Chapter 98
Chapter 98
Translator: Penny
Chapter 98
"We, Altair, will exchange our remaining balances...!"
At Cha Yeonho's solemn declaration, I clenched my fist and let out a silent cheer.
The Altair members wore bewildered expressions as they watched Kim Dobin and Ryu Jaehee sob and laugh hysterically, their faces a mess of tears and mirth.
Seo Yehyeon nudged me and whispered, "Hey, it actually worked."
"See? What did I tell you? I told you to trust me."
Seo Yehyeon shook his head, his expression conveying, I have so much to say, but I won't.
"Alright, let's reveal the remaining balances!" the MC announced energetically, ripping off the stickers covering the amounts.
Reve: ₩5,500
Altair: ₩13,050
"What the hell is this?!" KJ screamed, staring at Reve's balance, which had now become their own.
"...This isn't a dream, is it? Please tell me it's a dream," Cha Yeonho muttered, his face blank as he let out a hollow laugh. With a single wrong choice, he had squandered all the money he had painstakingly saved and scrimped on.
The other Altair members buried their faces in each other's shoulders or clung to each other, receiving comforting pats on the back.
Wow, they're so close. I can't even imagine this kind of scene at Reve.
Come to think of it, I've delivered another dose of despair to Altair, just like before my regression. Too bad.
"Since Yeonho-ssi chose to exchange balances, the final balances are: Altair - 5,500 won, Reve - 13,050 won."
"There are still three days left, Altair. It's too early to give up," the MCs said, offering words of comfort to the Altair members who were groaning in despair.
But with such a massive gap in points, a comeback seemed impossible.
Good thing we didn't save too much of our budget. If we had, we'd be in their shoes right now.
After the mid-term evaluation filming wrapped up, we bowed politely to the production crew and Altair members.
KJ, Altair's leader and composer, approached us with a friendly grin.
"Wow, you guys are amazing actors! We totally fell for it."
For the record, this guy was the one I hated most in Altair.
A patchwork artist and laundry master who shamelessly claimed to be a composer while strutting around with his nose in the air, despite just stitching together other people's songs.
If I were him, I'd be too embarrassed to even call myself a producer.
While doing a Search Quest, I stumbled upon a post by an Altair fan complaining that my position overlapped with KJ's, which pissed me off. But the one who was truly pissed off was me.
What the fuck do you mean "overlap"? Except for the leader, there's no overlap at all, you fucking idiot.
Cha Yeonho... honestly, before my regression, I didn't have any particular personal feelings about him compared to KJ. After all, crabs stick together, right?
Altair was famous for their tight-knit bond, unlike Reve. Cha Yeonho and KJ were the same age and known as close friends in the entertainment industry, so I completely understood why Cha Yeonho was acting like such a drama queen in front of me.
I'd probably do the same if Gyeon Hajun were in a similar situation.
He's just being a pain in the ass to keep Rising in check right now. In that sense, Choi Hyeonmin's assessment of him as a "fucking bastard" was pretty accurate.
Still, showing any reaction would definitely lower my Original Intent Score, so I forced a smile and thanked him, pretending everything was fine.
Cha Yeonho, who had been staring intently at me and KJ, suddenly spoke up.
"Eden, can we talk for a moment?"
The place he took me to talk was the emergency staircase behind the broadcasting studio set.
Cha Yeonho had called me here, yet he remained silent for a long time.
Remembering how I used to cling to people the moment I arrived at the place I'd summoned them to before my regression, I couldn't help but feel deeply resentful.
"What did you call me for?"
"Could you type your number for me? I don't usually answer calls from numbers I don't recognize."
"Oh, I always answer first and ask later. We're complete opposites, then."
As I typed my 11-digit number into his phone, Cha Yeonho, who had already saved my number in his contacts, immediately called it.
Hearing his phone ring, Cha Yeonho smirked slightly and hung up.
"You seemed to have trust issues back during The Dating Guide. This is unexpected."
