《Debut or Die [fan translation]》Chapter 57
Advertisement
//TN: I will be changing Big Sejin's name to Keun Sejin cause it just sounds better like that
"Wait for what?"
I sighed.
Seon Ahyun looked like he was going to cry at any moment, considering that he so bravely asked me to not drop out of the show and wait. Anyone who sees this would think that it was him who was about to drop out.
On the contrary, my brain was getting cooler.
'There's a common saying... You can't solve things by just standing.'
If I was an idol who had already debuted, I might have the option of 'self-reflecting' and waiting things out. However, this was an impossible approach for an audition show contestant with the finals just around the corner.
The fact that a guy, who people don't think is deserving of success, is holding out in the audition show will only add to the animosity. This isn't just a simple audition, it's a cable TV show that currently has over 10% viewership ratings and dominates real-time search engines. It would be like suicide to the program to have a person like that in the show.
'If I'm going to fail in the finals anyway, the best thing to do is to resign as soon as possible and figure out the situation.'
First let's give out a vague reason like 'health problems'. With that it would be easy to explain to the public, if it turns out that things were actually unfair to Park Moondae and he didn't do it. And if it turns out that this bastard really did something wrong... then let's go to the person concerned and apologize...
Damn it, the girl even dropped out of high school, so there's no way Park Moondae could be active as an idol.
But there is no other way.
"If there is no evidence that I didn't do it, waiting will only make the situation worse."
"B-but...Se-Sejin also..."
"At that time, we were able to find out about the photoshopped picture right away. We even happened to have a phone then unlike now."
It's really rare to be so lucky.
Seon Ahyun bowed his head.
A brief silence fell again in the dormitory.
It was then.
"...Are you there?"
Once again, someone knocked on the door of the dorm room.
"....."
"Yeah..."
After hearing Keun Sejin's short answer, the door opened. Kim Raebin came in. And right after that, Cha Yu-jin followed in.
I don't know why he followed to someone else's dorm room, but if he came here on purpose then, he really is a tactless guy.
Kim Raebin immediately noticed the bleak atmosphere in his room.
"...The personal practice time, finished just now."
"....."
These two guys missed the self-practice time. They didn't help much, but honestly...I was thankful.
I squeezed out my last ounce of patience.
"Go and practice."
"..! N-no but...."
"It's only a few days away, so don't regret it."
"...What about you?"
I calmly answered.
"I should go discuss about dropping out of the show."
"...!!"
Advertisement
"D-don't...."
Lastly, I will have to check the public opinion one more time, and if things are going as I expected, I will have to come up with a good reason for leaving.
"What? Hyung, why all of a sudden..."
Kim Raebin panicked. It seems that this unsociable fellow still hasn't heard the rumor.
'I'm tired.'
I didn't want to talk about anything anymore. He will hear about it by tomorrow anyway.
I just walked past Kim Rae-bin and headed for the door. I was going to go meet the show writer. Right then, my shoulders were grabbed from both sides.
"Come on, Moondae-ya. Take a rest first and then get up to think about it."
"Th-th-that's right. F-first...re-rest. Take a breather."
As the two of them stuck together, they instantly pushed me back in. Due to this, I was being dragged back to bed like a dog being suppressed.
"Are you guys out of your minds?"
"Wake up. It's been less that thirty minutes since I checked that you're having trouble. You're going to throw away all these months of hard work in thirty minutes?"
"That's why the more I postpone this, the worse the situation will get..."
"Even if you drop out right now, the articles won't appear until tomorrow morning. Things will still be the same in the morning."
Keun Sejin and Seon Ahyun forced me back to bed.
"You have to be in your right mind to decide anything. Don't you realize that you're out of your mind right now, because you're scared?"
"What?"
I stopped struggling to get up the bed. What nonsense is he saying?
"I'm not out of my mind."
"Yeah, no. Right now you're scared and confused."
Keun Sejin quietly added.
"...I've been through this before."
"...."
