Debut or Die - Chapter 85

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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 85
[Is everyone connected?]
[Looks like notifications are still going out.]
The broadcast was merely experiencing a delay, but the Testa members, inexperienced with live streaming, whispered to each other while watching the screen.
Then Cha Yu-jin suddenly brightened and exclaimed.
[Oh, the numbers are coming in!]
[Ah!]
[Hello everyone~]
Watching the real-time comments flood in instantly, the Testa members grinned widely, bowed their heads, and waved their hands.
“Hi… hello!”
The college student watching Park Moon-dae bow respectfully on screen found herself waving back without thinking.
The puppy lying on the bed looked at her with an expression that said it had seen every strange thing imaginable, but this wasn’t the time to worry about that.
‘I couldn’t go to the fan meeting, so I have to watch this W live at least…!’
Unlike her friend Home Ma, she had planned to pursue graduate school after graduating in the fall and simply couldn’t find time at the end of June. As a result, she had tearfully sent off the fan meeting.
‘I even thought about breaking my savings account….’
Her friend had tried to comfort her over text as she cried about having money but being unable to spend it, yet her heart still ached. It was because she had heard far too many details about what Park Moon-dae had done at the fan meeting….
‘When he had blonde hair… I should have gone then.’
She murmured that she wanted to see him in person for the first time with blonde hair, then focused on the screen. It was sad self-rationalization….
[The reason we’re greeting you all through W live today is… we’re finally announcing the official name for our fans.]
[Woooow!]
At Ryu Chung-woo’s words, Testa enthusiastically applauded and responded.
Park Moon-dae was clapping too, but because he wasn’t rolling up his generously wide sleeves, the fabric fluttered and flapped.
“So cute…!”
The puppy, thinking she was talking about itself, perked up its ears, but soon realized otherwise and turned away with a sullen expression.
Comments were scrolling rapidly across the screen.
-Love you!
-Congratulations on 1st place, guys.
-MARRY ME PLEASE
-♡♡♡♡
-It’s my birthday today, so please call me by my nameㅠㅠ
-Let’s make Testa’s next album a huge hit!
Since it was still the very beginning, comments were mostly pouring in haphazardly.
Testa seemed eager to read some, but they were scrolling too fast to read properly, so they just smiled brightly instead. At least they could confirm there were plenty of hearts.
[Nice to meet you all~]
[We’ve missed you so much~ What are you all doing? It’s 3 PM on the weekend, the perfect time for a snack~]
[I want a snack!]
Before Cha Yu-jin could even finish speaking, the staff behind the smartphone camera signaled, ‘I’ll bring you something, so please stick to the opening script.’
It seemed the staff was anxious that the rookie, doing W live for the first time, might go off-script during the opening.
At that sight—as if they were about to dangle a carrot any moment—the members naturally soothed Cha Yu-jin and pulled him back.
[Haha, shall we check what we’ve prepared first?]
[Yes!]
As Testa stepped back from the camera, the table set up behind them came into view. The white cloth-covered table was lumpy and uneven—clearly something was hidden beneath it.
-What’s on the table?
-Is it an album?
-We’re cheering for you from Indonesia
Haha, all you guys are so cute!
-You’ve all gotten uglier
-Is Eugene hungry?ㅠㅠ
The comment section was flooded with questions, personal inquiries, and hateful remarks all mixed together, but fortunately Testa was positioned far enough from the screen that they couldn’t read them.
Since anyone could post, the live comments were absolute chaos.
The college student ground her teeth in frustration.
‘I need to report all these trolls…!’
They appeared so quickly that she could barely keep up with them.
Praying that Moon-dae would remain at a distance where he couldn’t see the comments, she refocused on Testa on the screen.
[What we’re introducing today is… ta-da! Light stick designs that we drew ourselves!]
[Wow!]
As the first white cloth was lifted from the table, panels with each member’s name written on them were stacked underneath.
The members clapped excitedly and each took their own named panel.
[We each made one, and today with you all as witnesses, we plan to discuss and select one of these through consensus!]
[We really put a lot of effort into them!]
[We haven’t even seen each other’s designs yet.]
[First reveal!]
“….”
She pressed her lips together firmly.
Moon-dae holding his panel with both hands was adorable. But her insides were burning with frustration.
‘The Agency people really don’t listen…!’
She’d told them not to have fans vote, yet they’d made Testa vote among themselves instead—it was absurd.
‘I told them if the kids want to do something like this, you should collect their input and then select the design yourselves…!’
Being new to idol fandom, she felt her mind spinning at this frustrating situation.
Could it be that even the title track was created this way—with the kids doing the work—and that’s why the concept creation announcement came out in Reality Episode 2? Testa didn’t actually challenge themselves?
A strong suspicion flashed through her mind.
But since Moon-dae was moving in real-time right before her eyes, the college student’s gaze returned to him.
[So, shall we reveal each of our designs one by one and hear the explanations?]
[Sounds good!]
[Then starting from the right~]
Ryu Chung-woo, sitting on the far right, looked slightly embarrassed, but quickly peeled off the tape and unveiled his design.
And what was inside was… a sphere drawn with mysterious lines.
[…?]
[…?!]
[Hyung, is that… a light stick?]
[Pfft.]
Several members caught sight of the sketch and buried their faces in their knees, desperately stifling their laughter.
Ryu Chung-woo couldn’t hold back either—he burst out laughing.
[Haha, I’m not very good at drawing. Um, I was thinking—what if we made a round cheering tool like this, with grooves following the shape of fingers, so it’s easy to grab and wave above your head?]
