“Eyes on me! The moment we become one, everyone, pay attention. Hello, we are IZ*ONE!”

Kim Byungman clapped and exclaimed, “Ah, you guys are so elegant and refreshing that even your group greeting exudes it.” The girl group thanked him for his compliment, giving him some of their own. After a few moments, he continued, “So, do you guys know where we are?”

“Avea Island~” the members shouted.

Well, except for two lone members who scratched their heads and awkwardly smiled, “F–Fiji… Avea?”

Chaeyeon began laughing, alerting the rest of the cast and placing their attention on her. She almost fell to the floor as she pointed at the source of her laughter.

When the rest of them saw the reason, they joined the main dancer, while Byungman chuckled, “Eunbi-ssi, Yena-ssi, do you not know where we are?”

Their leader’s eyes flitted around, meeting all the cameras, “They never really… told us until just before we started.”

Her statement was met with responses of “That’s right!” from her members while the producers behind the cameramen sheepishly avoided eye contact.

Byungman’s eyes widened with disbelief, “Seriously? Wow, you guys are so mean!” He scolded the production team, “They’re a top-charting girl group, you should be giving them foot massages right now instead of making them confused for weeks!”

“In any case, shall we do the intro again, everyone?” Yujin brought them back on topic naturally thanks to her knack for MCing.

With that, they introduced themselves once more and said where they successfully said where they were, with Wonyoung giving a cute finger heart to top it off. IZ*ONE took turns revealing some basic information about them so that the viewers who were not familiar with them could have an idea of their personalities and quirks, as well as to kill some time for the production crew before they officially search for a place to settle in for a week. By the time, the last member had finished, all the cameras were removed from their tripods and mounted on the shoulders of the cameramen, ready to capture footage on the go.

When they were all ready, Byungman said, “I scouted the island a bit and I found the perfect place to set up camp, it’s just a couple of minute’s walk away.”

Wonyoung, who was enamored and admired everything, complimented the man for the nth time since they’ve met him, “You’re so reliable Byungman-nim!” The girl then cocked her head, “By the way, what do you want us to call you?”

“Chief Byungman or Tribemaster?” Yena suggested.

Yujin shook her head and grimaced, “‘Tribemaster sounds too much like a video game NPC title.”

Yena and Yujin got into a heated debate about suitable nicknames and why Tribemaster fits despite it sounding childish. Hyewon joined in but only egged the others on, switching sides to escalate the discussion further. Wonyoung tried to bring them back to the original topic, ultimately failing as the foodie’s goading proved to be too strong for her voice of reason. Eventually, the maknae gave up and walked ahead, sighing as she went.

The man chuckled at the comical display playing out before his eyes, “You can call me whatever you’re comfortable with, as long as it's appropriate.”

“You heard him, Yujin! I can call him Tribemaster,” Yena exclaimed, seeming a tad bit too excited at the notion.

After a few more moments of Yujin and Hyewon debating how stupid Tribemaster sounds and why Yena should go play Dungeons and Dragons, the members chose titles, or nicknames, to call Byungman. Some opted with “Chief Byungman”, or simply “Chief”, while some went with “Byung-nim”.

The producer came up to them, “Camera’s are ready to roll, ready to start heading there, Byungman-ssi?”

“Let’s go!”

At last, the tribe began their journey to their temporary home. The more inquisitive and curious members of the group tried to get some information about the campsite, but their efforts were proven to be in vain as Byungman replied saying that it would be better if they saw themselves. And so, they trudged on, camera’s filming, through the sandy beach and followed the coastline and stayed close to the shade that was provided by the overhanging trees.

IZ*ONE observed the horizon, appreciating the stellar view that Fiji gave them, and loudly voiced their opinions about it. The members asked the crew if they could get some photos of them, and what’s a pretty view without pretty models to go along with it? Hyewon, being the selfie queen she was, ran around and assisted the others with their pictures. Nako was also doing her best to help. In the background, they could hear the staff and the host of the show laughing sweetly at their antics, how endearing and cute they were to immortalize memories by begging the production staff to let them use their phones and take photos.

