Chapter 5

I slowed my steps as I observed the set, which was laid out at different heights by ranks.

My ranking was fourth.

I wasn't sure how it'd looked in other people's eyes.

'Wow, that's higher than I thought.'

From the setlist to the program itself, everything had went according to my calculations.

Survival programs like this, especially those that involved idols, are full of landmines to watch out for.

The first thing I had to think about was, 'What kind of image will people remember in the beginning?'

It's easier to create a plot if you have a solid character to work from early on.

We had three options.

You could start from scratch and create a character with growth.

You can start from scratch and paint an image of a perfect performer and can be a championship contender.

Or blaze up a trail that no one else can and only you can walk that trail.

I chose the last option.

The stakes are way far too high for a growth character. There's no way KNet, with its penchant for sensationalized editing, would leave such good prey untouched.

I'm sure they'll be editing with their eyes glowing, trying to break up the contestant's mind.

They'll put the bad kids in the middle of the good ones, and they'll say things like, "Why did they come here?"

I'll put in a step-by-step progression to create a reversal of the public opinion.

You'll end up with people saying things like, "Dude, he didn't make it, but he really tried," or "Honestly, I wish I was good-looking enough to make it."

But that's a good example of a growth character, and once you've been labeled as a trainee beyond repair, it's hard to recover. So I'd rather pass.

In the second case, the image of the perfect contender is optimized for the initial attention. But it's a stark contrast.

Unlike a growth character who gets a lot of carrots when they'd do well, these kind of characters have no idea how far their image could plummet if they make even the tiniest mistake.

This is the best example of how high expectations can lead down to a huge fall. In the other end of the case, even if you didn't do anything wrong on a shoot you've been to, the producers can make up weird edits to create a stir.

To the producers, the trainees were just a tool to raise awareness of the program.

They didn't mind breaking a trainee's mind for the sake of the internet buzz.

So this was also a high risk, so pass.

After mulling it over for a while, something caught my radar: the title 'Individual Trainee'.

With the high success of 'Asri 1', I had a feeling that producers would be rushing to get their hands on trainees for this season, and to some extent, I was right. I could tell from the scene. The majority of the contestants would come in pairs.

What if a rare individual trainee was as good as a big agency trainee?

The first thing that would come to mind is the judges shocked expressions.

If the judges reactions are unexpected, of course the production crew can't resist to using it.

Naturally, Yu Si-hwan's part is reserved for the first level test, which would air for the next one or two episodes.

The question then became, how well does he perform?

As I said before, there would be a risk for being too good.

So how could I perform without going overboard, while still being recognized as being a individual trainee?

'As it turns out, everyone's response was exactly what I had thought it would've been.'

I cleverly exploited the system of level testing.

The pre-test text said, prepare a minimum of one minute and a maximum of two minutes of stage time.

Not wanting to show too much at the beginning, I aimed to cut the stage time off at exactly at the 1 minute and 20 seconds mark. I wanted to show all of my skills during the first minute, but not so much that it overflowed.

The next step was the song selection, which was honestly the easiest part.

I had already narrowed down my candidates, so I just had to avoid the ones I had wanted to avoid.

Songs by superstar idols with huge fandoms.

Songs by idols who will end up being hot by the time Asri 2 airs.

And a song by an idol whose group's characteristics are so clearly imprinted.

If you pick the wrong one of these three songs, you won't be subjected to any evil editing. In fact, even if you hadn't, you're likely to be beaten into the dust by the viewers and netizens (1).

It's never a good idea to gamble against idol fans who thrive on with comparison. Especially not on a survival program like this.

After ruling out those songs, I chose 'Spotlights' because it was the best representation of what I could do.

This was my level testing stage where I would be able to put all of these things together and put them into action.

I honestly already expected to be within the top 10 or so, but I'm already in 4th place.

Of course, I could have been pushed back by the later runners, but it was still considered a high ranking.

"Hello."

"Hello~!"

I exchanged short greetings with the top-ranked participants sitting around me.

I skimmed through their faces skillfully and quickly, gathering the information I'd stored in my head.

'The first through third place finishers are from the biggest agencies we've already seen so far. We're still in the level testing phase, so what I've prepared should be enough to cover over them, but I'll get a better idea of how good they really are in the first round.'

Even if I have to fight a calculated battle, I have to be polite and smile for now.

The guy who just got up from the top seat showed tons of potential from the start, though.

The fourth-ranked player should've been more excited to see me, but strangely enough, the first-ranked player was the first to show an intense amount of interest in me.

"Hey, I just watched your show, it was really good."

"It's embarrassing to hear that kind of praise from the person sitting in first place."

"Ah, no."

The No. 1 finisher threw up his hands and smiled sheepishly.

"I'm Kang Sun-woo, and you must be Yu Si-hwan, right?"

"Oh, yes."

"By any chance, how old are you?"

"I'm 21."

"Wow, really?"

When he heard my age, he had clapped his hands together.

"You're the same age as me! It's hard to find friends."

"Haha...."

Maybe he's not a big agency trainee for nothing.

You're trying to make an image this early?

With me, a individual trainee, and not with the other kids who came with you?

