Chapter 408
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 408
[I’m not the only one feeling this, right..?]
It wasn’t that Seo Ho-yun was acting awkward or avoiding Kang Yi-chae in front of the cameras.
[Why does it feel like he’s being so nice to him? ;]
If anything, he seemed to be paying him extra special attention. Ho-yun called out Yi-chae’s name frequently, and whenever Yi-chae so much as opened his mouth to speak, Ho-yun would lean in close with a friendly tilt of his upper body.
[He’s been casually dropping the surname and calling him "Yi-chae-ya" for a while now, and I’m literally getting goosebumps ^^;;]
[Did Kang Yi-chae do something wrong to Seo Ho-yun? This is definitely a guilt-trip tactic.
└ LOLOLOLOL this is it, for sure.]
Fans, who initially thought it was just a joke, began to sense something was off because his attitude was far too pleasant—unlike his usual self when he was messing around. Normally, if a person who is usually stoic starts acting clingy, even in small ways, one would notice, but Kang Yi-chae seemed completely oblivious.
Currently, the only thing capturing Yi-chae’s interest was how the youngest member had managed to turn the rice cake soup bright blue.
[Kang Yi-chae: "Why on earth is the rice cake soup blue… Did you put Ho-yun hyung’s hair in it or something?"
Seo Ho-yun: "Next year, let’s wash Kang Yi-chae’s hair and make it red."
Jeong Da-jun: Suggests putting it in a hot pot bowl next time to create the Korean flag.]
[Ugh, Da-jun-ah, seriously LOLOLOLOL]
[LMAO, Seong-hyeon flicked the maknae’s forehead. Everyone is just saying whatever comes to mind, and Seong Ji-won is just sitting there laughing. Why aren't you stopping them, Ji-won-ah?]
Fortunately, there were too many other things for the fans to feast on for them to stay focused on Seo Ho-yun’s fleeting behavior for long.
As the members began to spill recent stories and small tidbits of information that fans found precious, the murmurs quickly died down.
[Seo Ho-yun probably isn't thinking anything of it, but people really love playing detective lol]
[To be fair, Seo Ho-yun himself just makes people feel tense........
└ Because he’s handsome??
└└ No, the vibe lol. I saw him in person on the street once and I almost peed myself.]
Of course, behind these comments were the fans' efforts to keep things calm, fearing that discord rumors might flare up again.
[Alright, let me summarize:
If Seo Ho-yun or Kang Yi-chae stares at you, they’re about to start a prank.
Kim Seong-hyeon? If you make eye contact, only your face will turn red.
Jeong Da-jun? He wants a snack.
But if Ji-won won't take his eyes off you?
That’s when you’re in real danger.
└ I’m sorry Ji-won-ah please forgive me I’ll do better
└ I can’t even imagine what I did wrong...
└ But the way Jeong Da-jun wanting a snack just slipped in there LOLOLOL
└└ Is he a puppy? LMAO]
While there were always people who overanalyzed every single action of an idol, even they were immediately distracted once they received The Dawn’s New Year Season’s Greetings, which perfectly captured a 1990s aesthetic.
As soon as they opened the box, they were greeted by faded film photos taken in front of a reed field in Jeju Island, evoking a sense of nostalgia.
[This SG is feeding me straight-up noir vibes.]
[Is the New Year’s message "Let’s live honestly, man"? I mean, I love it, obviously.]
The Noeuls, feeling proud as they meticulously looked through the Season’s Greetings—which even included thank-you messages to the fans—widened their eyes when they discovered postcards for each member at the bottom of the box.
On the back of the cards, they found letters the members of The Dawn had written to one another.
[Omg, they wrote a rolling paper for each other on the back of the postcards.]
[Ah, I haven't received my SG yet, I just got spoiled T_T]
[What is this? Yi-chae wrote to Da-jun in English lolol. Look at that cursive.]
Among them, the only sentence written in English was translated by some fans and shared on SNS.
