In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

The filming atmosphere was warm.

As expected, ignoring the younger trainees who called out “Our Dobi,” I looked around.

The trainees sitting on the auditorium floor were happily munching on souffle bread.

“Um, senior.”

A mischievous-looking trainee raised his hand. His name tag read “Lee Gihu.”

“Yes, Gihu.”

“Have you watched On the Stage, senior?”

“Of course I have.”

The trainees’ eyes sparkled.

They seemed about to ask how the show was doing outside, but at a signal from the production staff, they nodded instead.

The fact that the survival program was doing incredibly well was a secret from the current trainees.

“Before we start mentoring, I watched it in advance to get to know all of you better.”

“Waaaah......”

“So there were a few trainees who really caught our attention.”

Watching Episode 1, there were a few whose personalities or situations mirrored mine.

As I scanned the trainees, my gaze landed on a mid-twenties trainee named “Mo Yeonghun,” sitting in a corner, quietly eating bread.

– Mo Yeonghun? The guy who was there for just a bit?

– Yeah. He appeared on On the Stage this time.

– He seemed nice, but I don’t really remember him. It was such a brief cameo.

That was a conversation I’d had with Taehyun over the phone not long ago.

Unlike me, who survived with another specialty, he had nothing to compensate with and was eliminated immediately.

Although I’d only seen him for a few months, he was one of the few who stuck in my memory.

But I didn’t make any special eye contact.

Unless I greeted him afterward, it was better not to show interest.

“Um, senior.”

Trainee Lee Gihu’s eyes shone as he asked,

“So, senior, which trainee caught your attention the most...?”

“That’s a secret.”

The trainees all went “Aaaah~.”

Meanwhile, the main PD said it was a good point to wrap up the first recording.

The trainees stood and bowed.

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“See you later!”

I waved to each as they headed back to their practice rooms.

As the production staff prepared for the real mentoring shoot,

we greeted the trainers invited from On the Stage.

“Senior!”

“Our cuties~!”

I laughed with senior Jang Sowon.

“Why’s it so hard to see your face these days?”

“Right? We really missed you.”

“Oh, stop flattering me, Sun Wooju.”

“It’s true.”

I widened my eyes for emphasis, and she burst out laughing.

Her smile looked lovely.

Maybe because our bond went back to our trainee days, she was our dearest acquaintance.

The maknae said,

“Still, we watch every show you’re on. This time on On the Stage, you appeared as the Tiger Teacher and....”

“No!”

“With eyes wide like this, saying, ‘Team A, out of the practice room.’”

Senior Jang Sowon fanned her face with her hand, recreating the exact angle.

“I’m not doing it because I want to— the producers asked me to. Even KM Entertainment said, ‘Make them scared.’”

“Maybe it’s because the trainees come from so many agencies.”

“Right.”

At Ri Hyuk’s remark, senior Jang Sowon agreed.

“The trainees’ affiliations are really varied. If you want them to unify, someone’s gotta play the villain....”

On the Stage is a KM Entertainment survival show to form a debut group, but not everyone is from KM.

KM had acquired QT Entertainment and several others, accepting their trainees as well.

Since factions could easily form, it seems they had the trainers play the bad guys.

No matter how much humans bicker, if aliens invade, you’ve got to unite.

“But you did the villain role so well that we were all trembling watching you.”

“Really?”

“With eyes wide like that....”

“Hey!”

While we talked, I noticed someone circling, looking for a chance to jump in.

“Hello.”

“Hi! Finally...!”

Yoon Chanhyuk, delighted we were talking, made us laugh.

“Why is it so hard to say two words to you guys? Jang Sowon, you never stop talking.”

“I’m just happy. Oppa, if you wanted to talk, you could’ve come say hi.”

“There was no opening. No gap.”

He then motioned to the other trainers.

“Hurry over! This is your chance to talk with NewBlack!”

“Waaah!”

“Ay, so embarrassing. Just walk over!”

Chong-chong-chong-chong.

The trainers ran over and greeted us warmly.

Most were active singers, dancers, or rappers.

Since they were just one connection away, we chatted happily and exchanged contacts.

