031

"Wow, they got 3rd place?"

"No, weren't they doing a great job?"

"In the first place, their ranking was the highest…"

"The reaction was crazy, too."

When we got third place, the other team participants around us talked about it.

Thank you, but in fact, I had predicted this situation since the moment they said each audience had two votes.

'The vote is to put us in check.'

If they came to the audience, it meant that most of them were heavy viewers who were pushing for certain participants.

The audience first chose the team that had their favorite participant.

And then they would have voted for the team with 'low rank and good skill'.

There was no way they would vote for this team who could end up as competitors for the participants they pushed for.

If you think about it that way, honestly, getting 3rd place was a good save.

Because it meant that in addition to the audition who came to watch this team, we were able to gain the votes of the people who just came to watch.

However, the team members seemed to be quite shocked.

"…Thank you!"

Ryu Chungwoo, who answered a beat late, bowed vigorously.

The team members tried hard to copy his move, but it was clear that they were trying to look calm.

"Thank you."

I bowed my head, too.

The announcement of the first and second places was also postponed to the ranking announcement ceremony. Among them, there was the 'similar to the first match' team collected by Choi Wongil.

"Then, shareholders! Re-listed! Idol Inc. We'll see you again at the ranking announcement ceremony with the announcement of the 1st place in the team match!"

After the MC's closing remarks, Choi Wongil seemed to glance at this side with a triumphant look.

'Are you an idiot…'

He's always like that.

Is it because he hasn't seen the spicy taste of editing yet?

Anyway, this team was too out of mind to notice that. One by one, Ryu Chungwoo patted the shoulders of the team members who were applauding in a depressed state.

"Great job. It must have been cool because we did our best. Don't worry."

"Yes…"

"Yes, we did a good job!"

Well, as Cha Eugene said, we certainly did well on stage.

So if we got a sympathy vote for this, we wouldn't be criticized.

In any case, no one in this team would be eliminated from the next ranking announcement, which was the best result.

The problem was the editing, but unless there was another editing where they only highlighted Ryu Chungwoo and blackened everyone else, it would be fine. Since the performance came out well.

Everyone already had a fandom, so any bad news would be wiped out in public opinion battles.

Kim Raebin, who was ruined in the first team match broadcast, but settled in the rankings through persistent public opinion battles by fans, was an example.

Ah, he's talking to me.

"That… Park Moondae hyung."

"Yeah, what is it?"

Kim Raebin nodded.

"Thank you very much for everything. Can we exchange contact information?"

"Yes."

I gave my number without hesitation.

There was no harm in having a close relationship with this participant. Thanks to the songwriting characteristic, he ate the arrangement raw.

In addition, looking at his personality, unlike Keun Sejin who kept in touch all the time, he seemed the type who finished his business quickly on the phone when needed.

Kim Raebin bowed his head again after receiving my number.

"I'll say hello from time to time."

"…Good."

I don't know if I'm talking to an aspiring idol or to my successor.

'Oh, come to think of it…'

Is this an opportunity to change the so-called 'group of tied participants'?

Since this team match was also successful, there was a possibility that the fandom would be reorganized on its own if a few eyewitness accounts were leaked in time for the next episode to air.

'Park Moondae' and the guys tied up at the beginning had a lot of risk factors from drugs to the final rankings in the future. Furthermore…

'If possible, wouldn't my survival rate be higher if I am tied to someone with a higher final rank?'

I couldn't ignore the possibility of having a less hostile reputation to people who pushed Cha Eugene if I were tied up with Kim Rae-bin.

'Great.'

To make such a calculation, reality hit me hard, but who cares about that when faced with sudden death?

"Thank you for your hard work∼"

"Thank you for your hard work!"

As I was packing my things and getting ready to leave while occasionally shaking my head, someone touched my back from behind.

"H-hey."

"Hmm?"

When I turned my head, Seon Ahyeon looked grim.

The guy who has been too busy for the past weeks to say hello suddenly comes to talk with a determined face?

'Is there a bad rumor going around?'

Seon Ahyeon looked around and after confirming that no one was looking, he opened his eyes wide and whispered.

"Choi-Choi Wongil, you know."

"…? Yeah, what about Choi Wongil?"

Why are you suddenly talking about Choi Wongil?

'Did you come here to curse because he said he wanted other parts again?'

Surprisingly, the idea that I just threw was half right.

"He-he-he is so mean…!"

Seon Ahyeon was almost huffing.

No, what kind of personality does he have to make this guy so angry?

"Why, what happened?"

"Y-yes!"

Seon Ahyeon nodded vigorously and carefully began to explain what had happened in the last team match.

"A-at first… W-when asking for his part."

Oh, my prediction was completely correct.

"H-He kept talking about you! Like s-sarcastically…."

To summarize the following explanation of Choi Wongil's deeds, it was roughly like this.

'I didn't get camera footage in the first round, so it's right for me to get some this time. I made the team, so shouldn't you be grateful?'

'You gave all the parts to Moondae hyung, but why are you not giving all the parts to me when I am the main vocalist? It seems you're discriminating against me because of your friendship.'

It seemed he even talked about the latter while crying in an interview with the production team.

'He must have learned from the last team match that the first punch wins.'

It was said that when the team members who were hit in the back of their heads were struggling, Keun Sejin gently calmed Choi Wongil and cleared the situation.

'It's a wise choice considering the broadcast.'

But thanks to that, the frustration of the team members who couldn't speak properly seemed to have disappeared.

Seon Ahyeon's cautious attitude had changed to a completely turbulent state by the end of the speech.

It seemed he was so angry that he started stuttering.

"Y-you have to be careful…! I-I'm afraid he'll make your story weird… I-I wanted to let you know."

Seon Ahyeon, whose cheeks turned red, was worried about Park Moondae while everything was happening, and eventually acted on his concerns.

Perhaps the main point was this.

The situation is funny, but… Yes.

'I'm kind of grateful.'

In this survival audition where everyone was busy taking care of themselves, he treated me like a real friend, not a connection.

I feel like I'm a jerk who divides kids into groups based on their rankings.

'It's not like I'm in a middle school class.'

My future knowledge was already being ripped apart since my team had already lost ground in the first team match, maybe I was being paranoid.

I replied with a smirk.

"Yeah, okay. Thank you."

"N-no…"

Sun Ahyeon was surprised then hurriedly waved his hands and returned to his usual timid appearance.

Keun Sejin, who appeared after breaking through the gap, put his arms around our shoulders.

He seemed to have a strange ability to join any conversation.

"Hey, guys. What are you doing?"

"T-that… I was telling him."

"What? Ah… him."

Keun Sejin shrugged.

It seemed Cheo Wongil had been trolling so much to the point that he was referred to by his pronoun instead of his name.

"Can't we do it next time?~ The stressed side loses. Look at this. The world is too busy to see good things."

"W-what?"

Keun Sejin naturally passed on the topic, then popped something on the screen of his smartphone and turned it towards Seon Ahyeon.

