Chapter 549
Chapter 549
That was it.
I had done the crazy thing of signing an acting contract with the LeTi of the past.
It was all to gather multifaceted information on Cheong-ryeo and to secure an identity I could use in case of an emergency.
Once the personal information was filled out and the signatures were finalized, the management chief spoke to me with a beaming smile.
“So, you’ll be coming to Korea in two months, after your trip ends?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Naturally, I couldn't return to Korea immediately. I didn't have a passport, and my identity was fake to begin with.
I probably don't even have a record of entering the US.
It was the perfect setup to get arrested.
So, I delayed my entry by spinning some nonsense about how I’d come to the US for a two-month stay before the next semester started and that it would be difficult to cancel.
Well, LeTi didn't seem interested in compensating me for travel cancellation fees, so they readily agreed.
“Understood!”
However, as we were parting ways, the chief leaned in and whispered as if sharing a top-secret scoop.
“But before you come to Korea… you might actually make your screen debut right away. There’s a location that’s just perfect.”
“Excuse me?”
“When we did our internal evaluation, the feedback on your look and attitude was just too good… You know how it is, right?”
I didn't.
“I’m saying you might debut immediately.”
I had no intention of debuting.
Instead of saying that, I hesitated on purpose.
“I think it’s a bit too early for me. I feel like I should practice something first so I don't become an embarrassment to the company.”
“Oh, come on! What are you talking about!”
He wasn't listening.
Well, it didn't matter. I was going to disappear as soon as I finished analyzing the system clues anyway.
I stood up from the cafe seat and saw the chief off.
“Anyway, I’m looking forward to working with you, Gun-woo!”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Then, as if passing a baton, a guy slunk out from a table in the back and sat down in front of me.
“It seems the contract reached a satisfactory agreement.”
“…….”
It was Ju-dan.
I didn't know why he was doing this weird routine instead of just sitting next to me, but I simply nodded instead of asking.
“So, are you staying in the US?”
“Yeah.”
“It might be better than Korea, but the US isn't an easy place for a stateless person to live either.”
“It’s not like there’s only one or two illegal immigrants in America. I’ll manage.”
I could speak English and I knew how to cook or make coffee, so I could get a job at a fast-food joint or a cafe.
Ju-dan shook his head.
“At the very least, let me set up your first smartphone. A prepaid one.”
I let out a short laugh.
“As if you have any money.”
“I consider it an investment in the future.”
He seemed to firmly believe that I had been a member of his group.
His eyes gleamed as he asked seriously, “Let me ask you one thing. In the future, will I have the financial power to buy a building?”
“…Yeah.”
That… was for certain.
He nodded with satisfaction.
“Then I’ll be in your care. Let’s keep in touch regularly while I keep an eye on Cheong-ryeo sunbae’s movements.”
He held out his hand as if to shake on it.
I reached out and took it with a smile.
“Thanks.”
And then I realized.
His hand felt burning hot.
My own hand was impossibly cold.
“…!”
He must have felt it too, as his eyes widened before he nodded, seemingly making sense of the situation.
“That’s what happens when you order a cold drink in this weather.”
“…Right.”
It wasn't.
In fact, I hadn't even touched the drink I ordered.
In other words, this wasn't a temporary drop in body temperature from the cold.
“…….”
After confirming that Ju-dan had stood up to order another drink, I lifted my hand to examine it.
When I gripped the glass table, even the glass—which should have been cold—felt lukewarm.
A dull ache followed as a bonus.
Whew.
Right, this was also a problem.
My physical condition was rapidly turning into trash.
On top of using a stolen identity, I had no money, making it awkward to even go to a hospital.
Besides, it’s probably not something a hospital could fix anyway.
I opened and closed my fist.
“H-His body… it’s gotten even colder.”
“…….”
“What do we do?”
Keun-dal was holding the arm of Park Moon-dae, who was sprawled on the sofa.
It was because his body temperature had begun to drop as if he were freezing.
His breathing was incredibly thin, and his pulse was faint.
It felt almost no different from being dead.
At one point, his pulse had become so faint it seemed it might vanish entirely before returning, nearly giving the three of them a heart attack.
Kwon Hee-seung, who was on a video call, clutched his hair.