【Thanks for coming to pick me up at the PC bang in the beginning~】
[PC bang??? What does that mean?]
[LOL, I guess they used to play games at PC bangs together. Cute brats.]
However, they couldn't quite grasp the context.
They could only speculate based on rumors that Kang Yi-chae and Jeong Da-jun used to frequent a local PC bang together during their early debut days when they didn't have much work.
Amidst the mix of well-wishes, jokes, and a bit of cute grumbling in the letters, Seo Ho-yun calmly expressed his gratitude to Kang Yi-chae, saying, "It must be a burden, but thank you for always taking charge of the songs."
[The Dawn is family.]
[You guys said you were just business partners, so why am I crying..?]
Everyone clutched their hearts in emotion as they checked the message Kang Yi-chae had sent to Seo Ho-yun.
【He definitely lives up to his face.】
[LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL]
[Is Kang Yi-chae insane? LMAO]
[The way they joke around shows they’re real friends LOL. I guess they bicker a lot.]
The seeds of controversy that had been subtly sprouting seemed to fizzle out just like that.
And though the Noeuls wouldn't have known, at that moment, Seo Ho-yun was also hoping everything would just blow over without any issues.
* * *
The first thing I did after the New Year began was head to WH Entertainment. There had been a major change in the stage lineup for the upcoming awards ceremony.
While we were gathered in Kang Yi-chae’s studio—which we frequented like a hideout—exchanging opinions, I subtly glanced at his messy red hair.
He was clicking his mouse, editing a song in real-time.
"Seong-hyeon hyung’s dancing has been great lately, so I think if we just emphasize this part a bit more and change it to a more tense beat..."
‘Kang Yi-chae, he’s surprisingly quiet.’
Kang Yi-chae had definitely found something out about me.
‘He wouldn't have just thrown those words out by accident.’
Since it wasn't clear what his intentions were or what he had gained, I had been acting extra friendly to see if he’d spill anything, but he hadn't said a single word about it since.
My mind felt scratchy, like it was being ground against sand, but I soon reached a conclusion.
‘Let’s just leave it buried for now.’
Since Kang Yi-chae had chosen to keep his mouth shut, there was no need for me to go poking a hornet's nest. It would be even better if he stayed quiet until I finished all the quests.
Afterward, I headed to the practice room with the members to prepare for the awards performance. I split off from the group to go to the company cafe to buy drinks for everyone, when I heard a voice as faint as a crawling ant from behind me.
"Seo Ho-yun-ssi."
I stopped in my tracks and turned around. A hand suddenly appeared through the crack of a dark meeting room door, waving at me. Then, Kang Yeon-hu’s face peeked out.
"...What are you doing?"
"Shh, shhh!"
Quickly pressing his index finger to his lips and looking around, Kang Yeon-hu beckoned me inside.
‘What’s with him all of a sudden?’
This was the guy who would scurry away whenever we crossed paths in the waiting rooms.
Since he wasn't the type to pull a stunt like this for a joke, I followed him in and closed the door.
"What is it?"
"Just a moment."
Even after entering the meeting room, he checked every corner for CCTV cameras or recorders before finally looking back at me.
"Seo Ho-yun-ssi, do you have a moment?"
Seriously, what are you doing?
Finding his anxious behavior quite amusing, I crossed my arms and asked.
"Are we filming a spy movie? A secret rendezvous?"
"Don't be sarcastic right from the start of the year."
"I was actually curious this time. Oh, and Happy New Year."
"...Yeah, you too, Ho-yun-ssi."
Kang Yeon-hu, frowning slightly, returned the greeting awkwardly.
"......Uhm, I saw your recent stage. I heard the lights never go out in the WH practice rooms because of The Dawn, and I can really feel the quality improving every time I see you. Especially the 'Snowflake' performance at the Gayo Star Festival, even Senior Chae Jeong-woo was impressed—"
"Yes, yes, thank you~."
"Sigh... fine. My mistake. I'll get straight to the point."
