translation by mourningmoor
“Who did you say came?”
Just before the concert started, PD Pyo stopped by the waiting room to inform them that a very special guest had arrived.
“SS Chairman. Timothy Gordon.”
Timothy Gordon. 52 years old.
A businessman of Jewish descent, he was once an actor in his teenage years—enough to prove his good looks. With his incredibly charming appearance and demeanor, he had been ranked the world’s sexiest man countless times. I heard he had been married quite a few times because of that, too. Right now, he was said to be happily married to one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
At first, I wondered if this man might be that wizard in question.
But I concluded that he wasn’t.
For one, he was too young.
The wizard Go Dajin had met was an old man. Almost twenty years had passed since then, so by now, he should have been a hoary-haired grandpa.
Even if he had somehow reached the 9th Circle and managed to stop time, Timothy Gordon was still too young.
And on top of that, he wasn’t Korean.
According to Go Dajin’s memory, that wizard had definitely been Korean.
Which meant Timothy Gordon wasn’t that wizard.
But did that mean the SS Group had nothing to do with that wizard? Absolutely not.
The connection was far too deep—it was chilling.
Just looking at the logos of SS Group’s subsidiaries gave away the answer.
If you combined and subtracted parts of their logos in different ways, the magic circle would be completed perfectly.
In other words, SS Group and that wizard could essentially be seen as one and the same.
And now, the public face of that SS Group has come here.
Not just the Korean branch manager, but Timothy Gordon himself.
How was I supposed to interpret this?
“By any chance, did Go Dajin come along today?”
It was clear that they had recognized Go Dajin.
If Go Dajin had come to watch the concert today and they had come looking for him, that would make sense.
But if that wasn’t the case?
“No? I only brought Hanul today. I was thinking of bringing Dajin to the final concert instead.”
If Go Dajin wasn’t the target, then the target was me.
Which meant Timothy Gordon had moved himself.
PD Pyo also seemed to feel something unsettling about Timothy Gordon’s visit.
“Anyway, it’s a fact that the SS Group is showing an unusual amount of interest in us. Of all times, he just happens to stop by Korea for a market inspection right when our concert is happening?”
No, normally, a chairman doesn’t personally conduct market inspections. What’s the point of having a branch manager then?
So, this move was strange—no, very strange.
“You might have to greet him after the concert, so just keep that in mind for now.”
“Yes.”
I nodded calmly, saw PD Pyo off, and checked the markings on my fingers.
7.9 Circle. I was right on the brink of the 8th Circle.
Adjusting my ring, I called over the members, who were each warming up their voices. It was time to step onto the stage.
“Alright, everyone, gather up.”
A flamboyantly designed shirt, a sleek black suit, and a dazzling cheollik.
T.N.: a traditional Korean overcoat worn by noblemen, often used in modern stage outfits for dramatic flair
The members, perfectly dressed, gathered by my side.
These guys—each and every one of them shone.
Their skin glowed, their bodies had become sharper and stronger. Their eyes were determined, their expressions resolute.
The results of our relentless training were showing right here, right now.
“This is a historic day. Our first solo concert at the Gymnastics Arena.”
Right away, Roa responded.
“Yes! It’s not quite my dream Gocheok Dome concert, but I feel like we’ve taken a big step closer to that goal.”
I nodded at Roa’s words.
“Let’s achieve our dreams one by one. Until the day Jaewon’s dream of becoming the world’s greatest idol comes true.”
“Aww yeah, let’s go!”
Jaewon cheered with a bright smile.
“With the five of us together, we can do anything. You all know that, right?”
This time, Hanjoon added,
“Of course. A concert like this? Piece of cake.”
At Hanjoon’s words, Siu smiled brightly and said,
“I’m not scared anymore.”
That was admirable.
I reached out my hand toward the members.
One by one, they stacked their hands over mine, locking eyes with determination.
“Let’s go out there and own it. Let’s show them just how far we can go.”
“Sounds good.”
“Let’s do this.”
“Let’s gooo!”
“Yeah.”
With our battle cry, we raised our hands high into the air.
* * *
The concert had begun.
Just as Inyoung had taught him, Inseong searched through Newtube and found a live broadcast. Holding his breath, he watched the concert.
"Crazy."
The video quality was terrible, but the overall atmosphere was conveyed perfectly.
From the opening alone, it was such an electrifying stage that he was at a loss for words.
Universe was in chaos as well.
Filaments who had failed to get tickets, just like Inseong, were scouring Newtube, doing everything they could to watch the concert somehow.
And they comforted their misery of not being there in the online forums.
Wow. What is this hanbok on the boys? Seriously ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Even flashier than PMA.
└ The outfits are perfect, and their visuals are insaneㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
How can their vocals be so stable while dancing like that? They’re really strong live singers.
└ Of course they are. You won’t find idols like them anywhere else. They trained like crazy, building core strength just for this.
Ah, seriously. What is this Merry-Go-Round? Why are they so sexy today? Did you see Hanjoon’s expression just now? Our Joondaeng-ie is turning into a real man.
