Do You Want to Be Special? (4)

"Alright, where to blow it first."

I scrolled through the system window with the mindset of an overnight millionaire ready for a proper spending spree. The first item on the list, obviously, was already picked.

"First — upgrade the skills I've already got."

Skills leveled up on experience too. Steady practice had inched them up nicely — but free-to-play never beats paying to win.

Without hesitation, I dropped the cash.

Skill 〈Just As I Say〉 (LV.3) ▶ (LV.4) levels up! Skill 〈Just As I Say〉 (LV.4) ▶ (LV.5) levels up! Skill 〈Name Your Price〉 (LV.1) ▶ (LV.2) levels up! Skill 〈Name Your Price〉 (LV.2) has leveled up. You can now convert a wider range of favor into cash. Current Cash Balance ∥ 6,200 cash

'Good enough. Next.'

Prepping for the month-end and the survival — I needed a lot. I jumped straight to the skill activation tab.

To create a skill, please specify the desired skill's contents in detail.

The most important ability in a survival? Take a wild guess.

"I want to check people's stats. As specifically as possible. Their strengths and weaknesses, and anything performance-related is even better."

Measuring skill creation probability…. Skill contents are effective for quest progression! Creation probability increases. (Measuring….) Skill creation is possible! Create skill 〈Behold with the Dragon's Eye〉? Cost: 5,000 cash (Y/N)

Seriously, what is with the naming sense…?

All skill names are generated using the skill user's DB to make them easy for the skill user to understand. No complaints.

"Yeah, thanks."

Don't mention it. (´,,•ω•,,｀)

That wasn't a compliment. Don't get shy on me.

Speaking of which — maybe I'd take Kang Hawon to a PC bang this weekend, I thought as I hit create. Five thousand cash? Prices out here are downright criminal. Watching the dust I'd scraped together vanish in a single go felt like tearing up my bankbook.

Skill 〈Behold with the Dragon's Eye〉 was successfully created.

'Alright, let me start by checking my own…'

The hand I'd been about to move stopped in midair, as if someone else had grabbed the controls.

'Checking my own…'

An emotion I'd briefly forgotten since the regressions started came rolling in over me like a huge wave. You sure you're okay with this? With confirming your limits? Some helpless someone hiding inside me spoke up.

I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"Later. Look at it later."

Hastily catching my breath, I pulled myself together. So what if I just didn't check it? I forced off the weird feelings that had briefly swamped me. Cold sweat must have broken out in that short moment — the bitter winter-night wind cut into my clothes with a chill.

I escaped the rooftop like I was running from something.

"Ah, my head…"

Going out there had been the only option — I'd needed somewhere empty — but the brutal cold had frozen me solid in the short time I was up there. The moment I stepped back into the warm indoors, the chill snapped and a coughing fit broke out, my head spinning.

"One more trip out there and I'd be dead, seriously."

A cough caught in my throat and I hacked so hard it felt like I might bring up blood. Turns out coughing a lot pulls at your stomach muscles and makes your eyes water — I was learning that firsthand. I wiped my streaming eyes, and was pressing my still-throbbing, heavy head when—

"Huh?"

Wait a second.

"Kang Hajin-ssi?"

A familiar voice from behind. I turned around wondering, no way — and there was Upia's Seo Taeil, watching me with a worried face.

I quickly took stock of myself. Face gone red from the cold, sniffling nose, watery eyes, screwed-up expression.

'Ah, come on.'

"What's this. Hajin-ssi, are you—"

Are we still not done with the misunderstandings?

"No, I'm not."

I went with a flat denial first.

"Not what—"

"Whatever you're thinking, it's a misunderstanding."

"Were you cry—"

"No."

"Your eyes are still bright red—"

"I said no."

Seo Taeil couldn't quite shake the suspicion off his face, but seeing me deny it again, he nodded like alright, fine. I wanted to correct him a little further, but…

"Sure. If you say so."

He was wearing the face of I know exactly what happened, but you look embarrassed so I'll play along for now, so it was pointless anyway. I shut up.

The situation was awkward and being alone with him didn't seem like a great look right now, so I gave a small bow and tried to slip away — but Seo Taeil, as always, wasn't letting me off easy today.

"So… month-end prep going well? How's it looking?"

He'd even sidled right up next to me, asking like it was a friendly chat. He was a major sunbaenim, and more than that, this was the guy who'd pushed for me hard enough to hand over his own manager's business card — my conscience wouldn't let me just brush him off.

'Technically he's someone I've got to lock in as an ally no matter what, so no point poking the bear either.'

In the end, I gave up on running, relaxed my posture properly, and gave him a decent answer.

"Just starting the prep now. First month-end — I'm a little nervous, honestly."

