Debut or Die-Chapter 243
The monitoring equipment showed VTIC onstage effortlessly carrying on their talk.
“Actually, the longer you’re active, the fewer opportunities you get to cover fellow idols’ songs.”
“That’s right, that’s right~ At our concerts we can fill the whole set with our own songs!”
“That’s a really cool thing. Still, it was fun preparing a cover stage after so long.”
Even without looking, the comments were doubtless filled with snarky lines like “Yeah right, if you dropped rank tags you’d get trounced too lol.”
I caught myself about to fold my arms, then stopped—so I wouldn’t get in the way while staff adjusted my mic.
Those two couldn’t handle variety shows, yet here they were, pulling off a pretty convincing chat among themselves.
“Y-you’re... good at talk.”
“You’ve been at it over eight years, of course we are.”
“R-right?”
When Seon Ah-hyun praised him, Bae Se-jin snapped back sulkily. He clearly didn’t like that I was here.
Honestly, I’d expected it. When I first brought it up they’d recoiled in shock.
“That crazy bastard wants to do an event like this...!!”
“The platform is owned by that agency. We can’t exactly refuse.”
“Ugh...!”
“So... maybe we should just call the whole group. What do you think?”
“...Fine. That might be better.”
That led to a long debate over whether the concert even had to be on that platform, but Bae Se-jin eventually lost the vote.
By the way, the only one who knew I’d fought with Mundae during my vacation... well, let’s just say they were a one-word reaction bot saying “Yes” repeatedly.
“...Got it~ We’ll do our best.”
That was Big Se-jin’s last reaction to any of this.
Now here he was making rather disrespectful gestures—hey, stop pretending to fan us then decapitate us, would you?
Everyone seemed tense and wary—though of course some were simply excited. For example, Kim Rae-bin.
“That was a bold yet sophisticated arrangement. Next time, it’d be fun if we modernized your ‘Sangun’ too—what do you think?”
“.......”
That was the last thing I wanted to hear.
‘If you go that far it’ll turn into a real showdown...’
‘How dare you touch “Heng-cha”? I’ll do “Sangun” just as you did!’
This was a charity concert, on thin ice for goodwill. If they went that route, it’d be a total train wreck. Issue vloggers would have a field day calling it a diss track battle, and it’d be real chaos.
Fortunately, Ryu Cheong-woo cut off Kim Rae-bin’s comment before I even opened my mouth.
“Maybe someday we can try.”
“Yes!”
He had no idea that day would never come.
“.......”
Well, at least he was happy about something.
No—there was one more.
“We should use flags too!! Flags are awesome!!”
Cha Yoo-jin sounded as if he planned to write an entirely new song. Bae Se-jin, with a sour expression, turned to him.
“...Not nervous?”
“Why would I be?”
“B-because the others did so well.”
“I’m fine. I’m good at this! Um, we’re good at this!”
“......!”
Bae Se-jin’s face turned solemn all of a sudden.
“Y-you’re right!”
“That’s right!”
Sure, good luck with that pep talk.
I nodded and chimed in.
“Let’s do our best out there.”
“Uh, yeah!”
“Right, Mundae, who pushed hardest for this concert~”
“Mundae, who booked the choreographer just one day after being discharged.”
“.......”
Even Ryu Cheong-woo?
We really had to nail this stage. If we screwed up, they’d hang me upside-down backstage and pour red ginseng down my throat.
Not that I intended to fail.
‘Stick to what we prepared.’
I smiled and stood with them.
Soon it would be TeSTAR’s turn again.
“Wow!!”
The graduate student sitting in front of her computer was still marveling at VTIC’s stage she’d just watched. No one could deny it had been incredible!
‘Hmm, but I do prefer the original stage... oh well! It’s TeSTAR’s original, after all!’
She felt proud again of TeSTAR for doing such a great job on a classic song, and she applauded VTIC in her mind.
‘Korean idols are truly amazing~’
That was the reaction of someone untouched by the industry’s deep undercurrents. Unlike ordinary viewers happily praising both acts, the hardcore fans were wringing their hands, wondering what to do.
“Fucking VTIC, can’t even keep their spoon to themselves—showing up at the rookies’ concert, so obnoxious.”
“They could’ve just done their own thing... this power trip is disgusting.”
