CH20

That dude's looking pretty smug.

Well, maybe he's got a reason to be.

He must've nailed his practice sessions 'cause he's got ears.

<Slow Down> isn't exactly the norm for this idol survival gig, but Go Tae-Hwan's about to spice things up from now on

How? By cranking up the speed by 1.8 times.

Yep, that was my idea.

I was getting a bit bored with the usual songs Go Tae-Hwan was picking.

So, I suggested he go for a slow jam and speed it up because I liked the feeling of the beat flowing, and he chose this.

The result?

"Whoa, that was unexpected. It is a totally different vibe from what we saw in the pre-mission."

"At first, the sped-up version felt a bit off, but at some point, I was totally into it without even realizing."

"The sound quality's a tad disappointing, but it had its charm."

"Did you choreograph the chorus yourself? It fits the song perfectly."

He snagged 33 points with scores of 9, 8, 8, and 8.

Personally, I'm rooting for Go Tae-Hwan to join Team B and take the lead.

The introduction should be attention-grabbing right off the bat, and Go Tae-Hwan's got the chops for it.

Clear voice, but listen closely, and there's a hint of huskiness there.

Hmm, let's bump up that evaluation a bit.

I was mulling over that when Go Tae-Hwan dropped my name.

"So, was it Han Si-On who suggested the song choice?"

"Yeah, he helped me out a lot."

"How'd you end up getting help from him? He's a fellow contestant."

The cameras are on me now, so it looks like I'm in for a lengthy interview next.

I have to chat about my stage and how I picked <Flowers Bloom> and Go Tae-Hwan.

Well, it's not too bad.

I signed up for <Coming Up Next> to make a name for myself in the industry, after all.

The star of the 10th and final stage was undoubtedly the vocal powerhouse On Sae-Miro.

"Han Si-On was the first, and On Sae-Miro is the last."

"Is it a double crown?"

"I'd say so."

The judges inwardly felt On Sae-Miro had his spotlight stolen by Han Si-On.

He was a talent who would have received more praise if not for Han Si-On.

His vocal skills were genuinely good, and his looks were flawless.

If one had to nitpick, his skin tone was a bit tanned, perhaps from spending a lot of time outdoors.

"Honestly, On Sae-Miro is the one who fits better as the main vocalist of the boy group."

"Totally. While I can't say for sure about his personality yet, he doesn't come across as feminine at all."

In contrast, Han Si-On, on the other hand, gave off an oddly uncomfortable vibe.

He did not seem like someone who would listen well, yet the judges did not feel confident enough to firmly control him either.

It was not that he was being deliberately provocative or rebellious…

'He just has this subtle way of looking down on people, though he may not be conscious of it.'

That's BLUE's take, the mentor who had had the most chats with Han Si-On.

Still, all the judges knew one thing.

If they were running a talent agency and had a shot at signing Han Si-On?

They would definitely do it.

Even if it could be a bit of a risky move, they would want a sip of whatever he had.

That was how captivating Han Si-On's music was.

"But do we really need a rivalry within Team B?"

Choi Dae-Ho shook his head at Yoo Seon-Hwa's question.

"Let's hold off on directly comparing On Sae-Miro and Han Si-On for now. We're up against Take Scene, after all."

"They'll be aware of it even if we don't say anything. They might already be feeling the pressure."

"Alright. Let's leave it at that."

As the judges hashed out their critique strategy, On Sae-Miro took the stage.

"Hmm?"

The song choice was a bit unexpected.

<Toothbrush >.

A classic Korean rock ballad that ruled the early 2000s and even bagged a Grand Prize at the Korean Music Awards.

The representative song of Lee Hyun-Seok, who now runs LB Studio, was sent to the judges' tablets.

"He's going with this?"

It is a good song, and it is a song that has been loved by being constantly remade by junior singers.

On Sae-Miro would probably do it justice.

However…

"Is this really the right song choice?"

Definitely not.

After Han Si-On's powerhouse performance of <Under the Streetlight> in the pre-mission, doing a song in the same lane would be tough.

This is not necessarily saying that Han Si-On is better than On Sae-Miro.

On Sae-Miro's <Toothbrush > might be better than Han Si-On's <Toothbrush >.

However, it's not easy for On Sae-Miro's <Toothbrush > to beat Han Si-On's <Under the Streetlight>.

Because Han Si-On only sang the first verse.

Humans are animals that imagine the unseen parts in the most ideal form.

That is why people often look better when wearing masks – the covered parts are imagined perfectly.

In other words, On Sae-Miro was not actually fighting Han Si-On's <Under the Streetlight>.

She had to fight the vague feeling that she imagined after hearing Han Si-On's first verse, thinking, 'The rest will be like this.'

And if that verse had anything to go by, it was good enough for PD Kang Seok-woo to consider dropping the song right after the pre-mission.

'I'm interested in his fire for wanting to outshine Han Si-On…'

But it seemed like he had not thought that far yet.

"Contestant On Sae-Miro. Ready to go?"

"Yes."

"Let's listen to it."

On Sae-Miro's performance was solid.

He made good use of the charm of the song Toothbrush, and the high notes he hit in the highlight were quite good.

But that was all.

He did well, but he did not stand out in any particular way.

There was almost no choreography, and it was as if he was trying to show off his proper singing skills.

"The outstanding vocals weren't lacking, but the song choice left something to be desired."

