Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 256

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

256. Touch High! (8)
The Main PD spoke in a somber tone.
“Originally, we had prepared something like a final political game overflowing with cooperation and betrayal, where the winning team’s saboteur and their teammates would use the badges they each obtained separately….”
…Did they really pour too much effort into the final script structure?
No matter how I thought about it, this was an excessively robust concept for a one-week filler segment.
As our team stood there blankly blinking, the Main PD continued speaking with a hollow laugh.
“We honestly didn’t anticipate that Do-ha would expose himself as the saboteur right from the start like that. But since the content turned out entertaining, we’re actually quite satisfied with how it went…?”
“So…?”
“Ah, yes. So we’d like to present a proposal to the Kairos Team.”
The PD pushed his glasses up and laid out two options.
“The first option is to end it with Kairos Team as the champions and have each of you take home a Korean beef set as the winning prize.”
“And the second?”
“The second is to have the Kairos Team play one more round of flag tag for exactly 20 minutes. Do-ha, as the saboteur, wins if he protects his flag for the full 20 minutes, while the teammates win if they pull his flag.”
“Wouldn’t that put Do-ha at a huge disadvantage?”
At that, the opposing team members who had been eliminated by Lee Do-ha in the previous game clamored in agreement. Lee Do-ha himself seemed unbothered, simply nodding quietly.
I raised my hand to ask the PD a question.
“So if we catch Lee Do-ha, only the remaining four of us get the beef and that’s it? We’re living together anyway….”
“Ah. In the second scenario, it’s an individual competition. So only whoever pulls Do-ha’s flag first receives the prize. We’ll also allow you to pull your teammates’ flags to eliminate competitors. Do-ha can also retaliate by pulling other people’s flags.”
“The prize is still beef, right?”
“No. In this case, if each of you tells us exactly one thing you want, we’ll prepare that for you.”
“Anything we want?”
“…We’ll do our best to accommodate whatever is within our means.”
Custom prizes? That’s incredibly sweet.
Filming had wrapped up relatively early anyway, so there was no reason to turn down additional content.
‘Still, it feels a bit hasty to just bite at this right away…. Is there anything else I can negotiate?’
Beside me, Lee Do-ha and Dan Ha-ru were waiting for my opinion, while Ji Su-ho behind them was gesturing for us to do whatever we wanted.
After carefully gauging the production team and cast members, I spoke to the Main PD once more.
“PD, would it be alright if I carefully brought up something?”
“Yes, yes. Go ahead.”
“Well, the thing is, we’ve won as the Kairos Team, but now we’re dividing the championship prize through an individual competition, which feels slightly at odds with the original intent of this three-way competition format. That’s just a thought that occurred to me.”
The Main PD and Main Writer’s expressions shifted to ‘What kind of buildup is this now?’
Mindful that I was the most junior newcomer in this setting, I continued speaking with a tone that blended slight embarrassment, anticipation, bashfulness, and playfulness.
“And besides, if we’re playing an additional game, that’s essentially overtime work, isn’t it? Since we’d be creating another very entertaining segment for you….”
“…Creating?”
“If you could give the Kairos Team a group appearance slot on Touch High as the championship prize, we’d be able to tackle the final race with joy and boundless enthusiasm.”
Beef?
The dormitory refrigerator is already overflowing with it.
Seo Tae-il sent boxes of it right after the concert ended.
Our performance today wasn’t bad either, and for a production team always hungry for guest appearances, an appearance slot was the best card to play without much effort or fanfare. My proposal was quite reasonable, if I do say so myself.
Sure enough, after the Main PD conferred with the writers for a moment, he nodded readily before long.
“Excellent. Then, as the championship prize, I’ll promise the Kairos members a ‘Touch High Kairos Special Edition.’ And I’ll also present the original prize—a Korean beef set—to the two Touch High members. Kairos, congratulations on your victory.”
“Thank you!”
