More than 1,500 audience members? In this completely unexpected situation, not only Kang Rojun...

'Wo- shit, this is really sudden.'

The rest of the participants couldn’t help but be startled. The murmur in the practice room grew louder. PD Woo Han-suk, who had anticipated this, continued explaining calmly.

“First off, on the day of the 4th evaluation shoot, the number of production crew members will be doubled. Including the judges, the total staff will easily surpass 200 people.”

PD Woo Han-suk received a tablet from Writer Kim Se-hee.

“The expected audience to be invited includes the 76 people who were eliminated from ‘Produce That 100!’ first. In addition, about 1,500 fans confirmed through the application process. Of those, 300 will be standing close to the stage, and 1,200 will be seated.”

Including the staff, the number had already far surpassed 1,500. The smile faded from PD Woo Han-suk’s face as he lowered the tablet. He began speaking with a very serious tone.

“This is the first time I'm telling you this, but I’ve relayed information to several domestic entertainment companies. We haven’t had meetings yet, so I can't reveal the details, but they’ll be confirmed soon. And I plan to invite those companies to the 4th evaluation day as well.”

The participants’ mouths dropped open. Even if they weren’t sure exactly which ‘several entertainment companies’ he meant, they could more or less guess. Isn’t this ‘Produce That 100!’ that surpassed 25% viewership ratings? It was obvious that not only the top five entertainment companies in Korea, but also representatives from prominent agencies would attend.

The scale was getting bigger and bigger.

PD Woo Han-suk, the mastermind behind it all, emphasized his voice.

“I need to have meetings with the entertainment companies, but at the very least, dozens of their reps will attend the 4th evaluation. To meet you all in person. Of course, conversations between you and them will be prohibited.”

If the entertainment companies did show up, they would likely judge not the rap assignment, but everything about the participants from head to toe. Because they were the professionals of the idol market. The participants’ appearance, physique, voice, eye contact, composure, performance, charm, aura, and so on.

Seeing on broadcast versus seeing in person was worlds apart.

Anyway, just combining the mentioned people already meant the total would easily surpass 2,000. In other words, numerous audience members, including the general public, would watch the 4th evaluation in person. From this point, most of the participants froze.

The weight of the pressure.

In the eyes of No. 26, who usually wore a lifeless expression, confusion was clear, and No. 58, with the baby perm, blatantly gaped with mouth wide open. And Kang Rojun?

“......”

There was no change in his expression for now, but his heart was pounding wildly. As he observed all the participants’ reactions, PD Woo Han-suk regained his smile.

"Additionally, on the day of the 4th evaluation, we plan to distribute slogans with your faces, fans, etc. to the audience members who come. These have already been produced."

He was talking about something like merch.

“Hmm- it seems many of you are nervous. But don’t get confused. Audience members are just that, audience members. Don’t think of them as spectators and focus on the evaluation. This isn’t a concert, so the filming itself will be the same as usual.”

If spectators came to a concert, the artist had to deliver a flawless performance. But audience members were simply watching a scheduled filming site. So there was no need for perfection, and mistakes weren’t a problem. The only difference was that audience members were added to the usual evaluation filming.

However.

'Th-that’s easy for him to say! This situation is clearly not the same!'

'How are we supposed to not think of them as spectators?!'

'I’m already nervous in front of staff, now there’s an audience... and even entertainment companies!'

The participants’ sense of pressure intensified rapidly.

Naturally, this was the setup PD Woo Han-suk had intended.

From the start, ‘Produce That 100!’ was a survival audition show, and no one knew what kind of situation might unfold. The conductor was PD Woo Han-suk. A bland scene was out of the question, and the participants had no choice but to cling to the ever-changing reality.

Quick thinking, guts, adaptability, and more.

Professional idols frequently face situations dozens of times more intense than this. From their perspective, this kind of situation could be seen as trivial. Whatever the case, PD Woo Han-suk continued his explanation.

“Based on the presence of audience members, plan your 4th evaluation’s concept, movement paths, outfits, direction, and so on. As a reference, don’t overthink the outfits. Like I said, this is an evaluation, not a performance.”

The point was that there was no need for flashy stage outfits like in actual performances.

“But even if it’s not a concert, this will be the first audience participation for ‘Produce That 100!’, it’d be disappointing to end it after just showing the evaluation, right? So on the day of the evaluation, I’m thinking of letting the audience see the ‘Produce’ performance as well. As an event. You’ve done it before, and if we just revise the general stage movement a bit, it’ll be fine. Regarding the ‘Produce’ performance, we’ll do a separate rehearsal the day before the evaluation, and Judge Lee Han-na will come for that.”

