Chapter 183
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 183
Kang Yi-chae and Seo Ho-yun were a match made in heaven, mostly because they were both equally devious.
“You use Jeong Da-jun and Kim Seong-hyeon to find out the mission code and location. I’ll figure out who the traitor is.”
“Got it.”
Because they knew each other so well, it was easy to deduce each other's behavioral patterns. They figured that by working together, they could easily obtain the necessary information.
After exchanging glances, the two turned their backs on each other with sly smiles. Above their heads, CG speech bubbles appeared.
‘He’s definitely going to betray me, that bastard.’
‘He’s just going to suck me dry and toss me aside...’
[Wow, the production team’s character analysis is spot on.]
[└ They must have watched a lot of The Dawn’s self-produced content.]
Lee Ji-hyeon’s fifty-six-page proposal included extremely detailed character profiles for The Dawn, so it was impossible for the production team not to know.
Deciding that things were getting interesting, the production team cut the take and inserted a short interview with Kang Yi-chae.
【Q. Who do you think the traitor is?】
“Hmm, the only person in The Dawn whose words I trust completely is Seong-hyeon hyung.”
【Q. And the reason?】
“Because it’s so obvious when he’s lying.”
The decisive factor in his deduction was Kim Seong-hyeon. Kang Yi-chae gave a smirk and pushed up his sunglasses.
“So, the traitor is definitely Seo Ho-yun.”
[Hey, where’d the ‘Hyung’ go?]
Confident that he had figured everything out, Kang Yi-chae slowly approached the temporary public telephone booth and spoke.
“You think I’d trust you, Hyung?”
—What?
He stepped into the booth and toyed with the receiver, acting nonchalant.
“Seong-hyeon hyung lying? Don’t talk nonsense. There’s no way that hyung could pull off acting like that.”
—…….
“No, I mean, even for a traitor, Hyung, why were you so relaxed? Like an amateur. You should have at least pretended to be doing a mission.”
—…Do you really think so?
Instead of answering, Kang Yi-chae let out a chuckle.
—Yi-chae, where are you?
“What are you going to do if you know?”
No matter how much he racked his brain, he didn't think Kim Seong-hyeon was a good enough actor to deceive him. His facial expressions had improved a bit recently, but the moment he opened his mouth, it was all over.
However, Seo Ho-yun was different.
That man could deceive the entire world without even blinking.
“Hyung, I’ll call you back later.”
Kang Yi-chae waved at his invisible opponent.
“You have to tell me the password then, okay?”
After ruthlessly hanging up, Kang Yi-chae hummed as he picked up the receiver again.
[Guys, thanks for filming a movie for us.]
[I’m seriously living for this concept.]
[But... please trust each other a little.]
[I’d trust a guy trying to sell me floor mats more than this.]
[└ Seriously, a door-to-door salesman has higher credibility at this point.]
While the Noeuls tore their hair out at the abysmal level of trust between The Dawn members, Kang Yi-chae spoke with a grin.
“The traitor is Seo Ho-yun.”
He wanted to make this masterpiece of a scene look even more dramatic.
“Ho-yun-ssi, how can love—”
He intentionally paused for a moment, took a long breath, and was about to say the mission code in a poignant voice when a mechanical beep sounded from the other end of the line.
【Kang Yi-chae, you have failed to identify the traitor.】
【You are immediately eliminated.】
“……Huh?!”
A flustered Kang Yi-chae couldn't even respond before the call was abruptly disconnected.
Beep— beep—.
[?????]
[What? Why is Yi-chae eliminated?]
Still holding the receiver, Kang Yi-chae brushed his hair back in despair when he heard a knock behind him.
Knock, knock.
Beep— beep—.
Startled, he turned around to see Seo Ho-yun tilting his head slightly with a faint smirk.
“Hi.”
[KYAAAAAAAAAAH!]
The tone was infinitely tender, completely at odds with the situation, making everyone watching the broadcast scream.
Kang Yi-chae looked around, wondering what on earth was happening, then looked back at Seo Ho-yun.
“……What??”
“Ahaha.”
Seo Ho-yun opened the door to the phone booth and casually brushed some dust off Kang Yi-chae’s clean shoulder.
“You should’ve trusted your hyung a little more.”
“……!!”
“Get out, you punk.”
Seo Ho-yun chuckled as he dragged the stunned Kang Yi-chae out and kicked him away.
[LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL Look at that incredibly satisfied expression LOLOLOL]
[He looks so relieved LOL]
“W-Wait! You said you wouldn’t make me regret it!!”
“It was fun, so you won’t regret it.”
【The fourth betrayal has occurred!
Seo Ho-yun betrays Kang Yi-chae!】
Since it wasn't exactly a lie, Kang Yi-chae missed his timing to argue and was seen over Seo Ho-yun’s shoulder being dragged away by the staff.
[Wait, so if it’s not Seo Ho-yun, then who is the traitor???]
[Crazy, Seo Ho-yun is moving right away;;]
[Man, this is insane. My heart is racing. They only get one shot at this, isn’t the difficulty too high?]
