Chapter 1060: Overcooked (13)

At the very start of the music video, Souffle burst into applause and delighted laughter.

"Kyahahahaha!"

The reason was simple.

The members' outfits.

They had taken traditional chef uniforms and transformed them into stage costumes, and the result fit them perfectly.

[OVERCOOKED]

The title flashed onto the screen.

The five members stood frozen in their opening pose.

Like the opening sequence of an animated series, their faces appeared one by one as they held a variety of striking poses.

Oh my god. They're ridiculously handsome...!

Souffle's excitement instantly reached critical levels.

It wasn't just the members' visuals.

It was the song pouring into their ears.

Seriously, what is this? What am I listening to? This feels like an entirely new world.

Cooking utensils created sounds like musical instruments, while brilliant synthesizer layers tied everything together.

Sun Wooju had done it again.

As everyone watched the music video in amazement, Wooju stepped forward during the opening.

[Oooooooo—]

The customers, upset that their long-awaited meals hadn't arrived and that chefs had walked out instead, began booing.

"Huh?"

One by one, the camera showed the disgruntled diners, and Souffle's eyes widened.

That's Dante Cellini!

That guy's Carlos Gonza... Gonza... whatever his name was!

The world's greatest chefs, whom everyone had recently come to know through NewUniverse, were appearing as cameos.

The stern food critic with the monocle was Dante Cellini.

Chef Gonzalez was seated with his wife, reading through the menu.

"Wow..."

Even as they marveled at the fact that what could only be described as a dream team of world-renowned chefs had shown up merely as cameos in a NewBlack music video—

Wooju strode confidently forward and began to sing.

With a graceful wave of his hand, he greeted the guests.

We've kept you waiting

Dear customers

We apologize

We burned all the food

Souffle immediately fell in love with it.

The confidence!

I need to live my life with that kind of attitude!

While the customers stared in stunned disbelief, Wooju winked and continued.

If you don't mind

While your meal is being prepared

Would you care to enjoy

A show by our staff?

As Wooju gestured toward one side, Biju slid between the tables in a solo dance.

His sparkling blond hair flowed beautifully.

It won't take long

Just a little while

While the food is being finished

All you need to do is listen

His clear, dew-like voice drew beaming smiles from Souffle.

As everyone watched with their chins resting in their hands, Jiho joined Biju's solo dance, and the two launched into a paired choreography sequence.

That's a new combination.

Jiho's dancing has improved so much.

Usually, the paired choreography featured the lead dancer and main dancer.

This time it was the sub-dancer and main dancer.

Jiho flashed a smile overflowing with youthful charm.

To explain

How this happened

We'll need to go back

Ten minutes earlier

We were hard at work cooking

Dressed as a chef, Jiho mimed stirring something with his hands while describing the events leading up to the disaster.

The choreography is so clever.

Even if the English lyrics didn't immediately register, the gestures made the meaning obvious.

It felt as though the flashback scene was unfolding right in front of their eyes.

The customers, completely captivated, watched blankly as Jiho and Biju alternated singing.

We may have used

A bit too much seasoning

Salt, sugar, pepper

Jiho pantomimed sprinkling spices.

Beside him, Biju danced while pretending to adjust an oven dial.

Temperature control?

We may have turned it up

A little too high

After shamelessly explaining why the meal had failed, the members suddenly pointed off to one side.

To investigate the cause

We've brought in

The finest analyst available

Main vocalist Ri Hyuk.

As the music briefly softened, Ri Hyuk appeared wearing glasses and read from a piece of paper.

The reason was—

Our feelings for you—

He removed his glasses and looked directly into the camera.

It was our love.

(Love.)

The way he shamelessly answered with a single word made Souffle erupt into laughter.

Now gathered together, the members pretended to sprinkle sugar into the air as they launched into the chorus.

Overcooked~ Overcooked~♬

The choreography already looked addictive enough to copy.

As fans exclaimed in delight, the main vocalist now widely regarded as the best idol singer in the industry carried the hook.

We only cooked it a little longer~

I guess our love for you became a little too much~♬

The chorus returned.

Overcooked~ Overcooked~

Before they realized it, the people watching the music video were humming along.

"Overcooked~ Overcooked~"

Then the second verse began with Junghyun's solo rap.

