The Gates Opened on the First Day of Debut - Chapter 19

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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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The Gate Burst Open on My Debut Day (19)
“Let’s decide on the center first.”
I quickly interjected to prevent the atmosphere from overheating.
“Hey, you heard him say all that, and you’re not even angry?”
Yoo Sung grabbed my shoulder and spoke as if exasperated.
Angry?
Crude insults spewed by some trainee meant nothing to me whatsoever.
“Ju Gilhyung didn’t mean it seriously, right?”
I smiled and spoke toward Ju Gilhyung.
Whether he recognized his own mistake or not, Ju Gilhyung awkwardly averted his gaze and nodded.
Yoo Sung clicked his tongue sharply, displeased that Ju Gilhyung was now backpedaling after saying everything he wanted to say.
“Anyway, let’s decide on the center. Who wants to do it?”
Yoo Sung, who had been hesitant until just moments ago, now confidently raised his hand.
“Me.”
“No one besides Sung?”
Okada stared at me with sparkling, gleaming eyes, but I deliberately ignored her.
“Then should we go with Sung?”
“I want to be center too.”
Ju Gilhyung raised his hand as he spoke.
I smiled inwardly.
‘Right, it would feel incomplete if we just moved past this.’
I looked back and forth between Yoo Sung and Ju Gilhyung with a contemplative expression.
“Um… then should we vote? On who would be good as center?”
“Isn’t that unfair?”
Ju Gilhyung interjected again, clearly unwilling to let it go so easily.
Yoo Sung was doing his best to hold back, but he looked like he was about to explode.
“Unfair? How?”
“You’ll obviously vote for Yoo Sung. You’re from the same Guild and close to each other.”
Were Yoo Sung and I close?
I’d worked hard to appear close, and it felt somewhat gratifying to have my effort acknowledged.
“And that Japanese girl will probably vote for Yoo Sung too, right?”
Okada, who had been singled out, flinched slightly.
Well, Okada would vote for either me or Yoo Sung.
Since I said I’d vote for Yoo Sung.
I thought he lacked perception, but it seemed he wasn’t entirely without it.
“So Yoo Sung gets at least three votes. I get at most two. Isn’t that way too unfair?”
“Hmm…”
Honestly, it was nonsense not worth deliberating over, but I deliberately tapped my chin with my finger as if pondering.
“So, Ju Gilhyung, are you saying we should choose the center through a different method instead of voting? How do you want to choose?”
Ju Gilhyung chuckled softly and spoke while looking at Yoo Sung.
“Of course… the person who doesn’t fit the center position should step aside.”
“Step aside…?”
What kind of nonsense was that?
Anyone could see that Yoo Sung was the one who fit the center position.
So was Ju Gilhyung saying he’d step aside?
Then why didn’t he just do it already? Why was he being so vague about it?
“Then, Gilhyung, you step aside and—”
“You do it.”
Yoo Sung, who had been quiet until now, suddenly spoke up.
I spun around in surprise to look at him.
Yoo Sung kept his head lowered, glaring at Ju Gilhyung.
“If you want the center position that badly, then you take it, Ju Gilhyung.”
“What? Sung, didn’t you say you wanted to be center?”
What was he doing now?
I tried to stop Yoo Sung in confusion, but he seemed to have already made up his mind.
“I’m fine.”
“Hey, you—”
“I’m really okay with it. Tell him to do it.”
“Well, if that’s what you want.”
Faced with Yoo Sung’s unwavering resolve, I had no choice but to nod.
Ju Gilhyung didn’t look happy despite becoming center.
“What a pain…”
Ju Gilhyung muttered something barely audible under his breath, then abruptly stood and left the Practice Room.
I watched Ju Gilhyung’s receding figure and then Yoo Sung, who was watching the Starlight Stage performance video on a tablet, alternating my gaze between them as I fell into thought.
‘There’s something I don’t know.’
I needed to figure out what that something was.
“Brother.”
Okada, clearly uncomfortable with the current situation, leaned close to me and whispered softly.
“What do we do now?”
“Don’t worry.”
I spoke with sincerity.
“Everything will work out.”
It wasn’t an empty reassurance to comfort Okada.
It really would be fine.
As for the most crucial center position…
‘Yoo Sung will end up as center anyway.’
There was no need to worry.
* * *
We learned the choreography and divided the parts.
Ju Gilhyung, who had become center, didn’t seem particularly interested in the Stage.
Throughout the meeting, I sat with an indifferent expression and didn’t say a single word.
The moment the meeting ended, Ju Gilhyung disappeared in a flash, saying he’d grab a meal with another trainee.
“Should we practice after we eat?”
Everyone nodded, apparently hungry.
I waved my hand toward Yoo Sung, Okada, and Seo Ijae and spoke.
“Go grab something. I’ll wait here.”
“You’re not eating?”
“No. I’m not really hungry.”
In truth, I wasn’t without hunger, but I lied.
The three of them took my words at face value and left to eat.
Left alone in the Practice Room, I watched Starlight’s stage performance on a tablet and confirmed my parts.
‘As expected… it’s the least.’
Excluding Ju Gilhyung, who was the center, parts were distributed according to skill level.
Yoo Sung, who excelled at everything, received the second-most parts, Okada focused on dance breaks since she danced well, and Seo Ijae took primarily vocal parts.
