A New Career Singer Who Can Read The Future [EN]: Chapter 83

As the concert and repackage album approached, Do-hyun grew thinner by the day.

“Do-hyun, you need to eat something,” Kang-ho, his manager, urged.

Do-hyun shook his head. “It’s okay, hyung [older brother or close male friend].”

“You’re not an idol. Why are you losing weight? You’re a solo artist; you can take it easy. What if you collapse on the day of the concert?”

“That won’t happen. I just don’t have much appetite. Maybe it’s because I’m so busy…”

“Oh, right. Did you know that the Beautiful Autumn Festival is scheduled for this fall?”

The Beautiful Autumn Festival was an annual event held every autumn, drawing a large crowd.

“Oh, really?” Do-hyun asked, surprised. He used to buy tickets and attend the festival as a spectator. Now, he was going to perform on stage as an invited singer. It felt surreal.

“And you’re the sub-headliner!”

Do-hyun’s eyes widened at Kang-ho’s announcement. “Pardon?”

“Surprised, right? That you’re the sub-headliner.”

“Me? I know it’s extremely rare to perform as a sub-headliner right away, no matter how you look at it…”

“That’s the power of popularity, Do-hyun.”

“Ah… Oh my gosh.” Do-hyun was grateful for the opportunity to perform on another stage, but he also felt the pressure of preparing for it.

Do-hyun plopped down on the practice room floor and pulled out his tarot cards.

“What’s that? Is that a tarot card?” Kang-ho asked. Do-hyun nodded.

“Actually, I haven’t really told anyone, but I always use tarot cards to tell my fortune whenever something important is coming up. It’s surprisingly accurate when it comes to predicting the near future…”

“Oh! Then give me a reading!”

“I’ll read yours next time, hyung. What are you worried about?”

“Well, it’s a relationship problem. My girlfriend is complaining that I’m too busy…”

The busier Do-hyun’s schedule became, the busier Kang-ho had to be.

“Ah, I see… I feel sorry for your girlfriend.”

“Don’t be. I comforted her by saying that I still have a lot of time left since this is a period of focusing on practice. Instead, she asked me to get her an autograph.”

“I should do that. Let me look at this tarot first.” It was the first time Do-hyun had read tarot cards in front of someone since Hyo-seop. Moreover, he hadn’t even thought about looking at tarot cards recently because he was so busy.

“Wow…” Kang-ho was impressed by Do-hyun’s dazzling hand movements as he shuffled the tarot cards.

Regardless, Do-hyun concentrated on the tarot cards and shuffled them.

After spreading out the cards, Do-hyun picked one that caught his eye.

The question was, ‘Am I doing well?’

The card that came out was…

[Nine of Wands]

A man is standing with a wand, struggling, with eight wands already stuck in the ground. It means that he is in a state where he can complete it with just one more wand, and it means that he must have an enormous sense of responsibility.

“Ah…” Do-hyun thought it was a perfect match for his situation: concert, repackage album, festival sub-headliner, late-night radio DJ…

“What is it? Is it a bad card?”

“Well… there’s no such thing as a completely bad card in tarot, hyung. You can interpret it according to the situation. But if I were to interpret it to fit the current situation, I would say that it represents a situation that requires a strong sense of responsibility.”

“Ah, that’s the kind of card it is. That’s amazing. Did you study tarot from the beginning?”

“No. Just a little self-study.”

“Wow… that’s still amazing. Have you always predicted your own fortune before important schedules like this?” Do-hyun nodded.

“Amazing. I don’t think I could memorize all of that. Anyway, Do-hyun, let’s go out and get something to eat. We should at least have a simple salad.” Kang-ho tried to take care of Do-hyun, as a good manager should.

‘A salad would be… not bad,’ Do-hyun thought as he followed him.

* * *

Three songs were added to the repackage album, and the recording was quickly finished.

The main challenge was securing a concert venue. The company had secured two venues for Do-hyun’s concert: the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium and the Olympic Park Gymnastics Stadium.

The Gymnastics Stadium held special significance for idol singers. Filling that venue was a major achievement, proving a large and dedicated fanbase.

The A&R team and all the other relevant teams gathered for a meeting.

“We need to put up a notice now… Which venue should we choose, the Handball Gymnasium or the Gymnastics Stadium?”

“It’s the Gymnastics Stadium, of course. Do-hyun’s fandom is definitely large, starting with the fact that his album sales exceeded 700,000 copies. Honestly, he’s from a survival show, and he’s been incredibly popular since then, and his album sales are extraordinary…”

“Wouldn’t it be better to start with the Handball Gymnasium?”

Opinions clashed.

“No. I think it would be better to hold the first concert at the Gymnastics Stadium, even if there are some empty seats.”

“Hmm…” The CEO of Hue Entertainment was 고민 [agonizing/in deep thought]. Hue Entertainment had many famous singers, but they didn’t have a monster solo artist like Do-hyun, making the decision difficult.

“I’ve been thinking about it, and the Gymnastics Stadium is better. We’ve already secured both venues anyway. Let’s go with the Gymnastics Stadium! Let’s show them what kind of singer Na Do-hyun, who Hue Entertainment raised, is like!”

As soon as the CEO made his decision, the team leaders sighed in relief.

