Chapter 24: What I Expected, What I Didn’t

From the moment they shoved me into that ridiculous “Duke” ranking, I had a feeling.

Producer Jang Yeonju…

‘So you’ve decided to milk me for all I’m worth, huh?’

Back when we first met, PD Jang mentioned that thanks to my participation, he was able to secure immediate production funding from the higher-ups. That must’ve been why he thanked me so sincerely right off the bat.

‘Guess he didn’t even bother finishing his sentence.’

Budget or not, it was obvious from the start he planned to exploit me like this. Suddenly, I recalled something he’d said before:

“I’ve decided to use Haram to the fullest, no holding back. I won’t even bring up money, or else I might treat you too gently.”

And now he was following through on that promise to the letter. A man of his word. How admirable.

‘Fine. Great.’

If PD Jang was doing his job with such enthusiasm, shouldn’t I do mine just as well? Honestly, from a producer’s perspective, it was a rational and predictable decision.

Who’s getting the most attention in this hellish audition right now?

Me.

So then, when the show needs to stir up buzz in these crucial early episodes— Who better to use as bait?

Me again.

Yeah. It’s effective. Cost-efficient, even. But here’s the thing—

“Kim Haram, contestant!”

It’s really starting to piss me off.

“You’ve been forcibly assigned to the All Position role. How does that feel?”

That fake-smiling, cheerful voice asking me that question belonged to none other than Choi Hansol. And I couldn’t help but feel—

Like they were all trying to make a joke out of me. Some of the contestants seated below me were even looking up with smug little grins. Ugh. That really set me off.

“Yes.”

I picked up the mic that had been sitting next to my chair since the beginning. So this was why they put it there.

“You’ve already made waves with the Duke title, and now you’re the first ever All Position pick. How does that feel?”

How do I feel? I’m absolutely pissed off.

Just as I was about to speak—

[On Air! Kim Haram! Remember your image!]

Soram shoved a signal suppressor right in front of me.

This is being broadcast. The person sitting here is me—Kim Haram. Think about your image.

Okay. Thanks, Soram.

“…Well, first of all, I feel like I’ve been receiving far more attention than I deserve from the very beginning, and that’s quite a burden on my shoulders.”

Stay calm.

“I never even dreamed that there could be a ranking above first place… like a ‘zero’ rank.”

Let’s not acknowledge that atrocious naming sense.

“As for the AI position… I’ll take it as a sign of the high expectations placed on me, and I’ll do my best to meet them.”

Perfect. An interview without a single flaw anyone could nitpick.

“…Yes, thank you for your answer, Contestant Kim Haram.”

But if it ends like that…

“Ah, by the way.”

The show would be boring, wouldn’t it?

“Uh… sorry?”

“I was just thinking—some of the other contestants might be feeling a bit disappointed right now.”

What I mean is…

“Sorry, what?”

“If I’d chosen the vocal position, then only the contestants in the vocal category would’ve had to compete with me…”

Let me join in the fun.

“But now that I’m in the AI position, everyone in vocals, rap, and dance… all of them have to compete with me.”

Let’s see you work with that, PD Jang.

“From the other contestants’ perspective, that’s probably a bit disappointing.”

Heh—I finished off with the signature Kim Haram smile.

I definitely ended that with a smile.

“……”

“……”

But some of the stares looking up at me didn’t seem to take it that way.

Those expressions? Oh, they’ll look great on camera.

“Hah…!”

Choi Hansol, who’d been listening quietly, finally let out a sound of awe.

“Hahahahaha!! Hahaha!! That was brilliant, Contestant Kim Haram!”

Choi Hansol burst into exaggerated laughter. That madness definitely couldn’t be aired.

“Excellent! A brilliant interview that’s turned most of the other contestants into your enemies!”

…And yet you just had to announce that out loud. Well, the water’s already been spilled.

“Contestant Kim Haram, please step down from the podium and take your place at the All Position zone!”

