Chapter 126
Chapter 126
Translator: Penny
Chapter 126
"This award means so much to me, especially since we poured our hearts and souls into preparing this album. I want to thank the countless people who willingly lent their support to bring CHASE into the world..."
My strategy was simple: quantity over quality.
I figured that if I spoke long enough, at least one sentence would stick in our fans' memories for a long time. So, I spent the entire previous day diligently writing and memorizing my speech.
Thankfully, winning the Album Main Prize meant all that preparation hadn't been for nothing.
I had prepared roughly five minutes' worth of remarks.
"We will always strive to remain true to our original intent and continue to evolve into Reve, creating even better music..."
When Seo Yehyeon's acceptance speech showed no signs of ending, he gave an awkward smile, approached me, and smoothly snatched the microphone from my hand.
Since letting a microphone struggle play out on live television during an awards ceremony would be rather embarrassing, I simply handed it over without resistance.
"Ilmongs, I love you!"
Seo Yehyeon finished his speech with his usual cheesy line, beaming brightly.
As we descended the stage amidst applause, Ryu Jaehee sidled up to me and whispered, "Hyung, even if you're going with the stream of consciousness thing, giving a four-minute acceptance speech is a bit much..."
"What stream of consciousness? I worked so hard writing and memorizing that speech yesterday!"
"Wow, you actually memorized all that? Legendary waste of memory..."
If the cameras weren't rolling, I would have immediately put him in a headlock. What a shame.
"The Grand Prize goes to... Altair for Stolen! Congratulations!"
The Album Grand Prize went to Altair. Given their superior performance in digital sales and total album sales, this outcome was expected.
Even before the regression, Altair had won the Grand Prize, so it wasn't particularly concerning. However, the fact that our group was their rival made it quite disappointing.
As Altair rose from their table with an incredulous expression and walked to the stage, I offered the obligatory applause.
The sight of KJ bawling his eyes out, though, was utterly repulsive.
"We're so grateful for this incredible award. Sniff To our members who have always followed us so well, and to our Aquila, whom we truly cherish and love—"
KJ's voice broke as tears streamed down his face. He couldn't continue and handed the microphone to Cha Yeonho. I struggled to suppress a sneer.
What a load of bullshit. That bastard never cried before the regression. Is he tearing up over the thought of splitting the copyright royalties?
Cha Yeonho continued the acceptance speech, his face beaming with a smile that made my stomach churn.
"Hyung," Ryu Jaehee called out in a small voice. Probably just telling me to keep my expression in check for the cameras.
Thinking this, I glanced back without answering, only to find Ryu Jaehee gripping my sleeve tightly.
"Next time..."
His murmur trailed off, but I knew what he meant. I ruffled his hair lightly, as I always did, and replied, "Yeah, next time for sure."
I knew better than to make promises I couldn't keep, but this one I was confident I could fulfill.
Gyeon Hajun reached out and smoothed Ryu Jaehee's hair, which had been slightly disheveled by my touch.
Our eyes met briefly, but we both looked away at the same time, as if neither wanted to linger.
We weren't even fighting, so why are you acting like we were? Was it really so hurtful to ask you to tell me beforehand if you were going to cut ties?
Daydream Shortened to Dead @DaD000
I felt like I was listening to the principal's sermon...
Share 33 Likes 68
Dream♥Daydream @revedream
Eden gave the longest acceptance speech ever, but what I'll remember most from today is:
Yehyeon awkwardly smiling as he snatched the microphone from Eden + Yehyeon's radiant smile and "I love you, Ilmongs."
Share 122 Likes 395
Dream♥Daydream @revedream
Even though "Ilmong" is our obvious nickname, Yuje only ever calls us by our full name, which used to make me a little sad. But today, that sadness is gone.
Kim Pillow @pillowkim
I tried writing down Yoon Leader's speech to make a banner, but gave up and just changed it to "I love you, Ilmongs."
It was way too long.
Share 12 Likes 13
**Eden (Kind_Virtuous) @eden0801**
First Filial Scoundrel Idol, now Preaching Idol OMG
Why are my older brother's nicknames getting weirder and weirder?
Shared 397, Quoted 8, Liked 511
While completing the Weekly Quest's Search Quest, I stumbled upon a post that made me realize I was doomed to fail.
Seo Yehyeon's smile and single line of acceptance speech had made a far greater impression than my five-minute-long, carefully crafted acceptance speech. My stomach churned with bitterness, wondering what all my hard work the previous day had been for.
How could not a single memorable line come out of that endless speech?
Grumbling, I suddenly remembered how none of the principal's long-winded speeches during school assemblies had ever stuck with me either. I resigned myself to failure.
As midnight struck, a crimson Status Window materialized before my eyes.
QUEST FAILED due to unmet conditions!
A random Penalty will be applied.
Twice I'd coughed up blood, and last time my vision had been blocked. Not knowing what would come this time, I lay quietly in bed, pressing a towel over my mouth.
I'd considered waiting outside the emergency room of a nearby hospital, just in case I started coughing up blood again, but even I thought that was going too far and abandoned the idea.
For the next 24 hours, all sentences will end with 'nya.'
Surprisingly, today's penalty was completely different from the health-related ones I'd been dreading. I removed the towel from my mouth, relaxed, and grumbled, "What a pointless penalty, nya."
