The Malicious Member Has Returned! Episode 20
What does the public gaze mean to an idol.
If I were to speak through the mouth of someone called the worst malicious member in idol history.
[Shooting Rex @Shooting_REX (Photo) (Photo) 2X0924 On the way to Mude Rex♡ Rex, hwaiting today too! You look a bit thin so I'm worried ㅠ]
[⎿RexTrashIfYouHaveConscienceLeave @GEQOIUEPQET Dangg, are you saying you'd support RexTrash even if he leaves? As expected, the devoted fan of a problematic member is on another level lol ffs you're on the level of a mom shielding him saying he's skinny even though he's gained weight from drinking ㅠ]
It is a blessing and a curse simultaneously.
Without it, one cannot be called an idol. However, the moment that trajectory skews off course, there is no turning back. The deluge of hate comments aimed at me served as a clear example.
So, what I'm trying to say is….
"Anyway, our real reactions will start coming in once the broadcast begins, so don't cry. Ryota."
"G-guhh… Chunyong aniki…."
"It's not aniki, it's hyung."
"Krk, p-pronunciation is difficult…."
I patted the back of Ryota, who was buried face-first in the dorm bed sobbing his eyes out, and chose words that might help him calm down.
"It's okay if your rank is low right now. The real ranking starts from the next competition, so think about it. From now on, you only have room to go up. Hmm? Stop crying, stop."
"That's right, Ryota. Look at me. At this rate, only debuting alongside first place awaits you at the final competition."
Gao Yan, who had spectacularly fallen at 16th place and made a brilliant resurrection as an influencer, chimed in.
"That's right, Ryota. We all know that you're a good and cool person. You must always love yourself."
"Labu… love?"
"That's right. Love yourself, Ryota!"
"Yes. Loving yourself is important, Ryota."
"Ryota!"
"Ryota!"
"Gao Yan, Logan! Love!"
I watched my multinational roommates hug each other and shout love with slightly jaded eyes, then quietly moved to the bathroom.
Because cameras were rolling everywhere in the room, there was nowhere to have a moment to myself.
*Click—* The bathroom door closed, and I took out my warm phone from my pocket and checked the messages filling the notification window.
[Sudden Mission Success!
Congratulations on achieving 1st place in the team rankings in the first competition! (Fanfare) (Fanfare) Let's use this experience as a stepping stone to move forward one step at a time!
Mission Reward: Skill Selection Ticket (F) ▷ Select Skill!]
First, I pressed the reward section at the bottom of the notification window announcing the mission success. It wasn't in my nature to just leave something they were giving me untouched.
I had already benefited from the skill
Back when I was living carelessly, I used to quite like mobile games.
Soon, a crude gift box shape appeared on the screen, trembled with a rattle, and then the ribbon untied itself. Then, silver effects poured out from the box lid.
[Skill Selection ▷ ○ Vocal ○ Rap ○ Dance ○ Visual ○ Charm]
Unlike the previous sentence-type skills, this time a single column made up of short words appeared. The moment I saw it, I realized I would choose one of them to obtain a related skill.
"So, since live audience members are coming for the first time to the next competition…."
This must be important.
After a moment of deliberation, just as I selected one and before the skill window could even appear, X's messages that had been backed up until now came flooding in.
- X: Hey, hey, the preview comes out in 5 minutes, right?
- X: Daebak lololol Kim Chunyong's idol life is starting again ><
- X: Until now you've just seemed like? A sensitive and somewhat dim contractor? You'll look a bit different once the preview comes out, right?
- X: Are you a bit confident you won't get hate comments this time? You'll probably get fewer than before, right?
*Pffft! Khk, keohek….*
- Chunyong hyung? Are you okay? Is your stomach very upset?
"Yeah! Yeah. I'm fine. I'm fine. It's nothing."
At X's utterly unlike-him message, I burst out laughing before I knew it.
"Fewer than before? Hate comments?"
I quickly reassured my roommates who were worried about me outside, then replied to X with a hollow laugh.
- Kim Chunyong: Even if I collapse on the survival stage right now and roll around saying I can't go on, I won't get cursed out as much as before;; Just what do you take the malicious member who defined an era for.
If I tried to recall all the atrocities I had committed before, I couldn't count them on my fingers.
Dating rumors, alcohol, discord with members, discord with the agency, falling out with the variety show PD so our team couldn't appear on variety shows at all, throwing up on stage, lying passed out in front of the broadcasting station while drunk. And finally, at the last moment, even an emergency arrest.…
Though I regret every single one of them.
"Kim Chunyong, you crazy bastard, just why did you do all that, seriously…."
Just as I once again clutched my head in guilt and scrunched up my face.
Finally, the first teaser for
* * *
In the bustling academy district right after school, and among them, an art academy teeming with students in the fine arts preparatory class.
"Nari, did you see this?"
Kim Chunyong's younger sister, Kim Nari, sat there, letting the fuss her friend was making beside her go in one ear and out the other.
'Ah, I should eat tteokbokki before going home later. With extra fish cakes and tempura, two servings. No. That might not be enough. I need to add more tempura to get the right amount.'
Well, while thinking such thoughts.
Nari's friend, Choi Seoyun, grabbed Nari's art sleeve tightly and spoke in an excited voice.
"Hey, hey. Kim Nari. I'm telling you to look at this. Please! I'll make a wish. Just look once."
"What is it, why do you keep doing that?"
"You know that article about doing an idol survival show before? The preview just came out."
"Ah…?"
