Chapter 23

No matter how much you try to prevent spoofing, if it's a given, it's not Korea.

We have all kinds of anonymous social platforms and VPNs that can bypass the IP tracking.

The day before the premiere of a big survival show like 'Asri 2' was like a festival.

Fans who'd beat the odds to get into the audience couldn't wait to show off all of their sneak peeks.

Even the slightest hint of indirect spoilers sent the community into overdrive.

—

[HOT: Just a little bit of spoiler alert 1452]

I can't tell you everything, because I'm scared of getting blackmailed from KNET.

Once the big one was definitely a hit, the UsaX bolt—

You're posting this here like this?

I can't stand this!

— Why are you the only ones who know ㅡㅡ Let's share the good stuff, please.

— It's unfair. Who didn't go to the event because they didn't want to?

— Who's going to give sweet rice cakes to kids who talk like that? The vanguard, please shake it up a little more.

└ I hate the fact that I have to bark like a dog, but I can't help but bark.

└ (removed it, if you want, just read the raws, i don't really wanna translate this)

L God I'm ready to get my eardrums showered, please let the time go by quickly~

"You're all excited....."

As I layed at the edge of my bed muttering to myself, faces popped up from both above and below.

"Bro, what're you watching?"

"We're watching it too!"

"No, wait a moment, guys, how can there be all three of us in this small bed!"

"We'll just have to make it work!"

My rebellion is futile.

Yoo Ha-woon and Chae-haru are pushed in from both sides like a sandwich.

The nature of survival programs is such that if you're placed in the same group, you're forced to sleep in the same room for that round.

So, for the past week, I've been constantly bothered all over by these younger contestants.

Now they've been hanging out with me even more because they're afraid they'll be split up into different rooms when the second round starts.

Cerberus, who was well aware of the fact, grumbled as he'd watched both of the boys flank him on either side.

{I'm supposed to be lying next to my master's head.}

'I'm sorry, you'll have to be more understanding when I'm in your quarters.'

"Uh, isn't this an Idol Net? Is there a guest post up already?"

"I guess pledges are actually useless."

"Move over, assholes, I can't even see the words."

With my arms at an almost right angle, I struggled to scroll down.

Apparently, the audience had gotten excited about the firepower and were now shucking corn in earnest.

--

[HOT: The coin-op kids are getting the short end of the stick, believe it or not 5569]

Our stealers will only believe what they want to believe, so I'm just writing this for fun... First of all, I went to 'Asri' yesterday. (Set photo)

It may be a very personal standard, but it's my 10 year old's perspective, so just take it with a grain of salt.

My #1 pick: 'Volt'! Honestly, I think other people thought the same thing, this is a great wall. Hahaha Yu Si-hwan came at the end and blew it out of the water. I'm the first Spring Legend to hear that sound so clearly in the field.

The second pick is 'Evolution', but this one has a little bit of name-dropping in it. Sung-hwi was good at it, but he was also handsome, but team-wise, something was a little bit off, but won't we win safely? It's a trusted X2 mountain, so those who will board it will board it by themselves.

Among the names that circulated among the stealers beforehand, the ones that were a little less good were....

— At this point, I'm starting to doubt it, but aren't all of these certified posts Yu Si-hwan's part-time job? I thought I was singing well, but it's all about this guy, so it feels like it gives off a better freshness.

└ This is why everyone is so impatient with this, Si-hwan might have done a good job.

—

"Ooh, there are so many posts praising our stage!"

"Yeah, they all said 'Volt' was their favorite..."

"Well, that's good to hear."

I scanned through the comments, unable to hide my distress.

"I can't believe how quickly my worst fears have come true."

My plan before entering 'Asri 2' was to play it safe in the beginning.

As a individual trainee who didn't have a big name or come from a big agency, it was going to cause me a lot of trouble if I stood out from the start.

At least, I expected that reaction to come gradually after the first episode or two.

My reputation started to be tarnished before episode 1 hit the airwaves due to the spoilers from the audience.

