Debut or Die - Chapter 271

—————

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 271
Making a documentary directly?
‘What the hell.’
Kim Rae-bin’s fan, who had grown so exhausted by all the chaos that the mere word “documentary” made their stomach twist, felt a sudden chill wash over them.
‘Hey, don’t….’
Why stir up trouble that wasn’t there?
But this thought didn’t linger long before sinking beneath the surface.
The Testa that reappeared on screen looked far too familiar.
Whether it was morning or not, the cameraman with trembling hands nudged the members sprawled across the floor, touching them gently.
[Let’s eat.]
[Wow…. I’m so sleepy.]
[…I want meat.]
“…??”
In other words, beyond just seeming intimate with each other… their actions were simply unadorned and felt genuinely real, without agenda or exaggeration.
There were plenty of Testa videos that had been polished through production planning and editing.
Even in those, Testa showed their individuality and personality, but this was the first time confronting such an unguarded, audience-unconscious feeling so directly.
Ding-a-ling-ling.
What played slowly as the backing track was… Kim Rae-bin’s “Magic is You” acoustic guitar from just before.
The raw, barely-mixed live sound echoed through the venue.
[Mm.]
[You don’t really know?]
[A little.]
Between cuts of them practicing concert choreography, a scene of them huddled together monitoring.
In a hotel room eating ice cream while blankly watching foreign broadcasts.
In another country’s hotel, they play board games before flinging cards at each other.
[Haha!]
The cameraman’s laughter rings out above the guitar. The screen shakes.
Short clips like these strung together.
“….”
Kim Rae-bin’s fan was now watching the video without any other thoughts.
And they didn’t even realize it themselves.
Dancing, throwing and catching objects, checking hair dye, coming down from the stage and then running with smiling members—the camera bounces along with them.
And when the backing track crosses the bridge into the climax.
Whoooosh….
Photos of the concert preparations and after-parties they’d filmed directly swept past like a panorama within the video.
A photo of them all holding fireworks together at the beach, Park Moon-dae grilling meat and Lee Sae-jin shaking drinks at the after-party.
Cha Yu-jin laughing while climbing onto the rehearsal stage setup….
Countless moments of Testa’s time, captured at moments they couldn’t even remember.
That they shared so much time together beyond their activities, all through one screen, one connection, poured down like a massive meteor shower….
“….”
The auditorium fell into a hushed silence, the occasional screams from the crowd finally fading away.
And only then could Kim Rae-bin’s fans release their internal screams.
‘These… these despicable bastards!!’
The chairman was already thoroughly soaked in melancholy.
The group’s fans, who had unhesitatingly cut ties with the documentary to save Cha Yu-jin, were probably streaming tears while watching the broadcast.
And she too felt her nose tingling for some reason.
With the chairman’s atmosphere heating up like this, it would have been strange not to feel it.
“Sigh….”
She acknowledged herself, finding her own emotional fullness unfamiliar.
‘Yeah, at least it’ll work for now….’
It wouldn’t last long, but with this extra seasoning added to the concert’s magic, the effect was inevitable.
‘Once the concert ends, the mood will be good for a bit….’
However, what the members had prepared didn’t end there.
[Encore Preparation]
Below the caption on the screen, a silent scene of the members ordering chicken at the studio and talking played.
And even a shot of them entering the recording booth in comfortable clothes.
[In other countries, they sang songs famous in those countries. So… we thought it would be nice to do the same in South Korea.]
The screen showing a short handwritten memo turned dark again.
The gently ringing guitar sound reached its climax and faded softly.
And then the caption.
[Testa’s Founding Anniversary]
[200X]
[The most-heard song when all of Testa was in South Korea]
The stage opened and dry ice drifted out gently, awakening the scent of the stage.
And instead of the Idol Corporation medley, a melodically rich, lyrical accompaniment began to flow.
“…!”
A familiar, beautiful melody.
A carol sampling song released at the end of the year when Cha Yu-jin and Kim Rae-bin—Testa’s youngest members—were born.
[Getting Better]
The carol, arranged as a Korean-style ballad, beautifully resonated through the concert hall.
And from the opening stage floor, a lift slowly rose up through the dry ice.
The members stood on it, dressed in neat winter casual wear.
Bae Sae-jin, wearing a coat, picked up the microphone first.
-When trivial mistakes become wounds
When you feel like you’ll crumble from small scars
His voice, without excessive technique, somehow sounded genuine.
-I simply sit quietly by the window
Thinking of who I’ll be next year
Sun Ah-hyun raised his clear baritone.
And Lee Sae-jin added harmony, singing the next verse.
-On the same season, the same day
When I suddenly recall and look back
The orchestra swelled. The live band that had been producing intense sound throughout the concert stopped its electronic instruments and layered soft strings and keyboards.
Over it, a clear and powerful voice rose.
-This gloomy today
Becomes fertilizer in my heart
Sharp pains
Become the sturdy bolts that hold me together
It was Park Moon-dae’s voice. Solid sound emanated from within pink hair beneath a gray mustang jacket.
Pleasant harmonies connected above and below it. Ryu Chung-woo’s baritone anchored the center.
-Going down below that, and in the end
On the day I will have become myself
Cha Yu-jin sang the final verse with a smiling face.
-I won’t mind at all
It was a sound that somehow felt refreshing.
