Chapter 47
Kuuung—!
A vibration ran through the center of the stage.
It was the moment Cha Eun-gyeol’s three-step high note ended.
“……?”
Baek Do-ha turned his head, bewildered.
Something was slowly rising from the guest seat, which should have been empty.
At the same time, a white smog began to cover the stage.
― Firework~ Ahhhhh~
“Waaah—!”
The moment the first line of the chorus rang out, the audience erupted in a thunderous cheer.
Meanwhile, the members froze in place.
Nobody was holding a microphone…?
‘Who on earth…?’
Pop—!
As the spotlight shone on the stage, a man appeared wearing a black hanbok embroidered with a crane in gold thread.
His silver hair glimmered softly under the lights, and his silhouette emerging from the smoke looked almost divine.
“Ji, Jin-hoon!?”
From one corner of the audience, a teenage boy’s jaw dropped.
He didn’t know much about trot music, but everyone knew the “Trot Emperor Jin-hoon.”
A living legend who had left a bold mark on the history of Korean music and trot.
A presence that transcended eras, a voice that dominated the stage.
A master who had remained at the top for over thirty years.
As a child, he was the voice always playing on the TV at his grandparents’ house, the one who never failed to make the whole family laugh and cry during holidays.
Though he no longer appeared in the media, his concerts still held the title of “No.1 Filial Piety Gift” each year, and his status updates often appeared in online articles.
‘I thought Mangdol was supposed to be unknown…?’
The boy’s mind spun.
Considering both skill and guest size, Lumis was far from the insignificant (?) act his mother had mentioned.
“Teachereeeee!”
“I love you!”
“Kyaaa!”
The audience roared louder than ever at the legendary figure’s appearance.
“Uh, uh… Teacher!?”
“Senior…?”
“R-Really the teacher!?”
Even the judges were thrown into confusion.
There had been no word of the guest, neither at rehearsal nor right before the stage.
‘But how…?’
Flustered, the judges finally stood and repeatedly bowed.
No matter how skilled they were, in front of the living history of Korean music, they were all just juniors.
“Hello~ I’m Jin-hoon!”
His booming voice filled the studio.
Jin-hoon greeted everyone with his signature bright smile, showing his pearly white teeth, waving to various parts of the stage.
‘Let’s go!’
Kang Ian shot Hah Jin-woo a quick glance.
He didn’t know exactly what would happen, but this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to share the stage with a legend.
He couldn’t let it slip away!
Jin-hoon descended from the lift and made his way to the center of the stage.
His steps were leisurely yet majestic.
The hems of his black hanbok fluttered elegantly with each step.
Kang Ian quickly fell in beside him and began rapping.
― Yeah, little sparks flying one by one
Lighting up the darkness like a star, shining nova
‘Me,’ who was alone
Now becomes ‘us,’ millions of sparks
“Spark!”
Jin-hoon wrapped an arm around Kang Ian’s shoulders while layering a deep doubl-ing harmony.
“!”
At that moment, Kang Ian’s eyes welled with tears.
A legend placing his hand on his shoulder was overwhelming.
― Embroider the sky, burn brightly
Fly even higher
Adding the charm of trot to us
Hah Jin-woo joined on the opposite side, performing his part.
Jin-hoon wrapped his remaining arm around Hah Jin-woo’s shoulder.
The sight of the senior with the two young members flanking him was heartwarming and moving.
The cameraman quickly zoomed in on the scene, capturing a moment likely to achieve peak ratings.
‘Eun-gyeol!’
Ryu Si-an sent a powerful gaze, clenching his fist in a message of support.
‘…Yeah!’
Cha Eun-gyeol took a deep breath and nodded resolutely.
Suppressing his trembling legs, he stepped forward to the stage.
Then came the final chorus:
― Firework~ Ahhhhh~
Fly, blaze
Lighting up countless nights
Baek Do-ha, Cha Eun-gyeol, and Jin-hoon smiled brightly, locking eyes.
A harmony that transcended generations filled the stage.
― Firework~ Ahhhhh~
Fly, spread
We will light up the world
The unexpected appearance of Korea’s living music legend, singing alongside the country’s worst-known rookie group, was creating a miracle no one could have imagined.
― I was once a spark, now call me a flame!
Jin-hoon and the Lumis members finished the last line together, raising their hands high.
Bang—!
Golden fireworks exploded, and the stage slowly went dark.
“Waaah—!”
“Jin-hoon, Jin-hoon!”
“Lumis, Lumis!”
The audience’s cheers didn’t stop.
Voices chanting the rookie group’s name shook the studio.
“Hmm…”
The boy fiddled with the remote from the dimly lit center of the audience, deep in thought.
His mother had begged him to vote for Beat12Y, but honestly, he didn’t want to.
Beat12Y’s performance had been excellent: powerful vocals, precise choreography, a surprise appearance from a famous DJ.
But that was it.
As soon as the stage ended, the emotion vanished like smoke. Only Lumis’ performance lingered vividly in his mind.
