Debut or Die - Chapter 79

—————

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 79
After Testa’s fan sign event sparked a frenzy across social media, Park Moon-dae’s fans found themselves experiencing Ajusa PTSD all over again as malicious accounts suddenly swarmed in droves.
-What the hell is going on?
-They’re rushing in like they’ve completely lost their minds.. ugh
-Feels like they coordinated this from somewhere
The antis scattered throughout various online communities, weaving subtly distorted logic in their attempts to sway public opinion against Park Moon-dae.
Their main arguments boiled down to: ‘How selfish, preparing gifts separately just for himself’, ‘Pathetic value-for-money miracle with just lollipops’, and ‘Pointless attention-seeking using fan sign items’.
Of course, these arguments barely gained traction anywhere legitimate, but defending against them was itself an exhausting endeavor.
The moment fans responded emotionally, critics would seize upon any opening.
-What is this on such a good day
-I just want to wrap this up and move on to the next fan sign…
-I’m tired of this every time, seriously
Just before exhaustion could replace bewilderment.
An alert came through on Testa’s account.
========================
Hello everyone
I’m Moon-dae (puppy emoticon)
This is today’s settlement (photo)
========================
The attached images were selfies of Park Moon-dae wearing each fan sign item separately, one by one. Judging from the background, it looked like he was in a car.
But that wasn’t all.
More alerts immediately followed.
========================
There’s more (photo)
========================
Similar concept photos from the other members came pouring in one after another.
They swapped the fan sign items they’d each received, adding variety to the shots. The photos were all so well-composed and professionally taken that it was almost bewildering.
-??
-Moon-dae?
-Wait, what is this suddenly…
Before the fandom could even react to this sudden development, another post went up.
========================
Next batter is #Barona! (photo)
p.s. We’re doing all 7 members~ Please look forward to it♡
========================
The post featured a selfie of Big Sae-jin with his chin tilted in a V-sign, with Park Moon-dae opening a package in the background.
Inside the package, you could clearly see small packages of colorful lollipops.
-Whoa
-Insane
That’s right. Park Moon-dae had never planned this alone from the start.
Testa’s fanbase was still unified around individual fan groups, so they were cautious about me holding an event alone.
And of course, the first person I approached was Big Sae-jin, who brimmed with confidence in fan sign events.
The fans ignited instantly.
-Is the selfie bomb real? Drop more!
-It reminds me of the doll mask event during Azusa. Our kids are really good kids… I love you!!
-Look at this trick of taking care of fans who couldn’t come to the event too. This is what it means to be an idol who survived Ajusa.
-You should have bought 120 copies, you should have bought them.
And Park Moon-dae’s fans felt at ease.
Now they could shut down any nonsense that came their way.
-I don’t like that Park Moon-dae is doing this alone
└Yeah, tomorrow Big Sae-jin will do it~ We planned it as a relay with everyone! Doesn’t it feel great seeing how much our Testa fans love each other?♡ (photo)
-What’s that;; If you do that at a fan sign, people who brought items would lose motivation. It’s just piling up in my head..
└Haha I gave them time to put them on one by one and take pictures! And you uploaded a separate photo of each item? Even the other members are watching together ㅠㅠ? (link)
With that, the comments either quietly disappeared or turned into ‘deleted comments’.
-Ah, refreshing
-Moon-dae, give us another bowl of refreshment!! (splash!)
“Shut up and come down, ah that was so fun lol”
-Moon-dae is a genius, no rebuttals accepted
-Moon-dae must report his survival with selfies every day, and if he doesn’t post, he violates some law anyway
The fans ran excitedly through the next day’s fan sign event, then slept soundly with satisfied hearts.
Big Sae-jin gave me a bubble toy lolol
-The fan sign venue suddenly became a magical boy set
-It’s so cute. After the candy, Keunse also chose the one that looked like him ㅠㅠ (photo)
And within that festival-like atmosphere, enormous conflict descended upon many.
The Agency announced additional fan sign schedules, striking while the iron was hot.
-Next fan sign schedule (link)
└Scheduling after the initial sales period ends? The Agency really doesn’t know anything… This is maddening
-Oh, it’s the fan sign weekend. I really want to go.
-Isn’t a fan sign something you have to go to at least once?
-I think the next album will have higher cuts. Should I break my savings account now or not?
No one yet knew that soon, with the additional fan sign cut rising to 180 copies, both fan singers and everyone else would be astonished.

