280-282

Chapter 280: Hidden Story 

Given how young One Day King is, and considering this is their very first official album, the fact that Ronan was able to serve as one of the producers for the entire record—especially under a massive label like Atlantic Records—says a lot. Even if Josh wasn’t sure what other bands might’ve received similar treatment, one thing was clear: this wasn’t normal. 

“Huh?” 

A puzzled voice broke the silence again, and Josh instinctively looked over. Kane beat him to the punch, asking, “Did you find something else?” 

It was Sophie—again. 

She was closely examining the back cover, murmuring something under her breath. She seemed frustrated that she couldn’t make out the details. Someone nearby handed her a magnifying glass. 

Surprised gasps. 

All eyes—Sophie’s, Kane’s, Josh’s—locked onto the magnifying glass, which only made the person offering it more nervous. 

“Uh… I just thought we really couldn’t see it clearly,” the person said nervously. “We needed a magnifying glass, and since we’re already at the supermarket, we just grabbed one from the stationery section, so…” 

The rest of the explanation faded into silence as everyone gave a thumbs-up in unison. 

Sophie took the magnifying glass and focused on Ollie’s face on the back cover. Everything became crystal clear. Ollie looked unconscious, deep in sleep—his expression peaceful and serene… almost lifeless. His marble-like skin had lost all its glow. 

First Sophie, then Josh, then Kane—each of them passed the magnifying glass around, closely examining Ollie’s expression. One by one, they fell silent. 

So… what did it mean? 

Eventually, the magnifying glass made its way back to Sophie. She didn’t speak immediately but instead turned to the front cover and examined the expressions of each band member with the magnifying glass. As expected, she noticed something— 

Maxime looked like he was in agony, struggling. 

Cliff seemed lost in a brief moment of confusion. 

Ronan, on the other hand, appeared calm and alert, scanning his surroundings. 

Three people. Three expressions. 

Objectively, there didn’t seem to be any strong connection between them. Each one had a different gaze, a different emotion. Even trying to link the three feelings together didn’t form a full picture—there just weren’t enough clues yet. 

The only thing they could say with 100% certainty was this: There’s more to the story. Just from the cover alone, you could tell something deeper was going on. 

“Sophie?” Josh couldn’t hold back his curiosity anymore. 

Sophie looked up, hesitating a bit. “I have a theory.” 

Then… nothing. 

Josh, as impatient as ever, urged her, “So? What’s the theory?” 

Still hesitant, Sophie said, “Do you guys remember the cover art for Chasing the Light when it was uploaded online?” 

Everyone looked blank. 

Sophie sighed, exasperated. “Half heaven, half hell. A lone figure running down a road that reached the sky?” 

Recognition dawned on their faces. 

Sophie continued, “What if—just hypothetically—what if that silhouette was Ollie? Judging by height and body shape, it’s very likely. Ronan and Maxime are both leaner. Of course, I could be wrong.” 

“But if we assume it is Ollie, then the story from the single continues into the album. That means the storyline is ongoing.” 

She just dropped that idea like a breadcrumb trail, and suddenly everyone’s eyes lit up. It really was the best explanation so far. 

Encouraged by their interest, Sophie went on, “If that’s true, then Ollie is someone who got lost—or disappeared. Whether it was voluntary or not, we don’t know. What we do know is that the rest of the band started looking for him.” 

“Chasing the light… chasing Ollie!” Josh immediately made the connection in his head. 

Sophie was still cautious. “I’m not completely sure about that part. We don’t have enough clues yet. I don’t know if there are more hidden details in the album, but right now, it seems like the band is trying to find Ollie. Just look at the album cover—a space station exploding, four members floating in space, and only Ollie is missing. But more importantly, each of the remaining three shows a different expression.” 

“Sophie… aren’t you reading too much into this?” someone nearby asked, offering a more grounded perspective. “Maybe it’s just a creative concept.” 

Sophie didn’t take offense. She nodded. “That’s definitely possible. It could just be an artistic theme that matches My Demon. But from Born This Way to Chasing the Light to My Demon, I’m more inclined to believe there’s a hidden thread connecting everything—the lyrics, the character designs, the visuals… all of it.” 

