In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

In the end, I failed to punish those little rascals.

They ran so fast that I might’ve believed they’d made their fortunes by sprinting rather than singing.

“Hahaha!”

I could only watch in fury as they rode off in the manager’s car, laughing and waving.

“No way.”

“Haha.”

“Ugh......”

Inside the van on the way back to the dorm.

I sighed in disbelief, and Hyung Won-seok smiled gently.

“Just think of it as buying your friends a meal.”

“It’s just that the amount was shocking.”

Not that I’m stingy—I’ve made enough to happily treat friends a few times over.

But I’d never seen a meal cost that much.

“Isn’t it a good thing? Now they’ll think you’re as successful as they are.”

“That’s true.”

“If I’d thought it wasn’t appropriate, I’d have stopped you from paying.”

I nodded, recalling the prices of the dishes we’d had. If he’d heard, Won-seok’s opinion might change.

Still, he was right...

They truly thought it wasn’t much—like grilling pork belly with friends and splitting the bill.

Does a top star have to make purchases that carefree?

Sometimes the gap between my sense of normal and reality spins my head.

“By the way, Uju.”

Won-seok’s words snapped me back.

“Yes?”

“I brought what you asked for.”

“Oh! Finally...!”

He handed me a stack of file folders from the back seat.

Inside, unlabelled, were piles of proposals and plans.

Indexed in five colors—red, yellow, green, blue, purple—with labels like “Jiho,” “Bi-ju,” and so on.

“This is a lot.”

“The team leader said to review it at your leisure. If you agree, we can start immediately.”

“I’ll go through it with the others.”

These were materials from the TF team: collected, filtered, and organized proposals from various TV and industry sources.

Now that NewBlack’s solidly established, we planned to do some quick solo activities in the spare months before a full album.

For example, Ri-hyuk...

“Looks like he’ll be an OST tycoon—so many offers came in.”

“He’s famous for his vocals.”

“It’s satisfying. His personality’s rough around the edges, but his voice is great.”

Won-seok chuckled as he surveyed the OST offers from every major broadcaster.

Then he looked at me.

“Uju, what about you?”

“Me?”

“You’ve only been looking at the others.”

“Oh, I haven’t checked mine.”

I thought about what I wanted.

“How about that military reality show for the juniors? Something like that?”

“Not a bad idea, but you’d need the army’s approval.”

“True. Korea’s security and all that...”

I gazed at the clouds drifting in the morning sky.

They seemed to nod, as if agreeing with me.

I flicked through my proposals: acting gigs, composition, and...

“Huh?”

There was Plankton CEO’s name.

“...On the Stage?”

“Oh, it’s a new show on HBS—a national survival audition.”

“How interesting. They do everything.”

KM Ent., which had been busy acquiring rivals, was launching a survival audition: pooling all trainees and voting them off until the final group formed.

“If you’re eliminated, you’re dropped by the company?”

Feels like they outsourced to Satan. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

I shuddered.

“They want you to compose the theme and mentor, KM Ent. reached out.”

“I don’t think I have enough seniority for mentoring...”

“But you did MiP.”

“That was a lighthearted variety show. This is life-or-death for trainees...”

KM’s CEO obviously liked us enough to invite us, but we’re not KM artists. Better to avoid any controversy.

“I don’t know about ratings, but the comments section would explode.”

“Right?”

“This show has a bright future—a blazing path...”

If the gods of MSG saw this, they’d be delighted.

“I might cameo, but isn’t it HBS?”

“It’s a peace offering. ‘World’s greatest idol!’ That sort of promo.”

“...”

Is it a strategic attack?

I opened the acting, acting, composing, composing, variety pages, then closed them.

“I need to sleep on it.”

“Good idea.”

“I was only planning to support Ri-hyuk’s OST—help him out.”

Sleep-deprived, I thought I heard voices.

I waved my hands dismissively and Won-seok asked,

“What about Jung-hyun?”

“Oh, Jung-hyun?”

In front of me, plows and hoes danced about.

“That’s not easy...”

“Haha.”

Won-seok laughed like a happy bear.

We approached the villa entrance and he released the seatbelt.

He smiled and waved to the manager dropping me at the door.

“Thanks, hyung.”

“Good job. Go rest.”

“All right. I’ll be ready for pickup in two hours...”

“Sleep well.”

“But what will I do...?”

Won-seok rolled up the window and the engine revved away.

Such a cold departure.

I wondered if calling in four hours would work, then took the elevator straight to the dorm.

