Debut or Die - Chapter 505
Reed chapter first at Utoon.net
these Chs are commissioned if you want your series to be translated you can contact us at discord for your favorite series.
The day of the first group recording of <Genuine Match>.
Greetings were exchanged among the cast members, all of whom were famous and well established, with no rookies.
TeSTAR was no exception.
“Oh my god, it’s been so long, guys!”
“Mewdy sunbae-nim!”
First up was Mewdy.
The vocal trainer and judge on <Relisted! Idol Incorporated> was quite happy to see us as we walked over to the singer’s waiting room.
“Wow, how many years ago was that? You all became so successful that now I have to get your autographs, really!”
“Eh~ What are you talking about?! Sunbae-nim, we’re here to get your autographed album~ We’re asking you so earnestly, so please sign it, sunbae-nim!”
“Ahaha! No kidding!”
Lee Sejin this guy, he really knew how to pick and choose what people want to hear.
-I’ll do my best to make a conversation, so everyone should relax~
For the record, he had been doing a talk show almost every day to fill the void left by Ryu Chungwoo, the leader of TeSTAR, who had lost his memory.
Thanks to him, the mood was much more cheerful.
“Ahyeon is still like a flower deer~ Moondae, you can stop sending red ginseng to me for the holidays! I get it every time and I even talked about it on the radio!”
“Hahaha!”
Mewdy cheerfully complimented and joked with each member, before finally turning her attention to TeSTAR’s leader.
To be precise, to the one she thought was the leader.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you, Chungwoo. Are you having a hard time being the leader?”
“Haha, I’m doing well because the members are so supportive.”
However, this STier Chungwoo had also met vocal trainer Mewdy while participating in <Relisted! Idol Incorporated>, so he had no problem handling the situation.
I checked in on him as he smiled and made small talk with Mewdy.
‘Not bad.’
Anyway, it was probably no coincidence that Mewdy was recruited.
‘I’m sure a lot of the early requests for recruitment went to established names who had ties to TeSTAR.’
It was also important to have such a publicized relationship if the other side was to calculate that they could ‘benefit from the edit’.
‘As soon as TeSTAR signed the contract, I’m sure they would have emphasized that as the first thing when sending out the casting call.’
After that, once the cast lineup was completed, they would expand the horizons of contacts from there.
That was why the cast we were connected to didn’t end with Mewdy.
“Moondae-ssi! Oh my God!”
As soon as I walked into the next waiting room, I found… the members of Marshmallow waving enthusiastically.
That was right.
The female idol group from the same agency as VTIC, LeTi, that left behind the legendary concept song ‘POP☆CON’.
Marshmallow was also a member of the cast.
There was even one member who had already succeeded as an actress.
“Hello, Sohyun sunbae-nim.”
“No~ Wow, we’re meeting again!”
It was a very unique case where the original members completely reunited and appeared on a survival show.
But it was definitely not a stupid choice.
‘It’s clever.’
The group was past their prime anyway, so there was nothing to lose if they didn’t do well on a show with a lot of big names in the cast.
And one of them was now a successful actor, so it wouldn’t hurt her image because it was a different field.
All they needed to do was avoid the personality controversy, but they weren’t idols who had only been on the air for a day or two, so they’d know how to avoid it. Weren’t they the ones who survived that fucked up and absurb concept?
That was when I was nodding inwardly.
“You know we actually decided to appear on this show because Moondae-ssi was coming, right? Please take care of us!”
“……?”
“Ahaha, look at his face!”
What are you talking about?
At that moment, Sohyun, who patted the smiling Marshmallow member on the shoulder, said happily.
“Moondae-ssi is one of our fans! It’s encouraging to have at least one person who takes us seriously.”
Hmm.
It had been too many years since I popped popcorn at <Relisted! Idol Incorporated> to explain that I wasn’t a fan now. Eventually, I nodded shamelessly.
I’d at least mention it in the interview.
“It’s an honor.”
“Gosh, we’re honored!”
And then it was back to the friendly wrap-up conversation.
The question bounced around playfully.
“As a leader, what do you think? Do you think Moondae-ssi is still a fan of us?”
‘…!’
A question to Ryu Chungwoo.
Perhaps because of the nature of the question, it seemed to naturally turn to the leader….
‘No.’
This STier Ryu Chungwoo had no way of knowing whether I was popping popcorn or poppin’ at <Relisted! Idol Incorporated>.
Naturally, he wouldn’t even know there was a meme about me being a fan of these people.
I clenched my fists.
‘Cover him.’
Keun Sejin, who was acting as the acting leader for the day, blinked at me and was about to interject.
