Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: Through the Darkness
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After the first performance ended, staff quickly wiped down the stage with a mop, and the second performance began immediately.
The other teams, excluding the one currently preparing, were in their waiting rooms watching the stage.
The lights on stage came on, and Jung Eun-woo and Lee Ho-jun slowly walked from the edge of the stage to the center.
Most teams had structured their performances to have the special guest appear during the dance break.
But the fact that Creatin had given the beginning of their performance to RE-V left the other teams unable to hide their surprise.
“Wow. RE-V is opening the stage?”
“That's insane.”
“Won't they completely steal the show?”
“This is a real gamble.”
―A dark night
A night spent all alone
As lethargy inevitably finds me
The performance began with Lee Ho-jun rapping in a low voice.
The beat was somewhat familiar, but the rap lyrics were new.
Because of this, no one could figure out what song they were performing.
“What is this?”
“Does anyone know this song?”
“I think it's a completely new song.”
―Falling apart again, endlessly
I don’t know how far I’ll fall
A faint light that came for me
I follow that light, moving forward slowly
My dark night gradually lifts
The star that embraced me
As the rap part ended, the other RE-V members appeared on a lift.
The beat quickened, and the original song's instrumental began to play.
“Ah, it's a B-side from Leon's album.”
“Then they must have written the rap part themselves.”
Creatin and RE-V's song choice was 'STAR,' one of the B-sides from Leon's solo album.
It was his first solo album, filled with songs that told his sincere story.
Among them, 'STAR' was a song that conveyed the meaning that he could never have gotten back on his feet without his fans' love.
Usually, celebrities are called stars, but Leon flipped that expression.
He said that the artist is nothing, and it's the fans, the ones who always guide him with a bright light, who are the true stars.
“I think Leon said this was the song he cherishes the most.”
This song deeply moved the fans.
Leon had also mentioned several times on broadcasts that it was his most cherished song.
Knowing this, Creatin had gone through a lot of deliberation before choosing this song.
They had even sent several long text messages to Leon, the owner of the song, asking for his permission.
Only after hearing from Leon to do as they pleased and that he would take care of it did they text the writer to confirm their song choice.
Creatin was the last of the participating groups to select their song.
The other teams hadn't heard the full story, but they had a rough idea.
―The light has vanished
Far away
Without you, I am nothing
The so-called 'saintess part' that comes before the dance break.
It went straight from the calm section into that part.
It was a structure never before seen in the competition.
―Just erase me from this world
Seo Yoon-seul belted out a clear high note.
“Whoa.”
“That's insane.”
“Is that even possible? To hit a note like that all at once? Is his vocal technique completely different?”
Zero to the Boy couldn't take their eyes off the monitor in their waiting room.
They had heard a lot about RE-V from their manager.
“Seo Yoon-seul? He's not bad, but his breath control is lacking and his high notes are shaky. You know those screechy high notes? Aren't they just awful to listen to? There's a reason the company kicked him out. If he was any good, would they have let him go? Ah, now that I think about it, he left right away when they told him to. And who knows? They might have rigged the votes. How else could they have prepared albums and merch so quickly unless the members were already decided from the start?”
Having seen Seo Yoon-seul's skills since their trainee days, they couldn't fully believe those words.
“His skills suddenly got that good? Be realistic. It's all post-production magic. The whole of RE-V is probably like that.”
But that particular statement held a small grain of truth for them.
While Seo Yoon-seul had always been a good singer, he'd had a scratchy voice, and his skills had improved to a degree that was incomparable to what they had heard in person.
No matter how good a trainer he had, they were filled with doubt about whether such an improvement was truly possible.
*What the hell?*
That's why, after hearing that high note, the members of Zero to the Boy exchanged bewildered glances.
They wanted to say something, but they had to keep their mouths shut because of their manager, whose mood had soured instantly.
The camera in the waiting room might have helped a little, but it wouldn't save them from a tongue-lashing.
He was that kind of person.
“Ha.”
The manager let out a scoff, as if in disbelief.
Then, he smirked crookedly.
The members of Zero to the Boy tensed up.
The atmosphere in their waiting room was like walking on thin ice.
“Whoa!”
“Wow, sunbaenim! That high note was insane!”
