Chapter 50: Justice Will Prevail (1)
After the concept evaluation, TBN’s official YouTube channel, which had been quiet for a while, suddenly uploaded five videos at once.
Ding—
They were the self-PR videos that the Geundeure Team had filmed separately.
Fans of Do Seohan, who had been desperately waiting for behind-the-scenes footage from TBN, clicked on the videos as if hypnotized.
‘What is this?’
Seohan stood awkwardly behind a table that was obviously cluttered at a glance.
Though it was said to be a self-PR video, there were quite a lot of props.
While fans wondered about the identity of the props, a pop-up appeared on the screen showing the rules of the PR video.
[Concept Evaluation Benefit: Self-PR Video Rules]
Draw a prompt randomly from the box.
Promote yourself for 5 minutes based on the prompt!
Even if you're not confident in the prompt, no changes allowed!
Is this really random???
Wow, this is actually random LOL this is going to be hilarious
Seohan, please pull aegyo just once
TTTTTTT I’m so excited to see what he gets
Our baby Hamji will do well no matter what he picks
Just as real-time comments poured in on the freshly uploaded video,
the voice of the youngest staff member came from behind the camera.
[Please reveal your prompt!]
Seohan smiled and slowly lifted the crumpled note.
‘What is it?’
One fan pulled up a chair to get a better look at the prompt.
It was cooking.
-???????
Seohan, are you good at cooking?
It’s a draw, he didn’t have a choice LOLLLLL
But how do you even show cooking in 5 minutes, is this a 3-minute curry commercial?
Is this sponsored by OttuX?
Seohan’s thoughts were probably no different from the fans'.
The blinking of his eyes clearly showed he was flustered.
However, the timer started without mercy.
[Prompt confirmed! Starting 5-minute timer.]
[Start!]
Ding!
Clatter clatter.
The calm demeanor disappeared, and from the start, he dropped the frying pan in a flurry.
[Hello, I’m Do Seohan.]
After bowing his head 90 degrees, Seohan quickly picked up the frying pan.
His shameless voice began to speak fluently.
[I’m really good at cooking. I’ll make ramen.]
LOLLLLLLLLLLLLL contradiction much
He says he’s good at cooking and then makes ramen
Genius Hamji, it’s okay if you can’t cook, noona will make food for you TTT
There’s nothing else to make in 5 minutes except ramen TTT rooting for you Hamji
First, turn on the stove.
Seohan checked the temperature with his hand and muttered softly.
[I’ll warm it up a bit….]
“Warm it up a bit” LOLLLLLLLLLL
What’s this cozy vibe coming from an 18-year-old
Seohan, you’re not camping, are you?
Boiling the water came first.
Flustered, Seohan rushed through the setup, but when he looked down at the frying pan in his hand, he paused.
Hm.
Why is this in my hand…?
Byo-Seohan just short-circuited
Why are you holding a frying pan when you’re making ramen? Put it down first, Seohan LOLLLLL
LOLLLLL what are you, Rapunzel?
Frying pans aren’t for boiling ramen TTT
[Why did I take out a frying pan…?]
Good thing he realized before it was too late.
Seohan creaked over and found a proper pot, then began filling it with water.
It was a clumsy motion never seen when he danced.
Though the time limit was five minutes, everything he did felt slow. If it hadn’t been ramen, it probably would’ve taken all day.
‘That was the best choice.’
Watching the camera, Seohan began explaining things one by one in detail.
[First, boil the water.]
[Then, I’ll pour in the soup base.]
Although he fidgeted from being unfamiliar with the time attack format, Seohan was actually quite good at making ramen.
First of all, his hand movements while opening the ramen packet(?) were skillful.
Surprised fans’ chats scrolled rapidly down the screen.
For once, he's doing well
LOL of course he should, it’s just ramen
The fact that this is a cooking PR video is the most ridiculous point
No matter how you look at it, this is a group childcare video of Byo-Seohan; everyone’s praising him for tearing plastic well LOL baby TTTTTT
The skills of a solo-living student were starting to show.
Seohan stirred the ramen with chopsticks, recalling his days living alone in a one-room apartment during college.
At this rate, wouldn’t he successfully PR himself with cooking as his strength?
His tension eased a little.
With a confident face, Seohan grinned.
[Crack the egg lightly. You know it's best to stir it just a little like this, right?]
[I’m really good at making ramen—oh, oh no!]
The water began to boil over.
As he hurried to lower the heat, he stepped forward.
Clatter clatter.
The innocent frying pan, caught in his path, rolled across the floor.
Seohan grumbled and glared at it.
[Seriously… who left the frying pan here?]
You did
LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL it was you, who else are you blaming
Ah LOLLLLLLLLLL
Watching the baby cook all clumsy like this, I can’t stop smiling, he’s working so hard, why is this so heartwarming TTT not even my kid
Byo-Seohan is so freaking cute, I should’ve given birth to him
But already 3 minutes have passed
After all the chaos, the ramen was nearly done.
Seohan checked the bubbling noodles and gestured toward the camera.
Even in the midst of this, he didn’t forget his PR.
[I’m really good at cooking, right?]
LOLLLLLLLLLLL in what way exactly
Seohan, all you did was boil water, add soup, and crack an egg LOLLLLLLLLL
And even that was a hot mess every step of the way
It’s okay, you’re cute so it doesn’t matter
Bubble bubble.
Anyway, since it’s hard to mess up ramen, the end result looked fairly decent.
The video happened to be uploaded right before dinner time, so the bright red broth and bouncy noodles made viewers salivate.
Seohan swallowed and lifted a steaming mouthful of ramen.
[Wow, this looks delicious.]
It was right then that a problem occurred.