As I smiled at the familiar indoor air,

“Hmm...?”

A unique aroma tickled my nose.

Part soybean stew, part bulgogi, part grilled fish, part seasoned greens and quail eggs...

“Hyung’s home~?”

Bi-ju greeted me in an apron and a warm smile.

“Give me my jacket.”

“Oh, sure.”

“Must be starving after last night’s marathon. I made breakfast.”

“Really? I....”

I started to say I’d already eaten, but then saw the table.

Doenjang stew, grilled yellow croaker, bulgogi, greens, assorted banchan—a feast.

“Bi-ju.”

“Yes?”

“When did you start cooking?”

“At 5 a.m...?”

I couldn’t say I’d eaten. I glanced upward to the empty second floor.

Ji-hyun.

Bless my stomach.

No—no, please not a curse!

When I scooped a spoonful of stew, I felt eyes on me.

Sparkling.

Bi-ju, the housewife fairy, hovered with a grin as if propping his chin on his hand.

“How is it?”

“Mm...!”

Thankfully, I subscribed to mukbang channels.

“It’s really delicious.”

“Oh!”

“The depth of the fermented soy, the kelp broth blend—perfect. The tofu’s tasty. It’s like...”

I trailed off mid-flavor list.

“Grandma Kim Deok-sun made this.”

“Exactly. I used her recipe.”

No wonder. It tasted like her saying, “Eat more, you skinny thing,” with warmth.

But still.

“...”

How could eating this delicious meal feel like torture?

After king crab and all those dishes, my stomach was screaming, “Enough! Stop!”

I turned to Bi-ju’s shining eyes.

“Um, Bi-ju.”

“Yes.”

“It’s mealtime—shouldn’t we call the others?”

“Oh, right. It’s time.”

Bi-ju checked his watch, hurried to the stairs, and rang the bell.

Ding-dong~ ding-dong~

Ten seconds later, three doors upstairs opened at once.

“Pavlov was a great man.”

“Truly.”

I laughed as the three tumbled down like a single clump.

The maknae rubbed his eyes.

“You’re back~?”

“Why stay up all night? I told you to take it easy.”

“It’s Uju hyung.”

They rushed to the table at top speed and gasped at the feast.

“No way. Uju hyung, you stayed up making this? I never got this when I pulled an all-nighter!”

“You stayed ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ up gaming, dummy.”

“I’m not dumb~ fans call me a face genius.”

The table erupted in laughter.

Watching my juniors devour the meals, Bi-ju asked,

“How did recording go?”

“Good. Taehyun did great.”

“You finished recording so fast.”

The maknae said, and I nodded.

“It was just one person. We’re five when it’s group work.”

“No wonder it was quick. I thought you’d come tonight.”

I summarized the recording highlights and asked about their day.

“The frames yesterday—any injuries?”

“No. They said it’s high-quality glass that breaks prettily.”

“You should’ve been more careful.”

Ri-hyuk frowned.

“That was their fault. They hung the frames weirdly.”

“Oh.”

“I was startled. He tapped, and...”

“I didn’t want drama, so I laughed it off~”

I nodded at the maknae’s words. Well handled. It had been odd—no matter how mischievous Jung-hyun is...

“...No real harm done?”

“Yeah.”

As Bi-ju fidgeted with his apron, the others avoided my gaze.

Three seconds later, they switched topics.

“Everyone treated us so well. Whenever I walked, they almost rolled out a red carpet.”

“That’s just the company’s style.”

“I felt so pressured. Their kindness was overwhelming.”

I realized again: a top agency treats its stars like royalty.

At TJ, it was even more extreme. Trainees would return from debut to find themselves treated like nobility.

Meanwhile...

“Hmm.”

“What are you staring at, hyung?”

“Nothing...”

Why did we feel like nouveau-riche buyin’ into aristocracy?

They beamed at the modest lineup.

As everyone focused on their meal, I remembered something.

“Oh, guys—want to take one of these each?”

“What’s that?”

“Those solo activity proposals.”

I opened the file and handed them out.

Maybe because it was work-related, their eyes lit up. They stopped eating and studied the papers.

“Bi-ju’s roasted seaweed visuals are world-class.”

“Absolutely delicious.”

Crunch, crunch.

They devoured food while reading. Each saw their own proposals, said “Oh,” then looked at me.

The maknae asked seriously:

“Hyung, what will you do?”

“Me?”

They watched curiously.

Bi-ju smiled warmly.

“I’m really curious what you’ll choose.”

“Me too.”

