Debut or Die - Chapter 425

—————

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 425
Kim Rae-bin’s fan was checking on Testa’s movements as usual.
She dismissed it as nonsense when people called a tour that barely produced fancams “bait,” but this time she had genuine expectations.
‘If it airs on broadcast, then it counts as bait.’
The problem was that when she opened the lid, the contents weren’t just ‘Testa’s Concert’!
[Spacer – To the World]
‘They’re really bundling them together, huh.’
She suppressed her curses and watched terrestrial television for the first time in a while.
[Make some noise!]
The opening and first few stages were genuine concert footage, but when other groups suddenly appeared where VCRs and concert event stages should have been, it was infuriating.
Especially if those groups had fans who talked like this!
-Testa’s really catching on
-They’re gonna become variety show idols like T-Holic lol while these young, handsome space dummies do idol stuff, they’ll do comedy
-They call it public appeal and read it as image consumption no subject
‘Insane bastards!’
Though they’d been cursed at so much that they lashed out aggressively like a cornered rat biting a cat, the point was still sharp and cutting.
Of course, she gritted her teeth and countered as coolly as possible.
-Oh, what a rare sight, insisting that a fading group is “rising” while calling top-tier idols “washed up”
Since they were a survival group to begin with, there was no such thing as “junior members from the same agency deserve love” except for genuine survival fetishists.
Testa had even established their own label, so it would be fine if they treated each other like strangers, but the agency had been especially aggressive with cross-promotion these past few months.
And now there were the results of that effort.
-Oh
-Pretty good
-The stage is fun though, why the fuss lol
“Damn it…!”
The general public’s interest and favorable reactions to Spacer’s guest stage!
Even fans couldn’t openly criticize it. It was an 11 PM broadcast slot, so non-fans were crawling all over the comments too.
‘The agency probably hired some of those commenters too.’
She couldn’t bear it without thinking that way.
…Though the problem wasn’t just that.
-Shouldn’t we boycott T1 idols too?
-You make it public and then consume it like this? Aren’t you ashamed of yourselves? lol
Those provocations appeared at a rate of one per page.
‘Blaming the victim is wild’ and similar replies flooded in, yet Kim Rae-bin’s fan muttered to herself.
‘Do well.’
They always performed well during important moments, but this time they really had to.
Especially in a situation like this.
[—]
The screen changed, and finally the true owner of this concert’s title took the stage.
The lighting shifted from a concert hall full of heat to a quiet stage.
Click.
White, pale lighting.
Moonlit illumination bathes the Stage, glowing softly like a gentle slumber.
And what emerges is a dancer.
A ballet dancer.
Piercing the quiet silence, a lithe dancer in a classical black poet shirt and white mask covering their face begins a solo performance.
A melody I haven’t heard in a while, yet one familiar to the fans.
(Quiet now
Songs and dreams too
All forgotten)
The elegant cello melody of “Midnight, and After”—Testa’s title track from their first regular album—flows through the speakers, carried by piano and strings.
(This is midnight,
Your Midnight)
There are no lyrics, yet the lyrics seem to resonate.
Movement and expression of an almost artistic performance quality—chilling in its perfection. The choreography struck an exquisite balance between contemporary dance and classical ballet.
Yes, everything was perfect, but still.
‘…But where is Testa?’
Wait, are they seriously adding ballet dancers now? Is Tnet doing a ballet survival show?
Just as Kim Rae-bin’s fan, who had been watching with mouth agape as if entranced, finally burst with frustration.
The ballet dancer, standing gracefully at the Stage’s edge, slowly composes their posture as the music ends.
And white hands above black sleeves remove the mask….
[Midnight Intro – Sun Ah-hyun (TeSTAR)]
-????
-wait what
-Sun Ah-hyun?
-thought they were a real ballet dancer
-it’s Ah-hyun
“…??”
What… what is this?
Kim Rae-bin’s fan felt her eyes nearly pop out of her head.
But it was real. If it wasn’t a composite, then the ballet dancer who just appeared on screen was Sun Ah-hyun?
“….”
Even checking again, it was correct.
And this was… a live broadcast?
She recalled the masked ballet dancer’s physique from moments ago, then watched Sun Ah-hyun on screen again, hair swept back, as the grand orchestra swelled.
‘…Now that I look again, it really is Sun Ah-hyun’s body.’
Even if she herself didn’t particularly favor Sun Ah-hyun and had missed it, Sun Ah-hyun’s fans must have had their reasons for not making a fuss despite their suspicions.
It was literally impossible by common sense!
Even to an untrained eye, this was professional ballet performance—nothing less.
‘When on earth did they practice this?’
What? Can that even be called brief practice? Even if Sun Ah-hyun majored in contemporary dance, he only took ballet lessons for a short time as a kid!
“Ah!”
In that instant, a rumor flashed through like lightning.
Once the tour began, talk that circulated not just about Sun Ah-hyun but about all of Testa!
-The kids’ vibe seemed different, in a good way.. I’d say the stage has more density to it. Definitely recommend seeing this tour in person
-There’s definitely a subtle shift that doesn’t come across in fancams
-Did the kids really go camping and do waterfall training or something? Haha.
‘I thought they were just getting high on having tickets and egging each other on, fostering relative deprivation.’
These guys really seemed to have entered some kind of awakened state.
‘That thing, even athletes have people like that.’
-Wow that long-haired X bastard really flexed~
-Hey, shut up!
Kim Rae-bin’s fan recalled the communication—or rather, the argument—she’d had with her younger brother, and internally nodded.
She was quite pleased.
‘Everyone in this group just has to do well. If they don’t, they’re dead, seriously.’
Unintentionally, it was a unifying effect created among Testa’s individual fandoms by an external enemy.
Of course, this situation wasn’t quite the case she was thinking of, but there were some similar aspects.
That sense of an awakened state.
‘Phew.’
On the Stage.
Sun Ah-hyun lifted his head and moved his feet. The lit camera followed him.
And he evaluated coldly. The performance just now had been satisfactory.
Of course, there were limits because his body had changed. He couldn’t nail difficult techniques and details.
Still,
‘This is… fun too.’
The newly acquired knowledge and experience fueled the exhilaration of the Stage.
And appearing on the Stage with effects, members dressed similarly to him.
[Welcome]
Sun Ah-hyun joined the formation with a faint smile.
What followed was another of Testa’s previous hit titles.
Nightmare.
Orchestrated into something deeper, a sticky minor-key song resonated.
[Call it
Call out that name right now
Clinging like honey, never letting go]
This decadent song, which had only appeared slightly in the medley during this tour, was now arranged as a special stage.
And as always, the provocative sexy concept was intense. Since many members had temporarily changed their hair for this stage, the reaction was even hotter.
Even Kim Rae-bin’s fan was posting enthusiastically.
-Is Kim Rae-bin secret two-tone?? I can’t believe there’s a male idol who can pull off something this insane
Plus, there was even a special closing remark prepared specifically for broadcast.
[Thank you for enjoying this long concert with us. We’re finally down to just one last stage.]
-What?
-Why is Sun Ah-hyun so good at this
-Wow, that’s so cool
Sun Ah-hyun’s response exploded once more as I held the cue card with an unusually smooth and crisp pronunciation.
[Now then, we’ll play “Promise” for you.]
And so Testa’s concert broadcast ended successfully.
It had captured attention thanks to the unexpectedness and distinctive elements that went far beyond simply performing well on stage.
But precisely because of that reason, the “controversy” that erupted at the agency only grew larger.

