Chapter 15: What an Ideal Performance Looks Like (1)

[Opening “Random Box (Intermediate”)!]

“Please… please!!”

Interested.

The holographic box opened, and a stream of items flashed by in a blur.

[Skill ‘Power Punch’ acquired!]

Yes! I finally got it! Power Punch!

The name is kind of cheesy, but as long as I have this…

“I can finally shut Lee Jiwon’s demon mouth!”

Right then, I spotted Lee Jiwon in the distance, chatting away to Choi Woojin.

Judging by the shape of his lips… Haram… misunderstanding… stage… together… That bastard—!!

“I told you…!”

I took a large stride and instantly closed the distance between us.

Now that I had this skill, I was even stronger—high-speed movement like this was nothing.

“I told you not to say it…!”

Jiwon hadn’t even had time to turn and see me yet.

Good. This was going to work.

“Take this!!”

WHAM!

A fist bursting with power.

Nice. Landed it straight in the mouth.

But then—

“Seriously, hyung…”

My explosive punch was caught far too easily by that guy’s hand.

His mouth began to open. No. Not at this range—I couldn’t dodge.

“I told you, hyung. If you really want to shut me up, something like ‘Power Punch’ isn’t going to cut it. Seriously, hyung. Sometimes I really wish you’d listen to me…”

Stop… stop…

As my vision blurred into the distance, I saw Go Jeongeun behind Jiwon, rhythmically performing a Cossack dance.

Why are you here…?

“Hyung? You’re tuning me out again, aren’t you? It really hurts, you know. It hurts so much. You always pick up on my tiniest worries, so why can’t you understand this part of me…?”

Ahhh… Lee Jiwon…! Lee Jiwooooon………………!!!

…It was a stupid dream.

What the hell? Was my subconscious really that afraid of Lee Ji-won’s mouth?

I slowly raised my right hand, the one that had been blocked by Lee Ji-won.

“…Next time, for sure.”

Hang in there. Me.

“Haram hyung?”

As I stared blankly at my fist, Choi Woojin poked his head down from the upper bunk.

“Are you okay?”

“Mm… I’m fine…”

Just… a little disappointed…….

“…I’m still really upset, too.”

Hm? Didn’t I just say I was fine?

“Ji-won hyung… He’ll definitely make it back, right?”

Ah, so that’s what he meant.

“Yeah. Don’t worry. He’s really gonna be fine.”

In the most recent additional audition, Lee Ji-won was eliminated.

To be honest, I hadn’t expected that… But the only reason I’m not panicking about it now is simple.

‘Damn broadcasters…’

Lee Ji-won’s performance yesterday wasn’t bad.

He chose a vocal-focused song that brought out his strengths, and since he wasn’t nervous, he was able to fully showcase his skill.

“Ji-won’s vibe is good, huh?”

“Yeah, seriously.”

We’d been sitting in the audience holding banners, and as soon as the song started, we let out a huge sigh of relief.

“Thank you, contestant Lee Ji-won. That was a great performance.”

The judges’ comments started off well too.

“You’ve got a naturally pleasant mid-low tone, so I think this song suited you quite well.”

Even the judge who seemed to have been hastily brought in after Choi Hansol failed to return had nothing bad to say.

‘Yes…!’

Thank god. Now we just need to calmly prepare for the next round…!

“But… there were a few disappointing parts.”

“Huh?”

Lee Ji-won, who’d been listening to the feedback with a pleasant smile, blinked in surprise at the sudden comment.

“Well, it’s more like… the song suited you so perfectly that you didn’t get a chance to show off your own individuality…”

“Lee Ji-won’s expression froze in an instant.

‘What’s that supposed to mean, hyung?’

‘Let’s just hear the rest.’

Honestly, Woojin, I still don’t understand what they meant either.

If picking a good song is part of your skill, why is that considered a drawback? So idols who succeed by picking the right songs are only half-baked?

Frustrated, I couldn’t help glaring at the judge.

‘Er… so, while it was good overall, I think it’s just a bit…’

The judge’s gaze briefly flicked toward the production team seated below the stage.

Who’s he looking at?

‘That person…?’

The judge’s eyes landed on PD Jang Yeon-joo, who nodded with an uncomfortable expression.