“…Ah.”
The lyrics and the song’s atmosphere, the video from before.
Everything harmonized and created an insane synergy.
‘These bastards… they really put in the work.’
From various spots in the audience, subtle sounds of suppressed emotion intermittently filtered through beneath the sound system.
Kim Rae-bin’s fan tried to think she had deliberately maintained cold rationality, as if it were too obvious.
Self-deprecating, as if she were the exact same meme of pretending not to be moved while holding back tears.
-You won’t mind at all
The song unfolded truthfully and tenderly, without excessive embellishment.
The movements of fans slowly waving light sticks from all directions, and the sparkling lights that followed the grain.
The sampled carol melody spread through humming.
-Du- durururudu-
As if submerged in the depths of a warm sea, the audience was absorbed in the performance amid the harmony of sound and light.
-Happy new year to you
I know you’ll be okay.
The song concluded in a gentle bass tone.
“….”
‘A scam.’
Kim Rae-bin’s fan muttered as the close-up of the members lowering their microphones and smiling appeared on the large screen.
‘They’re just… completely draining the concert down to the marrow….’
Perhaps because she was an individual fan herself, she felt like she’d been had.
It felt like her entire body had been drained of emotion.
‘So you like Testa that much, you bastards…. Rae-bin….’
Watching Kim Rae-bin in a cute white padded jacket hold hands with the members and bow, she felt a complex sense of defeat….
Though it was said that unlike before, there were plenty of fans who preferred their own idols, at least not in this moment.
Yet Kim Rae-bin’s fan steeled themselves once more.
‘Still, it’s just a moment! Once next week rolls around, all this excitement will fade anyway….’
[Thank you for listening.]
[How did you like the song we prepared?]
“It was absolutely amazing!!”
“Wooooow!!”
There was no helping it. It was an involuntary reaction from the audience.
The members grinned with faces full of anticipation, descended from the lift, formed a proper formation, and turned around.
[Going straight into the next encore song.]
‘In those clothes??’
As the thought froze and confusion burst forth, Kim Rae-bin’s fan watched the members toss their winter coats aside.
Underneath were leather pants and white linen shirts—a classic stage outfit.
“Aaahhhhh!!”
It was a typical but effective production choice.
As screams erupted from the crowd watching them throw off their gloves and hats into the distance, the stage lights cut out abruptly.
And then came the sweet intro.
It was ‘Wheel (Low Key)’.
-Turn the wheel for me
So it flies far away
The melody rings out so beautifully
Touching my heart, let it pop
‘Huh?’
They’d just performed that song.
Well, (whoever wrote it) it was a good performance even seeing it multiple times, but it was definitely a bit odd.
-Turn the wheel for me
So it finds your dreams
Stay with me like this today
Never ending, let me in
And the outfit had a certain sharp edge to it for a ‘Wheel’ performance.
It was unbalanced.
‘Hmm.’
Did they recycle it because they were in a rush to prepare?
That was the moment Kim Rae-bin’s fan’s enthusiasm began to cool.
-Flying right now
Whee-whee whee-whee!
“…!!”
Suddenly, a familiar whistle cut sharply into the song.
And naturally, a strong bass and beat crashed into the track….
Then it dropped like magic.
-Jump off
No parachute needed
Just jump
‘It’s a drill!!’
That’s right—the chorus of ‘Drill (Night)’, their double title track, consumed the song in an instant.
In that moment, the Stage where the members stood transformed from Wheel’s ethereal, refreshing atmosphere to intense pinpoint lighting.
The luminescent paint that had been invisible against the black leather pants they wore now gleamed under the lights.
And then came the relentless signature choreography of ‘Drill’.
“What?!”
Only then did everyone grasp what was happening.
-Come in
(Let me in)
These guys had remixed their two title tracks into a single song!!
And for those watching the broadcast, a caption appeared on screen.
Testa – ‘Daybreak’ (Wheel + Drill)
The title of the new song.
-Had no idea the challenge was a teaser for a new song
-Genius idols are going insane
-Is this crazy? Is this crazy? Is this crazy?
-The song’s so good; what’s happening
Even as the viewers chattered, the track surged forward relentlessly.
And the chorus completely blended the two songs, creating an entirely new line.
-Like a drill
Boring through to capture you
Yes, it’s beautiful
Touching my heart, let it pop
I had no idea what they’d done, but both atmospheres were mixed flawlessly without losing their essence.
The structure of ‘Wheel’—pleasant but somewhat subdued—and ‘Drill’—intense but slightly excessive—fit together like puzzle pieces.
And the members maintained that delicate balance impossibly well.
The Stage was intense yet possessed a refreshing carbonated sparkle, while simultaneously bursting with playful charm.
-Turn my ferris wheel around
Starlight exploding
They’d carefully selected only the most impactful moments from both choreographies and woven them together—there was a satisfaction in filtering out ‘the very best’.
“Ahhhhh!!”
Kim Rae-bin’s fan screamed, though it was barely audible.
The surroundings were already filled with screams.
The adrenaline bursting from pleasant surprise and fulfillment, the tension amplified by the contrast with the previous performance, gripped the audience.
-Savor the moment
That’s my thrill, ha!
Within the razor-sharp group choreography formation, Cha Yu-jin’s satisfied ad-libs and tumbling cut cleanly through the Concert Hall.
Ahhhhh!
“Ugh….”
Kim Rae-bin’s fan let out a sound like he was dying, but ultimately conceded.
Coming down from the concert high seemed like a very distant future.