The cast responded to the Main PD’s bold decision with applause and cheers.
While Winter Tail’s sharp-witted leader loudly reacted with a theatrical “What a shame~,” the Storm Header members’ faces openly displayed undisguised regret and envy.
I felt a twinge of guilt that we seemed to be dominating everything, but knowing better than anyone that this industry rewarded skill above all else, I deliberately looked away.
“Now then. For the next twenty minutes, we’ll hold our final game of tag to determine the ultimate champion within the Kairos Team. I’ll give Do-ha three minutes to hide first. Let’s begin.”
As the three-minute timer on the filming studio floor started counting down, Lee Do-ha sprinted away and rushed up the stairs.
Watching Do-ha’s VJ in Charge hurry after him, I naturally draped my arm across the shoulders of my fellow fixed panelists from the same team, whom I’d grown close to, and spoke up.
“Should we form an alliance at the start? I don’t think I can take Do-ha’s flag alone.”
“Yeah, yeah. We’re not greedy about winning anyway, so we’ll back you guys up.”
“Ha-ru’s pretty strong though, right? I was genuinely surprised earlier.”
“Still, I don’t think he’d match up against Do-ha hyung, would he? He’s so much taller than me.”
While we exchanged idle chatter, the opposing team’s cast members conversed comfortably as if filming had already wrapped.
Winter Tail, with their more experience, naturally chatted with the fixed panelists, but Storm Header members, similar to us in standing, huddled together and seemed to be watching for an opening.
‘…Should I throw them some content?’
The three-minute timer was nearly finished.
I spoke first to Winter Tail’s leader, with whom I’d had a decent conversation earlier.
“Senior, how about we make a bet?”
“A bet?”
“Guess which one of us will win the championship.”
“Ah~ Well, it’s definitely not Ha-jin.”
“Ha, seriously. You’re setting my competitive spirit on fire again?”
“How about we bet on the shorts you couldn’t film earlier?”
“I’m in. I’m confident.”
“Oh, that works. How about the rest of us place bets on who’ll win?”
Sanchez, sensing broadcast potential, jumped into the conversation between me and the leader.
The Main PD, pleased that he could extract content from idle cast members anyway, leaned forward with interest.
As people got fired up over the betting, the three-minute timer ended and the twenty-minute timer restarted.
And the moment the whistle blew to signal the start of the game—
“…Huh?”
“Huh!”
I quickly withdrew my arm from the panelists’ shoulders and simultaneously snatched the flags off both their backs. In an instant, the cast members, including the two whose flags I’d taken, stared at me in shock.
But I simply flashed my usual playful smile.
“I really want to win today… so I need to eliminate the competition.”
“Hey! But why grab them right away like that!?”
“I’ll be going~”
With the most harmless smile I could muster, I sprinted toward the stairs where Lee Do-ha had disappeared.
Dan Ha-ru had already bolted the moment the whistle blew and was already passing the 2nd Floor Corridor.
Mentally mapping out Lee Do-ha’s likely movements, I smiled with satisfaction.
‘Yes. Another schedule secured.’
Once we get back to the Dormitory, if Seo Tae-hyun scolds me for not promoting the new song, I’ll use this to smooth things over.
Without realizing it, a grin spread across my face.
* * *
And so, back to the present moment.
Lee Do-ha managed to evade Dan Ha-ru and me for a full fifteen minutes, darting about with impressive cunning.
Since we’d only captured limited footage, it would be boring if he just hid the entire time, so I picked a fight with Dan Ha-ru as he passed by, tapped along the Emergency Staircase railing like a killer in a horror film, and added as much theatrical flair as I could muster.
“Our destroyer’s been here the whole time, hasn’t he~?”
“….”
And finally, with five minutes left in the game, I came face to face with Lee Do-ha.
“De-on will gracefully surrender his flag, de-on.”
“…That’s not happening.”
“You don’t have any material desires anyway. If I win, I’ll make an awesome wish for you.”
