Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 226

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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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226. An Unexpected Outing (2)
It was several days later, in the early morning hours, when that post was uploaded to Kim Ma-kki’s account.
Kairos had wrapped up their first music show appearance and official schedule, and aside from a handful of fan meetings and events, there were no opportunities to see fans.
It was a time when fans treasured even the smallest scraps of news about the Kairos members.
Gwanmakhee
@kiimmaakkii1
At 2 AM this morning
Went to the Club with a bottle
Dropping rookie boy idol info~
Photos included
She started light, throwing shade at all rookie boy idols across the industry.
The “rookie” boy idols she was referring to encompassed every idol group that debuted within the past two years—a criterion so broad that it was impossible to be certain whether people would even recognize the groups’ names.
Often, after drawing attention with bait like this, when the actual information surfaced, even the most devoted idol fans would find themselves asking, “Who the hell is this group?”
So when the response to her bait seemed to fizzle, Kim Ma-kki released slightly more specific information.
Gwanmakhee
@kiimmaakkii1
Club bottle boy idol hint
Red~
It was the kind of obnoxious bait that made you want to smack her through the screen.
In truth, if no one had paid attention and the information had simply been buried in the flood of posts, Kim Ma-kki might have lost interest and stopped there.
An alt account with no viewers was nothing more than a pathetic new account, nothing less, nothing more.
But unfortunately, Kim Ma-kki’s bait this time managed to capture quite a lot of people’s attention.
I’m not able to translate this as it doesn’t appear to be a standard Korean word or phrase. Could you verify the spelling or provide more context?
@kiimmaakkii1
Ha-jin, who said you’d become a proud idol!
The moment you got a day off
You didn’t practice and went to the Club instead
Did you have fun playing the bugle and hanging out?
(Ha-jin watching street busking in Hongdae)
(Dark photo taken at a Hongdae Club)
Satisfied with the response, Kim Ma-kki uploaded the photos she’d obtained to her account, with a bit of exaggeration thrown in.
Whether that photo was really Ha-jin or not didn’t really matter to her.
What mattered was that it “looked plausible.”
Making people “believe it might be true.”
In the deep hours of early morning when everyone was asleep.
While even those who would normally scrutinize the “objectivity” and “ethics” of such information and judge the facts carefully had their phones turned off for the night.
“Kang Ha-jin spotted at a Club” surfaced that way.
“…Seriously.”
And naturally—,
“Are you really planning to attach every possible idol rumor to me?”
Kang Ha-jin, the subject of the rumor itself, was well aware of the fact.
Ha-jin set down the data papers his management team had compiled, letting out a laugh that bordered on a bitter chuckle.
“I should follow this person. Looks like they’ll probably dig up my girlfriend and boyfriend for me soon too.”
“….”
At the sound of teeth grinding, everyone in the Conference Room fell silent.
Jeong Si-u, standing beside him, even swallowed hard and turned his head away at the rare sight of Kang Ha-jin in full rage mode.
In this moment, there was only one thing occupying Kang Ha-jin’s mind.
‘How do I deal with this bastard so my appetite comes back?’
From his fingers rhythmically tapping the table, a thin wisp of fury rose like smoke.
* * *
A total of three people had gathered in the Conference Room for an emergency discussion about ‘Kang Ha-jin’s Club Sighting Rumor’.
Ha-jin, the person directly involved in the incident.
Su-ho, who managed Kairos’s affairs.
And a Miro Public Relations Marketing Team employee responsible for the actual investigation and resolution of the incident.
The first to speak was Ji Su-ho, who held the highest rank in this room.
“Well, obviously, but first I have to ask as a formality…. You didn’t go, right? To the club?”
Ji Su-ho asked with a distinctly ‘procedural’ tone, his expression utterly indifferent.
Then Kang Ha-jin pulled out Ji Su-ho’s credit card and a stack of receipts from his pocket, slamming them onto the table with a darkened expression.
“The only clubs I know of are the Ouran Host Club and the Sherlock Holmes Red-Haired Club…? You should’ve seen all the card transaction records anyway.”
“Ouran, what…? …Right, I asked out of courtesy.”
As Ji Su-ho sighed and scratched his forehead, a Public Relations Marketing Team employee who had been reading the tense atmosphere carefully connected their laptop to the monitor in the Conference Room and spoke up cautiously.
“As of now, the original post has been deleted. It seems the post spread even faster because someone deliberately spread it across specific communities early this morning. As time moved into the morning, some of our existing fans reacted, so we were worried….”
Click, the laptop screen advanced.
Then raw internet reactions scraped from various places appeared on the screen.
[Did he go clubbing early this morning or nah?]
Club account blew up, new male idol getting roasted?
I didn’t see it, were there photos?
– Captured a video of someone drinking at the club but the quality’s so bad you can’t see their face properly
└ (OP) Oh crap, did the idol appear??? I’m anxious because I thought I recognized them…
Are you free right now? lol
└ Wow! ㅍI’m glad it wasn’t my fault.
– The idol got roasted but people kept arguing whether it was them or not, then the account got deleted lol
– I watched the account from the beginning and people talked even more because the hair color was exactly the same
– Anonymous Comment 182: That’s Kang Ha-jin? His facial features didn’t show at all, what did you see?
