Chapter 63
Only 5 of the top 7 achieved fever time.
When this fact was announced, the atmosphere in the hall became turbulent.
"There were only five people?"
"Then, isn't there a huge fluctuation within the debut group? "
"Hey, I think anyone who doesn't receive fever time will have their ranking drop a lot."
"Is there anyone who was outside the top 7 who achieved fever time and got in? "
Since the top 7 are the ones who have the right to debut, it seems like everyone expected that all of them would succeed in achieving fever time.
Perhaps that's why the trainees watching the ranking announcement ceremony looked more surprised than the trainees whose names had not yet been called.
'What about the other guys now? '
I turned my head away.
Song Hyung-bin still had his mouth shut and his fists clenched.
Ji Yoon-chul, sitting right next to me, was staring blankly straight ahead with no change in expression.
In contrast, Yoo Min-ha was muttering something earnestly with both hands clasped together.
"Please, please, please! I want to go up, even if it's just to 6th place! "
Baek Si-hwa, next to Yoo Min-ha, was expressionless.
Unlike the blank-faced Ji Yoon-chul, he seemed to have a strangely uncomfortable feeling.
And Chae Eun-gyu, um. He was just laughing like usual.
"Then, now let's check out the candidates for 7th place."
I was secretly amazed by the production team's advanced wickedness.
Instead of showing a split screen at the entrance to the debut zone, they do it like this within the debut zone.
In short, it was a way to classify which of the 7 members has a thicker and more stable fan base and which one is more likely to be pushed out of the debut bracket.
Now, all 50 trainees are staring at the large screen.
A three-part screen was created by adding three lines to the screen.
"Wow, awesome."
"Wait a minute. No, wait a minute."
"Really? It's not a mistake. "
"Why is he there? "
A much louder roar than before erupted here and there.
And I, who was quietly watching the screen, also had my eyes wide open.
"These are the candidates for 7th place. Trainees Yoo Min-ha, Kang Dong-hwi, and Baek Si-hwa, please come forward."
It was an unimaginable development.
Baek Si-hwa, who had ranked 4th in the first ranking announcement ceremony, became a candidate for 7th place.
And above all else,.
"There is no Karis! "
"This is crazy. It seems like Karis's ranking has gone up a lot."
"Wow...."
I surprised everyone again when I, who was in 8th place, did not make it into the list of candidates for 7th place.
The situation is such that the three candidates for 7th place are displayed on the screen at the same time, making it almost like the 5th to 7th places have already been announced.
"See, I told you so."
Song Hyung-bin slapped my thigh.
"I told you that your ranking would be really high this time."
"I really didn't know it would get to this point."
"I don't know what the real ranking would have been like if they all had blown up the fever time."
There are a total of 5 trainees who burst into fever time.
That means one of the three who have now moved up to the podium is ranked fifth by a huge margin.
"I'll announce it. The 7th-place trainee is… Kang Dong-hwi."
Choi Sia, who had been killing time for a while, called Kang Dong-hwi's name.
'That trainee, like me, also fell short at the threshold of debut.'
Kang Dong-hwi's ranking was somewhat expected.
But now the problem is starting in 6th place.
If it's Yoo Min-ha, the focus will be on rising in the rankings, and Baek Si-hwa will only fall one level.
If the opposite situation occurs....
This is truly an anomaly.
"Next, I will announce the 6th-place trainee. Coincidentally, these two trainees were on the same team. Trainee Baek Si-hwa. Who do you think will take 6th place? "
Here is a question exclusively for Baek Si-hwa.
I already know that this guy harbors venom towards Yoo Min-ha.
It was also suspicious that he suddenly talked behind someone's back when we first met him.
During the sports day, he would openly rush in and try to cause injuries.
I couldn't figure out why he did that, but one thing was clear:.
"Well, I'm so nervous that I can't think of anything... I have a feeling that Min-ha will be in 5th place."
Baek Si-hwa smiled as if nothing had happened.