“Comin’ as guests in a charity concert, bringing all your dancers... fuck off.”
“I’m cutting my internet.”
VTIC’s side wasn’t much different—initial shock and anger gave way to excitement. Their stage was just too overwhelming.
“They should’ve spent that time on variety shows. Still, Victory-lings won, so I’m good lol.”
“└ lol I’ll use this for promo vids**”
“└ Let’s push “Sangun” again, and ask for a VTIC version of “Heng-cha” too haha”
“This mystery win they don’t see every time is why being a T-car is so fun.”
“If they spent this time on a fan-sign instead... crap, it’s gonna be a brawl.”
While clips of VTIC’s surprise performance surfaced across SNS and forums, right then the screen displayed:
[VTIC is going off~]
[Please participate!]
After a short talk and friendly goodbye, VTIC exited, poking at the new message on the big screen.
[Next stage is]
TeSTAR covering VTIC
TeSTAR covering VTIC..?
It looked almost identical to the last options. The original “VTIC covering TeSTAR” choice was gone, replaced by a sentence with an enigmatic question mark.
“—?”
“—What’s with #2?”
“—Why is there a question mark lol”
Naturally, the comments buzzed again at this unfathomable prompt. VTIC’s fans, who’d tuned in because of them, held off leaving.
“—Another #2 for sure.”
“—I wonder why they added the question mark.”
“—Feels like some funny twist will happen. Hit #2.”
“—lolol so much fun”
With the unpredictable choice delighting everyone, votes piled in.
TeSTAR covering VTIC..? (179,557)
A complete landslide for #2.
‘Is this okay?’
‘I mean, VTIC will be brought up again either way.’
TeSTAR’s fans felt uneasy about the prompt itself but couldn’t dampen the excited crowd, so they quietly waited for TeSTAR’s next stage.
Then, as always, the screen suddenly went dark. Normally that meant the next stage was about to start, but this time the first thing heard in the darkness was a voice:
“Sangun—
Their claws are hella sharp
Readily tear you apart”
“......!”
That was the lyric of “Sangun,” which VTIC had just performed.
“—TeSTAR’s doing “Sangun” too?”
“—No fucking way”
“—Whoa”
Amid stunned comments, a spotlight shone on one corner of the dark stage.
Click.
It illuminated a table. The camera cut in to close-up. On the table sat ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) a red retro radio with an antenna—set up so it seemed the song was coming from the radio.
Without warning, a solid hand reached onto the table and pressed a button on the radio.
“No, you can’t......”
With static crackling, the song abruptly stopped. Then the owner’s head slid into frame.
It was Cha Yoo-jin, wearing a mischievous grin.
[hum, hum, hum~]
He hummed the melody of “Sangun” with delight, even bobbing his shoulders in rhythm—a perfect fan tribute. Just as the audience was about to relax, Cha Yoo-jin suddenly stopped humming, grabbed the table, and somersaulted over it!
BBA-BAM!
A crisp brass hit sounded. Lights around Cha Yoo-jin flared bright as stage lights snapped on.
The view opened to reveal a party scene for ten, filled with gold, purple, and red balloons and LED lights. Sofas and barstools and tables were occupied by TeSTAR’s members, frozen mid-pose with drinks in hand.
A brief, motionless pause—as if someone had hit pause on a tape—then....
BBABAM, BAM, BBA-BAAAM!
Brass chords full of flourish exploded. Suddenly, Ryu Cheong-woo and Lee Se-jin burst in from either side, as if flowing into the party, and hit their formation just as a fast-beat electro-swing track kicked off!
[Hey partner
Are you thinking of me?
I wonder, My Owner
Where our connection will lead]
Cha Yoo-jin sang the lyrics brightly, and every viewer knew the song.
“—Nassah!”
“—Night Sign!!!”
“—???? This one?”
That’s right. TeSTAR had chosen VTIC’s immortal hit, “Night Sign”—the title from the monster album that sold 1.8 million in its first week. It had knocked out TeSTAR’s debut release the moment it dropped.
The original song’s sexy lyrics and languid melody, contrasted with intense instrumentation and choreography, made it an extremely demanding stage. But TeSTAR didn’t sing it the same way. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎
“—They totally didn’t notice.”
