1. Raon Is Kidnapped (Kind Of)
Raon had just settled into her couch with a bowl of instant noodles when—
BANG!
Manager Kimchi burst into the apartment like a man fleeing both debt collectors and demons (which was accurate).
"RAON. EMERGENCY."
Raon groaned.
"If this is about idol stuff again—"
"It is. Get up."
"No."
Kimchi snapped his fingers.
Two interns entered.
Holding a giant net.
Raon's eyes narrowed.
"…Shion, defend me."
Shion, already sitting with a laptop, sipped tea.
"No."
The interns threw the net.
Raon punched through it—
so they threw five more nets.
They dragged her out the door as she flailed.
"LET ME GO! I DON'T TALK TO STRANGERS!!"
Kimchi shouted:
"TOO BAD! YOU'RE GUESTING ON THE METROSONIC MORNING SHOW!"
---
2. The Talk Show Set From Hell
Bright lights.
Blinding stage beams.
A live audience full of overly enthusiastic fans clutching glowsticks.
Raon squinted at the host:
Vivi Vibes, a woman with enough energy to power Klang City for a decade.
She bounced over, microphone in hand.
"WELCOME, EVERYONE—
TODAY WE HAVE THE VIRAL SENSATION, THE KICKING QUEEN,
THE ICON OF VIOLENCE AND SPARKLES—
RAON PUNCH☆STAR!"
The audience CHEERED.
Confetti blasted.
A remix of Raon punching played as her theme song.
Raon sat in the chair like someone attending her own execution.
Vivi leaned in with the blinding smile of a TV demon.
"So, Raon! Let's start simple!
How does it FEEL to become an overnight idol?"
Raon:
"…I didn't do anything."
The audience screamed like she just delivered the line of the century.
---
3. The Host Has Too Much Energy
Vivi clasped Raon's hands dramatically.
"Tell us! What inspired your debut single—
Punch☆Star?"
Raon stared.
"…I didn't make that."
Audience: "KYAAA!!!"
Shion, watching from backstage, facepalmed.
Kimchi whispered beside her:
"We need to train her. She's too honest."
"She's honest because she hates this entire situation."
"That's even worse!"
---
4. The Fans Ask Questions
A mic was handed to a random fan.
Fan #1 (crying):
"Raon… what is your daily beauty routine?"
Raon blinked.
"Soap."
Audience shrieked like she'd revealed the secret to immortality.
Fan #2:
"Can you do the 'idol heart pose'?"
Raon frowned.
"What's that?"
Fan #2 demonstrated.
Raon attempted it.
Her fingers cracked ominously.
A cameraman fainted from emotional damage.
---
5. Vivi's Special Segment: "Talent Challenge!!"
Vivi clapped her hands.
"Now, Raon—
To prove you're a TRUE IDOL, you must complete…
THE TRIPLE TALENT CHALLENGE!"
Raon visibly died inside.
Kimchi, offstage, whispered urgently:
"Raon, PLEASE. Just try. For my stress levels."
Vivi held up cue cards.
---
Talent #1: Singing
Vivi thrust a microphone into Raon's hands.
"Sing ANYTHING!"
Raon stared at the mic like it was a bomb.
Deep breath.
And then—
"…la."
The studio lights blew out.
Half the set short-circuited.
Vivi Vibes was blown backward into a plush chair.
Audience: THUNDEROUS APPLAUSE
---
Talent #2: Dancing
"Just follow the beat!" Vivi encouraged.
Raon took one step.
One.
The entire stage cracked like a tectonic plate.
A decorative backdrop collapsed.
The drummer fell off his chair.
Vivi, clinging to a pole:
"SO POWERFUL—SO RAW—SO IDOL!!!!"
---
Talent #3: "Show your cute side!"
Vivi leaned forward.
"Give the audience…
your sweetest smile!"
Raon turned to the crowd.
Smiled.
Every fan in the first row fainted simultaneously.
Someone's shoes flew off.
A paramedic robot arrived.
Vivi screamed:
"HER SMILE HAS POWER LEVELS!?!?"
---
6. The Final Disaster
The host beamed.
"And now, Raon… your SPECIAL SURPRISE!"
Raon flinched.
"…no."
"Yes! Our producers invited a special guest—
YOUR NUMBER ONE FAN!"
Raon looked at Shion.
Shion looked back.
Shion mouthed:
"This is going to be bad."
Smoke erupted onstage.
A silhouette appeared.
Mascot-sized.
Glowing neon.
Singing aggressively.
The guest stepped into the light.
Raon whispered:
"Oh hell no."
Because standing there was—
---
7. THE RETURN OF… THE SENTIENT ELIMINATION BUTTON
Now wearing a bowtie.
It wobbled forward with a mic.
"BZZZT–HELLO RAON–I STILL FEAR YOU–BZZT BUT ALSO ADMIRE YOUR TALENT–PLEASE DON'T HIT ME."
Raon stood up.
"No."
Button: "BZZT—YOU'RE SO SHY—SO IDOL—KYAA—"
Audience: collective meltdown
The button slid across the stage and tried to hold Raon's hand.
Raon kicked it out of the studio.
---
8. TALK SHOW RATINGS EXPLODE
Instantly—
every major media outlet posted headlines:
"RAON DESTROYS DAYTIME TELEVISION (LITERALLY)"
"SHOCKING! NEW IDOL HAS ZERO SKILL, 100% RAW POWER!"
"THE SMILE THAT PARALYZES MEN"
"DEATHBUTTON X RAON???" — shipping thread goes viral
Shion dragged Raon out of the studio.
Raon :
"Never again."
Shion:
"They booked you for three more shows."
Raon:
"I'm running away."
Shion:
"They will find you."
Raon sighed.
"I hate this timeline."
---
9. ECHO 3 WATCHES EVERYTHING
From a digital void, Echo 3 hovered over the broadcast stream.
Every time Raon appeared, resonance spikes glowed.
"Fame…
Emotion…
Exposure…
Perfect ingredients."
Her glitching eye narrowed.
"Time to initiate the next phase."
---
End of Chapter 57 — "The Talk Show Torture Arc"