GIJS

Chapter 86 The Real Start Begins Now

[7IN Sweeps All Major Music Charts Right After Debut!] [The 'scholarIdol' 7IN Takes Over Music Charts··· Overwhelming Debut Performance] [What is the Most Played Song Nationwide Right Now? [Origin>]

Two days after the debut.

7IN's debut title track [Origin> conquered the Aladin, HexMusic, and Lime charts.

Favorite, which debuted three days earlier, briefly topped the charts but then began to lose momentum, with rankings dropping across all charts. However, 7IN was different.

With a core fandom formed through auditions and broad public appeal across all age groups, 7IN saw a sharp rise in the Lime chart ranking and successfully defended their positions on the Aladin and HexMusic charts.

The dorm was a festival every day. Although the members had been living under strict weight management in preparation for music shows, on the day they achieved an all-kill on the charts, even Manager Lee Yong-jung allowed the members the freedom to enjoy chicken and beer. Five beer glasses and two soft drink glasses clinked together in the air.

"Ah, I knew we'd do well."

"Really? Woong, you kept refreshing the charts every ten minutes."

"Hahaha, why were you so anxious~"

"It wasn't anxiety; I just wanted to quickly smell success···."

"Anyway, it updates once an hour, so why check so often?"

"Yeah. Was I anxious?"

Taewoong tilted his head for a moment but then shook it as if to say it wasn't true.

"No, no. I don't think it was anxiety."

"Then why?"

"Because it's nice to keep seeing it."

"Our first place?"

"Yeah. No matter how many times I see it, the excitement doesn't wear off."

"That's true."

The other members seemed to agree with this sentiment. Gunja also nodded while sipping his beer.

"That's right. Being first place feels good."

"Oh, Gunja, are you drinking beer now?"

"Yeah, that's right. Not long ago, you were complaining about how beer was so fizzy! You hated it."

"Haha, I've finally come to appreciate it."

"Isn't that a bit too little to drink?"

"I'm still getting used to this fizzy stuff."

Gunja took another sip of beer, as small as a sparrow's, while speaking.

Thinking back, this wasn't the first time Gunja had been in first place. He was used to being first.

Even though his uncle had dragged him into unwanted competitions and martial arts tournaments, he enjoyed the moments when he won first place. Despite resenting his uncle, who was also his adoptive father, it was a bit satisfying to see him pleased.

Most importantly, being first was better than facing severe punishment for coming in second. At least on the day of winning first place, he didn't have to worry about bruises on his legs.

Having lived that way, the feeling of this first place was special. It was the same during A-yuk-si and now. Gunja hoped to reach the top on his own terms.

Winning first place with such enthusiasm was far more gratifying and enjoyable than winning first place in forced competitions.

"Three-time top scorer."

"Haha, Gunja. If you've been a top scorer three times, isn't that a new record from the Joseon Dynasty to now?"

"That's not true. Master Yulgok scored first place nine times."

"What!? No way. Wasn't the civil service exam supposed to be taken only once?"

"Wow, Master Yulgok was quite a tough guy. So, someone who got first place must have fallen to second place."

"Well, if you're annoyed, you should do better than Master Yulgok."

"That's also true."

Yes, if there are complaints, just do better.

The next day at the Solar System headquarters.

After finishing new song practice and taking a short break, Manager Lee Yong-jung came running with something in hand.

"Guys! The first three-day sales figures are out!"

"First three-day sales?"

The term "초동" (Chodong) means a young woodcutter boy, right?

Are they saying that in this world, they buy and sell boys for firewood?

"I don't want to hear this!"

"Huh?"

"No matter how much the world has changed, humanism (人本主義) should not disappear. Buying and selling children for convenience is terrible!"

"What? What about children?"

"I'd rather become a woodcutter myself. I can gather firewood···."

"What nonsense. I'm talking about album first-week sales."

"?"

Gunja, who suddenly had a dumbfounded expression, was kindly explained by Hyunsu about the first-week sales figures.

The term "초동" refers to the sales figures from the first week after an album release. Only then did Gunja breathe a sigh of relief and smile.

"Phew-."

"Phew- my foot. Who misunderstands 'Chodong' as a woodcutter boy?"

"If you studied a bit of Chinese characters, you would understand me."

"Enough, I also have a level 3 in Hanja."

Manager Lee Yong-jung chuckled and handed the document with the first-week sales figures to Taewoong. Taewoong began reading the numbers from the chart.

"Ten thousand, fifty thousand··· fifty-three thousand?"

The members' expressions became ambiguous upon hearing the number 53,000.

"Fifty-three thousand?"

"Um, well, isn't this not bad?"

"···Is it? What was the figure for Favorite's seniors?"

"320,000 for the first week."

"···Wow, that's amazing···."

"Hm, can we start selling like crazy now?"

"That's usually not the case. The initial sales volume typically peaks in the first three days."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's not bad. 53,000 is still impressive."

