In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 95

As Woojoo set up his laptop on the studio table, he texted his grandmother.

Me [Grandma]

Me [Do you know that I’m on Around the World With Dice today?]

Me [(Emoji)]

As soon as he sent the emoji of a white rice cake saying ‘I have something to tell you…’ and tapping its fingers, he got a reply.

KingGodKimDeoksoon [I turned it on]

Me [About 5 minutes?]

Me [More than 3-minute curry Kim haha]

KingGodKimDeoksoon [Call me when you’re on]

KingGodKimDeoksoon [I have a lot of customers]

Did she have a group of customers from the hiking club?

Woojoo smiled happily as he imagined the bustling restaurant full of customers. Then, Bijoo handed him some snacks he bought from the convenience store.

Their faces were full of excitement as they held the snack bags and drinks.

“Wow, when was the last time we watched a show together?”

“I know, right?” Junghyun said as he opened a non-alcoholic beer. “It feels like ages ago since we watched Music Cafe. How long has it been? Three months? Four months? It’s been a long time.”

“I can barely remember it.”

“What do you mean you can barely remember it?” Rihyuk scoffed. “I still remember how you were covered in snot there.”

“I can do that too.”

Junghyun imitated the youngest’s sniffling expression and burst into laughter.

Jiho pursed his lips.

“How is that the same?”

“…”

There was a brief silence, and then they all looked at each other and said at the same time, “It was exactly the same.”

“It was like a hundred percent sync.”

They chuckled and toasted as they watched the youngest make a sour face. Then, he smirked as if he remembered something and laughed wickedly.

“Rihyuk Hyung shouldn’t be laughing right now. Soon, your crazy basketball shot will be on the air.”

“Ah.”

“That’s the face of someone who just remembered.”

Their main vocal’s ears started to turn red.

Well. Woojoo had to admit that he looked funny back then.

It wasn’t just him. The other guys also turned their heads slightly and smiled.

“Ah, this is bad.” Rihyuk asked with a serious face, “Do you think they’ll show that?”

“Just think of it as sacrificing yourself for a big laugh. It’s not a big deal. We won’t tease you all day.”

“…You mean you’ll tease me for half a day.”

“That’s right.”

Woojoo grinned and ate a snack.

As the main vocal received a comforting apple slice from their team’s housewife, the logo of Around the World With Dice finally appeared on the TV.

The opening showed the members moving comically like a sitcom family.

Then, the endless sponsor messages followed.

And they were not ordinary ads.

The oldest member of Around the World With Dice, Woo Jaeyong, was tapping his back and saying ‘Ayoo, I can’t go on anymore!’ Then, the other members said ‘Teacher! We’ll carry you!’ and flew like bullets in a telecom ad.

Ye Heechan and Ye Heeyeon were bickering and then reconciled as they cooked ramen. And at the end, the siblings drank the soup at the same time and said ‘Eww!’ in a ramen CF.

“It feels different from Music Cafe,” Woojoo said as he licked his lips. “Back then, it felt like we were on a popular music show. But this… I don’t know how to explain it.”

“I know, right. I’m so nervous.”

The youngest shivered and rubbed his palms.

The others were the same.

They looked like actors who were watching their own movie for the first time. Their hearts were pounding and they were nervous about how they would come out.

Woojoo also swallowed his dry saliva and asked, “Did you guys tell your families?”

“I just got a text.” Bijoo showed him his phone. “My sister sent me a message. She said she’s watching us from a restaurant near our house. She even ordered some pork belly and sent me a proof shot.”

Along with his cheerful younger brother Minjun, Bijoo’s sister, mom, and dad were smiling widely and making V signs.

They were the familiar faces they had met at the hospital earlier.

But Woojoo noticed some changes.

Minjun, who had been pale from his illness, looked healthier even though he was still thin.

His parents, who had been shadowed by worry, had bright faces like the sunny sky.

Especially their mom, who looked like a girl on a picnic with her rosy cheeks.

“Mom must be really happy. She’s even blushing.”

“That’s because she had a drink of soju…”

“Oh.”

They exchanged embarrassed smiles.

“You all look great.”

“This was the program Mom watched a lot when she was taking Minjun to the hospital. It was something she laughed at every Sunday.”

“It must mean a lot to her.”

“Mom and Dad were so excited. When I told them we were going on Around the World With Dice, they started calling all our relatives and stuff…”

Appearing on Around the World With Dice was not just a meaningful thing for them.