“Otherwise, why would we even need a magnifying glass to notice the details?” 

Sophie looked around at her friends, visibly more excited. 

“Personally, I think this is the band’s hidden story. Only the fans who really love them, who pay attention to the layers behind the music, and who are willing to dig deep and spend the time will find the clues—like a mystery game.” 

Everyone fell silent, lost in their thoughts. 

Kane’s lips curled into a grin. “Honestly, it feels more like a sci-fi movie than a mystery. Something like Lost in Space, what do you think?” 

“A movie?” Kane was clearly joking, but Josh’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Music videos! That’s it! We should check out their music videos. If the album has a storyline, then the videos must contain clues. The story has to be in there somewhere, right?” 

“Josh, One Day King hasn’t released any music videos yet.” Before he could get too excited, someone dumped a cold bucket of water over his head. 

Josh looked completely dumbfounded. 

Sophie couldn’t help but laugh. Watching Josh’s animated expressions lifted everyone’s spirits. She added, “But I really do think we’re onto something. Maybe we should keep digging. Just like their music—the melodies and lyrics feel like there’s more under the surface.” 

Everyone nodded in agreement. 

“It’s like a little bonus for being a One Day King fan,” Sophie said cheerfully. “We get to explore a whole world.” 

Kane shrugged. “Let’s hope their world-building is solid. It’d be boring if we figured everything out too easily.” 

“Wait—we can just ask them on Twitter!” someone nearby suggested. 

Kane and Sophie looked puzzled—clearly not in the loop. 

The person explained, “You guys didn’t know? The band’s really active on Twitter. Especially Maxime—he even takes time to respond to fan questions. If we tag him, we might get an answer pretty quickly.” 

281 Online Replies 

She opened Twitter, typed in “One-Day King,” and easily found the band’s official account. Clicking in, she saw only 32,800 followers. 

Even for someone who didn’t use social media much, the lack of popularity was glaring. In a world where Twitter fanbases often number in the millions, not even reaching 100,000—let alone a million—was downright pitiful. It was disheartening to see them floundering this badly. 

Even sadder was the fact that this number had already improved significantly. From a hit YouTube video to their high-profile appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the name “One-Day King” had been spreading fast. Their social media numbers were rising, but it still needed time to really take off. Looking at those humble follower counts, you couldn’t help but wonder— Had they only had four digits before this? 

On Twitter, that’s basically the equivalent of a completely unknown D-list artist—no attention, no presence. 

No wonder Maxim was constantly managing their account himself—there weren’t many fans to begin with. Many of those might even be bots. So responding to every fan message wasn’t exactly a Herculean task. 

Sophie tapped the follow button. The moment she did, the follower count jumped by five. That meant four other people had just followed the band too. For some reason, this gave Sophie a small sense of pride—like she was part of something meaningful. 

“How should we ask?” Sophie looked up at the group. “Through DMs? Or using hashtags?” 

“Hashtags,” Cain replied enthusiastically. “If this whole story really has a world-building aspect, we should get everyone involved—generate some buzz.” 

And so, they started tossing around ideas for which hashtag to use. After much noisy debate, they settled on Cain’s suggestion: #OneDayKingdom—a clever nod to the band’s name and a perfect fit to represent the band’s worldbuilding. 

At the time, Cain had no idea this hashtag would go on to become one of the most iconic tags associated with One-Day King. It would even evolve into a long-standing trending topic on Twitter. Many fans would later mark this moment as the band’s official debut in the public eye. 

Sophie quickly typed out her thoughts and questions, tagged the band’s official account, and added a bunch of hashtags—not just #OneDayKingdom, but a few others she thought might trend. After hitting send, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief. Their eyes sparkled with excitement and anticipation. 

“Hey, kids—did you find what you were looking for?” 

The supermarket worker’s voice boomed like thunder, snapping everyone out of their bubble. They suddenly realized they’d been gathered there for quite a while—over 30 minutes had flown by unnoticed. To outsiders, they probably looked like a bunch of troublemakers. 