"If you weren't, you would have realized this before I told you. It makes no difference whether you drop out now or tomorrow morning."
"...!"
That....
Shit. He's right. I couldn't refute it.
'I can't believe I'm panicking.'
I sighed. I keep thinking how I shouldn't have abandoned that damn 'Unwavering mind' character trait.
As these guys pushed me, I laid back down on the bed. Seon Ahyun's relief could be openly heard.
"What the hell is going...."
"Come on, let's get out."
I heard Keun Sejin driving Kim Raebin and Cha Yujin out of the room. As Seon Ahyun followed after him, he swallowed and said to me.
"R-rest."
Creak.
And carefully closed the door.
'...Their beds are here though, even if they go out.'
Well, they'll take care of it in about three hours, whether they'll awkwardly come back in the room or sleep in the practice room. I'm not in a situation to care that much.
I closed my eyes and folded my arms.
And even if I tried to look at Park Moondae's case objectively... would it suddenly be possible? It looks like I'm going to suffer social death in addition to real sudden death.
'Status window.'
There were no changes to the status window I called out. Only one thing caught my eye.
Advertisement
"Why the hell are you doing this to me?"
Why did it have to be me?
Why did it have to be Park Moondae?
It was terribly annoying that I knew nothing about my situation and had no way of finding out. Naturally, it wasn't like I could suddenly think of a brilliant idea by morning. Things won't just get better all of a sudden.
'It's foolish to wish for luck.'
While usually horribly bad things can happen in life without warning, the opposite is extremely rare. If you compare the probability of winning the lottery with the probablity of getting into a car accident, the latter would overwhelmingly win.
Look at me. A supernatural phenomenon has completely changed my life, and my life is probably already ruined.
".....Haa."
Damn it. I'm just getting more anxious. It makes me want to resign right away.
'...Still, let's pass this night.'
I didn't have any expectations.
Just for the sake of those guy's sincerity, I sighed and yielded to their persuasion.
The more I calculate what is the reasonable thing to do, the more chaotic my thoughts became.
'There's no answer, no matter how I look at it...'
That's how I finally fell asleep.
* * *
Bang!
The loud noise woke me up.
'....The sound of wood breaking?'
As I opened my eyes half-awake, I saw Seon Ahyun storming in through the door.
"Mo-Mo-Moondae-ya."
Seon Ahyun's face looked red.
'What else happened now?'
If something has happened to someone else, I hope that would bury my current issues a bit. Seon Ahyun suddenly stuck something out in front of my nose. It was a smartphone with the screen turned on.
"Lo-look at this...!"
The light on the screen blinded my eyes. I frowned and grabbed the phone.
'Where did he get this.'
He held the item that was prohibited in the filming set and read the screen tremblingly.
"...!"
A miracle had occured.
The article began to explain the situation of that time in great detail.
The writer said to have been continuously bullied by some of her bad classmates since the beginning of the semester for no special reason.
At first, the bullying started with backstabbing, and gradually became worse to the point that it became unbearable. However, due to her difficult family circumstances, she had no other choice but to endure it.
And then her sanitary pad was stolen.
It seems that bullies tried to double the fun by accusing the theft on Park Moondae, who was going around alone without any close friends in class.
Although, it was not specifically mentioned in between the lines in the post, it's likely that this ridicule she got was sexual harassment. She was completely mentally shattered under extreme stress and was absent from school for ten days without notice.
And during this period, Park Moondae dropped out.
Although the writer herself was a victim, she tried to contact Park Moondae after dropping out because she was worried about Park Moondae being falsely accused.
However, Park Moondae's response to her texts apologising to him was as follows.
The writer was taking antidepressants at the time and was unable to proceed with the accusations, because she was in a state of hyperventilation everytime she was near the school.
So, she ended her conversation with Park Moondae. But even after she got away from the incident, she continued to worry about it and even tried to contact him. However, it appeared that the number didn't exist anymore.
