I'M A GENIUS IDOL BUT MY PASSIVE IS SUNFISH: Chapter 53

 TL by Miru

I'm a Genius Idol but My Passive is Sunfish: Episode 53

 

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Late at night, with dark circles dominating her eyes, Baekya Phenomenon was on the verge of being sucked into the monitor.

 

"This is insane."

 

Every time she looked, she was amazed by the face of her favourite idol. The miracle of winning the lottery to attend DASE's fan signing not once but twice after the first one was nothing short of a miracle bought with money. She had just finished admiring a rare photo she hadn't yet posted on social media.

 

"How can there be nothing to edit?"

 

It wasn't an exaggeration; there was nothing she felt she had to improve. At most, she could adjust the colour balance a bit. The most Baekya Phenomenon could do was to make the peachy cheeks more luscious.

 

"Haa... How can someone look like this?"

 

Cheers to her for taking this photo. Baekya was smiling directly at her lens, wearing a white garland with ribbons.

 

"This has to be the cover for this season's greeting."

 

After setting it as her desktop background, she logged onto social media to post another selected photo. With tens of thousands of followers, she always kept her notifications off. Unsurprisingly, her inbox was full of messages from fans, most thanking her for the photos of Baekya. She coolly passed over the mix of incomprehensible Arabic and English messages due to her severe English phobia.

Baekya Phenomenon followed only four accounts: DASE's official account, the Baekya Alliance, Yulmu's homepage master <Adley> and Chung's homepage master <Winsome,> whom she became close to through shared schedules. After uploading a photo from a music show's arrival scene a few days ago, the post quickly started to be shared.

 

- Wow, high-quality pics of sushi day's commute!

- Trust Baekya Phenomenon-nim to always deliver ㅠㅠ

 

Pleased with the response, she switched to her secondary social media account, 'Mallangie,' marked by a doodle of a sprout above Baekya's pink hair. The primary account, 'Baekya Phenomenon,' being public, required a level of decorum. Deciding it unfit for unleashing her fangirl rants, she created a secondary account.

Switching accounts refreshed her timeline. There was now a mix of photos of Baekya from other hommas, <SweetBaek> and <Dear Peach.>

 

"The editing is no joke."

 

Baekya Phenomenon hit the like button, marvelling at the different feels from the same photo. Though she took photos of Baekya on the same day from the same place, the outcomes varied because each homepage master had their unique style. The results differed due to varying preferences in editing styles.

The photo of Baekya with the Pixxchu from <SweetBaek> felt as sweet and warm as its name, while <Dear Peach> focused on enhancing skin tones.

And her own editing was, well…

 

- Baekya Phenomenon also uploaded a commute photo. Among DASE's homepage masters, this one seems to take the best pictures. They kind of turn the subject into a piece of art?

 

She had merely laid a spoon on an already prepared feast, yet such a tremendous review came her way.

 

"Haha, this is embarrassing."

 

Scratching her eyebrow ridge, feeling embarrassed for herself, she scrolled through the timeline until something caught her eye.

 

- I saw something incredible yesterday ('DASE Universe Summary Part 1' link)

 

Though it was posted late at night, the repost count was nearing 10,000.

 

"A universe? The kids had a universe?"

 

It was news to her, but Baekya Phenomenon clicked in curiosity.

 

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[Issue] DASE Universe Summary Part 1

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※Note that the interpretation is subjective

I've always been a movie buff who loves genres with expansive universes like fantasy and sci-fi.

By chance, I saw a music show my younger sibling had on, featuring really handsome guys wearing weird sushi outfits and chanting "Want me, want me."

What's with this bizarre concept? With that though, I kept watching.

Suddenly, the egg sushi transformed into a dolphin, hitting an unprecedented 4-octave high note.

That was the moment I fell for them.

Anyway, I decided to dive deep into their music videos from the start.

As expected from a renowned agency, even the intro reeked of money.

The quality was so high that it was hard to believe it was shot at a high school in Bukchon. I thought it was filmed somewhere in Europe.

But as I watched this grand music video, my chronic condition flared up again. Then, I stumbled upon an interview with an ID representative. They were talking something about a DASE universe existing and plans to gradually expand the world-building.

Enthralled by universes, I let my imagination run wild.

So, here's my take on the ☆DASE Universe☆!

 

First, you'll see playing cards featured if you watch DASE's 'No Games' music video.

(No Games MV screenshot.jpg)

Their debut song 'No Games' shows them right at the start.

