Chapter 42
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Keyword Music Pre-Meeting
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I stared blankly at the quest window.
[Sub Quest]
- Will you accept ‘Enter the Top 50 on the Music Chart!’?
- YES/NO
‘The quests haven’t been coming lately.’
I’d thought it was about time for one to pop up, but I never imagined it would appear right after finishing our self-produced content schedule.
Gazing at the shabby system window like a beggar while riding in the moving van, I fell deep into thought.
Enter the top 50 on the music chart.
‘Is that even easy?’
These days, with the revamped charts after the update, male idols weren’t making much headway.
For a rookie group that hadn’t debuted long ago to crack the top 50 wasn’t something that happened just because you wanted it to.
‘Even our debut song, which had so much buzz, barely scraped the 90s before dropping off.’
I knew it too.
To do well on the music charts, we needed to work even harder.
‘Let’s see what happens.’
I pressed the accept button.
[Sub Quest]
- Get Manwol’s Boys’ song into the top 50 on the music chart.
- Reward: ???
‘It doesn’t specify which song has to hit the top 50?’
As long as any song from Manwol’s Boys enters the top 50 within that scope, the quest succeeds, it seems.
‘A reverse run...’
I quickly shook my head.
Our debut song didn’t seem likely to reverse climb right now, so we’d have no choice but to pick a solid title track from the next album and push it onto the charts.
‘No matter what, let’s get the next title track into the top 50.’
With that resolve, I closed my eyes.
* * *
A few days later.
The members gathered in the manager’s office had eyes wide as saucers.
“Keyword Music?”
It was because we’d received an offer from a pretty well-known program.
‘I thought it was just some light variety show invite.’
I could hardly believe that Keyword Music had scouted us.
“Wow, really? That Keyword Music we know reached out to us?”
The manager nodded with a smile.
“Yeah, that’s right!”
Keyword Music.
A famous music competition program that anyone in the know would recognize.
The production team sets a keyword, and singers compete by putting on stages based on it.
For example, if the keyword is ‘butterfly,’ the singers have to create a stage with a song or choreography related to butterflies.
They select an existing song from another artist, rearrange it, and perform—any song fitting the keyword is fair game.
The trick is how well they pull it off. I’d seen cases where they brought a stage that didn’t fit the keyword and got roasted by the public.
It was one of the programs I’d watched religiously back in my trainee days...
“Anyway, the meeting date’s been set?”
Everyone’s faces were beaming with uncontainable joy. I was thrilled too, having gotten an offer from a show I’d been a fan of forever.
“This’ll be your first program meeting, right? Rumors spread fast in broadcasting. Be as polite as possible. Got it?”
“Yes.”
The members answered loudly.
As long as we didn’t cause a scene at the meeting, it’d be fine. Eun Hae-sol had been quiet lately, so no issues there.
Then Cha Jae-hyun hesitated before asking.
“Um, but we’re still rookies. It’s usually big names who appear. Any reason they scouted us?”
I was curious about that too.
Keyword Music was famous for only inviting singers with proven skills.
Just looking at the lineup each episode, they were all heavyweights with insane careers.
‘Will we be okay?’
I was excited and happy, sure, but worry crept in. If we bombed the stage, the vultures would pounce.
As if reading our minds, the manager said in an exaggerated tone.
“Don’t worry. They saw your stages and liked them enough to offer. Be proud. How many rookies get Keyword Music invites?”
“Right.”
The manager kept going.
“If we didn’t trust you, we wouldn’t let you go. We’re sending you because we believe in your skills. You get what I mean?”
Cha Jae-hyun nodded with a faint smile, though he didn’t seem fully reassured.
‘With his personality, he’s gonna drill us like crazy in practice for a while.’
I glanced at the other members’ faces.
Baek Si-woo seemed chill, just his usual style—no real worry.
Song Yu-bin was radiating determination to tackle the program head-on, no need to look closely.
Eun Hae-sol...
‘No clue. I can never read that guy.’
Then Baek Si-woo asked.
“Who else is appearing, by any chance?”
A question about the performers.
‘I’d been itching to ask the same thing.’
The singers competing each episode varied, and depending on who they were, nailing a good score could be easier or harder.
If someone else did a similar concept but blew us out of the water, that’d be heartbreaking.
But the manager didn’t seem to know yet either.
“They’ll let us know once it’s finalized.”
“We don’t know the keyword yet either?”
“Nope. Soon, though.”
We’d need some luck with the keyword too.
I’d seen episodes where weird keywords screwed over some performers.
Some singers powered through with skill, but others forced it, failed to nail the concept, and just got mocked.
I wouldn’t say I had zero fear about appearing on Keyword Music.
‘But you can’t make sausage if you’re scared of maggots.’
Sub quest.
Top 50 on the charts.
To clear it fast, we needed to become a more mainstream group.
Right now, we were only big in idol communities. Our mass appeal was seriously lacking.
