NOVEL NEXT Chapter 12: REQUIREMENTS
AFTER Haneul read the announcement, he quickly clicked on the link provided. The additional requirements were at the top of the web page. So, he was able to read it immediately. They were as follows;
- Males (Alphas, Betas, and Omegas are all welcome).
- Ages 17-21.
- Any nationalities are welcome.
- Not a trainee of any existing entertainment company.
- Should have a healthy and fit physique, and a strong mentality.
When Haneul read the first requirement, he let out a sigh of relief. He had been worrying about whether only Alphas or Betas would be allowed to participate in Boys Odyssey.
He had been doing his research about the idol industry in the past few days. Looking for any differences from the ones he had known. For the most part, they were still the same. Aside from the fact that a boy group or a girl group mostly had members with one uniform secondary gender. Or at least a combination of Alphas and Betas or Omegas and Betas. There was none that combined all three secondary genders.
That's when Haneul started to worry whether he would even be allowed to audition. After all, the format of this particular survival program might not be considered as friendly to Omegas. But thankfully, that wasn't the case.
Although this might just turn out as some promotional tactic and they wouldn't really allow for an Omega to pass, he would just have to make sure that they had no choice but to let him pass.
After that, he read the additional instructions. If one wanted to go to the audition, they had to sign a registration form first. When he clicked the sample of the registration form, it was just the usual. Name, address, age, birthday, if they had any experience as a trainee, and of course, a section to attach one's profile picture. What's different was the section asking what song they would perform.
The deadline for submitting the form was until tomorrow. Asking what song they would perform, was it so the production staff involve in the audition could prepare it beforehand?
Anyway, he wondered if they would let anyone who signed and submitted that registration form audition. If so, then there would be too many auditionees. Would two days even be enough?
Haneul exited the site and read the comments under the announcement.
— Is this the survival program Vnet had been promoting since January? I thought they already did an audition for this?
└ The pool of participants who passed is probably not enough. That's why they're holding another audition.
— Is Vnet not experiencing 'survival program' fatigued? If they aren't, the general public sure is.
— LOL every male and nationalities could audition? This is a recipe for disaster.
└ Watch them debut all Korean Alphas at the end.
└ Haha those overseas fans who would watch the program would definitely complain to death if that happens.
└ Knowing Vnet, that will definitely happen.
— But are they really going to make a group with all secondary genders present? Could Alphas and Omegas live in a dorm together?
└ Nah, I think they're just using that requirement to gather public attention. But at the end, they wouldn't really let an Omega debut.
└ You never know. After that rigging scandal in their Idol Producer series, Vnet no longer rigged results.
└ Yeah, they just doubled down on their evil edits and only give screentime to their favorite trainees, so those they picked would still be the one to debut.
— But what if they're really trying to make a mix group? Would the Omega contestants be safe? What if they were harassed by the Alphas there?
└ Hey, upstairs, are you making up some kind of drama in your head? This is the 21st century! If an Alpha harasses an Omega, they will definitely be sued and most likely be sent to jail.
└ Right? I mean, with so many good suppressants out in the market, Omegas nowadays hardly go into sudden heats. So what kind of excuse would an Alpha use if he attacked an Omega knowingly?
└ What if it's the Omega who wanted it? *smirk*
└ Upstairs, shut up. I'm going to report you.
└ Report X2
└ Report X3
.
.
.
└ Report X50
— I'm more interested in the fact that they're only allowing people not affiliated with any companies to audition. What could that mean?
└ This survival program might be a collaboration between Vnet and an entertainment company.
└ If that's the case, then the winners of this survival program won't be a project group but a permanent one?
└ Many would definitely tune in if that's true. After all, this time, they would be supporting a permanent group and not one that would disband after two and a half years.
└ But which company collaborated with Vnet? Is it one of the major entertainment companies?
That last comment and the responses to it caught Haneul's attention. Most of what they said was true. Boys Odyssey was indeed a collaboration between Vnet and an entertainment company, and that the debut members would be a permanent group. What they got wrong was that the entertainment company was not a major company but a new company instead.
Yes, a new company. But it was not just a simple company but one founded by a member of a chaebol family. And not just any other chaebol family, but one of the largest conglomerate in South Korea - the Taesung Group.
When that information was made known, it created even more buzz around Boys Odyssey. Many thought that any group who debuted with the backing of a chaebol had no choice but to succeed. And, to some extent, the group did achieve success — at least for a while.
As Haneul continued to read the comments, another one caught his attention.