Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 436

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

436. Why Did You Come to Our House? (5)
—That’s exactly why I told you to double-check every single time before you go anywhere, didn’t I!? And if you’d gotten in touch with the Executive Director, you should’ve just waited quietly, but instead you turn on a Live Broadcast!? You might as well advertise nationwide that you’re missing!??! No, you already did!?!?!?!?!!!!
Through the phone, Seo Tae-hyun’s piercing voice came through crystal clear.
If he’d studied high notes with that vocal resonance, our group could’ve been a male idol group boasting two members capable of the three-octave Cleopatra game.
‘Man, with just that alone, we could hook so many variety show contents….’
My mind automatically painted a picture of Jeong Si-u and Seo Tae-hyun trading the Cleopatra game across all sorts of entertainment shows.
Imagining the moment when Seo Tae-hyun—with his subtle but fierce competitive spirit that absolutely hated losing—clashed with Jeong Si-u—who never backed down from anything fun—I immediately purged that fantasy from my mind.
If they played that game just three times, our precious group’s vocal fairy and main vocalist’s vocal cords would be shot within a month.
—…Si-woo and Ha-ru are the same way! It’s not like that guy does weird things just once or twice!! And instead of stopping him, you two go ahead and turn on a Live Broadcast together!? What am I supposed to do, hearing about this on the radio!!! Do you know how shocked I was!?? I was so worried I messed up the text number and the announcement completely!!!!!!!!
Ah, this is getting dangerous.
Seo Tae-hyun making a mistake on broadcast? And messing up his lines on a radio show no less?
It was clear that news of our disappearance had dealt a serious blow to Seo Tae-hyun’s mental state. At this point, I needed to calm down an angry Che-ri.
I leaned my head slightly toward my pad, which had the speaker phone activated.
“No, look… we had our reasons too, okay? The Youngest Member’s phone battery kept draining, and my pad is basically a brick without Wi-Fi. Even though the Executive Director said he’d help, he’s in the United States, so we had no way of knowing how things were unfolding….”
—You should’ve waited anyway!!! What if sasaeng fans followed the hyungs!? What if reporters followed and filmed you guys meeting your families!? Huh!? How could you just turn on a Live Broadcast like that!? And on top of that, if the battery’s low, you should conserve it, but you turn on a hotspot and do a Live Broadcast!?!!!
“I’m sorry.”
Hmm. This wasn’t something I could talk my way out of.
Confirming that Seo Tae-hyun wasn’t just ordinarily upset, I quickly switched tactics and admitted my guilt. In situations like this, the best move was to just apologize first and ask questions later.
—Sigh. How did I end up debuting with these idiots….
After scolding Si-woo and me for a few more minutes, Seo Tae-hyun finally seemed to calm down, letting out a sigh as he muttered.
Throughout all this, Dan Ha-ru wasn’t scolded. When I asked why it was unfair that only Si-woo and I got chewed out, Seo Tae-hyun clenched his teeth and left just one comment.
—Our Youngest Member really managed to voice his opinion between a total lunatic hyung and a bulldozer leader, didn’t he…?
I couldn’t argue because it was true.
Dan Ha-ru, hearing those words, wore a strangely victorious expression, which made me feel slightly wronged.
—Anyway, Ha-won got in touch, and he’s heading over by taxi right now, so please, please don’t move an inch. Just stay put. Don’t do anything, seriously please. Okay?
“Sure. But what if suddenly an emergency patient appears nearby and we need to call an ambulance and perform CPR immediately?”
—You want me to have an emergency situation in my life too…?
“I’ll stay still….”
For someone who’s a full-blown INFP, Seo Tae-hyun was definitely becoming an ISFP today by refusing to account for unforeseen circumstances.
Of course, even as I said this, if such a situation actually occurred and we moved, he’d be the type to ask first if the patient was okay.
