Translator: MarcTempest
Editor: Rxel
Chapter 212 “A video?”
“Yup.”
The youngest one handed Woojoo his phone at the shop where they stopped by to prepare for the event.
“My friends sent me a link on chat. Your leader oppa is on the popular list on Youtube.”
“Me?”
“Look.”
“…Really.”
Woojoo saw a thumbnail with his face in it.But the content was unexpected.
Woojoo thought it would be about Jenmin or Jeppang, or maybe the part-time job, which were the hot topics yesterday, but he saw something irrelevant.
[Asking Taiwanese friends about the foreign language skills of a Korean idol feat. New Black Woojoo]
…was the title, and his face was faintly blended on the top of the scene where the Youtuber and his friend were sitting at the table.
What was this?
It looked like a fairy saying ‘Wake up, hero’.
“Pfft-!”
Bijoo, who was sticking his head out next to Woojoo, burst out laughing at the thumbnail and was dragged away by the makeup teacher.
“What is this?” Woojoo asked the youngest. “Do you know what this is about?”
“No. I haven’t watched it yet because I wanted to watch it with you.”
“Then let’s watch it together.”
Rihyuk quietly handed Woojoo an earphone and told him to watch it, so he shared one with the youngest and watched the video.
[Hello, subscribers.]
After a brief introduction, he moved on to the main point.
[You saw the scene where New Black’s Woojoo was mistaken for a local on ‘Patisserie Korea’ yesterday, right? He spoke Chinese so well that he even made it to the local news under the name ‘Woo Jenmin’… But suddenly! I got curious.]
He said he would verify Woojoo’s foreign language skills himself as today’s curiosity solution.
Looking at the recommended video list, he seemed to be a Youtuber who usually made content like ‘foreign friends’ reactions to Korea’.
He then said he would call his friends who hadn’t seen the broadcast yet.
Soon, the Taiwanese students who were sitting at the table put on their earphones and watched the news clip where Woo Jenmin appeared.
[Wow. Who was that just now? He’s so handsome…?]
[Is he a celebrity? He looks like an actor or a singer.]
[Can I get a link for this? I need to capture it and show it to my friends.]
For a few seconds, there was a mention of Woojoo’s face, which made him feel good and embarrassed.
The scene of them watching the video quickly passed and it was reaction time.
The Youtuber asked his friend.
[There is one Korean in the interview video you just watched.]
[…?]
The students wondered and said.
[Is it that Woo Jenmin?]
[Oh. How did you know?]
[Because he’s handsome…?]
[…]
The Youtuber and his friend looked at each other and laughed at the absurdity of the remark.
The Youtuber pushed him and said ‘Are you saying Taiwanese people are ugly?’ and his friend said ‘No!’ and waved his hands to explain.
He said he thought that person was the main character because he looked so out of place.
[He’s an idol from our country called ‘New Black’ Woojoo.]
The Youtuber briefly introduced them.
When he played ‘Masquerade’ for his friends who were tilting their heads, they said ‘Oh! This is the one that plays at the cafe.’
Then the part where Woojoo spoke Chinese on Patisserie Korea was played.
[How did you find his speaking skills?]
They all said ‘Uh…’ and answered with strange faces.
[To be honest, if I close my eyes and listen, I can’t tell at all. He sounds like a Taiwanese.]
[I could nitpick if I wanted to, but that’s only because I think of him as a Korean. If I didn’t know, I would have said ‘Oh? He’s an idol from Taiwan’.]
[He has the details right. This part. He must have either Taiwanese parents or lived in Taiwan for a while.]
Similar conclusions were drawn from everywhere.
They said this was not something he could learn in Korea.
They smiled and told them about Woojoo’s history.
[He took a plane for the first time when he went to Taiwan.]
[…?]
[And this is his usual Chinese video.]
When the scene where he spoke Chinese on their own reality show came out, they all looked doubtful.
[This one looks like a Chinese person again…]
[Give it back to Jenmin.]
[It sounds like he lived in China or something. What is he?]
Everyone reacted with disbelief and said he had a ‘natural talent for languages’.
The last one to appear was a professor with a warm impression, who asked with surprised eyes.
[Oh, who is this kid? We could hire him as a native speaker teacher.]
