The episode for the 4th Challenge was finally released, and just as Llana had expected, that trainers' evaluation was cut. Only the two trainers were shown.
Every episode of the show also began to go viral, especially the ones featuring Llana.
Among all the participants, she gained massive popularity and became a hot topic of discussion. Especially her songs, as it drew a lot of attention.
Her fans started demanding almost begging her and JYP Entertainment to release the tracks.
When they couldn't find any personal account linked to Llana, they immediately turned to JYP Entertainment instead, flooding the company's official accounts with comments, tags, and nonstop requests.
Her team stage, "Like That," also went viral nationwide, landing at the top of trending searches and making even more people curious enough to watch the show.
Llana didn't think too much about it. She'd wait for the company's decision and just focus on the competition for now. She wasn't officially debuted yet, so all that could wait.
With that in mind, Llana headed to the practice room. The production team had asked everyone to gather there, making it their first time meeting again since the 3rd Elimination.
By the time she arrived, everyone was already inside. She had been delayed after her brother Jude checked in on her.
Llana opened the door and found the others sitting on the floor, chatting casually.
"Good morning, everyone," she greeted.
She gave a brief bow to the production staff, then smiled and waved at the group.
Every head snapped toward the door the moment they saw her, and the room seemed brighten.
"Ohhh, look who finally showed up," Jeongyeon grinned. "The big celebrity decided to grace us with her presence."
"Oh, then we should greet her properly," Jihyo added, standing up.
Everyone burst out laughing and, as if on cue, they put on exaggeratedly serious expressions before bowing together.
"Annyeonghaseyo, Llana-ssi!" they chorused.
Llana felt her ears heat up, her cheeks flushing pink, but she didn't want to ruin the mood. She decided to play along.
Covering her mouth, she let out an overly dramatic, haughty laugh, "Fufufu~ That's right, that's right. Come, praise this famous celebrity, and perhaps I shall grant you my autograph."
"Yah!" Jeongyeon shouted, genuinely stunned as Llana completely flipped the script on them. Everyone burst into laughter again.
"Everyone looked so awkward earlier. What were you talking about?" Llana asked, genuinely curious. Earlier, they had seemed so solemn it felt like they were having a kumpisal.
(Kumpisal is a Filipino term for a religious confession. The act of confessing one's sins to a priest in the Catholic Church, part of the Sacrament of Reconciliation.)
"Nothing, where talking about what mission will we do right now." Nayeon answered.
"Do you think will be having another group battle? Major v.s Minor." Jihyo raised her brow as she asked.
"Then we'll be dead." Jeongyeon said pointing at the major line up. The majors line up consisted of Llana, Chaeyoung, Tzuyu, Momo, Somi, Jihyo, and Natty.
"Your lineup is incredibly strong. Ours would be unbalanced. We don't even have enough main vocals, while your group has three," Jeongyeon said.
"Aren't you putting yourself down too quickly, Jeongyeon-unnie? Your group has powerful vocals too. You've got Nayeon-unnie, Minyoung, and you," Llana replied, raising her brows.
Llana wasn't trying to downplay the gap between the teams or make empty reassurances. She genuinely wanted Jeongyeon and the minor group to see the strength in their own lineup. If they strategized well, the minors could still go toe-to-toe with the majors.
"Llana-unnie, Jeongyeon-unnie isn't wrong," Chaeryeong chimed in, backing her up. "You alone are already formidable. Your group also has Jihyo-unnie, Chaeyoung-unnie, Momo-unnie, and Natty, who are all powerful dancers. And then there's Somi-unnie and Tzuyu-unnie."
The others nodded in agreement. If they went up against the majors again in another group mission with such a powerful lineup, someone from their side would be eliminated once more.
"If we do another mission, then someone else will be eliminated," Nayeon said quietly.
"Yeah. Right now, there are seven majors and seven minors. If another person is eliminated, there'll only be six minors left," Jeongyeon added.
In the middle of their discussion the door finally opened again. It was JYP.
The group gasped in surprise, some laughing. Llana stood up calmly, unable to help the amusement bubbling up inside her at their reaction.They sounded exaggerated to her. She couldn't tell if they were genuinely that surprised, considering they saw JYP every week and interacted with him regularly. But who knows if they really are being genuine or just putting on an act in front of the camera?
' Well, that's usually the feeling you have when facing your boss, right?' Llana shrugged at the thought.
"Nice to see you, everyone. Are you all doing well?" JYP greeted them with a warm smile.
"Ne"
Everyone nodded, feeling much more at ease today. The rest day yesterday had clearly helped them relax.
"I'm preparing for a special performance this week. Majors, can you raise your hands?"
The majors raised their hands obediently.
'It seemed like they would be performing in this 'special performance.' This must be the advantage of being a major group this week.'
Llana thought.
If so, then this would be the best prize they would receive so far.
JYP nodded and continued, "You'll be performing with me."
"Wow!"
"Daebak!"
The majors gasped loudly, unable to hide their surprise and excitement.
Llana also felt excited. Even if they were only going to be JYP's backup dancers, it was still thrilling. Performing on a bigger stage, even if it wasn't theirs and only as support, was an opportunity to experience the energy of a real crowd, not just the hundred or so people in the studio, but thousands. She couldn't help but look forward to it.
Meanwhile, the minors standing at the side watched, their expressions a mix of jealousy, disappointment, and frustration, as they wouldn't get to participate.
"You will be dancing with me to 'Only you'. You must practice hard and show a good stage."
"Ne!!"
After JYP left, the minors began getting ready to leave the company, while the majors stayed behind to practice the choreography for "Only You" with JYP.
For a moment, a staff member approached Llana and whispered to her.
"Llana-ssi, JYP-nim wants to speak with you in his office, right now. Please follow me."
Llana nodded and followed the staff without complaint. The others noticed, but they didn't ask anything, they just exchanged curious glances.