Debut or Die - Chapter 193

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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 193
The Golden Disk Awards were divided into digital and physical album categories, held over two consecutive days.
Male idols tended to perform stronger in the physical album category than in digital, so they appeared more frequently at the latter ceremony.
This year, Testa fell into that category as well.
The album containing “Procession” had shattered records, selling over 7 million copies—ranking among the highest idol album sales of all time.
While the digital performance was excellent, breaking through the million-copy barrier for physical albums held special significance.
Testa had truly become a top-tier male idol group.
Even if an insurmountable wall loomed above them.
Even so, it doesn’t qualify as a target because VTIC exists lolol poor thing
-Didn’t you still receive this year’s singer award from ToneA? Of course, since it was the T1 awards ceremony, I thought they would give me one.
-Testa doesn’t seem Album of the Year material yet maybe they’ll get it next year after VTIC collapses
“When did we kick out the guy who caused the problem, and we’re still in the gutter? Yeah, I’m not taking your wishful thinking, you bastard who sucks up to the idols~”
└Pathetic VTIC fans
“Damn bastards!”
A VTIC fan hurled their smartphone down in frustration.
‘I’m so pissed… all because of that criminal bastard.’
I’d already disliked him for his incompetence, but seeing things reach this point made me feel like I was losing my mind.
‘Our innocent kids are the ones suffering….’
All scheduled activities cancelled. A temporary hiatus.
They didn’t appear in a single year-end program either, citing rest as the reason.
Just from the pre-releases, it seemed they’d prepared something massive for the comeback, yet the fact that it got delayed this much and we’re only now approaching the release felt unbelievable.
‘He’s been clean since debut, never caused a single scandal….’
This fan, who leaned heavily toward supporting one member in particular, recalled their favorite wistfully.
‘Jae-hyun….’
It was Chung-ryeo, the leader.
‘My Shin Jae-hyun even volunteers with abandoned dogs during breaks, yet he’s had to suffer all this time dealing with that scumbag tangled up in some pathetic club scandal….’
The fan decided to look on the bright side instead.
‘Right. Since we’ve cut ties with that incompetent deadweight anyway, let’s have the four of them reach career highs.’
The fan, having rendered a merciless judgment on the expelled former member, logged into social media.
VTIC fans’ accounts, which had been relatively quiet during the hiatus, now buzzed with energy.
‘Everyone’s in fighting spirit.’
Since this momentum absolutely had to translate into results, I carefully scanned through posts to check for any odd undertones.
And I noticed the empty spaces, licking my lips.
‘They must have switched over.’
Several accounts that had been active in discussions had disappeared.
Once activities resumed, they’d probably be replaced by new people, but there was no helping the fact that some had deserted.
“Did they all switch to that group?”
Recalling that group everyone’s been buzzing about lately, I was seized by a peculiar feeling.
The group with a junior member who seemed quite close to Chung-ryeo.
It was Testa, from Ajusa Season 3.
In truth, she had recently watched their reality show as well. She had some interest in Park Moon-dae, who was close to Chung-ryeo, and besides, they were all the rage on the Internet.
From mukbang to patriotic pride, that video packed in every element people loved, and apparently it had captured not just casual viewers indifferent to idols, but also middle-aged YouTube audiences.
-Ah haha ​​hotteok with ice cream? I can’t stand this
-Our handsome young men promoting delicious Korean hotteok~ Such skillful hands and such beautiful faces. Fighting^^
– Haha, look at the expressions on foreigners’ faces when they sing along to the songs that appear at the Park Moon University store. I think I would do that too if a chef from a far away country who was cutting kebabs suddenly picked a song with great enthusiasm.
-Oh no, what if foreigners get the wrong idea that all Koreans look like that… I don’t know (laughing emoji)
Riding on this momentum, a cable broadcast affiliated with T1 Network had even scheduled a television airing starting next week.
‘Our kids would do well with that kind of content too.’
The Chung-ryeo fan grumbled, noting how nice it must be to have a major broadcasting company backing them.
Yet she couldn’t deny that it was entertaining. Even in throwaway scenes, the characters came alive.
For instance, in the latter half of Episode 2, when they faced an unexpected surge in sales and had to suddenly close the shop.