“I have a wish I want to make too.”
“…Really? But what can you do about it? With the way things are now, I’ve got a complete advantage.”
With Lee Do-ha trapped in the box and his movements restricted, I had a hundred percent advantage looking down at him from above. I moved carefully to avoid being subdued, targeting the flag on his back.
As a tense psychological battle flowed between us, I suddenly felt someone trying to snatch my flag from behind.
“…Seriously, what the—”
“Do-ha hyung! Run!”
I spun around to see Dan Ha-ru charging at me to steal my flag. As I hastily grabbed his hand, Lee Do-ha slipped out of the Props Room while I was tied up with Dan Ha-ru.
“Hey, Sparkle. What are you doing attacking me? We could team up and catch Lee Do-ha together.”
“I’ve been thinking about it, and I think I’d have a better shot at winning against Do-ha hyung in a one-on-one than against you.”
“That makes sense? Hey, look at Lee Do-ha’s build!”
“But Do-ha hyung seems like he’d fight fair with just pure strength, whereas you use all sorts of tricks…!”
‘What does he think I am?’
…I couldn’t even ask, given everything I’d already done.
Time was running out, so I needed to quickly subdue Dan Ha-ru and go find Lee Do-ha.
“Okay. Come at me.”
I’d played around with Dan Ha-ru plenty of times before, but I’d never actually gone all out in a strength match like this.
It felt ridiculous to fight the youngest with full force, so I was just going to pin him down casually and pull his flag…
“…Hey, hey! Mom, hey, you brat! You’re gonna stunt your growth like this!”
“I really want to win the championship!”
Dan Ha-ru used my own force against me, and in that instant, he lifted me clean off the ground and hoisted me onto his shoulders!
‘Is this even possible?’
Sure, the difference in height and build meant my center of gravity collapsed quickly, but the fact that I’d been lifted by someone so much smaller than me was humiliating.
Worried I’d actually be eliminated by Dan Ha-ru before I could grab Lee Do-ha’s flag, I shifted my weight while his balance was disrupted and threw him to the ground.
“Ugh! Hyung! I’m the youngest!”
“I know, youngest.”
“I’m Ha-ru…!”
“Right, you’re Dan Ha-ru. …Oof! Who’s this now?!”
While I was bickering with Dan Ha-ru, someone else came charging in.
I thought Lee Do-ha had fled.
“What? You didn’t run away!?”
“…I just couldn’t leave Ha-ru like that. My conscience wouldn’t let me.”
“That’s something!”
Honestly, it worked out better this way. A proper struggle between me, Dan Ha-ru, and him would generate far better content than him hiding alone and winning by default.
Whether Lee Do-ha had actually considered all that before coming back was debatable, but one thing was certain—the victor would be decided by the end of this fight.
“Ah! Ah! Hyungs, the maknae is dying!”
“I didn’t raise you to be that weak.”
“Do-ha hyung!!”
“Ha-ru, pull your arm back. You’re catching the flag.”
“How could you too…! I’m telling Tae-hyun hyung about this!!”
The three of us—me, Dan Ha-ru, and Lee Do-ha—tangled together in chaos.
Lee Do-ha, who initially seemed to be targeting Dan Ha-ru, immediately reached behind my back whenever I showed the slightest opening. The Production Director filming us from the side shouted that only one minute remained.
“Aaaah…!”
Caught between two shameless hyungs who knew nothing of mercy, Dan Ha-ru was the first to be eliminated.
The beautiful hairstyle the Stylist had painstakingly styled was now a tangled mess. The moment Dan Ha-ru’s flag fell, my gaze and Lee Do-ha’s collided in midair.
“Thirty seconds remaining―!”
“Just win already!!”
With Dan Ha-ru’s cry, Lee Do-ha and I simultaneously reached for each other’s backs.
This was the moment when Kairos’s first broadcast champion would be crowned.

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