Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 185

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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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185. Welcome to Your First Debut (2)
Yoo Gun spoke with firm conviction, adding his reasoning.
“We simply don’t have enough practice time. If this is our debut track, we’ll need to synchronize far more rigorously than we did during the Survival Program.”
“But… November’s situation is similar anyway. We might actually be busier then with year-end performances overlapping. If we just cut back on sleep a bit and push through for a few weeks….”
As Tae-hyun countered, Yoo Gun gestured toward Do-ha sitting beside him and spoke in an indifferent tone.
“This guy’s already pulling all-nighters every single night. How much more sleep are we supposed to cut?”
Do-ha, the weakest dancer among us, had been undergoing intensive basic choreography training with Yoo Gun every day lately. On top of that, he was working on composition himself, so as his roommate, I knew better than anyone that he was practically living at the Company without proper sleep.
‘It’s true—if we try to prepare for a debut while maintaining the current schedule… it’ll be grueling.’
Do-ha seemed unable to deny this fact either, so he kept his mouth shut without particularly refuting Yoo Gun’s words. Then Yoo Gun let out a short sigh and added one more thing.
“I get that you’re eager to debut quickly, but not everyone can just do things and succeed like you do.”
Wait, wasn’t that a bit of a dangerous remark?
The moment I thought that, Tae-hyun, our resident INFP, eyes glistening with grievance and hurt, raised his voice.
“…Why are you saying it like that? I’m not being stubborn about wanting to debut quickly.”
“I never said you were being stubborn. I’m saying we should consider the skill differences between members. Don’t overinterpret.”
“But that’s the nuance you’re giving off. It’s not like I find everything easy either…!”
“Hey, stop. Both of you, stop. What are you doing in front of the Executive Director right now?”
If I left these two alone, they’d really start shouting and fighting, so I cut in appropriately to stop them. My loud voice came in handy at times like this.
Su-ho gave me a brief grateful nod, then gently soothed both of them with his characteristic mediator’s tone.
“Whether it’s Plan A or Plan B, the Company is fully aware that both schedules are sudden and hectic. But the Company has judged that a September debut is more advantageous.”
“….”
“Unless the November schedule is overwhelmingly more relaxed—relaxed enough to actually raise the quality of the performance—I personally think it would be better for your motivation if you could harvest the fruit of debut a little sooner. What do you think?”
Faced with Su-ho’s logical persuasion, Yoo Gun silently looked at Do-ha. Ultimately, Do-ha was the one who would have to endure the tightened schedule, so the choice belonged to him.
Accordingly, everyone’s gaze turned toward Do-ha.
“….”
Still, Do-ha couldn’t answer easily.
I suspected it wasn’t because the schedule seemed difficult or impossible. After all, he’d been an athlete, so when it came to stamina and toughness, he was second to none among us.
Rather, it was something else entirely….
‘He’s probably wrestling with whether he can create a polished performance in such a short time.’
This was a problem only he could answer, and it was something that would eventually have to be resolved.
Everyone waited in silence for Do-ha’s response.
…Everyone except one.
“Hyung! I’ll help you!”
Our little rabbit warrior was brave as always.
“I’m not the fastest at picking up choreography either…. That’s why I’ve researched a lot of methods to memorize movements more easily. Don’t you think we could learn faster together than alone? And it’ll be more fun!”
And he was positive about it too. Yeah, the perfect protagonist material.
Around the time I was thinking that this spirited kid had gone dark in his past life and become a sunfish-like regression traveler who rewound the timeline hundreds of times—truly the complete shounen manga protagonist cliché.
Do-ha finally opened his mouth.
“…I don’t want to be a burden to the team.”
“….”
“If it’s something I have to do, I’ll see it through.”
There was no answer more characteristic of Lee Do-ha than that.
Ji Su-ho nodded with a satisfied smile at the bold response.
“Good. Then the debut date is confirmed for September 15th. Being on the same team won’t be easy, but I believe you’ll handle it wisely.”
The last remark was clearly directed at Seo Tae-hyun and Lee Yu-gun, and both of the same-aged guys awkwardly averted their gazes. I was starting to get genuinely worried about what could have happened during the break to suddenly make them act like this.
‘Don’t fight, you bastards. You’re going to see each other for seven years even if you tear each other apart.’
The contracts were already signed and sealed anyway—there was no backing out. Blood might be thicker than water, but the seal on a contract was thicker than both.
I made a mental note to find out what happened between those two with Si-woo soon. In the meantime, Ji Su-ho clenched his fist with a healthy smile and launched into a team-bonding speech.
“They say when the body grows weary, the spirit grows barren. I can’t promise everything will be smooth sailing. The next two months will truly be exhausting and difficult…. But if we just endure a little more together, show each other consideration, and push hard through the rest of this year, we can do this!”
Will we… be okay?
I suddenly missed my mother.
* * *
“Where’s Lee Do-ha?”
“Oh. He went to his hyung’s studio. He said he’d work a bit more.”
As I dragged my exhausted body and mind back toward the Dormitory, Lee Do-ha was nowhere to be seen. Lee Yu-gun, who was teaching Lee Do-ha choreography, was already in the car with his eyes closed, so I asked—and sure enough, he confirmed that another late night was locked in.