“Then we’ll start preparing.”

* * *

The concert venue was confirmed, and another notice was posted.

Do-hyun’s fans were ecstatic. Some fans who had checked the website and saw that both the Handball Gymnasium and the Gymnastics Stadium had been secured were initially worried that Do-hyun was performing at the Handball Gymnasium, which they felt wasn’t commensurate with his popularity. But that concern quickly vanished.

[Honey, gather around]

I’ve been a fan of our Do-hyun for 10 years, and he’s entering the Gymnastics Stadium ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Honey, do you all feel the same way?

└Of course ㅠㅠ I’m going to cry at Do-hyun’s stage ㅠㅠ

└Should we see Do-hyun crying on the first day or the second day? ㅇㅈ? [agree?]

└Honestly, if you’re a fan of Do-hyun, you want to see him cry ㄹㅇ [real/for real]

└Na Do-hyun’s crying face is so beautiful…

└That’s right. Anyway, he’s entering the Gymnastics Stadium ㅠㅠ The people who used to troll can’t troll anymore. He sold over 700,000 copies, he’s entering the Gymnastics Stadium, what good things are going to happen now ㅠㅠ

* * *

We decided to film a video of me trying to get concert tickets myself, an idea proposed by the content production team.

I had never tried to get tickets before, so I found this opportunity very refreshing.

Of course, other singers have created and presented content about getting tickets to their own concerts, but this was my first time.

“Wow… I’m kind of nervous,” I muttered to myself. Ho-hyung, who was waiting next to me with a website displaying the server time, said, “There are still 5 minutes left.”

“Hyung, I didn’t know 5 minutes could go by so slowly.”

“I feel like it’s going by quickly? It’s already 3 minutes and 40 seconds while we’re talking.”

The ticketing site would become available for reservations right at 8 PM. That’s what I knew.

Thump, thump.

Would I be able to get a ticket?

The moment 10 seconds were left!

The notification sound rang from Ho-hyung’s phone.

10.

Ring─

The reservation button, which had been gray until just now, turned red.

When I clicked it while stuttering, the number of people waiting for reservations appeared as 270,000.

I’m doomed…….

270,000 people are waiting to come to my concert?

“Hyung, I think I’m screwed… There are 270,000 people waiting.”

“Even considering that some people’s servers are lagging or crashing, isn’t there a possibility?”

“It looks like the waiting time is at least 30 minutes. What kind of waiting time is this long? Our fans are breaking through this and coming to the concert? I really can’t do it if I were them! How can they do this?”

The number was decreasing. After about 10 minutes, it became 170,000.

I became more and more anxious as time passed.

“Ho-hyung… Will I be successful?”

The staff was filming my every move.

I brought my screen to the camcorder and muttered, “Everyone, I think I’m completely screwed. If I had to get a ticket to get on stage as a singer, I wouldn’t have been able to get on stage.”

As I waited, I logged in with my ID on the tablet and Kang-ho hyung’s phone and tried again.

The number of people waiting on the tablet was 340,000, and Kang-ho hyung’s phone was 400,000… No way, so many people are interested in my concert?

Of course, even if we exclude people who are trying with multiple devices like me, at least 100,000 people are trying to come to my concert!

“Huh… Oh! Now the number of people waiting is 47!”

My phone, which I had refreshed as soon as it hit 8 PM, finally connected…

“What is this? It’s asking me to enter English?”

A pop-up window appeared asking me to enter a security code.

Damn it!

I panicked for a moment and slowly pressed the buttons.

And I checked the remaining seats…

“Ho-hyung, I’m doomed.”

“Why? Haha. Wow, Na Do-hyun’s popularity is the best! My singer’s popularity is the best! There are 0 remaining seats?”

“I don’t see any remaining seats that are purple…”

Remaining seats that appear in purple, so-called ‘grape seats’ [highly desirable seats]. No matter which area I clicked, I couldn’t find any color similar to purple.

“Everyone, I failed miserably.”

I could feel a deep sense of frustration even though I had only failed to get a ticket.

Ho-hyung comforted me. “Do-hyun, cheer up. But you’re a singer, so you can get on stage. If you had to get a ticket to get on stage at your concert, you would have been screwed…”

“I’m glad I’m a singer. Fans, I know how hard it is for you to get through the difficulties and come to the concert. I will cherish each and every one of your hearts.”

My last words ended, and the camcorder turned off.

But there was still something that wasn’t turned off. It was the tablet and Kang-ho hyung’s phone.

I continued to try even though the camera was off, hoping that tickets might be released. This was a strange sense of challenge.

“Do-hyun, shouldn’t you stop now? The video is all filmed…”

“Hyung, I’m burning up. I’m burning up. I’m sure there are no seats, but I’m worried that several seats might be released…”

“The company has already set aside invitation tickets…”

Ho-hyung tried to stop me, but I didn’t give up easily.

“Hyung, I want to try to get canceled tickets.”

Canceled tickets are said to be released randomly after 2 AM. After I finish DJing, it’s after 2 AM, so it’s a perfect time to try.

“Stop it. You’ll ruin your health. You’re already getting thinner; what are you doing…”

“I’m getting competitive.”

“By the way, congratulations,” Ho-hyung said, changing the subject.