LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 43
Chapter 43
From 14th place to 10th place, the results were revealed all at once.
Coincidentally, they were all teams that covered girl group songs. The votes were all in the early double digits.
“For the five teams, these results must be quite disappointing. It must be really upsetting right now, but you’ll do much better next time.”
The results from 9th to 6th place were quickly revealed again. 6th place was Team 1 of Pluto’s ‘Avatar’, which only managed to secure 32 votes.
Starting with Team 1 of Upon’s ‘Comfort’ in 5th place, interviews were conducted with multiple members from each team, proceeding relatively slowly.
4th place was Team 2 of ‘TOXIC’, where Kim Jun-woo was a member.
“I am really grateful to everyone who voted for our team, and we will work even harder in the future. I also want to thank my team members for following an inexperienced leader and trusting the center.”
“Our leader is the best!”
3rd place went to Team 2 of ‘Comfort’. Seo Chan-bin’s performance stood out.
Every time a rank was revealed, I could feel our team members standing behind me flinch.
“Now, only Team 1 of ‘TOXIC’ and Team 1 of ‘Call on Me’ remain. Both teams have secured at least 4,000 votes.”
Everyone knew who would be first, so there wasn’t much tension.
However, Jena was experienced enough to control the atmosphere so it wouldn’t become too relaxed.
“Trainee Ok Do-yoon, how did you see the performance of Team 1 of ‘TOXIC’? Please say a word as the leader of Team 1 of ‘Call on Me’.”
Ok Do-yoon, holding the microphone, glanced at me, standing in the front, and gave a gentle smile.
“The performance of the senior from Chronicle was so well executed that, as a fellow man, it was a stage that made me fall for them.”
Since this was already the third season, the trainees were somewhat cautious when speaking in front of the camera.
“I see. Then we should hear from Trainee Kim Se-jong, the leader of Team 1 of ‘TOXIC’, right?”
Unlike Ok Do-yoon, who seemed to have prepared his words in advance, Kim Se-jong blinked as if he was pondering what to say, then opened his mouth.
“Uh… Actually, I didn’t expect our name not to be called up to this point, so I’m a bit bewildered. Right now, I think the Face Genius team is ahead of us in all aspects, including skills. I’m feeling quite relaxed right now.”
Kim Se-jong’s expression seemed genuinely relaxed, making some trainees chuckle.
After the interviews with Oh Hyun-jin and Kashima Sora, Jena, receiving the PD’s signal, spoke, hiding her fatigue.
“Then, who will take first place? I will now reveal the result.”
Could I be any less nervous?
[Team 1: 438 votes]
[Team 1: 297 votes]
There were no surprises.
Song Jung-hwan and Han Da-hoon jumped up and down behind us after confirming the results.
“Wow!”
“We got second place!”
Seeing this, Jena said,
“Haha, it seems like the trainees who got second place are happier than those who got first place.”
Of course. For their team, even with the 5,000 votes they got for first place, it wouldn’t significantly change their ranking, but for us, excluding Oh Hyun-jin and Ban Yo-han, it was uncertain if we could even survive.
4,000 votes were precious.
“Once again, thank you for your hard work.”
As the recording completely ended, I received a notification that the quest I got in the morning was completed.
[Main Quest
[A modest amount of experience points will be given as a quest reward.]
[Your team placed in the top three overall. As an additional quest reward, you have acquired the skill 《Breathing (Beginner)》.]
[Skill 《Breathing (Beginner)》 – You can breathe well. The only exercise allowed for someone like you with pity-worthy stamina is breathing exercise, right? Recommended for those who struggle even to breathe on stage. Inhale on one, exhale on two. One, two, one, two.]
[Tip! Skills are granted as quest rewards, and they can also be created at a certain probability when the player consciously repeats the same action.]
“…….”
What was I even expecting from this system?
The first trait was strange, and now the first skill is like this too. Can anyone explain why?
* * *
At that time, the representatives who had returned home after receiving their phones started to post reviews of the first round of the contest on the internet.
[Pick Heart 3 First Contest Review]
(Audience Certification Photo)
I went to see the main attraction (our precious Jena), but unexpectedly, there were some promising trainees, so I’m writing a simple review for later reference. I’m not good at remembering details, so I skipped a lot and wrote mainly about the teams I was interested in. Obviously subjective and spoiler alert.
– Rosetta
Team 1: Please remove girl group songs from the first round of contests for male hearts. It was just like the blackout team from season 1 with ‘Ice Cream’. Their skills were terrible, and unfortunately, it was King Zetta… unfortunately, it was Godter…
Team 2: Please remove girl group songs from the first round of contests for male hearts 2. The original performer, trainees, and audience were all frustrated. Whose choice was this song for? It was unbearable to watch. I hope they get a good song next time.
– Pluto
Team 1: Among Pluto’s songs, it’s the most popular, but it’s not suitable for contests. It was shaky from the beginning, and they totally missed the high notes. I only remember the missed notes. Pick Heart is ruthless in these areas, so it’s pitiful.
Team 2: Average. Surprisingly, the Japanese trainee Ritsu stood out. His pronunciation wasn’t too bad, and he spoke clearly in Korean during his personal comment. It seems he practiced a lot.
(snippet)
– Chronicle
Team 1: (Rambling warning) The only team that could rival the Face Genius team that turned Pick Heart upside down = TOXIC Team 1.
They had known members like Ban Yo-han, Oh Hyun-jin, and On Raon, and these three stood out the most in terms of visuals and skills. The rest were at a decent level, but the main vocal Ji Yeon-woo was a bit shaky on the high notes, which was a letdown. Still, it was worth watching.