My spot had been decided. I stepped off the platform and stood beneath the flag marked All. Naturally, I was now facing the 100 other contestants, standing completely alone.

‘This is seriously making me look like a villain.’

It was beyond burdensome. And yet… it was fun. I couldn’t help but grin.

“Next! As before, contestants will choose their desired position starting from rank 100!”

Am I just going to be standing here all alone for a while? I thought, and unsurprisingly—

‘Seriously? No one?’

From ranks 100 through 6, most contestants had already made their choices. And still, I stood alone in the All Position.

Hyeonjae and Woojin had briefly lingered near me when it was their turn—

‘It’s okay.’

It was still too early for either of them to take this path.

‘Still, I thought someone would join me.’

The position selections continued as if my mutterings didn’t matter in the slightest.

[5th place, Heo Jeongyeon – Vocal]

[4th place, Park Jun – Rap]

[3rd place, Yang Seou – Dance]

[2nd place, Jeon Byeongun – Dance]

Even from 5th to 2nd place, no one came to stand beside me.

‘Feeling a bit lonely here.’

But I wasn’t particularly bothered.

‘Don’t you want to come stand by me?’

Because I knew — eventually, someone would. Throughout the entire selection, I never took my eyes off him. You. As long as you come stand next to me, that’s enough. And I know you will.

The speaker announced the final contestant’s turn. With most of the contestants now on the floor, the room had grown noticeably noisy. But that didn’t bother me either.

‘It’s strange, really.’

It was a familiar and nostalgic feeling — that sense from my previous life, of being surrounded by countless others…Yet only you stood out. Only you could be seen and heard.

Yeah… I really, truly liked you.

[Your Unique Trait, ‘Even Otakus Get Lucky,’ is stabilizing!]

The final contestant stepped up and stood right in front of me.

“Seriously, what’s with that stare? You’ve been staring at me for ages. It’s kinda creepy.”

Well, it’s because I know you so well.

“‘So, what’ll it be? You gonna go somewhere else and get a half-baked taste? Or are you gonna go all in, right here?’”

You grinned like you were having the time of your life.
Of course. That’s exactly how you always smiled in moments like this.

“Why do you act like you know me so well? Have you been secretly researching me or something?”

Research? Please. I had hundreds of thousands of photos of you on my phone — all saved by version, from every era when you looked even more amazing than now.
Most of them didn’t have your beauty mark, though.

“So? What are you going to do?”

“What do you mean, ‘what’?”

You took a bold step forward — and the spot next to me was filled.

The final announcement echoed from the speakers.

[1st place, Seo Chanwool – All]

*****

“The dorms you’ve been assigned tonight are only temporary! We’ll reassign you again tomorrow, so please don’t fully unpack!!”

Yeah, yeah… got it.

Dragging my exhausted body, I stepped inside the dorm.

The rankings announcement, position selections… and right after that, the position evaluations. It had been a brutal schedule, with barely any breathing room.

‘So that’s why they made us come in so early this morning…’

Seriously, what was the rush? The schedule that started around lunchtime barely managed to wrap up by late night.

“Ooh, the dorm’s actually really nice.”

“Heh—!”

Seo Chanwool suddenly popped up behind me, startling me into making a weird noise.

“Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“No… it’s fine.”

I probably would’ve been startled no matter when or where you appeared.

I decided to take it positively.

[Your Unique Trait, ‘Even Otakus Get Lucky,’ is wavering!]

What actually was bothering me was this.

‘It had settled down for a bit earlier… why is it acting up again?’

I’d been meaning to talk to So-ram anyway, so I figured I’d make time and look into this properly.

“Chanwool-ssi, are you in this room too?”

“Apparently so?”

Chanwool answered casually and then dropped his arm onto my shoulder with a thunk.

Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey.

“Still, it’s kind of a relief to be in the same room with someone I know. Hm…? Are you okay?”

“… Yeah.”

…I really needed to get used to this relationship soon. Even a simple touch still held way too much meaning for me.