└ It’s not just Joondaeng-ie. What’s up with Ichan? Who’s he trying to seduce now?
└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Everyone’s already charmed. When Ichan stepped up as center, the screams were loud enough to blow the roof off the Gymnastics Arena.
└ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Why can’t I see this live? Blade, please announce an additional concert date ASAP.
Wow, Zero is a masterpiece. Was this song always this good?
└ This album’s b-side tracks are all amazing. My idols are truly the bestㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Inseong thought the same.
Really, this album had no skips.
The way they arranged the songs to match the album’s subtitle, Joy, Anger, Sorrow, and Pleasure, was so well done.
The unit song by Hanjoon and Siu playing now was also a masterpiece, deeply rooted in authentic hip-hop.
I’m absolutely wrecked by Siu’s rough rap coming from that beautiful face. This is heaven.
└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Same. When I first saw them, I was shocked that Siu was a rapper.
Hanjoon has really slimmed down a lot. He looks completely different from debut.
└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Joondaeng-ie met a great trainer.
└ Agreed. The trainer manages everything from A to Zㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└ Joondaeng-ie worked insanely hard too. Right now, he’s the one who trains the hardest.
Next was the unit stage featuring the three vocal line members.
"Wow. I knew this song would be performed. Seriously, every song on this album is amazing."
As the song Inseong expected began, he felt an odd sense of satisfaction.
Wanting to hear it more clearly, he turned up the volume, but only the deafening screams got louder.
Listening to the concert like this was frustrating beyond words.
As the unit stage ended, Cotton Candy began.
LIT, now back as a full five-member group, sang Cotton Candy with more energy than ever.
The members, practically flying across the main stage, bridge, and extended stage, had completely taken control of the concert’s atmosphere.
Then In a Dream played in sequence, followed by another unit stage.
One of them was Jaewon and Roa’s unit song from Survival, Music Genius.
It’s the maknae line unit. This is legendary ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Why are both of them so adorable?
└ They’re moving across the stage like fish in water. Their voices blend so well together.
└ ㅠㅠㅠ I hope Roa’s knee is okay. Anyway, when it comes to dancing, Park Roa is unmatched.
└ Our baby chipmunk. Please stay healthy. Don’t get hurt.
Next, the three older members took the stage for their unit performance.
The rap started playfully, like a comedic skit, with the members trading bars back and forth before Ichan’s vocals came soaring in.
ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ I love you guys. Stay together for a thousand years.
Wow, the real-time live stream is holding up well? We’re past the halfway point, right?
└ Don’t jinx it. Whenever someone says this, the stream always cuts off.
└ Seriously. At idol concerts, there are always people getting yanked out mid-event for illegal recording.
And just like that—
As soon as the last comment was posted, the live stream ended abruptly.
Ah, noㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ They really got caught? Why now of all timesㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
The forum fell silent in an instant. Everyone was scrambling through Newtube, searching for another stream.
Inseong also frantically searched for a new channel.
After a long, desperate search, he finally found one.
But there was no video—only audio.
"Still, this is better than nothing."
Trying to console himself, he turned up the volume and focused on the sound.
It seemed to be an intermission. There was only the murmur of voices filling the space.
With patience, he waited. The murmurs soon turned into cheers.
It seemed the concert was resuming.
Music began playing.
"Huh? Inga?"
From the intro, he was sure it was this song.
But the arrangement was different, making the atmosphere feel unfamiliar.
It had been rearranged to sound incredibly mystical.
Then it happened.
The cheers grew louder and louder. Soon, the Filaments were screaming like crazy.
"What. What is it. Huh? What is happening?"
* * *
Juhee and Yoojung were watching the concert while sitting in the second and third rows of Section B, right in front of the extended stage.
As soon as the hyung line’s unit stage ended and the break time began, everyone was busy praising L.I.T, saying this concert was insane.
The intermission passed quickly as they chatted with the Filaments sitting nearby.
“No, why is time going by so fast? They already performed sixteen songs.”
Juhee, who was checking the setlist, picked out the songs that hadn’t been performed yet.
“They haven’t done it yet, right?”
“Yeah. Do is still left too.”
Do is still remaining, and this album’s sub-title track, , hasn’t been performed yet either.
There is still alot left, and also Do, the sub-title track of this album.
At that moment, the lights went out, and a VCR started playing at the back of the stage.
It was a signal that the performance was about to resume.
Juhee and Yoojung stopped talking and focused back on the stage.
A vast screen displayed a brilliant night sky full of stars.
Then, a single firework exploded in the sky.
The sparks scattered and fell downward, illuminating a massive curtain.
It was a red-striped curtain, the kind you’d expect to see at a circus, covered with round light bulbs. But the lights hadn’t turned on yet.
And then, the music began.
The grand sound of the timpani filled the stage, followed by the melody of the trombone.
At that moment.
At the very top of the concert hall, from the ceiling, Ichan descended on a rope.