Translator: MarcTempest
Editor: Rxel
Chapter 132
They checked the fansâ reactions after uploading the announcement on their official SNS.
The Soufflés were dancing with excitement at the news of their first official fan meeting.
Bijoo spoke with a bright face.
âHyung, itâs been a long time since Iâve seen the fans so happy.â
âI know, right? Iâm so happy too. Hey.â
âItâs different, you know. Reality shows and stuff are just on TV, but this is actually seeing their faces.â
âDonât you think weâre more excited than them?â
âNo. We are.â
âŠAs he was saying that, the laptop screen turned off in power-saving mode.
In the black screen, he was smiling so brightly that his teeth sparkled.
Woojoo coughed and kept his composure.
ââŠLetâs look at the fansâ reactions a little more.â
Woojoo shook the mouse and quickly turned the screen back on.
He relaxed the muscles around his mouth that had been tense.
A faint smile escaped and he felt good.
How long had it been since their last offline event?
The last broadcast was in July, so it had been three months already, and even if they counted fan signing events and such, it had been two months since they met the fans officially offline.
They werenât even that far apart, but they hardly had any chance to meet the fans.
They only consoled their empty feelings with fan cafe posts or live broadcasts.
This was different.
It was a world of difference between showing their faces on a TV show and communicating with the fans directly.
Sometimes, when they saw their Soufflés in the seats of the event hall, Junghyun would spot them with his eagle eyes and be nervous, and Woojoo would remember and confirm them.
And then they would wave their hands like crazy.
Of course, there were also people who came to see them near the company or the dorm, but they didnât answer them at all.
It was unfortunate, but they couldnât help it.
They had already notified them in advance through the companyâs announcement, and more importantly, it was strictly forbidden for celebrities to have personal relationships with specific fans.
It wouldnât hurt to say hello, but if that led to a personal friendship, it always caused trouble.
For example, even saying a few more friendly words at the official seat could make the fans feel alienated over time.
In other words, the key was not to give the impression to other fans that âOh? Theyâre being nicer to some kids? They only treat me well if I come near the company or offline.â
They might not know and pass it by, but it would be hurtful from the fansâ perspective.
It was an easy mistake for anyone to make.
Woojoo wouldnât have thought of this if he hadnât seen the accidents that the senior groups at TJ Entertainment had caused.
Rihyuk also agreed with him.
âThatâs right. I moved around several book clubs because of the staffâs favoritism. I even had a big fight.â
It was a strange example, but it seemed appropriate.
Anyway, for that reason, the âSoufflĂ© Weekâ that Woojoo suggested this time was a festival that they planned so that not only the people who came offline, but also the SoufflĂ©s at home could enjoy with them.
A festival for all Soufflés.
Woojoo scrolled down the mouse and clicked on the notice about Soufflé Week.
âSoufflĂ© Weekâ
Mon: Jiho â Member Talk + Game
Tue: Rihyuk â Member Talk + Debate
âŠ
Sat: Official Fan Meeting
Sun: Surprise Gift Reveal
It was an event where they would spend time with the fans every day until the official fan meeting, taking turns by member.
For example, Jiho would play games with the fans, Junghyun would give quizzes, or Bijoo would give away soufflés that he made by lottery.
Of course, the prizes were small.
Almost like stationery jewel rings?
But it was meaningful to be with the fans.
âI think this event is really good, Hyung.â
Bijoo smiled.
âIt doesnât go over the budget and we can do it ourselves.â
âRight?â
âYes, I need to search for soufflĂ© recipes soon.â
Their Bijoo started tapping his smartphone.
Suddenly, when Woojoo suggested the title of the event later, he said âBijooâs Storyâ instead of âStarâs Storyâ, and he flipped over and laughed.
Their kid had a weird sense of humor.
Their main vocal, who was always rumored to be nitpicky, showed a satisfied smile today.
âWell, I donât want to admit it, but itâs good. We can also have a debate in front of the fans.â
âWhy do you think the debate is more important? You?â
âOf course. Look forward to it. Iâll pick a topic thatâs really hard to conclude.â
âRihyuk.â
âWhat?â
âIf artificial intelligence ever takes over the world, letâs not do this kind of thing. Okay?â
ââŠâ
âHaha, look at your face, Hyung. Youâre so embarrassed⊠Ouch!â
As Jiho pointed and laughed at Woojoo, he said to Rihyuk, âBring something more fun next time. Like last time, whether you dip or pour the sauce on the sweet and sour pork, that kind of thing.â
âHow is that a topic for discussion?â
Junghyun shook his head.