{Sniffs. Hmm, he doesn't seem to smell like trouble, master. I don't think we need to be too vigilant.}

Cerberus, who'd been waiting patiently below while I performed, was now perched onto my shoulder.

That was true before, and it's still true now.

'That smell is pretty damn good.'

{Of course, I'm Cerberus from Hell!}

'Do you have the ability to read thoughts?'

{I can only smell, master. I can't smell thoughts!}

If only I had the ability to read thoughts, it would've been so much easier.

In any case, if Cerberus is the one who says, 'he smell fine,' then he's sane.

That said, it's also possible that the trainee named Kang Sun-woo wasn't actually trying to take advantage of me.

'Let's wait and see.'

"Contestant #78 is coming in!"

When it was the next student's turn, they'd stopped chatting and took their seats.

As it turns out, 78 was my seatmate.

I don't really remember what his name was, but I remember feeling really intimidated.

Was it Ma Si-hyuk?

"Mr. Ma Si-hyuk, let's see the stage."

I looked towards the stage, remembering how Ma Si-hyuk had looked when we had talked briefly.

He seemed so timid, but I wondered how he would be on stage.

An unexpectedly intense drum bass blared out from the speakers.

"Ohhh."

My reaction was almost identical to the judges.

My eyes had been fixed on the floor before I even started, but as soon as I heard the accompaniment, my gaze shifted.

It was a difficult bass track with an increasing intensity, obviously used by crump dancers.

Proving why he'd chose this song, Ma Si-hyuk successfully completed an impressive dance performance with his excellent physicality and flexible body.

'This is a twist of its own, isn't it?

I hadn't talked to him much, but he was 180 degrees different from the image I had pictured from my mind.

I made a mental note to myself as I had watched Ma Si-hyuk, who quickly returned to his quiet, reserved self after the music had ended.

If he can sing well here, this could end up being a good card for me.

"Actually, I'm not very good at singing myself, so...."

"That's okay, but don't you want to give it a try?"

After finishing one song with the judges backs against the wall, Ma Si-hyuk became even more determined.

I clenched my jaw and sighed slightly.

'The song is just average or below average.'

There was no way the judges didn't know that they'd felt this way.

As expected, the judges said, 'His dancing skills are overwhelming, but he lacks confidence.', and 'His vocal skills are disappointing.' Ma Si-hyuk finished in 19th place.

I couldn't help but pity him as he looked gloomy until the moment he'd taken his seat.

'He has great dancing and physicality skills, but he wasn't able to utilizing them properly.'

Still, I found the later trainees to be better than the pre-50s, so it had became less boring to watch.

As I silently analyzed the skills of the contestants, I found a few talents to be wary of. Most of them were from big-named agencies, and all of them were assigned into the top rankings.

At the end of the day, the level test stage with 100 trainees came to an end.

My final ranking was 9th. Although I was pushed to the back of the pack, it was a result that had far exceeded my expectations.

I was worried that my strategy was too far off from the very start.

'But it's all in the past, so we should be happy about it.'

The theme song performance, the first stage offered to netizens, is based on this ranking. If anything, having a good ranking in the first place might put you in a far better position for the theme song stage.

'I need to think about how to maximize the amount of work I've done.'

"Let's go to the contestant's quarters!"

Together, we boarded into a large bus and traveled to a large sleepover facility nearby.

We then had to unpack our bags in our individual rooms and descend into the auditorium.

'Cerberus, I want you to stay in my room as much as possible while we're filming. Do you understand?'

{I know it's going to be awkward, but.… yes, master!}

I can't keep carrying Cerberus around on my shoulder.

Once all the trainees were assembled in the auditorium, the first trial came.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Go Hyun-joo, and I will be the general director and MC of 'Idol Stardig Season 2' from now on."

The famous 20-something actor, who started out as a child actor and is now the highest paid actor in the world, is the MC of 'Asri 2'.

While the trainees were excited about the appearance of an incredibly pretty actress, a notice was dropped that broke the mood once and for all.

"From now on, you'll be spending countless hours practicing here."

"Yes~."

"So you're probably wondering where you'll be practicing and with whom. You'll have just one week to prepare for 'HIT', the theme song for 'Idol Stardig Season 2', and I'm going to reveal to you now the placement chart that was created with the intention of facilitating (2) your rapid growth and learning in that time!"

Go Hyun-joo said in a cheerful tone as she unveiled the placard at the front of the auditorium.

Looking at the words on the placard, the trainees could see the contrast between his cheerful voice and the trainees all let out a collective groan in unison which contrasted from her cheerful voice.

"You all remember the vocal and dance grades you received during the level test, right? For the next week, you'll have A, B, C, and D grades all in one class to keep each other motivated. I can't wait to see which trainees will improve and be moving forward with their different levels of skill!"

The auditorium was then filled with even more noise, but Go continued with a series of KO punches.

"And there's one thing to keep in mind. After this one-week practice period, there'll be a 'final grade placement' where your grade will change depending on how well you improve. It will be a crucial moment that'll determine your fate in the full-scale survival rounds, so please do practice hard."

This was a development I hadn't thought of.

It did happen last season, too, and in a normal survival program, you'd expect them to stick together.

I smiled bitterly as I'd skimmed through the placement sheet, which had a total of 10 classes.

'They've been trying to shatter our mentality from the start.'