* * *
Testa Seoul Encore Concert—Day One concluded.
An hour and a half later, the Internet looked like this.
-Guess your day job really does matter lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol
-Like, how insane is this Testa thing? Usually when you mash two songs together it feels jarring, right? It’s not easy to make different songs mesh like that
└Right, and that whole ‘good + good = even better’ formula? Most songs fail because of flow issues, so how the hell did they pull this off;;;
-The Stage performance is insanely good lol those people who did the challenge must be embarrassed
‘Nice.’
We’d extracted the effect we wanted.
Now all we needed was for people satisfied with the Stage quality to maintain a ceasefire mood by citing our amateurish documentary as justification.
And it seemed that was already happening steadily.
-Testa is… family..
-What happened to that guy who said he’d execute anyone doing family marketing? He got executed. He doesn’t exist inside me anymore
-How did these seven people even come together I’m genuinely moved I’m crying Testa forever..☆
The group’s fanbase voices grew louder.
‘People naturally relax when they’re satisfied.’
I shrugged and lowered my phone.
“Did things work out the way you wanted~”
“Yeah.”
“Sit down and eat some meat already, Park Moon-dae!”
I sat down and had a late dinner, following Bae Sae-jin’s words—emboldened by intoxication.
And I thought about the relief pitcher who’d arrive before this concert high wore off.
‘We’ve done all we can.’
We’d reduced fatigue and provided justification and satisfaction.
So what comes next? Battle with the enemy.
And conveniently, some very suitable opponents are coming.
A comparison target that would make fans say things like ‘we’re still better than them’ and ‘now that I look again, they’re goddesses.’
And simultaneously… an external enemy.
I recalled the article I’d checked just before.
[【Idol Stock Company】 Season 3 First Stage Revealed]
It was the new season of 【Idol Corporation】.
Not female idols, but male idols. Testa’s direct juniors.
‘If we can just prevent fanbase leakage, external enemies like this are rare.’
I shrugged.
Let’s see how it plays out.

—————

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

—————