“—Amazing lol”
“—Was this always such a fun song?”
They’d turned it into an upbeat arrangement with electric guitar, drums, and disco-style synth, lifting the tone sky-high. The lyrics sounded like playful flirting.
[Our hands clasped and twisting
You remember again
Night after night]
From sofa to bar to table, TeSTAR moved their formation and passed center smoothly to each member. With no live audience, the stage had no fixed front—so they shifted center according to camera angles. When the camera panned down from the ceiling to Park Mundae on the sofa, then cut to bartender’s-eye view of Seon Ah-hyun at the bar, the transitions felt natural.
They grinned and leapt onto sofas and bars, filling the frame with big disco moves.
[Until the end of this night
Remember my eyes
Like a night sign
Drag you into a trap]
A multicolored mirror ball glittered and confetti rained down. With precise rhythms, they fused sharp hand and foot disco moves into high-energy choreography that filled the camera, evoking an early ’80s retro high-teen vibe.
“—This is so hype lol”
“—So cuteㅠㅠ”
“—I’m pumping my fist in my seat”
Instead of meeting VTIC head-on, the juniors chose a direction that no senior veteran could top: the heat and innocence of childhood.
[Whoo~
Whoo, whoo, whoo
Like a night sign]
They spun until their cheeks burned, bounded around, and sang with joyful abandon. They weren’t wild—they kept it clean and respectful, yet exhilarating. Park Mundae’s lead-vocal parts took on a new poignancy: VTIC themselves could never sing those parts the same way again.
“—Whoa, that high note;”
“—The singing is top-notch.”
“—Figures they gave the main vocal to himㅉㅉ”
Just that subtle shift cooled the audience’s adoration for VTIC—overwhelm turned to refreshment. TeSTAR rode that energy smoothly, ending the party with precision.
Then, only at the very end, did the difference between option #2 and #1 reveal itself. As the members formed their final line in colorful outfits, the lights suddenly switched to black and white.
Creeeeeak.
They froze, heads bowed, motionless on a stark monochrome stage. A narration echoed:
[“Welcome, welcome
This is the call that summons you”]
It was the chorus from their own song “The Summons,” a nightmare-concept track, intoned in a chilling voice. Behind the party set, a massive banner unfurled, revealing in gothic lettering:
[To be continued..?]
Crack of thunder!!
The members snapped their heads up to look at each other, like a trailer for a classic American teen horror film. Then... the stage cut to black.
[----]
Instead, the screen filled again with the peaceful talk-show set, seven chairs neatly arranged.
“—????”
“—You can’t leave us here!”
“—Alright, we’ll vote lolㅠㅠㅠ”
“—Show “The Summons”!!!!”
“—Do we have to donate to see it?? Name a target amount!”
As always, after a moment’s shock, the comments quickly demanded the next vote. Curiosity about comparison morphed into anticipation for the next stage. TeSTAR had masterfully used VTIC and kept everyone glued to the screen. It was a brilliantly executed plan.
A little later, during the ad break, we rapidly changed costumes and began mingling with VTIC.
“Wow!! That was amazing!”
“...Thank you.”
“Look at those moves—we’ll never dance like that again. Everyone take joint supplements. In this job, your knees are everything.”
“Hey, I take one—want the name?”
“......Sure.”
Those guys really know how to pretend we’re tight.
I watched them insistently offer advice I’d only seen them give once on variety, then glanced at Cheongryeo.
“......”
He was talking to Kim Rae-bin, then looked over and grinned. Yeah, now I know what kind of squad he picked.
“I just texted you the supplement name.”
“Mm, thanks.”
Suppressing a sigh, I pulled out my phone. Their eyes lit up.
“Ooh—how should we save your names...?”
“VTIC Senior Shin-oh”
“VTIC Senior Chae-yul”
“O...”
“You categorized us so professionally...”
What did they expect? I mumbled a quick thanks and escaped that conversational swamp.
“Big brothers, long time no see~”
“Oh, Se-jin!”
I can’t deny it was handy that he backed me up.
A moment later, just before VTIC left for their next schedule, Cheongryeo—still in his stage costume—turned to me not with a goodbye but a question. Or rather, an assertion.
“You got what you wanted, right?”
“......”
I pulled up my status screen.
