Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 148
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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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148
. 99%
Lee Do-ha’s fans had a nickname for themselves.
‘The Living Buddha.’
Whether it was because their temperament mirrored their favorite idol, they never seemed to get angry at anything. They never picked fights with other fandoms, and when other fandoms came at them, they simply remained silent.
This disposition had developed due to multiple overlapping factors, which could be explained most simply as follows.
First of all, your skills are insane, so your debut is guaranteed (You’re not going to debut someone who can do their own producing as a main rapper? lol)
-Even if he doesn’t debut here, he can pursue a solo rap career (plenty of fans were actually chanting prayers for him to drop out instead)
-Lee Do-ha’s personality means there are no trainees he’s particularly close with (no allied fandoms to band together and shield him (全無))
-Lee Do-ha can’t dance, and they know it too (better to keep quiet and endure until the survival ends than risk getting hit for unnecessary attention-seeking)
For these reasons, they had mastered the art of laughing everything off. Rather than waste time writing one more comment online to argue, they spent money voting. The evidence of their quiet strength had been crystal clear at the first elimination ceremony.
Hadn’t Lee Do-ha secured 6th place despite having overwhelmingly more mentions than other trainees?
Considering that voting was 7 picks and 2 picks until the first elimination ceremony, and that Lee Do-ha hadn’t received any benefits outside of round 3, it was truly a remarkable result.
As long as he stayed quiet, half his debut was already guaranteed.
Which meant that Lee Do-ha’s fans raising their voices at this moment was truly exceptional, and simultaneously signified that they had reached a point where they simply could not stay silent any longer.
[We are bringing to light the inconsiderate audience behavior that occurred at the Miro Maze guerrilla concert]
At a point just before the second elimination ceremony for final advancement.
Lee Do-ha’s fans publicized what had happened at the guerrilla concert.
So-called famous fans took the lead, and posts uploaded simultaneously to multiple communities spread rapidly. Some argued that publicizing this when everything was already over was pointless, but Lee Do-ha’s fans, unusually combative, demanded that other trainees’ fandoms take a stance on this issue.
There was only one reason they had become this fired up.
Park Jang-mi
🔒 @roxeeey
Whatever else, you shouldn’t have touched the stage
The reason was that the ‘stage’—the pride of Lee Do-ha’s fans and the very foundation of their fandom—had been ruined.
[How much were the fans looking forward to this stage]
When the team was announced, everyone was going crazy saying this was definitely going to be a rap stage
Miro Maze doesn’t have any concept evaluations or anything like that, so I didn’t expect to see a rapper unit stage that only raps like this… I happened to hear that rap position trainees gathered together before the finals, so the dope around me was really excited ㅠㅠ
But before they even started, other fans weren’t even watching the team mission properly, just joking about failure from the beginning, and saying harsh things to the kids in person and really…I think the fans had every right to publicize this.
I was there in person, and honestly, it was a complete loss of humanity. They were spouting off, saying it wasn’t the player they were cheering for, talking trash about the Team mission failing…
– Honestly, the fans not getting angry until now was like being a saint, I’m not even a fan but I was always worried when the mocking posts about Do-ha got too severe
I wasn’t part of the LBW Team, but even I was shocked by this.
Someone yelled at AH to come down
That’s a term used in other communities to mock and ridicule it along with slurs, they say.
– Seriously, these kids haven’t even debuted yet and they already have antis attached? So annoying;
└ It seems like it was even more like this before debut.
Because of this, Won-ho seemed to mess up his stage performance too, and now they’re criticizing him again for messing up there lol
– If you’re being real, shouldn’t you publicize this too???
└ Kim Won-ho isn’t popular so nobody cares
└ Above comment, you reported ㅇㅇ and there is also a story about ㅇㅎ in public discussion, so please tell me if you know^^
As time passed, the situation grew bigger and bigger.
The dating rumors had spread far and wide, nearly destroying Shin Kyung-ho’s domestic fanbase. Excluding Jayden, who had built his foundation on overseas fans from the start, Lee Do-ha’s fanbase led the charge in the ‘Loving You Incident,’ with Lee Yu-gun’s fanbase providing support, and now Kim Won-ho’s fanbase had joined the fray.
The more the Loving You Team’s stage views climbed, the louder the voices grew regarding this guerrilla concert debacle. At this point, it seemed there were more people outside of Destiny weighing in on the issue than those within it.
It was absolute chaos—a complete mess.
“…What?”
And there, standing at the center of this K-pop pandemonium, was our protagonist: Kang Ha-jin.
As he slowly monitored the situation, he stumbled upon an unexpected post.
【HOT! ‖ Kang Ha-jin’s statement from Miro Maze currently being re-evaluated.jpg (1,748)】
【HOT! ‖ Aren’t you ashamed of the kids who criticized Kang Ha-jin haha? (431)】
【HOT! ‖ Kang Ha-jin’s fanbase releases an official statement (2,001)】
“Why am I getting such a positive response…?”
Ha-jin blinked blankly at the situation he couldn’t comprehend.
* * *
Now, if we rewind the timeline a bit from this point.
Before the Loving You Team’s endless controversy erupted, Ha-jin’s statement had been generating subtle ripples with a quiet buildup.
[[Maple] I think my favorite’s anti-fans are showing up lately]
He’s openly scolding fans at an official event when this is already such a critical time for him…
– What was the context?
– This post has been coming up since yesterday, is it a buildup?
– Is he out of his mind?
[But what was that last statement from KHJ?]
