Chapter 79: Chapter 78

The contestants in the SIT ON THE MONEY finals were all skilled.

None of the finalists particularly stood out or lagged behind significantly.

It was a situation where even the smallest difference could determine victory.

Naturally, each of them hoped that the “small difference” wouldn’t come from their own performance.

Perhaps that’s why…

‘This is really... not something to celebrate.’

‘Talk about bad luck.’

A few days before the live finals of SIT ON THE MONEY, news broke that the female singer who was supposed to feature on Hwang Ji-hyuk’s final performance had to withdraw due to unavoidable circumstances. The other finalists were informed of this development at that time.

While they expressed pity for Hwang Ji-hyuk on the surface, inwardly, they felt relieved.

After all, one of their competitors had essentially stumbled on his own.

Regardless of Hwang Ji-hyuk’s circumstances, they weren’t responsible for his misfortune.

The absence of his featured singer would inevitably lower the quality of his final performance, which was a problem solely for him to handle.

Even as time passed and the day of the live finals arrived.

Even as their own performances concluded without major mistakes.

Even as Hwang Ji-hyuk’s final performance began as the last act of the finals...

In the minds of the other contestants, Hwang Ji-hyuk had already been excluded as a serious competitor.

They believed there was no way he could compete with them after hastily revising his performance just days before the finals.

However, after Hwang Ji-hyuk’s unexpectedly stellar solo rap concluded,

and the stage camera briefly panned to the back of the stage…

[ Feat. Pinocchio ]

The caption that appeared in the corner of the live broadcast screen instantly froze the other finalists in their seats.

What followed was a pure, crystalline voice that had once occupied countless playlists.

Even though the singer stood still with no choreography, their presence was overwhelming.

The unwavering clarity of their voice gently yet completely dominated the atmosphere of the stage.

The previous noise in the venue had quieted at some point.

In its place came murmurs and curiosity aimed toward Pinocchio.

Even the other finalists, seated in their respective waiting rooms, sat spellbound as they watched the screen, unable to say a word.

And then, as the second featured part began and the silhouette in black stepped forward a few paces...

“Wait… What?! No way!!”

Faced with a familiar voice and an even more familiar face, some of them jumped to their feet involuntarily.

Almost simultaneously, the text voting numbers began to skyrocket, quite literally exploding in real time.

It was as though someone had struck them all on the back of the head.

All they could do was stare blankly at the rapidly rising vote count, their minds stuck on the thought, How is this even possible?

Strictly speaking, stage performance was also part of the SIT ON THE MONEY

finals.

When you broke it down, all Pinocchio had done was sing her feature part and walk to the center of the stage.

There was no violation of the finals’ rules anywhere in her performance.

Yet the unbelievable reveal of her identity,

the cheers pouring in from the audience for just one person...

“Wow, seriously…”

“This is insane.”

“What kind of cheat code is that?!”

The contestants and their producers exchanged stunned looks, realizing that something had gone terribly wrong.

From the moment they brought Pinocchio in as a featured artist, the scales had tipped unfairly.

This was a singer once praised as having a voice that perfectly complemented the likes of Double Lee, one of the top names in the music industry.

The nickname “Queen of K-Hip-Hop” wasn’t just a joke.

Unlike other singers who had been given similar titles in jest, she had earned it by genuinely topping the charts with a hip-hop track.

The real issue was that her true identity had been revealed during the finals.

And the fact that this faceless singer, Pinocchio, was actually a famous actress made it even bigger news.

[ Text Votes: 71,249 ]

“It’s over.”

The text votes for Hwang Ji-hyuk’s performance were on a completely different level, even starting in a different digit range.

While on-site audience votes were also part of the score, those voters had likely been just as shocked by Pinocchio’s true identity.

Adding to that, Hwang Ji-hyuk’s rap part had exceeded everyone’s expectations.

It was clear to anyone watching who the true star of the finals was.

Roughly 20 minutes later, during the announcement of the winner.

As expected, the ultimate champion of SIT ON THE MONEY was none other than Hwang Ji-hyuk.

The loss didn’t even feel real enough for the other contestants to be upset.

All they could do was laugh helplessly and applaud Hwang Ji-hyuk.

Even Ha-eun, seated in her waiting room, clapped for him.

However, her phone had been blowing up nonstop since a while ago.

