NOVEL NEXT Chapter 21
As the assembly time approached 7 AM, all the Na Ah Ah participants headed towards the set, cutting through the early morning breeze.
“Haaaawn….”
“So sleepy….”
It seemed everyone hadn’t fully recovered from yesterday’s fatigue, as they each strolled along yawning.
I was one of them, but surprisingly, I felt okay.
Having gone through the harsh Cinderella training method while balancing school, part-time work, and housework, my stamina stats were…
(Stamina: 93)
A whopping 93!
In contrast, my sidekick Seo Yoo-jin seemed to have extremely low stamina, groaning as she barely managed to walk.
Curious, I checked her stats in the status window…
(Stamina: 12)
…It was a pitiful level.
‘…That was my vocal ability stat before leveling up.’
Realizing how trashy Yoo-jin’s stamina was made me pity her.
“Ughhh… where are we…”
As she stumbled around confused, I grabbed her hand.
“Not that way, this way.”
“Ah… thank you….”
Maybe she was still half-asleep, but today she was surprisingly docile, unlike the fierce cat she was yesterday…
“By the way, who’s that… ……!!”
Zing!
I thought she was going to get shocked, but as soon as she recognized who I was, her eyes bulged.
Of course, glaring at me with sleepy eyes didn’t hit me hard at all.
“Eek, eek!”
“Stop hissing and just follow me before I push you into the ditch next to us.”
This was just a joke since there were no cameras around.
However, as soon as I said that, Yoo-jin suddenly lowered her gaze and quietly followed me from behind.
Fear seemed to spread across her face.
Seeing that, I almost burst into laughter.
It was annoying to have her so hostile for no reason, but she looked pretty cute when her feelings were so transparent.
Just then, while I was having a small chuckle holding Yoo-jin’s hand, someone shouted my name.
“Unnie! Ye-rin Unnie!”
Turning around to the unexpected call…
Woof! Woof!!
…Park Yoo-jung was running towards me like a dog.
“Unnie!”
“Oh, hey, Yoo-jung.”
She charged at me, overflowing with energy, and hugged me tightly even in the morning.
‘Come to think of it, my MBTI starts with I… and it’s extreme I…’
In contrast, Park Yoo-jung was clearly an extreme E. The way she could emit such sociability after only a day was impressive.
“I’m so glad to see you again! I was wondering what I would do if I couldn’t see you today!”
“Right? I’m glad to see you too.”
Although her embrace was a bit overwhelming, it wasn’t unwelcome.
Having spent the whole day together yesterday, I had grown quite fond of Yoo-jung.
She looked so much like a puppy that it was adorable.
So, I let her hug me back and patted her head.
“Hehe… Hmm?”
While Yoo-jung was enjoying my petting, she suddenly noticed my left hand was holding Yoo-jin’s.
“Unnie, who’s that…?”
“Ah, she seemed super tired, so I was just holding her hand.”
“…….”
Upon hearing my words, Yoo-jung’s expression stiffened momentarily.
Now that I thought about it, she hadn’t seemed to like Yoo-jin’s attitude yesterday.
“I see.”
Still, Yoo-jung quickly returned to her cheerful demeanor and reached out her hand towards Yoo-jin.
“Hello! I’m Park Yoo-jung from Levi Entertainment! Nice to meet you!”
I really felt that Yoo-jung’s bright smile had an excellent effect on breaking down barriers between people.
I was not someone who easily opened up, but her smile had warmed my heart.
However, Yoo-jin seemed like a stronger opponent than I imagined…
“Hmph.”
“…….”
She turned her head away with a dismissive snort.
In that moment, I noticed.
Yoo-jin’s gaze had landed on the letter E attached to Yoo-jung’s outfit, marking her rank.
It looked like she had decided to ignore Yoo-jung after seeing her rank was low.
‘Truly consistently disrespectful.’
But Yoo-jung, unfazed by Yoo-jin’s attitude…
“Haha! You seem to be quite shy!”
She teased and laughed it off.
…What a strong mental fortitude that was.
“But you two holding hands is making me jealous. I wanna hold hands too!”
“Ah.”
Yoo-jung said this as she took my free right hand and intertwined our fingers.
“…….”
Yoo-jin glared at the scene with sleepy eyes, gripping my hand tightly like a child who didn’t want to lose something.
Ouch!
It got a bit painful as she squeezed my hand.
In this situation, I was the one feeling flustered.
‘What are they doing to me right now…’
With them pulling at my hands from both sides, it was like a tug-of-war.
Even so, while being tossed around, it didn’t feel too bad.
It felt somewhat… like I was finally gaining a younger sibling, something I’d never had in both my past and present lives.
So, I walked towards the set, with a cat in my left hand and a puppy in my right.
Maybe it was because I was holding something in both hands, but the morning breeze didn’t feel too cold at all.
Zing-…
When we arrived at the set, there was a huge screen set up along with Na Ah Ah’s main MC, Han Si-woo.
