kim Su-jeong's lengthy dressing-down finally ended, the trainers and the other composers each added a word.
"There was no unity whatsoever. I couldn't even tell what the song was supposed to be about."
"In my opinion, showing this to the audience would be a deception."
"The outfits this team wore during the vote were a mischievous concept, weren't they? You should keep the styling in mind and overhaul the whole thing."
When the merciless evaluation was over, the five trainees returned to the waiting seats thoroughly crushed.
Next up, Jeong Ui-tak and Bae Sae-byeok's team for For Seven Days took the center as if trading places. A strange murmur ran through the trainees waiting their turn.
I can feel them hoping for a proper disaster.
Given the uproar the day before, more than a few trainees were watching with gleaming eyes, eager to see the team self-destruct. Word of yesterday's incident had already reached the trainers as well; their expressions were skeptical.
"Begin."
At the vocal trainer's word, a soft intro began to play. There was no surprise this time either. Three minutes passed in which the only positive observation one could make was that Jeong Ui-tak and Bae Sae-byeok's singing had improved a little.
A hellish silence settled over the room.
Ye-chan glanced discreetly at composer PiPiPi, but the mask made any expression impossible to read.
"Ah — then, may we ask Composer PiPiPi to go first again?"
At the vocal trainer's request, PiPiPi shook his head.
"I'd like to go last, if that's all right?"
A sweet, high voice utterly at odds with the grotesque mask floated out. The vocal trainer, briefly scrambled by the mismatch of eyes and ears, collected herself.
"Of course. Then shall I start?"
Criticism as harsh as anything leveled at Team Domino poured from the trainers. Ye-chan had worried that Jeong Ui-tak — whose heart was soft as tofu — might wilt, but he seemed to have steeled himself; he stood calmly, listening carefully to every word.
The villain trio is basically dead on their feet.
Nine-tenths of the judges' comments concerned the lack of chemistry among the members. From Ye-chan's perspective, the lyrics, choreography, and part distribution were also full of problems — but the fallout from yesterday's incident seemed to have skewed the trainers' criticism heavily in that direction. Once the first three evaluators had all said as much, the remaining composers tacked on roughly similar remarks.
At last it was PiPiPi's turn.
"You've all said a great deal already. Honestly, I'd like to offer a somewhat different evaluation."
As if something were welling up inside him, PiPiPi paused, then spoke again.
"Jeong Ui-tak?"
"Yes?"
Startled by the sudden address, Jeong Ui-tak answered on instinct and blinked. In a flash, PiPiPi was on his feet, one hand stretched toward him.
"You are truly the best."
"……What?"
"Please be my muse."
Ye-chan, conscious of the cameras, smoothed the expression that had been about to crumple into something presentable. So PiPiPi's muse-collecting mania had kicked in.
Honestly…… he's a perfectly normal guy most of the time……
Alone in his frenzy, PiPiPi went on about how magnificent Jeong Ui-tak's voice was, which parts of which phrases had been outstanding, and eventually even thanked Choose My Prince for letting him meet Jeong Ui-tak at all. As PiPiPi's evaluation-disguised-as-gushing continued, the previously frigid atmosphere gradually thawed. He seemed out of his mind, but once a composer declared himself pleased, it became hard to pile on further criticism.
The only ones who looked uncomfortable with the situation were the trio who had been at odds with Jeong Ui-tak.
After a long stretch of rapturous praise, PiPiPi tilted his head — the giant smile mask listing heavily to one side.
"But why isn't Jeong Ui-tak the center? He sings the best, and he fits the song and the mood better than anyone."
"……"
The air that had been warming froze over colder than before. As if on cue, every gaze in the room except PiPiPi's locked onto Bae Sae-byeok.
"……Composer PiPiPi? The centers for this round were all decided by viewer votes."
In a silence so complete you could have heard a pin drop, the vocal trainer spoke in a carefully lowered voice. PiPiPi righted his tilted head.
