Chapter 68
Chapter 68
Translator: Penny
Chapter 68
Kim Dobin, who had been nonchalantly scrolling through his phone and reading chat messages, chuckled. "Summoning people like that and then acting like you have a conscience? Thanks to you and Eden Hyung, Hajun Hyung's nicknames are now 'Jun-Raemon' and 'Jun-Tta-Tui.'"
We might have been calling him that a bit too much, huh...?
I scratched my cheek awkwardly, watching Gyeon Hajun, who looked just as exhausted from cooking as Ryu Jaehee and I.
Ryu Jaehee, who had been diligently stirring the spicy pork stir-fry with a wooden spatula, turned off the heat and declared confidently, "First dish complete: Spicy Pork Stir-Fry!"
"Jaehee, it's undercooked. Stir it more," Gyeon Hajun said firmly.
"Not quite complete yet," Ryu Jaehee muttered, relighting the gas stove and listlessly stirring the pork again.
"Eden, stir the soup once and put the lid back on. Keep the heat on medium."
It was a rare sight: the birthday boy himself orchestrating the preparation of his own birthday feast.
Fortunately, the last dish was simple enough to make without Gyeon Hajun's help.
"Just the rolled omelet left, and then this grueling labor will finally be over."
"Hajun Hyung seems to have done more than you, Hyung."
"I worked hard too, in my own way."
Eden whisked the egg mixture, swirling it with chopsticks to shape the omelet.
Memories flashed through his mind—days spent practicing this one dish over and over, determined to perfect it.
As a flop idol group with no schedule, they had plenty of time for such trivial pursuits. These weren't exactly cherished memories.
When the Tornado Omelet was finally complete, Kim Dobin's eyes lit up.
"Wow, amazing! Hyung, do it again!"
"We're out of eggs. This is the last one."
"Didn't you buy any eggs when you went grocery shopping?"
"I didn't need to since there were some in the fridge. I just didn't realize there were only three left."
Ryu Jaehee, who had been diligently stir-frying pork, glanced sideways and interjected, "Anyone can tell this isn't a rolled omelet. It's a Tornado Omelet."
"Omelet or rolled omelet, it's all just eggs. Just eat it and stop being so picky."
"You're right about that."
The youngest member used to love this. I remember bringing it to his room when he was studying for his civil service exam.
Seeing him now, with no need to prepare for the exam, gave me a strange feeling.
Despite his words, Ryu Jaehee couldn't take his eyes off the Tornado Omelet, clearly fascinated. Gyeon Hajun asked him, "Don't you smell something burning?"
"Hey, hey, hey, the pork's burning!"
At my urgent shout, Ryu Jaehee frantically turned off the heat.
And so, the arduous process of preparing the birthday feast came to an end.
On the table, a pot of seaweed soup, a Tornado Omelet, and the charred stir-fried pork were neatly arranged alongside side dishes from the refrigerator and a cream cake we'd bought while grocery shopping.
I clapped along to Ryu Jaehee's enthusiastic rendition of the birthday song, complete with vibrato, and Kim Dobin's hilariously off-key harmonies.
I wanted to zone out, but I knew that would trigger the "Dead Eyes" penalty and lower my Original Intent Score again, so I forced myself to maintain a lively expression.
As Gyeon Hajun blew out the cake candles, Kim Dobin, still filming, suddenly asked, "How does it feel to finally be free from cooking and receive a birthday feast for once?"
"Can I even say... that I'm receiving this?"
Seo Yehyeon subtly chimed in, noticing Gyeon Hajun's weary expression and forced chuckle.
"Well, it's clear Hajun couldn't escape cooking, even on his birthday."
Remembering Gyeon Hajun's over-the-top performance—almost like the rat from that movie who controls humans to cook—I found myself nodding in agreement, too tired to argue.
"See you next time, Daydream!"
"Ilmongs, eat something delicious too!"
After filming the birthday feast and offering Gyeon Hajun another warm birthday greeting, we ended the live broadcast to finally eat.
We'd long surpassed the minimum quest requirement of ten minutes. I wondered if this single OA Live session would count toward the Weekly Quest.
Gyeon Hajun took a spoonful of seaweed soup, then quietly set down his spoon.
"Can someone pass the salt?"
"Jaehee, bring me some salt."
Is it really that bland? I clearly followed the recipe and added two tablespoons of soy sauce.
"Why is it so bland even though I followed the blog recipe exactly...?"
"Is that recipe for four servings?" Gyeon Hajun asked.
I reopened the blog recipe to check. He was right—it was for four servings. I nodded, and Gyeon Hajun continued, "This amount is for eight servings, Eden."
"...Oh, I see. No wonder 1.5 liters of water wasn't enough."
Cooking was still so difficult. And even though I made it myself, I had to admit it tasted terrible.
▷ Celebrate the members' birthdays! ✓
▶ You have completed this year's (20XX) 'Celebrate Gyeon Hajun's Birthday' quest.
▶ As a reward, you will receive Original Intent Score 5 and a Random Ticket.
I breathed a sigh of relief as the belated quest completion notification finally popped up. At least I'd found out about his birthday earlier than I had with Seo Yehyeon.
Still, I made sure to post my birthday message on social media at 11:59 PM, just as planned.
**REVE_official** @LnL_reve
[Eden Dream]
Happy birthday, Hajun-a!
I'll try my best to just sit still and let you enjoy your next birthday feast.