As he strode forward with rhythmic confidence, the kitchen instruments pounded like drums in a hip-hop beat.

Ladies and gentlemen

We'll now begin customer service

Cancellations are over here

Reorders are over there

Drinks can be requested over there

And all our love for you is right here

Junghyun hurried between the tables.

Refilling wine glasses.

Processing refunds at the register.

Several dissatisfied customers accepted refunds and left the restaurant.

As the song transitioned fully into the second verse—

[The show's not over yet. This song has a second verse!]

Unlike the first half, NewBlack now approached the customers more actively.

Ooooh...

This feels like a musical.

The diners who had initially watched with skeptical expressions slowly began responding.

Like a musical.

Or an animated film.

The sort where birds start singing along when the protagonist sings, and housewives hanging laundry suddenly join the dance.

As Overcooked continued, customers began tapping their tables with forks and knives.

Young children joined in the chorus while laughing happily.

And when the chorus arrived, even the cameo chefs stood up and lined up behind NewBlack like backup dancers.

Overcooked~ Overcooked~

We only cooked it a little longer~

I guess our love for you became a little too much~♬

Everyone sang together.

Overcooked~ Overcooked~

A wonderful melody echoed through the lively restaurant.

There's... something here.

The Souffles who loved interpreting meaning felt their eyes sparkle.

There seemed to be a deeper message hidden within the song.

Not one single message that could be neatly summarized, but several ideas woven together.

Please forgive me for being clumsy when it comes to love.

It sounded like a love song between two people.

Not every effort produces a perfect result. But if it was made with sincerity, doesn't that count for something?

It also sounded like a song meant to comfort someone.

This is good.

The cooking theme is brilliant.

Cooking was something everyone in the world could relate to.

Because it was such a universal subject, the song naturally invited countless interpretations.

But one thing was certain.

The song was unbelievably good.

"Ha..."

Souffle twisted around happily in their seats, grinning foolishly from pure joy.

Then, after everyone sang the third chorus together—

[Rumble—]

The music gradually faded.

The customers returned to their normal expressions, once again waiting for food.

Immediately afterward, NewBlack wheeled out the dishes.

[Your meals are finally ready!]

Souffle blinked.

Huh?

Wait, what? When did they make them?

The members appeared with serving carts the instant the song ended.

Fans tilted their heads in confusion.

Then they rewound.

And froze.

Wait.

When did they do that?

They were actually cooking the whole time?!

Whenever one member stepped forward to sing, other members could be seen in the background.

Smiling and dancing cheerfully in front of the customers.

Working desperately and nervously behind the scenes.

It felt like watching singers who continued working their hardest even when nobody was looking.

Look at that attention to detail. That's insane.

Director, please accept my deepest respect. You suffered for this masterpiece.

Deeply moved by thoughts of the poor music video director who had undoubtedly been worked to the bone by NewBlack, Souffle moved the playback bar forward.

[Bustling chatter]

Freshly prepared dishes were served.

The customers began eating.

Everyone smiled with satisfaction.

The members grinned proudly.

Even restaurant owner Chef Bobby Ross gave them a thumbs-up.

Then—

[Hm.]

Dante Cellini, disguised as a food critic, cut into a steak.

He speared a piece with his fork and placed it into his mouth.

NewBlack watched nervously with clasped hands.

[What do you think?]

The critic silently rinsed his mouth with wine before dabbing it with a napkin.

[Overcooked, but... nice.]

The members initially deflated upon hearing "overcooked."

Then their faces immediately lit up at the word "nice."

And, bringing the story full circle, the final title card appeared.

[OVERCOOKED]

As the names of the director and staff rolled beneath it, the music video came to an end like a short film.

Souffle stared blankly.

The video's over...

But the music wasn't.

Overcooked~ Overcooked~

We only cooked it a little longer~

A chorus they'd heard only once continued replaying in their heads like magic.

There was no easy way to explain it.

The unique sounds made by cooking utensils.

The incredible melody.

A genre that didn't fit neatly into electropop, trap pop, synth-pop, or anything else.

If someone asked what genre it was, the only reasonable answer would be:

NewBlack.

Listening to the song, Souffle swallowed hard.

The conclusion was painfully simple.

This... this feels like it's going to explode.