'...Because Park Moondae canceled his cell phone plan.'
The article ended with a bracing sentence that she would proceed with a lawsuit against the perpetrators in high school based on the recordings. There were several authentication photos attached below.
In the latest comments, the people who denied this reality, were being bashed at and they deleted their comments and ran away.
And the opinions that changed people's stance occupied the best comments.
"...."
I felt nauseous.
'It wasn't Park Moondae.'
Even the person directly involved showed up and confimed it. A day after the incident.
"All, all right!"
Seon Ahyun started talking, but it was hard for me to hear anything he was saying. My head was pounding.
'Is this... possible?'
I didn't even do anything, and suddenly things got better like this?
Can this just be solved like this?
Rather than relief and joy, I felt strange. It was strange that something like this could happen in life. I thought I've learned from experience, that if there's a sudden change in my life when I haven't done anything, then it most like would be something bad.
I never though I would come into a person's body and experience the opposite.
"Hey!"
The door slammed open and someone came rushing in. I could see the faces of the guys in the same team as me, with Keun Sejin in the lead.
'Come to think of it... I was the leader.'
It was strange because I didn't think we were that close. It must have been difficult to make changes to the practice since the leader was about to do a Schrödinger's resignation. These guys must have had a lot to think about last night.
//TN: It refers to the paradox of Schrödinger's cat. You can search it up if you want since I'm not going to explain it here :'D
"Hey! What did I say? I told you to wait, right?"
After Keun Sejin saw Seon Ahyun there, he understood the situation and shouted loudly. He seemed to know everything already.
"...I know."
I meekly agreed.
"Thanks."
If it weren't for these guys, I would have already quit last night, taken out my luggage and regretted it in the morning
"Thanks to you, I'm continuing the show."
I laughed.
Seon Ahyun was happy and kept repeating 'It's nothing' and 'I'm glad'.
Keun Sejin grinned.
"If you're grateful then buy me a cow." //TN: He literally said cow and not beef ㅜㅜ
"......Let's pretend we didn't say anything."
"Hey!"
I don't have any money to buy a cow.
I was relieved, listening to Keun Sejin grumbling and the teammates celebrating.
'Now I can quietly practice until the finals.'
"Thanks for bringing the phone. How did you get it?"
"I-I asked for it!"
Seon Ahyun smiled brightly and took the phone. Now I hope I won't have a reason to check the phone until the finals begin. But while I had my eyes off the smartphone, things took a weirder turn.
The first reason was a social media post by Gold 1.
Advertisement
- In Serial36 Chapters
My Girlfriend, the Necromancer
The power of the Orb cleaves the skies and shatters the earth. It heralds the advent of a new era, one where humanity is no longer at the top of the food chain and we must rise to the challenge when faced with our own extinction as a species. I could hardly care less. All I ever wanted was to love my Allie, to grow old and wrinkly by her side as I held her hand before taking my last breath on this green earth. To have our love echo through the ages, an ode to the last great love story on the planet, one that would endure the end of humanity, the breaking of the world, and even defy the dread summons of Death itself. It’s said that when the gods unleash their fury upon mortal kind, they grant their wishes. Well, crap. This is a gritty end of the world survival story with modern fantasy/romance/game-like elements in it. The main focus will be character development while stats and menus are there as a fun vehicle to empower the imagination. This is a work in progress and I deeply appreciate any helpful suggestions, so please don't be shy with input! Currently posting at least one chapter per week.
