The Gates Opened on the First Day of Debut - Chapter 43

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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 (43)
We had no words to offer in response to Seo Ijae’s question.
“It’s not great, is it?”
“Well… no, not exactly not great….”
“I know it’s not great. You don’t need to sugarcoat it.”
Seo Ijae continued with a bitter smile.
“It’s just… at some point, I became like this.”
“Became like what?”
“Someone who can’t compose or arrange music anymore.”
At Seo Ijae’s shocking confession, every team member, including myself, froze.
I carefully asked Seo Ijae.
“Did… something happen?”
….
At my question, Seo Ijae gave a bitter smile and slowly shook his head.
It meant he couldn’t tell us.
But I could roughly guess what had happened to Seo Ijae.
‘It’s the song that Min Woo ruined.’
The voice of Seo Ijae speaking with the Winter Boys member echoed in my ears.
‘So if I piece together the situation roughly….’
1. Hwang Min-woo ruined Winter Boys’ debut song “Winter Boys” that Seo Ijae composed.
2. From that shock, Seo Ijae became unable to compose and arrange music.
‘…Is that it?’
Now I understood why I couldn’t find Seo Ijae’s name in the other song information.
After ruining Winter Boys, he became unable to arrange music, let alone compose.
‘But I don’t quite understand.’
Having a fellow group member ruin your song is an incredibly shocking thing.
But I couldn’t understand how he suddenly became unable to compose and arrange music just from the shock.
It’s not like composition and arrangement abilities have legs and can run away.
As time passes and the wound heals, shouldn’t he be able to do it again?
“Yips….”
“Huh?”
“Lee Jae, you’ve got the yips.”
Kang Hae-soo, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, nodded and spoke.
“What are yips?”
“It’s a phenomenon where people with skilled techniques, like athletes, suddenly become unable to perform movements they normally do well.”
Kang Hae-soo, who came from an athletic background, began explaining the yips.
Yips.
A psychological condition where someone suddenly becomes unable to perform a specific action they normally do well.
It occurs due to psychological factors that are difficult to explain clearly, such as pressure or fear of failure.
“Can it be treated?”
“Treatment….”
At my question, Kang Hae-soo trailed off while glancing at Seo Ijae.
“There’s no clear treatment method.”
“Ah….”
“It’s fundamentally a psychological issue, you see. Psychological therapy and mental training can help somewhat, but they’re not a permanent solution.”
So treatment wasn’t going to be easy.
I pulled up my tablet and researched yips a bit more.
‘There are professional athletes who retire without ever overcoming yips.’
If Seo Ijae’s condition really was yips….
‘What should I do?’
This wasn’t just a matter of whether Seo Ijae could arrange Winter Boys’ song or not.
Seo Ijae was our center.
Even if I somehow finished the arrangement, if Seo Ijae remained in that state, we could never create a truly good stage.
“You should change the center right now.”
Seo Ijae looked at me and spoke.
“I’ll only be dead weight on this stage.”
“No.”
I shook my head firmly.
“We’ve identified the cause of the problem.”
“….”
“Now that we know the cause, all that’s left is to solve it.”
If it were that easy, we would’ve solved it already.
That’s what his eyes seemed to say as he looked at me, but I lifted my chin confidently.
“Just trust me, hyung.”
“What…?”
“I’ll resolve it for you.”
“How could you possibly….”
“Just focus on practicing without worrying about the arrangement! Oh, and don’t let Sung-i and Teo fight again because I’m not here. Got it?”
Before Seo Ijae could grab me, I snatched up my tablet and hurried out of the Practice Room.
I arrived at the Camera Blind Spot with quick steps and caught my breath as I thought.
‘I absolutely have to solve this.’
Seo Ijae aside, I had to resolve this problem to successfully complete the stage.
What Jang Hyuk-soo wanted was ‘a grown Seo Ijae showcasing a flawless Winter Boys stage.’
‘But… how?’
I’d rushed out saying I’d somehow figure it out, but I was just as lost as anyone.
‘First, I need to know exactly what happened.’
Seo Ijae didn’t seem willing to open up.
I had no choice but to find someone else who could explain the situation.
‘Someone who knows both their circumstances and would explain things to me, a third party… hmm?’
Suddenly, someone’s name flashed through my mind.
‘Didn’t the Winter Boys song credits list someone else besides Seo Ijae and Hwang Min-woo?’
There definitely was someone.
What was it again… some alphabetic name.
I pulled up the tablet I’d brought and checked the Winter Boys song information.
[Winter Boys
Lyrics: Hwang Min-woo (Winter Boys)
Composition: Seo Ijae (Winter Boys), Hwang Min-woo (Winter Boys), JiU
Arrangement: Hwang Min-woo (Winter Boys), JiU]
JiU… Jiw? Or Jiyu?
I immediately searched for JiU on the portal site.
Information about composer JiU flooded the screen.
‘Quite a famous composer, huh?’
While not boasting an abundance of hit songs, JiU had worked on many tracks that sparked that familiar feeling—the kind where you think, “I’ve definitely heard this somewhere before.”
‘So it’s Jiyu, not Jiw. This person must know what happened between Seo Ijae and Hwang Min-woo.’
But how could I ask?