"Ah, I just really hate people who are two-faced. Honestly, if someone told me they were still dating someone like that, I'd tell them to break up immediately."
"True. I'd rather break up than stay with someone like that too."
"Sunbae, if you're into that kind of thing too, why do you act so differently on broadcast...?"
"Regardless, we need to stick to The Dating Guide style. Standing out is good, but a stone that's too sharp gets hammered down, Eden."
"Thanks for the advice."
"Reve's songs are all great, but there were quite a few I'd never heard before."
"You keep praising the songs while emphasizing that you're hearing them for the first time. It's not exactly flattering. Are you suggesting Reve should only bring songs you've already heard?"
"Oh, did I offend you? I'm just completely clueless about music."
"Someone who won the Digital Music Main Prize at an awards show is being awfully modest. How could someone who's 'clueless about music' even survive in the entertainment industry?"
We exchanged empty pleasantries and conversations deliberately designed to irritate me. I responded with polite restraint.
"If you've finished your business, I'll be going now."
Despite my announcement, Cha Yeonho maintained his perpetual, sickeningly sweet smile.
Imagining how that smile would twist into a grimace this time slightly improved my foul mood.
It wouldn't be satisfying to crush him now. The higher he climbs, the more spectacular his downfall will be.
"Didn't you say before that you had no real connection with him?" Gyeon Hajun asked.
I nodded.
"So I just rubbed him the wrong way for no reason? Is my first impression really that bad?"
"I won't answer that—I don't want to hurt your feelings."
"It's fine. I'm so used to it now that words like that don't even sting anymore."
Day 3: START!
The mid-term check-in day saw Reve and Altair meet for a fierce mini-game competition. The winner, Altair, chose a balance exchange, a decision that backfired spectacularly.
-Even after seeing Reve's pizza party, I still fell for it for a moment;;; -ㅋㅋㅋ Pizza and money? This is true creative economics!
-Reve's so luckyㅋㅋㅋ It's not brains, it's just pure luck.
Viewers burst into laughter watching Reve's bold gamble and Altair's gullible reaction.
Altair's Perspective
Cha Yeonho:Actually, I was going to stick with my original balance, but I unconsciously fell for Reve's psychological warfare...
I Sumin: The Reve members really acted well. I honestly thought they were trying to reassure us so we wouldn't exchange balances.
Gwon Taehyeok: I never imagined our balance would be 5,500 won.
KJ: Still, we managed to win a Freeloading Pass, so at least we can save on one meal.
Ju Hyeongjin: But the problem is the movie tickets. Even the early morning show costs 6,000 won.
Cha Yeonho: Don't worry about that. Hmm, I think we might actually win.
KJ: Really?
Even though Altair had made the risky move of exchanging balances, drastically reducing their funds to 5,500 won, the team's morale remained surprisingly high.
Instead, Cha Yeonho exuded confidence, leaving viewers wondering what hidden strategy he had up his sleeve.
Wow, Mastermind Yeonho really had all the angles covered!
If they pull off a comeback here, it'll be the greatest comeback victory in history! Let's go, Altair!
Reve is getting on my nerves. This is just plain inconsiderate.
Huh? Altair chose the balance exchange, didn't they? If they hadn't, Reve would have just eaten all the pizza and ended up with 5,500 won left.
This is how the show works. Why are you suddenly hating on Reve? Are you Aquila?
Reve Side
Yoon Eden: Did you see my master plan?
Yuje: Honestly, my quick thinking and acting skills played a big part too. I turned Yehyeon Hyung's genuine mutterings into a brilliant distraction tactic—pure magic!
[Seo Yehyeon: What are you talking about? You lost the minigame. The original plan was for us to win and exchange the balances.]
[Gyeon Hajun: Haha, Hyung. When did we ever make such a plan? Our original plan was always the distraction strategy.]
[Seo Yehyeon: Wow... Hajun-a, you should be an actor, seriously. Even you, whom I trusted...!]
The atmosphere here was incredibly warm and friendly.
