Debut or Die-Chapter 285
I heard something I least expected... no, something completely opposite to what I’d anticipated.
“Do you need help?”
He wasn’t questioning discrepancies in the facts; he genuinely worried something was wrong with me....
‘Is this just to set the mood?’
To hear a more concrete explanation, I lifted my head to read Ryu Cheong-woo’s expression.
And immediately withdrew that thought. His face was clear.
Right, he wouldn’t do that.
He really meant to offer help.
“...Huh.”
I was baffled.
‘I never thought he’d bring up help in this situation.’
It seemed Ryu Cheong-woo had continued feeling deeply indebted to me since the car accident.
‘He didn’t factor that out.’
Now that I thought about it, I had even told him, “Be grateful,” back then.
I recalled what I’d said when he seemed tormented by that debt during the deserted-island survival show.
“Fine. Let’s say I saved your life.”
“...!”
“You can keep thanking me from now on. If you need anything, call me without hesitation, and be sure to repay me.”
And Ryu Cheong-woo had acted exactly on those words.
‘...We were hiking then, too.’
Hearing similar words in the same situation felt strangely amusing.
“Hmm.”
I draped an arm over the railing and gave a wry smile.
Now that I sorted it out... it felt even stranger. An offer of help instead of suspicion.
‘How odd.’
I felt unsettled. But not in a bad way.
I answered slowly.
“First... thank you.”
“......”
“For saying that. I’d have every right to be angry.”
“That wouldn’t make sense.”
Ryu Cheong-woo answered firmly, then leaned comfortably on the railing himself.
“You didn’t lie to me, and I wasn’t harmed, so why would I be angry?”
It was surprising he believed I hadn’t lied.
I almost indulged that strange feeling, then snapped out of it.
There was more to answer.
“And as for my situation... honestly, it’s hard for me to understand or explain either, but I’m not in so much trouble that I need help.”
I reflected on my circumstances.
I’d succeeded in this career, the status ailments were gone... the people I live with are all fine.
I’m doing okay.
‘No, I’m doing more than okay.’
Risk is the nature of this job. And sudden death at least has context.
“All the difficult parts are past. Now I’m just... suffering by choice. I want to figure out why those contradictions you mentioned arose.”
Right now... since I can’t understand why I ended up in this body and doing this, I need to get to the bottom of it.
‘If I don’t know the cause, I won’t know when this could suddenly change again.’
Ryu Cheong-woo nodded.
“So you need to track down ‘Ryu Geonwoo.’”
His perceptiveness was impressive.
“That’s right. So you’ve already been helping me.”
Ryu Cheong-woo let out a short laugh.
“Understood. I’ll do everything I can about that, so don’t worry. Anything else?”
“No, I—”
Ah, there was one thing.
“I have to win the Daesang this time, so I need your cooperation.”
I needed the Daesang to get the ‘Talk with Park Mundae’ mission reward.
“What?”
Ryu Cheong-woo looked as if he’d just taken a blow, then soon smiled.
“That’s exactly what our team should be aiming for.”
“Indeed.”
He didn’t ask why I’d said something so out of the blue... probably thinking it a joke to steer the conversation back on track.
‘Even if he’s mistaken, I have no explanation.’
But saying it outright felt liberating.
The tension eased from my shoulders.
“Alright. I’ll work harder.”
“Thank you.”
We both chuckled quietly and gazed back at the mountain view. The mid-slope was eerily silent.
“It’s a bit hot, but the weather’s nice.”
“Yes.”
The heat outweighed the comfort, but I didn’t point it out.
Ryu Cheong-woo didn’t ask for details or reasons after that.
He only confirmed one thing on the way down.
“The fact that Ryu Geonwoo’s situation matches yours... isn’t a coincidence, right?”
“No.”
“I see.”
That was it. That closed the topic.
‘Isn’t he restless?’
If it were me, whether I understood or not, I’d have demanded every detail. His calm was surprising.
Instead, Ryu Cheong-woo ended the conversation with, “If you need help down the road, feel free to ask.”
And that wasn’t all.
“Mundae, can I talk casually?”
On the drive back to the dorm, Ryu Cheong-woo said it.
“I realized it might be too stiff to keep calling you that when you’re not in the training center anymore.”
“No. It’s fine. You can.”
He almost said something dangerous there.
“If I switched to entirely casual speech, people might take it the wrong way. Could stir up controversy.”
If I’d done that right after debut... I’d have been beaten to a pulp for disrespecting the leader.
But Ryu Cheong-woo didn’t give up.
“Okay then? Just use ‘-yo’ endings. No need for full honorifics.”
Really?
Still, I guessed why he said it.
I finally gave a small laugh and answered.
“Go ahead, hyung.”
“Ha ha.”
