Chapter 985: I Am the King of Singers, But...? (21)

"Biju hyung."

"Hm?"

"There's something I'm upset about."

"What is it...?"

On the video call, Biju's pretty face immediately turned worried.

Beside me, the crane flapped its wings indignantly.

"Why does this person's lunchbox have a ketchup heart on it?"

"Well...."

Biju looked faintly emotional.

"Because Wooju hyung has omelet rice, and yours is bulgogi...."

"......."

Ri Hyuk suddenly found himself at a loss for words and sulked in silence while I leaned toward the video call screen.

"Don't worry about it, Biju. This is just Ri Hyuk's usual pettiness."

"No, it was my mistake. I should've at least arranged the perilla seeds on Ri Hyuk's rice into a heart shape...."

"Aigoo, our sweet Biju.... How did you end up with younger brothers like these...?"

"Did you enjoy the food, hyung?"

"Yeah."

I brightly showed him the completely cleaned-out lunchbox.

As Biju happily smiled from beyond the screen—

Junghyun and Jiho suddenly popped into view.

"How'd it go? How'd it go? Wooju hyung, did you make it to the King of Singers match?"

"You made it?"

"Not yet."

Jiho asked curiously,

"Who are you facing in Round 3? Is it someone difficult?"

"Hmm...."

The face of the Braised Soy Sauce mask flashed through my mind.

"I'll just have to do my best."

"What? Who is it? Who are you facing?"

"That's still a spoiler, so I'm not telling you."

"Hing."

The youngest pouted dramatically while trying to squeeze the answer out of me, but it was useless.

Junghyun spoke up.

"If you win the finals now, you'll face Ri Hyuk, hyung."

"Right."

"Hmm... NewBlack versus NewBlack. Who should we even root for?"

The moment the members started seriously 고민ing over who to support, Ri Hyuk and I both sharpened our senses.

We spoke at the same time.

"In competitions like this, you're supposed to root for the underdog. That's how underdog narratives work."

"Honestly, you should be rooting for me. Singing is my specialty. This guy just joined because he was bored."

The judging panel answered immediately.

"We should root for Ri Hyuk."

"Me too."

"Same."

At the unanimous declaration that they'd support Ri Hyuk, I could only blink blankly.

Even Biju was avoiding my eyes.

"Why...?"

Jiho explained.

"I imagined this scene. Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk defeats King of Singers Sun Wooju and becomes overflowing with confidence. Then he starts poking around in acting too. Like, 'Ah, if I beat him in singing, maybe acting isn't impossible either?' Then he goes to Cannes... wins an Oscar... and I'm crying while eating tteokbokki...."

"......."

"We have to stop that timeline from happening... that's basically how we feel."

Ri Hyuk nodded like that made perfect sense, and Biju and Junghyun did the same.

"Hey, even if I catch up to you guys, there's still such a thing as limits...."

Stare!

Stare!

"...There isn't?"

Nod.

Nod nod.

"I see...."

Suddenly, I felt bitter.

I'd come onto a survival show, yet not a single member was rooting for me.

"Biju, even you...."

"I was originally going to support you, hyung. But...."

"But?"

"When I found out you'd told only Jiho about this a week ago, and only told me and Kim Junghyun last night, I changed my mind."

"......."

No matter how I looked at it, I was at a disadvantage here, so I decided to let it go.

Meanwhile, the three members on the screen clenched their fists and started cheering.

"Alright! Then let's all cheer together! King of Singers Sun Wooju fighting!"

"Crush Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk! King of Singers Sun Wooju!"

"Sun Wooju! Sun Wooju!"

I exploded in outrage at the blatantly biased cheering for King of Singers Sun Wooju while Ri Hyuk practically vibrated with joy.

"You ungrateful little...!"

"Kya-ha-ha!"

The lackeys shouted even louder.

"King of Singers Sun Wooju!"

"Wooju hyung! Beat Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk—"

"King of Singers Sun Wooju fighti—"

Then the lackeys abruptly froze.

Something in their heads had suddenly gotten tangled.

"Wait...."

While the staff clapped and laughed, Ri Hyuk and I tilted our heads.

"Huh?"

"Huh??"

Something felt weird again.

Filming resumed.

As audience members returned after dinner, musical actor Jang Jaerim stood in the waiting room dramatically monologuing to himself.

"Ah... cursed fate of tragic Jaerimius...! Why did heaven create me, only to also create Korea's number one hip-hop artist?!"

He called over his stylist, whose surname happened to be Oh.

"Answer me, Ophelia. What should I do...?!"

