The First Ranking Announcement

The first ranking announcement ceremony.

I stared at the screen Lee Jiwoo held out, unable to believe what I was seeing, and asked in a trembling voice,

"H-how is this even possible…? Trending within six hours…. Does that make any sense…?"

"I couldn't believe it either at first…, but look at this."

The screen Lee Jiwoo showed me displayed a post from a community board.

Streaming loops.

I never imagined people would already be mass-streaming for me when I hadn't even debuted, hadn't released a single album — when I was still nothing more than an ordinary trainee.

And on top of that….

"…Isn't this a guy-dominated community?"

"Yep."

…It was male fans, not female ones.

Normally, that kind of obsessive mass-streaming support came overwhelmingly from female fanbases — but no matter how you looked at it, this post had been written by a guy.

"It's not just here. The girl-dominated communities are going completely crazy too. Your fans and Yu Seol's fandom were fighting all night! Look — Yu Seol's YouTube fancam views are sky-high as well."

Usually, when two sides with opposing views fought tooth and nail, both ended up taking damage. But in my case and Yu Seol's, it was different.

The fans' pride war had spilled over onto YouTube individual fancams, and both of us had reaped massive benefits in view counts.

Of course….

…If you had to pick a winner between the two of us, it was still me.

My individual fancam sat at 570,000 views; Yu Seol's was at 490,000.

"Yerin…, I was so shocked I couldn't sleep last night. You're the first person I know who's ever hit YouTube Trending…!"

"……."

…Obviously it was a first for me too.

I was so dazed I froze, unsure how to even react — until Lee Jiwoo tightly clasped my hand and said,

"…Yerin, if you win My Idol Academia, could you maybe mention Teacher's name in your acceptance speech?"

"Pfft."

She was half-joking, but her expression was a little serious.

Looking at that face of hers…, and at my individual fancam view count, I found myself thinking that winning might not be just a dream after all.

Then a certain post title caught my eye.

A program that hadn't even reached its midpoint yet.

And yet that arrogant post — already declaring victory — was buried under an enormous number of upvotes and comments.

"Yerin, today's shoot starts with the ranking announcement, right?"

"…Yes, that's right."

"This might just be meaningless statistics, but…, in every idol survival program Nnet has ever run, the person who ranked first at the first ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ranking announcement went on to win the whole thing."

"……."

"Of course, it's probably just superstition, but…, give it everything you've got today…!"

I nodded at Lee Jiwoo's encouragement.

I had already made up my mind to surpass Yu Seol and win My Idol Academia.

And today's ranking announcement….

Maybe it was because of those YouTube individual fancam views…, but I had a really good feeling about it.

"Ugh…, do I really have to spell it out for these idiots? Anyone with eyes can see our Yerin is way better than Yu Seol…."

Around that same time.

In a studio apartment just catching the morning light…, a user named YerinGuardian had finished a keyboard battle with one of Yu Seol's fans.

The winner: YerinGuardian.

After hours of parrot-repeating that Ha Yerin — with only a month of training — had taken first in both individual fancams and the team performance, his opponent had finally run out of steam and fled.

"Wasn't even that desperate about it, huh, dumbass."

Satisfied with his keyboard-battle victory, YerinGuardian turned his eyes to the dual monitor beside him, where Ha Yerin's Where is my first love! individual fancam was still playing.

He'd been looping that fancam ever since it went up last night — hundreds of plays by now, roughly.

Hours into an all-nighter of watching Ha Yerin's individual fancam.

YerinGuardian had seen the video so many times he could memorize every single one of her movements and hand gestures, and yet….

"God…, she's so beautiful…."

…Ha Yerin's face never got old, no matter how many times he looked at it.

Currently on leave from university, he had originally been obsessed only with anime and games — idols had never really interested him.

But after Ha Yerin performed 24 Hours Isn't Enough during the grade evaluation in episode one of My Idol Academia, he had fallen under her spell as if by magic.

How deep was he in? When she performed Where is my first love!, he genuinely felt like she was confessing to him — complete with delusions and all.

He knew it was overinvestment.

Pouring this much time into an idol he'd never even meet…, he knew exactly how pointless and unproductive it was.

But….

"She's so pretty…, what am I supposed to do when I can still see her even with my eyes closed…."

YerinGuardian never once regretted discovering Ha Yerin.

He traced a finger slowly down the face of Ha Yerin on the screen, then, with a vacant look in his eyes, found himself speaking without meaning to.

"I mean…, I could actually meet her…."

Ha Yerin wasn't some anime or game character. She was a real person who existed in the real world.

And if she was a real person…, then meeting her wasn't impossible, was it?

"When does My Idol Academia end…? When's Yerin going to debut…."

Once Ha Yerin debuted in a girl group, he'd be able to meet her in person through fan signings or concerts.

YerinGuardian started calculating the remaining broadcast dates and debut prep periods and so on, until….

"Ah…, there's still so much time left…."

Realizing how long he'd have to wait before he could see her, he sank into despair.

"I just want to see her for real…, as soon as possible…."

The exhaustion piled up from streaming without sleep, his yearning for Ha Yerin. And then….

"……."

