'Revival?'
The confetti gradually faded from the phone's screen. His hand trembled slightly at the thought of that word.
'Can I still go back?'
A series of images flashed through Rayen's mind, making him reminisce about the times when he was still at the peak of his career. Concerts, radio guest appearances, hearing their song nonstop just by walking down an unknown street, fans cheering for him—everything. It was exhausting, but he felt proud of those achievements.
Now, those were things of the past.
He exhaled a sigh and proceeded to read Plotter's next line of dialogue.
"This was an idea that my physical incarnation brought forth. Isn't it good?"
Plotter's character puffed out his chest, its face telling Rayen to praise it. For a moment, Rayen wanted to agree with him and thought he was somewhat cute.
'It was a brilliant idea. Thank you!'
"So in this project, my physical incarnation came up with a way to revive a seed and intertwine their fates back with the world without interfering too much with the tapestry of fate and causing chaos—that is, to be remembered by people."
Rayen intently read every word that appeared one by one from Plotter's dialogue box. His hands, slightly damp as his excitement gradually grew, tapped the screen. He was eager to learn more about this really brilliant idea.
"We must follow the rules or the world will be in chaos. Oh, there was actually an accident once when fate wasn't followed. Hehe, guess... Do you think it ended well?"
Rayen didn't know the answer, and honestly, he didn't care. But considering what had happened back then might be relevant to what was about to happen to them, his curiosity grew. Yet, Plotter seemed to have other ideas. When Rayen tapped the Next button to learn the answer, Plotter's response did not follow up on the question.
'Never mind, this guy is still annoying.'
"As seeds who are no longer part of this world's fate, you have a very big problem! It's your existence!"
Plotter's character suddenly faded, reappearing next to a series of numbers above the flowerpot icon. The entire screen dimmed, leaving only the numbers highlighted, along with a label indicating what they were for.
[Time Remaining: 10:33:54]
"See this?" Plotter pointed towards the numbers that kept changing every second. "This is the time remaining before you completely disappear."
Rayen's eyes quivered as he read Plotter's words, his mind nearly freezing in thought. He only had this little bit of time.
"You might become anxious after learning about this, so I won't waste more of your time."
The screen lit up again, no longer highlighting the numbers, but Rayen still ultimately stared at them as if they were the only thing on the screen.
"Don't worry. Before your time runs out, the audition will commence for Project Idol:Revive. You could check the clock in your waiting room for the exact time of the audition."
Rayen stared at the words, a complicated feeling settling over him. It felt unfair—the brutality of it, and the fact that not everyone could join. Just as everyone was given a second chance at life, it would abruptly end with an audition that they weren't even prepared for.
Well, that's also the nature of chances. If someone failed to grasp it, that just mean it wasn't for them.
He tapped the Next button, and Plotter's voice, coming through the phone's speaker, momentarily shed its usual playfulness.
"You might be thinking that this is cruel and unfair. Why have an audition? What about the people who have no skills for this? Why not just let everyone join and be revived?"
His words were spot on. Rayen did think that way, but he still tapped the next button, keeping his expression calm.
"Your current existence and awareness after death came at a great cost. Certain special individuals who wished for your revival sacrificed a span of their lives to keep you here. But you see, you were only given a few bits of hours."
Rayen slowly shifted his gaze towards the Plotter character that uttered these words. He recalled its physical incarnation, whom he communicated with during the interview.
At one point, he had thought that Plotter was just a stalker fan, especially after he'd jumped happily when Rayen mentioned remembering their meeting. In a strange place, a strange situation, everyone felt suspicious. He couldn't help it.
So, was Plotter the one who wished for his revival?
"It's inevitable," Plotter continued. "After all, you were supposed to be dead. My physical incarnation and those special individuals are already defying fate by doing this. Some of them couldn't shoulder everything for you, even if they were willing to. This audition is necessary for you to extend your remaining time by finding another sponsor willing to invest in you."
Rayen felt that Plotter's words finally made sense. He let out a sigh and leaned on the couch, staring up at the ceiling.
The emotions whirling in his chest were too complicated. Together with the gratefulness for the person who gave him a second chance at life, there was a deep sense of dread about the upcoming audition.
Would he be able to pass and find another sponsor? He didn't want to shamelessly squander the mere ten hours that had been given to him.
After a few moments of silence, Rayen continued with the tutorial.
"The purpose of Project Idol:Revive is for you to be a part of ordinary people's fate. A censored airing of the show will be broadcast worldwide. Through the show, you could leave a mark and occupy a small space in multiple Life Books without affecting their lifespan. The more people who remember you, the more stable your existence would be. Before that, you can only rely on your sponsors."
Just when Rayen thought the discussion was over, another dialogue screen appeared.
"You might also be wondering why this project is about idols."
The animation let out a mischievous laugh.
"Because I want to."
Feeling a bit aggrieved at the mercy of this person with supernatural ability, Rayen couldn't really fathom this individual's attitude. Sometimes, they felt sympathetic. Sometimes, they acted cruel...
Another laugh pulled Rayen from his thoughts.
"Just kidding," the character said.
Okay, right now, Rayen was sure that this person just loved messing with others.
"It's just one of the reasons," it continued explaining. "The way idols were cultivated was certainly admirable. And I thought it could also be an appropriate way to raise you, Seeds. As I said, what you need right now is to be remembered by people; being an idol is just one of the steps. So, if you can't even pass the audition, then you're not worth remembering."
The dialogue screen finally reached its end. When Rayen tapped the button to return to the questions screen, his shoulders felt so heavy from the overwhelming sense of Plotter's words.
'If I fail, then I'm not even worth remembering?'
Rayen wanted to laugh. In his past life, he was a famous band vocalist.
He didn't know if that special person who gave him the second chance was really Plotter. Sure, he felt immensely grateful that someone wished he wasn't dead, but that same person also said that if he failed a certain dubious audition, then he wasn't worth it.
'Ah... I feel offended!'