Chapter 97

Several days passed, and at last, the long-awaited final competition began.

<Debut Chart! 100> was burning its brightest in the final stretch of the audition program.

From early in the morning, the area around the indoor arena hosting the last competition was packed with people. Fans who had fought through fierce competition to secure audience tickets clutched their support slogans tightly as they filed into the venue.

In the section reserved for industry guests sat the CEO of K-■■ ■■■■, the startup that had found success through a real-time streaming platform.

The program’s investors were seated around him. They had come to watch in person after being persuaded by CEO Kwon ■■ of K-■■ ■■■■.

At the news that so many major players had shown up at once, the producer rushed out of the monitor room in alarm.

“I hope that, given how successful this program has been, we’ll see a good competition all the way to the end.”

“...Ha ha.... Of course. Well, then, enjoy the show....”

After exchanging greetings, the producer retreated, drenched in cold sweat.

Meanwhile, backstage, where there was hardly a single person who wasn’t rushing around—

three people strolled along at an utterly leisurely pace, as if they belonged in an entirely different picture.

“It’s nice that the final result is based one hundred percent on votes. Judging every single performance was weighing on me more than I expected.”

One of the judges, a choreographer, sighed and waved a hand dismissively. Yunjin and Big Room, two other judges, walked on either side of her.

“I know, right? And thanks to that, we even have time for things like this.”

The three of them made the rounds of the tallying room and editing room together.

“Good to see you. There are so many more people working hard behind the scenes for our Debut Chart than anyone ever sees, and it’s a shame they don’t get much of the spotlight. Everyone, have a coffee. Here, here.”

“Ah, yes. Th-thank you.... But you’re not supposed to come in here....”

“Oh, is this the tallying program? Fascinating. Domestic votes are seventy percent and overseas votes are thirty percent, right? Come on, we’ve made it this far together. What could you possibly have to hide from us?”

“.......”

“The producer agrees, don’t you?”

Snap.

Yunjin asked playfully as he snapped his fingers.

The producer, who had been glaring sideways at the uninvited guests, suddenly went slack-eyed.

“Uh... yes....”

Yunjin watched him coldly, then walked over to the monitors.

“What you’ve done is going to cause too much fallout to be covered up anyway, so at least here, let’s watch over the kids who’ve worked their asses off all the way to the end.”

With all three judges planted behind them, there was simply no way anyone could tamper with the vote totals.

And with even the producer, the person who should have been giving orders, remaining silent, the staff could do nothing but glance around nervously and stare at the monitors.

Even before the performances began, the introductions of the twenty trainees who had survived to the final had already brought in five hundred thousand votes.

“Th-the ratings just passed three percent.”

In the age of streaming, the number was nothing short of miraculous.

“Wow, looks like the kids are about to start.”

“Can we watch quietly?”

Big Room, whose attachment to the trainees had grown accordingly, focused intently on the screen. Behind him, Yunjin smiled softly as he watched the youngest member on the monitor.

***

A long spotlight fell across the center of the stage.

The first performance of the final.

Standing in the middle was one of the highest-ranking trainees, Baek Hanje.

—The days I ran without knowing where they’d end

A timeline drawn with millions of steps

The opening line began without an instrumental intro.

The main vocalist’s skill asserted itself with a heavy presence, drawing every eye in the audience toward the stage.

—The night of our final choice

Now it’s our area—!

In an instant, the voice shifted tone, turning into a bright shout that announced the start of the rapid beat.

“Aaaaaah! Baby master vocalist, debut right fucking now!!!”

“Baek Hanje, you insane bastard!!! You could get even better than that?!!”

Two Hanje fans who had met through <Debut Chart> but had become close in no time at all, as if they had been married in a past life, screamed together.

A rapid rap section followed.

This was the final competition, the moment that would decide who debuted, so the tension below the stage was fierce as well. Fans whose picks belonged to other teams sometimes stood completely still and refused to make a sound.

But the voices supporting a group packed with top-ranked trainees were more than enough to drown out any negative reaction.

“...Yeah, Baek Hanje has to be in there as the main vocalist. And if they’ve got a member who can produce, the album quality will go up too....”

A fan whose pick was Choi Songhyun, a dance-position trainee on another team, reluctantly nodded. Even then, their eyes never left the stage.

The song, its heat climbing until it felt ready to explode, reached the first chorus.

The four members split left and right, and Gowon, who had been standing toward the back of the formation, moved forward.

He stared sharply into the camera that had come right up to him and parted his red lips.

—We hit the PEAK

His low voice struck down like black lightning.

Then a difficult synchronized dance sequence began with Gowon at its center.

Watching this part, practically the highlight of the entire song, everyone could understand why Gowon had won the center position.

