Chapter 138
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 138
[OMG!!! The Dawn is debuting in Japan!!!]
"……Huh???"
The reaction was better than expected.
Startled, Lee Ji-hyeon bolted upright and grabbed her monitor.
[Congratulations so much, guys ㅠㅠ!! Let’s only walk on a flower path ㅎㅎ]
[Kyah, as expected lol. Time to earn that Yen #LetsGo]
…No, the response was actually great.
Even though it was the official account and there were still occasional jabs at Daepasung, it was rare for the atmosphere to be this positive. Ji-hyeon rubbed her eyes several times.
She then logged into her private account to check the discourse there.
[Lol, of course they’re starting with Japan.]
Fortunately, the mood wasn't too negative here either.
[Lol, I felt like they were gearing up to go abroad soon.. (f*ck) They’ve spent a year working hard to solidify their position domestically, so..
└ It’s not like they’re being sent abroad because they failed in Korea.. Since they’ve built up recognition, it’s inevitable they’d go overseas to bring in capital.]
[It feels a bit early.. but at least the duration is short, thank god ㅠㅠ
There aren't any big rookies debuting in January right now..
Even if they’re gone for a few weeks, there’s no risk of the fandom leaking out.
└ Lol, and these cute brats are so active on B-Live, they’ll probably keep uploading stuff anywayㅋㅋ]
Naturally, there were bound to be negative opinions about them going abroad. K-pop fans, having been burned too many times, tended to grit their teeth at the mere mention of the word "overseas." In a way, it was a natural reaction.
The fact that they weren't being universally trashed on the real-time trends was a win in itself.
As Seo Ho-yun had said, it was all thanks to the thorough groundwork they had laid over the past year.
[They’ve worked sooooo damn hard for the past year with variety shows, self-produced content, and title tracks..
└ Thank you! We are The Dawn! (GIF of them entering)
The Rising Dawn! We are The Dawn! (GIF of them leaving)
└└ Lololol this is so real.]
[Deonging-i-deul and Noeul are always like this:
The Dawn: No comeback, no comeback, no comeback..
Noeul: The Deonging-i-deul are lying again..!
The Dawn: (Silence)
Noeul: ...Wait? Is there really no comeback?
The Dawn: COMEBAAACK~!!
Noeul: ...Ugh! You guys always do this..!
└ Ahahahahaha]
Even during the year-end stages, comments like "I'm going to skin you alive, you Daepasung bastards!" were common. Ji-hyeon was so stunned by the unexpectedly mild reaction to the overseas activities that she just stood there, gaping.
"…W-wow."
[But? If they do a sh*t ton of overseas tours and lose the new fans, I’m pulling Daepasung out by the roots.]
[The moment they neglect domestic fans while chasing overseas money, I’m going to the lobby and screaming.
└ I’ll drop my pants right next to you.
└└ Lolololololololol seriously, everyone, calm down lolololol]
"Y-yes, sir."
Ji-hyeon tried to pull herself together while watching the posts update with every refresh, but tears began to prick her eyes.
For a whole year, she had lived like the walking dead, crushed between a boss who didn't understand trends and colleagues who wouldn't listen.
She had received incentives, and the work wasn't without its rewards, but she barely had time to spend the money, and even the smallest mistake felt like her fault. On top of that, she was being kept in check by her superiors, her peers were playing mind games, and the stress had piled up mountain-high….
"Damn it… thank god…."
Relief washed over her at the positive response. Poor newbie Lee Ji-hyeon, who had suffered so much, began to sob uncontrollably.
"Waaaaah. Thank goodness……."
Honestly, a Japanese debut wasn't that big of a deal, and the duration was short. She thought she had grown a thick skin from being constantly criticized, but perhaps because so much had built up over the past year, once the dam broke, the sorrow came rushing out.
Forgetting her embarrassment, Ji-hyeon slumped over her desk and wailed.
"…Uwaaaaah."
At the same time, the resignation letter she had been keeping tucked away in her heart came to mind.
Even if she couldn't live a God-saeng, she wanted to reclaim a human life.
'Do I really have to live like this…?'
After calming down slightly and sniffing vacantly, Ji-hyeon quietly pulled the resignation letter from her drawer and began to fill it out with trembling fingers.