“Isn’t he pushing himself too hard?”
I knew what it felt like to be chased by time, but…
Still, Lee Do-ha took it to another level. It was the same during the end-of-month evaluations, and the same during Miro Maze. He had a tendency to make up for insufficient practice time by burning through his own body.
I stood without getting in the car, thinking about whether I should just let it be. Lee Yu-gun, still keeping his eyes closed with his head against the window and arms crossed, answered matter-of-factly.
“Just leave him alone.”
“Leave him alone? That guy’s cooped up in the studio without eating or sleeping? No, he has to eat at least. He needs some sleep too.”
“…That’s the only way his hyung’s mind will be at ease, so just leave him be.”
Then Lee Yu-gun cracked his eyes open slightly and spoke to me, still standing in front of the car door, his voice tinged with bitterness.
“People like you wouldn’t understand. How much being a minus makes someone want to run away.”
Was he saying that to me right now?
I was about to tell him to cut the pre-adolescent angst act he’d been pulling since earlier, but Seo Tae-hyun, who suddenly appeared behind me, beat me to it.
“Don’t twist your excuses to drag others into it.”
Did our cherry just snap…?
Stunned by the cold tone so unlike the usual Seo Tae-hyun, Lee Yu-gun furrowed his brows slightly and shot back with a resentful voice.
“Don’t twist my words. I wasn’t even talking to you right now.”
“What did I twist? You’re the one always talking negatively—about being a minus and all that.”
“…You just don’t like everything I’m saying right now. Are you in elementary school? Even our tigers don’t act like this.”
“What, elementary school? Yeah, I’m in elementary school. You must be so happy being in high school?”
Wait, are these guys for real?
“Stop it. Both of you want to run back to the Dormitory?”
“But he started it first…!”
“Seo Tae-hyun keeps…!”
“Tsk. I thought you two were being obedient, but you’re treating your elder’s words like water and talking back? Stop fighting, you brats!? You want me to go live broadcast this squabble and spread it all over the neighborhood?”
I put my hands on my hips and spoke sternly, and only then did both of them shrink back. Their faces were still full of defiance, but once Si-woo and the younger members climbed into the car, neither of them could say anything more and fell silent.
Lee Yu-gun pulled out his earbuds from his bag and plugged them in, closing his eyes, while Seo Tae-hyun climbed into the passenger seat and turned his head sharply to look out the window.
“Ha-jin, aren’t you getting in?”
Jeong Si-u seemed to notice the subtle tension in the air, his gaze darting meaningfully between Seo Tae-hyun and Lee Yu-gun before he turned to ask me a question. I took a moment to calculate which of these childish same-aged brats or my rotting roommate at the Studio I should prioritize tackling first.
‘These guys aren’t going to be resolved in a single day anyway…. It might be better to check in on Lee Do-ha first while I still have some breathing room.’
The fact that Lee Yu-gun was speaking with such false authority suggested a high probability that Lee Do-ha’s situation was connected to the conflict between Lee Yu-gun and Seo Tae-hyun. Once the calculation was complete, I grabbed the car door handle and answered Jeong Si-u.
“Ah, I’ll just head out with Lee Do-ha. You go ahead first, hyung.”
“…Alright. Don’t stay out too late. Do-ha seems to be pushing himself too hard lately.”
“Yes.”
Jeong Si-u, having also noticed Lee Do-ha’s overexertion, nodded readily at my suggestion to leave separately. Before closing the car door, I gave Jeong Si-u a subtle eye signal, gesturing slightly toward Seo Tae-hyun and Lee Yu-gun.
It was roughly saying, ‘These guys seem to have something going on, so could you keep an eye on them when you get to the Dormitory?’ Our resident master of reading the room, Jeong Si-u, caught the signal immediately and gave a small nod with a faint smile.
Still, it was definitely convenient having someone on the Team who could communicate like this without words.
“Si-woo hyung, can we listen to music through Bluetooth?”
“Eun-chan hyung, we should listen to that one. What was it? That song by Jinu sunbae!”
“I was thinking of listening to the new song by Spear sunbae that just came out….”
“Oh. Um, can’t we listen to that one first and then play that other song next?”
“Nah, let’s listen to Jinu sunbae first.”
“Okay!”
Watching Ju Eun-chan and Dan Ha-ru sitting in the very back, completely unbothered by the cold atmosphere between Seo Tae-hyun and Lee Yu-gun, busily constructing today’s departure playlist, I quietly closed the car door.
…Yes. Let my youngest members grow up bright, healthy, and spirited.
One’s a professional returnee and one’s a premium young master—what does a little lack of awareness matter?
“Hmm. So now….”
Time to go hunt the Bear.
My footsteps as I stepped back into the elevator I’d descended from just minutes ago felt weightless.
* * *
Lee Do-ha thought he’d experienced a situation similar to this before.
“Hey, Do-ha.”
“…Yeah, hey.”
Kang Ha-jin, his roommate and groupmate, suddenly pushed open the Studio door and smiled softly. Lee Do-ha blinked, feeling like a mistake-prone new employee who’d just received an unexpected visit from the Cafe Owner.
“We have something to talk about, don’t we?”
We do? What could it be…?
Lee Do-ha’s pupils, which rarely wavered, rippled like waves across water.

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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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