I bit my tongue hard. Just adding 'nya' to the end of every sentence made it sound utterly ridiculous.
Goosebumps prickled my arms. What kind of speech pattern is this?
It was a stroke of luck that Seo Yehyeon had gone to the kitchen for a drink just then.
If Seo Yehyeon had overheard me, I would have seriously considered regressing.
After accidentally letting slip that one sentence, my resolve to keep my mouth shut for the rest of the day only deepened.
I had planned to hole up in my studio all day, but when I woke up, snow was falling so heavily it was practically a blizzard, ruining my plans to go out.
A ten-minute walk would have been fine, but a ten-minute drive? That was a bit much.
I glanced at the fully set table and the two figures already seated before abruptly turning my head and bellowing,
"Ryu Jaehee! Kim Dobin! Aren't you eating?!"
At my shout, Kim Dobin and Ryu Jaehee burst out of Ryu Jaehee's room.
"You brats! If the food's on the table, you should be here setting out your chopsticks right away! What are you doing?!"
"I was in the middle of a game and didn't hear you calling me for dinner..." Kim Dobin mumbled apologetically. Seo Yehyeon, who had been leaning back at the table with his chin propped in his hand, spoke up.
"Yoon Eden was the first one to call you for dinner."
"Ah, so I did hear it after all."
"But if it's breakfast time and the hyungs have already set the table, shouldn't you come out on your own?"
Kim Dobin, who had been sighing in relief, stiffened again at Seo Yehyeon's pointed words.
"We're sorry. We'll make lunch as an apology," Ryu Jaehee said with a wink and a bow, his usual charm on full display.
The meal finally began after I picked up my chopsticks. I couldn't even remember when this had started. It just seemed to have become the norm at some point.
While I understood why the other members followed me, it remained a complete mystery why Seo Yehyeon, who was older than me, did the same.
Had everyone finally acknowledged that I was the breadwinner of this group? But before the regression, when Seo Yehyeon had been the breadwinner, there hadn't been any such rules at the dinner table.
So what was it?
As soon as I finished eating, I collapsed onto the sofa. Seo Yehyeon's signature line about gaining weight from lying down right after a meal immediately followed.
I casually tuned out his words, switching the channel to an American crime drama. After watching for a bit, I closed my eyes.
"Dobin, are you going to put the remote down?"
Kim Dobin, who had been stealthily trying to snatch the remote from my hand, froze.
My vow to spend the day in silent contemplation was proving futile; I had so much to say.
"Jaehee, why don't you pour a glass of water for Hyung?"
I could even ask the youngest member to run errands for me. It was truly fortunate that I always spoke this way.
If Gyeon Hajun had acted like this, everyone would have noticed something was off. But because I was the one doing it, no one suspected a thing.
"Aren't you going to the studio today?" Seo Yehyeon asked casually, leaning back against the sofa from his spot on the floor as I sprawled across it.
"Hyung, with my eyes looking like this, do you think I'd want to go outside?" I replied in my most gentle tone, but Seo Yehyeon's expression still soured.
"I was just asking. Why are you picking a fight again?"
"Yehyeon Hyung, does this sound like I'm picking a fight?"
Even using his name didn't soften my tone, likely because of the way I ended my sentences. I should have just lied about having a sore throat and communicated through my phone's notepad app.
"Why don't you just drop that 'nya' at the end of your sentences?"
Seo Yehyeon, clearly convinced I was deliberately provoking him, sighed briefly and left.
Too bad, I can't drop it. I want to, believe me. But I can't just say to Hyung, "Does this sound like I'm picking a fight, nya?" The thought alone makes me want to puke.
This was undoubtedly the System's sinister plot to lower my Affinity Score and trap me in an Infinite Regression.
"Hyung, are you cursed to end every sentence with 'nya'?"
Kim Dobin, ever the otaku, smirked as he made a surprisingly accurate deduction. I replied dryly, "Dobin, are you having fun?"
You're right, you little shit. But your amusement at this Hyung's misfortune is seriously grating on my nerves.
"No!" Kim Dobin answered firmly and didn't ask any further questions. Instead, Ryu Jaehee changed the subject.
"By the way, Hyung, when are you going to make up with Hajun Hyung?"
"We didn't even fight. Does it look like we did?"
"Yes, terribly. Even if you didn't fight, you should at least talk. The atmosphere between you two is so frosty."
I said we didn't fight, I thought, scratching my head and replying nonchalantly.
"It'll sort itself out eventually, won't it?"
"Don't let a small problem become a big one, Hyung," Ryu Jaehee advised, shaking his head. Oh, our youngest member knows proverbs too? He'd ace a proverb quiz on a variety show later!
At the Music Daejeon Special Stage, the most talked-about team was On Top, a group composed of leaders from various idol groups. Thanks to the manufactured chemistry showcased in their behind-the-scenes videos, they were frequently mentioned together.
And now, I'm introducing a variety show:
[ Idol Showcase ], often shortened to [ Idol Showcase ].
It was a typical variety show format: invite an idol group, have them introduce themselves, engage in talk segments, play games—the usual fare. However, since only groups with a certain level of recognition were invited, it also served as a measure of a group's popularity.
I was going to appear on [ Idol Showcase ], a show even Reve hadn't been invited to yet.
As the youngest member of On Top, no less.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny