In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Next day.

After finishing the variety shoot and getting a deep rest, we headed in to the company.

“Hahahahahaha!”

When we doubled over laughing in the conference room, a dagger-eyed glare came flying our way.

“Ah. Don’t laugh!”

“Don’t laaaugh~”

Maybe he was annoyed that the older members were wobbling their arms and legs to imitate him; our youngest narrowed his eyes.

Then he put his earbuds back in.

“Hahahahahaha!”

“Ah, seriously!”

“Hahahahahaha~!”

“You find this funny? For real?”

The maknae pulled a bud from his ear and grumbled.

In our maknae’s palm sat a pair of wireless earbuds that looked like little bean sprouts.

I burst out laughing.

“Wow. I’d only seen these online—turns out real people actually use them.”

“They look weird without a cord.”

“What’s weird about them?”

The maknae huffed.

“Just wait. This is going to be the trend someday.”

“Doesn’t look likely.”

We were teasing our maknae, who had just bought the latest earbuds, and chattering among ourselves when—

Click.

The door opened and a group of people walked in.

“PD!”

“Hey, you!”

“How have you been?”

“How long has it been? Of course I’ve been well!”

We shook hands or hugged the PD, the writers, and the directors, grinning wide.

Our manager hyungs handed coffees to the production staff who took their seats.

I smiled at the PD, who took a slurp of americano, and asked:

“It’s been about a year for us, right?”

“Right.”

We were meeting the travel-reality production team again for the first time since last March.

I waved at the camera set on the table and smiled.

“Hello, Souffle!”

“This time we’re back with season 2 of NewBlack’s Travel Diary!”

“Waaaaah!”

Today’s shoot was a pre-meeting with the Travel Diary production.

After exchanging emails about filming, this was the final session to review the agreed items.

The PD flipped through the planning brief and said:

“Jiho’s graduation is on the 10th of next month, right?”

“Yes.”

“My word, Jiho is graduating...”

“Well. It’s something every adult goes through.”

Everyone burst out laughing at our maknae’s even-toned smile.

“Right. Congratulations in advance. The trip will start the very next day after Jiho’s graduation.”

“Okay. But...”

We widened our eyes and asked:

“Where are we going?”

“Mm... that’s the hard part. Even if you want to travel domestically now, you basically can’t.”

That was true.

Compared to now, our name recognition at the start of last year was baby-level; since then it had exploded.

Wherever we went, it was clear an incident-free trip would be impossible.

“We even went to a temple deep in the mountains, and the head monk already knew who we were...”

“The head monk said ‘nine nine.’”

“He said the number 9 has deep meaning...”

He lectured on the nine qualities of samsara across the three realms and six paths and on the nature of afflictions; he said it left an impression.

The staff who had been laughing at us said:

“If you want to travel with a little more ease, it’ll have to be a country where your recognition is low, and Southeast Asia is off the table.”

“They say that in Southeast Asia, after Mei, it’s you guys. You stand out wherever you go.”

Apparently alongside Serenity’s Thai member Mei, we were popular in Southeast Asia.

One of the writers showed us our billboard in Vietnam.

Ri Hyuk was going “hoo” in a foundation ad.

“Ri Hyuk’s foundation is selling like crazy.”

“Oooh~”

Ri Hyuk, cheeks flushing, was delighted. When Junhyun went “oooh~” and gave him a pat, the wheeled chair Ri Hyuk sat on rolled away like a bowling ball.

Clatter. Clatter.

As the chair rolled back, the PD snickered.

“And we’re excluding countries with poor public safety. And taking out places where your recognition is high. Which leaves us with...”

A writer unfurled a map with a whoosh.

One massive continent floated there.

“Australia.”

“Oh.”

“Junhyun, you said you wanted to see some unfamiliar flora and fauna, right?”

“Yes!”

“We’ll show you kangaroos and koalas.”

“...!”

Like he’d just gotten a birthday present, our third swallowed hard.

The PD looked at Ri Hyuk.

“Ri Hyuk, you said you wanted somewhere less cold, right?”

“Yes.”

“This is the Southern Hemisphere, so it’ll be really warm. The seasons run opposite to Korea. Christmas is in midsummer.”

“The sun’s going to be pretty strong...”

Muttering that we should order sunscreen in bulk, he looked rather satisfied.

