Chapter 293: K-Potluck Party (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 293: K-Potluck Party (1)
While Jeong Seong-bin and I were away at the bread factory, the dorm kitchen had been completely taken over by groceries.
Looking around, I noticed one guy was missing. I grabbed Lee Cheong-hyeon and asked, "Where’s Choi Je-ho?"
"He’s on his way up with a sack of rice."
"Did we run out of rice at the dorm?"
"We figured we wouldn't have enough to make all the kimbap."
He was certainly fulfilling his role. It seemed he was lugging it up alongside Manager Dae-yeon, who was in charge of driving.
Since we were filming self-produced content, I assumed Lee Cheong-hyeon was intentionally avoiding mentioning the manager... or so I thought.
"Open the door a bit wider."
"You carried this all by yourself?"
Through the partially open front door, I saw Choi Je-ho with a sack of rice slung over his shoulder. Startled, I hurried to open the door for him, and he delivered the rice all the way to the veranda like a professional courier.
"You should've carried it together...!"
Just as Jeong Seong-bin began to nag, Kang Gi-yeon pointed toward the kitchen.
"Hyung, we had a hard time too."
"...Sorry."
The sight of fruit bought by the box, eggs, and kimbap ingredients was overwhelming. The sheer volume of ingredients was even greater than I had anticipated.
"We're doing the actual cooking tomorrow, right?"
"No, we’re going to do a practice run tonight..."
Park Ju-woo said as he meticulously wiped down the packaging of each ingredient with a paper towel.
"To have the best potluck party, we have to give it our all..."
I could practically feel the grim determination radiating from him. His excellent assistant, Kang Gi-yeon, was also busy helping him by putting eggs into the fridge.
While Park Ju-woo and Kang Gi-yeon dominated the kitchen, Lee Cheong-hyeon dragged Choi Je-ho toward the living room.
"Our role starts now, Je-ho Hyung."
"What are we doing?"
"Making 'Strawberry Bouquets of Love' to offer to the Berion sunbaenims."
Lee Cheong-hyeon pulled out a stack of colored paper.
"The goal is to fold origami strawberries in the signature colors of each Berion member. We’re giving three to each of the nine members, so we need to fold twenty-seven. Got it?"
"Uh... first, show me how to do it."
And so, the two sat at the living room table and began folding paper. It was a hilarious sight—watching hands the size of a lid try to fold tiny pieces of paper.
"No, Hyung! You already folded three light blue ones!"
"I did?"
"Now you have to fold orange... actually, just fold five of each."
"Why?"
"...Just because."
Lee Cheong-hyeon trailed off.
However, for some reason, everyone except Choi Je-ho knew why. It was because Je-ho's strawberries were coming out in wildly different shapes and sizes. These were gifts for our seniors, after all; we couldn't exactly give them burst strawberries.
As the two folded the strawberries, Jeong Seong-bin and I—who were well-trained in small-scale packaging—attached them to wires and wrapped them like real bouquets. We decided to attach message cards cheering on our seniors inside.
That evening, for dinner, we shared three rolls of keto kimbap, six deviled eggs, and six crepe canapés. We spent the night in a state where the excited hearts of young boys waiting for a party coexisted with the exhausted bodies of servants preparing for one.
The day of the party was exceptionally beautiful. The sunlight was warm for winter, and the wind had died down as if coaxing us to go on an outing.
"It’s perfect weather for a party."
Lee Cheong-hyeon, styled as a 'Playboy Prince' with his hair curled perfectly with a flat iron, said as he toyed with his silk tie adorned with a brooch.
I had wondered if it was okay for an idol to have a 'playboy' attribute, but Kang Gi-yeon told me that in romance fantasy novels, the playboy persona is just a facade and they eventually fall for only one person, so I decided to let it slide.
"I know, right!"
Beside him, Jeong Seong-bin was dressed as a young naval officer, wearing a classic white suit setup with ornate fringed epaulettes.
His silver hair, reminiscent of a winter sea on a cloudy day, fluttered in the breeze. He looked so dashing that the paper strawberry bouquets he held in his arms almost looked like real tulips.
"Do we have enough trunk space?"
Kang Gi-yeon asked as he walked out carrying large reusable shopping bags from a warehouse club in both hands. His concept was the 'Profligate Third Son' who had been pushed out of the line of succession, so he had his inner shirt slightly unbuttoned in an untidy fashion and his hair curled even more intensely than Lee Cheong-hyeon's.
I had also asked if it was okay for an idol to have a 'dissolute' concept, but I was told that these types of scoundrels are usually just slightly dissatisfied with their families; once they find a dream, they reform overnight, working so hard that people say, "Is that really that ruffian so-and-so?" So, I gave the okay.
"If it's not enough, we have two cars... let's split the load."
Park Ju-woo, holding two stacked kimchi containers filled with Shine Muscat grapes, smiled brightly. The large frills, befitting a mysterious heir of a count who rarely leaves his mansion, made him look even more high-class.
For someone who supposedly never leaves his manor, the prominent veins on his forearms showed just how well-trained his body was, but anyway.
And...
"Why are there so many lunch boxes?"
...Allow me to introduce him. His Majesty, Emperor Choi Je-ho-sis of the Spark Kingdom.
He wore a velvet jacket that looked expensive at a glance, covered in gold embroidery. The white high-waisted trousers were a perfect fit for His Majesty's lower half. I wondered where they had found such a lavish outfit, and it turned out they had rented a musical theater costume.
With his hair slicked back in a pomade, revealing his bold features, he successfully projected a cold, noble aura, like a strict man of principle.
Now, if only he’d keep his mouth shut. Am I asking too much of you?
It was worth the effort of finding white outfits of various textures and styles for the 'Spark Kingdom Nobles' Snowy Outing.' Everyone looked white, soft, and radiant.