"Just sing your best, oppa."

"Sob...."

"You've already lost anyway. This is basically one of those 'omae wa mou shindeiru' situations."

The other staff members didn't even try to argue and simply nodded.

"Die honorably, Braised Soy Sauce."

"At this point, honestly, you can say you lost well."

No one offered encouragement like, "You never know, maybe you can win."

For some reason, that made him even sadder.

"I knew my luck had been too good...!"

He finally understood how Kim Cheomji had felt.

It truly had been an incredibly lucky day.

The bracket had worked out perfectly, letting him avoid powerful championship candidates like ballad singer Dokgo Young and band vocalist Jo Yuri.

'If luck was going to carry me this far, couldn't it have carried me just a little further?! Of all people, I had to meet Wooju...!'

To be honest, he genuinely couldn't think of any way to beat Sun Wooju.

"At this point, I just need to reduce the score gap as much as possible."

"You really think that's possible?"

Ignoring the steadfast attempts around him to crush his spirit, Jang Jaerim put on the Braised Soy Sauce mask.

His voice emerged through the voice changer.

"I'll reduce the score gap as much as possible and die honorably. Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk is definitely letting his guard down right now."

The reason was simple.

"He's probably relaxed because he got an easy opponent in Round 3. But I, Braised Soy Sauce, will strike that blind spot."

Honestly, most people would've thought the same.

If you faced a weaker opponent like him in Round 3, wouldn't anyone naturally loosen up at least a little?

He was happily dancing around to himself when—

Knock knock.

An FD opened the door.

"Braised Soy Sauce, we're filming the Round 3 VCR now."

"Okaaay~ Braised Soy Sauce is coming."

Following the managers' guidance, the Braised Soy Sauce mask walked out into the hallway.

The crane mask was already waiting there.

Braised Soy Sauce greeted him politely, and the crane returned the greeting politely.

Then—

"We're starting filming."

Braised Soy Sauce approached first.

"Korea's number one hip-hop artist. Your journey may have been easy until now, but defeating me, Braised Soy Sauce, will not be simple!"

Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk responded.

"I never once thought it would be easy."

"I see!"

The crane began rummaging around near his side before pulling out a book.

"Braised soy sauce beef. A dish made by simmering beef in soy sauce. Typically prepared by cutting lean cuts such as eye round into large chunks and boiling them in water. Also known as the signature specialty dish of Kim Biju, master chef and friend to all people living alone. Perfectly salty, especially when eaten over rice soaked in broth — Kim Biju's recipe."

"!"

"Are you perhaps curious?"

"Yes!"

At the mention of Biju's recipe, everyone widened their eyes and prepared to take notes.

Then the crane spoke smugly.

"Unfortunately, the margins were too narrow to write it downda."

'What is this, Fermat's Last Theorem?'

'That way of speaking is so annoying....'

'The crane's personality is exactly why the fox served him food in weird dishes.'

After successfully squeezing in some younger-brother promotion, Sun Wooju's crane mask issued his challenge.

"They say tension fades as competitions go onyo. But I will absolutely not allow myself to become carelessda."

The crane spread its arms wide like opening its wings.

"In today's Round 3, I will show you everything I haveda. Sunbaenim."

The Braised Soy Sauce mask slowly closed its eyes.

'I'm screwed.'

Far from being careless, the crane practically radiated determination to kill him with its absolute best effort.

All he could do was silently cry.

"Heh heh heh. I look forward to it...."

'Sob.'

The Braised Soy Sauce mask wept mournfully.

I believed that giving your all against your opponent — whether stronger or weaker — was basic respect.

The world of competition was cold.

If you held back just because your opponent was slightly weaker than you, how disappointed would they feel?

So in the finals that followed, I gave it everything I had.

"Now! The grand finals result is...!"

Our scores appeared on the electronic display.

Luxury Supporting Actor Braised Soy Sauce 4

Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk 96

"Huh...?!"

Even I was startled by the overwhelming score difference.

The Braised Soy Sauce mask cried while walking offstage.

"Sob...."

'Sunbaenim...!'

"Sob sob sob...."

The audience burst out laughing at the deeply wounded figure of the Braised Soy Sauce mask walking away.

His back practically seemed to say, "Wooju 씨... this is too cruel...."

I felt genuinely sorry.

The commentators marveled.

"As expected of Korea's number one hip-hop artist. No matter who stands before him, he'll crush them completely with his performance."

"The world of competition truly is cold indeed. Hahaha."

"Terrifying. Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk."

