Suddenly, I Became Crazy Handsome, and the World Became Easy
Chapter 31.1: Monster (4)

In episodes 1 or 2 of 'Produce That 100!', Kang Rojun received an intense spotlight, and because that Kang Rojun did things like skipping training by acting as a villain, as soon as Rojun picked ‘Dance’, viewers went wild.

So far, most of the reactions praised contestant No. 1, but there were also quite a few who spoke negatively about Kang Rojun.

Regardless, episode 3 of 'Produce That 100!' continued as planned. Following contestant No. 1, No. 10 stepped up and picked a ball, and what he selected was also Dance. The angle alternated between Kang Rojun and contestant No. 10. It was a deliberate production choice. In episode 2, red-haired contestant No. 10 had been shown keeping Rojun in check, and since both picked Dance, the setup hinted at a rivalry.

-No. 1 and No. 10 are totally gonna battle in a survival match ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Didn't No. 10 totally diss No. 1 in episode 2?

-That was because No. 1 disrespected him first

-He was just answering though, what do you mean disrespected ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ No. 10 is just being annoying, don’t like it

-No. 1 is also kinda annoying but ㅋㅋㅋㅋ letting it slide ‘cause he's super handsome

-No. 10 did dance in the first Dance round ㅋㅋㅋ this time No. 1 will probably get crushed by No. 10

After that, all 70 contestants drew their second-round evaluation assignments. Photos of 20 Dance, 30 Vocal, and 20 Rap contestants popped up quickly. At the same time, a voiceover briefing by the hired voice actor played in the background.

-["In the second evaluation, successful candidates grouped by assignment will compete against one another. The method is 1-on-1 survival. You will soon find out your opponent and the song, dance, etc.!"]

Then all the surviving contestants moved to their dorms, with rooms being assigned and a lottery-style pick for beds.

-[Room 105 / No. 1, No. 19, No. 37, No. 58, No. 88]

Angles showed each room’s contestants with their numbers displayed as captions at the bottom of the screen. There were a few minutes showing the contestants touring the dorms or short interview clips. Then came the voice of PD Woo Han-suk, halting the noisy dorm tours.

-["Dance team, please gather back at the hall with the stage."]

The next cut showed the ‘Dance team’ gathered again at the hall with the stage. The screen displayed the lineup starting with Kang Rojun, red-haired No. 10, and the rest of the 20 contestants.

-["From now on, please stand with the contestant number I call together."]

At PD Woo Han-suk’s request, the contestants paired up. The camera first caught No. 1 and No. 10 standing together.

-["No. 1, can you dance well?"]

-["Who knows."]

-["But people in our room were saying No. 1 might be bad at dancing."]

A short exchange between Kang Rojun and No. 10 aired.

-["I might be bad at dancing."]

-["If you're really bad, that would be funny, since you acted so confident, right? I can dance pretty well."]

Viewers started to take interest in the conversation.

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Is No. 10 picking a fight with No. 1 again??

-Looks like he’s got an inferiority complex toward No. 1

-I don’t like No. 1 so what No. 10 says feels satisfying

-Anyone here actually watched episode 2?? No. 10 had a right to be pissed ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

On-screen, Kang Rojun answered in a calm tone.

-["Saying you’re kinda good at dancing also sounds like boasting."]

The camera even showed the faces of other contestants who were listening.

-That was savage ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-No. 1 got some attitude

-After all that, if he gets wrecked by No. 10, it’ll be hilarious ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Once again, the voice actor’s narration played. It was something like “the contestant you just paired with is your survival opponent!” PD Woo Han-suk then picked it up.

-["No. 1 and No. 10, your dance is to the song ‘brake’."]

He announced all ten songs for the 'Dance team'. At the end, the voice actor explained the evaluation method for the second round for the 'Dance team'. All songs were duets, and the two contestants matched up would split the dance between the first and second verses.

-Oh that's interestingㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-If they do a 1st vs 2nd verse battle with the same song, the skill gap will be so obvious

-All ten songs are hits so the judges will probably be super strict

At this point, the atmosphere of 'Produce That 100!' shifted. A background track started, and ten members of a girl group appeared from the right side of the stage. As soon as the two girl group teams were shown on stage.

-Why is Lime Some showing up here???

-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋchat blew up instantly ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Don't tell me they're doing joint performances with girl group??!!

The voice actor shouted loudly.

-["Introducing the girl groups who will take on the female parts in the male-female duet dance!!"]

After the rookie girl group appeared, episode 3 of 'Produce That 100!' introduced each of the girl group members, and in the midst of that, Ha-young appeared alongside Kang Rojun and contestant No. 10. Naturally, Ha-young and the other 'Lime Some' members, who were watching 'Produce That 100!', were jumping up and down with excitement.

"We're on!!"

“Wow- they showed us for so long!”

“This is insane! Our fans are promoting us in open chat rooms!!!”

The promotional effect was massive.

Next came the scene where each team’s contestants chose whether they would perform the first or second verse of the dance. Of course, it started with Kang Rojun, who picked the second verse. After everyone had made their selections, the voice of PD Woo Han-suk was heard.

-["All dance practice rooms are open 24 hours. You can use them anytime you want."]

Soon an insert of the campus bathed in morning light appeared on screen, and the first cut of the day when full-scale training began featured contestant No. 1, Kang Rojun. He was the first among the 70 contestants to wake up and go running.

Even after completing an hour of running, he immersed himself in bodyweight exercises like push-ups and sit-ups.

Thanks to the sweat, his well-toned body was visible under his white T-shirt, and the camera zoomed in on Rojun’s face as he brushed back his wet black hair.

-Damn, working out with that face is just cheating

-Wowww.......

-He’s really going to work out too???

-Seriously... In terms of visuals, No. 1 is just dominating

Tens of thousands of viewers were having meltdowns.

At the same time, at the broadcasting station ‘JTVM’.

Inside 'JTVM' was the main control room, lined with numerous monitors at the front. Behind the busy employees operating something from their seats, a man with dark under-eye circles stood with his arms crossed, checking several monitors.

It was PD Woo Han-suk.

He was monitoring the broadcast status of episode 3 of 'Produce That 100!', and surrounding him were writers including Kim Se-hee. The key staff of 'Produce That 100!', including PD Woo Han-suk, were in the broadcasting station rather than the campus. Of course, the variety department chief and some executives were also present.

The control room was quite crowded.

Just as PD Woo Han-suk was looking at the monitor with a serious face.

“PD-nim.”

An employee seated in front of the monitors turned around and smiled.

“The mid-episode ratings for 'Produce That 100!' are 16.8%. At this rate, we might even hit 17% overall??”

Even though it was just the mid-point rating, PD Woo Han-suk clenched one hand tightly at the number being higher than episode 2. It was the expression of someone thinking, “We did it.” The variety department chief soon smiled and patted his shoulder.

"It's up again! Congratulations."

“What are you saying. It’s only episode 3, we need to push it higher.”

“Hahaha. Still, man, in this day and age, breaking 16% is a huge deal! Keep it up and push past 20%.”

A hyper Kim Se-hee and the writers flocked to him, bouncing with joy.

“Seriously, amazing, 20%?? Then 'Produce That 100!' would be a total legend.”

"It's already legendary!! We've exceeded 16%!"