"It is impolite to go empty-handed when one has been invited, Your Majesty."
"What's with that tone of voice?"
"My role is the one who gets kicked out early for giving sincere advice that displeases Your Majesty..."
"You're making me out to be a tyrant."
Choi Je-ho grumbled. If you have a problem with it, you should learn the polite speech of the service industry too. I'll give you a three-hour crash course.
"If all the luggage is loaded, we’ll head out!"
"Yes!"
At Seong-bin's word, the nobles quickly boarded their 21st-century carriages. The horseless carriages began to race toward the Green Line building.
Whenever there’s an event with a dress code, everyone worries about the degree of commitment.
You could end up being the only A-list actor walking a red carpet in the middle of the Yeouido financial district, or the only 'true' casual rookie resisting the older generation at a semi-casual company dinner.
The costume team and I shared the same concern. In the end, we agreed that even if we ended up looking like clowns, we should aim to leave behind the best possible footage.
As it turned out, our choice was correct.
"Oh, we are honored by your visit!"
...Berion greeted us wearing tweed setups with eight gold buttons each.
It was supposed to be a gathering of nobles, but the beginning felt more like a holiday family gathering you’d see in a drama.
Why did you pack so much? It’s been a long time. I enjoyed seeing you on TV. Why haven't you called lately? and so on. My heart ached for the video editor who would have to subtitle all of this.
"Come in, come in."
Yeo Seong-chan led us inside like he was welcoming guests to a clan's head house. A path of rose petals stretched from the building lobby. Green Line really gives their all for their idols.
The surprises didn't end at the lobby.
The large practice room we reached by treading on fake rose petals had been transformed into something straight out of 'Kingdom Cafeteria ~Another~.'
These guys must have filmed an entire episode just decorating the practice room. I’m glad Spark also made sure to film our preparation process.
It wasn't just the venue that was lavish. On the long table covered with a tablecloth, everything from pasta to all sorts of dishes was laid out. If we had brought skewered pancakes, we might have been kicked out for not matching the TPO (Time, Place, Occasion).
"Why did you prepare so much?"
"We can't let our guests go hungry after inviting them."
Since we were on camera, I switched back to formal speech, and Moon Yeon-gyu replied with a genial smile. This... sounded like something Park Ju-woo's aunt would say. This kid has grown up a lot in just one year.
"For the record, the pasta was made by Hee-rang. He’s our team’s official chef."
Moon Yeon-gyu proudly pulled Hee-rang, who was hiding behind him, forward by both shoulders.
"Really?"
When I asked in surprise, Hee-rang nodded.
I couldn't help but be surprised. Look at how many plates of pasta are here. If the six of us gathered to make even a single bowl of banquet noodles, it would be a miracle.
"...Do you like pasta?"
"Of course!"
At my answer, Hee-rang’s expression brightened.
The banquet hall remained noisy for a while longer. We had to set up the food brought from the Spark Kingdom, give the strawberry bouquets to our seniors... it was hectic. Thankfully, Berion noticed the small details we had put into the strawberry bouquets.
By the time all preparations were finished, there was enough food for forty people on the table.
"...Hyungs, how many servings did you bring?"
Cha Se-han asked.
"Probably twenty. What about you guys?"
"Us too..."
It’s a testament to the overflowing 'jeong' of Korean society. Neither the guests nor the hosts would be going hungry today.
The fifteen bandits gathered at Green Line sat down, saying we should eat before the food got cold.
While the cameras took insert shots of the food, we caught up with each other.
"I saw that Cheong-hyeon-ssi did a birthday live recently."
"Oh? You saw it, sunbaenim?"
"Of course. I wanted to call, but I was in transit."
"Oh, I should have timed the live better... while you were busy traveling..."
"Wait a minute! Why is the conversation going that way?"
Park Ju-woo smiled warmly as he watched Lee Cheong-hyeon work the room. He must have been worried after what happened during the break.
"Isn't I-wol Hyung's birthday coming up soon too? All the Spark birthdays are clustered together."
Yeo Seong-chan asked. You guys really pay a lot of attention to Spark.
"That's right. February 14th!"
"This time, I will definitely call in to congratulate you during the live..."
I was the one whose birthday it was, but the others were more excited. I gave a hollow laugh and lowered the temperature of the conversation slightly.
"I'm going to keep the live simple. Please cooperate so I can spend a lonely birthday."
"Why?"
"Spark's debut anniversary is very close to my birthday. I have to prepare for the 1st-anniversary self-produced content."
"Ah..."
Cha Se-han made a sympathetic face. Both a member's birthday and a group's anniversary are important, but the scale of an anniversary event is always much larger. Plus, the schedule for that day was packed, from a 1st-anniversary fan meeting to an evening live.
Since I needed time to prepare for all of that, we decided that instead of the members attending my birthday live, we would just do a phone connection. The planning team said they would set up a grand birthday table for the live so there wouldn't be any controversy over unfair treatment, so I just had to trust them.
"When was Spark's debut date again? The 18th?"
"You almost got it. It's the 19th."
"So it's exactly five days after your birthday."
Berion, who would have recently celebrated their own 1st anniversary, nodded as if they understood the struggle. Regardless of how grateful we were, the time available for preparation was finite.
"Oh? Then is this the first birthday you're celebrating since debuting?"
Moon Yeon-gyu asked, pausing while eating a canapé.
"Yes. Out of all the members, I'm the last one!"
"Oh~."
Everyone suddenly burst into applause. It felt like receiving early-bird birthday wishes.
'My birthday broadcast, huh.'
I was preparing various things, but now that it was mentioned, I felt a fresh wave of nerves.
I vowed not to do anything weird and focused on eating the pasta Hee-rang had made. The food was truly delicious.