Chapter 210
Chapter 210
Ryu Cheong-woo continued speaking, his tone not particularly heavy.
“When I first realized the extent of the aftereffects, I thought I could manage it. Everyone said I’d be fine if I just did rehab.”
“……”
“The doctor said there was a possibility, so I kept at it steadily… but it didn't really do much.”
Out of habit, Ryu Cheong-woo clenched and unclenched one of his hands.
“A possibility is just a possibility… I ended up in a situation I couldn't escape or recover from….”
“……”
“Anyway, that’s why I took my anger out on the company for no reason. I was worried about what would happen if someone got hurt, but then, well, I also wondered if I was just overstepping again.”
So that was the cause of his lethargy.
Overlapping with his fruitless days in rehab, he must have started thinking things like, ‘What on earth am I doing right now?’
‘…It makes sense.’
Since he was the type to shoulder an excessive amount of work, the sense of futility must have been even more profound.
I hesitated for a moment, only answering after I had finished my drink.
“You’ve never done anything useless, Hyung.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Everyone has received a lot of help from you. …Including me.”
“……! Is that so? Haha, I don’t feel like I’ve done anything special for you, though.”
No, the fact that you didn't get angry back when I was acting like a total prick is a testament to your amazing character.
If the situation had escalated back then… I might have died a sudden death from a status effect by now.
“Ah, surely not back then? Hmm, no. You were pretty mild. I told you then, didn't I? I was like that too when it was confirmed I’d never recover.”
Ryu Cheong-woo let out a small chuckle.
“It was really no joke. I yelled at the doctor… and on the day of the qualifiers, man, even I think it’s embarrassing now.”
I wasn't particularly curious, but since it was clearly the timing to ask, I humored him.
“What did you do?”
“I snapped my bow.”
“…!!”
Wow, this guy… he’s got quite a temper.
Usually, an archery bow isn't something that just snaps, so he must have really gone off the deep end.
Of course, it would be foolish to say exactly what I was thinking.
“Well, as long as you didn't hit anyone, it’s fine.”
“Is it? Haha! Right, well, it was just a practice bow I broke.”
Ryu Cheong-woo laughed, his face looking much brighter.
I wasn't sure if it was okay for him to feel refreshed by something like that… but I decided to let it be.
Still, having come to his senses, he added a socially graceful remark.
“Ah, sorry. That might have been an uncomfortable story for you to hear….”
He seemed to mean he didn't want to remind me of the time I had lashed out at him.
“It’s fine. I don’t really care about that anymore. I’m the one who should be sorry.”
“I told you, it’s fine.”
They say a bigger worry cures a smaller one.
After seeing that glitched status window, a simple ‘Truth’ verification of the past felt pretty mild.
However, Ryu Cheong-woo toyed with his plastic bottle before tossing out a question as if it had slipped out unconsciously.
“Um, Moon-dae.”
“Yes.”
“Actually, there’s something that’s been on my mind for a while….”
“…? Yes.”
Ryu Cheong-woo furrowed his brows.
“Is your memory okay?”
“…!!”
“I was thinking it might be a good idea for you to see a specialist about that.”
A topic I never expected came up.
To be honest, I had almost forgotten that I was using the ‘I don’t remember my past well, but it’s slowly coming back’ setting.
There had just been too many incidents.
‘…Looking at it like this, it really is like some trashy soap opera plot.’
Anyway, I didn't expect the excuse I’d thrown out randomly before to come back and hit me like this.
And then Ryu Cheong-woo started saying things that made my skin crawl.
“You’ve never gone to see your parents, and you’ve never looked at photos… or even brought them up in conversation.”
“……”
“We’ve been living in the dorms for over a year and a half now; I should have heard something even by accident.”
“…Hmm.”
I racked my brain quickly.
“I have almost no memories related to my family. It’s not like I’m in a hurry to find them, either.”
“I see.”
“Yes. I’m just satisfied with how things are now.”
“Hmm, okay.”
