Kwak Saerom vs Wang Zhenqi

It was time for a new pre-show segment for Genesis88, and this time, it was in pairs. Paired up at random, it all started with two girls standing behind a box. Saerom was looking at the director, while Zhenqi was already trying to catch the camera, doing aegyo and waving. "Ladies, this box in front of you has an object in it," the director began, but while Saerom was politely listening, the other girl already interrupted. "Oh! Oh! Let me guess! We have to stick our hands in and guess what it is?" Zhenqi knew that she was right, and her lips curled into a smug smile when the director sighed and confirmed. "Oh! I'm so excited! Aren't you too, Saerom?" The younger continued to yap on. Saerom smiled gently and nodded, "yeah, let's hope that it's not something weird. Good luck!" She spoke with sweet words.

Zhenqi giggled right as the starting buzzer went off, and both of the girls immediately stuck their hands into the box. The audience could see what the object was. For this duo, it was a microphone. Pretty tame to start with. Both of the girls started to feel up the object, zhenqi being very enthusiastic and making lots of noises, while Saerom was more reserved, but still happy. When they accidentally touched hands, the younger girl grabbed the other one's to romantically hold it for a moment, the camera zooming in with lots of hearts flying around. "Oh is that a tactical move to keep me away? You won't get me with that," Saerom chuckled and pulled her hand out of Zhenqi's grip to resume the game, the other letting out a disappointed whine in response. "Saerom!" The older exclaimed shortly after, "I think i got the answer! Is it a mic?" Saerom had hopeful eyes, and when the director confirmed, she cheered, not too much but she was still very happy. Zhenqi on the other hand had completely changed, not saying a word and pulling a sulky face. "Do I get self-promo now?" The winner looked at the director with hopeful eyes. When he confirmed, she immediately started. "Hi guys, I'm Kwak Saerom! I am here as individual trainee, but I used to be a part of YG." Saerom did her self promo earnestly, but the disappointed Zhenqi started pulling faces behind her and doing big gestures to try and grab the spotlight, making the former laugh a bit awkwardly, even though she tried her best to hide it. "Uh... I thought of giving up this dream of becoming an idol many times, but Genesis88 is my last attempt. I really hope you can support me!" The girl stopped talking when the director revealed that time was up, and both of the trainees smiled and waved at the camera.

Tony Yu vs Blanche Cho

The second duo that was facing off for some promo time were Tony and Blanche. As the latter was already an established solo artist and an older, stunning lady, Tony couldn't help but feel intimidated in her presence, and it was noticeable. The polite boy was fidgety and unusually quiet through the whole intro while Blanche introduced them both like a real professional. "Hi everyone! I'm Blanche, and this is Tony Yu! You may know him from a previous show in China!" the woman pointed her hands towards Tony, who needed to buffer for a moment before saying hi with a bright smile, coming back to his senses. "Hi! I'm so sorry, I spaced out a little because there is such an amazing artist next to me," the guy chuckled, making Blanche a bit flustered in return. "Oh stop it you, don't try to convince me to give you the win, I'm not going to give it up so easily," Blanche laughed, gently patting the other's shoulder.

"The timer is already running, please stop talking," the director interrupted, and both contestants reacted in shock. "Wait really? Why didn't you tell us?" Blanche reacted, already reaching for the box. If the two weren't making so much noise by blindly grabbing into the box and slamming the sides in a hurry, a sigh would've been heard from the director. Both of them had only just located the object with their hands, and they were both yelling their names loudly, trying to answer quicker than the other. "I think Tony was just a little quicker," the director judged, the boy cheering in response. "It's a brush!" Tony looked at the director with hopeful eyes. He was correct. "Yay! I mean- I'm sorry, sunbaenim, you were so close to getting it!" he turned towards the older with an expression of guilt. Blanche gave his back a pat and smiled, "Hey, you were quicker, don't worry! Go ahead and do your self-promo!"

"Oh, right!" Tony remembered, turning back to face the camera, "As Blanche-sunbaenim already mentioned, I have joined a survival show already! But this one is my first time in Korea with my labelmates. I hope that I will be able to do well..." Tony put his hands together and turned towards the other with a smile, "But with contestants as amazing as Blanche, it will be so hard to do well, but also so great! Please cheer for us both on the show!" the boy cheered while Blanche laughed at his cheesy comment. "Tony, you dork!" she grinned before both of them waved goodbye.

Song Jaegyu vs Tanaka Yuru

This was a very interesting pair to see, and the director was quite afraid of them. While Yuru is quite calm and graceful, Jaegyu is the exact opposite of that. "Are you guys ready?" the director asked. "Yes!" Jaegyu practically yelled, nodding excitedly, while the younger Yuru just gave a nod and a smile. When they got the starting sign, the older reached in without any fear, while the younger was cautious. When they both realised that there was something slimey in there, Jaegyu let out a playful shriek, while Yuru's face turned to disgust as she recoiled her hand. "Oh, this is so weird! I love it," the older girl laughed, feeling up the wet, slippery object without any fear or disgust showing. "Come on, Yuru, it isn't so bad!" she tried to encourage the quieter girl. "No, it is bad!" she retorted, going for another feel of the foreign object in the box, but recoiling again with a small shriek once she felt the goo. Jaegyu kept touching the object, her face turning into all kinds of weird expressions, swapping between joy and confusion. While she was going at it, Yuru took out her hand and noticed that there was some goo still on it. After studying it with a look of disgust, she had her lightbulb moment. "Yuru!! Tanaka Yuru!" she outdid Jaegyu in volume for the first time in the video, but when she had to answer, her volume turned down again. "Isn't this just slime? Like the stuff kids play with?" Yuru wondered. When it was confirmed to be correct, both girls cheered. "That's so wild!" Jaegyu looked at her hand which was covered in slime before laughing, "I was so stuck on thinking it was some kind of sea creature, but I couldn't actually find it! You're so smart, Yuru," she turned towards the younger while still laughing. Yuru laughed as well before facing the camera with a smile.

