The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 66

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

66

[Thank you for first place! Ah… but I shouldn’t thank you for that since I earned it myself, right? No, anyway, I’m grateful to Noel.]

“That’s an idol for you, a true idol.”
“A real pro~.”

Kim Sung-hyun’s first-place interview played across the screen as the Black Call Vocalist returned with a chuckle.

“Wow~, kids these days have a different kind of stamina~.”
“Hyung, you’re getting old.”
“Well, I aged fast thanks to someone….”

Joo Woo-sung, who had been stretching his legs out in front of him and swinging them, laughed sheepishly.
Black Call had an unusually calm atmosphere. From the start, they didn’t seem particularly hungry for first place. It was the composure of those with such overwhelming recognition that they didn’t need to compete for even a single extra second of camera time like other groups.

“What’s next? Rhythmic gymnastics?”
“Yeah, and archery after that.”

Since we had no members competing in rhythmic gymnastics, we stood up briefly during the setup time, went into the Waiting Room, and received a box directly from our Manager.
It was a reverse-support lunch box we’d prepared since yesterday.

“The fans probably haven’t eaten either….”
“Exactly.”

Usually the Entertainment Agency handles this sort of thing, but the members insisted on pooling their own money, worried they’d end up with some shabby lunch box like they were being treated. As I approached Noel with the box, cheers erupted. I smiled, set the box down, and greeted them.

“You must be hungry. It’s already nine.”
“Hey!! You guys must be even hungrier!”
“We grabbed something quick before coming.”

Sung Ji-won efficiently opened the box and began carefully handing out the lunch boxes one by one. We’d prepared relatively light sandwiches for breakfast, but since everything was homemade, the care was evident.

“I hope it tastes good….”

Noel’s members barely held back from swearing in emotion as they received the lunchboxes. Each one had a personal handwritten note from the members.

“You guys must be so busy with practice….”
“I’m sorry it’s nothing special. I should’ve given you something more delicious.”
“I actually snuck a taste earlier, and it was delicious!”
“You ate some?!”

Sung Ji-won covered Jung Da-jun’s mouth and bowed his head repeatedly. The laughter that erupted from Noel’s members was genuine.
After chatting for quite a while, a fan’s voice pierced through the noise.

“You don’t have to win today—just don’t get hurt!”
“Of course!”

Jung Da-jun nodded brightly with a radiant smile.
Seeing the rhythmic gymnastics event about to begin, I quickly returned to my position.
An idol around our career level was performing rhythmic gymnastics—specifically ribbon work. The elaborate costume and the tension visible all the way to her fingertips made it clear she was grinding her teeth through sheer determination.

‘Yeah, I gritted my teeth and made it through too….’

Jung Da-jun stood and applauded for a long while before sitting back down. The idol, looking satisfied, confirmed her respectable score and headed backstage.
Next was archery. But the staff suddenly stirred and began moving urgently.

“Huh? What’s going on?”
“Isn’t archery next?”

The broadcasting booth staff checked the note hastily handed to them and, with professional composure, broke into a natural smile.

“Well then, everyone, next up is esports!”
“Huh?”

‘Ah, must be a scheduling issue….’

While setting up each sport, they’d been inserting esports preliminaries in between, but apparently the actual playtime differed from expectations, so they pushed archery back to continue with the games.
As I turned around clicking my tongue in disapproval, Kang Yi-chae, competing in the semifinals’ final group, let out a quiet laugh.

“Ah… is it my turn?”
“….”

Kang Yi-chae, who’d been obsessed with some strange concept for days, tilted his head back arrogantly.

“Then let’s head out.”

Kang Yi-chae smirked and swept his hair back, then went around giving high-fives to each member one by one. The Black Call member sitting nearby got swept up in the momentum and joined in as well.

‘Nothing scares that guy….’

The esports team members were Sung Ji-won, Jung Da-jun, and Kang Yi-chae. Plus one member each from Refined and Nightmare.
Joo Woo-sung sipped his juice from beside me and asked.

“Aren’t you going out?”
“I was already eliminated when the team was selecting candidates. What about you, Joo Woo-sung?”
“I was never good at games anyway. Hyun-sung?”
“…I thought I was decent at it.”
“Ha, well, you won gold in the 100-meter dash, so that’s good enough.”

