Do you know the ghost story about someone throwing a doll into the trash, only to find it waiting for them again in front of their door?
That was pretty much exactly how I felt right now.
Why is this showing up here?
The Trait I had just pulled, ‘Now That You Mention It, You’re Right.’
It had first appeared as a C-grade Trait near the beginning of Idol Inc., and I’d used it to persuade Seon Ahyeon before deleting it when we debuted.
The fact that it had popped up again was funny enough, but something else was ridiculous too.
Why the hell is it A-grade?
I’d already experienced what happened when a Trait I possessed appeared again—it fused and turned into a higher-grade Trait. But if I remembered correctly, its name had changed in that case.
Does this System have no consistency whatsoever?
I had no idea why this one had kept the exact same name. Surely it wasn’t some bullshit straight out of a trash-tier game, like The Trait was too useful, so we adjusted it upward to A-grade.
For now… I should check the details properly.
[Traits]
‘Now That You Mention It, You’re Right (A)’ acquired!
-Causes emotional agitation in the listener.
: 60% activation chance, active by default
“…Hmm.”
The description was the same, but the probability had definitely gone up. I thought it had been 35% at C-grade, but here it was 60%.
Then it really did become a higher grade without changing its name… but why?
At that moment, a thought occurred to me.
Is it a warning?
Come to think of it, I had once formed the hypothesis that whenever a new Trait appeared, a moment would inevitably come when I needed to use it.
And that hypothesis… had more or less held true so far.
Then maybe the reason it had deliberately kept the same name was to make me stop and think about it one more time, as a warning that I absolutely had to take this Trait—
That’s going too far.
I shouldn’t focus too much on trying to decipher the Status Window’s intentions. It wasn’t as if it had only stabbed me in the back once or twice.
That didn’t mean I had to ignore it automatically just because it felt suspicious, either. I needed to judge it objectively.
“…….”
I drummed my fingers against my arm before finally shrugging.
Well… I was planning to swap one out anyway.
The ability to cause ‘emotional agitation’ was useful in all sorts of ways.
This is the right choice.
I manipulated the Trait section.
[Trait: International Student (A) has been deleted!]
And just like that, ‘Now That You Mention It, You’re Right (A)’ reentered my Status Window.
Congratulations on reclaiming your old post.
Now all that remained was investing my stats….
“Yeah. I agree with Sejin that the fundamentals are the most important thing. But rather than technique, I think it’s closer to your mindset. It’s important not to lose sight of where you started.”
“Hmm~ That could be true!”
“I-I also… think your heart is important…!”
“That’s right! Heart! Personality!”
No. Not that kind of heart.
And on top of that, they had arrived at a conclusion that had absolutely nothing to do with stat investment.
Good grief.
Still, they all looked pleased with themselves for reaching some kind of unified conclusion, so… whatever. I’d leave them alone.
“So we’re settling on mindset… Wait, why were we even talking about this in the first place?”
“Moondae hyung asked!”
At Cha Eugene’s declaration, Ryu Chungwoo turned his head toward me.
I looked away.
“…I just asked because I was bored.”
“Oh, really?”
Ryu Chungwoo gave an awkward laugh.
“I thought maybe you meant that we should all get our heads back in the game. Since we’re about to start promoting again.”
“Ah~ Then we can use it for that! Comeback, fighting!”
“F-Fighting!”
And just like that, the atmosphere somehow became one where everyone was wishing for a smash-hit comeback.
Good grief.
Still, nobody’s wound up as tightly as they used to be.
Our firm position as a team that had already settled into its trajectory. A good song and good choreography.
And repackages usually came out after a short interval and had similar album configurations, so expectations for their performance were lower. If anything, that seemed to have reduced the pressure.
There was no danger of the new season of Idol Inc. tripping us up, either. Because of the industrial espionage incident, the company would be keeping a low profile for a while, so refusing appearances or articles wouldn’t be difficult.
