Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Rookie Idol Woes (3)
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After wrapping up the stage to thunderous applause, we headed back to the backstage area.
Our manager hyung greeted us with a pat on the shoulders.
"You guys did great on your first stage. You nailed it. Same with the pre-recording earlier—you're all naturals in the real deal. Better than in practice, even."
"Thanks, hyung."
"Alright, hang out for a bit, then we'll do the closing greetings and head straight back to the dorm. Good work, everyone. Take a breather."
As we moved from backstage to the waiting area, I tapped the notification window floating in front of me.
Time to claim the sub-quest rewards.
With a click, a cheerful sound effect rang out, and the promised rewards poured in one after another.
[You've gained experience points.]
[SPECIAL ITEM, 'Voice Up! Raw Egg' x3 acquired. Check your inventory.]
[Skill Random Draw Ticket x1 acquired. Check your inventory.]
Voice Up! Raw Egg. A new item with a ridiculous name.
'Who the hell named this?'
You, system? It's trash. Voice Up Raw Egg? What even is that?
The moment I inwardly roasted the system, it fired back a notification like it had something to prove.
[The naming rights for SPECIAL ITEMS have not been granted to the SYSTEM.]
It was like it was indignantly denying responsibility for someone else's screw-up.
What? Then who did?
My offhand question got a cryptic reply from the system.
[The answer to this question has been automatically BLINDed.]
Automatically blinded? Why? Guess I shouldn't know.
And the system not having naming rights... that was weird.
I'd always thought of it as some all-powerful entity, but apparently not.
Which meant there was someone—or something—out there granting permissions... or not.
'What the fuck is going on?'
My head started spinning.
But there wasn't much I could do about it right now anyway.
'Think about it later.'
No point digging deeper for now.
I shoved the doubts aside and checked the new notifications instead.
No need to complicate things.
[LEVEL UP! 'Ha Jae's level has risen to 6.]
[Fifth LEVEL UP reward: +10 additional stat points acquired.]
[LEVEL rank upgraded from 'Sprout' to 'Leaf'.]
[LEVEL rank upgrade reward available. Click!]
Must've been a hefty chunk of experience from that quest.
My level, which had been stuck, jumped right up.
Level rank? Didn't know that was a thing.
Before claiming the rewards, I pulled up my status window.
[Name: Ha Jae (Seo Il-hyun)
Level: 6 (Leaf) EXP: 08.50%
Titles: Chick Negotiator +2 others
Trait: Second Life
Fame: D+
Stamina: 33/100
Passion: 42/100
Strength: C
Agility: D+
Intelligence: C
Luck: D+
Looks: B
Charm: C
Artistry: C
Distributable Stat Points: 11]
Ah, that tiny thing next to the level must've been the rank.
Sprout before, yeah.
What is this, Waver Knowledge Bank? Sprout to Leaf—what's next, flower?
Grumbling internally, I clicked the reward button.
A familiar yellow window popped up, crowned with its fancy icon.
[New! Title Acquired!
『Wind on the Tender Leaf』
A fair breeze begins to stir for you, like a freshly sprouted leaf.
Title Reward: Stamina and Passion recovery speed +10%]
Whoa. Jackpot.
Best title effect yet.
Stamina had been my biggest bottleneck, and a 10% faster recovery would help big time.
Heh... I grinned and opened my inventory.
The new items and skill draw ticket sparkled away.
'Dig into a skill draw first?'
I clicked the golden ticket icon—it looked straight out of that chocolate factory movie.
Poof! A golden roulette wheel spun to life on its own.
Second time doing this, and it's not even surprising anymore.
The wheel slowed to a stop in a small slot.
[Congratulations! You've acquired Active Skill 'Candy for My Throat'!]
...Candy for My Throat?
[Candy for My Throat
: A voice as sweet as candy! On activation, vocal skill effects +50% for 30 seconds (1 use per day)]
Ooh. Solid.
Name's trash, but the performance rocks.
Like Sparkle Sparkle, but boosts vocals.
Perfect for live-heavy stages... like concerts.
'And what's this Voice Up! Raw Egg?'
[Voice Up! Raw Egg
: Loosens up the vocal cords. Vocal skill effects +50% for 1 hour. After 1 hour, inflicts status ailment 'Hoarseness'.]
Same deal as the skill—50% vocal boost.
Downside with the backlash, but paired together? Explosive vocals incoming.
'And items work on other members too.'
Hit the right timing, and it's a massive win for the whole group.
Satisfied with today's haul, I closed all the windows with a smile.
We chilled with the members for a bit, then headed out for the closing greetings.
"Su-rim hyung, where do we stand?"
"Somewhere in the corner."
With every idol and singer from the show crammed onstage, space was tight.
