As they stepped into the living room, Manager Kwon Hosan greeted Seon-ho and Jia warmly.
“What were you two talking about for so long?”
“We were discussing the concept for the song that’ll be used in High School in Melody.”
“Oh, the OST you mentioned before?”
“Yes. Jia’s solo track.”
“Did the discussion go well?”
“Yeah, I think we’re ready to hand it over to Prefer now.”
Seon-ho’s confident expression was met with a calm nod from Manager Kwon Hosan.
Since the musical side of things had been entrusted to Seon-ho, all he needed to do now was show his trust through actions.
On the way back to the dorm, Manager Kwon Hosan had received a call from Team Leader Woo Jae-yoon.
Over the phone, Woo apologized and explained what PD Joo had done.
‘A song by Jung Heesun, huh…’
It was indeed impressive.
Many idols had tried to remake Jung Heesun’s songs, but none had succeeded.
That was because Jung Heesun, who even refused requests from veteran singers, would never be satisfied with idols.
As far as Manager Kwon Hosan knew, only one idol had ever successfully remade one of Jung Heesun’s songs.
That was Drake, the leader of All In One, who was more often referred to as an “artist” than an idol.
In this context, if Personal Color were to remake a Jung Heesun song, it would solidify their image as a “skilled idol group acknowledged by Jung Heesun.”
It was a solid plan.
In fact, as long as the song wasn’t bad, it was an excellent one.
However…
If Seon-ho were to suggest singing a different song, Manager Kwon Hosan was more than willing to go along with it.
This wasn’t just because he trusted Seon-ho—it was because he trusted Prefer as well.
More precisely, it was his trust in “Team Prefer,” who composed through Seon-ho’s eyes.
Most composers match songs to singers.
They write the song first, then look for the right artist.
Of course, some do write songs with a specific singer in mind.
But even then, they don’t tailor the song 100% to the artist.
There’s always some mismatch between the composer’s image and the real singer.
But Prefer was different.
Their songs were 100% tailored to the artist.
That didn’t mean the songs were easy.
Regardless of difficulty, the songs were made to help the singer shine brightest.
With the composer’s ego completely set aside.
Manager Kwon Hosan believed Prefer could set aside their own ego because of Seon-ho’s control.
Prefer had so much faith in Seon-ho’s ears and eyes that they trusted him to strike the perfect balance between a great and an excessive song.
‘Especially with “Vivid.” That one was all or nothing.’
But Kwon Hosan’s assumption was incorrect.
It had to be.
Because Seon-ho and Prefer weren’t separate entities.
The reason Seon-ho could abandon his ego as a composer was that his goal wasn’t money or success.
Seon-ho made music for happiness.
He wanted singers to feel happy when singing and listeners to feel happy when hearing it.
That left no room for selfish desire.
Ding-dong.
Just then, the doorbell rang, followed by the delivery person’s voice: “Delivery’s here!”
“Oh, finally!”
Teiji, whose stomach had been growling, jumped up, but Manager Kwon Hosan shook his head.
“Jiwoon, Seon-ho. You two go.”
“Okay.”
Since their dorm was attached to the girls dorm in the same villa complex, he was telling them to be cautious.
If Teiji showed his face, people would immediately guess that Personal Color lived there.
Teiji spoke up with a awkward look.
“But sir, we’ve already ordered so much…”
“Still, people seeing you in passing and seeing you after the broadcast are two very different things. Your dorm will probably change soon anyway, so just be careful for now.”
“Oh, we’re moving?”
“Of course. This place is way too open.”
“True. Even when people didn’t know we were celebrities, there were still guys loitering around. Makes you wonder if their eyes are broken…”
“You wanna die, oppa?”
Teiji shut his mouth after seeing Riha’s glare, and Baek Songyi slapped Riha lightly on the back.
“You need to watch your mouth. People already think you look fierce because of your eyes. Talking like that just makes it worse.”
“Come on, what did I say?”
“Even when you say ‘I’ll wreck you,’ it sounds bad. What kind of phrase is that anyway?”
