The S-Rank Paparazzi Reincarnates as an Idol - Chapter 4

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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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Chapter 4
“What’s with the petty B+ rating?”
[You’re quite shameless. Also, starting from A-rank stats, you cannot increase your abilities using stat points.]
‘So the limit for stat point increases is B-rank.’
“I see. So the maximum rank is A+?”
[No. There are higher ranks.]
‘There’s still a long road ahead.’
“But System, you said you directly increased my stats, right? That means you can keep increasing them going forward?”
[…]
“Hey. Answer me.”
[Yes.]
“Everything’s fine, but an idol with E-rank dancing? That’s not right, is it?”
Hahaha
“Why are you laughing?”
[I saw your thrashing around at the audition. It was quite the sight.]
As the image of the judges laughing flashed through my mind, heat rose from deep within my chest.
“Stop laughing and give me a Sub Quest or something to raise my stats.”
Did you leave it with them?
“Honestly, do you think it’s possible to become a world-class idol with these stats?”
[That depends on what Cha Si-woo does with them.]
I flashed the System window my most charming social smile.
“So come on, give me a Sub Quest to improve my singing and dancing. You saw my dancing, right? If I go in like this, I’ll be eliminated on the spot.”
Hahahahaha
“Fine, laugh all you want. Laugh and give me a Quest as payment for your amusement.”
[A Quest is given to Cha Si-woo.]
[Sub Quest (2): Practice singing and dancing without missing a single day for 2 weeks.
A. Sing idol songs for 6 hours. (14 times)
B. Dance idol choreography for 12 hours. (14 times)
Upon success, you will receive stat rewards.
Upon failure, you will die.]
Will you proceed with the Quest?]
Either way, whether I failed the audition and never became an idol, or succeeded, death was always waiting.
Even if it was grueling, I needed to raise my abilities while I still had time and opportunity in these early stages.
“Accept the Quest.”
[Sub Quest (2) is now in progress.
Time limit: 335 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds.]
With a crimson timer, my second Quest had begun.
***
“Ugh. I think I’m going to throw up.”
My heart thrashed against my ribs as if it might burst through my chest.
My throat felt parched, like cracked earth baking under the sun.
With each labored breath, I tasted the phantom sensation of bile rising.
‘I’m going to die.’
For two weeks straight, I’d obsessively watched YouTube videos and practiced singing and dancing like a madman to become an idol.
There was no way I could afford to attend an Academy with the meager funds I had.
Even if I’d worked part-time to pay for professional instruction, there simply wasn’t enough time to learn while progressing through the Quest.
‘I never want to do eighteen hours of practice in a single day again.’
I’d never sung this much in my entire life.
I’d worried my voice might give out, but fortunately it held up.
The problem was my body.
Someone ignorant of dance couldn’t possibly dance for twelve hours straight—my entire body was wracked with muscle soreness.
‘Is it because I’m using muscles I’ve never used before?’
Unable to bear the aching, I collapsed onto my bed.
Just as my eyes were closing, a familiar alarm sounded.
Ding.
[Congratulations. You have successfully completed Sub-Quest (2): ‘Practice singing and dancing without missing a single day for two weeks.’]
For the first time, the notification sound felt welcome.
[Will you accept your reward?]
“Yes.”
[Your Quest reward grants: Singing Stat +1, Dancing Stat +2.]
[Stat Window]
Cha Si-woo (20)
Appearance: A-
Singing: C (UP)
Dancing: D- (UP)
Charisma: B+
Stamina: B+
Ability: ???
Status: Paparazzi who regressed five years.
‘Still, seeing my singing and dancing stats improve makes me feel a bit better.’
[You’re a tough one.]
“What? Why are you picking a fight?”
[I gave you an eighteen-hour daily practice Quest with only five to six hours for sleep. I never expected you’d use your sleeping time for other things.]
I leveraged my experience as a paparazzi to practice, and used my remaining time to research Star picking5.
Research was essential to achieve my goal.
“Don’t you know research is basic for a paparazzi?”
A paparazzi’s job was to obsessively investigate and understand their targets so they could set up the perfect shot in advance.
I meticulously analyzed each season of Star picking5 alongside its missions, and organized my remaining memories accordingly.
I barely slept, but it was worth it.
[Truly~ how impressive you are.]
The sarcastic tone seemed to echo from the translucent blue window.
“If you’re not going to give me more stats, shut your mouth.”
[…]
As the System window vanished, I noticed the clock on the wall.
“It’s already this late? Sleep is out of the question.”
I forced my body, heavy as lead, to stand up.
‘If I leave now, I could stop by the hospital first.’
Departing immediately would get me to TX Entertainment Broadcasting Station at precisely the right time.
Since I didn’t have a suitcase at home, I grabbed an old crossbody bag from the corner.
‘This bag… I think I got it as a free gift when I worked part-time at an outdoor shop back then.’
I quickly stuffed my few belongings into the crossbody bag.
I neatly folded a black shirt that could hide dirt and jeans worn enough to pass as fashion, placed them inside, then opened the drawer.
“I have to bring this.”
When I opened the square box stored in the bottom drawer, a black leather watch emerged.
The leather watch, radiating luxury at first glance, stood in stark contrast to the shabby surroundings of my home.
‘My parents’ only keepsake.’
There were times when affording my younger sibling’s hospital bills was difficult, and I’d considered selling the watch.
But whenever I looked at it, my parents’ faces came to mind, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
“Besides, someone could break in while the apartment is empty.”
