NOVEL NEXT Chapter 73
Tap, tap.
As the dark intro ended, the music briefly cut off, and Ha Ye-rin tossed her whip aside as she stepped forward onto the stage.
“Wow…”
Seeing this, she, a fan of Ha Ye-rin, gasped.
Ye-rin’s expression acting was no joke today.
Especially her sharp and pointed eyes seemed even sharper today, adding life to Ha Ye-rin’s contemptuous expression.
‘This is strange…’
If someone looked at me with disdain, I should feel unpleasant…
Thud.
Why is my heart racing like this?
With Ha Ye-rin capturing the audience’s gaze, the stage began.
—
-One day, I met you as if by fate
-Like magic
-So softly
The originally high-energy, poppy melody “Magical Love☆” was arranged with electronic sounds.
This gave the audience a feeling that was the complete opposite of the original.
Plus…
‘Was Ye-rin’s voice always this husky…?’
Ha Ye-rin’s debut of her husky voice in front of the audience was shocking enough.
People no longer paid attention to the lower pitch of the song.
Next came the parts from the other team members.
—
-But you said you didn’t like me
-Thanks to that, my heart aches every night
She, a fan of Ha Ye-rin, had been a die-hard fan of the original artist, Strawberry Filter, until a few years ago.
So she knew that the first team’s “Magical Love★” didn’t deviate much from the original “Magical Love☆.”
But…
—
-Every night, I think of you and feel dizzy
-I can never forget.
Just because the atmosphere was different, the first team’s “Magical Love★” now had an eerie contrast to the original lyrics.
While the original gave off a feeling of a lovestruck teenage girl, now there was a void of a yandere stalker’s mindset.
‘To evoke this feeling without rewrites…’
Before she could finish her admiration, Na Han-na dashed forward.
—
-How could I forget you.
Originally composed of high notes about to burst, the bridge was replaced by Na Han-na’s breaking as they utilized their specialty.
With a soft murmur and electric sounds flowing, as Na Han-na performed colorful movements, the audience was mesmerized.
Next came the explosive chorus.
The formation changed… the protagonist stepped into the center.
Slide…
Then the other first-team members gathered around her like courtiers to a queen.
Whisper…
Boom!
As if to give a twist, the lights briefly went out, then exploded with light.
“Ahhh—!!”
The audience gasped in awe at the sight of Ha Ye-rin at the center.
—
-This is truly a fantastic love-
-With my magic
-I will ‘dominate’ you
“……!”
The original lyrics were “I’ll capture you,” but it changed to ‘dominate.’
To capture and to dominate.
Two similar words, but the feelings were completely different.
Especially in the chorus sections where Ha Ye-rin’s dance moves were minimal, but…
Whisper…
With a gently commanding hand gesture…
Brush…
That contemptuous look, as if looking down on pests…
Slide…
That off-shoulder gothic dress she wouldn’t normally wear…! The thrill of it…!
With each dance, her white ankles fluttering out…! The secret thrill of stealing glances at that…!
“Haah… ohh…”
The face of her fan flushed, and her heart raced violently.
The climax came when Ha Ye-rin finished the chorus with a solo dance break.
—
-This is magical love★
-By the time I realized, it was too late.
-You’re already ‘under my feet’
There was a rewrite here too.
Originally it was ‘in my embrace,’ but it became ‘under my feet.’
But most people were so captivated by Ha Ye-rin’s dance that they didn’t notice the change in lyrics.
Swish… Swirl…
Ha Ye-rin’s dancing demanded the viewers’ total attention.
When people watched Ha Ye-rin dance, they often felt like it was just her and them in that space.
Adding to that was her expression acting.
‘Ah.’
The biggest reason for her, a fan of Ha Ye-rin, not to give up on her obsession.
That hypnotic expression acting that seemed to show a hallucination.
By the time she snapped back to reality, there was only Ha Ye-rin and her in the dark space.
At first, Ha Ye-rin looked at her with a contemptuous face…
Tap, tap.
Then she walked over as if rewarding a good deed, ruffling her hair and whispering.
Her, a fan of Ha Ye-rin, in a daze, felt a jolt of clarity upon hearing Ha Ye-rin’s whisper.
—
-You pig, get on your knees and crawl over to lick my feet.
“……!”
By the time she regained her senses, the stage was over, and Ha Ye-rin was striking the ending pose.
Her, a fan of Ha Ye-rin, suddenly found herself standing up, looking at the stage.
‘Pig, did she say pig…?’
Of course, Ha Ye-rin never actually said that, but she felt as if Ha Ye-rin had actually said it.
Everyone gets angry when they hear derogatory words.
But she was not angry at all.
Instead…
“Ahh…”
Deep within her mind, the dark thought of really wanting to lick Ha Ye-rin’s feet arose.