“I’m curious, too—what will you do? Tell us your plan.”

They smiled as if to say, “We’re on your side.”

I forced a laugh.

“...Why is everyone clutching their proposals to their chest?”

“Everyone keeps a proposal in their heart, right?”

They hugged the papers like precious treasures—then their expressions changed.

“No way I’m acting. If I give up meat, I won’t give up my impact as the acting genius Wang Ji-ho.”

“No OST from you, right? Say it now.”

“Sorry hyung, but I claim dance.”

“We can farm together, but no rap. Only joint crops.”

They were ready to barbed-wire their fields against me.

“I’m not a bullfrog.”

“A bullfrog would be better. That’s you—snatching others’ parts like a....”

Ji-ho grabbed a soy-marinated crab and said:

“This is so you, hyung!”

Clatter-clatter.

The crab dangled midair, and I burst out laughing.

Seeing their sibling love erupt at breakfast, I couldn’t help but laugh too.

“Jung-hyun.”

“Yes, hyung?”

“Bring him here.”

“Yes.”

Jung-hyun’s chopsticks wielded dual blades.

“Over here.”

“No, I meant bring him here—not grab the crab...!”

“But it’s delicious....”

As I fussed, the table rang with laughter.

After the TJ Ent. visit, we flew out again for a weekend show in Taipei, Taiwan.

“Waaah!”

Flap-flap~

[Welcome to the birthplace of Wu Zhenmin]

[Bi-ju, don’t get lost today♡ Only in hot coals]

[Sun Woo-ju’s going fifty next year]

I flinched at “fifty,” then realized its meaning and waved brightly.

Where do they learn these jokes?

But before I could wonder, we were swept along.

“Waaah!”

Even in the quieter shows earlier this year, hundreds gathered. Now it was beyond comparison.

With the album’s success and the MiP special trending in Greater China, many reporters had come.

The arena was huge: Taipei Arena, a major international sports venue.

Over two days, we drew 23,000 fans.

Afterward, a local official told us it was the largest arena show for a Korean idol.

“NewBlack means a lot to Taiwanese fans. Taipei is the sacred birthplace of the legendary nickname ‘Wu Zhenmin’!”

“I see.”

“The fans’ passion has a reason! Ha ha ha!”

To repay that enthusiasm, we burned out the weekend and returned exhausted to Korea—where the TF team leader greeted us happily.

“I think ‘Bulkkotnori’ can aim for number one.”

Currently, “Bulkkotnori” had climbed to number two, overtaking “Nakhwa.”

“Looks like we can hope for a summer surge. It feels like a summer anthem. Once TeenSpirit finishes promotions... we can strike.”

“They’re really strong now.”

TeenSpirit’s full album sold 560,000 first-week. Ours did 370,000—still nearly 200,000 behind, yet the highest in nearly a decade.

With those sales and fandom power, our music show scores were insane.

I blessed the happy neighbors downstairs.

We’d have to wait for TeenSpirit to wrap up promotions.

So we decided what we needed to secure that number one for “Bulkkotnori.”

“Shall we start choreography practice?”

One was dance practice led by the main dancer.

And the other...

At Lemon Ent. Production Team.

The staff gathered as Sun Woo-ju played the session file on his laptop.

“Oooh...!”

“Bulkkotnori”—the song we might perform again on music shows from two years ago—played with a slightly altered vibe.

Almost identical to the original, but the intro had subtle changes.

A small tweak, yet the whole mood felt different.

‘Our music-obsessed kid never ceases to amaze....’

Click.

Sun Woo-ju stopped the intro and asked,

“How is it? I tweaked only the intro...”

The team murmured in admiration.

“Wow, this is amazing. You get the feeling right away.”

“It’s different from how you sang it as rookies. Feels like a comeback in this concept.”

“I love it. The vibe hits.”

Even Kim Hyung-seop—forced to sit in—nodded along.

Woo-ju smiled proudly.

“I’m glad you like it.”

“Ha ha.”

“You understood how I changed it, right? No need for more explanation.”

“Yeah. Got it at once.”

Honestly, no clue—but if I asked, he’d say, “Oh really? Then let me explain...” and drag me into hell.

If it’s good already, no need to meddle further.

Woo-ju smiled brightly.

“Are you sure you understand?”

“Yeah, sure~”

“Fantastic!”

“...Huh?”

They looked uneasy as Woo-ju clapped and laughed.

“From now on, you’ll be the ones doing this.”

“Pardon?”

...We’re the ones doing it?