The professor, who was gossiping, spoke into the microphone.
[Wow, he’s so good. I don’t know how long he’s been learning… He really has a natural talent for languages. The details of the difference between the alveolar and velar sounds are also amazing… It seems like he practiced on purpose for the local fans. He’s awesome.]
[Really?]
[If I were those fans, I would be touched.]
With that, the professor’s praise and the YouTuber’s summary of ‘We learned a lot today’ ended.
“Wow… Hyung, you’re better than I thought.”
“Ugh, man. This is embarrassing.”
“Don’t be ashamed. You said it yourself. You have to take the compliments when you can.”
Woojoo felt awkward by the reaction in the video.
It was probably exaggerated because it was a provocative YouTube content.
He felt good but also a bit awkward, as if someone had gilded his face.
“Puhaha!”
The youngest and Woojoo laughed as they looked at the comments.
Bijoo, who was getting his makeup done, also joined in the laughter.
It was because of the people’s reactions.
-I thought it was an idol content and clicked on it, but I feel a mysterious sense of national pride [Recommend 298]
-Peul-reuk
-He did the foreign language, but why do I feel proud?
-Did you see that, Taiwan? This is K-Chinese
-K-Chinese ㅁㅊ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-I think it’s more unbelievable that there is such a unique existence…
-Every time the Taiwanese students are surprised, my shoulders rise like Hallasan and Baekdusan on both sides [Recommend 126]
-Wow… I thought he was good when I saw him yesterday, but he was really good…
-A language genius?? I wish he would upload a video with his secret
It was the first time Woojoo appeared in a so-called national pride content, so the people’s reactions felt fresh.
Bijoo and Jiho were excited and pressed the like button.
“Wow, there’s really everything. Hyung.”
A shadow cast over Woojoo and he turned to see Junghyun looking at him with curiosity.
“But what is this? Is this Jiho?”
“Me?”
“No. Jiho junior.”
“…?”
Woojoo followed Bijoo’s finger and saw a video from the ‘Jiho Dance’ account at the end of the recommended videos.
It was a video uploaded by Kim Jiho, who performed at the event with them yesterday.
[I met New Black Hyungs at the event today]
Woojoo laughed as he clicked on the title.
A boy with cheeks as red as a breadman was drinking cola in the practice room and talking.
[I was so happy yesterday. Everyone kept saying ‘baby baby’ but I’m not a baby. I’m 10 years old and I practice a lot. But Woojoo Hyung introduced me and instead of calling me a kid YouTuber like the others, he acknowledged me as a dancer and I was so happy…]
He said the Hyungs were so nice and he liked this and that about them as he watched the video.
“Wow, this is amazing. We’re on YouTube and everything.”
“I know, right?”
Most of the videos that came out so far were either fancams or content uploaded by their company.
When they searched, they started to see videos about them here and there.
It felt like there was a wind of change.
***
While the New Black members were happy watching YouTube.
The Soufflés were happy for a different reason.
-It’s coming~ It’s coming~ The influx is coming~~
-Let’s dance dongsil dongsil
-Let’s put away all the black history we’ve seen so far and act like normal people
-Newbies, hurry up and come in!!
The fan cafe, SNS, and various internet communities’ subcategories were seeing an increase in incoming members.
Patisserie Korea’s special was not as popular as Around the World With Dice’s Chuseok Special, but it felt like a bigger response than then.
Before, they were nobodies and people would just glance at them and say ‘Who are they?’ or ‘Are they idols?’ but this time was different.
Unlike the debut, which started from scratch, they had a slight public recognition.
‘New Black? Are they the ones from Around the World With Dice’s?’ Most of them listened to Masquerade and said ‘Oh! This song.’
Now they felt like they had heard their name somewhere.
Meanwhile, as the name New Black started to spread among the public, the idol fandom had a huge reaction.
-I’m a multi-fan… Can I come and play for a while…??
-I saw Patisserie Korea yesterday and I liked them so much that I came to say this
–Soufflés, I’m also a newbie fan from today~
-The atmosphere here is so nice…! It looks so harmonious
-I only knew them as rookies who were good at their main job, but they were so cute…
These were the people who had only seen New Black through year-end stage videos, funny reality shows, or amazing promotional posts.
