translation by mourningmoor
The lines were already cringeworthy.
“ARCHE and L.I.T together for Power of K-POP.”
“The world of K-POP, spreading across the globe.”
“Shall we join together?”
The PD made the youngest members from both teams take turns delivering the lines, then had the eldest members—ARCHE’s Yoonseo and Younghoon—form the teams.
They played rock-paper-scissors, and the winner got to pick teammates first.
Younghoon, who won, pointed at me right away.
It was a smart choice, but that didn’t mean I liked his reasoning.
《If you want to win, you either need to be on Noah’s team or completely neutralize him. And since Noah is weak against this guy, securing Ichannie first is a must.》
The funny thing was that Yoonseo seemed to have the exact same thought.
When Younghoon picked me, Yoonseo scowled, looking like he’d been dealt a bad hand, and went for his backup option—Yoo Noah.
《Yoo Noah, you bastard. Now that it’s come to this, you better go all out against Ichannie.》
Seriously, how do the ARCHE guys even see me and Yoo Noah?
The more I thought about it, the more irritated I felt.
But I couldn’t show that in front of ARCHE, our respected seniors.
So, I played along, acting as if I had no complaints and following their choices without resistance.
And just like that, the teams were set.
The start was unpleasant, but the game turned out to be surprisingly fun.
No, rather than fun, it was a situation that worked very well in our favor.
For starters, the filming location was an amusement park near Nagoya, and since it was the weekend, the place was packed.
As if they had planned it, H-NET even did some crowd-pulling, bringing in more spectators.
People who had just come out for a weekend trip suddenly found themselves watching ARCHE and L.I.T go head-to-head in a game. Their reactions were insane.
The ridiculous physical battles between our two groups quickly spread all over NewTube. K-POP fans who had come to Nagoya for HAMA rushed over to the amusement park.
In an instant, over twenty thousand people gathered.
All thanks to ARCHE.
Even though we were currently dominating the Japanese Oricon charts with this album, we couldn’t compare to ARCHE. In Japan, ARCHE was so popular that everyone knew their name.
It was only because of ARCHE that this crowd formed so fast.
And now, we were playing games on equal footing with them?
With the footage spreading like wildfire through fan-taken videos?
This was turning out to be an incredible promotional opportunity.
By the time we got on the fifth ride, the crowd had grown into a massive sea of people.
Amid the blaring K-POP music, we rode the wild attractions while solving quizzes, performing choreography, and singing.
The K-POP fans who had gathered cheered so loudly that the whole amusement park seemed to shake.
Because of this, there was no choice but to get even more into the game.
It seemed ARCHE felt the same way.
Both teams played fiercely, refusing to give even an inch.
In the end, the final game would decide everything.
“It’s already December, isn’t this game way too much?”
At Yoonseo-hyung’s grumbling, everyone nodded in agreement.
The game was set up over the amusement park’s artificial lake, using a floating structure.
The goal was to push the opponent off the unstable floating platform and into the water. The team that won this round would claim final victory.
But that meant more than half of the participants would have to fall into the water… and who was going to take responsibility for that?
“This is just too much.”
“If we catch a cold, it’ll affect our performance tomorrow.”
But the PD just smiled and told us not to worry.
“The amusement park has agreed to fill the water with warm water, so it won’t be too cold when you fall in. Plus, we’ll pull you out immediately and get you dried off.”
Since L.I.T is still a rookie group, we had no choice but to go along with whatever they told us. But ARCHE, as global top stars, could have easily refused.
No one would have blamed them if they kicked up a fuss about being made to do something like this.
But instead of making a big deal out of it, they just grumbled under their breath.
No, they didn’t say a word to the production team—only to Younghoon-hyung.
So, in the end, this meant it was his idea. Then obviously, that bastard should be the first to fall in.
But that cunning guy had the nerve to suggest me as the first player.
“Ichannie, you go first. If you go out, then Noa will come out on their side, and as long as you take care of Noa, the rest will be…”
“Eyy, why are you doing this?”
Does he think I’m a pushover?
“You should be the one setting an example, hyung. You’re the one who came up with this game.”
At that, the other ARCHE members on our team, Sabi and Ken, immediately agreed.
“Yeah. Younghoon-hyung should go first. Take responsibility and protect us.”
“That’s right. This is something you have to take responsibility for, hyung.”
In the end, Younghoon-hyung was pushed forward as the first contestant.
The battle was intense.
Younghoon-hyung knocked Roa into the water, then Hanjoon knocked Younghoon-hyung in.
Hanjoon knocked Sabi in, then Ken took out Hanjoon.
Surprisingly, Ken was strong. He managed to throw Yoonseo-hyung, Jino, and Jeyoon into the water.
Now, only Yoo Noah was left.
“Ha, finally, it’s that monster’s turn.”
Younghoon-hyung let out a long sigh.
Yoo Noah had the perfect physicality—strong, quick, and on top of that, incredible athletic ability.