‘What should I do…?’
The boy furrowed his brows even deeper.
He had already voted for Lumis, but he wasn’t limited to a single vote.
The live evaluation system allowed voting for every performance they liked.
Sure, he had received something, so voting for Beat12Y as his sister suggested made sense… but…
“Live evaluation voting begins!”
While the boy hesitated, the MC announced the start of voting.
Ding ding ding—
The numbers on the screen began rising rapidly.
Tap tap– tap tap tap–!
The clicking of remotes echoed from every corner.
“……”
After a long moment of hesitation, the boy quietly set down his remote.
‘That older guy was more handsome.’
He couldn’t forget Ryu Si-an’s wink.
“Alright, today’s feast is on Jin-hoon, so don’t go overboard—eat in moderation and mind your manners!”
“Hahahaha!”
The restaurant filled with laughter. This was the first team dinner for RE:VIVAL.
The sizzle of meat, the clinking of glasses, and laughter everywhere created an atmosphere so lively it made people forget the competition.
Such dinners could be sensitive during contests—scandals or favoritism could arise, and there had been a few in the past.
So everyone had avoided these occasions carefully, but…
“I want to have a meal with young folks after a long time too.”
With a single word from the senior Jin-hoon, everything was settled.
Who could possibly refuse the Trot Emperor’s offer?
“Oh! Toybox!”
“Welcome!”
“Hyung!”
Toybox, who had left the program earlier, also appeared at the dinner.
The atmosphere became even warmer.
“Teacher! Your recent concert was amazing!”
“I heard your national tour sold out all seats recently!”
“Teacher!”
“Teacher!”
“Teachereeeee!”
Within just 30 minutes of the dinner starting, Jin-hoon’s cheeks flushed from the constant onslaught of toasting juniors, and redness spread around his eyes.
“I really want to stop hearing ‘teacher’ all the time!”
Jin-hoon moved beside Luha to avoid the endless cups being offered.
“Front! Stab! Hit!”
Luha demonstrated bayonet techniques with a back-scratcher.
“Puhahaha! This guy’s something else! Taejin-ah, can I take him and raise him?”
Jin-hoon laughed, clutching his stomach.
“…What!?”
Yoon Tae-jin was stunned.
Jin-hoon found Luha adorable, and Luha’s unusually cute behavior was unlike normal.
“…Would you!?”
Yoon Tae-jin asked enthusiastically.
Luha’s sharp gaze shot at him.
‘Anyway… unexpected.’
Luha’s eyes moved to the opposite table: Starbolt.
Contrary to everyone’s expectations, a strong contender had been eliminated.
“Sorry, you understand, right?”
The vocal trainer judge patted the Starbolt leader’s shoulder in consolation.
The stage itself was fine, but the main rapper had made a fatal mistake by freezing on important lyrics.
For judges who demanded perfection, it was unforgivable, and the score reflected that.
The scores from competing groups also played a role—peer evaluations accounted for 20%. Not insignificant.
Thus, the rapper could not lift his head throughout the dinner, drinking incessantly.
And eventually…
“Ughhh… Sorry, sorry! I’m a sinner!”
He burst into tears.
“Aiyo… money, adults, always a problem.”
Jin-hoon shook his head and reached out.
“Senior!”
A tiny hand grabbed Jin-hoon’s.
“Hmm?”
“Let’s do this. I’ve cleaned it thoroughly~”
Luha held out a soju glass filled with water instead, speaking softly.
“Ha! This kid? Luha, don’t you want to become a trot singer? I’ll support you!”
“If you push me, senior, there’s nothing I can’t do~!”
Luha quickly put a spoon into a cider bottle like a microphone and began singing.
“What’s my age~ If I love, can’t I ohhhh~”
Luha exaggeratedly trembled his voice, mimicking the characteristic vocal bends of trot.
“Puhahahaha!”
Jin-hoon’s hearty laughter shook the restaurant.
‘How did they even get him here?’
Manager Choi Eun-bi at the end of the table watched the scene with keen eyes.
Jin-hoon, the living legend of trot, was known for being gruff and stubborn.
As Korea’s representative legend, he was always the top pick for holiday music programs.
Yet he had disappeared from broadcasting for years due to mistreatment by a certain network.
A three-day holiday adult music contest was being held.
At that time, a junior Jin-hoon had admired appeared on the show.
Jin-hoon sat as a judge, evaluating coldly without bias.
Despite the junior’s high score, he was eliminated in the first round due to lobbying by a company favoring their own singer. The junior had no connections, so he was out.
Jin-hoon vowed not to be played by dirty network tricks again and retired from broadcasting.
He focused only on concerts and events, rejecting all TV offers.
And now, he appeared on a broadcast.
A contest program, for a rookie he didn’t even know.
‘…….’
Choi Eun-bi’s sharp gaze moved.
“Eh-heyra-diyaaa~!”
“Puhahaha!”
Still, the five-year-old smiled innocently, unaware of anything.
