Prince From Another Dimension Becomes An Idol [EN]: Chapter 66

#66.

First, Louis, stepping into the car and inhaling deeply, praised the interior. “It’s brand new!”

“Wow, it’s a new car!” Heungmin exclaimed, echoing Louis’s enthusiasm.

Jeong Gilju added excitedly, “Yeah, yeah. It’s your exclusive van, like I mentioned before! Fresh off the lot!”

Previously, the members had to squeeze into two cars or use a shared van provided by the company for all its artists.

But this time, MOST had their very own, brand-new van.

“Wow! Awesome!” A wave of excitement rippled through the members.

“Alright everyone, buckle up! Let’s get going!”

“Let’s go!” With cheers and laughter, the black van sped down the wide, eight-lane road as dawn broke.

The members, thrilled with their new van and the prospect of performing on stage after so long, momentarily forgot their fatigue.

***

The KVS Song Festival aimed to foster unity and herald a new beginning by uniting musicians from different generations and genres.

Consequently, unlike the year-end awards shows of other broadcasting companies, there were no award categories, and the lineup was incredibly diverse.

Many veteran singers, rarely seen on music shows or awards ceremonies, were present, leading MOST to navigate the waiting room, bowing respectfully to their seniors.

The special performances included the KVS choir and a *geomungo* [traditional Korean zither] player.

As a result, the broadcast was naturally quite lengthy.

MOST’s performance was scheduled for the latter half of Part 1 of the broadcast, which was divided into three parts.

Following MOST was The Origin, who would close out Part 1.

“Seriously? Our guys have won more rookie awards… Isn’t this a bit much company favoritism?” Jeong Gilju grumbled to team leader Kim Seokcheol outside the waiting room after seeing the cue sheet.

The order implied that the broadcasting station considered The Origin to be more prominent than MOST.

Team leader Kim Seokcheol, though not pleased with this arrangement, responded calmly. “Our team debuted later anyway, even if the difference isn’t that significant.”

“Hmm… Something’s definitely up. Even with variety shows… It seems like New is getting more attention than I thought?”

“Yes. But you don’t need to worry about it. Not yet.”

Team leader Kim Seokcheol believed the real test would be this year.

MOST, despite debuting last year, had surprisingly achieved better results than The Origin, who had received substantial company support.

Initially, their popularity seemed comparable, but as the year progressed, MOST’s popularity soared.

However, to someone unfamiliar with the music industry, they might appear to be at a similar level.

*‘Groups that have just debuted all look similar.’*

The gap wasn’t huge to begin with, and MOST seemed to be catching up to and even surpassing The Origin, which could have reinforced that perception.

So, the real competition started now.

*‘You can excuse the first time as a practice run, but not after that.’*

Popularity isn’t a finite resource, so the rivalry between the groups wasn’t necessarily a zero-sum game, but…

*‘If they want to play a zero-sum game…’*

There was no reason to back down.

Team leader Kim Seokcheol felt confident.

Anyone within Kingdom Entertainment would feel the same.

It wasn’t just blind faith.

Looking at the members’ faces, a mix of nervousness and excitement before the stage, his confidence grew.

“What if I suddenly forget the lyrics during the live performance?!”

“You’ve practiced the stage a lot.”

“I’ve been singing it every day lately. I think it’s permanently etched in my brain.”

“That’s because you sang even more than that. There’s no way you’ll mess it up.”

In the waiting room, Dojae was reassuring Woocheol, who was anxious before their long-awaited performance.

“If you mess up, just recover quickly. If you do that, you’ll gain more stage experience.”

“Hyung, are you a singer from a past life or something?”

Dojae chuckled at Woocheol’s exaggeration and patted him on the shoulder.

Kijun began gathering the members.

Team leader Kim Seokcheol smiled faintly as he watched the members join hands and shout their usual fighting cheer.

It was a rare sight.

*‘They’re friends who will excel.’*

The members were giving their all in every moment.

*‘So that we can all succeed together… I have to do my best, too.’*

So, let’s erase any advantage the company’s backing might give them.

Team leader Kim Seokcheol thought as he watched the members head out of the waiting room.

***

“Waaaaaah!”

“MOST! MOST!”

“Oppaah!” [Term used by young girls to refer to older male figures, like older brothers or male celebrities]

The public hall, with a capacity of 1,000 seats, reverberated with the arrival of MOST.

Officials and audience members in the front rows were startled by the loud cheers and turned to look.

The sight of BESTs [MOST’s fan name] gathered on one side, enthusiastically cheering for the silhouettes of the MOST members hidden in the darkness, was quite a spectacle.

Soon, with the MC’s introduction and the lights coming up, MOST was fully revealed.

“Kyaaa――!” It was a scream that threatened to shatter eardrums.

Even the MOST members, returning to the stage after two months, were taken aback by the sheer volume.

Despite the lack of special activities during that time, fans had steadily gathered through videos uploaded to MyTube [Parody of YouTube].

The members were intoxicated by the cheers calling out their names.

―Open your eyes and look at this world!

It was the opening verse of .

Holding their microphones, the members jumped in unison.

Woocheol glanced at Dojae and smiled briefly.

Dojae was right.

His body moved instinctively.

The members energetically commanded the stage, living up to the song’s title.

*‘As expected…….’* Dojae thought as he moved around the stage.

*‘I love being on stage.’*

It was fulfilling to focus on songwriting and hone his skills through practice.

But the best part was performing live.

He knew the other members felt the same way.

All the members were performing at 120%, dancing with even more intensity than usual.

Yet, there was no sign of exhaustion.

His body, which had felt heavy with accumulated fatigue during yesterday’s practice, now felt as light as if he were flying.

*‘I want to be on stage again soon.’*

He was on stage, yet he craved it even more.

