Chapter 38

Chapter 38

“Well... I think ‘Loving the Wait’ could be a good choice.”

“...!”

Ahyeon seemed really touched, apparently having no expectations that I would choose his idea.

“R-r-really?”

“Yeah.”

“Loving the Wait” was a good song, and I also liked that it was a song that was already five years old. The song that Raebin had picked, “Hone,” had been released only two years ago.

I felt the same way during the first team battle, but the recent VTIC songs are tough to pull off. Raebin seemed pretty confident, but I didn’t see the need to take any unnecessary risks. Considering that he would be in charge of arranging the song, I had to incorporate his opinion somehow. If I was going to make use of his special trait, “Maestro,” I needed to give him something to work with that was going to get his creative juices going.

While Ahyeon was extremely touched, Raebin looked put out. He probably thought that I was rejecting his idea.

“But since the theme of this team battle is ‘do-it-yourself,’ we can’t use the original song as is.”

“Oh...”

“I think we should do something bold with the arrangement. Frankly, I think the traditional sound that Raebin was talking about could be a great fit.”

“Well...” Raebin looked as if he was seriously considering the idea. His expression brightened. “For sure, the lyrics wouldn’t be awkward... If we chose the right instruments, we could have a really interesting song on our hands. If we can revise the choreography to match, we might even be able to pull off a performance that people are sure to remember.”

“That’s good.”

With Raebin satisfied for now, that just left Big Sejin and Goldie #1. I turned my attention to them. Big Sejin grinned smoothly as soon as our eyes met.

“So how about a traditional sound accompanied by a sexy concept?” He asked. “Even if we go with your idea, we still have to decide what general mood we’re aiming for. If we’re going to do this, let’s make it impactful, yeah?”

He had a point. So he was planning to push his idea regardless all along... Since none of what we’d brainstormed thus far was ill-suited to a sexy concept, he had probably intended to work it in no matter what suggestion won out.

He has a way of speaking that’s both funny and difficult to disagree with.

Obviously agreeing with me, Goldie #1 marveled in a playful sort of way, “Man. You really are something else...” He was basically agreeing. From the expressions the other two members were wearing, I could tell that they had already accepted the idea, too.

“Haha! I guess I am pretty persuasive, huh?” Big Sejin said with a proud shrug. With that, all four members’ opinions had been acknowledged.

While we’re at it, might as well get everyone’s ideas into the mix.

The viewers couldn’t hate a caring, democratic team. “Why don’t we incorporate rabbits into it somehow, too?” I proposed calmly.

“What?” Goldie #1 waved his hands around wildly. “You mean my idea? That’s all right. I was just throwing it out there.”

“No. I think it would go well with our theme.”

“Rabbits...?”

“Yes. There are a lot of rabbits in old folk tales, right?”

They all seemed to have a different story in mind at this.

“The Hare’s Liver?”

“Uh... was that one about a turtle and a rabbit racing each other from our country?”

“That’s a tale by Aesop.”

Big Sejin was the only one who grinned as the others murmured amongst themselves. He was quick, I had to give him that.

“You mean the Moon Rabbit.”

“Yep, that’s the one.”

There was an old folktale about a rabbit who made rice cakes on the moon, also known as the Moon Hare. One famous folk song described the little rabbit that lived under a cinnamon tree.

“How in the world do we make that sexy?” Goldie #1 asked dubiously, obviously worried about ruining the children’s tale. He must have been thinking of the sort of rabbit outfit one would find in the pages of a sexy magazine or something.

On the other hand, Raebin seemed to like the idea quite a lot—his eyes were glowing already. Conveniently, I didn’t have to say a word.

“We just have to use it as a motif within the performance, rather than basing the entire thing on a rabbit. We’ll use the idea of fantasy animals, which I think will come off as pretty charming.”

“Is that so? Of course, I don’t mind you guys including my idea,” Goldie #1 eventually agreed reluctantly, nodding.

Big Sejin immediately began wrapping things up. “Hmm! I like the idea, too! Why don’t we take a vote?”

A few of the other teams had already decided on their song and informed the production team of their selection. It was about time that we also came to a decision and moved on to planning the details.

“Those of you who agree that we should reinterpret ‘Loving the Wait’ using traditional instrumental sounds and a sexy concept, while also incorporating the Moon Rabbit, please raise your hand!”

The vote was unanimous. Big Sejin raised his own hand as soon as he’d finished speaking and laughed. “Now that’s what I call fair! We managed to incorporate everyone’s ideas. Let’s do this, guys!”

“Yes!”

“Yep!”

The discussion came to an end with a warm round of applause, in the same amicable way it had begun.

The same could not be said for everyone, however.

“I said no!” someone shouted from one of the other teams, shooting to his feet. I caught sight of the person’s face—it was Lee Sejin.

“Huh?”

“What the...”

“Are they fighting?”

I could hear murmuring from all around, but no one seemed willing to comment on the situation. If anyone was to say anything unnecessary, they would be offering themselves up as a willing sacrifice to a spiteful edit.

Lee Sejin was glaring at the contestants sitting opposite him. Choi Wongil’s body language had grown stiff, while Eugene looked put out. The confrontation didn’t last long.

Lee Sejin gritted his teeth and ran off set.

“Whoa. Those guys...”

Thankfully, Chungwoo had the presence of mind to quickly go after him. “Guys, hold on a minute. Sejin? Lee Sejin!”