Why did he suddenly talk about being proud and all that to his fans??
I watched the video and he said it with a serious expression, what happened?
– No one called him out, but he just exploded on his own
– He’s always been obsessed with his image anyway
– That guy barely scraped by in 9th place with no popularity, yet he’s always running his mouth like this
“Right lol, that punk would’ve been eliminated long ago if it wasn’t for the fans voting for him, and now he’s getting roasted by those same fans lol, looks like our disciplinarian has arrived”
Anyway, that person was always just a public pick with no core skills, so they probably won’t debut lolol It’d be funny if they put on that whole show and then can’t debut because of one thing they said lolol
Kim Mak-hwi
@kimmakhiii
This trainee is crazy for wanting to pick fights with fans even before debut.
(A video with only part of Ha-jin’s final remarks cut out)
(A screenshot with Ha-jin’s remarks written out as text)
(A photo of Ha-jin squinting in the sunlight)
(A screenshot making it look like Ha-jin was serious)
281 shares 437 quotes
The related search term #KangHajinAntifen quietly began to take root.
But the shockwave wasn’t that significant.
Ha-jin’s statement had been walking an ambiguous line in terms of severity.
[Wait, I watched KHJ’s video and why is this an issue?]
He just asked to be a fan he could be proud of…what’s the problem?
– What’s got you feeling guilty?
– They keep saying something about fighting with fans, but honestly I’m not sure what they mean. I don’t think I’ve seen any actual anti-fans
– Why does their fandom always have so much to say… I’m exhausted just reading it
└ There seem to be a lot of trolls writing these posts right now. In places where Kang Ha-jin fans actually gather, there’s barely any reaction
Kang Dae-jang
@strongjin
Here’s what I think
To become a proud member of Kang-preu
I vote for Ha-jin once a day
At the cafe where I work, I only play Miro Maze’s music
I keep up with my assignments without falling behind
When Ha-jin debuts, I’ll go to the fan sign
And I’ll be able to share the story of how I got a job
I want to become a respectable working adult.
Captain, please…
What do you think about the controversy over Ha-jin’s recent comments? Honestly, I think it was a careless remark… I don’t really understand why Ha-jin would say something like that. Why would he do that? The fans were already feeling discouraged…
Quote 45
As the named accounts skillfully controlled the narrative and the general public refused to follow suit, the controversial posts about Ha-jin’s remarks gradually scrolled down and disappeared from view.
But that didn’t mean there were no problems. The issue wasn’t so much Ha-jin’s statement itself, but rather the atmosphere within the fandom.
Ha-jin’s fanbase had been beaten down so badly, shattered into pieces, only to experience a miraculous revival through Ha-jin’s tearful comments in Round 3, barely managing to unite again. Yet when Ha-jin finished with a disappointing 9th place, everyone let loose and threw themselves into voting and promotional activities, worrying about Ha-jin’s debut more than Ha-jin himself. It was at this exact moment that they heard their favorite’s subtle remarks.
Those delicate words were enough to touch a nerve with some of them.
Cracks began to form in the tightly bound solidarity.
[Kang-preu members are about to quit]
If you’ve never been a fan, you wouldn’t understand…
Even when people grab you by the hair and curse you out everywhere, even when chaos erupts, fans endure it all with nothing but their devotion. But when your favorite says something like that, it’s enough to cause disillusionment
As someone who quit fandom because of things like this, Kang Ha-jin definitely misspoke. He’s in a situation where he should be bowing to his fans, not the other way around
– Just post your voting proof and stop writing, kid
– So, what kind of wisecracks hahaha did he say something like you shouldn’t live like that? Ah, it’s ridiculous when you really look at it.
– I’m a Kang-preu member too and I’m genuinely disappointed. If people want to quit, let them quit. We don’t need glass-hearted fans who only talk about supporting Ha-jin without actually voting
– I’m not discouraged from being a fan at all. Why do you keep trying to make me quit vicariously?
The fandom division emerging before the second combined audition was an extremely critical situation.
At this moment when they needed one decisive move to unite, the ‘Loving You incident’ erupted.
As people’s attention and gaze gradually shifted toward the Loving You Team, Ha-jin’s fanbase seized the opportunity to catch their breath and worked hard to discipline themselves and bond more tightly together.
#KangHajinAnti and #LovingYouTeamPublicization had similar undertones, but were still being recognized as separate incidents.
Until one exposé post was uploaded.
LovingYouPublicization
@ravvingyouogon
@knggirir
@xioxio
@wltanftod
@xree_jin
@llioppop
#Exposé
At the Miro Maze guerrilla concert
Screaming at Ha-jin to come down
Instigating mission failure against the Loving You Team
The group that kept saying their stage was boring and spouting nonsense
(video)
(video)
619 shares 6,888 quotes
Someone had exposed the “perpetrators.”
The fury of the victimized trainee fandoms, which had nowhere to direct their anger, converged in one place.
When videos emerged of those hiding behind the guise of “audience members,” mocking and snickering at the trainees, people began to explode with rage.
But the exposé did not end there.
Loving You Public Statement
@ravvingyouogon
#Exposé
Posting after receiving additional reports
Using Shin Kyung-ho’s seal as a shield
Sending DMs to Destiny and Kang-preu members, hurling insults
Reportedly holding Kyung-ho’s slogans at the venue
Confirmed to actually be from Kang-preu
(secret chat screenshot)
(open chat screenshot)
2,320 shares 4,725 quotes
The “shameful” face of the fandoms had finally been revealed.
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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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