episode_0021

As the assembly time approached 7 a.m., all the participants of the Nara Challenge pierced through the early morning wind and headed to the set.

“Haahh….”

“So sleepy….”

Everyone, still not fully recovered from yesterday’s fatigue, yawned and sluggishly walked.

I was also among them, but my condition was still decent.

My stamina stat, which I had trained rigorously with a Cinderella-like routine of school, part-time job, and household chores, was….

(Stamina: 93)

An impressive 93.

In contrast, Seo Yujin beside me seemed to have a very weak stamina as she groaned and barely walked.

Curious, I checked her stamina stat through the status window….

(Stamina: 12)

…It was a pitiful level.

‘…That’s my singing stat before leveling up.’

Thinking that way, I realized how trashy Seo Yujin’s stamina stat was, feeling sorry for her.

“Uuuhh…, where am I….”

As she mumbled, disoriented and trying to go in the wrong direction, I reached out and held her hand.

“It’s this way, not that way.”

“Oh…thank you….”

Still half-asleep, perhaps.

She, who was like a fierce cat yesterday, seemed quite docile today….

“But who are you…? ….!!”

Zap!

…I thought she knew who I was, but as soon as she recognized me, her eyes widened.

Of course, glaring at me with sleepy eyes didn’t have any impact.

“…Heh, hehe!”

“…Stop growling and just follow me. Before I push you into that ditch over there.”

Of course, since there was no camera, it was a joke in a sarcastic tone.

But as soon as she heard my words, Seo Yujin looked at me with wide eyes and silently followed behind me, as if in a trance.

Fear was evident in her expression, as if she was scared.

Seeing her like that, I felt like laughing instead.

It was annoying how she antagonized me for no reason, but when she showed her vulnerability so clearly, it was kind of cute.

And that was when I chuckled, holding Seo Yujin’s hand as we walked.

“Unni! Ye-rin Unni!”

Suddenly, as I turned around at the sound of someone calling me….

Woof! Woof!

…Park Yoojung was running towards me like a dog.

“Unni!!”

“Oh, yeah, Yoojung.”

Even this morning, full of energy, Park Yoojung ran to me and hugged me tightly.

‘Come to think of it, my first MBTI type was I…. And extreme I at that….’

In contrast, Park Yoojung was clearly an extreme E. To be able to exude such friendliness after just one day of meeting.

“I’m glad we met again! I was worried about not being able to see Unni all day today!”

“Yeah, I’m glad we met again too.”

Although it was a bit overwhelming for her to hug me all over, it didn’t mean that I wasn’t happy to see her.

After spending the whole day together yesterday, I had grown quite fond of Park Yoojung.

She looked so much like a puppy that she was cute.

So I accepted her hug and patted her head.

“Hehe…, huh?”

Park Yoojung, receiving my pat, looked surprised when she saw my left hand holding Seo Yujin.

“Unni, who is she…?”

“Oh, she seemed really tired, so I was just holding her hand.”

“….”

As she listened to me, Park Yoojung’s expression momentarily stiffened.

Come to think of it, she didn’t seem to like Seo Yujin’s attitude yesterday.

“I see.”

Still, Park Yoojung quickly regained her composure and reached out to Seo Yujin.

“Hello! I’m Park Yoojung from Levi Entertainment! Nice to meet you!”

I’ve always felt this, but Park Yoojung’s bright smile seemed to have a great effect in breaking down barriers between people.

I’m not the type to easily open up to others, but her smile made me open up to her.

But Seo Yujin seemed to be more of a rival than I thought….

“Hmph.”

“….”

He turned his head after letting out a sneeze.

I witnessed that moment.

Seo Yujin’s eyes were fixed on Park Yujung’s outfit, which was labeled with an E grade.

It seemed like she decided to ignore her after seeing that Park Yujung’s grade was low.

“She’s really shameless.”

But even in the face of Seo Yujin’s attitude…

“Haha! You’re quite shy!”

Park Yujung chuckled lightly and brushed it off.

…She must have an incredible mental strength.

“But holding hands together makes me jealous. Can I join too?”

“…Oops.”

Park Yujung grabbed my empty right hand and interlocked our fingers.

“……”

Seo Yujin glared at us with sleepy eyes, then squeezed my hand tightly as if she didn’t want to lose something, like a child…

Squeeze.

…She gripped my hand so tightly that it hurt a little.

I was the one who felt flustered by the situation.

‘What are they doing, sandwiching me between them…’

Being pulled back and forth by both of them felt like a tug-of-war.

But strangely… I didn’t feel bad while being dragged around.

It was like… having a younger sibling I had never experienced in my past and present lives.

With a cat in my left hand and a dog in my right, I headed towards the dressing room.

Holding both of them seemed to ward off the chilly morning breeze.

Zing-.

**

At the set, there was a huge screen set up with the main MC, Han Siwoo.

As the main PD signaled the start of filming, Han Siwoo grabbed the microphone.

