Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 251. Touch High! (3)

Before the new *No Answer Trio* set off, I made them sit in the car and spoke secretly.

“So, what’s our goal for today?”

“Winning!”

“No, Dan Haru. Winning on a variety show like this is basically the boring route.”

At my firm words, Dan Haru grumbled with a face full of dissatisfaction. Ignoring him lightly, Lee Doha tilted his head and answered.

“Avoiding injuries?”

“…Let’s save that for when *Idol Athletics Championship* comes back.”

Watching them blink as if asking what our goal was, I explained it to them once more.

“Our goal today is to have our names called out more than anyone else. Create situations where our names get mentioned as much as possible. Just for today, there’s no hyung, no members, no juniors. We don’t need to win. As long as our names get called, that’s all that matters. Anything goes to achieve that.”

Fortunately, neither of them were the type to get shy and run away, so with just this much guidance, they’d likely manage on their own.

Thinking so, I lowered my voice even more.

“Today, it’s not just us; there are two more teams joining. They’ll probably push us into a ‘good’ position and focus more on the other two teams. Those teams will likely try to use us in a similar way.”

The worst-case scenario would be ending up as the *‘handsome, shy idols who do nothing but enjoy being treated as successful stars’*.

To avoid that, it was crucial to seize the initiative from the start.

“So, I’m thinking….”

I revealed the first tactic I’d been considering for taking the initiative.

“Let’s ditch the opening.”

* * *

Sanchez Park, the main MC of *Touch High!* and a professional broadcaster, was conducting a script reading with the main writer of the show.

“So, we have… nine guests today? Three teams in total?”

“Yes. And Hanji won’t be able to make it as one of the panelists.”

“Why not Hanji?”

“There was a bit of a scheduling conflict. Oh, today’s shoot is going to be quite hectic, oppa.”

“You all have it rough, too….”

With six regular panelists and nine guests, today’s episode featured a total of 15 participants, divided into three teams of five to complete missions based on three different themes.

After briefly reviewing the simple plan, Sanchez quickly checked the guest list.

Though he’d been in the industry for quite some time, it was still difficult for him to keep up with the constant stream of newly debuting idols.

Eventually, Sanchez shrugged his shoulders and put down the cue card, addressing the main writer.

“We’ll just introduce them casually, have them show off their new songs or prepared performances, and that’s it, right? They’ll do their self-introductions later anyway.”

“Sure, oppa. Just go with what you’re comfortable with. You’re always good at this….”

“Nine guests are just too many. We’ll probably spend the whole shoot just memorizing their names.”

“Let’s talk about this over drinks next time. Seriously, this shoot has been a rollercoaster.”

“Yeah, let’s have a drink and talk it over. Good luck today.”

The writer and Sanchez exchanged sympathetic glances and laughed.

‘Idols, huh…. Well, there are a lot of idols these days who are good on shows.’

However, if they weren’t those types, today’s shoot might be a bit of a struggle, Sanchez thought as he reluctantly headed to the opening set.

“Alright! Today on *Touch High!* we have not one, but three idol teams as guests.”

“Three teams? Why so many today?”

“That’s great, that’s great. Fresh young blood.”

“You just like idols, don’t you?”

“Be quiet, don’t you have any tact?”

“Guests, please come out!”

The filming of *Touch High!* began.

With the regular panelists’ well-timed reactions, nine boys slowly walked out on the pre-prepared red carpet. Everyone seemed cautious, still watching each other closely.

While considering how to navigate today’s dynamic, a male comedian with a high school-aged daughter shouted upon seeing the last team.

“Huh!? It’s Kairos, Kairos!”

Kairos?

Sanchez quickly recalled the information the writer had given him.

A junior group of Utopia and Enderway. Recently debuted through a company survival show. Currently the most popular among the three teams.

‘Should I try giving them a bit of a push?’

As he pondered this briefly, the young man with black hair at the front looked surprised and asked back.

“You know us…?”

“My daughter practically drained the family’s phones to support your debut. Our Jiyu, she’s a… uh, Dest-…”

“Desty? Oh, your daughter is a Desty?”

“Yes, that’s it, Desty! That’s your fan name, right? Isn’t it?”

The comedian clapped as if he’d finally remembered.

Then, the young man identified as ‘Kang Hajin’ on the cue card suddenly bowed deeply to the comedian!

“Ah, so you’re my father-in-law.”

“What, wha…?”

Father-in-law?

The flustered comedian blinked in confusion, but Kang Hajin continued with a determined tone, “Father-in-law, please accept my bow!” He then dramatically lowered his forehead to the red carpet. The other two members, seeing this, quickly followed suit and bowed as well.

The quick-witted comedian switched to a skit tone and played along.

“I’ve never had sons-in-law like you!”

“We’re very close with Desty, you see.”

“My daughter’s only eighteen, you scoundrels!”

“Oh, but not Desty, that’s a bit…”

Even in the middle of the act, Kang Hajin grabbed the neck of the member beside him, ‘Lee Doha,’ and quickly stood up, as if refusing to allow the involvement of minors.

A light laugh erupted among the panelists at the unexpected skit, but the youngest-looking, blonde member on the red carpet remained in a deep bow.

‘Is he too young to know when to end the scene?’