He’d been saying he wanted to see Southern Hemisphere stars all the time anyway.

So the place selected to reflect all our preferences seemed to be the Australian continent.

“Have you ever been to Australia?”

“Yes.”

I answered.

“But because of a tour, we headed to the venue the moment we landed in Sydney, so we didn’t really look around.”

“We didn’t even have time to see the Opera House.”

“I see.”

The PD and writers said to tell them what we’d like to do or see in Australia.

And that’s how we wrapped the pre-meeting for .

“Have you eaten?”

“No.”

“It’s been a while—let us treat you to something tasty~”

To the audio directors who were about to experience ear-shattering pain, the camera directors who would be running with Junhyun, and so on—

We bought lunch as a gesture of “please take good care of us.”

“Then see you at the shoot!”

“Enjoy the Lunar New Year! Have a great new year!”

Smelling the faint grilled-beef marinade on our clothes, we cheerfully headed back to the company.

With the holiday coming up, there were more than a few things to do.

We’d finished the travel-reality meeting, but we also had to prep a surprise stage for Mister Producer.

And we had to prep the full album, too.

If we wanted a comeback in mid-to-late April, we had to start album prep now, three months out.

“Busy, busy~”

It was as I was wishing someone would steal Hermione’s time-turner and hand it to me.

Chatting with the younger ones, we headed toward the producing team when...

“?”

In the usual hubbub of audio, something was missing.

I checked, as always, whether our main dancer was around; Junhyun was debating “apple vs. banana drizzled with chocolate syrup” while arguing over the most delicious fruit.

Our maknae, right here next to me, was talking about the greatness of the wireless earbuds he’d just had delivered.

So the one missing person was—

“But where did Ri Hyuk go?”

“Ri Hyuk-hyung?”

We stopped walking, looked around, and spotted Ri Hyuk lagging far behind.

Right in the middle of the hallway, Ri Hyuk stood with his phone, eyes wide like a Van Gogh painting thought lost had been found.

“Ri Hyuk!”

“...”

“What is it?”

When we came closer, Ri Hyuk finally lifted his head and said blankly:

“Did you see this?”

“What?”

“...I was lurking to check the U.S. reaction just in case. Since our ‘Blue Moon’ did well last time.”

“And?”

“This time we made the Billboard chart again.”

Was he talking about the Billboard 200?

I was about to say, “Don’t we hit that every time?” when Ri Hyuk shook his head.

“The songs chart.”

“Hot 100?”

“No. Not that one...”

“Figured it wouldn’t be.”

How would a pop track with traditional vibes enter another country’s main chart?

Then Ri Hyuk spun his phone to show us and shouted:

“We’re number 11 on Bubbling Under!”

On the Billboard site was a news post: “NewBlack’s ‘Dokkaebi’ has entered Billboard’s Bubbling Under!”

We looked back and forth between Ri Hyuk—eyes sparkling, face asking, Isn’t this huge?—and the article.

“...”

“...”

At our flat reaction, Ri Hyuk asked:

“What’s wrong?”

“What’s Bubbling Under?”

“...”

“I mean, we need to know what it is to react...”

Scratching his head sheepishly, Ri Hyuk went, “Ah,” and explained:

“Bubbling Under is a collection of songs ranked 101 to 125 that didn’t make the main chart.”

“So like an honorable mention.”

“In baseball they say, ‘You lost, but you fought well.’”

While he said that, we did the math on his 11th place.

Starting from 101... the 11th would be...

“So that means number 111 on the Billboard Hot 100, right?”

I said it offhand and laughed—and then my laugh cut off.

The lackeys who unconsciously followed my lead in laughing meaninglessly stopped the same way.

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

“...!”

“...!”

Number 111 on America’s mainstream songs chart.

Even in Korea, if a rookie cracks around the top 100 on the songs chart, people call it a successful debut.

Our “Dokkaebi” had just hit 111 on the U.S. main songs chart.

It felt like little goblin angels were dancing a ganggangsullae right before my eyes, chanting “Gabi Gabi Dotkabi~.”

“Uh...?”

Staring at Dokkaebi sitting on the U.S. chart, we quickly wore the exact same expression as Ri Hyuk—bewildered.

“Why?”

“...”

“How did this climb up?”