It was an SNS post that posted pictures of subway station billboards.

Oh, it's already time for this.

Placing advertisements on public facilities was one of the idol fans' representative support. I remembered because I took a few pictures of them.

'Of course, it was uploaded under a fan account name.'

Anyway, I thought Keun Sejin was trying to show his own billboard, but it wasn't just that.

"Ta-da! This is the three of us."

"Hm?"

Looking at it again, it was definitely a picture of three nearby billboards facing each other.

Under the picture, I could see a registered post.

[It's at Hongik University Station, it's the same age line from October 31! So cute ㅠㅠ I put a post-it on it!]

Keun Sejin grinned and said.

"Hey, isn't it amazing? How did they put up ads like this? Did they discuss it beforehand?"

No, they must have fought for a spot.

I felt sorry when I thought about the time and money they must have spent to catch a large billboard at a popular station.

'Well, Park Moondae's chances of survival… Thank you for your investment in it.'

I had a new concern. Even if I debuted and avoided sudden death, I would avoid going to hell only if I filled the contract with sincerity.

As I was confused by a strange sense of debt, Keun Sejin got down to business.

"Do you want to go see this? Fans also posted messages, so it's only right to go there and see them~"

Can't we just each take care ourselves?

However, Seon Ahyeon's eyes shone and he shouted okay right away.

"O-okay."

"Good, good. Moondae, you're going too right? When should we see it?"

Somehow, just like back when we watched the third episode together, it was a foregone conclusion that we would go together like this.

Still… As Keun Sejin said, I had to go see the billboard once. If people recognized me, it would be easier to deal with it together rather than alone.

I looked at the two of them alternately for a moment, then just nodded.

"If we're going, it'd better go within this week."

"The sooner the better!"

"O-okay!"

Listening to the two happy people excitedly setting the date, I continued packing my luggage.

Well, it doesn't feel bad.

And two days later.

I took out the black cotton mask I bought at the convenience store last time and put it on.

The destination was Hongik University Station.

When it wasn't filming time, I was stuck at home, so it had been a long time since I had gone out.

[Seon Ahyeon: Why don't we have lunch after looking at the billboard? I've found some good restaurants, but if it's okay with you… (View more)]

A message came from Seon Ahyeon.

'It's still a long sentence.'

Checking out Keun Sejin's response which was filled with excessive emoticons, I went out and got on the bus.

I stayed in a cheap apartment, so there was no subway station within a 20-minute walk distance.

'Like this, I can move quietly to the bus stop near Hongik University Station.'

…is what I thought, but I was mistaken.

"Gasp."

"Isn't that Park Moondae?"

"Oh my God… Hey, hey there!"

Because as soon as I got off the bus and crossed the crosswalk, this happened

I hadn't arrived at the meeting place yet, but people were already gathering.

There were only a few people who recognized me right away, but it was a busy road so the crowd was gathering.

"Who is it?"

"Is it a celebrity or an idol?"

'I can't do this.'

I thought about it, bowed my head to say hello, and ran.

I wanted to respond more, but the atmosphere was unusual. The impact of the most successful audition program at this time was amazing.

This was the time when there was at least one news related to rankings of Idol Inc. if you turned on the entertainment news section. I was complacent because I didn't go outside.

'Now that this happened, I have to quickly look at the billboard and disappear.'

As I was quickly running down the subway station, my smartphone vibrated, but I thought to check it out after leaving the crowd.

And… As soon as I arrived at the location of the three billboards, I figured out what the call was about.

It was because the two people who had already arrived at the billboard were surrounded by smartphones.

'I guess it was a call saying that they've already arrived and that the situation is like this.'

These idiots came out without masks.

Meanwhile, people who recognized Park Moondae cheered.

"Moondae!"

"Moondae is here!"

I am embarrassed but thank you. Really.

032

'First, let's quickly finish what I have to do.'

First of all, I caught Seon Ahyeon who struggled with people's questions and requests around the billboard.

"Give me your phone."

"H-huh?"

"I'm going to take a proof shot."

Seon Ahyeon finally came to his senses and sneaked to the front of the billboard. I turned on the camera of the smartphone that was handed to me.

People reacted immediately.

"Oh, picture!"

"Let's get out of the way∼"

"Let's take a picture of them!"

Surprisingly, the enthusiastic crowd voluntarily began to distance themselves and retreat.

…I'd seen so many people who risked their lives to get a picture, so I was a little worried.

"Stretch your shoulders."

"Y-yes!"

"Ahyeon, you're so handsome!"

The last one was not said by me, but by a person who seemed to be a fan of Seon Ahyeon.

Seon Ahyeon's face became red as if it was broken.

"N-n-no…"

Muttering like that a few times, Seon Ahyeon straightened his body.

Anyway, I mechanically took a picture with the right composition, and as soon as I lowered my smartphone, Keun Sejin shouted next to me.

"Moondae! Me too!"

I turned around as I held Seon Ahyun's smartphone and took a photo of Keun Sejin.

It was cumbersome to take his pictures because Keun Sejin changed poses several times.

But people were eagerly filming the scene again with their smartphones.

"So cute…"

"Please do another pose∼"

'… If that's the case, wouldn't it be fine if I didn't take a proof shot?'

I just had to go online and download anything that popped up on the internet.

"You too, Moondae!"

"Ah."

It would be weird if I was the only one not taking pictures, so I moved to the front of my billboard.

When I saw the billboard in front of my nose, which was completely exposed after everyone retreated, I felt a sense of intimidation due to its size.

The photo used for Park Moondae's billboard was taken during the production presentation.

Fortunately, it wasn't a photo of me poking my cheek or making a finger heart, but I was a bit embarrassed by the incredibly large size of the face.

'…Let's not make eye contact.'

As I turned my head, I saw the text written in the background.

[Park Moondae]

[A blue chip that appears like a comet!]

(TL note: blue chip = stock in a stock corporation with a national reputation for quality, reliability, and the ability to operate profitably in good and bad times. Sumber: Wiki.)

At the bottom, 'Please buy a lot. ' was written in small letters.

"…"

That phrase is very impactful… I can't deny that.

'You must have had a hard time.'

I silently took a proof shot.

I had to show this much sincerity, at least.

And as soon as I took a picture and stepped away from the billboard, people started pouring in again.

"Are you here to see the advertisement?"

"W-what should I do…."

"Did you take a good picture?"

"I'm voting!"

Slowly, the number of people was increasing enough to interfere with the traffic. It was definitely worse than when I got off at the bus stop alone. It was a disadvantage that the three of us came here together.

If I do this wrong, wouldn't I get called a nuisance?

I wanted to do something and left, but it seemed difficult.

'I must use the strength of the three of us.'

I winked at the other two.

Fortunately, it looked like they understood the signal.

We bowed our heads.

"Thank you!"

"I'll do my best!"

And immediately ran to the nearest exit.

As three tall men ran at once, the road naturally opened.

"We're going to go now∼ Thank you!"