“Can I have your autograph...?”

“Ah, sure.”

While signing for their nieces and acquaintances, the production staff announced preparations were complete.

“Then we’ll see you in the practice room.”

“See you later!”

Once the trainers had moved away, my juniors and I formed a penguin formation.

“Now it’s time to scatter— give it your all.”

“Yes!”

“Let’s do our best. You know the one whose mentored team comes in last...?”

gulp.

I said ominously to my juniors swallowing nervously,

“The loser buys meat for everyone all of September.”

“Hyung.”

Junghyun raised his hand.

“Next month is our album prep period. We need to diet.”

“Oh. Then....”

In October we’ll do music shows.

“Then November....”

“That’s awards and year-end stage prep.”

“December....”

“We have the Japan tour.”

Hearing that the days of feasting on meat for a whole month were gone, a sad feeling washed over me.

“Then the first-place person gets to be treated like the eldest brother at home for one day.”

“Oooooo!”

At that moment, the maknae asked,

“And what about you, hyung?”

“I’ll be the maknae. Hee.”

“......”

My juniors shuddered at the thought.

Rain fell in my heart.

“Then just shout ‘Fighting!’ and go over there.”

“Fuh-ha-ha-hat!”

One, two, three, Fighting! we cheered and parted for our practice rooms.

It was our own title match for the title of eldest brother for a day.

Wang Jiho smiled /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ blissfully.

‘I should be the eldest brother~’

Just imagining it made me happy.

As eldest brother, I’d flop onto the sofa and call, “Maknae-ya~!” making Seo Ri-hyuk run errands.

– I don’t want to run errands. If you make me, at least pay me.

Right. That hyung listens to no one.

Still, thinking about teasing Biju hyung and Junghyun hyung by calling “Sibling, here~” was thrilling.

Just as I grinned,

– Eldest brother? What about me~? Uju wants ice cream too! Hey? Eldest brother~ where’re you going~?

A person who would set aside pride without hesitation flashed through my mind.

...Is this really the right choice?

Though that doubt lingered, I couldn’t stand the thought of Ri-hyuk or Sun Wooju winning first place.

‘I’ll be number one.’

I took a deep breath and beamed brightly.

With my broadcast smile on, Wang Jiho opened the door and entered the practice room.

“Hello, everyone!”

“Hello!”

I waved happily, and the trainees stopped the music from the amp and greeted me.

“I’ll greet you again~! I’m NewBlack’s cutie in charge of the Fireworks Team, Wang Jiho! Yeah!”

“Waaaaaah!”

“So from now on, you’re Jiho’s team! What team?”

“Jiho’s team!”

Clapping for the trainees, I had them chant “Wang Jiho!” and closed my eyes in satisfaction.

The taste of power was truly sweet.

No wonder my dad said work was fun.

‘Let’s see.’

Counting the cameras— one, two, three, four, plus about eleven mini-cams around the room— roughly fifteen.

I quickly scanned each angle, then smiled toward the main camera.

“First, let’s sit down!”

About ten people sat in a circle.

Watching the trainees gulp nervously, I smiled too.

“I thought we’d gotten close munching bread together, but am I still awkward? That can’t be~!”

“No, you’re fine!”

“If you’re too nervous, I’ll be uncomfortable~ I’m not here to evaluate you, so relax.”

“Yes!”

“Everyone, fighting!”

“Fighting!”

We clapped to raise the energy.

My bright expression made the trainees smile in return.

“Oh! Right! We need to do this first. Everyone, cover your name tags!”

“Ah, yes!”

“I might get them wrong, so correct me right away~!”

Then I recited the ten names of the Fireworks Team that I’d memorized earlier, pointing to each.

Whenever a name was called, the trainees’ eyes went wide as they raised their hands.

“My memory’s good, right?”

“Wow... yes!”

“I’ve been studying hard. I wanted to hear some praise.”

Laughter rippled among the trainees.

Most were awkward, but their eyes held warmth— though there was a hint of something else.

‘Is that person the oldest on this team?’

A trainee around Uju hyung’s age was watching me.

Their gaze was subtle— maybe because they were nineteen.

