“From now on, I will announce the trainees who will be making their debut.”
Following Cha Woon’s song performance, what seemed like an eternity passed before the announcement of the debut group trainees finally began. After watching s, reading unnecessary scripts, and conducting interviews here and there, it seemed that the production team was finally satisfied.
‘Yang Hajun has it the hardest. He has to suffer, dragging it out for hours.’
Yang Hajun was almost exhausted, leaning against the host’s podium to take a brief rest once the camera lights turned off. I was so worried he might collapse during the live broadcast.
Finally, the production team’s “
okay
” signal was given, and Yang Hajun received the cards with the completed results and opened it. Then, a mysterious groan of discomfort came from the audience. It seemed that they were envious of Yang Hajun getting to see the rankings first.
Yang Hajun smiled gently at them, then fixed the microphone.
“I will announce the trainee who will be the first to join the debut group, the trainee in sixth-place! This trainee, who climbed up from the bottom without giving up, showing the most dramatic ranking change among all the participating trainees, is none other than!”
“…….”
“Trainee Nagi Zen!”
As soon as his name was called, the audience let out a scream so loudly it felt like they would tear the air apart. Zen’s head snapped up at the sound of his name, and without even acknowledging us, he dashed forward.
“Zen!”
“Ooh, can you let us congratulate you too?”
As the trainees, with desperate pleas, reached out their arms toward the departing Zen, he came to a screeching halt. Then, in a strange, almost comical way, he returned to his original place as if he’d hit rewind.
“Congratulate me. I like compliments.”
As he bowed his head and said that, the trainees patted him on the head like they were petting a dog, showering him with compliments.
“Our Zen is amazing!”
“Work hard in Korea! Let’s keep seeing each other!”
“Thank you.”
While Zen was being congratulated, the chat window exploded into a flurry of responses.
— A legendary filial son. He came out first so the fans wouldn’t have to worry. I’m actually tearing up.
1
— Ugh, it’s so frustrating. Why are they letting a Japanese person debut? Either give up your nationality or give up debuting, tell him to choose one. There are plenty of Korean trainees, so why does it have to be him?
└ This kid must think people can just waltz into the global market lolol It’s been a while since I’ve seen someone so stupidly bash someone based solely on their nationality, it’s making my head spin. Do you even know how much easier it is for new fans to get into the group when there’s a foreign member?
└ Do you know that there are successful teams made up of only Koreans lol?
└ If that approach worked universally, why would agencies bother taking on the risk of recruiting foreign members? Do you think entertainment companies are complete pushovers? If you don’t know how huge Zen’s japanese fanbase is, just stay quiet.
— Just ignore it. If the chat gets messy, the kids might see it. It’s not that we’re staying quiet because we have nothing to say.
— Congratulations on your debut, my baby. You worked hard living in a foreign country and being a trainee at such a young age.
— He’s been in Korea for months and his Korean still sounds that bad?
Chats congratulating Zen and those expressing disapproval of his joining were chaotically mixed together. Zen stared blankly at them for a momen, then turned to me and smiled.
“Leada, I’m finally debuting! I worked really hard.”
“You did well.”
“So, Leada, please come quickly. I’ll be waiting for you upstairs.”
“Okay.”
I quickly turned Zen around and pushed him toward the ranking seats. Then, with determined strides, Zen ascended the platform.
“Next is the trainee in fifth-place. Despite going through tough times, this trainee worked really hard and reclaimed his top-ranking position. With his warm charm, this trainee is extremely popular among the other trainees. That’s right, it’s Trainee Woo Kangwon!”
This time, the audience, who were holding slogans with Woo Kangwon’s name on them, screamed loudly.
As with when Zen was announced, the chat window, which was quickly rising, contained messages like these.
— I was worried about him because he went through a tough time, but I’m glad he debuted just fine. Fighting!^^
— There has never been an idol like this. Once you start looking into
Woo Kangwon, you won’t even be able to see the younger ones ^^. Woo Kangwon is the one who can satisfy the tastes of adults! The best!
— Congratulations on your debut T.T You worked really hard!
— Is the average height of the confirmed members for real?
“Congratulations!”
“Thank you. I’m sorry I have to go first. I’ll wait for you upstairs.”
With his long arms, Woo Kangwon tightly hugged all the trainees around him, receiving congratulations from all the participating trainees as he walked toward the ranking seats. It was indeed a moment that confirmed his immense popularity among the trainees.
After another long delay, Yang Hajun raised his microphone again.
