Chapter 37
Guys, I love you!
Pfft!
There was a beep in the middle. Seong Jiwon laughed even though the microphone was on. The staff hurriedly adjusted the mics volume, but the fans had already heard everything.
The stage brightened up again, and Kang Ichae playfully hit Seong Jiwon. As all the members greeted the fans, cheers erupted.
Yu Jia smiled at us.
Theres a lot to say, but
First of all, Id like to say that we want to see you again.
The members relaxed at Yu Jias words.
How did you prepare all this in just a week? From the musical format to the unexpected werewolf concept. Who arranged the music?
Ichae arranged it, Dajun came up with the concept, Seonghyeon choreographed, and Jiwon supervised the vocals.
A perfect distribution What about Hoyun?
I just tagged along.
I was sincere, but everyone burst out laughing.
Kim Seonghyeon then picked up the microphone.
Seo Hoyun looked after the overall direction. He did a great job conveying the plan to the production team and setting up the stage.
Yes, we really enjoyed the amazing stage. Lastly, please say a word to our audience.
Hmm, its nice to show a heartwarming side in front of the camera. Seong Jiwon picked up the mic with a determined expression.
Weve been preparing a lot for a week.
If the effort, as Hoyun said, was reflected in our performance, theres nothing more we could ask for. Thank you for today.
Seong Jiwon spoke well today. As he spoke, the members expressions were filled with determination.
Was I the only one who couldnt read the atmosphere here? The audience all had moved expressions for some reason.
Anyway, after the group greeting, we exited the stage when suddenly, Jeong Dajun hung on my left shoulder. Everyone patted my shoulder or head as they passed by.
What is it?
Todays team, coming up!
As we exited, the last team, Today, caught our eyes. They had bitter faces, as if they watched our performance. However, they passed by without saying anything, perhaps conscious of the egg incident.
Cheers for Today were not as loud as ours.
It seems like we did well. Better than we thought.
Jeong Dajun laughed heartily.
The camera that followed us seemed to be trying to give us exclusive coverage as it continued to capture a close-up.
As we headed to the waiting room, contestants and staff greeted us every step of the way. Eventually, we couldnt even return to the waiting room and had to go back on stage.
We quickly greeted Today, Refined, Maze, and Nightmare, who were all standing on stage. Their gazes were heavily fixed on us.
Dont just stand there, guys!
No, I was sorry, guys I can still stand. Yu Jia pretended not to hear and held up a card.
All five teams worked hard. Now its time to announce the glorious rankings.
Yu Jia spoke slowly. She deliberately announced the rankings from the bottom up.
5th place: Nightmare, 4th place: Refined, 3rd place: Maze.
The only teams left were Today and The Dawn.
Jeong Dajun narrowed his eyes.
Hyung, are we going to lose?
It was possible.
Now, its time to announce the glorious first place.
In fact, I did not expect much. I didnt think wed win first place in the first round.
I had different plans.
We purposely didnt look at Todays side and only faced forward. Jeong Dajun, oblivious to the situation, fidgeted.
The winner of Shining Stars first round is
An exciting song reverberated throughout the competition hall. Todays Yu Hyeok glared at us too much.
Hey, control your expression!
Thats when it happened. Yu Jia took a deep breath and raised the microphone.
Congratulations to The Dawn for winning first place with 4,700 points!
Uh, what?
Ahhhh!
The Dawn! The Dawn!
The Dawn won first place?
With audience scores at 90%?
This didnt make sense.
I frowned slightly and caught a glimpse of PD Kim Heeyeon. She was looking at us with a distorted expression.
Whats going on?
My head was spinning.
I couldnt hear what Yu Jia was saying.
Congratulations, The Dawn. You successfully captivated the audiences hearts with incredibly stable vocals and a surprising concept.
Audience
Ah, now I understand.
Initially, they planned to manipulate the results if Today didnt get first place, but the agency backed down after seeing the atmosphere. Now that Ive been hit with an egg, it wouldnt be a good look if Today ranked first. Anyway, it wasnt essential to be first in the preliminary round.
So, did that mean we just have to get first place later?
Hyung!
We got first place!
No, thats not it. Theres something more.