A cameraman quickly fell in behind Chungwoo.

Wow... Those guys are f*cked. If even the happy-go-lucky Eugene hadn’t been able to prevent a fight from breaking out, things had to have turned really sour.

“Oh, man...” Goldie #1 groaned.

Raebin seemed to be recalling his traumatic experience during the first team battle, and his expression was dark.

However, nobody was tactless enough to approach the team and try to console them or ask questions. We were several weeks into filming and everyone had figured out how things worked around here.

If you meddle, you get picked apart on the show. My team simply reported our choice of song and moved on to a practice room. It was a wise decision.

***

Team Rabbit returned to their rooms long past midnight, with everyone completely drained of energy.

“Ah, bed... Nice...” Big Sejin said with a groan, flopping onto his bed.

We had been told we needed to finish rearranging the song, getting the choreography together, and fleshing out the performance’s concept, all within ten days. It had been too much for the guy.

“I... I’m going to... shower...” Ahyeon said. He seemed unable to pry himself from his bed and instead fell dead asleep though.

I stared at him. He had been extremely high-strung the entire time he was revising the choreography so it was in line with the changes to the rearrangement. It seemed to have totally wiped him out.

Goldie #1 trudged out of the room, muttering about needing to eat something. He was probably going to try and steal some cup ramen from Goldie #2. I supposed he would find food some way or other.

“Do you mind... if I use the shower first?”

“Not at all.”

Raebin called Ahyeon’s name a few times, then gave up, asked if I wanted to use the shower, and then entered the bathroom.

This left me the last man standing in the room. Why was I doing so well comparatively, you might ask? It was thanks to my status window, of course. I considered the new trait that had been added to the bottom of the window.

[Trait: Energy Drink (B)]

Keep a clear mind and a healthy body!

: All fatigue buildup speed reduced to 50%

I had won this trait for reaching the next “fame achievement” after the last team battle had gone live.

[The Ripening of Fame!]

500,000 people have taken notice of you!

: Pick a hero trait ☜ Click!

Frankly, the number was unbelievable. Five hundred thousand people? How popular had the show gotten that over 500,000 people knew who I was? It was an incredible number, even considering that I was pretty highly ranked.

At this rate, I would probably cross the million threshold before long. The thought gave me the chills.

So a million people will remember me—no, not me. Park Moondae? At times like this, I felt relieved that I was in someone else’s body.

In any case, I’d hit the jackpot when it came to the random trait awarded to me for achieving this new milestone. Of all the traits I’d gotten so far, this one was the most useful for a survival show. It didn’t immediately increase my lung capacity or my muscle strength, instead busy and tiring days became much easier to bear.

After such a tough day, I now still have the energy to sort through my thoughts. Standing up and stretching, I still felt kind of tired and sleepy. I’ll have to shower and go to bed as soon as Raebin comes out.

That was when someone knocked on the door.

“Huh?”

Could it be Goldie #1? But if it were him, he wouldn’t have bothered with knocking. And if it was one of the staff, they’d have said so already. I had no idea who it might be. The knocking continued insistently, but everyone else in the room was totally wiped out and unresponsive.

What a bother. I sighed and opened the door. Cha Eugene was standing outside.

Though I was surprised, I quickly found that it made some sense. He might have come to see Raebin, who had been signed with the same agency as him in the past. The problem was that he was crying, tears and snot dripping down his face as he sniffled.

I stared at him quietly. What’s he doing all the way over here and crying? I was very uncomfortable.

There were cameras in the corridor and inside the room as well. Which meant there was already footage of him crying on the way here. I couldn’t even begin to guess what the editors were going to do with that. But more importantly, why had he chosen to come here, of all places?

Doesn’t it make more sense for him to talk to Chungwoo? Given Chungwoo’s personality, he would have offered a willing ear. Why seek out a different team and possibly cause trouble? Though I suppose he isn’t the type of person to think that far ahead...

All sorts of questions filled my brain during my short silence, but I soon spoke. “Are you here to see Raebin?”

He sniffled. “I wanted to see you and Raebin,” he mumbled.

Okay, but why me? I didn’t think we were particularly close. I guess he must have really come to like me during the previous team battle. The end result had turned out well and it had probably been pretty fun and easy from his perspective.

I guess he misses his previous team after the hellish one he got stuck with this time around. In any case, I knew that if I sent him away now, the editors would not do me any favors. I resisted the urge to sigh.

“Come in. Raebin is in the shower.”

“Okay...” Cha Eugene kept sniffling as he shuffled inside.

Our other team members were dead asleep in their own beds. I didn’t bother to lower my voice, certain neither of them would wake. I had him sit down at a table.

Should I give him some food? I stared at him in distress, then handed him a few chocolate bars from my backpack. Sweets can only help, I suppose.

“Thank you...” Eugene mumbled, unwrapping one and shoving it in his mouth.

A silence fell over us, accompanied only by the sound of his chewing. I grew a little anxious.

F*ck... what am I supposed to say to him?

I didn’t want to ask a stupid question and get tangled up in his team’s mess. That was the outcome I wanted to avoid at any cost. I couldn’t just sit here and say nothing, however, hoping that Raebin would come and take over.

Kim Raebin isn’t really all that socially inclined, either. There was no telling what might result from this situation and I couldn’t let whatever events followed affect my chances on the show.

In the end, feeling like I was walking into a minefield, I spoke.