‘Star-nim. I Just Held Hands…!’
"I always wanted to meet you in person and say this. I'm glad I get the chance now."
"……."
"Thank you so much for making this concert possible."
Kim Yu-jun smiled plainly. His eyes crinkled softly at the corners.
Yul asked her constellation seriously.
‘Star-nim. Will you be in heaven if I go there?’
Constellation ‘Blind Sovereign of the Sky’ freaks out, telling you not to say such scary things.
Shrieks at the top of its lungs that our Yul is fated to live eternally as the king of kings, super supreme man for a thousand—no, ten thousand years.
‘Dying over something like this would be too embarrassing, so I'll snap out of it.’
Turning into a dead fangirl from heart palpitations. More humiliating than her nickname LeeSunJwaKiller.
Yul was grateful for her bandages today, too.
Yul gave a small smile back and shook the hand clasped in hers.
"No, thank you."
"Oh, right—I heard you met up with some of our guys last time…."
"Park Sa-ha and Han Jun-yeol."
"You have no idea how much they bragged about meeting you."
"……Bragging about meeting me?"
Yul asked, her tone a mix of bewilderment. Why would that be brag-worthy?
At the subtle edge in her voice, Kim Yu-jun added,
"It's worth bragging about."
"Ah, hyung!"
Han Jun-yeol and Park Sa-ha cried out from behind, but he continued with a kindly smile.
"Our kids are total fans of yours."
"……Pardon?"
"Not just those three—honestly, me too."
It was a bit embarrassing to admit, but.
Kim Yu-jun scratched his head sheepishly. Despite his best efforts at a casual smile, his ear tips were tinged a light pink, proving his words true.
Constellation ‘Blind Sovereign of the Sky’ snorts that of course no lowly creature could resist falling for our Yul—it's only natural.
Still, smiles warmly, congratulating our Yul.
Launches fireworks, declaring that our Yul's fanning life isn't one-way—it's mutual!
Her status window went wild like a live chat during a trashy morning drama.
Unlike her fireworks-bursting constellation, Yul blankly echoed,
"You guys are my…?"
"Fans."
"……My fans?"
"Yes."
The confirmation hit like a falling guillotine.
The three who'd been forcibly outed as fans behind him let out silent screams.
Kyaaah!
"Hyeeeeeng!"
"Hyung, this is cheating! How could you?!"
"Ah, hyung, I trusted you…!"
The trio grabbed at Kim Yu-jun's clothes, shaking them frantically. They whispered (though everyone heard), This can't get out!
Kim Yu-jun just chuckled heartily. It wasn't anything bad—what was the big deal?
Seo In-ah, who'd been quietly watching the chaos, let out a soft chuckle. He glanced at Yul.
And of course, Yul thought,
……What did I just hear?
She was hearing the heavenly bells tolling her life's success.
Fans? Double Black? My fans? For real?
A combination of three words that never seemed like they'd fit together.
Yul buried her face in her hands.
Mom, I think your daughter's life is a massive success.
Kim Yu-jun asked cautiously,
"Um… Hunter-nim?"
"Did we do something wrong…? Are you okay?"
"H-Hunter-nim! That's, uh, hyung's just being dramatic. N-not a lie or anything, we are fans! We just—argh."
Park Ho-young, rambling incoherently, punched his own mouth shut.
Instead of freaking out over their precious maknae's mouth injury, Yul was too busy holding back tears of emotion.
Fangirling career: year six. The monumental day she realized her one-way fanning was actually mutual.
* * *
「Ughhh, I didn't wanna come out this lame!」
「Sorry, LeeSunJwaKiller-nim! I, I really love Candy…!」
「……We're, like, real fans.」
Final rehearsal over, just before showtime.
Park Ho-young couldn't lift his face from the embarrassment, Han Jun-yeol hesitantly formed a shy heart, and Park Sa-ha added his bit with flushed ears.
The three were dragged by their hyungs into the waiting room beyond backstage.
Yul sat with Lee Yu-na in a spot that wouldn't get in the staff's way as they bustled about.
"……."
