Debut or Die-Chapter 301

“Teholic’s Show Business” used to be a studio variety show that has now largely vanished, pushed out by observation‐style variety shows.

Unlike observation programs that create interesting situations through editing, this one was a battlefield where only the genuinely funny survived.

“Ahahaha!! This is driving me crazy.”

“Why, why?”

“Well... do you know what Wonsoek just said? ‘Are all idols looking like that these days?’”

The staff burst out laughing even at the spot‐on impersonation. The called‐out member muttered awkwardly,

“No, I’m not the only one who was shocked, right?”

“Huh? Actually, you are.”

“Really? You didn’t know? If we’d debuted now, we’d be doomed. Guys, let’s not forget that and stay humble.”

“No, riding the zeitgeist well is our talent too, you know?”

“Stop it! It’s making me sad!”

Just look at them—they start spouting lines the moment the cameras roll.

They’re practically professional entertainers; maybe the idol image itself becomes their character.

Be it prejudice or generosity, whatever.

‘So it’s inevitable that a solo guest struggles here.’

On their own show, where they dominate the spotlight, a guest inevitably has to rely on them.

And these guys are senior enough that most guests lose in the seniority hierarchy from the start.

“Wow, someone’s been born after the Millennials?”

“They’re so cute, guys.”

Naturally, Teholic, ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) mindful of the atmosphere, will lay the groundwork for the juniors and feed them lines, resulting in scenes like this.

“Wow, Teholic really knows how to hype people up lol”

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen idols talk so freely on a showㅠㅠ thank you!♡”

“As expected, anything can cure stage fright if you’re on TShowBiz”

The moment the tide turns, you lose attention, and the guest becomes just another element of the show.

But if someone doesn’t care about seniority or anything...

“That cuteness is too small! I’m cool!”

“Huh?”

Cha Yu-jin shot up his hand and shouted out of the blue.

Teholic, apparently not expecting such fierce (?) resistance so early, gaped.

‘I knew it.’

Cha Yu-jin didn’t know much about Teholic. He simply stuck to his usual chatter, seniority be damned.

And he didn’t come off as rude—he’s a foreigner, after all.

“R‐right?”

“Yes! I am a tiger.”

“Is that so? Our Cha Yu-jin friend is a tiger, huh.”

“That’s right! Tiger~ Like a T!”

“T!”

“Don’t try to ride the rhythm just to look cool.”

Still, people will go along with it. Cha Yu-jin’s American sensibility was already famous.

‘And the rest will cover for him automatically.’

Teholic, accustomed to keeping the vibe alive, couldn’t glare at Cha Yu-jin or act awkward.

‘Plus there’s someone to moderate right beside him.’

“Cha Yu-jin! If someone compliments you on being cute, you better accept it gratefully!”

It was Kim Rae-bin.

He tried to whisper, but with a mic on, it was pointless.

“I accepted it! I didn’t refuse!”

“You downplayed it as ‘small.’ That could sound rude!”

“It means more than small—it means awesome! Thank you for the cuteness.”

“Uh...”

“No, we got it! We got it!”

“Thank you so much for understanding! We’ll do our best today.”

“Is that really necessary?”

Cha Yu-jin and Kim Rae-bin bowed, and Teholic hurriedly bowed along—it was hilarious.

‘Great impact.’

I spotted a few members of Teholic in the back laughing and exchanging glances.

They probably decided that watching themselves struggle early on would be entertaining.

“Alright, very cute and cool TeSTAR!”

“Hehe.”

“Is this what Gen Z is like? Do we feel old now?”

“Guys, we’re all in our thirties. In this industry, we’re already in the grave.”

The setup was that Teholic, not understanding the new generation, tries awkwardly to adapt to their sensibility, using Cha Yu-jin’s bold energy to their advantage.

‘The focus is still on Teholic.’

TeSTAR, now a trending idol group, found themselves subtly placed opposite Teholic.

And I quietly played the sensible one in the mix.

“So, Mundae, you’re the main vocalist, right?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“Oh, your song! ‘Party in Me’—you did so well!”

“Don’t lie—you were in the army!”

“No! I heard it when I came home on leave!”

“I’m truly honored. Thank you.”

“Yeah~ Mundae hyung really sings well!”

They asked him to sing a line, he got applause—every predictable move ensuring the guest idol got at least some screen time.

‘Okay, that sets the scene.’

‘This guy’s vibe is normal, so we’ll go with him, and get a dynamic between those two.’

Since they’re so used to this format, they probably nailed their parts quickly.

‘I doubt they pre‐checked my variety show skills.’

At most, they probably just reviewed my recent activities and results. The more they see me as calm, the better.

“Alright, that’s the intro done!”

They must have thought they got enough funny bits from Cha Yu-jin and Kim Rae-bin, and moved on.

To the main corner.

A genuinely humorous segment often involving games—shooting a basketball without a ball, chairs flying into a ball pit, drawing portraits with feet and guessing who it is, and so on.

“It’s time for Track 2 of Show Business: The Game That Reveals Our True Feelings!”

Since it’s the main corner, I had predicted a few game types, and the most likely was...

“This time, the game with TeSTAR is—‘Makes Sense When You Hear It’!”

Pfft.

Yes. That one.

I nearly choked, having heard that phrase somewhere before.

‘Good thing I looked it up in advance.’

The first time I saw it on WeTube, I almost spat out my drink.

“Hyung, staying hydrated is important.”

Right, thanks. I sipped the water Kim Rae-bin handed me and listened closely to Teholic’s flashy explanation.

‘At least my prediction came true.’

This corner pops up roughly once every three episodes, and since reactions were great, they’d bring it out when they hit the main lineup.

[“Makes Sense When You Hear It!”]

The title sounds like persuading someone, but it’s similar yet different.

Teholic’s maknae held a vocoder mic and pretended to host seriously.

“Each team chooses one of two statements to persuade the other. When one team is logically convinced, the game ends. The losing team faces a dreadful punishment.”

“The mini‐game winner chooses their statement first. Good luck!”

It sounds normal, right? But they always plant a trap in each game, revealed when opening the statements.

“Tada!”

[Our team’s goal for next year]

[Receive a billion won VS Get stranded]

“...???”

“Ahahaha!! This is nuts for real!!”

“Welcome to Show Business, folks~”

The balance was completely shattered.

The mini‐game winner, Teholic, gleefully picked the former.

“A billion won! A billion won!”

“I’ll give the stranded Gen Z a bitter lesson~”

If you stopped there, it’d seem boring—a one‐sided guest beating.

But the next twist appeared.

“Folks, I said the game ends when you’re ‘logically convinced,’ right?”

“.......”

“Come on, seriously?”

“That’s right! The team most convincingly and logically convinced—wins~”

It’s a fallacious debate.

The goal is to reasonably concede to the other’s statement.

Which means now Teholic must be convinced that “I’d rather get stranded than take a billion won” to win.

Meanwhile, TeSTAR just has to accept the obvious—“We’d rather take a billion won than get stranded.”

“Isn’t that cheating??”

“Nope!”

‘Well played.’

They get to slip up and be funny, then let the guests win to hype them up.

‘They really do heed the top WeTube comments.’

“It’d be fun if the convinced team wins lol”

“‘Makes Sense When You Hear It’ is legendary... please milk it forever!”

Like any fledgling production company, these producers seemed to obsess over engagement.

It was common to see the top comment from the video reflected two episodes later.

So I watched all past videos and predicted a few variations—and nailed it.

What happens next? Predictable.

“Oh? But if you suddenly get a huge sum, people can fall apart, right? They say ‘I want to retire now—’ so you should take the billion!”

“That’s right, that’s right!”

“I don’t want to retire! I want to go on!”

“Okay~ then what do you do? Huh? There’s one option left, right?”

“I’ll take the billion and not retire! I won’t fall apart. My members are strong!”

“Wow, such confidence....”

“But money is scary~ I’m not saying don’t take the billion!”

They brazenly defend the absurd while teasing the sensible guest, keeping them flustered.

After wringing enthusiastic reactions from the guest over their antics, they’ll graciously concede...

‘Then they hog all the momentum.’

We didn’t come here to be used at your whim.

I smirked.

‘The best way to play this game?’

Simple. Bolster the other side’s logic—that’s exactly what the producers expected.

Riding that logical flow would let them steamroll us.

So... we go the opposite way.

I placed both hands on the table and interlaced my fingers.

“Senior.”

“Yes, Mundae, you may speak~” 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

“To win, I’ve tried to understand and agree with the other side’s argument as much as possible, but....”

I declared solemnly.

“No matter how I think about it, their statement is correct.”

“...??”

“Our team would choose being stranded over the billion.”

“Huh??”

“What are you talking about?”

I answered earnestly.

“Because you can learn priceless values from being stranded.”

“Um?”

“What would you learn?”

I poked Cha Yu-jin gently and answered clearly.

“In reality, any place where you could get stranded is one where you can be rescued within days. During that time, you gain new experiences and lessons.”

“Ah! That’s true.”

Cha Yu-jin nodded enthusiastically.

“Then being stranded is fine! I like it!”

“......??”

Teholic’s maknae host jumped in.

“Wait a minute! If we go on like this, you’re winning, you know??”

“You can’t abandon your convictions over a single corner.”

“You have convictions about being stranded??”

“Guys, what’s wrong with you... you’re scaring me.”

As the ridiculous scene unfolded and the maknae panicked, Kim Rae-bin nodded seriously.

“I agree.”

“Huh?”

“Exactly.”

“Yes. We once got stranded during a show shoot.”

Kim Rae-bin said, eyes sparkling.

“And we learned so much from that experience.”

“Wait a minute.”

“I actually composed our last album’s title track while stranded. Choosing the billion over being stranded would mean forsaking musical achievement for money, wouldn’t it!”

“Why would you worry about that?!”

Kim Rae-bin, momentarily forgetting this was a variety show, earnestly voiced his stance.

As expected, once immersed in the topic, that would happen.

“No... think about it. Does this make sense? What kind of ‘stranding’ is that??”

“How much did you even get paid to treat a billion like nothing!”

I raised my hand.

“Come to think of it, since Rae-bin’s title song did well financially, some monetary gain is already baked into that choice....”

“Oh~”

“I see!”

“Don’t react like it’s logical, ughhhn.”

And the set descended into chaos.

Exactly as planned.

A few days later, on a weeknight.

“Wow! It’s here too~”

A grad student grinned at Mundae’s photo on the thumbnail and clicked the pre‐release of “Teholic’s Show Business,” which had become a trending video.

One minute later.

Pfft!

He spat out his coffee.