When their sons and daughters say ‘Our album is selling well’ or ‘We have an event to go to’, the parents didn’t really know if that meant they were doing well or not.

Even if they told them they were doing well, it was different from seeing them on TV.

And when they found out that the TV program they were going on was Around the World With Dice, Woojoo couldn’t imagine how they felt.

Then, Junghyun suddenly showed Woojoo his phone.

“I got something from my dad too.”

Woojoo thought it was a low-quality picture, but when Junghyun pressed a button, a video started playing.

A community hall full of old and middle-aged people.

-Come on, clap~!

Junghyun’s dad shouted and a loud applause followed.

-Dear residents, today our Junghyun is on a very auspicious TV show!

The residents clapped their hands as he said TV!

-Come on, let’s do the wave~ Hooi~~

Why were they doing the wave?

“…What is this?”

“My dad sent it to me. He said they’re going to watch and cheer together.”

“You did tell him we’re only on for like five minutes, right?”

“I did, but he’s like this,” Junghyun said with a sigh. “I think he’s just using this as an excuse to have a party with the villagers. They’re probably going to slaughter a cow, drink soju, and have fun.”

“Yeah. When else are they going to have fun? You did a good deed.”

“I’m happy too.”

Woojoo looked at him smiling contentedly and then turned his eyes to the youngest, who was busy moving his fingers.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m chatting with my friends on the class chat. They’re all buzzing about us going on Around the World With Dice. Especially because of Gil Chaekyung.”

“Oh, same class?”

“Yup. She kept promoting it like ‘hehe, Jiho will also be there that day’. It was such a contrasting atmosphere. Totally annoying.”

As the interested Hyungs leaned in, Jiho showed them his phone.

Gil Chaekyung [It’s not just me who’s appearing ㅋㅋ Jiho is also coming]

Gil Chaekyung [I hope we all appear a lot ㅎㅎ]

Gil Chaekyung [ㅋㅋㅋ You guys are watching right now, right…? I’ll be there soon and Jiho too!]

…She was really mean.

Jiho made a sly expression and said, “She’s doing this because she has more seniority and she thinks she’ll get more screen time. Ugh, so spiteful.”

“Just endure it. What can you do?”

“It wouldn’t have happened if she didn’t confess to you and call her ugly.”

“Wow. I have no one on my side.”

“Aww, we’re on our maknae’s side. Don’t say such sad things.”

“I don’t know. I feel really bitter.”

Meanwhile, as Woojoo tried to comfort the youngest, he remembered something he had forgotten until now.

One person who kept silent during the family talk.

It was Rihyuk.

Woojoo heard it when he composed Night Sea. He didn’t keep in touch with his family except his younger sister.

…Woojoo thought he made a mistake.

He should have been more careful with the family talk. He unknowingly got nervous and forgot to say that.

Only then did Bijoo seem to notice and looked restless.

Woojoo felt like he had made a slip of the tongue and glanced at him, but he met his eyes and smiled thinly.

He said with a smile, “Don’t worry about it. Well, we have each other, right?”

***

The broadcast finally started.

It continued from the last episode, where they did a mission at the Gapyeong French Village.

They became street painters like in Europe and drew portraits for the visitors.

The strange quality of the paintings, the shocked reactions of the applicants, and the conversations with the pedestrians were the fun points of today.

At the end of the show, they gathered in one place.

-Well, then let’s pick the next destination!

They rolled a dice to decide where they would go next and the episode ended.

Of course, that wasn’t the end.

A logo that said [2014 Chuseok Special] appeared and the screen changed.

New Black swallowed their saliva as the introduction video flowed.

The first team introduced their guests, comedian Seo Jihyung and model, Han Sora.

Seo Ji-Hyung, who was ridiculed for his lame jokes, and Han Sora, who showed off her elegant walking in front of the members, seemed to be the editing points.

…But something was strange.

Maybe it was because they weren’t professional broadcasters.

The amount of footage seemed a bit small.

Then the second team’s guests appeared.

The building of Hwai Entertainment showed up, and Girls on Top, who were checking their choreography in the practice room, greeted them hastily.

-Oh, hello!

They looked confused by the sudden intrusion, and the members laughed heartily.

The promotion of Girls on Top’s new song came out briefly, and then the mission proceeded with the nearby pedestrians.

It was a pretty fun one.

