Outside the Hall – 5:47 PM
The line stretched around the block, a serpent of glittery banners, handmade posters, and glowing lightsticks that pulsed like stars against the twilight. Fans pressed close to one another, buzzing with adrenaline, their voices overlapping in chants:
"MON-ARCH! MON-ARCH!"
Some were crying already, clutching their albums. Others rehearsed fan-chants under their breath. A girl in the front row whispered shakily into her phone camera:
"They said it's a rehearsal showcase. No cameras allowed inside. It's private. But… we get to see the new song live, before anyone else. Can you believe this??"
Excitement hummed through the air like electricity before a storm. Everyone could feel it: tonight wasn't ordinary.
Backstage – 6:02 PM
The rehearsal hall was wide, echoing, lit by stage lights that painted the empty seats in shades of violet and blue. Only staff and the first wave of fans filled the front rows.
Monarch stood together in the wings, microphones in hand, sweat already beading under their collarbones despite the air-conditioning.
Kai was bouncing on his toes, dimple flashing. "They're going to lose it, hyung. I can feel it."
EO exhaled slowly, shoulders tight. "No mistakes tonight. If this hits, it's going viral before the night's over."
Zayn rolled his neck, grounding himself. "Forget viral. Think survival. We're going up against Equinox's last performance. We can't half-step."
Min's hand lingered against the mirror panel in the wing — his eyes distant, uneasy. He whispered, almost to himself: "It feels… louder tonight. Like someone's listening."
Jiwon turned toward him, laying a steady hand on Min's shoulder. His eyes burned with that leader's fire, hiding his own storm. "Then let's give them something worth hearing."
Stage Call – 6:10 PM
The house lights dimmed. Fans screamed — a rolling wave of sound that vibrated through the floor.
The giant LED wall flickered to life, displaying Monarch's sigil: a crown of fractured light, shards orbiting a single burning star.
The intro beat began. Heavy. Electric. Dangerous.
And Monarch walked out together, five silhouettes in black and silver, moving as one.
Performance Begins
Kai took center first, his voice sharp and bright:
🎤 "Cut the chains, burn the night,We rise from ashes, ready to fight—"
The crowd screamed, some fans already chanting along, though they didn't know the words yet.
The choreography snapped hard — Kai spun, passing momentum into EO, who slid across the floor with a sharp shoulder pop, his falsetto floating above the beat:
🎤 "숨겨진 길을 따라 (Following the hidden path),빛이 날 이끌어 (The light pulls me forward)…."
Fans gasped at the Korean lyrics, some covering their mouths, others repeating the words in awe.
Then Min stepped forward. His verse was lower, breathier — unusual for him, but hypnotic. He dragged his hand across the air like cutting through glass, the LED wall behind him fracturing into shards of crimson light.
🎤 "I see the truth inside the mirror,But who's the face that's drawing nearer?"
The crowd roared. Some fans shouted: "MIN CENTER!!!"
Then the chorus detonated — all five together, stomps and spins hitting the ground like detonations.
🎤 "This is our reign, no fear, no crown,We rise, we fight — it's the takedown!"
Lightsticks whipped in time, the audience shaking the hall with chants.
And in the middle of it all, Jiwon stepped into his verse.
The lights dimmed except for a single golden spotlight. His voice cut through — smooth, powerful, devastating:
🎤 "They don't know the nights I've bled,비밀 속에 (inside the secret), love I've kept.If shadows burn, let them consume—I'll rise again, and call it truth."
The crowd erupted. Some fans sobbed. Others screamed his name, over and over.
The choreography tightened around him — Zayn anchoring the formation, EO's falsetto weaving with Kai's golden notes. Min dropped to one knee at the center, arms wide, as if breaking chains.
The performance built like a storm, climaxing with every member hitting their line in succession — their voices layering into a wall of sound.
The final move: Monarch standing in a broken-crown formation, each with one hand gripping the other's wrist, bodies chained together in defiance.
The last lyric hit like thunder:
🎤 "No kings, no gods — we make our own."
The music cut. Silence.
Then the fans exploded.
The sound was deafening — screams, sobs, chants echoing through the hall. Staff struggled to hold the barricades as fans surged forward, desperate to capture every breath of what they had just seen.
For a moment, Monarch just stood there, drenched in sweat, staring out at the crowd that was still screaming for them.
And Jiwon thought — This isn't just music anymore. This is war. And they're ready to fight it with us.
– Fire in the Rehearsal Hall (continued)
The music cut, but the echo of Monarch's voices seemed to linger in the air, thick as smoke.
For three long seconds, the fans froze — stunned, breathless. Then the dam broke.
Screams. Thunderous applause. Hands waved glowing lightsticks so wildly that the hall itself seemed to pulse like a living heartbeat.
"JIWON! JIWON! JIWON!" roared the front rows.
Others chanted the group's name in rhythm: "MO-NARCH! MO-NARCH!"
Tears streaked down painted cheeks. Some clutched their friends, shaking them in disbelief. Phones (smuggled despite the no-camera policy) were raised high, shaking as fans whispered breathlessly into them.
"Oh my god. Oh my god. Did you hear Min's part? He's… he's never sounded like that before!"
"Jiwon's voice… it felt like it was tearing me open, like he was confessing something."
"That chorus— I can't breathe— they're monsters. No one else is doing this. No one."
A wave of chants followed them as they bowed. Monarch's breaths were ragged, but their movements were sharp, perfectly synchronized, even in exhaustion. The fans couldn't stop screaming as the group filed offstage.
Backstage – 6:43 PM
The second the curtains swallowed them, everything collapsed into chaos. Staff rushed forward with water bottles, towels, in-ears dangling from their necks.
Kai doubled over, laughing through his gasps. "They— they lost it!" He slapped EO's arm, grinning like he'd just set the world on fire.
EO's hands shook as he accepted a towel. His eyes glimmered. "We did it. We actually did it."
Min sat heavily on a bench, chest heaving, sweat sliding down his temple. He pressed both palms into his thighs, grounding himself. "It was too much," he murmured, his voice low. "I felt them pulling at me. Like… something wanted to get through the song."
Zayn crouched in front of him, steady, grounding. "We're fine. You're fine. Don't spiral now. We owned that stage."
But Jiwon stood apart, silent, his chest rising and falling. He hadn't shaken the spotlight from his eyes. That verse he sang — it wasn't just a lyric. It had been a piece of him, torn out and exposed before thousands of strangers.
He thought he could still feel it, lingering in the air.
The secret. His secret.
"Leader?" Min's voice cut through, softer now, careful.
Jiwon blinked, forced himself back. He ruffled Min's damp hair with a ghost of a smile. "Good work, all of you. We didn't just rehearse tonight. We made history."
But deep in his chest, he felt a shadow stirring. The memory of Yul's frightened eyes. The voice of the man — the one who'd appeared in his own vision.
And as the fans outside still screamed Monarch's name, Jiwon wondered — how much longer before that shadow makes its move?