Muttering for me to do something about my smirking face, Kang Yeon-hu roughly brushed back his bangs.
"Haven't you felt like the atmosphere in the company has been strange lately?"
"In what way?"
"Like Lavish taking the Grand Prize at the GMA last time..."
Trailing off, Kang Yeon-hu let out a sigh and continued.
"Our company isn't the type to be this powerless. Since the results aren't matching the performance at all, people are wondering if we've ended up in the higher-ups' bad books... It’s not being said openly, but the High Five staff were whispering about it behind the scenes."
"......"
"So I suspect something might be going on."
Only then did I understand why Kang Yeon-hu had been so thorough in checking his surroundings.
It wasn't a topic to be brought up lightly within the company. And there wasn't really any other place for someone from High Five like Kang Yeon-hu and someone from The Dawn like me to meet.
"Hmm......"
I had assumed the incident where an unheard-of group took the Grand Prize was simply LV’s tyranny. But Kang Yeon-hu, who had been with WH Entertainment for a long time, found it suspicious.
Come to think of it, it was indeed quite fishy that a major agency like WH Entertainment wasn't looking out for its own artists.
"Besides that, have you heard anything concrete from the upper management?"
"Nothing. Everything I know is just rumors based on assumptions."
"You're called the 'Grandson of WH,' aren't you? Why don't you just ask the CEO?"
"Excuse me. If I actually had that kind of influence, would I have been left to rot in the basement practice rooms for all those years?"
I had thrown it out half-jokingly, but Kang Yeon-hu’s expression only soured further.
He seemed restless, his fingers tapping incessantly against his side. If that was a subconscious habit, he really ought to fix it. Just as I was debating whether to mention it, Kang Yeon-hu wiped his face with his hands and composed himself before speaking again.
"Phew... Honestly, even if we knew more, it’s probably not something we could do anything about. I guess it’s best to just focus on what we can do for now."
"Then what was the point of this conversation?"
"...It’s just a warning."
What, to me?
"Be careful and be mentally prepared, because we don't know what might hit us."
I let out a short laugh.
Despite everything he’d been through because of me, Kang Yeon-hu couldn't bring himself to turn a blind eye. It suddenly reminded me of how he was even during Shining Star Season 2, when we were clashing as rivals.
‘He’s soft as ever.’
Regardless, it wasn't useless information.
The Dawn’s dedicated team, composed of Daepasung Entertainment staff, seemed fired up to aim for the start of the year, but if the atmosphere of the High Five team—who were essentially the company's direct lineage—was unusual, it wasn't something to ignore.
The Korea Music Awards were coming up soon.
It was a ceremony with a long history, and while it couldn't compare to the Seoul Popular Music Awards scheduled for the very end, it was still one of the three major awards ceremonies required by the quest.
"High Five is attending the Korea Music Awards too, right?"
"We are. You know that already."
"Let’s see how things go then. If we don't win anything there either, then there might really be an ulterior motive."
Maybe we really were in someone's bad books.
Hearing my words, Kang Yeon-hu’s long eyelashes trembled as he squeezed his eyes shut.
"...Kang Yeon-hu-ssi."
I was about to leave the meeting room, but I clicked my tongue and turned back toward him. He looked like a small animal trapped in a cramped cage, shivering from stress.
"Don't worry excessively over nothing."
Kang Yeon-hu slowly lifted his eyelids and tilted his head.
"......Seo Ho-yun-ssi, has something good happened to you lately?"
"Why?"
"No, it’s just, well... you’re still as mischievous as ever... but you’re offering comfort, which is unlike you...."
"......"
"......Ah, never mind."
Yeon-hu mumbled and looked away.
It seemed he felt he might be overstepping, considering we weren't particularly close.
I stared straight at him and curled one side of my mouth into a smirk.
"Oh my, I’m honored. To think the Prince of WH would take such an interest in me."
"Seriously, why are you like this to me?!"
You just said you weren't the grandson.
That’s the nickname the old guys who play the stock market call you.