"I am Yuru from EXACT music! The graceful swan that will make you feel calm!" she did a pirouette to excited cheers from Jaegyu. "I only trained for 5 months because I was studying ballet before this, and I am way worse than the other members of EXACt music, but I really hope people will vote for me!" she spoke gently, keeping a smile on her face, still proud that she managed to win. "Ey, I'm sure you're great, I've seen you dance!" Jaegyu chimed in to praise the other, putting an arm around her shoulders. "But you're also great, unnie..." Yuru felt shy, looking down at the ground. "Time's up," the director commented, interrupting their moment. "Aww, but this was so fun!" Jaegyu whined. "Yeah, it really was!" the other joined in the whining, "we'll see you guys soon, national producers!" Yuru finished the video while both of the girls waved. With them being such opposites, the battle went surprisingly smooth.

Bang Hyowon vs Hu Xinyi

How these girls were put together, nobody knew, but it didn't seem like a good idea. Both of them were standing up straight, giving the camera a staring competition, while also having a competition of looking the most deadpan among themselves. "Hello, national producers," Hyowon started in a monotone voice, "I am Hyowon." Xinyi chimed in, almost the exact same voice, "And I am Xinyi. Today we are playing what's in the box for you guys." Both of the girls bowed at the same time, being surprisingly in sync. "Is it me, or can I hear some splashes in the box? This is scary, isn't it?" Hyowon commented, showing no signs of being scared at all. "I really hope it's not some sea creature... That would be disgusting," Xinyi scoffed. When the starting buzzer went off, neither barely moved a muscle for what seemed like an eternity. Because of the noises inside the box, they were both waiting for the other to get the first feel. In the end, Hyowon decided to reach in carefully. When she touched the thing, her face turned to a scowl, but she only retracted her hand for a little bit. The foreigner was watching her reaction, and decided that it was safe enough to go in herself. But when Xinyi reached in her hand, the thing inside immediately started frantically moving, resulting in her shrieking through the whole room and recoiling so hard that she ended up almost losing her balance. It managed to get a little chuckle out of Hyowon. "Are you okay?" she looked over, Xinyi just nodded while out of breath, clutching her pearls.

"I can't believe they gave us something this crazy, why me! You could've given this to Zhenqi instead!" the girl complained towards the director, making the other grin softly. "Don't worry, I figured it out," Hyowon chuckled, "Bang Hyowon, the answer is an eel," she said calmly. Xinyi looked at the other with an open mouth, absolutely in shock at the revelation. "You mean there's eels in there? Living eels?? That's crazy??" she kept on yammering. "I'm pretty sure they have done it before in produce 101 as well," Hyowon calmly explained, "But it is indeed crazy." Xinyi still couldn't believe it. "I can't believe you are so calm, Hyowon! How did you guess that?" she looked over at the younger, still with a funny expression on her face which showed both disgust and shock. "I guess that's just who I am," Hyowon chuckled before beginning her self promo. "Hello, I'm Hyowon from MBK," she smiled gently, "I haven't had idol training at all, so I apologise if I don't really have the energy of the other teainees, but I hope that you will still enjoy watching me and Xinyi," she finished swiftly. Xinyi waved at the camera when she heard her name falling, but she was too busy cleaning off her hands to really pay it any mind. The video finished with both of them back into the same deadpan stares to the camera before bowing once again.

Shin Ryulang vs Byeon Ahri

The next pair that was up to play the game were two absolutely stunning ladies, Shin Ryulang and Byeon Ahri. Both of them seemed to feel a little timid at first, but they were showing gorgeous smiles. "Are you ready? I'm nervous," Ryulang leaned towards the younger, whispering gently. The other gave a little nod before grinning. "Good luck, unnie!" Ahri whispered back a bit louder right before the starting buzzer went off.

Both of the girls reached in with just a little hestitation, but once they realised that it wasn't something weird, they both let out a sigh of relief. "It's not weird to the touch! It just feels cold..." Ryulang began wondering out loud, with the other nodding in agreement. Both of them were quietly touching the object, Ahri tapping it a few times. "It feels like metal..." Ahri continued to conduct the duo's research on this strange object. Not too long after, Ryulang took her hand out and raised it to answer. "Ryulang!! I think I got it! Is it... a clarinet?" she looked at the director with hopeful eyes. "Daeng! That's not right," the director responded, resulting in a pout from Ryulang. But then Ahri's face lit up. "Ahri! Ahri! I got it! It's not a clarinet, but a flute!" she exclaimed, both of the girls looking at the director. When he confirmed that it was correct, Ahri started doing little bunny jumps, excited to win. "Hurry, Ahri, time is almost up!" Ryulang ushered the younger to start her self promo. She was a little confused at first, but then started hurriedly rambling to fill up the last few seconds of the video. "I'm Byeon Ahri! I'm representing EDAM and you may have seen me before as model or music video actress... Uh, I'm more introverted compared to my friend Haein, but I hope you can still enjoy my presence! And Ryulang's too!" Ahri quickly did a little promo, and both of the girls huddled together to say their goodbyes to the camera, showing off their charms.

Adrien Choi vs Kim Aejung

There was finally another guy selected to play the game, and it was Adrien. He was facing off against the proper, polite Aejung, and he looked more nonchalant compared to her. The girl gave her foe a bow and a smile, Adrien hurriedly bowing back, chuckling a little awkwardly. The buzzer went off without them really saying a word. "Ah, I'm kind of scared, actually," the guy hestitated, deciding to watch Aejung's reaction before he went for it himself. The other did reach in immediately, but she was still more careful than most. She didn't really react much, only grinning a little once her hand made contact. Adrien decided that it was safe, so he decided to reach into the box as well. But he would go on to regret it.