And every time I saw the watch, it brought me comfort.
‘It feels like my parents are watching over me.’
Though I couldn’t express it precisely, the watch—which gave my heart a ticklish, warm feeling—was my only connection to my parents.
I closed the box containing the watch and placed it deep inside the crossbody bag.
“Should I head out now?”
I slung the worn crossbody bag over my shoulder and turned off all the lights in the one-room apartment.
As I opened the front door, instead of the musty smell typical of semi-basements, cold air brushed against my nose.
☆☆☆
I arrived at the hospital just as the ICU visiting hours were about to begin.
Stopping at the entrance to the ICU on the third floor, the familiar scent of disinfectant hung heavily in the air.
“We’re beginning visiting hours for guardians now.”
Following the Nurse’s instructions, entry into the ICU was only permitted after donning disposable sanitary equipment.
In the pristine white room where cold air brushed across my entire body, the sound of machines beeped at regular intervals.
Beep. Beep.
The sharp sound of the heartbeat echoing from the monitor at steady intervals pierced through my mind.
Now, hearing just this machine sound made my heart race wildly.
With trembling hands, I opened the white curtain, and there lay my younger sibling in the Hospital ICU, unchanged from five years ago.
Life-support lines were attached to various parts of Cha Si-hyun’s body, barely keeping him alive.
The countless needle marks had long since faded into bruises, and my skeletal younger sibling lay motionless, an oxygen mask covering his face.
“Cha Si-hyun.”
Just calling his name made my lips tremble slightly.
The bridge of my nose stung, and with each swallow, my throat tightened painfully.
“Your older brother is here.”
“…”
No matter how many times I saw my younger sibling lying there with only his eyes open, motionless, I could never quite adjust to the sight.
Watching him unable to speak, something rose from deep within my chest.
“Si-hyun. Have you been doing well?”
“…”
“Your older brother suddenly got into an idol audition.”
“…”
“Pretty out of the blue, right?”
No response came back.
‘But you’re listening to everything, aren’t you?’
“Si-hyun, you’ll cheer me on, won’t you?”
“…”
“I’ll definitely succeed. No matter what it takes, I’m going to make sure our Si-hyun recovers.”
“…”
“Once Si-hyun gets better, we’ll eat lots of delicious food together, and I’ll take you to all the places you wanted to go before. I’ll make sure you can do everything you want.”
“…”
“So you have to stay strong. Your older brother will cheer you on. And….”
“…”
“I won’t be able to visit for a while because of filming. Don’t be upset—please understand.”
‘I’ll have to stay on set during the Star picking5 filming, so I won’t be able to visit.’
Looking at my younger sibling’s pale, drained face, my determination to become an idol burned even brighter.
‘I’ll definitely complete the Quest and bring back the universal cure.’
The thirty-minute ICU visitation window passed faster than it felt.
“ICU visitation time is over. All guardians, please exit now.”
At the Nurse’s words, the guardians filed toward the exit with heavy steps.
“Um… Nurse.”
The Nurse who had been checking Cha Si-hyun’s IV turned her gaze toward me.
“Yes?”
“I won’t be able to visit during visiting hours for a while because of work.”
“Ah….”
“I’ll come by as soon as my work is done, so please take good care of our Si-hyun in the meantime.”
I bowed at a ninety-degree angle and made the request several times.
For my younger sibling’s sake, lowering my head meant nothing.
“Yes. Don’t worry and go ahead. I’ll call you if anything happens.”
“Thank you so much!”
Only after receiving the Nurse’s firm assurance could I finally turn and step toward the ICU exit.
Just before the exit door closed, I turned back to glance at my younger sibling one last time.
My heart ached as I watched the twelve-year-old Cha Si-hyun’s labored breathing.
‘No matter what it takes, I will succeed in this Quest.’
***
I arrived at TX Entertainment Broadcasting Station precisely at the designated time.
‘Thank goodness I’m not late.’
As the Staff Member guided me closer to the Star picking5 Filming Set, the murmur of voices grew increasingly louder.
“Cha Si-woo, you’ve arrived at the filming location.”
“Thank you.”
The Large Studio, with cameras installed throughout, was filled with intense heat from the countless trainees gathered there.
‘I haven’t been in a place with this many people gathered at once since my school days.’
The Staff Member handed me a large name tag the size of an A4 sheet.
The top portion was green with “Independent Trainee” written on it, and below that, my name “Cha Si-woo” was written in large letters.
“The name tag has a clip. Please attach it to your chest where it’s clearly visible.”
“Understood.”
“The line with the green sign is for independent trainees. The opening will start soon, so just stand in line.”
“Thank you for the kind explanation.”
After bowing at a ninety-degree angle, I turned my head to search for the green sign.
Far in the distance, at the very end corner, the green sign marked the independent trainee line.
‘Are independent trainees treated as second-class here?’
As I passed through the elaborately dressed trainees, their gazes began to converge on me.
‘There are certainly a lot of students here.’
A diverse array of people coexisted—from students whose baby fat hadn’t yet faded to trainees who looked like natural-born entertainers.
‘So I have to outshine all these people and debut, is that it?’
As I made eye contact with those glancing sideways at me, I recognized several familiar faces.
‘Wait, there are some people here that I’ve photographed before.’
That one was an idol who had an affair with a married woman, and this one was an idol who had been embroiled in sponsorship controversy.
‘That person standing in the Large Entertainment Agency line was someone who dated multiple sasaengs, wasn’t it?’
This is a complete goldmine.

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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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