Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Parallel Worlds and Idols (5)
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Darkness and silence had fallen over the dormitory hallway.
Under the faint glow of the emergency lights, the dragon girl stood.
"Everything's sealed off..."
She wandered the hallway in hopes of finding an open spot somewhere, but the door leading to the stairs was locked tight.
Looked like she had to rest as the announcement instructed.
As she debated just sitting on the floor to catch some sleep, the door to the room the owner had been staying in until moments ago slid quietly open.
"...Ming?"
She approached the door where all signs of life had vanished and peered inside.
A bed and blanket, plus a small closet.
The room was so cramped it took her breath away, lined with multiple bunk beds.
Was this the dormitory...?
"It's even stuffier than the army barracks..."
The barracks from her days as a guy hadn't felt this suffocating.
"The owner made her trainees live in a prison like this..."
If she'd been the owner, she'd have torn up the contract and bolted right out.
But the owner had toughed it out in this chicken coop for a full six years to chase her dream.
"......"
She smacked her lips bitterly and approached the bed still carrying the owner's scent.
"A letter...?"
Behind what looked like the owner's bed, a bunch of letters were stuck to the wall.
One of them caught her eye.
【Mi-ra unnie!
It's already been four years since Mi-ra unnie left to become a trainee!
Today at school, they gave us homework to write a letter to our most precious person.
So I wrote to unnie!
Just two more years, and I'll get to see Mi-ra unnie on TV, right?
I miss unnie. ㅜㅜㅜ
From Iru-na.】
The letter looked like it was from a little sister, the handwriting all crooked and full of misspellings.
"...Here too, and there..."
The letters taped to the closet weren't just one.
There were enough to cover nearly the entire wall.
【Mi-ra unnie! Look how awesome my handwriting is now!?
I practiced super hard just to show unnie!
The teacher even gave me a praise sticker! ㅋㅋㅋ!
Debut's just a few months away now?
Mom and Dad are hyped too!
Remember our promise? When you make it as an idol, buy a ton of Lua's favorite burgers!
Your sister who lo~ves you tons, ＊Iru-na＊.】
The most recent one still felt warm to the touch.
"......"
The letters from Lua, the much younger sister, served as the sole sanctuary in the barren dormitory.
"She was trying to write a reply too..."
By the pillow lay a half-finished sheet of letter paper and a pencil.
【Lua-ya. Sorry I haven't been in touch lately.
As debut gets closer, security means I have to keep it secret even from family.
I really wanted to tell you...
But unnie's debut date is set!
Christmas, no less! The group name you were so curious about is official too! MooD:iN!! It means making everyone (MooD) fall in (iN). Pretty name, huh? I'll call right after debut, so hang tight a little longer. I'll buy tons of burgers! Unnie who loves her sister too muc—】
The end of the reply looked hastily wrapped up.
"...Meow."
Just the surrounding letters and the unfinished reply made it clear how close they were.
The family photo at home...
The owner's oddly overprotective attitude toward her...
And now this glimpse into the past...
"......"
No deep thought needed to guess what had happened to the owner's sister, Iru-na.
Her hand unconsciously tightened around the letter paper.
Losing precious family... was the saddest thing anyone could face.
"So that's why the owner started the burger shop... No... don't overthink it."
Forced guesses would disrespect both the owner and her sister, so she quietly perched on the bed.
Her tail, swaying with her emotions, drooped more limply than ever, fanning the flames of her gloom.
She wanted to leap into the owner's arms and act all cute right now.
Play so wildly she'd forget her sadness.
Help out noisily while she made burgers.
...Instead, she quietly pulled the owner's scented pillow close and buried her face in it.
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Was she just spacing out, hugging the pillow?
Knock knock—.
A knocking sound echoed through the dormitory.
"..."
She lifted her head slightly and glanced at the door.
Who could be out there?
The owner?
Or maybe the senior from rule number six?
Knock knock—.
The gentle rapping came again, and she carefully turned the doorknob.
"......"
An unexpected guest stood at the door.
"...Lua?"
The owner's sister, Lua, was quietly waiting there.