When he touched the object, he shrieked in disgust and retracted his hand immediately. "Oh my god! What is that?" he broke into very australian English from pure shock, looking over at Aejung, who had started laughing. "How can you not be disgusted by this?" Adrien returned to Korean, a hand resting on his chest as he tried to catch his breath. "I mean..." the girl chuckled, taking her hand out of the box so she could turn towards Adrien, "It's just a wig, you know?" The boy turned towards the director with a look of defeat. "Is it really? Is that the answer?" he wondered. "Yeah... I guess Aejung just gave the answer away," the director sighed. "Oh, oops! I'm sorry-" the girl grinned innocently, covering with one hand. "Well, I guess I won!" she turned her attention to the camera, "I'm Aejung, from MBK! I'm also known in Japan as Aoi Kimu, and I am a childhood actress! I'm here with my girls and we are nicknamed Nahyoae, I hope you will support all three of us... And of course," she turned towards the boy next to her, who had been smiling and nodding, "Support Adrien as well! He is a really nice guy!" Adrien immediately got a proud grin on his face, "Thank you! We're the same age, actually, so this was loads of fun." Both of them grinned, but time was up, so they said their goodbyes together.

Hoen Akiko vs Rhee Jihae

Both of the next contestants were absolutely adorable girls. Both of them had their gaze locked onto the camera. Akiko was swaying around a little while fidgeting with the hem of her shirt, having a shy smile on her face. Jihae however, was standing more confidently. "Are we going to guess what's in the box today? That's so exciting!" the older Jihae commented, giving the director a smile. "Yeah... It is exciting, but I'm also nervous..." Akiko chimed in, trying to at least get some words in despite her still being camera shy. "Don't worry about it!" Jihae turned towards the younger, "It's going to be great!"

When the starting buzzer went off, Jihae went in immediately, and before Akiko could even reach into the box, the other was already yelling. "Jihae! Jihae! Please let me answer!" the older raised both of her hands, jumping excitedly. The younger was taken aback by her sudden outburst. "Is it a plushie? Please tell me it's a plushie~" the older looked at the director with puppy eyes, and burst into a cheer when he confirmed that she was correct. But Akiko didn't even get to do anything, so she did feel down about how things turned out. Jihae noticed, and she promptly broke the box open to grab the plushie, which was a cute, fluffy bunny, and handed it to Akiko. "I'm so sorry... I should've considered you more and given you some time as well, but I got excited..." Jihae apologized, but the younger shook her head, happily taking the plush to give it a big hug. "It's alright, I should've acted quicker," Akiko replied, looking content while snuggling with the plush. Jihae couldn't help but giggle at the cuteness before turning back towards the camera and starting her self promo.

"Well, I'm Jihae, hi!" she waved happily, "I've trained for 7 years and now I am under RBW!" Akiko, still hugging the plushie in the back, whispered: "Wow... That's so long!" Jihae laughed in response. "Before this, I was in Sixteen, Produce 101, idol school and produce 48! I'm already a familiar face to mnet," the girl chuckled. "I already know the practice rooms by heart, it's crazy." While the older was going on, behind her was Akiko, looking adorable and content. Jihae noticed that time was running out, so she finished off her little speech. "Uh, I really hope national producers can vote for me so I can finally make it! I'm so sorry for breaking the box, by the way!" Akiko laughed a little at the comment, and joined the older in saying goodbye. After this video, the director was left with a broken box, and without a plushie to use in the game.

Zhang Yuyan vs Park Hayan

The next face-off was between the older and confident Yuyan, and the younger and sweet Hayan. If Yuyan wasn't pronounced differently, they could've been 2yan, but alas, the gods didn't allow for this shipname today. The older woman immediately took the mc role, speaking Korean confidently despite being a foreigner. "Hello, dear national producers!" She clapped her hands together while Hayan next to her smiled at the camera, "I am Zhang Yuyan, and this is Park Hayan, and today we are playing What's in the box!" Yuyan smiled proudly. "Yeeee~" the younger cheered cutely in response. Yuyan now acted like she was holding a mic and conducted a little interview. "Hayan, sweetheart, how are you feeling today?" She held out the imaginary mic in front of the younger, who played along very well. "Err... I'm very excited! I really hope we can play a good game-" The girls got interrupted by the starting buzzer going off, and both scrambled to reach into the box first, accompanied by excited squeaks from both of them.

"I can feel something cold and metallic," Yuyan kept on commentating, getting a laugh from Hayan. "Unnie, you might give it away to me if you keep yapping like that," the younger grinned. "I mean, it's for entertainment. Uh? What's this soft thing that I feel now?" The older kept talking, and it made Hayan laugh even harder. "Unnie! That's my hand! Please let go!" The younger whined playfully while trying to escape from the box. "No, let's be romantic for a little, come on~" both girls looked into each other's eyes. Yuyan gave the younger a wink, which made her emit a shy squeak. "Oh my god! Stop it!" Hayan whined as she freed herself from the romantic scene, cheeks blushy. But she did know the answer, and so she rose her hand. "Hayan! Is it a microphone?" She wondered. When the director confirmed, both of the girls cheered happily. Yuyan immediately opened the still broken box to grab the mic and resumed her interview, with a real mic this time. "Hayan, you won, how do you feel?" The older asked. "I feel great! I'm so happy that I can promote myself for a bit!" Hayan spoke into the mic while waving excitedly towards the camera. "Hi!! I'm Hayan from Source music! I am known as a sweet and fun girl with good skills! I hope I can capture national producer's hearts!" The girl made a heart as the buzzer went off again. Yuyan toook the mic back to end the video. "Unfortunately, time is up! This was me, Yuyan, with the gorgeous Hayan!" The older announced. "Goodbye!!" Both of them yelled into the mic in choir. Luckily, this thing was not .

