216

The K-pop camp of hell, which successfully ignited the national buzz,
continued to air with great interest from the first episode to the
second episode.
And there was no denying that Chungryeo's appearance played a
significant role in the buzz.
This was all thanks to the law of scarcity.
//TN: The Law of Scarcity: In economics, it means that the demand for a
good or service is greater than the availability of it.
Ever since the incident of a VTIC member leaving the group, they had
been refraining from light and enjoyable content such as variety
shows.

- It's been so long since they've had a variety show ㅠㅠ

- It's a bit disappointing that only Jaehyun appeared, but since he

has to carry on with the role of a leader, I feel heartbroken… Guys,
you've worked hard.
- Just from watching the preview, it's clear that he's the essence of
K-pop. F*ck. Shin Chungryeo, please be an idol forever.

And in the second episode, this bastard used up all the impact, that the
mentor cast could bring, by himself.
'It was fortunate that our screen time was in the first episode.'
From what I saw from the monitoring, it seems that he carried out all
the important roles, from being a judge to an instructor to a counselor.

- Chungryeo giving the kindest feedback in the world (video)

- This is what K-idols are!

- ㅠㅠㅠㅠOur leader has always been a warm-hearted person

(screenshot)
- Shin Jaehyun, who couldn't understand what was so hard about
this task that these people couldn't do it but decided to just
oversee their practice firstㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ He's still the same.

Moreover, although the shooting duration wasn't that long for such a
busy top-tier idol group, they managed to capture the crucial parts.
'Was this worth the money?'
As I thought, these f*ckers had to make him stand out. The only ones
who suffered a loss were the other mentors appearing with him for
having their shooting time cut short.
'Come to think of it, the Golden Age guys were also among them.'
It was the group of Gold 1.
After the industrial spy case, we didn't hear from each other much, but
after meeting again in the <IdolCo> producers' new variety show,
there were occasional contacts at the level of maintaining connections.

[Golden Age Ha Iljoon hyung: Moondae-ya, it was nice to see you

after a long time! It's a pity our filming didn't overlap this time.
See you next time!]

I replied to Gold 1's message accordingly and boarded the plane.

[Yes, I'll see you again next time.]

Neatly and efficiently.
Usually, when it comes to work, it was ideal to have the kind of
relationship where neither did anything to make the other person get
worked up.
Especially with a lunatic who drives others insane, it was a good idea
to stay away. But somehow, I keep ending up working together with
him, which is quite annoying.
But fortunately, the guy I would be going with listens well.
"M-moondae-ya, did you get your passport?"
"Yeah."
I'm talking about Seon Ahyun.
There was not just one special collaboration stage for the mentors, as
Seon Ahyun's special stage will also be filmed this time.
'It seems that one of the groups must have complained about not having
enough time.'
If I had known, we could've also spoken up that we wouldn't do this
special stage.
"Let's get some sleep on the plane. Even if the other team had
practiced the choreography in advance, we still have to adjust the
formations, so we won't have much time."
"Uhhuh!"
Seon Ahyun and I safely boarded the plane, ignoring the data sellers
and some of the homepage master's cameras that were following us.
'They gave us good seats.'
It seems like they pulled in proper investments. I closed the curtain
next to my seat to prevent any potential invasion of privacy.
As for the manager... I don't know. The second guy came along, and he
was probably sitting at the back on his own.
'Let's get some sleep.'
After adjusting my seat to almost a bed-like position, I reached for a
bottle of water.
Then Seon Ahyun spoke in a low voice.
"Um, you know."
"Yeah?"
"M-moondae… um, are you uncomfortable with VTIC's Chungryeo
seonbae-nim?"
"Pfft."
The water almost came out through my nose.
'How did he know?'
"A-are you okay?! I-I can pat your back…"
"Uh, forget it."
I waved my hand to brush him off and shook my head. Seon Ahyun
looked at me with concern and cautiously continued his words.
It seemed like he had thought about this beforehand.
"I-if you're uncomfortable… Should I switch with you?"
"What?"
"Since you already know our team's choreography, Moondae, I th-think
it'll be fine…"
"…"
"I-I'm usually uncomfortable around other people anyway… so it
wouldn't make much difference…!"
"I'm okay."
I smiled and closed the water bottle.
Oh, wow. This was quite moving in its own way. This guy was even
worried about others' interpersonal relationships now.
"And when are you going to learn the new choreography again?"
"I-I have one day so… it should be okay."
"…"
How full of talent.
"Anyway… well, even though I don't particularly like that guy, it's not
like I can't work with him. He's not that big of a deal to begin with."
"I-I see. S-still… if you change your mind, let me know!"
"I got it."
It's unlikely that such a thing will happen, but it's okay to speak up if
needed.
I laid down on the seat that had turned into a makeshift bed.
And after a moment, I asked in passing.
"But was it that obvious?"
"H-huh?"
"That I don't like that seonbae."
"…A-a little?"
"In what way?"
"E-every time you meet him, you keep clenching your fists…"
"…"
I need to be more careful.