'It's bound to be that way in some people's eyes, what kind of a dork gets a hotline over a kid who's already known in places like ZINC GAL.'

While the viewers are purely praising me for my high-pitched performance, it can be quite annoying for those who don't know the group battle rounds yet.

If they hear a name they don't recognize, they'll naturally wonder if it's a parachute.

"Didn't you say we need to be in the auditorium by 10:30?"

"Yes!"

"Well, I guess I'll go down there now and grab a bite to eat and get ready. Let's go."

I looked at the clock, which was already ticking toward eight in the evening, and patted Chae-haru and Yoo Ha-woon on the forehead.

As I made my way down to the cafeteria, my mind was filled with thoughts about the editorial direction of today's episode.

'If this is the case, my impressions from episodes 1 and 2 will play a major role.'

Please, I beg you of you, KNet.

May I be freed from your demonic editing.

***

"You're free to sit wherever you want, but if you move out of your assigned seat, you're in trouble! You could be out of the camera angle, do you understand?"

"Yes!"

"Let's sit in the front, in the front!"

"Wow, I'm really nervous."

The 100 eager participants chattered excitedly as they took their seats in the leather chairs arranged around the auditorium.

I wondered where I should sit.

"Hey, Si-hwan, come on!"

"Si, Si-hwan!"

I could hear them calling my name anxiously from around the middle of the middle row.

Standing up and waving his arms like a wind-up doll, Kang Sun-woo and Ma Si-hyuk radiated a look of acceptance just for their savior.

Driven by a force that I could've never ignored, I brought Chae-haru and Yoo Ha-woon with me and sat down with them.

It was a scene that would have infuriated Cerberus, who was sleeping in his quarters.

"At least we'll get to see this historic sight together! We'll be the center of attention 100% of the time."

"Big brother Si-hwan, I've missed you so much."

"I hope you don't get edited out of the story. Si-Hyuk looks like he's about to cry."

"Oh, him?"

Kang let out a short sigh as he patted Si-hyuk's broad shoulders.

"I guess you've had a rough couple days."

"...Because of the team competition?"

At my question, Ma Si-hyuk merely nodded his head slightly.

No matter how much I want to talk about it, there are too many prying eyes... here.

The cameras lining the walls of the auditorium, not to mention the other trainees, made me realize it was best to refrain from small talk.

'I guess we'll hear about it later.'

I didn't question Ma Si-hyuk beyond that.

He just patted me on the shoulder and spoke cheerfully, just as Kang had done.

"It's okay, you did well in the team competition. What's done is done, so let's take it easy today."

"Hyung..."

Kang Sun-woo looked at Yoo Ha-woon and Chae-haru who had come with him and greeted them cheerfully.

"By the way, these guys were in the same group as Si-hwan. I recognize Yoo Ha-woon, but what's the name of the guy next to him?"

"Chae-haru. Take care."

"Wow, he's so handsome. I'll be honest, I was surprised. I swear I don't remember anyone looking like that when I first saw him, but here he is in the center during 'Volt' and he's so handsome. You must be Haru. It's really nice to meet you."

No matter how you look at it, Kang's affinity is obvious to see.

Thanks to this, they were able to wait for the first episode to air in a relaxed atmosphere.

"It's one minute before we start recording!" "The participants will count down together from 10 seconds!"

Like any Korean audition program with a rich history and tradition, this one follows the manual.

Around episode 3, they always include a scene of the trainees watching episode 1 together to fill in the gaps.

I guess they wanted to show off their unity in the countdown.

The participants eagerly counted down the numbers, even though they must have been worried about how many cuts they'd have gotten.

"3, 2, 1!"

With the majestic melody of 'HIT' playing in the background, 'Idol Stardig Season 2' has officially begun.

Monitoring the reactions of episode 1 was of utmost importance, so I sneakily checked the live talk while skillfully avoiding the gaze of the surrounding cameras.

My hands are hard to see from the angle of my chair.

In addition, the broad shoulders of Ma Si-hyuk, who'd been sitting next to me, made it a absolute great undercover.

Even if I didn't intentionally look at him, he was able to block up to three cameras by himself. I'm grateful. My friend.