âItâs dipping, obviously.â
âNo, itâs pouring.â
âI prefer soy sauceâŠâ
They ended up forming an alliance and attacking the soy sauce faction.
It was exciting to see everyone preparing an event each, and Woojoo smiled happily.
Jiho said, âHyung, Hyung. But what about this? Canât we do this every year?â
âEvery year?â
Itâs not a bad idea, but Woojoo didnât know if it was possible.
âWell, it would be nice if we could.â
âI had this idea earlier. We do this every year and gradually increase the scale. And then when we become super successful, we rent out COEX and hold a souffle expo or somethingâŠâ
The youngest was so enthusiastic that they joined him in imagining and burst out laughing.
A souffle expo, huh.
They joked among ourselves.
âBy then, there would be giant balloons of our dolls floating around, right?â
âOh, I want to sell Junghyun hot dogs, Junghyun burgers at a stall. Iâll ask Bijoo for the recipes.â
âHey, I can do that.â
âI want to do that thing. You know, in the US amusement parks, there are people with cola bags who refill your drinks. I want to do that.â
âExcuse me, can we all talk sense? Please.â
Someone pointed out the lack of realism, but it was a funny scene to imagine and they teased each other.
Well.
Imagination was free.
Maybe it was because they planned this together, but they were just happy.
âOkay, then, shall we get ready?â
They all nodded, but Bijoo looked at the laptop screen and asked Woojoo, âBut, Hyung. Friday is the day you chat with your fans, but why is there nothing on the event slot?â
âOh.â Woojoo smiled and said, âI have something else to prepare.â
ââŠ?â
Woojoo gestured to the studio table with his chin, and his siblings got it.
Woojoo asked with a smile, âAnyone curious about what Iâm going to do?â
The scene where Junghyun and Jihyo visited the village in Yeoncheon County and reunited with the residents was accompanied by the appearance of the black goat Daegil as a scene stealer.
A veterinarian who appeared in that episode examined Daegil at the hospital and checked for any possible abnormalities in his body, but there was nothing wrong.
Soon after, an animal scientist who appeared on the scene looked at the video and the black goat and nodded his head.
[Im Jungho/Animal Scientist]: Thereâs nothing wrong with him mentally or physically. Simply put, he just has a bad⊠dirty, no, a bad personality.
The expression and caption of the animal scientist who awkwardly softened the words that he was crazy were somehow exquisite and spread all over the community.
At the end, the cause was revealed.
[Im Jungho/Animal Scientist]: This is the cabbage you feed him as food. You changed it recently, right?
[Ko Myungsik/Daegilâs Dad]: âŠHow did you know? The farming was not good this year, so I changed the cabbage to foreign ones.
[Im Jungho/Animal Scientist]: It seems that he didnât like the taste. Thatâs why heâs angry all the time.
[Junghyun/Daegilâs Friend]: Heâs like that because he doesnât like the food?
[Jiho/Daegilâs Younger Brother]: Wow. Amazing. Heâs really immature.
Then, at the end of the broadcast, Junghyun grabbed Daegilâs hand and said, âYou have to eat well from now on,â with a heartwarming ending.
The subtle and funny directing of the cuts of Junghyun walking with Daegilâs leash, along with the gentle BGM and the flying CG flowers, was quite a topic.
And on the same day.
The team of Around the World With Dice, whom Woojoo had chosen Hawaii as a travel destination, rolled in Pugok Hawaii after the preview, and the âMen Goâ male celebrity special was broadcast.
They had a lot of work to do, so Woojoo only watched the clips after it was over, and the video call between Woojoo and Taehyun had a pretty high view count.
Inside the car.
Taehyun: Heâs the closest Hyung to me after our members. We were really close since we were trainees, and heâs also a veteran, so⊠Iâm calling him to get some advice.
Then, Woojoo appeared on the screen wearing a military uniform.
Taehyun: Hyung, but your outfitâŠ
Woojoo: I just finished the reserve duty.
Woojoo laughed for a while in front of Taehyun, who was laughing. Behind him, the younger brothers holding the placards that said [Milky Woojoo], [Welcome to Society] flowed out.
Among them, Bijoo shyly waved a mini flag.
Then, when Taehyun said that he was appearing on âMen Goâ, Woojoo burst out laughing.
It was a bit mean, even for him.
Woojoo thought he might get cursed by TNT fans, but fortunately, the editing was good.
It showed him giving serious advice.
Woojoo: Thereâs no honey tip in the army. You just have to do what they tell you to do.
Taehyun: But there are times when you have to be proactive and stuff.
Woojoo: Iâll tell you one criterion. Something happens, right? But if you look at it and think, should I do it? Then you have to do it, and if you think, can I do it? Then you donât.