Due to a side effect of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, the pupils of the man staring at Ha Yerin on screen slowly began to darken.

"………Where did she say Yerin's school was."

Of course, he considered himself a perfectly healthy, well-behaved fan.

Suddenly wanting to know where Ha Yerin's school was — that was nothing more than curiosity born of pure fan devotion.

Click, clack.

"……I'm pretty sure I saw a sighting post somewhere."

And so YerinGuardian, eyes bloodshot, dug through community boards in search of the information he wanted.

It was morning.

But even as the sun climbed to its peak, set, and night returned once more….

Click, clack.

His hands on the keyboard and mouse, and his eyes scouring every corner of the screen, never stopped.

Back at the set for week three of My Idol Academia.

Thud.

"Thank you for driving me again today, sir."

I arrived at the set in Kang Hyeongman's car, by now a completely familiar routine.

As always, Kang Hyeongman had brought me here with that expressionless yet affectionate manner of his.

But….

"…Yerin."

…At the last moment, he spoke up with some difficulty.

I tilted my head, puzzled by the look on his face.

"What is it, sir? Is there something you need to tell me?"

"…Your dad and mom keep asking where you are."

"……."

Kang Hyeongman let out a sigh and continued.

"They keep calling, and they've even shown up at the company in person…. I keep wanting to just throw them out, but then I remember they're your parents and it isn't easy. What would you like me to do?"

"……."

I turned my head and answered without a second of hesitation.

"…Just throw them out."

Thinking of my parents, my voice came out cold even though I was speaking to Kang Hyeongman.

"Unless Dad and Mom change, I'm never seeing their faces again. …Not that those people are likely to change easily."

"…Alright."

Even at my answer — firm enough that it might have come off as rude — Kang Hyeongman simply nodded.

And then….

He reached out and gently stroked my head, as if placing absolute trust in whatever I said.

"I'll do as you say."

"I heard from Trainer Lee Jiwoo. Today's a very important day."

"…Yes. It's the first ranking announcement."

"Good. You've done well so far — I'm sure the results will be good."

Kang Hyeongman's flat, even voice put me a little at ease.

"…Sorry for bringing up something unsettling right before something important. I'll handle your parents for you."

"Yes, thank you, sir. I'll be going now."

I bowed my head, and Kang Hyeongman waved.

Sanggu oppa, who'd driven me all the way here, handed me my bags and called out softly,

"…Ha Yerin, fighting."

"Thank you, Sanggu oppa."

Kang Hyeongman and Sanggu oppa, who brought me here every time, were always a huge source of strength for me.

Maybe it was thanks to the two of them that I'd been able to perform so well on My Idol Academia without any major problems.

Once again, I walked inside with my head held high, fully charged by their energy.

My first stop was the dorm — I needed to drop off my bags.

But then….

"Yerin—!"

"……?"

At the voice calling me on my way to the dorm, I turned around….

"…Writer-nim?"

One of the My Idol Academia writers I only knew by ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠face was calling for me urgently.

She came running up, out of breath, grabbed my wrist, and said,

"Goodness…, I wasn't sure from behind, but it really is you, Yerin…. Hah, hah…, we're short on time — where are you headed right now?"

"…Ah, I was going to drop my bags at the dorm. But short on time? There's still plenty left before call time…."

I'd actually arrived quite early compared to the other contestants.

So why were we short on time?

I was confused, but the writer didn't explain — she just pulled me along.

"We're short on time, so I'll fill you in later. Just come with me for now."

"…Uh, okay."

She brought me to a waiting room.

And inside, two stylists were standing by.

Only after depositing me in front of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the stylists did the My Idol Academia writer give me a rough explanation.

"Today's the first ranking announcement, right? It's a big event — you've got to look even a little prettier going out there. Haha, of course, Yerin looks gorgeous even without any special styling."

Getting coordinated before a shoot was standard procedure, so I could accept that.

But….

"Then why am I the only one getting styled separately in a waiting room? What about the other contestants…."

Being assigned two stylists in a private waiting room all by myself…, I couldn't shake the feeling of special treatment.

When I asked about it, the writer smiled and answered,

"Come on~ Yerin is different from 'the rest of the kids,' you know~"

"……."

"Yerin is one of today's main characters. Alright, I'll be going now — I'll come pick you up when the styling's done~"

I was different from the rest of the kids.

I was one of today's main characters.

The writer's words couldn't have been more loaded with meaning.

And so I quietly received the stylists' full setup, then followed the production staff's guidance to the set.

The first thing I faced the moment I set foot on set was….

"…It's been a while."

The massive pyramid seating from the very first shoot's seat-selection segment — ranked from 1st to 100th.

Dozens of contestants in the official My Idol Academia uniforms were waiting in front of the seats.

And then.

"Alright, the last contestant is coming in now, so we'll start shooting shortly~"

At the words "last contestant," I turned around — and what I saw was….

"……."

"……."

…Yu Seol, walking onto the set with the production staff, fully styled just like me.

The moment our eyes met, we both knew instinctively.

That first and second place were between the two of us.

And….

Yerin is one of today's main characters.

The gap between us clearly wouldn't be very large.