--

- Oh, please, I don't need the preamble. I don't want to buy it, I don't want to buy it, just show it to my kids.

ㅡ Honestly, Hyun-joo's sister is an honor, right?

└ Honor is right, but I want to see the level evaluation sooner than Hyun-joo's sister.

--

Netizens who had already mastered the rules through 'Asri 1' wanted to progress quickly.

The trainees were also clamoring for a quicker pace.

"I don't think I'll be able to watch it all if it takes forever, I'm nervous."

"My heart feels like it's jumping out of my mouth."

Participants who started with relatively low ratings and rankings watched the broadcast with anxiety.

They probably know the feeling.

If they were deemed to have merit despite their low ratings, the producers would have given them a cut.

If it wasn't funny, inspiring, or talented, it would have been cut and disappeared.

My fears were realized.

As I recall, a lot of level test footage of earlier contestants who should have been featured disappeared.

Perhaps it was decided that they weren't needed to form an opinion.

"Haru, what was your entry number?"

"Me, number 34."

"That's really fast, then you'll be the first of us out."

"Was everyone in the back?"

When all four of us nodded, Chae-haru had swallowed hard.

There was a faint gleam of nervousness in his lifeless eyes.

'Haru's final grade was a C one day. A B is at least a hint of promise, but a C is a real gray area.'

I'd rather have been humiliated like a D or an F.

It's a position that can be very easy to fall into.

But.

[Hi, this is Chae-haru, I'm in my 4th month as a trainee....]

I was quite surprised when a contestant with bangs so long that you can barely see his eyes came up in the first half of the video.

'I guess the producers thought they could use that for a story later.'

The producers must have realized that Chae-haru's bangs would've given a huge visual boost.

Moreover, they decided to keep him in because he's is associated with me, who is currently attracting most of the attention.

"I must have had a really bad hair day, why didn't I think to take care of it?"

He looked like he wanted to find a rat hole in his own screen.

I was somewhat right.

I got to see a lot of Yoo Ha-woon, who I'll have a connection with in the future, and of course, the level assessment of BK trainee Kang Sun-woo.

--

Wow Sunwoo, you've been ranked first in grade A since the beginning!

Was he originally a debut group in BK? Which group?

A 5-member group that came out in the first half of this year.

boy group from the first half of this year 'Magnus'?

ㅡ The visuals are also completely my favorite. I love those torn eyes.

└ He's good at rapping and dancing, and he even arranged that himself, right? And yet he couldn't make his debut, what's the competition?

--

I was relieved to see that the netizens responded well.

I had a lot of trouble filming the unintentional bromance with him.

The first episode went quickly.

"Si-hwan, you were number 77, weren't you?"

"I was."

"Are you going to be cut this time, or are we going to be done with you?"

Kang's question was something I'd been wondering myself.

In terms of impact, it's best to end episode 1 on a high note.

It would be easier to recognize it as a definite conclusion than a vague appearance at the beginning of episode 2.

The question was which direction KNet chose.

[Participant #77, I'll bring you up front].

"Get out!"

"Wow, so you're really the finale?"

I fixed my gaze on the screen as I tried to listen to Yoo Ha-woon and Ma Si-hyuk chirping like sparrows.

In my heart, I hoped it was edited for the good.

[Hello, I'm Yu Si-hwan, and although this is a stage with many shortcomings, I've prepared hard, so I hope you'll take a good look at it].

[I have a question].

This is unedited until Min Si-hyun asks me a question straight away.

When everyone around me is nervously looking at Min Si-hyun that was holding the microphone.

[My neck is so stiff these days, isn't it, so I always put this on].

— ??? Excuse me, boss? You're going to slap on a commercial right here?

— This is really crossing the line!

— Oh, that's Ryu Si-hwan!

─ KNET is basically a legend. How can a handsome boy just come out and then you treat them like a ghost?

— I'm angry, I'm angry, I'm angry... more angry that it's my fault when I can't even turn the channel even when I'm this angry...

--

"..."

Damn.