Keun Sejin turned around, then waved and shouted. I could hear several voices answering as I followed them closely.

"Huh? Guys!"

"Goodbye!"

"Fighting!"

Fortunately, no one felt that it was rude, and their voices were bright.

It was my first time running while listening to so many cheers.

It felt very… Mysterious.

I immediately caught a taxi from the exit that popped out.

"Ah! That was really good!"

As soon as the taxi departed, Keun Sejin said this with a grin.

Sun Ahyeon also nodded wildly, looking rather excited.

'Was it that good?'

Of course, I felt a sense of debt because I couldn't thank them. However, being recognized by many people didn't particularly heighten my mood.

Is it a matter of temperament? Or…

'…It could be a matter of age.'

They were all 21 years old.

As I was feeling bitter all alone, Keun Sejin suddenly took out his smartphone with an exclamation 'Ah!'.

And immediately there was a vibration in my phone.

[(Photo) (Photo)]

It was my picture taken in front of Park Moondae's billboard.

Maybe the exposure value was so wrong that all the colors flew away, and my face, which looked ruined from all the shaking, was floating on a blank billboard.

"…"

He was terrible at taking pictures.

"Hey, doesn't it look more realistic with the shaking?"

This was so full of realism that it was impossible to recognize anything other than the sense of realism.

When I looked at him without a word, Keun Sejin laughed and spoke to Seon Ahyeon, pretending not to know.

"Haha… Right, Ahyeon! You have my proof shot on your phone, too, right?"

"Y-yes! W-wait a minute"

Seon Ahyeon turned on his smartphone and posted a picture in the group chat.

These were the pictures of Keun Sejin and Seon Ahyeon that I took.

'Why are you sending your picture?'

Maybe he was confused and ended up uploading it all at once.

"Oh∼ the pictures taken by Moondae…"

Keun Sejin, who was looking at the screen pretending to be pleasant, paused as if speechless for a moment.

And with a slightly flustered look, this time he began to give a genuine exclamation.

"Uh, oh… You are really good at taking pictures."

I made a living out of it for years, so it was natural.

I glanced at the screen.

The horizontal composition was perfect, the proportions of the human body didn't seem awkward, and there were four or five photos of each person that captured their expressions and poses well.

It seemed that my skills weren't rusty.

As I felt a little proud, Keun Sejin added in an awkward tone.

"…Well, I'll take a good picture of you next time. I'm sorry."

He seemed sincere.

A Keun Sejin without his usual flavor of business, I witnessed a lot of things today. I just shrugged.

"Well… A photo with a sense of realism is fine."

Keun Sejin made a surprised face for a moment, then quickly smiled and changed the subject.

"Right? Oh, come to think of it, are we just going to pass by the restaurant that Ahyeon recommended like this? That's too bad."

"I-it's okay. N-next time we come together…"

"…Hn."

Right, we had talked about it.

It was impossible to go to the restaurants that Seon Ahyeon recommended now.

Since he only selected popular places on SNS, if I went with these people, we would be broadcasting our meal live on other people's SNS.

In addition, it seemed that Seon Ahyeon wasn't very talented in browsing, the cost-effectiveness in these places wasn't very good because they just smelled like viral marketing.

After thinking for a while, I checked the navigation system while passing through the Ewha Womans University station.

"Sir, can you turn us to Yeonhui-dong?"

"I can∼"

"Yes, then…"

I looked back at the two in the back seat.

"I know a quiet place, do you want to go there?"

"Oh∼ Of course, I agree!"

"Y-yes!"

Right. I asked the driver for permission and changed the navigation to the restaurant's location.

And only after the meal was over I realized that I had volunteered to do something I didn't have to do.

Oh, my God. We're getting closer!

"Hmm."

The woman who was looking at the smartphone repeatedly agonized in a painful voice.

On the screen, an option that plunged her into a swamp of anguish appeared.

[Idol Inc. stock package discount! ∼80%]

Under the large banner, there were stocks tied to all kinds of services sold by the group company of Tnet, the channel where Idol Inc. aired.

For example, if you buy Tnet's music site package here, you will also receive a three-month streaming coupon with a 50% discount and the right to buy 20 stocks of Idol Inc..

In short, she could give Moondae 20 more votes.

These broadcasters sold the stocks in a package like this, except for a monthly fixed-rate ticket that could give her one more vote every day!

The scary thing was, this package had a high discount rate, so it had a dual purpose in which existing service users bought this package to get a discount and then ended up falling into Idol Inc..

'It's really terrible…'

The woman sighed as she scrolled through the pages, and saw the message that had just come up in a pop-up.

It was a message from the friend who fed Park Moondae to her mouth by requesting her to apply for the audience.

[Yeonju: crazycrazy ㅠㅠ Someone caught sight of Moondae! (Link)]

'Oh my gosh.'

The link that she clicked hastily led to an SNS post.

[Oh, I just went out to eat with my family and saw an Idol Inc. participant. They seem to be those kids who sang MallangDalkom? (Photo)]

In the attached photo, Park Moondae, Seon Ahyun, and Keun Sejin were seen receiving a ttukbaegi with samgyetang at a table with sagging partitions.

(TL note: ttukbaegi = a small, black-to-brown earthenware vessel used for various boiled dishes in Korean cuisine. Samgyetang = ginseng chicken soup.)

There was a long response below the picture.

– Look at his eyes on the samgyetang, they are about to pop out ㅋㅋㅋ

– As expected, K-samgyetang, is better than basic chicken, you know it

└Please stop the discrimination against chickenㅠ

– I am in favor of these three staying close

– Ah, they must have gone to eat there after seeing the billboardㅠㅠ I love these cute guysㅠㅠ

'Billboard?'

The woman searched for 'Park Moondae billboard' just in case.

Immediately, an article a few hours ago that had been shared by thousands of people appeared at the top.

Moondae went to take a proof shot at his billboard ㅠㅠ There were so many people so he couldn't stay for a long time, but he was so cute and kind that my heart smashed into pieces. His face looked handsome even if he wore a mask (short video)

When she played the attached video, Park Moondae, wearing jeans, a black hood, and a black baseball cap, stood in front of his billboard.

[Handsome!]

[I'll buy you a lot of stocks, Moondae!]

[Um, thank you…]

Park Moondae responded a little shyly to people's pouring words.

And the video ended with him and the two other participants happily sprinting and disappearing.

– So cute

– He's more sociable than I thought?

– ㅠㅠAs expected, Moon Puppy is not just a delusional claim, it's officialㅠㅠ What, Tibetan fox? It's heresy!

– The PD who edited it, please die, our kid was just being calm

– Even if he wore a blonde hat it would match

'Cute…! So cute!'

As she stomped on her feet, she suddenly realized that Park Moondae's billboard photo was familiar. It was the picture her friend showed to her after she had taken it!

She wrote a message quickly.