Ryu Cheong-woo crushed the plastic bottle, tidied it up neatly, and took a long breath in and out.
“You’re right. I like the way things are now, too.”
I asked, picturing Ryu Cheong-woo contradicting himself.
“I thought you said you were exhausted?”
“I don’t think you can avoid getting tired, no matter what the job is. What matters is managing it well.”
True. He was right.
“To be honest, I was half-doubting myself when I went on Aju-sa, but things turned out much better than I imagined, so I’m grateful.”
“That’s true.”
Regardless of the stress, TeSTAR’s trajectory had been an incredible success.
Of course, I already knew Aju-sa would do well.
“I’m going to try not to get too used to it.”
“……”
Man. What a healthy mindset.
I let out a short laugh.
“Still, for the next few days, just do the things an idol is supposed to do. You don't need to do the company’s job for them.”
“Haha, well… since I took on the role of leader, I wanted to work hard at it.”
At that moment, from the other side, we heard Cha Yu-jin let out a shout as he finally broke his high score.
“WOOOOOW!!”
“Be quiet, you idiot! It’s almost midnight, you’re causing noise pollution….”
“It’s not noise! We’re the only ones here!”
“The people living near the building….”
“There aren't any!”
“There are!”
I muttered under my breath, quite sincerely.
“…Honestly, I think you’re doing enough as a leader just by handling those guys.”
“Umm.”
He couldn't deny it.
“I think that much is just fine. Otherwise, the manager hyungs might forget why they’re even getting paid.”
When I added that last bit like a demanding celebrity, Ryu Cheong-woo burst out laughing.
“Haha! Okay, I get it.”
Then, he lightly extended his clenched fist toward me.
“Let’s keep doing our best.”
“Yes.”
I lightly bumped my knuckles against his.
It was a bit cringey, but it did have a certain thrill to it.
“We’re all done here~!”
“Got it! Let’s head to the TeSTAR van!”
That day, Ryu Cheong-woo returned to the dorm having mostly regained his usual self.
“Yu-jin, go inside and sleep. We have a music show tomorrow.”
“Okay!”
Even Cha Yu-jin was so moved that he listened well.
The members all celebrated in their own ways, giving thumbs up with faces that practically screamed, ‘The shooting range was a brilliant idea.’
“As expected of Moon-dae. Being a Tibetan fox, those eyes that see through everyone’s psychology are just…….”
“Go to sleep.”
And so, everyone managed to get a good, deep sleep, even if it was short.
The highlight came the next day.
The first manager, sensing that Ryu Cheong-woo’s mood had softened, immediately tried to push his luck.
“Cheong-woo, is there anything specific the kids need to be told?”
Ryu Cheong-woo replied with a faint smile.
“I wonder?”
“……!?”
“I’m not really sure either. I think it would be best if you asked the members directly.”
That was it.
Ryu Cheong-woo stretched and climbed into the van, and the manager followed, looking like he’d been slapped.
Since he’d just been chewed out by the chief manager a few days ago, he couldn't exactly complain to Ryu Cheong-woo.
‘This should do it.’
It would buy some time until they could find someone who actually did their job well.
And when I checked the internet for the first time in a while, the nonsense about Ryu Cheong-woo hitting someone had completely vanished, replaced by buzz about the shooting scene.
“Ooh~ People are going crazy saying Cheong-woo Hyung’s shooting was cool!”
Keun Se-jin, peeking at the screen, deliberately talked Ryu Cheong-woo up. Ryu Cheong-woo laughed bashfully.
“I just did it for fun, though.”
“No way! I expected your status to rise after watching you shoot yesterday, but as expected, it’s huge.”
“It w-was really cool…!”
Relieved that Ryu Cheong-woo’s mood had lightened, the guys poured out compliments like a waterfall.
And Keun Se-jin seemed to notice a few specific comments. A question followed.
“Come to think of it, Hyung, how did you end up choosing to be an idol as your career path~?”