‘If it keeps going like this, daily life is going to be tough.’

I barely managed to calm my racing heart and started unpacking my things when—A group of temporary roommates came bursting into the room.

“Whoa! The room’s really nice!”

“Gasp! It’s Kim Haram! Hello!”

Yeah. Hello. I awkwardly greeted them and started choosing the bed that would get me through the night when someone knocked on the door.

“I’ll get it.”

Who’d be coming this late…? I quickly shuffled over and opened the door.

“Who is it?”

“Hello! Is this Room 201… huh?!”

What the… who is this guy?

His face looked strangely familiar, but I couldn’t quite place him.

“Ah—!”

The noisy visitor kept reacting in surprise, then suddenly pointed a finger at me.
Where’d you learn it’s okay to point at people, huh? You punk.

“Kim Haram! You’re in this room?”

He spoke to me in a friendly tone, like he already knew me.

‘Who the hell…?’

For the first time in a while, So-ram helpfully popped up an information window beside me.

[<Character Info>

Name: Jo Seha
Age: 21
Role: Be the IDOL contestant (Rank 33)
Traits:
– Dad, I want to be an idol when I grow up (Rare, Active)
– Flower Garden in My Head (Normal, Active)
– Runaway Youth (Normal, Active)
View detailed stats and info (Expand)]

Hmm… still doesn’t ring a bell. But the fact that So-ram immediately pulled up his info meant one thing for sure—Kim Haram must’ve originally known this person.

“You really came out here after beating out my dad, huh?”

The moment I heard the word “dad,” something clicked and my brows furrowed instinctively.

Dad…? And the family name Jo…? Plus those traits…

Throb.

For the first time in a while, my head actually started to hurt.

“…Are you Jo Jungjae’s son?”

“Hey! Don’t just call grownups by their full name like that!”

The guy grinned wide and said, “Hold on, I’m coming in~” and strolled right into the room.

Hey! What makes you think you can just walk in here!?

I immediately stepped in front of Jo Seha, blocking his path.

“Why are you here?”

Is he one of Jo Jungjae’s planted spies? I knew I should’ve just earned my way to the top fair and square with money…

“Me? I told my dad I wanted in and rushed to an audition! Got scolded for going all the way to Busan.”

“And your contract?”

I was pretty sure this guy had already debuted in some idol group.

“Oh. They said I couldn’t participate if I had a contract, so…”

Right. You can’t have an active contract. So just leave—

“I went to my dad’s office, found my contract, and burned it! Figured that’d be more final than just tearing it up.”

“…Huh???”

You can do that???

“No, uh…”

There’s no way that should’ve worked!

As I continued to block the doorway, Jo Seha pouted and spoke up.

“Hey, if you’re done talking, can you move? I need to unpack.”

No, no. I’m not done talking yet.

On the contrary, too many things were rushing to my mind that I didn’t know where to start.

Does he even know what his dad did to me?

“What’s going on?”

Sensing the commotion, Seo Chanul approached from the front door. Jo Seha let out another exaggerated exclamation.

“Whoa! Even Seo Chanul’s in this room? The average ranking here is crazy high! This is wild!”

He was way too cheerful and hyper for the situation—nothing like Jo Jungjae.

“Hello!”

“Uh… hello.”

Don’t respond to him, Chanul!

As soon as I slightly hesitated, Jo Seha took the opportunity to brush past me and walk up to Seo Chanul.

“I saw you in the All Position stage earlier! How was the position evaluation?”

“Oh, uh… not bad, I guess…”

Thrown off by Jo Seha’s energy, Seo Chanul awkwardly tried to keep up.

“You little—!”

Just as I was about to lunge at Jo Seha again—

J-FJ-J-J-

A chime rang out from the speaker installed in every room.

[We will now announce the results of the Position Evaluation.]

All of our roommates, who had just entered the living room, turned their attention to the speaker.

[First, Vocal F-rank—]

Here it comes again…