Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 162

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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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162. The Finals (6)
As Ha-jin and Yoo Gun finished their choreography and exited stage left, Jae-young, Si-woo, and Ha-ru remained center stage, each striking exaggerated pose-like stances that bordered on comedic.
– Ah, I knew this felt familiar—it’s like that phoenix team from the school sports day
– When are we ever going to successfully pull off a Jeong Si-u character concept?
└ If you really look at it, he’s the most normal one of them all
– Park Jae-young and Dan Ha-ru: job satisfaction rating 10000%
To the playful electronic instrument sounds, the three advanced toward the front of the stage with locking movements.
The choreography that followed emphasized synchronized breathing and harmony over raw technical skill like Ha-jin and Yoo Gun had displayed. Then, as the drum beat accelerated sharply, Ha-jin and Yoo Gun, who had been seated in the back, rejoined the formation.
All five of them then launched into a tightly woven freestyle dance in perfect unison!
Damn, hahahahahahahahahaha
– Come on, be honest—you all had a drink before hitting that stage, right?
Park Jae-young leading the charge with his wobbly squid dance,
Dan Ha-ru bouncing excitedly in one corner all by himself.
Jeong Si-u and Yoo Gun locked shoulder-to-shoulder, swaying in complete abandon, and
Kang Ha-jin, whose years as a variety show PD had given him the seasoned touch to elevate any gathering’s mood.
– I’m about to laugh so hard I’ll throw up
– But honestly, they’re so cute
– The thing is, their skill level is high enough that it just comes off as funny
– Right, for B-tier not to look sloppy, you need S-tier skill or something
└ Now they’re just repeating themselves
└ Just vote already, we’re too busy
We, Find, out! (out!)
We’ve found it, Finish Line
Still far too early, Farewell
The tomorrow you’ve been waiting for
Has already arrived, right now (hey!)
As the short, intense freestyle dance ended, confetti exploded as the song surged toward its climax.
Ha-jin, who had been delivering trendy rap moments ago, seamlessly transitioned back to vocals, his distinctive raspy voice gliding smoothly between chest voice and falsetto.
Jeong Si-u and Dan Ha-ru traded ad-libs while Jae-young’s energetic interjections layered richness into the song. With Yoo Gun commanding the center with fierce performance presence, they formed a complete team that yielded nothing to Team A.
– No, the kids are all good ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
– Three people dropping out from here doesn’t make any sense, seriously
– Just debut as a ten-member group, Se-won—honestly, you’ve made enough money for that
Finally shining, our Finale
With the final verse, Team B’s song finally reached its end.
The trainees’ shoulders heaved as they caught their breath, their faces appearing one by one on the large screen as they steadied their breathing.
After Ha-ru’s face appeared and he squeezed his eyes shut before blowing a kiss to the camera, Ha-jin’s face was caught next, standing behind him and breathing heavily.
“Phew… Oof.”
Ha-jin, annoyed at how his sweat-soaked hair kept pricking his eyes, blew air from his mouth to toss his bangs aside. Then, belatedly realizing he was on the large screen, he opened his right palm to display it. On Ha-jin’s unusually large, pale palm were words he had hastily asked the PD to write before taking the stage—now slightly smudged by sweat.
【Did I do well, hyung?】
Everyone present knew those words were meant for Ha-won, who had appeared in the VCR earlier.
With a satisfied expression, I display the letters written on my palm, flashing a refreshing smile directed solely at Ha-won.
It was also a gesture of gratitude to my younger sibling—the most precious and dependable friend across every timeline I’ve lived through.
With that image, the stage fell into darkness.
* * *
Both performances of the new songs I’d prepared were finished.
However, since time remained for vote tallying, after a brief delay, MC Seo Tae-il took the stage again. Following the provided script, Seo Tae-il requested brief evaluations from the judges and announced information about the voting.
“So now we’re just left with the rankings?”
“Probably. Ah, what do I do. I really can’t do this twice.”