[Minso: Wow, isn't this yours? Congrats, Moondae saw it! (link)]

[Yeonju: I lost my mind when I saw that, but now I have come to my senses… I didn't do it, it was done by the fan association, but I'm still so excited… I'm overwhelmed…]

When she asked, 'Why didn't you tell me this first?', the answer was 'I couldn't type because my heart was shaking so much'.

The woman giggled and sent a congratulatory emoticon. And she thought.

'I want to do something for him, too.'

Park Moondae did well, so she wanted to see a lot of great performances.

Eventually, she went back to the previous purchase page and bought a music package.

After happily buying Moondae's stock, she checked the Samgyetang restaurant, and in the witness article, a fight broke out.

– Please take down the photo. Stalking is a crime

└I just happened to see him. What stalking;; it's just a sighting

└Are you watching someone else eating and taking a picture without permission? Use your common sense and say something that makes sense

└Yes, I block them ㅅㄱ

(TL note: ㅅㄱ = keep up the good work. After the game is over, it is a term used to say to the opponent, and is also used to slander someone.)

After this conversation, the reactions of the people who were on fire were awkwardly fizzled out. This is because it was difficult to hear news of Park Moondae, so they reflexively got excited about the rare sightings and just now realized that it could be an invasion of privacy.

The woman was also embarrassed and turned off the window. She had forgotten that Moondae hadn't even made his debut yet.

'That's… Because he did so well…!'

As she recalled her previous audience experience, which made her mind dazed just thinking about it again, she suddenly remembered what she had forgotten.

"Ugh! Idol Inc. is airing!"

Right. In the first place, she was looking at the stock purchase page while waiting for Idol Inc. to air.

She hurriedly turned on the channel, and luckily was able to see the logo of the show that was just starting out.

"Phew…"

She was relieved, and suddenly the MC's meaningful face appeared on the show.

[Everyone, do you remember Idol Inc.'s promise?]

The MC hit the desk seriously as if he were sitting in front of a desk in the discussion room.

[We promise you that we will do everything as you wish. So, even now, numerous votes are being held on our website, such as the vote for the number of final debuts and the song selection.]

For reference, there were people crying, saying 'The final number of debut members I voted for is too small.'

[And today, we're going to carry out one more promise. Everyone. Do you have any participants you don't want to see?]

As soon as the broadcast started, in front of the viewers who were suddenly confused about what this was about, the production team threw a huge mess.

[Then sell that participant's stock! With the newly introduced Selling Stocks shareholders can reduce the stocks of the participants they do not want to see in the future!]

[The 'right to buy stocks' that shareholders purchase can also be used as a 'right to sell stocks' in the future. In other words! Instead of buying a particular participant's stock, you can sell it and make it negative!]

It was the arrival of hell.

033

After the introduction of a new system to reduce the number of votes of participants in Idol Inc.

– Are you kidding me? ㅋㅋㅋ Are the producers crazy?

The Internet had become a mess.

– They've lost it, what if someone has a bad intention and holds a hate vote?

– It's not spicy anymore. It's hellfire

– Oh seriously, I can't watch the next ranking announcement because it's too painful, you bastards, what are you doing to the kids?

– Shouldn't we boycott at this point?

Posts criticizing the production team and the program first covered all the communities.

It was a natural reaction, but after this criticism became a basic sentiment, this kind of post began to appear.

– Participants who will benefit from this negative vote and those who will

It was a review of the participants.

If you go further from here, there will be a flurry of slanderous comments about the participants people don't want to push for.

"Hmm."

I skimmed through the post on the best bulletin board in seven minutes.

As I slowly scrolled down, I saw the name I was looking for.

[Park Moondae's risk of falling in rank ]

: Whenever stories about him come out, there are messy fights everywhere about whether his personality is good or not. There are kids who bite at a level of a psycho. His number might drop quite a bit.

'Two stars are fine.'

Honestly, I knew this would happen. This was because Park Moondae was an extreme character who either had to be liked or disliked, with no in-between.

'The PR live and the first team match editing was well done, so I guess that made up for it.'

In addition, the participants of October 31 who appeared in the first team match were latecomers at this point. This meant that they were bound to be beaten by malicious fans of existing strong participants.

When I scrolled down, except for Keun Sejin, everyone was in danger of falling in rank.

'Of course, I can't believe this one article alone.'

The fact that this article became popular and was not ignored by people meant that it was somewhat similar to public opinion.

Of course, there were fights in the comments.

– You wrote a long post, pretending that you're mastering the history of Idol Inc, and pretending to dominate public opinion on the Internett? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– I'm already tired, I hope this stops, really…

– ㅋㅋㅋㅋThese people are obviously clenching their teeth, why are you guys sucking up to people who are being cursed at?ㅋ

– Isn't this the truth? Admit the realityㅎㅎ

And among these comments, there were people talking about the participants who were posted in the article.

They were mainly enjoying chewing, biting, and tasting the participants who were likely to fall.

– ㅋㅋㅋSejin's fall is confirmed∼

– What about Raebin? He's going to go down further… I think the fans should be strong!

Of course, there were also quite a few attempts to drive public opinion by saying, 'I don't know why they wrote that, his rank is stable.'

-Ryu Chungwoo who was a member of the National team should be more than average, aren't many people selling his stocks because they are annoyed by how he is getting fans even during the broadcast?

'They are already creating excuses.'

Of course, there were quite a few stories about Park Moondae.

-I hope the kids who pick Moondae only choose one route. They said they couldn't believe his skills because of the editing, but they brought an edited version of his personalityㅋㅋ

└Yeah, let's not believe those people who believe in the broadcast's editing and say his personality is bad~ That's all

└I'm going crazy, just listen to him singing without music on PR LIVE. He's better than on TV. And why do you trust the edited version of the interview and pretend you didn't see the video that Moondae actually treated other participants well?

└You're rambling;; Ugh don't risk your life on an idol, ahjumma!

└Reported ㅅㄱ

'This… I'm sorry.'

I was speechless when I saw people suffering from Park Moondae's stocks.

Just because I was better at one thing didn't mean I could change the direction of the broadcast.

'Actually… I already knew.'

The introduction of this negative vote was so controversial that I, a civil student, knew about it.

There had been two or three times when Re-listed! Idol Inc. walked a crazy tightrope between going crazy and being ruined, and this was the first case.

Anyway, looking at the current trend, I didn't pay much attention because I didn't think I would be eliminated even if my vote rate dropped quite a bit, but when it came down to it… It bothered me.

Those who support 'Park Moondae'.

'I hope they don't get too stressed out.'

I hesitated, then turned off the window for now.

Actually, I was going to look at the reaction to the newly aired episode 6 rather than Selling Stocks, but there weren't that many because it got buried.

'In the first place, I don't have a lot of footage in episode 6.'

The stage of the team I belonged to was assigned to the next episode.

The team formation and song selection scenes were only partially shown, so there was little reaction.

– Ugh, Gommeo, why are you on the same team as Rae1binㅠㅠ Kim Raeb1n, please stop doing charity work. The last team was like a beggar too. Except for the faces, there's nothing to see… Ugh, how did you catch something like this…

– Mundae, don't stick to Eugene, just die

Mostly, only the reaction of these malicious fans remained. No, I don't know if you can call them fans.

