Episode 46: The Day of the Decisive Battle (2)
The lights dim.
The only illumination on this vast custom stage comes from the giant back screen emblazoned with the Blind Singer logo.
Under that faint glow, a silhouette slowly emerges.
Ji Sehyuk, rising on a lift.
“A singer. Someone who creates and performs music with their voice.”
He echoes the opening line that kicked off Blind Singer.
“Past, present, future—across all time, we now know the essence of a singer lies in their voice.”
The following words differ slightly from before.
Click. Click. Click.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Spotlights from various angles pour down, following Ji Sehyuk’s steps forward, mirroring the show’s opening in a poetic symmetry.
“This journey to find that essence is nearing its end.”
Faces begin appearing on the giant screen, one by one.
Speeding up, they fill the screen—seventy-three in total.
The bright smiles and names of those who left this stage earlier are etched like stained glass, evoking the end of a long journey.
But—
“This isn’t the end!”
Ji Sehyuk’s voice flips the mood.
Thud! Thud! Thoom!
Heavy sounds reverberate as light floods from all directions, banishing the darkness.
“Seven singers who’ve proven the true value of their voices, now ready to reveal their names and faces to the world!”
The dazzling stage revealed shatters the earlier symmetry in an instant.
“A festival to celebrate and cheer for those ready to begin a new journey!”
Ji Sehyuk’s voice rises with fervor.
““Woooo!!!””
His fiery energy unleashes the cheers 2,500 audience members had been holding back.
Tararara taran~!
An arranged birthday song melody rings out, as if waiting for those cheers.
Pew! Pew! Pew!
Boom! Boom!! Boomboomboom!!!
Fireworks soar, painting the night sky, illuminating the audience below.
““Waaaaaa!!!!””
As the fireworks light up the crowd, colorful cheer signs wave like a sea, their passionate cheers for their favorite singers growing fiercer.
“Blind Singer Season 3! The final stage begins with all of you!! Right!! Now!!!!”
Ji Sehyuk’s massive shout rivals the 2,500-strong roar, marking the opening of the final chapter of Blind Singer Season 3, a new milestone in Korean audition history.
***
“Eek!!!”
Suhyuk flinches with a weird yelp at the thunderous cheers mixed with firework blasts.
It’s brief, though.
“Sorry, hyung.”
His nervous reaction before a stage hasn’t changed, then or now.
I smile lightly at his quick apology, head bowed.
“It’s fine. I was startled too.”
“For someone saying that, your inner peace is overflowing, hyung.”
Even in his nerves, Suhyuk notices the stark difference between his reaction and mine.
‘Of course it’s a lie.’
Getting startled by “just” 2,500 people cheering?
My countless sold-out concert experiences—too many to count—make me immune.
“Caught me, huh?”
“Yeah, big time.”
“I was trying to spare your feelings, and you call me out like that?”
Still, my white lie worked.
Suhyuk’s goofy grin shows his tension easing a bit.
“You’re not nervous at all, hyung.”
“Hm?”
“It’s the last Blind Singer stage, and you’re the final performer.”
The finals’ order reverses the semi-final rankings.
With my consistent first-place streak, I’m last.
“If it were me, my hands would be dripping sweat… You seem like you’ve done dozens of concerts.”
“Pfft.”
His words, pure fact, make it harder to hold back laughter.
Suhyuk tilts his head, wondering if he said something odd, amplifying my amusement.
“I get nervous too.”
I let out my honest thoughts after laughing.
‘I’m human, after all.’
How could I not be nervous?
No matter how many concerts I’ve done, or how many people show up, it’s the same.
But—
“I practiced enough to trust myself. That’s what I lean on.”
The stability from my practice outweighs the nerves.
“And the last slot? Honestly, it kinda pumps me up.”
Truthfully, in Polaris, taking the finale was almost a given, but it’s not a lie either.
Every Polaris fan knows Han Yujin loves encore stages best.
“Wow… Is that what it takes to be a singer? Even with practice, I’d be shaking. Respect, hyung.”
“Respect for something like that?”
Honestly, Suhyuk’s reaction is more normal.
In Polaris, only Jun was like me.
“Now, for the first performance, let’s bring out Park Juan-nim!”
As I muse, Ji Sehyuk summons the first singer, Park Juan.
His beige trench coat and black turtleneck scream his song choice.
“He’s coming out swinging to set a heavy mood.”
In the semi-finals, Park Juan delivered a fast-tempo song with quirky moves.