Without a moment’s hesitation, Seo Ho-yun pressed the buttons on the phone. He pulled his own phone out of his pocket, opened a chat window, and showed it to the camera lens.
[Kim Seong-hyeon: I did exactly what you told me to.]
[Kim Seong-hyeon: They really betrayed me right away. Those bad guys........]
[Me: (Photo)]
[Kim Seong-hyeon: You’re bad too.....]
At the bottom of the short chat was a photo of a mission paper that Kim Seong-hyeon seemed to have sent.
【Identify the traitor—
‘I’ve fought through the darkness for this moment’】
Shining Star Season 2, the legendary final stage.
It was a lyric from Stardust.
Kim Seong-hyeon hadn't intended to lie to Kang Yi-chae and Jeong Da-jun from the start, either. Before filming, he had tried his best to ignore Seo Ho-yun’s words as he slyly amplified his anxiety, asking, ‘Which member can you trust besides Seong Ji-won?’
But as time passed, the sentence Seo Ho-yun had tossed out like a devil’s whisper kept swirling in his head. In the end, he had given a different hint just as insurance.
In truth, if Jeong Da-jun and Kang Yi-chae hadn't betrayed him, he had intended to correct it later.
But when he was actually stabbed in the back, the first person who came to mind was Seo Ho-yun.
As long as he wasn't the target, there was no one better suited to handle someone else.
【The fifth betrayal has occurred!
Kim Seong-hyeon betrays Kang Yi-chae and Jeong Da-jun.】
Ring... ring.
Click.
Seo Ho-yun called out to the other person ‘tenderly.’
“Ji-won-ah.”
Crude CG clips of the sweet, heartwarming times Seo Ho-yun had spent with Seong Ji-won flashed by.
Tapping the tangled phone cord, he paused for a moment and put on a bitter expression.
“How can love change?”
Then, an awkward laugh came through the receiver.
【The Original Betrayal.
Seong Ji-won betrays everyone.】
.
.
.
The full story of the "The Dawn’s Five" incident, which involved a total of six backstabbings, was as follows:
A few days before the filming schedule, the production team had called Seong Ji-won aside and offered him the role of the traitor.
“Ahaha, okay! I’ll do my best.”
【Seong Ji-won cast as the traitor!】
Seong Ji-won, who showed an active attitude toward the role with his angelic face, carried the show even harder than the staff had anticipated.
From subtly hinting that Kang Yi-chae might be the traitor, to intentionally distracting Seo Ho-yun by saying the hot dogs looked delicious, to leading him to a cafe where they were swarmed by fans.
[Holy crap, so that’s why they filmed a ‘virtual marriage’ scene.]
[It wasn’t Seo Ho-yun, it was Seong Ji-won who was stalling for time….]
Despite all the interference to stall him, Seo Ho-yun had simply nodded.
He didn't need to move anyway.
Since he had set traps for Kim Seong-hyeon and Kang Yi-chae respectively, all he had to do was wait for them to busily move around and destroy themselves. Then, he would just take what he needed and make one phone call. It was an incredibly easy task.
“……Ah, this is a bit troublesome.”
Unaware of the situation, Seong Ji-won was flustered because he hadn't expected Seo Ho-yun to follow him so obediently. He hadn't intended to interfere to this extent.
On the other hand, he felt like he was being swept up in Seo Ho-yun’s pace.
“Hmm… I’ll go play poker to find the treasure’s location.”
“Sure, then I should go do some acting.”
In the end, Seong Ji-won, who had been agonizing over his iced americano, decided to look for a target easier than Seo Ho-yun.
Of course, even after that, Seo Ho-yun continued to just sip his drink at the cafe.
[LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL Seo Ho-yun, you lazy bastard.... Did he even move at all besides fooling around with Seong Ji-won?]
[But he’s seriously smart LOL]
The whole time, he had just stared blankly outside, occasionally checked his phone, or made small talk with the staff.
Then, after checking the time on his phone, Seo Ho-yun slowly stood up.
The hint about the traitor he got from Kim Seong-hyeon.
The mission code Jeong Da-jun obtained, which was passed through Kang Yi-chae.
And finally, the locker number provided by the overconfident Kang Yi-chae.
All the information was gathered.
Now, all that was left was to go to the public phone.
‘The reason Kang Yi-chae failed is clear.’
Actually, though no one knew it, this game was significantly in Seo Ho-yun’s favor from the start.
Kim Seong-hyeon can’t act!
That strong belief was rooted deep within The Dawn.
However, Seo Ho-yun had been very surprised when he checked Kim Seong-hyeon’s stats toward the end of Shining Star Season 2.
【Kim Seong-hyeon
Acting: E → D】
Kim Seong-hyeon had achieved remarkable progress in acting.
Of course, that was with a massive amount of exaggeration added.
‘Still, this is enough to be useful.’
This was something only Seo Ho-yun knew.
This time, a short interview with Seo Ho-yun was attached.
