Chapter 906: Hey, where is this? Yes. This is Newniverse. (6)

Laughter burst out at me for shouting “Goblin” instead of the correct answer, “Sun Wooju.”

Hanjo clapped.

“Right. That was a very sincere self-introduction.”

“No.”

Senior Lee Gyeonwoo and Taehyeon were laughing too.

“I think I explained it pretty well. It was so easy I thought you’d obviously get it.”

“You actually got that wrong?”

At the team members clicking their tongues, I protested.

“No.”

This wasn’t my fault.

“Didn’t you describe it in a way that anyone would misunderstand? It’s completely different from who I am in real life.”

“In what way?”

“Well, saying I like singing—that part is true. But what do you mean I surprise people with weird songs?”

At that, the members and guests all started talking at once.

Jiho shouted.

“Me! I have a witness story! I was walking down the company hallway at dawn and suddenly from behind I heard ‘Grrr—’ following me. He said it was some Mongolian rock band song or something. It was seriously scary. Grrr....”

“He goes around singing alien music from movies.”

It was true, so I couldn’t argue.

Mongolian throat singing does sound a bit creepy at night.

“And Hanjo. It’s true I make things here and there, but what do you mean I use magic?”

“You use transformation, don’t you?”

...Depending on how you look at it, that might be true.

Realizing what kind of intention was behind those explanations, I quietly retreated to the corner.

Ri Hyuk spoke.

“He’s not addressing whether it’s true that he bullies other people.”

“He knows it’s true.”

“When things get disadvantageous, Wooju hyung just glosses over it. That’s his trait.”

People burst into laughter at me pretending not to hear.

“You’ve worked hard!”

“Eat!”

“Woooooah!”

Finally, it was time to eat.

Everyone looked starving, having poured out their energy and mental strength during the games.

The sun was already setting.

“It’ll take a little longer for the main menu to arrive.”

Producer Gu Jaeyoung said.

“In the meantime, we’ll set up the basic menu first. Starting with Junghyun’s Magic Barbecue!”

“Woooooah!”

Thick pork neck cuts, beef steaks, sausages, and marshmallows were laid out, drawing everyone’s attention.

Teen Spirit’s Hahyun beamed.

“Marshmallows!”

“You like them?”

“I’ve always wanted to try roasting marshmallows!”

Everyone smiled at how cute he looked, probably screaming inside, ‘This is freaking exciting!’

As we approached the fire pit stacked with firewood, people watched us with anticipation.

“Are we finally going to see flint?”

“They might show that thing from NewBlack TV. You know, lighting a fire with sticks like papapap.”

“Every time I saw flint on NewBlack TV I was so curious what it’s actually like.”

Seeing their excitement, probably because we often used flint on NewBlack TV, I spoke.

“Um, everyone.”

“Yes!”

“We also use... the benefits of modern civilization.”

Everyone burst into laughter.

Biju laughed.

“We actually tried practicing beforehand, but it really didn’t work. We couldn’t light the firewood like that.”

“It’s hard.”

Actor Nam Dohun, who said he camps often, added,

“Even with a gas torch, it doesn’t catch easily. Firewood is harder to light than you think.”

“Really?”

While the guests were talking, Junghyun placed a paper cup with oil-soaked tissue among the logs.

The fire caught instantly and flared up.

As smoke rose, Junghyun started grilling meat.

Sssizzle—

“Hooo....”

“That looks so good.”

Junghyun twisted his body playfully while sprinkling salt, making everyone laugh.

Naturally, it tasted amazing.

“You grill meat insanely well.”

“Wow, it just goes down so easily.”

The atmosphere was warm and lively.

Meanwhile, more dishes began to arrive.

“Cockle bibimbap is here!”

“Over here!”

“This table!”

The nutty aroma of sesame oil drifted from the cockle bibimbap.

Grilled eel from Paju.

Chuncheon dakgalbi and makguksu.

The staff joined in eating as well, and laughter filled the space.

Biju looked around and smiled.

“Ah, this is nice....”

“Right?”

“I love that there are so many people.”

About forty to fifty people eating together—it made Biju look genuinely happy.

Of course, eating didn’t mean work was over, so we kept filling the audio.

Since everyone was a broadcaster, they were pulling their share of footage.

“Hello. I’m Seok Jihoon from TNT. I’ve come to your table on official business.”

“You’re here for a bite, aren’t you?”

“That’s correct. What should I do? Aegyo?”

“Do a somersault.”

Jihoon spread his arms like wings and spun in a circle, doing aegyo.

I asked with a disdainful expression,

“What was that?”

“I can’t do a somersault, so I showed you a bird spinning in the air.”

