Chapter 72
Translator 8uhl
Chapter 72
Chapter Title Explosive Cheers
The waiting room was buzzing with an energy more lively than ever before.
You guys were amazing!
I was so nervous I thought I was going to lose it, bro!
Ah, Im just relieved we didnt mess up.
I bet were taking first! No, itd be weird if we didnt!
Due to the drawing for performance order, the team we saw as our strongest rival went on before us.
That meant we got to watch their stage closely from backstage.
I wasnt the only onemy other teammates clearly saw just how massive the cheers they got were.
But let me say just one thing. We got the biggest roar. This is a lock.
Yesss!
Even Chae Eungyu, who was always so composed, was fired up by the huge response we received.
It was a clear difference compared to theirs.
Everyone recognized that fact and was swept up in massive excitement.
The only one who seemed somehow unsatisfied was Baek Sihwa.
Chae Eungyu, who had been spinning around in a fervent game of strongstrong circle dance hugging his younger teammates, soon looked at me and grinned.
Karis, you did that heart shape differently from practice, huh? Whered you pick that up?
Ah, haha... It just popped into my head right before going on stage.
The finger heart with index and middle? First time Ive seen itfresh and cool.
Really cool, huh?
What a silly question.
Chae Eungyus lips curved even higher.
The biggest reaction was when you came out.
Was it? I was so focused I didnt hear a thing.
The crowds reaction was great, and the teammates watching from behind showered me with praise, saying it was the best.
I let out a quiet sigh of relief inside.
Looks like the gamble paid off.
In the grand journey of Idol Training Simulation, calling this third preliminary round the turning point wouldnt be an exaggeration.
The Lucky Draw Coin that lets you draw an item capable of flipping the board.
I only had one left.
It appears as a reward when the system issues a hidden quest, but the criteria for generating those hidden quests are vague, and they dont always reward a Lucky Draw Coin.
Plus, since its probabilistic, like last time, if lucks not on my side, using the coin might not help at all.
So my decision was to get through the third round without spending the Lucky Draw Coin.
Everything hinged on the final round.
In other words, it was a situation where I had to bet purely on this crown princes body and my own experience.
It was an enormous gamble.
Especially since we didnt even snag the center position, I had to squeeze out maximum efficiency.
Take the bridge that can create the songs killing part and generate a standout moment within it.
Id honed my practice around that idea.
Originally, wed planned to go with the standard heart that Chae Eungyu had suggested.
But right before going on stage, the system hit me with a sudden message.
Hidden Preceding Quest Secure 410 votes in the 3rd Round Team Vote has been generated.
Reward 15 Skill Points
Notice Completing the Preceding Quest will unlock the Linked Quest.
Linked Quest Clear Reward 1 Lucky Draw Coin
It was a new type of quest.
A linked quest that only opens after clearing the preceding one.
Clear both, and Id get Skill Points plus a Lucky Draw Coin.
I couldnt let this chance slip, so right before hitting the stage, I steeled my resolve even harder.
Id go allin on the bridge part.
Hitting 410 votes isnt as easy as it sounds. Its a number that requires votes from nearly all 500 audience members.
I glanced at the quest window again, then closed my eyes briefly.
I didnt want to fail again.
I didnt want the stat drop penalty or the pain inflicted on this body.
And above all, I wanted to post the best results among all teams and snag that benefit too.
On immediate reaction alone, 410 isnt impossible. The issue is what the linked quest will demand.
I pushed the complicated thoughts aside for now and watched the remaining teams stages.
Our next up was RB pop genre.
One thing that jumped out immediately was Kang Siyoon flaunting his slick moves in the center position.
...Hes got insanely quick situational awareness.
Back during mission song selection, Id recommended that track to Kang Siyoon.
Hed taken my advice and headed straight to the waiting room.
But when he saw Song Hyeongbin and Ji Yuncheol already there, he voluntarily bailed during the roster adjustment time.
Dude, I open the door and bammy breath catches. Not one, but two absolute monsters. My head spun no way Im snagging center here, and my screen time would be cosmic dust. So I bounced right away.
I pictured Kang Siyoon clutching his forehead and chuckled.
Kang Siyoon made the right call.
He went for a song where center was easier to claim and made a strong impression with it.
At this rate, hed gotten plenty of practice footage too.
Keep the momentum, and he could crack into the debutzone Top 7.
And the final stage left was future EDM genre.
Here, Heo Yubin unleashed his main vocal prowess to the fullest once more.
Yubin sings so well.
His vocalization is insane... Jealous.
My teammates watching the TV in the waiting room let out gasps of admiration.
In terms of high notes alone, it boasted the highest difficulty among the five mission songs.
Singing those live in front of 500 audience members could be a huge pressure.
