Chapter 147

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Translated by Sylph

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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“Hyung, I’m truly sorry. In a hasty attempt to arbitrarily judge the situation, I recklessly used the private experience you shared……”

“I said it’s okay.”

If I hear it one more time, it’ll be the fifth. I accepted Kim Raebin’s apology with a bit of a fed-up feeling.

‘If someone saw this, they’d think I’d been framed for something.’

All this guy did was tell the members, “Moondae-hyung remembered something from the past while he was sleeping.”

He likely did it because he was scared or nervous.

He probably wanted to interpret my erratic behavior somehow and respond to it.

‘……I thought I’d hidden it well enough.’

It was a delusion.

When I checked the Summer Package footage after returning to Korea, my vibe was damn awkward and gloomy.

‘I looked like someone people would handle with care for fear of something happening.’

The members’ worried or nervous expressions were caught on camera from time to time.

The fact that the filming proceeded smoothly was entirely thanks to Keun Sejin, who talked twice as much on his own.

‘…Ryu Chungwoo showed restraint.’

It was clear he realized from the beginning of the filming that I felt uncomfortable around him.

Restraining a groan, I spoke to Kim Raebin.

“Then I’m the one who should apologize. I’m sorry for ruining the atmosphere.”

“Pardon?? Not at all! In the first place, you have no need to apologize for an unexpected situation that occurred during a continuous filming session……”

“Right. For the same reason, you don’t need to apologize either.”

“…! I understand. Thank you!”

Once I gave him a reason for ‘why he didn’t need to apologize’ that he could accept, Kim Raebin finally stopped talking and left after a bow.

“I’ll be going now. I hope you have a comfortable rest.”

“Yeah. You too.”

The room immediately became quiet. One roommate was absent due to a schedule, and the other had a quiet hobby.

‘The world is finally silent.’

I let out a sigh and buried myself in the bed.

However, another sound came from the bed next to mine.

‘…It hasn’t even been three seconds since I said it was quiet.’

It was Bae Sejin.

“…Are you, alright?”

“Pardon? Yes.”

It was a predictable answer, but my condition was actually quite stable.

I didn’t know if it was because I’d vented a bit while drinking at the end, or because I’d left the strange country where the incident occurred and returned to the familiar dorm room.

Whatever the reason, I didn’t feel the ‘can’t stand it’ sensation like I did before.

It was just that I’d break out in a cold sweat if I suddenly remembered it. So, I could readily add an explanation.

“There won’t be any more instances of me hindering the filming. Don’t worry.”

“I, I wasn’t worried about that!!”

Bae Sejin shouted, then as if startled by his own voice, he quickly raised the book he was reading again.

“…….”

What am I supposed to do about that?

Anyway, after checking the Summer Package footage, I immediately checked today’s date. It was the day the Summer Package was released to the market.

‘Just in case.’

I picked up my smartphone and finally began monitoring.

“……Hmm.”

I’d been a bit concerned, but fortunately, there were no big problems.

Thanks to the magic of editing, my attitude had been turned into just being moderately passive.

The reactions weren’t bad either.

– Moondae must have really been unwell. It hurts my heart even more to see him trying not to let it show ㅠㅠ
– Park Moondae’s eyes are like dead fish. His motivation is destroyed, his rookie mindset is destroyed. Whew.
└ No, he looks damn sick, what kind of nonsense is that?
└ There’s nothing you can’t say to a kid who couldn’t even come on W-Live because he was sick, you crazy bastard.
– Seeing the kids look after Moondae really warms my heart. TeStar forever.
– Quiet puppy dog in the Summer Package (Moondae GIF).

‘As expected, it was right to reduce the reactions themselves rather than giving sharp ones.’

It seemed like the correct choice to minimize my emotional expression and reactions toward the other members and the situation as much as possible.

Of course, a few troll accounts saying things like ‘Where is Park Moondae’s rookie mindset?’ were visible here and there, but they were in the trend of disappearing after getting beaten up without gaining any support.

Because it was a one-off thing and I’d even missed a W-Live before the filming, public opinion was set on the side that I was really sick.

……My conscience was slightly pricked.

‘It’s not like I was particularly physically ill.’

Since I’d already used the excuse of being sick once, I should really take good care of my health for the next six months or so.

If I got sick again, it would no longer be a one-off thing, and then unwanted talk could really start coming out.

It seemed we’d roughly passed over this since only fans buy and watch things like this Summer Package, but I didn’t know about the future.

‘I should be careful.’

I shrugged and turned off my smartphone.

Seeing the clean internet situation, I thought it was a good thing I’d pushed myself a bit at the time.

…And I was also keeping the promise I made back then.

Beep beep beep.

[Counseling time]

When I turned off the alarm ringing on my smartphone, Bae Sejin subtly spoke to me again.

“…Are you going?”

“Yes.”

“Good choice.”

“Well, I guess so.”

It was the fact that I’d decided to receive counseling at the same time Seon Ahyun went for his.

Thanks to that, I also went out today, matching the time with Seon Ahyun who had returned from a schedule.

“M-Moondae-ya. Let’s contact each other when we come out after it’s over…!”

“Uh… okay.”

But to be honest, it didn’t do much good.

“Then, what would be the biggest worry you’ve had recently?”

“…I have the same ones everyone else does.”

“I see~ What would be an example?”

“Well, there’s the worry about whether I can do my job properly.”

This was because there was no way I could tell the counselor, “If I can’t resolve this status abnormality I’m going to die, but this bastard showed me a strange vision so PTSD symptoms are popping up like seizures.”

I was just doing it for show.

