The system window popped up as if it had been waiting—almost as though it were pleased with my decision. I pulled my gaze away from it and looked down at the lyrics sheet.
"The final performance song is… SPARK."
It was a fusion-pop track built on a lively, powerful rock beat—energetic overall, with a more trendy feel than a rough one.
Since it was a genre that could swing in many directions, the song's overall vibe would depend heavily on the vocal interpretation. That interpretation would likely decide who became the main vocal.
"I'll go first."
After staring at the lyrics for a moment, Gyeong Ji-won began the test.
He cleared his throat briefly, then chose the bridge leading into the chorus—the part with soaring high notes that climbed without restraint—to show off his strong high range.
"In this brightly shining moment, the time we shared—never forget it—!"
The notes rose gradually, then shot upward sharply like they were piercing the sky. When Gyeong Ji-won finished with a flourish, the trainees who had been listening quietly clapped.
Without changing expression, Do Ji-hyuk shifted his gaze to Hwang Young-oh next. Sensing that he couldn't beat Ji-won in vocal agility, Young-oh focused instead on bringing out tone and texture.
"The time we shared—never forget it—!"
He emphasized a rougher vocal texture, attempting to stylize his high note. It reached its peak—though with slight instability.
Young-oh seemed to realize he had come close to going off-pitch for a moment, lowering the lyrics sheet with a dissatisfied expression.
"I'll begin."
Finally, it was my turn. I drew in a deep breath.
Now that synchronization was complete, I could sing closer to how I had sung before my regression.
Even if I don't remember exactly what my style was…
Still, the way to produce the sound seemed to linger in my body like muscle memory.
"In this brightly shining moment, the time we shared—never forget it—!"
The note slid effortlessly through my throat and came out exactly the way I wanted.
"Wow…"
"Yu Ha, that was insane."
"Hyung, did you get doped or something? How is someone's skill allowed to jump like that?"
At Cheon Se-rim's playful tap and teasing, I shut my mouth without thinking—feeling a surprising wave of confusion myself.
…It's my first time.
The first time after my regression that my singing came out exactly as intended.
The voice responding perfectly to my will felt strangely unfamiliar. Ever since receiving that overall stat debuff, I hadn't once been able to reach the level I considered "normal."
My baseline was set by my pre-regression skill, yet I couldn't match it anymore. That frustration had hit me many times throughout
But today was different.
And as the sensation of everything finally clicking fell into place, a thought crossed my mind—
There's no way I'm letting go of the main vocal this round.
And—
I'm going to be able to get it.
"You all worked hard. Should we vote now?"
It was reckless confidence, but my prediction was correct.
"…A unanimous vote."
For the first time since joining
***
"Guess the vitamins I gave you are finally kicking in."
"…What are you talking about?"
"Or did KRM put you through some kind of hardcore training?"
"We're all watching each other, that's why."
At my response, Cheon Se-rim grinned and nagged me again to take my vitamins every single day. Right then, Joo Dan-woo, scooping food onto his tray beside us, asked me quietly:
"You're not overdoing it… right?"
"No."
"Hm. Good then. I thought maybe you'd been locked up somewhere and forced to train nonstop. You always sang well, but earlier it was like someone had oiled your vocal cords. You must've practiced hard?"
I nodded along to Cheon Se-rim's joking remarks and carried my tray to the table. Their tone was playful, but it wasn't hard to see what they were worried about.
They're wondering whether KRM did something to me—punished me, pressured me, or forced something on me.
After kicking the three out of my house, I hadn't contacted them for a while. I'd been busy sorting things out, then throwing myself into practice for the next competition.
Maybe that made them think I had given up resisting and accepted whatever KRM wanted. But in reality, I had been able to talk with Director Kwon again.
And we struck something of a compromise.
—You can tie my past to senior Lee Hyun. If it's an interview after his transfer or some program I need to appear on, I'll follow it. Just promise me one thing.
—What?
—Please manage the hate comments about my parents. Put out an announcement so baseless insults and rumors don't spread.
Director Kwon's expression soured. To him, it probably seemed better for my image if my parents stayed as irresponsible villains forever, making me look more pitiable.
He didn't like it, but he had no real choice. Since stories about my past were circulating anyway, they needed to manage the hate comments. And they wanted me to keep cooperating regarding Baek I-hyeon.
By the end of this year, they'll definitely try to use me in earnest.
Once Baek I-hyeon's contract with their current agency expired and
So now, KRM and I were watching each other.
KRM worried I'd act out again like before, so they were monitoring me.
And I was figuring out the best way to betray them at the right moment.
