I’m Debuting With The Bias I Killed - Chapter 19

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

Episode 19
After being cut from the Debut Group, the first thing I checked was my Danger Rating.
[Danger Rating: 83% (-)]
Yama clearly took pity on me. It was a blessing in disguise.
“……I’m alive.”
I leaned my back against the hallway wall and exhaled.
Tap.
Someone gave my shoulder a light pat.
“You okay?”
I turned around, startled, and found Han Sang-yoon.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
Han Sang-yoon offered a few words of encouragement.
“You really did well this time—”
No wonder he earned the nickname “born-to-be leader” among the fans. Even checking on a nobody trainee like me.
“It’s a shame, but I’ll make it back up.”
“That’s right.”
Tap. Our fists bumped lightly.
‘He greeted me the same way at the fan meet-and-greet.’
It felt strange.
After Han Sang-yoon left, a familiar voice drifted over.
“See, Jae-sung really deserves to go in.”
“The justice system works, doesn’t it?”
The same crowd that had celebrated Go Jae-sung with exaggerated reactions when he was announced as Code 4.
“Luck doesn’t last long, you know?”
Clearly meant for me to hear.
‘Ugh.’
Suddenly I felt how young they still were.
‘Childish. So childish.’
“Come on, guys. Don’t be like that.”
Go Jae-sung walked over with a smile.
“You did well anyway.”
That infuriating smirk was back.
‘Stay calm.’
“Your performance today was solid.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Honestly, I thought you’d be Code 5.”
A fake consolation. But his intentions were so transparent it was almost funny.
“I’ll do better in the next mission.”
Go Jae-sung added with pointed meaning.
“That is, if your dancing improves by then?”
A clear provocation.
But I just nodded. It was true—I did need to get better at dancing.
“Yeah, absolutely.”
My cheerful answer made his expression harden.
‘That’s not the reaction you wanted, is it?’
“But if you want to debut too……”
This time, I stepped closer.
“You’d better build up some strength.”
“……?”
“You were ripping off that Name Tag pretty hard.”
Go Jae-sung let out a hollow laugh.
This time I turned away first. The fact that I didn’t throw a punch deserves credit. Good job, Yu Seong-woo.
I found a corner of the Practice Room and pulled out my notebook.
It was time to strategize for the next mission.
* * *
Six in the morning, before the sun had even risen.
[Keep on moving
Never stop
Break it
Open this door
The only Code
Boys Code!]
The wake-up song shook the entire Dormitory, and the trainees screamed.
“Ugh, ah…!”
“What? What time is it…?”
From the lower bunk, I heard Ji Dong-seok tumble out of bed.
Thud!
“Ahhh!”
“It’s six in the morning…?”
Since we’d been fixed on eight o’clock wake-ups until now, everyone was bewildered by this sudden assault.
I, on the other hand, had already washed up and gotten ready.
‘Here we go.’
“What… you’re already done?”
Instead of answering, I pulled my shoelaces tight. I’d need to sprint now.
Kang Se-jun’s familiar voice followed.
[All trainees, please gather at the Studio on the first floor immediately. The trainee who arrives first will receive…]
Screech—
“Holy crap.”
‘Get ready…’
[A hidden prize!]
‘Boom!’
I bolted toward the first floor. And sure enough, it looked like a zombie movie set. Doors burst open everywhere, trainees spilled out, and they chased after me…
Most of the trainees probably had their eyes on the hidden prize.
But that’s a red herring. The real point of this event isn’t the prize.
‘Screen time.’
Raw footage, yes—but I can’t show something too raw, and I can’t look too polished either.
So just before I left, I grabbed one thing.
The Color Lip Balm Yu Seong-ah had forced into my hands.
[Hey, your lips look lifeless—you look like a ghost. And you’re already pale enough as it is.]
‘Sister’s the best!’
Before the regression, I’d resented having been born as that tyrant’s brother—but now I see she’s no tyrant. She’s a sage, a true sage.
The moment I opened the Studio door, dozens of cameras greeted me.
“The first trainee to arrive is… Yu Seong-woo!”
Kang Se-jun, dressed in a gaudy uniform since morning, announced it. By this point, he’s clearly enjoying himself.
“And the hidden prize is… a Snack Set!”
‘Just as I thought.’
“Huh?”
“What, a snack set?”
“Ugh, ran for nothing…”
A disappointed laugh rippled through the trainees. But I grinned wide and accepted the snacks.
“I’ve been on a diet and wanted these so badly… thank you!”
‘It’s all about the footage.’
As I returned to my spot with a beaming smile, Choi Un-jo stared hard at my Snack Set.
…I quietly hugged the bag to my chest.
‘This one’s mine.’
“We’ve had a little event, but there’s another reason you’ve all gathered here today.”
Kang Se-jun spoke again.
“The Round 2 mission reveal.”
The screen turned on.
[CODE MISSION 2: What Is Your Color?]
-Boys facing the second gate.
There is only one way to solve the Code:
Express your color boldly.
“Idols must be able to pull off a variety of concepts.”
Fresh, sexy, sporty, ethereal.
Four keywords appeared in sequence.
“So this mission is a concept team mission.”
Of course, Boys Code added its own twist.
“However, each concept’s song will only be revealed to the five members of the Debut Group.”
“Whoa…”
“You might like the concept, but the song could still rub you the wrong way, right?”
“Ah, I envy that…….”
He’d stuck rigidly to a format that favored the Debut Group. Cruel, yes—but it guaranteed buzz.
“Team selection will proceed with candidates choosing from the lowest codes upward.”
Among the four concepts, Fresh was by far the least popular.
‘It had a relatively weaker feel to it.’
Sexy and Sporty were concepts that practically sold themselves, and Ethereal had emerged as a rising force too.
“However, if all positions are filled, trainees with lower codes will be eliminated in order.”
“Ugh…….”
It was a culling mechanism.
As for just how unpopular the Fresh team was—with nineteen trainees to accommodate, one team had to be four people, and that team was Fresh.
