The Gates Opened on the First Day of Debut - Chapter 25

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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 (25)
Once Yoo Sung achieved 100% trust and became my ally, he revealed everything he’d experienced at LMH—away from any cameras.
Hearing his story, the mystery that had been circling in my mind finally unraveled.
‘He couldn’t debut because of the Parachute Trainee?’
I’d heard rumors about a Parachute Trainee joining LMH several times across my dozens of regressions.
‘But I never knew that trainee was the reason Yoo Sung got cut from the debut lineup.’
Though I said the mystery was solved after hearing Yoo Sung’s account, not all my questions had actually been answered.
‘How could they possibly eliminate a trainee of Yoo Sung’s caliber?’
Yoo Sung was a captivating idol.
I was certain of it.
No matter how talented the Parachute Trainee was, they couldn’t have matched Yoo Sung’s level.
And among the debut lineup trainees, excluding the Parachute Trainee, none surpassed Yoo Sung either.
‘If it were me, I’d eliminate a different trainee instead of Yoo Sung… or would I?’
According to Yoo Sung’s account, the Parachute Trainee had said they wanted to be the ‘Center’.
The Center position goes to the most radiant member of the group.
Both the Parachute Trainee and LMH’s staff must have known that as long as Yoo Sung existed, they could never be Center.
‘Yoo Sung must have really gotten under their skin.’
The CEO’s nephew.
They probably had everything they wanted and achieved everything they desired.
But there were things in this world that couldn’t be obtained no matter how much you wanted them, and dreams that couldn’t be realized no matter how hard you tried.
The Parachute Trainee must have discovered something in Yoo Sung that they could never possess themselves.
‘So they stole Yoo Sung’s most precious dream. Is that it?’
Ha, haha….
I let out a hollow laugh and looked at Ju Gilhyung, who was pressed against the wall, trembling.
We were in a deserted alley near the Filming Set.
After confirming the messages exchanged between Ju Gilhyung and what appeared to be the Parachute Trainee, I’d immediately dragged him here.
“It’s not even funny, is it?”
I blocked Ju Gilhyung’s escape route with my foot as he tried to slip away.
Ju Gilhyung’s shoulders flinched.
“Just for such a petty reason… trampling on a trainee’s hard work and effort.”
I stared at Ju Gilhyung, who was avoiding my gaze, and asked.
“What do you think, hyung? Hm?”
“I, I don’t understand what you’re talking about at all…”
“You know everything. You’re just pretending not to.”
I smirked and continued.
“What promise did you make with that Parachute Trainee?”
“W, what…”
“Should I guess? They told you to sabotage Sung-i’s debut, didn’t they?”
Hit with the truth, Ju Gilhyung’s mouth fell open.
He was so transparent….
I couldn’t suppress my laughter.
“The price… yes, you said you’d let me debut under an LMH Subsidiary Label?”
“H-how did you…?”
I’ve seen countless guys like you.
Through dozens of regressions, I’ve witnessed so much deception, scheming, and treachery that Ju Gilhyung probably has no idea.
A Parachute Trainee… with this level of determination, he’ll be a nuisance to Yoo Sung even in the EX-Grade K-POP Idol industry, and especially after debut.
I’ve already boarded the same ship as Yoo Sung.
Whether I like it or not, I’ll collide with Yoo Sung relentlessly in the EX-Grade K-POP Idol industry.
Perhaps even after debut.
For a smooth and safe debut, I needed to give the Parachute Trainee a warning.
“Tell him this.”
“W-what…?”
Ju Gilhyung was now looking at me like I was some kind of monster.
Yes, be more afraid.
Fear is better than contempt.
Besides, Ju Gilhyung’s usefulness had run its course anyway.
“Don’t even think about pulling any tricks on broadcasts I appear in.”
I pulled out my phone and photographed the messages exchanged between Ju Gilhyung and the Parachute Trainee.
―Click, click.
The sound of a camera shutter echoed through the quiet alley for a long while.
After photographing all the messages, I returned the phone to Ju Gilhyung.
“Do you understand?”
Ju Gilhyung, who had been staring blankly at me, nodded vigorously.
“Now get out of here.”
At my words, Ju Gilhyung hesitantly shuffled out of the alley.
Every three steps, he turned back to look at me.
I stood in the dark alley and quietly watched him until he disappeared from sight.
* * *
“I’m home.”
As always, there was no response.
I removed my shoes and coat, then sprawled across the living room sofa.
A stale, dusty smell hung in the air, but I lacked the energy to move.
―Buzz.
As I rested with my eyes closed, my phone vibrated.
[Okada: Did you arrive home safely?]
A message from Okada appeared in the group chat.
The stiff phrasing typical of a translator made me let out a quiet laugh.
[Yeah.]
[What about you?]
Almost immediately after sending the message, a reply came back.
[Okada: Yes!]
But the next message came much later.
[Okada: I arrived home thirty minutes ago.]
[Okada: (cat giving OK emoji)]
Seo Ijae also replied after reading the message.
[Seo Ijae: I made it home too.]
[Seo Ijae: Everyone get some good rest, and I’ll see you all next week.]
I didn’t wait for Yoo Sung’s reply.
He seemed like the type who rarely checked messages, let alone responded to them.
I picked up the remote and turned on the TV.
The morning news rebroadcast was playing.
[“The mass disappearance incident occurring in the Jirisan Mountain area continues to deepen in mystery.”]
A disappearance case….
Kim Chowon came to mind, and I found myself frowning without realizing it.
[“Seven members of a Hiking Club who set out on a mountain excursion last weekend have vanished without a trace and remain missing for the third day. Kim Min-jun reporting from the scene.”]
People going missing in the mountains happened fairly often.
But seven people disappearing simultaneously?
Since this news always appeared with each regression, it didn’t particularly move me, but I was curious about what had actually happened.
[“Yes, I’m currently at the entrance of Cheoneunsa Temple on Jirisan Mountain. Last Saturday at 9 AM, seven members of a Hiking Club from Seoul departed from here to climb the Nogodang Peak course. They were scheduled to descend by 6 PM that afternoon, but they never returned even as night fell.”]
After the reporter’s broadcast, an interview with a family member of the missing followed.
[“My brother is a veteran who’s been climbing mountains for over thirty years. He’s not someone who would ever get lost…. We can’t reach him, and I have no idea what’s happened….”]
[“The most peculiar aspect is the location where they vanished. The last trace the search team found was on a flat Ridge Trail merely 500 meters away from the summit of Nogodang Peak. Seven backpacks and mountaineering equipment were discovered there arranged in a neat line….”]
I picked up the remote and turned off the TV.
“Sigh….”
Though I’d seen this news several times before, each viewing made it overlap with Kim Chowon’s disappearance, souring my mood.
After changing clothes, cleaning, and eating dinner, it was already 7 PM.
I sat back on the sofa and turned on my phone.
By now, there should be plenty of reviews posted about the first broadcast audience experience of the EX-Grade K-POP Idol.
* * *
[[HOT] EKDI Broadcast Audience Review
Honestly, I forgot everything after watching the last stage
SRKD]
└They’re drawing attention in a novel way
└What? I don’t think I was planning to write a review anyway
└I went to the broadcast too and it’s not attention-seeking lol seriously I want to spoil it irl lol
└If you want to spoil it then do it, stop just saying you want to spoil it
└But what’s EKDI anyway?
└EX-Grade K-POP Idol, we shorten it to EKDI
[[HOT] MSJ Jang Hyuk-soo
How did they even think to pair him with that person lol
[Really liked it]
└Who? I know Han Theo, but who’s this person?
└You don’t know? Not as famous as Han Theo, but pretty well-known
└Wow, I just looked him up and he’s seriously handsome. Honestly, more my type than Han Theo lol
└But Han Theo and this person are paired together?
└Yeah, they’re both centers. I heard they did a Nogodang Peak battle
└What? What? Ah, that must have been fun ㅠ I should have applied for an audience ㅠ
[[HOT] No spoilers but I have to say this
I still can’t accept the final stage results….
I’m not a Han Theo fan, and I wasn’t rooting for his team either
This person did well too, but looking at the average skill level of the trainees, shouldn’t Han Theo’s team have won by a landslide?
Of course, I thought the team would win… Although it was a small margin, I was shocked that I lost.]
