Chapter 6
"The three of them have great vocal tones and the synergy is so good. Can you just debut like this? Haha!"
"Thank you."
It's an unexpected variable.
I'm answering the judges' questions according to the members, but I don't know what I'm talking about. Because of that damn system window that's flashing right in front of my eyes.
[Life Remaining 10:07:59]
[Life Insufficient Headache Penalty is in effect.]
The lifespan was reduced in an instant.
While I was busy performing the choreography, a warning sound suddenly rang and a pop-up window appeared.
[Idol Virtue Violation! Failed to make eye contact with the camera.]
[Lifespan has been shortened.]
[-04:00:00]
The system's absurd nitpicking cracked my expression. However, I soon gritted my teeth and tried to focus on the choreography.
Then, another window popped up.
[Idol Virtue Violation! Failed to manage facial expressions.]
[Lifespan shortened.]
[-04:00:00]
Should I kill you?
My eyes trembled.
What kind of penalty is this?
The camera that filmed the trainees throughout the evaluation.
That seemed to be the culprit.
I had to keep looking at the camera diligently throughout the entire stage.
Thanks to that, there were no unfortunate incidents of sudden death while performing choreography, but since 8 hours of life disappeared in an instant, I was suffering from the penalty again this time.
'.... Damn. If only the daily quest had come on time.'
That wasn't the only variable.
After receiving the first evaluation assignment, the daily quest arrival pattern was always the same.
Every night at 12 o'clock, the quest to achieve 4 hours of dance practice.
It wasn't hard to fill the practice time.
After all, practice is all day long.
Thanks to that, except for the first day when I even had a nosebleed, I was able to focus on practicing in good condition while filling up my lifespan. Today, as soon as the daily quest arrived at midnight, I planned to finish it early and fill up my lifespan first.
'Is today an exception because there's a special event called the first evaluation?'
Fortunately, the overall evaluation wasn't long.
The moment I greeted the judges and returned to my seat, the long-awaited system notification rang.
[Daily Quest Arrived!]
[Get in the top 6 in the first evaluation of the debut group!]
[?th / 6th]
[Reward Life 24:0000]
"...?"
If I don't get in the top 6, the quest is a failure.
Are you serious? I just laughed in vain.
I should do what's possible.
Now, I only have 10 hours left to live.
"Okay, that's it for today's evaluation! I'll put the rankings up front, so come and check."
"Yes!"
"The second evaluation is in a week. The evaluation songs will be announced next Monday, so everyone, get some rest for the rest of the weekend~."
"Yes, thank you!"
The judges left, and the trainees rushed forward.
The staff was just putting up the ranking list on the wall next to the mirror.
The heads of the trainees were leaning in front of the paper.
As soon as I took my steps to check the results, I felt dizzy.
'Oh, damn it.'
I had to stop again.
"? What's wrong?"
Shin Yeonwoo, who was following behind, stopped walking and asked, but I didn't have time to answer.
It was because of the bright red status window floating in the air.
[Daily Quest Failed!]
[Failed to get within 6th place in the first evaluation of the debut group!]
[11th/6th]
I saved myself the trouble of going to check.
Thank you. Very much.
It was the result I expected.
But it was even more disappointing when I actually saw it with my own eyes. How can a rookie trainee who just came in beat a trainee who has been practicing for years?
[Life Remaining 09:59:59]
[Life Insufficient! High fever penalty added.]
The timing is amazing.
I closed my eyes tightly and let out a hot sigh.
Shin Yeon-woo, who had been looking at my face with a puzzled expression, soon changed to a look of surprise.
"Yoo Hyun-ah, your face is really red. Are you getting hot again?"
".... Ha."
Okay.
I don't know if it's because of the penalty given by the system or because the system made me hot.
***
In the end, I had no choice but to use the life box I had saved. If I hadn't had that, I wouldn't have been able to get through that day.
'They say passives are one-day idols, and that's exactly right....'
[Remaining life 16:23:32]
[Not enough life! Headache penalty is in effect.]
Thanks to that, it's been two days since the evaluation ended, and I've been suffering from the penalty all day.
On the day the evaluation ended, I headed home for the first time in a while.
Now, I can't even rest because I have to keep an eye on the clock.
'I've finally used up my life box, so now I really have nothing left.'
My anxiety doubled when the item I had been saving like insurance disappeared.
The daily practice quest that came up without fail even on holidays.
In the end, I lost sleep over my return home and went to the office early in the morning to spend the day practicing.
"Oh,
When Kim Eden saw the announcement for the second evaluation song on Monday, he was delighted.
The second evaluation practice began in a friendly atmosphere.
No, actually, I was rather excited.
Shin Yeon-woo, Kang Se-hyun, and Kim E-den all received high rankings of 1st, 2nd, and 5th.
Individual rankings do not determine debut, but the more trainees with high rankings, the higher the probability of debut.
The dreamy atmosphere of this designated song was compared to the previous evaluation songs, but the choreography was average.
It is a song where the vocals stand out.
[Kwon Yoo-hyun]
Appearance: A
Singing: C+
Dancing: D+
Talent: C-
Acting: B
! Passive: Mayfly Idol
The singing stat is C+.
It is a very worrying grade.
I held back a sigh and followed the members to the recording studio.
This time, one producer is assigned to each team.
He was in charge of everything from recording to training, but today, the first day, he said we would just do a simple test recording.
We knocked on the studio door at the appointed time.
"Hello, PD-nim."
"Hello~."