From what I heard, episode six, which had aired recently, was doing something insane called a stock-sale discount—basically, ‘Cheap Negative Votes for Sale.’
It wasn’t my problem, so this was the very definition of watching a fire from across the river.
Hmm. Maybe I can take it a little easier this time too.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to make things physically easier on myself and focus comfortably on the dancing for once.
I looked at the Status Window, which was still open, and let out a short laugh.
What kind of idiot who dies if he can’t collect two hundred thousand is talking about taking it easy?
Let’s be efficient.
This song wasn’t performance-heavy, so it would be better to emphasize other elements and make the stage appealing that way.
It all converges on one answer anyway.
Just as I had originally planned, I raised a stat.
Charm, from B+ to A-.
Well, even then, it’s nowhere near Cha Eugene.
Still, I was a little curious about what difference there would be compared to when it was B.
Two weeks after Park Moondae finished settling his Status Window.
Thursday, October 17, in the afternoon.
“Comeback!!”
Park Moondae’s fansite master couldn’t suppress the excitement swelling inside her as she watched the music video and streamed the digital track on a tablet and a spare smartphone respectively.
Both screens displayed the same words.
[TeSTAR – Picnic]
It was TeSTAR’s new repackaged title track, released with their comeback on the fourteenth of that month.
It’s so good!
She was worried about her idols working like oxen without even getting a proper break, but there was no helping the grin spreading across her face.
I was worried they wouldn’t be able to ride the momentum they built with <Procession>!
There had been no need to worry.
The promotional track was excellent.
The fresh, gentle R&B song was perfect for listening to pleasantly on a chilly autumn morning.
Please become everyone’s commute song…. Please!
It was only the third day since release, and rather than talking about the general public picking it up, fans were still busy dragging it higher on the daily chart. Yet the fansite master, rather unlike herself, was already getting ahead of herself.
This one has to do well digitally!
After all, they had made a song focused this heavily on pure listening appeal. An odd sense of pride was rising inside her, insisting that everyone had to hear it.
And TeSTAR had also made sure to include a little something fans would love—the sort of thing that could easily be lost when focusing too much on mainstream appeal.
They had put it into the details of the music video.
-Doesn’t matter what the forecast says
It’s a day when I want to see you
If I just walk along, light step after light step
Today, the sky is blue, yeah
Go on a picnic, Go on a picnic
The music video’s story was simple enough: ‘The TeSTAR members are college students going to the Han River for a day out.’
But the props and compositions inside it were far from ordinary.
They had cleverly recreated and inserted decisive images and props from TeSTAR’s journey, from Idol Inc. all the way through <Procession>.
For example, there was the high school uniform hanging in Park Moondae’s room that looked nearly identical to his <Idol Inc.> uniform, the soap bubbles Seon Ahyeon blew by the Han River, and the composition of Ryu Chungwoo walking between the trees.
Details only people in the know could recognize gave the fans something fun to hunt for.
One reporter who had been interested in TeSTAR even published commentary like this.
========================
[A One-Year-Old Group Brings Back Nostalgia]
Here lies a span of time in which an enormous story has been compressed. The time TeSTAR has spent running without rest possesses a tightly woven density, thick with the sense of experience they share with the public.
…….
There is something extraordinary in the feeling of taking all that time apart, piece by piece, and allowing it to scatter beautifully through the air.
Those who know will recognize it, but even those who do not can enjoy it.
…….
========================
The article itself didn’t receive much attention from the general public, but it received plenty of comments and support from TeSTAR fans, the fansite master included.
And although it wasn’t enough to say that fans were simply getting intoxicated by their own interpretations, the initial public reaction was pretty good too.
The proof was that K-pop communities and similar spaces had not been completely plastered with comments like ‘the song sucks’ or ‘<Procession> was better.’
Though that was about the limit of the praise.
