A Blank Slate Regression for the Idol That Lost His Original Mindset - Chapter 50

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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A Regression Guide for Idols Who Lost Their Initial Intentions Episode 50

“You need tears to cry.”

I replied indifferently while taking a sip of beer.

“Why? Aren’t you happy, hyung? If I were you, I think tears of joy would naturally well up just thinking about the copyright fees coming in.”

Copyright fees coming in. Kim Dobin’s words made me let out a bitter laugh.

‘…Do you know how much copyright fees I was earning before regression.’

Before regression, I was in the top 10 for Korean music copyright revenue.

So thinking about the copyright fees that disappeared thanks to the forced regression naturally brought tears to my eyes.

Not from joy, but from frustration and anger.

This damn forced regression gave me the joy of the stage and took away the profits and copyright fees I had earned.

It was a damn perfect equivalent exchange.

To me, the former owner of that past, the copyright fees coming in now were nothing more than pocket change.

“And this is our first 1st place. Weren’t you surprised, hyung?”

“Not really… I believed we would naturally get 1st place.”

Suddenly, an unfamiliar warm atmosphere began to flow.

I wanted to correct that I didn’t trust your abilities, but the big data from before regression.

But since I’m a human with learning ability, I knew that if I spoke honestly and openly, my sincerity level would decrease, so I just kept my mouth shut and let the members enjoy the joy of 1st place.

To be cold about it, this time we were lucky with an easy target.

KICKS’ song, which was our competitor for 1st place, was definitely lower quality than our song.

Thinking about how happy the opposing team that was our 1st place competitor before regression must have been when they heard our song, just like I am now, made me feel sick, so I downed the rest of my beer in one shot.

If we had made a comeback in January as originally planned, the song wouldn’t have been buried miserably like before regression, but we couldn’t have even dreamed of becoming 1st place candidates, let alone getting 1st place.

Since I couldn’t be sure that chart items from before regression would keep appearing in the item selection tickets, I couldn’t expect such luck next time.

This song was brought over as a proven success formula from before regression because the comeback schedule was tight, but the songs on the USB were limited, and was the only song made considering the members’ skills and vocal ranges.

And it’s only at this point in time that idol culture has mainstream appeal and male idols stand tall in the mainstream.

From Rev’s 5th year onwards, idol culture gradually becomes more niche and the mainstream shifts from male idols to female idols.

So both ‘s reverse chart climb and ‘s chart 1st place were only possible because of this timing.

TikTok and private messages haven’t appeared yet, but returning to a time when male idol songs could easily achieve high chart positions means the system has some intention of ending the regression.

If they had told us to debut as rookie idols from some nobody agency during our 8th year, I would have regressed infinitely about 1,000 times.

‘Should I pay more attention to producing for the next activity? Maybe ask G1 for a collaboration?’

As I was lost in thought with my chin propped up, a beer can was suddenly thrust in front of me.

“Thinking about arrangement work again? Put down the work burden for today and just enjoy the 1st place celebration.”

Seo Yehyeon, who handed me the beer can, said lightly. Even so, perhaps feeling embarrassed, he awkwardly averted his gaze, and I also scratched the back of my head while accepting the beer can.

Seo Yehyeon, who had been staring down at the beer can in his hand, hesitated before adding a word.

“You said you never doubted the success of your music. What are you worried about?”

I chuckled while opening the beer can at those words that completely missed the point of my concerns.

“Of course I’ve never doubted the success of my music. But what I’m working on now is KICKS’ song, not my song.”

“If you arranged it, it becomes your music too.”

“Haha! Well, that’s true.”

For the first time in a while, we had a comfortable conversation instead of a sharp exchange.

I guess the problem really was with that guy, not me.

“That’s right, hyungs. This is exactly it. Please talk like this.”

I immediately frowned at Ryu Jaehee’s words as he interrupted with applause, wearing a proud expression and moved tone.

Seo Yehyeon’s brow was also deeply furrowed.

“Now that you’re doing this, I suddenly want to fight.”

“Oh, really. Thanks for making me aware that I had an embarrassing conversation with this guy, Jaehee.”

“Why do you hyungs really live like that…?”

Ryu Jaehee drooped his eyes and asked in a lamenting tone.

That guy complains even when I’m killing my personality to live peacefully.

“Whatever, let’s just make a toast. Youngest, shout out a toast.”

At my request, Ryu Jaehee neatly put his hands together and held them out to me.

“If God would bestow upon me one beer can, I would give an absolutely awesome toast-“

“Stop fooling around. Don’t create controversy and minors should keep their mouths shut and drink juice.”

Instead of placing a beer can on those hands, I thoroughly messed up his hair.

“Aw… I was going to give a completely mood-dampening toast.”

“Go ahead. If the mood gets dark, you’ll be the one getting indigestion from eating chicken, not me.”

“Alright, I’ll go with the simplest and most fighting-spirited toast! When I lead with Rev, just shout fighting!”

Ryu Jaehee, holding his glass filled with orange juice, stood up abruptly and led the chant.

“Rev-“

“Fighting!”

Five voices rang out loudly in the narrow semi-basement dorm.

Unlike before when everyone’s timing was completely off, this time our voices came together quite well.

Three beer cans and two juice glasses lightly clinked together.