Amid the stunned cheers of Gowon’s fans, someone muttered blankly,

“Holy shit.... He’s possessed. Completely possessed....”

Who would believe he started out stiff as a board and got a C grade?

Maybe he had met the god of K-pop somewhere along the way during <Debut Chart>, because the unaffiliated trainee who had once ranked near the bottom was now giving a performance that left people staring with their mouths hanging open.

Plausibility has increased.

Current Plausibility: 84% (▲3)

He sharply dropped his center of gravity through his upper body, froze for a split second—

—Uh, We hit the PEAK

then immediately twisted into a jump. Footwork followed, so precise it seemed to divide the beat into milliseconds, and without even a chance to breathe, he dropped one hand to the floor and launched into floor choreography.

Everyone else was throwing everything they had into the violent choreography too, but the one who stood out beyond question was Gowon.

As if he alone had strapped an oxygen tank to his back, he fitted his long arms and legs into the song without a moment’s hesitation.

Plausibility has increased. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

Current Plausibility: 89% (▲5)

...Wow.

Even without the system alerts going off excitedly in the middle of the performance, Baek Hanje would have had no choice but to swallow a disbelieving laugh.

This bastard looks like he’s dancing better than he did at the DEEP showcase.

Maybe it only felt more overwhelming because I knew firsthand how difficult the choreography was.

—A nameless voice that used to sing of dreams

Now I know

As I sang the bridge, the other four members shifted along their routes.

—That distant stage is right before my eyes

When I, standing at the very front, turned around, the formation became a pentagon facing inward.

—Finally, what brought me all the way here—

In the instant before the next line, my eyes met Gowon’s across the formation.

All five members stretched their hands forward as though pointing at themselves in a mirror.

—It was you— Ah—

I saw that Gowon’s fingertips and gaze were aimed directly at me.

The final syllable of the bridge flowed into the ad-lib of the final chorus.

Gowon walked past me, close enough to brush by.

Then came another burst of dizzyingly difficult synchronized choreography.

Plausibility has increased.

Current Plausibility: 95% (▲6)

There wasn’t even enough room in my head to think about being out of breath.

Apparently I wasn’t the only one fired up by Gowon, because even the guys who usually started dragging toward the latter half were moving desperately.

Even Jung Garam, who had been practicing with only moderate effort as though his debut were already guaranteed, looked rattled as he panted his way through the choreography.

—We hit the PEAK

The killing part at the song’s climax belonged to Jung Garam.

But his breathless voice, half cracking from exhaustion, made the contrast with Gowon painfully obvious.

—You bring me to the PEAK

The performance ended as all five of us turned toward the fan section at once.

The music thundering through the speakers cut off, and a brief silence descended.

Then cheers exploded, shaking the entire venue.

As the lights that had been flashing nonstop above our heads dimmed, I found myself facing an audience whose expressions were tangled with shock, emotion, and exhilaration.

I put off even catching the breath that had risen so violently it felt like I might throw up and waved toward the audience.

When the five of us finally got backstage, we collapsed onto the floor almost in unison.

I went over to Gowon, who could barely lift his head, and whispered low enough that only he could hear.

“You fucking lunatic. What are you going to do about the position-based performance...?”

Gowon coughed for a long time before he could answer, then slowly looked up at me.

“I can... do it.”

“.......”

“Watch me.”

That declaration was proven perfectly when Gowon stepped onto the next stage.

Nine trainees specializing in dance took part in the performance.

Jung Garam, who had ranked first at the last ranking announcement, was among them.

Including him, every single one of them approached it with the desperation of knowing this was their last chance.

And yet—

“...Ha.”

Gowon, in the dance-position performance, looked as though he were speaking directly to me.

This is what my own senior taught me, right?

He swallowed the entire stage by himself.

No matter where he stood in the formation, he stole the viewer’s gaze.

Plausibility has increased.

Current Plausibility: 97% (▲2)

Gowon

Has fully adapted to his current body.

Dance Lv. 147

Gowon

Dance Lv. MAX (▲3)

...He’s good.

Quest window, surely at this point you could tell him his training is over, couldn’t you? Even without me paving a flower road for him, he’s marching forward planting flowers under his own feet.

Plausibility has increased.

Current Plausibility: 98% (▲1)

Still... if I ignore your fucking threats, I kind of want to see how much further I could raise him.

How far would he reach on the next album?

And the one after that?

All the more because I couldn’t estimate his ceiling at all.

Plausibility has increased.

Current Plausibility: 99% (▲1)

He realizes his own potential.

Desire breaks through the limit.

“......!”

Desire breaks through the limit.

It was a line from Gowon’s debut song, <Unlimited(∞)>.