The Malicious Member is Back! - Chapter 106
After the first and second episodes of Targeting Star aired:
“I trusted it somewhat because it was produced by Joo Cheol Yeong, but… it’s at this level?”
“I was hesitant since the agency has never had a successful group, but if it’s going this well… I think it’s okay to push it further.”
“Let’s get more advertisers. Put up the announcements.”
Realizing they were getting a decent response from the public, Music Days teamed up with AG to take a more aggressive marketing approach starting from the third competition round.
And that began with:
[3rd Competition Benefit – Same Stage as Them!
A chance to perform on Music Music Today!]
The winners of the third competition would perform on Music Days’ music show Music Music Today.
This was something I didn’t even know, despite being in Targeting Star for the second time.
…It meant that the survival show was starting to diverge from what I knew.
<Tomorrow morning, there will be a studio shoot. Trainees, please be ready by 7 a.m. and wait in front of the bus.>
I had a feeling we wouldn’t be doing it in the large auditorium of the idol factory like before.
But I wasn’t too shocked.
I was already thinking about changing the debut members, so it wasn’t surprising that other things were changing too.
Besides, I had already sensed it when my edit was moved up in the first episode.
“Wait, does this mean we’re going on a music show?”
“All of us? No way. Obviously, only the winning team or the winning individuals will go!”
“Hold on. I’m really nervous….”
Still, upon arriving at the studio, the trainees were left speechless as soon as they saw the benefit for the third competition.
“Wow, trainees! This is the first time you’re more interested in the benefits than the actual competition, right? It’s my first time too!”
MC Choi Gaon, who appeared more extravagantly dressed than usual for the studio shoot, added with a laugh.
“Haha, doesn’t it make you excited to think about singing and dancing on the same stage as debuted idols? I always perform my first comeback stage on MuMu!”
“I’m really excited!”
“I really want to go up there….”
Though they dutifully answered the question to get camera time, each trainee was harboring different thoughts.
‘Can I make it up there? With my current ranking?’
‘What’s the easiest way to win?’
‘No, before that, can they just tell us what the competition is about?!’
Even if they tried to hide it, everything showed on their faces.
Especially Ji Hwa Sung, who was already certain he’d be on that stage, his eyes burning with so much intensity that it was like lasers were about to shoot out.
“Hah….”
Of course, I was also included in the group dreaming different dreams. But there was a slight difference.
Unlike the other trainees, I was…
‘…Already swamped with things to think about, and now this!’
I was worried about the additional workload.
Logan’s parents’ issue, Liu Wei, the new twist in the third competition prep?
I felt like grabbing my family and the Arrows members and running off to another country.
“Chunyong, you look really scary right now. Are you angry?”
“Oh, no. Hmph.”
I quickly adjusted my expression and rubbed my chin in response to Yu Chan hyung’s quiet whisper beside me.
It was unacceptable that others could see me so shaken.
Running away would go against my plan to redeem myself, and coming back to this point in time was already a gamble.
…No matter what happened, I needed to stay focused.
I glanced briefly at Yu Chan hyung, whose face was glowing with excitement, and then listened to Choi Gaon Seonbae, who was enthusiastically continuing the show.
“Now that we’ve revealed the benefit, let’s find out what the third competition is! Everyone, please pay attention!”
I needed to figure out how much was changing compared to what I knew and how to prepare for it.
Lately, I felt like I’d been constantly adapting to changed situations, stressing out, and fighting with X.
…Maybe it was just my imagination?
While I was lost in these useless thoughts, Choi Gaon Seonbae professionally continued, alternating between the trainees and the cue sheet.
“This third competition is a solo mission! It’s the first time since the ranking evaluations, right? Haha. Now, let’s take a look at the screen together.”
<Position Competition – Teams, but not teams!>
A large screen in the center of the studio displayed a well-organized pictogram and an explanation.
In summary, it went like this:
The trainees would be divided into teams of six, based on their positions as vocal, rap, or dance.
Each team would perform a stage, and their rankings would be determined individually.
Then, the two highest scorers from each team—a total of six trainees—would get to perform on the Music Music Today stage.
This part was the same as what I had experienced before.
“Huh? Isn’t this…?”
And, it wasn’t hard to figure out even without having gone through two survival shows.
“I saw this during practice.”
“It’s exactly the same as what the Serenia Seonbaes did, right?”
Exactly.
The third competition, also known as the “Position Competition,” was a format that had already been showcased once in Dive Little Star, a survival show produced by Joo Cheol Yeong just before Targeting Star.
“Alright, everyone. Please keep your eyes on the screen! Something big is coming up!”
Choi Gaon’s voice grew louder.
Then, as if to stir up the trainees’ already heightened excitement, two women appeared on the briefly blackened screen—one with her long hair tied up high and the other with a neat bob cut.
– “Hello, Targeting Star trainees! I’m Choo Si Yeon from Serenia.”
– “And I’m Kim Ye In!”
Choo Si Yeon and Kim Ye In, who took first and second place on Dive Little Star and debuted confidently as members of Serenia.
It was the production team’s strategic move to bring back buzz to Dive Little Star following the success of Targeting Star on OTT platforms.
“Wow, amazing!”
“Out of nowhere? Why is Choo Si Yeon Seonbae here? Wait a minute. I’m a huge fan!”
“No, I can’t keep up with this…!”
As if they could sense the trainees’ enthusiastic reactions, the two survival show seniors continued speaking smoothly, their bright smiles radiating.
– “We heard that you, the Targeting Star trainees, will be competing on the ‘Position Competition’ stage, just like we did on Dive Little Star.”
– “That’s right. The position competition was so intense, I still remember it vividly!”
– “Today, we’re here to announce the songs that you’ll be performing on stage!”
Choo Si Yeon and Kim Ye In clapped a few times in sync before holding up some papers and exclaiming in unison:
– “The songs Targeting Star trainees will be preparing are….”
