Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 121

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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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121. Reasons for Action (8)
“Oh, Mother! Hello!”
Soo-ho, who had been waiting for someone outside the broadcasting station, spotted a woman carrying shopping bags in the distance and hurried over to greet her.
“Oh, Team Leader. Hello.”
The woman who greeted Soo-ho with a refreshing smile that reminded him of The Voice was none other than Ha-jin’s mother, Young-in.
The two had met before when Ha-jin formally signed a contract with Miro, encountering each other as the company representative and Ha-jin’s legal guardian.
“We should have visited your home instead. Thank you so much for coming all this way to Sangam.”
“Oh no, it’s nice to have a trip to Seoul thanks to you. Here, the school uniform.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you so much, Mother.”
Soo-ho accepted the uniform from Young-in with an apologetic expression.
Normally, he would have sent an employee to Ha-jin’s home directly. But Young-in had unfortunately left Ha-jin’s school uniform at a local dry cleaner, making it impossible to coordinate the timing.
In that situation, Young-in had readily offered to bring it to the broadcasting station herself.
The fact that Soo-ho, not the road manager who came with them today, had come down to receive the uniform personally was to express his gratitude and respect toward Young-in.
“Rather than doing this here, why don’t you have a cup of coffee with me? It’s on me.”
“Oh, you must be busy, so it’s fine. I’d just like to see Ha-jin’s face once before I go. You must be busy, right? How is our Ha-jin doing?”
At Young-in’s cautious question, Soo-ho immediately understood why she had driven all this way to distant Sangam. He knew well the heart of a parent who spares no effort, hoping to catch even a glimpse of their child from afar.
‘Many other trainees’ parents do the same thing.’
Soo-ho checked the time on the smartwatch around his wrist, mentally calculated his schedule, and asked Young-in.
“The kids have a recording at two o’clock. If you have time, Mother, would you like to watch the recording for a bit?”
“Really? Is that allowed?”
“Of course.”
Ever since the ‘Infinite Regression’ incident, Soo-ho had been wondering, ‘Is there something that could lift Ha-jin’s spirits?’
From what he usually saw, Ha-jin called his mother frequently and seemed to have a good relationship with her. He thought it would help if he could see his family’s face, even briefly, and receive their encouragement.
“Let me buy you a cup of coffee at the cafe here. If you wait, I’ll contact you at the right time later.”
Soo-ho guided Young-in with a warm smile.
Hoping this surprise visit would become a small source of encouragement for Ha-jin.
* * *
The rehearsal proceeded on schedule without any delays.
“Miro Maze team, please wait here for a moment~”
“No! Not there! Please focus!”
Unlike during the Miro Maze filming, somewhat sharp voices went back and forth.
But despite the staff’s cold attitude, Ha-jin and Tae-hyun, who were accustomed to the set, thought, ‘That guy must have missed lunch because he was so busy.’
Yoo Gun, a slave to capitalism, muttered to himself about how much daily wages he’d make if he worked in a place like this, only to get hit on the back by Seo Tae-hyun. Dan Ha-ru, who had a fairly steel heart, simply grinned, seemingly delighted just to be on stage.
“Dan Ha-ru, why are you so excited?”
“Oh, I was thinking about what to ask Team Leader to buy me for dinner later. I heard from the hair noona earlier that there’s a great tonkatsu place nearby!”
“Donkatsu Restaurant?”
“Huh? How did you know, hyung?”
Dan Ha-ru widened his already large eyes even further in surprise.
Ha-jin couldn’t possibly say that in his past life, when he came here for mixing, a senior had taken him there to eat. So he found an appropriate way to deflect.
“…I heard you guys talking about it earlier. But that would be during break time after our recording ends.”
“That… that can’t be right.”
Dan Ha-ru’s expression crumbled as if the world itself had collapsed.
‘It’s not like a puppy that couldn’t go for a walk because a typhoon came….’
Ha-jin began coaxing him by gently patting his head. Given today’s stage requirements, it would be quite problematic if Dan Ha-ru’s condition deteriorated.
“Just ask for something more delicious next time. If you do well on stage today, I’ll take you to that restaurant next time.”
“Really? You promise, hyung?”
“Yeah. You know your role is crucial today, Center.”
“Yes!”
True to his resilient nature, Dan Ha-ru quickly perked up and rushed toward Tae-hyun, who was warming up on the side, eager to show off.
‘Dan Ha-ru’s fine… The problem is those two fragile ones.’
My gaze turned to the remaining pair.
Jae-young and Jayden had bounced between the General Class before being assigned to the Feather Class, so they’d never even come to a place like this as backup dancers for senior members.
‘They’re completely frozen.’
I’d even requested a calming herbal remedy from the manager this morning, but it didn’t seem to be working.
I exhaled quietly and inserted the earpiece, staring directly at Jayden and Jae-young, who were visibly stiff.
‘How am I supposed to loosen them up?’
Of course, I didn’t realize that Jayden and Jae-young had only grown more tense from my constant gaze.
“H-hyung. Ha-jin’s been staring at us this whole time….”
“He’s just telling us to do well with his eyes….”
“H-hey. He’s coming. He’s coming!”
Jayden and Jae-young, who had been trembling in the corner, were startled when I walked toward them.
Through “Shout at You,” I’d become much closer to them than before, and I was definitely a playful and pleasant hyung….
But the memory of my “crazy leader” moments from the Team B days was etched deep into their bones.
“You two. Come on.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Yes, sir.”
Jae-young and Jayden, unusually disciplined today, rushed toward me. Since both were about a head shorter than me, I stood with one leg slightly bent and draped both arms across their shoulders, lowering my head.
