Chapter 97
Chapter 97
HAZERD's debut album [HAZERD MAP] specifications were released just hours before Baek Gyeonwoo's solo teaser dropped.
First off... the limited-edition mini retro game console included in the album got rave reviews, even from non-fans.
The design is total nostalgia ㅠㅠ but isn't it too grown-up... like who's the target?
└Retro is trending across all age groups right now so it's fine
―They said a standalone game will be released later
―Wait, isn't this gonna be scalped to hell later?
―It says all the B-sides have 8-bit arrangement versions included...?
Meanwhile, the official album released in three versions — HAZE, RD, and MAP — drew envy from other fandoms, thanks to its high-quality components and reasonable price.
―18 photocards... whew, all the members look good so I want to collect them all, but how many do I have to buy...
└Hold on, they're not random?
―Huh, 1 out of where is this going
―But honestly the real ones are the unreleased photocards, not the album photocards lololol
―Yeah, getting rid of random album photocards is the right move... ㅠ those barely go for over 20,000 won on resale, how much does that even affect sales ㅠ
And another hot topic was... the scale of the debut showcase.
[Seo Cha-gyeom's group 'HAZERD' showcase info]
Capacity: 2,160 people
Comments
―Whoa they're going huge, for a rookie even a thousand is a lot
―Where's this confidence coming from lol Sorasum's got guts lol
―Wait aren't they going way too big? AWER's was 1,500
―Well, they have Chateebaek so they'll probably fill the seats, but still, this is beyond expectations lol
Not just for mid-tier agencies — a 2,000-seat venue is a pretty massive challenge for any newly-debuting rookie.
Fans who had been waiting faithfully for over six months since the <MAKE100%> days were delighted at the prospect of a low application cut-off, but at the same time, they couldn't hide their anxiety about facing an empty audience.
―They'll fill 2,000, right...? Please... our idols can't get discouraged
└Buzz is great right now, you don't think they can even fill that? Aren't you worrying too much?
└Most of that buzz is just from bandwagoners ㅠㅠㅠ who knows if those people will actually buy albums and show up offline...
―Ugh, scalpers stay the hell away, don't come, fuck
―Still, it's way better than artificially slashing capacity to inflate the cut-off
January was typically what people called the "off-season," a time when major idol comebacks slowed down due to year-end award shows and music festivals.
However, precisely because most major idols were resting, the fandom market took on a strange kind of energy...
Since fans had less to watch, they started turning their eyes to new content, often window-shopping comparatively more niche groups.
This was especially true in times like these, when fans who exclusively stanned a single group were becoming rare.
So the emergence of "Seo Cha-gyeom's group" in this period was more than enough to gather their attention all at once.
―2,000 seats, I'd only need to buy like 5 albums to be safe
└Nah, even 3 would be enough
―Hmm, honestly I'm not super interested, but I feel like later I'll regret not going at this price. Should I just go?
―@xxxxxx hey hey, wanna go to HAZERD's showcase with me? lol I'll enter the lottery for you
―Ah my schedule's kinda iffy... I'll apply first and if I'm busy that day I'll just no-show
The fans who had been waiting for a long time were unhappy with these bandwagoners' casual attitude, but there was nothing they could do. If anything, they had to hope that even that would help fill the seats.
Yet from the moment the members' individual teasers started dropping one by one... reactions inside and outside the fandom began to shift, little by little.
―Ah should I buy one more set??? Suddenly I'm getting super anxious
―Hmm honestly I wasn't super interested, but after seeing all the teasers my mind's changed. I'm off to enter the showcase lottery
―Look, all those bandwagon-clown accounts disappeared
―How many sets did you all buy?? I bought 2... ㅠ
└Don't talk about the cut-off...
And so came the fateful day of the showcase winner announcement.
―.....Why didn't I get a confirmation text?
People's joy and sorrow were split in two.
* * *
―I wanna die
―It's our debut showcase and this... I can't go to this?
―Ah I should've bought just one more album ㅠㅠㅠㅠ seeing the cut-off talk, it looks like my number fell right between the random cut ㅠㅠ ㅠㅠ
―Next time it'll only go higher, I should've closed my eyes and overbought...
'......Hm.'
The showcase capacity was something we had requested from the company.
Because we jumped straight into debut prep right after <MAKE100%>, we hadn't even done a fan meeting, so I thought it was right to make our first offline event as big as possible.
Even if empty seats popped up and public opinion started writing off our debut as a failure... I just wanted every fan who could come to be able to come.
'Maybe my ambition was too small.'
The fact that this many people were paying attention meant it was a good sign, right?
I tried to stay positive and continued monitoring the reactions.
―It's great there's no random photocard, but do they not care about sales?
―Seems like there's no landmine member here, so they probably didn't even need to remove the random
―Even if you can buy all the photocards secondhand, there are tons of people who insist on pulling with their own hands, so it does affect sales to some degree
'Sales... of course they matter.'
There was no way I didn't know that.
Even so, the reason we skipped the "random" booster was partly for the fans... but more precisely, for a different reason.
The fandom that had formed so far was highly likely to be people who came in through <MAKE100%>.
Their memories of fiercely competing for their own ultimate bias were probably still fresh.
But we were no longer competitors — we were one team now. So from the very start, I wanted to exclude any "ranking" element that made people size up and compare the members' popularity.
Back when we first returned to the company and decided to ban gifts, it had been a similar line of thinking.