Perhaps my age bruised their pride.

‘Lots of people care about age.’

In a job dealing with people, it was easy to spot those who looked down on you for being a minor.

“Before we see your practice, I’d like to see the lyric sheet once. Who can bring it, Seonyong?”

“Ah, yes!”

Trainee Lee Seonyong handed me the lyric sheet he’d been holding.

“You took the most notes, it seems.”

“Uh... yes, thank you.”

“Let’s do well. Fighting~!”

I made eye contact and smiled brightly as I bumped fists with him.

I conveyed that it wouldn’t be fun if they weren’t cooperative— and it seemed to register.

Since the rest were all peers, gaining their hold was easy.

Having set the tone,

‘The lyric sheet only has each person’s part.’

While planning how to coach them,

I cheerfully called the trainees over.

“All right! Show me what you’ve practiced so far~!”

Shiver, shiver~

Flutter, flutter~

“.......”

The dance trainer watching the trainees’ moves pinched his forehead.

‘Oh dear.......’

Their dance skills had improved, but the group synchronization was off every time.

On stage, someone might comment, “Is this a theme of chaos? A depiction of our lives?”— that sort of vibe.

A writer behind the camera whispered to the assistant director,

“Jiho’s impressive.”

“Right? How can his expression never change?”

They wanted to villainously edit him, but Wang Jiho’s face never shifted.

If he narrowed his eyes even slightly, they could’ve used it on broadcast.

‘We can’t even play tense BGM to save face.’

From any angle, his perfect smile remained.

As the production team pined for a flaw,

the trainees, panting after their performance, lowered their eyes.

‘......That was a flop.’

Objectively, it was a failed performance.

Now, I awaited the scolding.

As trainers usually said, “Aren’t you desperate? Is this how you do it?”,

clap, clap.

“......?”

Jiho lightly clapped and gave a fresh smile.

“Good job! You all did well~?”

“Uh...?”

“I said, good job.”

Jiho smiled gently.

“The trainers set you in the right direction so well that I feel like I have nothing to add.”

“.......”

“But.......”

Now the real talk, perhaps.

Turning to the trainees tense and watching for cues, Jiho asked earnestly,

“Do you feel like something’s off?”

They nodded.

“I want to talk about that. I’ve been on stage many times too, so I know why this happened.”

Looking at them seriously, Jiho said,

“Right now, your stage is like shattered pieces of glass. Each puzzle piece is awesome, but it doesn’t fit together.”

“Yes, exactly.”

“Your stage isn’t coming together. That’s because—”

He placed his hands beside his temples.

“Your eyes are narrowed like this. You know racehorses run with blinders, right?”

They nodded.

“Because your vision narrows, when you step onstage you get fixated on your part. That’s natural.”

“...Is it?”

“When there’s a carrot and a whip right in front of you, how can you see broadly?”

The maknae of NewBlack mimed a carrot and a whip, and they all understood.

Compared to the brutal monthly evaluations they’d faced, no stress came close to a survival show.

Especially the Fireworks Team, with lower-ranked trainees among the five teams, couldn’t help feeling rushed.

“But it won’t end. After debut, you keep going onstage, and each time your vision narrows again. Performing is fun, but it’s often scary. You’re scared now, right?”

“Yes......”

“So I came to help reduce that fear.”

Jiho winked and smiled, and the trainees eased their tension into awkward smiles.

“So what do we do? Before you go onstage, you have to widen your vision. I’ll give you a good method, so grab your lyric sheets and stand in the stage formation.”

“Yes!”

“Anyone here who’s memorized all the lyrics?”

“.......”

No one.

As if expected, Jiho smiled and said,

“Think of the lyric sheet as a script. Imagine a story in a script— then, whenever it’s your part, stand up and show your choreography.”

Immediately, the atmosphere turned into a lesson.

Each line of lyrics played, and the assigned trainee moved through the choreography and sang, while the others watched.

Each time, Jiho acted like a commentator,

“Now where is this? It’s like a lost spaceship penguin, right?”

“Yes.”

“And then a cute handsome person comes in~ Why do they come?”

“To meet the lost person...?”

“Close enough.”

