Chapter 20

"Wait… what are you talking about? Explain properly."

"Mm, I don't think we have time for that right now. But I really can do it well. Can't you trust me just this once?"

"No, but we need to know—"

"I don't play games I lose."

Aiden Lee looked straight at us as he said that. The smile that had been on his face was now completely gone.

"I mean it. I don't lie. Not when it comes to competition."

"...."

The team members looked at one another. Should they trust Aiden Lee's words or not? They deliberated deeply—but reached a conclusion quickly.

"…We'll trust you."

"Yeah, let's do what Aiden says."

"Ha… I don't know. He must have a plan if he's this confident."

"We—we'll do great. All of us!"

"It is a good song…"

There was no way we could afford a lengthy debate now. The other trainees were waiting for their turn, and the MC was watching us with obvious interest.

And ultimately, we all chose to follow Aiden Lee because we had realized—more or less—what kind of person he was.

One of those classic genius types.

Meaning: someone who never does anything he doesn't want to do.

People with that kind of temperament rarely compromise when it comes to the field they're passionate about or the plan they've envisioned. And in that field, they show overwhelming focus and talent.

But the flaw in people like that is that if their plan collapses or they're forced to do something they don't want, their ability gets cut in half—or worse.

And the chance of them running away skyrockets.

I felt like I now understood why Aiden Lee, who debuted in I.DYN, had started showing signs of rebellion in his second year.

After all, <Design Your Idol>, which supposedly selected members to build a "perfectly optimized idol," never actually let those members participate in planning anything.

The company decided everything—from the concept to the song.

The results were polished, of course, but also predictable and safe. Everything felt expected.

Naturally, someone like Aiden would never have quietly accepted that.

Genius types always prioritize challenge.

He must have pitched ideas countless times—maybe even brought in full tracks he produced. And the company probably hated that.

It's common. Agencies often try to tame promising rookies early on.

To keep a talented sprout from acting out, the agency must have pressed him down. Proof? I never saw Aiden Lee's name in I.DYN's album credits.

The agency must have known Aiden's song could generate buzz and attract fans.

But the fact that someone with his skill didn't get even one track on the album meant the agency prioritized breaking his spirit over leveraging his talent.

And for someone like Aiden—who undoubtedly took pride in his musical ability—there couldn't have been anything more humiliating.

That was probably what triggered his rebellion.

Once I thought of that, the missing pieces of his past seemed to click together.

"Then can I pick the song now?"

Of course, all of that was something that would happen in his future debut. It wasn't something I needed to worry about. Right now, the first mission was what mattered.

We silently nodded. Aiden, delighted, brought the mic to his mouth and announced:

"The song Team 2 will choose is Lumière sunbaenims' 'BINGO'."

A stir spread among the trainees. After earning such an early pick, choosing a girl group song was undeniably risky.

"Do all team members agree?"

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

We answered in unison. The MC complimented us—saying we seemed close, saying we already had a great sense of challenge.

But our expressions were far from bright. Even with cameras lined up in front of us, we couldn't fully hide our worry.

Still, the real reason we had no choice but to trust Aiden Lee was obvious:

If we blocked Aiden now, the entire team mission would collapse.

Like it or not, Aiden held the most crucial position in the creative mission. Arrangement required real talent and instincts.

If he didn't do it, no one else in our team could fill that gap. No matter what happened—whether we sank or swam—Aiden had to arrange the song.

"Team 2's group battle track will be Lumière's 'BINGO.' Please stand by the sign."

And like that, we had no choice but to swallow our fear and take on this risky challenge together.

"...."

"...."

With our team and concept song decided, we sat in our seats in silence.

Everyone seemed too busy processing the whirlwind of the last twenty minutes to speak.

"Should we start deciding the concept and positions now?"

Everyone except the one who caused all this chaos in the first place.

"…Since you brought it up, go ahead."

"Huh?"

I let out a long sigh as I looked at Aiden Lee's innocent face—the same face of the guy who had just dropped bomb after bomb without blinking.

Grabbing my throbbing head, I asked:

"Earlier—you said you wanted to make me the main vocal. What did you mean by that?"

"Exactly what it sounds like?"

"What?"

