Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 108. Things Will Explode (8)

After chattering for quite some time, the recording time finally approached.

The three of us, who arrived a bit earlier than the announced time right after lunch, were able to join the queue without any trouble thanks to helping distribute MalangGgom’s slogans.

“Um… Whose fans are you by any chance?”

“We’re fans of Doha and Siwoo.”

“Oh! This is Eunchan’s slogan. Would you like one?”

“Oh, yes, yes. Please give it to us.”

While receiving slogans for other trainees here and there and checking out the goods handed out by Miro Maze’s production team, the three of us gradually made our way into the studio. It was mid-May, so it wasn’t that hot outside yet, but stepping into the studio, where the air conditioning was blasting, was cold enough to make our skin tingle.

“Hey, but seriously, the entry check isn’t that strict.”

“Right? Still, you never know, so we should be careful.”

“I’ll take the hit if anything happens. Ggom, you keep a lookout later.”

“Okay, okay.”

Bringing the camera in with the Gwajam* was easier than expected. The audience area was dark enough that if we hid well, we might get through the whole performance without getting caught.

“Hello, everyone~.”

After the audience had settled in, a PD dressed casually walked up onto the stage. The PD, wearing large glasses, held the mic and smoothly engaged with the audience.

“Okay, let me briefly explain today’s recording schedule and the voting process~. Then, since we need to watch the trainees’ performances, let’s practice our reactions and cheers!”

The PD on stage went on to explain the rules for being in the audience, the voting process, and finally encouraged the audience to practice their reactions.

“Okay, imagine a trainee comes out! Cheers! Applause!”

For about 10 minutes, we practiced clapping, cheering, and shouting out the names of our favorite trainees. Even though it was just practice, with the Jimmy Jibs and cameras rolling, it seemed like they were pre-recording the reactions to mix into the final edit.

“Great job, everyone. We’ll start the recording shortly~.”

After the PD left the stage, a younger-looking PD with a clapperboard stepped onto the stage.

“We’ll begin the slate! One, two, three!”

With a resounding voice, the clapperboard made a sharp sound as it was struck.

‘Ah, this reminds me of Kang Slate.’

Soda* chuckled softly, recalling Hajin’s slate scene from the second episode. Gwajam, who seemed to be thinking the same thing, smiled contentedly when their eyes met.

‘You too?’

‘Yeah, me too.’

After a brief musing on whether telepathy might be possible with enough fandom power, the studio dimmed, leaving only minimal lighting. Although it was dark, Soda, who was relatively close to the stage, could make out the silhouette of someone stepping onto the stage.

Bang―.

A single spotlight suddenly shone brightly from the back of the dark stage. Under the full glare of the spotlight, a silhouette slowly walked toward the center of the stage.

“Wow, what’s with that body ratio?”

“Those legs must be 2 meters long!”

Murmurs of awe spread throughout the audience. The silhouette, which looked like something out of a 3D cartoon, was difficult to see clearly due to the backlight, but everyone in the audience knew who it was.

It was Seo Taeil, Utopia’s Taeil, the MC of Miro Maze, who had recently been driving viewers to comment, “Is the MC also redebuting?”

“That guy never ages….”

“Look at that suit fit. Who would guess he’s a 30-something who served in the military?”

“If that’s what an ‘ahjussi’* is, then from today, ‘ahjussi’ is my ideal type….”

Once the murmurs had died down, Taeil shouted his first lead-in line. His voice was stable and perfectly crisp, with nothing unnecessary added.

“To those who wish to reach the sun, soar high. The third journey to become Icarus of the Maze begins now.”

Bang, bang, bang―!

With that line, rhythmic lights illuminated the studio.

“The 17 trainees striving to become the third idol group of Miro. And to the Destis*, the ultimate goal of these trainees and the destination of this journey, welcome!”

“Wowww!”

With thunderous applause and cheers, the previously dark stage instantly brightened. An LED screen rapidly expanded from where Taeil was standing. All the lights came on, and the colorful moving lights heightened the atmosphere.

Seo Taeil’s presence was overwhelming as he finally revealed himself to the audience. Even though he was just wearing a basic suit, I could see people around me covering their mouths in awe.

“Today, you’ll get to see three stages prepared by 17 trainees. Are you excited?”

“Yesss!”

“Of course!!!!”

“Aaahhh~~!”

“Haha, well, we’d better get started then.”

Taeil joked playfully in response to the excited reactions. Gwajam, who was standing next to Soda, was testing their camera on Taeil. While Soda kept an eye on the security guards in the distance, they subtly shielded Gwajam.

“Today, you’ll be watching three stages prepared by the trainees. Since it’s their first performance in front of you, their ultimate destination, Destis, the order of the stages is up to you.”

Up to us?

Before I could fully process what he said, Taeil made a light gesture, and the LED screen behind him changed once more.

The LED screens on the right, left, and center each displayed a different keyword, with matching graphics as the background.

“Each keyword represents the core theme of each team’s performance. From now on, please press the button corresponding to the keyword for the stage you want to see first. The team that receives the most votes will perform the first stage.”

The voting system for this competition had two major components.

After watching a team’s performance, you could vote on whether you liked it, and then vote again for the trainee you thought performed best. If you liked all the performances, you could vote three times, but you could only pick one trainee per team.

Since the stage order didn’t affect the relative evaluation between teams, it seemed like a simple event corner.

“By the way, there won’t be any pre-stage greetings today. You’ll have plenty of time to greet and interact with the trainees after enjoying the surprise performances, so don’t be too shocked.”

“Your beauty is the most shocking thing right now~!”

In the middle of Taeil’s speech, someone couldn’t resist shouting out a personal comment. Since it was something everyone agreed with, everyone tried to hold back their laughter while sneaking glances at each other.

Taeil, who also heard the comment, glanced in the direction of the audience with a faint smile and then nodded slightly, as if he already knew.

“I know.”

The cheeky reply made the audience burst into laughter again. But Taeil, unfazed and showing no hint of embarrassment, continued with his next line.

“Okay, Destis. Now, please choose the keyword for the stage you most want to see first!”

The audience began murmuring amongst themselves as they clutched their voting necklaces. Soda, thinking quickly, consulted with MalangGgom.

Confession, Liberation, Festival.

There were only three options, but that made it even harder to decide.

“What should we pick? Ggom, what are you going to choose?”

“I feel like…. since it’s the first one, maybe Confession!”

“What about Gwajam?”

“Oh, oh, you decide for me. I’m a bit distracted right now.”

“Ah, okay, okay. So we’re all going with Confession?”

Soda pressed the 1st button on the necklace for Gwajam as well. The sound of people pressing the voting buttons echoed around the room.

“Ah, but I feel like Doha might be Liberation.”

“Then vote for Liberation!”

“No, I’m not ready to face Doha yet.”

Soda responded firmly. That was partly why she deliberately chose Confession, which seemed the least related to Doha, for the first stage. Even though she had been virtually worshiping Doha through her monitor every day, meeting him in person was a completely different story.

“Now! Voting is closed.”

The LED screen returned to its default background. Taeil received the results handed to him by the assistant director with an intrigued expression.

“Ah, it’s this team. Oh, it seems like a perfect fit for the first stage. Let’s see which trainees you’ve brought to the stage! The first stage of Miro Maze, begins now!”

With a deafening roar of cheers, the stage darkened once again.

Soda felt her heart pounding with nervous excitement that wouldn’t subside. Who would it be? What kind of stage would it be? Just as she was fidgeting with Doha’s slogan, holding it up meaninglessly, she sensed that someone had taken the stage.

Soon, the keyword and background from earlier flashed on the LED screen above the stage.

On the yellow background, candies and chocolates flew around playfully. It seemed like most people had chosen the lighthearted Confession as the first stage. The cheers grew louder as the anticipation built, and the music started.

Hwii― hwieeee―

‘A whistle?’

A clear and pure whistling sound echoed. At the same time, lights slowly illuminated the stage, revealing the trainees standing with their backs turned one by one, making the cheers grow even louder.

1, 2, 3, 4!

With a countdown, a New Jack Swing rhythm and a synth

pop intro rang out cheerfully. Simultaneously, the trainees standing farthest to the left turned their bodies forward.

“Ahhhh! Seo Taehyun!!!!!!!!”

On top of Taehyun’s beige baby perm, small, colorful hairpins glittered like jewels.

It was Seo Taehyun, dressed in a white shirt layered with a light pink sweater, black shorts, white knee-high socks, and black loafers. As he turned around, dropping to one knee like he was proposing, he held out a bouquet full of pink roses towards the audience with both hands.

“Insane, just insane!”

“So freaking cute, Seo Taehyun!!!!!!!!”

As soon as people realized it was Seo Taehyun, the audience erupted in cheers. But the cheers grew even louder with each subsequent team member who turned around.

“Who are these kids? What’s with this lineup?”

After Taehyun, Park Jaeyoung turned around, dressed in a pink sailor suit with a red ribbon, holding a red rose between his teeth. With an exaggerated pose and a smarmy expression, he nodded his chin in a way that made him look like a cocky younger guy.

Umm, umm―

Likewise dressed in pink and white preppy looks, Parang and Yuki wore a blue corsage and a yellow flower crown respectively, linking arms and drawing a big heart with their free hands.

Finally, Dan Haru, wearing a beret and a pink cardigan, looked out at the audience and confidently pulled out another bouquet he had hidden behind his back.

But instead of flowers, Haru’s bouquet was filled with strawberry-flavored lollipops.

Everyone stared at Haru in surprise, and it was overwhelmingly adorable!

“Maknae line!!!!!!!”

“Sweetie, noona* loves lollipops!”

Despite the crowd’s swooning, the trainees stepped in time with the upbeat rhythm, quickly shifting from a straight line to a W-shaped formation as they began their choreography. The main melody was a repetition of the whistling sound from earlier.

“Hey? I know this song! This is, uh, what was it called?”

“Ah! ‘I’ll Tell You’!”

“Just say it already, it’s so frustrating!”

“Huh? No, the song title is ‘I’ll Tell You’!”

As MalangGgom said the title, Soda immediately recognized what song it was.

And then she thought.

“Wow, these kids are just determined to be cute.”

It was an absolutely brilliant song choice that left her in awe!