The Final Ranking Announcement
After the vacation ended, the trainees who had gathered again at the filming set began to enter one by one.
With the final approaching, only the third ranking announcement remained. The trainees who would advance to the final were determined by this result.
We've already done this for the third time. At this point, some trainees seemed to have moved beyond desperation to mere resignation.
"Let's begin the Dream Stage Season 2, 3rd ranking announcement."
Soon, the special MC ascended the stage and greeted everyone.
I stared blankly at the stage where multiple branches of lighting were pouring down. Then, my eyes met those of Lee Hae-won beside me.
"Are you okay?"
He asked with his lips. I nodded my head vigorously and looked straight ahead.
Actually, even I could see that my current state wasn't good. There was the bet with the system, and that incident on the rooftop that day had been quite shocking.
But I had to endure it. Now, there wasn't much time left.
'If I become the final 1st place, I said I would give anything to the system.'
That meant that even if Won Ji-an didn't debut and something went wrong, I could obtain the qualification and demand something from the system.
So, if I become 1st this time, at least there wouldn't be a complete mental breakdown. Of course, even if I protect the 1st place, my mental state wouldn't be completely normal....
"Then, let's announce the rankings."
Today's MC's voice sounded unusually cold.
There really wasn't much time left. Time was cruelly flowing, and within it, who would survive was decided.
* * *
In the middle of the ranking announcement set, trainees were called by name one by one and headed to their ranking seats.
The many chairs that were there at first had now dwindled, and only a few remained.
The number of trainees being called wasn't many yet, so the Top 9 announcement was coming soon.
"10th place trainee is...."
He lowered his head silently.
He was trying to maintain a nonchalant expression, but he was anxious.
'Won Ji-an. Did his rank rise?'
Last time, Won Ji-an's name wasn't called in the Top 9.
So, this time, I hoped that Won Ji-an would enter the Top 9 again.
With that fervent wish in mind.
"10th place is, trainee Won Ji-an."
Won Ji-an's name was called.
'Oh...'
The breath I had been holding burst out all at once.
'It's exactly the same as last time.'
The same rank as last time.
The most cruel rank, just one step below the Top 9.
'Rank unchanged?'
The reaction to Won Ji-an's 1st place in the last mission wasn't bad. He had somehow changed the stage that was supposed to be cursed and received quite good reviews.
But despite those reviews, the rank had no effect.
'Now that we're in the latter half of the survival, no matter how well we perform on stage, the ranks are solidifying and it's hard to change them.'
I knew this fact intellectually, but I had hoped. But the result was cruel, as if mocking me.
The moment I heard that Won Ji-an was 10th, I thought his mental state would break.
Last time, the shock had come all at once; now, as time passed, the damage felt increasingly greater.
"Haa..."
No matter how I thought, I couldn't accept that Won Ji-an was 10th.
'If there was just one more seat, it would be good.'
There were many who wanted to debut, but there were only nine seats.
Ultimately, if Won Ji-an entered the Top 9, someone currently in the seat would have to be pushed out again.
'But is there anyone more desperate than Won Ji-an right now.'
Watching Won Ji-an give his thoughts on stage, my mouth was drying up.
I felt my insides burning up as I watched, but what about Won Ji-an's feelings? I couldn't compare myself to him at all.
If this continued, he would die. He would feel like a death row inmate facing a death sentence.
"Um, first, I want to express my gratitude to all the voters."
Nevertheless, Won Ji-an smiled.
Thinking back, he had always done that. Even in the worst situations, in front of the cameras where fans were watching, he tried to show only a good appearance.
At that moment, our eyes met.
"......"
"......"
Through all the time, both of us had become wrecks long ago. Who knew better than anyone else what kind of feelings we had endured in this hellish days.
Looking at each other as wrecks, just staring into each other's eyes seemed to convey some feeling.
'You must have suffered a lot too.'
Won Ji-an held the microphone and continued his thoughts one word at a time.
"It's so happy and grateful to be able to be with all of you until the final, and I'll work hard until the very end."
Won Ji-an didn't cry until the end. He just conveyed his gratitude that he could be together until the very end.
Then, the Top 9 was announced one by one, and the trainees called by name went to their seats.
The ranking announcement was nearing its end, and what remained was only the announcement of the 1st place candidates.
"Yes, now we're left with only the much-anticipated 1st place announcement."
And my and Han I-jae's faces appeared on the screen in split screen.
I had expected Han I-jae to be a candidate. He had been rising sharply since the middle of the survival.
"Shall we go up?"
Han I-jae stood up and looked at me as if to say let's go together.
After heading to the stage together, we ascended the stage. Standing on the stage looking at the same place felt oddly strange.
'Originally, it was the seat of Lee Hae-won and Han I-jae.'
Originally, Do Won-woo shouldn't have reached the final and should have been eliminated.
By changing that fate, he had protected the position of 1st place candidate until now.
'Can I really become the final 1st?'
Just before the announcement, the title of 1st place remained fixed above my head.
"Are you nervous?"
Han I-jae asked subtly. I nodded silently in reply.
My stomach started to churn. Because the rank was really important to me now.
"Then, let's announce the 1st place."
I could see the trainees watching us from the opposite stage.
Familiar faces appeared. But would those people know what kind of feelings I was having right now, what thoughts I was thinking?
"1st place is...!"
I clenched my fists and waited for the result. At that moment, the voice came through the microphone.
"Congratulations, trainee Han I-jae!"
The 1st place changed.
'Oh.'
The moment I raised my head, I saw Han I-jae with a slightly surprised expression.