"……."
Lee Yu-na eyed Yul carefully. She'd patrolled outside the stadium briefly, and now Yul seemed half out of it.
What happened?
Whatever could daze this person?
Lee Yu-na pulled out her terminal and logged into the hunter channel.
"……?"
Lee Yu-na pondered seriously.
Really?
But the other was none other than HamSukKkun, LeeSunJwaKiller's one and only friend.
As Lee Yu-na nodded and pocketed her terminal,
"Entry starting! Hunters, please prepare!"
A staffer's shout rang out.
Yul and Lee Yu-na rose in unison.
They exchanged a glance, then silently turned toward the entrance.
Entry began.
The jumbotron played Double Black's video, music filling the main stadium.
"Hey, over there! There! LeeSunJwa Hunter-nim and Yung Hunter-nim!"
"I can't believe I'm seeing them in person…. I'm losing it."
The seats filled quickly if not at breakneck speed. Yul tilted her head slightly at the murmurs.
Good thing her presence here wasn't being taken too badly.
"LeeSunJwa-nim!! I'm a fan!"
"Kyaaah! Unnie! Oppa! Either one!"
"Yung Hunter-nim!!"
"Thank you so much for today!"
……But it was worse than expected.
Yul rubbed her nape at the fans waving lightsticks toward them.
What am I supposed to do with those?
Constellation ‘Blind Sovereign of the Sky’ beams with satisfaction at the cheers and attention for our Yul.
Digs out its own lightstick, saying it has one too.
Flaps the ‘Our Yul Super Supreme Man’ banner.
‘……You still have that?’
Yul bobbed her head lightly at the fans shoving cameras their way.
The forums were about to explode with LeeSunJwa live-sighting stories again.
"Unnie, you're so cool! Oppa too!"
"LeeSunJwa hyung!! I love you! Noona even moreeee!"
One male fan's shout echoed through the hall.
Lee Yu-na admired from beside her,
"Idol fans these days are impressive. Their lung power rivals a hunter's."
Not rivaling—there was a hunter fan right here—but Yul stayed silent.
The impromptu LeeSunJwa fanmeet(?) continued through entry time.
"LeeSunJwa Hunter-nim!! I saw HamSukKkun Hunter-nim outside!"
"Ah. Doing a good job?"
"He's so hot!"
"……That's not about the job."
"His face is working overtime!"
Isn't it always on strike?
Yul thought seriously.
Ryu Shin-ah would wail that only the general thought so, but he was waiting outside with Joo Young.
Time neared 6:20. Seats fully packed, entry done.
Pop.
Lights dimmed.
Everyone held their breath, awaiting the real start.
After eons of silence, majestic new music boomed, stage lifts rising.
Spotlights hit five figures in sharp uniforms, fully dolled up: Double Black.
Waaaaaaah!
Cheers shot to the ceiling.
‘……Whoa, damn.’
Yul muttered an awed curse inwardly.
The finite rehearsal vibe was gone; only the charismatic artist aura she'd seen in fancams remained.
The darkening sky and rising tension blended perfectly.
Insane. This isn't a dream, right?
Yul watched Double Black shift moves to the intro, thinking,
Yeah, who said fangirls can't ascend tiers? This is tier-smas—
Constellation ‘Blind Sovereign of the Sky’ activates ‘Uninterruptible Judge (Mental Domination Resistance)’.
The moment the constellation alert popped,
Craaaack!
A brain-crushing pressure blanketed the stadium.
The crowd's heat and roars cut off dead.
Cheering fans froze like paused video. Even Double Black on stage, staff backstage.
Everyone in the stadium lost movement.
"What…!"
"……."
Except two.
Lee Yu-na gasped, Yul whipped her head around.
Her bandaged black eyes sharpened toward the source.
The constellation's quick action hinted, but her hunter instincts pointed to a certain hunter nearby.
"Man, it's been a while."
A sly voice echoed leisurely through the silent stadium.
From the frozen crowd's gaps, someone strolled casually toward the stage.
"Hey there, No. 1."
Kim Jae-won grinned.