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Chapter 7
Ding.
[Status Window]
Kim Sun-yu (23)
Appearance: B
Vocal: B-
Dance: A-
Charisma: B-
Stamina: B-
Ability: ???
Trait: 5-year idol debut experience
Wow. His stats are straight-up honor student level.
[He’s on a completely different level compared to someone.]
Shut up.
A veteran’s stage, filled entirely with A’s and B’s, was on another level.
Not that I should be talking, but isn’t this kind of cheating too?
The moment the one-minute timer ended, the music stopped.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Applause echoed among the trainees, their faces full of awe.
The judges, wearing satisfied smiles, picked up their microphones.
“Kim Sun-yu, trainee.”
Kim Sun-yu took a light breath and smiled warmly again.
“Yes.”
“A veteran idol really is different.”
“Your vocal control was clean, and your dancing, eye contact, and facial expressions were flawless.”
“…!”
“Kim Sun-yu’s grade is—”
Still smiling calmly, Kim Sun-yu looked straight at the judges.
“Grade A.”
“Thank you!”
He bowed to the judges, and his turn ended.
Honestly, a veteran deserved an A.
After that, the self-introductions continued nonstop.
“You’re really good.”
That one gets caught in a gambling scandal three years later.
“Amazing.”
This one fell from grace over school violence.
Aware of the cameras constantly zooming in, I swallowed the words I really wanted to say and put on my professional work smile.
I raised my trembling lips as much as possible and became a full-time applause machine.
“You look very charming.”
How many hours have I been smiling? Watching 100 people’s talent shows is brutal.
A translucent blue window suddenly appeared.
[Cha Si-woo, do you have a personality problem?]
Me? It’s not me—those guys are the ones with issues.
Enduring it while thinking about my paparazzi days, I kept clapping until most trainees finished their evaluations.
“Cha Si-woo, please get ready to go on stage.”
Only then—at the very end—was my name called.
“Yes!”
As I stood up, sharp gazes flew at me from all directions.
You guys are really on guard.
After being threatened with death countless times, this level of hostility felt cute.
Some trainees rolled their eyes when I met their gaze; others openly glared.
I flashed a professional smile at the ones glaring and waited below the stage under staff guidance.
My whole body feels stiff from sitting so long.
While stretching lightly, I watched the trainee being evaluated before me.
The trainee before me forgot the lyrics, panicked, and ended up crying pitiful tears.
“Hic… I’m sorry.”
“Yes. Trainee Hong Ryu-han is Grade E.”
The judge, staring coldly, immediately called the next person.
No mercy.
As I stepped onto the stage via the metal stairs, the hot lights shone brightly.
After hours of judging, the judges’ faces were filled with fatigue.
“Hello. I’m Cha Si-woo, twenty years old, an individual trainee.”
Every time I said I was five years younger, my conscience still stabbed me.
After bowing at a perfect ninety degrees and lifting my head, the judges’ dull eyes suddenly lit up.
I’ve seen this scene somewhere before.
“Trainee Cha Si-woo. According to your profile, you’ve never been in an agency?”
“Yes, never.”
“How long have you trained as a trainee?”
“About a month.”
A judge looked startled and asked again.
“What?”
To be exact, two weeks.
“My trainee period is about a month.”
“…Ah! That’s extremely short—basically a beginner. But you passed the first audition. That’s impressive.”
“I was lucky.”
“Very humble. What do you think your charm is?”
Hmm… what’s the model answer here?
Just as I was thinking—
Ding.
[Choose one of the following answers.]
- “My prince-like handsome face. I think I passed because I’m good-looking.”
B. “Tehehe~ (wink) My cute, charming tone and expressions >_<”
C. “My crazy delinquent-style gap charm. People say I look resistant to embarrassment.”
…What is this?
I was genuinely flustered by the sudden system prompt.
I’m not hallucinating, right?
[Choose within 3 seconds. If you don’t, an answer will be selected automatically.]
Hey! What the—!
“Tehehe~ (wink) My cute, charming tone and expressions >_<”
“…”
“…!”
You damn system bastard!!!
Silence spread across the studio.
“Kh—”
“Ahem. Hahaha. Thank you for that cute display, Cha Si-woo.”
“Another trainee full of aegyo. Then shall we see your prepared self-introduction stage?”
“…Yes.”
I swear I’ll kill the system someday.
I forced myself to calm the embarrassment boiling inside.
Mind control. Focus.
Dung-ddang-dung-dung, ping-ping-ping!
As the backing track started, the judges’ pupils visibly shook.
I lightly swayed to the overly bright, cheerful intro of a familiar cartoon theme song.
🎵 I’m going to become a princess~
🎵 Heart-ping that fell for me!!
It was a princess-style cartoon theme song that was hugely popular among kids at the time.
