Idol Hides His Military Service

Hongdae.

Its status would drop a bit in the future, but as of 2015, if you asked for the hottest place in Korea, this was unconditionally the number 1 pick.

‘Mask secure.’

Bundled up in a thick padded jacket, a cap, and even a mask, I carefully approached Exit 3 of Hongdaeipgu Station.

– Curiosity kills humans. But that curiosity is what pushes humanity one step forward.

At a glance it sounded like some great scientist’s famous quote, but it was actually something a guy said back at the Military Academy when he got caught trying to bring in a PMP to watch porn.

He hadn’t been expelled, thankfully, but he did get disciplinary action.

Back then, I’d laughed at him for being an idiot, but now I empathized with that line with all my heart.

Scan.

I stuck my neck out like a turtle and peeked around at my surroundings.

Since it was midwinter, it was a relief that wearing thick clothes and a mask didn’t look weird.

Right now I was near Exit 3 of Hongdaeipgu Station, and even though it was the early hours of a weekend morning, there were so many people walking around that I was struggling to calm my heart thumping away.

‘Ugh! Why is there a crowd there again?’

After Idol Ground 100 episodes 1 and 2, which had captured my disgrace, aired, I’d sworn I would never go outside again.

[Fundraiser complete for Lee Sion debut-support billboard ad]

「Thanks, Sionists.

Thanks to you we hit our fundraising goal, so we went and submitted the image draft and put the ad up on the subway billboard.

For reference, the image draft was picked from the Sion photos the Sionism café owner sent over.

Apparently that one was taken directly by a café member, so it’s legally safe for copyright.

Anyway, it’s supposed to go up starting this weekend, so I’m asking for lots of interest and support.」

↳ Is the café head a r*tard? Where’d you even learn to say “lots of interest and support, please”?

↳ That guy’s gonna get banned soon.

↳ Hey, they say it’s dangerous to use “Sionist” now? Sionism got changed to Sion-ism too.

↳ The owner’s notice gave me a headache 😂 said they got some crazy “Allahu Akbar” email.

↳ Wow, look at that firepower. It must’ve cost a ton to put an ad on the Hongdae Station billboard.

When I heard my photo was up on a subway station billboard, there was no way I could stand it without seeing it in person, so I had no choice but to decide to go out.

Lee Sion Gallery.

I still didn’t understand how it had even come into existence, but in that gallery where my fans supposedly gathered, dozens of posts were going up every day, no—every minute, and it was being run very actively.

Of course, judging from the posts they put up, they did not seem sane.

[Honestly, Pink Spell was our gallery owner’s peak]

(Lee Sion clumsily dancing while keeping eyes locked on the judges)

↳ For real. Idols like Ryu Ayeon might show up again someday, but this kid isn’t reappearing within the 21st century.

↳ Facts. What idol is ever gonna take a gut punch?

↳ If you became a fan when you saw the F class kids giving our gallery owner a group beatdown, big rec.

↳ It’s “became”, not “becomed”.

↳ Y u rite spelin rong lik dis?

I still couldn’t understand why these so-called fans only ever uploaded the clips I wanted erased, but the fact that they had pooled their own money to put up a subway billboard ad for me was kind of, no, very touching.

‘Isn’t this something only idols get?’

In my previous life, I’d seen bus or subway station ads for idols’ birthdays a few times.

Back then, all I’d thought was,

‘Man, these people are swimming in money. If they gave it to me, I’d spend it frugally for them.’

But being the actual subject of one, it felt a bit—no, a lot different.

Why would people go this far for a stranger whose face they’d never even seen in person?

At first it was a mystery, but once I actually arrived at Hongdae Station and saw the billboard with my photo on it, I couldn’t say a single word and could only stare.

– The Lee Sion Gallery supports Lee Sion’s idol debut! You have to debut!

When I realized there were so many people who simply wished me well, my shoulders suddenly grew heavier, but at the same time I felt strength surge through my whole body.

640,000 votes.

That was the number of votes people had cast for me at the first ranking announcement ceremony.

To be precise, when the unbelievable number 640,302 appeared on the auditorium screen, I couldn’t believe it.

Honestly, since I hadn’t planned on debuting as an idol, the feeling of pressure had been much bigger at the time.

It was similar to how I’d felt back at the Academy when I became a duty cadet without even wanting the position.

Back then too, just like now, I hadn’t wanted it, but thanks to recommendations from the cadet brigade commander, the training officers, and my classmates, I’d been forced to take the duty cadet position once.

Even though I hadn’t wanted it, as they say the position makes the person, I had quickly gotten used to being a duty cadet.

– Lee Sion, you absolutely have to debut!

I kept seeing Park Hyerim calling my name during the final remarks before leaving the program.

Then the faces of the participants who had believed in me and followed me started to pass through my mind, one by one.

Nayeon, who I had forced into it, but who ended up leading our F class kids splendidly.

Im Yunkyung the water ghost, who was the very first F class kid to approach me and ended up picking me for the group battle mission.

Suyeon, whom I’d met at the very start of the program and who had been with me ever since.

Lee Gahyeon, who, depending how you looked at it, went through some harsh treatment from me but never held a grudge and approached me again.