“Wooooo! RE-V is amazing!”
The sounds of another group reacting to the performance drifted in from the next waiting room.
The cheerful atmosphere from the other room was palpable, causing Zero to the Boy's shoulders to slump slightly.
*Must be nice.*
After being told they would debut, they had been floating on air for a while, ecstatic that their dream was coming true.
Until their current manager was assigned to them.
At first, just having a manager made them feel like real celebrities.
The problem was that the manager was not a normal person.
He would get angry at the drop of a hat, shove their heads or shoulders, and often feign acts of violence.
“Dammit! Stop pissing me off. How many times do I have to tell you not to act like this?”
Eventually, unable to bear it any longer, Zero to the Boy filed a complaint with the company.
But nothing changed.
The company simply urged them to endure it, saying they wouldn't survive in the entertainment industry if they couldn't handle something like this.
Their reasoning was that no direct physical violence was involved.
Zero to the Boy thought quietly to themselves.
Seo Yoon-seul wasn't kicked out of the company; he had found his own path to survive.
―UH WOO
Harmonies began to stack one by one over Seo Yoon-seul's voice.
And then, silence.
The lights, the singing, the instrumental—everything went out.
After about five seconds, the stage lights came back on, revealing Creatin.
RE-V was nowhere to be seen on stage.
Unlike RE-V, Creatin was dressed in black, suit-like outfits.
―A burst of light
The darkness that embraces me
And yet, I am not afraid
They went straight into the chorus.
―Through the vast universe
A floating existence
In the warm light called love
Creatin continued the performance with stability.
Appearing right after RE-V, any thought that they would have their spotlight stolen was rendered meaningless.
“Well, JR only picks truly skilled people.”
“I heard their training is incredibly intense, too. It'd be weirder if their skills didn't improve.”
The solid skills of their artists played a huge part in the company's rise from a small agency to its current position.
That's why they would never debut anyone who wasn't skilled enough.
Not idols who grow, but idols with skill.
That was the kind of idol JR promoted.
―In to the universe
When the sunrise
The lights dimmed slightly.
It wasn't so dark that Creatin's faces were completely hidden, but you couldn't tell their expressions unless you looked closely.
Creatin threw off their black jackets.
At the same time, dancers appeared.
The dancers surrounded Creatin and began to move busily.
―That's how I rise
The dancers did a wave and parted to the left and right.
Revealing Creatin, who had been standing in the center.
―I will shine through that darkness
Creatin, with about three buttons of their shirts undone, swept a hand across their necks.
And their necks shimmered with silver.
While the dancers had been obscuring them, they had applied silver glitter to their palms.
―I want to(WANT WANT)
As Creatin covered their eyes with their palms and performed an isolation using their knees, the shimmer became even more intense.
―A burst of light
The darkness that embraces me
And yet, I am not afraid
“Wow.”
“That's amazing.”
“The stage direction is so good, isn't it?”
Everyone watching Creatin's performance let out exclamations of awe.
The direction of applying glitter to their necks to match the lyrics about shining through the darkness was deeply imprinted in their minds.
―Through the vast universe
A floating existence
In the warm light called love
They moved in sync with the dancers through the chorus choreography.
The dancers had glow-in-the-dark bracelets on their left wrists.
Thanks to that, even with the dim lighting, the stage didn't feel empty or too dark.
“Where on earth do they get ideas like that? It's all so new.”
“Let's work harder.”
Creatin's performance became a good stimulus for the other teams.
A unique stage composition and use of a guest.
The PD watched the stage with a satisfied expression, arms crossed.
“I thought, 'This is it,' when I saw the rehearsal, but the actual performance is even better.”
“I agree.”
“Ha. I really have to thank Yoon-seul. It wasn't enough that he created all sorts of buzz during RED CUBE and delivered an amazing performance, but now the group he recommended is a hit too. I'm so happy these days.”
This was exactly the kind of stage the PD wanted.
That scene where they applied glitter to their necks would surely circulate on social media as a GIF once the performance was released.
His intuition, honed from directing survival programs, was telling him so.
“You need at least one performance like this per episode for a show to succeed.”
―That’s why I can stand here
I can
Creatin's performance came to an end with a bounce on the final beat.