[Wow. This is driving me crazy. No one on the internet thinks anything is weird. And… wait! Lunch break is already over? Shouldn't Cheong-ryeo sunbae be heading back now? Wow, then what happens to hyung?]
“It doesn't matter today. It’s a day off.”
[Ah… well, that’s a relief, at least.]
Cheong-ryeo didn't look relieved at all.
He turned to Keun-dal and asked, “You still haven't found any system traces?”
“…No.”
Keun-dal continued to try while sniffing back tears, but no clues appeared from Park Moon-dae’s body.
It was too strange. Hyung was definitely the one who had collected all the system parts, and it had to be the system that put him in this state.
And yet….
How can there be no trace at all?
Just as his mind was going numb.
Clap, clap!
[Now, now, let’s not get too bogged down in that. Why don't we rethink this!]
Kwon Hee-seung tried to refresh the atmosphere.
[First, uh, seeing how hyung’s state is jumping all over the place, getting cold then faint by the minute….]
Cheong-ryeo muttered, “Change.”
[Pardon?]
“Park Moon-dae isn't dead.”
[O-Of course he shouldn't be!]
He wasn't saying it to be reassuring.
If his body is still alive but his condition continues to fluctuate abnormally…
Cheong-ryeo concluded that there must be some kind of mechanism at work.
This reaction was likely appearing because Park Moon-dae was experiencing something.
Only, it was happening somewhere else, not here.
And they simply had no clues as to where that place was.
Kwon Hee-seung began to groan.
[Hmm… a location. Ah, back then, you know… when I became the server. Do you know what state our bodies were in then? On that plane. Uh… Keun-dal hyung? Hyung, you weren't there.]
Keun-dal groaned along with him.
“Everyone was pulled in together, so I don't know… Ah, but even then, I found hyung by accessing his status window!”
But now, there were no traces.
[Ah, seriously!]
Tap. Tap.
Cheong-ryeo slowly tapped the table.
[Just what is different? Is there some condition that’s different from back then?]
Cheong-ryeo stopped his tapping finger.
Conditions.
In summary, it was the same.
If so, the difference lay in the details.
And if there was one thing different in the process….
The medium.
“Is that it?”
[Yes?]
Park Moon-dae had been in the middle of collecting things called system fragments.
And the person who had the last fragment.
Furthermore, the only person he had been in contact with when he was swept into the strange phenomenon….
“It’s me.”
“Pardon??”
It was himself.
Cheong-ryeo grabbed Keun-dal’s arm.
“Check me.”
“Ah…….”
Overwhelmed by his intensity, Keun-dal reflexively tried to ‘access’ Cheong-ryeo.
And then….
Twitch.
“…!!”
Keun-dal’s arm trembled.
He slowly raised his head and swallowed hard.
“It’s there.”
Hope shined in his eyes.
“There’s something on Cheong-ryeo-ssi! I mean, it’s like a trace connecting to some system, or a pathway….”
[Waaaah, I was right!!]
Cheong-ryeo didn't react to whatever Kwon Hee-seung was shouting.
“Can you make contact?”
“I’m trying right now!”
Keun-dal exerted every ounce of effort.
And then.
Thump.
Cheong-ryeo felt a faint surge, like a nauseatingly dull ache, brush past his mind.
But that was it.
“…….”
Keun-dal was breaking out in a cold sweat.
“It’s too… too far…… and fast.”
[Fast?? What does that feel like?]
“I don't know either! It’s just, it just feels like that…….”
It was as if he were trying to run on foot to deliver a message to someone inside a speeding train.
A feeling of being outmatched.
It felt like an entirely different method was needed.
Ugh!!
Still, having finally caught a clue, Keun-dal tried his best to think more calmly.
How could he make contact?
“Seon A-hyun.”
“Pardon?”
Keun-dal looked back at Cheong-ryeo.
“That was what caused the error in the system. Can we use it?”
That was why Cheong-ryeo had prioritized calling Seon A-hyun as soon as things went south.
Ah!
Keun-dal understood the words, but at the same time, he fell back into deep thought.
Because Cheong-ryeo’s call hadn't worked on Seon A-hyun at all.
