Chapter 431
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 431
Three days after the teaser dropped, the music video for "Flight," the title track of the regular album Aeronautics, was released.
Inside a spaceship where old, multicolored wires tangled like vines along gray walls, Seo Ho-yun appeared, wearing black wired earphones and staring out of a dome-shaped window.
Just as a droplet of water sliding down his jet-black hair was about to hit the floor, an emotionless mechanical voice flowed through the cabin intercom like a narration.
【This is The Dawn bound for sunset. We will depart soon.】
Simultaneously, an ethereal intro blending 808 bass and synthesizers filled the air.
As Seo Ho-yun quietly gazed at a beautiful planet through the glass—a harmonious mix of white clouds and blue oceans—the earphones were forcibly yanked from his ears.
【Please fasten your seatbelt—】
He frowned slightly and turned his head to see Kang Yi-chae, who was grinning while twirling the earphone cord around his finger. Yi-chae snatched a cassette tape and began rapping as he strode down the corridor.
【Say who’s back again?】
Heading toward the cockpit, Kang Yi-chae tapped the shoulder of Kim Seong-hyeon, who was dressed in a white turtleneck.
【Some noise tries to fill me with doubt (what?)
Pushed me away, maybe I’ve lost it all
In the dark of night, my worries only deepen】
Yi-chae leaned over to check the instrument panel, tapped the touchscreen a few times, then touched his index and middle fingers to his temple before pulling them away with a playful smirk.
【But what can I do? This is the path I chose
Bid me Bon Voyage!】
The scene shifted to an eagle soaring in an oval flight path across a brilliant blue sky. Below, Jeong Da-jun sat by a first-floor window of a Gothic stone building. He folded a paper labeled "Astronaut Application Form" into a paper plane and tossed it outside. Seeing the other members walking toward him, he gripped the windowsill, vaulted over it, and ran to join them.
【Some days, I did regret it
Thinking it was nothing but a downhill road
But it’s time to take flight, don’t be afraid】
The paper plane, drifting on the wind, fell beside Kim Seong-hyeon at the spaceship's control monitor. The camera zoomed in on Seong-hyeon’s eyes, which had turned red, reflecting the instrument panel's readings as they fluctuated erratically. His hand on the control stick began to shake violently.
【You pull me like gravity
Remember the day we heard the sound of the waves
Even that small smile you gave me】
The cockpit lights flickered amidst intense turbulence. As the lights cut out, the setting shifted to a greenhouse garden.
Diverse harmonies layered over a melody that raced toward a climax. Due to the wild gravity, arrowhead plants and trees were uprooted and scattered, while clumps of damp soil floated through the air.
In the center of it all, Seong Ji-won stood upright alone, leisurely walking as he lightly brushed against the green leaves around him.
【Between disaster and a miracle
We stand here, holding hands】
Flames erupted in the corridor, and scenes of the members urgently sending out distress signals appeared one after another.
Jeong Da-jun, repeatedly pressing buttons that wouldn't respond, threw off his headset and grabbed a fire extinguisher.
At that moment, Seo Ho-yun, who had ripped open a control panel and pulled the emergency lever to open the escape hatch, spotted Jeong Da-jun rushing past—
【Now, it’s time for flight
Beyond the planet’s tidal waves—!
I’ll take you to that place we miss】
He grabbed Da-jun and threw him inside the escape pod.
Seong Ji-won closed the door before a startled Da-jun could scramble out. Ji-won tilted his head back and covered his eyes with his palm.
【I think I’m starting to understand
How to see our flight through to the end
Belief, (Ah— Ah— Ah—)
Even in a universe where meteors burn
You will be able to land safely】
Through the glass, Jeong Da-jun pounded his fists desperately, as if pleading.
Amidst the frantic blinking of red warning lights, Kim Seong-hyeon and Kang Yi-chae exchanged glances. Kang Yi-chae, brushing back his red hair which had grown long enough to touch his shoulders, gripped the yoke steering wheel with a faint smile, his toes tapping playfully.
【—We do not know where to land
I’m not afraid of an indefinite wait
Is this bluffing? Am I bragging?
Doesn’t matter ’cause I feel this is gonna be a happy ending
The finale becomes clearer bit by bit, our closing credits】
Just like in the greenhouse garden, gravity in the cockpit began to fluctuate wildly.
