Save a Failed Idol’s Life

Chapter 37 What’s Wrong with My Taste

“Even after ten thousand years~ My love for you will never fade-. This burning passion is like my life~ I have to pray every day-.”

As soon as the first verse ended, I had a gut feeling. I was doomed.

They said the dance and performance would be adjusted according to the possession level, but why was the vocal so bad?

The result was 75 points. I learned for the first time today that you could get less than 80 points in a karaoke room.

“How can I be off-key when I’ve been singing this for decades?”

I couldn’t believe it, but it was reality. How much money did I pay to the composer for the karaoke royalties?

At this rate, the recording would be a disaster. But I couldn’t just use Son Seong-won’s buff skill.

If I raised the expectations once, I would have to maintain the same level every time.

“Maybe I should have raised my vocal stat a bit…”

I felt regretful now that I tried to record with a level worse than a normal person.

But since my performance was higher, maybe I had a chance with rap?

“Then let’s try rap this time.”

I pressed the number of a song with a lot of rap parts from the 7080 hit list.

“Yo! I’m in the same daily routine, but I fell for your intellectual eyes-. My friends and teacher point fingers at me, but I can feel it in your gaze! Your love for me!”

This time, it was a bit better with 88 points. It was definitely better than singing. The singing was fine until the rhythm, but the pitch was the problem.

If I relaxed, the sound was too small, and if I put some force, it inevitably went out of tune.

The good thing was that my part was the easiest and the rap parts were mixed well.

“Let’s try singing with the accompaniment on.”

No one would leak the song of an idol group that no one had ever heard of.

Just in case, I took out the wireless earphones and plugged them in my ears.

It seemed like Cheonise had been using them all the time, but they were quite comfortable.

“♬~♪~♩♪”

Maybe it was because I kept humming and singing along with the lyrics. It was much easier to sing than My Eternal Love.

Then, a status window popped up.

[New song – Drink me has been registered in your song list. The first registration is free of charge without any point deduction. For subsequent song registrations, 10pt will be deducted per song.]

‘Huh?’

I looked at the bottom of the status window and saw a sheet of music in my mouth.

“What is this song list?”

People passing by would think I was a weirdo talking to the air, but I had a phone in my hand.

There was no one, but they would think I was making a call or something.

[Song list is a correction system that guarantees a certain level of quality after you go through the training process.]

[Currently registered songs (1)]

[- Drink me: 3.33% (1st stage)]

They divided the proficiency level by two decimal places. 

They were vicious bastards who wouldn’t let me get away with anything.

[Currently, Cheonise (Lim Hyun-seong) can improve his proficiency by repeating practice and get a B-grade (1st stage) vocal skill correction.]

[When you achieve the 2nd stage proficiency, you can also get an additional grade correction, so please strive for a higher level.]

There was a hole to survive even if the sky fell. They seemed to be trying to help me not get kicked out of the recording studio. Of course, not for free.

“Then I’ll keep practicing this from now on.”

I put in a coin and turned on the microphone, and played the accompaniment again.

Thanks to Ye-jun’s cool arrangement with electronic instruments, it was at a level that even a top composer would envy.

‘It would be nice if Oh Ye-jun participated as the main producer for the next comeback.’

That was only if we succeeded in this comeback, though.

I quietly followed the lyrics along with the beat.

[Drink me, swallow me]

[Once more, like a whirlwind]

[Don’t let go of our hands]

[Rescue you, hold on to this moment]

[I call your name like a prayer every day]

This was my part. The rest was chorus, so I wasn’t too worried about overlapping with other members.

I sang along from the beginning to the end and the proficiency level increased by 3%. It meant that I couldn’t fill half of it even if I sang it ten times.

‘I have to go and make lunch later… I don’t have time for anything else.’

I was busy. I didn’t have time to breathe and hummed the lyrics diligently.

***

[Drink me – Proficiency 100% achieved. You get a +2 grade correction effect as a proficiency reward.]

[2nd stage proficiency gauge opened.]

[- Drink me: 0.01% (2nd stage)]

[When you achieve the 2nd stage proficiency, you get a correction effect of +3 grade level of the original grade.]

The gauge didn’t budge as if to prove that the 2nd stage proficiency was an extra difficulty they provided.

It increased by 0.05 every time I sang, so it seemed impossible to fill it today.

‘Let’s stop here for now.’

Huff huff. My throat was dry as if it was burning from singing non-stop. I hurried out of the booth and grabbed a bottle of water from the vending machine.

I was exhausted from using my throat for almost two hours.

‘But I’m glad I made a hole to survive.’

They should have told me sooner if they had something like this. They were supposed to help me with the quest, but they never prepared anything for me.

I grumbled and left the coin karaoke and returned to the dorm.

The guys who were sleeping when I left were getting up one by one and starting their day.

“Where’s Seon-woo?”

When I entered the room, the blanket was rolled up like a caterpillar and Seon-woo was nowhere to be seen.

I asked as I came out to the living room and Kyunghwa answered.