I mean, who stares at an album for half an hour? 

“Sorry, sorry!” they all apologized quickly and began grabbing albums off the shelf. In no time, the shelf was empty—it hadn’t held many to begin with. Even with one per person, there weren’t enough copies. 

“Excuse me, do you have any more of this album in stock?” Josh turned to the staff member who had been “watching” them and asked. 

The staffer looked skeptical—clearly not convinced they actually wanted to buy anything—but still replied, “I’ll check for you.” 

After some searching and back-and-forth, the staff returned from the warehouse with three full boxes of albums. Still sealed. They’d been collecting dust in storage. 

But today, finally, they’d be opened. 

In the end, everyone got at least one copy of the album. Some bought two, others as many as five. It wasn’t just about supporting the band—it was also about collecting. For diehard music lovers, a classic album holds collectible value too. The group of a dozen or so swept through the store like a tidal wave—some even picked up albums from Shining Band while they were at it. Then they paid, and walked out of the supermarket in high spirits. 

Housewives shopping early in the morning stared in bewilderment as this scruffy group of young people ran by, laughing and shouting. Confused, the women paused mid-step, left speechless by the whirlwind of youth and energy. 

Standing at the supermarket entrance, the sun had already risen above the horizon. The world was now bathed in golden light, with the sky tinged in soft gray-blue. It was breathtakingly beautiful. 

They wished—desperately—that this party would never end. That they could keep dancing and laughing all the way to the edge of the world. But every party has to end eventually. No matter how reluctant they were to part ways, the all-nighter that had bled into the morning had to come to a close. 

“Ah! Maxim replied!” 

Sophie’s sudden shriek snapped them back together again. The farewell was immediately put on hold. Everyone turned around, eyes wide with excitement. 

“What? That fast?” “I told you—Maxim’s super diligent.” “But this early in the morning? That’s nuts.” “What time is it even? Shouldn’t he still be asleep?” “This is the first time an artist has ever replied to one of my posts. Ha!” 

As they all chattered away, Sophie felt a subtle bitterness beneath her excitement. Maxim’s quick reply showed just how much he craved attention—and how much he valued every bit of it. He responded to fans with such kindness and sincerity, it was both heartwarming and heartbreaking. 

But Sophie didn’t dwell on it. She quickly snapped out of it and read the tweet out loud: 

“So glad someone found the hidden message in the album. Ronan will be thrilled. #Maxim” 

There were more hashtags after that, but the first one already confirmed it was from Maxim. That one simple sentence made Sophie squeal with delight: 

“Ah! It’s real! It’s really real! The album cover has a whole world-building concept! And it was Ronan’s idea! Ahhhhh!” 

Everyone else was just as excited, exchanging wide-eyed looks. Their energy was off the charts. 

“Sophie, ask him—what kind of worldbuilding? What’s the story?” “Is Ollie lost or something? What’s going on?” “There is a connection between the album and the single, right?” 

The questions came flying all at once. Sophie raised her hand and laughed, signaling them to calm down. 

“You all have phones too, you know! You can tweet Maxim yourselves! I’m just one person—I can’t ask everything!” 

Everyone blinked, realization dawning. But no one rushed to pull out their phones. Josh summed it up best: 

“Sure, but it’s way more fun to do this together. Asking on your own is boring. It kills the whole vibe.” 

Chapter 282: Intricate Details

“Of course it’s more fun when everyone gets together to discuss things. Asking questions alone is so boring—it totally kills the fun.” 

Some things are better enjoyed solo. But others? The real joy comes from sharing. And when a group of fans who love the same music gather together to dig into hidden meanings, that spark of excitement becomes electric. Josh’s comment was instantly met with nods of agreement all around. 

But Kane had a different take. “No, no. We should each post questions using our own accounts. That’s the only way we can get the hashtags trending.” 

Right! How did they forget? 

Sure, group discussion is lively and full of great brainstorming energy—but if they wanted to help boost One Day King’s visibility, it was a whole different mission. They needed to spread out. More posts meant more power. 

So the group pulled out their phones, heads down and fingers tapping away. Naturally, Sophie, who had already drafted her post, was the first to send it out. 