Cutting through the noisy ambient sound, my distinctly attractive mid-range voice came through clearly to their ears in a calm tone.
“Listen carefully. The stage is smaller than you think. We just need to move the same way we did during the Miro Maze recording, right?”
“…Right, yes!”
“Good. You already know that. And most of the production staff here are people you’re meeting for the first time. You might offend someone if you get the honorifics wrong, so if you need to say anything, go through me. Understand?”
“Yes, yes.”
I had expected to tighten discipline, asking if they’d really perform while this tense, but instead, I slowly began calmly explaining the broadcast environment to Jae-young and Jayden.
How monitoring works at music broadcasts,
why pre-recording is necessary and how we’ll do it,
what’s different from Miro Maze and what’s the same.
Knowing well that they were nervous and afraid because everything was still unfamiliar and new, I occasionally checked their expressions and confirmed multiple times that they truly understood.
“You’re nervous because you don’t know. It’s natural to be scared when you don’t know something. Since this is your first time, everyone here already knows you’re tense, so if you’re going to be scared, don’t worry about what others think—be scared confidently. If you’re openly scared, they’ll actually find it endearing.”
I wasn’t entirely sure what “be scared confidently without worrying about others’ eyes” meant,
but after hearing my explanation, the two of them, who had been frozen solid and couldn’t even see their own feet clearly, gradually began to see the world around them more clearly.
‘Come to think of it, that camera director seems like they were here during our Miro Maze shoot too.’
‘Our competition venue is definitely wider and bigger!’
‘Do Miro Maze and here use different cameras? Which ones are better?’
The venue transformed from a place that was ‘unfamiliar and frightening’ into one that was ‘unfamiliar yet somehow known’.
With that shift, curiosity and wonder began to take root in both their eyes. Watching them sometimes greet familiar sights with recognition and sometimes regard them with interest as if they already knew them, Ha-jin smiled.
Giving their shoulders an encouraging pat, Ha-jin began gathering the rest of the team.
It was almost time to take the stage.
“Everyone, this is just a rehearsal, not the actual recording yet. You know that, right? For now, focus on camera angles, blocking, and making sure there are no sound issues—that sort of thing. If anything goes wrong, tell me immediately.”
“Yes!”
“Miro Maze Team, we’re heading up!”
“Right, we’re being called. Let’s go now.”
Just then, the signal came for them to take the stage. As Ha-jin led the team up, a thought crossed my mind.
I needed one decisive moment to break through this frigid atmosphere.
‘Maybe it’s because this recording was scheduled so suddenly, but the production crew all seem a bit annoyed.’
“Hello! We’re the Miro Maze Sad Ending Team! Thank you for having us!”
The trainees’ stage felt like a formality to be gotten through before taking a break—that vibe was palpable throughout the studio. Even when the Sad Ending Team gave their greeting with spirited energy, the response that came back was cold.
There was no particular malice in that coldness. For us, this was a precious stage we’d only get once, but for them, it was just one of countless tasks they saw every day….
More than that, it was just a fleeting stage for industry newcomers who could disappear at any moment, so naturally, no one expected anything or paid much attention.
Because of that, I felt I needed to break through this atmosphere even more.
‘What’s the secret to seizing the initiative….’
Ha-jin recalled those days when I was making the rounds at music broadcasts.
Back then, I stood below the stage just like them, watching the clock with tired eyes, waiting only to go home.
Which singers back then had captured my attention so completely that it jolted me awake from exhaustion?
“Alright, Sad Ending Team. Let’s do a mic check. Starting with Tae-hyun.”
While I was pondering, the sound check began.
The trainees sang a short verse or spoke, providing feedback on what came through in their in-ears.
And then, finally, it was my turn.
Ha-jin gripped the handheld microphone tightly—chosen instead of a headset to hide the wound on my palm.
At the end of that day, so full of meaning,
At the end of all the time that has already passed,
“…?”
“…What, what is this.”
Ha-jin’s unaccompanied high note live performance—so powerful it even moved Sarin, the original artist—resonated through the studio with a brilliant, ringing clarity.
Ha-jin delivered the third verse chorus, which was a full key higher than the original, with complete ease and composure.
Whether everyone was stunned and staring or not, Ha-jin calmly pulled the microphone away from my lips and adjusted the volume, then flashed a warm smile and called out to the sound director behind the console.
“You might want to turn the volume down a bit! My voice tends to be quite loud.”
-Y-yes… Wow, that live performance was incredible.
“Thank you for the compliment! I’ll do my best!”
Through the talkback microphone, the sound director’s casual remark came through softly.
Ha-jin responded immediately and bowed at a sharp ninety-degree angle. The other trainees, caught off guard, quickly followed suit with exaggerated one-hundred-twenty-degree bows.
‘A singer just needs to sing well.’
Crazy people enduring this 3D industry that can’t even maintain work-life balance? They were all predictable.
Sure, they whined about barely scraping by to survive, but the ones with any sense had already cut their losses and fled long ago.
‘They’re only hanging on because everyone else is. Whether it’s music or broadcasting.’
No industry was as sensitive to ‘talent’ as this one.
Rookie or veteran, if you could ‘make it work’, everyone treated you generously.
True to form, unlike before, cheers of “Whoo! Fighting! You’re doing great!” erupted alongside the staff’s applause.
The icy atmosphere that had hung so heavily moments ago melted away in an instant.
“Alright then, Miro Maze Sad Ending Team. A word to you. We’re moving on to rehearsal round one~”
Ha-jin smiled wryly and stood up.
This was only rehearsal, after all.

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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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