Maybe he felt my gaze—PD Jang looked in my direction, and our eyes met.

‘Hm…?’

With a bitter smile, PD Jang brought his hands together in front of him, a silent gesture of apology.

At that moment, a system window I hadn’t expected suddenly popped up in front of me.

‘Ah-ha…?’

Just as I was starting to put things together, the judge continued.

‘…So yes, I’m going to give a fail. Though it was unintentionally revealed earlier, we do still have the Wildcard Round, so I hope you’ll keep trying.’

Ah. Now it all made sense.

‘It’s rigged.’

‘Rigged?’

Lee Hyun-jae and Choi Woojin turned to look at me at the same time.

‘Yeah. They’re deliberately dropping him.’

I should’ve caught on the moment they introduced that messy “Wildcard” system.

‘The Wildcard Round. They said it happens after the first main performance round, right?’

‘Yeah, they did.’

‘And the structure is…’

’20 people who failed the first round, 20 who failed the prelims… From those 40, some will move on.’

Woojin chimed in beside me.

Exactly. That format was nonsense from the start.

If the prelims were judged purely on skill, it wouldn’t make sense for someone who failed the prelims to outperform someone who already passed and made it to the main stage.

I mean, unless they somehow improved drastically in one or two weeks—if they could do that, would they have even failed in the first place? And with only a few available slots, it’s a brutally competitive setup.

So how do you make this setup work? The answer’s obvious.

‘You’re saying they’re deliberately eliminating strong contestants so they can make a dramatic story in the Wildcard Round?’

“That’s right.”

Even after the results were announced, Lee Jiwon remained standing on stage.

“…I’m really angry.”

“…Yeah, me too.”

Just to create the ‘storyline’ they want, they made a perfectly fine contestant look like a failure?

If they’re doing things like this… then maybe even Go Jeongeun was unfairly eliminated.

“…Thank you.”

Eventually, Lee Jiwon bowed his head and stepped down from the stage.

So this is how they’re going to play it. Why not just admit the debut lineup was already decided?

He dragged his feet back to the seats and slumped into his chair.

In this audition studio, where all the necessary scenes had already been captured, there were barely any cameras capturing the details—or staff left to control the crowd.

Lee Jiwon covered his eyes with one hand.

“Ah… I’m out.”

“It’s fine. You’re definitely going to be in the wildcard round.”

“And how would you know that…?”

“Name ten people who got eliminated that are better than you.”

“Uh…”

“You can’t, right? You’ll make it. So get ready.”

Lee Jiwon lowered his hand and looked at me.

Maybe, in that moment, I had a more determined look on my face than usual.

Because right then, I had made a massive decision.

It was finally time to draw my sword.

They’re all dead. For real this time.

Snapping out of the memory, I checked the time and began getting ready to head out.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“Yeah. With Manager Woo. Might take a while.”

It could turn into a long conversation.

“Ah, then…”

Choi Woojin stopped mid-sentence, looking awkward. I could pretty much guess what he wanted to say.

“I’ll be back before dinner.”

As soon as I said that, his expression instantly shifted—like spring replacing winter.

“Yes! Let me know when you’re heading out!”

As expected. We’d planned to have dinner together to celebrate the end of the Be the IDOL preliminaries, and it seemed like Choi Woojin had been worried about that.

Cute guy.

“I’ll also check with Jeongeun-hyung to see if he’s free!”

Well, that doesn’t matter too much.

You asked him several times through the door yesterday and didn’t even get a response.

I let out a quiet chuckle at Choi Woojin’s kind heart.

“Alright. Don’t go overboard, okay?”

“Okay!”

A little while later, right on schedule, Manager Woo arrived at the dorm.

As soon as he walked in, he grumbled with a clearly irritated tone.

“Hey. What am I, your personal chauffeur now?”

“Oh come on. What else can we do? The chairman can’t drive himself, and we don’t have a car either.”

“You little—”

“Which reminds me.”

I cut him off before he could finish.

“Should we hire someone? And while we’re at it, maybe get a car too.”

Manager Woo’s expression immediately turned puzzled.

“Then the new car can be yours, Manager Woo. Sound good?”

The tension in his forehead smoothed out in an instant. Like, whoa, was that Botox?