They had to raise the heart rate of the same-sex people with their words or actions.

It looked fun at first glance.

But it wasn’t.

Girls on Top were too reserved.

They should have done it even if it meant ruining their image, but they were all sitting there acting cute, so it wasn’t fun at all.

Woojoo wished it would end soon, and it really did.

“…Huh?”

“Is that it?”

“Is this the end?”

It cut off abruptly, as if to say they had shown enough.

Their faces turned serious.

“This is bad. If Girls on Top were like this, what if we get completely edited out?”

“Nah, that won’t happen.”

“How much time is left for the broadcast?”

Woojoo looked at the clock and said, “There’s still 15 minutes left?”

“What? This is weird. There’s only us and rapper Heysion left in the introduction video.”

“Maybe they’ll show something like a Chuseok Special preview at the end.”

“Hyung, how can they show a preview when we didn’t record anything?”

It was incomprehensible.

The previous ones were like that too. They could have shown more, but they ended abruptly.

It felt like squeezing a rag with your hand once and putting it in the basket, instead of wringing it out completely.

Were they going to be on for two minutes and that was it?

Woojoo was worried.

Right now, not only Mrs. Kim Deoksoon, but also their siblings, families, and friends must be sitting in front of the TV.

If they really got cut off in two minutes, there would be no shame like that.

That was why they couldn’t laugh at the scene where the Ye siblings and rapper Heysion were dancing the bong dance.

And then.

“Uh… I think we’re coming out.”

It was here.

Rihyuk covered his eyes with sweet potato chips as if he couldn’t bear to watch. Woojoo would have done the same if it weren’t for shrimp crackers.

Junghyun, who was pretending to be calm, was also crumpling the can.

Finally, New Black appeared on the screen.

“We’re on…!”

But surprisingly, Woojoo felt calm.

Maybe it was the same feeling of relief that he had when he faced the actual test paper after being nervous with the OMR sheet.

And it wasn’t as weird as he thought.

It was clumsy and awkward, but they looked pretty good on the TV screen.

Actually, there was something really weird.

When the time to greet the members of Around the World With Dice and New Black in the auditorium was over, they looked at each other with wide-eyed faces.

Even Junghyun had a flustered expression.

“Hyung.”

Junghyun pointed at the clock at the bottom of the laptop and said, “…We spent two minutes just introducing ourselves.”

***

As always, when a popular variety show was on air, various communities were full of people running Around the World With Dice’s live broadcast.

That was why a free board of one community was no different from a live chat.

-The baby cried after seeing the picture ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Around the World With Dice Ye Heechan is crazy ㅋㅋㅋ

-Around the World With Dice’s chemistry today was amazing

-It’s like a show when the three of them are together

-The French village there must be crowded with people now, right? I planned with my wife…;;

-Let’s use some prefixes

And then, the corner where the introduction video came out after the main broadcast.

-Today’s lineup is a bit weak

-Seo Jihyung is really boring…

-Honestly, it’s more of a problem that they keep accepting him

-Ah… When will it end?

-Wow, Han Sora is amazing.

-Wow, modeling is not for everyone.

-Looking at Han Sora’s fashion show walk again.gif

As the comments flooded in, Girls on Top appeared.

-Girls on Top are here.

-Wow, Joo Hana is stunning.

-Is that Joo Hana? The one with the dating rumor?

-Today’s mission is so fun.

Since Girls on Top was a popular girl group, the comments quickly piled up.

But the admiration for their visuals was short-lived, and the atmosphere of anticipation turned into disappointment in an instant.

-They’re pretty, but not fun.

-I’m just satisfied with looking at their faces.

-Didn’t they say it’s been a while since they did variety? They don’t seem eager or anything.

-Whatㅋㅋㅋ They’re four years into their career.

-Use quotation marks.

-The old PD has lost his touch.

Of course, the situation was completely reversed by Heysion’s appearance.

The rapper with dreadlocks dancing with a stick on the street along with EDM music drew a big laugh. And the two members also joined the dance without holding back.

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋWhat is that?

-They’re all crazyㅋㅋ

-They got too relaxed and explodedㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Today’s MVP is honestly Heysion…ㅋㅋㅋ

Meanwhile, in the midst of the laughter-filled atmosphere, some comments started to express doubts.

-Today’s episode feels strangely short, doesn’t it?

-It feels like it’s ending too quickly. Is there something in the ending?