I received a few unremarkable parts that weren’t difficult, and one center part.
‘This is enough.’
While I might lose in on-site voting, my choice wasn’t wrong when viewed long-term.
After confirming my parts and practicing, Yoo Sung, Okada, and Seo Ijae returned from their meal.
“Where’s Ju Gilhyung?”
“No idea.”
Yoo Sung shrugged as he spoke.
I hadn’t expected him to participate diligently in practice, but I didn’t think he’d be this reckless.
“He’ll probably be like this right up until the day of the Stage.”
Yoo Sung clicked his tongue and continued.
“He’s just not desperate enough. He can debut anywhere else without much trouble. This place is just… where he came to become famous.”
I suddenly grew curious.
LMH trainees who failed to make the debut group could relatively easily join other Entertainment Agencies and continue their idol dreams.
Yoo Sung must have received love calls from other Entertainment Agencies too, and some of them were probably quite decent.
So why did he reject them all and appear on EX-Grade K-POP Idol?
‘Wait, why did he even get cut from the debut group in the first place?’
Yoo Sung continued with a pained expression.
“His insistence on being center… it was just to mess with me.”
“Did something happen between you two when you were at LMH?”
“Something happen? What… what could have happened?”
Yoo Sung seemed to have much to say, but ultimately said nothing.
“…I’m going to get some air.”
“Don’t stay out too late.”
“…”
Yoo Sung didn’t respond and walked outside.
‘The rift runs deeper than I thought.’
But I wasn’t worried about Yoo Sung.
Yoo Sung was more sincere about his debut than anyone else, and he would soon compose himself and practice diligently.
“Why don’t we practice among ourselves for now?”
At my words, Okada and Seo Ijae nodded in agreement.
Without a center, and without Yoo Sung who had the second-most parts, there was still plenty to work on.
* * *
Okada, Seo Ijae, and I practiced without pause.
Seo Ijae quietly followed along with our practice, but after surpassing two hours, it seemed his stamina had reached its limit.
Seo Ijae stretched his hand toward us while bent over at the waist.
“Come on… let’s take a break for a moment.”
“Yes, that sounds good.”
I quickly sat down on the floor and gulped down some water.
I’d brought it before practice, but it had become lukewarm during our session.
“Must be because you’re young… your stamina is impressive.”
Seo Ijae, sprawled flat on the floor, muttered as if speaking to himself.
I grinned at Seo Ijae and spoke.
“Compared to a marathon gold medalist, I still have a long way to go.”
“Marathon gold? What do you mean… oh.”
Seo Ijae, realizing what I was saying, widened his eyes in surprise.
“You’ve seen it?”
“I make sure to watch it every year.”
“How embarrassing…”
“What are you two talking about?”
Okada, who had been quietly listening to our conversation, interjected.
“You know about the Idol Summer Olympics?”
“Oh, I’ve heard of it!”
I pointed at Seo Ijae and laughed playfully.
“Ijae won the gold medal in the marathon event.”
“That was years ago…”
Seo Ijae turned his head away, looking embarrassed.
“Gold medal?”
“Gold medal, he came in first.”
“First place? That’s amazing!”
Seo Ijae groaned and pushed himself up.
“That’s all ancient history.”
“Still, the marathon is the crown jewel of the Idol Summer Olympics.”
“It’s just a variety show.”
Seo Ijae was right.
The Idol Summer Olympics was just a variety show.
But Seo Ijae had run that marathon with fierce determination.
Not only Seo Ijae, but all the other Winter Boys members gave their best effort to win medals in their respective events.
By performing well and winning medals, we could introduce the Winter Boys’ name to the public one more time.
“It’s on my bucket list. Winning a gold medal at the Idol Summer Olympics.”
“That’s modest.”
“It’s not modest. I still need to debut and get casting offers.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”
I shrugged as I spoke.
Phew….
After catching his breath properly, Seo Ijae spoke to me.
“Why did you pick me?”
“Huh?”
“You had so many options, so why someone like me….”
Seo Ijae was easy to work with.
His skills weren’t bad, but his self-esteem was low, so he generally just went along with whatever his teammates suggested.
He’d simply burned out and stopped talking much, but he always practiced diligently.
However, I hadn’t chosen Seo Ijae simply because his skills were decent and he was obedient.
“I was just… a fan of yours.”
“A fan?”
“Of Winter Boys.”
“What? No way.”
Seo Ijae firmly denied my words as if they were absurd.
“Why don’t you believe me?”
“There’s no way you could like Winter Boys.”
“I did like you. After we debuted, we were invited to perform at the year-end stage hosted by Music Day.”
“…!”
Seo Ijae was startled by my words.
“I became a fan after watching that performance.”
“You… watched that?”
Winter Boys being invited to Music Day’s year-end stage was truly a miracle.
Our debut performance had been quite successful thanks to our unique concept and addictive song.
Of course, every comeback after that flopped, so the debut became the career high.
Winter Boys danced and sang with all our might on that miraculous year-end stage.
The performance was so impressive that even now, years later, I still remembered the taut tendons in Seo Ijae’s neck.
“So… let’s debut together, hyung.”
I smiled and thought to myself.
You’re worth so much more than this.

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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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