While Seo Hoyun was still hospitalized, the buzz surrounding Kang Ichae’s role as a mentor on Rising Rookies grew louder. [This isn’t worth my license fee.] And not in a good way. The trainees’ pre-release stage had been horrible. [Title: Is this season of Rising Rookies for real] 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 God, I need to laugh this off Actually, I’m not laughing The level of these trainees is seriously... I know there are like a million survival shows out there, but can they at least try to make this one decent? Either that or pick better trainees. Honestly looks like they just grabbed a hundred random people off the street. 🎵 trainees_intro_stage.mp3 🎵 Why were they randomly throwing hearts off-beat?? 📸 this_part_was_unhinged.jpg 📸 There was more talent coming out of my neighbor’s karaoke booth. 🧟 mentors_rotating_faces.jpg 🧟 The mentors’ faces = my face └ I used to wonder why Kang Ichae was in this show └└└ LOL fr... imagine working with The Dawn and then seeing this └ And yet he still watched them seriously └└ Honestly if I saw a mentor texting mid-stage, I’d understand—but Kang Ichae? Respect.] [Title: Kang Ichae’s mentoring is terrifying] He was watching their practice, spinning his pen, and suddenly went, “So this is what you call practice?” I almost pissed myself └ That thing Dajun said before—about Ichae having a death stare? I get it now. └ The fact those trainees didn’t pee themselves is enough for me to respect them As with all survival shows, however, there was at least one gem among the rubble. Some viewers started talking about a select few trainees who showed real potential. [The Daepaseong kids aren’t half bad tbh... Didn’t expect much, but they’ve got good personalities, and they’re hard workers Just sucks that they keep getting stuck as group leaders in cursed team projects... feels bad.] [At this point Daepaseong’s casting director deserves a huge bonus. Yeah, The Dawn dragged the company’s image up, but still... └ How the hell did Daepaseong even find The Dawn in the first place? └└ Real talk—top 8 global mysteries.] Just as public interest in Rising Rookies began to wane due to the lack of redeeming content... [‘Rising Rookies’ Pre-Release: Mentor Performance Video Now Live] ...a new video featuring Kang Ichae’s performance dropped. Clearly, it was an attempt to revive interest—and it worked perfectly. 【Perhaps I was too kind】 [Kang Ichae, are you fucking insane?????] People familiar with the idol world already knew Kang Ichae’s stage presence was top-tier. This wasn’t just good—it was otherworldly. 【I want to dye you in my colors Can I bite you, little?】 [AAAAAAAH I feel like ten years of stress just melted out of me!!!!!] [Ichae was so hot it made me uncomfortable └└ sorry my salivary glands malfunctioned;;] The YouTube video was littered with timestamp comments—specifically during the moments Ichae appeared on screen. From the second he propped his combat boots on the speaker to the split-second he dropped one side of his leather jacket and rolled into a wave. But the most liked moment? 【This isn’t a joke. This is a warning.】 —was the split second he glanced at Seo Hoyun. His brow twitched, his mischievous face morphed into something sharp and menacing. [2:53 I’m so sorry, world That raw intensity radiated even through the screen. [lolololol why is the top comment “I’m sorry” I’m crying 😭 What did you even do wrong??? └ I also made eye contact through the screen and regretted it] [Kang Ichae’s expressions are INSANE. I legit got scared 😭🤣] That was 100% his actual expression in that moment. 【I want to dye you in my colors I don’t have time to be gentle】 [The lyrics match The Dawn’s discography so well, I got punched in the chest. I’m losing it.] [Ichae didn’t just rap—he devoured that shit. He looked like a damn Hollywood star. Insane star power.] [Yo, even Kang Ichae lives this passionately. Trainees, get your shit together pls.] The performance was immediately cemented as a legendary moment in The Dawn fandom—on par with the Shining Star Season 2 unit face-off. [The real takeaway from this season is Kang Ichae’s performance video.] The Dawn’s fans, trying their best to stay calm during Seo Hoyun’s hospital stay, couldn’t help but lose it over the video. At the same time, their rage toward Daepaseong was approaching nuclear levels. [Okay, Hoyun’s sick... let’s stay calm... [I want to throw a tantrum and lie down in Daepaseong’s lobby. But seriously, what kind of trash talks shit about Hoyun now? Who are you sick people?] [Check your timing, assholes. I swear to God I’m ready to throw hands.] [Fucking hate this... Hoyun is crazy good at ignoring hate (best among any idol I’ve stanned), but I just want to protect him and only show him good things ㅠㅠ] [Even now, when he’s sick, Hoyun doesn’t show it... I just want him to be happy.] Despite fans burning with rage, they managed to barely hold it together—until a notification popped up. [[Hoyun] You’ve got a new message!] Seo Hoyun had been discharged for a while now. Official source is novel⦿fire.net When fans rushed to check, they found a selfie attached. He wore a white sweatshirt, lips curled up ever so slightly—subtly different from his usual expressions. Almost like he felt guilty for making them worry. ‘It feels good to do this again.’ As the flood of warm responses from Noeuls came pouring in, Seo Hoyun smiled to himself. He hadn’t been given his phone even after being discharged, but yesterday, he finally got it back. He’d felt bad about not reassuring the fans sooner, so at least now he could say something. Hoyun gave a lazy answer, eyes still glued to his phone. Joo Woosung shook his head, clearly still salty. He’d sulked and complained, but now here he was—showing up during his free time to help Hoyun practice. After collapsing onto the floor post-practice, Hoyun suddenly sat up and started snapping selfies. Woosung watched him curiously while gulping water, then slowly shuffled over to peek at his screen. “You crazy bastard. This is what you send to your fans??” “What?? Did you really just say what? Are you some kind of split personality?!” Scowling, Woosung flipped his phone around to show Hoyun. “...Did you save me as ‘Lunatic’ in your phone?” “You saved me as ‘Push-over,’ remember? Focus on the messages, not the name.” [Lunatic: JWS-ssi, where you at] [Me: You should be grateful I even use your initials now] [Lunatic: JWS, where you at] [Me: You little shit] “God, you’re the worst junior I’ve ever had.” “And I’m the only one who’ll go get kimchi fried rice with you.” “...Okay, that’s fair.” Woosung grumbled, slung his bag over his shoulder, and flipped him off on his way out. It was obvious he’d be back the moment he had another schedule gap. Hoyun cackled at his retreating back, then flopped back onto the studio floor. His condition felt decent. He’d rested, eaten well, even forced Hojin to go sit for his midterms. He’d binge-watched every trending show with a daily dose of red ginseng extract. Now all that remained was training up for his return. ‘But are my stats even going up?’ The system window hadn’t shown up in days. He couldn’t check his status. Well... if I keep practicing, something will happen. Live or die, one or the other. No time to sit around moping—better to get moving. As he stood up again, the door creaked open. Kang Ichae entered, slurping an ice cream. “...Why are you here?” Those sharp eyes hadn’t dulled. Hoyun searched for an excuse, but Kim Sunghyun and Jung Dajun jumped in like trained cover agents. “Hoyun just came to grab something real quick!!” “Y-Yeah!! Just grabbing something!!” “Well, you did say you were resting at home.” When the hell did I say that? The retort was on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed it with a deep sigh. He still wasn’t allowed to practice with the team. “Well, I’ll be off to get more rest now~.” Whatever. Sooner or later, he’d have a chance to put that red-haired beast through hell again. Watching this unfold, someone else was internally panicking. That someone: The Dawn’s youngest member, Jung Dajun—soon to turn 21 on October 22. “Happy birthday, Dajun!” “Happy birthday, man.” “Haha! Thanks, hyungs!” At that moment, Jung Dajun was hard at work—planning. “Come on, Hoyun hyung. Say something longer~” “Ichae, can you drop the formal speech already?” Hoyun was acting as always, and Kang Ichae had mostly gone back to normal too—except for the formal language. Dajun narrowed his eyes. He was studying them closely. Ichae slung an arm around his shoulder and grinned. “What do you want for your birthday, maknae? Hyung will get you anything~” “...You’ve been hanging out with Hoyun too much.” “I mean it. Just hang out with me today.” Having completed the mental blueprint, Dajun changed gears fast. He knew full well that Kang Ichae had a soft spot for him. Lately, he'd been binge-watching There Are No Bad Dogs and Eun’s Counseling Room, and he’d found divine inspiration. I’m gonna fix this—for Hoyun hyung and for our team! Now 20 years and 10 months old, Jung Dajun had gained awareness. And ambition. “Make it a proper birthday celebration, got it?!” There’s no such thing as a bad Kang Ichae!! That... was the grand vision behind Jung Dajun’s birthday plan.