The actor-host Lee, whom the boys had not seen for a week, appeared again in a black tuxedo. Everyone clapped when they saw the cameras flashing in their direction. Yet, as Lee Soo-Hyuk read the texts on the screen before him for the mandatory mission introduction, Juwon discreetly giggled and elbowed Jun. Then, he offered no explanation when the latter glanced at him with one brow raised.
The mildly annoyed Jun mouthed to him, 'Quiet.'
In front, the emcee switched spots on the stage and continued reading his lines, "Today marks the last mission before the first elimination of Best of Idols: twenty-four dreamers, twenty-four talented boys. However, only twelve will get to stay for Part 2 of our show. Now allow me to announce two things before we officially start the performances of the Inhabitants and the Landers."
At this moment, the double doors of the room opened, revealing the Barren Landers, who came in one by one. Some looked quite shy and conscious of people's stares. But almost all of them waved at Jun before taking the seats several meters behind the Inhabitants. They also separated into two teams, similar to the ones from the Greenhouse.
The handsome emcee smiled. Looking at the camera to his right side, he said, "First, like I already said a week ago, the losing Greenhouse team would move to the Barren Land, while the members of the winning Lander team would become Inhabitants. However, today, we will also determine who will stay for Part 2."
Many contestants swallowed when Lee Soo-Hyuk emphasized that only twelve people would remain.
The emcee added, "There are only twelve slots, and today, our judges, your mentors, will choose six. The judges will only pick from the Greenhouse Inhabitants, in other words, from the winning teams today. That is how important the current mission is."
Varying reactions immediately echoed from the contestants' side.
Kato shook his head once and bowed, looking lost in his thoughts.
Jun's teammates were also silent.
Seong-hun quietly and softly asked, "Did I understand it correctly? We are fighting to remain in the Greenhouse, but winning the fourth mission does not guarantee a pass to Part 2."
Jun sighed and nodded. "We need to win the six-man team battle to be one of the Greenhouse Inhabitants on the judges' list. Then, after that, we would still be competing for slots against the winners from the Barren Land."
Jun paused to catch his breath before he described a scenario, "Let's say our team won. Even if we are from the Greenhouse, it's not guaranteed that the judges will only choose us since there would surely be excellent performers today among the Barren Landers. The judges might choose them over us if they impressed the judges more. Or maybe today's performance would not be the only criteria, but the growth we showed through our previous stages."
"What to do? I suddenly become more nervous." Seong-hun's voice trailed off.
Juwon creased his forehead. "What if we lost?"
Jun knew the answer, but he could not respond, or some people would think he had an insider connection. He did not want anybody to know his secret, and he would hate it if unnecessary and fake rumors began circulating.
Lee Soo-Hyuk held the cue card with one hand. "I think I heard someone ask, 'What if we lost?' Good question. But if you remember, I told you all that the judges will only choose six. You must be wanting to ask, how about the remaining six? How do we select the last six? Well, actually, it would be, of course, up to the audience to decide. This is the second thing I want to tell you, guys."
Lee Soo-Hyuk roamed his gaze and flashed a mysterious smile before raising a hand and dramatically flicking a finger.
Lights went out for nearly three seconds, surprising and scaring some contestants.
"An idol is like a star in the night sky. However, have you ever wondered how the stars of BOI are born?" The emcee paused, once again grinning mischievously. "Let me show you the answer real quick, my dear Inhabitants and Landers."
The floor-to-ceiling screen behind him lit up, briefly displaying a TV static animation. After that, the in-door stage, located on another floor of the Greenhouse, was revealed. It was a vast raised platform with moving headlights already flashing across it. Below it was a dark space, which the contestants thought to be empty until cheers burst out and shocked them.
A second later, the place lit up brightly to show the nearly three hundred people screaming and shrieking below the stage while holding placards and phones. They all wore masks and face shields and kept a meter distance from each other.
"Oh my god," exclaimed Hyeon-ju as he covered his mouth.
Like him, the others widened their eyes. Among them, Jun appeared the most surprised. A curse word subconsciously flickered in his mind, "Dang."
In this mission, the program team shocked them with a live audience. Some were thrilled and happy about the prospect of performing in front of other people. Some were nervous. However, while some worried about performing live without mental preparation, Jun instinctively imagined the possible reactions of the netizens and viewers to the program team's move.
The pandemic situation was still unclear outside, and he did not know if it was safe for people to form crowds. BOI participants were okay since they were quarantined for a month before being transferred to their current location for the official filming of the survival show. Even now, they are isolated from the rest of the world. But what about these people? Did they go through the same tedious process just to attend today's live show? He doubted it.
'I probably have to pray hard later for no health-related issue to arise after this.' Jun really felt nervous and worried. His heart could not calm down.
Finally, the emcee signalled the start of the battle.
"Landers of Team 'Hunger,' I hope you are ready."
The screen showed the faces of Hanada and his teammates. They had just barely recovered from the stupor when the emcee called them.
"Please enter the elevator that will bring you to the stage."