I clicked my tongue at the sight of the disgusting masked figure.
If it were
The tense BGM reached its climax.
The screen continued to show close-ups of Yoo Min-ha and Baek Si-hwa's faces.
Yoo Min-ha was truly happy that his ranking went up from last time.
Baek Si-hwa just stared straight ahead, biting his lips little by little.
As time passed, Choi Sia, who checked the production team's signal, announced the results.
"Congratulations! The 5th-place trainee is.... trainee Yoo Min-ha!"
"Wow!"
"Min-ha!"
"Yoo Min-ha!"
The surprised trainees' gasps were heard.
When Yoo Min-ha heard his name, he froze for a moment and couldn't say anything.
Baek Si-hwa, standing on the other side of the stage, smiled faintly and applauded a few times.
"Trainee Yoo Min-ha miraculously achieved fever time right before the end of the second global vote, and quickly rose up the rankings. The difference in votes with trainee Baek Si-hwa, who was in 6th place, was a whopping 800,000 votes."
The number of votes was revealed below each trainee's screen.
Yoo Min-ha with 2.1 million votes and Baek Si-hwa with 1.3 million votes.
'Perhaps because the fever time is short, the votes aren't as high as I thought. On the other hand, if I hadn't reached the fever time cutoff of 1.8 million votes, I would have gotten a score like Baek Si-hwa.'
This is a moment where you start to wonder how many votes the remaining trainees will get.
As Yoo Min-ha and Baek Si-hwa sat down in their respective seats, Choi Sia said while passing over the cue cards.
"Next, I will announce the 4th place trainee."
As soon as the number 4 appeared on the scoreboard, the stadium became quiet.
Being in the middle of this situation, I could guess what the trainees were thinking.
The trainee, who was ranked 8th previously,.
Will a trainee who is not from Korea but from overseas make a big difference by breaking through Song Hyung-bin, Ji Yoon-chul, and Chae Eun-gyu to make it into the Top 3? Or will he end up in 4th place after being blocked by the Top 3?
Everyone's attention was focused on me.
A normal person wouldn't be able to hide their tension under the barrage of gazes.
I waited for Choi Sia's announcement with a calm expression.
"This trainee received benefits in the second round. And by advancing to the Music K Showdown, he succeeded in making his name known widely."
Ji Yoon-chul was automatically excluded from the list of candidates.
I felt like there were dozens of cameras on set, circling around me, Song Hyung-bin, and Chae Eun-gyu.
"This is a trainee who quickly captured the hearts of the national managers with his amazing visuals and presence. The 4th-place trainee is.... Karis von Walden."
In the end, the big differences did not happen.
Although I failed to break through the concrete floor known as the Three Immovables this time, it was still a great feat.
I went from being outside the debut bracket at 8th place to Top 7 and even reached a very high position of 4th place.
"Congratulations! You've worked so hard."
"No. Hyung-nim, who was the leader, suffered more."
"I couldn't have done anything without you."
Song Hyeong-bin was incredibly happy, as if it were his own business.
Even as I hugged him, it still didn't feel real.
I never thought that the #1 trainee who seemed so unreachable in the past would become so close to me.
"Congratulations, Karis! "
"Congratulations."
Even Chae Eun-gyu and Ji Yoon-chul joined in the congratulatory remarks.
I nodded in greeting and walked out to the front of the set.
As always, I was concerned about my feet slightly falling behind, but now I'm okay with that.
"Trainee Karis von Walden rose a whopping 4 places from 8th place in the first round to settle in at 4th place. He perfectly utilized his visuals, which are acknowledged by everyone, and took center stage again on this stage. He achieved meaningful results by sweeping up a whopping 900,000 votes while Fever Time was active. Congratulations! "
I looked at the total number of votes displayed at the bottom of the screen.
[4th place: Karis von Walden: 2,719,012 votes]
There is a difference of almost 600,000 votes between me and Yoo Min-ha, who came in 5th place.