“...”

We made it for Koreans to have fun with—so why did this end up on the U.S. chart?

Blinking at this inexplicable phenomenon—

While the singers were bewildered,

the fans—unlike the singers—

– Uh?

– What is this??????

– Why?

– How?

– What is this

were even more bewildered.

‘No, seriously, what is this.’

When they said the special album would bring a Korean vibe this time, I’d felt really proud.

– Man. If you’re Korean, you root for NewBlack, right?

– Truly our national idols~

I was honestly proud like that.

The intent was good, and the result was good.

K-music where pop and gugak intertwined perfectly—like an army stew where spam and kimchi mingle just right.

We admired how, regardless of overseas popularity, they brought a traditional Korean vibe with conviction.

– Was it actually a grand design?

– Maybe we got played by the wicked mothership’s master plan

– So it goes up to 125, right??? Then 11th is 111th

– Even the number feels “Dotkabi”-like

– Hm it’s a tiny bit of a near-miss but I like it lol

– Anyway it’s impressive, right?

– They said North America was reacting and wow, there is reaction

There was even news that in Canada it had entered the Hot 100.

And in Europe—where folks thought NewBlack didn’t have much of a connection—NewBlack poked its head into the main charts, too.

‘...It’ll end as a one-off, right?’

I figured overseas Souffle power had pushed it up for a bit.

Well.

It’s not like it’ll climb higher from here, right?

At first the mood was confusion, ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) but soon we concluded, So there was a one-off blip on the U.S. chart. Usually the early burst is strongest, so it’ll rise and drop this time.

‘But... what exactly are overseas folks reacting to?’

No matter how strong the fandom firepower, to get even a nibble on a foreign main chart, there had to be something.

As Souffle started combing through things with eyes blazing, the unseen began to stand out.

‘Oh?’

There was a tweet from Rick Morton, the lead singer of a rock band that’s hot in the UK lately.

@Rick_Morton

(still of the Dongdaemun Market scene from the “Dokkaebi” MV)

NewBlack’s “Dokkaebi.” I’ve never seen anything this trendy. If anyone knows where to buy those clothes, tell me.

A celeb with a unique fashion sense and tons of followers seemed to love the fashion in “Dokkaebi.”

But the crucial part came next.

@Rick_Morton

But what I like most are the lyrics. I think they capture how the standard of “the top” changes by era.

They gracefully weave in discourse about social minorities.

I, Rick Morton, rate this highly.

Souffle blinked.

‘Hm?’

After that, we could see clearly which points in “Dokkaebi” hit for North American and European fans.

Once, goblins were playful tricksters.

As time moved into the modern era, the image tacked on horns, fangs, hideous clubs.

And the goblins say, So what; don’t worry about it; we’re perfect—those were the song’s lines.

[Here’s what I think. NewBlack’s at the top now, but they’re still the same people you think they are—let’s keep having fun like usual. Isn’t that the meaning?]

[I think the theme is conflict. The cause of conflict is difference, and there’s no right or wrong in that.]

Domestic creators on MeTube had offered a variety of readings of the “Dokkaebi” MV.

But Western fans seemed to take it as an allegory about discrimination against social minorities.

Once, goblins were normal folk who just hung out with humans; as the times changed, the “abnormal” label stuck to them—that kind of reading.

‘The points they latch onto really are different.’

We even saw reactions from the general public, not just American Souffle.

At first they liked it for the video’s unique color palette; then they looked up the lyrics and went, “Feels like my story, I relate.”

Watching those reactions, Souffle smiled awkwardly.

‘Right. As long as you’re happy.’

We could only laugh at people saying “Dokkaebi best!” for reasons we never expected.

Good is good, isn’t it.

Those thoughts would change the instant they watched even one second of NewBlack TV, but...

‘Sure. You’re right. Our NewBlack is a contestant who conveys social messages...’

We shook our heads as the image of Dotkabi yelling “We don’t know about that!” bubbled up amid the chatter.

Just then—

Along with tidbits about the manager variety show and news of NewBlack’s Lunar New Year special appearances, a fresh teaser dropped.

‘A Mister Producer appearance...?’

Over at Jusehan, they said there’d been some bet in front of the TBC station.

Souffle were already excited, wondering what they’d do on Mister Producer, another national variety show.

