Chapter 135
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 135
Chapter Title: Japan Trip (3)
『This is an announcement. The Tokyo-bound flight to Tokyo will be departing shortly. Passengers scheduled to board, please proceed to Gate X—』
After wandering around the duty-free shops, boarding time crept up on us without me buying a single thing.
"Isn't it about time to go?"
"Hmm... It bugs me a little that we didn't pick anything out, but whatever. There are catalogs on the plane anyway. And plenty of stuff to buy in Japan."
"You don't have to spend money on everything, you know."
I kept an eye on Myth's terrifying spending habits—reserved exclusively for me—as we headed to the gate together. This girl might impulsively buy a whole car if she felt like it.
She already had a house and bought the one next door just to give it to me. I needed to stay vigilant from here on out. She had a habit of going off the rails sometimes.
"What about Sera and Sara?"
"They boarded first. They bought food for us and said not to bother getting anything."
"Huh? You can bring food onto the plane? They took all the water and stuff at security earlier."
"Anything you buy inside here is fine to take on. That's why there's a convenience store and cafe over there."
"I thought you had to eat everything before boarding."
"Heh heh. I skipped breakfast and lunch, so my stomach was growling anyway. Perfect timing."
We scanned our tickets and crossed the jet bridge to the plane.
"Welcome aboard."
The flight attendant greeted us as we stepped inside. Oh, right—I'm 27. Come to think of it, she might actually be younger than me.
As I mulled over that random thought and entered the cabin, something heavy jabbed my side.
I turned to see Myth puffing out her cheeks with a pouty expression, glaring at me.
"What're you thinking about?"
"Huh? Oh, just wondering if she's older or younger than me."
"It's rude to think about a woman's age. ...So, what do you think?"
"Honestly, I have no clue how to guess women's ages."
"Why not?"
"Because 19-year-old you and 27-year-old you look exactly the same to me."
Truth be told, the first time I saw Myth at the airport that day, I could've sworn the past seven years were a lie.
She looked exactly the same as right before that car accident—like nothing had changed.
Myth blinked at my words, staring quietly at me.
I racked my brain wondering what I'd messed up this time when she suddenly slapped both her cheeks with her hands.
"Hoo. Public place. Public place."
She swallowed hard, like gulping down some emotion, let out a sigh, and turned away.
My first impression of the plane was that it was pretty big and spacious. Of course, I wasn't clueless enough not to realize this was business class.
And Myth plopped down in a business-class seat like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Hm?
"Ah, this is our spot, Seol-ah. Come on, sit down already."
"Wait, this is for real? For just a trip to Japan?"
Myth shoved me toward the window seat. Business class? For Japan? I turned to her in disbelief, and she just grinned back.
Then Sara and Sera suddenly popped up from the seats behind us—either they'd been hiding or we hadn't noticed because they were both on the shorter side.
"Right? I've never flown business for a measly two-hour hop either."
"Unnie, this is straight-up overspending no matter how you slice it."
"What's the big deal? I can't stand seeing Seol-ah uncomfortable. That's why I made a pile of money in the first place."
"Economy seats are cramped, so we could've snuggled even closer."
"Ah."
Myth's face fell like the thought hadn't even crossed her mind.
While she stood there stunned, Sera handed me a few snacks.
"I wasn't sure what you'd like, so I grabbed a bunch of stuff."
"Ooh, my favorite snacks. Thanks, I'll dig in."
After divvying up the snacks, the plane started to shake a little.
"Oh, looks like it's takeoff time. The plane's lining up on the runway."
"Whoa... So this massive thing actually moves, huh."
"You sounded like such a country bumpkin just now."
"Kuh, sorry for being a Seoul hick."
The shaking intensified, and the deafening roar of the jet engines I'd never heard up close assaulted my ears.
My chatter died down without me realizing. I guess I was pretty tense.
"Ooh, Legend oppa shows his nerves, but are we supposed to stay chill?"
"Speak for yourself. Stop teasing the nervous guy and be quiet."
"Oh, so you want us to pay a little more attention to you?"
"When did I ever say—"
Sera and Sara bickered noisily behind us as the Japan-bound plane let out a mighty roar and lifted into the sky.
▶
Meanwhile, at that very moment, DreamLive's headquarters in Japan.
Mika stared blankly at the profiles of the next batch of trainees, her eyes dead.
Truth be told, someone at her level didn't need to handle this anymore, but ever since joining the company, Mika had deliberately taken it all on herself.
It was all preparation to build a ladder straight to Myth.
She had to handpick the kids she'd be working with, right? Not that she was using DreamLive as a mere tool or anything... well, whatever.
"Hey, Mika-Mika. You hear?"
"Tell me what it is first. And don't call me Mika-Mika. Makes me think of that yellow pouch mouse."
"Ehehe. We collabed last time, what's the harm~?"
Maki shrugged shamelessly.
"DreamLive invited Myth."
"...What? I didn't hear about that."
"Duh, 'cause this collab's with me, not you. Remember that recording we did after last year's Christmas show? She's coming back for that. It was so popular, we're doing another track."
Maki flashed a V-sign, beaming. Mika's face, on the other hand, soured. No, it darkened completely.
"Haa... Those DreamLive idiots."
"Huh, why? Jealous I'm collabing with Myth?"
"As if, you moron. It's something else."
Mika rubbed her face in frustration.
It wasn't the collab with Maki that bugged her—it was DreamLive's obvious intentions.
Logically, unless it was a huge event like last time, there was no reason to fly Myth over for just one song.
This was fallout from their stunt before—they were tiptoeing around Myth, scared she'd catch on.
No way they'd been busted for sure, but people had hunches.
Myth, backed by Legend and QWER—folks who could do whatever they wanted in the industry—might've picked up on the weirdness.
'Right after I dropped that bomb refusing the outfit, everyone turned on them and ripped into it, but yeah, there were people online suspecting manipulation.'
She thought she'd played her reaction perfectly, but the provocation fell flat, leaving plenty of room for others to suspect she got special treatment.
Now it was all dismissed with a single "If they rigged it, Mika would've taken the outfit, duh—why wouldn't she?"
The label, Myth, and Legend's side—watching closely—might've sniffed out the irregularity.
The label held the knife, evidence or not. Even a blunt blade could draw blood if swung right at DreamLive.
'You idiots. Shouldn't have pulled that crap in the first place.'
Mika knew exactly what the president and board were scheming after all these years together.
Start small with a collab album invite, then ramp up to gauge the label's hostility toward DreamLive.
'How about this level of project—wanna come to Japan?'
'No? What about this?'
'Eh, not even this?'
'Oh crap, they totally suspect us—what now—'
Gathering intel like that inside the company. So they jabbed lightly with the album recording...
'Sounds good. Let's do it.'
'Huh? For real? You're coming to Japan just for a recording?'
'Yep. See you soon.'
They probably never dreamed Myth would fly over for a single track. That's why Mika hadn't heard.
Why Myth was coming? Obvious: to treat her boyfriend to a trip. DreamLive got nothing checked and now had to scramble with the recording.
"Maki, sit down. When exactly is the recording?"
"Huh? Suddenly? Uh, two days from now, I think?"
"Great. Means we've got two days of all-nighters ahead."
"Why?!"
If word got out they called Myth over for just one track, that'd be worse. She had to fill Myth's schedule with something—anything.
Haa.
Mika let out a dead-eyed sigh at the mountain of work piling up again.