'…Looking at it closely, Kim Raebin is being cursed, too?'

It was the kind of people I saw often even when I was selling data.

I didn't know why they were cursing while claiming to be a fan, but… The important thing was that there were more reactions saying that they hated him being on the same team as Park Moondae than those who didn't.

Even viewers who liked 'Park Moondae' said it was a shame that he couldn't be with the team members from the first team match.

I crossed my arms and smiled. I wondered how public opinion would change when episode 7 was aired.

The stage was definitely good, and there was a limit to what the editing could touch with it.

'So until then, I'll organize the status window pop-up and practice…'

Ding.

As I was thinking, my phone rang.

Maybe it was the same-age group chat. I unintentionally opened my smartphone.

As if they were copied and pasted, two messages arrived almost at the same time

[Kim Raebin: How are you, hyung? It's Kim Raebin. The reason I'm contacting you like this is because I have something to ask you.]

[Kim Raebin: Cha Eugene and I are going to Gangnam Station tomorrow to check the advertisement that our fans posted, do you want to check the advertisement with us…(More)]

"…"

Did my advertisement appear at Gangnam Station?

I searched and found an SNS post saying that it started today. How surprising. Kim Raebin seems to be good at searching?

But this timing was not good.

'The system of taking votes from participants has just been introduced, so there is no need to stand out.'

If there was a happy eyewitness account, bullshit like 'Park Moondae seems confident?' would come out.

Besides, going with Kim Raebin and Cha Eugene? I could already imagine the cursing.

– You must be so scared of the negative vote, you're acting like you're close to the popular boysㅋㅋ

There was no need to make noises like this. Let's protect the people who support Park Moondae as much as possible.

I'd better wait and see until episode 7 aired.

I typed in a reply right away.

[Park Moondae: It will be difficult because I have work to do. See you next time.]

[Kim Raebin: Yes… Then I'll contact you again.]

I'll see you on the set.

With that assumption, I started stretching before starting to work out.

'Let's build up stamina.'

At this time, I never dreamed that Kim Raebin would send a greeting every day until the next filming.

It was not just a greeting, it was an image file of colorful greetings like those made by the elderly.

[Kim Raebin: (If you smile ^^ Blessings will come∼ Let's make today a happy day with a pleasant morning∼)]

"…?"

Maybe it's because the field is the art and physical education, every young person I meet recently has a really unique sensibility.

And finally, it was Friday night again.

[Kim Raebin: (Happy Friday -— With all my heart in these roses^^ Sharing happiness and health)]

Somehow, The boomer-style picture was getting upgraded. Now it had a sparkle effect.

[Park Moondae: Take care of yourself, too.]

[Kim Raebin: Thank you.]

Anyway, if I wanted to have a 'happy and healthy' Friday as the phrase in Kim Raebin's image file said, today's episode 7 had to go well.

I started watching episode 7 drinking beer.

My portion was more likely to come out at the end of episode 7.

Because the production crew must have postponed the team with the highest ranking to the very end of the show.

As expected, other teams came out one after another.

I wasn't really interested in it, but I watched it carefully to see if there was anyone who could be a hit.

"There's nothing special."

There was no particularly conspicuously friendly or hostile editing. It was just an ordinary storyline about overcoming conflicts and lack of skills.

Then in the middle second half, Choi Wongil's team came out.

It was a team that had a lot of participants from the same team in the first team match, including Seon Ahyeon and Keun Sejin.

The editing potential exploded here.

[Choi Wongil: I don't know why you're only doing this to me…]

[Ha Iljun: What…?]

Choi Wongil's interview cut crossed over with the bewildered team members.

[Choi Wongil: (Staring) Aren't you being too much, Moondae hyung?]

Choi Wongil was completely overthrown.

"Wow…"

They sent it like this.

The production team showed Choi Wongil's uncooperative attitude in the first round.

To be honest, he was quite annoying in the first round, but I didn't know that it had been piling up and going to explode like this.

But it wasn't just me who built these stacks of karma.

[Kwon Heeseung: …Because he doesn't respond to me.]

Gold 2 seemed to have been a bit scornful since the first round. He didn't get a response when there was no camera.

[Kwon Heeseung: Maybe because I'm the youngest…or because I am the lowest (in rank).]

Of course, the crew who caught it with a fixed camera and sent it out were also disgusting people. Another participant talked nonsense to bring up the ratings.

[Big Sejin: Now, now! Wongil, I understand how you feel. Sit here.]

Just as I heard from Seon Ahyeon, the conflict being broadcasted was stopped and settled by Keun Sejin.

[Choi Wongil: It's true that I was a little emotional.]

The team practiced hard and that interview ended with a good performance on the stage, but not one covered their eyes and pretended nothing happened.

Already, Internet pages were being plastered with swear words.

– Is Choi Wongil's personality for real?

– He's a little emotionalㅋㅋㅋ Bullshit, he has anger issues

└But I feel worse because it feels like he's only doing it to people who seem easy

– Did you see him ignoring Heeseung? I almost had PTSD because it reminded me of my hard times from school…

– Park Moondae needs to be reevaluated, he was a Bodhisattva who willingly gave his part

'Um, it will be difficult if Park Moondae keeps being mentioned.'

If they praised my personality as they pleased and anything suspicious showed up again, the cursing would be doubled.

Fortunately, the team's stage was okay, so the appreciation on the stage took a stake, and the topic of Choi Wongil was pushed aside a bit.

When the story came up again, the focus was probably only on criticizing Choi Wongil.

'He doesn't look mentally well, he's going to have a hard time.'

I clicked my tongue and turned off the comments.

Now there were two teams left. Soon it would be my turn to come out.

Of course… Under the assumption that no one else stuffed their face.

'The high-ranking guys must be showing up a lot.'

I put down my expectations and continued watching.

And I was surprised.

Dudung!

On the screen, Kim Raebin's interview was reconstructed with a magnificent background sound.

Sparkling golden… With some homage-like captions.

[Kim Raebin's journey to gather team members]

[Kim Raebin: First of all, I am going to pick participant Park Moondae.]

"Cough."

I spit out the beer I was drinking.

034

On the screen, Kim Raebin calmly explained the reason.

[Kim Raebin: Participant Park Moondae has a wide range of vocals, so there is no pressure in terms of selecting the song.]

[Kim Raebin: I also have seen a lot of scenes where he flexibly accepted other team members during group activities. He will be my first team member.]

Shortly after, the scene where Kim Raebin quickly won the mini-game and pointed to 'Park Moondae' was shown.

And an interview with Park Moondae who had a blank expression came out.

[Park Moondae: …?]

[Park Moondae: Thank you, but… (Why?)]

Thanks to the BGM and additional captions, Park Moondae, who joined Kim Raebin and bowed his head, seemed very flustered.

And another cut scene where Kim Raebin clenched his fists and expressed a small sense of victory was shown.