"Oh, is that so? That's a shame. If you'd decided after hearing my song, you would have chosen Jeong Ui-tak."
This bastard—!
Ye-chan clenched his fists and watched Bae Sae-byeok's face. Bae Sae-byeok was, astonishingly, expressionless.
"Uh, what do we do……?"
Gi Tae-rang's small whisper floated from behind. And then PiPiPi, whom Ye-chan desperately wished would shut up, opened his mouth again without a shred of tact.
"Isn't there a composer chance to change it? This is just too disappointing."
"I'm happy with my part right now!"
Jeong Ui-tak, unable to take any more, shouted — almost a scream.
This is exactly why I never used that guy more than twice!
Ye-chan ground his teeth inwardly. He had known from the start that PiPiPi was a selfish man with zero social sense, but today he had gone far beyond the usual. Crushing someone else's spirit wasn't enough — he was actively sowing discord. The offense was severe.
The atmosphere had long since turned into a funeral parlor. No one could easily speak. Then Bae Sae-byeok's hand rose quietly.
"Ah — Trainee Bae Sae-byeok. Go ahead."
The vocal trainer readily granted him the floor. Bae Sae-byeok turned his head and fixed his gaze on PiPiPi's mask.
"Composer, will you be coming to the main performance as well?"
"Me? Well, the production team hasn't said anything separately."
PiPiPi looked toward the staff and tilted his head — and in that moment, Bae Sae-byeok's flat, even voice found him again.
"Please make sure you come."
It was diction so perfect you would rarely find it even in dramas or films. Ye-chan felt a flicker of déjà vu in Bae Sae-byeok's expressionless profile. Through the scattered bangs, Bae Sae-byeok's large eyes shone with an alien light.
"I'll show you a center you can accept."
That kid's eyes have gone crazy again.
What followed was Team Raindrop, with Nam Ji-yu as both center and leader. They had built lyrics and choreography that suited the tropical-pop, fresh concept without experimental detours, taking the royal road — and the finished product was quite solid. Composer Kim Su-jeong, who had worn a death mask ever since the disastrous Domino stage, finally broke into a broad smile. She even gave a thumbs-up to Nam Ji-yu, who had carried the performance.
After three teams had finished, Ye-chan rose from his seat. At last, it was Team Sinabro's turn.
"Whoa, this team's stacked."
"Isn't the balance completely unfair, PD-nim?"
The moment the trainers saw Team Sinabro's trainees, their faces lit up and they started joking. Ye-chan had to agree — if this combination failed, it would be a genuine catastrophe. The trainers' goodwill was so infectious that Composer Kim Su-jeong and MJ joined in, laughing along. Only PiPiPi, composer of Sinabro itself, stayed out of the conversation, staring fixedly at the trainees.
Not that you can actually see his eyes through that mask.
Vocal Trainer Hyeon Ji-yeong spoke to Ye-chan, who had taken the center position for the opening choreography and stood with his back turned.
"Trainee Ha Ye-chan — are you confident as center? Composer PiPiPi looked pretty fierce earlier."
Ye-chan turned his head halfway and grinned.
"I'll answer with the song from here on."
The bold reply drew enthusiastic reactions from the trainers.
The whistle of MR. Pudding faded, and at last the intro of Sinabro began. The quietly flowing accompaniment cut off without warning. Ye-chan straightened the waist he had been bowing. When he had practiced with Beom Se-hyuk's team, Kang Hae-sol's rap had opened the song — but Ye-chan had kept a secret weapon in reserve.
Still facing away, one arm raised, Ye-chan opened his mouth.
"Ah — the moon has waxed full!"
The moment that first line — something out of a traditional narrative song — left his lips, the accompaniment surged back transformed, incomparably grander than before. The trainees clustered around Ye-chan scattered in perfect unison, the cloths in their hands streaming through the air. Turning as if drawing a soft arc, Ye-chan shot PiPiPi a brief, sharp look.
You dared touch someone I already claimed? Pi Dae-gi — you've crossed the line.
From here on, it was time to show him properly.