As if the talk was almost over, PD Woo Han-suk showed a thumbs up.

“I’m looking forward to it, everyone else is too, right?”

Later.

About an hour later, a new announcement appeared on the official website of ‘Produce That 100!’

-[Produce That 100! ‘4th Evaluation On-Site’ Audience Invitation Event!]

Of course, this news spread not only on the official website but also through various SNS platforms and online communities. Within minutes, it was picked up and reposted by journalists.

《[IssueTalk] ‘Produce That 100!’ to accept audience applications for the first time!》

It spread like wildfire through the mouths and fingers of the public.

-Wow!!! I’m applying right now!!!

-Huhhhh that’s crazy, I was wondering why ‘Produce That 100!’ didn’t have audiences!!

-The fan site admins are going to go nuts ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-I want to go ㅜㅜㅜㅠㅠㅠ No. 1ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-Wow... a chance to see No. 1 in person... I can’t miss this... but I probably won’t get picked....

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ I haven’t even gone yet, so why am I already nervous ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Whether positive or negative, the reactions exploded. Already a hot topic, ‘Produce That 100!’ climbed to even greater heights, fueled by praise and hate comments alike. The official website, which had been stable so far, crashed again from the overwhelming traffic.

Later that night.

Normally, the 24 participants from the campus side would be getting ready for bed in their rooms. But not tonight. Some were in the lounge, some in the hallways, some in the practice rooms. Every single team was deeply engaged in conversations about the 4th evaluation. The pressure they already felt had grown several times heavier.

There was no way they could sleep.

It was the same for Kang Rojun and No. 26, from Group 2 Team A. The two were now sitting face to face in one of the smaller practice rooms. Around them were a laptop, a tablet, a phone, and a practice notebook. With his usual lifeless expression, No. 26 looked at Rojun and spoke.

“I’ve already divided the parts.”

He sounded serious. Kang Rojun cleared his throat before replying.

“That was fast.”

“It wasn’t hard. Anyway, how’s your practice on ‘Small Fry’ going?”

“Not bad.”

“What do you mean, ‘not bad’?”

“Just okay overall.”

No. 26 squinted with a neutral expression. What? Was he doubting him? Rojun let out a quiet sigh.

“Then listen.”

“Okay. I’ll just listen to the first verse for now.”

“Alright.”

No. 26, now speaking even more lifelessly than usual, placed his hand on the laptop.

‘I hope there’s at least a basic framework, even if it’s rough.’

While operating the laptop, No. 26 fixed his gaze on Kang Rojun.

“Playing it now.”

“Go.”

The rap track 'Small Fry' immediately began playing in the practice room. It started with the sound effect of a door opening. Then came the fast beat.

-♬♪

Now it was time for Rojun to come in. No. 26, slowly nodding his head, locked eyes with Kang Rojun.

-Swish.

Rojun began rapping, as if he had been waiting for this.

Not long after, No. 26’s lifeless expression cracked. His eyes slightly widened and his brow furrowed. Because Kang Rojun, sitting calmly and rapping with both smoothness and complexity, was expertly playing to the beat. Soon, No. 26 raised his hand high and stopped the track 'Small Fry'.

“Why’d you lie?”

“Lie about what?”

“You said it’s your first time rapping.”

“It is my first time.”

“......”

No. 26 responded, clearly dumbfounded.

“Your flow’s insane, what do you mean first time??”

Meanwhile.

The break room was quite crowded with participants. Everyone was sitting in teams, preparing for the 4th evaluation. In a quiet corner, the baby-permed No. 58 was visible. With a laptop and tablet in front of him, he had earphones in both ears. His expression was seriously focused.

“......”

What was odd was that he was alone. Only No. 58 from Group 1 Team A was there; his teammate, puppy-faced No. 71, was nowhere to be seen. Regardless, No. 58 kept listening to something, occasionally moving his fingers.

Ten minutes, fifteen, thirty.

As other participants gradually left the break room, No. 58 remained seated, unwavering and fully focused.

About an hour passed.

-Swish.

No. 58 removed his earphones and let out a long sigh as he stretched his body. His tense face finally loosened a bit. Then, looking at the laptop screen, No. 58 murmured quietly.

“Composition complete.”

He had completed the commission.

“Luckily, I didn’t have to stay up all night.”

This meant No. 58 had finished the theme song for ‘Produce That 100!’

Friday morning, September 11th.