While I was racking my brain, the members were smiling brightly with their faces full of emotion. Well, its true that weve proven ourselves with our skills and captured the hearts of the audience. I patted them on the back and picked up the microphone.
Im Seo Hoyun from The Dawn. Thank you so much for voting for us despite our shortcomings.
Yes, congratulations! What are your thoughts on this?
I shifted my gaze to Yu Jia, who was smiling as if she was wearing a mask, and continued.
First of all, I want to thank our fans who always support us, as well as all my team members. Also, Id like to thank all the staff who prepared hard with us and the opposing teams who always impress us with their amazing skills.
I was genuinely grateful to the opposing teams.
Thanks to Todays provocation, our teams morale was soaring.
Yu Jia, slightly disappointed by my typical response, tilted her head. However, she professionally continued without showing any discomfort.
Then, shall we check the privilege of being first?
I wish it were money but it probably wont be.
Whats the prize?
Is it something like Korean beef?
Jeong Dajun asked innocently. Yu Jia looked apologetic for a moment, not knowing what to do.
PD Kim Heeyeon still looked at me with her lips tightly sealed.
What should I do? Its not something like that its a bit more special.
Yu Jia slowly flipped over a card and awkwardly smiled at the audience.
The first-place group can choose another group and change their score to a negative value!
Everyone was silent. Their faces showed shock.
In other words, if a team gets 3,000 points, their score will become minus 3,000 points, and itll be reflected in the final total. Its an important opportunity to bring down a group youve been keeping in check.
Wow
I asked for some sort of adversarial concept, but
This was harsh.
Really harsh.
Is it Kim Heeyeons work? Or is it Todays agencys work?
It could be. Kim Heeyeon was wishy-washy because she wasnt me. She created the concept but never cornered the participants like this.
So thats why Kim Heeyeon asked me if I was curious about the first-place privilege.
The Dawn members were too shocked to even speak. To be precise, they couldnt talk. If they said anything here, they would be pelted with stones, not eggs.
Only then did jeers erupt as the audience regained their senses.
Are the producers crazy?!
Do you want to get sued?!
It was something along those lines.
On top of that, everyone looked like they wanted to tear me to pieces, except for The Dawn fans.
I was used to malicious gazes, but this murderous intent made cold sweat trickle down my back.
Please make your decision now.
What should we do in this situation?
So, The Dawn, which team will you choose?
No matter who I picked now, it was certain that I would be torn to shreds. Maybe Id even be burned to ashes on social media or online communities.
Now I understand why Today didnt rank first.
In the first preliminary round, the losing side was the one that ranked first.
Ive been had.
I looked back at the members before grabbing the microphone. They all had faces that didnt know what to do.
Hoyun.
Ill give the answer.
Suddenly, Seong Jiwon whispered to me, holding my shoulder. No matter what happened, the person who answered would be torn to shreds.
Fear was evident in Seong Jiwons eyes, but he pretended to be nonchalant and spoke to me. It was his sincerity.
Its okay. Dont worry.
Guys.
I faced their shaking eyes, feeling like I would crumble under their piercing gazes.
I looked straight at them.
I didnt know it would be used so soon, but
Do you trust me?
Just in case, I prepared a landmine.
The third landmine was to trust me unconditionally even if I made a mistake.
Kang Ichae chuckled and then nodded her head. I stopped Seong Jiwon from answering and slowly turned my body towards the audience, facing Yu Jia. She gave a pitiful smile.
Have you made a decision?
I nodded.
Yes.
Then, please tell us the name of the group.
I looked towards the side where the other groups were. They all seemed surprised. Amid that, Today let out a sneer. Everyone seemed happy with the situation I had gotten myself into.
Since I was already set to face Today, choosing them here would only break the sympathy I had gained.
[There was no need for sympathy]
[I told you over and over that Im strong ]
Titles like these would fill the online communities.
Thats why they thought I would choose Nightmare, the group with the smallest fandom, or at most, Refined. Today just seemed to enjoy watching me struggle. But guys, what should I do?
I choose.
I picked up the microphone with a smile.
Today, I choose you.
I decided. Screw it. I will just have to defeat them.
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