And 11 hours later, I indeed realized that I was truly clenching my fists.
//TN: *insert Arthur's fist meme*
"Hello."
"Hello, sunbae-nim!"
'He was right.'
In the large dance practice room where the production team had
already installed cameras.
When Chungryeo, who had arrived a few minutes late, greeted us with
a smile, my hand was really acting with its own will.
'Could it be an unconscious reaction to the memories of being attacked?'
Anyway, thanks to Seon Ahyun, I learned one thing. I need to be
cautious when there are cameras around.
'Anyway, VTIC definitely lives up to its name.'
Whether I was mindful of my clenched fists or not, everyone around
me was greeting Chungryeo with all their might.
"Nice to meet you. Should we start practicing right away?"
Amidst the individuals who either admired or felt inferior, Chungryeo
went straight to the point gracefully.
'This is convenient.'
I had no objections to not wasting time before practice.

And we started working on the choreography.

"One more time!"
The parts were already assigned beforehand, and we had familiarized
ourselves with our designated choreography movements through the
pre-recorded footage.
However, once we all started together, differences in spacing, height,
and movement size naturally emerged.
This was the process of refining those aspects, which was usually done
with the help of dance trainers...
"The person on the left, raise your elbow more."
"Yes- yes…!"
But this time, at some point, all the trainer did was shout, 'I'll play it
one more time.'
Because a certain bastard completely took over.
"Come in a little faster during the pre-chorus. When you lower your
arms, break the motion and enter."
"Ah… Yes!"
Obviously, it was Chungryeo who was the busiest and most
experienced person here.
It was nice to see some of the guys, who would have otherwise idled
around due to their seniority and popularity, gradually being
intimidated into following along.
"Then let's take a short break. How about 10 minutes?"
"Yes!"
Even the break time seemed strictly regulated.
Hoo.
'This is really useful.'
Indeed, someone who had been a leader as an idol for decades was
different. His efficiency was exceptional.
'This should finish quickly.'
It was the moment I was about to slightly revise my opinion of him.
"Hoobae-nim."
"…Yes."
I immediately canceled that thought.
I went to the corner since I didn't need to talk to these guys anymore
as the cameras were being fixed. But now, this guy was approaching
me to speak.
Surprisingly, though, he didn't make any of his usual demented
remarks.
Chungryeo lowered his voice and quietly offered advice.
"It's good to have big movements, but you're moving your joints
incorrectly."
"…"
"Then, look."
A clean demonstration followed.
An action of bending the whole body and then bouncing back, creating
a recoil in the upper body.
"This is where your elbow and thigh touch."
"Yes."
"Why do you think they're touching?"
"I think it's to add rhythm to the movement of bending and
straightening the body."
"Right."
The affirmation came immediately, but the conversation didn't end
there.
"But you should think further than that."
"…!"
"Look. You should move in a way that takes the next movement into
account where you bend the upper body."
Chungryeo pulled his elbows further away just enough and then pulled
up his upper body.
"This way, the joint movement of the elbow becomes larger, and the
movement bounces back faster when bending."
At that moment, tension appeared in the movement.
It was what I would describe as 'springy'.
"That's how you make it visually more pleasing."
"…"
"When you pay attention to why certain preceding and subsequent
movements are included, you'll be able to showcase your current
abilities even better."
I almost bit my tongue.
Goodness.
This bastard was actually being helpful.
For I immediately understood how extremely useful that advice was.
'...No wonder I didn't feel like I was performing better than others with
similar stats despite raising my stats.'
This was the kind of revelation that requires either talent or time. It
was something that people like Cha Yujin instinctively knew or people
like Keun Sejin figured out through analyzing and practicing countless
times.
And refining that understanding into words and conveying it in a way
that even amateurs can comprehend... that's something only someone
who has attempted similar things thousands of times can do.
'He hasn't been just idling away all those years.'
I plainly admitted it.
"Yes, thank you."
"…!"
Perhaps taken aback, Chungryeo became silent for a moment.
But soon he seemed to understand and nodded with a smile.
"That's right. It's best to hear these things in private, right? It would be
hurtful to be criticized in front of everybody."
"…"
"Ah, hoobae-nim, I'm not saying that you're particularly doing a bad
job. Haha."
This fucking guy was indirectly hurting my pride.
'I may be like this with dancing, but I can fucking sing.'
I know it was thanks to the status window, but I still couldn't hold back
from saying it.
"I'm not offended by that. I'm sure you wouldn't be offended if I gave
you advice during song recordings either, seonbae-nim."
"……Aha. Right."
Chungryeo's eyes narrowed.
But soon, as if acknowledging it, he shrugged his shoulders.
"Mm, I guess that's the limit of my talent. I can't do more than that."
"…"
I'm sure that was the case. Seeing that the guy, whose vocal growth cap
was B+, managed to raise it all the way up to its limit.
Just as I was about to slightly admire him, I could hear him muttering
to himself in a very low voice.
"That's why every time… it was so annoying to look for a young guy
who was in his right mind and could sing well for the group."
"…"
"Well, this time… I mean, I can't really say I succeeded even now. That
guy quit. Haha."
…Come to think of it, the main vocalist of VTIC was the guy with the
club controversy.
This won't do. I quickly changed the subject before even more insane
remarks could be made.
"Still, you seem to be doing well with your activities."
"I guess I have my own know-how. I mean…"
Beep beep beep beep!
At that moment, a loud alarm rang.
"Ah, time's up."
It meant that the break time was over.
Chungryeo immediately went to the center of the practice room and
spoke while stretching his neck.
"Now let's work on the details."
And the work of unifying the choreography details began, which was
so intensive, I wondered if this was necessary for a one-off special
stage.
I should mention that the only people dying with joy about this was
the production team.