* * *
Bump, bump.
The jostling motion jolted me awake. I heard muffled voices from the front.
“…Hmm, have we arrived?”
“Still a bit longer.”
“I see….”
Through the fog of sleep, I caught fragments of Ryu Chung-woo and the Manager’s conversation.
‘…Right.’
We were in transit.
Afraid that if I stopped thinking, I’d drift back to sleep, I stirred and reached for my phone.
The modern person’s best friend—I powered it on.
[Fri AM 4:35]
‘We’ve been on the road for… two and a half hours.’
This schedule was truly something else. I rubbed my groggy face.
‘I was relieved there was no pre-recording this week, and now we’re shooting a variety show at dawn.’
I never imagined we’d have to go all the way to Gyeongsangdo. Because of that, I hadn’t even touched the settlement from yesterday’s fan signing event.
‘I should probably post something.’
I logged into my Testa account on my phone and hesitated for a moment before uploading a few group photos I’d taken at the Dormitory.
========================
It’s Moon-dae here 🐶
Testa matched pajamas. (photo)
========================
‘…Hmm. Is this too much?’
Now that I’d posted it, I wondered if anyone really cared about other people’s pajamas anyway.
While many fans asked idols to share TMI, they often felt disappointed once the information was revealed, so I had to choose what to share carefully.
‘I’ll adjust my approach based on the response.’
The moment I finished uploading, I heard movement beside me.
“Mmm….”
Sun Ah-hyun opened his eyes groggily, and when our gazes met—me now fully awake—he startled.
“…! Have we, have we arrived?”
“No.”
“Oh….”
“Go back to sleep.”
After saying that, I closed my eyes again too.
We still had two hours before arrival, so I wanted to rest a bit more. Besides, knowing his personality, he wouldn’t be able to sleep if the person next to him was awake.
“….”
But the moment I shut my eyes and opened them again, we’d already reached our destination. Exhaustion had devoured time.
And something extraordinary was waiting for us.
“You don’t know?”
“That’s right. Your reaction is important when you find out what job you’ll be experiencing for the day.”
“Yes, understood~”
Thanks to the Manager stepping in and taking charge, I had no choice but to put on the blindfold. He made sure it was thoroughly secured so we couldn’t see anything outside.
It wasn’t a big deal, but putting blindfolds on guys who were already drowsy made some of them look completely out of it.
Cha Yu-jin, who had been on the verge of dozing off, finally snapped awake when his side got poked.
“Ugh…. Ow!”
“Come on, let’s go!”
We shuffled along following the Production Team’s guidance.
“Now, please remove your blindfolds~”
“Yes!”
And the sight that greeted us after removing the blindfolds was….
A lake and an open field.
“…??”
‘What is this.’
Of course, I wasn’t the only one confused.
“…Are you awake over there?”
“Where is this place?”
Before anyone could say anything else, a portable banner appeared in front of Testa, carried by the staff.
[Congratulations! National Stock ★Testa★ Visit!]
[Korean Birds Welcome You!]
[at Junam Reservoir]
A colorful rainbow-hued bird illustration fluttered in the breeze.
“…?!”
The underlined, bright sans-serif font gleamed.
“…??”
When I turned my head, Lee Sae-jin was also staring at the banner with her mouth open. She looked unable to process the situation.
And before anyone could say anything, a middle-aged man with a kind expression appeared with a chuckle.
“Hello, everyone~ I’m Kim Jung-won, an ornithologist!”
“Ah, hello!”
“Hello!”
Our survival show filming experience came in handy—everyone snapped to attention and bowed enthusiastically.
‘…The drowsiness is gone.’
But their faces still showed they didn’t understand the situation.
The ornithologist chuckled and offered his hand for a handshake.
“I heard you all are doing a bird researcher experience here today~”
“Pardon? Yes. We’re doing a one-day job experience….”
“Yes, yes. That’s right~ Let’s experience the basic work of an ornithologist together today~”
“Bird research…?!”
