Debut or Die - Chapter 15

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

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A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 15
Why is Malang Dalcom suddenly appearing here…?
The bewildered audience members only then realized that this stage wasn’t covering VTIC itself, but rather the idol groups under LeTi Entertainment, VTIC’s parent company.
The momentary confusion had arisen because the MC had openly discussed VTIC earlier.
“What…?”
Moreover, since it wasn’t even a particularly famous song, sporadic murmurs of irritation erupted and faded throughout the crowd.
It would have been different if it were a hit like 【POP☆CON】, but most people only remembered the chorus of their debut track.
The woman adjusting the camera settings was no exception.
‘Should I just grab some photos of them voting?’
Just as she was thinking half-heartedly while concealing her camera from the security guards’ view, the stage darkened and the intro began to flow.
Ooo-. Oooo-ooo-. Ooo–.
The melancholic melody of a distorted synthesizer filled the stage.
In its place should have come a refined, early 2010s female idol-style orchestral intro with strings and piano.
“Huh?”
She reflexively lifted her head, and her eyes caught sight of the participants in white stage costumes adorned with dark shoulder decorations.
The formal-like styling was typical enough for male idols that there was nothing particularly novel about it, but the lyrical atmosphere contrasted oddly with the intro saturated in electronic sounds.
In that moment, the participants began to move.
-At some point, I came to realize
Myself wandering through imperfect time
The participant who began the first verse was undoubtedly handsome-faced with skillful movements.
She suddenly recalled his name.
‘Was it Sun Ah-hyun?’
Even the choreography blended lyrical and graceful dance movements, but somehow… something felt off.
-This maze of time I cannot stop
Save me trapped within it
The moment the next part came, she realized it.
‘…Why do they all look expressionless?’
All the other participants except the one singing had completely blank expressions.
It was common for facial expressions to be less pronounced when it wasn’t their part, but expressions this vacant were rare.
And furthermore…
‘Their… their eyes look strange?’
Their gaze was fixed on empty space rather than the camera.
Since their expressions and eye focus suddenly returned only when their part came around, it seemed intentional.
Unless they had accidentally failed to make eye contact with the camera, idols were known to consider finding the camera even during non-singing parts as their sacred duty.
…Which made this scene all the more bizarre.
Contrasted with the participant smiling alone and brightening their eyes during their own part, it felt positively eerie.
-Gradually withering away
This small space within
Waiting for the day flowers bloom again
Come find me soon
A crackling noise—the pitch lowered, eerie static woven through the backing track as a desperate voice rose above it.
The lyrics were undeniably soft and mournful, yet the arrangement and staging transformed them into something sinister.
If one heard weeping echoing through an abandoned school, wouldn’t fear overwhelm any impulse to help?
The Stage was unfolding with precisely that unsettling atmosphere.
-One step, two steps
The sound of you approaching
Rings in my ears
Don’t hesitate—reach out your hand
Now I’m entering a new world~
That high note—”a new world,” mirroring the song’s title—sent an electric shiver down my spine.
Raised half an octave and rendered dissonant, the voice was crystalline and precise, yet somehow twisted and malevolent.
Of all the participants so far, this one possessed the strongest vocal ability, yet I found myself captivated not by the singing itself, but by the Stage presence.
-Come to me
Come to me
Dazzling, the Paradise beside you
In the chorus, the original strings returned, colliding with the synthesizer’s warped tones in a chilling dissonance.
Eeeeee—. Screeeeech—.
Movements borrowed from ballet, punctuated by violent gestures, created an inhuman quality.
In that moment, she understood.
October 31—Halloween. The night when malevolent entities cross into the mortal realm.
-Come to me
Come to me
The Melody of love for you (continues)
This wasn’t a human singing—it was something otherworldly, enchanting people with its call!
‘Gasp!’
Her hand flew to her mouth as her mind erupted with shock.
Certainly, idols with inhuman concepts existed.
But in an amateur idol debut audition program, no one could have anticipated such a bold reinterpretation of a female senior artist’s song with the exact opposite concept…!
Without even a moment to assess her as “audacious,” she was swept entirely into the Stage.
After the modified, shortened second verse, the song transitioned into the bridge.
And then came another unexpected twist.
-Can’t You feel me?
Suddenly in the bridge, the arrangement reverted to the original!
Even the vocal range returned—the original’s high register, now sung in a clear, boyish voice.
-Your warm touch
Lifts me up, so beautiful
A spring garden
As the lighting shifted to brighter hues beneath the gorgeous orchestral accompaniment, it felt almost sacred.
-Ooh, Ooh….
Yet as the lights brightened, something else became starkly visible—the costume’s intricate details.
What she’d assumed was simply a dark-colored shoulder strap was in fact white fabric identical to the costume, marred by dark crimson dye that clung in thick, uneven splotches.
It looked as though blood had trickled down from the neck, pooling above the shoulder strap itself.
‘A vampire…!’
The moment this realization crystallized in the audience’s mind, the bridge ended and the distorted chorus resumed with its altered sound.
-Come to me
Come to me
Dazzling, you’re my Paradise
But this time, the dissonance with the orchestra had faded and much of the noise had dissipated, allowing the raw poignancy of the lyrics to shine through.
The artificial blankness that had marked their faces during others’ parts vanished, and the mood shifted from eerie to ethereal.
The sound design too abandoned its harshness, instead embracing a spacious dream pop quality.
-Come to me
Come to me
The Melody of love for you (continues)
The distortion faded, and the violin carried the sound to its end.
Unlike the original’s ballet-choreographed finale, the song concluded the moment the chorus ended—with all of them collapsing to the stage.
Thus the Stage left behind not horror but heartache. As if the inhuman voice singing had genuinely fallen in love with a human being.
“…Oooooh!!”
In that instant, those who’d snapped back to reality erupted in enthusiastic cheers.
Beginning with shock and ending in melancholy, it was a performance that stirred every emotion in the viewer’s heart.
Done half-heartedly, it would have been neither one thing nor the other.
But this team’s participants had pulled it off flawlessly.
‘They’re insane, seriously!’
Among those shouting, many had caught on that this was possible because the participants possessed above-average skill, striking visuals, and impeccable styling.
From various corners of the audience, the excited voices of those who’d already made up their minds could be heard.
The participants rose to their feet, patted each other’s backs a few times, then turned to the audience with bright smiles and bowed repeatedly.
“Thank you!”
“Th-thank you.”
It was something all the other teams had done, but the stark contrast with the Stage performance made it feel somehow more endearing.
“They’re cute….”
She, who’d been directing the camera, murmured warmly to herself. One member in particular—the one who’d sung the high bridge—caught her eye.
That surprising bridge would surely linger in her thoughts long after she got home.
To cut through that acoustic density and execute that high note with such impossible ease, while possessing a trendy, cute face, and somehow managing not to look awkward despite the excessive concept—it was remarkable.
‘When the voting announcement comes, I’m definitely memorizing that name.’
She kept her gaze fixed on Park Moon-dae as he exited behind the Stage, making this silent vow to herself, when suddenly she became aware of the camera in her hands.
And she was horrified.
‘I was so focused on the Stage, I completely forgot about the camera…!’
She regretted not taking photos, yet simultaneously felt overwhelming gratitude that she could witness it with her own eyes without worrying about the camera!
This had never happened since her days as a former idol.
A chill ran through her.
It was, unmistakably, the signal of complete immersion.

* * *
As I descended from the Stage, my teammates’ legs gave out—some gripping the walls, others collapsing onto the floor.
I leaned against the wall myself, lost in thought.
‘That was… more fun than I expected.’
It was strange.
Honestly, I never anticipated this would be enjoyable.
I only did it because I’d drop dead if I didn’t debut—I had no choice.
I’d never danced and sung in front of anyone in my life. And certainly not in makeup.
…Right up until the popcorn dance and the singing, it felt like I was just doing what I had to do.
‘I thought I’d hit a wall of reality… but why is this actually fun?’
My breath was still ragged, threatening to burst from my throat.
‘It’s harder than practice.’
Being in an actual performance must have demanded more from me.
And probably, everyone else who went up there was similarly breathless.
They were all panting right now.
But their expressions were radiant.
The roar from the crowd had been deafening.
“Wooooah!!”
“Encore! Encore!”
I could even hear a few people in the back shouting for an encore right now.
‘There weren’t even that many people.’
The results exceeded expectations.
Even the teams with the 1st and 2nd place members hadn’t received this kind of applause.
Could this be why it’s fun? Because of the overwhelming reaction right before my eyes?
“Everyone really… really worked so hard! We did great! We really did!”
As the camera approached, Big Sae-jin quickly opened his mouth.
I couldn’t say he wasn’t conscious of the camera, but his words seemed genuine nonetheless.
As the saying goes, good results beautify everything—my teammates embraced each other and began expressing gratitude to one another.
“Thank you for your hard work!”
“Th-thank you so much….”
I should probably say something too.
“Thanks to all of you… it was fun. I appreciate it.”
“Moon-dae….”
“Wow, Moon-dae’s actually saying things like that.”
What are they going on about?
These guys are so moved they’re getting emotional over anything I say.
Even that sullen Lee Sae-jin was caught up in the moment, her expression softening.
“…Good work.”
“Whoa. Hyung.”
“It’s moving.”
My teammates rarely looked at Lee Sae-jin with warm eyes, unburdened by the camera’s gaze.
The atmosphere felt exactly like the climax of a shounen manga.
I recalled the rehearsal process we’d gone through.
-Hyung! Shouldn’t we push the horror element harder? We need to match their innocence!
-Right? I was thinking—what about a serial killer!
-Ooh~ That’s intense!
-…But it might overlap with real people, so what if we leaned more toward fantasy creatures instead?
-A, a ghost….
-…A ghost?
-Y-yeah, if we m-move like this… it looks interesting, so….
-Haha! Lots of good ideas~ Let’s settle this democratically with a vote!
….
I only remembered the ordeal of diplomatically shutting down the absurd, over-the-top claims these chatty fools kept spouting.
For once, I was grateful for Big Sae-jin. He really knew how to sway public opinion.
In the end, most of the arrangement proceeded according to Big Sae-jin’s and my wishes. I’d pushed for the vampire concept, and he’d backed me up.
No matter what, a proven crowd-pleaser beat ghosts or serial killers any day.
Ghosts were borderline acceptable, but a serial killer? We’d be getting roasted across social media with tens of thousands of shares.
Anyway, by strategically balancing horror and innocence, we’d achieved solid results, and I was satisfied.
And honestly….
It had been fun.
I was beginning to understand why so many people wanted to pursue this profession.
As I steadied my breathing and rose to my feet, my teammates pulled me into their embrace.
I shrugged my shoulders. If I stepped out now, the moment would fall flat.
Showcasing teamwork to the camera was necessary anyway, so I didn’t bother extracting myself.
“Let’s definitely team up for the next round.”
“Yeah, let’s work together again!”
“Y-yeah, that sounds g-good.”
“Honestly, our teamwork was the best.”
The well-wishes continued, and once we’d exhausted our repertoire, we followed the staff’s guidance and moved to a separate space to watch the opposing team’s Stage.
As we arrived in the room with the dedicated monitor, the opposing team’s 【Mountain Lord】 Stage began shortly after.
“Wow….”
These guys were making polite exclamations, but they’d probably already noticed.
There was a meaningful difference in the audience’s cheers.

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

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