Seo Ryujin, who definitely had some petty sides, but in the end always helped me.

And lastly, Shinyu, whom I met for the first time during the group battle mission, but who now had become more on my side than anybody else.

In the ridiculously short span of only a month, I’d somehow grown attached to them.

– This time, I’m not lying.

Suddenly, a line from a basketball manga I’d read before popped into my head.

The ambiguous line the protagonist had said while clutching the heroine’s shoulders.

I had made up my mind now too.

‘I guess I really am going to have to give this idol thing a shot.’

Even if it was a program I’d started because I fell into my aunt’s scheme, and up until now I’d approached Idol Ground 100 thinking of it as just part-time work.

And even though I’d been hiding my feelings under the surface until now.

For whatever reason I’d been so embarrassed, I’d made all kinds of excuses, but in the end, I liked the stage, I liked being together with them, and I liked the audience screaming when they watched me.

‘First things first is debut.’

Of course, it might still be getting ahead of myself.

As the saying goes, drinking kimchi broth before someone even offers you rice cakes, I could only debut if I made it into the final seven in the program, and even though I’d taken 1st place in the first ranking announcement, I knew very well that ranking could change at any time.

Above all, I still wasn’t satisfied with my own skill, so I had to work even harder.

‘The dorm period is only two weeks anyway, I can sleep later during the break. At the dorm, two hours of sleep is enough.’

The conclusion came back around to practice.

Once I made the perfect plan to hurry back home today and sleep soundly, then cling to Seo Ryujin and drill like crazy once I returned to the dorm tomorrow, my heart felt at ease.

‘Wait, before I go home···.’

There was one last thing I had to do before returning home.

I walked right up in front of the billboard with my big photo on it, took out my smartphone, and started taking pictures in selfie mode.

Click.

It felt way too wasteful not to leave a record of something this precious.

Besides, there was a time I could use this, so I absolutely had to snap it.

The group KakaoTalk chat the participants had created after the dorm stint ended.

It was a KakaoTalk chat where seven participants who had gotten close through this dorm period had gathered.

Of course, Seo Ryujin was included too.

‘Seo Ryujin doesn’t have a billboard up yet.’

I’d combed through the communities just in case, but her billboard was still in the planning stage and hadn’t gone up yet.

Which meant this moment was one of the few times I could tease Seo Ryujin.

Seo Ryujin was way more competitive than you’d think.

Where other kids just reacted like they were dumbfounded when I messed with them, or at most glared,

‘What are you even saying, you scrub!’

Seo Ryujin was a perfect prey who reacted immediately even if you just poked a little.

If I bragged to a kid like that that I got a billboard before she did, how would that go?

‘She might not show it, but she’ll probably be stewing over it in frustration.’

It was obvious.

She’d probably pretend she hadn’t even seen the KakaoTalk message and not reply at all, but just imagining her quietly suffering with frustration through the whole break period was enough of a reward for having risked going out today.

‘I guess I’ll have to take the mask off for a moment.’

If I took the picture with my mask on, it was obvious the others would use that as an excuse to attack me.

– Unni, did you catch celebrity disease already?

– With Sion’s level of popularity, it’d be understandable~ this is the person who took 1st place in the vote, after all.

– Lee Sion, who else but a scrub would be too scared to show her face and go with a mask?

For some reason I could hear their voices clearly right in my ears.

Sneak.

I quickly scanned my surroundings.

Thankfully, the crowd had noticeably thinned out compared to before.

Seeing people hurriedly walking past without even glancing at the billboard, I gained confidence.

I quickly pulled my mask down to my chin and started taking selfies again.

After three or four shots, right when I was feeling satisfied,

“Uh··· excuse me?”

Someone called out from in front of me.

“Wow!! It really is Lee Sion!!!”

Then, after confirming my face, a man yelled like he’d just discovered wild ginseng.

‘So that’s why I was craving seolleongtang today!’

It was an extremely lucky day.

Carelessness.

If I had to pick one of the few flaws I had from my previous life to this one, it would be carelessness.

When I left the house, I’d thought,

‘There must not be a repeat of the convenience store incident disaster!’

and I’d sworn I would never take my mask off, but I gave in to the temptation of wanting to toy with Seo Ryujin and ended up taking it off.

“Can we take just one picture together, please!”

The man took out his smartphone and approached me, and at the same time, passersby’s gazes started to focus on me.

“What, are they a celebrity?”

“Huh? That person looks exactly like the photo on the billboard over there.”

“That’s them, the Pink Spell kid!”

As I saw the people around me gradually begin to close in around me like a wall, I knew it instinctively.

‘If I stay any longer, I’m going to get boxed in!’

If I didn’t move now, I wouldn’t even have a chance to attempt an escape.

Tensing my thigh muscles,

“I’m not Lee Sion!!!”

I shouted, then immediately bolted toward the exit with everything I had.

People were momentarily taken aback by my grand escape, but there was no way they could catch me once I’d already sped far away.

This was me, after all, the one once called Haandong’s Usain Bolt in my previous life.

.

.

.