“Rejected. Go back.”

As he sulked and turned away, we laughed and pulled him back, feeding him a big bite of marinated crab bibimbap.

Meanwhile, Jiho walked confidently to our table with a spoon.

“Me too.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m cute.”

“!”

It was a convincing reason, so I gave him a bite.

In that way, we exchanged bites and played mini-games to fill content.

After everyone had eaten enough, we moved into talk time.

“We should do some promotion too!”

People with things to promote stepped in front of the camera.

“Sunbae.”

“Let’s go.”

For our Hallyu star who had made a big decision to appear on variety, I stepped forward.

Seok Jihoon and our youngest joined to promote their film as well.

With the two guests standing, Jiho and I spoke.

“NewBlack visual line—movie versus movie.”

“Objection.”

Junghyun raised his hand.

“I believe I am also part of the visual line.”

“Denied.”

“Yes.”

Junghyun quietly withdrew again.

I pointed at Senior Lee Gyeonwoo.

“There is a man here. He wakes up inside a car by a dark lakeside with no memory. In the Korea he wakes up in, something very strange is happening. There isn’t a single person left.”

Senior Lee Gyeonwoo acted as the film’s protagonist, gazing into the distance.

“There are no cars on the roads, no people in the city. Only silence. As he wanders through an empty Seoul, he finally senses another human presence!”

“!”

As everyone focused—

Jiho stepped forward.

“Next film! Here we have a civil service exam candidate studying in a reading room during an unprecedented disaster!”

We introduced the films in an exciting way, making everyone react.

“Ah, I really need to go to the movies.”

“That looks fun.”

“Can I be invited as a guest when my movie releases?”

Various promotions continued.

Taehyeon and Jihoon stood together.

“Next month, right? TNT will be making a full-group comeback in early June. The teaser will probably be out around the time New Universe airs.”

“Please show us lots of love!”

They also promoted their upcoming concert.

Returning to his seat, Taehyeon asked,

“You’ll come, right?”

“Yeah. Of course.”

I said I’d even send a big congratulatory wreath, which made him smile.

After everyone finished their promotions, we chatted while eating snacks like marshmallows and roasted chestnuts.

“When people open a restaurant, they ask acquaintances for feedback, right? We also need your opinions about New Universe.”

These were people active across the entertainment industry, each with valuable experience.

At our request, they offered ideas.

“Phone reveal content? Like showing what apps you use—wouldn’t that be fun? Though maybe that’s too invasive.”

“A chase game among NewBlack would be fun.”

“What about disguising yourselves and walking around? Whoever gets recognized first loses.”

“How about a music variety special?”

Even in the casual atmosphere, we got some good ideas.

As the conversation deepened, more serious topics came up.

We also gave advice.

“How do you manage your time? With packed schedules, I don’t even know what to prioritize.”

“Well, we...”

It seemed our acquaintances were just as curious about us.

How we balanced practice and schedules.

How we handled pressure while maintaining our careers.

After conversations suitable for broadcast editing, we wrapped up filming the New Universe special.

“It’s time to say goodbye.”

“Huh?”

Senior Jang Sowon checked his watch, surprised.

“Seriously? It’s already this late?”

“Yes. It’s gotten pretty late.”

The forest had grown dark.

The sweat from earlier had cooled, making it slightly chilly.

With everyone putting on outerwear, I pointed past the camera.

“The managers are here too.”

“Oh, they are.”

“You can relax now. You were nervous riding in our cars, right?”

We told the laughing guests,

“On the way back, you’ll be riding safely with your managers. So don’t worry.”

“Still, you all did great.”

“You drive well.”

Even if we were good drivers, we were still beginners.

We thanked those who had helped us nervously from the passenger seats.

“The people here probably know us very well. You passed the NewBlack mock exam with high scores. Honestly, that’s impossible without affection for us.”

We looked at our acquaintances.

Looking at Taehyeon, Hanjo, and Senior Lee Gyeonwoo, I said,

“As much as you watch us, we want you to know that we’re watching you too.”

“With that in mind, we prepared gifts.”

Junghyun brought gift packages, and everyone clapped happily.

We handed out gifts to each team.

I gave Taehyeon a cushion.

“Your back seemed to hurt lately. You looked uncomfortable in the car earlier, so I gave you one then too. This is the same kind. It’s a backrest sold overseas—really effective.”

“Hyung....”

He looked teary-eyed.

“Thanks, hyung.”

“Yeah.”

“But... did it have to be floral...?”

“Plain ones are boring.”

Holding the floral cushion, Taehyeon looked... happy(?).