The prime center-front spots went to the vets, so we stuck to the edge, gazing inward.
The MCs held court in the middle, mics labeled with their names as they wrapped up.
Soon, they announced this week's #1 contenders.
Oceans, Hotspot, and solo artist Yoo Yeon-jae.
"And now, for M-League Week 1 of June, the grand #1 is..."
"Combining album sales, live viewer votes, and streaming scores, the winner is...!"
"Oceans' Lot of Things! Congratulations!"
No surprise—Oceans took it.
As their leader stepped forward for the acceptance speech, I thought:
'Someday, will I stand there too?'
Past EverPlanet had been allergic to trophies. Probably 'cause same-year S-T dominated.
'Gotta grind.'
But this time would be different. It had to be.
Or I'd never survive to clear that main quest.
With the debut schedule flawless, we piled into the van back to the dorm.
Everyone was beat from the long day, but buzzing with energy anyway.
Probably the thrill of finishing the debut stage.
"We're really debuted now, right? Still doesn't feel real."
"Same. I feel like a trainee still. Like I'll wake up tomorrow and head to practice."
"Me too."
"Even you, Jae-oh hyung?"
Lee Jae-oh, who'd been leaning back with eyes closed, spoke up, drawing all eyes.
"Honestly, I still can't believe I'm an idol. ...You guys know."
"...Yeah. You especially."
I nodded along quietly.
Out of all of us, Jae-oh had lived furthest from idol life.
Then Kim Kwang-myeong scratched his head furiously and chimed in.
"Same here. I joined thinking I'd be a rapper."
"Kim Kwang-myeong employment scam theory."
"Ugh... CEO Oh totally duped me."
"Just bail to showbiz now."
"Nah. I'd just be k-hip-hop fodder. Might as well stick it out with EverPlanet—bury my bones here."
You're gonna end up on that show anyway, Kwang-myeong.
"Good thinking, Kwang-myeong."
Teddy shot him double thumbs-up.
Park Su-rim clapped, leader-mode activated with encouragement.
"Anyway, everyone killed it today. Solid debut stage—live was good, no choreo flubs. Fans loved it. Especially Teddy—you were flying out there. Stumbled in rehearsal, but live? Thought you were doing contemporary dance or something."
"Teddy hyung's a closet live beast again."
"Heh. Thanks to Ha Jae."
Not me—my Performance Amplifier.
Bit my tongue on that.
Then Han Tae-hee, next to me, nudged my side with his elbow.
"Oh, Ha Jae. Had some slick talk backstage, huh?"
"Kinda..."
"Hook me up later too?"
"You don't get nervous, hyung."
"What? I nearly puked my heart out."
Funny. Guy seemed second-least fazed after Go Eun-young.
I chuckled and nodded. Then said:
"Let's keep grinding like today."
"Okay."
"EverPlanet fighting!"
"Fighting!"
Boosted by Teddy and Go Eun-young's roars, we vowed to push on.
And so EverPlanet's first day faded.
* * *
Post-debut schedule was more of the same.
Music shows, music shows, music shows.
Unavoidable for no-name rookies like us.
Expecting top-tier idol timetables, down to the minute? Dream on.
Music Road, Music Center, Music Around... we rotated through the stations, hitting stages.
Not one offered pre-recording slots except M-League.
Rookies rarely get them anyway—too much hassle.
M-League was the exception, probably a favor.
No way they'd waste it on nobodies who don't boost ratings.
'Least we caught some sleep.'
Unlike dawn pre-records, live shoots only meant looser timings.
But one place threw us for a loop.
"Su-rim hyung, why line up in the hallway to bow out?"
"It's the tradition here."
"Ooh, I know that word. Tradition. Like hanbok."
"Nice, you remembered."
"Yep. Reviewed it."
Usually, we'd bow on-site post-recording and bounce.
Not here.
"PD heading out!"
All performers lined up two rows in the exit hall, bowing to passing PDs and staff.
Felt off, but no choice—EverPlanet was powerless rookies.
Bowing, I thought:
'Boomer culture on steroids.'
Heard entertainment world's strict, but a station enforcing this? Wild.
Did it anyway—mood was weird, though.
But grinding music shows paid off.
Stage clips hit YouTube and streaming sites, slowly building our name.
SNS followers doubled-plus.
'M charts still dark, though.'
No diehard fans for streaming yet. Unavoidable.
Self-promo aside, our song slaps... Shame. O Woong-jae picked bangers.
Then the system blue-screened me.
[Massive Narcissism! Charm +1]
...Yay or nay?
I closed it, mood subtly soured.
A week later, mid-music show run.
"Wednesday, 7 PM, ABC Mall. Everyone got it?"
EverPlanet's first fansign was nearly here.