Kitamura Jun vs Boom Tawan Saetang

It was finally time for the first all-male face-off of this segment. It was Jun against Boom. Both of them looked a bit clueless as they were waiting for the buzzer to go off, not knowing what to say. But Jun did look a little grumpy, as he was the older of the duo, but also quite a bit smaller than the guy standing next to him. His eyebrow game was on point as he was switching between glancing at the camera and giving Boom the side eye. "Uhh... Good luck, sunbaenim!" Boom broke the silence, stumbling a bit over his words as he bowed politely to the older. Jun bowed back, but didn't get time to respond as the buzzer finally went off. Both of the boys basically flew to the box, desperately wanting that win and the self-promo. The older was frantically feeling up the whole box while the younger was being a bit more careful in the exploring, and shrieking every time he touched the unknown object. It went on like this for a while.

"Jun! I got it!" Jun suddenly exclaimed, piquing the younger's attention. "Is it... a rod?" the older looked hopeful for a moment, but his hope got crushed when the director denied the answer. Boom didn't want to lose, so he also attempted to answer: "Boom! Is it.... Uh... I don't know how to say it in Korean... Is it a... shovel?" The guy ended up answering in English, but his answer was also denied. "How the hell would that fit in there," Jun muttered under his breath right before he got his lightbulb moment. "A flute?" the older tried again, but was wrong for a second time. "Oh! A key!" Boom also tried another time. "That's way too big to be a key!" Jun commented again. Both of them kept searching and answering, their attempts getting more ridiculous as the timer ticked. When the buzzer went off, neither of them had gotten it right. They both had their eyes fixated on the director, out of breath and noticeably puzzled. "Too bad, guys! The object is a wrench!" the director announced. In response, Jun fell onto his knees dramatically, while Boom just chuckled. "I never would've guessed that... What is it, actually?"

Ryu Binni vs Jack Chatri Krungthep

This pair was one of the more awkward, quiet ones. Both of them decided to give the camera a little wave and a small, gentle smile, but they decided to not say a word. Even when the buzzer went off, not a single word was said. They exchanged glances and gave each other a nod of acknowledgement before starting. Jack was the first one who got the courage to reach into the box. Binni decided to wait a little, watching the older's reaction. "Oh... It's pretty weird to the touch," Jack commented. The younger also reached into the box and once she felt the object, she nodded in agreement. They were both meticulously feeling around, occasionally touching hands but neither of them cared. After a while, Binni raised her hand. "Ryu Binni, I got an answer," she spoke gently. Jack stopped feeling around to wait for the answer, looking over at the girl next to him. "Is it a brush?" the girl wondered. "That's correct!" the director confirmed, getting a tiny cheer from Binni. "Dammit," Jack muttered under his breath. But Binni got surprisingly cheerful upon being granted the self-promo.

"Hello," she started off quietly, "My name is Ryu Binni, and I am the main rapper of the group Ultraviolet! We are representing MMG on the show. Not to be confused with GMMTV, which Jack is a part of." Jack chuckled a little upon hearing that, nodding towards the camera. "We both might be on the quieter side, but that doesn't make us any less cool, don't you think?" Binni looked towards the guy, who nodded and smiled in agreement. "We're cool people," Jack spoke quietly. "Exactly," the younger agreed, "And I hope that the national producers will get to see it! I hope you will support me and the rest of Ultraviolet! And of course, Jack too." The both of them gave the camera a big bow before waving.

Kim Youngmin vs Son Ryuwon

Compared to the calmness of the pair that had just left, this one was bound to be chaotic. The director wasn't sure how these labelmates from @AREA ended up together, and he wasn't sure if he was happy about it either. From the getgo, they were already nudging and pushing each other, fighting for attention from the camera. They were, of course, the notorious duo that was Youngmin and Ryuwon. Arguably the most intimidating duo on the show, making the kids shiver in their boots. But right now, they were just fighting each other to hog up the most space in the frame. "I'm going to win this 100%," Ryuwon sneered towards the older while giving him a glare. In response, Youngmin chuckled. "There's no way you're going to beat me, kiddo." The girl growled back in an attempt to be threatening.

When the buzzer went off, it was as if two bloodhounds were released. They flew towards the box and immediately tried to push each other away from it. Youngmin was pulling the box away from Ryuwon's reach while trying to reach the object himself. Ryuwon herself was shrieking, cursing a lot and clinging onto the older guy to hopefully hinder him. "You're a cheating bastard, Youngmin!" she yelled. The guy was having the time of his life, laughing out loud as he kept having the upper hand on his labelmate. At one moment, Ryuwon did try to manage to get her hand in, and you could see the panic on the older's face when he realised. In a last attempt to keep his hoobae away from the object, which he still didn't guess himself, by the way, he grabbed it... And accidentally pulled it out of the box. It was a candle. Both of them stood still for a while, staring at each other in disbelief, before Ryuwon exploded. "Youngmin! You're so stupid! Why did you do that, you *censor beep*!" the girl cursed, attacking the guy next to her with light smacks. "I don't know! I was too absorbed into the competition!" Youngmin complained back, but he could just barely hold in his laughter. "But you lost, so I see this as an absolute win~" the guy teased, wiggling a little while giving his labelmate a smug grin. "I swear to god, you are the dumbest guy-" Ryuwon shook her head, but it didn't take long before she burst into laughter as well. Both of them were huddled together, laughing their butts off about the whole ordeal. "I can't believe we made it so dramatic," the girl wiped a tear from her eye. "You were the one that made it dramatic, as always," Youngmin nudged his friend. "That's not true! In the end, you made the mistake and ruined the game!" she fired back, before they started laughing again. The director was left scratching his head.

Na Hyunsook vs Heidi Kim

After the room got messed up by the two bloodhounds that were Youngmin and Ryuwon, this pair seemed like they weren't going to be much better. At least Hyunsook and Heidi weren't labelmates with the accompanied rivalry, they still both had strong personalities, and quite the temper. "Let's have a good fight," the older Hyunsook acknowledged her adversary for this video. "Yes, unnie," Heidi gave back the same exact energy. The atmosphere in the room was very tense, and the director felt like a fight was going to break out. He feared for his life as the buzzer went off.

