Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 56

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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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56. Various Methods of Dropping a Parachute (3)
The day of the second mission reveal had arrived.
‘God, I’m exhausted to death.’
The Staff Member doing my makeup laughed as she watched me barely holding onto consciousness.
“Ha-jin, you’re practically about to pass out.”
“If I don’t open my eyes like this, that means I’ve fainted, so please call 119.”
I bantered back lightly and closed my eyes as instructed, letting all the grueling schedules of recent days flash before me.
‘Profile shoots, performance videos, additional filming….’
Some trainees who needed narrative buildup at the start or whom the Entertainment Agency wanted to push had filmed separate reality VCRs to highlight their characters. Of course, since I fell into both categories, I naturally got additional filming.
…with Kang Ha-won.
-Your younger sibling?
-Yes. You two have a good relationship, Ha-jin, and it makes for a nice image. An older brother in music, a younger brother in art.
-Like an artistic family… wouldn’t Jeong Si-u fit that better?
-No, not that kind of vibe. How do I put it—more like brothers supporting each other’s dreams?
-Ah…. I’ll ask him anyway. But your younger brother will probably refuse.
I’d naturally assumed Kang Ha-won would turn it down since he didn’t even do SNS, let alone appear on broadcasts. But that bastard surprisingly agreed on the spot.
-He said yes? Really?
-Why are you making such a fuss about it?
-You hate that kind of thing.
-…Ah, never mind if you don’t need it.
-No, please do it. Teacher Ha-won, please. Thank you.
Thanks to that, I didn’t have to go back to my old High School and reminisce with my homeroom teacher about how “he was always such a standout from his school days.” It was a win for me. Plus, I got to hang out with Kang Ha-won for a while.
“Still, Ha-jin, you’re pretty hot these days, right?”
“Me?”
“Yeah, because of the profile.”
“Oh.”
A few days ago, eighteen trainees were uploaded to Miro Maze’s official SNS over three days, six per day.
To maintain the buzz over those three days, the production team strategically staggered the high-ranking trainees who could generate the most hype.
Cherry Boy Seo Tae-hyun, already officially confirmed to participate, and Jeong Si-u, whose mother is a renowned pianist, were on day one. Ju Eun-chan, who’d gained buzz as Miro’s hidden card, and Lee Do-ha, who had some recognition from underground activities, were on day three.
And the effect was undeniable!
[Summary Post] Compiled the Miro next survival trainee profiles that dropped yesterday (pics attached)
– Damn, Seo Tae-hyun got even more handsome
– But Miro’s taste is really something else, I see Upia and Rene Entertainment vibes too
– How did Jeong Si-u even end up at Miro, did he get kidnapped?
└ So that’s why Cha Min-seok willingly gave him to Rene Entertainment
– My taste overlapping with Han Se-won for 10 years straight is seriously annoying;; So when does voting start?
– Ju Eun-chan is so handsome, Seo Tae-il showing a bit too
– Wow, Taehyun is finally coming outㅠㅠㅠ
– Wait, are Lee Yu-gun and Lee Do-ha brothers? They look kinda similar (meaning they’re my type)
SNS real-time trends were dominated all day, and every community was buzzing with this talk. Still, the most overwhelming one was….
Cherry Blossom
@ch_blossom
(Photo)
From Seo Tae-hyun’s final concert at Boy Heaven
A photo of Tae-hyun crying his eyes out while it was being taken.
This time, I’ll make sure there are no tears.
#MyCherry_SeotaeHyun_LetsMakeDebut
Shares 13K Quotes 2,092 Likes 37K Mentions 159
Tae Day
@tae_day
#RT #Miro Maze
#Seo Tae-hyun
Broadcast return + Miro Maze participation celebration event!
One lucky winner gets XX brand perfume, the same one Tae-hyun uses♥
Winners announced at 7:23 PM Tae-hyun time on the day Miro Maze airs 🙂
#MyCherry_SeotaeHyun_LetsMakeDebut
Shares 4,231 Likes 1,209
Seo Tae-hyun Info Account
@tadadoo
(Photo) (Photo)
(Photo) (Photo)
Miro Maze Seo Tae-hyun Profile
-Pledge: We parted at sixteen and meet again at nineteen. Thank you for waiting.
My precious Tae-hyun, I’ll support you through your nineteen too.
#MyCherry_SeotaeHyun_LetsMakeDebut
Shares 2,103 Quotes 1,320 Likes 5,951
…It had to be Seo Tae-hyun who’d brought back every fan account and verified account that had gone dormant.
The initial momentum was genuinely on another level. Despite it being just a handful of photos with two simple concepts and a self-written interview, a fan account with 20,000 followers had already closed their page.
‘Well, I expected this much anyway.’
But given the circumstances, I naturally thought my photo—which had quietly climbed up alongside the other lower-ranked contestants—would be buried without a trace….
– Who’s the hoodie guy in this?
└ The third one
└ ?????The third one?
– What’s wrong with hoodie guy, did he pour soju on the photographer’s head?
– (Photo) How is this the same person
└ Seriously what’s the problem lolololololol
└ What do you mean the same person? Don’t lie
└ Huh this person’s face is actually decent???? What is it, what’s real
– Honestly feels like the world is scamming me right now. If you’re gonna use your face like that, give it to me
– Is it that the photo was just taken badly, or is that witness account screenshot just legendary?