“You said it too!”
“I got caught up in the moment…”
“Sooo naggy. There are idols who swear constantly but still pull off the innocent image. I’m pretty nice compared to them!”
Riha grumbled that she was being nagged at, but she understood Songyi’s concern.
Riha was pretty, but her features had a sharp edge.
Her upturned eyes made even slight eye makeup give her a fierce impression.
That’s why, among the mostly positive comments about Personal Color, there were also some like “Riha seems rude” and “She looks too aggressive.”
Baek Songyi couldn’t help but worry.
But the truth was, Riha didn’t really care.
As the saying goes, “to each their own”—and there were plenty of fans who liked her exact look.
Especially female fans.
If Woochan and Baek Songyi paid the most attention to online comments, An Jia and Riha couldn’t care less.
While Baek Songyi and Riha bickered, Seon-ho and Jiwoon returned with a huge bundle of late-night snacks, and the members began setting the table.
Once the food was set and they finally picked up their chopsticks, the Wednesday–Thursday drama came to an end.
Then, a screen announced the beginning of Idol War.
As he watched, Manager Kwon Hosan suddenly remembered something.
“Oh, right. Guys—the ads are all sold out.”
“All of them?”
“Yeah. Regular ads, ID ads, SB, pre-CM, post-CM—everything. And the rates are higher than for Chicken Race.”
“But it’s only episode 2…”
“Advertisers already felt it after episode 1.”
Manager Kwon Hosan smiled with satisfaction.
The mood among Personal Color, now aggressively digging into their late-night snacks while watching the commercials, was calm.
Right before episode 1, they had been nervous despite doing well—because things had never gone well in the past.
But today was different.
They were confident in this broadcast.
Similar to past success, they had done well again this time.
When the commercials ended and a highlight reel of the previous episode played, Idol War episode 2 began.
Bzzz.
At that moment, Kwon Hosan’s phone buzzed with a message.
The sender was Promotion Team Leader Choi Ki-seok.
[We started off with a ‘nine’ curse.]
[Huh? What do you mean?]
[The ratings.]
Caught off guard by the unexpected message, Kwon Hosan quickly typed a reply.
[Ratings are already out?]
[The KBM master control room checked the minute-by-minute ratings just before airing—]
9.9%.
That was the minute-by-minute rating that Idol War episode 2 opened with.
PD Nam Yunsoo’s editing style was still all about speed.
Just like in the first episode, the second episode also breezed right past any part that wasn’t absolutely worth highlighting.
It was to the point where fans obsessed with making gifs were venting their frustration.
└ PD Nam Yunsoo is a foolish creature who doesn’t understand the value of gifs!
└ They say when a person dies, they leave behind a name; when a tiger dies, it leaves behind its skin; and when a variety show ends, it leaves behind gifs…
└ Are we really supposed to appreciate these beautiful kids through mere screenshots!?
Because the show moved so fast and the screen transitions were so dynamic, there were hardly any moments that could be made into animated clips.
Of course, this was a minority opinion—most viewers had glowing praise.
└ Damn, this show goes down like beer. Smooth and easy to watch.
└ I usually only watch highlight clips for shows like this because they get boring, but this one doesn’t give me a second to be bored.
Originally, the “Switch Song Mission” in Idol Wars was scheduled to be broadcast over two weeks.
It was meant to build tension by introducing the first elimination round.
However, after much deliberation, PD Nam Yunsoo decided to edit the mission into a single episode instead.
He was concerned that viewers who had enjoyed the fast pace of the first episode might lose interest if things suddenly slowed down.
Fortunately, he was able to get an extra 10 minutes of airtime, which let him include the scenes he wanted—like the cheerful, friendly vibe in Personal Color’s waiting room.
└ Ah, our PerCol kids are getting along now 😭
└ I know 😭 Seeing all five of them smiling together is so cute.
└ Is it just me, or does An Jia still look a bit awkward?
└ Nope, that’s just you.
└ No, it’s not.
└ Wait, aren’t there supposed to be five members in Personal Color? Why are there six?