Among them, the ones who liked various idols indiscriminately and were called ‘multi-fans’ showed interest.
The situation where those who had only felt a vague liking until now came to visit the place where the Soufflés gathered.
It was obviously a cause for celebration.
-ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
-People are… swarming…!
-I love this crowded atmosphereㅠ
-Newbie fans, come here, this granny has some gifs for you–
-Just look at this picture and go, I won’t hurt you
-Isn’t this really going to make our kids rise to the top when they release their third album???
-New fans, hurry up and join us
-Sob sobㅠㅠ
-Call them crybabiesㅋㅋㅋ sob sob sounds like we’re perverts
-We’re not weird. We just have strange tastes
It was uncertain whether this was a temporary situation or whether it would continue in the future, but the things that New Black had built up over time were creating synergy and increasing the meaningful influx.
And the existing Soufflés, encouraged by this fact, were welcoming the new fans with sincerity.
-But I don’t know anything about New Black’s hints… Is there any video or something you can recommend??
The Soufflés started to row the boat while the water was flowing.
『 A guide to New Black’s hints for Soufflés — (1) How did Seon Woojoo, an ordinary young man from Gunsan, become a ‘black history maker’? 』
『 (2) Bijoo? Why are you killing our kid’s spirit. He did everything well except for finding his way 』
『 (3) ‘I dream of being a farmer.’ A report on our kid who is too early for humanity to understand 』
『 (4) ※ Warning! This post will make Rihyuk angry 』
『 (5) Jiho, Jiho, your brothers have something to say, our youngest is so cute in his growth period 』
……Most of them were promotional posts that would make the parties involved grab their necks.
***
It was clear that terrestrial broadcasting was different.
“Two, three, hello! We are New Black!”
“Woah-!”
People who recognized them and were amazed by them were popping up at the department store event.
It was a different reaction from yesterday’s shopping mall.
Woojoo knew this wouldn’t last more than a week or so, but he still felt very good.
His throat was still bad, so he couldn’t perform as well as usual, but the response was good enough to make up for it.
It was an experience of being a popular celebrity for a while.
“That’s Jenmin from yesterday. Jenmin.”
“Oh, really.”
……Woojoo didn’t know why they called him Jenmin out of the blue, but he was grateful for all the attention.
He hoped they could keep up this momentum until the Challenge, Legendary Song Discovery Team.
There were already articles coming out.
-‘New Black, who shot the legend of Patisserie Korea, to appear on PBS’s new competition show’
-‘Challenge, Legendary Song Discovery Tean!’ PD Baek Sunghyun, “They are friends who are full of entertainment skills from the start, please look forward to our show”
-‘Home run every time they appear on entertainment, rising rookie ‘New Black’ to become an entertainment blue chip…?’
There were PBS logos and PD Baek Sunghyun’s face all over the articles.
PD Baek, who checked the reaction of Patisserie Korea yesterday, called their manager and expressed his satisfaction.
He said it would be a great promotion.
“It feels like we’re finally getting on track.”
Woojoo nodded at Bijoo’s words.
They were slowly catching the flow.
With the fixed appearance on Legendary Song Discovery, they could stamp our faces on the public and successfully promote our third album…
Woojoo thought of the upcoming events and felt that this was an important time.
He felt proud in a way.
Jiho said, “Until now, it felt like we were building a sandcastle that would be swept away by the waves every time they hit, but now it feels like it won’t collapse even if it shakes a little.”
“Right. It’s like a slightly sturdy sandcastle.”
“We really have to do well with the rest. We.”
The sandcastle joke was something they often said.
Working in the entertainment industry was like building a sandcastle on the beach where the waves never stopped. That was the idea behind the joke.
Sand was popularity.
Even if you piled up the sand castle diligently, it was swept away by the waves.
The popularity that was built up by appearing on a broadcast once quickly eroded over time. It was the same for pros like Around the World With Dice who had a lot of buzz. After a certain period of time, only the remains were left.
This Patisserie Korea would also unfold similarly.
It was hot for the first week and got some entertainment offers, but after a week or so, the power gradually faded.
But what remained there was important.