"Let's not live like this…. Let's just quit everything…. I want my God-saeng…."
Just then, a familiar voice came from the entrance.
"Ji-hyeon."
Seo Ho-yun stood leaning against the door with a stoic expression, a book tucked under one arm.
Ji-hyeon, who had been writing her resignation, jumped in surprise, but Ho-yun merely nodded and approached her.
'……D-did he hear me?'
"Are you still working?"
"O-oh, yes. I was checking the reaction to the debut…."
Embarrassed, Ji-hyeon quickly wiped her face with one sleeve and covered the resignation letter with her other arm, but she couldn't stop her nose from sniffing.
"The, the reaction seems okay."
"Yes, I saw."
"…You saw?"
You saw it and you're this calm?
Ji-hyeon often found Seo Ho-yun impossible to read.
No matter how early one starts their social life in the entertainment industry, and no matter how much they grow up reading the room, Seo Ho-yun was still only twenty-four and a second-year idol.
Yet, despite that, he was indifferent to most things, prickly about small details, and utterly fearless.
"The reaction isn't bad, thanks to you, Ji-hyeon."
"……."
'…Wait, that’s actually touching.'
Ji-hyeon erased her previous thoughts and looked at Seo Ho-yun with a moved expression.
No one else acknowledged her hard work, so hearing it from Seo Ho-yun—who was famous even within Daepasung for being difficult—made her heart swell a little.
"I think the Japanese promotions will go well. The anime ending theme should do well, and the showcase planning was solid."
"…The B-sides turned out really beautiful."
"Right? Kang Yi-chae put a lot of effort into them."
Ho-yun brought up work matters casually, then leaned slightly against the desk next to her. He set the book down on the other side and handed her a box of tissues.
"…Sniff. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Whether Ji-hyeon blew her nose loudly or not, Ho-yun’s gaze swept across her desk before landing on the monitor.
"Um, did you need something…?"
"Ah~."
Surprisingly, Ho-yun didn't get straight to the point. Since this was different from his usual "no-brakes" way of speaking, Ji-hyeon became extra cautious.
"Just? I was concerned."
"……Ah, oh…."
Ji-hyeon struggled to understand the meaning behind his words.
'What?'
That ill-tempered brat is concerned about someone?
The tears that had been dangling from her eyes vanished instantly.
She was rubbing her eyes in disbelief when Ho-yun tapped the desk.
"It’s hard working here, isn't it? Getting pushed around from all sides is a given, and no matter how hard you try, most people don't even notice."
"……."
"And even if they do notice, they just take you for a pushover and dump more work on you as if it's expected. People are really cruel."
"…Excuse me, Ho-yun."
"Yes?"
It was one thing for him to suddenly show up and build up to a topic like this, but still.
"Why do you talk like someone who’s been through the wringer for over ten years?"
You're an idol….
At her hesitant question, Ho-yun finally looked at Ji-hyeon and gave a slight smile.
"I guess that didn't work?"
He meant he was dropping the act and the build-up, but Ji-hyeon barely registered the words.
'……Wow.'
Having left the K-pop fan life behind, Ji-hyeon had long since dedicated her life and soul to 1D and 2D characters, so she honestly wasn't interested in real humans. However, she couldn't help but be purely impressed whenever Seo Ho-yun smiled like that.
It wasn't just his looks.
'His aura is just….'
"Since you're so quick-witted, Ji-hyeon, I have something to give you."
"…Yes."
Ji-hyeon looked at him uneasily.
Admiration was one thing, but she already knew that whenever Seo Ho-yun smiled like that, something—whether positive or negative—was bound to happen.
"Here."
"Yes."
With a complete change in expression, Ho-yun picked up the book he had set down and handed it to Ji-hyeon. Watching him warily with suspicious eyes, Ji-hyeon took the book and her eyes widened to the size of saucers.
"……What?"
It was a first-edition hardcover of a novel that had been out of print for sixteen years—Ji-hyeon’s absolute favorite, the very foundation and beginning of her long history as a novel otaku!!
"W-w-w-what is this……!!"
"The front page."
It was a book that people joked couldn't be found even if you offered a million or ten million won.
Ji-hyeon felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck her head, half in disbelief and half in excitement.
At Ho-yun’s words, she opened the front cover with trembling hands.