“Mm?”

One sentence in those articles caught the eye.

[The current Mister Producer cast has flown to the U.S. for an “odd jobs” special.]

‘Oho.’

So they’re going to America again this time?

Los Angeles, USA.

At a famous theme park—where a globe spins at the entrance—screams rang out from one attraction.

“Gwaaaar!”

“Gwang!”

Zombies with grotesque faces were practicing their “Gwaaaar” faces in the mirror.

The six-member team kept lurching at the mirror with their best “Gweeeeh!” when the American supervisor lifted a bullhorn.

“Not enough! Put more soul into it!”

The Mister Producer members practiced breaking into a grotesque run, crying “Gweeeeh!”

After a long stretch of intense drills—

The MP members squatted down as a short break was granted.

“Ugh, I’m dead.”

“Wow. This isn’t a normal person’s job.”

“Everyone stop laughing. It’s scary.”

Mister Producer’s odd-jobs special.

For this one, the special was experiencing extra work at a theme park’s zombie-movie attraction.

With dried-blood makeup on, model Hong Seok and actor Chu Giseok pressed heads together and went “Huaaaang” when—

“Everyone.”

PD Shin Murok called them, face downcast.

The cast asked with flat expressions:

“Why. What now.”

“You’re very tired, right?”

“...Well. A little...”

Maybe he was about to give them snacks; the variety stars raised their eyes expectantly.

PD Shin Murok smiled.

“So we’ve prepared a performance for you.”

“A performance? Now what?”

“A very special set of guests have come to this theme park to tell you to cheer up.”

“Ooooooh...!”

The MP cast lit up with anticipation. They knew who was coming, but pretended not to.

‘NewBlack is coming!’

They knew from the articles.

Their friends back in Korea had blown up their chats: Your NewBlack is coming, get me an autograph~

“Whew, whew.”

Self-proclaimed pseudo-Souffle Chu Giseok took deep breaths, saying he’d finally see “Dokkaebi” live.

“All right. Let’s move first, shall we?”

“Move?”

“This place is too cramped, so we prepared a stage elsewhere.”

“Ah.”

Ex-soccer-player MC Kim Euiji shook off sweat and helped the others to their feet.

They arrived at a spacious storage warehouse for stage equipment.

But...

“Mm?”

A wide circle was taped on the floor.

“What’s this?”

“Ah. For safe viewing, please watch from inside this circle.”

“Oh. That... wait.”

All the Mister Producer members traded puzzled looks.

‘Safe viewing?’

At that ominous phrase, the MP members stepped into the circle and tilted their heads.

Thunk.

As the crew stepped out, they shut the metal door.

“...What.”

“Ah. What is it. What now!”

“Is this really a performance? Not a courage test?”

At that, PD Shin Murok’s voice came through the audio.

—It’s a performance. Please watch from inside the circle.

Relief lasted only a moment.

Thoom!

There was the sound of lights cutting out, and the MP members jumped into each other’s arms, making a fuss.

“Mommmm...!”

“Hey, if a zombie pops out, Shin Murok, I’m going to wring your neck!”

“Hah... I just want to faint.”

As they whispered in the dark—

“L-look over there!”

Chu Giseok pointed.

“W-w... what?”

“Huh?”

“Will-o’-the-wisp?”

Flames in various colors—red, yellow, green, blue, violet—wavered closer.

Huddled together, the MP members’ eyes sparkled like kids seeing something wondrous.

Fwoooooosh!

The flames flared even brighter and began to spin round and round the circle.

While that happened, the model student narrowed his eyes and said:

“But listen.”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t you hear something under the sound of the flames? Like wheels?”

“What are you...”

He was about to say, “What are you talking about,” when—

Pop!

Where the will-o’-wisps had just been, rectangular TV screens blinked on one by one, and the members leapt out of their skins.

“Hyaaaargh!”

From the five TVs came tinkling laughter.

—Hellooooooo...!

—Welcome to NewBlack World~!

—Welcome~

As harmonies stacked one by one, the moving TVs began circling them, and the stunned entertainers stared, then started to laugh.

‘Who does a performance like this...’

The shuffling, dancing TVs showed off tricks as they gathered into a stage formation, and laughter burst out right away.

Something no one had ever imagined—

The first remote, moving-TV performance in idol history.