Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 568

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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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568. The Worst Timeline (3)
Lee Do-ha unable to make music.
The shocking combination of words hit us like Yoo Gun’s inability to dance or Eun-chan’s lack of confidence—no one could speak easily in response.
I wondered if he was joking, but Lee Do-ha of all people would never joke about music.
A silence fell as if time itself had stopped. Soon, Lee Do-ha scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and continued in a flat tone.
“I sold all my equipment back then and enlisted because I couldn’t make music anymore. The slump lasted a long time.”
“But that’s all in the past. You’re different now than you were then, so why….”
“I’ve tried. Right after awakening, as soon as I got my first leave, I borrowed a senior’s studio and tried to write something, anything….”
“….”
“I just sat there for over eight hours without producing a single thing. Like someone who’d completely run out of inspiration.”
In truth, it was entirely plausible that Lee Do-ha would still be affected by events from his past timeline even after awakening.
I myself had been carrying the trauma of the twenty-nine timeline since my regression, and both Eun-chan and Yoo Gun were dealing with their own aftereffects in their own ways.
‘Right. It’s not something I can’t understand, and it’s definitely not something we can’t overcome. But still….’
But still, somehow.
My heart sank with a heavy thud. It felt like someone had severed my right arm with a blade.
‘How can we revive Kairos without Lee Do-ha’s music….’
The comeback signal could be managed with the track Seo Tae-il had promised to provide, but that alone wasn’t enough.
‘At minimum, if we’re going to release songs as projects, having at least one self-produced track from a member would help with image building…. Still, it’s fortunate we have time for him to overcome these aftereffects.’
“Ha-jin.”
‘Or should we push forward with a concept of hidden gems? Since all our songs are supposedly failures in this timeline anyway, maybe instead of being greedy for new tracks, we could just rediscover old songs and push a narrative of them charting retroactively….’
“Kang Ha-jin.”
‘No, we can’t avoid releasing songs entirely. Just thinking about the plans I’d made with Seo Tae-il, there are more than one or two tracks that need Lee Do-ha’s production. So what do we do….’
“Ha-jin hyung.”
“…?”
A deep, heavy voice I’d never heard before uttered an unbelievable word in an accent that sent chills down my spine.
Lee Do-ha, who’d called me by that terrifying title without blinking once, stared directly at me. The guy had already doubled in size, and hearing him call me hyung made my skin crawl for some reason.
Unable to believe what was happening, my entire body froze as I stared at Lee Do-ha. He spoke once more, his tone utterly flat.
“Hyung.”
“No, stop! Stop! Don’t call me that!”
“Ha-jin hyung.”
“I said stop! Damn it, seriously, don’t…!”
“Are you calmer now?”
“…What?”
I wondered what he was talking about, but when I looked up, all three of them—Eun-chan, Yoo Gun, and Lee Do-ha—were staring directly at me.
“Hyung, are you okay?”
Eun-chan placed his hand gently on the back of mine, his expression slightly worried.
Looking at Eun-chan’s concern—his face like a cat witnessing its owner collapse—I finally realized that my bad habit had surfaced again without permission.
“Ah…. Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry. I was just thinking about something for a moment.”
Yes, I’m fine. It’s nothing serious.
I reassured myself with those thoughts.
From the moment I resolved to survive this timeline, hadn’t I already braced myself for far worse nightmares?
‘Nothing has happened yet.’
As I settled my mind with deliberate calm, my vision, which had blurred momentarily, sharpened once more. I exhaled a short breath.
If variables emerged, I would simply devise countermeasures.
“So Lee Do-ha, for now just focus on completing your military service in good health. Use the downtime to trim down a bit. If you’re this thick, it’ll be uncomfortable when you dance.”
“Yeah, got it.”
“As for singing… let’s think about it slowly. We still have plenty of time before we return to full-group activities anyway. If your sense returns before then, great. Otherwise, we’ll have to figure out another approach.”
“What other approach?”
Lee Yu-gun asked in a tone of genuine confusion.
Lee Do-ha’s slump, which was practically equivalent to a mentor’s crisis for Lee Yu-gun, had clearly shaken him. The guy who’d been muttering about “this damned timeline” with a light heart and carefree demeanor now wore a decidedly serious expression.
I avoided Lee Do-ha’s gaze, which fixed on me as if I already knew the answer.
“Well, there’s Seo Tae-il, and if necessary, outside composers too. We’ll find something somehow.”
“….”
“Come on, there are countless composers in the world. We can’t source a single song? It’s fine, don’t worry.”
“….”
“…Yeah, I could be one of those alternatives too. I know, I know, so stop staring.”
Lee Do-ha, who had finally forced me to admit the fact I’d been avoiding, wore an inwardly pleased expression.
This was all happening because of his slump in the first place, yet he was genuinely delighted that I’d gained an opportunity to challenge composition.
‘Is this right? Is that the right reaction?’
I couldn’t understand it, but I couldn’t deny it either.