Still, regardless of our real intentions, things were peaceful on the surface. Both KRM and I shared the same short-term goal: surviving
It'll change after debut, of course.
But that would be a problem for later. For now, debut came first.
"Hm, I wanted to be on your team too."
Aiden Lee muttered as he sat down beside us with a sulky expression, making Cheon Se-rim snicker.
"Chan-hee didn't want to let hyung go."
"I mean, working with Chan-hee is fun and our team song is good. But your team just looks more fun. I'm also curious how Yu Ha suddenly leveled up like that."
Aiden Lee seemed curious about what had happened in our team's practice room. He was the only one among the four of us who had ended up on a different team, so he didn't know what had been going on.
"It wasn't fun—it was brutal. Ugh, hyung should've seen how our position fights went."
Cheon Se-rim shook his head with a rare expression of disgust. At his words, Joo Dan-woo nodded with a slightly tired look, and I recalled what happened after the main vocal was decided.
—Then let's decide the sub positions now.
Once the main positions were set, only the sub positions were left.
There were seven trainees remaining, and the farther down the position list you went, the fewer lines you got. Naturally, the fight for sub positions was fierce.
Even then, Do Ji-hyuk competed under the same conditions as everyone else, which only raised more questions for me.
He still ended up taking Sub 2 because he's that skilled…
But it made me wonder why he even bothered. With his overwhelming advantage, he could have structured the team to favor himself. Instead, he let things become a messy battlefield.
If he was worried about backlash or pettiness from viewers, he could have taken advantage in some places and yielded in others. But so far, he hadn't taken advantage of anything.
"But I think that's why the stage is going to be great."
At Aiden Lee's comment, Cheon Se-rim nodded.
"Yeah, that's true. Everyone's clawing their way for even a little more. How's your team, hyung?"
"Mm, the ones who are serious are serious, and the ones who've given up… aren't."
No matter if it was the final round, not everyone was going to be fired up. With debut prospects becoming clearer, some trainees were bound to give up.
"So it's kind of boring."
And Aiden Lee seemed bothered by that. Thinking about how he had picked a fight with me in the first round, he was probably stressed in his own way.
Without saying a word, I pushed the drink that came with the meal toward him. Aiden Lee stared at it, looking oddly wronged.
***
On the first night of group living, the final practice ended with center selection.
Because we had spent the entire daytime practice block on sub position battles, we hadn't been able to choose a center until evening.
"Those who want to be center, step forward. Then we'll vote."
Many trainees wanted the center position—it was the chance to monopolize the camera during the opening shot, to leave a strong first impression. The importance of the position skyrocketed during the live broadcast.
"Yu Ha, are you applying for center too?"
Of course people would try to check me.
"Yes."
I answered lightly and checked who else had stepped forward. The applicants were me, Do Ji-hyuk, Yoo Min-seong, Zixuan, Hwang Young-oh, and Cheon Se-rim.
"…You're main vocal and trying for center too? That's a lot of pressure."
More than half of the ten team members had stepped forward, so Young-oh tried to keep me in check with that comment. But since the others just watched silently without backing him up, he closed his mouth.
The center test was simple.
Each applicant performed the chorus choreo of SPARK along with the facial expressions that matched it. Since the applicants were more than half the team, everyone decided to vote for the person who fit center the best—excluding themselves.
After Cheon Se-rim went first, followed by Zixuan, Yoo Min-seong, and Hwang Young-oh—
"I'll start."
—Do Ji-hyuk began his test.
"Captivate! More SPARK—let the brilliant flame burn in your rising heart—!"
And as expected, he wasn't easy to beat. While others hummed or lightly danced to the rhythm of the seated trainees' claps, Do Ji-hyuk performed steady live vocals while executing the choreo flawlessly.
He's really good.
As the admiration spread, I couldn't help but think the same.
For someone who spent six years as a nobody and then two years in the military, his skill level was unreal.
His live vocals were unwavering, his expressions polished. And his gestures—like he instinctively knew how to capture people's attention.
When it comes to stage presence in
He had talent—and the kind of "experience seasoning" that only time gave.
In a way, maybe that's why he didn't bother fighting for positions. With the skill he already had, he might've thought he didn't need to chase positive reactions to get noticed.
Even Cheon Se-rim, who had looked confident before seeing him perform, now had a helpless expression. Do Ji-hyuk's finesse simply couldn't be matched right now.
In short, his stage experience had single-handedly settled the situation.
"I'll begin."
But that didn't mean I planned to be intimidated.
I had my own experience on stage too—and I wasn't going to lose easily.
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