The playing cards consist of 4 symbols and 3 alphabets, each symbolizing:

 

K/Q (King/Queen): King, Queen

J (Jack): Knight

Heart (♥): Clergy, Spring

Diamond (♦): Merchant, Summer

Club (♣): Citizen, Autumn

Spade (♠): Nobility, Winter

JOKER: Jester

 

The card colours also symbolize red for day and black for night.

Before debut, DASE released black and white and coloured concept photos:

 

Black and White: Yuyeon, Chung, Minsung

Color: Yulmu, Jihan, Baekya

 

Spade(♠) and Club(♣) cards are only in black, while Heart(♥) and Diamond(♦) are in colour.

Of course, K/Q/J and JOKER exist in both colours, so those teaser photos alone don't reveal much.

Back to the 'No Games' MV.

You'll remember Minsung dealing cards at the very beginning of the video. It's likely that the members each took one card symbol.

With only two music videos out, it's too soon to be certain, but the debut photos were definitely the first hint DASE gave us.

(King, Minsung wearing a crown screenshot.jpg)

The first released 'No Games Teaser #1' shows Minsung wearing a crown.

(King, Yuyeon holding a crown screenshot.jpg)

But in the official MV, the crown is held by Yuyeon.

It's plausible to speculate that Minsung and Yuyeon are competing for the King's position.

And if you look at the lyrics,

 

- NO GAMES, THERE'LL BE NO NEXT TIME

TO WIN, YOU'D HAVE TO KILL ME

 

It suggests the members are engaged in some sort of game, likely a life-or-death one.

Perhaps something like Russian roulette.

(Members searching for something screenshot.jpg)

It's purely speculation, but they might be searching for the traitor (JOKER) among themselves.

In other words, they can't trust each other's identities.

(Chung discovering a room of jewels screenshot.jpg)

Chung is the first to find something.

Given the luxurious jewels, it's likely Chung symbolizes the Nobility represented by Spade(♠) or Wealth represented by Diamond(♦).

In the latter part of the MV, Baekya is also in the same room, finding a splendid sword among the treasures, suggesting he might be the Knight, J (Jack).

(Yuyeon lying under a chandelier screenshot.jpg)

(A hand cutting the string the chandelier is hanging from screenshot.jpg)

(Jihan discarding scissors screenshot.jpg)

Assuming Yuyeon is K (King), who would most want to eliminate him?

The Jester, of course.

In a society with a hierarchical system where playing cards were created, jesters were treated worse than animals.

So, is Jihan the JOKER?

No.

(Jihan wearing a jewel necklace screenshot.jpg)

Firstly, 'No Games' shows Jihan wearing the most extravagant accessories.

(Yulmu building a card tower screenshot.jpg)

In the MV, Yulmu is the only one uninterested in searching for something.

Highly likely to be the Clergy, Heart(♥).

That's all we can deduce about Yulmu=Heart from 'No Games'.

(Everyone, Yulmu is love.)

I'll continue with the recently released 'WANT ME' interpretation next.

(Chung and Baekya eating cake screenshot.jpg)

Both seen together in the treasure room in 'No Games' are together again here.

Unlike Baekya's untouched plate, Chung's is filled with various desserts, while Yuyeon sits alone on the floor, looking up at a teddy bear, suggesting his social status is low.

(Jihan climbing to the attic screenshot.jpg)

Jihan discovers an old chess game in the corner of a storage-like place. What we need to pay attention to here is this chess game!

Five stars!!!!!

Chess shares similarities with playing cards in the sense that it has a King/Queen and the weakest piece, a Pawn.

(DASE playing chess screenshot.jpg)

Here too, Minsung and Yuyeon are shown pitted against each other, with Minsung having a slight advantage, holding what appears to be a white pawn, assumed to be Yuyeon's.

Baekya is positioned next to Minsung and Jihan is alone on the sofa, looking down at the three of them.

Jihan is the only one looking directly at the camera!

(Jihan eye contact screenshot.jpg)

The purple marble he rolls in his hand has been a symbol of luxury, wealth, and power across cultures since ancient times.

Since Jihan's debut teaser was in colour, it confirms he's either Diamond(♦) or King/Queen(K/Q).

While it might seem obvious he's Diamond(♦), remember 'No Games' shows him sabotaging Yuyeon, who's holding the crown.

What if the crown was originally Jihan's and Minsung just happened upon it? What if Jihan lured them into his trap, dragging them into a game he created, resenting Minsung and Yuyeon for coveting his crown?

Moreover, he was the first to find the chess game, which might explain the current composition of him sitting alone on the sofa. (Though this might just be my headcanon.)