Though no music played in the car, the silence wasn’t distracting.
And I realized a worry had been resolved.
‘...No summer package controversy will replay.’
That’s how I adjusted to my new roommate.
But when one worry fades, another arises.
After talking with Ryu Cheong-woo, I plunged back into the insanely tight comeback prep schedule at dawn.
[VTIC Sunghyeon Ryeo hyung: Not working out?]
A random message arrived.
‘Why’s he texting for no reason...’
[VTIC Sunghyeon Ryeo hyung: (dog photo)]
It was a picture of a familiar dog joyfully walking along an apartment path.
The dog was familiar, too. Specifically the one I met jogging in the fog at dawn.
‘Come to think of it, I haven’t gone that way since.’
Even I found that hard to believe—I’d forgotten while hiking.
With my unadorned hand, I typed a quick reply.
[I switched to a different workout]
[VTIC Sunghyeon Ryeo hyung: Oh, I see. I couldn’t see you so I thought I’d check in. Today’s my last day, too.]
That meant I no longer had to worry about meeting that guy on my dawn walks. Good news, though busy with comeback prep, I wouldn’t be going out anyway....
‘Wait, he’s not going out either?’
If so....
I threw out the possibility that worried me most.
[Are you prepping for a comeback?]
He deflected.
[VTIC Sunghyeon Ryeo hyung: I’m always preparing albums^^]
‘Fuck.’
They’re comebacking. His evasive answer made it obvious.
‘When’s theirs?’
I thought fast.
We comebacked in January; they did in February.
Now it’s late May... so their comeback must be around June.
‘So a four-month gap... perfect for a repackage cycle.’
Repackages often sell less than main albums—the added tracks are few, the interval short, so fans hesitate to spend.
But four months is plenty.
‘That gap means almost no loss.’
It’s like a normal rookie cycle, and VTIC’s reputation for album quality ensures sales.
And their plan must be....
‘They don’t want to lose out in the yearly rankings.’
Their deadline is early Q3, so they’d have planned since early this year.
‘They need half-year results.’
It also shows confidence in this repackage.
“......”
This will be intense. I gave a wry smile.
‘They mirrored our plans exactly.’
We’re also eyeing a summer comeback for the same reason.
“Hyung, I’m going in for the shot now!”
“Yes.”
I set my phone aside and followed the staff’s cues. But my mind raced.
“A little angled to the front... yes, perfect.”
During the concept photo shoot, I reached a conclusion.
‘Please don’t overlap their release.’
Our own deadline is July, so ideally we’d come back in June as planned.
But soon after, an urgent message came through the company’s emergency contact system, dashing hopes.
“...July, you said.”
“Yes, ah.”
Through Ryu Cheong-woo’s phone, I heard a planning team member biting back a string of curses. I stifled a sigh.
Today is two days after I texted Sunghyeon Ryeo hyung, and news broke: VTIC is making a sudden July comeback.
[“K-POP Kings” VTIC to Comeback in July... Album Pre-orders Open]
They held it under wraps until they were ready to explode it.
“......”
Well, to look ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) on the bright side... at least they dropped it with over a month and a half’s notice.
It was a message to other top acts: dodge if you don’t want to get eaten.
‘My head’s spinning.’
Our company’s seal-keeping must be atrocious, so our comeback schedule likely leaked through T1 already.
‘Then they’re daring us: either push to September or strip titles and fight it out.’
Is Sunghyeon Ryeo really willing to do that?
“You know our July comeback, too, right?”
“...No. I think they still believe it’s June, since that’s what initial reports said.”
“......”
I see.
Apparently when T1 released their investor presentation and articles mentioning TeSTAR’s activity plan, they announced the original target month—June—in the Q2 section of the slides.
It was the usual sleight of hand.
Assuming LeTi, VTIC’s agency, believed it was June, their comeback would land at the end of July.
That’s worse—it could really overlap.
“Understood.”
I hung up with a cool head and returned Ryu Cheong-woo’s phone. I couldn’t call again anyway with schedules shifting.
“Hyung, here.”
“Thanks.”
Which meant my members had been listening to the call beside me.
“We’re overlapping with VTIC hyungs again, right?”
“Yes.”
“Ugh.”
Big Sejin sighed and gave a bitter smile. The others looked tense, and understandably so. It was a nightmare repeat of simultaneous releases at debut.
We’d somehow held out for first place then, but remembering that struggle brings despair.
“Umm~ OK!”
Except for that guy.
And Bae Sejin piped up as if frustrated.
“If it’s that stressful, why not postpone? Late August would be fine.”
“If we push that far, our year-end scores will suffer.”
Passing early Q3 would cost too much in digital points.
Then we’d have to focus solely on album awards, and we’d already lose to VTIC there.
A decisive choice was needed.