—Ha-ru’s phone is dead anyway. Just in case, I sent Ha-won Ha-ru’s number… but still, we don’t know what might happen, so try to stay in that spot if you can. Got it? Huh?
“Got it, got it. Don’t you have a schedule? Go to your schedule already.”
—I should’ve gone, but I’m doing this because you guys startled me and I’m making calls right now…!
“…I’m sorry.”
Why do I always come out empty-handed whenever I stand in front of Seo Tae-hyun?
I almost felt sad for a moment, but seeing Jeong Si-u sitting across from me also just avoiding my gaze without saying anything was somewhat comforting.
If even he was frozen stiff, then I wasn’t the weird one—it was just certain that Seo Tae-hyun was incredibly scary.
—Phew. …And, let me talk to Ha-ru for a bit.
“Ha-ru?”
—Yeah. He’s right next to you, isn’t he?
“Oh, he just went to grab a drink for a moment.”
Jeong Si-u and I turned our gazes simultaneously toward Dan Ha-ru at the counter.
Dan Ha-ru, his face completely concealed behind a hat and mask, was casually collecting a tray of beverages despite the staff’s suspicious glances. We had been able to enter the Cafe without money or phones thanks to Seo Tae-hyun sending me a gift certificate through my work messenger.
‘Of course, he probably meant it as a way to tell me to stop causing trouble and stay quietly in the Cafe until Ha-won arrives….’
Either way, it was a godsend of a Cafe gift certificate arriving just when my throat was parched and my stomach was growling.
I thanked Seo Che-ri’s kindness once more, respectfully held my tablet with both hands, and handed it to Dan Ha-ru as he approached our table.
“…? What is it?”
“Seo Tae-hyun. He wants to switch with you.”
“…Tae-hyun?”
As if surprised by the unexpected name, Dan Ha-ru set down his tray and accepted my tablet with a bewildered expression.
While Dan Ha-ru connected his earbuds to the tablet, Jeong Si-u, who was about to take his iced mugwort latte, accidentally spilled some of the drink on his hand.
“Ah, I spilled it. I’m going to the Restroom for a moment.”
Jeong Si-u wiped his drink-stained hand with a tissue and stood up. As if passing a baton, Dan Ha-ru inserted his earbuds, carefully set down my tablet, sat down, and continued the call.
I took a long sip of my iced double chocolate and peered out the window to see where our cute Ha-won might be by now. I had been avoiding sweets for a while, trying to manage my health, but today I had received so much stress that I couldn’t help myself.
“Yes, hyung. It’s Ha-ru. …Ah. No, it’s fine. It’s fun.”
I wasn’t deliberately listening, but Dan Ha-ru’s conversation naturally reached my ears.
Judging by his tone and expression, it didn’t seem like a secret conversation, and there was no sense that he wanted me to avoid hearing it, so I turned my gaze from the window and openly looked toward Dan Ha-ru.
As expected, Dan Ha-ru noticed my gaze but continued the call without concern.
“Yes. Yes…. Yes, I’ll do it that way. …Ah, no, it’s not like that. Really, it’s fine.”
When he said that final “it’s fine,” he glanced in my direction, which made it clear that Seo Tae-hyun was quite worried about the moody youngest member caught between two eccentric hyungs.
Since Seo Tae-hyun was the one most concerned about the fact that Dan Ha-ru had recently entered his rebellious phase and the atmosphere had grown somewhat heavy, it made sense. Moreover, Jeong Si-u, who had come with us, had never had any interaction with Dan Ha-ru beyond being a team member….
‘Well, come to think of it, there aren’t many people who get along comfortably with that hyung beyond being team members anyway.’
Still, back when Dan Ha-ru was sparkling, he would sometimes approach Jeong Si-u when he was alone, and he used to do cute things as the youngest member….
It was true that after the current Seon Gwi-ja personality emerged, the interaction between the two had drastically decreased. Jeong Si-u seemed to know it too, but he didn’t seem to pay much attention to it.
