Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Meeting the Variety Show PD
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It turned out I wasn't the only one appearing on the variety show.
The broadcasting station had scouted employees from the Mutant Crime Management Bureau.
That meant Yeon-hwa and Ha-rin were included along with me.
Surprisingly, I thought both of them would turn down the variety show appearance, but they were going on with me.
Ha-rin could maintain her usual composure even on a variety show, so I figured she might do it for the fun of it. But Yeon-hwa was unexpected.
When I asked her reason, Yeon-hwa answered like this.
[Ha Yeon-hwa: I can't stay holed up in my room forever! Besides, it's a show I watch a lot, so I'm curious about it.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Oh... That's the same as me? But are you sure? It feels totally different from just stepping out of your room for a bit...]
[Yoo Ha-rin: Yeon-hwa unnie's just wrapping it up nicely. Wrapping. She's really just going to see her favorite celebrities.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Ah?]
[Ha Yeon-hwa: Eek, caught!]
Come to find out, Yeon-hwa had a celebrity she was a huge, huge, huge fan of.
She agreed to the offer purely out of personal desire to see that celebrity in person.
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Then what about you, Ha-rin?]
[Yoo Ha-rin: I just think it'll be fun. It's not an experience you get every day, and lately I've been wanting to try something new.]
In short, both wanted to try something new.
They both spent their days holed up in their rooms or fiddling with their smartphones at the bureau before clocking out.
It was the monotony of daily life.
Thanks to me, mutant crimes had plummeted, leaving them bored out of their minds lately.
...Honestly, at that point, maybe they didn't even need to come to work. But we're civil servants. Even if we're just playing around at the office, we have to at least pretend to show up.
Anyway, living in that boredom made the variety show offer pretty appealing.
On top of that, the show we were joining was a nationally popular variety program.
One famous for putting its celebrity participants and guests through absolute hell.
Seeing celebrities who get mobbed by fans like a tidal wave just walking down the street get rolled over in every direction was bound to be exciting.
...But they themselves would get rolled over just as badly.
Well, as mutants, they probably figured it wouldn't be uncomfortable even if they did, so they happily agreed.
* * *
Having a variety show scheduled didn't mean we appeared on it right away.
There were things to coordinate with the station, and even for a variety show, there were precautions to take.
Above all, even variety shows need to discuss how to handle the opening.
From the opening onward, it was better to inform the celebrities in advance about things they should watch out for with us mutants.
Of course, there were things we needed to watch out for with the celebrities too.
That's why we were at the broadcasting station now, discussing those matters.
The stares from around us felt strangely novel.
People who must have seen celebrities everywhere were now focusing on me, Yeon-hwa, and Ha-rin. It felt odd.
Some celebrities were mixed in among them, and Yeon-hwa's smile wouldn't leave her face.
Ah, so she's a total celebrity fanatic.
"Wow, wow, Director! Kim Jin-hyun is over there...! And Jo Han-hwi is there too!"
"Y-Yeon-hwa. I get that you're excited, but calm down a bit? Deputy Director? Where should we go?"
"The PD should be here soon... Ah, there he is. Let's go."
The PD of the variety show I'll Be Fine As Long As It's Not Me, Lee Myung-ho.
He greeted us with a hearty laugh.
"Haha, hello. It's an honor to have such distinguished guests here."
"Ahaha... Hello. I'm Yoon Seo-hyun, Director of the Mutant Crime Management Bureau. This is Deputy Director Choi Jeong-ho, and our bureau agents Yoo Ha-rin and Ha Yeon-hwa."
"With all these beautiful ladies, I'm feeling pretty tense. This way, please."
I'll Be Fine As Long As It's Not Me.
True to its title, it throws all sorts of missions and quizzes at celebrities, then torments them mercilessly with random luck-based twists.
Like putting out a soda and canary fish sauce, penalizing whoever drinks the sauce.