They were all taking credit for the situation, attributing 70% to luck and 30% to skill—the "luck-7, skill-3" principle—and beaming with satisfaction as they looked at their balances.
- Gyeon Hajun is lying through his teeth without even blinking ㅋㅋㅋ
- Yoon Eden's smug grin is so infuriating ㅋㅋ
- These guys are insane with their luck ㅋㅋㅋ
And so, the 본격적인 day 3 began.
Mission participants Cha Yeonho and Seo Yehyeon both visited the movie theater early in the morning.
[Cha Yeonho: Is using points prohibited? Oh, I can use them?]
[Cha Yeonho: I'm glad I've been saving up points all this time.]
[Cha Yeonho: Since watching movies is my hobby, I even got a credit card with the biggest movie theater discounts.]
[Cha Yeonho: With this... ta-da! Zero won.]
[Seo Yehyeon: I came to see an early morning movie because the movie ticket is a mandatory purchase.]
[Seo Yehyeon: Early morning showings are the cheapest, right? It's 6,000 won.]
[Seo Yehyeon: I should have skipped the cheese oven spaghetti yesterday and saved an extra 500 won. 5,000 won wouldn't even be enough to buy a movie ticket.]
[Cha Yeonho's Expenses: 0 won]
Seo Yehyeon's Expenses: 6,000 won
Seo Yehyeon had aimed for the bare minimum by choosing an early-morning movie, but even that couldn't beat card discounts and point redemptions.
Now, Seo Yehyeon was stuck shouldering the hefty 6,000 won expense alone.
- Wow, so that's why he was so confident. Yeonho really had a plan all along.
- Seriously, could they actually pull off a comeback victory? If Seo Yehyeon has to cover both lunch and dinner, it'll be cutting it close.
[Cha Yeonho: I'll use the Freeloading Pass I won in yesterday's minigame. Gotta save on at least one meal today.]
[Seo Yehyeon: Today's meals: one cucumber. I'm planning to split it into two meals. Good thing I had pizza yesterday.]
[Cha Yeonho's Day 3 Lunch Expense: 0 won]
[Seo Yehyeon's Day 3 Lunch Expense: 500 won]
Lettuce, which could last for four meals, wasn't a cost-effective choice in their current situation. Seo Yehyeon's alternative was cucumbers.
The sight of Seo Yehyeon slicing a cucumber in half, then cutting one half into sticks and chewing them without even dipping sauce, was enough to make viewers clamor for her to unleash her competitive spirit once more.
- She's a formidable opponent! OMG, surviving two meals on a single cucumber!
- So fuel efficiency was the key all along!
[Cha Yeonho: I'll pay 1,000 won for dinner.]
[Seo Yehyeon: Dinner... is half the cucumber I bought this morning.]
[Cha Yeonho's Day 3 Dinner Expense: 1,000 won]
[Seo Yehyeon's Day 3 Dinner Expense: 0 won]
Cha Yeonho had to pay 1,000 won for his dinner, while Seo Yehyeon didn't spend a single won thanks to the cucumber she'd bought earlier!
- Is this for real? Even after using his Freeloading Pass, Cha Yeonho still spent 500 won more?
- I'm really nervous. What if Yehyeon collapses from malnutrition on this show and the whole program gets canceled?
└ He ate pizza on day two, lol.
Day three passed uneventfully. On the morning of day four, the contestants gathered on set for the final results announcement.
Final Results!
Cha Yeonho's Remaining Balance: 4,500 won
Seo Yehyeon's Remaining Balance: 6,550 won
Reve Wins!
Reve celebrated their victory in their own unique ways. Altair humbly accepted defeat, warmly applauding his juniors.
- They're not even hugging, just patting each other on the back, lol.
- Are they going to do the penalty challenge? lol.
Seo Yehyeon: I'll make sure to have a great time with the members.
Reve, holding up a large panel printed with group tickets to Hawaii, waved at the camera. The episode ended with a preview of next week's cast.
The following day, a post went viral online:
[ Top Post ]: Altair Cha Yeonho Disrespected by Junior
📝 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