A New Career Singer Who Can Read The Future [EN]: Chapter 40

Hyoseop went on stage. The scar was cleanly covered with makeup, making it invisible. However, he seemed nervous, likely due to the accident. It wasn’t just any accident, but a lighting fixture crash that nearly led to the program’s early termination, so it was understandable that he wasn’t completely at ease.

Despite this, Dohyun focused on the stage, believing Hyoseop would perform well.

Hyoseop’s performance was incredibly refreshing. *Ah, how great would it have been if he had shown that refreshing side since his debut!* Dohyun mused.

Dohyun’s mind flashed back to his beastly idol days when he was practically living on chicken breast.

At the same time, he didn’t forget to closely observe Hyoseop’s performance.

It was a great stage, but the shadow of the accident lingered. Although it was a bright song, Hyoseop’s anxiety was palpable, which was slightly disappointing.

Contestant Number 17’s performance was scheduled after Hyoseop’s.

Number 17’s expression wasn’t bright as he stepped onto the stage.

It was evident that he was being forced to perform. If he were thinking about his future, he would at least try to manage his expression. However, Number 17 was too short-sighted for that.

As the music started and he began to sing, Number 17 threw down the microphone.

The audience was taken aback by Number 17’s actions and fell silent.

If the first performance was mesmerizing, this one was provocative and utterly arrogant.

After Number 17 threw the microphone and cursed, the screen showed footage of his behavior in the dorm.

“Oh my, what’s wrong with him…”

“Ah, why are all the guys I like like this?” came the disgruntled voices of people who had supported Number 17.

At that moment, Hayeonho appeared on stage.

“Contestant Number 17 has been evicted due to his earlier cursing and mocking of others. We have revealed this performance as a final look at the efforts he has made so far, and he will be removed from the contestant list as of today. Now, only 9 remain. Please look forward to the performances of the remaining 9.”

Number 17 tried to lunge at Hayeonho, but was stopped by the staff.

It was as if the program was cursed. Last week, Hyoseop was injured by a falling lighting fixture, and now Number 17, who was like a ticking time bomb, finally exploded and was evicted. It was time for a cleansing ritual, Dohyun thought.

After a brief commotion, the atmosphere calmed down, and the next performances proceeded in order.

Dohyun placed his hand on the guitar strings, pretending to play. It was to keep the feeling fresh in his mind.

“Contestant Number 23, please stand by!”

At that, Dohyun quickly ran to the standby area.

*Today, people will be surprised to see me,* he thought. *A guitar performance in a beautiful hanbok [traditional Korean dress]. Everyone will have doubts about my performance rather than expectations. But considering the direction of the arrangement and the practice I’ve put in so far, I’m confident that I can pull off the performance well. I have high hopes of receiving good scores from the audience vote.*

“Number 23, coming up!”

A staff member wearing a headset shouted busily.

At Dohyun’s appearance, a buzz went through the audience.

The staff’s reminders not to take pictures and the sound of shutters clicking all reached his ears.

*This performance must be even better than expected.*

Since it was a stage he had already performed on in front of an audience, it couldn’t be the same as last time. He had to show an even more perfect performance.

Dohyun played the prelude and focused his emotions.

The audience, which had been excited by the previous contestant’s chaotic performance, became quiet.

Everyone was looking at him.

Dohyun added humming to make his voice sound even more sorrowful.

*Ah,* he thought as he sang, *my emotions are surging even more intensely than last week.*

Tears welled up in his eyes, and eventually, tears streamed down.

Perhaps because it was a stage he had worked so hard on and had so many thoughts about for a week, he was able to immerse himself in the emotions even better.

The sound of the audience sniffling also reached his ears. He had one earphone out, and the sound of sniffling that penetrated through the gap amplified the swirling emotions.

And so, his 3 minutes and 30 seconds of performance came to an end.

* * *

After the last performance, the 9 contestants went on stage.

It felt a little empty without the mischievous Number 17, but it didn’t matter.

Hayeonho looked at them and said, “Everyone, would you like to see the real-time voting results first? Or would you like to check the combined scores of the audience and judges first?”

Dohyun had seen Hyoseop’s performance, and Number 17 had ruined his performance and was evicted. He was confident that he was still in first place.

What he was curious about was the scores of the audience and judges who had seen the performance with their own eyes.

Dohyun raised his hand and conveyed his preference to Hayeonho. “I’d like to know the latter more!”

“I thought so. I knew Number 23 would choose the latter. What do the other contestants think?”

Most people tend to follow the opinion of the first person who speaks.

The other contestants also said that they were more curious about the combined scores of the audience and judges than the real-time website voting rankings.

“Then, I’ll announce the rankings from 9th place!” Hayeonho seemed to derive quite a bit of pleasure from being able to announce the rankings.

“9th place is… Contestant Number 8!”

Contestant Number 8 was good at singing, but he had stage fright, so he always made a mistake on stage at least once. Today, he made a big mistake of going off-key while completing a good performance. He was still at the amateur level.

“8th place is… Contestant Number 3!”

Hayeonho announced the rankings quickly after that.

And now, with the top 3 remaining.

Hayeonho’s suspenseful progress began.

“Contestants Number 23, 33, and 41, please come forward!”

Hyoseop was indeed worthy of being called his rival.

Seona Nuna’s skills were also formidable. It wasn’t for nothing that she was called the god of Hongdae [a district in Seoul known for its indie music scene]. She had proven her talent.

“Contestant Number 23, what do you expect your combined audience and judge score to be?”

