Debut or Die - Chapter 117

—————

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

—————

A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 117
A loud siren wailed across the dark stage.
Wee-oww Wee-oww Wee-oww
Then, with the crisp crack of shattering glass, the siren transformed into a beat melody.
[HaHaHa!]
The moment a child’s laughter was sampled into the track, brilliant lighting flooded the stage, revealing seven figures seated there.
They were all members of ONYX, each wearing glossy black hoodies with a delinquent swagger.
Various emoticons painted in white and red splattered chaotically across their jackets.
Then, like a bolt of lightning, Cha Yu-jin burst forward as the intro began.
[Look here~]
As the child’s narration played, Cha Yu-jin placed his hand under his chin in a V-sign gesture.
[Every time I sing
Hands over the mic, desperate for it
Today I’ll show you the real deal
So wish me luck]
Cha Yu-jin playfully bared his canines, snapping his fingers to the beat in rhythm with the melody.
Following Cha Yu-jin’s movements, ONYX members joined in pairs, clapping their hands as they executed a rough, synchronized choreography.
An effortless confidence and swagger oozed from every gesture.
Even as Cha Yu-jin was grabbed by the shoulders and dragged backward by the other members, he gestured toward the camera.
[Groaning and moaning (that’s a sickness too)
Yeah, such obvious talk
Forget the pointless thoughts
Just give me tons of cheers for me
Shout out loud]
As Big Sae-jin winked and raised his hand, the two members on either side executed martial arts-like movements and flipped through the air.
Then each of them gave a casual wink to the camera currently rolling and exited.
[Shout out to me
I only accept gratitude in lump sum]
The comments were filled with delighted bewilderment.
A mix of people who knew the original song and those who didn’t shared their thoughts, but the conclusion was unanimous.
‘This is fun.’
-So entertaining
-Wow they’re insanely good
-Yeah, this is what makes it worth watching
-Is this the class difference? They’re definitely different from those guys before
-See how they find the camera;;>
-This originally had such a lame delinquent vibe but Cha Yu-jin is insanely talented lolol
-I’m loving this so much?
-Wait, they didn’t even rearrange it at all
-The original stage was so cringey… but… why is this so good? The outfits are almost identical
Leaving behind the flood of excited comments, the performance continued.
Whoosh.
Park Moon-dae, pulled by his members’ limbs and cutting through the air, stepped forward onto the stage and picked up the handheld microphone.
[If you want to pass through here
You need a down payment
You can’t just go, sit here
Watch this stage and enjoy]
The suddenly elevated pre-chorus note flowed from Park Moon-dae’s lips with effortless nonchalance.
In that moment, the formation shifted and the members rolled across the floor and sprang up.
Taking turns, they squeezed in beside Park Moon-dae’s face to catch the camera’s eye before being pushed aside to make room.
There was something about all of it—playful and mischievous—yet unmistakably polished.
Park Moon-dae, eyeing each member in turn, smiled and pointed at the camera.
[Only those who enjoy get to leave
Shout out to me
I only accept lump sum payments]
It was a high note he delivered cleanly, scratching his throat as he pushed it out.
Over the deliberately small and noticeable AR backing, his bright voice rang out sharply, bringing the live performance to life.
-He’s really killing it
-Didn’t know something like this could be so natural
-Park Moon-dae’s vocals are insane, seriously
-So refreshing
-It looks like AR was crushed to death by the explosion.
-They didn’t rearrange it, right? What is this? Why does it feel so different?
-Sounds like their own song
Meanwhile, the stage was reaching its highlight.
[Shout out to me]
[Shout out to me]
As the track dropped, a siren sound transformed into a Middle Eastern-flavored riff melody, flowing lavishly and loudly over the slightly relaxed, heavier beat.
It was a powerful chorus.
[You gotta enjoy to survive
Shout out to me]
A complex jumping choreography with intricate footwork followed.
The members, never forgetting to ride the rhythm and elevate the atmosphere, handled the difficult movements with ease and relished every moment.
That exhilarating, mischievous energy bounced across the stage.
And people realized it.
Yeah, they all got picked because they’re so damn good at what they do lol
-Their stage presence is off the charts
-The rush is insane
-Yeah, this is it, this is the feeling
-Can’t take my eyes off them
People who had seen Ajusa but weren’t interested enough to keep up with music broadcasts or clips found themselves watching Testa’s Stage performance again through the special broadcast of the year-end program on public television.
And the fact that their first Stage happened to be a song by another controversial rookie made people talk even more.
-Does anyone know the original Stage for this? I’m just wondering if the song itself is a masterpiece
-Did Testa not rearrange it? Does the original feel the same?
At that moment, something fluttered above the hooded zip-ups of the members as they shook their heads and jumped during the climax of the choreography.
They were animal ears.
Testa had attached fabric shaped like animal ears symbolizing each member to the sides of the crown of their hoods to create the effect.
Fluttering along with the intense chorus choreography, they revealed their form and commanded attention.
-Whoa, what is that
-Animal earsㅠㅠ There are ears on the hood
-Check out that idea
-So damn cute
-Yeah, idols need to have this kind of charm
-Cute animal gangster..?
-Is this a new Testa song? Why are they in the first part?
The concept, which could have been too intense and burdensome, was slightly neutralized by the cuteness mixed in at the end.
[HaHaHa!]
And the climax that came at the end of the song followed.
A chorus with no vocal part—a section where different movements were inserted between the choreography for each member, showing off their charm as the choreography gradually accelerated.
As Testa performed the group choreography and couldn’t contain their charm whenever individual shots came up, the song came to an end impressively.
[Shout out to me]
The cut ended with Kim Rae-bin, sitting at center, wiping the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand as he yawned.
And as the camera switched because Onyx’s Stage was about to air, the comments were flooded with reactions to Testa’s Stage.
-Insane
-I don’t know what else to say besides that they did well
-Why is it so short
It seems like it cut off at the first verse because it’s a special stage performance.
The kids before me only did one verse too, but look at how the people are reacting lol
-This isn’t a Testa song, right?
-I need to check out Onyx’s performance
-I was thinking about commenting but forgot while watching the screen
And the moment Onyx’s Stage aired, the atmosphere became awkward.
Onyx had also chosen Testa’s debut song, “Magic Boy,” but… the Stage was far too lackluster.
-Hmm
-Didn’t they prepare well
-No presence
-I wonder how much the key of Magical Boy was lowered. There is no charm in the song at all.
-Seems like lip-sync? Or is the AR too loud
-I don’t know, it’s boring.
People’s excitement died down in an instant.
At the same time, more people began searching for the original stage of the ONYX song that Testa had performed.
The moment I watched ONYX’s next stage, I intuited it.
‘Could it be that Testa actually performs this better than ONYX’s original?’
And when most people watched ONYX’s “The Enjoyer” stage, they sighed, and some even cried out in shock before frantically clicking to write posts.

