Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 420

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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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420. Let’s Go on a Trip! (1)
“Oh my, our variety show idols Kairos have arrived!!!”
The moment I opened the conference room door and stepped inside, the production team erupted in thunderous applause and rose to their feet to welcome us. Ju Eun-chan, who had opened the door first, was so taken aback by this unprecedented reception from the broadcast station staff that his pupils were trembling fifteen times per second.
“Welcome, welcome! It’s been such a long time, hasn’t it!”
“Y-yes…? Oh, um…”
“Eun-chan, come here.”
The guy was so shy and startled that even when the Main PD told him to come in and sit down, he was actually backing away instead.
Thinking he might actually faint if I left him alone, I quickly pushed Ju Eun-chan aside and entered the office first. Seo Tae-hyun and Jeong Si-u, being quick-witted, naturally followed behind me. Ju Eun-chan, still flustered, seemed to be brought along by Lee Yu-gun.
I quickly took a seat across from the Main PD and respectfully shook the hand he offered.
“We’ve been waiting with bated breath for you to call us. Thank you so much for the snacks last time too. Our fans said they really loved them.”
“Oh, that was because Ha-jin did well and earned us that sponsorship. Please, sit down.”
Once I sat down at the Main PD’s invitation, the other members and production staff took their seats in turn.
As I’d been briefed beforehand, a man who appeared to be an Assistant Director began recording with a camera from the corner of the conference room.
“First of all, thank you so much for having Touch High back again.”
“We’re the ones who should be thanking you for the invitation. Since then, we’ve seen you play our songs a lot on the broadcast and promote us.”
“Really?”
“Yes, yes. You’ve sung our songs and…”
“All our members are basically obsessed with Kairos right now. They’ve all become fans, you know?”
“Oh, what an honor.”
After our appearance on the last Touch High shoot left such a strong impression, I’d learned through fan monitoring that core members like Sanchez would frequently mention us whenever the camera was rolling, saying things like “Ha-jin, I miss you!” or “Kairos, are you watching?”
Whenever they got the chance, they’d perform hit songs like “This Isn’t Carol” or “There Is No Spring,” and whenever a spy mission segment came up, they’d call out for Lee Do-ha.
It was all because our episode had raked in impressive viewership ratings, view counts, and trending scores, but regardless, the fact that this major public broadcast variety show had taken a favorable stance toward us was certainly welcome news.
“Well… today’s meeting doesn’t really have any special agenda. We heard this was your first time appearing as an entertainment group, so we thought we should get to know each other and become familiar with your faces beforehand.”
“Ah, I see.”
“The filming is mostly just formality anyway, so don’t worry too much about it. Just think of today as a casual conversation before you head back.”
I’d never seen a PD who actually let people leave after just a casual conversation like that.
I knew this was all a smokescreen to lower the members’ guard and extract various stories from them, but since a few of them seemed genuinely nervous, I let them relax at his words.
Besides, there was no one here who would say anything strange, and even if they did, I could smooth things over.
“Eun-chan, was there a particular Touch High episode you found especially entertaining?”
“Oh, for me it was the late-night Gwigok Mountain Lodge episode…!”
“Hack! Cough, cough―!”
Eun-chan, please.
“Oh my, are you alright, Ha-jin? Sena, could you get some tissues?”
“Ugh, cough… S-sorry. I choked… on some water…”
Why would you say something so ominous right when I was drinking water?
I quickly wiped my mouth with the tissues the production staff handed me and quietly turned my gaze to Ju Eun-chan.
“Are you okay, hyung?”
“…Yeah. I’m fine.”
What I meant was, ‘Are you going to keep deliberately picking out exactly the kind of things the broadcast station people would love and just blurting them out like that?’ But our group’s youngest member didn’t seem to understand the problem and was actually asking about my wellbeing with a worried expression.
Only Dan Ha-ru and Lee Yu-gun, sitting next to him, understood the meaning behind my gaze and quietly looked away.
“Ah….”
And the Main PD of Touch High—who caught that response perfectly—opened his mouth with an oddly anxious tone.
“You enjoyed the Gwigok Mountain Lodge episode…?”
“Yes. The games before it were really fun too, but that twist at the end where they were all actually the same ghost was genuinely thrilling. It’s my favorite episode.”
“Really~?”
So Eun-chan was actually a horror fanatic? I wouldn’t have guessed.
