Chapter 132

The office worker felt like they were about to contract a mental illness.

Today, though, it wasn’t because of Manager Kim.

“These damn journalists should be thrown into a shredder with Manager Kim. Ugh…”

It was because the journalists were indiscriminately churning out clickbait articles.

[Seven’s comeback and Coral Blue too… Preview of the second-half girl group battle]

[Early summer music scene: The throne battle between 3rd gen and 4th gen representative girl groups]

[The clash of two chart-topping powerhouses “Who will be this year’s Summer Queen?” …Summer girl group wars begin]

[Once again, Seven’s Dorahee surpasses Coral Blue’s Lira… Girl group personal brand reputation rankings]

June 26, Monday – Seven’s comeback.

A week later, July 3, Monday – Coral Blue’s comeback.

The articles comparing the two girl groups were more than enough to provoke strong reactions.

Of course, mostly directed at Seven getting criticism.

– Big clash? Haha, Coral Blue is going to crush them anyway.

– Anyway, they’re disbanding next year, so why are you even hyping them up? Even if they don’t disband, they’ll never catch up to Coral Blue. Haha.

– These one-day wonders should’ve hit Billboard or something already. Haha.

– Why did Jeon Ha-rang join Seven? She should’ve debuted quietly in some junior group under Coral Blue.

After all, Coral Blue’s fandom size was overwhelmingly dominant.

– It’s undeniable that Coral Blue represents the third generation, but why is Seven considered the fourth?

– That’s exactly why Seven gets criticized. Their fandom drama is ridiculous.

Moreover, fans of other fourth-generation girl groups like ‘ThreeM’, ‘PureGirls’, ‘NavyA’, and ‘CatchOne’ who were losing to Seven also jumped on the bandwagon.

“Why do our schedules always overlap like this…?”

An office worker sighed deeply after reading the inflammatory posts on K-pop community forums.

It seemed like it would be a tiring promotional period for both the fans and the members.

“This is all ShockEntertainment’s fault. They should give the kids some rest. Those money-obsessed bastards.”

But when it came down to pressing play on the music video, the office worker couldn’t help but get excited and squirm in their seat like any other dedicated fan.

[SAVEN (Seven) ‘Melody’ Official M/V]

“Wow, they already look amazing just from the thumbnail.”

The teaser had already shown us the urban and sophisticated outfits of the members, along with mysterious concept photos.

Indeed, project groups have one clear advantage:

Since their narrative and image are crafted through survival shows, there are no limits to the song concepts.

However, worry couldn’t be avoided, especially since the outfits in the thumbnail looked quite sexy.

With four minors, this was bound to attract backlash against sexualization and result in negative feedback.

“And Dohee is only sixteen, for heaven’s sake.”

Despite previously believing that ShockEntertainment excelled in selecting songs and concepts, it now seemed like their touch had faded.

Still, the office worker pressed play on the MV.

“I guess I’ll find out by watching it. Sigh.”

The opening scene showed an Ionic-style Greek building fronted by a plaza.

The members stood in formation, ready to perform choreography.

Instead of the outfits from the thumbnail, they wore pure and innocent attire.

‘Ah, this is why the concept photos were…’

As realization dawned, the intro began.

A dreamy synth sound flowed like beads rolling down a scale, gradually descending.

As the notes dropped, bass sounds were added incrementally.

The disco retro beat heard in the teaser was smooth and refined—not overly bombastic.

‘Zy-side producers really know what they’re doing.’

Meanwhile, the members, who had been staring meaningfully forward, finally moved, raising their hands toward Dohee, once again center stage.

Now the screen was filled with flower-shaped hands.

Dnn↘Dnn↘Dnn↘Dnn↘

In an instant, the bass notes descended step-by-step as the members lowered their hands.

When their hands finally disappeared from the screen, the background had changed to a vintage London street.

Dohee, standing at the center of the flowers, provocatively wiped her hand along the wall as she walked out onto the street.

「Ay, I can’t seem to fill it

Would you write your heart for me」

The previously seen concept photo outfit—white blouse and black corset belt—was gone, replaced by a red knit dress that highlighted intellectual charm.

「Ad lib lib lib I am just beat. (lips lips)」

The office worker’s mind exploded with exclamation points as they inwardly screamed in awe.

「It’s obvious where you are

But still, I’m scared, maybe it’s something else

Maybe a bit indecisive」

Before they could utter another word of praise,

This time, Hana with black hair and white fabric covering her eyes,

And Ye-eun, whose chicness was doubted until now,

Appeared surrounded by paintings, facing each other like reflections in a mirror, starkly contrasting.

“……!”

Once again, the office worker almost yelled out loud but managed to suppress it,

Not wanting to miss a moment of this melody’s buildup.

‘Buildup…? Now that I think about it, the instrument arrangement seems to change slightly with each part of the song?’

Deciding to confirm later, they refocused on the video.

「Though I pretended to understand」

This time, three members appeared:

Sara, Chae-rin, and Ha-rang.

「In the end, the answer lies within you」

The three walked down a stylish corridor of an old mansion, where sunlight barely filtered through the windows.