"Why'd you call me here..."
"Shh—."
"Mmf..."
Lua pressed a finger to her lips and handed over the bouquet she was holding.
"...Give this to unnie. Got it?"
A dainty bundle of pale purple flowers, woven together adorably.
No distinctive fragrance, no sweet aroma.
"Wait...! Lua! Where are you going!"
Lua, after handing off the bouquet, headed for the stairs without a backward glance.
"Wait! Tell me why you called me here...! Run...!"
As she clutched the bouquet and chased after the receding Lua, she collided with someone passing through the hallway and tumbled to the floor.
Normally, the other person would have fallen, but it felt like she'd hit something even more solid, sending her sprawling.
Thud—.
The bouquet Lua had given her dropped limply to the ground.
"Ah, no way..."
This was precious; she had to deliver it to Mi-ra owner...
Scared the flowers would get ruined if left like that, she reached out fast.
"Hey, watch where you're going."
Just before she could grab it, someone else snatched the bouquet and tossed it to her.
"S-sorry..."
She caught it and mumbled an awkward apology, then looked up to see who'd she'd bumped into.
"........."
Arms and legs that had to be dozens of meters long speared down from the ceiling.
"What're you staring at? Who taught you to eye your seniors like that?"
A grotesque thing with no torso in sight snapped at her irritably.
"Heard there was some millennium rock girl, so I came to check her out... What's with trainees these days? No discipline at all...?"
Pat pat—.
It straightened its glitter-sprinkled pants, then seemed to finally notice her face and switched to a fake sugary tone.
"Ahem... Ah~. So you're that millennium rock kid, huh?"
It snorted like it was intrigued and let out a sleazy chuckle.
Rule six said to bow to a senior in stage costume in the hallway.
But rule seven said no outsiders ever entered C Building.
"You wanna debut early, right?"
She stayed silent, so it dropped its voice sleazily.
"You look desperate for it. I could push your debut date up."
"......"
"In exchange... just spend a little time with the VIP investors I hook you up with. Whaddya say?"
And rule eight about no sponsorship brokering zipped through her mind.
...Right on the cusp of debut, some creep disguised as a senior idol pitching illegal sponsorship.
This situation... was the owner's actual past.
This long-limbed anomaly talking to her... had to be a manifestation of that senior.
"...Sorry, but I'll pass."
She wanted to smash its arms and legs right then, but who knew what variables that might trigger, so she bowed politely to decline.
"...Aw, c'mon. It's not sketchy, just trust me once. The girls who debuted last time did it too?"
It half-ignored her refusal and reached for her shoulder.
Smack!
She haughtily swatted the hand away and shot it a frosty glare.
"I don't want to debut through cowardly means."
...The owner from back then definitely would have said exactly that.
Dead serious about being an idol, she'd have found anyone pushing illegal sponsorship utterly repulsive.
"...What'd this bitch just say?"
The senior anomaly stared in disbelief and raised its hand.
Going for a slap?
In its eyes, she wasn't dragon Iru-a—she was the millennium rock trainee Mi-ra.
If it hurt her, it'd be on the hook for the astronomical investment sunk into her debut.
She knew it knew that, and she met its gaze with unflinching icy resolve.
"Whoa... this psycho chick... got some guts... ptui! Fuckin' hell..."
The senior anomaly, aware of a promising millennium rock trainee's pull at the agency, spat curses and scrambled away in a panic.
"......Tch."
The idol world was way darker than she'd imagined.
Starving to keep weight down, cramming multiple people into dorms too tiny for one...
And shady illegal stuff happening behind closed doors...
Seeing the past Mi-ra owner silently enduring all that darkness made her seem even more incredible.
"Now just head to the fourth floor, huh..."
Follow the rules, report to the director's office on four, and she'd neatly clear rule eight.
"..."
She clutched the rustling bouquet tight to her chest and flung open the stairwell door.
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Unlike the second and third floors with dorms and practice rooms, the fourth floor reeked of corporate business vibes.
"Director's office..."
She navigated the maze of offices—enough to make her think it was endless—and reached the door with the director's plaque.