To maintain the title of a skilled idol capable of self-producing, member-composed tracks were essential, and in this situation, I was the only one who could provide that.
The problem was whether my songs could generate the same commercial success as Lee Do-ha’s.
“I don’t know, just focus on completing your discharge first. We’re not planning any musical activities right now anyway.”
“You….”
“No, I’m not running away. I’m not, I swear. I’m seriously swamped right now? From now on, I’ve got AiTube video planning, filming, editing. Right?”
“….”
“Plus once ‘In the Chaos’ starts, I need to do promotions, track down Seo Tae-hyun, find Dan Ha-ru, look after Si-woo hyung. If I add composition on top of that, I’ll literally work myself to death. You guys want to watch my brain capacity overload and explode? Huh?”
“I never said anything like that.”
“Why, why, what. You were about to ask if I’m running away again, weren’t you? I know everything.”
Whether in this timeline or that one.
As I grumbled and complained to Lee Do-ha, who couldn’t stand seeing me do sloppy work even if it killed him, he slowly parted his lips while quietly listening to my grievances.
“Are you going to be okay?”
“….”
“That’s what I wanted to ask. No matter how I look at it, you seem to be pushing yourself too hard alone.”
His voice, deeper and lower than when he was twenty-one, resonated as it reached me.
Unable to respond to his unexpected words, I closed my mouth, and both Lee Yu-gun and Ju Eun-chan nodded in agreement with Lee Do-ha’s sentiment.
“Honestly, I was debating whether to say something the moment I saw you this morning… Are you sleeping properly? Your complexion is twice as bad as when I last saw you.”
“Hyung, you’ve lost more weight too, haven’t you? This is the outfit I bought you, and it wasn’t this loose back then.”
“…Me? What? No. I sleep plenty. Right after we finished filming ‘In the Chaos’ last time, I didn’t leave my bed for three days straight.”
“Hyung, you always keep thinking even while lying in bed. You just keep going until someone stops you.”
“….”
Did I? Was I really like that?
Now that I think about it, during my rest I did spend considerable time pondering what to do moving forward, what situation Jeong Si-u and Seo Tae-hyun were in, and what had become of Dan Ha-ru, whose traces I still couldn’t find anywhere.
‘But I wasn’t drowning so deeply in a quagmire of thoughts that it felt overwhelming….’
And unlike the days when I worked as a PD, when I could only sleep three hours a day or spent all my time running around under deadline pressure, I didn’t think I was pushing myself that hard.
I’d always had a relatively high threshold for what I considered “difficult,” but honestly, I was thinking that I hadn’t really achieved anything noteworthy in this timeline yet….
“Ha-jin, the reason I tried to find you the moment I awakened was….”
“…?”
“Because I was worried that maybe you or Ha-ru were carrying everything alone here too. Of course, with my situation being what it is, I couldn’t do anything until Eun-chan contacted me first, but….”
Dark clouds gathered across Lee Do-ha’s face.
Unlike the shadow from when he’d mentioned the Military earlier, Lee Do-ha now wore genuine responsibility and regret about the situation.
“When you first asked me for that favor at the Namhae Villa.”
“….”
“I was scared, but I was also grateful. Because I have the kind of personality that can follow through without questioning such things.”
“….”
“So you and Ha-ru didn’t have to endure all that time alone and lonely.”
As if recalling what happened at Namhae, where the group members experienced their first awakening, Lee Yu-gun flinched and his hands trembled. The fear and tension from that first awakening seemed to resurface.
Lee Do-ha silently grasped Lee Yu-gun’s arm and continued speaking.
“And when I opened my eyes here again, I felt relieved. Because now I can truly trust your words completely.”
“….”
“Wanting to return to the ‘original timeline’ isn’t just your wish.”
“…I know.”
“So let us do what we can. It might sound odd coming from someone who can’t write songs anymore…. But even with an injury, I can still be a boy group member.”
I wasn’t sure.
Was I not giving the kids work to do?
Confused, I couldn’t answer easily and moistened my lips with my tongue. Just as I was searching for the right words, Ju Eun-chan suddenly spoke up.
“Um… in that sense, I have something I’d like to say.”
“…? Eun-chan, what is it?”
What could he possibly want to say at this moment?
As I turned my gaze with a puzzled expression, Ju Eun-chan, still sitting with his back and spine perfectly straight like a pitch-black cat, clenched and unclenched his fists as if he’d made a decision.
The sight reminded me oddly of when he was preparing for the Miro Maze Round 3 stage and insisted he wanted to sing instead of just rap.
“I’d like you to let me convince Si-woo.”
“Who…?”
“Si-woo. I want to meet him.”
…I never wanted my kid to grow up this fast.
At Ju Eun-chan’s declaration that he would personally overcome one of the biggest hurdles, the mouths of the (former) childcare-in-charge hyungs, who each took responsibility for raising, disciplining, and nurturing the youngest member, fell open.

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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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