‘Produce That 100!’ was still heating up the internet. ‘Produce That 100!’, ‘Rental Lover’, ‘No. 1’, ‘Produce That 100 Audience’, and more. No, it was even more intense than yesterday. Because tonight, episode 9 of ‘Produce That 100!’ was airing.

Meanwhile, the set of 'Rental Lover' was also in chaos.

Maybe because it was breakfast time before the actual shoot, dozens of staff members were scattered around eating lunch boxes. The place was bustling with noise.

“Ah! Today’s the day episode 9 of ‘Produce That 100!’ airs, right??”

“I haven’t seen writer-nim in days, I’ll just watch him on ‘Produce That 100!’ instead.”

“Ugh- Lighting Director! That’s creepy.”

“What? It’s just fan love, fan love.”

“Can’t believe it’s already episode 9.”

“I saw on the way here that things are buzzing about the audience event for ‘Produce That 100!’”

“Sigh... if not for the shoot!”

“Rina-ssi, you’re curious too, right??”

“Well, yeah.”

Meanwhile, PD Jung Soo-ryeong sat alone at the monitor station.

“......”

With a deeply focused expression, she was reading a script. What was unusual was that the script she was reading wasn’t 'Rental Lover'.

-Rustle.

Even though the set was noisy, PD Jung Soo-ryeong kept reading with no problem. At that moment, she recalled the voice of Kang Rojun from a phone call a few days ago.

‘PD-nim, when the time comes, can I change my pen name from Kang Chul-soo to Rojun?’

Of course, PD Jung Soo-ryeong already knew Kang Rojun’s real name. Changing the pen name wasn’t difficult either. With a faint smile, PD Jung Soo-ryeong murmured.

“Not No. 1 or Writer Kang Chul-soo, but Writer Rojun. Somehow, it really suits him.”

Come to think of it, the broadcast of ‘Produce That 100!’ had already passed its midpoint. That meant the day when Kang Rojun’s name would be revealed to the world was drawing near. By then, whether as an idol, a writer, or an actor, he would be known not as No. 1 but as Rojun.

The anticipation coursed through PD Jung Soo-ryeong’s body in an instant.

-Swish.

A woman wearing a tired-looking makeup look approached. No, it was top actress Choi Rina.

“PD-nim, what are you doing alone?”

“Hm? Ah- Choi star. Why aren’t you eating?”

“The staff keep going on about ‘Produce That 100!’ and it got kind of boring.”

That wasn’t the real reason. Choi Rina had run away because she was afraid of blurting out something about her fangirling over ‘Produce That 100!’ She then asked a question.

“But, what about the writer-nim? No shoot again today?”

“Writer Kang? You didn’t hear? He won’t be on set for a few days. Because of the ‘Produce That 100!’ schedule.”

“Ah.”

Choi Rina tilted her head with a bit of disappointment showing on her face.

“So, what are you reading?”

PD Jung Soo-ryeong answered simply.

"Script."

“‘Rental Lover’?”

“No. Something else.”

“Huh? You’re reading another script on the 'Rental Lover' set? What is it?”

With a smirk, PD Jung Soo-ryeong lowered her voice.

“Another script written by Writer Kang Chul-soo.”

Choi Rina’s eyes widened instantly.

“By writer-nim... another script? He has more??? What genre? What’s it like??”

Choi Rina bombarded her with rapid-fire questions, and PD Jung Soo-ryeong’s expression shifted to something a bit more meaningful.

“You want to know?”

She looked down at the other script in her hand, written by Rojun.

“'Rental Lover' was just a teaser.”

Her mysterious smile deepened.

“To be blunt, this one’s in the top five of all scripts I’ve ever read.”

At that moment.

-Bzzz, bzzz.

The phone placed on the desk in front of PD Jung Soo-ryeong buzzed loudly. She casually checked the screen and tilted her head.

‘PD Woo Han-suk?’

It was PD Woo Han-suk on the line. They did talk occasionally, but it was the first time he had called her in the morning. PD Jung Soo-ryeong set down the script and raised the phone to her ear.

“Yes, PD-nim. Hello.”

PD Woo Han-suk was the first to speak, asking for a moment.

“PD Jung, is it okay to talk for a bit? Are you filming?”

“No, it’s fine. Go ahead.”

“Yes, yes. It’s nothing major. I just have a proposal.”

“A proposal?”

Then came PD Woo Han-suk’s voice from the other side of the phone.

“For you, PD Jung, and the actors as well, Team 'Rental Lover'.”

There was a hint of laughter in his voice.

"Would you like to come as audience to the 'Produce That 100!' 4th evaluation?"

*****

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