Like the saying that even a thousand-mile journey starts with a single step, it was about stacking up things like this.
Add the remaining sand of Around the World With Dice to the remaining sand of Patisserie Korea. Add the incidental popularity gained from other activities and more and more.
The most important thing, wouldn’t something that wouldn’t budge even by the waves remain if you piled up the popularity gained from their main job?
After the Patisserie Korea broadcast, the outline seemed to gradually emerge.
Something that became stronger with what they had accumulated over time, not the popularity that they gained in a flash.
“…That’s why we have to do well on the remaining broadcasts. We.”
After returning to the company.
Rihyuk and Woojoo told the younger ones.
“No matter how trivial it is, you can’t take it lightly. Honestly, we were the first ones to become a topic as a part-timer on Patisserie Korea.”
“That’s a rare right thing to say.” Rihyuk agreed and said, “Other daily part-timers were only popular for their looks, they wouldn’t have expected to be known like this.”
According to what Seokhwan Hyung said, he said that ‘the atmosphere of the daily part-timer on Patisserie Korea will change a bit after you guys’.
If it used to be like a folding screen, appealing with their looks while saying ‘Shalalang~’, now they would all work really hard. He meant that celebrities who were aiming for the second New Black would come out one after another.
Rihyuk said, “So we have to work hard on everything as this old man said.”
“Right. Right.”
But even with their words, the younger ones sitting in the company conference room had dumbfounded, sad, or painful faces.
Junghyun said, “Hyung.”
“Junghyun. You have to raise your hand. It’s class right now.”
“Here’s my hand.” Junghyun raised his hand and said, “Do we have to do this…?”
“Yes.”
“Can’t I do it with my body?”
“No.”
“I got it…”
This time, Jiho raised his hand.
“I have a question for the two of you.”
“I don’t want to hear it.”
“Woojoo Hyung always said this. No matter how well we do in entertainment and whatnot, the most important thing is our main job. Our fans like us going on entertainment, but they like us doing well in our main job the most~~.”
“That’s right.”
At Woojoo’s words, Jiho showed him the workbook and said, “Then why do we have to learn this? Wouldn’t it be better to practice singing one more time instead of this time?”
“Hmm… You have a point.”
Woojoo stroked his chin and asked Jiho, “Jiho.”
“Yes.”
“Then shall we go to the studio with Hyung and work on the third album songs together?”
“I like studying. Hyung.”
He earnestly expressed his face as if he liked studying the most in the world. Woojoo passed Jiho and looked at Bijoo.
Before he could say anything, Bijoo quickly raised his pen and shouted, “Me, I’ll study!”
“…”
There was no need to shout…
No. Anyone who saw it would think he was a bad person.
‘Bad person.’
‘Evil composing monster.’
‘I like it when Hyung doesn’t compose…’
He appealed with his eyes. Woojoo snorted and winked at Rihyuk.
“Okay, then everyone has no objection, right? Open the book.”
As soon as they opened the book they were holding.
They all sighed deeply as they looked at the page that said ‘The Life of the Prehistoric Age, The Establishment of Gojoseon’.
On the other hand, their Rihyuk was full of energy and he was spreading it all over the place.
“I’m not doing this because I want to. But we have a History Discovery Team broadcast ahead of us. Don’t we have to know first if we want to teach the children the right knowledge?”
As Rihyuk spoke with a flushed face, the rest of the siblings looked gloomy.
What they were doing now was preparing for HBS’s children’s program ‘Sok Sok! History Discovery Team’ which was scheduled to be recorded next week.
The beginning was when Junghyun said ‘I forgot everything, history.’ and Rihyuk’s answer ‘Then shall I teach you a little bit?’ made everyone agree.
As soon as the conversation ended, the siblings were anxious when they bought the workbook from the internet, but Woojoo didn’t care because he was going to be the teacher role as he already knew Korean history well.
As long as it wasn’t him. Hehe.
“…”
Zzzt.
Woojoo coughed and managed his expression at the siblings’ glare.
Meanwhile, Rihyuk clapped his hands with a thrilled face.
“Just trust me.”
“…”
“By the time this broadcast is over, I’ll make you all pass the Korean history 1st grade.”
“…”
A dark shadow began to fall on the members’ faces.