└ It doesn’t photograph well; judging from the other departments’ posts, the eyewitness account clips look more like him
‘Why is this even trending?’
That cat’s gratitude business was lasting longer than I’d expected. Damn it.
“It even popped up on OneStagram’s trending posts. But he looked like a completely different person?”
“Does he really look that different?”
“Yeah. I thought maybe the editing was off.”
The reaction was brutal.
But spilled water can’t be gathered back up. I simply erased my profile from my mind. There were occasional negative posts about me floating around, but they’d all be buried once new gossip emerged anyway.
“Alright, Kang Ha-jin. Eyes up.”
“Yes.”
“By the way, when does that come out? The music video you shot?”
“They said it should go up sometime next week.”
Like the performance video for 【Daylight】, the show’s title track.
Spilled water that can’t be gathered back up anyway—might as well soak it with tissues and towels and be done with it.
This industry runs on attention. If even one or two viewers watching the performance video think…
‘What does Kang Ha-jin’s real face actually look like?’
…and click because of that curiosity, then I’ve succeeded. Because—
[System Alert: ☆★ System Update Complete! ★☆]
[System Alert: (Fixed) Regressor Authority is being upgraded.]
[System Alert: Skill 【As I Say】 (LV.6) is now active.]
[System Alert: Skill 【What’s Really Me?】 is now active.]
Thanks to the System coming back online, I’d absolutely nailed the performance video. Even I was satisfied with how it turned out.
Lee Do-ha, who’d been going on about greed the whole time, had nothing to say after monitoring that. I’m not sure why I keep worrying about what this guy thinks, but anyway.
“Kang Ha-jin, you were seriously incredible. You were flying out there.”
“Ha, thank you.”
“Alright, we’re done. We’ll just keep your hair like this, right?”
“Yes. I prefer keeping it simple for now.”
“You’re the only one who finishes this fast every time, Kang Ha-jin.”
I checked my reflection in the mirror and stood up. I’d simply tidied my natural black hair, barely styled at all. While the others were bleaching and perming and doing all sorts of things, I might seem too laid-back, but there’s a reason for it.
‘Once we debut, we’ll style everything to match the concept anyway. No point burning through my image now.’
This isn’t some 16-episode marathon. Eight episodes will fly by in a blink. Even if I do something, a light change for atmosphere around episodes six or seven is plenty.
Viewer reactions? Actually great.
– The true taste of fresh-faced youth is definitely… that raw, unpolished quality
– The ultimate tuning is always stock
If you decorate it too much, it actually loses its flavor—there’s something charming about a slightly awkward, clumsy taste to it.
There’s a reason black hair and a natural look are timeless classics in entertainment.
That said, showing the same face every episode from episode one has no merit either, so what I’m targeting is these details.
“Hyung, you’re wearing glasses today?”
“Model student cosplay.”
“…And you’ve got two piercings in your ear?”
When I appeared wearing black-framed glasses that covered half my face, people showed interest from all directions. Seo Tae-hyun’s gaze—the look that seemed to say, “You’re a model student with that face? Do you have a conscience?”—I simply brushed off.
“Hey, hey! Do these glasses have lenses?”
“No, they don’t.”
“Why do you keep poking people’s eyes out like that?”
“Can I try them on too?”
When Dan Ha-ru appeared with his hair tousled and fluffy, I handed him the glasses, and he and Ju Eun-chan ended up trying them on each other and putting them on one another—it was complete chaos.
“Ta-da!”
“Dan Ha-ru, why are you copying that? If you’re going to do that, give them back to Ha-jin.”
“Okay….”
“What if you poke yourself in the eye with your fingernail?”
Dan Ha-ru, who had been imitating me by poking the empty frame with his fingers, was finally stopped by Seo Tae-hyun. I took the glasses back and casually hooked them over my ear, then sat in my seat. As someone ranked in Wings Rank, I’d been assigned a comfortable chair in a pretty good spot.
“Hey.”
“…Oh, hello.”
Jeong Si-u and Lee Yu-gun were assigned to the seats on either side of me. Jeong Si-u, with his long chestnut hair swept back calmly, greeted me lightly, and for a moment I had the illusion of pollen swirling through the air. No matter how many times I see him, I can’t get used to that face. Since I hadn’t really talked to him much, I was just doing something else, but unexpectedly, Jeong Si-u spoke to me first.
“You sing well.”
“…? That’s not something I should be saying to you?”
“I like your singing style.”
A vocalists major from a practical music department telling a non-major something right now.
“I’ve always envied a voice like yours.”
“Me?”
“Yes. It’s calm and pretty.”
“….”
“I mostly just get told my voice is loud.”
That was feedback I always received from my previous agency too. They criticized me so much for standing out.
“Really? Let’s perform on stage together next time. If the opportunity comes up.”
“Sure, yeah. That sounds good.”
The conversation ended there. A signal went around that we’d be starting filming soon. I could see Han Sung-woo, dressed to the nines, sitting across from me. When our eyes met, he flashed a confident smile.
Soon the lights went out and the camera started rolling. A spotlight illuminated the center stage, and Seo Tae-il, dressed in a light suit, stepped into the light.
“Those who wish to touch the sun, soar to greater heights.”
“Welcome, everyone, to the second gate of Miro Maze.”
Finally, the second filming had begun.

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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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