My phone had been confiscated, and even if I had one, I didn’t have their contact information.
“One mountain after another… wait.”
I was scrolling through the composer Jiyu’s information on the tablet when something caught my eye.
A familiar name appeared in an internet news article.
[Nexus announces new song… ‘Perfect chemistry’ reunites with JiU]
Nexus?
Someone’s face flashed through my mind.
* * *
Self-produced idols handle most of the song production work themselves, including composition and lyrics.
However, even self-produced idols cannot complete every stage of song production solely through their own efforts.
While the members may lead the overall process, professional assistance is absolutely essential.
Jiyu was a composer who had collaborated with the self-produced idol group Nexus for an extended period.
So I sought out Nexus.
“Hello, Judge Kim Junwoo.”
To be precise, I sought out Kim Junwoo, who belonged to Nexus.
‘I got lucky.’
Judges don’t come to the Filming Set unless they have lessons or evaluations scheduled.
But fortunately, I’d overheard the trainees chattering about seeing Kim Junwoo in front of the Dormitory Building today.
‘I’ve really lost it.’
The moment I saw Kim Junwoo’s face, it struck me—I was genuinely doing something insane.
But there was no other way.
I needed Jiyu’s contact information, and the only way to get it right now was to ask Kim Junwoo.
“Kim Chowol? What’s the matter?”
Kim Junwoo looked slightly taken aback.
Understandably so.
After all, Kim Junwoo and I were in the Judge’s Exclusive Lounge.
Fortunately, there were no other judges present.
And of course, no cameras either.
“Judge Kim Junwoo, I apologize for the intrusion, but I had something I wanted to ask you.”
I spoke with careful politeness.
“Judge, do you happen to know composer Jiyu?”
“Jiyu? Oh, Jiyu?”
Fortunately, Kim Junwoo knew Jiyu.
The way he called her “Jiyu” so familiarly suggested they were quite close.
“Of course I do. I’ve worked with Nexus on projects with her quite often. But why are you asking about Jiyu?”
“If it’s not too much trouble, could I get her contact information?”
“Her contact information? Jiyu’s?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Kim Junwoo didn’t seem particularly displeased.
But he seemed curious about why I was suddenly asking for Jiyu’s contact information.
I needed to answer carefully from here on.
“The song I’m performing this time is one that composer Jiyu participated in.”
“Oh, another Nexus song?”
“No, it’s Winter Boys by Winter Boys.”
“Winter Boys…. I see.”
Kim Junwoo seemed to be thinking, “Did Jiyu work on a song like that?” but soon nodded.
“So what?”
“Pardon?”
“What does that have to do with anything? Are you looking to get advice from Jiyu?”
“Ah, yes….”
“Winter Boys… isn’t there someone among the trainees? Why didn’t you ask that person instead? They say they don’t have Jiyu’s contact information?”
Ugh.
Hit by Kim Junwoo’s words, I squeezed my eyes shut.
After collecting myself and slowly opening my eyes again, I saw Kim Junwoo grinning playfully.
He was testing me.
He didn’t seem particularly curious, but rather seemed to be enjoying watching me squirm.
His personality really was a bit twisted.
“Lee Jae said he doesn’t have her contact information.”
“Is that so? Well, then there’s nothing to be done about it.”
Kim Junwoo surprisingly accepted my flimsy excuse without question.
He didn’t seem intent on pressing me further.
“Still, it’s a bit awkward to just hand it over.”
“Hmm….”
I suppose that made sense.
Handing over contact information so carelessly wouldn’t be respectful to Jiyu.
Moreover, if it became known that Kim Junwoo had given me his contact information, it could spark controversy over fairness.
But Kim Junwoo didn’t seem to care much about loyalty to Jiyu or fairness with the other trainees.
“It feels like I’m the only one losing out here.”
“Pardon?”
“What are you going to do for me, Kim Chowol?”
Kim Junwoo, leaning back against the Break Room sofa, asked with a smirk.
“I… well, is there anything I can do for you?”
“I don’t know. That’s something you’ll have to think about, Kim Chowol.”
“No, I…”
What could I possibly offer to someone who already had everything?
I looked Kim Junwoo over from head to toe.
Skin so flawless you’d believe he was in his early twenties.
A model-worthy height and long legs that boasted perfect proportions.
Despite being fifteen years into his debut this year, his fanbase remained solid enough that he still toured internationally across the globe.
Truly young, rich, tall, and handsome.
When I fell silent for a moment, Kim Junwoo chuckled and spoke first.
“Are you the center this time?”
“What?”
“You said it to me during the last Guild War. That you’d definitely be center if you got the chance.”
“No. Lee Jae is the center.”
“Hmm…”
Kim Junwoo regarded me with an appraising gaze.
“What if.”
After his assessment, Kim Junwoo rubbed his lips with a long finger.
“In exchange for me giving you Jiyu’s contact information…”
Kim Junwoo rose from the sofa and walked slowly toward me.
He pulled out his phone and scrolled through it.
“You become the center.”
Kim Junwoo stopped scrolling and tapped on a contact.
Then he showed me the contact information.
[Composer_Kim Ji-yu(JiU)]
I tried to check the number, but Kim Junwoo was faster.
He slipped his phone back into his pocket and continued.
“What will you do?”

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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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