[Kim Da-yeon] - Hey

[Kim Da-yeon] - Hey

[Kim Da-yeon] - Hey

[Kim Da-yeon] - Pinocchio, ma’am

[Kim Da-yeon] - Queen of K-Hip-Hop Pinocchio

[Lee Ha-eun]

- (Nervous otter emoji)

[Kim Da-yeon] - It’s chaos here

[Kim Da-yeon] - Everyone’s only talking about you

[Lee Ha-eun] - (Running otter emoji)

However, Ha-eun couldn’t help but feel the impact of the SIT ON THE MONEY finals.

And with good reason.

“I uploaded it quickly since it was urgent. Let me know if there’s anything you’d like to change.”

Ha-eun found herself at a café near the finals venue, reviewing an article about Pinocchio written by Heo Joo-eun.

Strictly speaking, there wasn’t anything in the article that needed revision.

While some of the wording made Ha-eun a little embarrassed, it also didn’t leave out any mentions of The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds.

The article’s comment section was bustling.

By some twist of fate, Heo Joo-eun’s article had landed in the [Hot Topics] section, and its view count was climbing rapidly.

“It’s… well-written. Thank you.”

Shortly afterward, Heo Joo-eun made another request for an interview.

She confidently predicted that the name “Lee Ha-eun” would dominate conversations for a while.

But Ha-eun had a compelling reason to attend the post-finals celebration, so…

“I’m afraid I can’t do it right now. I’m really sorry.”

She postponed the interview for a few days.

With a slightly disappointed expression, Heo Joo-eun agreed.

After parting ways with Heo Joo-eun, Ha-eun climbed into Ju Jung-yoon’s black van and headed to a barbecue restaurant near the finals venue for the celebration.

“I’m here!”

After greeting the people who warmly welcomed her, Ha-eun plopped down in the seat next to Lee Jun.

From that point on, she had to keep an eye on him.

“Hmm, marbled beef pairs perfectly with sake—”

Glare.

Pinch.

“Ahhh! Ouch!!”

“Do that again, and I’ll report you to Gun-yeol.”

“I-I was just saying it for fun. Just for fun…”

“Don’t even joke about it.”

Currently, Lee Geon-yeol had gone to his hometown for a family memorial service right after the finals ended.

So instead of heading to where Yoo Sung-jae and Da-yeon were, Ha-eun stayed next to Lee Jun to keep him in check.

Well, in any case.

Hwang Ji-hyuk had kept his promise to win, and it was just in time for the first episode of The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds to air.

“Excuse me, boss. Can I change the channel for a moment?”

After getting permission from the restaurant owner, Ha-eun switched the TV channel.

And there it was—the first episode of The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds.

“Oh? Is that The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds?”

“Yes.”

“Wow, it’s well-made. The wild boar CGI looks so real. Even the part where they cut the boar—it looks like they’re actually slicing it.”

“………………”

“...It’s CGI, right?”

“………………”

“...Hello?”

“T-The meat’s going to get cold. Let’s eat.”

Ha-eun kept silent and continued eating, focusing on her chopsticks as she put pieces of well-grilled beef into her mouth.

Meanwhile, as everyone at the celebration enjoyed their delicious barbecue while watching Ha-eun’s performance in The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds...

Elsewhere, a little farther from the SIT ON THE MONEY celebration venue:

“Director, have you seen the internet? It’s flooded with articles about Ha-eun!”

“Yes, Writer Seong already told me.”

The buzz about Ha-eun brought unexpected publicity to The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds.

However, they were still uncertain about the current ratings.

For now, the focus was solely on ensuring that the first episode aired without issues.

Director Jin Gyu-seong of The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds didn’t pay much attention to anything else.

“D-Director!”

“I know about the articles on Ha-eun.”

“N-No, it’s not that. Our ratings!”

“?”

The current ratings for The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds had far surpassed those of its timeslot competitor, Lovers Under the Full Moon.

Upon overhearing this, Yoo Sung-jae hurriedly approached Da-yeon, borrowed the bear plushie she was holding, and announced:

“Today’s MVP! Applause!”

He then prompted the The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds cast and crew to clap for the bear plushie, which now had Ha-eun’s photo attached.@@novelbin@@

“…What an incredible person.”

The group’s opinion of Ha-eun drastically shifted.

By some twist of fate, the show that would air before Episode 2 of The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds—Two Days, Three Nights—was now completely out of their minds.

None of them, including Jin Gyu-seong, could predict what it would mean for Ha-eun to be the center of attention for two days in a row.