“Yes. I’ll have fun. …Yes, you too. I’m hanging up.”
While I was lost in thought, Dan Ha-ru ended the call once the business was finished.
He shoved the tablet that had returned to me into his bag, and as I pushed his drink toward him, Dan Ha-ru quietly tore open the straw wrapper and opened his mouth.
“Aren’t you going to ask?”
“Ask what?”
“What Tae-hyun hyung said.”
At those words, I immediately shook my head and rested my chin on my right hand.
“Not curious. He probably just asked if it’s really okay to come to our house, told you to just go to the Dormitory if it’s inconvenient, that kind of thing. Since you said it was fine, he probably told you to eat lots of delicious food and have fun.”
“….”
“I’m not reading your mind. Seo Tae-hyun worrying about you isn’t something new, is it? It’s predictable.”
“…Yeah. You’re something else, hyung.”
At my words, which flowed like a river, Dan Ha-ru let out a soft snort and took a sip of his drink.
He had wanted an iced americano, but what he was holding now was a strawberry yogurt smoothie. Jeong Si-u and I had absolutely opposed a minor’s caffeine intake.
Fortunately, it seemed to suit his taste. After taking a sip and smacking his lips, Dan Ha-ru took several more sips in succession. Whether he lived as sparkling or rebellious, his tastes would be the same even if his life had been different.
I leaned forward with my chin still resting on my hand. Dan Ha-ru, who had his straw in his mouth, suddenly lifted his head.
“What I’m more curious about is your audacity—calling him hyung consistently, but then dropping all formality the moment we’re alone.”
“If I’m counting the years I’ve lived, I’m practically your grandfather. I’m grateful you even call me hyung.”
“Sigh… Our youngest is going through puberty way too intensely. No matter how I look at it….”
I’d thought he’d calmed down a bit after the Theme Park incident, but he was still as rebellious as ever.
Well, his current temperament seemed like it wouldn’t wilt even in difficult situations, which I actually appreciated. Still, I sometimes missed the baby rabbit warrior Dan Ha-ru from back then—the one who’d flash that dazzling smile and chase after me calling “Hyung, hyung!”
‘The personality integration rate does seem to be rising gradually….’
The whole personality integration thing was still an unknown territory to me, so what frustrated me most was that I couldn’t properly prepare or make plans for it.
I folded my arms and opened the System window, but still no new Quests or notifications appeared. The quiet, pale blue window—as if everything had frozen—only made me more anxious.
“…You know.”
I was just sighing and sweeping that frustrating blue window from my sight when Dan Ha-ru, who’d already half-inhaled his yogurt smoothie, quietly broached the subject. I looked over to see what he wanted to say, and he opened his mouth with his gaze still buried in his drink.
“What do you… think of me?”
“You?”
“Yeah.”
It was a question whose intent I couldn’t discern.
As I narrowed my eyes trying to guess at the meaning behind his question, Dan Ha-ru continued, chewing on his straw.
“The things I’ve done. All this time…. The way I kept rewinding time on a whim.”
“Well…. What’s there to think about? It’s all in the past anyway.”
“…Do you really think that? Do the others too?”
Dan Ha-ru asked with an uncharacteristically uncertain expression, his gaze wandering through empty air.
Ju Eun-chan, who’d suffered greatly from his regression, had already heard a direct answer last time, so he’d know. But the fact that he was asking again like this probably meant the subject was different.
I thought of Seo Tae-hyun, whom I’d just finished calling, and Jeong Si-u, who still hadn’t returned from the Restroom.
The two of them hadn’t awakened yet among us, and therefore hadn’t set foot into this fantasy world.
-I keep seeing Father.
-I keep seeing Father. Ha-jin. Father keeps….
I recalled Jeong Si-u, who’d had to witness Father dying across every single repeated timeline in that Pension in March.