Or distributing pocket money unevenly for a trip to a destination—some get a lot, some get little.
Or splitting into teams after failing a mission, with some sleeping outside and others inside.
It was a show that drew pure entertainment from the celebrities' suffering.
It usually ran with fixed members and occasional guests... but I never thought we'd be the guests.
"I never imagined you'd really appear. I threw it out there like grasping at straws..."
Lee Myung-ho PD said as soon as we sat down.
"Actually, Ha-rin and I are huge fans."
"Really?"
"Yeah, we've watched it since we were kids. It's so much fun."
"I-I'm really... flattered..."
For reference, Yeon-hwa had drunk my blood before arriving at the station, so her energy was way up.
That's why she wasn't holding back her words unusually.
...It's fascinating every time I see it. What exactly does my blood do?
Come to think of it, the National Intelligence Service Director mentioned he'd talk to a pharmaceutical company soon.
Maybe clinical trials for drugs using my blood would start before long.
Anyway, that's not the point. Surprisingly, Yeon-hwa smoothly continued the conversation with PD Lee Myung-ho.
"May I... ask what kinds of mutants Yeon-hwa and Ha-rin are?"
"Yeon-hwa is a vampire... more precisely, a pureblood-type mutant, and Ha-rin is a fairy-type mutant."
"Pureblood? What's that?"
"It's the vampire that rules over other vampires... Seems like I'm the only one left now."
"Oh... So like nobility or royalty?"
"Yeah."
"Wow, you're quite impressive."
"I-It's not that impressive..."
Of course, Yeon-hwa's mouth was grinning ear to ear as she said that.
Once the small talk wrapped up, we asked the PD how we should proceed.
"Just do whatever feels natural. It shouldn't be a big issue... Our show's motif is pretty free-form anyway."
"We still have to follow the missions, right?"
"Haha, yes, please stick to the mission contents. Of course, you can use your abilities while doing them."
"Oh."
"Having mutants on and not letting you use powers would kill the viewers' fun. Just keep it at a reasonable level, please."
"Of course. Ah, for the guest introduction, how should we make our entrance?"
"...A lot of people will expect dragon form, so could you come in as a dragon?"
"That might be tough. When I revert from my true form to this, it takes time for my clothes to regenerate."
"Ah, then could you spread wings and land like that?"
"That much should be fine."
They seemed intent on milking it for all it was worth. Fair enough—even I thought bringing a dragon and not showing the form would be a waste.
...If only my clothes regenerated faster, I'd do it.
I wanted to see the celebrities freak out too.
Wait, maybe ask Jin-ha? It might be a bit much, but she'd probably say yes.
Then, make it a surprise.
I could carry Ha-rin and Yeon-hwa on my back then.
After that, we discussed various things. He didn't reveal detailed mission info, but told us the filming locations and opening flow...
We set the rough outline, leaving the rest to our discretion.
He said ad-libs were fine. Sensitive or problematic parts would be edited out anyway.
Of course, no plans to be rude to the celebrities. I don't want to get cyber-lynched.
Overall, things went smoothly.
Filming was scheduled soon.
Luckily, no schedule conflicts.
The deputy director handled the details, so we just had to show up.
* * *
Today was the I'll Be Fine As Long As It's Not Me filming day.
For today, I commissioned a suit from Jin-ha, and she gladly made one with dramatically faster regeneration.
Tests showed it fully regenerated the instant I released the transformation mid-air and landed.
Now we were fully prepared.
I waited for Yeon-hwa and Ha-rin at the same venue as the launch ceremony last time.
They arrived soon after, and I immediately transformed into dragon form.
"Can we really ride?"
-You won't even feel the weight. Hop on.
"Then, no holding back...!"
Yeon-hwa turned into a bat, Ha-rin spread her wings, and they climbed onto my back.
My body was huge anyway, so no noticeable difference.
Alright, let's go.
Suddenly, I got curious about the celebrities' reactions.
They'd probably freak out.