Debut or Die - Chapter 253

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 253
Park Moon-dae appeared without warning at the front gate on the first night of the holiday break, at 9 PM.
It was a situation Ryu Chung-woo had never even imagined.
‘I did post in the group chat that visitors were welcome….’
But it had been nothing more than a casual joke about the food being delicious.
Yet for someone to suddenly appear at this late hour without any prior notice—someone who had firmly rejected his proposal to spend the holiday together—was deeply peculiar.
‘And of all people, Park Moon-dae?’
His younger brother, so composed and sharp in his judgment, so principled.
But now, standing in the darkness outside, Park Moon-dae was….
“Hyung.”
“…Ah, sorry. Yeah.”
Ryu Chung-woo paused for a moment, then stepped aside to let Park Moon-dae enter the house.
Either way, he couldn’t leave him standing outside on a night like this.
Yet an inexplicable tension gripped his body taut.
‘What is this?’
Park Moon-dae’s calm voice reached him.
“I’d like to wash my hands.”
“…It’s that way.”
Ryu Chung-woo directed him to the Bathroom, thinking he should have a calm conversation once Park Moon-dae returned.
‘I should let my parents know beforehand.’
By now, from the voices exchanged, they had likely guessed that the visitor was someone he knew.
And Ryu Chung-woo was about to close the door when….
He encountered the sheepish face of Bae Sae-jin, who had been following behind Park Moon-dae.
“…??”
Why are you coming out from there?
“Oh, hey.”
“Y-yeah. Hey.”
Bae Sae-jin quietly lifted up some fruit.
“These are… apples.”
“Ah, thanks.”
Ryu Chung-woo hastily accepted the fruit. The strange tension had vanished.
‘Hmm.’
Only then did he ask.
“It’s nice that you came to visit. But the two of you… what brings you here?”
“…I just followed Park Moon-dae.”
Bae Sae-jin glanced toward the Bathroom where Park Moon-dae had gone.
“He said he was coming to your house, and I was a bit… well, curious.”
‘He came along because something felt off.’
Ryu Chung-woo read the concern in Bae Sae-jin’s expression and asked.
“Did he say anything about why he was coming?”
“No. Well, but….”
Bae Sae-jin whispered softly to Ryu Chung-woo.
“I think I remembered something.”
“…!”
“You know, like before—I’d suddenly remember things while sleeping. Every time.”
Ryu Chung-woo immediately recalled what had happened in America last summer.
-When people face fear and pain… it’s natural for them to get angry, blame others. That’s fine.
He remembered saying that to Park Moon-dae, who had only opened up after drinking.
Later, noticing Park Moon-dae’s alcohol dependency, Ryu Chung-woo had privately regretted his approach back then.
‘Could there have been another way?’
In any case, it had been a shocking experience.
Wouldn’t anyone have felt the same witnessing their composed, sharp younger brother suddenly unable to control his aversion and suffering?
Especially when gradually realizing that his previous memories were hazy, and that he’d been like that because memories suddenly returned to him.
‘A similar… feeling?’
Ryu Chung-woo felt a sense of déjà vu from the subtle tension he’d sensed from Park Moon-dae earlier.
So he’d mentally prepared himself, but upon seeing Park Moon-dae emerge from the bathroom, he changed his mind.
“Hyung, I have something I’m curious about.”
There was no aversion in Park Moon-dae’s face toward Ryu Chung-woo.
It was just… his eyes had rolled back. That seemed like the right way to describe it.
‘Oh no.’
Ryu Chung-woo exchanged a quick glance with Bae Sae-jin.
“Well, first… should we greet our parents and then talk?”
“Yes.”
Bae Sae-jin hurriedly washed his hands and came out, positioning himself beside Park Moon-dae. Then Ryu Chung-woo introduced them to his parents.
He felt like he might break into a cold sweat.
“These are my younger brothers—they stopped by briefly with some fruit.”
“Oh my!”
“Welcome~”
His parents seemed a bit surprised, but they welcomed the two warmly nonetheless.
“Hello.”
“…Hello!”
The two greeted respectfully, but Ryu Chung-woo checked Park Moon-dae’s eyes just in case.
And he found Park Moon-dae staring with vacant, lifeless eyes.