Both of the girls went for the box, but there were no problems yet. They reached in, but neither had been able to locate the object yet. "Do you feel it?" Heidi asked, looking at the older, who was just as confused. "No, I didn't yet... It must be really flat," Hyunsook shook her head. When both of them reached further down, they both immediately pulled their hands back out with loud screams, Hyunsook even stumbling and falling from the surprise that had awaited them. "Ewww, this is disgusting!" Heidi looked at her hand that was full of slime, and then shot daggers with her eyes towards the director. "This is slime, right?" the girl kept glaring. "I got some in my hair!" the older whimpered, trying to get the bright green slime out of her pink hair. "This is horrible!" she continued to complain, still sitting on the ground. "That's going to need a big wash... I feel for you, girl," Heidi helped the older up, speaking partly in her nonchalant English. "This is so evil from you, director," she turned her attention back to the director, who was shivering in his boots. "It really is! How dare you subject girls like us to this mess?" Hyunsook started to fire complaints as well. But then both of the girls decided to spare the director and turn back towards the camera. "I'm so sorry that we couldn't give you a good show today, national producers, but I am Heidi Kim, and this is my unnie, Na Hyunsook," Heidi announced, both of them laughing a little at all the chaos that just happened. "Actually, we shouldn't be the ones sorry, it should be the director," the older pointed at the director that was next to the camera, both of the girls getting a smug smile on their faces to intimidate him. "Should we go wash that hair? It's so pretty, too," Heidi asked the older, who nodded, "Let's go." The video ended without the game properly concluding.

Charles Roh vs Liu Zixin

After the chaos that was the two previous pairs, it was time to have another duo of labelmates face off. It was two of the guys from the trainee group that called themselves The Vision. Charles Roh and their leader, Liu Zixin. "I'm not going to go easy on you because you're one of my members," Zixin chuckled, giving his friend a nudge. "Good, I will crush you anyway," Charles had a smug grin, firing back at his senior immediately. "Should the loser pay for a round of drinks after the show?" The older continued to fire up the battle. "Sure, if its just us two and not the whole group," the younger Charles agreed. When the game began, both of them were quick to reach into the box, but the younger had the idea to try and put both of his hands into it, one to feel the object, and the other to grab Zixin's hand and hold it hostage. But the leader saw through it, and started to pull on Charles' hand to force him to give up on this plan, almost causing the both of them, plus the box and table to topple over and crash on the ground. There was lots of yelling and even a bit of curding, but in the end, both let go of each other to save everything.

After all that, they calmed down and decided to fight a fair battle. "Let's not break the box, it already looks battered up enough..." Zixin let out a sigh to calm down before reaching back in. But he wouldn't have much time left, because the younger was ready to anser. "Charles! I got the answer! I think!" Charles raised his hand up high, having a huge smile on his face, making Zixin laugh at his surprisingly cute behavior. "It's a brush!! I could feel it," the younger exclaimed excitedly, and when it got confirmed, he cheered triumphantly. "Where's this enthusiasm when you practice, huh?" The older joked around, laughing. "Hey, don't make me look bad in frotnt of the national producers or you might not debut either," Charles scoffed, giving his senior a nudge. "Yeah yeah, just show that you work hard on the show, okay?" Zixin chuckled, nudging back. Because of the two bickering, they ended up wasting Charles' self promo time. "Oh shoot, is it over already? Damn! Uh-" the guy was taken aback, but tried to still squeeze some promo in before the video ended. "I'm Charles Roh and this is Liu Zixin! We are The Vision, vote for us!!" He yelled hurriedly. "Please do," Zixin spoke in between laughs. Charles opened his mouth to say some more, but the video ended.

Jung Jangmi vs Koizumi Anna

This pair that was in frame right now was quite interesting. The director was relieved that he finally didn't get another destructive one. It's just that these girls seemed like opposites. On one side you had stone cold ice princess Jung Jangmi, on the other side you had cutesy, energetic sunshine Koizumi Anna. While the younger was looking excited and was constantly moving her body around subtly, the older stood still and quiet, not moving a muscle. All Jangmi had was a very subtle smile. Once the game began, the older decided to play the waiting game, watching the younger go for the box. But Anna was hestitant. She constantly switched between looking at the box and looking back at the woman next to her, unsure of what to do. "Uh... Are you going to wait? I'm scared to try it-" she pouted, her body constantly focusing on a different thing, showing that she was unsure of what to do next. It made Jangmi chuckle slightly. "I'll try it first, if you're scared," she spoke with a strong but monotone voice and stepped forward to reach into the box. "Wow!! You're so cool, unnie!" Anna basically fangirled, clasping her hands together to show admiration. When Jangmi felt the object, she didn't react much. "It's nothing weird, you can try," she looked at the younger. "Okay! Thank you so much!" the younger replied excitedly and reached in. She still couldn't help but squeak a little while looking for the object, noticeably nervous, but when she found it and made contact, Anna breathed a sigh of relief.

Jangmi decided to give the younger some time to try and guess the object, since she was feeling way more enthusiastic about this than her. While Anna was absorbed in feeling up the object and trying to guess it, Jangmi just acted like she was trying, but she had already figured it out. "Don't you feel how waxy it is, Anna?" she hinted, glancing at the younger with raised brows. "Oh yeah!" the girl exclaimed, "I can feel it! It's quite a weird sensation," she continued to think out loud. When Anna thought she had the answer, her face lit up completely and she politely raised her hand as she was in a classroom. "Koizumi Anna! Can I please answer?" the girl alerted the director, receiving a small chuckle from Jangmi, who was standing in the back, watching on. "It's a candle, right?" Anna spoke, hopeful. The older nodded as the director also confirmed that it was correct. "Yay! I really didn't expect to win today!" Anna cheered, jumping in the air while clapping like a little seal. "Hi, national producers! I'm Koizumi Anna from Yuehua! I may just look like a young, cute girl, but I am a very international girl at that!" she rambled, full of excitement, "I can speak five languages! Japanese, Korean, English, Mandarin and Spanish! I really hope I can capture hearts all around the world that way, I hope everyone can cheer us on!" The girl spoke happily, managing to not stumble over any words despite her going very fast. When she realised the video was about to end, she invited Jangmi to stand next to her to say goodbye together. The older obliged, and gave the camera a soft smile and a wave, while Anna gave a much, much bigger one.

