The Idol Training Simulation I Messed Up

Chapter 25

Myung Jae Min and the members arrived at the venue where the dance competition was being held.

Fortunately, because they had informed the organizers in advance, they were able to enter together as team affiliates, even though they had to sit in the back.

“Hyung, hyung! That person over there is JKane.”

“What? It really is him.”

“You know him? Who is he?”

“He’s a professional dancer with a famous channel on the internet.”

The members recognized the famous dancer who was on stage. Despite being a foreigner, he was famous enough for the members to recognize him, which indicated his significant popularity.

Listening to them, Jae Min, who was a novice in the field, could roughly guess the level of the competition.

Even though the competition was naturally conducted in English, language was not a significant issue given the nature of a dance competition.

Despite the participants and audience members being from various nationalities, they all connected through the performances.

Jae Min felt like he was witnessing a world of professionals that he couldn’t hope to reach.

‘Can a human being really move like that?’

Since only skilled teams that had advanced through each country’s preliminaries were gathered, every stage was fascinating and enjoyable.

He had worried about whether he could properly enjoy the competition as an audience member, given his lack of knowledge about dance, but those worries had proven unfounded.

“[Team MIRO!]”

While enjoying the atmosphere of the event, Team Miro’s turn finally arrived.

When the announcer called out Team Miro’s name, some members of the audience recognized and reacted to them.

Among the team members, Jae Min was hiding his face except for his eyes with something like a hood, making him look like an assassin from a historical drama.

Because of his blond hair, his group could easily recognize him.

Even in the other photos Jae Min had seen of Team Miro, he had noticed that Jae Min always had his face covered like that.

Judging by the fact that he was covered again this time, it seemed that Jae Min had consistently performed with his face hidden.

‘So that’s why he wasn’t well-known even though he was in a talented dance team…’

Team Miro’s members had unified the base color and accents of their outfits, while still highlighting their individual styles.

Among them, Jae Min’s hidden face appeared to have become his trademark.

As a former idol member, he probably didn’t want to reveal his face, and this seemed like an accessory he had chosen for various reasons.

The lights that had illuminated the entire venue dimmed, and spotlights poured onto the stage.

As if synchronized, the audience quieted down, and the prepared music started to play.

Jae Min remembered how the team member who was supposed to replace his part had looked like they were dying, saying that they had been surviving only on chicken breast and salad for days due to dieting.

The reason that memory suddenly resurfaced was because Jae Min now understood why after watching the stage.

‘He’s practically… flying.’

The true level of Dance Level 9, which he hadn’t fully grasped until now, unfolded before his eyes.

Jae Min took the lead in parts that required light movements.

‘I told him he looked too skinny and should eat more properly…’

It was clear that he had maximized the advantages of having a light body.

Maybe it was fortunate that he wasn’t prone to gaining weight. Otherwise, Jae Min might have inadvertently pushed him into weight management before the competition.

Perhaps because they had spent years together, the team members displayed an exceptional level of coordination.

Especially the team leader, who, as expected, had an immense stage presence. If converted into game levels, it would easily be around Level 15 or higher…

‘No, I keep thinking in numbers, and it feels like my mental standards are becoming strange.’

Jae Min shook off his idle thoughts and refocused his attention on the stage. The performance was so intense that if he didn’t concentrate, his eyes couldn’t keep up.

Every time they performed a high-difficulty move, cheers erupted sporadically from the audience.

“Wow, Jae Min is so cool.”

“The other team members too, wow…”

“The leader hyung and noona are no joke.”

The members clapped and marveled along with the audience.

Unlike their playful and laughing demeanor in the practice room, they now had serious expressions and exuded charisma.

This contrast made the stage feel even more impressive to them.

After a few more teams took their turns, there was a brief judging period before the results were immediately announced.

Team Miro achieved an excellent result of being the runner-up in the world competition, and Jae Min expressed the joy of winning with his entire body alongside his team members.

***

Since the dance team was scheduled to return to Korea early the next morning, Jae Min moved to the hotel where the other members were staying right after finishing the after-party with Team Miro.

While searching for a spot to place his suitcase, Jae Min noticed something piled up in the corner of the room.

It was a bunch of shopping bags that hadn’t been there when they left for their trip.

“Wow, how many are there… What did you guys do while I was gone?”

“Joo-in is really generous… We didn’t even have a chance to stop her. She said this is for you.”

Yoo Han-yi handed Jae Min one of the bundles.

Indeed, a few of the shopping bags had been tied together, with a note labeled “Jae Min” attached to the handles.

Jae Min, suddenly receiving clothes without even knowing about it, couldn’t keep up with the rapid development and had a bewildered expression.

It was the same expression the members had when they watched Joo-in’s reckless shopping spree.

“Try it on, see if it fits. I think it’ll look good on you.”

Inside the shopping bag were a few clothes and a hat. There were even piercings included.

“Is Joo-in really rich?”

“She probably is, compared to us.”

From before, Joo-in had been trying to give things to the members. Almost as if she was repaying a debt.

The members had never experienced something like this since joining the company, so they weren’t used to it and might have felt that way.

‘Or maybe this is just a foreign style.’

Even though Joo-in had no experience living abroad, everyone assumed she had spent time overseas.

They were curious about why Joo-in kept giving, but since it was impossible to know unless she told them, they all just let it be, thinking it was her style.

As Jae Min unpacked his suitcase, Baek Haerang and Hyun Jun-hae, who were in the adjacent room, came over.