[This truly tastes like heaven. I’d like to order one more ice cream hotteok, please.]
[Bae Sae-jin: Oh, okay.]
Bae Sae-jin, who had been carefully sprinkling chocolate on the hotteok, tensed up at the sudden foreign customer and hurried awkwardly to the kitchen.
[Bae Sae-jin: Hotteok… I need one more ice cream hotteok.]
[Lee Sae-jin: Huh? Hyung, we just ran out of dough!]
[!!!!]
A screen-shake impact effect shook Bae Sae-jin’s close-up.
[Bae Sae-jin: Th, then… w, wait.]
[Lee Sae-jin: Oh, let me tell them! How about we just give them plenty of ice cream as a service~]
[Bae Sae-jin: …No, I’ll do it!]
[Boom!]
Bae Sae-jin scooped out a generous portion of ice cream, with solemn sports cheering music as the BGM.
[Oh~ Thank you!]
[…Ahem, you’re welcome.]
And so, after receiving the customer’s approval, the additional order crisis ended with a satisfied expression.
The subsequent business review discussion maintained that cheerful, lively tone.
[Sales surge forces closure!]
[※Discussion begins※]
Boom!
[Recipe-focused faction]
[Kim Rae-bin: The fact that we made only 40 pieces from 50 portions of dough indicates a skill level issue. After closing, I will practice to master the feel of 50 pieces…!]
[Korean generosity(?) faction]
[Lee Sae-jin: The cost isn’t that high anyway, so let’s give them plenty~ Let’s show Korean generosity~]
[Make money faction]
[Park Moon-dae: No matter what you say, don’t stop your hands from kneading. We need to have something to sell first.]
The members actively voiced their opinions and bickered, yet they seemed close, and each distinct personality was highlighted.
Especially Bae Sae-jin, who froze in shock at every small mistake, and Kim Rae-bin with the broken hotteok machine had become cute memes circulating online.
It was clear that they possessed charm as entertainers.
‘That’s why our fandom is experiencing defections too…’
But Chung-ryeo’s fan thought that would end today.
Now that the hiatus was over and the comeback was confirmed, VTIC would suck up all the buzz with terrifying momentum!
‘If we just pick a good song, we’re nowhere near decline!’
In fact, interest was pouring in because of the member withdrawal incident—either “let’s see how well they do” or “they’ve worked hard, let’s support them.”
And throughout all that time since debut, Chung-ryeo had never once let down his fans’ expectations.
[Ding~ Dring!]
“Ah, it’s starting.”
The moment the “Not recommended for viewers under 12” advisory passed, she straightened up and turned her gaze to the television.
‘Watching the awards ceremony comeback stage live!’
Whether it was pre-recorded or not, the singers taking their seats in the waiting area flashed briefly across the screen.
And then, past a certain point.
“What.”
Testa appeared on screen.
Of course, Chung-ryeo’s fan hadn’t gasped just because Testa showed up out of nowhere. It was the right timing for them to appear.
But the ones on screen were… placing cushions they’d bought at an amusement park snugly on their chairs.
Thwack thwack thwack!
They’d even neatly covered up the amusement park label.
And the camera deliberately zoomed in softly on the animal face of the cushion stuck to the chair.
‘What is that.’
When I opened the internet page due to a sudden premonition, I saw live viewers bursting into laughter and saying ‘ㅋㅋㅋ’ all over the place.
For those who hadn’t seen Testa’s reality show, it was just a randomly funny scene.
And those who had watched the reality show were even enjoying the fun of sharing background knowledge.
Crazy, doing that here lol
What’s that? Does it have a story behind it? lol
-It appeared in Testa’s reality show
I impulse bought it for a thousand won lol but I’m actually using it well
-Highly recommend Testa’s variety show, check out these Korean youths paying off their America trip debt by selling hotteok~
“Wow….”
Chung-ryeo’s fan waited for VTIC to appear on screen, and couldn’t help but admit it slightly.
Those guys really were something else.

* * *
“I’m using the cat cushion.”
“Cha Yu-jin, you’re the one who burst the cat cushion! Be satisfied with the dolphin.”
