Debut or Die - Chapter 55

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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 55
I returned the mascot costume before sunset and headed back to Sun Ah-hyun’s place.
My entire body felt steamed from the moisture trapped inside the costume.
‘So hot.’
The physical toll had been considerable. On top of that, I was exhausted.
Yet my mood wasn’t bad at all.
‘Probably because I only heard good things.’
The reaction when I removed the mask at the end was surprising, but honestly, wandering around in the costume itself felt more engaging.
People wanting to laugh and take photos together, or handing me printed photos of Park Moon-dae or snacks—it was a refreshing experience.
‘Of course, I never expected photos like these to surface.’
There were even composited images with yellow animal ears added.
I stuffed the items I’d received, including those photos, into my bag. I planned to examine them more carefully later.
Then I showered immediately.
‘I felt like I was melting.’
After drying off and changing clothes, I felt much refreshed.
As I sat on the bed drinking cold water, a newly created group chat wouldn’t stop buzzing.
[Big Sae-jin: Yo, saw all the updates. Everyone had a great time lol except Yu-jin!]
[Cha Yu-jin: ;(]
[Kim Rae-bin: Why did you talk while wearing the costume?]
[Cha Yu-jin: I didn’t know…]
Scrolling up to check, I found a video of Cha Yu-jin shouting thanks, getting exposed instantly, and then fleeing.
‘Not surprising, honestly.’
[Big Sae-jin: Dude, Moon-dae visited 15 places? That’s seriously impressive. True Korean spirit of determination, everyone give him a hand]
[Kim Rae-bin: (old-fashioned clapping emoticon)]
[Cha Yu-jin: Congratulations…]
[Big Sae-jin: Moon-dae, we saw everything you did. Answer us lol]
I chuckled and replied.
[Me: Yeah, thanks.]
[Kim Rae-bin: (basic greeting emoticon)]
[Cha Yu-jin: That’s awesome!]
[Big Sae-jin: lol no need to thank us (heart emoticon)]
I closed the emoticon-spammed group chat and logged into SNS.
‘Let me look at this more carefully.’
I wanted to check if any strange comments had appeared, like “Stop running around during breaks and actually practice, do you have no brain?”
“Hmm.”
Fortunately, nothing like that had surfaced. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
I scrolled up the timeline further.
When people noticed that four people in mascot costumes had searched for different contestants’ advertisements.
At first, people seemed to think it was something fans had done as a joke among themselves.
-I want to try this with my fan friends too
-It’s harmonious and cute. I hope fans don’t fight and become friendly like thisㅠㅠ
-Let Cha, Ryu, Park Moon-dae, and Big all debut ♡
But once Cha Yu-jin was exposed, and the other participants began removing their masks one by one, the atmosphere descended into absolute pandemonium.
-This is insane
-Wait what are you guys doing
I went to Jamsil Station yesterday and ugh ugh I’m so frustrated… If only I had known, noona would have… we could have gone camping there today…
-Bare face what is this, is that glow real
-Everyone, I gave a picture to Mundae, the Welsh Corgi. ㅠㅠUgh, I love Mundae! [Picture of a dog ear composite crest]
Afterward, people buzzed wondering if this was also an Ajusa production, but when the Mascot Costume Rental Company posted a review with their signature, they grew even more delighted.
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[Looks like the kids each rented costumes matching their own image – review posted from Mascot Costume Rental Company (link)]
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-Oh my god, how can these crazy people think like this among themselves?
-Thinking about how my kid dug through the costume inventory and deliberately chose the Welsh Corgi mask makes me so cute I could die [screenshot of “love to death” meme]
-I don’t think he would have found a puppy and chosen the yellow one and been proud just because his fans called him his dog. It breaks my heart.
‘…I’m glad they enjoyed it.’
It was a bit embarrassing, but since people seemed to love it so much, I could tolerate it. Still, I wasn’t sure if it warranted this much “adorable” commentary.
‘Maybe it’s just my sensibility.’
It was incomprehensible. I shrugged and settled into bed after arranging my bedding.
Then I realized something.
‘I haven’t eaten anything today.’
I’d been so caught up running around in the mascot costume all day that I’d forgotten.
Yet strangely, I didn’t feel hollow inside.
I had a fleeting thought that I should eat something before sleeping, but I fell fast asleep almost immediately.
It was a dreamless, deep sleep.
That early evening sleep stretched all the way until noon the next day.
Well… it was a productive day off.