Their artists had just released something huge.

There was something creators always seemed to say in interviews.

Actors.

Drama writers.

People who made a living through creativity.

"We were told my acting felt too forced, so I relaxed this time. I never expected such a positive response. Thank you for loving Jungseok."

"After my previous drama failed, I basically shut my brain off and wrote whatever I wanted. Then it became a massive hit. My god."

A familiar story.

They stopped trying so hard.

Created freely.

And somehow produced their biggest success.

It was a famous rule among creators.

You succeed when you stop forcing it.

Most people didn't want to expend effort while consuming entertainment.

One of the reasons traditional television content requiring concentrated attention was struggling while MyTube flourished.

And now, Koreans were witnessing another example firsthand.

[Overcooked Seriously Feels Like A Crazy Song;;]

Honestly feels like Wooju just went "Let's have fun!" and wrote whatever he wanted

But the quality is absolutely insane lol

The song quality is ridiculous

It really feels effortless but somehow amazing

I don't know much about music but it won't leave my head

Overcooked~ Overcooked~

This is perfect for anyone whose favorite song was Goblin lol. That's me

The musical vibe of the MV was so goodㅠㅠㅠ Please do an actual musical concept someday

Everyone was excited.

Not just Souffle.

Ordinary listeners were reacting surprisingly positively as well.

And the reason was none other than NewBlack's self-proclaimed rival.

[Moonlight Debuts At No. 1 On Billboard Hot 100 With "Hot Shot" — "NewBlack Watching?"]

Moonlight had exploded this time.

Their new song All I Want, unveiled at the VMA Awards and based on a legendary classic, had become a massive success.

Driven by overwhelming streaming and download campaigns from American fans, combined with strong public streaming numbers, Moonlight had recently broken records for boy bands.

At that point, even ordinary Koreans were impressed.

"Aren't they the group America's pushing really hard these days?"

"Well, I guess NewBlack's glory days are over."

Most people honestly believed that beating this would be nearly impossible.

Not because they wanted NewBlack to lose.

Quite the opposite.

As the nation's idol group, seeing them lose would hurt.

So people were already preparing themselves emotionally.

"Eh, we knew it wasn't going to happen anyway."

But then—

"Oh."

"Oh...? Oh?"

Even people who knew nothing about music could tell there was something unusual about Overcooked.

They had already added it to their playlists.

There's definitely something here.

Koreans immediately began getting excited.

When do the American reactions come out??

Has anyone seen the US response yet?

Man... this seriously feels like a huge hit waiting to happen lol why am I nervous?

When are Overcooked reactions dropping?

Still too early

Why's everyone so impatient lol? It's not like foreigners sit around waiting exclusively for NewBlack MVs

While everyone impatiently waited for overseas reactions—

Souffle was screaming with happiness.

[Souffle!]

The members had gone live immediately after the music video release.

[I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I...]

...The stream lagged terribly at first.

But as viewers spread across Y app Live, Instagram, and MyTube, things gradually stabilized.

[What did you think of the Overcooked MV?]

[Let's see... "Oppa, your song is so good. I've been listening to it for five hours..." The song came out one hour ago??]

The members laughed while reading comments.

They look so happy.

They've definitely seen the reactions.

The fans had noticed.

There was no way the singers hadn't.

The flood of responses pouring in from every direction already felt unusual.

Even the members seemed a little excited.

[About Overcooked...]

While Wooju and his underlings enthusiastically shared behind-the-scenes stories like children showing off a new toy, Souffle browsed social media and online communities.

Then—

This is weird.

Normally by now there should've been posts saying:

"Am I the only one who thinks this sucks?"

But today was different.

NewBlack is honestly entering pop star territory

At this point they're beyond being idols based on career achievements alone

Calling them idols feels weird now lol. Feels like we're watching living legends

Wooju seriously cooked with this song

What is wrong with these people? Why are they complimenting them?

Fans of other idol groups were showering NewBlack with praise.

Especially fans of other boy groups.

"NewBlack is just on another level."

The comments left Souffle completely bewildered.

Unlike Souffle, however, those fans had a plan.

NewBlack needs to become untouchable.

Fans of nearly every top-tier boy group and girl group shared the same thought.

At this rate, our group will never become No. 1.