【Q. How did you set up this whole scheme?】
“It’s not hard if you have two very certain facts.”
Seo Ho-yun rested his chin on his hand, his eyes curving into crescents.
“Kang Yi-chae will never trust me. And everyone thinks it’ll be obvious if Kim Seong-hyeon tries to act.”
The more Kang Yi-chae distrusted him and layered doubt upon doubt, the closer Seo Ho-yun got to victory.
Opening the bag with the password Seong Ji-won had given him, Seo Ho-yun took out a jewel, kissed it, and smirked.
“Of course.”
【WINNER: Seo Ho-yun】
And so, Seo Ho-yun naturally claimed the victory.
* * *
Kim Seong-hyeon, Jeong Da-jun, Kang Yi-chae, and Seong Ji-won were standing in front of the tvK broadcasting station.
Except for Seong Ji-won, the other three were busy bickering and glaring at each other.
Bam~~ baram bam bam!
Suddenly, the most famous OST from the movie Veteran began to play.
And from a distance, Seo Ho-yun, crouched atop a child’s electric G-Wagon, drove toward the members, even pulling off a bit of a drift.
Whirrrrr—.
Screech.
Driving the car that looked too small for him to even sit in with surprising skill, Seo Ho-yun parked in front of the main camera and winked as he lowered his sunglasses.
“Macau Seo has arrived.”
[LOLOLOLOLOL You crazy bastard, why are you actually riding that LOLOLOLOL]
[Man, he looks cool as hell though LOL]
“Boo~~!!”
“Traitor! Traitor!!”
“Why are you acting like this? Like an amateur.”
After throwing back the words he’d heard from Kang Yi-chae, he walked over to his only ally, Kim Seong-hyeon, and put an arm around his shoulder.
“Mr. Kim Seong-hyeon, thank you for your help.”
“Yeah……. I’m… glad I could be of help.”
“I should give you a reward.”
Seo Ho-yun rummaged through his inner jacket pocket as if he were actually going to give him something. Kim Seong-hyeon, having no real expectations, watched him with a lukewarm gaze.
[Is he going to give him money???]
However, Seo Ho-yun...
“Here.”
...pulled out a finger heart.
“Oh, and this too.”
“……!!”
“Thank you very much~.”
[LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL]
[Look at Seong-hyeon’s look of pure disgust LOLOLOL Seo Ho-yun doesn’t care one bit LOL]
Kim Seong-hyeon’s expression rotted after receiving the wink.
It wasn't that he particularly wanted money, but he had ended up seeing something completely useless that only served to rot his eyes.
While Kim Seong-hyeon screamed and poked at his own eyes, Seo Ho-yun unfastened the briefcase he had attached to the back of the child’s electric car.
He handed the bag containing the jewels and gold bars to the staff and received a bag containing the prize money in exchange.
[I think Seo Ho-yun has developed a taste for teasing Kim Seong-hyeon... What are we going to do with Seong-hyeon.....]
He really had developed a taste for it.
Jeong Da-jun pouted and grumbled.
“What are we going to do about his personality??”
“Our Da-jun-ie, you’re still young so you don’t know. Character originally comes from the wallet.”
Saying, ‘Look, see how kind I am right now,’ he opened the bag and waved a handful of bills.
“I might lack class, but do I not have money?”
[LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL]
[Ah LOL Aren’t the lines reversed? LOL]
After saying that, Seo Ho-yun lowered his sunglasses and smiled, just as Seong Ji-won had done in the opening.
At the same time, the ending credits for The Dawn’s Five rolled.
Photos of the production staff who participated in the filming were shown along with their short commentaries.
【The plan was for them to cooperate and fight the traitor… but they say they all took turns betraying each other quite nicely.】
【I felt once again how amazing The Dawn is…. Seeing them bite and tear at each other like hyenas was truly heartwarming. ^^】
Finally, on the blackened screen, the title ‘Winner: The Gifted Seo Ho-yun’ was stamped, and an angel mark was drawn over it.
【But Seo Ho-yun-ssi was a truly good person.
(This is definitely not being said because he bought an expensive course lunch for the entire staff with his prize money.)】
That was exactly why they were saying it.
【The Dawn are angels, and we will support them forever.
(This is not being said because he sent a coffee truck outside today while we were editing.)
May you prosper.
- From all the staff.】
The broadcast ended with The Dawn’s song, Stardust.
Despite being full of suspicion for each other and committing betrayal after betrayal, The Dawn managed to protect their title as angels.
Furthermore, through this reality show, Seo Ho-yun successfully shed his previous image.
Moving away from labels like ‘orphan’ or ‘victim of a tragic accident,’ he became known as a prickly guy with a sharp brain.
He officially became the gifted one, the extraordinary one, the one crazy for victory.
[Seo Ho-yun, our small and precious crazy angel......]
Everyone already knew that this was necessary when thinking about the group in the long term, but...
The Noeuls just laughed hollowly.
[I don’t know where you’d find angels who betray each other five or six times, but....]
They decided to overlook the minor details.