“Of course.”
STier Ryu Chungwoo answered neatly before he could speak.
“Moondae even plays your songs on our live broadcasts.”
“…!!”
“Wow! Really? That’s awesome….”
“Thank you, Moondae-ssi!”
And the conversation flowed naturally.
STier Ryu Chungwoo finished his pleasantries by mentioning TeSTAR’s past activities without any problems.
Lee Sejin saw the mood and smiled, not interrupting further.
I and the others went along with the flow and the conversation ended well, but in the back of my mind, I was confused.
“…….”
No way.
“See you in a bit~”
“Yes, sunbae-nim!”
Click.
Walking out of Marshmallow’s waiting room, I looked back at Ryu Chungwoo.
“What you just say was….”
How could he reply like that?
He scratched his face as if slightly embarrassed, then smiled.
“Well, when I was looking at the stage, the algorithm popped up some videos… I saw that the fans have done a good job of organizing TeSTAR activities.”
“…….”
“That, you watched them all… Thank you, you’re amazing…!”
“Haha, not really… but thanks.”
Nope.
This wasn’t going to end with ‘amazing’.
‘He didn’t just watch the stage video, he watched the entire activity of TeSTAR?
His tone made it sound like he’d just watched it on an algorithm, but his answer was like he’d memorized the entire fan wiki.
Moreover, Ryu Chungwoo was not the type of person who would do such searches.
I didn’t think STier Ryu Chungwoo would be any different. It was obviously a deliberate search.
‘When is it?’
Did this guy even sleep?
I couldn’t believe he voluntarily studied all that stuff when I didn’t even ask him to in the first place.
But then the question came back, nonchalantly.
“Did I make any mistakes back there?”
“Nope. That was neat.”
“Haha, thanks.”
No, I wasn’t the one being questioned right now, but I wanted to ask: What kind of mentality does he have when he’s thrown into a strange world with no status window and this is his response?
‘He’s not the protagonist of a novel.’
However, STier Ryu Chungwoo said calmly.
“Still, tell me if I’m misunderstanding something. I tend to talk to my fans a little softer than what actually happened.”
“…Yeah.”
Okay. I didn’t even know anymore, damn it.
‘Is this mentality the reason Cha Eugene is scared of him?’
It was pretty convincing.
* * *
After that, the subsequent filming went smoothly.
The announcer from MBS came out and introduced each cast member in a grandiose manner, but after only an hour, he got down to business.
‘We’re almost the last one, so it’s all good.’
But the MC’s voice was already cracking a bit. Too bad.
“I would like to announce the theme of the first match.”
The theme finally appeared on the screen in giant font.
[Song Swap].
A theme where the cast members took turns singing each other’s songs.
Traditional, brutal, and exciting. I like it.
“And because it’s a match, unlike the opening performance, the audience will be ranking your performances.”
One obvious statement.
And then the equally obvious, but provocative, next one.
“And the last place performer, unfortunately, will be eliminated.”
“……!”
Everyone looked surprised even though they knew it was coming. They did a great job at broadcasting.
With that deliberate tension in the air, the cast picked their opponent’s song to cover by drawing lots and…
“Oh, I look forward to your kind cooperation.”
TeSTAR pulled Mewdy’s ball.
‘Good.’
None of the participants had any overlapping elements. This made it hard to have a point of reference for comparison, and it was easy to pick a stage with different styles.
‘We know each other, so it’s a good angle for editing.’
Still, I guessed I should at least pay lip service to the interview by saying that I also wanted to sing a Marshmallow’s song.
“Huuuh?”
Marshmallow squealed after drawing the TeSTAR’s ball.
‘Congratulations.’
Clap clap clap.
I finished my first shoot with polite reactions, trying to think of words that wouldn’t make for the weirdest edits in the interview.
And practicing diving right in as soon as I got back to the company.
“Hmm, the arrangement, I think it would be great with a completely different accompaniment…!”
“Yeah, I can see the appeal of changing the vibe~ Then why don’t we just keep the melody?”
“Well, the addictive melody and the high notes are its strength, so we’ll keep those elements! That’s a great decision.”
“Then the concept is… Yeah, I already knew MoondaeMoondae would have something to say~ Come on, tell me. …Ohhh, and Eugene too?”
“Hehe!”
Pick a song, pick a concept.
After a quick discussion, minus the unnecessary editorials, we came up with the result.
-A completely remade TeSTAR version of Mewdy’s decade-old hit song!
After digesting the results of the discussion, Kim Raebin presented a demo of the edited arrangement in an hour, which was then tossed among the choreographers to create a plan.
