Emily looked at Dayo and smiled, relief washing over her face.

Tyrell let out a low exhale. "Man, I thought Frank was going to kill us for a second."

Frank didn't respond, just lowered his trumpet with a small nod, his pride clearly hurt but hidden.

Then Emily and Maya hugged each other, almost crying, knowing they had given their absolute best.

The applause went on for a while before the host finally stepped forward. "Wow… that was—" he paused and looked at the judges, "—something else."

Lucien Duval, one of the judges, was the first to speak. "That was beautiful coordination. The vocals and instruments were on point, and everything came out natural." He leaned forward and asked, "Who came up with the Korean-English mix idea?"

Dayo adjusted the mic and answered softly, "It was my idea. I thought it'd be nice to thank the Korean fans by blending both languages."

Lucien nodded, impressed. "It worked. You all achieved it beyond my reasonable doubt, and I am sure most of the judges feel that way."

To which they surprisingly all nodded.

Next, Carolina Vega spoke. Her tone was lighter, almost playful. "The song structure was really good, I am impressed to say the least. I liked how the English and Korean parts complemented each other. And that bridge—who arranged it?"

Everyone looked at Frank. He hesitated, then said quietly, "I played the trumpet bridge, but the structure was Dayo's idea. He helped me with the notes and all."

Carolina smiled. "Well, it was risky… but it paid off. It was an unexpected bonus that added to your performance, so good work, Frank."

Then Hiroshi Tanaka leaned closer to his mic. "I liked the way you all portrayed the emotion. Your performance can be rated as global worth. Especially during the last chorus—it reminded me why I love music."

"And most especially," he added, "I don't know if I'm the only one surprised that, Dayo, you can speak Korean. I'm sure that I, as well as the other judges, am surprised. How did that come about?"

Dayo smiled. He knew the question would be asked.

"Well, I always had a thing for language right from young, so I studied any language of my interest, and it all became easy to me."

Hiroshi Tanaka and the rest of the judges looked surprised, because it was almost a proven fact that Asian languages are some of the hardest to learn, so hearing that Dayo self-studied a language was amazing.

"Hmm, good. So, how many languages do you know how to speak? Because if my memory serves me right, your Japanese was good on the last stage. So humor us—how many languages can you speak?"

Dayo smirked at the question and replied, "That would ruin the surprise I have then."

Hiroshi Tanaka leaned back and laughed. "Very well then."

Then he gestured to the next judge.

Adele Strauss, who had been quiet till now, crossed her arms and nodded slowly. "Amazing job, all of you. First, I commend you—your harmonies were smooth, and you all connected well. It's rare to see that much teamwork in such a short time, so good job."

Marcus Cole, the last judge, smiled faintly. "To be fair, I've seen a lot of performances tonight. But not to be biased… this might be the best one yet."

The words hung in the air. Emily blinked like she wasn't sure she heard correctly. Tyrell whispered, "Did he just say that?" under his breath.

The judges all scribbled notes while the MC continued, "Alright, Team Jayson, that was excellent work. Please step back. We'll call you again when it's time for the results."

They all bowed deeply.

"Thank you," Dayo said on behalf of the team. A thought of something came to his mind about Frank, but he buried it.

As they walked offstage, the clapping continued. Backstage, Maya immediately threw her arms around Emily, both of them laughing and shaking. Tyrell joined, giving them a quick group hug before Frank quietly stepped aside, wiping sweat from his forehead.

"You did good," Dayo said, patting him on the shoulder.

Frank's face twisted as a frown surfaced. His mind was in turmoil as he knew he had messed up, but the fact that he felt Dayo was rubbing it in his face made him annoyed. Still, he also knew Dayo had saved the performance—otherwise, it would have been a mess.

He struggled to mutter, "Hmm, thanks."

Dayo smiled, unaware of Frank's thoughts. "That's what teammates do."

They all sat down in their assigned room. The adrenaline was still running through their veins. But there was a difference—the atmosphere felt light, like they had just come out of something big and won.

But still, they tried not to talk about the main issue, which was elimination.

No matter how good their group performed, at least two people would be eliminated from them, and automatically, they all chose to ignore it, maybe due to how heavy it is to accept the fact that even after the long hours of practice, two people would be eliminated from them.

So their eyes were now fixed on the next team was called Team Amara.

They chose a slower, emotional performance. The lights dimmed blue, and Amara's voice filled the room. Her tone was soft, soulful, and warm. She didn't do much movement, but her control was perfect. The judges nodded throughout, especially Carolina Vega, who seemed genuinely moved.

By the end, Amara's team got a standing clap from two of the judges. Not as loud as Dayo's, but it was still impressive.

Then came Team Sophia. They entered in coordinated red outfits, bright lights flashing. Their choreography was strong—every movement sharp—but the vocals weren't as clean. A few notes were missed. Still, they gave it everything they had.

When the last note ended, the judges nodded and clapped for them, some giving their criticism and praise to those who deserved it.

Back in the waiting area, Dayo and his team watched everything on the screen from their room.

Tyrell leaned back, stretching. "Okay, we're definitely top three. No way we're below that."

Emily nodded, still smiling. "Everyone did great, but… I think we hit something different tonight."

Dayo smiled faintly, watching the screen. "We'll see soon."

Knowing well that they had outdone themselves.

Then, the familiar voice of the MC echoed through the hallway.

"All teams, please assemble. The judges' results will be announced shortly."

The laughter stopped. Everyone glanced at each other—a bit tense, but they reassured themselves.

Dayo stood, adjusting his mic belt. "No matter what happens," he said quietly, "we gave them something they won't forget and no matter who you know...."

He didn't complete his words, but they all got the message.

Emily nodded. "Yeah… whatever happens, we did our best. And that's enough."

They all walked out together, side by side, towards the stage.

The stage lights ahead flickered on again, brighter this time, with all thirty contestants standing in front of the judges.

Now it was time for the judges to give their take on who gets to stay and who gets to leave.

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