Taehyun: Oh, oh.
That advice got a good response from the veterans on the internet community, Woojoo heard.
Woojoo: Donât get hurt. Thatâs the most important thing.
Taehyun: But the broadcast timeâŠ
Woojoo: The broadcast time is important, but not getting hurt is the best. So be careful when the instructors tell you to be careful. If you think you canât do it, just drop out. Your body is more important.
Taehyun: Iâll get scolded for being selfish. Hyung.
Woojoo: Then youâll live long.
Taehyun: (Laugh) Hyung.
Woojoo: (Laugh) Anyway, donât get hurt. The fans are the ones who are most heartbroken when you get hurt.
Then Woojoo asked him a question.
Woojoo: But how long are you going for?
Taehyun: Oh, Iâm going for 2 nights and 3 days.
Woojoo: 3 days?
Taehyun: Yeah.
Woojoo: 3 daysâŠ? So youâre saying 3 days⊠HooâŠ
The scene where he shivered on the screen was a funny point, judging by the comments below the clip.
On the other hand, the clip turned out to be a good thing for Woojoo.
The fans of TNT liked his advice to not get hurt, and he heard from the promotion team that they liked Woojoo a lot.
Plus, some stories.
-New Black Woojoo, âMen Goâ phone call with TNT Taehyun and prove their close friendship
Unlike their reality show, it was a terrestrial broadcast, so the publicity was quite powerful.
Everyone was happy about it.
Well, not everyone.
***
The first start of the Souffle Week, Monday.
ââŠâ
In the silence, Woojoo spoke.
Everyone nodded their heads in unison.
Only Junghyun, who was about to raise his hand, was grabbed by the wrist by Bijoo.
While preparing for the upcoming Soufflé Week and the official fan meeting with the PR team, they also sped up the work on the reality show and the album.
They selected the songs for the album through a contest with the A&R team.
They decided to entrust the Intro and Outro of the second album, which would be the beginning and the end of it, to Junghyun, their rapper.
He had been burning with passion for work since he met Heysion at Around the World With Dice, so Woojoo asked him if he wanted to do it and he said yes right away.
They quickly found someone to help him with the song production.
Woojoo went to the studio with a bunch of red bean buns and pine tree drinks to cheer him on, and he saw a familiar face.
ââŠâ
A tall and skinny man sitting next to Junghyun.
A black leather jacket over a hoodie.
And dreadlocks.
It was Heysion, who was on the same team as them at Around the World With Dice.
âHi.â
ââŠHi, nice to meet you.â Woojoo asked cautiously, âWhat brings you hereâŠ?â
âWhat do you mean? I came to help my rap brother with his work.â
Woojoo was a bit surprised.
He liked Junghyun enough to call him his brother, since he had been a fan of him since his minor debut album, but he was basically a person who had a strong aversion to the idol industry.
So Woojoo asked him while watching him work.
Woojoo beat around the bush, but what he really meant was why he was participating in their work when he hated idols.
And Woojoo got a really clear answer.
âWell, I still donât like idols much. Oh, Iâm not talking about you guys, I just donât like this system in general.â
ââŠâ
âBut, what I realized as I got older.â
Heysion raised his thumb with a serious expression.
âMoney is the best.â
Woojoo engraved his golden words in my heart.
With Heysionâs help, the Intro and Outro of the album came out beautifully.
The PR team was thrilled.
-Rapper Heysion, participates in New Blackâs second album
-âAround the World With Diceâs connection leads to the albumâ, New Blackâs Junghyun & Rapper Heysionâs work
-Heysion, âNew Black is a great junior singerâ
Of course, the PR team and their managers were not the only ones who liked it. đ§đđźđźđđđŁđŻâŽđŁđŠđ”.đžâŽđ
-âAnimal Friendsâ, New Black⊠Reunites with the black goat Daegil
-Shock! Black goat Daegil ânot an anger management disorderâ
-Animal Friends, New Black surprised by the animal expertâs words âDaegil has good anger controlâŠ?â
The show that featured Daegil, the black goat who had more cult popularity than any celebrity since the Chuseok Special.
âGuys.â
âWhat? Traitor.â
âTraitor? Your words are full of thorns, Rihyuk.â
âYou are a traitor.â
The youngest answered with a chubby face.
âYou always bully us, scold us, and hit us.â
âWhen did I ever bully you, scold you, or hit you?â
âWell, there are many if you look for them. Anyway! You are so kind to Taehyun Sunbae, but to usâŠâ
âHey, thatâs becauseâŠâ
Woojoo explained to the guys who looked at him with pouting faces.