Dohyun answered honestly. “Honestly, I think today’s performance was better than last week’s. I expect 1st place.”

“Oh, that’s a lot of confidence. Contestants Number 33 and 41, please tell us your thoughts as well!”

Hyoseop said that he would be happy with just 3rd place, but Seona Nuna showed even greater ambition. “I want to regain 1st place. I believe in the impact of my powerful and rocking performance! I think my vocals showed the strong charm of being a Hongdae frontman!”

“Oh, it’s a battle between Number 23 and 41. Then, I’ll announce 2nd place. It’ll be fun to guess who will be 1st and 3rd, right?”

Dugudugudugu─

The sound of drums created tension.

Since he would have taken first place in the real-time website voting, Dohyun hoped that he had captured the hearts of the judges and audience.

“You had great confidence, but unfortunately, you took 2nd place! Congratulations, Contestant Number 41! If you continue with this momentum until the final competition, will we be able to see the band reunite?”

At Hayeonho’s question, Seona Nuna smiled brightly and answered. “Even if I don’t take 1st place, I want to say that there is still a possibility of the band reuniting if I’m within the top 3. Fans, see you at the Hongdae club!”

“That’s great. Please invite me to the Hongdae club performance. I’ll definitely go see it. Then, 1st and 3rd place. It seems that rivals will be facing off again. I’m also a little worried about how to announce this result.”

Hayeonho paused.

Dohyun was confident that he, who had taken 3rd place in the last competition, would be able to establish himself in 1st place through this competition.

“This person is…!” Hayeonho shouted loudly, hiding the hand holding the cue sheet behind his back.

“It will be revealed in 300 seconds!”

“Ah, what’s with another 5 minutes!”

“Just reveal it in 60 seconds like other programs! Seriously!”

“The 1st place is definitely Na Dohyun!”

“The 1st place is definitely Na Dohyun! Na Dohyun! Na Dohyun!”

Dohyun heard a lot of voices cheering for him.

He also heard voices cheering for Hyoseop, but he was more touched by the voices of his fans.

When he heard that it would be announced in 5 minutes, his legs almost gave way, but Hyoseop supported him.

He should have been a little nervous, but it seems he was too nervous.

And so, 5 minutes passed slowly…

Hayeonho announced that he would now announce the real 1st place.

“The 1st place is… This person has an amazing debut history, right? A contestant who is challenging their fourth debut, Number 23!”

Congratulatory confetti poured down from above.

“Then, naturally, Contestant Number 33 will be in 3rd place! But! Number 23, you can’t rest easy here!”

Dohyun was a little worried about what Hayeonho added.

Could it be that the website voting scores were overturned?

He couldn’t think of anything else.

“First, let’s hear the judges’ evaluations of the top 3. Seon Hwaseung, I heard you made a sincere request to Number 23. Were you satisfied with the performance?”

Seon Hwaseung, who was sitting in the judge’s seat, nodded vigorously. “You showed me a performance that exceeded my expectations. I asked you to sing it, but you sang the song more affectionately, vaguely, desperately, and sadly than I did, as if a new song was born. It was great.”

Next, Coast spoke. “Number 33 has a lot of talent, but it seems like he didn’t show it well. That’s a shame, and I think it’s a bit of a shame that Number 41 only continues to do his specialty, rock. And I’m amazed to see Number 23’s skills improve as the competition progresses. Actually, I met Number 23 in the preliminaries.”

“What was it like then?”

“He made mistakes. After much deliberation, I gave him the necklace of acceptance. It proves that my choice at that time was not wrong.”

Dohyun took the microphone from the staff and said thank you.

“Okay, we’ve heard the judges’ brief comments. Real-time website voting! I’ll let you know what the rankings are as of 9 PM!”

The numbers went up on the screen.

Then, at some point, only the scores of Dohyun in 1st place and Hyoseop in 2nd place stopped.

Seona Nuna was in 3rd place. It seemed that she had risen to 3rd place after Number 17 left.

“Ah! The 1st and 2nd place have the same score! But it wouldn’t be fun if it stopped here, right? Go! Scoreboard!”

At Hayeonho’s energetic shout, the stopped scoreboard moved again.

Both went up to 1 million votes, and the scoreboard stopped again.

“Wow! 1 million votes… That’s an unimaginable number. Is it because they’re from idols? Or is it because their skills are finally starting to shine? Now! Everyone, shout together! Go! Scoreboard!”

“Go! Scoreboard!”

“Hurry up and reveal it!”

The scoreboard went up quickly.

And not long after—when it exceeded 1.5 million votes—the final score was…

“Congratulations! Contestant Number 33 is ahead of Contestant Number 23 by 2,317 votes in the real-time voting rate! It’s a situation that can be overturned at any time! I expect that it can be overturned a lot through today’s stage!”

Dohyun was shaken for a moment because he was sure that he would have taken first place in the real-time voting, but he quickly regained his composure.

2,317 votes. He thought that was a difference that could be overturned.

Unless there is a difference of hundreds of thousands of votes, it can be overturned enough.

“Contestant Number 23, how is it?”

Hayeonho handed the microphone back to Dohyun, and he answered with a relaxed smile. “Even if it’s a difference of 200,000 votes, 2,317 votes is enough to overturn. Contestant Number 33, let’s do our best until the end!”

“The same goes for me. Let’s run hard until the end!”

“Then, the result of combining all these scores… 1st place is…”

*It’s obvious without listening.*

“Contestant Number 23, Na! Do! Hyun!”