“Eliminated trainees will form new teams after the first selection phase concludes.”
As a result, the Fresh team was stacked with lower-ranked trainees and received the lowest score overall.
‘So then…….’
“Code 6. Please select your concept.”
Even after revealing their names, Boys Code persisted in referring to the trainees by their codes. Truly a program committed to its concept.
“Yes!”
I headed toward the labyrinthine space.
[Fresh]
And I opened the door without hesitation.
It was exactly as I’d expected.
“Huh……? Why’d you come here?”
Inside was only Ji Dong-seok.
“You’re alone?”
“Yeah.”
Ji Dong-seok gave an awkward laugh.
‘Same as before the return.’
The other three would likely be lower-ranked trainees pushed out from other teams.
“We’ve completed team selection down to the final Code 1. Now we’ll move to the second round of team selection.”
Five trainees had been eliminated.
Three would go to Fresh, and two would go one each to Sporty and Wild.
“The selection method will allow the trainee with the highest code in each team to choose.”
I picked the trainees in the same composition as before my return.
‘It wasn’t a team with skill or character problems.’
Above all, they were kids who’d follow instructions.
“Now, let me announce the final team composition!”
Just like before my return, high-ranking trainees clustered in the Sexy concept.
Lee Yul-li kept his original team too. Right—he made a legend out of Round 3, but Round 2 was also a pretty solid performance.
‘I should worry about myself.’
“Well then. I’m looking forward to the Round 2 stage!”
Kang Se-jun left, and the trainees gathered in small groups to begin brainstorming sessions.
And our team’s atmosphere was…….
“So, should we at least introduce ourselves?”
“…….”
A disaster.
* * *
Even after I’d suggested introductions, a suffocating silence hung in the air.
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
‘It must have been even grimmer before my return.’
Eventually, I broke the ice first.
“I’ll start.”
Eyes naturally turned to me.
“I’m Yu Seong-woo, and my positions are Producing and Singing.”
“Ah…… I’m Seong Jun-woo.”
An ant-like, creeping whisper of a voice.
“My position is Dance.”
He couldn’t even meet my eyes properly.
Next.
“I’m Kwon Ki-hyun. My position is dance, and I do some vocals too……”
“Song Woo-joo. Position is rap.”
‘So we’ve gathered only the difficult ones.’
Last came Ji Dong-seok, grinning widely as he raised his hand.
“I’m Ji Dong-seok! And my position is obviously dance—”
At least that was something.
‘So there are times when this bastard actually helps.’
That’s right, Dong-seok. You’re no longer just a filthy roommate. You’ll be the comedian who lifts the spirits of this team teetering on the edge of collapse.
Even before returning, the biggest problem with this team wasn’t skill.
It was the atmosphere.
With everyone keeping their mouths shut, the meetings themselves couldn’t move forward.
Dangerous elements abound, but there’s a reason I chose the fresh concept.
First, it’s a song where the choreography can’t be difficult. That matched exactly why the top-ranked trainees didn’t pick this song.
‘Even with the time loop, there are limits to what I can catch up on.’
With a different concept, I probably would’ve had to loop the hourglass tens of thousands of times. The hospital ceiling came to mind all by itself.
‘I can’t do that twice more.’
Second, there was plenty of room to work with the arrangement.
Finally, if I’d joined one of the top teams, I’d obviously become a backup member.
Then I wouldn’t even get my face on camera during individual fancams.
And if I got bad reviews because of me? I’d be marked as a nuisance trainee right away.
The hate comments played automatically in my head.
[What is this clunker?]
This one ruined the whole stage quality;; So annoyed this clunker isn’t even backup material
-Why is there a Zepeto grandfather’s creation in an idol survival show
-Such a creaky mess I’m losing the will to live even for a thousand years
-I will never forget Code 6
The thought alone was horrifying.
“Hey, Yu Seong-woo?”
Ji Dong-seok’s voice brought me back.
“……Huh? Oh, right. Where were we?”
“We were about to assign parts.”
I looked slowly around at my teammates. They all wore the look of people who’d already resigned themselves.
‘I’m still Code 6, though…….’
But these guys wouldn’t have confidence in me either. Well, that’s something I’ll have to solve myself.
“So, does anyone have a part they want?”
“…….”
That’s when the survival show scene—playing at double speed—flashed through my mind.
[Silence falls over the Fresh Concept Team as they await Ji Dong-seok’s part assignment proposal.]
‘This is going to take a while, isn’t it?’
But I never thought it would take an hour!
I waited for anyone to speak first, but it was a vain hope. They’d hem and haw, then clam up again, and I felt like I’d burst.
I wanted to wait as long as I could. If I stepped forward here, I’d look like I was being bossy.
But if we waited any longer, nothing would get done.
So I drew my sword.
“Listen up.”
They looked at me with tired eyes.
I smiled gently.
“Trust me with the part assignments.”
“……Huh?”
“Pardon?”
One stiffened, one flinched, and one looked bewildered.
Lighten up, guys.
‘I’m going to create one perfect stage for you all.’
I Murdered My Favorite and I’m Debuting (Serialized)
Author │ Yoo Sseu
Publisher │ Kim Joo-hyung
Publishing House │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyuk
Address │ 401, Ace Tech Tower 8th, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong)
Email │ [email protected]
Homepage │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ Yu Sseu 2026
※This work is published by Jayplemedia Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder, and the contents may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and the author.
Violation of this may result in criminal and civil legal liability.

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