└What? Han Theo lost? That doesn’t make sense lol
└It’s probably just a spite pick. Han Theo obviously looks like he’ll debut lol Han Theo’s team trainees also had high rankings
└It’s really annoying that I’m already being kept in check ㅠ
└It’s fine, Han Theo will debut anyway lol
└I went to the audience and I had a feeling, but sure enough Han Theo fans started causing a stir lol Honestly both performed so well that either could’ve won, but they won with a spite pick. It’s really pathetic
└What stir lol Honestly the Nogodang Peak battle is a center fight, and the fact that Han Theo lost a center fight doesn’t make sense. Of course people would think it’s spite
└Let’s say that to the trainees on the team too haha. I also went to the audience, but I wanted to stand out more than ㅎㅌㅇ, so it wasn’t too much of a fuss. I didn’t want to see that ㅎㅌㅇ pitiful ㅠ
“Hmm….”
Checking the Community Site for reactions, as expected, people were fiercely debating the results of the final stage.
And this much buzz before even the first episode aired….
“Not bad at all.”
I refreshed the Community Site and continued checking the reactions.
That’s when I spotted a post that caught my eye.
[[NEW] Huh? Seriously? lol Hey guys, look at this
Kim Junwoo’s Mother uploaded a preview of Okada’s trainee]
└Kim Junwoo’s Mother? Could it be Eun Ha-su?
└It’s real lol But who is this? He’s handsome
└That mother’s been uploading only Kim Junwoo photos for over 10 years… first time seeing her post another idol’s photo
└For real, she even stuck to Kim Junwoo photos on April Fools’ Day, so she’s got the nickname “Pure-hearted Fan” lol
└Wow but it’s the first audience viewing and previews are already coming out lol
└There’s more than expected. Especially handsome ones like Han Theo
└The fandom’s huge too. These kids have an incredible nose for money lol
└So who’s the trainee that Kim Junwoo’s Mother uploaded? Han Theo?
└Never seen him before
└The trainee who appears at 1 minute 10 seconds in Music Day, Kim Chowol!
[[NEW] Preview Trainee
He’s handsome, right?
No… not exaggerating, he’s genuinely handsome
The photo came out well…
Since Eun Ha-su took it, it reminds me of Kim Chowol’s legendary shot
+)I also watched the Music Day stage footage, and it wasn’t bad then either, but he seems to have gotten even more handsome since]
└Of course it’s just editing lol
Eun Ha-su barely does any editing. She said she doesn’t photograph ugly kids who need a lot of retouching lol
Reading the Community Site reactions, I nodded thoughtfully.
‘They’ve got a good eye.’
There’s a saying that the best cosmetic surgery is a diet, isn’t there?
Through consistent dieting, I’d successfully lost 5kg right before the Guild Tournament.
My Appearance stat rising from B+ to A- was thanks to that diet.
‘Consistent diet and exercise really are the best.’
After scrolling through the Community Site, I logged into SNS to check my preview.
[Eun Ha-su@milkyway_KJW
XX.XX.XX 1st Audience Preview
#EX-GradeKPOPIdol #KimChowol #KIMCHOWOL]
Eun Ha-su.
The famous mother who captured Nexus Kim Junwoo’s legendary shot.
Kim Junwoo’s mother Eun Ha-su came to every single first audience taping, and whenever Han Theo performed Starlight, she’d upload his photos.
‘Han Theo’s Starlight preview that Eun Ha-su uploaded… broke 3,000 retweets in just a day.’
And as the broadcast aired, the retweet count kept climbing, surpassing 30,000 retweets right before the live broadcast.
I feel bad for Han Theo, but I need to claim those 30,000 retweets for myself.
I immediately checked the retweet and like count on my preview that Eun Ha-su had posted.
[RT541 ♥781]
It’s still climbing, but remembering Han Theo’s 30,000 retweets made it feel a bit short.
However, I had an item prepared in advance for situations like this.
‘Status window, check items.’
The familiar status window appeared before my eyes.
[Viral Guarantee Voucher
Grade: C+
Description: Select 1 post from SNS or Community Sites and make it go viral.
*Impact varies depending on the post’s content.]
I murmured while looking at my preview that Eun Ha-su had posted.
“Use item.”

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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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