-There must be more introduction videos left.

-Aren’t the remaining ones some unknown rookies?

No one thought that they would spend all that time introducing New Black.

That was why when New Black came out, complaints erupted.

-They spent three minutes introducing some nobodies… Wow.

-At this point, it’s fair to say that Gu Jaeyong took some money.

-What agency are they from??

-They’re so boring for three minutesㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Girls on Top must feel wronged for being called boring earlier.

Anyone could see the difference in speed.

While they quickly went through the other guests’ segments, New Black’s broadcast time was slow and steady, building up gradually.

Anyone could see the special treatment.

Some even cursed at the small-time kids who got so much airtime from Around the World With Dice.

***

Fortunately, the atmosphere of rivalry disappeared as soon as the mission content was revealed.

-Wow… look at the difficulty level

-They want them to do that??? That’s almost a full-court shot

-Full-court is an exaggeration, ㅋㅋ. The gym looks small to me

-While reciting the Heart Sutra…??

-What, ㅋㅋ. If you succeed, I’ll buy you chicken

-That’s not that hard. I did it when I was in the basketball club;;

A heated debate ensued about the success rate.

Some said it was possible, some said it was only possible for athletes, not for the skinny members they had, and a very few said there was a chance of success.

And by then, the viewers who had watched Around the World With Dice for a long time noticed something.

-It seems like they put a lot of effort into the content, maybe they succeeded?

-This??

-If they succeed, that would be amazing…ㅋㅋ

-Gu Jaeyong only writes a lot when he gets hooked on something weird, otherwise he always writes nonsense

A subtle anticipation mixed with the atmosphere as the New Black members started to challenge one by one.

Starting from Ye Heeyeon who kicked the ball, to the rest of the New Black members.

-Wow…ㅋㅋ. That’s almost a delivery cross

-Soccer player class is not going anywhere

-But is New Black practicing a lot, ㅋㅋ. They are not just a concept, they can really dance

-They all failed;;

-Only one left, it seems

Then, the last member came up.

As the tense BGM played, New Black’s Woojoo held the ball.

The camera captured his calm expression in a close-up.

He then bounced the ball skillfully and gripped it firmly in his hand, then snapped it towards the sky.

As the drum sound of the BGM stimulated the tension like a heartbeat.

Woojoo’s shot was completely out of the people’s expectations.

He didn’t kick the ball like Ye Heeyeon, nor did he use one hand or two hands.

He threw the ball like a baseball pitcher, stretching his right arm far back and putting his strength into it.

A full shot was taken right away.

As the ball drew a perfect parabola, the bulletin board went into a temporary lull.

The expressions of Around the World With Dice’s siblings, New Black members, and the staff who were watching were captured in slow motion.

Soon, they widened their eyes as if they saw something unbelievable.

But it was hard to tell if their reaction was due to regret for missing the shot, or surprise for succeeding.

Another full shot.

The ball flew along a beautiful trajectory and landed on the goal.

It didn’t bounce on the ring and go in, but it went in smoothly as if he had dunked it.

Thud-

The sound of the ball wrapping around the net was caught on audio.

Along with the exclamation that the people on the scene unknowingly uttered, the screen showed a large ‘!!!’ caption.

The team members on the scene ran to Woojoo right away.

-Wow, ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-It went in

-Meanwhile, Ye Heeyeon’s true gum smile, ㅋㅋ

-Where is the person who said he would buy chicken?? Did he delete his comment?

-It was possible, huh?

The complaints about the content were gone long ago.

Soon, on the TV screen, Woojoo, who had the golden key in his hand, was surrounded by the members and gave his closing remark.

-Thank you. I’ll do my best!

He wiped the sweat on his forehead with his hand, looking very nervous. The TV viewers laughed at his gesture.

After the recording was over, the siblings approached Woojoo, saying, ‘Hey, you sweated a lot.’

‘I wanted to do well…’ His voice was caught on the microphone.

He licked his dry lips, thinking the shooting was over. His appearance, trying hard as a rookie, was edited warmly.

Then, the preview for the next episode came out, but the viewers still had his image in their minds.

The people who were watching the show on TV at home, on DMB on the subway and bus, and at the train station lounge, searched for the name New Black on their smartphones.

As expected of the number one entertainment show with an average rating of 23 percent, the portal search rankings started to rise rapidly.

Of course, there were people who were most happy about all this.