Dominate Showbiz: Media Tycoon Discovered My Talent-Chapter 68: Performance Order

Confident as Kaija might have sounded when she ran out of the dressing room, she was still unsure about one thing... Since she hadn’t even tried the dress on, she had no idea if it would fit.

In her living room, the black paper bag sat exactly where she’d left it two weeks ago. Next to it, the once-vibrant red roses had dried into a deep, brittle red-brown, a few petals scattered across the mahogany surface.

She lifted the light blue wearable piece of artwork from the bag, the expensive satin smooth and cool against her hands.

The brand tag said Birds of Paradise. Kaija, fashionably illiterate as she was, was of course clueless of which brand that was.

"Thank you, whoever gave me this," she murmured, before stripping down and slipping into the dress right there in the living room.

The fit was perfect, as if it’d been tailored to her exact measurements. Her breath caught when she saw herself in the full-length mirror.

The satin hugged her waist comfortably, not squeezing her like the black dress had. The lace ruffles fell elegantly to just above her knees, highlighting her narrow waist against her full bust and wide hips in a sophisticated rather than obscene way.

The light blue shade was a couple tones lighter than her blue eyes, but instead of overpowering her features, it made them stand out even more. With crystals meticulously scattered across the fabric, the dress would definitely dazzle under the stage lights.

Growing up, her mom had never bought her anything princess-core like this, so seeing herself in such a dress now was more than just surprising. It felt surreal.

"Man, how does this girly thing suit me this well?" she muttered at her reflection, baffled. "This thing must’ve cost a few thousand S dollars, jeez."

With little time left to keep admiring it, she threw a long black coat over herself to hide the dress and hurried back to the concert hall.

The dressing room was now packed. Contestants sat at brightly lit makeup tables, with countless makeup artists and hair stylists buzzing around them.

The moment Kaija walked in, Esko and Dani rushed over and dragged her to an empty chair as two staff members immediately got to work on her face and hair. One girl divided her long hair into sections and began rolling it, while the other wiped cool, alcohol-scented primer across her face before applying the base.

Next to her, Dani crouched down, voice low but urgent. "Where did you go? Did you somehow get an outfit?" She remembered Kaija leaving earlier in a plain white shirt and jeans, and now she was back in a long black coat with the jeans gone. She had to have found something.

"Yeah," Kaija whispered back, her tone wary. "But I’d rather keep my coat on for now and show you later, in case someone gets jealous and decides to destroy this one too, you know? I promise it’ll work for the stage."

Esko, leaning in from the other side, was relieved hearing that. "Thank God, Kaija! I was worried sick the whole twenty minutes you were gone!" he cried under a low voice. "I’ll go tell the Stage Manager you’re here and ready, okay?"

"Okay, Esko." Kaija gave him a thumbs-up. "Thank you so much for being here with me today, Esko. I’ll surely pay you back later."

"Yeah, yeah, pay me back as much as you want!" Esko said, grinning brightly. "Now listen, you’ve got an hour before the show starts, so keep your inner peace, alright? Just take deep breaths and relax. You’ve got this, my superstar. I believe in you!"

With one final tight squeeze around Kaija’s shoulders, he shot off through the sea of people and out of the room.

With him gone, Kaija turned to Dani. "Hey, did they tell you when my turn will be?"

"Not yet," Dani said. "You’ll only find out about thirty minutes before the show starts. That’s when the Stage Manager finally knows which artists actually showed up. They’ll send out the performance order then. But since you’re a new trainee... well, they’ll probably put you near the end when everyone’s already tired. Every festival, the seniors always get to go first. They need someone to kick off the night for that big wow factor, you know? Then it just goes down the list to the juniors."

Kaija’s face instantly darkened. "Wouldn’t that take like... an eternity before it’s my turn?"

"Definitely gonna be close to midnight, girl," Dani nodded solemnly, patting Kaija’s shoulder with sympathy. "But hey, you’ll have plenty of time to chill. Just don’t fall asleep before your turn."

"I’ll try not to," Kaija sighed. "What am I even supposed to do until midnight? Just sit here and wait?"

"You don’t have to," Dani said, shrugging. "There’s a waiting room, but it’s always packed and loud because everyone practices in there. Or you can wander around backstage or go out for some air. Just make sure you’re back in time for your turn."

"That works for me," Kaija said, already plotting how to kill the hours.

From what she’d learned in training, an entertainer’s life was mostly waiting until showtime anyway. Once debuted, she’d have to endure the same thing when performing at weekly music chart TV shows, or concerts with many performers, just like this one.

When her hair and makeup were done, she followed Dani out of the dressing room. A while later, they met up with Esko again, with the performance order list in his hand.

Originally, Kaija was supposed to go last, but somehow her slot had just been moved to the middle of the show, right after the fifteen-minute break. As for why, the stage manager didn’t say. He only said she’d be opening the second half, and that was both an opportunity and a pressure.

After the break, the judges would feel refreshed. They’d expect an even better opening than the beginning of the show, but if she could pull it off, it would surely leave a lasting impression. That also meant she had a reasonable amount of time before taking the stage.

She made her way to the curtain separating the front from the backstage, eyes peeking through the tiny gap between them. From the far back row, the audience was already pouring into the hall through the doors on the right side.

The entire hall was large enough to host about five thousand people, and yet all the seats were gradually filling up. It seemed like there weren’t just KE staff at the festival, but staff from other companies under Kosonen Group were here today too.

Then suddenly, one door on the left side swung open.