First, there was the intense diet for the concept evaluation.
During that time, Seohan hadn’t even touched spicy food, let alone ramen, so this bowl after a month felt like an emotional reunion.
So.
He kind of lost it in front of the ramen.
Seohan respectfully held the chopsticks with one hand and began slurping up the noodles.
[…]
Slurp.
Slurp.
Second, Seohan wasn’t good at multitasking.
He was supposed to keep talking, but he got so focused on eating that the commentary stopped.
S-Seohan?
He stopped talking LOLLLLLLL ahhh Hamji
Byo-Seohan is too busy eating to function
Are you seriously a baby? You’re too cute it’s insane LOLLLLLLLLL
[…]
If you closed your eyes, you might mistake it for a mukbang video instead of a PR one.
Fans chuckled in the chat as they watched Do Seohan’s delightful eating show.
[It’s delicious….]
Come back, Do Seohan
LOLLLLLL he lost his mind over ramen
Just how strict was that diet?
His eyes look watery? Is he crying?
Is that ramen soaked with tears?
Slurp.
Thankfully, his scattered mind returned a bit late.
Seohan looked at the front-facing camera, his eyes widening.
[Ah, I shouldn’t be just eating right now.]
Realizing he needed to speak, he tried to recover, but it was too late.
The youngest staff member’s voice chimed in at the worst possible moment.
[Trainee Do Seohan, 15 seconds remaining.]
[What?]
Slurp.
The slurping stopped there.
[R-Really?]
Oh dear, Seohan
LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
You panicked, huh?
Yes. He panicked.
Seohan blinked and stared at the red light on the camera.
[Ah, no.]
Even as he froze in panic, time continued ticking by.
In front of him, the door started to slowly close.
Seohan hurriedly began saying whatever came to mind.
[Sponsors, today I tried cooking, and that was Do Seohan….
[5 minutes have passed.]
Ah LOLLLLLLL Hamji missed the timing because he was eating ramen
LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
The door’s closing LOLLLLLLLLL
Final line failed!
Creeeak.
Bang—
And just like that, the heavy door shut.
[Aaah….]
On the monitor screen, only Do Seohan’s vacant expression remained like an afterimage.
* * *
Inside the dorm.
As soon as I opened the door and walked in, I heard Seo Haim’s excited voice.
Seo Haim turned his head sharply and his eyes sparkled.
“Did Do Seohan come back after just eating ramen instead of doing his self-PR?”
His tension was sky-high from early morning, clearly delighted at the thought of teasing me.
But it didn’t bother me anymore.
It would only work if it were the first or second time.
I grinned and gave a thumbs up.
“It was delicious. Awesome.”
“Wow, he doesn’t even react anymore. Seongbin-hyung, did you see?”
“Whoa, Do Seohan’s all grown up~.”
“…Well, he is taller than me at least.”
Seo Haim, looking sullen, roasted himself and pulled his phone out of his pocket.
My lukewarm reaction made him go hunting for another target.
Apparently, he skipped Kang Siwoo because his expression was too scary….
Seo Haim’s gaze landed on Seo Ian, who was absentmindedly munching on chocolate snacks.
“Hyung.”
“Mm?”
Seo Ian’s pupils trembled slightly.
Honestly, if I had just been awkward, this guy had experienced a real black history moment.
His Danso skills would’ve made Joseon-era scholars faint.
Seo Haim closed his eyes and pretended to hold a Danso in the air.
A deflating tire-like sound echoed through the quiet room.
“Shhhhhh….”
“Pfft.”
“Stop, don’t.”
I failed to hold back my laughter.
Seo Ian’s face instantly turned bright red.
Seo Haim had correctly guessed this would hit harder.
Seo Ian looked like he might explode from how red his face got.
That hyung was definitely fun to tease.
Look at that reaction—it was too good.
“Shhhhh…. Shhhhhh….”
He didn’t even play the Danso; in the PR video, all he did was breathe deeply.
Kang Siwoo chuckled and added to the joke.
“I’ve definitely heard that sound before. Is that an electric rice cooker?”
“Ding, cooking is complete.”
Even so, his personal talent was voice impressions.
He hadn’t forgotten the time he mimicked cicadas.
I joined in teasing Seo Ian, mimicking the sound of the rice cooker.
“Ahak hak…. Ahak hak.”
Seo Haim collapsed forward again, laughing in that weird way of his.
He even pulled up the PR video to show it directly to Seo Ian.
“But honestly, I liked how confident you were.”
“You’re more talented than I thought.”
“Hyung, your lung capacity is impressive.”
Seo Ian, his face now the color of a ripe persimmon, snatched Seo Haim’s phone.
“If I could delete just one video, it’d be this one.”
Though, if he had to keep just one, I bet he’d save the ab reveal fancam.
Seo Haim waved his hands while laughing like he was about to suffocate.
“Ah, okay, I’ll really stop teasing now. Give me my phone back.”
“Mm… promise me.”
As long as the fans found it cute, that was enough.
His Danso skills were tragic, but most comments praised his effort.
Seo Haim, still smiling, caught his breath.
“Ah, seriously, that was hilarious….”
And then it happened.
“Huh?”
Seo Haim’s face froze as he scrolled through his phone.
The smile that had been plastered on his face vanished in an instant.
Kang Siwoo turned his head, wondering what was going on.
“Wait a sec.”
With a serious face, Seo Haim scrolled down his phone.
“What? What happened?”
“Something… seems to have blown up.”
“Huh?”
I looked at the two of them calmly.
Even without checking the news, I could guess what had happened.
The time had come.
Seo Haim frowned and opened his mouth.
“Kevin-hyung… did drugs?”