Debut or Die
chapter-113

For the past few days, in the <127 Section> community, some hardcore players had been analyzing ‘BETTER ME’ music video.

It was because they formed a strange belief that there would be game-related content in it due to its connection with the trailer.

[Godstar is confirmed in this video]

: The monsters wearing school uniforms in the middle seemed to be related.

When you go to the cave of Gangnam Bookstore, you can see the records of survivors when the meteorite falls, and it is the same as the description of the people who have changed because of the meteorite (game screenshot), which means Godstar video is a content about the time when the meteorite fell 7 years ago.

– The collaboration reached that far?ㄷㄷ

– Hey, it’s plausible

– Do I have to watch boy idol music videos to play this game?

– Is this what you call weeb’s immersion?

– Bullshitㄴㄴ It means 7 years had passed but their face is still the same, the Factory bastards won’t miss out on this

└What if everyone’s already defected by the meteorite? It’s a Godstar psychic concept, but what if that psychic ability is due to the meteorite mutation?

└This punk is so smart

└Is your brain taken hostage by the factory? It’s a smart delusion, but it sounds appealing to me, who’s already a factory worker

└You people are crazyㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

It was controversial, but the more people tore down the music video, the more suspicious it was.

If you put it on your nose, it was a nose ring, if you put it on your ears, it was an earring, that was how they saw it.

– Do you see the calendar behind the classroom? It’s 2030. Section 127 is set in 2037, so this is seven years before the meteorite crisis. It’s a perfect fit, right? (screenshot of the MV’s blurry background)

– Godstar fans are pushing the theory that Bill and the doctor are the same person, but if this is the case, it explains why Bill is the only one with a codename. Bill is an Android clone linked to the drone.

└ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋYou guys are really funny

However, there was no big evidence and the video wasn’t designated as an official collaboration, so the story hovered around the line of doubt.

And as usual, people who chanted prayers for the initial comrades occasionally made an appearance.

– Ah, whatever, give me back the sniper, you Abandoned Factory bastardsㅋㅋㅋ Or sell the right to change the comrades’ name. Give the sniper a name

└Hiik otaku…!

└Do you do that sort of thing?

– I’ve just started, but I’m in a hurry to ask, why are they all dying? Please give me a guide

└There’s no such thing.

└If you go to official cafes, guys like you appear every hourㄱㄱ

At a time when the initial comrades were still hot issues, Testar uploaded a late Halloween choreography video.

The video even started with all of Testar lying on the floor, from the thumbnail.

And as soon as the intro of ‘BETTER ME’ started playing, each member stood up and took a different starting position from the original choreography.

It was the position from the illustration that appeared when entering the battle in the game.

Because they dressed up earnestly, the members who looked the same like the trailer even made similar facial expressions, raising the mood.

Cha Eugene even changed the intro.

– Do you trust me?

It’s ME

Oooohh—.

Afterward, whenever the most impressive parts of their verses came out, all the members brought out small props that symbolized their characters and briefly copied the battle highlight cutscene.

The atmosphere was light and pleasant because most of them made a compromise with hats, flasks, and piles of small light bulbs to save the choreography.

However, Kim Raebin was flustered when he knocked over the mannequin while dragging it out of the blind spot of the camera in the chorus he sang.

– It’s just confusing

Since when

I’m just confused

Umm

How far you’re going

With the flustered Kim Raebin and the members holding back their laughter and moving the mannequin together, the melancholic lyrics somehow sounded funny like a meme.

In addition, from members who did it very shamelessly to members who were a little embarrassed or ashamed of exaggerated combat motions, it matched the impressions of the characters shown in the game.

Thanks to this, the over-immersion of the people watching the video intensified and peaked at the last part.

– Thank you!

– See you again~

– See you!!

Originally, it was a last-minute dance break where the gloomy atmosphere was released and reached its peak.

But when the members who danced happily waved their hands and said that, the endings that completely matched them in the game overlapped.

The members were just shy and excited about the fun shooting, but the aftermath was scary.

The comments were full of crying people.

Even the English comments were pushed out of the top exposure.

-ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠUaaagh

– We’re going to see each other again, right? Right, guys?ㅠㅠ You’re collaborating again, right?

– Ah, PTSD-ssi is coming, but what is this happy feeling?

– Guys, just wait, I’m going to scream now. I’m not going to stop until everyone gets it rightㅠㅠ

– My kids are alive and doing well over there, but I was obsessed with the wrong kids in the game… Let them go… Let’s wait until our Testar comes back…

Conflicting opinions were simultaneously recommended and posted in the comments, and people who cried and laughed in large comments appeared one after another.

Even in the game community where the video was shared, the atmosphere was the same.

– Dead comrades are back for Halloween

└ㅅㅂ

└Don’t leave comments like this, it’s sad

└ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋAh, our Bill isn’t dead, he’s still alive in my deck. I just changed his name, what are you guys saying?

– Don’t make such childish jokes when you’re called ‘Godstar’ (emoticon unable to hold back tears)

– Godstar is better than devilish factory bastards

Thanks to this, even the non-fan game players joined the procession of Loviewers who cried and laughed in the comments.

The curious foreign fans were confused again because they couldn’t understand the situation, but it became more painful for them after they understood the situation through translations on SNS.

It was because <127 Section> had not yet launched a global service.

– I really want to play that game (laughing and crying emoticon)

– PURE JEALOUSLY (burning emoticon)

Along with the suffering of foreign fans who didn’t even get a chance to mourn, the Halloween commemorative choreography video successfully became a channel for game enthusiasts to enter.

