Seon AhHyun and Keun SeJin mentioned that it would be better to have something to eat before attending the shoot, so we agreed to meet at a restaurant.

-Oh MoonDae, hello~

-H-hello...

But even though they already had food served in front of them, their faces looked very dark.

One seemed to only react automatically if there was any small social interaction, the other looked like he was about to die.

"They must be like this because of the sale of shares."

It was the most obvious answer. I thought to leave them alone, but seeing them not eating, I asked them.

-Are you worried about the votes?

-H-huh?

-None of you seem to be okay.

They both stared at each other. Perhaps they were feeling so bad that they didn't realize that their partner also felt the same way.

-...Oh, MoonDae is a ghost~ No... it's hard not to worry. I think I've been surfing the internet too much, hehe

SeJin flinched and AhHyun nodded at what he said with his gloomy face.

-I-I'm afraid they'll hate me...

Oh no.

Looks like they searched for things they didn't need to see. Looking at the atmosphere, it was clear that they didn't stop checking social media the whole night and kept searching for their names.

Now, when we get to the shoot, they'll check with numbers how many people hate them, so I understood why they weren't in the mood to eat.

"...Even so, you should eat something before going to the program or going home."

After thinking for a while, I finally sighed and said.

-Since it's a survival show for idols, don't you think there are more people who like it than dislike it? Also, having a lot of shares sold may mean that they see you as promising contestants, so they try to sell your shares out of fear that you will win.

-...!

In the previous team battle, the best team finished in third place due to the vote of the audience present for that very reason.

-What I mean is that you don't have to worry too much about it, unless the amount of sales of your shares is already excessive.

Of course that doesn't mean they shouldn't care, but it would be better to think on the bright side of things and believe that they will win. As expected, Keun SeJin recovered first.

-You're right.

And as he held the spoon from him with a bitter smile, he muttered to himself.

-I really need to do something this time. I've been training for too long... Well, anyway, let's eat well and cheer up!

He quickly said those words that came out of nowhere and resumed his meal with a more determined fighting mood.

Seon AhHyun still looked flustered with worry, but when I asked if he wasn't in the mood to eat, he ate immediately.

"I know it's a difficult time to eat."

I sighed, but I also prepared to continue eating.

Since I was a last-minute chosen contestant, I was criticized a lot, but I also got good recognition for my talent. There are cool kids who haven't been the victims of bad edits yet, but they and the other contestants must be feeling pretty worried too.

"The atmosphere of today's shoot may not be good."

And my prediction was correct.

-...

From the contestants at risk of being eliminated to those in the top ranks, none were in a good mood.

This is because slander and rumors about the contestants on the internet got worse after the "If you don't like it, make it go" voting system was introduced.

Cha YooJin was the only one who was excited, although he seems to be that way because of personality, not self-confidence.

-Why didn't you come with us?

He approached me to tell me all the details about the day he went with RaeBin to see their billboards. Yes, he has a great personality.

After a while, the shooting started.

Welcome to the second ranking ceremony for "Idol Corporation - Reincorporated!"

I don't know how it will air, but the ceremony took place in an atmosphere more depressing than ever.

-This will be the first rankings ceremony to include the results of the recently introduced system called "Stock Sale". Rankings will be determined by the number of people who bought and sold each participant's shares.

Gulp.

I heard someone swallow their saliva and the murmurs of someone else praying.

I think adults are doing terrible things to their children.

-Before that, should I announce the first place of the last team battle? I had already mentioned that the winning team would receive a grand prize, right?

Even though the atmosphere felt heavy, the MC announced in the happiest way possible.

-The "Stock Sale" will be invallid for the winning team!

-...What?!

-Oh God.

In an instant, the surroundings were filled with awe.

-The members of the winning team will be ranked according to the total number of purchases of shares, but will not include the negative figures through "Sale of shares"!

The reaction didn't get bigger, but rather lessened, we could even hear someone's low murmur.

-That is unfair.

Certainly, it was an idea that could not be done out of respect for all the participants, but it seems that the production team likes to give and receive benefits to whoever to get more dramatic results.

"After getting hit with the downvote system, now we're getting hit with the sixth episode prize."

-Congratulations on winning first place to... the "Gigantic" team, who performed the song "Fingerprint"!

The team that Choi WonGil chose ultimately took first place in the second team battle.

Perhaps WonGil, who was confirmed to have been eliminated due to the stock sale system, received a rescue signal. Upon hearing the news, he cried and was relieved, but it was not really a good thing for others.

"That is a problem."

If the downvotes he got led to his downfall, there was a good chance he wouldn't get any sympathy.

As he was fortunate enough to win an award that invalidated his fate, he is going to receive an avalanche of negative public opinion unless he does an excellent job in the next tag team battle.

The award announcement for the winning team concluded with a fitting comment.

-Now, let's begin the sorting ceremony!

The first 30 classifications would manage to continue with the program. As in the last ranking ceremony, it would start by calling the participants from 28th place, leaving two people behind.

-28th place goes to Park JunKyung!

In fact, there were no significant changes until 20th place. The contestants chosen weren't the ones with super dramatic cuts or small appearances on the show, but rather the most popular ones.

It was in the top 20 that the unexpected happened.

-20th place... goes to Contestant Choi WonGil!

-Wow.

-Amazing.

It was rated higher than Gold 2.