Thud.
Her, a fan of Ha Ye-rin, felt a new preference developing in her heart and sat down.
Her friend, an enthusiastic fan of Yoo Seol, looked at her with a bit of pity and then shouted in surprise.
“Hey, are you overreacting…? Huh? Hey! You…!”
Her friend was startled, shouting as she saw blood flowing from her face.
“Your nose! You’re bleeding now!”
Her friend hurriedly took tissues from her bag and plugged up her nose.
While her friend wiped away the blood, her face was still filled with lingering satisfaction.
“Hey, friend…”
“Uh, why…! Are you hurt? Should we go to the hospital right now…?”
Her friend was worried, thinking she might be dying.
“Sorry… I can’t vote for Yoo Seol…”
“…Huh?”
“Our Ye-rin… I can’t go without voting for her… our queen… one more vote…”
“Ugh.”
“Gah!”
Even amid that, seeing her obsessing over Ha Ye-rin, she tossed her aside.
“You ungrateful thing! Who do you think got the viewer tickets?!”
“But… our Ye-rin did so well on stage, what can I do…?”
“…Hmph.”
Her friend, a fan of Yoo Seol, clicked her tongue but couldn’t disagree with that statement.
Just now, Ha Ye-rin’s performance was at such a high level that even her friend, an enthusiastic fan of Yoo Seol, was impressed.
Of course, that said…
“But still, our Seol’s team will win this time!”
She wouldn’t stop cheering for Yoo Seol.
Next up was the performance of the second team, which included Yoo Seol.
Though the aftermath of Ha Ye-rin’s stage still lingered within her…
“…I can do this!”
She clenched her fist, convinced that this time Yoo Seol could beat Ha Ye-rin.
—
“Waaah—!!”
“Gahhh—!!”
“Ha Ye-rin—!!”
“Ye-rin—!!!”
After the stage ended, back in the backstage, hearing the tremendous cheers calling her name made me realize the performance was a success.
Of course, aside from the audience reaction… this performance was personally satisfying.
It seemed that the other team members felt the same, as they all wore expressions of relief.
“Wow, everyone did great…!”
“We really did well, right?”
“…We all worked hard, that’s true…”
Just as each team member was celebrating their successful performance…
“Actually, the one who suffered the most is our Ye-rin unnie, who had to lead and be the center at the same time. All the ideas came from her…”
“……”
Suddenly, Na Han-na interrupted and spoke about me, creating a moment of awkward silence before…
“Ah, haha. That’s true! Unnie did everything!”
“Unnie, you did well!”
The others ran to me, cheering.
“Oh no, oh no, everyone worked hard too.”
As I waved away the team members rushing at me…
“Han-na.”
“…Yes?”
“This.”
Snicker.
I slyly wrapped my arm around Na Han-na’s neck, whispering in her ear.
“Where are you trying to run off to? You also didn’t do your part by making me do the leader and center work, right?”
“……”
Feeling caught off guard by my comment, Na Han-na flinched.
That’s right.
While she was chastising the other team members, she was simply thinking about hopping on the bus I was driving.
Whether my words touched a nerve or if Na Han-na felt guilty…
“That’s…”
She rarely bowed her head and apologized.
“…I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
“……”
“You were right. This time, I was really scared it would fail, so I couldn’t speak up. I didn’t work hard before because I thought if I tried and failed, it would hurt more…”
But as Na Han-na opened up truthfully, perhaps this stage accounted for her hard work, I didn’t find her that unlikable.
“I promise I’ll really work hard if we’re on the same team next time.”
“Same team, huh…”
Of the contestants from Na Ah Ah, the only member I knew well was Yoo Seol. Besides her, I was somewhat familiar with Park Yoo-jung.
And Na Han-na…
‘I don’t remember her.’
I wondered if the previous version of Na Han-na had indeed been selected as a member of the Na Ah Ah debut team.
Based on her current skills, she could definitely be part of the debut group…
However, somehow I felt that the lethargic Na Han-na in front of me might not have made the debut team.
But right now…
Though it was only a slight difference, compared to the past, Na Han-na’s eyes seemed a bit more awake.
‘Maybe one of those six spots will belong to Na Han-na.’
Though Na Han-na’s lethargy and slothfulness were her downsides, she was skilled and had great ideas.
‘She can even be cute at times…’
So I readily nodded at her promise of working hard next time.
“Alright, next time you have to be the leader or center.”
“Yes…!”
Thus, our first team’s stage for the second team competition came to an end.
It had its share of troubles…and issues…but I thought it was a fun experience.
When we returned to the waiting room with the warm atmosphere…
“Wow, the second team is about to start now.”
“…!”
Our opponents, the second team, were preparing to showcase their performance.