Having passed with a detour like many ballad princes, including Ji Sehyuk, he’s back with what he does best.
With a song steeped in the melancholic vibe of autumn, Park Juan launches the final round, earning high praise.
“Ugh, starting off making people cry…”
Yoon Ichae’s teary acclaim, paired with cheers that clash with the song’s mood, marks his success.
But Park Juan isn’t the only one going all out.
“Yang Seunghee performed solo but didn’t forget her roots. Her synergy with her members was a sight to behold.”
Using the finals’ privilege to bring in extra performers, Yang Seunghee made the bold move of featuring Pink Blossom as backup dancers. Sally doesn’t hide her pride.
“That’s it. That’s a performance. Noh Jiyoon’s radiant shine in group choreography is her true strength.”
The only performance-driven contestant to survive, Noh Jiyoon proves her Queen of Waterbomb title, earning Lee Sangwoon’s cheers.
“Yeah! Rock and roll! Kim Kwangyong-sunbaenim would regret stepping off again. Heavy metal’s niche now, but Kim In showed why people crave it.”
Kim In, with Yell’s full lineup, displays a prowess that could dominate the band scene for a decade, prompting even Bang Hokyung to flash a “sign of the horns.”
“Um Dongkyu feels like a giant now. Despite the intimidating act before him, his steady performance spreads like a great tree’s shade.”
Lee Ahjeong applauds Um Dongkyu, who showcases the strength that won Blind Singer Season 3 in my pre-regression timeline.
And then—
“Under the lonely moonlight’s glow,
Gathering the sad tears in my eyes,
I only wished to shake off
The deep red pain lingering by your side.”
Kang Taeoh, bringing the lush tones of a fusion historical drama OST with just an acoustic guitar, earns poetic praise from Seo Yoonje:
“‘Flowers Blooming Under Moonlight.’ The courage to express this song with one guitar suits his youthful spirit, but his refined skill says age is just a number. The moon’s above us tonight, and the flower’s right here.”
Each performance pulls starlight that Seoul’s night sky can no longer hold onto this stage, pushing their limits in a true clash befitting the decisive day.
“Yujin-ssi, are you ready… Oh, you’re all set.”
My body, instinctively heating up toward the stage, meets Song Jaeryung as I step out of the waiting room.
Scanning me up and down, she flashes the brightest smile I’ve ever seen from her.
“I’ve got a line in mind looking at you.”
“What is it?”
“I came to end this fight.”
Her dramatic delivery of the famous line makes me burst out laughing.
“Pfft!”
“How’s that?”
The red-haired character’s iconic words are so fitting for this moment, even for someone like me who’s not big on manga.
Keeping my smile, I step forward.
“Shall we go?”
Time to settle this battle of stars.
***
“Blind Singer Season 3, the grand final round! Only one performance remains!”
Ji Sehyuk’s energy seems boundless.
The six performances so far were so stellar that any could win without surprise.
That makes the final stage heat his heart even more.
“Let’s call out the last performer!”
As if at his own concert, Ji Sehyuk points the mic to the crowd.
““Han Yujin! Han Yujin!””
Countless voices chant my name, amplified through the speakers, echoing across Korea.
Feeling the fervor, Ji Sehyuk brings the mic back to his lips.
Normally, he’d drag it out to build tension, but not today.
“It was insane.”
“Total wow. Han Yujin’s winning anyway.”
The staff who saw my rehearsal keep raving, making Ji Sehyuk impatient.
“Here we go! Blind Singer Season 3 final round, the seventh and final performance—Han Yujin-nim’s stage!”
Thoom!
As his voice lingers, all lights go out at once, amplifying anticipation for the next three minutes.
The crowd collectively swallows hard.
Bang!
A bright spotlight from the back illuminates one spot.
Whirrrr.
A mechanical hum sounds as the stage floor parts like a gate, and a lift rises.
Emerging from it—
‘The sea?’
A silhouette of a man with jewel-like, ocean-blue hair, reminiscent of a tropical sea.
“He dyed it too?!”
Everyone’s speechless at the drastic change.
The figure, face obscured by backlighting, lets his emerald-blue hair gleam under the intense spotlight as he walks to the stage’s center and sits on a simple chair.
The moment Han Yujin places the guitar on his lap—
Thrum! Thrum!
Flash! Flash!
Crisscrossing beams reveal the figure hidden in the silhouette.
His smile appears on the giant screen.
““Woooo!!!””
““Kyaaaa!!!””
The idol’s smile that once captivated the world reemerges, defying time.
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