That’s how the stormy October with the game collaboration came to an end.

* * *

In early November, the release of the game collaboration content was over.

But, of course, the group schedule became busier. This was because during this comeback, the results were better than the debut and the stock price soared.

As if to prove that, I was running on this schedule.

A high-cost commercial.

“Raise the corners of your mouth and smile~”

I held up the lightstick and tried to smile as best as I could. Fortunately, the director seemed satisfied and he threw another instruction.

“Tilt your head here!”

Tilt my head…

By the way, I was told that a picture of a dog’s ears would be edited on top of this.

‘…Isn’t that too much?’

Even the title of the ad was this.

[Magical Boy Testar’s magical artificial intelligence assistant, Curiosy!]

On top of that, the AI character was a puppy, so it seemed they wanted to use Park Moondae more actively.

I wondered if it would be okay to be broadcasted on TV like this, but…

It was worth 350 million dollars in three months, so I decided to shut up and follow the advertiser’s instructions. They would take care of it.

“Yes, that’s enough~”

“Thank you.”

Anyway, the shooting went smoothly.

The waiting members expressed their joy at the finished today’s schedule.

But Keun Sejin didn’t take his eyes off his smartphone and only waved his hand with a smile.

Hmm, he wasn’t that kind of guy, so it didn’t feel good.

“What are you doing?”

“Ah, sorry. It’s not a big deal.”

Keun Sejin shrugged his shoulders and put down his smartphone.

And staring alternatively at Keun Sejin and me from next to us, Cha Eugene blurted out with his eyes shining.

“Is it your girlfriend?”

“…!!”

“What?! No, absolutely not! Hey, what are you talking about~”

“Whoa!”

“Don’t even think about dating!”

“It’s nothing like that!”

Keun Sejin shook Cha Eugene several times and let him go. Then he smiled and gave a proper explanation.

“The guys who debuted in the past suddenly contacted me. Hmm~ it’s unexpected.”

Seon Ahyeon admired from next to us.

“Se-Sejin has so many friends!”

“Ahaha, well, we’re not friends~ We just know each other?”

Keun Sejin laughed and drew a line with a smile.

‘Showing up and making a contact now is absurd.’

Keun Sejin finished his words with a shrug.

“We’ll see each other next month anyway~”

“H-Huh?”

“Oh, you mean the year-end awards ceremony?”

Keun Sejin nodded at Ryu Chungwoo’s words.

“Yes. There’s less than a month left until the first award ceremony~”

“Wow…”

“It’s already that time.”

At those words, everyone seemed to be immersed in their own aftertaste. It was clear that they were recalling the eventful year, starting from <Idol Inc> to this album.

And I had a hunch.

‘I will go back to an even crazier schedule.’

It was a schedule that had very little free time other than sleeping time. In addition to that, we had to prepare for the year-end awards ceremony?

It was visible that the agency was still trying to narrow down and create a schedule that made the most money.

It would probably be difficult to reduce that, so we should cut down our sleeping time.

As if I wasn’t the only one who thought that far, Kim Raebin raised his hand and said.

“Then we should start preparing for the year-end award ceremony soon.”

“Mmm.”

“…Do we have a lot to prepare in particular?”

Bae Sejin’s cautious question, which had nothing to do with the music awards ceremony, sparked fierce reactions from K-pop veterans here and there.

“Let’s do a special performance!”

“At any rate, I think I’ll probably make about three separate versions of the arrangement. It’s also unknown how much we’ll participate, but…”

“M-Make a lot of new choreography…!”

“…”

Bae Sejin, who had the lowest stats, looked sick of it already, but he soon nodded. His face looked grim as he grasped the situation.

“…I-I see. I have to work hard.”

“Right. Let’s work hard and attend many awards ceremonies.”

“I love awards!”

“Ah, it would be great to receive it~”

The conversation between the guys who brightly gave up their lives continued amicably. The problem was that I did too.

‘I have to pay attention to the rookie award.’

It was fine to sleep late. I checked the status abnormality once again.

[‘Win an award or die’]

: If you don’t receive a Rookie of the Year award at the most prestigious domestic awards ceremony within the time limit, you will die

As long as the standard for the expression ‘most prestigious’ was ambiguous, I had to win Rookie Awards at the three most prestigious awards ceremonies.

‘It’s not directly related to the awards ceremony performance, but if the performance is insincere, even the people voting will lose their spirits.’

Considering the upcoming awards ceremony season, I had to pay as much attention to the performance as possible.

‘Well, we have no competitors in terms of levels.’

It was definitely more comfortable than before.

“First of all, Moondae will take responsibility for our live performance. Aren’t you too relaxed?”

“R-Really!”

“Thank you always.”

“…Right, thanks.”

“Haha!”

It became the topic of conversation while I was organizing my thoughts. Anyway, the team atmosphere was good.

And that night, I got a message on my way to the car.

[VTIC Cheongryeo sunbae-nim: Next is the Rookie Award, right?]

“…”

Isn’t he still on a tour?

At any rate, I didn’t want to get baited.

I quickly sent a reply.

[I would be really happy to receive any awards. I hope you get good results as well.]

After a while, a reply came back.

[VTIC Cheongryeo sunbae-nim: Yes ^^]

‘I really want to block him.’

I turned off the notification and turned on the Internet.

And while browsing awards ceremonies, I found an article that stood out.

[Isn’t it too much for Testar to win the Rookie Award?]