As Kim Sung-hyun spoke with a slightly dejected tone, Joo Woo-sung patted his back and laughed heartily. The Black Call members also chuckled at Kim Sung-hyun’s innocent joy at such simple praise.
The semifinals—Refined’s members were at the very front.
Since the previous esports preliminaries were only going to be edited down to short clips, there were no separate interviews or broadcasts for them.
Perhaps because of this, the broadcasting booth staff looked puzzled when they received information about each team.

[Oh! What’s this Blue Tiger team? It seems like The Dun is the main team, but what does “Tiger” mean at the end?]
[It stands for Nightmare and Refined. Only three members from The Dun are participating, and the remaining two were recruited from other groups.]

Sensing this would make for an interesting interview, the announcer approached them and asked the reason.

“Player Yi-chae, The Dun has five members, so you could participate perfectly with just your team. Why didn’t the other members come?”

Kang Yi-chae received a question with an obvious answer and raised one corner of his mouth as he responded.

“Because a member who performs minus one’s worth isn’t really a member….”
“Wow, that’s pretty harsh, isn’t it?”

As Kim Sung-hyun and I gave thumbs down and booed, the camera didn’t miss it and turned toward us.

[Yes! Player Kang Yi-chae, quick decision-making, well done. So shall we hear interviews from the opposing teams, Refined and Nightmare?]

The remaining members of Refined made faces like they’d eaten something bitter, pouring complaints toward the members from The Dun who had joined the other teams.

“He abandoned his team members and went there, saying he would win.”
“What do you think about that?”

The announcer thrust the microphone closer to the Refined member attached to The Dun. He responded with a composed expression.

“There’s a saying: don’t follow the crow to where the egret goes….”

As the Refined member responded lightly, laughter erupted from the audience. Since bickering back and forth seemed to be routine for Refined as well, the fan seating area didn’t find it particularly surprising.

[Refined Team and Blue Tiger Team, please take your seats!]

“Betting on a man’s ‘pride’… the match is ON.”
“Yeah~!”

To Kang Yi-chae’s gaming-enthusiast-fueled commentary, Sung Ji-won responded graciously and continued waving his hand with a bright smile throughout.

[Alright then, let’s begin the first preliminary match!]

The broadcast team stepped back, and the professional gamer commentators took their seats at the Broadcasting Booth. Their expressions suggested they weren’t particularly optimistic.

[Ah-, the players are heading toward the Tower from each side. Sung Ji-won chose ADC, and Kang Yi-chae chose Support. Are they trying to demonstrate The Dun’s teamwork?]
[Kang Yi-chae’s pre-submitted rank is quite high. But Sung Ji-won… there’s no posted rank?]
[He didn’t submit a ranked match, apparently.]
[Ah, I see….]

The commentators burst into laughter. It was their way of saying there was nothing much to expect, but since the fans who knew Sung Ji-won well also had no great expectations, it didn’t matter.
However, as the game progressed, the commentators’ eyes widened in surprise.

[Whoa~! Right now, the opposing Refined jungler is coming down. It’s a gank, but unfortunately their vision is limited up there. This might get messy.]

“Hyung.”
“Yeah, I see it.”

Yeah, I see it?
At that very moment, Sung Ji-won moved his mouse with dazzling precision. As his character’s brown hair fluttered brilliantly, he dodged the grab that came flying from the darkness and alternated between basic attacks and skills.

[Whoa, whoa, whoa!]
[Sung Ji-won dodges and trades damage simultaneously!]
[Support Kang Yi-chae enters at the same time! Providing movement speed!]
[Refined members panic and retreat upward! They should have committed more aggressively here!]
[First Blood
1)
! Sung Ji-won secures First Blood!]

Sung Ji-won announced the achievement with calm composure, showing no elation over the First Blood.

“Yi-chae, shall we dive?”
2)
”
“Yeah.”

[A dive here? That’s bolder than expected!]
[The support’s health is too low for a dive! He’ll die instantly!]

Just before entering the enemy turret, I eliminated an opponent, leveled up a skill with the experience, and placed it in the path where Refined members would enter. Beside me, Kang Yi-chae unleashed magical damage on the incoming enemies, and their health bar evaporated in an instant.