“Let’s go, Chairman.”

His attitude flipped just like that. The power of capital, huh.

“Yes, I’ll be counting on you, Manager.”

Since he started smiling, I couldn’t help but smile too as I got into the passenger seat.

Flex, yeah, flexing is nice.

But the real flex starts now.

Time to have some real fun for once.

Actually, not just “for once”—this is my first time.

Before long, Manager Woo and I brought the car to a stop in a very familiar place.

The site where Lee Jiwon had just tasted the bitterness of elimination.

And then—

“You’re early.”

“Of course. The PD set aside precious time for me, after all.”

This guy.

“Are you doing this because you know I’m not really in a position to refuse you?”

From the very first line, he didn’t make it easy.

“Instead of standing around here, shall we go inside? It seems the contestant has quite a bit to say about the program.”

The main PD of Be the IDOL, Jang Yeonju.

*****

Inside the meeting room of the broadcasting station, following PD Jang.

“Americano okay with you? You’ve heard our station café’s is famous, right?”

I’d never actually had one, but I wasn’t planning to kill the mood.

“Yeah, well…”

“It’s famous. I always wanted to try it whenever I came, but I was too busy. Thanks to you, PD-nim, I finally get to taste it.”

Just as I was about to give a vague reply and move on, Chief Woo—seated beside me—intercepted with a comment.

“…?”

I’d been wondering why he insisted on coming in with me, and now he was acting a little… unusually eager?

“Ahem…”

As both PD Jang and I turned to glance at him at the same time, Chief Woo awkwardly cleared his throat.

Hmm… fine. Let’s table this for now.

Maybe he had the same thought, because PD Jang’s gaze soon turned back to me.

“So, you came all the way here to ask me to let a fellow agency member pass the auditions?”

“As if.”

My Ji-won doesn’t need to resort to something like that—he’ll push through and make it on his own.

“I just had a few things I’ve been meaning to ask and confirm with you, PD Jang.”

The first was—

The day of the initial shoot.

“What exactly did you mean when you thanked me that day?”

And then yesterday.

“What were you apologizing for then?”

Finally—

[ SideQuest–TheIdealCompetition

Objective: Save PD Jang Yeonju from all the scheming and manipulation
Reward: Increased chance of success in Be the IDOL
Failure Penalty: Complete failure in Be the IDOL]

“And what kind of hardship you’re facing as the one running this program.”

Hearing that last part, PD Jang’s eyes widened in surprise.

“That… how did you…?”

His eyes were asking how much I knew. Unfortunately, I was only planning to start figuring that out now. I just shrugged with a casual grin.

“I can tell just by looking into your eyes.”

“Heh, haha… ha.”

Had he really been showing that much? He muttered to himself and glanced around the room for a moment. He still looked a bit conflicted.

Just one more push.

“I’ll save you.”

“…? Excuse me?”

His gaze returned to me.

“I’ll save you. I don’t know what kind of trouble you’re in, but still.”

“Save me…?”

PD Jang lowered his gaze and let out a long sigh, then looked up with a strange smile.

“That’s the first time someone’s ever said that to me. Haram, you’ve grown up. When we first met, you were just a baby.”

Well, Haram has grown up a lot over the past few days. Haha.

While I stood there with an awkward smile, PD Jang spoke again.

“You’re here because CEO Cho was harassing you and you wanted to leave the company, right?”

…What?

“How did you know…?”

This time, he was the one to shrug and joke.

“I can tell just by looking into your eyes.”

“Haha, ha…!”

“You didn’t even finish your contract properly, really…”

He knows that much too?

As expected, he’s not someone to take lightly.

“Well… in that sense, maybe you and I will get along just fine.”

PD Jang let out a self-deprecating chuckle.

“I really hate the big shots at our company too.”

Then, as if making a decision, he looked me in the eye and asked,

“So, did you come up with a way to save me?”

“Oh, well…”

It’s nothing special, really.

“I just happen to have a lot of money.”

A deep wrinkle instantly formed between PD Jang’s brows. Yikes. Why the scary face? You’re acting like my manager.

The more his brows furrowed, the brighter I smiled.

“A lot. Like, really a lot.”

Enough to chew up and spit out whatever underhanded schemes they try.

“Not bad, right?”