Debut or Die - Chapter 297

—————

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 297
“You guys are mean. You tricked me.”
“Oh come on~ Why are you like this, Eugene!”
Cha Yu-jin had been visibly shocked when he saw the laser chaos during rehearsal, but after witnessing the joint concert’s main stage performance, he declared a communication boycott.
His reason was simple: ‘How could you pull off a stage like that without me?’
‘It only lasted thirty minutes anyway.’
Once Testa’s stage ended, his mood apparently improved, and he was already starting to speak again.
I removed the towel from my head and spoke.
“Next time I’ll give you a laser solo—swing it around like dual swords.”
“Oh!! …Um, it would’ve been even better if we did it today!”
“Today was just a one-time thing. When we do our solo concert, we can do it for months. That’ll be even better, don’t you think?”
“Right~ Doing it multiple times is definitely better!”
“That’s true!”
“So waiting is actually the smarter choice.”
“OK, Got it! I wasn’t tricked, hyung.”
This was easy enough now.
After exchanging a few more words with Cha Yu-jin, I continued walking.
My body felt significantly lighter compared to how I usually felt after a concert.
‘Five songs aren’t even that exhausting now.’
Compared to a solo concert, this was practically a breeze. The other participating groups probably felt the same way.
I opened the Waiting Room door and stepped inside.
“Hello, Testa Senior!”
I glanced at the waiting camera and the rookie group.
‘These guys with their slicked-back hair and all.’
“That was truly impressive. Thank you so much for teaching and helping us!”
“We should be thanking you~ Good luck with your debut!”
I exchanged formal greetings once more with the Ajusa Debut Group in this ending behind-the-scenes cut.
It would probably be uploaded to Tnet and YouTube later.
I watched them bow and thought to myself.
‘That was a safe choice.’
Relying on a song’s popularity to navigate the situation wasn’t a masterstroke that would overturn things. It was a safe choice anyone could see, so no one could find fault with it.
But by avoiding direct comparison and mockery, at least I demonstrated understanding of the situation.
‘Or perhaps… if that hadn’t already happened, I was being extremely cautious knowing the consequences.’
The moment the camera stopped and the setup was cleared, I called someone over.
“Hee-seung.”
Gold 2.
“Yes, yes?”
“Got a minute to talk?”
“Yep!”
The rookie group exchanged whispers like “They must be really close!” before Gold 2 cheerfully followed me.
Big Sae-jin asked quietly.
“Kwon Hee-seung didn’t do anything wrong, right?”
“No.”
I denied it lightly. Big Sae-jin shrugged and waved his hand. He probably assumed I was just going to talk about the performance or something casual.
But I’d brought Gold 2 all the way to the van parked in the Parking Lot.
“…?”
“Get in.”
By this point, Gold 2 realized the situation wasn’t ordinary and began lowering his head voluntarily.
The look of ‘Did I mess something up!’ was written all over his face.
‘A mistake… if you could call it that.’
I closed the car door and tossed him a canned drink.
“Ah, thank you.”
Gold 2 quickly caught it and opened the drink. I waited until he brought it to his lips.
And at the right moment.