-Compared to Procession it’s kinda bland. just my taste
-They picked such an easy routeㅠㅠ Guess they’re done being concept freaks now
└Raebin personally arranged it, and the members said they loved it so much they absolutely wanted it as the title track! I’m already excited to see what amazing song they bring next comeback♡
-It’s fine, I guess~
-The song is good but kind of disappointing. I thought they’d come out with something more intense
Of course, that didn’t mean fans reading those comments weren’t pissed off.
When they came out with <Procession>, you all said they’d ‘gone too far’ and that it was ‘cringey’!!
Watching people heap praise on an old promotional track they could no longer tear down, only to use it as a club to beat the new song with, was infuriating every single time.
The fansite master briefly recalled the whole thing with the urge to clutch the back of her neck, then quickly calmed herself.
It’s fine. Our song is a masterpiece.
As long as the song was good, everything was fine.
And it wasn’t only the title track that had been well received. The repackaged album contents were excellent too.
The preorder bonus included a picnic blanket and box, and the patterns had been drawn by the members themselves.
I know it’s blatant merchandising… but it was excellent blatant merchandising.
The fansite master gazed contentedly at one wall of her room, where the blanket patterned with the squashed, rice-cake-like apples Moondae had drawn was hanging.
For reference, beside it was a whole crowd of ‘May Groom’ dolls from <The Singer I Made>, gathered in various sizes.
She felt full just looking at them.
“Good…. Everything’s going smoothly.”
The fansite master calmed down in an instant, then rolled across her bed in happiness mixed with excitement.
To be honest, when she’d first started running a fansite for a member of a group that debuted through a survival show, she had privately worried that the road ahead would be covered in thorns.
But judging by their record so far… things had been far smoother and more enjoyable than she had expected.
Problems had happened, sure, but every situation had been handled just right, and the controversies died down quickly.
And most importantly, their results were good!
Ah, Moondae appearing on <The Past Is Calling> this time was so good too.
She briefly recalled the moment her timeline had practically lagged from everyone losing their minds, saying he was intelligence itself, like some brilliant crown prince in a historical drama.
Moondae is… a genius puppy…….
It was pure, primitive fan gushing.
Only a moment later did she suddenly snap back to reality.
Work. Work!
She had to hurry up and edit the photos she’d taken at the last event if she wanted to watch today’s comeback-stage live broadcast with a clear conscience!
Read only on MUGEX
But what she saw on the internet tab she clicked almost unconsciously on her laptop was… a notice posted to the community page of TeSTAR’s WeTube channel.
========================
[<TeSTAR Living Together TEST: Side Story> Roommate Switch, Part 2!]
Who ended up sharing a room with whom? It’ll be released early tomorrow (Friday) at 7 PM for membership Loviewers! >_<
(Photo)
=======================
The attached photo showed several men’s hands playing a card game.
Judging from the post… anyone could tell it was a game for deciding roommates!
“Aaaagh!”
The fansite master screamed in delight.
This is going to be fun!
It obviously wasn’t that she disliked Ahyeon, but at this point, she also wanted to see how Park Moondae would react if he became roommates with another member.
Afterward, though, she calmed down a little.
Hmm… not Ryu Chungwoo… I hope it’s Lee Sejin!
They had somehow fought it out and moved past it at the right time without causing a real problem, but judging by what Moondae had been like in the last summer package, everyone vaguely suspected that something had happened between him and Ryu Chungwoo.
Of course, it didn’t seem serious.
They were only like that then. They got along fine again afterward.
It had only been enough to make people briefly wonder if they had fought, but there was still no reason to specifically wish for the risky adventure of making them roommates.
And because the first impression left by the team combination from Idol Inc.’s first team match was still so strong, the fansite master privately picked Lee Sejin.
Anyway, I just hope it’s fun!
In the end, at least that broad wish of hers came true.
“WOOOW! Moondae hyung!”
“……Wow.”
Was this for real?
I stared at Cha Eugene, who had his hand held out for a high five, and briefly found myself at a loss for words.
So this meant….
“We’re roommates!”
He even delivered the finishing blow himself.
Fine.
I got it.