Professor Task used the opportunity to replace the camera’s memory card and battery, then discussed the next sequence with Mal-lang-gom. Since they wouldn’t suddenly do another cover song here, the prediction was that they’d probably drag out time with some talk, watch one advertisement, and then announce the rankings over the course of an hour.
“Miro Maze, we’ll be back in one minute!”
“See, it’s ad time.”
“Right. So now it’s really just the final ranking tally.”
Sure enough, Seo Tae-il delivered the advertisement line, and one minute passed.
However, contrary to their expectations, what greeted them after the commercial was a new VCR.
【To. Destiny】
The VCR’s content wasn’t particularly special. It faithfully followed the structure of the “emotional time” that could be called the national standard for survival finals.
The atmosphere inside the concert hall softened as the trainees shared letter-like interviews about how much love they’d received through Miro Maze and what changes had occurred in their own lives.
【Trainee Dan Ha-ru: So… I think I’ll never forget these moments, perhaps forever.】
【Trainee Kang Ha-jin: I have to protect them. So I can always be by your side going forward.】
Among the countless people watching this interview, no one knew the hidden difference between the “going forward” that Ha-ru recalled and the “going forward” that Ha-jin promised.
They simply felt their eyes grow moist at each and every word painting that future.
Lalalala―,
A lyrical accompaniment flowed out, as if countless stars were falling.
After the VCR ended, a spotlight suddenly illuminated a single spot on the still-dark stage.
The moment we first met
Do you remember?
Seo Tae-hyun, dressed in the school uniform that had been Boy’s Supremacy’s outfit, opened his mouth with a trembling voice beneath that light. Tears were already glistening at the corners of his eyes—he’d been crying since watching the VCR.
When a desperate dream touched the sky
On the night it became the sun
The day your light reached me
Eun-chan, who had returned to his usual self from being the mafia’s deranged youngest member, wore a jumpsuit—his original profile photo outfit. Even the face painting drawn on his face remained intact.
As Jayden appeared beside Eun-chan, recreating the black-and-red casual look that was Team B’s outfit during “Daylight,” people finally understood what concept this was.
[That’s the Twoumi kids’ clothes right now]
The one that got the best response from fans so far…
– Hey, but isn’t Seo Tae-hyun’s Socheon school uniform a foul?
Please, Si-woo, Cinderella, Cinderella, Cinderella!
– At this point, is Miro a pervert or is the production team a pervert…
└ Two perverts meeting and creating paradise, just enjoy it
After that, Jae-young in the outfit from “I’ll Tell You” and Ha-ru in the marine look—the same as when Eun-chan took his profile photo—slowly walked onto the stage. The scene of the two youngest members facing each other and harmonizing was so heartwarming that if Kang Ha-jin had seen it, he would’ve covered his mouth to keep from saying they’d all grown up.
Be my daylight
Even if I awake from this warm dream
Jeong Si-u appeared dressed in the 80s college student outfit he’d worn during the fourth round guerrilla concert, complete with gold-rimmed glasses hanging from a chain. As he sang a fan song with such earnest passion, his neck straining with emotion, gasps of admiration erupted throughout the venue.
Lighting flooded the entire stage, and the remaining four trainees revealed themselves.
‘Where is Ha-jin? Where is he?’
Professor Task hurriedly searched for Ha-jin among the crowd.
Won-ho in the first round Daylight Team A outfit, Yoo Gun still wearing the Blue Flare choker from the third round, and Do-ha in the form-fitting black leather suit from the second round Ripple—he passed them all….
Beneath lighting as crimson as his own hair, her favorite stood waiting.
Be your daylight
A black leather shirt with collarbones fully exposed, and a silver body chain visible through the gaps in the fabric.
Ha-jin wore the third round Blue Flare outfit—the one that had garnered the strongest reaction.
The leather belt slung across one thigh, and that violently exposed outfit with what was likely a sheer back, created a stark contrast with the beautiful, warm melody he was singing….
This radiant tenderness will surely last forever
…but that smile as he gazed at the audience rather than the cameras seemed warmer and more affectionate than any spring could ever be.