âItâs different. Heâs someone I see very rarely, so Iâm nice to him. But you guys are close to me and weâre always together. So itâs more casualâŠâ
âHmm.â
Junghyun stroked his chin.
He seemed to want to say something smart, so Woojoo fed him a sweet snack.
It worked.
Then, Bijoo came out and said with averted eyes, âIâm a bit disappointed too, Hyung.â
âCome on⊠If youâre going to say that, you guys also ordered and ate something delicious when I went to the reserve army.â
âWow, you were holding on to that?â
âI knew you would. You said you would keep it in mind.â
âSighâŠâ
It was too hard to argue with four against one.
In the end, Woojoo slumped like a scapegoat.
âI have committed a great sin, everyoneâŠâ
âYou should know that.â
Woojoo was angry and resentful because he didnât know what he did wrong, but soon he laughed.
It was because they were all joking.
They were having a meeting at the company conference room with a camera in front of them, nervous about the first event of Soufflé Week.
The youngest nudged Woojoo with his shoulder.
âHyung, Iâll forgive you, so please massage my shoulder.â
Ouch.
âOw! It hurts!â
âWow, our youngest. Your neck is so stiff.â
Woojoo massaged his neck and he groaned.
But it was strange.
His shoulders were always soft and relaxed without stress, but today they were stiff and hard.
âWhat did you do yesterday, you?â
âAh. I practiced a lot for the game with the fans today.â
Bijoo asked, âJiho, did you sleep at 2 oâclock as Hyung told you?â
âYes. Of course.â
âI donât think so. I woke up in the middle of the night and touched your laptop cover and it was hot.â
He clicked the mouse a few times and [Yesterdayâs end time 05:34:29] came up.
The youngest looked at Rihyuk with a bitter expression.
He felt like he could have gotten away with it if it wasnât for him.
While Bijoo sat the youngest down and talked softly about the dangers of using the computer for a long time, they finished preparing for the event.
The first part was a live broadcast with the fans, and the second part was a random invitation for Jiho to play games with them.
The company wanted them to do individual specials, but Woojoo opposed it.
It would be troublesome if the viewer numbers varied by member.
After killing some time.
âTwo, three. Hello, we are New Black!â
âWow!â
They clapped their hands and greeted the Soufflés who were coming in eagerly.
Then they started the live broadcast with Jiho in the middle and them surrounding him.
There were various Q&A and talk time about the youngest and them.
And then the game time.
Colorful beans were driving carts and running in a game, or there was a game with Fizz or something that looked like Rihyuk.
Woojoo didnât know anything, so he just watched blankly.
He only played the games that were popular in PC rooms when he was in elementary school, so he didnât know anything about these games.
âAh, but Iâm the only one doing it, so the other Hyungs might be bored. So I want to give you a chance, Woojoo Hyung. What do you want to do? Do you want me to turn on Go?â
ââŠI know how to play games too.â
He didnât.
Woojoo always got teased by his younger siblings and the fans whenever he played the games that Jiho recommended. The chat window would fill up with âLOLâ as they watched him from behind or on the screen.
ââŠAh, the mouse is stiff.â
âThatâs the new one that the PR team bought this morning, Hyung.â
âItâs probably because the computer is slowâŠâ
âI optimized it yesterday.â
After setting a record for the last place in every game, Woojoo looked at the camera and said, âI havenât played any of the recent games, you see. I only used to play things like StarCraft.â
âOh, we have StarCraft too.â
âYou do?â
The youngest one clicked on the icon that was installed on the shared laptop.
Woojoo said, âBut I donât think there are many people who play this game⊠Oh, there is someone?â
âWow.â
A match was made.
As soon as he created a random room, one of their fans joined.
It was someone with a fearsome nickname, [Killer_Soufflé].
âHyung, the fan is asking if you can play well.â
âOf course.â Woojoo smiled and said, âI may not know much about other games, but I played this one a lot when I was in elementary school.â
âOh, are you an expert?â
âYes. This game is like my own territory, I think.â
âŠThat was what I said. Then the game started.
And.
âWow, Player Seon Woojoo. You really canât control, huh. Are you showing us that you are the worst player ever?â
âThatâs right. This is why we need a dome stadium. Did you see how Hyung flinched because of the monitor light just now?â
The idiot duo exchanged their ridiculous commentary while player lost three times in a row.
And with the same strategy each time.
When he typed GG, Killer_Soufflé left a cool remark and disappeared.
-You suck at games, Oppa
ââŠâ
As his siblings burst into laughter, the fan cafe was flooded with gifs of him grabbing the back of his neck.