But Heo Yubin nailed stable pitch like it was nothing.
He didnt get center, but the songs structure put the spotlight right on the main vocal.
At this rate, both Kang Siyoon and Heo Yubin should bring back solid results.
I felt joy for the rally of my Cell 31 roommates, whod started Idol Training Simulation alongside me.
Kang Siyoon pouring in insane time and effort true to his Practice Bug trait, and Heo Yubin climbing from underground rank to 13th place.
Watching comrades youve bonded with succeed is always a great feeling.
Trainees, please gather back at the filming set!
After the final stage, result announcement time finally arrived.
Choi Sia waited for us in her usual poised manner.
Trainees whove completed up to the 3rd Round, great job.
Polite applause echoed through the set.
Like the 2nd Round, theres a special benefit this time too. First, the team benefit Among the five teams, the one with the most votes from National Producers gets 50,000 votes for every member.
Fifty... fifty thousand votes?
I didnt hear that wrong, right?
The moment the benefit number dropped, everyone looked stunned.
The perperson 10,000vote benefit from the 2nd Round had jumped fivefold this time.
Recall that the rank announcement had come down to a mere 9,000vote gap between life and deaththis benefit was huge.
Also, the trainee with the most personal votes in each team gets a 50,000vote benefit.
Personal benefits matched too.
Even top contenders like Song Hyeongbin were growing tense, faces stiffening.
The concrete ceiling tier had barely any gaps. Those 50,000 votes could shake up the rankings entirely.
Choi Sia delivered the final news to the murmuring trainees.
And like before, the top team in group votes gets a chance to perform on KNets music show Music K Showdown. Lets see right now which team captured the National Producers hearts.
The trembling moment.
I snuck a glance at the quest alert and swallowed dryly.
I absolutely cannot fail. Its not just the rewardthe penalty from failing hits out of nowhere.
The sudden physical pain and forced stat drop from missing the hidden quest last time.
Having dumped massive Skill Points into recovering Vocal, I had no room for another stat hole.
And enduring agony while managing expressions in front of everyone? No way.
First team, show the results for.
The spinning numbers slowed to a stop.
Funk Pop 312 votes
1st Place Trainee Park Sanghyuk
took a total of 312 votes.
The first team didnt score as high as I thought.
Meaning just over half of the 500 voted for them.
Remembering our quest goal of 410, I felt a twinge of unease.
If all teams hovered in the 300s, wed miss the quest clean.
But the powerhouse results for quickly made that worry fade.
Deep House 435 votes
1st Place Trainee Ji Yuncheol
A monstrous 435 out of 500 votes.
And a huge upset in the personal 1st too.
Yuncheol, congrats!
Congrats!
Thank you.
Ji Yuncheol had beaten Song Hyeongbin for personal vote 1st.
His teammates were all slapping his back with cheers.
Ji Yuncheol just offered a slight smile, his expression barely changing as always.
Guess you cant underestimate centers impact.
No helping it.
Center gets the most screen time and attention by nature.
Show the results for.
So I decided to set aside personal vote 1st for now.
As long as we cleared the quest goal in group votes.
grabbed over 400, so were definitely hitting 400 too. 300s? No way.
A few dozen seconds later.
A result emerged that let me breathe easy.
Synth Pop 451 votes
1st Place Trainee Yu Minha
451 group votes cleared the hidden quest.
And we surpassed our biggest rival team.
Meanwhile, the personal 1st star, usually so chatty, was speechless for once.
......
Yu Minha!
Minha!
Congrats! Man, this is huge!
Chae Eungyu, Kwon Daehyun, and Heo Juno shook Yu Minhas body roughly.
Yu Minha flailed like a paper doll, staring at the screen with his mouth agape.
I reached out and patted his shoulder too.
Great work, Minha.
......Whoa. First place? Is this real life?
Perfect reality.
My words seemed to ground him in the moment Yu Minha clenched his fist and broke into a huge grin.
Tears even welled up in his eyessomething Id never seen before.
Thanks, everyone!
Baek Sihwa, whod been hanging back, glanced at the camera and quietly offered congrats.
......Congrats.
Thanks, Sihwa!
It might feel a bit awkward, but Yu Minha laughed heartily, as if forgetting that dawn memory entirely.
No anger lingered in Baek Sihwas eyes anymore.
Just vague defeat and emptiness mixed together.
Everything comes back as karma.
Meanwhile, a golden effect sparkled in my peripheral vision.
Hidden Preceding Quest Secure 410 votes in the 3rd Round Team Vote completed successfully.
15 Skill Points awarded as reward.
Notice Hidden Linked Quest generated.
Hidden Linked Quest Synth Pop Stage Hits 1 Million Views generated.
Reward 1 Lucky Draw Coin