* * *
I spent half a day doing light exercises and resting thoroughly.
Then, the next morning at dawn.
I headed to the Filming Studio to prepare for the live talk show.
Sun Ah-hyun, who had returned from his trip in the middle of the night carrying walnut cakes for some reason, naturally came along with me.
By the way, the walnut cakes were delicious. They were soft because they used white kidney beans in the filling.
“Moon-dae, you got some good rest?”
“Yes.”
As I entered the waiting area of the Filming Studio, Ryu Chung-woo, who had arrived first, greeted me.
Sun Ah-hyun wasn’t there because the Production Team had called him away.
“Did you get good rest, hyung?”
“Well… yes.”
Ryu Chung-woo laughed dryly. Just looking at him, his complexion didn’t seem good.
‘Now that I think about it, he didn’t lead this time either.’
I’d heard he’d stepped back, but I wasn’t sure what happened. Honestly, I didn’t really care either.
“I saw what you guys did with the mascot costume. It looked fun.”
“Ah, thank you. You did a few proofs yourself, hyung.”
Just in case we debut, I should give him this much attention in return.
Ryu Chung-woo hesitated slightly before answering.
“…I haven’t been able to lately.”
….
What was he getting at?
It seemed like he wanted me to ask about his situation, but I didn’t really need to know Ryu Chung-woo’s long-winded story.
I shrugged and wrapped up the conversation.
“You can do it once the broadcast ends.”
“Well… if I don’t debut, I won’t have the face to do it.”
Ryu Chung-woo laughed with a haha.
‘Why does he keep trailing off like this?’
I cut the conversation short.
“I think you’ll debut, hyung.”
“Thanks. But that’s something no one can know. My ranking dropped too.”
Was he really talking about dropping from 1st to 4th place?
‘I know you debut and even become a leader.’
I gave Ryu Chung-woo a lukewarm once-over, but I acknowledged that any participant at this point could be anxious.
Besides, this guy seemed to be experiencing some kind of burnout.
‘Wait, if Ryu Chung-woo gets eliminated like this, there will be one vacancy.’
I had a hopeful thought for a moment, but I quickly abandoned it. With only the finals left, it wouldn’t be much use even if his mental state crumbled now.
I decided to just answer comfortably, whatever happened.
“Even if you get eliminated, wouldn’t the fans prefer it if you did ad proofs rather than not doing them?”
“I’m not sure… if I get eliminated and the program ends, I wonder if the fans will stick around.”
“They’ve already spent money on advertising, so I doubt they’d suddenly disappear.”
“Huh?”
“If it’s a transfer station, the minimum cost is 2 million won, and prime locations go for 10 million won.”
“R-really?”
“Yes.”
I heard Ryu Chung-woo swallow hard.
‘Did he really not know?’
“I should… work harder.”
“Of course.”
I stared blankly at Ryu Chung-woo.
“Moon-dae!”
Just then, Big Sae-jin burst in energetically with one hand raised.
‘Perfect excuse.’
I naturally nodded to Ryu Chung-woo and approached Big Sae-jin.
And I suddenly thought about it.
‘So I’ve racked up a debt of at least 54 million won?’
It was the kind of amount that would require me to work like an ox to keep my conscience intact.
I never knew that after sudden death, such a potent motivator could materialize like this.

* * *
This week’s broadcast subtitle for Idol Stock Company was as follows.
Idol Stock Company – Earnings Report
I never expected a talk show to have such a gimmicky subtitle, but it was admittedly impressive naming sense.
The content was no different from typical audition program specials.
They called up the surviving contestants, sat them down, asked questions, and shared anecdotes related to episodes.
However, since it was live, there was no editing magic, and naturally the level of questions was much tamer than usual.
“Oh~ 14 people who eat with a fork! Fork-eating really is the trend!”
So most of the content was this kind of TMI overload.
‘Eating raw, huh.’
I lowered the fork-eating panel I was holding and thought to myself.
Instead of the MC who usually ran the program, a talent frequently seen on talk shows was hosting the broadcast.
With such impressive conversational skills, it was remarkable that he could keep things moving smoothly even with 20 amateurs without any awkward silences.
‘Still, at this rate the viewership is going to tank.’
Every time I thought that, the MC fed the audience new content.
“This segment is~ Random Play Dance!”
It was a famous content format with simple rules—music plays and contestants rush out to dance—but with 20 people scrambling out at once, it had its own chaotic, exhilarating charm.
-Come to me
Come to me
Dazzling, the Paradise by your side
“Whoa!”
“I wanted to try that!”
Cha Yu-jin and several other contestants rushed out and danced to Malang Dalcom’s “New World.”
“Ooh~”
The contestants from October 31 burst into laughter and applauded as they mimicked the choreography from the first team competition, completely absorbed in the moment.
Since the program only used songs that had appeared on the show, it seemed there would be decent demand for seeing contestants from other teams perform their choreography.
‘Not bad.’
The moment I thought that, a familiar melody struck my ears.
-POP! POP!
You’re my popcorn~
“Huh?”
“Oh, this one!”
“Hahahaha!!”
The contestants who had been heading back suddenly burst out and started dancing popcorn.
Since it was such an easy and famous dance, it looked like nearly all twenty people came out.
Which meant everyone except me.
“Park Moon-dae! Park Moon-dae!”
“….”
The MC enthusiastically called me out.
‘I’ll probably be dancing until retirement….’
I trudged out and joined the other contestants.
Since I was already doing it, I might as well dance with full effort.
-POP POP POP!
POP☆CON!
Thanks to the Production Team playing the audio all the way to the ending, I ended up doing the final pose before heading back inside.
The ones who had been sitting in the front row continued chattering as they headed back in, dancing through the very end.
“Man, Park Moon-dae, you’ve really improved!”
“You’re a genius, a real genius.”
“…Let’s stop.”
“Huh~? It’s a compliment, though? Are you embarrassed?”
“You’re so humble, hyung~”
“….”
I was beginning to wonder if putting Big Sae-jin and Gold 2 on the same team had been a mistake.
In any case, the broadcast proceeded smoothly from there.
All twenty contestants, without exception, desperately threw themselves into the content and actively followed the MC’s lead.
“Alright, now let me ask you some questions we received from our viewers.”
“Ooh~”
“Just a moment—let me draw a name….”
The MC drew a ball from a box prepared in the corner of the set and read the name inside.
“Contestant Park Moon-dae!”
“…Yes.”
I never expected to hit a one-in-twenty chance.
I quickly raised my hand and answered.
The MC brought over a tablet PC that Ajusa was using for product placement, held it in his hand, and swiped through the screen.
It seemed he was filtering through questions to find ones suitable for broadcast.
“Among the questions coming in now… ah, this one!”
The MC touched the screen to enlarge the question, then turned it toward the camera and read it aloud.
“So, ‘Is it true that Moon-dae changed his name?'”
“….”
What?

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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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