It was like a WeTube skit.

"…"

It wasn't just once or twice that the production team created reactions like this, but it was the first time they were able to pinpoint my true feelings.

[Kim Raebin: Next up is Cha Eugene.]

[Kim Raebin: And Ryu Chungwoo.]

Kim Raebin picked his team members without hesitation with his own logic, and the scene where the team members were confused continued.

It was a cute production in its own way.

'They must be trying to save Kim Raebin.'

It was an edit that openly neutralized his brutal appearance in the first round.

However, the atmosphere did not last long.

After the red caption 'But' appeared on the screen, a suffocating scene filled with only white noise was shown.

[Midterm evaluation a few days later.]

[Who rearranged it?]

The scene of Kim Raebin lowering his head was crossed with the scene of several team members looking back at him. A big caption popped up again.

[What happened?]

And…

An intermediate advertisement.

"…Hmm."

I poured the rest of the beer down my throat.

They were trying to get ratings… Now I'm amazed. It's great, Idol Inc. crew.

When I checked during the intermission, all kinds of speculation were rampant on the Internet.

The popular opinion was, 'Isn't Kim Raebin's team match ruined again?'

– From the moment the reason for choosing Park Moondae came out, I thought that he really had no eyes for peopleㅋㅋㅋ

"No…"

So far, Park Moondae was the first to get rejected.

The beer made me feel a little more relaxed, but I was more pissed off than usual.

I turned off the screen grumpily and turned on Tnet again. The commercial had just ended.

As expected, after the song was decided, the discussion scene was broadcasted on the screen.

[Ryu Chungwoo: Shall we hear Sejin's opinions first?]

In general, the editing highlighted Ryu Chungwoo, who even took care of his less sociable team members.

In particular, his calm response to Lee Sejin's nervous reaction was shown on the screen.

'Lee Sejin, too.'

Is this going to be a picture of Ryu Chungwoo eating up everything again?

There were a few scenes that charmingly highlighted Cha Eugene as a choreography genius, and a few scenes of Kim Raebin spending time arranging the song, but the victory still belonged to Ryu Chungwoo's decision.

It was from the midterm evaluation that the situation changed.

[You touched the original song a lot, but it feels worse than the original song.]

The evaluation was edited more seriously than the original lukewarm atmosphere.

It was the effect of the original singer's sudden remarks being woven and inserted in the middle of the evaluation.

[On your stage… I couldn't feel the power of Burning Like the Sun.]

I didn't know that this bullshit would be aired.

In such a serious atmosphere, a team member pointed to Kim Raebin as the person involved in the arrangement.

[(Right away) Raebin did the arrangement.]

The team members' quick attention to Kim Raebin was blatantly emphasized on the broadcast.

It was a spine-chilling editing

'Damn it…'

I put on an act to cover this up, but are we all going down together?

At that moment, the screen suddenly began to zoom in on 'Park Moondae'.

"Huh?"

'No way.'

Park Moondae on the screen had a thoughtful expression on his face, and then a flashback cut was suddenly inserted.

[I think it'd be good to lower the key before doing it.]

[How about adding some rap?]

[The arrangement goes well with the concept of the cheering squad.]

[…Yes.]

It was a scene where some of the team members were telling Kim Raebin to try adding elements that didn't suit the song.

As Park Moondae observed it carefully, his gaze was directed in.

Then on the screen, the midterm evaluation came back again.

Park Moondae opened his mouth casually.

[Yes. Since Raebin could arrange it, we consulted with the arranger, and we all decided on the direction of the arrangement.]

Kim Raebin's face with a surprised expression was zoomed in.

Then, Park Moondae's interview was inserted.

[Q: Why did you defend Raebin?]

[Park Moondae: (Surprised) I was just telling the truth.]

That's… It was a cut from an interview related to arrangements for the first team match.

"…Huh."

'I was being deliberately blunt about it in order to naturally change the subject.'

After going through the magic of editing, Park Moondae, who didn't care about others, looked like he had just told the truth.

'It's absurd no matter how I think about it.'

Regardless of my bitterness, the broadcast went on.

[Sincerely conveyed.]

[Kim Yujun: I'm sorry…]

After the team member apologized to Kim Raebin, the atmosphere rapidly changed to hopeful and warm, and the focus was on Kim Raebin's touching interview.

[Kim Raebin: I think I have done well in gathering the team members.]

As he said that, Kim Raebin, who smiled faintly, surprisingly didn't look bad.

And the new arrangement… Ridiculously enough, Kim Raebin and Park Moondae were suddenly shown as if they were having fun with each other during chatting.

[Ryu Chungwoo: I saw the two of them talking about something during the break.]

[Ryu Chungwoo: But when I went back…Raebin was already on the keyboard, and Moondae was excited saying we would (beep-)]

The narration from Ryu Chungwoo's interview and the arrangement discussion process made it really look like that, so it was even more ridiculous.

[Ryu Chungwoo: Are geniuses like that? Haha.]

After that, the short cuts continued as if Ryu Chungwoo adored the two unsociable geniuses and the team was fused well, then the amount of preparation for the stage ended.

"…"

I really didn't expect it would work out like this.

Anyway, I wasn't shown as a bad person, so I would have to settle for this much.

Besides, I thought the stage was the best part of it, but I was very satisfied with how the production team took great care in editing it.

The ending was good, too.

[3rd place?]

[Nobody expected this.]

This was because they put the team's 3rd place in the middle of an advertisement and highlighted it as if it was very strange and shocking.

You can see that they have pulled out everything.

It's a neat profit.

"It's nice."

I straightened out the bedding. As the tension was eased, the fatigue set in.

'I can monitor the Internet tomorrow.'

Because I didn't look at the reaction immediately at this time, It was only around lunchtime the next day that I realized that the aftermath of my portion in Episode 7 was much greater than I had expected.

– I have decided to embrace Park Moondae. Compared to the guys in the first team match, he's a fairy

– Looking at Moondae again, his face is fine. He and Raebin seem to be doing well, so keep working as a team

– Rabbit and puppy are a fantastic combination, but the fact they're a medieval rabbit and a countryside mixed breed is the icing on the cakeㅠㅠ

– Oi oi, did you ever imagine a day when this combination would do badly? (Shrug)

– I thought we would fight, but we surprisingly became close:;

"…Oh."

Surprisingly, as soon as episode 7 aired, the public opinion of Park Moondae rapidly changed among Kim Raebin's fans.

Most of them were normal fan accounts that didn't slander other participants, but some of them used to giggle and called 'Park Moondae' with insults until yesterday.

What a change of pace.

Park Moondae's fan accounts who were worried about the negative votes were relieved, but some of them were angry.

– Whenever I see people just wash their mouths after cursing like that, it really… made me speechless. I hate myself for feeling relievedㅠㅠ

– The thought of fangirling with those people once both of them debut made me sigh… I'll just watch Moonda1..