At the start, Younghoon-hyung even said that in order to win, they had to tie up Yoo Noah’s feet—that’s how much of a threat he was. But he also said that as long as Yoo Noah didn’t awaken, it wouldn’t be a problem, since he found moving around bothersome.
Whether that was his actual personality or something influenced by the Demon King, no one knew, but apparently, he really hated stepping up and taking action.
“Today, overall, it seems like Noah’s laziness is at full capacity.”
At Younghoon-hyung’s words, Sabi nodded.
“Yes. His expression looks very calm right now. There shouldn’t be any problem.”
“Right? He looks calm now, right? Then Ken will take care of it, and the victory will be ours…?”
Younghoon-hyung, who had been confidently predicting their win, suddenly shut his mouth.
Because right then, Noah had overpowered Ken and thrown him into the water.
“Wow. That bastard must have awakened.”
Younghoon-hyung spoke in a tone that was almost a sigh.
Sabi, now looking serious, agreed.
“He doesn’t want to lose.”
On their side, Yoo Noah was the last one standing. On our side, there were three of us left—me, Jaewon, and Siu.
No matter how strong Yoo Noah was, it would be tough for him to take on all three of us. But then, Younghoon-hyung suddenly changed his mind and predicted our loss.
“We lost. No matter how weak Noah is against Ichannie, the situation changes when the final match is at stake. Once that guy awakens, he has to win, no matter what.”
Once he awakens, he charges straight toward victory without mercy.
And when that happens, there’s no one who can stop him.
“We should just start choosing who’s going bungee jumping.”
Sabi, now sulking, nodded.
Today’s punishment was that two people from the losing team had to jump from the amusement park’s most extreme bungee jump while shouting a cheer.
And since the one who came up with that punishment was Kwon Younghoon, the one who should be jumping was obviously Kwon Younghoon.
“If we lose, you’re jumping, sunbaenim.”
As I took off my jumper while saying that, Younghoon-hyung’s eyes went wide.
“But the next one up is Jaewon.”
“You think I’d just let my teammates fall into the water?”
The two people who had already fallen in—there was nothing I could do about them. But at the very least, the ones still on my team, I had to protect.
“And didn’t you say that if Noa sunbae comes out, our side has to send me?”
That had been the strategy from the very beginning.
If Yoo Noah came out, I had to go out no matter what.
I waved my hand at Jaewon, who was getting ready to go out, and adjusted my sneakers, making sure I was fully prepared.
Honestly, this is such an easy game.
Balancing on a floating platform while it sways? That’s supposed to be a game? It’s too easy.
Besides, no matter how much Yoo Noah is under the Demon King’s control, the Demon King’s influence is limited to the mind. His physical abilities can never surpass mine.
Basically, I could take him down with just a single finger.
I just have to play around a little, then give him a slight push and send him into the water. That’s it. The victory is ours.
Yoo Noah didn’t have any intention of winning this game in the first place.
We had already talked about it before the match started.
[Let’s make it a close game. If one side dominates too much, it won’t be fun.]
He knew full well that there was no way I would lose.
[Go along with it for a bit, then win at the end. Make it look good.]
Make it look good—he had a point.
Even though our popularity has been rising day by day, we’re still far from reaching ARCHE’s level.
If I won an overwhelming victory in a meaningless game like this, no matter how many ARCHE members were on our team, the public wouldn’t look kindly on me.
Losing a little on purpose could be the smart move.
[Alright. We’ll keep it tied, and I’ll win at the last moment.]
[If possible, let the ARCHE members beat ARCHE, and keep the final match close too. Back and forth. Sounds good?]
[Got it.]
If we were sticking to our agreement, I should be going out as the very last player. But I couldn’t let this game drag on any longer.
Too much time had already passed since the match started, and the artificial lake, which had been filled with warm water earlier, had cooled down significantly.
Roa and Hanjoon, who had fallen in early on, wouldn’t be feeling the cold too much, but Jaewon, who would be the next to go in, was a different story.
I couldn’t let our main vocalist catch a cold right before a concert.
The moment I stepped forward as the next player, Yoo Noah tilted his head slightly.
‘Now? That’s not what we agreed on.’
I could hear his voice even though he wasn’t speaking.
Looks like he’s using his telepathy ability.
‘A great magician breaking his promise… How is that any different from the Demon King?’
A slight crease formed between his brows, but then the corners of his lips curled up in amusement.
‘Then you can’t complain if I don’t keep my promise either.’
By now, the sun had set, and the amusement park lights had turned on, illuminating the place brightly.
Way more people had gathered than when we started, turning the area into a massive crowd.
With so many eyes watching, Yoo Noah couldn’t just throw the match carelessly. He would probably try to defend himself as much as possible.
Not that it would make a difference.
‘Do whatever you want. But don’t get cocky—there’s no way you’re winning.’
After lightly stretching, I climbed onto the floating platform.
The surface wobbled beneath my feet, immediately throwing off my balance.
“Hoobaenim, let’s take it easy.”
Yoo Noah smiled slightly as he steadied himself and approached.
I also smiled as I stepped toward him.
“Sunbaenim, you too. Please go easy on me.”