Chapter 16
After finishing our introductions, we waited for the opposing team to come in.
How long will it take for the empty spots on the other side of the blue team to be filled?
I imagined trainees somewhere clutching their heads in despair.
'It's obvious that they'll gather the kicked out cells in one place and then send them to empty waiting rooms based on their average rank.'
Even in the midst of the initial shock, the choices overlap on the second attempt.
If they get kicked out there again.... the production team will just make the picture they want in 4K quality.
If you look at it this way, there is a good chance that our competing team will be rather low-ranked.
It's fortunate that we avoided the top-tier trainees who had risk factors.
Instead, another challenge has arisen.
'Since our team is not lower than Tier 2, we need to create a stage that objectively proves our skills so that the viewers will be satisfied. Of course, we need to win.'
As I thought about that, I quietly thought back to the lucky draw coins I had been saving up.
I have a feeling that I will be able to use it soon.
As I was gathering my thoughts with a serious expression on my face, someone's hand suddenly appeared next to me.
"Excuse me, excuse me. This is delicious. Would you like some?"
His pronunciation isn't perfect, but he is still pretty fluent in Korean.
I looked at the chocolates stacked in fancy packaging.
The Japanese text written on the outside is impressive.
"I just felt like I was dropping a little sugar, so I'll eat it gratefully."
"What! Thank you for accepting."
Ken Hashimoto nodded his head and smiled faintly.
That puppy-like face was smiling so broadly that I wanted to pet it.
"Ac, actually. I wanted to be friends with you from the moment I first saw you, Mr. Karis."
"It's an honor to hear that."
"I wanted to approach you during the practice session too... but I lacked the courage."
I savored the taste of the chocolate Ken handed me as I put it in my mouth.
The rich taste of dark chocolate spread throughout my mouth, making me feel good.
Perhaps because of that influence, the princely habit built into me started to struggle violently.
"Don't worry. Now that we're a team, let's create a destructive stage together."
"Of, of course! I like destructive stages!"
Before I knew it, I was patting Ken Hashimoto on the shoulder and saying these trustworthy words.
Since the cameras were constantly rolling inside the waiting room, our conversation must have been captured as well.
It looks like it was stuffed, without a doubt.
"Sehan hyung expected it. Karis nim would choose this song."
"Me?
"Yes! No one can sing this song as well as Karis nim! He said. That's why he explained that it would be great if we could perform together on stage this time."
I quickly turned my head and looked at Park Se-han.
He seemed to be listening to Ken, and he returned the sly smile.
'... I wonder if I was really being stalked.'
Did you subconsciously recognize the potential that Karis von Walden possessed?
Because you need to form the best possible team in the first team match, which is also called the watershed of voting.
It seems like Park Se-han wanted to catch me no matter what.
'Your head may be working well, but unfortunately your fate has already been decided.'
I almost shook my head at Park Se-han, but I barely held myself back.
After waiting for so long and getting bored, the door to the
"Omg."
"...Wow."
"What should we do?"
From the moment they grabbed the doorknob, they were quite the gloomy guys.
As soon as they saw our faces, they sighed as if the ground were sinking.
Judging from the color of their training suits, there seemed to be a lot of Tier 3 and 4 trainees.
It was exactly as I expected, with rejections here and there before they got here.
"I look forward to...."
"Please take good care of us! Let's create a great stage!"
"Yes...."
Kang Si-yoon tried to welcome them cheerfully, but it only served to further highlight the different atmospheres between the two teams.
Whether he was aware of it or not, Kang Si-yoon kept his mouth shut until the production team made an announcement.
"All preparations for
"Yes-!"
We gathered again in the auditorium.
Everyone answered Choi Sia's obvious question with all their might, but the young boys' feelings were clearly expressed in their facial expressions.
"The preparation period until the first team match is one week. After practicing hard for a week, you will be able to beautifully decorate the first competition stage in front of the national managers who will visit the site. I wish all the trainees the best of luck!"
The
But the moment we saw the sign guarding the entrance, the trainees' expressions hardened.
[
Since a practice room for each song will be used, both teams end up using the same practice room.
I knew the rules, so I was indifferent, but the two quick-witted people circled around and started talking in low voices.
"You guys, you know we can't let our editing get weird, right?"
"When we practice together as a group, let's not even look at them, because we might end up being compared strangely to the opposing team. Okay, everyone?"
"Oh, I understand."
What Kang Si-yoon and Park Se-han expected would have been the same.
When two teams with a clear difference in skill level practice the same song, comparative editing becomes possible naturally.
If a team that is doing well here inadvertently says something with the nuance of 'we are much better'.
The devil's edit that the production team had been rubbing their hands waiting for was created in the blink of an eye.
Those who haven't even fought yet are being so arrogant.
Even though they couldn't play fair with each other, they sat down and evaluated other trainees.
These were two guys who thoroughly prepared their team members to prevent the image from collapsing.
It was a smart move.
"Why do I see so many panels today?"
"Do we have to distribute all of that?"
On the walls of the practice room, there were panels made to distribute parts.
Leader, center, main vocal, sub vocal, rap.
A crown sticker signifying the center, an M sticker signifying the main vocal, and an L sticker signifying the leader.