– Moondae showed a great attitude, came up with great ideas, and even performed a great stage, why should I care about anything elseㅋㅋ

'I hope they don't get too stressed out.'

Spending money should be fun, but these people didn't seem to be able to enjoy that, so I didn't feel good about it.

Even if we might debut on the same team in this program, all the participants were currently competing with each other so this part might be inevitable.

Still, most of them were happy that the stage was selected well.

Immediately after the main broadcast was over, seven episodes were arranged on the broadcast schedule from midnight to this morning and lunch, so the inflow effect could be seen.

The stage video immediately entered the WeTube real-time popularity ranking.

– How can these crazy people handle this crazy concept so well?;;;

– They're heroes who come to mess with my grade, but I love them

– I can't believe they changed the cheering song of the baseball stadium to a hero theme song. The stage, as well as the idea and arrangement skills, were absolutely phenomenal

– Ahh the kids must have matched their own colors too, they wore an item for each color! This kind of detail made my fangirling heart raceㅠㅠ

– Is this stage in 3rd place? Aren't you embarrassed by the vote?ㅋㅋ

– This is the summary. 0:06 Cha Eugene (Red), 0:16 Min Jeonghoon (Green), 0:24 Ryu Chungwoo (Blue) … [Watch more]

Personal fancams that were released at dawn were also having a terrifying increase in views.

This match was bigger than the first team match, but even taking that into account, the number of views on the 'Park Moondae' fancams was increasing tremendously fast for someone in the main vocalist position.

The comments were also more favorable than in the first round, and the 'dislike' ratio was lowered.

– I can't deny that he's a genius

– Thanks for the blonde hair, Moondae. Thanks to you, my sister cheered up and held back her resignation. I'll buy a lot of Moondae stocksㅠㅠ Let's make a debut and try silver hair and pink hairㅠㅠ

– It's amazing, being able to come up with a hero concept after horror! I'm rooting for you a lot. I hope you make a debut! ㅎㅎ

– Why do you look more handsome and better every time I see you? What will happen if I end up ascending to heaven once you debut?ㅠㅠ

I felt embarrassed, but I was happy.

Although this result was inevitable, I couldn't deny that I felt a sense of accomplishment.

As I thought so, the last best comment caught my eye.

-The main vocalist, who is not just young and cute but also good at dancing, is just like a left-handed pitcher. I would have to grab you from the pit of hell so thank you so much for walking into the idol market with your own feet. You can't get out anymore, Moondae^^

"…"

To be honest, I am a little scared.

'I won't suffer from an abnormal condition like 'unable to retire' once I debut right?'

I quickly dispelled the no-good ominous delusion and cleared my mind.

Anyway, at this rate, there seemed to be nothing to worry about at the next ranking announcement ceremony.

'Now, there are two stages left.'

After two more team matches, the program would end.

It felt strange to think that I had already entered to enter the second half of the show.

I thought it would be cool that the day where I could get rid of this trashy condition drew near, but it wasn't necessarily the case.

Maybe it was because my grades were much better than I had expected.

I'd been stuck in the corner of my room preparing for the civil exam for the past few years and I hadn't felt any sense of accomplishment, so the taste of this success was quite stimulating.

'I was worn out, so of course, I would get carried away.'

Avoiding sudden death… If I looked back at it a few years later, I might think of it as a meaningful experience.

Of course, that scenario won't happen if I fall behind, so let's think about survival first.

Ring.

As soon as I made up my mind, a message came in.

[Keun Sejin: MoondaeMoondae How are you doing? Do you want to go together with me on the day of the shoot? With Ahyeon too ㅎㅎ]

The faces of the guys I met on the day of the shoot were completely dead.

No, Choi Wongil the troll is removed so why are you guys dying? Who makes you like that?

035

Seon Ahyeon and Keun Sejin asked to eat something before entering the filming set, so we met at a restaurant.

"Oh, Moondae, hi~"

"H-hello…"

But even with the food placed in front of them, they had dark expressions.

One of them became a social-life-reactions vending machine, and the other looked like he would burst into tears at any moment.

'Is it because of the negative vote?'

It was a guess that made the most sense.

I thought about leaving it alone, but I wanted to know how they were doing so I asked once while eating.

"Is it because you're worried about the voting?"

"H-huh?"

"Both of you don't look good."

Then, the two of them look at each other's faces reflexively.

Perhaps because they were in a bad mood, they didn't realize that the other person was in a bad mood.

"Ah, Moondae, you're like a ghost~ No, well… It's hard not to worry. I've been looking at the Internet too much, haha."

Keun Sejin trembled and joked soullessly. At his words, Seon Ahyeon also nodded with a gloomy face.

"I-I'm afraid I'll be hated…"

Aigoo.

It seems that they had been searching for articles that they didn't need to see. Looking at this atmosphere, it was clear that they couldn't leave SNS all night and kept searching for their names.

When they entered the set, they would see the number of people who hate them, so it was understandable that they couldn't easily swallow food in this situation.

'…But you have to eat before you go.'

I pondered for a moment, then finally sighed and said.

"Since it's an audition program, wouldn't there be more people who keep us in check than those who actually hate us? If you get a lot of negative votes, it could mean you look promising."

"…!"

Even in the previous team match, the team full of high-ranked players ended up in 3rd place in the on-site voting.

"It means you don't have to worry about it unless you show up a lot."

Of course, that didn't mean you could ignore it. But it would be better if you had a spot where you could mentally win.

As expected, Keun Sejin recovered first.

"That's true."

Then, with a bitter smile, he lifted his spoon and muttered to himself.

"…I really need to get something done this time. My trainee period was too long… Well, anyway, let's eat well and cheer up!"

He quickly wrapped up the words that came out of nowhere and resumed his meal diligently.

Seon Ahyeon still looked anxious, but he ate diligently when I said, 'Isn't it be better to eat before you go?'

'It's hard to eat sometimes.'

I also resumed eating with a sigh.

Although they were latecomers, they got roughed up a bit because they were well known, so it was obvious how the other participants were doing if even these two kids who were never smashed by editing were being like this.

'The mood of today's shooting must be crazy.'

And this prediction was exactly right.

"…"

From the participants at risk of being eliminated to the high-ranked participants, all of them had the atmosphere of a funeral home.

This was because slander and rumors about the participants on the Internet got worse after the 'If you're disliked, get out' voting system was introduced.

Cha Eugene was the only one who was excited. It wasn't the confidence of the first place, it was just a personality problem.

"Why didn't you go with me?"

He even came to me and excitedly talked about the day he saw the billboard. He had a really great personality.

It wasn't long before the shooting started.

"Welcome to the second-ranking announcement of Re-listed! Idol Inc.!"

I didn't know how it would come out on the show, but the ranking announcement ceremony was held in a more depressing atmosphere than ever.

"The first ranking with the newly introduced system Stock Selling will be announced today. The ranking is determined by how many people bought and sold the stocks."

Gulp. I heard someone swallowing saliva and a small voice praying.

I guess grown-ups do child-like things when they can't do something.

