Prince from another dimension becomes an Idol chapter 70

The faces were familiar from MOST’s first fan signing event.

“Oh. Look at that. They’re here too.”

“They might have come from out of town. Damn… competitors.”

Although they had seen each other multiple times and knew they were all MOST fans, there was no real animosity between them.

Still, competitors were competitors.

Competing with other fans for a spot at the fan meeting was already nerve-wracking, but seeing rivals right in front of them made them even more anxious.

“Let’s hurry and get our spots and practice.”

“Okay.”

Sunmi and Heera quickly paid for a one-hour usage and sat down, opening the reservation website.

After logging in and preparing everything, it was just three minutes before the reservation time.

They had the server time, known for its accuracy, open on one side of the screen to refresh the site at exactly 0 seconds.

56 seconds, 57 seconds, 58 seconds…

Sunmi and Heera stared intently at the server time without blinking.

Sweat beaded on the hands gripping their mice.

59 seconds…

They clicked rapidly without even breathing.

Thousands of small squares turned white in an instant.

In less than a minute, Sunmi let out a big breath.

“Heera, did you get it?!”

“Uh… I gave up on standing and went straight for a middle seat. What about you?”

“I’m in the 30s for standing!”

“Wow!”

Heera looked at Sunmi with envious eyes.

Both had managed to get good spots.

They glanced at the familiar faces across from them.

The atmosphere there didn’t seem good.

*

In just over seven minutes, 3,000 seats were sold out.

No one expected such a fast sell-out.

The first fan club pre-sale was only for fan club members, making it even more surprising.

But considering it was MOST’s first fan meeting, and their new song would be performed for the first time, fans were eager to attend.

With many new fans joining after the fan club recruitment period ended, those who missed out on tickets were clamoring for additional shows.

As the organizers had anticipated some overflow demand, they quickly added another show for the next day.

The second show also sold out completely.

“Both shows sold out!”

The members were thrilled but also felt a bit of pressure.

They wanted to be perfectly prepared for their fans…

Soon, the long-awaited day of MOST’s comeback dawned.

*

Inside the van heading to the concert venue.

Usually, there would be chatter or game sounds, but the van was unusually quiet.

No one was sleeping either.

Kijoon had his earphones in, listening to their performance setlist in order.

But honestly, he wasn’t really hearing the music.

“Why is everyone so quiet? It’s creepy.”

At a red light, Jung Giljoo glanced at the rearview mirror, checking the back seats.

The members sat still, just blinking.

“Why are you all like this? You were excited back at the shop.”

No one seemed to want to answer.

Dojae spoke up for the group.

“I think we’re just nervous.”

“Even you, Dojae?”

“Of course. I’m nervous too.”

Dojae was known among the members as having nerves of steel, never getting anxious.

He usually wasn’t nervous before important performances due to his calm personality and extensive experience performing in front of large crowds.

‘Standing before thousands at imperial events was no big deal…’

Plus, his intense desire to be on stage played a part.

‘There wasn’t even time to feel nervous.’

His desire transcended dimensions.

Dojae felt that even the time to be nervous was too precious.

Even Dojae felt a bit of nerves today.

It was their first time in a while performing in front of fans and unveiling a new song and stage.

He was curious about the reaction.

Wondering how it would be received.

Since they had prepared so thoroughly, he felt more excitement than worry.

A pleasant tension enveloped Dojae.

“Hyung! If you’re nervous, what about us? We’re relying on you.”

Woochul’s exaggerated whine made Dojae chuckle.

“Ha… I hope I don’t mess up the lyrics.”

This was Heungmin’s constant worry.

It was the main source of Kijoon and Heungmin’s anxiety.

‘Rappers sure have a lot of lyrics to remember.’

Memorizing all those words without a single mistake was quite burdensome.

Dojae looked out the window.

The streets, filled with the energy of spring, felt lively.

“I don’t think there’s anything to worry about.”

Dojae’s small murmur drew the members’ attention.

They looked at him, hoping for some solid reassurance.

Unable to withstand their gazes, Dojae grinned sheepishly.

“I just have a good feeling.”

The members laughed, feeling a bit relieved.

Maybe because it was Dojae who said it.

It did feel like things would go well.

They had a good feeling.

*

A long line snaked around the large stadium holding 3,000 seats.

Fans were lined up to exchange tickets and buy MOST-related merchandise.

“All items are sold out!”

A staff member came out and shouted loudly.

Staff quickly posted signs saying “Sold Out” above the merchandise stalls.

“Sold out! It’s all sold out!”

“No way.”

“Oh no!”

“Nooo!”