“I hate the dolphin.”
Cha Yu-jin had been eyeing Kim Rae-bin’s cushion ever since we left the salon. Watching this unfold was giving me a headache.
I picked up my own cushion.
“…Just use the dog one.”
“Yes!”
Cha Yu-jin happily snatched the dog cushion and respectfully offered me the dolphin with both hands.
Sure, it wasn’t the prettiest, but since we’d be sitting on it anyway, what did it matter?
‘Sigh.’
I laid down the cushion and took my seat. I could hear another idol nearby struggling to suppress their laughter.
‘Laugh all you want.’
The viewers would be laughing too—a good sign.
We’d managed to pull off the reality appeal reasonably well, so now I should focus on showing how seriously we were taking the awards ceremony.
Though the seating arrangement was a bit awkward.
‘VTIC is right next to us.’
Since Testa had become even bigger than last year, getting a good seat was unavoidable.
But what was really bothering me wasn’t Chung-ryeo. It was the guy sitting next to me.
‘What’s with that expression?’
Bae Sae-jin beside me had an incredibly grim look on his face.
It was fortunate that everyone would assume it was because of the awards, or else all sorts of speculation would have already started flying.
I held back a sigh and covered my mouth, speaking quietly just in case.
“Hyung, your expression.”
“Ah…!”
Bae Sae-jin immediately recovered his usual neutral expression. He certainly had outstanding acting skills.
‘Big Sae-jin… well, nothing to worry about there.’
The guy grinning and teasing Cha Yu-jin was no different from usual.
Which made sense. I recalled the conversation I’d had with them yesterday.
-I won’t worry too much about it, but if things go sideways, I’d appreciate it if you could cover for me.
-Uh, how exactly??
-Well… if the atmosphere seems awkward and problematic, could you just redirect the conversation a bit?
In terms of ability distribution, it was really more directed at Big Sae-jin than Bae Sae-jin, but I’d phrased it around the senior for courtesy’s sake.
-Okay~
And as expected, Big Sae-jin had ended his reaction there without any fuss.
But Bae Sae-jin seemed to have taken some kind of mission from this conversation.
-Mm, yeah. Don’t worry!
He’d answered like that, and ever since coming to the awards ceremony, he’d been acting like he was escorting his younger brother on the way to school after getting beaten up—completely fired up.
‘What if he ends up causing an incident instead?’
I was starting to regret saying anything.
However, since their attempt to show consideration was commendable, I decided to ease the tension in a gentle manner.
Like this.
“Come to think of it, Big Sae-jin, your cushion had a ribbon on it.”
“Right. Sae-jin, that guinea pig character was cute.”
“…Well, I guess so.”
“Yes. Oh, did you perhaps buy it after seeing the VOD reaction back then?”
“…!!”
Bae Sae-jin’s face turned crimson.
The VOD reaction in question was this.
A reaction video included in the concert VOD sales package—Testa’s own reactions to the first concert rehearsal.
‘They said they’d release it for VOD promotional purposes.’
And Bae Sae-jin had been flustered during that reaction.
The rehearsal footage that appeared showed a unit stage fully equipped with outfits from the light jacket to the large ribbon.
On top of that, there was even a question from the making film production team.
-The ribbon really suits you!
-…N-no.
Watching Bae Sae-jin on screen run away like that, Cha Yu-jin had laughed mercilessly.
Well, perhaps recalling the same scene, Bae Sae-jin suddenly burst out.
“No! It’s just, it looks similar to a hamster…!”
“Oh, a hamster.”
“I’m not saying I’m a hamster! The fans just call me that!”
“Is a guinea pig a big hamster?”
“Ugh.”
Bae Sae-jin sank under the members’ well-meaning remarks. He wouldn’t recover for a while.
‘It should have looked harmonious, so that’s killing two birds with one stone.’
I chuckled softly and turned my gaze away from Bae Sae-jin.
Then, my eyes met with those of the guys entering at the adjacent table.
“…!”
“Ah! Park Moon-dae~!”
The two VTIC members I’d appeared on a variety show with before immediately waved their hands with smiles the moment our eyes met.
And right next to them stood the guy who’d tried to strike my head with a frying pan.

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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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