Prince From Another Dimension Becomes An Idol [EN]: Chapter 51

#51.

“He’s really handsome.”

However, the words that came out of Jung-joon’s mouth sounded absurdly hollow.

“Wow… He’s even more handsome in person than he looks on TV. And his skin is amazing! He’s the same age as me, but he’s got baby skin!”

Contrary to his seemingly cold impression, Jung-joon’s comments weren’t much different from the enthusiastic fangirling of MOST’s fans.

“What’s with him? The youngest one next to him is a real baby, isn’t he? Our team’s youngest is all old and worn out……”

“Hyung! Are you crazy?!”

Jung-joon’s muttered, seemingly possessed, caused the youngest member of Big Boyz to flare up and shout.

Seeing Do-jae and Louis looking bewildered, Kedo quickly tried to smooth things over.

“Sorry, sorry. When you gather a group of people, there’s always one crazy guy, right? It’s like the law of conservation of crazy guy mass. He’s that crazy guy.”

“We don’t have anyone like Jung-joon on our team,” Ki-joon muttered, sounding exasperated.

“Haha. He’s quite the character,” Do-jae said, barely managing to relax his stiff expression.

Heung-min, who seemed to know Jung-joon’s personality well, patted Do-jae’s shoulder and whispered, “He’s just complimenting you.”

“That’s right. It’s a compliment, and I’m also a bit crazy. That’s why I can’t say a word on broadcasts. But that has the opposite effect, and I want to talk too much when I’m not on the air. I’ve become even more talkative.”

At Jung-joon’s words, the Big Boyz members began to bicker.

“Seriously. It’s a relief we’re using the same waiting room as MOST! If you did this to another team, wouldn’t we be blacklisted in the industry?”

“He did this to a member of Infinite Boys last time too. Everyone’s secretly nice, I tell you. If it were me, I would have punched that Jung-joon bastard.”

“Why would you punch me?”

“Because I want to! Do-jae, you can punch him too. It’s not too late.”

Do-jae ended up laughing at the Big Boyz leader’s conclusion.

On stage, Big Boyz showed off their perfectly synchronized choreography without a single error.

But off stage, they were just a bunch of chaotic guys in their early twenties.

It wasn’t a matter of good or bad.

They had been together longer, but the atmosphere was clearly different from that of the MOST members.

‘Woo-cheol and Louis weren’t that crazy either.’

And there was a slightly more aggressive vibe among the guys.

Seeing Heung-min playfully slapping Woo-cheol on the back of the head felt like a long time ago. Do-jae’s influence had definitely made MOST’s atmosphere more gentle than other teams of the same age.

Of course, the biggest influence was Ki-joon, the leader of the team.

Ki-joon frowned slightly, as if he was used to and tired of the Big Boyz members chattering.

“Let’s at least greet them properly.”

While the other MOST members were preparing, Ki-joon stepped forward to introduce Do-jae and Louis to the Big Boyz members.

Big Boyz were scheduled to perform in the second part, so they had plenty of time.

“Here. As you already know, this is Do-jae and Louis from our team. And this side, as you know well, is Big Boyz, our seniors at the company……”

“Ah. What seniors? Nice to meet you! Sorry about that guy just now. I’ve heard a lot about you from Ki-joon. I’ve seen you on TV too.”

Kedo greeted Do-jae and Louis with a friendly smile.

The other Big Boyz members also took turns greeting them formally, saying they were glad to meet them.

They also made sure to mention that they had enjoyed Do-jae’s appearance on [a popular music show].

“Appearing on [the music show]! That’s amazing. We haven’t even won a rookie award yet.”

One of the Big Boyz members grumbled in a way that wasn’t offensive.

Ki-joon replied, sounding a bit dumbfounded, “We haven’t received it yet… There’s a high chance we won’t get it. You guys are nominated for the grand prize today.”

“We haven’t received that yet either!” Kedo replied playfully.

However, Ki-joon didn’t laugh anymore.

“Everyone knows Big Boyz will get it, anyway. We really don’t know.” There was a hint of discomfort in Ki-joon’s voice.

Do-jae glanced at Ki-joon’s expression.

Kedo seemed to notice Ki-joon’s mood and naturally changed the subject.

“I heard there are only three rookie nominees for this awards ceremony, but you’re performing. I’m really looking forward to your team’s performance! You must have prepared a lot, right?”

“I guess so.”

“I guess so? You say that, but you must have prepared a lot. I heard the practice room on the 7th floor is never empty. I heard it all from Team Leader Jung.”

At Kedo’s words, Ki-joon made an embarrassed expression, saying, “Well….”

Then Jung-joon suddenly chimed in again. “How do the MOST members put up with it? If I were on the same team as Ki-joon hyung [older brother/male friend], I would have run away.”

It was clear that he didn’t mean any harm, but it was also clear that he was speaking without thinking.

Kedo, flustered, covered Jung-joon’s mouth.

There really was a member who had run away, and Do-jae and Louis, who were able to become MOST members thanks to that, hesitated and couldn’t react easily.

Just then, a loud roar reached the waiting room.

The roar was so tremendous that the floor vibrated.

“Oh? It must have started!” Louis blinked in surprise.

“Guys! Hurry up! We need to finish getting ready and leave in 20 minutes!” Jung Gil-joo shouted, looking at his watch.

Ki-joon, Do-jae, and Louis finished their greetings with Big Boyz.

“I’ll finally get to see Lee Ki-joon’s performance live. I’ll be watching. Do well!” Kedo said, patting Ki-joon’s shoulder.

You could tell that the two were really close just by looking at the way they exchanged glances.

Ki-joon chuckled and nodded.

***

The performances of the three rookie nominees for ‘Rookie of the Year’ were in the order of REGINA, MOST, and The origin.