‘Why… like that?’
It was because they weren’t his target.
Ryu Chung-woo grew more confused, but he seated Park Moon-dae and Bae Sae-jin in the living room nonetheless.
Kkami bounded over and settled onto Park Moon-dae’s lap, and Park Moon-dae deftly scratched the black dog’s ears as he spoke.
“Hyung.”
“Y-yes.”
Park Moon-dae’s eyes gleamed brightly once more.
“You said you’d repay my efforts.”
“…Yeah, I did.”
It wasn’t quite the right choice of words, but Ryu Chung-woo answered honestly regardless. Beside him, Bae Sae-jin’s pupils trembled.
“I have a favor I’d like to ask of you.”
Park Moon-dae spoke quickly, his expression blank.
“I’d like to see some photos of you from when you were young.”
“…??”
It was something I hadn’t expected to hear.
“Actually, if possible, I’d prefer videos. Do you have any recordings that capture a moment of your close-knit extended family?”
Ryu Chung-woo posed the natural question.
“Why would you want that?”
“Just because.”
An invincible answer.
Bae Sae-jin mouthed something from behind him.
‘Childhood memories!’
“…!”
Right. He might be trying to find clues related to childhood memories, hoping to be triggered by similar scenes. That could be it.
‘Was I closest to Sae-jin’s family?’
Ryu Chung-woo smiled vaguely as the thought crossed his mind—a relieved smile that suggested he’d grasped the situation well enough.
“Sure, then. Should I dig out what we have?”
“Yes, please.”
Ryu Chung-woo quickly went to the master bedroom and retrieved the albums and videos.
When he returned, he found Park Moon-dae mechanically petting Kkami with dazzling skill, while Bae Sae-jin looked tense.
“….”
Ryu Chung-woo hesitated for a moment, but decided to account for the fact that while Park Moon-dae might seem a bit out of it, he wasn’t panicking like last time.
“Here, want to start with the albums?”
“I’d like to watch the albums while viewing the videos together. And if possible, I’d like to see footage from when you were in early elementary school. Would that be alright?”
The specificity of the request and the precise age range made Ryu Chung-woo think that Bae Sae-jin’s guess might actually be correct.
“Ha, sure.”
Ryu Chung-woo relaxed slightly and pressed play on the video. His childhood self appeared on the television screen.
[Chung-woo! Wave your hand here!]
A shy-faced younger version of himself appeared on screen. Ryu Chung-woo himself felt a bit embarrassed in turn.
It must have been Chuseok back then too—he remembered how all sorts of relatives had chartered vehicles and gone on an outing together.
“…What grade were you in? You were already tall.”
“Probably second grade.”
A faint sense of defeat flickered across Bae Sae-jin’s expression, but Ryu Chung-woo didn’t notice.
That was because Park Moon-dae was beside him, scratching the dog’s chin.
“As expected.”
“…?”
In any case, the three of them sat together, watching the albums and videos while exchanging various stories.
My parents cast warm glances as they passed through the Corridor, though they seemed somewhat burdened—as if asking, ‘Why show us this?’
It was likely because after I retired due to injury, I’d been hounded by the media and had become defensive toward others.
Ryu Chung-woo smiled bitterly at the faint guilt.
‘Still, I should tell them that Park Moon-dae saved my life.’
If Park Moon-dae came during the holiday, I was planning to mention it anyway.
Ryu Chung-woo continued watching the video with that thought. The atmosphere wasn’t bad.
[Waaah!]
The home video switched again.
Bae Sae-jin was at a loss, watching a puppy that had climbed onto his lap.
‘Nothing special.’
Maybe I’d just sit here, chat a bit, and then head back.
Late-night snacks weren’t good for the body, but since it was a holiday, Ryu Chung-woo thought he should at least offer something healthy before sending them off.
That’s when it happened.
Park Moon-dae next to me suddenly jumped up.
“…!!”
“Wait.”
Park Moon-dae picked up the remote and paused the video.
Then he walked toward the Television screen.
With a face full of certainty.

* * *
‘It’s me.’
I knew it the moment I saw it.
The guy on screen, sitting in the corner of the Pension sofa with a book and an indifferent expression—that was Ryu Gun-woo.
“….”
For some reason, all the tension drained away.