"Yes, just a moment."
The producer answered dryly and was working hard without even looking back.
How long did we wait like that?
"Um... PD-nim?"
"Oh, I'm sorry."
Kang Se-hyun, who had been rolling his eyes, couldn't stand the silence and spoke to the producer again.
Only then did the producer in charge of Team A turn his chair around to reveal his face.
"It's my first time meeting you. I'm Choi Sung-jun."
"!"
A handsome appearance with a strange mix of gentle and rough aura.
I opened my eyes wide without realizing it because it was such a familiar face. Choi Sung-jun.
He was a member of the idol group that I had been in charge of security for the longest time before returning.
We ended up getting entangled and found out that we were the same age, so we were comfortable together.
'Why are you in TP?'
He was definitely under UJ Entertainment.
And a producer.
Did he leave because it was a waste about leaving him as a producer with that face?
'Still, I am lucky.'
I thought of the other team's trainees who were complaining about being caught by a difficult producer.
Fortunately, Choi Sung-jun was a friendly guy with a good personality. I was relieved, thinking that I wouldn't waste my energy on something else.
But after a while.
"Again."
Only Choi Sung-jun's firm voice echoed in the quiet studio.
The members who were waiting for their turn to record were all pale.
I sang the introduction again with a confused mind.
"Again."
...Is this really the Choi Sung-jun I know?
I sang it again several times in a state of confusion that I couldn't bear to show, but in the end, Choi Sung-jun sighed loudly and shook his head.
"This is a mess."
"....."
"Just come out."
No matter what, he shouldn't have said something like that. Now that I've gone back to the past and a game window is popping up in front of me.... Isn't it possible that there's a doppelganger with the same name?
Choi Sung-jun frowned and rested his chin on his hand, leaving me bewildered, thinking of ridiculous assumptions.
"Who's next?"
Shin Yeon-woo, who had been frozen, suddenly raised his head.
"...Yes, me!"
"Here, sing this part."
Shin Yeon-woo entered the recording studio with a determined look in his eyes. But soon...
"Again."
He fell into Choi Sung-jun's 'Again' swamp.
Shin Yeon-woo also sensed the ominousness, and his pupils began to tremble.
"Again."
This time, too, the situation repeated itself without fail.
"Again! It keeps getting flat."
"...I'm sorry."
"Ha."
Choi Sung-jun sighed, leaning back against the back of his chair.
"Neither of them will work?"
The air in the studio became stiff at Choi Sung-jun's firm words.
"Trainee Kwon Yoo-hyun has no basics, and trainee Shin Yeon-woo's vocal range doesn't match."
"...."
"Did you say trainee Kang Se-hyun is a rapper?"
"Huh? Yes!"
"Just try it. Just in case."
Kang Se-hyun, who was shivering, straightened his waist.
Kang Se-hyun, who had a lower voice than Shin Yeon-woo and me, was not good enough to handle the high notes.
As expected, Kang Se-hyun was also rejected cleanly.
"This is a big problem."
"....."
"This is not a matter of whether or not we can do it in a short period of time.... Let's record again tomorrow, and if it doesn't work out, we should lower the key or something. Or we can give it all to the main vocalist."
The recording studio froze at Choi Sung-jun's words. Lowering the key was really a last resort.
Other teams all use the original sound, but our team is the only one lowering the key?
It would be very noticeable in a bad way.
Then in the end, it would go in the direction of giving the part to Kim Eden, who is the only one with a similar key.
'Until tomorrow......'
It's currently 11 AM.
In about 10 hours... would it be worth a try?
'No, even if it doesn't work out, I have to make it work.'
I immediately declared.
"Not tomorrow, but I'll fix it by today."
"...?"
Everyone in the studio blinked their eyes in bewilderment at my bold statement.
They must be wondering what I am saying.
I know that too.
I stared blankly at the cause of my impulsive behavior.
[Daily Quest Arrived!]
[Take charge of the introduction of the 2nd Evaluation Song!]
[Reward Life 24:00:00]
The daily quest ends today.
***
Choi Sung-jun opened his eyes and stared at me, then waved his hand roughly, telling me to do whatever I wanted.
I guess I'll be living in the workshop anyway. I was momentarily nervous, thinking they'd say no.
Fortunately, the members' reactions were also positive.
It must have been absurd to suddenly suggest something like this, but the members must have had similar thoughts.
There are 6 days left until the final evaluation.
Of those, there are only 5 days left to devote to practice.
It would be a waste of time to hold on to the part distribution for too long.
'As Choi Sungjun said, vocal range and basic skills issues are not something that can be fixed in a day.'
After leaving Choi Sungjun's studio, we each took our seats in our vocal practice rooms.
From now on, it's a real fight against time.
"Mailbox."
As soon as I closed the practice room door, I called the mailbox and clicked on the remaining items.
[Draw a Song Stat Booster]
: After using an item, the practice efficiency of the corresponding ability increases by n times for 24 hours
The roulette multiplier was the same as the dance stat booster.
This time, as expected, a notification that the beginner pack characteristics were reflected was given, along with a jumble of multipliers ranging from a blank to a 200x.
This time, the largest space was placed at 4x, and the next largest was placed at 200x.
I was furious at the system's lies, but I pressed the [START] button without hesitation.
I don't even expect 200x, I just hope it comes out exactly 10x.
Tiring riiiing riiiiing-!
'Please cooperate this time.'
I swallowed as I looked at the rapidly spinning roulette.
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