Lee Namshin vs Sakata Nagito

In the frame were two absolute towers of men, to the point that the director even considered moving the camera. But even though they were both quite tall, their vibes were entirely different. Namshin had a very chic, cool aura to him, while Nagito was being wiggly, active and bubbly. No one would guess that the second guy was the older one of the two. It reminded the director of the previous pair, and expected similar results. "Don't go too crazy, hyung, watch your glasses," Namshin leaned towards the other, speaking quietly. "Don't worry!" the other spoke with a way higher volume, "I won't do anything wild! Like during the audition-" Nagito got a little embarassed thinking about what happened a while ago for them. Namshin shushed him and whispered: "I don't think you're supposed to say that-" Both of the guys looked at the director, who shook his head and let out a sigh. Finally, the buzzer signified the start of the battle, and both of them went for it surprisingly carefully.

It didn't take that long until Namshin tried his hand at a guess. "Namshin! I got an answer," he spoke up, still keeping his cool image, "Is it a cooking pot?" When it got confirmed, he grinned, while Nagito expressed his disappointment without any words, pulling some weird faces as he complained quietly at himself. But he decided to not say a word to give Namshin his deserved promo time. "Hello guys," Namshin begun proudly, "I'm the chic and cool Namshin. I'm the prince from Pledis, and the princess happens to be on the show too, my twin sister, Yeoshin." He managed to keep up his image for now. Meanwhile, Nagito opened the still not repaired box, taking out the pan and put it on his head, without laughing or saying a word. When the younger spotted it, he broke into a laugh. "What are you doing, oh my god-" Namshin grinned, holding one of his hands in front of his mouth to hide the laughter. "I'm protecting my head from the incoming comets, go on, promote yourself!" Nagito spoke in a serious tone, ushering the other to continue his self promotion. "Oh, right, thanks-" Namshin barely managed to keep himself together and continued. "While this hyung next to me is preparing for the incoming comets, I- I will be prepared to debut, hopefully- So please vote for me and my sister!" the younger had completely lost his coolness, but tried his best to still end his self promo properly. Meanwhile, soldier Nagito was standing behind him with the pan on his head, totally expressionless. Both of them started laughing when the buzzer went off, and the video ended just like that.

Hong Soojoo vs Watanabe Yuuki

The room was filled with an awkward atmosphere, it was even noticeable on camera. It was because this pair was a combination of the shy Soojoo, born in 2006, and the prim and proper Yuuki, who was a whole 13 years older than her. The man cleared his throat, and when the younger gave him a big bow, he hurriedly bowed back just as big. And the room fell silent again. The massive was showing, Yuuki had almost lived Soojoo's life twice, after all. But it was also their quieter personalities that were showing. "Good luck, Soojoo," the man spoke gently. The girl, who had spaced out, jumped in surprise as she came back to reality, and quickly bowed again, showing politeness. "Uh- You too, s-sir!" she blurted out, resulting in a chuckle from the older. "Please, you don't have to be so worried, on this show, we're just two contestants," Yuuki adapted to a warmer tone of voice, showing a fatherly smile to the teenage girl. "Oh... Yeah, that's right," Soojoo muttered, fidgeting with her shirt as she still felt quite shy. Their awkward interaction was interrupted by the starting buzzer.

Both of them carefully reached into the box without much hestitation. But as soon as they touched the objects, both Yuuki and Soojoo pulled a stank face. The guy immediately retorted his hand, looking up at the camera with furrowed brows. "This is something really weird! I don't like the sensation," he commentated while the younger was still fearlessly going. Despite her shy personality, Soojoo really wanted that promo chance, so she kept going, despite her sharing the same sentiment as the older man. Because she was trying so diligently, Yuuki decided to step back and watch her with a gentle smile on his face. The fatherly energy was radiating from him, but Soojoo never noticed. "Soojoo!" she spoke up softly, her volume only increasing a slight bit. "It's a wig," she answered, her lips curling into a tiny, proud smile. "That's correct," the director confirmed. Yuuki applauded the younger enthusiastically. "Great job, Soojoo," he smiled. The girl looked back at him, shocked for a split second, as if she had forgotten that he was present. Then she smiled as well, thanking him before focusing her attention towards the camera. "Thank you, sir! I guess I can promote myself now... I'm Hong Soojoo, maknae of girl group Ultraviolet!" she spoke, still quietly but with an extra bit of enthusiasm added. "I am still very young, and a bit shy... but people always say that I am very cute and skilled! That I have lots of talent," she went on, while Yuuki nodded in approval in the back. "I hope to be able to show a lot of those talents on the show, so that me and the rest of Ultraviolet can become more popular! Please, so we can keep on existing!" she pleaded, pulling adorable puppy eyes. Behind her, Yuuki practically melted into a puddle before joining the pleading quietly, without Soojoo noticing. When the buzzer went off again, the girl invited him to stand next to her to say goodbye together, but it was still awkward.

Koi Pattamawan Chittsawangdee vs Kwon Chiwon

Yet another Ultraviolet member was up next, the one in question being Koi. And she was facing a member of The vision, Chiwon. While the last video had a very awkward air around it, these two seemed ready to fight. Both of them had quite the competitive spirit, and really wanted to grab that self promo time. Both of them were already in position to attack the box, the director actually feared that it would be even more broken after this pair was done with it. "Let's have a good fight," Koi began, acknowledging the older guy with a powerful nod and curious smile. "Not a fist fight, I hope, I don't think I'd win that," Chiwon responded in a nonchalant matter, making the girl laugh. "You think that? Do I look that strong?" the girl played along. "No, but you are mega competitive, I've already spotted that. But I'm not going to lose," the older chuckled. "You're perceptive... But will that help you in this battle?" Koi kept going, the atmosphere growing tenser as the seconds ticked on. Chiwon didn't get any time to fire back, because the buzzer went off, and both immediately flew towards the box, pulling crazy faces and making amazing shrieks as they got absorbed into the fight.