“Ah, me?”
Ryu Cheong-woo gave an ambiguous smile.
“Well, actually, my parents recommended it.”
“Whoa!”
“Your parents?”
“Yeah. To them, they kept saying I’d been good at dancing and singing since I was little… so I just started it as a hobby.”
It seemed that to get him out of the house when he was depressed after quitting archery, they had encouraged him, and it had become his new path.
“What about you guys? Especially Yu-jin, I’m curious how you ended up becoming an idol.”
“A stranger talked to me!”
“A beat I submitted to a contest was selected, and when I went up to Seoul, the contract was….”
The conversation in the van had shifted to ‘Why did you become an idol?’
And eventually, the question came to me.
“Then what about Moon-dae?”
Me?
Honestly, it didn't matter if I told the truth, but… it was a bit embarrassing.
“…I was scouted at a karaoke bar by the writer of Aju-sa.”
“Seriously??”
“Whoa, I thought that was just a rumor, but it was real~!”
The van became noisy for a moment. The topic seemed to be ‘Just how much of a natural-born talent is Park Moon-dae?’
“So Moon-dae wasn't even a trainee, he just started as a total civilian and got this far?”
“His t-talent must be incredible…! O-of course, Moon-dae worked really hard too!”
“…That’s amazing.”
“Well, thank you.”
If I brought up the status window, I felt like I’d be lynched.
Anyway, thinking back to the moment I first entered this body, I felt a strange sense of accomplishment.
In truth, if it weren't for the stat increases and traits provided by the status window, I wouldn't have been able to grow this much to fit the profession.
‘If it weren't for the "die if you don't clear the status effect" part, these past few years would have been quite rewarding.’
……No, I’ll take that back.
Even including the status effects, it’s been quite rewarding.
These few years since I returned to the past in someone else’s body have been so dense it’s almost bewildering.
‘Maybe it’s because I’ve been struggling to survive since I’m constantly on the verge of a death sentence.’
Hmm, that’s quite persuasive.
“……Then you didn't necessarily set out to do this. Are you okay?”
“Pardon?”
“Promoting… is it okay?”
Bae Se-jin asked with a serious face.
I answered without hesitation.
“Yes. It’s fun.”
“Right~”
“Y-you have no regrets, right?”
I gave a wide grin.
“None.”
“Ooh~!”
The members cheered and clapped boisterously.
Kim Rae-bin even quietly started playing some music.
“I do not know what I was thinking, but inspiration suddenly struck one day, and I created an EDM version of Magical Boy….”
“Let’s go!”
And the van was filled with the sight of guys full of passionate idol spirit bobbing their heads.
‘What a sight.’
Out of loyalty, I decided not to post that scene on the group’s social media.
After that, domestic activities seemed to proceed smoothly without any further noise.
“TeSTAR, standby!”
The pre-recording for the second week of music shows went cleanly, and the variety shows filmed before and during the first week of the comeback began airing one by one.
And of course, the schedule wasn't entirely filled with just music shows and variety programs.
“Look over here~ and lift your chin a bit more!”
We did a few events, but since we had moved up to the top tier, we focused on higher-paying opportunities rather than inefficient events with long travel distances.
Namely, advertisements.
“Please touch your collar once!”
We had been filming commercials steadily since our debut, but the scale was completely different now.
Amidst the flood of ad requests, the agency was doing a pretty good job of picking the lucrative ones. I thought they were doing well to snag high-paying ones that didn't overexpose our image.
‘At least there’s no more nonsense like that AI Curious thing.’
But I didn't realize they were also thoroughly looking out for the company’s own interests.
Not the parent company T1, but the agency, T1 Stars.
Take the commercial we were filming today, for example.
“Ah, hello, Sunbaenim!”
I met the junior idols from the same agency, ‘Mirinae,’ at the smartphone commercial shoot.
‘Oh.’
It was a package deal that showed the agency’s ambition for their brand name.
And that was something I could definitely make use of.