“I will announce the trainee who took the fourth-place. This trainee showed a major reversal on the competition stage. Despite already possessing excellent skills, they continuously strived for improvement. This trainee is….”
Normally, my patience would have already run out and I would have gotten angry by now, but this was so extreme that I had reached a state of near detachment. I didn’t feel anything at all.
See, Yang Hajun was practically gasping for breath.
“Ahem, it’s Trainee Baek Kiryang!”
It was fortunate that my stamina was recovering little by little as I watched the members I wanted join the team one after another. Otherwise, I would have lost my consciousness long ago and only regained it just in time for my ranking to be announced.
“WHOAAAA!”
“I-I’m debuting … uuh.”
Hearing his name being called, Baek Kiryang covered his ears and muttered in disbelief. Even though he must have received top ranking several times by now, Baek Kiryang still seemed unable to adjust, and he brushed a hand across his face as tears welled up in his eyes.
‘Since he didn’t cry his eyes out, I guess I should at least consider it an improvement.’
As I was roughly wiping Baek Kiryang’s wet face with my sleeve, chat messages started popping up on the screen, just like for the other members.
— Ha … If Baek Kiryang hadn’t debuted, I would have just fainted…..
└ For real … our child is an endangered species. If he doesn’t debut this time, we’re done for
— I’m crying … Congratulations ……. I love you…………
— Oh my God. My baby Bambi. My little weasel. Congratulations on your debut
.
└ Ah, the way you speak
— I love you, Kiryang-ah. Don’t get LASIK.
‘What do you mean by don’t get LASIK….’
It felt like something strange was naturally mixed in.
But before I could fully process what I had just seen, Baek Kiryang bowed once to the audience in front of the stage, then once toward the screen, before hastily moving toward the ranking seats
“…….”
As Baek Kiryang made his way to the ranking seat, Baek Kiheon was briefly caught on camera. Without even blinking, he was dripping tears like a faucet. It was the first time I had ever seen someone cry like that.
— Is that pianist Baek Kiheon just now? He’s crying too hard?
— Ah, why do I feel so close to him lately? ㅠㅠ lol I guess it’s because he keeps showing up at rock festivals and idol concerts, keep going hahahahaha
— I still can’t believe that a genius pianist is my fellow fanboy
Laughter filled the chat as the viewers didn’t miss that moment either.
But the peace was short-lived, and the chat started to get more and more strange.
Since the 6th, 5th, and 4th place winners had already been called, if Lee Hwayoung and I, who were obviously contending for first place, were excluded, there was only one spot left.
— I’mGoingCrazyI’mGoingCrazyI’mGoingCrazyI’mGoingCrazy
└ Ah, please be quiet. Do you think you’re living in a solitary cell?
— Ah, this is crazy, I feel like I’m going to throw up. The kids all look so calm, but it’s just us who are shaking like this. I’m envious, jealous, hateful, angry, resentful, despairing, and sick of the fans who have confirmed their kid’s debut
— Must be nice that you guys still have the energy to joke around … Run away, this place is a sea of fire.
— Realistically, it’s probably difficult for Gildong to debut ㅠㅠ Still, you’ve worked hard
.
└ Ah, hurry up and get rid of that negativity now! Gildong-ah, don’t be discouraged. You can do it. You are the most precious. You can even beat Han Seungbeom
└ This is something that was not agreed upon with Trainee Go Gildong
└ How can you say he can beat Han Seungbeom … He’s my baby, but I’m predicting a 5-second knockout…..
└ No matter how much I think about it, I can’t come up with an argument to counter that, this is so unfair.
— Excuse me, but why are Go Gildong’s fans filming a variety show here?
As the audience was cracking up reading the chat, the production team took advantage of the moment to stall for time before they reluctantly ordered the announcement of the next ranking. Filled with the hope that it was almost over, Yang Hajun clenched his fist out of sight of the camera and then grabbed the microphone.
“The next ranking is the third-place trainee. This trainee has consistently maintained a stable ranking from the very beginning of the program until now. This trainee has also made significant contributions to the program as our variety and comedy character.”
“…….”
As soon as he heard “
third place
” and “
variety character
“, Do Yuda began to twitch his lips strangely and started fidgeting with his fingers persistently.
‘Since the rankings from 1st to 3rd place have been so stable from the beginning of the program … it’s difficult to act surprised.’
Since he realized that debut was just around the corner, he seemed unable to stay still due to anticipation. He was so transparent that I started to feel the second-hand embarrassment.
I became really concerned about how he would live his life in the future if he couldn’t hide his true feelings like this.
“The third-place trainee is none other than! Trainee Do Yuda!”