This was possible because the role division and progression structure had been thoroughly established through years of experience.
And STier Ryu Chungwoo observed and absorbed the whole process intently.
As if he were a newcomer to the company.
“So I’m supposed to report back to the company from here.”
“Yes. The production crew will probably come for practice and some filming, so we need to coordinate that.”
“Sure. Okay.”
At this rate, he’d be able to play leader in no time.
‘His memories will come back anyway once the update is finished.’
He did so well that I almost felt sorry for him when all he had to do was stay on his feet.
And then this happened.
“…Ryu Chungwoo.”
“…!”
Right after the meeting, Bae Sejin offered a drink to STier Ryu Chungwoo, who was thirsty and trying to get some water.
“Drink it if you don’t mind.”
“…….”
In fact, the question of how to handle the rift between him and Bae Sejin during their time as STier members was no longer on my mind.
The conversation had already ended a few days ago.
-We need to talk about Sejin hyung.
-I’ve heard from Eugene, things are different now, right?
And with that, Ryu Chungwoo had never expressed any hostility towards Bae Sejin.
‘Is it true that they communicate so well?’
However, Bae Sejin seemed to have noticed something strange. That was why he handed him something as if to test the waters.
“I think you’re thirsty… If you don’t want to drink it, you don’t have to.”
“…….”
I definitely looked.
There, STier Ryu Chungwoo hesitated for a moment.
But in the end, he didn’t resist and took the bottle, uncapping it coolly.
He smiled and replied.
“Thank you. I’ll drink it.”
“…! What!”
Ryu Chungwoo didn’t seem to mind and even drank the drink on the spot.
Bae Sejin seemed to be relieved, and the atmosphere became even better.
‘Hmm.’
It seemed like I was watching a scene where STier Cha Eugene’s relative toughness score was dropping in real time…
And as the practice continued into the evening in this atmosphere, Lee Sejin even said something like this, whether he was being sincere or just testing the waters.
“Hyung-nim, thank you~ You’re being so nice to us! Our Eugene even ran away because he didn’t remember us.”
“Yeah.”
“Haha, did he?”
Ryu Chungwoo said the next words in a gentle voice.
“Still the same.”
“…?”
“I’m glad you seem to be doing well now.”
“…Yep.”
Suddenly, a strange tension seemed to flicker in and out of the air.
‘Mmm.’
I immediately focused on the conversation.
The mood was still good. Cha Eugene took a long drink from his water bottle, then spoke up.
“And congratulations, Chungwoo hyung. At this rate, your memory will come back quickly.”
“Hmm?”
“I was able to remember when I admitted that I liked the stage. Maybe that’s the trigger? That’s how I feel.”
Cha Eugene said that casually as if he was passing on a tip.
How to bring back memories from TeSTAR!
‘He did say something like that.’
I recalled my conversation with TeSTAR Cha Eugene after he returned to his body.
-[Maybe it’s not a coincidence that that “update” was over so quickly. I mean, the timing is just too freaky, isn’t it?]
-[I’m betting that my enlightenment, or our frank conversation, had something to do with the timing].
I didn’t know why this asshole system was doing this, but it decided to update the Company System anyway, and in the process rolled back the memories of the members.
Therefore, a member’s mental growth affected the completion of the update…
‘That’s a pretty plausible hypothesis, so I’m going with it.’
I’d already shared it with Keundal.
And since I had already talked to Ryu Chungwoo with the premise of ‘you have lost your memory’, it was more about ‘tips to get your memory back’ than ‘how to get out of that body quickly’.
Ryu Chungwoo was intrigued, so he asked.
“Automatically?”
“Well, I asked Moondae hyung, and this is how he explained it to me. Moondae hyung has this weird ghostly thing. Status window?”
Dude.
Before I could say anything, Cha Eugene finished naturally.
I pressed my forehead. Yeah, have it your way….
“That’s how I got my memories back, and I’m sure you can too.”
“Ah.”
It was that moment.
Ryu Chungwoo replied, his voice as gentle as ever.
“Do you think that’s necessary?”
What?
“Hyung?”
Ryu Chungwoo looked back at me.
He spoke in the same calm, unaffected voice.
“I mean, is it really necessary to get my memories back?”
I was a step too late, interpreting the meaning.
‘That’s….’
-Do we really need to get TeSTAR Ryu Chungwoo back?
It meant not to bring back the original TeSTAR Ryu Chungwoo.
I got goosebumps all over.
these Chs are commissioned if you want your series to be translated you can contact us at discord for your favorite series.
Reed chapter first at Utoon.net