“B-But he doesn't even remember Moon-dae hyung, he can't even perceive him… how,”
How were they supposed to persuade him?
It was at that moment.
Knock, knock.
“E-Excuse me.”
“…!!”
When they turned their heads, a tall figure was revealed entering through the building’s front door.
The person with a nervous expression… was Seon A-hyun in a coat!
“…?!”
For a moment, Keun-dal wondered if he had developed some strange ability.
“Hell…o.”
But Seon A-hyun wasn't the end of it.
Behind Seon A-hyun, who had cautiously entered the room, five more people with different strides followed.
“Excuse us.”
Keun-dal was stunned.
All of TeSTAR.
Everyone had suddenly appeared at JSA.
“…!?”
“We came because there’s something we want to ask.”
Ryu Cheong-woo, who entered last, confirmed that all the members were inside.
Then he asked.
To Cheong-ryeo.
“Who is Park Moon-dae?”
Two hours ago.
“Thanks for lending me the book, Se-jin. It was interesting.”
“…Whatever.”
Bae Se-jin looked slightly embarrassed as he snatched the book Ryu Cheong-woo was holding out.
“Haha.”
Ryu Cheong-woo laughed heartily.
He knew that while this friend acted blunt at times, he had actually taken the time to write out a list just to recommend a book to him.
The book he’d read this time also showed signs of being carefully chosen. It was an autobiographical essay about a retired athlete succeeding in the IT industry. Ryu Cheong-woo let out a pleasant chuckle at the almost blatant content of the book.
I should read it carefully.
But once he finished it, he felt it would be more interesting to someone with a greater interest in the internet than himself.
You know, like that member who…….
“…….”
Ryu Cheong-woo leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.
“Se-jin.”
“…What.”
“Were you the one who did the most monitoring among us?”
“…! I just watch WeTube a bit, it’s not like I watch it that much!”
“Yeah. Right.”
“More than me…!”
However, Bae Se-jin, who was about to give an example without hesitation, froze right there.
…I mean.
He was sure there was someone, but when he tried to use them as an example, no one came to mind.
There was someone.
“…….”
“…….”
A somewhat stiff silence settled over the living room.
It was enough to make Lee Se-jin, who was about to pass by with a toothbrush in his mouth, pause for a moment.
“…?”
In that moment, Bae Se-jin finally broke the silence and shouted.
“Right! L-Lee Se-jin watches it more! The internet!”
“Me?”
“Yeah!”
“…I don't know what this is about, but I feel like it’s something bad? It’s not, right~?”
“……N-No, it’s not.”
With the addition of a playful tone, the stiff atmosphere finally eased, and an inexplicable sense of relief dominated the living room.
However, Ryu Cheong-woo remained deep in thought with a calm face.
Lee Se-jin lightly tapped the leader’s shoulder.
“Ah, Se-jin.”
“Yes, hyung!”
Lee Se-jin rubbed the back of his neck even as he laughed cheerfully.
“Hmm. For some reason, the atmosphere in the dorm today is really heavy~ Is it because everyone’s been working so hard?”
“Maybe.”
Ryu Cheong-woo nodded and then made a suggestion.
“Shall we watch some old videos?”
“Oh, sounds good. To find our roots!”
And so, they gathered in the living room and began watching TeSTAR’s old stages and content.
From their debut activities to their most recent ones, at random.
[I think of you all day today, you whom I’ll meet tomorrow.]
[Dreaming a dream as blue as the day—]
“Oh, what are you watching?”
“I just happened to finish my work.”
And as befitting a holiday, the members joined in one by one and began watching the videos.
The debut stage, the extreme travel, the deserted island survival, the rural life with Mung-gae, the special concert stages….
Even the W Live commemorating their first concert.
[Park Moon-dae (Today’s Crybaby King): …Thank you.]
But it felt strangely awkward.
“……Ah.”
“Hmm.”
However, the more they watched, the more that awkwardness vanished, and it started to feel like just their imagination.
Bae Se-jin thought, It’s weird.
Usually, monitoring together should be fun. Why did it feel like they were forcing themselves to endure it?
Then, Ryu Cheong-woo, who was sitting next to him, spoke as if to himself.
“Just a thought.”
“Yes.”
“That stage just now, the high notes were good.”
