In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 240

“Look at this.”

“Wow. They’re really too much.”

Before Windflower was uploaded to the music site, the Soufflés frowned as they looked at their phone screens.

There was a lot of talk in the idol community about the pre-released music video of New Black.

-New Black’s music video is kind of weirdㅋㅋ

-The song sucks

-It’s vague. Fireworks and Masquerade were different genres, but I felt like they were going to explode when I listened to them

-Yeah, there’s no punch

-They went from strong songs to weak ones, so um… haha

-They must have made the song in a hurry for the Muggles after they got their faces known to themㅋ

-It needs to be addictive for the Muggles. This is not enough

The Soufflés who were looking at the screen were furious.

“Wow. What is this? The music critics are here.”

“How many pages are there on this thread? What is this?”

There were posts that blatantly criticized the song, but there were also posts that subtly pretended to be the majority opinion.

[New Black’s music video that is getting a bad reaction from people right now.youtube]

[The song that New Black produced themselves for this album]

[The rookie idol group that is not getting as much response as they expected from their MV]

There were more than a few posts that made them angry just by looking at them.

‘The song for this album is not that good, huh? Did New Black produce it?’ That was the reaction that they saw everywhere.

In the comment section, the Soufflés were at war with them, but the ones who kept saying ‘It’s bad! It’s bad!’ like parrots were persistent.

-What? Just because they got some popularity, they think they’re saints? If it’s bad, we can say it’s bad

-The fans are so mean

-They’re going to get sued. No slander in the comments

-Is it because they composed it themselves? Their fans are too proud of their song;; It makes me frown when I see it

-I work in the music industry and I’ll give you an objective evaluation. The other composers said the same thing. It should have exploded at Savi’s part, but here…

The Soufflés who had a lot of experience in idol fandom were calm and thought ‘This too shall pass’, but most of them looked surprised.

‘Why are there so many posts?’

There was a lot more talk about the music video and the song than when they did Masquerade.

It was not the kind of reaction that would come out for a rookie idol group from a small agency.

Maybe if it was a famous rookie from a big agency.

It was the first time the Soufflés experienced this.

“Just let it go.” A Soufflé who had a lot of fandom experience said to someone who was shaking their phone, “Anyway, the more these parrots make a fuss, the more buzz it will create. When the results come out, they’ll change their tune.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“…Wow, you’re so calm. I envy you.”

“Well. It’s not the first or second time that this happens in this field. Look at the flow of the posts.”

Their finger pointed at the screen.

“There’s only a lot of talk about the song. There’s nothing about the quality of the music video.”

“Oh, right?”

There was no mention of the music video quality being bad, even though they said this and that about the song.

It was because the quality was good even at a glance.

It felt like they were only focused on the song, which was the only thing that could be subjectively evaluated.

‘What are these people doing?’

They wanted to see their faces, who were biting at New Black as if they had taken money from them.

Did they have some grudge or something?

But as one of the Soufflés said, it was true that the interest also increased as the bad reviews increased.

There were also those who came out after crossing the line and getting disgusted.

-Isn’t this too hasty? It’s not too late to talk after the results come out;;

-The song is good…? Is there something wrong with my ears?

-Isn’t this the same for any idol? When the second album comes out, they say the first one was good, and when the third one comes out, they say the second one was good. What do they wantㅋㅋ

-Didn’t they also have a live singing controversy last time?

-They’re just hitting them again when they see the opportunity

That was how the comeback of the rookie boy group became an issue in the idol community.

“6 o’clock!”

“It’s 6 o’clock…!”

The Soufflés who were gathered at the showcase site moved their hands like lightning. There were hands that quickly tapped the phone screens everywhere.

They started to leave positive reviews on the album review section along with streaming the main music sites.

It was a tense atmosphere.

‘I hope it goes well.’

It was the wish that they all shared.

It was all because of their singer.

They could guess to some extent by watching their live broadcasts and such. The singers might think they were hiding it well, but the fans could see things that only they noticed.

Like how they looked anxious as they prepared for their third album comeback.

Or how they threw themselves more than usual in other shows to promote their album.