"It's a point where he needs to ponder what kind of charm he has and how to properly showcase it."

"He sacrificed visual entertainment for the sake of singing. But he wasn't dominating with just his vocals alone."

He scored 8, 8, 8, 7 for a total of 31 points.

He was tied for third place with Go Tae-Hwan, who scored 33.

After the first mission of this competition, CEO Choi Dae-Ho had a bit of a gripe off the record.

He said the contestants didn't show enough fire or they wouldn't be able to go toe-to-toe with Team A.

But from what I've picked up from years of being around TV shoots, this is basically on the record, with the cameras pretending to be off.

Most of the cameras are off, sure, but the main camera catching contestants' reactions? It was still rolling.

And the words that Choi Dae-Ho's throwing around don't sound like they're meant to be slanderous.

If he really wanted to bash, he'd be dropping F-bombs left and right, maybe a 'Sucks' or 'Mother F' here and there…

Oops, Am I being a bit too American?

Anyway, I get CEO Choi Dae-Ho's intention.

I'm not a big idol expert myself, but the vibe from the contestants? It was kind of lackluster.

Go Tae-Hwan's the only one who had really shown what he's got so far.

Maybe this vibe's 50% my fault and 50% the wonky setup of the show.

<Coming Up Next> isn't your typical idol survival gig.

Other idol survival gigs slot contestants into a clear mold called 'idol' and judge them based on how well they fit.

Here. It's not an 'Alright, let's see what ya got.'

It's closer to 'This is the track that idols run on, so let's see how well they can run.'

But the <Coming Up Next> setup's a bit funky.

Take Scene has to debut, but Team B needs to shine brighter in terms of talent.

When picking Team B members, they leaned more toward musical prowess than just idol material.

I am the one who emphasized that focus.

And it seems like everyone, even On Sae-Miro, thought that my idea was the right one.

Perhaps if I had not been there, the overall stage would have had a different feel to it.

More like your typical idol showdown.

But…

"...."

It feels kind of unfair?

I joined <Coming Up Next> to learn the ropes of being an idol, but my presence seems to be changing things up.

Will it be different once Team B is finalized?

While I'm pondering this, filming shifts back to an "on the record" setting.

BLUE, stepping up the stage to keep things moving, starts talking.

"Do you ever wonder where the word 낙점 (nakjeom – select) of 낙점 받는다 (nakjeom padneunda) (to be selected) comes from?"

I know how it's used, but its origin? Nope, clueless.

Guess it's because I'm a pretty old-fashioned American.

"It dates back to the Joseon Dynasty when the king would put a 낙점 (nakjeom) on the name of a high-ranking official when choosing them."

So, it means that the judges had "nakjeomed" the participants' names, huh?

Get 4 nakjeoms, you're in?

Or is it 8 because there are two stages?

BLUE clarifies it's the former.

"In other words, if you get 4 nakjeoms across two stages, you're in."

It's a pretty generous system.

A participant who only gets nakjeomed by BLUE and Seon-Hwa in the first stage can still pass by getting nakjeomed by Choe Dae-ho and Lee Chang-jun in the second stage.

Not sure why they specifically used the term "nakjeom" though.

Wouldn't "get a pass" sound better?

Besides, this seems like a hastily made rule.

If it was official, they wouldn't be sweating the scores so much, right?

Questions start flying as soon as BLUE finishes up.

"Can a judge give two nakjeoms? Because there are two stages."

"No. One mark per judge and per person."

"What happens if there are more than five people with 4 nakjeoms?"

"We'll talk it out. We might need an extra round. But if you get 4 in the first stage, you're in, no questions asked."

So, if you ace the first stage, you will pass unconditionally.

Me? I'm set, and Go Tae-Hwan's got a shot, too.

Oh, and if looks count, Lee Ye-On might sneak in, too.

His stage wasn't bad.

His voice's a tough fit for a group, but his individual stage was worth watching.

"Now, onto finalizing the teams for the second mission."

The team composition is simple.

The top two, the next two, the middle two, the penultimate two, and the last two would play rock-paper-scissors, with the winners forming one team and the defeated in the other.

I thought they would play a mini-game to fill up the broadcast time. It's that straightforward.

And turns out I, sitting pretty in first with 39 points, have to face rock-paper-scissors with Go Tae-Hwan, in second with 33.

The result...

Winning group:

Han Si-On, On Sae-Miro, Choi Jae-Seong, Kim Seong-Woo, Sim Ju-Wan.

Losing group:

Go Tae-Hwan, Lee Ye-On, Kim Hae-Un, Nam Seong-Il, Park Seong-Joo.

The composition turns out to be very awkward.

"Any swaps? We're looking a bit rap-heavy on the losing side…"

As someone pointed out, there are too many rappers on the losing team.

Out of 10, we got three: Kim Hae-Un, Nam Seong-Il, and Park Seong-Joo.

And all of them were on the losing side.

Even Go Tae-Hwan, a vocalist, was spitting rhymes at near rap speed in his first stage.

Judges exchanged opinions and decided against any swaps.

It's an unexpected situation, but it looks like it'll make for an interesting test run.

"For the second mission, you'll be covering songs from senior boy groups. However, this time, the choreography score will be scored separately, so please pay attention to your song selection."

The theme of the second mission is about covering songs.

TL/n - 

You can read 5 chapters in advance on p@treon.com/inkbound