The two growing boys fighting to eat one more piece of chicken, and Seo Yehyeon showing his stubbornness by only chewing pickled radish as a side dish.

I watched Gyeon Hajun trying to mediate by dividing everything equally, then chuckled and brought the beer can to my lips.

This scene, quite different from the past when we were crushed by an invisible dark future and didn’t even have the capacity to care for each other, wasn’t bad.

* * *

“The 5th week of November Music Center 1st place goes to Rev’s All Right or Night! Congratulations!”

Pop! Confetti poured down over our heads. Still, having gotten 1st place once yesterday, everyone had composed expressions.

Ah, except for Kim Dobin who was bursting into tears again.

He said he really wanted to give a 1st place speech once, so he naturally took the microphone and was listing grateful people as if he was going to mention everyone he knew, so I lightly poked Ryu Jaehee’s side to signal him to tone it down.

Even though over twenty names had been mentioned, CEO Kim Nodam’s name still hadn’t come up.

It was pure coincidence that we encountered KICKS in the hallway while moving to greet the CP after finishing the encore song.

There was no one else around, and KICKS was glaring at us with eyes like they were looking at enemies, except for one person.

Seeing them like that, Seo Yehyeon muttered loudly enough for them to hear.

“Wow, look at those murderous glares. Anyone would think we robbed their trophy.”

“Yehyeon hyung, speak a bit quieter. What if they hear?”

“Hmph, did I say anything wrong? Let them hear. What do we have to be ashamed of?”

“Hyung, are you good at fighting?”

“There’s Yoon Eden.”

This guy even outsources fighting. I wondered what he was trusting to act like that, but as expected, it wasn’t himself he was trusting.

“Right, Yehyeon hyung. Just let it go.”

As if he firmly believed I would take his side, Seo Yehyeon looked back at me with betrayed eyes, so I lightly patted his shoulder and continued.

“A group that barely made it with luck beating them for 1st place must be really annoying.”

When I returned exactly what the KICKS leader had said at the festival before comeback, the KICKS leader’s face contorted as he sneered.

“Acting all high and mighty when you just robbed an empty house?”

Then, Gyeon Hajun, who had been quiet, spoke up.

“Yoon Seong, even if it was robbing an empty house, why is a leader putting down his own group in front of members like that? You’re discouraging your members who worked so hard.”

I opened my eyes wide at the thorny content delivered in a gentle voice that sounded like genuine advice.

‘That guy, was he always that kind of personality…?’

If he was going to stop me, he would have stopped me, but he wasn’t the type to voluntarily join this kind of power struggle.

KICKS also seemed not to have expected that Gyeon Hajun, who disliked conflict and was quiet, would throw stones at them, as they looked at us with dazed faces.

From Gyeon Hajun’s hand firmly gripping my arm, I could understand the intention behind his unexpected action.

He had made the first move before I could jump out.

Although I had spent 7 years in the entertainment industry before regression and painfully learned that thinking should come before action, Gyeon Hajun, who didn’t know this, naturally remembered me at this point as a hothead who acted with his body first.

I mentally applauded Gyeon Hajun, who had unexpected talent for freestyle diss and had driven the already rock-bottom atmosphere underground, and smiled crookedly.

“What can we do. Since you guys lost, I can’t admit with my own mouth that our Rev barely made it with luck. Make sure to win next time so I can acknowledge it. Fighting.”

When I even struck a light fighting pose, the KICKS Leader’s glare became even sharper.

The guy who was about to say something immediately shut his mouth when he heard footsteps approaching.

When we could even hear murmuring voices, I leisurely stepped away first, ending the standoff.

Before passing by, I casually looked around at KICKS and made eye contact with KICKS’ Parachute.

Though he was the whistleblower before my regression, at this reset point in time he was just someone I had an awkward relationship with, nothing more or less. As I was about to look away from him, Parachute showed me a deliberately friendly smile. My eyebrows twitched involuntarily.

…What the hell was that?

* * *

-Ah, I really wanted our kids to get first place at least once before this year ends…

-Fuck, Keyback’s really celebrating. It’s not like they dissed their own artist by calling them a group picked for rivalry, so why is that fandom going crazy lumping everyone together?

-Next week’s first place is also hopeless…?

└Yeah ㅠㅠㅠ Their album release date was a whole week later too, and now there’s quite a gap in the music chart scores ㅠㅠㅠ

-Even if we can’t get our kids first place, let’s at least get them a rookie award

-If they take away both first place and the rookie award, I really won’t have the face to look at the oppas…

-WAMA voting is over so let’s focus all our firepower on Naoni and Sildi’s rookie award voting ㄱㄱ

└Right, nobody takes WAMA awards seriously these days anyway. They’ll definitely bash it as agency-picked selection, so we need to win rookie awards from those two to avoid backlash

└True, ‘that fandom’ is already starting to bash it, saying WAMA voting ended in their comeback’s first week so they’re claiming it’s rigged

-But is it true that Narak and Hapjuk were KICKS trainees?

└I don’t know about Hapjuk but I heard Narak was close with Yunseong too

└Why did he leave? If Narak was there we wouldn’t have lost in singing, so fucking disappointing

└It’s not that he left, he got kicked out, right? lol Unless he got shot in the head, why would he voluntarily go from NewBone to that shitty place lol

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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