Even though the grimace that had appeared on both of their faces showed that there must've been something weird in there, neither of them gave up. They kept going without any fear. "This is so weird, what IS this?" Chiwon wondered. When both of their slimy, wet hands touched, they both shrieked at the same time and pulled out their hands. They were black. The pair looked at their hands with a disgusted but curious expression before both of them attempted to answer at the same time, moving closer towards the director while trying to yell their names out louder than the other. It left the director quite scared, and he judged that Chiwon was just a bit quicker. "Is it an octopus?" the guy answered. Of course it was correct. "Dammit! I had it too! I was so close," Koi complained in defeat, her hands moving towards her head until she remembered that there was octopus ink on there. "Jezus, I hope that it's not alive," Chiwon looked at the director with a scowl on his face. "No, it's not, but this wasn't supposed to happen, I don't think we're going to use it again..." the director muttered quietly. Both of the contestants ended up complaining so much that Chiwon didn't manage to get in any promo time. But hey, at least it was a bonding experience for these two... right?

Celine Lee vs Kwak Jongho

After all that mess, the director hoped that it would be a more calm video this time, but when he saw what was being put in the box now, he feared for his life. In came the next pair, Celine and Jongho. Both of them quite outspoken, but according to their fellow auditionees Jangmi and Jaewook, also quite stupid. The both of them were already struggling to keep in their laughter. Whenever one wanted to try and say something to get the ball rolling, they would exchange one glance and burst into grins. It was reminiscent of Patrick Star and Spongebob quietly laughing in the classroom. Celine was still busy grinning when the buzzer went off, but Jongho, the man was ready. He attacked the box immediately, reaching his hand in... and a splash was heard. And then all hell broke loose. The guy, who didn't seem like a scaredy cat at all, started screaming like his hand had just been cut off. Celine didn't even have the chance to get to the box yet, but she watched it all happen, and found it absolutely hilarious. Jongho retracted his hand incredibly quick, almost pulling the box along in the progress, and stumbled back, only to fall on his . During all that, he didn't stop screaming. Was he acting for extra comedic value? Perhaps, but the poor man really was terrified. Celine couldn't believe it, laughing uncontrollably and falling onto the ground as well. It really was a beautiful symphony, one screaming bloody murder, while the other was rolling on the floor laughing.

In the end, no one got the opportunity to guess, because both of them were just being wrecks on the ground. Celine hadn't even reached into the box once. When the buzzer went off to end the battle, both of them crawled back up slowly. While Jongho's hair was all messed up and he was immensely out of breath from the shock, Celine was wiping tears from her eyes. "Man, my cheeks hurt... Are you okay?" the girl was out of breath as well, helping the older get back onto his feet. "Wow, the moment I touched that thing, I freaked out immediately, this is insane..." Jongho sighed, clutching his pearls. "Let's see what it is, I think the box can be opened," Celine was still laughing from all the chaos, but both of them fell quiet when she opened the box slowly. In there was a bowl with eels, still flopping around. Jongho immediately let out the girliest scream he had ever screamed and fell onto the ground again, the camera of course playing a slo-mo replay of it. Celine gasped in disbelief before bursting into laughter again. "This is so mean!!" Jongho screamed, out of frame because he had fallen behind the box. "You're such a mess, why!" Celine complained, and that's how this mess of a video ended.

Dylan Wang vs Jinny Liu

The director breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the next pair coming in. Surely this wasn't going to be chaotic... This pair were two contestants from EXACT music, Dylan and Jinny, and both of them were known to be well-behaved and polite. They were happy to be together, and grinned at each other gently before turning towards the camera and bowing simultaneously. "Hello, we are Dylan and Jinny from EXACT music," Dylan began their intro. "I hope we can have a fun battle for the dear national and international producers," Jinny continued the intro perfectly. Both of them exchanged another glance and a smile right as the buzzer went off.

Dylan reached into the box carefully, while Jinny was still a little hestitant. She was following her older labelmate's movements. When he didn't react much and just kept on searching diligently, the girl figured that it was safe for her to start guessing as well. She did emit a tiny squeak when she felt the cold object, but in the end, it was all fine. After a while of both of them quietly exploring the whole box with their hands, Jinny gasped and raised her hand. "Jinny! Is it a flute?" she attempted to answer. Both of them looked at each other for a moment before they turned their attention towards the director, being completely in sync. When the correct answer was confirmed, both of them cheered. It wasn't much compared to many other contestants, but it was nice to see this burst of energy from them. Jinny didn't waste any precious time and started her self promo immediately. "Hi! Remember the name, Jinny Liu! And of course, I'm here with my labelmate and friend, Dylan Wang. It's lovely to meet so many national producers from around the world," she began her little speech, both of the trainees standing upright with good posture. It was like they were news announcers covering the next big thing on national TV, or maybe a weather report. "We are both trainees under EXACT music, coming from China," the girl continued. Every time she would reveal a new fact about the two, Dylan would nod along to confirm. "I am the main vocalist of our trainee group, while Dylan can both sing and dance. We got four more people in our group too! I hope you can enjoy us on the show and that you can spare a vote for all of us," Jinny concluded right as the buzzer went off. "Thank you!" Dylan got a word in as well, and both waved as the video ended.

  
Goto Tsubasa vs Clarabelle Lee

The next pair was quite the interesting one. Both Tsubasa and Clarabelle were known to have a dark and quite broody image to them. At the start, there was a cold vibe in the room as both tried their best to keep a serious face going. While the girl was doing a good job, the older guy was noticeably struggling to remain serious. But the game began without any big slip-ups, yet...