“So what’s the deal with the worldbuilding? Why is Oli the only one left drifting in space? What does the shattered space station mean? Do your expressions on the cover symbolize something? Is there a link between this album and your earlier singles? What’s the order of the story?” 

A flurry of questions. Honestly, if Twitter didn’t have a character limit, Sophie would’ve kept going. Her mind was buzzing with thoughts. 

And then—bam! Just seconds after she posted, a reply came in. From Maksim. That fast. Like a DM from a friend sitting right across the room. Sophie was stunned—but had no time to let it sink in before the reply made her burst out laughing. 

“Secret!” 

That was it. 

Sophie laughed out loud. She couldn’t help it. Then quickly replied: 

“Fine, we’ll solve it ourselves. But come on, the clues are really sparse right now. Oh! And what’s up with the album title? Does it mean something?” 

The album was simply titled “Seven.” So minimal, so easy to overlook. Unless you paid attention, casual listeners might totally miss the weight behind it. But Sophie had a hunch: there had to be something deeper. 

Like how Adele named her albums after her age at the time. Or how Ed Sheeran used mathematical symbols—simple, unique, memorable. 

Maksim responded quickly again, clearly still glued to his phone just like Sophie. 

“It’s how long One Day King has been together.” 

Sophie stared at the screen, blinking in thought. 

So while Adele marked her personal milestones with each album, One Day King was charting the journey of their band. Seven years—of struggle, of passion, of navigating darkness without giving up. That kind of perseverance distilled into one album… how could you not be moved? 

“Heads up, that was Oli’s idea,” came the next message. 

Another hidden gem. The album name was Oli’s suggestion. And just like that, Sophie felt her emotions quietly stirring again. She couldn’t even explain why. It wasn’t just admiration—it was something deeper. Something resonating from within. 

Her excitement rising again, she typed out another message: 

“Come on, give us just one more clue! Let us crack the code!” 

Five seconds. Ten. Fifteen. No reply. 

Was Maksim avoiding spoilers? Or just busy replying to others? Sophie anxiously refreshed the page. A red “1” popped up in the corner. 

Her heart skipped a beat. 

“Shhh! More clues are on the way. Here’s a teaser keyword: music video.” 

Short, simple—but it hit like a lightning bolt. 

Sophie froze for a second, and then exploded with excitement—literally jumping in place. 

“AHH! Music video! They’re dropping a music video! MUSIC VIDEO!!” 

No one needed more context. One look at the trending replies under the hashtag confirmed it all. Everyone instantly got it: They had just uncovered a hidden story in the album—and now, they were about to see that story come to life. 

“Maksim! Will the music video reveal more of the worldbuilding?” “When’s it coming out?! I’m dying to see it!” “Is the story connected across the album, singles, and music videos?” “Come on, just give us one more clue! Is it secretly a full sci-fi world?” “Who wrote the script? Was it Ronan?” 

One tweet after another poured in like a tidal wave. Just a dozen fans were generating massive buzz—and you could feel the electricity in their words. Pure, unfiltered joy. 

But this time, Maksim didn’t reply to each message individually. Instead, the One Day King official account posted a single tweet: 

“Shhh.” 

And then—radio silence. Total stealth mode. Probably avoiding spoilers. But that only made the anticipation more intense. 

“AAAHH!” someone near Sophie groaned in frustration. 

Sophie giggled happily. She didn’t say anything. Instead, she— 

Started unwrapping the album. 

Kane saw her and immediately understood. If the front and back covers were full of hidden details, then the inside had to have more. Maybe they’d been holding the key to the puzzle in their hands this whole time—without even realizing it. 

He joined in right away. 

The group had been planning to head home. But now, standing right there at the supermarket entrance, they were all tearing into their album packaging. One by one. The night, it seemed, was far from over. 

Passersby watched with wide eyes, confused by the scene: A bunch of young people clustered outside, frantically opening CD cases like there was a golden ticket inside. 

The first thought that came to mind? 

“Wait… is there some kind of prize giveaway going on at the supermarket?”