They knew how much effort they put into their third album, so they just wished them the best.

That was what was on the minds of the Soufflés who were at the scene.

‘How high will it rank?’

The fans had increased since the Masquerade, so it would be higher than that, right? But it would be nice if it was higher than Something.

Beat New Black.

That was when someone who checked the five-minute chart widened their eyes.

“What…?”

The other fans also checked the five-minute chart and started to open their eyes wide.

Soon, a scream-like sound burst out.

Rumble-

If it hadn’t been drowned out by the thunder, it would have been a moment when New Black, who were huddled together in the waiting room, would have noticed something strange.

“…”

The people who were sitting together in silence looked at each other.

At first, they were stunned.

They didn’t even think of opening their umbrellas as the raindrops fell one by one, and they had blank expressions on their faces.

Then, another scream-like sound burst out with the thunder.

Soon, the raindrops started to fall one by one.

They hurriedly opened their umbrellas in the sudden rain, but they couldn’t hide the joy that was bursting out everywhere.

“…!”

In the eyes of the Soufflés who were sitting there, it was as if every raindrop that was falling was a golden number ‘1’ shining.

Number one on the music chart.

Soufflés were in a festive mood, whether they were on the scene or online.

-Guysㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-Let the music play!!! ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-Aww, I’m crying…

-Eek, I think of the kids when I hear Jiho’s way of speakingㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-I’ve loved them until now…

-We… we did it.

-Is this where I’m supposed to lie down?

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋWhy are you suddenly saying you’re leaving? Don’t go!!

The Soufflés who were scattered everywhere were dancing with their shoulders.

Everyone was holding a toast.

It wasn’t just the Soufflés who were excited about New Black’s number one entry.

-They got number one…???

-The fans are crazyㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-I thought the song was good, but I didn’t expect it to be number one

-When did New Black get so big??

-I thought they had some popularity, but what’s with their firepower…? It’s amazing

-They made it, huh

At the same time, the praises that had been hidden by the harsh criticism started to surface.

The public opinion changed in an instant.

-The song is really good… The lyrics are poetic too

-The genre feels a bit unique, but I like itㅋㅋㅋ I can’t explain what kind of genre it is, but I like it

-I really like it. It sticks to my ears

-It feels like they balanced well between the public pick and the critic pick ㅋㅋ

-There were a lot of obsessive concepts lately, like breaking and smashing, but this is healing and nice

-But why were they criticized so much until now??? I can’t tell if it’s bad even if I listen to it

-Hey. Where did the self-proclaimed composers go?

The critics disappeared as if they had never been there.

There were still some who stayed and claimed that ‘you have to wait and see if this is really a public pick’, but they didn’t get any response.

Of course, no matter what reaction came out, the Soufflés were no longer upset.

-Wow! We’re fans of a number one singer!

-☆Congratulations, New Black enters the Mango Chart Contest★

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-But I’m suddenly curious, what does it feel like to be number two…?

-Hmm…

-Scratch scratch… Number two…

-I don’t know what it feels like to breathe number two air, do you?

-Spe) I’ve never breathed number two air before

-Stop it, guys. You’re making me feel embarrassed for youㅋㅋ

-Aww, how embarrassingㅋ

-You were all so nervous before the show, and now you’re suddenly acting like rich bossesㅋㅋ

-I’m eight years old, and I’m high on New Black. Wow

–ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

While they were laughing at the hilarious jokes on the internet, the fans in reality were no different.

“Pwahaha!”

“Look at that, look at that.”

What they were laughing at were the wreaths displayed at the concert hall.

♧ Jang Sowon & Lisa – Wishing you a huge success for your mini 2nd album!! (You guys are awesome!)

♧ PBS Music Discovery Team – We support New Black’s comeback!

♧ PBS Music Discovery Team – Come on, guys… It’s not too late. Come back now

♧ Cha Woohyun, the vocal master – New Black fighting (>ㅁ<)

♧ THE Maxi – Aww… It’s already their 3rd album…

♧ GTV ‘Slip’ crew – We cheer for the comeback of the thugs and Officer Heo 😀

Besides these, there were many other wreaths with funny messages that made the fans laugh. They held up their smartphones to take pictures of them.