[Ooh.]
[So instead of a stick shape, it’s round like a baseball!]
[It’ll look pretty if the circle is shiny.]
Though the drawing itself was mediocre, everyone suppressed their laughter and nodded, praising the presentation.
Testa continued the discussion by pinpointing the best aspects of each member’s design and offering compliments.
This wasn’t the kind of project where personal opinions had to be reflected—as long as the final product looked good, that was all that mattered.
[Sun Ah-hyun’s drawing looks pretty, like a magic wand.]
[Th-thank you.]
[We’re… magical boys, so… using a magic wand as a cheering tool…? That actually makes sense!]
[There’s internal consistency!]
Of course, arguments lacking any semblance of realism were naturally dismissed.
[The purpose of a cheering tool is to create another layer of enjoyment for our fans watching the Stage, so what if it made a maracas sound when shaken?]
[That’s an interesting idea.]
[But Kim Rae-bin, wouldn’t that drown out our voices?]
[Oh no.]
Kim Rae-bin sank three minutes into his presentation.
hahahahahaha
-Ravin, it’s okay.
-So cuteㅠㅠ
-Any cheering tool is fine ♡
-so cute
Though occasional comments like ‘eng plz’ or ‘lol’ popped up, most viewers watching were smiling warmly at the screen.
The university student was no exception. She’d somehow ended up cradling the puppy while watching, grinning to herself.
‘Now it’s Park Moon-dae’s turn!’
[So… Park Moon-dae’s is…… ooh?]
Park Moon-dae on screen quietly peeled off the tape, then turned his sketch toward the camera.
Two imposing black sticks were drawn on it.
That much was fine. There were plenty of cheering tools in that style.
The problem was the evidence of attempted additions scattered around those sticks.
All of them were drawn so terribly that they resembled some grotesque amoeba.
[…??]
And Park Moon-dae opened his mouth with the expression of someone who’d abandoned all hope.
[…That’s how it turned out.]
Explosive laughter instantly consumed the audio.
[Pfahahaha!!]
[Park Moon-dae’s drawing has the most impact!]
[You’re even worse at drawing than Ryu Chung-woo!]
The members, who had forgotten the concept of using formal speech, laughed like madmen while staring at the drawing. Even Sun Ah-hyun was biting back laughter, his face flushed crimson.
And the graduate student burst out laughing too. It was half amusement, half affection.
‘Park Moon-dae really can’t draw, huh…!’
But the traces of his earnest effort were so endearing that my heart felt like it would burst!
[Ah, I’m sorry for laughing!]
[Right, we should hear Park Moon-dae’s explanation too!]
[…Well, it’s fine.]
Park Moon-dae on screen cleared his throat a few times, then began explaining point by point while gesturing at the drawing.
[So first… the outer appearance looks like a baseball bat.]
[Mm-hmm.]
[If you twist and pull out the handle part, I’d like a magic wand to come out from inside.]
[…!!]
[That’s pretty novel!]
[That’s good!]
Everyone started getting excited, remembering the magic sword toys they’d played with as children.
[Then what if we use Sun Ah-hyun’s design for our magic wand?]
[Let’s put Ryu Chung-woo’s circle in the middle!]
[Make the bat separation work with one touch!]
The manufacturing cost was skyrocketing absurdly, but nobody cared. As a result, something like an ultra-deluxe magic toy was being created.
Haha! Hey guys!
-Stop…let’s stopㅠㅠㅋㅋㅋ
-Seriously
What the heck is that? lol
-So we transform with that and cheer?
Haha, if you guys like it, then what can I do!
Testa even brought pens from off-camera and frantically sketched new cheering batons with various added elements among themselves.
In the process, Park Moon-dae’s drawing being introduced naturally started getting compared.
[Wait, so this was the magic wand, Park Moon-dae?]
[…Yes.]
Big Sae-jin burst out laughing again at the shriveled pretzel-like shape.
Park Moon-dae eventually covered his face with one hand, then pushed his drawing to the edge of the table.
“Ugh….”
The sight was so pitiful and adorable that the prospective graduate student finally started leaving real-time comments. It wasn’t just her—the comments were flooding in so heavily the traffic was lagging.
-ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠMondae is cute
-Marry me
Hahaha, you gotta sweet-talk Moonday, bro.
-Is this what love is
-(heart emoji)
Like an earthworm lolololol
-Do something other than drawing
-I love you!!!!
Foreign languages scattered throughout the comments as well.
An overwhelming flood of comments poured in, so numerous it was impossible to make sense of them all.
Meanwhile, the screen displayed the newly completed light stick design that had finally been finished after all the back-and-forth.
[Ta-da!]
[Light stick concept design, decided!]
[Woooow!!]
It was the crystallization of what seemed like an overwhelming cost increase the moment the production team received it, but it looked decent.
It was thanks to carefully selecting only the tasteful suggestions.
By the way, Park Moon-dae took his own drawing back after the members repeatedly said “it’s fine.”
Still, with the light stick design completed, a small smile played across Park Moon-dae’s face as he applauded.
‘…Black hair looks good too.’
Whether black or blonde hair, the college student ultimately admitted you really had to see it in person….
The members on screen meanwhile swept their drawings downward to organize them, then rushed over to the front of the table where white cloth still covered part of it.
[Well then, now comes the long-awaited announcement.]
[It’s the fandom name reveal!]
The members, delighted that they’d decided this together as well, reached their hands toward the cloth with slightly nervous expressions.
[Drum roll!]
[Reveal!]
And together they lifted the cloth and threw it back.
“…??”

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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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