Perhaps his fans, who were aware of the danger he was in due to negative voting, supported him by buying quite a few shares.

Choi WonGil gave a long thank you speech and included an apology.

-...I find myself reflecting deeply on my immature attitude. Oh, I'll do my best from now on, uhh.

He went crying until he reached his new seat.

"Wouldn't it be better to apologize to Gold 2?"

Well, it was not something that worried me, I was more interested in knowing the position in which I will be.

After that, to sum up the rankings... Lee Sejin dropped several places, while Kim RaeBin managed to resurface and settle into sixth place.

Contestants who were part of Choi WonGil's team, such as Keun SeJin, moved up their ranks. Their rankings rose sharply as downvotes were excluded for taking first place in the team battle.

Seeing this, I thought that I would probably be downgraded, so I was ready to get up and go to my new seat in case I was called soon.

But it was not necessary because he had risen in position.

-The fourth place contestant is... Park MoonDae!

-...?

I didn't expect to hear my name in the midst of all the chaos. Since I hadn't been in fifth place, I thought I had dropped too far down the rankings and maybe I would be in 28th place, I didn't think they would announce me in fourth place.

When I jumped in panic, something even more embarrassing was waiting for me.

-Congratulations!

Ryu CheongWoo walked up to me and patted me on the back while smiling with a touched expression. Cha YooJin also came up to me and congratulated me.

-Congratulations!

"Eh? I was going to pretend that I knew them only a little, but..."

Apparently, the presentation we did had such good reactions that my team members felt more comfortable with me and got closer.

In particular, Ryu CheongWoo looked happier than ever because he hadn't been close to any other contestants before, the boys he was on his first team with had either moved away or been eliminated in the first ceremony.

I waved to the cameras and walked up to the podium after high-fiving Seon AhHyun, who stood up to congratulate me as well.

I felt strange, the signs of affection they gave me was something that until then was unknown to me.

-I want to thank all the shareholders who supported me by buying my shares. Considering the level of my skills, I feel that I still don't deserve it, but I will try much harder to achieve the results that you have invested in.

As soon as I finished my standard thank you speech, the MC asked me.

-Participant Park MoonDae, you have been delighting our shareholders with ideas that come out in every team battle. Do you have an idea that you would like to try next time?

It was an extremely difficult question, but I think it would be easier to try to show off a bit of aegyo.

I will mention it in a way that seems logical.

-Next time I would like to do something fun and enjoyable.

-Hahaha. Are you starting to miss what you showed on "POP ☆ CON"? Contestant Park MoonDae, I look forward to your next performance.

Was the MC too amused by my performance of "POP ☆ CON"? I couldn't look directly at the MC, so I quietly lowered my head and climbed into my seat.

The beautiful sofa that awaited me for 4th place was downright embarrassing, but I sat comfortably on it and waited for the rest of the rankings to be announced.

-3rd place goes to... Contestant Cha YooJin!

-Yes.

-You used to be 1st place.

Cha YooJin, who was ranked 1st at the last rankings announcement ceremony, had dropped two places, but he didn't seem to care much. He approached the sofa with the bright impression that he was happy to be in a high position.

Then came the long-awaited showdown for first and second place.

Ryu CheongWoo and Seon AhHyun made it to the finals.

"And so he believed that he was going to be eliminated?"

AhHyun stumbled and stood up on the podium. From the nervous expression on his face, he looked like he would faint at any moment if he came out on top.

-In this ranking ceremony for "Idol Corporation - Reincorporated!", first place goes to... Ryu CheongWoo! Congratulations!

-Thank you very much!

CheongWoo took first place. In fact, I thought it would be that way unless something unusual happened.

He was a representative of the national team and has a good image on TV, so he probably wasn't affected by the negative votes.

After CheongWoo and AhHyun's thank you speeches, the announcement of the 29th and 30th ranked contestants continued. It stretched out so long that I ended up lying on my back on the couch.

But after they were announced, the most surprising thing came.

-These would be the ratings they would have received if the "Stock Sale" system had not been put in place!

The production team showed all the amounts of votes of support, votes sold and the final figures with and without sale of shares

There were anguished sighs everywhere.

"They don't want to see it."

I quickly found my name on the screen.

Third place?

When I checked my original ranking, the person who was actually ranked fourth was Seon AhHyun.

We both had a similar number in buy votes, but the significant difference was in sales votes.

At that time, I had a strange feeling.

"This is totally... disgusting."

Yes, although I had a good result, I did not like to see that more than 10,000 of my votes were wasted.

"This hurts a lot more than I thought..."

...Wait a moment!

"I must not think nonsense."

My goal is to debut and avoid sudden death. What sense does it make to say that 1 in 90 votes doesn't like what I do when I'm getting closer to achieving my goal?

"Rather, I should thank those 890,000 votes for helping me avoid my death."

I defined my situation and stopped thinking. But when I looked around me, most of the participants seemed to be seriously injured regardless of their ranking.

"Looking at it from another point of view, they will do their best in the next team fight so as not to be eliminated."

I saw several boys dry their tears.

* * *

Please wait a moment!

The production team must have been embarrassed by the depressing atmosphere of the contestants, so the filming of the next team battle, which should have taken place as soon as the rankings ceremony ended, was temporarily put on hold.

Instead, they came up with a weird little plan.

"Idol Talent Show"

...It was somewhat in bad taste as it had been hastily planned.