The MOST members waited below the stage for Regina’s performance to end.

“Make sure your in-ears are in properly.”

“Microphone check, everyone?”

“Don’t stray from your positions!”

The staff bustled around below the stage, checking on the MOST members.

Once Regina came down, the MOST members were scheduled to jump onto the stage via the lift.

“Wow… My ears are all muffled,” Woo-cheol muttered, squatting down.

He had felt that the cheers were loud even inside the waiting room, but it was even more so when he came out to the stage.

‘Is this what it means to be overwhelmed?’ Do-jae thought, feeling the loud singing and cheers with his whole body.

He was slowly realizing that this was a really big stage.

It was a feeling he had never experienced even during their debut showcase.

Standing in the center, Do-jae calmly took a deep breath and looked back at the members.

Louis had his hand on his chest, as if his heart was pounding.

Heung-min was clutching his microphone tightly, and Gyu-sung was muttering something next to him with his head bowed.

‘Is he praying?’

Finally, Do-jae’s eyes fell on Ki-joon next to him.

Ki-joon was still mouthing the lyrics, just like he had been in the waiting room.

Normally, Ki-joon would have already memorized the lyrics perfectly, even if they had been changed, and wouldn’t have practiced anymore.

‘Rather, he would have been taking care of the members and telling them to do well. But……’

It was clear that Ki-joon was feeling the pressure of this stage.

The proof was that Ki-joon’s expression was darker than usual.

Being so close, he could feel it clearly.

It wasn’t a matter of the lyrics being changed, or it being their first awards ceremony performance.

‘Could it be……’

Do-jae recalled the meeting with Big Boyz in the waiting room.

‘He’s worried about being on the same stage as Big Boyz.’

Those they had practiced with were already nominated for the grand prize.

‘On the other hand, we’re rookies whose chances of winning are uncertain.’

That was why Ki-joon had stiffened during the conversation with Kedo earlier.

MOST was growing faster than Big Boyz had in their early days, but they still hadn’t closed the gap in time.

Once they were all in one place, it seemed that fact had led to the thought that they were falling behind.

Ki-joon had even collapsed from overwork while trying to relieve his anxiety about the debut delay by working on songs.

It would be a lie to say that he wasn’t impatient.

‘Moreover, his close friend is watching… He must want to do well on stage more than ever.’

Pressure, tension, impatience, and even greed.

Do-jae thought that they were all not bad.

All of those things were bound to become a driving force on stage.

But everything was fine in moderation.

Before he knew it, REGINA’s song was coming to an end.

Do-jae grabbed the bandana tied around Ki-joon’s wrist.

Even though the stylist had tied it tightly, it was already half undone.

At this rate, it looked like it would come completely undone as soon as the stage started.

Ki-joon, who belatedly noticed that the bandana was untied at Do-jae’s gesture, exclaimed, “Ah,” in surprise.

“I’ll tie it again for you.”

As Do-jae confidently stepped forward, Ki-joon thanked him and held out his wrist.

There were so many knots on the imperial robes [traditional Korean clothing].

Most of them were tied by palace maids, but he often did it himself, so tying knots so that they wouldn’t come undone was very easy.

Tightly. Pulling the bandana tightly on his wrist so that it wouldn’t come undone, Do-jae lightly added, “Hyung, let’s do well again today.”

“Yeah. We have to do well.”

“Just like we always do.”

“…Huh?”

“Because you’re already excellent just doing what you always do.”

Ki-joon, who had initially leaned in as if he hadn’t heard properly due to the loud music, soon made a deflated sound, saying, “What is it.”

“How boring.”

After saying that, Ki-joon was about to turn his head when he suddenly met Do-jae’s eyes again and asked, “Is that so?”

He was asking, but Ki-joon seemed to have already sensed what Do-jae was trying to say.

You’re already excellent just doing what you always do.

That’s enough.

“Without a doubt,” Do-jae replied with a confident voice.

It wasn’t arrogance.

He wasn’t saying they were perfect either.

MOST was a group that always did their best.

They had always done their best, so there was no need to overdo it to show something more.

“Because we’re already doing our best.”

“…Yeah.”

That was why they were able to be here in just three months, as they had said in their red carpet interview.

The MOST members had already made their debut and were receiving a lot of love.

Whether they received the rookie award today or not, that fact remained unchanged, and there was still a long way to go.

There was no need to be too impatient.

Ki-joon shook his head slightly as if to shake off his complicated thoughts.

The long silver earrings swayed and jingled.

From makeup to clothes to small accessories, it was definitely more extravagant than usual.

Just before going on stage.

Ki-joon looked back at the members on either side of him with the same expression as usual and said in a small voice, “We can do it.”

Then Heung-min, who was next to him, chuckled and continued, “We will do it.”

The members shouted along in lip sync, as if riding a wave.

‘We can do it. We will do it. MOST!’

Soon the stage went dark, and the cheers from the audience momentarily subsided.

Now it was MOST’s turn.

***

As the logo symbolizing MOST appeared on the large screen, the cheers filled the concert hall again, which had been full of silence.

“Waaaaah!”

“MOST!”

“MOST―!!!”

The voices chanting MOST echoed like a large drum.

Pot―!

At the same time as the lights turned on, the MOST members jumped onto the stage.

At the same time as the prelude began, the members raised their heads, which had been lowered, and looked at the audience with trembling eyes.

Cheering sticks symbolizing various fandoms were shining in various colors.

Not everyone had come to see MOST, but at this moment, everyone was watching MOST.

The beginning was Ki-joon.

Ki-joon tossed his hand microphone into the air.

The microphone soared high into the sky.

‘I mustn’t drop it.’

It was a movement he had practiced hundreds of times.

Ki-joon quickly reached out his arm.

***