As the main PD gave the signal to start shooting, Han Si-woo grabbed the microphone.
“Everyone, nice to see you again. Did you sleep well last night?”
“Yes-!!”
“Then, I will now reveal the theme song for the Idol Academia you will be practicing for the next week.”
Boom-!
As Han Si-woo signaled, the screen lit up.
Inside the screen, dancers were preparing their choreography.
“Pay attention, Na Ah Ah’s theme song, [We are dreaming idol!]”
Even without directly seeing Na Ah Ah, I knew this song. Na Ah Ah had been a massive hit program in Korea.
You couldn’t walk down the street without hearing it a couple of times.
-We always dream.
The song was at an average difficulty level, not exceeding any typical girl group’s standards.
But it was my first time watching the choreography live.
Perhaps for the sake of mass appeal or to accommodate lower-ranked participants, the choreography for the intro was not too difficult.
However…
-We are dreaming!
-The moment you see us.
-We wake up!
“Huh?”
“……Hmm.”
In the next moment, the participants watching the screen gasped.
And rightly so…
‘Did only the center’s choreography change…?’
It was rather complicated to follow.
With that change, the participants who became the center would be required to perform at a considerably high level.
Of the 100 participants, the center would naturally consist of A-rank trainees.
‘So they really won’t let just anyone into A rank, huh?’
Having noticed that fact, most of the B-rank participants’ faces turned pale.
I felt sorry for them, seeing them struggling to break through the thick wall of A.
But little did I know at that moment…
What it would mean for me that the B-rank trainees couldn’t make it to A.
After the theme song introduction, the trainees moved to their customized classes according to their ranks.
F rank went to F class, B rank to B class.
Naturally, I went to A class since I was an A rank.
And then…
“Ye-rin, are you even awake?”
…Hell began.
“Ye-rin, sing this part again.”
The vocal trainer pointed to the bridge part leading into the chorus.
“Watch over me-!”
“No, no! Haa… Seol-ah, can you give it a try?”
This hell was what one might call comparison hell.
“Watch over me-!!!”
“Exactly! Here, you need to belt it like Seol to give it that dramatic feel, okay?”
“I’m sorry.”
The problem with A class was that only Seol and I were there.
With only two of us, the trainers had no choice but to compare us.
Of course, my dance stats were slightly higher than Seol’s, having a bit of experience, but I didn’t fall short of her otherwise.
But the problem was my vocal ability.
No matter how much I leveled up my stats… my vocal ability was 65.
Whereas Seol’s vocal ability was 99.
Vocal ability 65 isn’t a low stat, but compared to Seol, it felt worlds apart.
But honestly, this wasn’t a significant issue at first.
The trainers were aware of the difference in our vocal abilities.
“Ye-rin, I think you were off by half a beat there.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Ha-ha, it’s okay. Let’s try it again.”
At first, they patiently taught me without comparing my vocal ability to Seol’s.
However…
“Kim Ye-sol trainer, can we have a word?”
Suddenly the main PD took the vocal trainer aside for a private talk…
“…Ye-rin. Didn’t you understand what the teacher said? Do it like Seol! Do it like Seol!”
They suddenly began barking orders while comparing Seol and me.
Damn production team.
Surely, they definitely ordered them to compare me with Seol for dramatic effect since it wouldn’t make good broadcast content otherwise.
“Haa… let’s take a short break.”
The vocal trainer sighed once and gave me an apologetic glance before stepping outside.
Zing-…
The camera focused on just the practice room where only Seol and I remained.
Seizing the moment, Seol approached me.
“Are you okay?”
“Ah…”
“Don’t be too upset. The teacher is certainly hoping for good things for us, so….”
“Thank you.”
Seol clenched her fists encouragingly and said.
“Shall we practice the bridge part together a bit more? It was tricky, right? I….”
At that moment.
“Let’s change tapes for a moment.”
As the production team lowered the camera, Seol naturally pulled back.
“……”
The second reason why A class was tough was exactly this.
Seol.
This person was entirely different in front of and behind the camera.
Whenever the camera was rolling, her whole demeanor would change.
Even now… while she was teaching me the bridge, the moment the camera dropped, she immediately backed away.
“……Hah.”
While her behavior was absurd, I couldn’t complain.
If I argued and that scene happened to be recorded, it would get aired, and I’d be crushed.
So all I could do was wait.
Waiting through the trainer’s comparisons, the production team’s challenges, and Seol’s coldness…
Simply waiting for another A-rank trainee to emerge.
‘Even if it’s Seo Yoo-jin, please….’
I prayed for another A-rank trainee to show up, even if it meant having to deal with Yoo-jin’s prickly attitude for the time being.
Perhaps my prayers were finally answered.
“Everyone, a new A-rank trainee has been born.”
“……!”
As the production team opened the door, announcing the emergence of a new A rank.
“Come on in!”
And upon seeing who the new A rank was, I…
“…Huh.”
…Couldn’t help but jump back in surprise.