Kim Nari realized that the video Seoyun was thrusting at her was the preview for the survival program her older brother, Kim Chunyong, appeared in.
"…Let me see it."
"Huh, last time you said the AG non-public trainee's face was just so-so, so why are you looking at this so obediently? Be honest. You're a bit interested, aren't you."
'No, I'm usually not interested, but it's not anything else, it's my family appearing….'
Instead of bothering to say "My brother is in this," Nari simply chose to hook her arm through her friend's and bury her face in the screen.
In the center of the palm-sized phone screen appeared Choi Gaon, the MC of this season's
"Why is Choi Gaon coming out first and not the trainees?"
"They need to catch people's attention with a hot guy like this first so that fans of other idols will take a look, right?"
"Mmm…."
Solo singer Choi Gaon was Kim Bomi's favorite singer.
Something about being a breadwinner who succeeded as a soloist at a young age.
'He is handsome. No wonder my sister likes him.'
On screen, Choi Gaon held something like a crossbow and fired it *twang* toward the viewers beyond the screen.
- "Shoot for the dream called debut!"
Along with Choi Gaon's narration, the logo for
"Hey, Choi Seoyun. This is a bit cheesy. Is it always like this?"
"Later, all sorts of people will be bawling their eyes out watching this, so feel free to mock it as much as you want now."
As the two held onto one phone and chattered, subtitles flowed out within motion graphics that the production team had poured their souls into making.
- Ah, Star Shooters, the moment you've been waiting and waiting for— ☆★ Male Idol ★☆ Survival Targeting Star
- Just who are we
- Without buzz, we're corpses ✓ Music Days ✓
- Shall we check the faces of our carefully selected ♡trainees♡ first?
- Then immediately!
Sta! Start▷ GO GO//
After the frenzied subtitles, the trainees' faces quickly flashed past. It seemed like they didn't even spare 0.2 seconds per person.
"Wh-what? How are we supposed to see anything like this?"
"It's okay. There's a way to see them all later."
While Kim Nari, who wasn't used to this kind of directing, was exasperated, the video continued rapidly.
- "Did. You. Miss. Him in this world?"
- "Then as expected? Shouldn't we hear the impressions of those who already saw them first?"
Then Moon Yunha appeared sitting at the mentor seat and spoke with a listless face.
- "He's so-so. Not my type? That nose, I don't like the nose…."
- …We will have a brief screen adjustment (^0^;;//
This time, there wasn't even time to call it absurd. The screen glitched once more, and then Na Jihyeok and Min Siyoung were revealed evaluating with serious faces.
- "As expected of AG. The trainee level is on another level."
- "There's nothing to nitpick. If I had to point something out, his pronunciation. Well, that'll improve gradually."
And then some trainee's smiling lower face, or a slight eye smile, flashed by—
- "……."
- (Judge Jin Dasol is currently in awe.)
- "……."
- (Judge Jin Dasol is currently in a slightly displeased state.)
Jin Dasol appeared maintaining a deadpan expression, and a close-up cut of trainees' feet practicing like crazy appeared.
- Our star babies are still. Practicing. Right. Now. Until their toe fingerprints wear off…… (Tears) (Tears)
- "You can't help! But cheer for them, right? Episode 1, soon to be released! You can't miss it, right?"
"Hey, they tell us to cheer for them without even showing us the faces properly, are these guys crazy?"
- But ㅠ because Episode 1's editing isn't fully prepared yet ㅠ
- We'll soon meet you with the ♡ 2nd teaser ♡ and our star babies' ♡ original song video ♡!
The video seemed to end with those frenzied subtitles, but suddenly one more cut of Moon Yunha appeared.
- "Isn't the name a bit tacky?"
- ;;; The real end!
Kim Nari opened her mouth at the video that had passed like a storm, trying to understand what she had just watched.
So, I think they were telling us to watch episode 1, but….
'I don't know why they said the name was tacky at the end, but it seems like my brother….'
While Nari was agonizing like that, Seoyun was already quickly entering a community on her phone.
That was exactly the reason she had told Nari it was okay that they couldn't see all the faces right now.
Because, after all.
[Summary Post of Key AG Survival Trainees from Today]
[AG Male Idol Survival 1st Teaser 47.5-Second Man Visual Level.jpg]
[Found out who the guy with only the eye smile was, former Queen's debut team eliminated member]
[AG Hardware Store @HARDWARE_store (Photo) (Photo) Promoting the legendary 47.5-second man ♡Son Jaeha♡ Now, while it's still a wasteland, is the perfect time]
[It's Siwoo @singsingull_ll11 Our Siwoo is finally revealed ㅠ Don't forget noona is always cheering for you, let's debut for sure♡]
Because internet ghosts sorted it all out and uploaded it the moment it was released.
Seoyun smiled and pressed her phone into the still-flustered Nari's hand.
"This is all you need to see, mortal."
"Huh?"
"Hurry up and look. The head instructor will be here in five minutes. They said they'd critique our sketches today."
Nari quickly checked the phone screen at Seoyun's urging.
She had no real interest in idols; she had only watched the preview a bit because her brother was in it.
'To think I'd get swept up in this in an instant. I definitely need to buy tteokbokki on the way home.'
Yet even as she thought that, her eyes quickly began reading the post.
[Title: Summary Post of Key AG Survival Trainees from Today]
Author: Anonymous
Views: 23,058 (HOT!)
The person writing this post has watched all idol survival shows produced by Mude.
So I'll check the pushed members, promising members, and filler members by associating them with other survival teasers released so far.
The words of the author Anonymous were sharp from the very beginning.