Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 131

—————

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

—————

131
. A Small Catalyst (3)
So, it all started with that bastard’s “back.”
Like roe packed densely into soy-marinated crab, the sixth episode of Miro Maze was stuffed full of the third round of performances.
The Blue Flare Team that I belonged to was already generating buzz from the moment of its formation.
– Yo, is this combination actually decent?;;;
└ Who knows, I can’t even breathe watching this
Spoilers had already circulated, so everyone knew, but there was still something different about knowing it intellectually versus seeing it with my own eyes.
Jeong Si-u, Kang Ha-jin, Lee Do-ha, Kim Won-ho, Lee Yu-gun, Ju Eun-chan.
Half of them were trainees who had been caught up in real-time controversy tied to Yoo Gun,
and the other half were trainees who had subtly served as background to that same controversy!
[But me saying things like this…]
The Blue Flare combination…
It’s actually pretty good…
You guys, this really seems good
Average height of 180 with those visuals and harnesses
Isn’t this insane
You? Me? Lol you’re visually insane.
– Kim Won-ho’s visuals…? Hmm…are you a Won-ho fan?
└ Ugh what’s with this guy again
– Now I get why people said the stage was insane
But with all the controversy already cleared up, there was no point in rehashing old arguments now.
Most viewers quickly shifted their stance to simply enjoying this visually pleasing combination without worry.
When the highly anticipated “truth game with the leash” aired, this pleasant atmosphere continued.
– What exactly did Nam Da-down teach those kids
– I want to go on a school trip with this guy named Kang, I don’t know about dating or whatever but for 2 nights 3 days he’d definitely make it super fun
Why do they keep adding more rules lol
– Since the kids keep saying leash I see it as a leash too, and honestly if you think about it it is a leash, but now that they keep saying leash it sounds weird, ugh my leash perception is collapsing
The final turn where Yoo Gun’s parents were mentioned was appropriately edited out by the production team.
Following the truth game with only the essence cleanly extracted, the Blue Flare Team’s preparation process was compressed into the entertaining narratives I had intended, piece by piece.
Yoo Gun becoming Do-ha’s dance teacher, and Do-ha becoming Yoo Gun’s rap teacher.
My first meeting with Si-u, where we had a main vocal battle.
Even Eun-chan’s official vocal debut, despite having been thought to be in an ambiguous rap position.
Every trainee except Won-ho was introduced with their own drama.
Won-ho also appeared on broadcast this time, working on the choreography with his own concerns,
but it was revealed in interviews that he had created it together with Yoo Gun and me, so unfortunately he didn’t receive much spotlight.
But that didn’t really matter much.
The stage was absolutely incredible!
Captain Kang
@strongjin
REST
You’re all saying the same thing.
But none of you ever told me that Kang Ha-jin would expose his back and let me go, so you can’t blame me.
I withdraw my statement. Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey.
Commander Kang
@strongjin
REST
…
Ha-rang
@dohajin_luv
Wow, the entire Blue Flare Team right now
All going crazy lol lol lol lol
But seriously, Kang Ha-jin’s back<<
Is it okay for something like this to be in first place?
(Screenshot of the frenzy)
The bold outfit was one thing, but he absolutely nailed the stage.
Watching Kang Ha-jin hit a triple high note while wearing a sheer back outfit, the named accounts that had gone dormant began slowly opening their coffins and raising their shutters again.
And the climax came during the post-performance talk.
– Oh man, Kang Ha-jin's crying
– Yo, Kang… Ha-jin…
I can't provide a reliable translation for this text as it appears to contain corrupted characters, typos, and unclear Korean text that doesn't form coherent words or phrases.
– Ahhhhhhh our Kang-preu absolutely must debut!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After watching his first performance video and being overwhelmed with emotion, Ha-jin—who had become a subway storyteller—began sharing his story.
His interview continued, detailing how he'd trained at his former agency, fallen out of the debut lineup twice, and was on the verge of abandoning his idol dreams.
【Trainee Kang Ha-jin: To be able to meet all of you like this today…】
【Trainee Kang Ha-jin: I can't express how grateful I am.】
【Trainee Kang Ha-jin, tears finally streaming down his face】
As Ha-jin's heartfelt closing remarks brought tears to his eyes, the audience erupted in screams, tearing at their hair.
[So this is why he cried in episode 2]