So popular that it topped kids’ wish lists and caused sold-out chaos, emptying parents’ wallets everywhere.
The melody was brighter and higher than expected—but manageable.
More importantly, the “dance” was closer to simple motions—something even kindergarteners could do.
Even I, with D-minus dance, can learn this in a day!
🎵 Heart-ping, love-ping-ping-ping!
At that moment, I instinctively felt I should throw a heart.
Why… am I even thinking this?
Following instinct, I formed finger hearts and winked, tossing them evenly at the judges.
Is this because my charisma stat went up?
I didn’t hesitate at all doing something I’d normally never do.
The judges’ faces froze after getting hit by the hearts.
When the timer hit one minute, the cheerful song stopped.
Ha… that minute was intense.
I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand.
Silence filled the studio.
After about three seconds, applause finally erupted.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
A judge who looked dazed regained focus and picked up the mic.
“Trainee Cha Si-woo.”
“Yes.”
“Your charisma is incredible.”
“Thank you.”
The all-nighter was worth it.
“You look like a cold, chic guy, but you’re full of aegyo—that gap is amazing.”
“At first, I was confused, but your charisma overflowed. And your vocal tone is really good.”
The B-grade emotional self-introduction hit exhausted judges like a refreshing rain.
“Your unexpected idea and performance make us look forward to you.”
The praise exceeded my expectations, and my lips lifted naturally.
Quest success, right?
The choreographer judge, who’d looked uncertain, picked up the mic.
“Since it was more gestures than dance, the dance aspect is a bit ambiguous…”
Staff pointed at the clock, and the choreographer reluctantly nodded.
“But judging the stage itself, it was good.”
Just as planned.
“Your strategy was smart. This mission is about showing charm within one minute. You chose a song that fit your abilities.”
The rules were strictly one minute.
With 100 trainees to judge, the judges had no reason to bend rules or extend time for one person’s dance skills.
After briefly exchanging opinions, the judges nodded.
“We’ll announce the grade.”
Tense music filled the speakers.
“Trainee Cha Si-woo’s grade is…”
“…”
“Grade B.”
I did it!
“Thank you!”
I bowed at ninety degrees toward the judges.
Ding.
The familiar blue window appeared.
[Congratulations. Sub-Quest (3): ‘Receive Grade B or higher in self-introduction’ completed.]
Yes!
[Would you like to receive your reward?]
Of course.
[Reward: +2 stat points. Please choose where to allocate them.]
What should I raise first? Dance, which is ridiculously low? Or play it safe with vocals?
As I returned to my seat under staff instruction, Yoo Hae-in’s voice echoed.
“Great job today, trainees. The one-minute self-introductions were exciting to watch. These videos will later be uploaded to the official website and streaming platforms.”
“…!”
“Oh my god… what do I do?”
Broadcast stations never change.
Doing things their way without prior notice was already infamous on Star Picking.
Joy and despair crossed between trainees who succeeded and those who failed.
Flipping the cue cards, Yoo Hae-in continued.
“Out of 100 trainees, the results are: Grade A—15 trainees, Grade B—20, Grade C—38, Grade D—12, Grade E—15. Great work, everyone.”
A-grade trainees smiled brightly; E-grade trainees looked gloomy.
“Now that we’re warmed up, let’s introduce the next survival mission. First, let’s listen to the music.”
A trendy instrumental flowed from the speakers, followed by a familiar song.
It was the massively popular Star Picking 5 theme song.
“The song you just heard is ‘Cheer Me On,’ the representative theme song for this survival.”
It had topped every chart and played everywhere—so familiar that even someone uninterested in music like me knew it.
“Practice this theme song and present a high-quality performance at the shoot two weeks from now. That performance will air on TX Network’s music show.”
“…!”
The studio erupted in shocked murmurs.
“So we’re doing the theme song again?”
“Covering both choreography and vocals in two weeks…!”
“We’ll appear on TX Network’s music show before debut?!”
Cameras zoomed in on stunned trainees.
Judging by their worried faces, two weeks was definitely not enough time.
“It’s still too early to panic. Grades need to mean something, right?”
“…!”
“A-grade trainees will receive benefits. Front-row placement, solo shots during the stage, and an additional MemTok challenge video uploaded to social media.”
They’re clearly pushing A-grade trainees from the start.
On a 100-person stage, A-grade trainees at the front would be far more likely to be shown.
“The theme song stage will be filmed in a V formation. Behind A-grade will be B, then C, D, and E grades.”
That meant E-grade trainees might not even appear on camera at all.
As the murmurs grew louder, Yoo Hae-in smiled.
“Lower-grade trainees might feel unfair, right? That’s why we’ve prepared this—there will be a re-evaluation for the theme song stage in 10 days.”
That’s a chance to overturn the rankings, isn’t it?