‘…I never thought I’d be saying this line.’
Not even that madman. I suppressed a sigh and opened my mouth.
“So… how many years ago did you come back from the audition?”
“…!! *cough*,”
Gold 2 barely managed not to spit out the drink.
Unfortunate, but that reaction alone was answer enough.
“Uh, u-um….”
I pulled out another canned drink and spoke while squeezing and releasing it in my hand.
“You were being pretty obvious about it.”
The circumstances had been unusual from the start.
‘It’s rare for a previous season’s contestant to debut in first place.’
Especially if that audition had been a commercial success.
Both the Production Team and viewers prefer fresh faces unique to each season.
‘But this bastard ultimately debuted in first place.’
Moreover, when he eliminated the previous first-place Chae Seo-dam in this process, his attitude was far too composed.
-Ah…. Yeah, something did feel off about it.
After his reaction ended there, it was somewhat unexpected that he completely trusted our words.
‘His response was also excessively skilled for his age.’
So the next time I met him, I checked his status window first thing.
That’s when I saw it at the very bottom.
[!Abnormal Status: Bounce Back]
-I’m really going to be an idol!
: If the team fails to unite within the period, ‘failure’.
Don’t you feel it from the structure itself?
This was an abnormal status of the same type as Chung-ryeo’s ‘School Grounds’ or my ‘Debut or Death’.
And the things he said while dealing with Chae Seo-dam.
-Phew… No, how did that hyung debut again this time too…?
Even the hastily glossed-over part after this. The circumstantial evidence essentially ended here.
Gold 2, Kwon Hee-seung had returned from the future.
Probably as my next batter.
“Starting with Chae Seo-dam debuting ‘again this time’, your behavior overall is way too obvious.”
“….”
Of course, Kwon Hee-seung didn’t seem to have the presence of mind to admit it willingly. He had every reason not to.
First, the biggest problem was trust. From his perspective, he had no reason whatsoever to tell me he’d come from the future.
‘I need to dangle some bait from my end too.’
I had information I needed to extract from this guy. I’d have to take the risk.
‘I’ll give this much and start from there.’
Click.
I cracked open a canned drink and muttered.
“I came from the future too.”
“Huh-whoa!”
Like his lungs were about to pop out.
Gold 2 clamped his hand over his mouth and stared at me.
“….”
“….”
After quite a long silence, he nodded and muttered.
“…That explains it! I always thought you were so skilled.”
It worked.
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Wow, I thought it was just me, so I was actually wondering if maybe it was a premonition dream or something.”
Gold 2 seemed quite frustrated, as words poured out of him.
“So other people came back too, right? It wasn’t just me then. I’ve seen dramas where that usually happens.”
Something seemed off about his understanding, but I’d let it slide for now and play along a bit.
I needed to grasp the situation anyway.
“Yeah. So… you came back because things weren’t working out while you were active?”
But Kwon Hee-seung answered with a face that looked like he was about to sweat profusely.
“Uh, I, I… I wasn’t an idol.”
…What?