Seong Ji-won and Seo Ho-yun clung to various devices, navigating through shattered components as if swimming. Kim Seong-hyeon, seated in the pilot's chair, leaned out halfway and pulled their arms to help them into their seats.
Surveying the surroundings, Kang Yi-chae tightened his grip on the yoke. Seong Ji-won’s hand overlapped his.
Finally, the wheel was pulled back.
【Now, it’s time for flight
Beyond the planet’s tidal waves—!
I’ll take you to a new place】
To the accompaniment of a fierce cello and violin duet, the interior of the spaceship spun clockwise and jolted.
【Between disaster and a miracle
We stand here, holding hands】
With a massive explosion, the screen instantly turned pure white—...
【—Thank you for flying, we hope to see you so—oo—oon….】
The mechanical voice echoed again, distorted and lagging with static, before overlapping with the image of sunlight reflecting off the water in a red glow at sunset.
Woof!
The camera caught Jeong Da-jun stroking a dog nearly as big as himself while looking out at the sea. Sitting still as if waiting for something, Da-jun let out a soft sigh and stood up.
Just then,
"What are you doing?"
At the sound of the voice, he lifted his head, the sunset glowing on his rounded cheeks. He broke into a bright smile and started running.
To the left of the dog, which was lying down and wagging its tail, five pairs of feet could be seen toppling over as they lost their balance.
The sound of waves gently sweeping the sand echoed softly, and the title appeared after a long list of names.
【 FLIGHT
THE DAWN 】
Just like movie credits.
* * *
[Holy........... sh*t]
[What did the official account just give me?]
[└ Youth.. space flight disaster genre..]
[└└ Please don't use words, my heart hurts like an exploding stick of dynamite]
[└└ This storytelling is definitely Lee Ji-hyeon again. Her form is insane.. My tastes are literally identical to hers. Please never leave The Dawn.]
[Ha, I finally understand the reviews from the listening session. The comparison to a 'dark concept Ocean Train' is perfect.]
[Rumors said they made the MV in a rush.. but now that it's out, the production value is insane;;]
[└ The Dawn must have made a lot of money.. I'm tearing up.]
[The MV is one thing, but the song is soooooo damn good;;; I listened to the whole album and literally every track is great. Aeronautics is a masterpiece, period.]
As soon as the music video for The Dawn's new song "Flight" was uploaded, the fandom went into a frenzy.
The incredibly sleek song, the flashy choreography, and the meanings hidden within the metaphors that were being unraveled one by one struck a chord deep in the fans' hearts.
[Title: About Seong Ji-won's Pop-Pop comment just now]
[He said 'Flight' is a tribute song for Noeul.]
[Then the 'gravity' (You pull me like gravity) and 'hometown' (I’ll take you to that place we miss) in the lyrics refer to Noeul....]
[The interpretation that The Dawn is returning to us after finishing their free flight must be right.]
[└ Agreed, and the lyrics about taking us to a new place.. it feels like a message telling us to look forward to more.]
[└ The Dawn bound for sunset…]
[└└ Along with the eagle representing courage and freedom,,]
[Along with the arrowhead plant representing trust and friendship,,,]
[└└ Ah, just kill me now.]
[└└ Isn't the arrowhead plant Jeong Da-jun's birth flower? ㅠㅠㅠㅠ Da-jun waiting for and trusting his hyungs ㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[└ It's for Noeul...?]
[So it wasn't 'Operation: Save the Maknae' after all..?]
[└└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Sh*t ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ah, that's hilarious.]
[Title: The wave sounds used at the end of the Flight MV..]
[They're the exact same wave sounds from Ocean Train.....]
[“Remember the day we heard the sound of the waves” refers to the Ocean Train we heard three years ago....]
[└ This is the most romantic gift for Noeul, who endured those f*cking malicious commenters.]
[└└ F*ck, who said love was sweet?]
[The full dance hasn't been revealed yet, but just from the glimpses, it looks incredibly hard.]
[According to Kim Seong-hyeon, this is the fastest choreography in The Dawn's history.]
[└ Professional dancers were filming a reaction to it.]
[└└ They're asking how they even do that.. they're horrified by the insane amount of practice it must have taken.]
[└ Sh*t, if The Dawn asks to do a challenge with this, the juniors better run away fast.]