When this unexpected profession was revealed, everyone panicked without exception. But the ornithologist didn’t seem to mind.
“Ah, what charming friends. Today, we’ll have a time to observe those friends in more detail~”
“Um….”
“We’re going to film migratory birds!”
“Huh.”
In an instant, cameras were distributed. Testa only came to their senses after accepting the items the staff members handed out in perfect unison, dragging the banner with them.
“Ah, ah!”
“Birds are great, right!”
“We’ll do our best!”
The ornithologist smiled contentedly.
“Haha! You young folks have such great energy~”
“Hahaha!”
Finally, warm laughter erupted. Sun Ah-hyun, seeming relieved, approached me with a slightly hopeful expression.
“This… this is going to be fun, right…?”
“Right. Moon-dae, you’re good at taking photos anyway!”
“….”
These guys… naturally, they had no idea.
But after checking the camera, I barely managed to change my response.
“…It’ll be rewarding.”
“Haha, that’s right!”
Yeah. Really, it’ll be nothing but rewarding….
I recalled a tearful story I’d heard from a senior in some club whose name I couldn’t even remember.
-Damn it, if you want to shoot migratory birds, it’s gotta be winter.
-In summer… there aren’t many migratory bird habitats anyway.
-And it’s so hot you feel like you’re dying….
“….”
I was already worried whether these guys could appear on the afternoon music show with their minds intact.
“Hahaha! Then let’s head out!”
“Yes!”
The ornithologist’s laughter gradually sounded like a professor capturing a master’s student. Clueless undergrads like the Testa members trailed after the researcher obediently.
“Wow, the weather is nice!”
“The sun rises early now, so it’s blazing.”
Listening to the chatter of guys who would soon be desperately craving shade, I moved forward in silence.
And kept moving.
…kept moving.
“…?”
Ryu Chung-woo stepped up among the confused members as the endless march continued.
“Teacher?”
“Yes?”
“Um, how much further do we need to go?”
The ornithologist smiled brightly.
“Haha! We have to walk until we see the migratory birds!”
“…!”
“Ah~ I wonder when we might see one?”
Big Sae-jin jumped in quickly. The ornithologist waved his hand dismissively with a chuckle.
“Hehe~ If I knew that, I’d be divine~”
“…!!”
Just as the others began to sense the awkward shift in atmosphere, Big Sae-jin hastily opened his mouth again.
“Of course, right~? Still, with the heavens’ blessing and a bit of luck, hopefully we’ll spot one soon~ Haha! Right?”
It was a signal—don’t kill the mood on a variety show, just make it funny.
“Ahahaha!”
“You’re absolutely right.”
The atmosphere was forcibly restored to warmth. And the march continued.
Trudge, trudge.
Endless reservoir and verdant landscape stretched on. At this rate, it felt less like a variety show and more like an immersive nature documentary.
Fortunately, Big Sae-jin kept engaging the ornithologist in conversation, extracting content. His smooth manner happened to suit the elderly man’s taste perfectly, so the dialogue flowed well.
“So sparrows become quite lean and scrawny in summer, you see~”
“Ah~ Then the photos we usually see on the Internet must not be from summer!”
Thanks to him, I could get by with just reactions while we moved.
‘He’s really earning his keep…’
But no matter what was said, the conversation kept circling back to sparrows, so I had no idea what kind of footage would actually make it to air.
And at some point.
The ornithologist raised his arm.
“See that willow tree over there? There’s a bird!”
“Ooh!”
“Wow!”
Our faces brightened instantly at the thought that the march had finally ended. Cha Yu-jin looked ready to dash straight toward it.
“Whoa, you can’t get too close! The birds will run away!”
“Oh, yes…”
As Cha Yu-jin cautiously began walking again, the ornithologist grinned and grabbed his shoulder.
“Now, let’s move while crouching~”
“…”
A moment later.
Everyone began moving toward the water’s edge in a duck walk.
‘What kind of boot camp experience is this?’
Now I understood why the first episode of this show flopped.

—————

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

—————