It didn’t matter who they shared rooms with, but when it came time to decide, Jun-hae had subtly glanced at Haerang and called out, “Hyung.”

The members didn’t know, but the two seemed to have some unspoken understanding, exchanging glances. It was a secret that they had briefly glanced at Han-yi.

So, Haerang and Jun-hae ended up sharing a double room, while Woohyung and Han-yi were assigned a triple room, considering that Jae Min would be returning.

Naturally, the triple room was more spacious, so even in Jae Min’s absence, the members had gathered in that room.

“Jae Min hyung needs to get some screen time too.”

Jun-hae brought over a camcorder that the members used to record each other’s moments.

There wasn’t a set quota for screen time, and the footage might not even be used or could be used at any time, so the recording wasn’t mandatory.

It was just an expression that since the five of them were gathered, they might as well do something.

“What are we doing, though?”

“Rolling someone up in a blanket!”

“Aah!”

Out of nowhere, Jae Min threw a blanket over Han-yi, who had been sitting under the bed, and jumped on him.

As Jae Min pressed down with his weight, Woohyung and Haerang also joined in, piling on top.

“Ugh. Wait, wait. I’m getting crushed, not Han-yi hyung.”

“Ah, don’t give Han-yi hyung too much screen time. This will end up in storage.”

“Treasure my sacrifice.”

After the members quickly disbanded, Han-yi, with his hair all messy, emerged from under the blanket.

Despite saying it would end up in storage, Jun-hae zoomed in on Han-yi’s disheveled hair.

“Any ideas? Hyung, you always did VLive.”

Woohyung, who had consistently hosted VLive with various topics to show fans something even during the hiatus, was pointed at by the members.

When they all pointed at him, Woohyung quickly stood up.

“Should I get my guitar and sing…”

“Let’s do that later. Let’s do something fun first.”

Just as Woohyung was about to get his guitar, he sat back down, a bit dejected.

Looking around for fun props, Woohyung’s gaze fell on the shopping bags stacked in the corner.

“Let’s do a fashion show. Whoever makes their partner look the most uncool wins.”

Since they had each brought a few outfits for the trip and now had a bunch of new clothes, it was a good idea to make the most of what was available.

“What kind of game is that? But I’m in.”

“That sounds fun.”

“Oh~. Idea bank~.”

The members had just casually asked, but a good idea had come up quickly.

Woohyung was proud of himself as the members praised him for the idea.

“What do we get if we win?”

“What do you mean? You get the honor of being the winner.”

Woohyung pointed out that his partner was the person next to him and indicated to rotate counterclockwise.

Han-yi, checking who was next to him, lost enthusiasm.

“Aww~. It’s hard because this hyung can make anything look good.”

Even though they said they would dress up the person next to them, naturally, they all ended up picking one person and spent time debating what would look the worst on them.

“Ah! Don’t strike a cool pose.”

“Maknae, do I look that cool to you? I’m touched.”

“Excuse me, judges? Please ban posing.”

“How can you ban posing at a fashion show?”

The first turn was Jun-hae, with Woohyung as his model.

The goal was to make them look uncool, but everyone, including the model, was an opponent.

After that, various unconventional styles were tried in each turn.

“Honestly, it’s not really cool, right? So I’m the top contender, right?”

“No. I think I’ve seen that style in a magazine somewhere.”

“It’s just ahead of its time, not uncool.”

“That’s the next season’s trendy item.”

Though the prize was just honor, they all tried to judge the other’s outfits as somehow stylish, even when they were outlandish.

While having fun like that, they managed to complete some content that the fans would probably love.

***

Time flew by as they laughed and joked around.

Having fun was great, but staying up too late would affect the next day’s schedule, so Haerang and Jun-hae returned to their room before it got too late.

With two people gone, the room suddenly felt much quieter.

“It feels like we should have a beer or something.”

“We have filming tomorrow.”

“I was just saying it feels like that kind of vibe.”

As Han-yi looked out the window and mentioned beer, Woohyung shot him a sharp look without even lifting his head from his phone.

Though he immediately gave a warning, Woohyung understood what Han-yi meant.

The lighting was soft, and beyond the full-length window leading to the balcony, the night sky stretched endlessly.

Not long ago, they were just killing time on a floor with barely any foot traffic in the practice room.

Who would have imagined that they’d be relaxing overseas like this?

And with all five of them who debuted together.

Woohyung turned his head slightly and glanced over at Jae Min, then smiled to himself.

He had been so quiet.

“Jae Min is asleep.”

He lowered his voice and said, and Han-yi stretched his neck to look over at Jae Min’s bed.

Jae Min, who had been leaning against the headboard and participating in the conversation, had gradually lowered his position and was now fast asleep with his head buried in the pillow.

He had been pushing himself hard to keep up with both Monochrome and the dance team’s schedules recently.

Now that the competition was over, the accumulated fatigue seemed to have hit him all at once.

“He really worked hard. Jae Min.”

“But he looked so cool.”

“Right.”

It had been a time where they could learn a little about what Jae Min had been up to while away from them.

He had been with really great people, but they were still thankful that he had returned to them without hesitation.

Even if he had been elsewhere, Monochrome was his true home.

Jae Min, who had been away for a while and had now returned, was even more special to them.

Woohyung and Han-yi quietly conversed so as not to wake Jae Min, and eventually, they each went to bed at an appropriate time.

For them, and for Jae Min, Monochrome’s official activities would start again tomorrow.