Even though they were talking about me, everyone burst out laughing because King of Singers Sun Wooju sitting on the throne was awkwardly staring off into the distance.

Then—

After the post-match comments ended, all eyes focused on me.

"Now! The most important question!"

The commentators asked,

"Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk! Will you challenge the King of Singers?"

I slowly lifted the microphone.

As everyone watched my every movement, trying to predict my answer, I deliberately opened my mouth slowly for dramatic tension.

"I...."

Everyone unconsciously pursed their lips while staring up at me.

Then—

"I will challenge the King of Singers."

A huge roar exploded through the concert hall.

As people shouted "Hip-hop! Hip-hop!" in excitement, I mischievously danced around flapping my wings.

Then, while preparations began for the revival round before the King of Singers match—

As I stepped offstage, I made eye contact with the four eliminated contestants waiting below.

"Fighting!"

"Korea's number one hip-hop artist fighting!"

"You can do it!"

I bowed politely toward the others while walking down the hallway.

As I passed the wolf mask silently standing in the corner with crossed arms, I gave a light greeting.

It felt like I heard faint muttering from her, but my attention was somewhere else entirely.

"Hoo...."

Back in the waiting room, I removed my mask and took a deep breath.

Wonseok hyung asked,

"Nervous?"

"Yeah."

"I would be too."

Soon, I'd be facing the strongest opponent I'd encountered so far.

Against the other contestants, my mindset had basically been, 'Don't get careless and do your best.'

But—

"I at least need to make it look competitive against Ri Hyuk...."

Honestly, by my own objective evaluation, Ri Hyuk's current skill level could probably produce an 80-to-20 score.

My goal was simply reducing that gap down to something closer to 70-to-30 or maybe 60-to-40.

"Seriously, I couldn't find an answer. Strategies only work when the skill gap between you and your opponent isn't massive."

"Is the gap really that big?"

"In my opinion."

Strategy only mattered when I overwhelmingly outclassed the other side, or when our levels weren't too far apart.

Right now, the image of Ri Hyuk smiling in my imagination looked like some kind of ultimate vocal demon king.

"Hmm."

After briefly tensing up, I swallowed and spoke.

"I practiced hard, and I built my strategy. At this point, all I can do is give it my absolute best. With the determination to carve away my own bones...."

I intended to treat today's stage like the final performance of my career.

Seeing that expression on my face, Wonseok hyung smiled.

"But you're not the only nervous one right now."

"Huh?"

"Ri Hyuk is probably just as nervous."

"Him?"

The revival round took place after Round 3.

"And the final winner of the revival round is...!"

Four singers stood onstage as the contestant surviving into next week was finally announced.

"Husky Voice Forsythia!"

The lights on the other three contestants went dark, and the singer in the forsythia mask bowed deeply.

The audience was pleased.

"Thank god."

"Heo Heejin survived in the end."

It was female rock vocalist Heo Heejin, who'd narrowly lost to ballad singer Dokgo Young in Round 1.

Many people had regretted her elimination because the two had been so evenly matched that the result had basically come down to preference.

While everyone celebrated her survival—

"Hello. I'm Jo Yuri from Jo Yuri Band. I appeared as Lonely Wolf...."

The contestants removed their masks one by one and shared their elimination thoughts.

The audience applauded as Jo Yuri spoke with reddened eyes, saying she'd enjoyed herself.

'Jo Yuri was unlucky too.'

'If only her mentality hadn't collapsed....'

It seemed the Round 1 elimination had hit her hard, because her revival-round performance had looked unstable.

As the eliminated contestants continued sharing their thoughts—

'Hurry...!'

'Ah, I want to see it already....'

The audience's hearts pounded as though they might burst.

A truly historic stage was approaching.

King of Singers Sun Wooju VS Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk

Two members from the same group, both possessing King of Singers-level skill, fighting each other in disguise while using each other's names.

Every break had been filled with heated debates.

"Ri Hyuk wins, right?"

"I think it's Sun Wooju."

"Wouldn't King of Singers Sun Wooju win?"

"Right. The odds of Ri Hyuk winning are...."

"Wait, wait. First we need to define the terminology. So King of Singers Sun Wooju and Sun Wooju are...."

Naturally, terminology clarification came first.

Once that was settled, audience members exchanged opinions while even the celebrity panelists whispered among themselves.

"Wow, this is genuinely historic. Has a group ever had two members battle each other vocally like this before?"

"Who do you think wins?"

"This has to be King of Singers Sun Wooju, right? He is the King of Singers, after all."

"But Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk...."