Fans, who had been eagerly waiting in line to buy as much merchandise as possible, were taken aback.

The line still stretched endlessly.

Fans who had been waiting since dawn were the only ones who managed to see the merchandise.

“Is this it? Won’t there be more coming in?”

“Can we buy some if we come tomorrow?”

“What about tomorrow?”

As the commotion grew, a staff member quickly explained to those at the front of the line.

The fans who witnessed everything sell out before their eyes looked ready to devour the staff member.

So, there was no choice but to hurry.

“You can come again tomorrow. And soon, you’ll be able to purchase all items online as well.”

Fans knew they could buy online because the announcement had been made. However, purchasing online meant waiting an additional two weeks.

“Ugh… Why didn’t they produce more?”

“My friend told me that Kingdom had plenty of stock.”

“Three hours of waiting, and I still couldn’t buy anything. I thought I’d at least get a tumbler!”

“Is it for real that even the hoodies with their faces sold out?”

“Yes, it’s real!”

As the fans dispersed, their complaints grew louder.

Yet, mixed with their frustration was a sense of pride that the merchandise of their favorite idols was selling like hotcakes.

“But those hoodies with their faces were really nice. This time, the merch turned out really well… Even non-fans would want to buy it.”

“What are you talking about? Why would a non-fan buy merch with the members’ faces?”

“Oh, I’m just saying.”

The disappointment of not being able to buy the merchandise immediately was because the quality this time was exceptionally high.

The design was so good that it would have been desirable even as a regular retail item, beyond just fan merchandise.

Starting with this album, there were plans to officially release a variety of merch, thanks to the hiring of an additional visual director by Planning Team 2.

In Kingdom, the role of a visual director included everything from overall album art to music videos, photo artwork, and stage costumes, ensuring the concept was cohesive.

Depending on how the visual directing was done, the outcome could be either tacky or stylish, making the visual director’s ability extremely important.

The newly hired visual director was to assist the existing VD and also participate in the expanded merchandise business.

Once the concept was set and the basic album art was done, the new visual director contacted a famous product designer to create the merchandise.

As a result, the quality of the merchandise was comparable to items from well-known curated shops.

“Let’s come back tomorrow.”

“Yeah… We’ll come even earlier tomorrow!”

Fans scattered from the line, gathering in small groups to wait for the concert admission time.

Naturally, their interest was focused on the upcoming release of MOST’s second album and their first full-length album, “Bloom.”

The release time was set for 6 PM, just 30 minutes before the first concert of the day.

Fans attending today’s concert would get to hear the tracks as soon as they were released and then see the live performance right away.

Although those attending tomorrow’s concert wouldn’t get that immediate thrill, they had the advantage of having more time to familiarize themselves with the songs and the fan chants, and to watch the music video released at midnight, getting to know the choreography as well.

“Oh! It’s 6 o’clock!”

Even before someone shouted, fans in the long line were already on their phones, accessing the music site to check out MOST’s new songs.

The tracklist was as follows:

00. intro 2
01. before sunrise
02. Yours
03. give me, give you
04. The shade of an umbrella
05. Confession
06. First date
07. Be amazing
08. this is MOST
09. outro 1/1

The number of tracks was fitting for their first full-length album.

“I’m so nervous!”

“I hope it’s as good as ‘I’m Different.’”

“If it’s as good as ‘Dynamic,’ I’ll be a fan for life.”

“Seems like you’ve already made that commitment.”

“Come on.”

Although a 30-second teaser had been released, it was hard to guess the title track’s vibe.

In the short video, only one line of the song was heard.

Even that one line sung by Dojae was so good that expectations for the song were high.

Fans, with eager faces, began listening to the album in their own ways.

Some started with the intro track, while others couldn’t resist and went straight to the title track, “Yours.”

“Wow… Amazing…”

The fan who played “Yours” muttered in awe.

The first line in the teaser was indeed the opening line of the song.

And the song’s atmosphere was entirely different from what fans had anticipated.

“Please proceed to the entrance!”

Just as the fans had likely listened to the entire album, a staff member shouted from the entrance.

The excited fans gathered and poured into the venue.

*

As the fans finished entering, the lights dimmed one by one.

It was the most nerve-wracking moment.

“It’s starting!”

The audience buzzed with excitement, anticipating the start of the show.

Complete darkness enveloped the large venue, followed by an eerie calm before the storm.

Around a grand piano, five members took their positions.

Just before the lights came on, the brief moment of silence felt like an eternity to the members.

Meanwhile, behind the stage, Dojae tightly gripped a hefty wooden bat with both hands, waiting for the song to start.