Among them, there was one that had the most popularity.

♧ TBC ‘Men Go’ – We sincerely wish New Black’s comeback and success.

♧ TBC ‘Men Go’ – You’re not coming even if we do this? Even if we do this? We can’t give up on the reserve idol

♧ TBC ‘Men Go’ – Woojoo… Are you sleeping…?

They wrote warm messages and next to them were the military variety show staff who were sticky with sweat.

The fans smirked as they imagined their pale faces.

That was how the fans who brought their goods and photos entered the concert hall.

‘Wow…’

The fans who attended the fan meeting last year stuck out their tongues as they saw the crowd gathered in standing.

When did they grow so much?

They said they deliberately increased the size of the event because it was their comeback after almost half a year, but it felt more than that in reality.

‘They’ve grown. Our kids.’

They expected it to some extent.

They made their name known in a competition program that had very high ratings, and they were also rising as SNS stars recently.

New Black was a name that no one could ever not know if they used SNS even a little bit.

Recently, Bijoo’s ‘The Princess of the Jade Empire’ and Junghyun’s ‘The Son-in-law of Goguryeo’ memes also became famous.

The scene where the youngest one bossed around his six brothers was titled ‘The Common Temper of a Noble Aristocrat’. Because of that, Rihyuk’s scene where he went to Tang Dynasty wearing Choi Chiwon’s cosplay also became a meme.

That was how the History Discovery Team caused a big sensation along with the issue.

They expected the result to some extent.

But it was the first time they felt the popularity on their skin.

It was the same with the entrance 1st place.

There were always familiar faces when they came to the broadcast, but now there were more new faces.

They looked at them with a warm smile and squeezed through the people who were pushing from all sides.

‘Haha, Kyuho…’

It was when they barely pulled out their arms that were stuck like bean sprouts.

The lights got darker and the music sound from the large screen got louder.

8 p.m.

The music heightened the atmosphere as they faced New Black’s intro stage.

The vibration from the large amp made their eardrums tremble, and their hearts started to beat.

The singers they had been waiting and waiting for.

Finally, five agile figures appeared on the stage and a scream-like cheer burst out.

When the five members’ faces were revealed under the bright lights.

“…?”

The fans who were close to the audience or had good eyesight couldn’t help but hold back their laughter.

‘They cried.’

They had very serious expressions on their faces, but they had a tearful vibe from crying a lot. It was New Black.

The crisis came twice.

After the intro stage was over, they almost cried again.

They were really happy.

They had done a lot of broadcasting activities, but they had never met the fans directly with the purpose of ‘meeting’. It felt like they had finally met after making promises. How should he put it?

Their hearts had already run over and were jumping among the fans who were standing there.

Woojoo’s younger brothers also waved their hands with excited faces.

“Thank you.”

The staff who ran onto the stage handed them a hand microphone one by one and left. Woojoo smiled and winked.

“Two, three.”

“Hello, we are New Black!”

Then, a huge cheer that made their ears ring followed. It was the biggest cheer among the ones that were directed at them so far.

“…”

Woojoo opened his eyes wide and looked at his siblings. Even if they stayed still, laughter leaked out.

There were 2,000 people.

Not only the people standing on the first floor, but also those waving light sticks on the second floor were packed.

It was like a small concert, where both the singers and the fans were excited.

Woojoo felt that it was a little more real now. He was still nervous, though.

“Yes, uh…”

Woojoo’s voice trembled without him knowing.

-Hyung, are you nervous?

-Woojoo Hyung is shaking. Shiver, shiver.

-Why are you shaking so much?

These hyenas wouldn’t miss it. Woojoo glanced at his siblings and smiled with the microphone.

“Thank you so much for coming to see us. It was raining outside, and you must have had a hard time waiting… Thank you for coming to see us!”

-Thank you!

-I’m the most grateful!

Woojoo looked around the audience and made eye contact with them as he took a breath.

“Have you been waiting a long time? We finally! With our second mini album, ‘Yellow, the Color of Sunshine’…”

-We’re back!