* * *
Clips from the Gayo Daejeon Part 1 special stage were uploaded to various Online Communities and SNS immediately after it ended.
========================
[SBC Rookies Special Stage]
: I attached the original stage too!
(video)(video)
…
========================
And immediately, the comments were flooded with discussions about Testa and ONYX.
These were already the same things being said throughout the special stage.
The reaction to a completely even one-on-one match without any arrangement changes was stark.
-Wait, how is this happening? Testa performs the ONYX original better than ONYX does
Hahahahahaha
-Ah, the shareholders have the right perspective~ This fucking entertainment show was fucking bullshit haha.
-The skill gap is so wide it’s honestly bewildering
-Testa probably didn’t even have much practice time, and yet…
Why would they write it like this? The person who wrote this is seriously cruel lol
There’s a reason Ajusa did so well back then, and now that punks like this have shown up, the Stage is bound to skyrocket lol
Moreover, it wasn’t just a difference in skill. The depth in song interpretation was entirely different.
ONYX’s debut song “The Enjoyer” was a hip-hop-style track brimming with momentum, clearly crafted to showcase intense performance.
Typically, rookies practice their debut song for anywhere from a few months to over half a year.
And ONYX, naturally, had practiced this song with solemnity and tension, thinking they were only just debuting.
The emotion didn’t clash terribly with the song and passed smoothly enough, but truthfully, the song’s essence leaned more playful and sharp—a confident, spirited vibe.
And Testa interpreted the song exactly that way.
-Is Testa’s expressiveness real? They really are the ones who survived that insane Ajusa hellscape
-I hate to say it, but… honestly, Testa’s stage feels more like the original…
That’s why the ONYX stage feels like they’re covering a senior artist they respect, haha.
└It’s like they didn’t quite capture the chewy flavor of the original, but it’s that feeling of watching earnest kids doing their best.
This is perfect lolol
Because ONYX’s fanbase was shallow, people didn’t hold back and spilled their thoughts without hesitation.
Of course, those obsessed with Testa’s controversies didn’t all disappear after one stage.
-Ugh, here they come again, never knowing when to quit…
-Why don’t they understand that it’s unfair for an entertainment project group to win the rookie award?
I’m not sure if you’re not embarrassed about clinging to a rookie like this.
-No matter how hard the fans try, regular people will probably find Testa uncomfortable
However, when such an obvious comparison resulted in absolute superiority, all the previous discourse became laughable.
People who found this rare situation of clear winners and losers entertaining swarmed in to mock the backlash.
-Seriously, are Muggle fans blind? This is hilarious lolololol
-They threw everything at it and won without their ranks, how pathetic lolol
-Weren’t they the ones who rushed in? lolol
-Yeah I’m not even a Testa fan but ONYX’s original song got wrecked~ Testa’s the real deal
└lololololololol
-The better performer should win, what else lol
-Now that I think about it, Testa probably would’ve won the rookie award even without Ajusa backing them lol
└Right, they even produced their own debut album lolol
The direction of the conversation shifted slightly.
-This is too cruel… they didn’t even rearrange it, honestly wasn’t this intentional?
But this argument didn’t hold either.
└If this was intentional, that’s even more embarrassing for them
└lololololol seriously lolol
└Maybe it’s not that Testa was cruel, but that ONYX just isn’t capable
└Anyone would think Testa broke ONYX’s legs to keep them off the stage lolololol
Even in the comments section of ONYX’s original song performance video, when sorted by latest, they were flooded with messages from people who had watched the Gayo Daejeon performance.
Since Testa’s official “The Enjoyer” video hadn’t been uploaded yet, these were people who had come to watch as a substitute.
– Ah, it doesn’t taste like this… That… It doesn’t have that laid-back feeling of being naughty and naughty… It doesn’t have that naughty feeling.
Ah… you’re working hard, but…
-I like this version too! Keep it up!
-It feels like running into an acquaintance on the way to meet the popular kid at High School
└lololololololololol
-The vocals aren’t crisp… smh
The cruel comments from the general public, not fans, painted a far clearer picture of public opinion.
There was no need for a judgment call. It was a knockout victory for Testa.
And the next day, Park Moon-dae received an unexpected congratulatory gift.

—————

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

—————