* * *
After returning home once the live concert broadcast schedule concluded.
[This outfit from the Testa concert, you can’t buy it. (Jung Jin-il Daily Tok Tok Empathy)]
“Hmm, the articles seem to be getting more intense?”
“Oh my, you’ve connected it quite well to our concert story.”
“Mm.”
“…That’s what I mean.”
I’m not sure why they’re looking at me with that expression, but I didn’t do anything.
‘I just added some air to it.’
I simply started by pretending to send an early holiday gift to the Management Director, gathering thoughts from the company’s upper management in the process.
“A predictable result.”
I shrugged and wiped away the moisture. My body felt refreshed after washing.
Just as it’s natural to feel refreshed after washing, this was actually something that would inevitably fall apart if no one intervened.
Because the agency kept telling me to develop idols, but I was doing something else instead.
-A clothing business collaboration with the rootless T1 Stars agency.
Still, if I recall collaborations like the 127 Section game, this degree was manageable.
‘Idols do a lot of clothing advertisements anyway.’
The problem was… the company had done something reckless while dreaming of “diversifying revenue.”
They had heavily promoted this collaboration.
-Wow, ‘From bronze to platinum. Affordable options without burden to special premium choices?’
-It seems there are significant differences in design and fabric quality depending on the tier….
First, they somehow divided the design to create multiple lines, and it appears they directly borrowed this from Ajusa’s tier system.
They even paid royalties to the program side while doing this.
‘It’s just business, after all.’
Still, if only this had been announced, they would’ve just been criticized for lacking taste and being outdated, called nothing but thugs.
The problem came next.
-‘T-shirts made directly by idols’, certain products available for purchase only to membership subscribers.
First, they revealed their desire to extract payment one more time between the lines, making fans extremely uncomfortable. Still, this could have been managed somehow.
If only the next publicity stunt hadn’t happened.
-Testa, the ‘platinum’ outfit that Mirinai wore?
The ‘Platinum’ grade is manufactured in only one size—the idol’s actual size—to present the most beautiful image….
If only these lunatics hadn’t posted to the media that Platinum-grade clothing is sold ‘only in sizes that idols can actually wear.’
I understand what they were going for.
Probably they wanted to emphasize the ‘actual wear’ feeling to stoke fans’ desire to collect, but it backfired spectacularly.
This is what happens when you fail to distinguish between merchandise and clothing.
-Aren’t they insane
-Idols are all managed to the extreme right now since they’re being broadcast on flat screens but ‘only the most beautiful size’ lmaooooo
-So you’re paying that much money and supposed to reshape your body to fit the clothes or what, keep it on a shelf?
Meanwhile, an interview with a staff member surfaced saying they were ‘planning an actual-wear authentication photo event,’ and public opinion completely… plummeted into the abyss.
-Yep got the message loud and clear that only people with idol bodies can wear this
-When I go to the store I’ll probably get scanned head to toe and not be allowed to buy anything trauma activated
-If they launch like this I feel like I won’t even see their faces, getting turned away at the entrance..
They’ve only accumulated resentment.
‘Idiots.’
Actually, if you think about it, using ‘only people who look like idols can wear this’ as a differentiation strategy shows an angle to rake in money unethically.
They just failed to hit that psychology precisely and ended up taking a fatal blow instead.
‘If you want to profit from creating tiers, you should’ve done it more subtly.’
Why does Tnet-style survival content keep getting criticized yet still makes people watch?
Because it’s provocative, refined, and creates content appeal by self-satirizing.
‘But these bastards?’
This company doesn’t have many people who can do that. We swept them all up when we created our label.
And the people who do exist are all in operations—so who handled this business?