[└└ Exactly ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ If it were me, I'd pretend I wasn't there.]
[└└ Unless you're on Ju Woo-seong's level, you absolutely cannot do this, for real.]
As if to reward the effort The Dawn put in, the album sold like wildfire.
[???? How many millions of copies is it already?]
[Wow, I didn't know it would do this well;; the growth rate is giving me goosebumps.]
[Even considering the inflation these days;; the physical sales are insane.]
[Is it because Kang Yi-chae's controversy trended so much? It feels like everyone is checking out the title track at least once.]
[└ But all the B-sides are charting too.]
[└ Are we going for a chart sweep? Sh*t~~~~~]
[└ Hehehehehehe this is crazy, I'm so proud... ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
However, as their popularity surged, the attacks against The Dawn became even more vicious.
[[HOT] The most successful boy group of the current generation]
[Is The Dawn.]
[Whether it's digital or physical sales..]
[It doesn't look like anyone can catch up to them.]
[└ Agreed.]
[└└ Agreed, agreed.]
[└ Even considering inflation, I agree.. There's almost a 400,000-copy difference compared to High Five, who had a comeback earlier this year.]
[└└ Hasn't The Dawn had a pretty long gap between releases for a boy group these days? High Five had a comeback every 3 months, so of course there's going to be a difference in sales. Why are you even comparing them? lol]
[└└ Why don't you think about why there's such a gap in their hiatus even though they're in the same agency??]
[└ Don't most groups get these kinds of results during a comeback? ㅋㅋㅋ So dramatic..]
[└└ It's definitely something to celebrate. Excluding Black Call, they hit the highest career high among boy groups.]
[└ Aren't they going to hit #1 on the daily chart too?? The NerdyFreak song is also climbing.]
[└└ Real-time maybe, but for weekly or monthly charts, Black Call is still the immovable #1 since it's only been a month since their promotions ended. The Dawn can't do it lol.]
[└└ For real.. maybe if it had been six months since Black Call finished promotions.]
[└ Ugh, why is this a hot post? The intention is so obvious.]
[└└ Seconded.]
[└└ Thirded. Ignoring them is the answer lol.]
[└ As someone old and tired, I'm just f*cking jealous of Kang Yi-chae.]
[└└ This is the truth ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└└ He's a full member of the Copyright Association, he's the true winner.]
(View 1,821 more comments)
From criticisms disguised as goodwill or ignorance to posts and videos openly disparaging The Dawn, the hate was everywhere.
[But it must be a bit embarrassing. They even recorded and released a separate English version of the title track, but in the end, it didn't even make the Billboard entry predictions ㅠㅠ]
[They talk about their overseas fandom and whatever, but anyone can see they were aiming for it... secondhand embarrassment ㅠㅠ]
Above all, people pounced like hungry wolves, looking for anything to tear apart regarding their Billboard entry.
[More importantly, the number of people logged into Raybism today is insane?? Even the pre-orders sold a lot, where are all these new fans coming from?]
[└ Didn't the fans just save up and buy a ton? Or is it because of the Song Camp??]
[└└ I don't know, but the influx is record-breaking.. I don't think there'll be a seat for me.]
[The application form opened early, so I clicked it ahead of time ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[└ Me too.. When the Raybism site turned red, my mind went blank.. so I applied early..]
[└└ I hate the fact that Kang Yi-chae writes such amazing songs.]
[Failed to get into the pre-recording.]
[Me, the god of course registration? Me, who grabbed front-row tickets for 'King of Trot,' which supposedly had the highest application rate ever?]
In reality, the Noeuls didn't even have the mental capacity to care about such things. Because The Dawn had broken every record—album sales, digital performance, and fastest MV views—the influx of new fans was massive, making competition for everything incredibly fierce.
[Title: Day 1 at U-U Bank, an easy #1!!]
[Da-jun, the U-U Bank MC, was so cute at the end, teasing the members about whether he'd give them the trophy or not.]
[The encore was so refreshing too.]
[Seo Ho-yun's pitch is still f*cking perfect ㄷㄷㄷ And Seong Ji-won is the God of K-pop..]
[Kang Yi-chae said he'd give a piggyback ride to an 'elephant' (Da-jun) if they won #1, but as soon as he picked him up, he wobbled and fell pathetically.]