With each explanation, the trainees went “Ah!” in realization.

‘Oh, that’s why this hand gesture is like this.’

‘So that’s what it meant.’

‘No wonder the trainers keep telling us to memorize lyrics.’

Although the vocal trainer had told them to learn all the lyrics, they’d dismissed it as basic advice like “chew your food well.”

Seeing it like a play, each doing their part, they understood why.

Stepping back, they grasped the story flow of the entire stage.

A broad view they hadn’t seen when they were rushing through sleepless practice.

After repeating a few times and memorizing their parts,

“All right, let’s rehearse! We’ll go at half speed ten times! Everyone sings the lyrics!”

“Yes!”

“If your voice is quieter than mine, no snacks for you!”

As Jiho sang the Fireworks lyrics, the trainees strained to project their voices.

‘What projection.......’

The practice room echoed with powerful vocals.

Only then did it sink in that this person in front of them was a member of the All-Stars Season 1 who’d placed first for singing ability.

The trainees, who had been slowly matching movements, felt the change.

“Oh...?”

The overall flow smoothed out.

At the same time, structure emerged.

It was still lacking, but vastly different from before.

“How is it? Better, right?”

“....”

“That’s why you have to memorize all the lyrics.”

The trainees stared at the handsome man before them in awe.

Having produced such a transformation in thirty minutes,

“Any questions for me~?”

“Senior, for this part the pitch......”

“Oh, that part? I’ll play the note for you. Summer star~ like this.”

He pinpointed the lyrics with precise pitch, checking vocal condition and choreography.

Once one question came, they poured out like a flood.

The most enthusiastic was twenty-four-year-old trainee Lee Seonyong.

‘I need to learn more! I have to ask one more before I go.’

The initial impression of his youthful looks was a world apart from this eagerness.

He started, and the other trainees clustered around.

Seeing him answer any Fireworks question with ease, the production and trainers were impressed.

“Was Jiho always like this...?”

“I don’t think so. Like a healthy maknae at most.”

They’d expected advice on facial expression acting, not this level of vocal and choreography skill.

Seeing his proficiency outside his specialty, they were naturally impressed.

‘So that’s how he built his approachable image on the show!’

They realized his skill made him impossible to underestimate.

Watching the trainees’ expressions— completely smitten— the trainers remarked,

“I’d be like that too. He saved someone drowning and gave them a hundred bundles.”

When the vocal trainer sighed about trainees never listening to memorize lyrics, the dance trainer said,

“But on the show, everyone will be amazed. If he coaches the other members like this....”

“Do you think the others will too?”

While they chatted, Jiho approached to drink water during a break.

The vocal trainer smiled and handed him a bottle.

“Here you go.”

“Oh, thank you~”

Perhaps from the passionate coaching, beads of sweat trailed down his jawline.

The refined hero still bore a boyish face.

The trainers, mesmerized by Jiho wiping his sweat, asked,

“Jiho, you’re really surprising.”

“Me? Why?”

“I didn’t know you could teach this well.”

“Really? Did I teach well?”

NewBlack’s maknae laughed in relief.

“I’m glad. I was worried I teach poorly compared to the hyungs......”

“Is that so?”

“It’s all what I learned from them. Where else would I have learned~”

At that, the two trainers blinked.

It felt like hearing the confession of the weakest villain lieutenant from a comic.

‘Then what about the rest...?’

While pondering that, Jiho, watching the trainees back at practice, suddenly exclaimed,

“I forgot this! Hold on!”

“......?”

Like he’d remembered something important, the maknae dashed off.

With a drreuk- sound, he dragged over a chair. Using it as a step, he stretched his arm toward...

“The clock?”

He reached for the clock hanging in the practice room.

At the same time,

in the trailer filled with monitors watching the five practice rooms, the main PD narrowed his eyes.

“What is that?”

It looked as if NewBlack had planned it all along— the members were bringing chairs and starting to reach for the clocks.

The production staff had no idea what was going on.

“...Why are they suddenly taking down the clocks?”

He watched the TV screen, puzzled, as all five NewBlack members, with delighted expressions, began removing the clocks in each practice room.