[Met our gallery owner today (pic inside)]

「I rushed over to get a proof shot since Hongdae’s near my place and they said the billboard was up, and there’s this woman in a mask lurking around taking pictures there.

At first I thought she was a female fan of our gallery owner, so I was just going to take some pictures and leave too, but then,

(Lee Sion making a fierce attempt to escape)

suddenly she takes off her mask. And it’s obviously the gallery owner.

So I ask for a photo together, and she goes, ‘I’m not Lee Sion!’ and runs away insanely fast.」

↳ Sion-ah··· if you were going to pretend you weren’t you, maybe you should’ve started by hiding those blue eyes?

↳ Posts saying people saw our gallery owner in other places are going up nonstop right now too. But they all say the same thing: she was really fast.

↳ Wow, f**k, all that fundraising was worth it!

↳ I was gonna go too··· why’d only you see her? Why only you? Why only you? Why only you? Why only you?···

[Idol Ground 100 KakaoTalk chat]

– Oh, look at Ms. Lee Sion strolling around in style.

– Unni, have you always been this much of an attention seeker?

– Why did you take your mask off, exactly?

– I’m calling it now: Lee Sion definitely did that because she wanted to brag to us, I’ll bet my next ranking ceremony vote 1,000 votes on it.

By the time I finally got home and caught my breath, my actions had already spread all over the communities.

I had lost everything.

***

If you asked people to name the hottest current program lately, many would pick Idol Ground 100, and even though only episodes 1 and 2 had aired so far, communities related to A–G–Baek were springing up like mushrooms after rain.

This meant the program’s level of interest was high, which wasn’t a bad thing, but that didn’t mean it was purely good either.

– Doesn’t this straight-up feel like they’re determined to debut a few specific contestants?

– Yeah, what the hell is with funneling screentime like that. Honestly, if you push someone that hard, you could debut a random civilian off the street.

– You can clearly see the PD picks, and watching them pretend to play dumb while fawning over their own picks is seriously disgusting.

They weren’t on public communities yet, but in certain SNS spaces, the so-called “shadows”, some people were spreading rumors about the program.

However,

[Predicting the debut lineup through screentime analysis]

「I used to work in broadcasting, and usually for variety shows like this, episodes 1 and 2 are used to gauge viewer reactions and set the editing direction for later episodes.

So it really stood out to me how they tried to distribute participant screentime as evenly as possible at the start.

These are the screentimes I personally analyzed for the participants in episode 2. (I left out episode 1 since it was just the entrance ceremony, and only counted solo shots or at most two-shots.)

Agency / Trainee / Screentime

Unaffiliated / Lee Sion / 5:54

TSP / Ryu Ayeon / 5:23

Logic / Seo Ryujin / 6:12

Dion / Lee Gahyeon / 4:46

RBW / Yoo Jihae / 4:59

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.

.

.

I also attached the analyzed timeline so people don’t slander the show saying they edited in a way that specifically favors certain contestants.

As you /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ can see, screentime is not concentrated on specific contestants.

They just focused more on contestants who were already a hot topic from the start or who made an impact on the broadcast.

Anyway, my conclusion after analyzing this is that there isn’t any pushing.」

↳ F**k, but it really felt like it was all Lee Sion all episode 2?

↳ When did you start assuming you were looking at only Lee Sion?

↳ No, seriously, I just checked the timeline and that screentime per contestant is actually correct.

↳ Lately there’ve been people slowly crawling out of the woodwork saying specific contestants are getting too much screentime, but now we’ve got proof, huh?··· Time to go stir up trouble somewhere else.

↳ You crazy f**ker, you should go stir that sht up in other galleries, why are you stirring shtty trouble in our gallery!

“This is how the world should be.”

Lee Hyuksu looked at the reactions to the post he’d put up on the A–G–Baek gallery and smiled in satisfaction.

Lately, between working his day job and being active in Sionism and the A–G–Baek gallery, he’d been cutting down on sleep, but every time some false piece of information about the program got corrected one by one like this, the thrill he felt was beyond words.

‘Come on, I’m the one who edited it, you think I wouldn’t have checked the screentime?’

Sensing that nonsense slander like specific contestants getting all the screentime was starting to pop up online, Lee Hyuksu had felt the need to take action.

Things like this, if you didn’t properly clarify them early on, would later end up being accepted as fact.

In particular, one of the people quietly being brought up as a supposed beneficiary of “pushing” was Lee Sion, who, far from receiving the benefits of editing, had actually lost screentime because of main PD Kim Miyoung, which had frustrated Hyuksu enough to write such a painstaking post.

‘If I hadn’t had to rein it in, adding just three more minutes of Lee Sion would’ve made it even more fun!’

In fact, for episode 3, which was soon to air, there were plenty of scenes of Lee Sion’s feats he wanted to include, but the painful memory of having to pick out only the most impactful ones at Miyoung’s request flashed through his mind.

Which was why, if Miyoung ever asked him again to cut down on Lee Sion’s screentime, he would have no choice but to respond firmly.

Some might say he was doing this out of fanboy feelings, but Lee Hyuksu believed this was exactly the kind of thing one did for a fair society.