Purely in terms of skill, it felt like Seo Ri Hyuk should probably win.

But honestly, Sun Wooju didn't feel like someone who'd go down easily.

From Round 1 through Round 3, he'd changed his vocal style slightly every single round, showing entirely different performances each time.

No one knew what he'd pull out in Round 4.

"Hmm...."

"I think we need to see the stage first."

Most people leaned toward Seo Ri Hyuk winning, though the prevailing opinion remained, 'But you never know.'

Then—

"You've waited a long time for this!"

At the commentators' words, hearts throughout the audience began pounding.

'Holy shit, I'm actually witnessing this live....'

'As a Souffle, I can die here happy today.'

'This is insane.'

Then the contestant stepped onto the stage.

"The challenger stepping onto the stage to face the 43rd King of Singers, King of Singers Sun Wooju!"

"Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk!"

"Who will become the 44th King of Singers? Will King of Singers Sun Wooju maintain his title through the 43rd and 44th reigns? Or will Korea's number one hip-hop artist Seo Ri Hyuk ascend as the new King of Singers?!"

"It begins now!"

A deafening roar shook the hall.

After briefly declaring his determination to do his best, the crane mask loosened up and took his position.

The Souffle fans nodded.

'Wooju's nervous.'

Others in the audience might not notice, but they could see the slight tension in Wooju's body.

It was the first visible nervousness he'd shown all day.

As the Souffle fans unconsciously clenched their hands while watching Sun Wooju lightly flex the hand holding the microphone—

'It's starting...!'

'It's starting!'

The lights dimmed, and cheers already erupted.

A quiet piano melody began.

As the audience's cheering slowly subsided, a spotlight fell onto Wooju standing in the darkness.

Then a low voice began its narration.

"Toward autumn,

my youth dies beautifully like a flower."

A famous line from the poem Falling Blossoms echoed as narration, drawing immediate cheers.

The atmosphere already hit hard enough that some audience members closed their eyes.

Wooju placed a hand over his chest and lifted the microphone.

I didn't know where I was supposed to go

The road I was walking

Was no longer

My road anymore

His voice echoed emptily through an atmosphere carrying the loneliness of autumn wind.

The wandering and depression of youth.

It was Satellite, originally sung by famous rock singer Choi Yujin.

At the very first verse, the audience already fell into it.

"Wow...."

There were times

When everything felt certain

Satellite was a song about the original artist's wandering youth.

A drifting adolescence.

When they were younger, everything had felt clear.

But now that they'd reached youth, why did everything suddenly feel so frightening and uncertain?

That was the song's theme.

The "star" symbolized life's goal.

But—

Until now, I'd spent my life running toward the stars in the night sky, only to realize those stars weren't stars at all, but satellites.

Then where was I supposed to go now?

Unlike childhood, the body had already matured, and nothing physically blocked the road ahead anymore.

Yet it was a song about the wandering confusion of youth unable to decide where to go.

The emotionally charged voice slowly lifted each ending note.

Where should I go

Where am I supposed to return to

I've simply been

Left behind alone—

His voice scattered like dry leaves caught in the wind, carrying a wild charm.

Unlike Seo Ri Hyuk's technically perfect style, Sun Wooju sang this song with a freer vocal approach that intentionally stepped outside convention.

Was he singing while recalling his own wandering years?

As his deep voice stirred memories of youth within each audience member—

"......."

Standing backstage watching the performance, the sunflower mask grabbed the back of its neck.

'This guy seriously....'

Advice the other person had once given him echoed through his ears.

"Ri Hyuk. What should I do when I meet an opponent I can't easily beat on a survival show?"

"Hmm...."

"In situations like that, the answer is simple. You make it difficult for the audience to judge."

"Difficult?"

"You turn it into a matter of taste instead of skill. Vocal color, genre, atmosphere... you stop people from being able to judge easily."

That was exactly what was happening.

Sun Wooju's rock ballad captivated the audience with emotional yet slightly wild vocals.

Watching the eldest brother pour his heart into the stage, it almost felt like a message was reaching him.

'I will stop you with everything I have.'

Facing that determination, Seo Ri Hyuk smiled coldly.

'But that doesn't mean I'll go down easily—'

The moment he thought that, Sun Wooju's vocals exploded upward with overwhelming force.

'Still, I—'

The voice grew bigger and bigger.

'No matter what, my—'

"WAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"......."

The audience's screams.

Audience members beginning to cry.

Applause erupting naturally.

'Wow, this bastard really came prepared!'

Seo Ri Hyuk exploded with rage once again!