The higher-ups actively signed the contract wanting to split the portfolio and profits.
Therefore….
‘The predicted result arrived.’
It crashed and burned.
“Really?”
Yes.
“That’s all?”
I’m innocent.
I just posted one anonymous comment with the context.
-Platinum grade, the premium line that came from Ajusa and everyone knows means top-tier, but only in one idol size…
-There are people in this world with diverse body types and diverse charms.
“That’s incitement!”
“No. I wrote exactly what the article said.”
“…You’re sure?”
“Yes.”
I even used a VPN to be safe. There’s no way to trace it.
Well, since these guys didn’t launch the agency with actual vision but only have people wanting to strip it for profit at the top, I really just accelerated an inevitable disaster.
“…And the outfit we wore at the concert performance was originally supposed to be sold here as ‘Platinum’ grade, right?”
“Wow, our Agency really is something else.”
“So that’s why so many articles came out….”
Thanks to the concert broadcast going well, it became more fuel for the fire and drew aggression.
So we’re taking damage too because we’re tied to the Agency?
‘We might have taken some momentary hits.’
After all, we’re under this Agency’s banner.
-Isn’t Testa ultimately coming out because they agreed to this?
└Like they would’ve known?
But it won’t last long enough to have a lasting impact.
Once a problem grows this big, Headquarters steps in.
“Right, because it can’t affect the stock price?”
“Probably.”
Besides.
‘From T1 Entertainment’s perspective, their subsidiary just needs to do its job as an Agency.’
From Headquarters’ standpoint, other businesses can be handled through other subsidiaries. It was only the top brass who were so desperate for supplementary revenue.
So what would T1 Entertainment experts—who are more versed in this business than those Agency executives—do?
They’d try to preserve the value of the existing brand products.
Namely, their own idols who sell well.
“There’s already a damage control article up.”
I refreshed the news page and spotted Headquarters’ move.
They probably felt things out while preparing, then confirmed reactions right after the concert ended and released the statement.
[T1 Stars’ Unilateral Actions, Artists’ Bewilderment]
[Turslay, “Contract Claims Unfounded… Only in Discussion Stage.”]
Everything was being pinned on the Agency’s incompetent management.
Those who made the mistake would bear all the consequences—a beautiful sight. And so the Agency’s executives were cut loose by Headquarters.
‘A couple of them won’t keep their positions.’
And to quickly bury this bad news, wouldn’t they launch an event with their main revenue stream?
Ryu Chung-woo grinned.
“What do you mean?”
“Yes.”
I smiled too.
“They’re releasing the album next week.”
“Ohhhhh!”
It was the expected development.
“They’ll release it for the teams with good performance first. They need good news to cover this up.”
“Then….”
Bae Sae-jin didn’t finish his sentence, but everyone understood and grinned.
Obviously Testa.
“And that’s because Ah-hyun did so well on the broadcast today~”
“That’s right, you did great!”
“Thank you…!”
Empty chatter flies through the Living Room in the dead of night.
‘Those fools who wasted time will collapse… and we’ll release our album.’
The atmosphere feels right.
That’s when it happened.
Zzzzring—
My phone rings.
“Could it be… a call already…?”
“Don’t tell me it’s T1?”
At 2 AM?
I wonder if T1 would really move that fast, but I feel a spark of anticipation nonetheless.
I lower my gaze to my smartphone, and then a thought crosses my mind.
‘But if it’s about the album, shouldn’t they be calling Ryu Chung-woo instead of me?’
Right.
And sure enough, it wasn’t about the album.
Instead, someone I never expected was calling.
“….”
“Moon-dae?”
I picked up anyway.
-Hello.
It was VTIC’s voice.
…But this guy has never called me before.
-How have you been, Moon-dae?
It was Ju Dan.
Why is the guy heading to the military calling at this ungodly hour….
-I have a proposal I’d like to make. I believe this is a game where nobody loses.
I already wanted to hang up.

—————

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

—————