Professor Task felt tears threatening to spill.
‘…what on earth is this K-pop industry?’
He doesn’t know my name, doesn’t know my age….
He doesn’t even know that I love him and support him.
Even though it’s not a serenade sung while meeting my eyes, all the grievances and hardships I’ve endured while loving Ha-jin seemed to vanish in an instant.
We could be the light (light)
I am a star that shines because of you
A star that shines only because of you
An eternal sun that will shine only on you
As the trainees sang together in harmony, confetti erupted with a burst and scattered beautifully across the entire concert hall. Ha-jin stood quietly in place, lifting his gaze to take in the sight.
The moment Professor Task spotted Ha-jin raising his hand as if trying to catch the falling confetti, he instinctively lifted his camera.
Click,
As he pressed the shutter button, the aperture rapidly closed and opened, capturing the moment.
Professor Task thought that if Ha-jin debuted today, and if he still loved him even after his debut….
He desperately wanted to send this photograph to Ha-jin as a gift.
“….”
He wanted him to know just how beautiful and radiant he was on that stage.
* * *
And then, the moment of reckoning arrived.
“Now, we will close the final voting.”
The voting had ended.
All that remained was the announcement of the final results, reflecting real-time votes, cumulative votes, and the judges’ scores.
After the special stage concluded, ten trainees changed into neat formal wear and took the stage. Seo Tae-il, wearing the same suit he’d worn during the first episode of Miro Maze, stood at the MC podium and delivered his lines in sync with the cue.
“Before announcing the rankings, I will reveal the group name that will be given to the seven boys who will make their final debut.”
At the mention of announcing the group name, the atmosphere in the concert hall stirred with anticipation.
Ha-jin, standing upright in his position, felt that atmosphere and quietly reflected on his past life.
‘What was the group name supposed to be originally?’
Now that I think about it, I clearly remember Rene’s Lanion debuting around the same time, yet I had no recollection whatsoever of Miro’s next group.
‘Wait? But why is Lanion so quiet? Their debut should be this month. No, that’s not what matters right now.’
Ha-jin, nearly distracted by that tangent, shook his head briefly and returned to the original question.
What would the group name be?
Miro had an unwritten rule—they typically crafted group names and fandom names using a single alphabet letter as the first character.
‘Yupia, Idea, Endway, And With U—they all followed that pattern….’
As Ha-jin racked his brain for an appropriate letter,
a very familiar and welcome word suddenly blazed across the massive display screen.
【ICARUS】
“Icarus. It was a crucial keyword and identity throughout this Miro Maze. In Greco-Roman mythology, Icarus attempted to fly toward the sun with waxen wings, but ultimately the heat melted the wax and he plummeted to his doom.”
As Seo Tae-il finished his remarks, the letters composing Icarus began to melt and shift, forming new arrangements and characters.
“However, if we alter just a few letters in Icarus, an entirely new meaning emerges.”
【KAIROS】
“Kairos. The name of the ‘God of Time’ and the ‘God of Opportunity’ in Greek mythology. Derived from the Greek word meaning ‘to engrave,’ it carries the meanings of ‘the right moment,’ ‘opportunity,’ and ‘a fleeting instant.'”
The letters of 【ICARUS】 and 【KAIROS】 intertwined with one another.
Then, accompanied by a grand sound effect, a new word appeared on the display: 【K:RUS】.
“The new group born from Miro today will carry the name Kairos, presenting music that engraves an unforgettable special moment in the K-pop industry to all of you, Destiny.”
With the group name finally announced, Ha-jin quietly savored the word Kairos on his tongue.
Kairos.
Even he, who had attended church as a lifelong believer, knew this word well.
Kairos—in Greek, it meant ‘the creative moment when something extraordinary occurs.’
‘A special group born from something as absurd as regression… it fits perfectly.’
Ha-jin let out a small, quiet laugh at the profound significance of the group name.
“Now then, let me announce the final rankings for those who will carry this name.”
At last, the finale had arrived.

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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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