“Wooow!”
Before the fans could even scream, Do Yuda let out a loud shout, raised his arm, and spun around in place. He looked like a dog spinning in circles, trying to catch its own tail.
“Finally, I’m escaping the long-term trainee life! SU, are you watching? I made it!”
— Yuda, so cute hahaha Aww, are you happy now that you’ve debuted?
— As expected of SU, the class of the Founding Member, Legion of Honor
— Ugh, come on, can he stops exaggerating? I’m seriously disgusted every time he does that .… he’ll do anything just to get on camera.
└ Ha … I’m nervous because this will be my first time killing someone ㅠ … Bring me a knife.
After quickly reading the fans’ lively chats, Do Yuda burst into a cheerful laugh and waved his hand at me.
“Hyung, I’m going first!”
“Okay.”
And as soon as Do Yuda sat down in his ranking seat, a solemn background music began to play.
It seemed like a build-up for the announcement of the 1st place trainee.
“Now, we will proceed with the announcement of the first-place trainee. The first-place candidates, Trainee Nicholas and Trainee Han Seungbeom, please come forward to the stage.”
Following Yang Hajun’s instructions, Lee Hwayoung and I stood side by side at the front of the stage. Then, the MC began reading from the script in a calm voice.
“The total number of votes for the first-place trainee is 1,850,748 votes. This is 417,169 votes more than the second-place trainee, and a significantly higher number of votes than the final first-place trainee from the last season, who received 1,289,575 votes. This is the highest number of votes ever received by the first-place trainee in the history of our program.”
The moment the first-place vote count was revealed, murmurs swept through the audience.
The number of votes was so overwhelming that it surpassed not only the previous season’s winner but also the most-voted trainees from all other seasons. Even the second-place trainee received more votes than the first-place winner from the previous season, proving just how remarkable the popularity of this season was.
“And the final first-place trainee of
Survive IDOL
is!”
Du dum dum dum.
A suspenseful sound effect played through the speakers. In fact, just like with Do Yuda, the likelihood that the 1st place trainee would be me was very high. However, with the atmosphere being built up like that, it was impossible for me not to feel a little anxious.
When the audience could no longer hold their breath, the production team finally gave a nod.
‘Hurry. Hurry up. We’re koreans, hurry hurry.’
And in time with that, Yang Hajun shouted,
“TRAINEE HAN SEUNGBEOM!”
“WAAAAAAAAAAAH!”
The sound of the flower pollen effect exploding, the screams of the audience, all at once, deafening my eardrums. Amidst this uproar, Yang Hajun’s shout, filled with overwhelming emotion, cut through the noise without missing a beat.
“Trainee Han Seungbeom, without a single failure until the very end of the program, has perfectly secured an undefeated first place!”
In response to Yang Hajun’s statement, a graph showing the week-by-week ranking changes appeared on the screen.
[1st-1st-1st-1st-1st-1st-1st-1st-1st]
“Even if you combined all the survival programs in South Korea, there’s no record like this! It’s not an exaggeration to say that he has made a mark on the entertainment industry.”
As a clear, sharp straight line that seemed to scratch the peak appeared, the audience gasped in admiration.
And after a brief moment of silence, as if they were stunned by the magnitude of the moment, the sound of thunderous applause began to echo.
I stared at the screen in silence, listening to the overwhelming sound.
“…….”
This was merely the first step.
There was still a mountain of work left to do, and there was no guarantee that everything would go as smoothly as it had this time.
“You should really be grateful to me. If it weren’t for me, you would have lived as a nobody.”
However, there was one thing that was certain; I had earned this position entirely on my own, without the help of Kang Hyukwoo or RH Entertainment.
[Final 1st Place: HAN SEUNGBEOM]
Yes, I was born with this destiny.
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Translator’s Corner:
If you don’t understand, he’s basically called “A filial son” because he’s being called first. Tbh at final broadcast like this unless you’re the competor for #1 first place, ranking doesnt matter as long as you get called. So, the fans of the trainee who gets called first usually very happy because they don’t have to spend long time being anxious whether their fave made it or not. Since the gap between the time the announced one trainee to the next is quite long. ↩︎
KDSJFSDJKLJFD MY SKYYY, WE ALL KNOW IT’S COMING BUT STILL, I’M SO HAPPY FOR YOU
OKAY EVERYONE PAUSE YOUR SILENT READER ACTIVITY FOR ONCE AND COME OUT TO CONGRATULATE OUR MC!!! AFTER 100+ CHAPTERS!!!!! GOODBYE SURVIVAL SHOW ARC