The cheers and the waves of light sticks burst out.

It was time for Woojoo to say the main words, after greeting each of the fans and having some time to talk to them.

“Um…”

How should he say this?

He wondered if he should mention the number one entry on the chart, but he decided to avoid it. It was different when the fans mentioned the performance and when the singer mentioned it themselves.

More than anything, Woojoo wanted to tell them that their feelings for them wouldn’t change even if the song didn’t do well.

It was a happy thing, but.

No matter what the result was, their gratitude wouldn’t change.

“I want to thank the Soufflés, including the fans who came here and those who support us.”

Woojoo saw excited faces everywhere.

It was fun to make the third album, but sometimes it was hard, too. But he felt like he was rewarded for everything at this moment.

It was nice to meet the fans.

He didn’t know how much his heart would reach them, but.

“Have you listened to our second mini album?”

‘Yes!’ The answer came back. With that one answer, a smile appeared on the lips of Woojoo and his siblings.

“How was the song?”

As he heard the answers that they liked it, Woojoo picked up the microphone and continued, “You might be curious, but there is no MC for this fan showcase. We asked the company to let us do it ourselves.”

Bijoo took over the baton.

-We produced the whole album, and we also participated in the production.

-We wanted to have a time to introduce the album to you as singers and producers.

No one knew their songs better than them.

The purpose of this fan showcase was to have a time to introduce the songs directly to the fans.

So they tried to talk, but the personal comments that had been passing by since a while ago came to his ears.

Rihyuk grabbed the microphone as if he had been stabbed.

-You keep asking us if we cried, but I. Did. Not. Cry.

-That’s right.

Jiho replied with a naive face to the fans who laughed.

-We don’t have tears. I didn’t cry even when Officer Heo died. I’m cold.

Bijoo grabbed the microphone.

-I… I didn’t cry either.

-I cried a little bit.

…As they said so, the fans laughed. Woojoo almost joined them.

They all had swollen eyes like goldfish.

Woojoo saw a fan waving a placard that said ‘Calm down, New Black’ and he almost laughed.

Woojoo clapped and smiled.

“Shall we start the introduction of our second mini album with our crybabies?”

Woojoo ignored the strong protests of the crybabies and proceeded with the showcase.

As the fan showcase progressed, the members of New Black began to explain the overall aspects of the album.

They were definitely used to broadcasting, and the awkwardness that remained until the second album was gone. Now they were skillfully leading the fans’ reactions and flowing smoothly.

-The background of the music video was the reed field in Suncheon, but Bijoo got lost.

-We barely found him with the Find My Child app.

-That was good. When I pressed the emergency button, it kept ringing ‘Mom! I’m here!’ without a break.

They joked around with each other or talked about the behind-the-scenes stories of the album.

Woojoo was the one who produced the whole album, and the others also participated in the production.

They wanted to have a time to introduce the album to them as singers and producers.

And finally, it was time to perform the title song of the mini 2nd album, ‘Windflower’.

“Windflower is a song that I participated in composing. It’s about feeling like someone is watching you when you sometimes feel lonely. I hope it can be a song that gives strength to someone.”

Bijoo smiled and briefly introduced the song.

After the members went down to change their outfits, a calm music played along with the curtain rising after a while.

The one who stood on the stage was the rapper of New Black.

It was the stage of ‘Intro: Wind’ that preceded ‘Windflower’. The music was calm like jazz, but trendy, and it wrapped around the audience.

The rap started with the sound of drums.

The lyrics flowed in the flow that skipped between the offbeat and the onbeat.

It was about the wind finding a seed in a corner of the street and struggling to move it to the soil. It was an easy task for the big wind, but a hard one for the small wind.

The lyrics were about how hard it was to plant a seed of a wildflower that bloomed on the roadside.

The stage of ‘Wind’ ended and the music changed right away.

The members came up next to Junghyun, who was standing still on the stage.

The members of New Black, who flowed softly like the seeds swaying in the wind, started to take their places one by one.

And as the outfits that were brightly decorated like the boys of spring sparkled under the lights.

The stage of ‘Windflower’ began.