After ten minutes of trekking, Chaeyeon decided to consult the compass that was hanging on her backpack and saw that they’ve been heading northeast.

“It’s good to know that someone in our group bothered to learn how to read a compass,” Eunbi said.

Chaeyeon laughed, “It’s so easy to read one, though. But if any of you want to learn it then I’d be happy to help.”

“In an age with technology and screens, no one thinks about reading a real compass when you have a digital map in the palm of your hands,” the leader hummed, “it’s nice to know that we have someone here who’s reliable. Plus, we’re not allowed to have our phones unless it’s for emergencies or pictures.”

The younger dancer blushed at the compliment yet acted humble about, “I’m not so sure about that but,” her eyes softened, showing something akin to pity and awareness, “I know for sure that there is someone who has consistently been by your side in the dark.”

“Huh–what?”

The film staff’s camera lens glinted out of the corner of Chaeyeon’s eyes and stopped the conversation there, “You’ll see, unnie.”

The entourage kept trudging on, feet sinking softly into the sand and spirits kept as high as the sun bathing them in a soft glow. Soon enough, the chief told them to huddle close to him as they were nearing their destination, and the girls’ excitement blew through the roof and past the stratosphere. True to his word, a beautiful and bright lagoon came into their view.

The lagoon was partitioned from the ocean by a strip of shallow water, marking where the colors of the water change from deep blue to a clear cerulean. It was encapsulated by lush trees and plants that would provide more than enough shelter from the wind and, when the weather calls for it, rain. The white beaches that they’ve been walking on were present as well. Right across from where they entered, was a cloud of leaves overhanging from the trees and passing over the sand and out to the water, a perfect spot to make their housing.

As the girl group ran around and made their way to the shady spot on the beach, they could hear the camera director ask for the drone operator to begin compiling overhead shots of the lagoon and the young women frolicking to and fro. They even had the shoulder-mounted cameramen follow them at full speed, panting and sweating not even a few minutes later. The members noticed their plight and toned down the intensity of their enthusiasm and slowed to a brisk walk.

Wonyoung had become a sort of reaction bank for the production team, with her making the most genuine and adorable reactions about almost everything she came across. Even on the way to the lagoon, the maknae was squeaking at the slightest ripple in the ocean and rustle in the leaves thinking that there might be a little creature she could befriend, muttering things like “do you think there’s a baby bird I can say hi to?” right into the camera. They swore they could see the staff swooning over the giant baby in front of them and they would sometimes even hear them encouraging her to continue this behavior, either for their personal entertainment or for more content.

Byungman calmly reached their goal first and spoke to his designated cameraman, his words lost in the wind and distance from the girls. When he yelled and waved his hands to signal them to gather, IZ*ONE rushed towards him while stowing away the phones or portable film cameras into their bags and readied themselves physically and mentally for the start of a new chapter in their book of variety shows. When they arrived, the chief of the tribe effortlessly switched on his professionalism mode, as well as his survivalist mode.

“So, this is where we will be starting our journey before we ultimately split and meet up at the end of the trip.”

Oh, they’d forgotten about that. In their eagerness to get the show on the roll, they’d overlooked the fact that Kim Byungman would leave after the first night and embark on his own as his personal mission.

Yujin pouted, “Aw, we don’t get to hang out with you that much.”

“Yeah,” Nako added, “after all the time we spent thinking up a nickname to call you.”

Byungman smiled at them like how a father would smile at his children, “But I would never leave you guys just like that.” He pointed at a pocket on his backpack, “I have a special item that I’ll leave with you guys before I go.”

They could already imagine how this scene would be edited in the final cut. The production team would zoom in on the backpack and write a caption with some delicate pink font stating something along the lines of “What does Byungman have for the young women?”. Then it would pan to one of the IZ*ONE members with another line of text mentioning how reliable the man was. Although, they agree with that sentiment as Byungman, was indeed a dependable and trusty person, with him giving them tips off-camera.