[└ Their live was so good;; At the start of the encore, I thought they just turned on the CD.]
[└└ Actually, it's way, way, way better than the digital version.]
[└ Kim Seong-hyeon bowing and saying thank you so much to Noeul for waiting.. I'm crying ㅠㅠ]
[└ But Kim Seong-hyeon.. he tried to lift Da-jun's arm and then immediately dropped it like it was a heavy barbell. The audacity ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└└ Don't forget, Kim Seong-hyeon is also a pure-blooded member of The Dawn..]
[└ Ji-won: Hehe (Doesn't give a piggyback ride)]
[Ho-yun: ㅋㅋ (Doesn't help him up)]
[└└ (Elephant: Hurt)]
[└└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Sh*t ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[Title: I love that Yi-chae is posting a lot from their group chat lately]
[Da-jun and the dog.jpg]
[It looks like Da-jun posted a photo from the MV set in the group chat with himself on the right and the dog on the left, and Yi-chae screenshotted it for us ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[Maknae-ie: (Photo)]
[Hyungs, which one is The Dawn's puppy?]
[Water Dumpling: The one on the left]
[Ho-u Ho-u: The one on the left]
[Me: The left one~]
[Rap Machine: The left one!!]
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋ F*cking spear and shield.]
[Da-jun's hopeless attempt at self-moe-hwa and the cold-hearted hyungs who never fall for it.]
[But Da-jun doesn't give up.]
[Da-jun and the dog_horizontally flipped.jpg]
[Maknae-ie: Correct!!]
[Ho-u Ho-u: The one on the right]
[└ Seo Ho-yun, seriously ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└└ Sh*t, they play so well together ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└ If Seo Ho-yun has a kid, he'll probably be great at playing with them ㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└ No, but ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Is it just me who finds it hilarious that Yi-chae has Ho-yun saved as 'Ho-u Ho-u'? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Crazy.]
[Jeong Da-jun is so, so, so, so much like a puppy. Ah, I need to stop moe-hwa-ing him like I breathe.]
[└ Did you see Yi-chae's Pop-Pop yesterday?]
[└└ Not yet?]
[└└ After doing all that, Kang Yi-chae seriously asked if the dog in the MV didn't look like Jeong Da-jun.]
[└└ My idol is better at fangirling than I am..]
[For those who feel like The Dawn has become too much of a superstar and feel unfamiliar]
[Go watch the MV behind-the-scenes that just went up.]
[You can see Kang Yi-chae and Jeong Da-jun failing the 'try not to laugh' challenge just by making eye contact and sobbing on the floor.]
[└ For real, high schooler vibes ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└└ These guys are still the same ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[└ Seo Ho-yun said he sent Jeong Da-jun out first because sending him alone would save space rations..]
[Seong Ji-won added that they sent him out because Da-jun tried to eat the plants..]
[└└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ji-won, please ㅠㅠ]
[└└ But in the back, Jeong Da-jun is asking if those kinds of plants can actually be eaten in space.]
[└└ Sh*t ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ why are you curious about that ㅋㅋㅋ]
[└└ I don't know, but Kim Seong-hyeon is next to him warning him not to just pick up and eat anything.]
[└└ Parenting is hard.]
Along with the fact that they had started promotions again, the Noeuls, already satisfied with the results they had achieved, tried to keep an open mind about the digital chart rankings.
[1st] Blackout – Black Call 【—】
[2nd] Eyes – Black Call 【—】
[4th] Flight - THE DAWN 【NEW】
[5th] Garage – NerdyFreak & Ichae Kang 【▲6】
[9th] Wave – THE DAWN 【NEW】
[28th] CanIsayNow – THE DAWN 【NEW】
This was because of the immovable throne held by Black Call, who, once they released a song, would stay at #1 for months even after their promotions ended.
Of course, the fact that every single track from Aeronautics successfully entered the charts on the first day of release also helped The Dawn's fans remain generous.
And so, one week after the album's release.
[1st] Flight - THE DAWN 【▲2】
[2nd] Wave – THE DAWN 【▲6】
[3rd] Blackout – Black Call 【▼2】
[4th] Garage – NerdyFreak & Ichae Kang 【▲1】
[5th] Eyes – Black Call 【▼3】
On the daily charts of the music streaming platforms, an unexpected upset occurred.