"Congratulations again, trainee Han I-jae. Trainee Do Won-woo, who protected the 1st place seat in the 1st and 2nd ranking announcements, has fallen one step below, and trainee Han I-jae takes the honorable 1st place seat."
I had to congratulate him. So, I barely managed to control my expression.
But I felt like I was going crazy.
'If this happens...'
I would be farther from the final 1st.
Since I didn't know anyway, but feeling more distant after not getting 1st this time was inevitable.
'If I don't get 1st at the end...'
Even if something went wrong, there would be no chance to save Won Ji-an.
Suddenly, my vision blurred. My legs were wobbling as if I would fall at any moment. But I clenched my fists.
'Can't.'
I swallowed the silent scream.
'Since I fell from 1st place from the beginning, this will definitely become big news.'
And someone would analyze my expression at the nano level and upload it.
Knowing that, even though I felt like dying, I smiled as if everything was fine.
"Well, then, shall we hear trainee Do Won-woo's 2nd place thoughts."
The turn came to me after Han I-jae's first 1st place thoughts ended.
"...Yes, first."
I had to choose.
The final result would depend on what stance I took here.
I was in a situation where I had to get 1st somehow. So, I had no choice but to make a desperate move. Even if it was an ugly choice.
"Everyone, I'm fine."
I couldn't let my expression harden too much, and I couldn't let myself cry too much.
I wasn't a character who acted well, but I had to raise my acting skills from the depths I had accumulated while living to the maximum.
"Ah... I can't cry."
There was no better stimulant than tears.
"I don't know why I'm crying. Soon, the last will come, and I'll be saying goodbye to the seniors and friends I've been with, so it's sad, and the efforts you've made for me during this time come to mind..."
I wasn't crying because my rank dropped, but in the end, evoking sympathy was a good strategy in this survival.
Of course, it was a strategy I would never normally do, but now there was no other choice. I had to mobilize all the cards I could pull out, even if they were ugly.
"Please keep watching until the end, everyone."
With that, I bowed with a lower waist than usual.
At the very end, when I closed my eyes, a single tear fell. It was a tear I deliberately made fall at the last moment.
'...Ugly.'
I had to do even this acting, but it didn't matter that it was ugly.
Somehow, I had to stimulate and awaken the fans to squeeze out the votes. That way, I could get the chance to save Won Ji-an.
* * *
"Are you okay?"
On the way out of the set, Han I-jae said to me.
Along the corridor, Kwon Hak-jin also saw me and asked if I was okay.
Then, Lee Hae-won and Na Jae-hyun I met next also showed the same reaction.
"Won-woo. Are you sick?"
It looked pretty bad. Did I look that bad in others' eyes too?
"Seriously?"
"No, your face is a bit pale."
"What about my face."
As I said that, I looked in the mirror.
"Haa..."
Even I could see that my face was pale. Moreover, my whole body was soaked in sweat.
'With this appearance, every time I passed by, they asked if I was okay.'
After wiping the sweat from my forehead, I looked around for someone.
'Won Ji-an.'
After the incident on the rooftop last time, I was also worried about Won Ji-an's mental state.
He had only recently wanted to live again and was causing a ruckus saying someone would die in front of him, but he almost fell.
On top of that, this time he received the same 10th place rank as the 2nd ranking announcement.
'There's no way he's okay. By the way, where is he now, what is he doing.'
Just as I was looking for Won Ji-an. At the end of the corridor, Won Ji-an was standing there.
'...What is he doing over there.'
Won Ji-an was standing motionless in place with the wall in front of him.
"Won Ji-an."
With a worried heart, I approached.
"What are you doing over there."
Won Ji-an, who had been quietly standing, turned around. His expression was bright beyond belief.
"?"
A question mark appeared in my head for a moment.
"Won-woo. You came because you were worried about me? You don't have to worry. I'm really fine!"
"...What?"
Won Ji-an showed a bright smile with eyes sparkling unnaturally.
Can a person be this bright? I stared blankly in disbelief, then the title floating above Won Ji-an's head caught my eye.
'Human Vitamin?'
Is there such a title?
Wait. Human Vitamin is Lee Hae-won, right?
"Me! I'm so happy. Even though I'm 10th, 10th is still a high rank. So, I have to be grateful for every moment. I'm so grateful to be living in this kind of blessed world."
Wait, that's a bit over the top.
"Hey, you..."
No words came out.
It seemed like there was a buff that gave positive effects to the title....
"I don't have to force it like that."
"Eh?"
"You have to be pitiful. At least at the end."
Then, Won Ji-an's sparkling eyes gradually darkened.
"Not really?"
"It's just because you don't seem like you."
"What is being like me."
"Even if I say such cliché lines..."
After exchanging such trivial conversations, I patted Won Ji-an's shoulder.
"I wanted to help you somehow, sorry."
"No, Do Won-woo."
Won Ji-an shook his head and said.
"I know you did your best. So, since everything will end soon, I hope you spent the last bit without being gloomy, smiling."
Is that how it was.
Since I didn't know what would happen in the future, I wanted to spend the last time brightly, so I made such a title?
I bit my lips tightly and forced a smile.
"Yeah."
As Won Ji-an said, since it was the last time, I decided to smile.
* * *
After the ranking announcement ended, the trainees changed into training clothes and gathered again at the set. It was to listen to the explanation of the final mission.
Everything proceeded in a hurry. The ranking announcement, saying goodbye to the eliminated trainees, and the mission explanation.
As always, but today it was a bit difficult. Nevertheless, I was surprised that my mind could endure this situation.
"The last final mission is..."
The recording started again, and the MC began to explain the final mission.