Now that I think about it, when we went to Dream Land last time, he did seem to be watching that cosmic horror parade in the evening and the thrilling house—the house of horrors—with particular interest….
“Yes, and that doll they did at the abandoned school back then….”
“I actually―!”
“…?”
If I let this continue, that (differently terrifying) mouth would innocently light up those eyes and hand the broadcasting station crew the perfect justification to plan an absolutely brutal horror special.
I couldn’t let that happen. If it were the height of summer, maybe, but after spending the sweltering heat busy with activities, I had absolutely no desire to suffer through a belated summer special now. Not at all.
‘And the shoot is a whole one night, two days—one night, two days!’
Suffer through a courage test for one night and two days? On public broadcast, no less?
That was absolutely unacceptable.
“I actually… liked the detective special. Because I’m a mystery fanatic.”
“Oh… ah, right. I think I’ve heard that before. Fans were sending you Sherlock Holmes costumes and stuff?”
“Yes, I watched a lot of mystery manga when I was younger. And Touch High was one of the first to attempt this kind of mystery-format storytelling variety show, I believe. That was when I was in middle school? Anyway, I was genuinely impressed when I first saw it then. This kind of format is only possible because it’s Touch High, you know?”
“Oh my, Ha-jin, are you a Touch High kid? That must have been a special from way back.”
“I’m someone who watched in real-time when Sanchez ripped his pants doing bungee jumping in Touch High episode one.”
I did my best to keep talking, hoping that Jo—who had saved me in every interview before—would save me from this horror special danger this time too.
The fact that I was a Touch High kid who grew up watching from childhood seemed to tickle their fancy quite a bit, because I could feel the body language of the PD and writer who had been facing Ju Eun-chan subtly shift toward me.
I’m sorry, PD. Truth is, I actually liked the rival show 【Let’s Sunday】 that aired at the same time more than 【Touch High】.
“This guy gets impatient and just keeps talking.”
“If you don’t want to spend one night and two days screaming through a horror special and come back, stay quiet.”
“….”
Seo Tae-hyun, who seemed fascinated that I was spouting lies without even wetting my lips first, fell silent at my words. I couldn’t quite remember if he was naturally fearful or not, but it was clear he wasn’t particularly fond of horror specials either.
“Wow, if you’ve been watching since episode one, you’re a real devoted fan? Why didn’t you mention it during the last recording?”
“I just couldn’t find the right moment to bring it up…. Since it was a program I liked, I asked to appear on it once more. You know I worked really hard that day, right?”
“Of course, of course. Wow, the members would be so happy if they knew this?”
Perfect. The production team’s conversation was gradually drifting away from the word “horror.”
And thanks to Seo Tae-hyun and Lee Do-ha, who came right after me, mentioning pure entertainment content like company outings or situational comedy specials back-to-back, our misdirection was becoming increasingly flawless.
“Haha, right. That was really fun too. A company outing special would be fun like that. Or a university MT special. Since there are a lot of people involved, for starters.”
“Yes. With our panelists and the Kairos members, that’s fourteen people total…. I think having clearer role assignments in the setup would be better.”
“What about Si-woo? Is there anything you particularly liked, or any topic you’ve wanted to try before?”
“Oh, me.”
It was becoming perfectly… complete.
“I’m similar to Eun-chan.”
“Yes?”
“The cursed doll special from the abandoned school. I rewatch it pretty often these days. Since we haven’t done that kind of horror special separately yet, it might feel fresh.”
It was only until our household’s youngest member—that sleepless, dry-witted, handsome older brother who seemed to live solely in pursuit of entertainment—opened his mouth.
“Hyung…?”
“What? Doesn’t it sound fun? I hate sweating in summer, but these days it’s not even that hot, so there’s no risk of feeling uncomfortable even if we stumble around. Right, Eun-chan?”
“Ah, yes. And I’m curious about something. If I were placed in a situation like that, how would I handle it? That kind of thing… Even though I’m approaching it while being aware that everything is fake, I’m curious whether it would still be that scary.”
Jeong Si-u, who had finally coaxed Ju Eun-chan into speaking again, smiled and turned to the Main PD.
“And our album concept this time happens to be school urban legends. I think it would be good for promotion too, right? A horror experience?”
Why does hyung always have to be like this?
The words I couldn’t bring myself to ask tumbled restlessly in my throat.

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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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