From That Day On, My Life Completely Changed (2)

As the cheers of those sharing memories of G-Dragon's era filled the air, the commercial break ended and my stage resumed.

At that moment my Vocal stat was 65. It was definitely high for an ordinary person, and the song itself wasn't particularly difficult, so my voice came through clear and strong.

Maybe it was the nostalgia boost, but the comments were reacting pretty well.

Seeing the favorable responses, I let out a quiet breath of relief and checked Kang Suhyeon's reaction.

Tap. Taptap.

She was watching my stage, tapping her fingers as if keeping the beat. Her expression wasn't bad… so by her standards, it must have been a passable score.

The camera also caught Han Siwoo's face — smiling for the first time since the grade evaluations had begun.

And just like that, the song ended without any major mistakes.

Explosive comment reactions poured in immediately.

On the broadcast, Han Siwoo offered praise for the first time in a soft tone, and the other trainers ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠joined in with compliments, carrying the warm atmosphere forward.

And then it happened.

With Han Siwoo's words, the people who'd been buried under the G-Dragon fan nostalgia finally found their voices.

Thudathudathudathuda.

The production team layered in a tense BGM, manufacturing a crisis.

This was the moment the long-awaited 24 Hours Aren't Enough was supposed to drop.

On the broadcast, I nodded at those words and casually stripped the clothes right off.

Apparently the production team thought it was a comedy beat, because they slapped on a ridiculous BGM and zoomed in on Han Siwoo's flushed face.

The comment reactions weren't bad either.

Taking off the jacket and skirt like that had been a completely thoughtless move on my part, but watching it through the broadcast, it turned out to be a pretty solid icebreaker.

With the mood loosened up, I started the stage.

I'd felt it before watching myself on YouTube, but seeing myself dance on TV was still a little embarrassing.

But looking at it now with eyes that had grown somewhat used to it….

Yeah, Stat 99 really is something else. I did pretty well.

The me on screen was dancing with a completeness that even I had to admit looked cool.

"Yerin—! You're so pretty—! How are you even better on stage?"

"And not a single note off on the vocals either. Excellent!"

Lee Jiwoo and Kang Suhyeon, the ones who'd trained me for this stage, laid on the praise without holding back.

And even….

"…How the hell did a dragon end up in my arms."

Kang Hyeongman, who'd shown zero reaction the entire broadcast until now, muttered that while staring blankly at my stage.

Feeling proud, I checked the comment section.

But….

Huh…?

The comment window was quieter than I'd expected — almost sparse.

Did it not land for other people?

I was tilting my head at that thought when the me on screen finished the stage.

And in that instant….

"Huh?"

"What's wrong, Yerin?"

"No, the laptop just suddenly lagge— wait?"

Right in front of my eyes, something spawned and vanished in endless waves.

Everyone in the monitoring room stared at that Chinese-army-level flood of comments with stunned eyes.

"Whoa……."

"……."

And even as time passed… the comments never stopped worshipping me, as if they'd finally met the master they'd been waiting for all this time.

After my stage ended, Han Siwoo poured out extreme praise, and the heat in the comments climbed even higher with no sign of cooling down.

Riding on Han Siwoo's words, the comments went full simping mode.

And it wasn't just the comments doing the simping.

"Pfft, Yerin. Isn't that the girl you said you got close with?"

"…Yes, that's her."

"Looks like she really took a liking to you."

…Yeah, no kidding.

So that's why she kept approaching me, and why she filmed that interview so aggressively.

The comment section's mood was pure "obviously."

Lee Jiwoo, who'd been flustered by the insane comment volume at first, had already gotten used to it. She turned to me with a pleased smile.

"Yerin, they're saying you're winning anyway? Hehe."

"Ah… Teacher, please don't tease me."

"I'm not. I'm serious. You really did great."

Stroke—, stroke.

Lee Jiwoo patted my head with proud eyes and continued.

"The only thing that stuck with me from today's grade evaluation was you, Yerin. I don't know whose student you are, but she was incredible. No joke — you were the best out of everyone who performed today."

"Teacher…."

I was truly grateful for Lee Jiwoo saying that.

But… there was one thing wrong with her words.

I had not been the best in the grade evaluation.

Because behind me… one more person still had her turn.

When Yu Seol appeared as the last performer, the comment section swelled with anticipation once again.

But… maybe because of the aftershock from the previous stage, even after she stepped up, the voices calling my name still outnumbered everything else.

The comments ranking me above Yu Seol continued even as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she told her personal story.

Those comments even evolved further, escalating into outright snide remarks about Yu Seol.

At the unexpected song choice, the comment atmosphere shifted from snark to shock.

And that shocked atmosphere….

…turned into pure awe the moment Yu Seol began to sing.

Even listening again, Yu Seol's stage was legendary.

"Huh… what kind of voice is that…."

Even the stone-faced Kang Hyeongman reacted like that — enough said.

Before long the comments had forgotten about me entirely, chanting Yu Seol's name as they watched the stage.

And so the stage that had drawn nothing but awe came to an end.

As the judges on the broadcast got excited and poured out praise, the comments began worshipping Yu Seol as well.

But the next moment….

Han Siwoo's question put a brief brake on the runaway atmosphere.

In that moment.

The broadcast shifted into slow motion, and at the same time….

Swoosh.

The screen captured Yu Seol lifting her head to look at me.

Naturally, the comments could only tilt their heads at the incomprehensible broadcast footage.

And then… soon.

Tick-tock tick-tock.

The intro of 24 Hours Aren't Enough — the same song I'd just danced to, recognizable the instant you heard it — began to play….

Our meaningful interviews played side by side, and the screen went dark.

That was the end of Episode 1 of My Idol Academia.

"Whoa… shit, they cut it HERE?!"

The production team's cut was so perfectly timed that Lee Jiwoo, watching with me, actually shot up off the sofa.

And then they piled on the preview, making it even worse.

"Whoa… for real…."

Yu Seol choosing the same song as me. The rivalry setup between me and Yu Seol. Me getting scolded, and a trainer bursting into tears.

…The My Idol Academia production team was truly something else.

They'd made it impossible not to watch the next episode….

Of course the comment section was on fire.

And it wasn't just the comments that were on fire.

"…Yerin, there's an article out."

"…An article?"

From that day on, my life became completely different from before.