So we had to grit our teeth and push.
Keyword Music could be a huge boost or a disaster.
In this uncertain future, my job was to give my all to what’s in front of me.
“Let’s do this.”
“Yeah! Manwol’s Boys fighting!”
We left the manager’s office like that.
The members, standing stunned in front of the door, started walking one by one.
“...Honestly, it doesn’t feel real.”
“Yeah. Keyword Music, of all things.”
No one had seen it coming.
Us, on the Keyword Music everyone just talked about? Still couldn’t believe it.
“What’ll the keyword be?”
“Hope it’s something tied to a concept we can nail.”
Baek Si-woo chimed in confidently.
“Psh, we can pull off anything. Right?”
Cha Jae-hyun nodded.
“Yeah. We’ve gotta handle any concept smoothly.”
No matter the keyword, we had to deliver the best stage possible.
Opportunities like this didn’t come easy, so we needed to make our mark on the public somehow.
Hit songs come from the people’s choice, after all.
Then Baek Si-woo said.
“Everyone’s thinking first place, right?”
Protests erupted from all sides.
“Hyung, that’s a bit...”
“How could we take first? Just hearing ‘not bad for rookies’ would be enough.”
At their reactions, Baek Si-woo pouted and muttered.
“Dream big, at least.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hey. Bigger dreams mean bigger crashes. Dream just big enough to handle—no damage that way.”
“Really?”
He looked convinced, sucking his pout back in.
Then Song Yu-bin nudged my arm.
“Hyung, what place you think we’ll get?”
“How should I know.”
“You’ve got good instincts. Like that time Jae-hyun hyung got locked in the broadcast station bathroom—you figured it out quick...”
Oh, right.
The bathroom lock-in incident.
The nightmare I’d barely forgotten came rushing back.
Last time, X tried to sabotage our first music show stage. Would they show up for Keyword Music too?
I shook my head hard.
‘No. Don’t jinx it.’
Forcing a smile, I walked forward with the members.
* * *
Time flew, and the Keyword Music pre-meeting day arrived.
“Let’s go.”
We entered the broadcasting station building and headed to the designated meeting room.
First program meeting—nerves were high. Glancing at the members, they looked tense like me.
Baek Si-woo muttered.
“My heart’s pounding.”
Not just any show, Keyword Music. Fair enough.
Step by step—
Before I knew it, we were at the meeting room.
“In as soon as we enter, bow and greet.”
After a few fake coughs, I opened the door.
“Hello.”
We greeted the PD, writers, and others in turn, then sat.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Shin Ho-jeong, the PD.”
I knew the name.
Famous for music programs that focus purely on musicality—no mid-stage interviews or reactions to ruin the flow, just like other music shows.
The PD slowly scanned our faces and asked.
“You’ve all watched Keyword Music at least once, right?”
“Yes.”
Amid the responses, I gauged the vibe and added.
“I’m a fan.”
“Oh? Jeong Eun-ho’s a fan?”
“I’ve watched since trainee days. Always dreamed of appearing someday.”
It might sound like generic newbie schmoozing, but it was genuine.
‘Actually, my dream was to win first place, not just appear—but better keep that quiet.’
I spotted cameras in the meeting room.
‘No telling how they’ll use this on air.’
Catching my glance, the PD tapped the table.
“What? Camera making you nervous?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t mind the camera—answer comfortably.”
As if. But I flashed the brightest smile possible.
“Then let’s try another question. Group-related... Do you think Manwol’s Boys is a vocal group? Or a performance group?”
The leader, Cha Jae-hyun, should answer.
I glanced at him—he looked deep in thought.
‘Tough question.’
Vocal or performance.
Manwol’s Boys’ identity had been debated since debut.
Some said we excelled at both.
Others argued vocals led, or performance had more impact.
In short, we were evenly matched, hard to focus on one.
Saying “we’re strong in both” ourselves?
‘Could come off as cocky rookies. Expectations would skyrocket too.’
We had to pick one...
Tricky question on group identity.
I peeked at Cha Jae-hyun.
‘Still prepping his answer?’
Taking time showed caution, but too long could seem dull.
Then he exhaled shortly and spoke.
“We’ve put more into performance lately, so for now, I’d say performance group.”
He quickly added.
“We’ll refine our vocals to become a group that does both well.”
Clean answer.
Didn’t lock in our identity, left room for growth, showed humility.
But right after, another question from the PD.
“Any stages you guys want to try?”
“Each member has their own ideas, probably. We’ll compile them and deliver a great stage for Keyword Music.”
The PD’s pen tapping the table stopped.
“Honestly, hard to picture what kind of stage Manwol’s Boys will bring.”
Then the PD continued.
“You’re wondering what the keyword is, right?”
Now we were getting to the point.
All eyes locked on the PD.
Our fate hinged on the keyword.
The PD’s mouth slowly opened.
“This keyword is...”