A New Career Singer Who Can Read The Future [EN]: Chapter 18

The rehearsal began the day before the main competition.

A staff member shouted,

“We’ll proceed with the rehearsal for the last, tenth group!”

“Ugh, I’m getting nervous.”

“Me too.”

“I wish the first round of the main competition would just end already.”

The staff and team members spoke respectively.

It’s not that I don’t understand the team members’ reactions. If you have a competition every week, it’s more than enough to feel that way.

I was the same. I remember how painful it was every day during my third debut, the audition program. My ranking changed depending on the real-time live voting, and every word from the judges was hurtful.

“You’ll all do well.”

“We have to trust our leader.”

Participant number 49 said.

We went on stage and checked the sound.

I said to the sound staff,

“The sound seems a bit off. Could you raise it by 1db [decibel, a unit of sound intensity]?”

“Yes! Understood!”

After testing with only 1db raised, it sounded right.

“How is the condition for the others?”

“I’m fine.”

“Me too.”

“I’m also good.”

The remaining three members answered as if they were satisfied. Then we can proceed without any problems.

“Then let’s start the rehearsal in earnest!”

The trainers and judges were watching from below the stage, and the MR [music recorded] started.

I have to do well from the beginning.

I closed my eyes with that worry.

I had to complete a stage that I could be satisfied with through the few rehearsals given.

* * *

“Hello! This is Coast. Today is the day to check the team missions of the 49 participants who made it through the preliminaries. Since one person has been eliminated, 49 people will be performing on stage.”

The four trainers sitting side by side focused on Coast.

The participants were sitting at tables below the stage, listening to Coast’s words with tension.

“Tomorrow, 39 people will be eliminated through the stage. And the remaining 10 will prepare for the next main competition… You know what that means, right?”

Coast, who is the MC [Master of Ceremonies], and the four trainers sitting side by side in the judges’ seats, will be doing the final check as trainers until today. But tomorrow, on the main stage, they are judges.

Sighs of tension fluttered from various tables of the participants.

“You seem too nervous. I hope you believe in yourselves and show us a great performance. Now, leaders of each group, please come out.”

Dohyun got up from his seat.

The leaders of each group except Dohyun got up and headed to the stage.

“Slips of paper with the competition order are in this secret slip box.”

“We’ll pick the order from group 10 first. Group 1 will wait a bit.”

Dohyun nodded with a smile, without expressing any dissatisfaction at Coast’s words.

I hoped for a middle ranking as much as possible. The first stage was easy to be forgotten in a competition of 10 groups unless it was unconventional. But I didn’t want to be the last group either.

‘Please… let it come true.’

“Kyaa!”

The leader of group 10 screamed as soon as she put her hand in.

Because of that, the other leaders looked at her with puzzled expressions.

Coast also had a curious expression.

“Is there something inside?”

“Ah, no… I was just surprised because I thought there was something! There’s only a note!”

“I thought the production team had prepared a surprise event. Now, please reveal the number on the note you’re holding.”

The leader of group 10 revealed the paper she had picked. The number 6 was printed on it.

“The number that those who want to perform in the middle are hoping for has come out. We look forward to the sixth stage. Next, group 9 leader, please come forward!”

From group 9 leader, it proceeded without any surprises.

After that, the first stage and the last stage came out.

Unexpectedly, except for group 10, the middle order was not coming out.

Dohyun chose the stage he wanted to pick in his head.

‘Eighth would be good. That way, it’s good for imprinting on the judges, and the burden on the stage can be reduced. The team members will all be adapted too.’

While thinking that, he glanced at the table below the stage.

The faces of the three team members were filled with tension.

Dohyun hoped that the last remaining number would be 8.

“Now… you’ve waited a long time. Participant number 23! I’ll ask you a question on this occasion.”

“Ask me anything.”

“One of your team members left, so you formed a group of 4, but was there any problem?”

“It’s a very difficult question, but to answer simply, there was no problem.”

“As expected, you’re a survivor of survival programs, so you’re narrowly avoiding the answer. You know there’s only one number left, right?”

“I know.”

“Is that the number you’ve been waiting for?”