Just as Sanchez was about to step in, the member named ‘Dan Haru’ suddenly raised his head, his eyes sparkling.

“I’m only seventeen, sunbae-nim!”

“What?”

“Even if she’s Desty, I’m okay with noona!”

“Not a chance!”

“My daughter would probably like it, but her dad’s freaking out.”

“Oh boy, you’re in for it when you get home, she’ll scold you.”

Amused by the audacious age attack, the comedian let out another comical cry.

As the panelists chimed in with their own comments, Kang Hajin helped Dan Haru to his feet. The comedian wrapped up the situation with a remark about how he’d be watching closely to see how they performed today.

‘Still, they don’t seem completely clueless.’

Sanchez, now keeping a close eye on the Kairos members who had managed to create some good content right from the start, smoothly moved on to the next segment.

“First up, let’s introduce Stormheader. You know this challenge, right? The ‘Shining Star Challenge?’ Isn’t it these guys?”

“Oh, I’ve seen this one. It’s always on short-form videos.”

“So, these are the guys?”

It was time for the so-called *‘Guest Promotion Segment.’*

This was where the guests were introduced to the audience, especially those who might not be familiar with them, and it was an essential part of the opening where they showcased their new songs or special talents.

In fact, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that guests often appeared on the show just for this segment.

“We can’t skip over the original. Let’s see the performance you’ve prepared.”

“Sure! We’ll show you a short version of our comeback song, *Shooting Star*.”

Stormheader, who debuted about a year before Kairos, stepped forward.

As a familiar-sounding song played, the members poured their energy into their dance performance. There wasn’t much for the panelists to do except clap along, so Sanchez focused on raising the atmosphere while scanning the next teams.

At that moment, the main writer seated at the center scribbled something on a sketchbook and held it up.

*Kairos Hajin, did this challenge while hosting a music show. Do a challenge with Stormheader member.*

Sure enough, a quick side glance revealed that Hajin, who had just bowed earlier, was casually following along with the rhythm and mimicking the choreography.

Since the original group would benefit from having their song played once more, Sanchez nodded in understanding. As soon as Stormheader’s stage ended, he smoothly led into the next segment.

“By the way, I noticed that Hajin here did this challenge before?”

“Ah, yes, when they had their comeback, I was the music show MC, so I remember practicing with them briefly.”

“Then we can’t miss seeing Hajin do the challenge. Come on up, come on up~”

Following Sanchez’s lead, Hajin was pulled to the center, looking slightly embarrassed. The Stormheader members, while somewhat awkward, responded with smiles. When Hajin and Stormheader’s main dancer stood at the center, the song played again.

*I’ll sing of shining stars!*

Despite his initial shyness, Hajin smoothly sang along and executed the challenge flawlessly. His expressions were even cuter than the original, drawing the spotlight.

After finishing the final pose perfectly and nailing a camera close-up, Hajin caught his breath and immediately turned to the comedian, whom he’d dubbed his father-in-law(?).

“Am I good enough for approval?”

“I told you, you’re out because of your

age!”

“Oh, right.”

Hajin nodded sheepishly and returned to the group of members.

Sanchez, noticing that Hajin had a knack for seizing opportunities to shine on camera, moved on to introduce the next team’s performance.

“Next up, we have Wintertail!”

“Hello, we’re Wintertail~”

“Among the idols here today, you guys are the seniors, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

With three years under their belt, Wintertail seemed a bit more relaxed than the previous teams. Sanchez prepared to give them the spotlight to perform the stage they had prepared.

Their performance was their latest comeback song, which had just been released a couple of days ago.

‘Should I give them a chance…?’

After Wintertail’s performance ended, Sanchez called Hajin, taking a bit of a gamble.

“Hajin.”

“Yes?”

“Can you do this one too?”

“…Sorry?”

Hajin blinked in surprise, then, after catching the comedian’s eye, rolled his eyes and nodded with exaggerated confidence.

“Yes, I can.”

“Oh, you can? Even though it’s your first time hearing the song today?”

“Rookies are supposed to handle anything.”

“Can you do it without watching the Wintertail members?”

“…Of course. I can manage.”

“Hey, hey. Don’t just say things. You don’t have to do it.”

“The kid’s a rookie, so he’s just taking on everything.”

Though it was clear he wasn’t confident, Hajin bravely stepped forward, citing his father-in-law watching as the reason he couldn’t back down.

“Play the music, please.”

As the music started, Hajin seamlessly followed Wintertail’s new song as if he’d known it all along. Though he only mimicked the broad movements and skipped the details, the impact was undeniable.

“Wow, he’s really good.”

“Idol talent is something else.”

“It’s the power of love.”

“It’s not gonna work, you punk!”

“You can’t tear Desty and me apart, no matter what, Father-in-law!”

The short skit that followed lightened the mood even further.

Now it was time to showcase the final team of this guest promotion segment.

With a satisfied smile, Sanchez looked at Hajin and spoke.

“Alright, now let’s finish up with Kairos! Let’s hear your new song, too.”

All the panelists turned to Kairos, faces full of expectation.

Then, Lee Doha, who had been quietly standing throughout the opening, spoke up.

“Ah. We won’t be performing.”

Huh?

“We can’t show our new song to anyone before Desty sees it first.”

In other words, *‘a rookie idol madly in love.’*