Ban Yo-han’s visual was crazy and insane. This is what noble looks mean… It makes you wonder why he wants to be an idol. Though he has a suspiciously high background, we’re thankful he took an interest in being an idol. And there’s a rumor he has only been training for two months, but his skills and stage manners are far beyond a two-month trainee. Other trainees should be on alert because of him.
Oh Hyun-jin was clean and flawless, as expected of True. His appearance was not my type, though.
On Raon was the center, and now I understand why he left True. He doesn’t fit that style at all. His voice is unique like a fingerprint. When I went home and listened to ‘Heart Attack’, I could immediately tell which part was his voice, haha.
His voice is delicate when he sings, but it has inner strength, so I want to see him handle high notes. Maybe because I’ve always focused on the main vocal while stanning. But he also has a subtle wistfulness, so I’m curious about him singing ballads + his speaking voice is slightly lower than his singing voice.
He visibly struggled with his stamina towards the end of the performance, but he never lost his rhythm or pitch, which was impressive. After the performance, Joo Yeon-ho described him as a reckless younger man who blindly loves, which was a perfect description.
He still had that subtle wistfulness even while just breathing, and when our eyes met, I thought, ‘Oh, I must take care of this younger man for the rest of my life.’
If I abandon him, I become a terrible person. He’s my pick from today.
(snippet)
Team 2: They worked hard and were generally good, but it was obvious they were discouraged after seeing Team 1’s performance, which was a bit heartbreaking. Kim Jun-woo was the center and I remember his energy being especially good. The concept suited him, so I think they’ll get a good reaction when it airs.
(snippet)
– Jupiter
Team 1: Indisputably the Face Genius team. The song, costumes, and visuals were perfect. Seeing them lined up in a row was almost enlightening and even touching.
Seo Moon-gyeol’s face and skills were overwhelming. His sharp and delicate features were impressive. Overall, he had an unreal look that evoked the end-of-the-century sentiment, making it unclear why he hadn’t debuted yet. Perhaps his agency was too small to hold onto him. But seeing that they also had Ban Yo-han, there seemed to be something special about them.
Jing Xiao was indeed shockingly clumsy, but his face was handsome and he was good at hiding his flaws. He memorized the choreography and showed that he worked hard, so he wasn’t disliked.
(snippet)
Team 2: Sorry.. it seems you did something, but following that previous performance…
– Summary
1) The flawless hosting of Jena, the queen, the emperor.
2) The skilled ones were with the skilled, and the less skilled ones were with the less skilled, so the skill gap between teams was significant.
3) Team 1 of ‘Call on Me’ was a legendary performance that no one could dispute, but as I was leaving, I noticed many people seemed taken by Team 1 of ‘TOXIC’ too. Besides preferences, those two teams were definitely the top two.
– Thank you for the detailed reviewㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
┗ Selective detail?? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ It was an impressive selection and focus.
┗ No, it’s really too muchㅠㅠ ‘Call on Me’ Team 2: Seems you did something << That’s crazyㅜㅜ My pick got criticized for the same reasons in other reviewsㅠㅠ
– There seem to be quite a few capable ones, so I’m less worried about the debut team. Thanks for the review.
– The subjectivity was clear, so I could easily skip parts and read well.
┗ On Raon was praised in other reviews too?
┗ Yeah, the reviews are almost unanimously positive. He did well.
* * *
After finishing the recording of the first contest, we returned to the seed trainees’ dorm late at night.
Despite thinking I had managed it well, the next morning I woke up with a severe cold.
[You have caught a cold as a penalty for overexerting yourself beyond your stamina level. Eat well, sleep well, and rest.]
[All stats reduced by 40% due to the condition: Cold]
Are you serious?
[Yes, I am.]
You bastard.
Along with the fever, muscle aches, headaches, and nausea tormented me. Adding to my headache, the mirror on the wall showed me ‘On Raon’s’ past.
Gyun Seong-ha, who usually avoided me, saw how bad I looked and generously offered me the bottom bunk of his bed.
“How are you feeling?”
Kang Ji-woo, holding a tray with one hand, opened the door and walked in.
“Someone should destroy this deceitful world….”
“Yeah, you must be feeling really bad.”
[Kang Ji-woo pities you, wondering why you are struggling when Ban Yo-han is fine.]
“It’s because my stamina is 25…….”
Fortunately, Kang Ji-woo ignored my nonsense.
“Sit up and eat some porridge.”
Kang Ji-woo helped me sit up and fed me vegetable porridge he had made himself, topped with flavorful braised beef.
I wanted to lie back down and ignore everything, but the porridge and beef were so delicious, and they had a stamina recovery effect, so I kept eating despite my desire to stop.
Truly, Kang’s homemade food was the best.
I would have to leave here soon, but I wondered how I would live without this taste.
“Isn’t it especially lonely to be alone when you’re sick?”
I had never really thought about it. Having someone around didn’t make the pain any less.
However, coincidentally, ‘On Raon’s’ past shown through the mirror was of him suffering alone in the dorm when he was sick, so I found it hard to answer.
Having someone around didn’t make the pain less, but being alone when sick might make it feel worse.
……Had I been suffering more than others my whole life?
‘Wow… being a friendless loser has even more drawbacks than I thought….’
I felt like I was thinking strangely, but it seemed somewhat accurate…. I felt like I had said that out loud….
Ah, forget it. My head hurts.
Kang Ji-woo continued speaking in a gentle voice.
“That’s why I turned down the other company’s offer to debut as a soloist. I was afraid to endure hardships alone.”
Kang Ji-woo, crouched beside my bed, talked about how he felt alone every moment during the audition program and how hard it was. So he wanted to do group activities with good people.
Until I fell asleep, forgetting to set the sleep mode to fatigue recovery mode.
Maybe even beyond that.