"Before that, we should announce the final winner of the last team match, right? I told you that there is a huge prize waiting for the final winner."

Despite the heavy atmosphere, the MC said everything he had to say cheerfully.

"That is, Selling Stocks becomes invalid!"

"…What?!"

"Heol."

For a moment, the surroundings were filled with astonishment.

"The team that won first place will be ranked using the number of votes that don't include negative votes of Selling Stocks!"

The reaction did not get bigger, but rather died down weakly. And someone murmured a little.

"That's too much."

Certainly, it was an idea that couldn't be done if they respected the participants. It was like the production team was taking off and adding the benefits however they wanted.

'In the first place, they strike with the negative vote in episode 6 without prior notice, so what is it that they want?'

"First place… Congratulations! Team 'Gigantic' that reinterpreted Fingerprint!

Choi Wongil's team eventually took the final first place.

Perhaps Choi Wongil, who would certainly be eliminated due to the Selling Stock system, was given a rescue signal.

Choi Wongil cried and was relieved, but it wasn't a good thing.

'He's in trouble.'

If his rank dropped due to negative votes, there was a high possibility that sympathy would rise.

However, if he got lucky like this, negative public opinion would surely explode unless he made a huge achievement in the next team match.

In any case, the announcement of the 1st place came to an end with a reasonable impression.

"Then, from now on, we will start the ranking announcement ceremony!"

The total number of successful applicants was 30. Like the last ranking announcement, it began to be announced from 28th place, leaving out two people.

"In the 28th place is Park Joonkyung!"

In fact, there was no significant change until the 20th place. There was no one who got an exceptional cut scene or a lesser cut scene. Participants who could compete in those rankings were called without much reversal.

It was from the top 20 that an unexpected event appeared.

"In the 20th place… Participant Choi Wongil!"

"Wow."

"Awesome."

He was ranked higher than Gold 2.

Perhaps his rank went up because fans who were conscious of the negative votes gathered together and voted.

Choi Wongil attached an apology at the end of his long speech.

"…Also, I deeply reflect on my immature attitude…. I-I'll show you my good side from now on."

And he sat down in his seat, crying.

'Wouldn't it be better to point out Gold 2 and apologize?'

Well, it's not something I have to worry about. Let's worry about my ranking.

To summarize the ranking after that… Lee Sejin plunged, and Kim Raebin succeeded in reviving and settled in sixth place.

And participants who were on Choi Wongil's team, including Keun Sejin, rose. Their ranking rose sharply because the negative votes were removed.

Looking at the flow, I thought I was probably going to fall a little too. So, I was ready to respond immediately if I got called soon.

But there was no need to.

My rank had risen.

"4th place is… Participant Park Moondae!"

"…?"

It was an unexpected save in this chaos.

I wasn't called until the 5th place, so I wondered if I had plunged below the 28th place, but I didn't expect to be called in 4th place.

When I jumped up flustering, something even more embarrassing was waiting for me.

"Congratulations!"

Ryu Chungwoo got up and approached me then he patted me on the back with a pleased expression. Following Ryu Chungwoo, Cha Eugene also approached and congratulated me.

"Congratulations!"

'I was just going to pretend I knew you..?'

Apparently, the reaction on stage was so good that it narrowed the distance between us.

In particular, Ryu Chungwoo didn't have many close participants because all the people in the last team match were out.

I roughly accepted their greetings, made a high five with Seon Ahyeon who was standing awkwardly and went up to the podium.

I felt like a rare insider. It was very unfamiliar.

"…First of all, thank you to the shareholders who bought my stocks. Keeping in mind that my rank is too high compared to my skills, I'll strive to achieve as much result as you've invested in."

As soon as the standard appreciation was over, the MC came in.

"Participant Park Moondae, you've entertained the shareholders with ideas that stand out on every stage. Is there any idea you want to use next time?"

It was a terribly difficult question. Showing off a little bit of aegyo would have been easier.

Let's just say it moderately and comprehensively.

"…Next time, I'd like to try something more cheerful."

"Haha, are you slowly missing POP CON? Participant Park Moondae, I look forward to your next performance."

How could there be an MC who combined cheerfulness with popcorn?

Of course, I couldn't glare at the MC, so I calmly lowered my head and went up to my seat.

To be honest, the fancy sofa given to the fourth place seemed embarrassing. But since my back was honest, I waited more comfortably for the rest of the ranking announcement.

"Third place is Cha Eugene!"

"Heol."

"He was number one."

Cha Eugene, who topped the ranking announcement ceremony last time, fell two notches.

But he didn't seem to care much. He came up with a bright impression 'I am happy that I get a high rank' and settled down on the sofa.

And the long-awaited battle for 1st and 2nd place.

It was Ryu Chungwoo and Seon Ahyeon who made it to the finals.

'Isn't he going to pass out?'

Seon Ahyeon staggered and stood on the platform. He looked like he would immediately pass out if he won first place.

"Re-listed! Idol Inc. the first place of glory… Congratulations! Participant Ryu Chungwoo!"

"Thank you!"

First place was Ryu Chungwoo. In fact, I knew it would be like this unless something unusual happened.

Since he was a graduate of the national university and had a favorable broadcasting image, the negative vote probably didn't affect him much.

After Ryu Chungwoo and Seon Ahyeon finished their speech, the announcement for the 29th and 30th place continued. It took so long that my back was starting to ache on the sofa.

But the real highlight came next.

"This is the rank you would have gotten if it hadn't been for the Selling Stocks system!"

This was because the production team released all the votes and the negative votes, rearranged them, and put them on the screen.

There were groans all over the place.

"I can't watch."

I also quickly found 'Park Moondae' on the screen.

[Bought: 893,452 / Sold: 12,257]

[Total ranking: 4th / Purchased ranking: 3rd]

3rd place?

When I checked the 4th place, which was originally my rank, it was Seon Ahyeon.

It seemed that there was a significant difference in the negative votes because the number of votes at the top was similar.

But I felt a different feeling than regret.

'This is surprisingly… Upsetting.'

[Sold: 12,257]

Right. Even though the results were good, looking at the 10,000 unit number of people who wished that 'Park Moondae' would fall… It felt a bit strange.

'It's a lot more impactful than I thought…'

…Wait!

'Stop talking nonsense.'

My goal is to avoid sudden death by debuting.

Damn it, how could I think that just having one negative vote out of 90 votes is not good enough?

'Let's just thank the 890,000 votes to prevent sudden death.'

I defined the situation and ended my thoughts.

However, when I looked around, most of them had a face that said 'It's driving me crazy' regardless of their ranking.

'The next team match is going to work very well.'

The kids who were already squeezing tears with runny noses looked good in my eyes.

"Wait a minute!"

The filming of the next team match, which should have been held as soon as the ranking ceremony was over, was temporarily suspended, as the production team seemed to be flustered by the funeral-like atmosphere.

Instead, the production crew came out with some strange mini-plan.

Idol talent show.

…This hasty plan is very tacky.