└ LOL the one who flashed by just now was the manager. PerCol has three managers, and one of them is so good-looking that he blends right in with the group and makes it look like there are six members.
└ What? I thought it was a member from another group dropping by.
└ You mean the guy who showed up just now? Damn, he’s really handsome.
└ How can someone with a face like that be a manager? Such a waste of looks.
└ Seriously, a total waste;
└ Here I am, hoarding my looks and barely surviving day to day, and that manager is out there overspending his beauty.
└ Should’ve started saving early, huh.
└ LMAO you guys are nuts.
Finally, at the stroke of midnight, the show entered its main phase.
It was no longer just an exhibition match—this was the first real round where teams could be eliminated.
First up: Ladies Day.
Ladies Day was a team where the most popular member had abruptly announced her retirement from the entertainment industry, and the new member hadn’t yet found her place.
They were also troubled by rumors of discord and bullying because of that sudden departure.
Ladies Day performed Deep Sleep, the debut song of Dream Girls, but it fell a bit flat.
They had added a solo vocal part in the bridge to highlight the new member’s singing, but it only ended up dulling the energy of the song.
“That’s the tragedy of a small agency. Their producer lineup is too weak,” was Manager Kwon Hosan’s brief yet unchanging assessment by the end of the stage.
The team that came on after Ladies’ Day was A.S.A.P.
True to their hip-hop roots, A.S.A.P performed a Black Label song rearranged in hip-hop style.
Even Seon-ho couldn’t find much to criticize about the stage.
If he had to nitpick, the only issue was that since it’s hard to rap and dance at the same time, the backing track had a lot of vocal overlays.
Then it was finally Personal Color’s turn.
PD Nam Yunsoo highlighted the external interest the group had got after their debut, raising expectations for their stage.
“Ugh!”
At that moment, Riha let out a weird groan.
It was a familiar—but deeply unwanted—scene.
Right before going onstage, the five members gathered at the waiting line, put their hands together…
And following Riha’s energetic chant…
—Wreck ‘em!
—Wreck ‘em!
—Wreck ‘em!
The group’s enthusiastic battle cry made it onto the broadcast.
└ LMAOOOOOOOOOO
└ I didn’t mishear that, right? Right, guys?
└ Did she just say ‘wreck ‘em’??? 😂
└ Are you ready to fully cooperate with the prosecution’s investigation??? : Wreck ‘em.
└ Haha Riha is too damn likeable 😂 Straight up Mokpo energy.
└ That salty sea-man energy.
└ Also… is it just me, or was An Jia lip-syncing? Her mouth barely moved.
└ The dignity of an actress.
Unaware of the netizens reactions, Riha muttered, “This life is over…”
Meanwhile, Seon-ho was capturing screenshots of the reactions on his laptop.
He planned to show them to Riha after the broadcast.
And so, Personal Color’s flawless performance began.
Baek Songyi opened the song, drawing all eyes to her with the charm befitting a lead vocalist.
While Riha and Teiji were likely stronger singers overall, Baek Songyi had her own distinct presence.
After her part, Jia took over and showed her usual impressive level of immersion in the lyrics.
Or perhaps she was even more immersed now, thanks to the steady support of her older teammates.
The original Role Model by Jesco was a song about a man in unrequited love, declaring he’d become like the guy his crush liked.
Since this had to be adapted for female singers, Jia sang lyrics about becoming like the unnie the person she loved admired.
Watching her gestures and expressions, she really did look like a girl in love.
Baek Songyi and An Jia set the stage, and Teiji and Riha blew it wide open.
As main vocalists, they showed off their formidable singing skills.
But tonight, the true standout in Role Model was, without question, Woochan.
He unleashed the rap skills he’d honed underground without holding back.
PD Nam Yunsoo’s method of showing the performance hadn’t changed.
He used steady camera work and avoided chopping up the stage, a style that clearly revealed the skill gaps between the competing teams.
And in that approach, Personal Color—once at the very bottom of the food chain among the seven teams—
Was now undeniably showing they had risen to become the predators.