8 141 - In Serial19 Chapters
Slime of Gluttony
_____ ___, a completely and utterly deplorable person. Lazy, apathetic, and unmotivated. He spends his time as a shut-in, wasting his life away doing nothing of importance. This is the life of the man, a life of no importance. At the impulse of desiring food, he left his small and cramped apartment. Regretting his actions immediately, he was left with the prospect of a complete panic attack due to the numerous amount of people outside at that day. However, he pressed on, determined to find some sort of delicious food to consume. Life had other plans for him. He gets hit by a car, and after hearing strange words from an even stranger voice, he dies. However, minutes, hours, maybe even days later, he awakes, his senses of smell, sight, and hearing robbed of him. Author's Note: This is my first story on Royal Road, so it might not be the best. Although, I hope you enjoy! I'll probably write around 2000 words or more per chapter, but on average a bit more. If you're wondering, the cover art is drawn by me, just in case you thought I wasn't giving credit to the creator.This story might often times lean more into the comedy side of things, but stuff can still get pretty serious at times, especially in the later chapters. The story isn't super dark or anything, but character death is of course going to be a thing. Who? Well, you'll find out, eventually. Also, I'll upload chapters on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I hope you enjoy reading this little hobby of mine!
8 84 - In Serial7 Chapters
Infernal Bones: Book 2 in the Elemental Dungeon Series
Ryan has died, been reborn as a dungeon core, defeated a necromancer, and made a number of friends along the way. Life, well un-life, is good. However, everything changed when the demons attacked. With his dungeon town in danger and cultists scheming in the shadows, Ryan must decide whether to draw upon the darker side of his own nature – unlocking powers far greater than anything he has accessed before. Something his new dungeon fairy seems suspiciously excited about.With his favorite adventurer, Blake, slowly accepting his new powers as a Specter of Balance, Ryan learns being a darkness dungeon means a lot more than just bones, zombies, and skeletal fight club. Apparently, the power granted by God of Death encompasses much, much more. Unfortunately, Ryan learns the hard way that some things should remain dead… **** I have recieved permission from the publisher to share the first 7 chatpers of the story, as a sample (I am the author of this book) **** If you like what you've read, feel free to hop over to Amazon and check out the full story! https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B08461328J
8 172 - In Serial70 Chapters
Qinrock
A series of short standalone (mostly) stories taking place in a world of darkness and sorcery, monsters and demons, faeries and witches, knights and nobles. A new story every week written following certain rules: 1. Once a story is started it must be finished 2. There can be no written plans for the story except for the story itself 3. A story cannot be edited or changed significantly while it is being written 4. Anything goes in Qinrock
8 118 - In Serial11 Chapters
Gur-dun: Grey's Selection.
Afterlife advocates have a difficult job, they never get the easy assignments. Balancing the Benefits, Penalties, and Goals for each client's new life is tricky, every time Mr. Grey must do what he can with what he has. Mr Grey's latest client has been royally screwed by his previous life, and worse, by interns to the reincarnation system.The only solution Mr. Grey could find might be worse than his clients previous life...This is the unfortunate and amazing life of Gur-dun, Son of Suffering.
8 179 - In Serial43 Chapters
The Man With The Gloves (mxmxmxm)
TW: SELF-HARM This is a BXBXBXB story. Don't like, don't read. "Be careful, Fayez, not to touch anything or anyone. Keep your gloves on at all times, my sweet prince, or who knows what might happen".Fayez is the last-born child of one of the strongest family of vampires that ever existed. According to most, he should have led an easy life, for money was never a problem and he had many servants more than willing to fulfill his wishes. Fayez had everything to be happy, except for the fact that he was a burden to his own parents. See, there was something terribly wrong with his hands: everything he touched became rotten, so he had to keep his gloves on at all times. He was a leathal weapon, one that had to be kept a secret, so that other people wouldn't try to use his curse for their own benefit.When Fayez turned 21, his parents decided that their son could not be kept secluded in their castle any longer, and that it was more than time for him to face the outside world. They sent him to the prestigious ISB - Institute for Supernatural Beings, where every supernatural creature from age 20 to age 30 is given a special training to enhance his natural capabilities. How will the priviledged Fayez, who only ever knew the faces of his family and servants, survive in a place where most of the residents have experienced violence and cruelty from a very young age, and are street smart?More importantly, can this haughty, strong yet inexperienced, touch-depraved young man learn how to love and be loved in return, or is he far too gone already?
8 317