After doing the routine speech regarding the show, as well as some idle chatter to fill some time slots for the footage, Byungman settled into his leadership role and began assigning tasks.

“A little birdie told me you guys have been preparing for the show, and that you guys are basically experts about this whole survival thing.”

A chorus of denial erupted, with Sakura shaking her head, “No, we aren’t experts, not by a long shot.”

“Well,” the man shrugged, “In any case, we have to split up the jobs so our tribe can get through the first day. I’m okay with any task, so I’ll leave the decisions of teams to you guys.”

With that, he left to do some more scouting, bringing his cameraman with him and talking as he went. He disappeared into the thickets of the jungle and left the girls to their own devices.

“Uh–so, who wants to go look for some nature snacks with me?” Chaeyeon asked.

Wonyoung walked up to her immediately, “Me! I wanna go exploring.” Her eyes twinkled with eagerness, “I hope we find some food and a chicken. Oh, or maybe some beef.”

Everyone gushed at their maknae’s cuteness before discussing amongst themselves to figure out who would join the two on their endeavor. They mainly discussed who would fit the role and who had the physical capabilities to do things that may require them to either climb trees or use strength, and they decided that half of the group should help Byungman build the house and the other half should look for food. Furthermore, the food searching party should split up again so that one group could scour the shallow waters for some morsels of seafood and the remaining three could search for fruits and such.

Eventually, they assigned Eunbi, Yena, Chaewon, Hitomi, Yuri, and Wonyoung for the builder team and the rest would accompany Chaeyeon. With the tribe separating into their roles, the cameramen and some staff members allocated themselves accordingly to successfully film the different groups.

The girls dumped their bags into a neat pile and took out the necessary items they needed, collections of knives and sacks were produced, and then they separated to do their assigned tasks. Chaeyeon led her group to the other side of the lagoon, where a thin line of trees segregated another smaller body of water and addressed her group.

“Alright, I’m thinking that Nako and Yujin should definitely go search the jungle for food.”

“Whot? Why me? And why with Yujin?” Nako questioned, hands on her hips.

Yujin chimed in, “Yes, why must I be with the crawling spider gremlin?”

They began arguing with Nako threatening to come after her ankles and Yujin saying that she would step on her if she tried to do so. It was like they forgot that there were cameras on them and that it was just another regular day at home. The confusion on the crew members’ faces became evident as Chaeyeon and the others ignored them and continued the discussion without them.

“Nako can climb trees and Yujin could boost her up, as well as reach things without having to find a way to elevate herself. So let’s consider who’s gonna search the sea and the remaining person can go with the dumb and dumber duo,” the main dancer explained.

Hyewon raised her hand, “I can go with them–”

“No!” the others groaned, with Sakura elaborating the reason for their disapproval, “We all know that if either you or I go with them we’ll just mess around and return without a single thing in our hands.”

“Ugh, fine…” the foodie huffed and crossed her arms.

They discussed some more while a certain short girl and a tall puppy berated each other some more. Oddly enough, Nako had started kicking sand at Yujin’s shins while the other laughed and quoted memes about someone being pathetic.

“Oh? You dare approach me?” Yujin announced, mimicking the pose of a popular blonde character from a critically acclaimed anime.

Nako pulled an exaggerated scowl and puffed her chest, “I can’t beat the heck out of you without getting closer.”

“Then come as close as you like.”

They walked an overdramatized swagger, legs swinging strong and weird, but it strangely exuded this aura of power and confidence. It was like one could almost imagine some Japanese characters floating around them to make the whole scene cool.

Before they could meet halfway and finish their impromptu play and, perhaps, escalate it into another shouting match, someone interrupted them.

“Looks like you’re stuck with me for now,” Minjoo said, feigning annoyance but still smiling all the same.

“Unnie!” Yujin completely disregarded everything that she and Nako had done up to that point and ran up to the newly arrived member.

The Japanese girl sulked closely behind, “You’re suddenly very chipper even though you were complaining about me having to tag along.”

“What do you mean I was complaining?” the second maknae asked innocently with her eye-