Dohyun smiled brightly at Coast’s question.

And instead of answering, he put his hand in the slip box and picked it.

The last remaining one.

“Number 8. It’s the number I’ve been hoping for. Is that enough of an answer?”

Dohyun predicted the numbers that had not yet come out by counting the numbers that the group leaders who had picked the numbers earlier revealed, and smiled.

Luck followed me!

“You look very happy. Can I ask why?”

“I’ve been through several competitions, but our team members haven’t. I judged that the team members can regain confidence and perform on an ambiguous order.”

“Oh… it seems like luck followed you because you were thinking about your team members. I look forward to a good performance today and tomorrow. Especially today, as it’s the last stage to watch as a trainer, I hope you’ll think of it as a real stage and perform.”

Coast looked at the moving teams and asked the trainers.

“The trainers must have expectations too. Which team do you think will do well?”

“No comment.”

Seon Hwaseung, one of the cold-hearted trainers, said first.

The other trainers agreed that they would not answer now.

“You’re judges, so your mouths are very heavy. I’m sure everyone here wanted to hear a word from you too. It’s a bit of a shame that you don’t have that opportunity.”

Seon Hwaseung grabbed the microphone again.

“If we mention the stage now, it will definitely have an impact. So, it’s better not to comment on the stage, right? I think it’s right to make a subjective judgment after the stage rather than mixing subjective things before the stage.”

“That’s right. I actually think so too, haha.”

Coast laughed and continued.

“First group, please come up and perform.”

The group that decorated the first stage came up.

The tension was clearly visible on their faces.

Since it was a stage disguised as a real battle, they were not given time to loosen their throats or relieve tension.

The MR [music recorded] was played for them, who were all wearing in-ears.

They closed their eyes and tried to focus on the stage.

The trainers had strange expressions as they watched them.

‘Honestly, closing your eyes like that in a real battle, not making eye contact with the audience, is just showing that you’re very nervous. That attitude will be pointed out.’

Thinking that, Dohyun whispered to his team members.

“We shouldn’t close our eyes like that on our stage.”

Number 49 continued Dohyun’s words.

“You have to face the audience on stage. You have to convey the sincerity and emotions contained in the song well. No matter how nervous you are, you shouldn’t sing with your eyes closed like that. Our group, you can do well, right?”

Everyone nodded as if they understood the words.

We were born to live

And we live to die

I want to live because of you

You and I have no choice but to be happy

My whole space is filled with you

They were very nervous, but the harmony of their voices was good.

Dohyun judged that if he were a judge, he would pass the leader of this team and the team member who saved the sad part.

That’s how the first stage ended.

The participants on the stage were sweating profusely and catching their breath.

Soon, the trainer in charge of the group grabbed the microphone first.

“Good job. You did a good job of saving the sad song. With that in mind, I’ll ask you a question.”

The team leader was taking the steepest breath.

But since the trainer’s question had to come in, he grabbed the microphone tightly.

“Heok… Yes! I’ll take the question…!”

“There was one very disappointing thing. Why are all the team members closing their eyes when they perform on stage? Do you have a camera phobia? Or is it because you’ve seen a lot of senior singers singing like that?”

The question came out as Dohyun expected.

Dohyun’s team members looked at Dohyun and whispered.

“The question came out exactly as expected….”

“Since we’re the eighth in order, we’ll be able to hear reviews about what we shouldn’t do in the future. Recognizing that on stage and singing with emotion. It won’t be easy. But let’s try.”

As Dohyun said full of will, the team members sighed deeply.

The leader of the first group gave an apology.

Oh no… I don’t think that’s the answer they wanted.

Dohyun was upset as if he were a trainer.

“I don’t want to receive an apology. I want to talk about the attitude towards the stage.”

“Still… I’m sorry.”

Coast grabbed the microphone.

“I think you’re misunderstanding something now. You shouldn’t be apologizing to us, but to the audience who will be watching this stage from below. Have you ever made eye contact with the audience even once while performing on stage? Have you ever made eye contact with the camera? What kind of attitude did you practice with for a week?”

Silence flowed in the studio at the cold words.