Blood rushed to my head. It felt exhilarating.
‘So I was here too.’
This video is still early. If I play it a bit longer, I might even see my parents, but… let me hold back for now.
I picked up my smartphone and took a photo of that frame.
Click.
At that point, Bae Sae-jin asked with a confused expression.
“That person… do you know them?”
“….”
Right.
I was so eager I forgot to make an excuse.
‘Has my brain rotted?’
I inwardly clicked my tongue and answered.
“I know them, and I owe them a debt of gratitude.”
“Ah….”
The longer an excuse is drawn out, the more it sounds like an excuse. Since I answered quickly, a memory of buying a meal for Park Moon-dae flashed through my mind, and the words came out naturally.
Bae Sae-jin’s face brightened.
“So you came because you remembered this person?”
“Huh? …Yes.”
He’s constructing a story for me on his own. How helpful.
I added more details while pursuing the lead.
“His name is Ryu Gun-woo, so I wondered if he might be a relative of Chung-woo hyung. The surname Ryu isn’t that common, after all.”
“I see. …Hmm. Now that you mention it, they do seem to share some similar features.”
Do they?
In any case, my flimsy excuse about the similar names worked well enough thanks to the resemblance, and Ryu Chung-woo nodded readily.
And he spoke kindly.
“Should I ask my parents? In case he’s a relative we know.”
“…Thank you.”
To be honest, since he’s such a distant relative that I’ve only seen him once every few years, I doubt they’d remember. But the attempt wouldn’t hurt.
‘If I tell them he’s already in the afterlife from an accident in middle school….’
I felt a slight chill at what kind of misunderstanding might arise, but I decided to push forward. At this point, there’s no turning back.
And the answer from his parents was exactly what I expected.
That they ‘couldn’t quite remember.’
“Hmm….”
I’m the one who’s troubled, yet these two are the ones worrying.
Amnesia has quite the impact, apparently.
And then an even better suggestion came up.
“We could ask the clan association too. Since we know roughly his age and name, we should be able to find him.”
“…! Then… thank you.”
“No need to thank me for something like this.”
Ryu Chung-woo laughed and made a phone call, and after a brief conversation, he relayed quite positive news.
“They said they’d look into it quickly and get back to us.”
“Thank you, especially during the holidays.”
“Ha, I’ll pass that along too.”
And so, the ‘search for traces of Ryu Gun-woo’ ended quite successfully.
And the only remaining topic of conversation was the dog.
Bae Sae-jin asked hesitantly.
“…Is that it?”
“Yes.”
Bae Sae-jin must be concerned about his mother being alone at home.
It’s surprising that he came along without even being asked. Of course, earlier I wasn’t even paying attention to whether he came or not.
“I’ll call and let you know, so don’t worry.”
Ryu Chung-woo also tactfully expressed that it was fine for them to leave.
So I bowed once more to Ryu Chung-woo’s parents before heading back home with Bae Sae-jin.
Of course, I didn’t forget to say goodbye.
“Thank you for bringing me the fruit.”
“Well, I was already out shopping anyway, so…!”
Despite what he was saying, he seemed quite pleased with himself.
In any case, I’d received help to avoid looking like an inconsiderate fool during all that chaos, so I was thinking of preparing some kind of holiday dish tomorrow as thanks.
“Sigh.”
With that, I changed back into my pajamas and lay down on the bed.
But sleep wouldn’t come, perhaps because of what I’d witnessed through ‘Truth Verification’.
“….”
Damn it, forget about it. I don’t even remember any of that, so what’s the point in dwelling on it now? There’s no answer to be found.
I pushed the thoughts aside and called up something to replace them.
“Status Window.”
Well, I figured that ‘Settlement in Progress’ message would probably still be floating there….
Poof!
“…!!”
Suddenly, pollen burst across my vision.
Holographic particles erupted from the popup, scattering beautifully across the bed with diffuse light.
And the status window blazed with an enchanting rainbow shimmer.
[GRAND SUCCESS!]
User Park Moon-dae (Ryu Gun-woo) has successfully removed all status abnormalities!
Reward: Permanent Status Window, Title
[Title Created!]
: The Successful One (Idol)
Wishing you a sweet life ahead.
“….”
What?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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