#happybirthday #mybf
(Birthday feast group photo.jpg)
4,831 shares 1,122 quotes 8,104 likes
**REVE_official** @LnL_reve
+) The birthday boy's taste review of the feast:
Seaweed soup: Bland
Spicy pork: Tastes burnt
Tornado Omelet: Too pretty to eat
That's what he said.
Gyeon Hajun's birthday OA Live, a real-life version of Ratatouille (human version, no rats), saw its viewership skyrocket.
We had only intended to capture a heartwarming scene of the members celebrating Hajun's birthday together, so we were bewildered by the sudden surge in views. Still, as the saying goes, "All roads lead to Rome." If it's good, it's good, right?
Congratulations! You've reached 70,000 fans!
Reward: Original Intent Score +20, Item Selection Ticket
For the first time in ages, the Status Window, which usually only served to raise my blood pressure, displayed welcome news.
Project: Regaining Original Intent for Idols Who've Lost Their Way!
Mandatory Condition: Having disappointed 30,000 fans, you must now delight 30 million! (73,011/30,000,000)
70,000 fans was a significant leap from the 10,000 we had before, but the target still seemed impossibly distant.
"I need to reach A-list status overseas within three years just to barely hit 30 million followers."
Just seeing that number made me feel like a debtor drowning in debt, with the amount I owed constantly growing. But now, the number wasn't decreasing at all.
Original Intent Score: 100
After earning 20 more points, I finally reached an Original Intent Score of 100.
This was the first time I'd ever seen the number 100 since the System was introduced.
Ever since my first regression, I'd been cursing nonstop, so when I first checked my Status Window, my Original Intent Score had already been around 94.
Now that I've successfully reclaimed my Original Intent of 100, can't you at least remove the Infinite Regression Penalty?
I prodded the System, but it remained stubbornly silent.
Or at least reduce the target to 10 million followers...
Original Intent Score -1
This damn System is now deducting points without even giving a reason?
As if it were my last vestige of conscience, I felt no Original Intent Pain (a shortened term for the pain felt when one's Original Intent Score decreases). Yet, seeing the number drop back to 99 filled me with profound unease.
Since I couldn't raise my Original Intent Score until the Weekly Quest reset at midnight on Monday, there was no way to restore it to 100.
Surprise QUEST★
▶ Reestablish Your Concept
- Content: Having undermined your carefully established concept and confused your fans, you are given another chance. Reestablish your concept based on the image your fans perceive.
- Reward: Original Intent Score 10, Random Ticket
- Deadline: One month
※ Failure to restore your concept to align with fan expectations will result in penalties!
No, I didn't mean to get a Surprise Quest! Can I return this quest?
The only thing that could ruin their concept was that incident. In a world where the "tough exterior, soft interior" image was the dominant character interpretation, they had blown it by being the only group not to cry when they won first place on a music show.
If they could win the Rookie Award and fake some tears of emotion, that would be fine. But since that wasn't guaranteed, their chances of even getting the award were uncertain.
On the other hand, if KICKS were to bawl their eyes out when they won the Rookie Award, it would not only damage their image but also invite public ridicule.
And since they couldn't realistically fake being overwhelmed with emotion and crying buckets over a music show win in just a month, that option was out.
Should we just go with a "watching a real horror movie" concept? At least pretend to be terrified while watching it?
But if they reacted to jump scares a beat too late, it would expose their act and make them look even more ridiculous.
"Wow, the comeback lineup for January is insane."
"If we'd actually made our comeback in January, we wouldn't have even gotten close to first place. We would've just flopped."
"I get why Monthly Fortune is considered bad luck now. Should we really start believing in astrology?"
Lost in thought about how to complete this Weekly Quest, I couldn't help but overhear the Maknae Line's hushed conversation.
That's all bullshit.
I've managed to get even the youngest members interested in this nonsense, just like the CEO. But since I prevented the January comeback, I have no regrets.
As the new year passed, the Silver Disc Awards and Naon Chart Music Awards loomed closer.
Both ceremonies had their controversies, but they were still considered more credible than WAMA.
Voting had already closed. I deliberately avoided checking the results, fearing I'd get too worked up.
Before my regression, Reve had never won a Grand Prize.
I knew our group before the regression was never Grand Prize caliber.
Though a song I composed once won the Grand Prize.
Sitting in the Artist Seats, clapping without receiving a single award, and listening to junior artists' acceptance speeches like, "We're grateful to Yoon Eden Sunbae for graciously taking on the producing," was far from pleasant.
While I felt proud of the achievements my compositions had brought, seeing our group become a mess—with popularity concentrated on one member and our title tracks being utter garbage—often made me think, "Could this have been our future?" and left me seething with frustration.
"The Rookie Award for 20XX goes to... Congratulations, Reve!"
Perhaps because we'd lost the Rookie Award to KICKS at WAMA, my overwhelming emotion wasn't joy, but relief at finally getting revenge.
I deliberately smirked at KICKS as I accepted the bouquet and trophy.
I handed the microphone to Ryu Jaehee, who had been whining for days about wanting to give the acceptance speech if we won the Rookie Award.
Seo Yehyeon dabbed at tears, just like when we got our first #1 on a music show, while Kim Dobin sniffled.
I glanced at Gyeon Hajun, whose eyes were rimmed with red, as he turned to look at me. I rubbed my still-dry eyes, feeling utterly alone in my composure.
"We, Reve, will continue to work hard and strive to be even better in the future. Thank you!"
With Ryu Jaehee's acceptance speech finally over, I bowed deeply, waving the trophy.
How do they even fake cry like that?
Maybe I should have asked future acting idol Gyeon Hajun for tips.
📝 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