Debut or Die - Chapter 190

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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 190
It was only natural to expect that a new idol group selected for Ajusa Season 4 would come to this agency.
But the current situation had become rather interesting.
‘I figured they’d naturally recruit dedicated staff for that group.’
Testa was only in their second year, yet here they were, pulling people away.
And for a group that hadn’t even properly proven their worth yet.
“Oh~ So we’re getting juniors! But wait, you’re not recruiting new people—our staff members are leaving, right? Ugh, won’t that make everyone’s workload way too heavy?”
“We’re recruiting new people too! But it looks like they want to redistribute some experienced staff. Don’t worry—you’re not going anywhere~ I’ll send the second one!”
“Ha ha~”
Big Sae-jin laughed brightly at the manager’s joking remark, but having experienced both large and small agencies, he’d probably grasped the underlying situation well enough.
‘The Director chose the new junior group over Testa.’
To be precise, he’d given up on Testa’s fanbase.
From the Director’s perspective, he’d already lost two predecessors in quick succession, and it was easy to see why fans would react so viciously to anything he did.
In fact, Testa’s fans were already viewing the agency with disdain.
‘And the members themselves seem skeptical of his vision.’
That whole America obsession.
The incoming group had already built a solid fanbase through the grueling Ajusa survival show, so it wasn’t strange for the Director to redirect key personnel and dream of a new vision for them.
“Our company’s doing great these days~ Better people will come, so don’t worry too much!”
“Yes, yes!”
What did I think about it?
‘This is perfect.’
Genuinely excellent.
The company wouldn’t want to create more pointless friction with fans, so they’d manage things properly.
In that case, this situation where the Director stays out of it and I can just pull capital investment is the best-case scenario.
After all, we can handle planning ourselves anyway.
‘The Approval Bot returns.’
There was just one thing that nagged at me.
The risk that at some point, he’d stop investing properly in new albums and just keep us touring endlessly.
‘Being treated like a cash cow.’
The moment this tour ended and I checked the revenue, there was a solid chance the Director’s eyes would light up at the sales figures.
If he then decided to just milk Testa for profits now that he had another option to nurture, that would be a problem.
So what was the solution?
Simple.
‘I just need to make sure he can’t abandon capital investment in Testa.’
Three and a half years left until the contract ends.
I just need to maintain steady growth during that time.
Simultaneously scratching both the economic angle—’we can expand tour scale as we grow bigger’—and his vanity—’the artists under my management have become this impressive.’
‘Knowing this Director’s personality, he absolutely won’t let go.’
So the external perception of Testa during this tour is crucial.
This was our first extended hiatus. I needed to manage our relevance beyond just showing our faces at award ceremonies.
But with the schedule already so packed, there was no way to add more domestic activities.
So there was only one answer.
‘I need to deliver the reality show better than planned.’
It meant expanding the scale of the already-scheduled content.
‘I should be more aggressive about it.’
This was the first time I’d made such a resolution since Ajusa, so I’d grab the content and character more provocatively.
“You see our junior?”
“That’ll be tough right now.”
Around me, I could hear Ryu Chung-woo’s voice answering Cha Yu-jin.
And he was right.
The tour departure was tomorrow.

* * *
After the highly praised Seoul concert, Testa departed immediately for America.
During the awards season crowded into January, they could return to South Korea quickly by going to nearby Japan first, and they were handling America now because it was smaller in scale and would wrap up faster.
And the fans who’d consumed all the teases from the concert were left waiting with bated breath.
The final episode of Ajusa Season 4, which had drawn attention during the Testa concert, aired right around that time.
[Controversy and Hot Topic: Idol Stock Company 2… Is the Final Act Closing?]
[Idol Stock Company Season 4 Debut Group ‘Miry-nay’ Officially Confirmed]
[Ajusa New Season Winners, Sharing the Same Pot as Testa?]
With Testa fans’ sharp reactions, even Tnet quietly backed away, with the Testa concert appearing only briefly in a tone praising the concert itself.
But even setting this issue aside, Ajusa Season 4 hadn’t properly shaken off numerous controversies.
Because Testa’s Season 3 had been so successful, it was constantly compared to it, and each time the show came out with increasingly provocative formats.
-Even I, a survival show fan, can’t endure this season. Dropping it.
-Watching Season 3 again, they were goddesses
-This is insane, I’m running away to Testa lol
The program’s image was at its worst, with excessive sadism and accusations of squeezing the dreams and hopes out of aspiring idols, along with testimonies from participants who dropped out midway.
So apart from the show’s commercial success, the public harbored an underlying unease about the group debuting through this season.
That’s why Testa’s fans naturally didn’t want to be deeply entangled with them either. Especially since they were in the process of building their own independent image and world after debut.
-Just don’t force them on us
-I feel bad for the kids, but it’s still uncomfortable
-It’s nice and quiet since we blocked them. Blocking was the answer after all
Still, aside from a few tentative articles, there hadn’t been any reckless moves from the agency, so the backlash wasn’t strong yet.
Rather, there were far more fans who were on edge about Testa’s scarce news.
-They recorded for Gayo Daejeon and left right away. Saw the kids’ faces for the first time in a while (commute photo)
-Please come to Dub App, guys. These days, there is no content of its own and I am bored…
-2X1221 New Jersey concert preview (photo)
-Mundae Solo has been modified to sit on a chair and climb up. It’s more stable, but it’s a bit disappointing. I pray for an immediate release of the Seoul Cone VOD.
Except for one public broadcast year-end program and one major awards ceremony, Testa was absent from South Korea throughout December.
Plus, aside from a short W Live for Park Moon-dae’s birthday, there was nothing else but tour news.
There was no news about their own content either. Whether it had been removed from VOD or not, the concert behind-the-scenes footage never went up.
Naturally, people began to worry, jumping to conclusions.
It was deductive reasoning born from past experience as a K-pop enthusiast.
-Looking at the vibe now, I’m worried there won’t be any teasers throughout the whole tour;
-Those bastards at the agency are pulling Testa staff to manage the rookies, so obviously Testa’s new content is taking a backseat. Haven’t we been through this once or twice?
-Reviewers, enjoy the awards season while you can. After this year, you’ll stop seeing Testa on domestic music shows for three weeks every comeback lol
-Damn it, our guys have been around for two years, surely this isn’t just a tour loop? You bastards promised one comeback per year
-It’s about time to shift focus toward overseas activities anyway. The domestic popularity got too big.
Some people even took it this far.
-I hope the next album doesn’t do well overseas so they’ll focus on the domestic market
└Don’t say things like that while claiming to be a fan
└I’m not even a fan anyway lol. Getting bigger here doesn’t help with anything. If they don’t come back to Korea, fan sign cuts just get more expensive, the original spirit gets ruined, and it’s a shortcut for early fans to leave the fandom
In reality, it wasn’t as if Testa had been silent for months or more, so this kind of talk was coming far too early.
The problem was that Testa had been working tirelessly like oxen without rest, with news pouring out every single day.
Even during breaks, they’d been sharing updates through all sorts of SNS and videos, so when that suddenly stopped, people began to feel anxious from just this brief silence alone.
-The tour just started and it overlaps with year-end programs, so of course they’re busy. Chill out a bit.
└What are you talking about? We saw them going sightseeing all over the place. Looks like the trip was more about tourism than the tour lol
-This is just between us here… but honestly, is it really that hard to post one photo while hanging out together? I’m a bit disappointed.
└That’s right, during the last con, I celebrated my birthday… In the end, I ended up not doing anything ㅠㅠ
-This is a mess. Have they been too good to us? Are there a lot of people new to being fans? Getting upset over every little thing, seriously.
Still, thanks to their year-end program appearances, there wasn’t a complete lack of teasers, so these voices were treated as minor complaints throughout December.
And on the last day of December, when fans were disappointed that Testa appeared on MBS’s Gayo Daejeon through pre-recorded footage.
A notification came to Testa’s official YouTube channel.
Ding.
[(Teaser) Happy New Year! Testa’s New Reality with the New Year!]
The thumbnail showed seven members of In-young sitting on a beach.
‘Oh, finally!’
‘Yeah, they should at least release a reality show, the gap’s been long!’
‘Since they’re on tour, it’ll probably be boring documentary level, but that’s okay! It’s content!’
Fans clicked the thumbnail quickly, relieved at the New Year’s gift.
And they were a bit taken aback by what played.
‘…??’
First of all… suddenly, grand brass instruments and a vocalist’s high note came crashing down.
Boom boom boom boom ba-ba-boom!!
[Gasp!]
[Ugh!]
[Wow,]
[Oops!!]
[Argh!]
In sync with that beat, scenes of Testa members each letting out screams and exclamations flashed by rapidly.
[….]
And finally, the camera lingered long on Bae Sae-jin, completely frozen with both hands raised.
Below him, ice cream lay scattered across the ground in a mess.
-???
Haha, huh?
What are you talking about? lol
As the live chat erupted in confusion, the video suddenly shifted tone.
An interview with Testa’s peaceful daily life began abruptly.
The question was simple.
[Have you ever worked a part-time job?]
[Lee Sae-jin: Yes!]
[Chung-woo: Just helped out at my parents’ shop?]
[Bae Sae-jin: …No. (nervous) Why, why are you asking?]
White text appeared on a black screen.
Just like that, haha.
Then the scene cut again.
The production team shouted at Testa, who were clearly dressed for a business trip with luggage in hand.
[Everyone! Are you ready to film a reality show? This week’s theme is free travel!]
[Lee Sae-jin: Wow!!]
[Sun Ah-hyun: Really?]
[Of course! Go wherever you like!]
Heartwarming clips of Testa enjoying themselves flashed by—pairs and trios exploring exotic beaches and restaurants, or the whole group together.
All accompanied by this red caption.
[※Costs will be charged.※]
Ominous white text reappeared on the black screen.
[Will Testa truly be able to earn money and go on this trip safely!]
[Eugene: I want to go to that place.]
[Moon-dae: Please, let’s go….]
Park Moon-dae and Cha Yu-jin appeared helpless and ridiculous, covering their eyes with both hands.
[Testa’s Reality Show Show Show]
[Idol Working Holiday]
[Episode 1 Premieres Thursday, January 9th!]
Naturally, it was a taste of genuine variety entertainment that even fans hadn’t anticipated.

* * *
“So today’s sales finally broke a thousand dollars, which means tomorrow we can go to the theme park without any debt.”
“Wow!!”
Applause erupted from those around us. The members stretched with satisfied expressions and exchanged high-fives.
“Do you… want to drink this?”
“Thanks.”
I gulped down the plum juice Sun Ah-hyun handed me. It felt quite satisfying.
‘Everyone really did work hard.’
If we keep going like this, we’ll be able to move around debt-free without any problems… wait.
“….”
‘This… doesn’t feel like entertainment anymore, does it…?’
Everyone had become far too absorbed in it.
Realizing that the filming set had suddenly shifted from playing around to genuinely caring about debt relief, cold sweat broke out on my skin.
‘How am I going to save this.’
This won’t do.
I need to encourage them to splurge.

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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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