[Thank you for your support.
Always be happy ^^]
…It was a handwritten signature from the author, who was said to have retired from writing.
"A-a-a-are you crazy?!?!?"
Clatter.
Ji-hyeon carefully placed the book on the desk as if she had seen a ghost, but scrambled away so fast she didn't even notice her chair tipping over.
Ho-yun, however, just responded nonchalantly.
"I heard you liked it."
"Are you insane?!! It’s not just that I like it, I worship this! This is my religion! My Bible!!"
Ji-hyeon was in shock, staring at her "Bible" which seemed to be emitting a holy glow.
"H-how on earth did you… no, why…."
She had mentioned it once in passing during a meeting with the planning team. That she was a fan of this novel and wanted to find the hardcover edition.
She had definitely said it, but the fact that Ho-yun remembered it was shocking enough—how he had actually managed to find it was another matter entirely….
No, how did he get a signed copy?
"I'm glad you seem to like it."
"……."
"I wanted to get that cleared out of my sight as well. It's yours."
Ji-hyeon, still unable to recover from the shock, could only gape. Lacking the energy to even respond, she pulled her chair back up and slumped into it.
Ho-yun simply rested one arm on the chair and used his other hand to move the mouse, closing the websites Ji-hyeon had been searching.
Click.
"Are you still going to resign?"
…He definitely saw me writing the resignation letter, this brat.
When a dazed Ji-hyeon shook her head as if possessed, Ho-yun smiled brightly.
The cluttered websites disappeared, revealing the Daepasung logo set as the wallpaper.
"…What is it?"
She had reached a point where she couldn't tell if the being in front of her was an angel who had brought her a signed first-edition hardcover of her worshipped novel, or a devil whispering sweet words to lure her into a trap.
No, even if Seo Ho-yun were an angel, there was no way he would do this without a reason. The sharp-witted Ji-hyeon barely managed to pull herself together and asked.
"Do you have a favor to ask of me?"
"Ahaha."
Ho-yun laughed as if he liked this side of her. In contrast to Ji-hyeon’s anxious face, Ho-yun looked very satisfied.
"There's something I want to do. I came to check your intentions first."
"……??"
Ji-hyeon frowned and looked up at him. Ho-yun looked away from the Daepasung logo and lowered his gaze.
"Ji-hyeon."
"…Yes."
The Japanese promotions were one thing, but…
"Are you the ambitious type, by any chance?"
To quickly rise to the First-tier, he was starting the engine to snip away any unnecessary sprouts.
.
.
.
'Hmm.'
I thought back to Ji-hyeon, who had been staring at me as if I were a savior, her loyalty deepening by the second.
Is it really that good?
'I don't get it.'
As for that hardcover book,
I had gone through a lot of trouble to get it as a surprise gift for Kim Hee-yeong, who said she was a fan of that author. But then I got buried in work while supporting Ho-jin through his CSAT and completely forgot about it. Even after we broke up, I was too busy living my life, so it had just been sitting there, forgotten.
If Ji-hyeon hadn't happened to mention it during a meeting briefing, I probably would never have remembered it.
Anyway, it was a gift I’d bought for an ex-girlfriend, but in the end, I never gave it to her, and it wasn't like I could give it to her now.
Not that it didn't feel a bit awkward.
'But the object is innocent.'
Shameless and without a conscience, I finished clearing my head and stepped off the business class section of the plane, arriving at Narita Airport.
I greeted the airport staff and hovered next to Seong Ji-won, who could speak Japanese.
After finishing the routine procedures, I shoved my passport into my pocket and looked at the scene before me with a fresh smile.
"Whoa~."
Air that was a bit warmer than Korea's winter, characters whose meanings I didn't know, and a somewhat quiet atmosphere.
"It's Japan."
Refreshing.
'Still, it was a good idea to lay the groundwork before coming, right?'
A person really should handle their business in advance.
Kim Seong-hyeon, with a neck pillow tucked under his arm, looked at me skeptically.
"…I hate it whenever he smiles like that. Am I abnormal?"
"Beep. You are normal."
Ignoring Jeong Da-jun’s comment as he placed a hand on Kim Seong-hyeon’s forehead, I let my smile widen.
It was the start of our first overseas activity.