Clarabelle was the first to reach into the box, and she immediately tried her go at a guess. "Clarabelle," she spoke coolly. Tsubasa froze on the spot because he was so shocked that she already had an answer. "Is it a cat?" the woman spoke, keeping up her cold expression. The guy burst into a little laugh. "There's no way they would do that, right?" he chuckled. "But I heard that they put live eel in there, and a squid too," the woman tried to prove her point. "That's disgusting," Tsubasa spoke without much emotion, managing to keep his cool. Now it was his turn to try and guess. "Is it a plushie?" he said calmly. When he found out that he was correct, Tsubasa cheered loudly and did a little victory dance. "I won something! I haven't felt this sensation in so long!" the guy yelled, immediately opening the box to grab the plushie and give it a big hug. But then he did a big 180, freezing on the spot with a shocked face before shoving the plushie in a shocked Clarabelle's arms. "Oh sh-" he almost cursed, "I'm supposed to be dark and mysterious- Oh no-" he stuttered before clearing his throat and adapting to an upright posture.

"Ahem, I am Goto Tsubasa, your very dark and mysterious prince from Anthos," the man reached a hand out to the camera while he had a smug smile, falling back into his idol persona. While he usually would be in the form of a handsome, 2D avatar, his real life cute face made for an interesting sight. "In the group, I am in charge of muscles, darkness and of course... being the cutest of the group," he spoke with a low voice and cold expression. While that last point was obviously meant to be sarcastic, his real life appearance actually made him a contender for cutest in the group. "He really is so cute!" Clarabelle decided to chime in to poke fun at the older's persona a little bit. She held the bunny plushie next to Tsubasa's head, who was looking a little confused. "See, doesn't this plushie look exactly like him? He's so adorable," she chuckled, getting joy out of messing with the man. Tsubasa huffed and puffed about being compared to the bunny, giving Clarabelle a bombastic side eye. "Stop ruining my vibe," he grunted under his breath. It made the woman laugh, not too loud, but lovely, "Boy, you already ruined it yourself-"

  
Sakurai Takeshi vs Jeong Aera

This pair was strangely reminiscent of one of the earlier pair. It was the older Takeshi who had to face the much younger Aera. The difference wasn't as big as Yuuki and Soojoo, however, it was 'only' 9 years. While Takeshi was looking a bit awkward and sluggish, Aera was quite enthusiastic and ready to go into the battle. She was cracking her fingers and neck, really acting like she was getting prepared for a fist fight instead of a what's in the box battle. Upon noticing that, Takeshi let out the tiniest little whimper. "Pff- What is this-" Aera laughed in response. "Please don't be scared of me, oppa!" she nudged the older playfully, and it managed to get a smile out of him as well. "Okay, if you don't act so scary-" the man responded back with a soft and gentle tone in his voice. It was as if the wasn't even there anymore, due to Aera's infectuous energy.

Once the timer began, both of them reached into the box without hestitation. The reserved Takeshi was trying to figure it all out in silence, but the younger woman was constantly ooh-ing and aah-ing as she tried to figure out what the object was. But even after most of the time passed, neither of them hadn't even tried to guess. "You keep acting as if you found something, but do you have any idea yet?" Takeshi looked at the younger, wondering why she was constantly making those little noises. "Oh! Well..." the girl chuckled, "I haven't gotten a clue as to what this is, I just tend to make those noises as I'm thinking." "Oh," the man said, and continued to search. In the end, Aera did raise her hand to answer. "Aera! It's a wrench!" she yelled out, surprising the man next to her, making him flinch a little. Her answer was correct, so she cheered, but the party was over quick because time was already up. "Sorry, Aera, time's up," the director spoke. "Really? Oh no! I don't even get to promote myself? What a bummer!" it made Aera grumpy, so she huffed, crossing her arms. She begrudgingly said goodbye to the camera, while Takeshi cosplayed a madagascar penguin. Just smile and wave...

  
Wai Kanaphan Thawornwong vs Nam Jeonguk

This pair of two guys was surprisingly calm. Both Wai and Jeonguk weren't the loudest guys, despite them being quite friendly with other contestants. They were both swaying their body around a little as they waited for the buzzer to go off, showing sweet smiles both at the camera and towards each other. They didn't say much before the battle began, and once it started, they exchanged acknowledging nods before reaching into the by now battered up box. When both of their fingers made first contact with the object, their brows furrowed as they got absorbed in thought, being surprisingly in sync. "Heh... this feels weird, but kind of familiar?" Jeonguk spoke for the first time, Wai humming in agreement. They both kept feeling around in the box, remaining calm and sportsmanlike, respecting each other's space while facing off.

After a while, Jeonguk retorted his hand and raised it to anwser. "Jeonguk. It's a brush," he spoke confidently, his lips curling into a smile as he knew he had figured it out. When it was confirmed, he celebrated. "Yessss, I got it!" he pumped his fists and did a little victory dance, stumbling over his own feet in the process and almost falling. "You were a good competitor, Wai," the older acknowledged the other contestant, who just nodded back. Wai took a step back and fell completely quiet. It was noticeable that he couldn't handle this loss very well, his eyes locked onto his fellow contestant, brooding. Jeonguk didn't notice, and began happily promoting himself. "I'm Jeonguk, better known as Gukkie! I've been in the industry for a while now, both as a member of Vive and soloist. While I wish that I had some of the Vive hyungs with me today, I'm here by myself to represent my group proudly, but they're all cheering me on from home!" Jeonguk spoke fondly of his older groupmates. "Now what can I say next... Oh, right! I looove anime, so if you got any recommendation, please let me know on my instagram page!" he made finger guns towards the camera, grinning happily. "I hope I can show you why I am worthy of being an idol, and a member of Vive," Jeonguk concluded his self promo as time was up and waved at the camera with a big smile. Then he turned towards Wai to ask him to say goodbye as well, but that guy was still brooding, so Jeonguk decided to not say anything and turned away quickly, looking a bit puzzled. Not the best end for a video...