* * *
“…She was a model.”
“Yeah.”
The conversation seemed like it would drag on, so I moved us to the Company.
Gold 2 kept saying he thought his heart would stop, and he continued gulping down green tea.
“Ugh… Well, being a model came with all sorts of complications. That’s when I realized I’d really taken the wrong path.”
“Mm.”
“So this time, I quit modeling and came back out of Ajusa.”
Gold 2 spoke with a somewhat proud expression, saying he was confident because he’d been watching this season closely.
“So what about Chae Seo-dam….”
“Oh! That guy was already causing a scandal about dating and character issues right after debuting anyway. So I sent him off without any guilt whatsoever!”
So that’s how it was.
I was about to ask him about my own future, but I let him ramble on a bit more instead.
“No wonder you’re so eerily good at this! I was really… so relieved. It felt good, but I was anxious about what was happening.”
Gold 2’s expression had become much more relaxed.
“Usually the cause is something like the Earth being destroyed and people being sent to the past, right?? Could it be something like that??”
This guy definitely thought I’d returned to the same timeline as him.
And this is the first time I’ve returned to the past.
Based on the status window’s description, this might be his first and last chance too, just like mine.
‘This is a different case though.’
I need to find out more.
“Let me confirm first. How many years did you go back?”
“Uh… Well, since it’s the end of this year, so… it seems like about 11 months?”
“….”
A year?
“It’s insane, right? Not even a day—I have no idea what’s going on.”
I was momentarily at a loss for words, staring at him.
That’s… basically like not going back at all.
“I bought stocks, you know. Really… what did you buy? Did you buy lottery tickets? Oh, you probably don’t need to.”
“Mm.”
Future knowledge was off the table then. I returned to my original purpose with a bitter smile.
At this point, I could probably reveal it.
“I went back further. The future I returned to has already passed and become the past now.”
“Whoa.”
According to the truth I confirmed last time, there are lost memories… but let me connect the logic excluding that for now.
“Crazy. So have you figured anything out during all that time?”
I deliberately rubbed my chin.
“I’m still working on it. …If you don’t mind, could I ask what you did right before you came back to the past?”
Based on the cases so far… it was likely a sensitive question, so I was prepared to understand if he hesitated to answer.
But his reaction was a bit different.
“How? Ah, well… it might sound a bit ridiculous.”
Gold 2 laughed awkwardly, his face glistening with cold sweat.
“What is it?”
“I accidentally fell into the River and hit my head on the Bridge… so my luck was really terrible.”
“….”
“Ah, no! I was trying to help someone! It wasn’t just me being stupid!! It was a noble sacrifice! There was an accident during filming. Wow, the working conditions were really harsh…”
Though he’d started with excuses, Gold 2 apparently had things to say, and his frustrations came pouring out.
Having gone through so many ups and downs working as a model, he’d apparently shut himself away at home during his downtime and rejected the world.
Gold 2 let out a sigh.
“…Anyway, as I was dropping out like that, I kept thinking things like ‘I’m never coming back to this filthy industry’, ‘Idol work really was the answer’… and then the situation actually turned out so I could become an idol.”
“…!”
Wait.
“So you’re saying… things worked out the way you wanted.”
“Yes, you could say that?”
Gold 2 nodded. I looked him over carefully.
‘A guy who came back from the past exactly once.’
And what he wanted was… ‘to quit modeling and become an idol’.
…I could see the angle now.
I brought up the variable that had been bothering me.
“If you’d come back earlier, you could’ve debuted with me in the previous season… what do you think about that?”
“Uh, um…”
Gold 2 rubbed his head with an embarrassed expression.
“Um, hyung. I’m sorry, but that’s a bit…”
“…??”
“That season was such a mess and the conditions were so bad, I didn’t really want to do it again…”
“….”
“Ah! And honestly, I wasn’t even confident I could debut with that lineup! It was basically a scam anyway.”
…I didn’t really have anything to argue against that.
‘So basically, he didn’t want it.’
I tapped my fingers on the desk, then laid out the conclusion I’d organized.
“So do you think the timing of your return was most… appropriate for achieving what you wanted right before you came back?”
“Huh? Um…”
Gold 2 seemed to be thinking about it for the first time, his eyes contemplative, but soon he nodded.
“That’s right! It feels like only the parts I wanted to try again are perfectly arranged.”
“…!”
It was certain. I interlaced my fingers.
‘He came back to the exact moment he wanted most.’
I recalled Chung-ryeo’s perspective from what I’d seen in ‘truth verification’.
His monologue.
-If I’d made it, I wouldn’t have done it this way.
…That bastard wanted to start being an idol all over again from the beginning.
Perhaps… ‘keep going until I succeed’.
And I returned to the point before my debut.
‘I see.’
The outline becomes clear.
The system. This bastard doesn’t just bounce people back to the past randomly.
‘It grants wishes.’
Yearning, regret, whatever you call it… in any case, it reflects the person’s own desires.
Following this logic, the abnormal status can be seen as stemming from the same context. The penalties are structured to align with the person’s wish fulfillment.
‘It all fits perfectly.’
But there’s a problem.
…It’s me.
‘I have no memory of wishing for something like this.’
Comparing my situation with the two cases before and after me, I definitely feel a sense of incongruity.
No matter how drunk I was or how depressed I became, it’s hard to imagine I suddenly wanted to become an idol in someone else’s body.
Then… is this Park Moon-dae’s wish?
Why on earth?
“…”
For now, I need to explore the detailed conditions more to understand the mechanism.
And to learn more specifics, I’ll need to cross-reference the cases.
“Hyung?”
“…Mm. Hold on.”
I pondered for a moment, then pulled out my smartphone.
[Are you on tour?]
A moment later.
[VTIC Senior Shin Chung-ryeo : On the move]
[VTIC Senior Shin Chung-ryeo : What’s the matter?]
In the end, there’s only one choice.
Let me cross-verify.

—————

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

—————