It had only been a month and a half since their debut and two months since their last performance.

He missed the stage.

It was different from the desperate desire to debut.

Back then, the idea of becoming a singer and performing on stage was somewhat abstract.

But now it was different.

*‘There are fans waiting for me.’*

He wasn’t sure if the fans would love their next album title, , as much as .

He felt anxious about that uncertainty, but now he also had more anticipation.

That the fans would connect with the youth they were singing about.

―So different!

That’s how the stage that began with ended with .

It was a remix stage lasting about 2 minutes and 50 seconds.

But for the members, it felt like a blink of an eye.

***

“Good job, good job!” The stylists and Jeong Gilju, waiting in the wings, cheered as they greeted the members.

“Thank you for your hard work!” Assistant Manager Lee Jeongyeon handed Kijun a bottle of mineral water.

“Thank you.” Kijun bowed and gulped down the water.

Today, in addition to the Kingdom Entertainment staff who were usually with them, a crew filming a reality program was also present in the waiting room.

This made the already cramped waiting room, which they shared with Big Boys behind a partition, even more crowded.

However, the members were too energized to care.

“…Today’s stage was really good.” The members all smiled, united in agreement with Kijun’s rare praise.

The energy that the MOST members were뿜어대던 [Korean slang for ‘exuding’] today was palpable, felt by both the audience and the viewers watching the live broadcast.

The members on stage together both emitted and absorbed that energy.

There was a sense of unspoken understanding.

“Let’s just keep doing this in the future.” The members nodded in response to Kijun’s words.

“It’s been a while, so the adrenaline is really pumping!” Woocheol exclaimed excitedly, checking the online reaction to their performance on his phone.

The response was overwhelmingly positive.

There were many compliments about the members’ appearance and performance.

Posts like ‘Who is that guy over there?’ were popping up on various online communities.

“It’s worth losing weight……” Gyuseong murmured quietly.

Louis, humming as if serenading himself, changed his clothes, still buzzing with excitement.

“Louis, time to change into these clothes!”

“Okay!” He replied.

It was a hot pink knit sweater and jeans.

The special stage was scheduled to open Part 2.

“Louis, do well!”

“I’ll be watching on the monitor.” Louis left to prepare for the special stage, receiving encouragement from Heungmin and Dojae in turn.

***

[Song Festival Running Wild 444444444]

…-The Orines have something stable, so I guess that’s why they’re the ending of Part 1

-I think it’s just the order of seniority

-Anyone can see it’s the order of seniority

-It’s not working for Most

-I keep seeing Most’s stage, someone please get me the linkㅠㅠ

-Most is really legendary todayㅠㅠ They’re amazing when they’re on stage

-I wish they were on stage 365 days a year

-Then only powder will be left of the Most members

-The Orines have less energy than rookies, but they’re trying to make it up with stability

-Don’t put them down

-I think I’ve become a Most fan today

-You haven’t become a fan yet???

-There are so many Most fans here

-Part 2 is starting!!!

-Wow, daebak!!!! The youngest ones are on stage!!!

-So cuteㅠㅠㅠ What’s with the hot pinkㅠㅠ

-Muso and Youngjin definitely look like hyungs [Older brothers or male friends]

-Wow, they’re doing the Bling Bling stage

-Are all the youngest members dance members except for Eun Sang? They’re good on stage

-Eun Sang is doing pretty well too? He seems to have practiced a lot

-The kids are cuteㅋㅋㅋ

-Who’s the blonde? His skin is so white and he dances well

-Most’s youngest, Louis!! His real job is an angel

-Chaehyun is handsome, I thought only Myungwoo was handsome in Orine

-Yeah, Chaehyun is also handsome, he’s surprisingly versatile

-Oh, Chaehyun dances well too?? Look at his wave

-Louis is the best, he doesn’t miss the camera for even a second

-He dances so well that he catches my eye, is he Most’s main dancer?

-Yeah, he’s in the main dancer line with Min

-What’s up with Chaehyunㅋㅋ He’s so flexibleㅋㅋ

-He’s flexibleㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Youngjin oppa looks awkwardㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-It’s a song that’s too much cute for Infinite Boysㅋㅋㅋ

-Come back as Infinite Boys oppa

-He’s awkward with being cute, but he’s doing well, he’s definitely differentㅋㅋ

-Of course, Muso has experienceㅋㅋ

-Chaehyun just messed up the choreography

-Louis!!!

-헐 [Korean slang expression of surprise, like ‘OMG’]

-헐

-헐

-헐

-Daebak [Korean slang for ‘jackpot’ or ‘amazing’]

As the special stage began with the youngest members of the four groups at the start of Part 2, online interest exploded.

Various fans tuned in to watch the special performance.

The community reaction was particularly intense at that moment.

The members watching Louis’s stage in the waiting room also stared wide-eyed.

“Wow! Kim Louis!” Woocheol shouted Louis’s name and jumped up from his seat.

Because in a brief moment, lasting only a few seconds, Louis blew a hand kiss from his thumb to his pinky and winked directly at the camera.

Immediately afterward, his expression turned serious, and he danced powerfully, capturing the moment perfectly.

It was a dazzling moment that felt blindingly brilliant.

The members were amazed by his incredible speed and stage presence.

Posts about Louis continued to flood the internet in real-time.

-Mom, I’m holding my heart right now

-Gap [Sudden change in image].. was crazy

-Please make a clip quicklyㅠㅠㅠㅠ This is a permanent collection

-Louisㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-The dance just now was crazy tooㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-He’s been standing out since earlier, and now he’s flyingㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-He’s somethingㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

After the stage ended, Woocheol, who was monitoring the online reaction while waiting for Louis, shouted in surprise again.

“Wow! Hyungs, look at this!”

“What is it? Is there any hate about Louis?”