Chapter 162 - 161: Though It’s a 9-Member Group, 10 Members Have More Soul

Chapter 162: Chapter 161: Though It’s a 9-Member Group, 10 Members Have More Soul

The first trainee to take the stage brought a sweet little love song. His sugary vocals carried through the microphone, washing over the audience and setting a romantic mood that left everyone yearning for a sweet romance of their own.

"Bestie, I think I want to fall in love..."

A girl sitting behind Rian Sinclair listened in absolute intoxication. Clutching a hand over her racing heart, her eyes overflowed with tenderness.

The friend who had accompanied her to the live show rolled her eyes dramatically. "You don’t deserve it.

"You say you want to date, but if you actually did, you’d complain. If a guy asked you out to dinner, you’d say he’s interrupting your reading. If he asked you out to have fun, you’d say he’s getting in the way of your TV shows. If he asked you to a movie or shopping, you’d say he’s keeping you from scrolling through videos.

"Basically, dating is an inconvenience, but when you’re single, all you do is talk about wanting to date. Take my advice, bestie: don’t go ruining some poor guy’s life. Your species is meant to be single forever."

(Ian: I wonder if any readers out there are exactly like this.)

"Ha, ha, ha. You really are my best friend."

Her friend’s ruthless roast was like a bucket of ice water poured directly over her head. The sudden urge to fall in love vanished without a trace.

The performances continued, one after another.

The solo stages passed at a steady pace. Once they concluded, the performers all returned to the stage to present the performance of the finalized nine-member debut lineup to the fans.

Rian looked at the ten young men on stage, each chasing their own dreams. Her criteria for selecting talents was simple—

As long as you had the skill, you would debut.

With her, there was no such thing as being controlled by corporate capital. After all, Rian herself was the capital.

Seeing the ten of them take the stage together, the fans in the audience waved their glow sticks with wild enthusiasm. These were the boys they had been following and supporting for so long! Tears shimmered in the fans’ eyes; after all, they had personally voted these boys into this position, one ballot at a time.

After the host finished speaking, it was time for the ten trainees to introduce themselves.

The boy standing next to the host took the microphone. "Hello everyone, I’m Levi Forrest from LE. Please enjoy our upcoming performance."

"I’m Ronan Rhodes, and I’m still working hard! I’m so happy to stand here and shine alongside my teammates!"

"Hello, my name is Ken Miller. Thank you for being here. I love you all!"

...

Ian Neal took the microphone, waving his arm at the audience below. "Hello everyone, I’m Ian Neal, the captain of LE. I’m incredibly grateful to ’Idol Debut’ for giving me this massive platform to stand on and allowing me to receive so much love. Please continue to support us in the future!"

As the trainee with the longest training period among the group, Ian Neal’s eyes brimmed with tears upon seeing the final results.

Shouts rang out from the fans in the crowd. "Don’t cry, Ian! You’re amazing!"

Now it was the last person’s turn. Ian Neal passed the microphone to the next boy, who was also the first one to sing the sweet song. The boy took it, waved to the fans, and said,

"There are so many people here today! Basking in the glory of my teammates and Sagan, I’m Dylan Summers. I hope everyone will give us lots of support!"

The cheers from the fans grew louder in waves. Though Rian wasn’t entirely used to this kind of atmosphere, watching the young men sweat it out on stage, backed by a crowd of people who adored them, was a truly wonderful feeling.

As the host’s voice faded, he left the stage to them. The nine shining boys began to radiate their own unique brilliance.

The stage lights dimmed. The nine of them quickly moved to their designated marks and struck their opening poses.

Then, as the music swelled and the lights flashed, their performance began.

Since this was their final show, everyone had gathered to rehearse together. After a week of high-intensity training, the nine members’ dance moves were sharp, synchronized, and powerful, showing off excellent musicality and rhythm.

Their overall singing and dancing were top-tier. Unlike some idol groups where the main vocalist might have shaky breath control or the dancers might rush the beat, this group was solid. Of course, since everyone’s eyes were glued to their favorite idols, fans would naturally overlook any minor flaws, focusing entirely on their biases and completely missing any mistakes made by others anyway.

As the veteran with the longest training time, Ian Neal had taken the center position many times before. However, he wasn’t the center this time. He had voluntarily given it up, wanting to leave more opportunities for his younger brothers.

Yet, his eye-catching performance made him look like the center regardless. He controlled his strength perfectly, balancing tension and relaxation so he never seemed to be trying too hard. Every movement felt entirely natural as he sparkled on stage.

The others performed exceptionally well too. Watching them, Rian felt that in this group performance, everyone was a center.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"

Both live and online fans screamed together. They all thought the boys looked incredibly handsome singing and dancing tonight. Just as Ian Neal’s fans were deeply mesmerized by him, convinced that no one could surpass him, chairs were brought onto the stage. Realizing instantly what the next part of the choreography would be, they collectively held their breath, not even daring to exhale.

Staff members quickly hurried onto the stage, arranged ten transparent chairs in a straight line, and swiftly exited.

The fans didn’t notice the extra chair, but Rian did. Her lips curved into a faint smile. She took it in but ultimately said nothing, simply continuing to watch the show.

Following the melody and hitting every beat, the nine boys stylishly sat down on the chairs. The very next second, Sagan’s face appeared on the large screen. His already handsome features were twisted into an impossibly alluring expression, so captivating it could steal a person’s soul.

That’s right, this was a little Easter egg.

It was also a slight gimmick from the production team. Originally, the premise of the show was to debut a ten-member group. However, yielding to the demands of the viewing audience, they later established a single spot for a solo center debut. Sagan had been miles ahead of the competition, easily securing that solo center spot.

As a result, many fans felt it was a huge pity not to see the ten of them perform as a group. For this final show, Sagan had initially planned to forfeit his grand finale solo stage, requesting the General Director to let him join this group performance instead. This move perfectly fulfilled the fans’ dearest wishes.

But the General Director had refused his forfeit.

Instead, he declared that the solo performance had to stay, but doing a ten-member group performance as well was a great idea.

And just like that, the highly anticipated ten-member group performance was brought to life on stage!

Rian’s lips curled up slightly. It was a brilliant idea, and the secret had been kept spectacularly well; neither she nor Quentin had heard a peep about it.

Sagan’s long legs moved to the rhythm as his upper body executed a subtle body wave. The collar of his shirt pulled taut with the motion, the buttons looking like they might pop off at any second. His sculpted pectorals pressed against the slightly sheer fabric, tantalizingly visible.

Moving to the fast-paced beat, Sagan grabbed his collar with his right hand and thrust his hips upward. In sync with the rhythm, he stood up from the chair. Turning his back to the audience, he kicked the chair away, planted his feet, and glanced slightly over his shoulder, exposing a deadly profile and a razor-sharp jawline.

The performance wasn’t over yet. The ten boys shifted formations again, each taking a turn for a brief solo sequence. The fans were completely losing their minds over Sagan’s surprise appearance.

They were truly outstanding; every single one of them possessed immense talent.

The live stream was flooded with a barrage of comments taking over the screen.

[HOLY CRAP! Kick me, Sagan! Kick me! I’m begging you to kick me!]

[WAAAH! I finally get to see a ten-member group performance! Even though only nine will officially debut as a group, I feel like the ten of them together are the true soul of the team!]