Grinning, Aiden Lee picked up the lyric sheet for "BINGO." The spot his finger pointed to was at the end of the second verse—the part where Lumière's main vocal, Yoo A-yeon, belted a high-note ad-lib.

"I wanted you to do this part, Yu-ha."

"...."

"I chose 'BINGO' because of this. To make you do it."

"…No, I mean—"

What the hell was this guy even talking about?

I felt my mind float as I struggled to follow Aiden Lee's bizarre way of speaking. If he was going to say something, it should be understandable—but instead, everything was sinking deeper into a maze.

"Aiden, could you explain a little more clearly?"

Seeing me at a loss for words, Joo Dan-woo—who had been quietly observing—carefully spoke up. The four trainees who still weren't close with Aiden looked anxious, unsure how they should deal with him.

Aiden Lee, meanwhile, looked like he couldn't understand why we couldn't understand. But he eventually began explaining slowly.

"This ad-lib part—the pitch rises gradually, and the highest note is D♯6. Yu-ha can hit that easily, right?"

"What? Yu-ha can reach the sixth octave?"

The trainees stared at me in shock. I nodded, though hesitantly.

'…I've never sung that high in front of him before.'

I'd never taken my pitch that high around this guy, so I had no idea how he could say it with certainty. The highest note I'd hit on <Dear Doll> was only about B4.

B4 was the highest note in "New Life," which I sang on the first day of the class evaluation. And D♯6 was far above that—most male vocalists struggled severely with that register.

"That time, Yu-ha only lacked stamina, not range."

Apparently, Aiden had gauged my potential pitch range just from watching me perform "New Life."

"I think Yu-ha can express this song better than anyone. Well, the version I arrange, at least."

"…I get what you mean. But that's not enough of a reason. Tell me more—why did you choose 'BINGO'? What's the concept you're thinking of…?"

"Oh, I've already decided that."

"What?"

"Huh?"

We all stared at him blankly. Aiden smiled brightly and scribbled something on the lyric sheet of "BINGO."

'Boy. Fresh. Game.'

"This is our song."

We all fell silent again, just like before.

Because we genuinely could not understand what this guy was talking about.

'…Is this bastard Mozart or something?'

A curse slipped out mentally before I could stop it. Aiden reminded me of Mozart saying, "The song is already complete. I only need to write down what's in my head!"

I finally looked at him with an icy stare, cameras be damned, and spoke:

"…Aiden."

"Yeah?"

"You. Go over there, right now, and write down exactly how you plan to arrange this song. Every detail. Then come back. You get ten minutes."

"Huh?"

"Time starts now. Go."

At that, Aiden stared at me—rarely looking genuinely flustered—and repeated, "Huh? What?" multiple times, like he truly couldn't understand what he did wrong.

But when I didn't retract my words, and the other team members stayed silent, he reluctantly got up and shuffled to a corner of the practice room. Sitting down, he grabbed a pen and began scribbling on the lyric sheet, scratching his head—apparently finding it difficult to put the ideas in his head into actual words.

'So he dragged us to this point with ideas he can't even explain out loud…'

The future suddenly looked bleak. I looked back down at the lyrics.

-Oh- oh- ohoh- oh- oh

A sudden meetingbut I already knoweverything about you

To win your heartI'm prepared—A perfect day begins

Lumière's "BINGO," unlike their usual bright concepts, was an outright sexy-oriented track.

With a theme of "me coming to match you" and "me approaching you," the song opened with a slow, whistling motif, then transitioned into a languid, smooth melody resting on sensual piano accompaniment.

Among the countless peoplethere's only one BingoMake sure you choose the right answer

Hurry and come closerHurry and tell meHurry and hold me

The breathy singing that switched between falsetto and chest voice, and the lightly soaring high notes at the climax—these were the song's key features. Its essence was languid expression, longing, and fragility.

Meaning: Aiden's "Boy. Fresh. Game." had absolutely nothing to do with the original.

"I'm done!"

Which is why, until Aiden came back clutching the lyric sheet covered in scribbles and crooked handwriting, all we could do was sigh deeply.

Praying desperately that this Mozart wannabe genuinely had a solid plan behind all that confidence.