After finishing the gifts—

“Alright! Great job everyone! Shall we end with a cheer?”

“New Universe! May the ratings be a hit!”

“Woooooah!”

As everyone waved at the camera—

“Wow!”

“Look over there!”

Drones rose into the sky, forming the words “New Universe.”

Everyone gasped.

“Wow. There’s even a drone show for a variety program.”

“You prepared this too?”

We nodded.

“Yes. It’s for you.”

We smiled warmly.

‘We can never tell them this was leftover from paying for the concert drone show....’

‘This is a secret.’

After finishing the New Universe shoot—

we took a full day off to prepare for the second shoot.

“Don’t do anything. Just breathe.”

“Hoo ha hoo ha.”

“Let’s practice choreography while lying down.”

Next, it was time to drive with Souffle.

The first shoot had gone well.

“Looks like we got about three weeks’ worth.”

Now we would film another two to three weeks of content with Souffle.

Although New Universe aired weekly, filming was irregular due to our schedules.

So we planned to select items that could produce long segments.

“If needed, we can go seasonal.”

“A seasonal format sounds good.”

New Universe 1, New Universe 2—it didn’t sound bad.

While thinking about that, I looked at my phone.

[No.1] NewBlack – Midnight Sun

Midnight Sun was still holding No.1 on the Mango Chart.

Then my eyes widened.

“Oh.”

I thought the B-side would be second place, but an unexpected track was high up.

“Lullaby is here.”

Jiho said,

“That song is really popular lately. People say it helps them sleep.”

“I see.”

“I tried listening to it when I couldn’t sleep.”

“Yeah?”

“But since it’s your voice, I couldn’t fall asleep....”

We burst into laughter.

“It felt like you were whispering, ‘Jiho, can’t sleep? You should be practicing...’”

What sounded like “sleep well” to others sounded like “can’t sleep?” to Jiho.

After checking the rankings, I looked at the Billboard Hot 100.

“It dropped compared to last week.”

Midnight Sun had entered high despite the disadvantage of a Monday release, but now it was falling.

A different pattern from METRO.

“But that’s normal.”

It shouldn’t stay high.

Unless Americans suddenly thought, “Wow! The greatness of Korean!” and started learning Korean, a Korean song staying high could cause backlash.

“Why is this always so high on the chart?”

Since we were separating Korean and US promotions anyway, the US performance of Korean songs wasn’t that important.

Still, it was fascinating.

“...Looks like we really gained a lot of fans in the US.”

After METRO, the North American fandom had clearly grown.

After checking global performance—

“Alright, meeting again.”

We jumped up and spread out a map of Gyeonggi Province.

Ri Hyuk marked routes with a highlighter, with sticky notes all around.

At the top:

[Safe and Happy Drive Plan with Souffle!]

“Let’s go over the route again.”

“First, we take Olympic Boulevard...”

We prepared thoroughly for the next shoot.

Thump. Thump.

Souffle wearing smartwatches looked at their screens.

[Heart rate: High]

It was only natural.

‘I’m so nervous.’

‘This is insane.’

‘Seriously... I’m going crazy....’

Souffle were known for having thick skin and strong mental resilience.

They endured all kinds of embarrassing content from their idols.

But—

‘Still, this is nerve-wracking.’

A chance to ride in a car driven by their idols.

And for a nationally broadcast show.

“Hello.”

“Ah, hello.”

Souffle gathered at the meeting spot, greeting each other.

There was a sense of camaraderie.

They had passed a mock exam, been selected, and even interviewed.

“I saw photos the other day—they were riding in the celebrities’ cars.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Then we’ll be riding with the members... I’m so nervous.”

No one knew who would pick them up.

“Did you check the introversion option?”

“Yes! I checked it.”

“Me too.”

“Same here.”

The Souffle smiled.

‘An introvert gathering!’

Many introverted fans felt pressured being in a small car with their idol.

They said there would be special arrangements.

Then—

“Hello. Is this the meeting spot?”

“Yes.”

More people kept arriving.

‘Isn’t that too many for one car?’

“Um... are you introverted too?”

“Yes!”

They gathered—

“Hmm?”

“A car is coming.”

“Really?”

But something was strange.

‘Why... is it so big?’

A large vehicle approached.

It was a small bus.

“?”

“??”

The bus stopped.

Clunk—

The door opened slowly.

Inside—

white gloves, brown sunglasses.

A handsome man dressed like a bus driver smiled.

“Hello.”

Junghyun greeted them.

“I’m Kim Junghyun, licensed for large vehicles.”

“!”

“!!”

Junghyun had prepared a bus to pick up the introverted fans.