***

"Is it up?"
Chungryeo's personal fan kept refreshing Netplus and constantly
checked to see if the third episode had been uploaded.
And her actions soon paid off.
"It's up!"
She couldn't miss the variety show where Chungryeo appeared after a
long time! Chungryeo's fan excitedly watched the third episode.
However… this time, Chungryeo barely appeared.
"Hmm…"
Certainly, it still had the thrill of watching participants struggle and
grow, shedding tears and sweat, and being refined and polished.
But since the most important person, Chungryeo, hardly appeared, her
excitement quickly faded.
'Right… He couldn't be filming for such a long time.'
He was not even the main MC and still appeared that much as a
mentor, so it was already a significant treat.
"I should just watch the cut version."
Chungryeo's fan shrugged her shoulders and decided to stop wasting
her time.
But at that moment…

[In a moment!]
[The splendid showcase stage of K-pop mentors is about to
unfold!]
[Contestant: Oh, my f*cking god!]
[Oh my. Will the contestant be able to recreate this stage?]

Suddenly, a special stage announcement appeared.

"Crazy, Shin Jaehyun!"
And the fan did not miss Chungryeo's face.
'What is this?!'
Unable to contain her excitement, Chungryeo's fan immediately
skipped to the end of the playback bar. Seeing that they announced it
like this, she assumed it would definitely come out at the end.
And her prediction was right.
"Uaah!"
Suddenly, the video atmosphere transformed into typical WeTube
stage content.
The fan confirmed the presence of seven idol mentors standing in
formation.
And Chungryeo was truly among them!
"Heok."
It was almost the first time since his second year after debuting that
Chungryeo shared a stage with other idols!
"Wow damn, even Park Moondae is there."
The fan's mind was spinning.
And the moment she thought the pose looked familiar as the idols
were in formation with their chins up and arms crossed…
The intro started.

- Shhshhshh, shh…!

"…!"
This... was the hot idol hit song that had been released just six months
ago!
And it wasn't just any hit song.
'That's Miry-nay's song!'
A hit song by a rookie girl group that debuted less than a year ago was
playing on the screen.