Of course, no matter how much a fan's heart wants to give everything, just gobbling it all up without a second thought.......
Personally, it felt a bit... shameless to me.......
―But why a Wednesday comeback? Don't they usually do Monday?
The date was also our suggestion.
Most idols comeback on Monday for an advantage in the weekly digital chart tracking.
But music show schedules usually kick off on Thursday, so from the fans' perspective, Tuesday and Wednesday after the debut showcase were essentially a dead zone.
We had already made them wait more than enough until debut, and it felt too sorry to make them wait even those mere two days.
'What reactions should I look up next.'
I hesitated for a moment, then typed the group name into the search bar.
That was when it happened.
Plop.
"......!"
A hand suddenly landed on the top of my head.
Startled, I reflexively looked up to find Baek Gyeonwoo, face expressionless, gazing down at me.
"What's with the surprise."
Baek Gyeonwoo plopped down next to me as he spoke.
"......Why?"
"You've been glued to your phone."
"......."
"So you do feel nervous after all."
That hit a little close to home.
With the debut showcase literally tomorrow, it would be a lie to say I felt perfectly fine.
'Hm.'
When I stood on stage during <MAKE100%>, I felt nothing.
Could just having the label "debut" attached to it really make my emotions this complicated?
But.
'It doesn't feel like nerves, though.'
I mulled it over briefly, then deflected with a question instead of agreeing.
"You're not nervous?"
"Nah."
Baek Gyeonwoo truly seemed utterly unfazed, without the slightest waver.
On the other hand, in the practice room we were in right now... the members were expressing their nerves each in their own unique way.
Kim Yuri, who looked as lively as ever, was the only one going around teasingly encouraging the nervous members.
"Sowol, you're fine! If you faint from nerves, I'll scoop you up, haul you onto my back, and do your part for you!!!"
Jeong Sowol, who had been stretching, answered with a chic face.
"I'm not tensed up at all."
"You are."
"......."
Jeong Sowol smacked her own mouth with her hand.
Then, apparently devastated by her own pathetic display just now, she flopped onto the floor and began wallowing in despair.
Having KO'd Jeong Sowol, Kim Yuri next approached Han Neuti, who was in the corner muttering and memorizing the prepared answers for expected questions at the press conference.
"Hyung! Don't worry! If you have a slip of the tongue, I'll immediately do something cute next to you and totally defuse the atmosphere!"
"......For real?"
Looking at Han Neuti genuinely touched.......
I made a mental note to keep the mic away from Han Neuti as much as possible tomorrow, if I didn't want to witness Kim Yuri's nonsense firsthand.
And then I looked at Kim Sanho, the quietest one of all at that moment.
The guy who fused with the practice room floor every break time was, for some reason today, sitting with his back against the wall. He must be nervous.
'......Kim Yuri and Jeong Sowol at least have prior stage experience, but tomorrow really is Kim Sanho's first stage ever.'
Hm.
I briefly turned on the System window.
[Recruit colleagues and achieve debut. (6/N)]
January 2nd, the day our teasers first dropped.
And the day before that was Kim Sanho's birthday.
We had all agreed in advance to handle well-wishes on our own, just like we did for my birthday a few days earlier. With debut right around the corner, we didn't have the bandwidth to prepare a grand party.
So what gift had I prepared for him back then, you ask.
―......Is this a photo of you, hyung?
―You don't like it?
It was none other than my own ID photo.
Kim Sanho stared at my photo without a word.
―.......
―.......
To be honest... I was kinda... super freaked out at the time.
I've never been the type to make a big deal out of other people's birthdays, just like my own.
Even more honestly, I only remembered Kim Sanho's birthday because Kim Yuri told me on the day itself.
While scrambling to figure out a gift, I happened to find a few spare ID photos I had taken for my <MAKE100%> application and just gave him one.
Don't get me wrong. It's a gift with its own share of memories.
Meaning it was payback — no, repayment — for the photo Kim Sanho had given me before the program's first filming.
Of course, I didn't just hand over that one thing on the spot; I ordered something online that same day and properly delivered it a few days later. A burgundy coat.
Anyway, after a long silence, Kim Sanho finally opened his mouth.
―Hyung, where did you put my photo?
―Ah, that.......
I'd completely forgotten about it and hastily jammed it into the back of my phone case just a moment ago.
I couldn't bring myself to answer that honestly, so I added a little wrapping to my words.
―I've been keeping it safe. Right here.
When I lifted up my phone case to show him, Kim Sanho stared intently at his photo tucked inside.
And then, as if mirroring the gesture, he slid my ID photo into his own phone case.
As he did, he said,
―That's a relief.
―Hm? What is?
―That I get to debut with you, hyung.......
More than the birthday... honestly, the whole situation was closer to a pointless gift exchange, so those words were a completely unexpected, heartwarming remark.
Thanks to that, I couldn't give a proper reply and just awkwardly brushed it off.
What did I say again? 'Then work hard' or something.
'Hm.'
......It seemed like right now was the right moment to finally say what I couldn't bring myself to say back then.
I got up from my spot and walked over to Kim Sanho, who was still sitting with his back against the wall.
"Sanho."
"......Yes?"
I looked Kim Sanho in the eye and said,
"I'm glad we're debuting together."
Kim Sanho, who had been staring at me blankly, answered,
"All of a sudden......?"