As long as NewBlack existed, no other boy group could claim the throne.

The only possible hope was a dating scandal.

But—

They're too big to fall from a dating scandal.

There wasn't even any evidence for one.

And even if there were, the fandom was so enormous it probably wouldn't matter.

Then someone pointed out the most terrifying issue.

Okay. Imagine a dating scandal happens.

Yeah?

Then Wooju is going to start writing love songs and breakup songs. Do you seriously think your group can beat that?

...

A horrifying scenario.

American pop stars often released career-defining albums after breakups or divorces.

And there was something even more important.

The era of NewBlack isn't ending.

When there was a dominant No. 1 group, most fandoms simply waited.

Eventually every fandom weakened.

Male idols had military service.

Time solved everything.

But NewBlack's real problem was that they had virtually no military hiatus.

The other members might enlist.

But Sun Wooju—the universally acknowledged core of NewBlack—had already completed his service.

A hit-making machine that would continue releasing songs under the NewBlack name indefinitely.

"..."

"..."

For idol fans, it was an unsolvable problem.

They couldn't beat NewBlack.

And they couldn't spend the next decade watching their favorite groups remain permanently stuck in second place.

So everyone reached the same conclusion.

Go higher!

Fans of Street Boys.

TeenSpirit.

Wonder Child.

Even fans of top girl group Serenity.

Everyone was united.

Please. Go even higher, NewBlack!

Normally, when a girl group became the biggest act, people would simply acknowledge:

"You're the queens of public popularity."

But NewBlack existed.

And so an unspoken agreement emerged.

Let's move NewBlack into a realm of its own.

Then we can argue about who's No. 1 among everyone else.

With that shared goal in mind, idol fans everywhere began enthusiastically praising NewBlack.

"Oh..."

"Oho..."

The Souffles who figured out the scheme smiled brightly.

Jackpot.

While other fandoms rolled out the red carpet, Souffle happily marched across it.

"Kyahahahaha!"

"Kyahaha!"

Souffle couldn't stop laughing.

What even is today?

Not only had Overcooked dropped.

NewUniverse had aired as well.

Content was overflowing.

And there was one thing they were looking forward to most.

Cha Woohyun VS Ri Hyuk

The highlight of Mission Singer.

The showdown the entire nation had been waiting for.

No. 1 on every real-time music chart.

Reports were already coming in that Overcooked was climbing rapidly overseas thanks to Souffle's efforts.

NewBlack's "Overcooked" receives overwhelming praise for its MV, achieves fastest-ever 100 million views

"Overcooked" finally unveiled, showcasing NewBlack's new artistic vision

"Overcooked" achieves all-kill across music platforms. "Is the industry watching?"

The news was filled with wonderful headlines.

Normally, they'd have been so happy they could've cried tears of joy while eating salad instead of meat.

But—

"..."

"..."

At that moment, the five of us were staring at the television with more tension than anyone else.

Biju spoke.

"I-I think Overcooked has daily chart No. 1 locked up at least."

I nodded.

Then Ri Hyuk quietly added,

"But maybe not the day after tomorrow."

"..."

"..."

We all turned our heads.

The live comment feed.

Souffle's biggest focus was naturally Overcooked.

The general public's wasn't.

AHHHHHH we're finally getting it todayㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

King of Singers vs God of Song

I ordered chicken just for this

Cha Woohyun is God! Cha Woohyun is God! Cha Woohyun is God!

Ri Hyuk is a carp! Ri Hyuk is a carp! Ri Hyuk is a carp!

Watching the endless flood of comments, we stared blankly into space.

Junghyun muttered,

"Weekly No. 1 might actually be in danger..."

"..."

"..."

As an English-language title track competing against domestic songs, it was enough to bring tears to our eyes.

"We have to beat both Yesterday's Poem and Halley? Songs that are coming out of the most anticipated competition in history?"

"Um..."

"Hm?"

Ri Hyuk hesitated.

"I don't think you remember this, but those aren't the only Korean songs."

"What else is there?"

"I took off my mask and sang Like The Sun too..."

"..."

All five of us slowly closed our eyes.

Poor Overcooked.

Its fate hung by a thread.

"Yalli yalli yallashyeong. Yallari yalla..."

All we could do was chant prayers and hope for the best.