The rest of the parts were clearly showing that these three were the main positions, as seen by the stickers.
We sat on the floor and started sharing our opinions without wasting any time.
"First of all, who wants to be the leader?"
"Is there anyone who wants to do it?"
Park Se-han and Kang Si-yoon, who spoke at the same time, looked at each other.
Then, Kang Si-yoon laughed heartily and waved his hand.
"I don't mind not being the leader. Sehan, do you want to be the leader?"
"I don't really care either... If there are no applicants, I'll try to be the leader."
It doesn't matter, the corners of my mouth are already slightly going up.
I also applauded because I wasn't really aiming for a leader's image.
Park Se-han, with a satisfied expression and an L sticker on his chest, turned on the tablet the production team had given him.
"First, before we break it down into parts, should we watch the video?"
"Great."
"I think it would be right to look into what it feels like and then talk about it."
So we put our heads together and watched the
What was immediately noticeable was that the center had a noticeably large amount of space.
'Even if you think about it separately, it's a key position that holds the center of this song.'
The center is a position that can only be filled if one possesses both image and skills.
It's understandable that everyone would be greedy.
If someone who is not suited to be the center takes the stage, it is obvious that the quality of the entire stage will plummet.
That's probably why there weren't any trainees who rashly applied to be the center.
Heo Yu-bin, who had been staring blankly at the tablet, broke the silence.
"Dancing... is incredibly difficult."
"It definitely seems to be on the difficult side."
"That's okay! I'll teach you the choreography one by one. Don't worry."
"But, isn't that too much of a burden on Siyoon hyung?"
"I have a counterargument to that opinion."
Park Se-han raised his hand slightly and smiled.
"Honestly, I'm confident in my vocals, but I think the high notes part will be a bit difficult. From what I remember from your practice session, didn't they say Yubin is really good at singing?"
"The, the, the judges gave me a lot of praise."
"Ey, that's too humble. Anyway, I also want to relieve some burden. It seems like Yubin is the only one who can handle the main vocal part here. What do you think? Do you want to get the M sticker right away?"
Park Se-han even went so far as to wave an M sticker in front of Heo Yu-bin's eyes.
Then, Heo Yu-bin, whose eyes were spinning, opened his mouth like a broken robot.
'You can't just push so hard.'
If Heo Yu-bin's buffering continues beyond this point, there will be no progress, so let's intervene appropriately.
"Yubin's singing is really good, but how about letting him sing the main vocal part first and then making a judgment?"
"Right, he should sing first."
"Ahhhh."
Although Heo Yu-bin still had a dizzy expression on his face, he diligently looked at the lyrics and practiced several times.
And then he started singing the main vocal part.
"Oh, this is so good! It feels cool!"
"Tha, thank, thank you."
"I want to sing like Yubin, but I'm not very good at it. I think Yubin is the right main vocalist."
Ken Hashimoto's praise poured in.
When a trainee who was usually quiet like him was praised by giving him a double thumbs up, Heo Yu-bin didn't know what to do.
"Okay, here goes the sticker."
While Kang Si-yoon was holding onto Heo Yu-bin's body, Park Se-han attached the main vocal sticker with his refreshing hand movements.
Heo Yu-bin looked at me with pleading eyes, but now there was no turning back.
I just nodded with a pleased smile.
"Then, before we pick the center, should we memorize the choreography first? We have to dance first to see who can bring out the flavor better."
"Yes!"
Kang Si-yoon and Oh Tae-young took the lead in following the choreography.
Oh Tae-young, who surprisingly revealed his hidden dancing skills, seemed to be of great help to Kang Si-yoon.
It was noticeable that Kang Si-yoon caught the small details that were missed while quickly following the overall choreography.
"I think I got everything, let's go practice!"
I received a lot of help from Kang Si-yoon while preparing for the final grade evaluation, so I was able to quickly learn the choreography he taught me.
As I matched my steps, an old memory suddenly came to mind.
'... It definitely wasn't this smooth when I first came here.'
I still remember it vividly.
Our group, which was randomly created for the first team battle, was full of selfishness.
Of course, it was not that I did not understand their minds. Since every moment is directly related to one's survival, it is common for them to fight to secure their share in some way.
However, in
No, it's abnormally good.
I glanced at the trainees, who were sweating hard and repeating the choreography.
'Is it because they believe that they can do it with their skills without being greedy for parts?'
They are really special and kind guys.
Unlike us, who were preparing in perfect order, the
I didn't necessarily turn my head, but I could sometimes feel the stinging gaze directed at us.
It seems like he's quite envious.
After each person danced to the chorus choreography, we held a vote to see who felt the best.
In conclusion, Kang Si-yoon, who received 3 votes, won the crown sticker.
"Thank you! I will try my best."
In my opinion, Kang Si-yoon was the best dancer, so there was no objection.
So I was thinking about trying sub vocal 1.
[A new linked quest,
[Reward: 15 Skill Points]
"...."
I looked at the pop-up window and sighed.
It's on a completely different scale from the repeated achievement rewards that only gave 1 point.
If I just complete that quest, I can raise my stats all at once.
I was going to keep going like this, but I can't help it.
'Status window.'
It's time to invest some of the skill points I've been saving.
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