Chapter 177
Hiiiiik—
Eerie wails from the speakers echoed in the distance as I navigated by flashlight, filming with the handycam and keeping tabs on the Li Ming Shen and Liu Wei pair who had entered before us.
All while Jae Ha hyung moved in closer beside me, raised his handycam, and smiled brightly.
“Ah, hello, Star Shooters. This is Jae Ha. Today’s mission content is a courage test. My partner is the day is Chunyong.”
“…Ah.”
I forgot my own situation for a moment, caught up in admiration for Jae Ha hyung’s professionalism.
I’d been thrown off by the subtle change in his demeanor since returning, but truthfully, this was the most idol-like part of him.
No matter the situation, always composed. Always fulfilling his role.
“Today’s featured Monthly Issue star is… none other than August Entertainment’s rookie boy group, Arrows! Give them a big round of applause, everyone!”
“Hello, we’re Arrows!”
Before the incident.
Before I completely fell apart, the Arrows members had once appeared on a variety show.
It was one of those standard formats, playing trending mini-games with MCs, promoting new songs or dramas.
The only problem was, the show had a pretty infamous reputation among idols.
“Ah, Rex’s slip of paper says… random song challenge! Haha, but can you even sing? Aren’t you a dance member?”
“Ah, that’s right!”
“Our producers only prepare really hard songs for this game. What now? Oh man, this one’s definitely making the rounds online. Hey, PD, this is kinda harsh for a rookie, isn’t it?”
They boasted that “honesty and unfiltered humor are our pride,” but it was just plain rude.
Eventually, people got sick of it and changed the channel. Low ratings shut it down. But at the time, it was all the rage.
And the hosts didn’t just target me.
When Si Woo introduced himself as an all-rounder, they asked, “So there’s nothing you’re particularly good at then?”
To Yu Chan hyung: “Bet you dated a lot in college, huh?”
To Hwa Sung: “You’re from Daegu, right? Speak in your dialect for us.”
We’d gone in knowing we had to do as we were told because we were rookies, but that didn’t make the treatment any easier to swallow.
And the one who basically saved us back then was Jae Ha hyung.
“Ah, this is actually my favorite song… Is there any way I can take Rex’s penalty for him?”
“Oh ho, Jae Ha, trying to take away our fun? We gotta make a living, you know!”
“Then how about Rex dances, Yu Chan hyung sings, and Si Woo does both? Our members are super versatile.”
“…Sheesh, alright. Production team, we got another game ready, yeah? Let’s switch it up.”
He discreetly gave me a chance to do what I was best at, defended the others from crap they shouldn’t have had to hear.
It’s true I hadn’t shared the stage with Jae Ha hyung during all of Targeting Star, so that impression had faded a little.
But back then, Jae Ha was the one who showed me what a real leader of an idol group looked like.
Lost in those memories, I smiled slightly and rested my hand on Jae Ha hyung’s shoulder, waving at the handycam.
“Hello, Star Shooters! Chun as in spring, Yong as in dragon! I’m Chunyong. I’m doing this courage test with Jae Ha hyung today. Yep. We’re currently walking through the forest to find our first clue. Huh… maybe it’s because I’m with hyung, but this doesn’t feel scary at all?”
“Uh, huh?”
I led Jae Ha hyung, who looked a bit surprised, straight toward the first clue spot I remembered clearly even without looking at the map.
Not that there was anything to remember, really.
The first clue was…
Thud!
“Ah, ack!”
“Hyung, are you okay?”
“Y-yeah, I’m fine. But… wait. Is this a real hand…?”
“… Hyung. Look at what it’s holding.”
At the first fork in the path, not far from the trail, there was a hand reaching up from the ground, ready to grab a trainee’s ankle.
Clutched in that blood-stained hand was a note.
“Mmm, I shouldn’t be so surprised. It’s a little embarrassing.”
Jae Ha hyung, still catching his breath, mumbled as he picked up the clue the hand was waving.
“It’s ok to get jumpscared by something pooping out of the ground, but honestly, you wouldn’t even notice this thing if you didn’t come close.”
“Some people will get too spooked to check. That just puts us one step closer to the treasure, right?”
“Hmm… let’s read it while we walk. The more clues, the better.”
“Yes, let’s do that, hyung. Thank you for the clue, ghostie! Great job out here! This was Chunyong!”
Slightly embarrassed and hands lightly trembling, we both formed finger hearts for the handycam and continued along the path.
Once we’d settled down, Jae Ha hyung let out a soft chuckle, clearly amused by how I’d reacted.
“Ha, haha. Who thanks a ghost so sweetly like that, Chunyong? And the finger heart?”
“Ah, well. They’re working hard, so…”
“Yeah. That’s just like you. You’re always thinking of others… even in other things.”
Just like…
“Li Ming Shen, for example.”
“……”
“You helped him out a bit, right?”
At that moment, I pressed my lips into a straight line and darted my eyes away.
To the handycam, it might’ve just looked like Jae Ha casually bringing up someone from our Groggy team, but I knew better. I could feel it instinctively.
That wasn’t what this was about.
“…Haha. Yeah, I guess so. I helped him out a little during the stage.”
“Mm. Yeah. You two looked good. The ‘Groggy’ team.”
This hyung never let anyone fully let their guard down, not for a second.
Sometimes it felt like he knew everything. Other times, like he knew nothing at all. He really did act like a true hyung.
And the way he just happened to pick me, right after Liu Wei’s turn, lining himself up behind them like that.
Just how much did Jae Ha hyung really know?
Trying not to show anything, I put on my usual cheerful front and casually leaned toward him.
“Isn’t that why you picked me, too, hyung? You thought I’d be helpful.”
“…Yeah. That’s right. I figured it’d be good if we teamed up.”
“Same here.”
I thought it’d be good, too, if we were on the same team.
And that was the truth.
Not just for a survival show mission like this. No, I wanted to debut with him again, properly, and become someone who could really help him.
It wasn’t something that’d ever fully get through, but I said it anyway.
“……”
Maybe he wasn’t expecting that, because Jae Ha hyung suddenly turned to look at me with wide eyes.
With the moon half-veiled behind clouds, the only light around us came from our flashlight—and reflected in his eyes.
I never imagined I’d have this kind of talk with our leader hyung.
And maybe… he could tell.
Then…
“Hold on, Chunyong.”
Out of nowhere, something unexpected came out of Jae Ha hyung’s mouth.
“…What is that?”
Following the path of moonlight that had just slipped free of the clouds, something half-hidden in the brush caught our eyes.
And with it, came the sinking feeling I’d been pushing to the back of my mind since the moment we stepped into this forest.
Discussion
3 CommentsBees
Thanks for the translation.
YoshiK
kcyfan1000
Thank you for the translation <3333