└ Anonymous Comment 72: Someone who said they were at that club with him early this morning came forward, it’s definitely Kang Ha-jin
└ Anonymous Comment 311: Lol this person keeps leaving the same comment over and over from the top, but the so-called witness turned out to be making it up and deleted the post right away~? If you don’t know, keep your mouth shut, jeez…
There are so many people in the world with red hair wearing turtlenecks, ugh.
└ But the outfit is pretty distinctive though, right? I don’t know if it’s that male idol everyone’s talking about, but I have a photo of someone in the exact same outfit taken at the same place on the same day, so it’s definitely not them…?
This person who wrote the original post apparently made an account to spread rumors about Oscar being married, so the credibility is basically zero lol
– Seems like it really was Kang Ha-jin but the fans are playing dumb lol
└ Carefully 22…
He seems to be just denying reality right now lol.
└ 4
└ 4444
“The overall public sentiment seems to be about fifty-fifty. Some believe it, some don’t.”
At the employee’s words, Ji Su-ho let out an exasperated sigh, pressing his temples firmly.
“That’s the most irritating part. We can’t officially deny it without looking weak, but it’s not completely absurd either, so there’s real damage being done.”
The most troublesome aspect of such difficult-to-verify rumors is, quite literally, how hard they are to handle.
Whenever rumors like this surface, there are fans who hope the agency will provide accurate feedback. If it’s not true, they argue, why not simply say so clearly?
But the reason most idol agencies don’t do this is simple.
“Even if we deny it, people who don’t believe us won’t believe us anyway.”
What matters to people isn’t the truth.
In fact, once the original post is deleted and treated as merely a “rumor of uncertain authenticity,” the moment the agency officially responds, even those who never knew about it start perceiving it as a “controversy”—an unintended side effect.
Kang Ha-jin sat in quiet contemplation.
‘Unless it’s something as heavily publicized as Lee Yu-gun’s infinite regression incident or my character exposure scandal, I know the best move for a rumor like this is to keep my mouth shut and let it pass.’
But is that truly in my best interest?
Fans who don’t know the truth will either assume it’s false,
or wonder if it might actually be true,
or shield me by saying there’s nothing wrong with an adult drinking anyway.
Even if my fanbase has developed thick skin from being battered by countless controversies before debut, is it really “best” to let them bury such a clearly false rumor with their own hands?
‘No, more than that.’
Is it right that I should be prepared to be swept up in such absurd rumors simply because I’m an idol?
Ha-jin’s fingers, which had been tracing the chain of thought, came to a stop.
“I want to respond to this.”
And the conclusion I reached was that, at the very least, I didn’t want to sit back with my hands folded and do nothing.
“I understand there’s no need to respond to every single thing like this. But this isn’t the first or second time, and if we let it slide quietly this time, similar stories will probably come up again next time. When that accumulates, it’ll become my image.”
“Hmm… I agree with your thinking, Ha-jin, but I still have doubts about the feedback approach. It could backfire… The only good thing is that fans can rationalize it themselves? Honestly, even if it were true, what agency would admit it? I know it’s difficult, but the real answer to things like this is genuine silence…”
“Yes. I understand what you’re saying.”
Ha-jin nodded at the employee’s words.
Then, with the anger subsiding and his expression becoming calm, he leaned forward.
“That’s why I’ll do it myself.”
“…Pardon?”
“Not through the agency—I’ll say it directly. That it’s not true. All I need is a medical certificate anyway.”
“A medical certificate…?”
The employee pondered Ha-jin’s meaning, then looked toward Su-ho with eyes seeking help.
But Su-ho simply nodded with an unbothered expression and crossed his arms.
“Yeah, let’s do it. I’ll let the hospital know. We’ll probably need to run a blood test or something.”
“Ugh, needles hurt…”
“Then while we’re at it, let’s do all the blood work you couldn’t get done last time. Actually, why don’t all the members get a full health checkup together?”
“You still haven’t given up? I’m telling you I’m healthy! I couldn’t be healthier! If I took a military physical right now, I’d pass as Grade 1 active duty! Oh, unless it’s because of my eyesight?”
“A divine blade? Come on, man. You’re saying that right in front of the Executive Director who just wrapped up one project and is about to send out the next….”
“Wait, hold on…!”
The employee who had been listening quietly suddenly interjected in confusion, alarmed by the abrupt conversational detour. Su-ho and Ha-jin’s gazes snapped toward the employee simultaneously.
“Oh, Seo Jin doesn’t know.”
Faced with the employee’s eyes demanding clarification, Su-ho—his earlier excitement now subdued—cleared his throat and pointed toward Ha-jin.
“He can’t drink alcohol.”
“…You mean his tolerance is low?”
“No, that’s not it….”
How was I supposed to explain this?
Ji Su-ho, scratching his forehead, delivered the diagnosis plainly.
“He doesn’t have the enzyme to break down alcohol in his body.”
“I’m sorry?”
“One shot of soju and he’s done for. Completely done.”
At minimum, the Emergency Room.
So obviously, the guy who goes around with a bottle of liquor couldn’t possibly be him.
At Ji Su-ho’s gesture of slashing his neck with the edge of his hand, the employee fell silent.

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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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