“Hello, everyone. Nice to see you again. Did you sleep well last night?”

“Yes-!!”

“Then, I will now reveal the theme song that you will be practicing for a week at My Idol Academy.”

Pah-!

As Han Siwoo signaled, the screen lit up.

Inside the screen, dancers were preparing for the choreography.

“Watch carefully, this is the theme song for My Idol Academy, .”

Even without directly seeing NAAA, I knew this song. NAAA had caused a huge sensation in South Korea.

It was impossible not to know it, as it played on the streets every now and then.

-We always dream.

The song was not too difficult, not exceeding the average level of other girl groups.

But seeing the choreography for the first time was different.

The beginning seemed to cater to the public or perhaps consider the lower-grade participants, as the choreography difficulty was not high.

However…

-We are dreaming!

-The moment you saw us.

-We open our eyes!

“…Huh?”

“…Hmm.”

The participants watching the screen murmured the next moment.

It was understandable…

‘The center’s choreography has changed…?’

And it was quite complex, making it difficult to follow.

In that case…, the participants who would be in the center would require a very high level of skill.

Among the 100 participants, the center would naturally be made up of A-grade trainees.

‘Do they not just put anyone in A-grade?’

Most of the B-grade trainees noticed this fact, and their faces turned pale.

I sighed with pity as I watched them, knowing they would have to break through the thick and solid wall of A.

But at that time, I didn’t know what it meant for the B-grade trainees not to move up to A.

**

After the introduction of the theme song, the trainees moved to customized classes according to their grades.

F-grade went to F-class, B-grade went to B-class.

Naturally, I was in the A-grade, so I went to the A-class.

And…

“Yerin, can’t you focus?”

…Hell began.

“Yerin, try singing that part again.”

The part the vocal trainer pointed out was the bridge leading to the chorus.

“…Protect me-!”

“No, no, that’s not it! Ugh… Seola, would you like to try?”

The name of this hell was the so-called comparison hell.

“Protect me-!!”

“That’s right! They said we have to shout like a lion here to give a dramatic feeling, right?”

“…I’m sorry.”

The problem with Class A was that there were only two of us, me and Yoo Seol.

With only two people, the trainers naturally had to compare the two of us.

Of course, in terms of dance stats, I wasn’t behind Yoo Seol except for lacking in technique and experience.

But the problem was vocal ability.

No matter how much I raised my stats… my vocal ability was 65.

And Yoo Seol’s vocal ability was 99.

Vocal ability 65 wasn’t a low stat, but compared to Yoo Seol, it felt like a world of difference.

But in the beginning, this wasn’t a big problem.

The trainers were aware of the difference in vocal ability between me and Yoo Seol.

“Yerin, it seems like the rhythm was a bit off in this part.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Haha, it’s okay. Shall we try again?”

At first, they kindly taught me without comparing my vocal ability to Yoo Seol’s.

But…

“Trainer Kim Yesol, can you come here for a moment?”

Suddenly, the main PD took the vocal trainers aside for a private conversation…

“…Yerin, can’t you understand what I’m saying? Do it like Seol! Like Seol!”

Suddenly, they started comparing me and Yoo Seol and pushing us.

Damn producers.

If things continued smoothly like this, there would be nothing to broadcast, so the order to compare me and Yoo Seol was undoubtedly given.

“Sigh… let’s take a break for a bit.”

The vocal trainer let out a sigh, gave me a apologetic look, and left.

Zing-.

The camera captured only me and Yoo Seol left in the practice room.

Without missing a beat, Yoo Seol came up to me.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah…”

“Don’t be too upset. I’m sure the trainer only wants things to go well…”

“Thank you.”

Yoo Seol clenched her fist as if to encourage me and said, “Shall we practice a bit more before the trainer comes? The bridge part was difficult for you, right? I can…”

That’s when it happened.

“I’ll go change the tape for a bit.”

When the production team lowered the camera, Yoo Seol naturally stepped back.

“…”

The second reason why Class A was difficult was because of Yoo Seol.

She was so different in front of the camera and off-camera.

She completely changed when the camera was on and off.

Even now… when she was teaching me the bridge, as soon as the camera was lowered, she immediately stepped back.

“Ha.”

Her behavior was puzzling, but I couldn’t confront her.

If I started an argument and it was caught on camera, I would be immediately shown on broadcast and face consequences.

So all I could do was wait.

In the midst of the trainers’ comparisons, the production team’s pressure, and Yoo Seol’s coldness…

I could only wait for the birth of another Class A trainee.

“Even if it’s Seo Yujin, please…”

I prayed desperately for another Class A trainee to come, even if it was the sharp-tongued and prickly Seo Yujin.

And perhaps my prayers were answered.

“Everyone, a new Class A trainee has been born.”

“…!”

As the production team opened the door and announced the birth of a new Class A trainee.

“Come on in.”

And as I saw who the new Class A trainee was…

“…Huh.”

I could only be taken aback.