"Mi-ra owner...?"
Inside the director's office, the young owner was talking with someone.
"...Is that really true?"
"Yes. It'll be on the CCTV too, Director."
"Do you remember which senior offered Mi-ra sponsorship...?"
"Yes. It was Pin sunbae... from Astel."
Looked like she was explaining the senior who'd pitched illegal sponsorship to her.
"Astel's Pin... Got it. I'll contact the president right away."
The woman called Director immediately picked up the receiver linked to the president's office and made the call.
"We'll handle the rest, so go downstairs and calm your nerves."
"Thank you, Director."
Mi-ra owner bowed to the director and slipped out of the office.
"...Owner. Here..."
Waiting outside, she suddenly remembered the bouquet from Lua and tried to hand it over, but the owner had already dissolved into mist and vanished somewhere.
"Not the time yet."
Only then did she vaguely realize when she was supposed to give the owner this bouquet.
Month-end evaluation.
The day the owner finally debuted after six long years of waiting...
And the day she gave up her idol dreams...
"......"
She turned wordlessly toward the stairs.
Was the harsh winter chill seeping into the building? The stairwell felt much colder than before.
Her footsteps echoed as she passed the third floor.
"Huh? Lua...? Huh? Wait...! What do you mean...?"
From the third-floor dorm, the voice of the young owner screamed in disbelief at someone.
"Lua found dead... Ha... haha...!! It's a lie, right...? Tell me it's some belated April Fool's prank..."
Ignoring the increasingly choked-up voice of the owner, she quickened her steps down the stairs.
"Practice.... I hate it..."
Passing the second-floor practice room, the once vibrant voice was gone, replaced by a cracked whisper from the owner.
"...Lua-ya."
First floor.
"...I-I'll quit being a trainee."
Basement 1.
"I'm gonna try making those burgers Lua said she wanted."
Basement 2.
With each passing floor, echoes of Mi-ra owner's past rang out.
Before she knew it, she'd reached basement 3. Then came the voice of Ye-rin, leader of MooD:iN.
"There really is such a thing as an idol physique... Ah, this part goes like this. Sorry, sorry, Mi-ra..., pfft..."
Was this a fragment of the past?
Or the present?
Without hesitation, she reached out and flung open the stairwell door.
Click—.
Blinding spotlights.
A stage at the center of all eyes.
Among the four shining members, boldly claiming center...
"Mi-ra unnie...!!!"
She called the owner "unnie" and dashed onto the stage.
"Huh? Lua? When did you... Oof?!"
Poof! Caught off-guard by the sudden dragon body slam, Mi-ra owner tumbled to the floor with her.
"Unniee..."
The real owner.
Not some fragment conjured from past echoes, but the living, breathing Mi-ra owner.
With idol makeup and styling, she looked every bit the goddess now.
"Unniee... Kyahung!!"
"What're you doing tackling like that outta nowhere! It's dangerous!"
Bonk! The owner gave her a knuckle rap, peeled off the clingy dragon, and straightened her outfit.
She wagged her tail every which way as she gazed at Mi-ra owner.
Unlike her younger days, she'd dyed her roots white, and her matured features gleamed under the spotlights.
It was like a halo was shining around her—a true once-in-a-millennium idol.
Idol dance music poured from the speakers.
...She'd been practicing.
"Unnie...! A present!"
She beamed brightly and handed over the bouquet from Lua.
"Huh?"
The owner took the bouquet in a daze, and for a moment, her eyes flickered as if seeing her real little sister.
Iru-na.
Iru-a.
A mere dragon like her could never replace the owner's precious sister.
...But she wanted to be the owner's little sister, as herself.
"You came... just to give me this...?"
"...Yes!"
The innocent dragon girl Iru-a smiled harmlessly.
"Kyahung!!"
"...Coming here all alone like that—what were you thinking!"
She took a loving knuckle rap from the teary-eyed Mi-ra owner.
"Lua, you really...! Sniff...!"
"E-eh, unniee?!"
...In the far corner of the stage, under the dim shadow, Lua watched them with a soft smile.