“He went to the gym to exercise on an empty stomach. He said he’ll be back before lunch.”

He got motivated after appearing in front of the public. It made sense since he was not far from the goal. If he hit the early 70s, he could lower the intensity a bit and aim for maintenance.

Then, I could allow him a little bit of snacking.

“How’s your condition today?”

All I could do for them was to make them a hearty lunch, even if they said they were not feeling well.

I looked around at the other members as well as Kyunghwa and Ye-jun shouted out loud.

“Awesome!”

When were you ever not happy? I chuckled lightly and went into the kitchen. Seong-won and Kyunghwa didn’t even budge.

‘I didn’t expect anything from you guys.’

Why did I feel like I was raising kids who weren’t even mine? I wiped the sweat off my forehead and started preparing lunch.

***

“I’m so nervous. It’s been too long.”

Seon-woo clenched his fingers and tapped his feet as he sat on the sofa inside the studio, facing the recording booth.

“What are you nervous about? I’m doing all the recording and mixing anyway.”

Ye-jun slapped Seon-woo’s shoulder and reassured him. He seemed to be trying to comfort him, but it didn’t look very effective.

“It’s not your first time. You’ll do fine.”

I gave him some consolation as a senior. But this guy was a vocal A-grade. Who was worried about whom?

‘I’m… B-grade with two levels of correction.’

I couldn’t blame anyone else for my low grade. Seon-woo, who took the first part, asked me for support.

“Can’t you cheer me up, hyung?”

It wasn’t hard to say a word. I gently stroked Seon-woo’s head with both palms and let go.

“You can do it. You’ll do well.”

“Yeah!”

Seon-woo nodded vigorously and opened the door to the recording booth.

Inside, he did a simple mic test and exchanged signals with Ye-jun, and then the recording began.

“Do you want me to turn on the speaker so you can hear everything?”

After giving and receiving instructions with Seon-woo a few times, Ye-jun took off his headset and looked at the members.

To be honest, I was curious.

I had heard him humming casually a few times, but it was the first time I heard him sing with all his strength.

“Let me hear it.”

Kyunghwa nodded before me. The power came on the external speaker and Seon-woo’s voice rang out.

“He sings well.”

He proved that he wasn’t an A-grade for nothing. His pitch was accurate.

If A-grade was this good, how well did Son Seong-won, an S-grade, sing? I was looking forward to the next order.

“Seon-woo, well, you would have been a main vocal if you were in another group.”

He had such a pretty face and sang well. He was a talent that would have been coveted by the industry, regardless of his cursed constitution.

He was either well prepared, or Ye-jun’s standards were loose. Seon-woo’s recording ended much faster than expected.

“Is this really okay?”

Seon-woo came out with a surprised expression.

“Yeah! Perfect!”

This producer… Can I trust him? We all seemed to have similar thoughts in our heads.

“Next is Ise hyung, right?”

Seon-woo remembered my part and sparkled his eyes.

My part was shorter than his. I hoped it wouldn’t be too different. I prayed inwardly and entered the recording booth.

‘Wow… It’s so quiet.’

I thought it wouldn’t be much different from being an idol, since I had done some broadcasts before.

But when I entered the realm of a real singer, I felt the difference.

“Okay, focus~ I’ll play the prelude right away so you can get the feel. Raise your hand when you’re ready.”

In the midst of the silence, only Ye-jun’s instructions sounded faintly. It felt like only me and Ye-jun were left in the world.

I didn’t want to feel this way with this guy. I put aside the random thoughts in my head. The prelude progressed and my part began.

“Drink me, swallow me-.”

“Wait, hyung~ You got the beat wrong, let’s do it again.”

I thought it would be easy after hearing Seon-woo, but I couldn’t even get past the first verse.

“Drink me, na, reul sam-ki-go.”

“Hyung, you’re bending too much at na-reul, let’s try again.”

Why are you being so picky? I suppressed the blood rising to my forehead and waited for the prelude to start again.

“Drink- me, na-reul sam-ki-go.”

“This time, drink me was good, but you’re too slow at sam. Let’s adjust it a bit.”

What kind of craftsmanship do you want? Recording was always this difficult, and I had no idea that Seon-woo was so skilled.

It took me more than an hour and a half to finish my part.

“Huh, huff…”

Even though I was B-grade, it took so long. If I had stayed at D-grade, I would have been in big trouble.

As I gasped for breath, Ye-jun patted my shoulder.

“Good job, hyung~.”

The first thing that came to my mind was that saying good job was for elders. He was only two years younger than me, but still.

“Next is my turn, right?”

Kyunghwa touched the baton with me, looking tense.

He was also a vocal A.

He should have raised his vocal instead of his useless S-grade appearance.

I felt lucky and went back to the sofa.

“Good job, hyung.”

Seon-woo greeted me with a bright smile. I couldn’t erase the feeling that he was being mean.

I crossed my arms and opened my ears, wondering how good the other A-grade Kyunghwa was.