I kept looking at the gap that had suddenly opened up, and I put the microphone in my mouth.
"First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the national managers who have always sent me unchanging love. At the first ranking announcement ceremony, I said that I would work hard every moment. I am very happy that the fruits of my efforts have led to such a good ranking. I think that the only way to repay those who have believed in me is to show them that I am developing even more."
And then I fell silent for a moment.
The lights were pouring in, and the camera lenses were aimed at me, just to capture my feelings.
Something hot was slowly burning inside my heart.
"And I promise you one more thing. I will never be satisfied with where I am, but I will be a Karis von Walden who will look to higher places with the trust that the national managers have given me. Thank you."
I thought it was an emotion that could only be felt when an abnormal status was manifested.
But now, I'm sharing my thoughts on a set filled with dazzling chairs.
As I gazed upon the throne of the first rank, which was even more splendidly decorated than the imperial throne in
Yes, that's right.
The Crown Prince does not look up to others.
As the crown prince, I cannot be satisfied with my current position.
My gaze met Song Hyung-bin's.
He was still looking at me with a proud expression.
Looking at him, one thing occurred to me.
'I hope we can meet each other on the podium next time to announce the winner.'
Then third place was announced.
This time, the rankings changed again.
"... I sincerely thank the national managers who love even my shortcomings...."
Ji Yoon-chul, who was ranked 2nd in the first round, fell one place to 3rd place.
"There have been many difficult and frustrating times, but I will show you that I never lose my smile. And I will work hard so that the support you have given me will not be in vain, and I will work hard to bring good results next time as well."
Cha Eun-gyu, who continued his meteoric rise while receiving benefits, took second place.
While I was applauding, I noticed something interesting.
This means that there was almost no difference in votes from 2nd to 4th place.
I am in 4th place with 2.71 million votes.
Ji Yoon-chul, in third place, received 2.83 million votes.
And Chae Eun-gyu, in second place, received 2.87 million votes.
If I had gathered just a little more firepower during fever time, I might actually have been able to break the concrete.
Song Hyung-bin, who was confirmed to be in first place, also received exactly 3.01 million votes.
The turning point of
The throne of first place was not as far away as I thought.
"Lastly, I will announce the 28th ranked trainee."
The final survivor candidates were revealed one after another on the screen.
Park Jae-hoon, who was praying with his hands clasped together, was also included here and felt an initial sense of relief.
"Jae-hoon hyung, you can survive."
"There it is! "
The cheers of Heo Yu-bin and Ken Hashimoto could be heard from near the bottom of the staircase-shaped set.
Although the 4th place was very high up, Park Jae-hoon's face was clearly visible as he closed his eyes and prayed deeply.
Will a miracle really happen?
After the announcement of the 30th place, we reached a crossroads of fate.
"28th place is...trainee Park Jae-hoon!"
Fortunately, Park Jae-hoon survived with a chin-up.
This has created the feat of total survival.
"The difference in votes between trainee Park Jae-hoon, ranked 28th, and trainee Yoo Ji-hoo, ranked 29th, was only 9,000 votes. In short, if trainee Park Jae-hoon had not received the benefit, the survivor's name would have been different."
Choi Sia was the one who kindly shared information that would be extremely difficult to accept from a lower position.
The second ranking announcement ceremony ended like that, and the trainees said tearful farewells.
"You must survive well on behalf of me."
"I will definitely go to the finals. I will definitely debut."
"See you next time on stage! "
"It was fun."
And the remaining 28 survivors were immediately informed of the third round.
"The third round of filming starts tomorrow at 10 o'clock. Please be on time for the meeting and get some rest this evening."
"Thank you for your hard work! "
"Thank you!"
The trainees who received the production team's notice headed to the dormitory building together to take a break during the intermission.
I, too, waited for the sun to rise tomorrow while making new resolutions.
Behind me as I headed toward the dormitory, the first place throne was illuminated and shining.
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