He'd missed the debut lineup time and again, abandoned his dreams, and barely managed to pull himself together to join Miro,
Only to be forced into Feather Class on his first survival mission (he would've been Wings, but got demoted due to member adjustments), and even placed in Team B while the other top 10 trainees were elsewhere…
Yet despite all that, he never gave up or fell into despair—he took on the role of Team B leader and actually led them to victory…
Thinking about it now, I suddenly feel tears welling up and my chest tightening
I thought he was just some carefree kid from a wealthy family who'd never struggled, someone naturally talented at everything
But that's not it at all, is it? What must Kang Ha-jin have been thinking throughout this survival show?
I'm absolutely making sure Kang Ha-jin debuts, for real
Honestly, if Kang Ha-jin doesn't debut, who will?
– Oh, so I want to kill all the people who said that a kid like that would debut anyway because it was a PD pick or an agency pick. I cry so much when I think about how desperately this survival opportunity must have been for Hajinㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– Honestly, Ha-jin has to debut. No matter how I look at it, there's no one else to be the leader
Kang-preu guys, please… let's really make sure Ha-jin debuts, I'm begging you…
…In that process, slightly—very slightly—some information that didn't quite match reality began to spread.
But setting aside the fact that those tears were nothing more than crocodile tears meant purely to draw aggro….
Since there wasn't actually anything factually wrong, let's just move past it reasonably.
In any case, due to that shocking 'Kang Ha-jin Tears Incident', his scattered fanbase began mobilizing with terrifying momentum.
Beyond communities and social media, they coordinated across every platform, united solely around the goal of 'Kang Ha-jin's debut'.
Before 'my boy's tears', those petty aggro-mongers spewing their nonsense day in and day out could be dealt with through appropriate blocking and timely reports.
The timing was absolutely perfect.
The original poster who had spread manipulated posts about Yoo Gun and consistently left malicious comments was finally caught.
I can't provide a reliable translation for this text. It appears to contain corrupted or garbled characters mixed with Korean text, making it impossible to accurately interpret the intended meaning.
Apparently it was a former Miro employee who got fired
The article said there'd be no leniency and they'd make an example of them
Who was Ukppang again?
└ Y U Gun
– Miro's malicious commenters have it rough, we went through so much of this during the Upia days, so catching these people is overdue
– Comments are being deleted in real time now hahahahahaha hey guys, it’s ugly, it’s ugly.
I wish this opportunity had led to all the other kids who used to bully not just Ukppang but other students getting caught and ending up in prison too…
Once the article broke that the person spreading false information was actually being sued, those hiding behind the shield of anonymity quickly began erasing their traces.
As the activity of those who had been bashing and cursing Ha-jin without reason died down, normal support posts and fan posts about Ha-jin finally began filling in one by one.
And the result of all that was happening right now.
"The ninth survivor advancing to the next mission is… trainee Kang Ha-jin!"
The announcement site for the first elimination and the fourth mission.
Ha-jin barely survived, his name called ninth.
As I moved toward the block where the survivors stood, I let out a quiet sigh of relief.
'If I hadn't gotten that benefit in the third competition and the votes hadn't concentrated at the end, I really could've been eliminated this time.'
Ninth, not eighth.
A sense of danger that this could actually get risky gripped my body tightly.
After finishing a brief comment and taking my seat, I checked the survivors who had arrived before me.
'First place is naturally Seo Tae-hyun. Second place is Jeong Si-u without much surprise….'
Eun-chan, who had always had a strong core fanbase, took third.
Ha-ru, who had been subtly mentioned with a cute, sunshine-like image throughout, placed fifth.
'Yuki seems to have gotten all the votes from Japanese fans.'
'Lee Yu-gun and Lee Do-ha are climbing at an insane pace.'
Apparently a solid core fanbase formed starting from the second mission, because Yu-gun and Do-ha, who were in Feather Class last time, took fourth and sixth place respectively.
Neither of them seemed to have expected those rankings, their mouths just hanging open at Seo Tae-il's request for their comments.
'And seventh place is….'
My gaze turned to the seventh-place trainee.