“Mr. Moondae. You’re already doing well enough. By any chance, have you ever thought that it would be okay to be a bit more generous to yourself?”

“……I do, a bit.”

Well, still… there was a sense of stability that came from the act of venting to a professional.

The feeling of my frayed nerves settling down and my internal calm becoming more solid.

Combined with a schedule that wasn’t too excessive since it wasn’t a domestic promotion period, I finally felt like retrying ‘that’.

Inside the dorm’s restroom after returning from counseling.

I took a breath.

“……Status window.”

Goosebumps broke out on my back, but it wasn’t at a level where I had to give up.

Thus, I checked the status window after a long time.

…To properly check the new status abnormality.

[‘Death if not an Audience’]
: If you fail to meet more than 200,000 audience members within the set period, death.

Achieved number: 2,219 / 200,000
Remaining period: D-339

‘Is it crazy?’

The number was lacking in conscience this time as well.

‘This is a number that absolutely requires an overseas tour.’

Fortunately, the count was at 2,000 thanks to events, but there was a limit to that too. Since there weren’t events all year round.

According to plan, we were likely to tour starting with a domestic concert around autumn, so there wouldn’t be a problem with the timing… but now it was a matter of scale.

It wasn’t at a level to give up early, and if I combined events and such, it was at a level worth challenging.

‘In the end, there’s no choice but to release the album well.’

It returned to the fundamental point.

…Still, thinking that this was the last one, some peace returned.

‘At least I’m not the target.’

I was about to dismiss the status window with a slightly trembling hand when I suddenly realized I didn’t need to use my hand.

It meant my head wasn’t working properly.

‘…I’m not normal.’

The status window disappeared. I resisted the urge to dunk my head in the sink again.

And I thought.

‘…What on earth does it want?’

I really didn’t know why this status window was like this.

It was different when the circumstances of Park Moondae… I mean, the real Park Moondae, appeared as the first reward, or when it told me Cheong-ryeo’s story in detail as the second.

I had thought those were hints about what was going on in the current situation.

But what I saw in the US… damn it, anyway, that was, ……not that, was it?

It wasn’t any explanation, any help….

“……Phew.”

Let’s stop.

I took a deep breath and cleared my head.

Anyway, thinking about it more wouldn’t bring an answer. Let’s just do what I have to do.

That was the best.

‘First, starting with the biggest upcoming schedule.’

It was my solo schedule. The one I’d thought of ever since I drank and vented with Ryu Chungwoo.

‘It’s not bad to have some time working alone.’

…Actually, I haven’t had a proper conversation with Ryu Chungwoo since returning to Korea.

I could manage greetings, light small talk, or scripts in front of the camera without much trouble now, but beyond that… since there’s a history, it’s a bit difficult to try hastily.

‘I should use this for distancing.’

I gratefully accepted the solo schedule.

– Moondae-ya, will you be okay? Isn’t it too soon?
– It’s fine.

And actually, there was a part I was looking forward to.

Because the stats I’d boosted last time were specifically for this variety show.

‘It actually ended up being later than expected.’

It was a perfect situation to challenge for a change of pace.

I drove out the useless residue from my mind and smirked while thinking only of the clean facts.

This was a singing variety show.

And my current vocal stat was…… S-.

* * *

It was a variety show that had recently become a big hit on MBS.

The format of this program, where celebrities in disguise come out to sing and a winner is chosen through survival, was perhaps a bit cliché.

There was even a concluded variety show that had been a huge hit with that format on MBS itself.

However, had a unique point of differentiation. It was… the fact that the contestants didn’t appear in person.

That’s right. They appeared on stage as holograms.

And not as themselves, but as ‘characters’ they set up.

The contestants created a profile including appearance, personality, tastes, and age to produce a mascot singer character.

Then, a hologram machine supported by a large corporation implemented that character on the stage.

Viewers were fascinated by the taste of cutting-edge technology that even implemented the motions of the contestants linked below the stage, and they were drawn in without feeling out of place thanks to the familiar format.

So, a high school student who was flipping through channels stopped his remote when he saw the familiar stage screen of this variety show.

“Oh~ Fake singer~”

The high school boy, who chuckled while calling it by a vulgar nickname, watched the screen without much thought.

His older sister went into her room to watch those guys called Testar or whatever.

He would likely be able to lie comfortably in front of the TV without worrying about losing the remote for a while.

The program had just finished its mid-roll commercials and was starting its second half.

[The survival stage where imagination becomes reality!]
[! The ‘singer’ who will appear on the fifth stage is now! Ready!]
[Whoo-hoo!]

The scene where unpredictable characters of a spectrum that didn’t distinguish between species, from baseball players to triangular kimbap, appeared out of the blue was always quite fun.

‘It’s about time for a dinosaur to come out once more~ Please don’t let it be someone boring!’

Recalling the previous winner, ‘Tyrannosauron’, a red one-eyed dinosaur with short forepaws, the high school boy smirked.

The MC shouted energetically.

[The next singer~ is appearing!]
[His name is…….]

Dududu, spotlight moved busily across the stage along with a drumroll.

And, a tall figure began to be slowly composed and appear on the stage.

A white wedding veil was draped over a well-proportioned body in a white formal suit.

Behind him, holograms of white butterflies fluttered, wrapped around the figure, and disappeared.

Just as the high school boy was about to jeer, ‘Ah, it’s a human again~’, he saw what was beyond the close-up veil.

In the place where a face should have been, colorful flowers were placed like a bouquet instead.

“Whoa.”

[Please welcome, ‘May Groom’~]

Cheers and applause, which seemed to have been artificially inserted, rang out from the screen.