“That’s true.”
“Our members are good~”
Ryu Cheong-woo asked coldly amidst the casual compliments.
“Exactly who?”
“…….”
—Whose high note was it?
“Uh, of course it was you, hyung. Ah, and everyone except our rapper line is good at mid-to-high notes~”
“I don't think I can hit it that high.”
“…Pardon?”
“I have a good grasp of my own vocal range.”
Ryu Cheong-woo spoke calmly.
By absorbing his experience from Steer as knowledge, he knew his own strengths and weaknesses more clearly than before.
“It’s not me.”
“…….”
“You said our member sang it.”
“That… is true.”
“Who?”
A dizzying silence dominated the living room once again.
While only the sound of TeSTAR’s performance echoed dully from the TV.
“Shit… do we have a 7th member that none of us know about? Like a ghost story?”
Cha Yu-jin shouted that while covering his mouth.
“Huh??”
Everyone was startled and began to shake their heads or hit the person who said it.
“D-Don't say such nonsense, Cha Yu-jin!”
“You, every single time!”
“Ouch! That hurts! I’m hurting!”
Lee Se-jin didn't hit Cha Yu-jin, but he spoke while shaking his head.
“Hey, where would a ghost come from~ Ah, speaking of an idol who became a ghost, that reminds me of something. You know, that one. A long time ago, VTIC’s Cheong-ryeo sunbae and our member appeared together….”
“Ah. That mountain cabin.”
When Bae Se-jin remembered Get Close First, the members nodded vigorously.
Right, there was that too!
Ryu Cheong-woo asked.
“…Who was that member?”
“…….”
“…….”
A chilling silence.
The hands hitting Cha Yu-jin also stopped.
[OK. Now I’m literally getting goosebumps.]
And he realized that he had naturally believed someone would translate this English for him, and that no one had stepped forward to do so now.
And about the sense of incongruity he had felt until now.
He furrowed his brows.
“It’s strange.”
Ryu Cheong-woo pressed his brow.
“Alright. If anyone has had a strange experience, let’s speak specifically. Was there some kind of trigger?”
“Well… I mean.”
But everything felt as vague and stable as if it were in a fog.
The goosebumps they felt for a moment vanished before they knew it, as if it had never happened. Just as they were about to move into the stage of feeling slightly embarrassed, as if they had reacted too unrealistically.
It was then.
“Ah.”
Seon A-hyun let out an exclamation with a pale face.
“W-What is it?”
“Hyung…?”
Pushed by the urging, Seon A-hyun slowly opened his mouth.
“I, I mean, that… earlier. I, I had a phone call. A call suddenly came….”
“With whom?”
“VTIC’s Cheong-ryeo sunbae, to this smartphone.”
Lee Se-jin frowned slightly.
“Isn't that A-hyun’s private phone? Why does that sunbae know that number?”
“Yeah, that was strange… and.”
Lowering his smartphone, Seon A-hyun murmured.
“He suddenly asked me if I knew a certain stranger.”
“…….”
“Who.”
“A person named P-Park Moon-dae.”
It was a name they had never heard before.
That was why the members felt a chill down their spines.
“…What did you say?”
“I said I didn't know, so he told me to search for it in the search bar….”
“…….”
Usually, being told to search for it on a portal site meant that it would show up if you searched….
And that profession was usually a celebrity.
An idol like themselves.
“And, I just checked.”
Seon A-hyun, still with a bloodless face, picked up another smartphone from the table.
It was Seon A-hyun’s work phone.
He had been checking this since the call. It was because something kept bothering him.
“The number that called my private phone was different.”
“What?”
“The number for Cheong-ryeo sunbae that I saved here… wasn't it.”
“…….”
That was it.
Everyone felt it instinctively.
That was the strangest and most suspicious thing!
“H-How about sending a text message?”
“Right!”
And so, under Ryu Cheong-woo’s supervision, Seon A-hyun sent this text to Cheong-ryeo.
A few hours later.
“It’s because no matter how much we think about it, it’s strange.”
They had come here to ask this.
An absurd question they would never have asked under normal circumstances.
“About the person named Park Moon-dae you mentioned to A-hyun on the phone earlier.”
“…….”
“Was he one of our members?”