[Refined is retreating! Refined is falling back to their turret!]
[The support has dangerously low health! Wait, The Dun is diving in! They’re committing!]

Rat-a-tat-tat!

The moment Sung Ji-won entered, he unleashed basic attacks and skills in rapid succession.

[The Dun’s Sung Ji-won—Double Kill!]

One opponent fell instantly, while the pet I’d placed earlier hunted down the last remaining player with a sliver of health.

[The Dun’s Sung Ji-won—Triple Kill!]

As the turret’s attacks rained down, Kang Yi-chae, with supernatural timing, cast healing and movement speed, then retreated. Though damaged, both survived.

[Incredible! What a spectacular play!]
[Sung Ji-won secures his first Triple Kill!]
[If Kang Yi-chae hadn’t cast that heal, they would’ve died there! A 0.5-second delay in reaction time and it’s over! Honestly, in that situation, Kang Yi-chae sacrificing himself would’ve been worth it! But he survived!]
[Man, The Dun’s teamwork is seriously impressive. This is getting exciting!]

The commentators grew excited as the game unfolded far more thrillingly than expected. Perhaps they felt like professionals watching an amateur match and finding it entertaining—either way, they’d caught the momentum.

[The Bottom Lane has completely pushed the enemy back. They haven’t even used their ultimate yet….]

“Want some ice cream?”
“Yeah, the Bar X Bar kind.”
“We don’t have that.”
“…Then just anything.”

We were narrow-minded enough to leisurely suck on ice cream while watching. Besides, I didn’t really understand the game anyway… Of course, the commentators were already too caught up in the excitement to pay attention to anyone else’s reactions.

“Brother, come over here.”
“Yeah.”

[It seems like Kang Yi-chae is handling the overall strategy, doesn’t it?]
[Yes! But right now in the Top Lane, Refined’s Sung Ji-won just quietly secured a kill! The Top Lane is completely pushed as well!]
[And now the Bottom! The Dun’s Bottom Lane isn’t even bothering with the back-and-forth—they’re going all-in for a quick finish! They’re showing their determination and destroying the turret outright!]

Kang Yi-chae clicked his mouse rapidly, tap-tap-tap-tap.

[What’s Kang Yi-chae doing with the minimap? Did he see everything at once?]

“Gank.”
“Got it!”

[Sung Ji-won! The player is heading into the Valley! Wait, no—he’s been spotted! Refined’s player saw him! He’s rushing over, but the physical difference is overwhelming right now! Kill! Kiiill!]
[‘The Dun’s Sung Ji-won’ is going absolutely wild!]
[Sung Ji-won, I can’t believe it!]
[This is pure instinct, pure sense!]

The entire broadcasting booth jumped to their feet. Noel’s fanbase was already in an uproar.
Kim Sung-hyun and I casually sucked on our ice cream and halfheartedly waved our slogans.

“Go for it~.”

Everyone in the broadcasting booth except the commentators focused on the match burst out laughing.

[Are those remaining members of The Dun cheering, or are they not?]
[It feels like they’re saying, “Let’s see you win without us, why don’t you!”]

The Blue Tiger team swept through the team fight and destroyed the opponent’s inhibitor before demolishing the final turret in just 20 minutes.

[Ahhh!!! The Blue Tiger team claims victory, victory~!!]
[Wow~! My, Sung Ji-won and Kang Yi-chae really stood out this match.]

Even as the commentators continued their analysis, Jung Da-jun ripped off his headphones and bolted out excitedly.

“Hyung! Yi-chae Hyung! Ji-won Hyung~!!”
“…Cleanup, done.”

That relentless guy….
Even now, Kang Yi-chae maintained his composed persona as he turned away.

“That was absolutely incredible just now!”

The Blue Tiger team embraced each other and reveled in unbridled celebration. In stark contrast to their blazing enthusiasm, Kim Sung-hyun and I—our moods remained decidedly dampened.

“Is it the finals?”
“I keep wanting to make sarcastic remarks….”

We sat slouched in our seats, pouting and grumbling.

1) The act of eliminating an enemy player for the first time.
2) The action of diving into enemy territory at the risk of being hit by enemy turrets.

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