"You know I'm coming on as producer for the survival, right? I'll be judging the month-end too. I've got high hopes."

"For me?"

"You're a trainee I personally staked my name on to bring in. Of course. Judging will be fair, obviously."

'Yeah, sure it will.'

I'd been so focused on Ji Suho that I'd temporarily forgotten — Seo Taeil apparently had more of a stake in my becoming a Miro trainee than I'd realized.

The thought of it inflating the 'Miro's Zhuge Liang' rumor even further was a little scary, but at this point — in for a penny. If you can't dodge it, milk it for all it's worth.

'Ah — right, that skill.'

A few more exchanges in, I remembered the new skill I'd tried to test-run and failed to earlier.

"You'll be nervous for your first one, sure, but just go for it. If you deliver with the same nerve you had at the guide audition, you'll clear the bar easy."

Miro's founding member. The greatest leader in the history of idol groups, the man who'd wrangled a pack of wild-mustang Upia members for over ten years.

'Stats like his should make a decent baseline.'

While the conversation carried on, I pulled up the system window and activated the new skill. Ding — coins deducted for skill use, and an alert pane spun up in front of me like it was measuring an attack stat.

"What did I even do for my first month-end… can't remember anymore."

Skill 〈Behold with the Dragon's Eye〉 executes. label: Seo Taeil (Group: Upia) Vocals: 93% Dance: 83% Expression: 91% Special: Composition, Producing (63%) Appeal Point: 'The world is in the palm of my hand!' — Leadership, charisma, stage command

Well, those are some serious numbers.

"Oh, sunbaenim. Hi!"

I was about to try analyzing what all those numbers actually meant when Seo Taehyun stepped out of the office right on cue, spotted us, and headed over. He and Seo Taeil apparently already knew each other — they greeted each other warmly — and Seo Taeil looked between the two of us with a slightly surprised face.

"Hi, Taehyun. You two close?"

"…Not really?"

"Not so much…"

"Yeah. You're close."

At that 'are you close,' the two of us looked at each other going are we? — while a delighted Seo Taeil laughed and threw us the standard here's-rooting-for-both-of-you line.

He looked like he wanted to say more, but his manager was calling him urgently from over there, so Seo Taeil wrapped up his goodbyes lightly and disappeared quickly.

Seo Taehyun kept bowing until Seo Taeil was out of sight, and the moment he vanished, straightened up and gestured at me to get moving too.

"But hyung — you and I aren't close? I'm a little hurt."

"You said not much either."

"You said not really."

"Let's call it even."

I shrugged and started toward the practice room. Batting back Seo Taehyun's little grumblings as they came, I went back to analyzing Seo Taeil's stats, which were still floating in front of me.

'Are these percentages? If so, that man's producing is only 63%?'

Seo Taeil's popularity was partly about his character as Upia's crazy leader, but a huge chunk of it came from his producing and composition, praised as beyond-idol tier.

He was a guy whose producer skill had famous overseas artists reaching out on his SNS to work with him — and his score was only 63%?

'Something's off.'

"Ah, I want tteokbokki. I really should be watching what I eat, this is bad."

To actually nail down what the numbers meant, I'd need at least one more comparison. Well, I needed at least one sample among the trainees too. Without hesitation, I fired the skill at Seo Taehyun.

label: Seo Taehyun (Affiliation: Miro) Vocals: 45% Dance: 67% Expression: 52% Special: Acting, Showman Streak (82%) Appeal Point: 'Your eyes go straight to him, guaranteed!' — Tone, dance lines, stage expression

'So these definitely aren't straight percentages.'

Looking at Seo Taehyun's numbers, I was sure. These weren't just stats.

'Seo Taehyun isn't at the level where he crushes people on vocals or dance, sure, but he's not a guy pulling numbers this low either.'

The only scores that halfway made sense were the acting and showman stuff under Special…

'This one needs more looking into.'

Turning it over in my head, I realized we were already at the practice rooms. Seo Taehyun and I were about to head into A, which we'd booked ahead — and my gaze wandered off to one side.

Come to think of it, there was one more guy I needed to try this skill on.

"……"

"Hyung, not coming in?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

I waved off a puzzled Seo Taehyun and turned toward whatever had caught my eye. End of the hallway — among the practice rooms strung together like an anthill, one small room, the only one with its lights on.

Ding—.

Given how thoroughly soundproofed the private practice rooms were, they had a bell installed instead of a knock. From inside came a brief crashing noise, and before long the guy I'd been waiting for showed his face.

"Huh…?"

"Hi, Doha."

"…Hi."

We've got some talk left over, right? At the gentle smile I gave him, Lee Doha's pupils shook hard.