Yet, their coordinated red and black outfits turned the dark, heavy setting trendy.

「Raise your hand and write it down」

Finally, as the trio approached and pushed open a door,

Seo-yoon stood alone, her pink hair and lip piercing emphasizing allure over cuteness.

As she thrust her T-shaped hands downward,

A sudden drop occurred.

The intense buildup melody and beats vanished,

Replaced by a restrained yet enchantingly emphasized chorus line.

「That’s in my score sound─」

Seo-yun lightly moved her fingers to place them atop her lip piercing.

The office worker gave up trying to suppress their admiration.

“Damn…”

They decided to start over from the beginning.

‘Anyway, I’ll probably watch this 100 times today.’

And it seemed everyone else had the same thought.

This was evident in the real-time reaction updates.

-Do-d-do-d-do-d-Dorahee!

-What kind of visual punch is this?

-Three consecutive hits!!!

Even without seeing the performance on stage,

It was clear this wasn’t the typical excessive sexy concept.

Following their refreshing concept from the second album,

This one was even more suited for summer.

‘Mesmerizing coolness.’

They had released a title track that captured everything—cool, fresh, and sexy—all at once.

***

As usual, the area in front of LE Center in Sangam-dong was bustling.

180 lucky fans had secured spots for the Mpulse live broadcast recording through fierce competition.

The cheerful atmosphere matched the crisp early summer morning.

People exchanging goods, cramming last-minute cheer routines, and bonding with others filled the scene.

All were brimming with anticipation and excitement.

And as always, a few well-connected home mamas were present.

They exchanged pleasantries upon recognizing familiar faces.

“Hey, you made it?”

A man greeted a woman walking toward him.

He didn’t appear to be someone who followed celebrities daily, dressed rather casually.

“Yeah, how about you, Oppa?”

“Me? 1 AM.”

“Midnight?!”

“Yup, just stayed up at the PC bang editing some stuff.”

“I heard there’s going to be a mini fan meeting after the recording. Will it be okay?”

“Of course! That’s what got me excited and kept me awake. When the notice popped up yesterday, my heart raced like after drinking alcohol.”

The man’s exaggerated reaction made the woman laugh.

“That’s why. Other stans are jealous.”

“Yeah, right? By the way, Ji-hyun? Did she not get selected? Doesn’t she usually come regardless?”

The man recalled a female stan who became close through following Seven.

The woman seemed to know something.

“Well, tell me.”

“Oh… Remember The Ultimate Survivor Season 4?”

“Ah, the male version? Of course, I know it. What about it?”

“Last Monday was its press conference.”

“Yeah, so?”

“Ji-hyun went there to take pictures for money, but she met her type among the contestants and decided to focus on that instead…”

“Huh? Suddenly?”

“Not really. You know, she used to be into boy groups.”

“Ah, true. Seems like those who follow boy groups eventually return to them.”

“Exactly. Pretty boys are irresistible.”

“Ah, lost a lunch buddy.”

As the two stans felt a sense of loss,

“Oh, Manager Da-hong!”

Fans noticed Seeven’s manager, Da-hong, approaching.

“Manager, you look great today!”

Manager Joo Da-hong occasionally appeared in member live streams, gaining recognition among fans.

“Alright, everyone, let’s gather properly!”

As fans gathered one by one,

Da-hong raised a hand and loudly announced,

“Saben friends, everyone knows their numbers, right!? Starting now, the left side will be numbers 1 to 60! Middle section, 61 to 120! Right side, 121 to 180! Everyone else with backup numbers, please step aside for now!”

Following Da-hong’s instructions, the two stans continued chatting while moving into position.

“Definitely feeling it lately, huh?”

“What? Getting criticized?”

Indeed, what was once welcomed as cute rookies has now become a battlefield of scrutiny on online communities.

“Yeah, that.”

Pitch battles among fandoms weren’t new, so he remained detached.

On the contrary, he found this situation gratifying.

“Superstars are supposed to drive both haters and fans crazy.”

Because it meant they were climbing higher.

“I’ll check the headcount now! Please have your ID, albums, and purchase records ready!”

The man reminisced about the idol world of the past.

Coral Blue, after winning rookie awards,

Began breaking girl group records with their second comeback.

And comparisons never ceased.

Especially with the immensely popular [The Ultimate Survivor Season 1] project girl group.

By coincidence, this time it was once again a showdown between Coral Blue and a Junior Survivor 3 project group.

“ID, albums, and purchase records please!”

Manager Joo Da-hong stood before the man, hand extended.

“Ah, yes.”

The man, pretending to stay calm in front of the woman, rummaged through his shoulder bag as usual.

“Uh…? Did I leave it at the PC bang?”

The woman watched as the man desperately pulled out his phone to show his homepage.

“Manager, I’m a home mama! Don’t you remember? You must!”

Nearly sobbing,

“Yes, I recognize you as one of our home mamas. But rules are rules. I’ll wait for you until I finish checking all 180 participants. Hurry back. If you’re late, you’ll be bumped to backup.”

‘PC bang is… so far away from here…’

With tears in his eyes, the man marked the beginning of Seven’s lower half activities.

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