Won-ho, who despite making the debut cutoff at seventh, didn't look happy at all.
'…He took some heat this time.'
When it aired that Won-ho was Wings Rank during the third competition, complaints about him began erupting in certain circles.
Because of the lawsuit article against malicious commenters, they couldn't openly curse him, so they subtly and insidiously tore him down instead.
– I really like and have a good impression of Number 1, but… honestly, I'm not sure if he'll debut
– No, if Number 1 debuts, what are they even going to have him do? His dancing is outclassed by the others, his singing isn't great, his visuals are average… what, variety show talent?
└ To be honest, if you're number 1, it's not like you're going to be criticized for your looks. But… it's just that there are S-level visuals among the other trainees.
└ Number 1's fans keep saying who else would create the choreography if not him lol
└ Then he should be a choreographer, why is he trying to be a singer, that's ridiculous… and I heard Blue Flare also had Sung-woo and Yupia work on it together
– Honestly, he seems overrated for his actual skill level. Even Sarin said his live vocals were lacking
– No, Shuangjin is also a Feather rank, so what are you talking about Wings… Oh, honestly, it's Eva, guys. We're not going to end this after 3 years, we're an official group.
It seemed Won-ho maintained his 7th place ranking through a combination of rival picks from fans who disliked Yoo Gun, accumulated mission benefits that were fairly substantial, and favorable picks from his easygoing personality.
Ha-jin gazed at Won-ho with worried eyes, thinking that when these results aired, the criticism directed at Won-ho might intensify.
'…Whenever I look at that guy, I'm reminded of my old self, and it just feels off.'
That fear of recognizing one's own limits far too early.
Every time Ha-jin caught a glimpse of that fearful glint in Won-ho's eyes, I felt my own heart ache.
'He's definitely capable of doing so much better. …And he's one of the guys I'd want to debut with.'
Good social skills, positive attitude, sharp instincts.
Most importantly, Won-ho and I worked seamlessly together when it came to actual tasks. Having someone like him in the group would mean I wouldn't have to struggle to do and explain everything on my own.
'I need to accelerate the Kim Won-ho recruitment plan.'
Just like Seo Tae-hyun occasionally displayed "very depressed" statuses, once Won-ho became a colleague, I might be able to better understand what was going on inside that head of his.
With the thought that I'd like to offer him more helpful comfort and encouragement, Ha-jin turned his gaze back and refocused on the recording.
By now, the tenth surviving trainee was announcing his thoughts.
"I, I really, gulp, I really never thought about this, *hiccup*. Um, um, I really, ha, I, starting from the very bottom here, *gulp*, coming up this far, *hiccup*, I really, uh, it's all thanks to Destiny, Destiny, I think…"
'Oh my.'
It was Park Jae-young, whose initial ranking had been dead last (originally 19th, then 18th after Yun Tae-hee dropped out, and automatically 17th after Han Sung-woo withdrew).
Along with the growth narrative he displayed in "Shout to You," Jae-young had impressed viewers during the Harmony Sports Day by showcasing charming maknae chemistry with Ha-ru and Eun-chan.
On top of that, this "I'll Tell You" stage received a historic evaluation as the freshest, most refreshing, and cutest performance in male idol survival show history, and it seemed his ranking surged thanks to receiving solid support from female fans.
"Really, really thank you…!"
"Yes, trainee Park Jae-young. You worked hard. Please return to your seat."
Seo Tae-il warmly embraced the tearful Jae-young and handed him a tissue to comfort him.
When Ha-jin noticed Jae-young sniffling over to his side, I chuckled and naturally opened one arm.
"Come here, Little Jae."
"*sniff*…"
"You did well. Big Jae needs to make it here too."
"*whimper*…"
Jae-young scurried over and nestled into Ha-jin's embrace, sniffling.
Ha-jin gently patted Jae-young's head and then looked toward the remaining trainees who hadn't yet entered the survivor block.
'…I honestly can't be sure about Seok either.'
Now that I'd grown attached to everyone, if the moment truly came when someone had to leave, I knew tears would inevitably fall.
Even if my troublesome little lamb Kyung-ho were eliminated, I'd probably end up with tears streaming down my face.
"Well then. Now we'll announce the first eliminated trainee among the remaining seven."
This is really something I can't do.
Ha-jin scrunched up his nose, which was already stinging, and focused on Tae-il's announcement.

—————

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

—————