"True. But we're number one on the charts for the music."

The members tried to comfort each other by pretending everything was fine, but their disappointment was evident.

"Woong, I want to see that too."

"Oh, this? Sure."

Hyun-su, who received the document from Taewoong, started reading the sales figures.

"Hmm?"

Hyun-su's gaze stopped on a number as he read through the document, and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Wow··· incredible."

"What? Is there something else?"

"Let me see too."

The other members gathered around the document as well.

As they read the numbers, their expressions dramatically changed.

"Ah, what is this!"

"This isn't 53,000!"

"Wait, what is it then?"

"Haha, the manager needs to study classical Chinese, and Taewoong needs to brush up on his numbers!"

"L-Let's check again."

[3rd Day Sales: 532,413]

"Gulp-."

Taewoong, after reading the numbers again, involuntarily gulped.

On the third day after release, album sales had surpassed 500,000.

It was a moment when the record for the highest initial album sales for a male idol debut was broken.

* * *

After achieving a clean sweep of the music charts and setting a new record for debut album sales, 7IN's momentum showed no signs of slowing down. Requests for appearances were flooding in, and entertainment journalists were churning out articles about 7IN.

Now, reactions were starting to come in from overseas as well.

International fans of 7IN were analyzing every detail of the show, including "Yu Seung Ho's" appearances on various variety shows like [Masterpiece Genuine Antiques> and [Today's Quiz>, and commenting on the showcase footage.

[ㅠㅠㅠ Where can I find such a grand showcase?ㅠㅠㅠㅠ] [I'm so jealous of the winners··· They're actually being served by the members··· Isn't that crazy?] [When Hyun-su is drying hair and smiling cheekily, he's truly boyfriend material] [With that, he's practically a thief, right? If it were me, I'd open my wallet and give all my cash] [This event is so enviable!] [I have oily hair. I'll forever hate Gun-Ja for washing someone's hair!] [ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Foreigners are so madㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [What's the yudu festival?] [The yudu festival is a traditional Korean holiday, starting from Jay-Park!] [Crazyㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Who took away the translation tool from the sistersㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [It's good to learn a lot about Korea! I'll go there someday!]

Despite the buzz both domestically and internationally, the members continued to live in the practice room.

With only two days left until their first appearance on the cable channel Music Planet's [M Planet>, the members had not forgotten the team leader Seo Eun-woo's advice.

"You all are very handsome."

"Huh?"

"And each one of you has a lot of charm."

"Ah, thank you."

"But your successful journey isn't just due to your appearance or charm."

"···"

"The overwhelming stage presence you showed during the auditions. I believe that is the source of your popularity. There are many good-looking idols and charming idols, but idols who have all that and perform well on stage are rare."

"···"

"I believe you all can hold that position. In fact, fans already see you as that kind of singer."

"···Yes."

"Let's not disappoint our fans. From now on, this is the real beginning."

"Yes, Team Leader."

"Honestly, not all idols who debut through auditions walk a model path. Just because you debut through an audition, doesn't mean popularity will follow automatically. There are idols who became complacent, believing that popularity would come easily."

"···"

"We must avoid becoming like that."

"Yes!"

"To do that, we need to work hard now. It may be tough, but we have no choice but to push you hard right now."

"No problem!"

Laziness did not suit Gun-ja's nature. While he understood the pleasure of it, he knew that some things needed to be done.

[M Planet> First Stage D – 1.
With the choreography practice now perfectly finished, the fatal performance for the stage's opening had been prepared in advance.

Now, only facial expression practice remained.

Gun-ja and In-hyuk were receiving facial expression training from the expert Hyun-su. The only criticism they had received was that their facial expressions were slightly lacking when performing.

"When it comes to serious and heavy performances, you guys are great. But when it comes to showing off, it feels a bit awkward."

"Really···"

"···Showing off···"

"But this song is a sexy one, right?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"So you need to express that sexiness with your face too. The better you perform facial expressions, the better the stage presence."

"Hyun-su, what should I do?"

"Hmm, it's a bit embarrassing to demonstrate, but..."

After a moment of thought, Hyun-su spoke as if he had an idea.

"For example, use your tongue a little."

"Tongue?"

"Yes. Don't do it too much, just a little..."

"Like this?"

At the mention of using the tongue, Gun-ja and In-hyuk simultaneously stuck out their tongues and made silly faces at Hyun-su.

"Are you supposed to do it like this?"

"Like this?"

"Is it like this, heheh?"

"Uh, let's stop."

Seeing the double silly faces, Hyun-su rubbed his forehead and closed his eyes.

Even though they had memorized the difficult choreography and prepared the fatal performance, their practice for showing off facial expressions still seemed far from complete.

And so, the final day passed, and the next morning.

The van carrying the 7IN members finally arrived at the [M Planet> studio.