The Returner would be caught anyway, so it was unlikely that Seo Tae-hyun or Jeong Si-u would newly awaken to their own timelines….
‘But still, if something happened and the two of them learned about their past timelines….’
And if they found out it was all because of Dan Ha-ru’s regression.
I hesitated for a moment. But there was no right answer I could give in this moment.
Because I wasn’t Jeong Si-u or Seo Tae-hyun.
“You….”
“Hey, the car’s here outside. Come on out.”
Just as I was about to say something in response, Jeong Si-u, who’d returned from the Restroom outside the building, spotted the car before us and called out to us from the entrance.
Dan Ha-ru got up from his seat without hesitation at Jeong Si-u’s call. He didn’t seem to have been expecting a particular answer anyway. I followed suit, gathering the remaining luggage and standing up.
After all, this wasn’t a problem I could solve right now.
“Hello, Kang Ha-won.”
“Oh, hey. …Get in quickly.”
As we stepped out of the Cafe, Kang Ha-won stood there awkwardly with a troubled expression, greeting Dan Ha-ru and Jeong Si-u stiffly while loading luggage into the trunk.
Looking at that lukewarm face, I felt like I might burst into tears any moment, despite how serious things had been just moments before…!
“My war, up!”
“Don’t. Be quiet. Please just pull your hat down and get in a taxi, hurry.”
Overwhelmed with emotion, I spread my arms wide to rush toward my younger brother for a tearful reunion, but Kang Ha-won, as if he’d anticipated exactly this, mercilessly clamped his hand over my mouth and raised his guard to swat my arms away.
Then he forcefully pressed down the hat on my head and shoved me into the back seat of a taxi…!
“Driver, please take off.”
“Sure thing. Heh, you young men won’t find it cramped back there?”
“It’s fine. Right now we’re not in a position to be picky about anything.”
“Kang Ha-won, that’s too much!!”
“The hyung who broadcast our house move to the entire nation is the one being too much.”
“You heard the radio?”
“…A clip got posted in the group chat, and the class president even tagged me?”
Yeah, I need to shut up.
Maybe because he’s the original, unlike Seo Tae-hyun, he barely said anything and I was already intimidated.
The moment I clamped my mouth shut, Jeong Si-u, sitting by the window, turned to Kang Ha-won with a bright, cheerful smile.
“Still, it’s fortunate that Ha-won exchanged numbers with Tae-hyun beforehand. Without Ha-won, we really would’ve been left stranded on the street.”
“…Ah. No, it’s not. You’re guests coming to our house, and the two of you suffered because of my hyung.”
Kang Ha-won, ever courteous to everyone except me, answered with such meticulous respect that it was almost audible. crisp.
Yet seeming to have something to say, he made a sound of brief contemplation before turning slightly to look at me.
“…? What.”
“But I’ve been curious about this since I heard about it earlier.”
“Yeah.”
“Couldn’t you have just gone to the dormitory and grabbed hyung’s phone and wallet?”
“Would I not have done it if I didn’t know that? How am I supposed to catch a taxi without money? Dan Ha-ru can’t even do mobile banking.”
“No, I mean….”
“…?”
Kang Ha-won, still not understanding my explanation, furrowed his brow and continued in an exasperated tone.
“Since there are three of you anyway, you could’ve just grabbed a taxi at the destination and had hyung quickly run up to the dormitory and come back down, right? Don’t taxi drivers wait for that kind of thing?”
“Nah, what. Is there a driver who’d be picky about getting paid? We’ve got that much flexibility, heh heh.”
The driver, hearing the simple solution Kang Ha-won had offered, added a word with a good-natured laugh.
And we, listening to those words, fell silent.
“….”
Such an easy method….
My survival skills as Kang Ha-jin were completely exposed.
Faced with the practical incompetence of a K-idol that I’d experienced firsthand, all the glorious credentials from my time as an assistant director crumbled to dust….

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