Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 74

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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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74. Guess What? (2)
“Well then, shall we head out?”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
Kang Ha-jin and I rose from our seats. Two hours had already passed since we’d entered the restaurant. I was grateful I’d had the foresight to book a full three hours. I gathered my things.
The plan Ha-jin had just laid out for me was less “perfect” and more instinctive—reckless, even. One misstep, one button fastened wrong, and the entire scheme would unravel.
“…When are you planning to execute this?”
Yet I knew instinctively there was no better alternative. That’s why when Ha-jin asked if I would participate, I could only nod in agreement.
“Well, for now… Team Leader will need time to prepare too, and there are some things I need to look into.”
“Then let’s share updates as things progress on our respective ends.”
“Sounds good.”
Ha-jin looked just as preoccupied as I felt. But I’d decided not to pry further into whatever shadows weighed on him.
“I need to head straight to the Company, so I can’t give you a ride.”
“That’s fine. It’s not like I’m some kid like Dan Ha-ru.”
“It’s not because you’re a kid—it’s because you’re an artist under my management now.”
With that, I resolved to treat Ha-jin as a proper artist under my care from this moment forward.
The first step was the hardest: dropping the formal speech. It looked ridiculous for a Team Leader manager to keep using formal language with a trainee from the subsidiary.
“What? You’re really dropping the formal speech?”
“Yeah, from now on I’m dropping it completely. I’ll treat you the same as the other trainees.”
“…? You’re talking like you ever treated me formally before.”
A boy living through his life multiple times over.
A boy with such a brilliant mind and overflowing talent, yet who never debuted once across all his lifetimes.
A boy radiating a white light I’d never witnessed before.
The chance to become a “colleague” to such a boy was an opportunity I didn’t want to miss as a manager.
“Keep your face covered when you’re out, and avoid crowded places if you can.”
“Are you seriously switching into full manager mode right now? I’m just a trainee.”
“…Ha-jin, you haven’t checked the monitoring data on your team’s video yet, have you?”
“….”
“Make sure to check it on the way. See what kind of chaos your stage is causing online right now. When you do, wear a hood and mask.”
I emphasized this seriously before getting into the car. Ha-jin still looked indifferent, hands in his jacket pockets, scratching the back of his head.
‘How did he know I hadn’t checked the monitoring?’
With that thought, I gave him a proper send-off. After my car disappeared into the distance, Ha-jin headed toward the Subway Station without a clear destination, simply to decide his next move.
“….”
Taking out my phone was a purely instinctive action. The Subway Station was quite a walk away, and I hated being bored.
So pulling out my phone was simply to pass the time during the walk.
“Hmm.”
My steps stopped on the street.
I hesitated for a moment, then lowered my phone with a sigh,
before letting out a groan and raising it again,
finally biting my lip as I accessed AiTube.
“Wow, seriously, what is this right now.”
With fingers brimming with determination, he stabbed at the keypad, entering his search query.
【MIRO MAZE Performance B】
It took a while before he could bring himself to press Enter, but eventually, Ha-jin did.
The curiosity and intrigue sparked by Su-ho’s words outweighed the countless moments of self-doubt and pessimism that had kept him from watching the video last night.
“….”
After pressing Enter, Ha-jin instinctively closed his eyes, then slowly lifted his eyelids.
And he saw it.
“…what.”
His own face filling the entire thumbnail.
‘Me? Just me alone?’
The Feather Class kids were generally a mess, but that didn’t mean they lacked any buzz whatsoever.
Park Jae-young, the youngest of the class, had earned considerable affection from the New Artist Development Team staff with his smart and capable image. Jayden, who’d trained overseas, and Gong Seok, with his neat, model-student appearance, weren’t bad visually either. Even Young-ho, that troublesome little lamb of his, had a face worth acknowledging.
“I’m the thumbnail?”
Yet among those nine members, it wasn’t just a few selected—Team B’s thumbnail featured only him.
Ha-jin clicked on the video as if entranced.
MIRO MAZE ∥ Daylight (日光) (Prod. Seo Tae-il) – Team B Performance Video
573,165 views
1,872 comments (most popular)
– Raise your hand if you came to see the real hoodie oppa
└ Me
└ Me lolololol
└ I came because there was so much talk about him and now I’m shook
└ 444
– Ha-jin, debut already
– Is there an individual fancam of this?
– The center guy is actually really good
Visuals are pure Miro vibes
And he can actually sing so I like him
Miro’s always been skilled anyway
So I had high expectations but yeah
…show more
– The importance of the center
– But everyone’s good and one person is just overwhelmingly dominant;;>
– But I heard the hoodie oppa has only been a trainee for 3 months
└ That’s bs
└ It’s not bs, his profile says he joined Miro when he turned 20
└ That’s 3 months as a trainee? For real lol
– Talke failed again like shit, Kang Ha-jin you’re my last K-pop
└ Grandma’s lying lol
└ Pathetic guy
Ha-jin stood frozen in place, unable to move, scrolling through the comments with a vacant stare.
Of course, not every comment was favorable. Not all of them were directed at Ha-jin, and not all of them contained only praise, but.
“….”
So Ha-jin was truly, for the first time in ages.
Truly, after such a long time.
Having his efforts and their fruits finally ‘acknowledged’.
[System Alert: ‘Public Recognition’ stabilizes the fixed returner’s state.]
[System Alert: ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode is reduced by 10%…. (Loading)]
[System Alert: If ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode remains at 50% or below, it will be deactivated (Currently 78%)]
[System Alert: The ‘public’ feels curiosity and affection toward you.]
[System Alert: ‘Public Affection’ is being converted into cache for the skill system. (Converting cache….)]
Multiple notifications appeared in blue windows, accompanied by a cheerful alert tone unlike usual. Yet Ha-jin’s vision remained fixed,
on the comments within that small monitor.
“…This is actually working.”
In truth, Ha-jin had never really felt what he’d accomplished as a genuine ‘accomplishment’.
As Su-ho had said, due to the events he’d experienced in his first life and the series of regressions that followed, Ha-jin had deliberately avoided pouring genuine affection into what he was doing now.
‘There’s no need for that anyway.’
Do only as much as you receive. Give back only what’s expected in return.
Do only what must be done, and deliberately avoid doing what doesn’t need to be done.
That was a line drawn from the deepest defense mechanism within Ha-jin’s heart.
Ha-jin didn’t want to experience ‘loss’ again—the pain of being abandoned by something he’d loved and poured his heart into.
‘It’s not something I’ll be doing my whole life anyway, so why bother?’
It’s all an illusion that will disappear with one regression, so why?
That’s why Ha-jin hadn’t placed great significance on anything he’d accomplished in this life.
Though he’d achieved good results in all three evaluations, Ha-jin didn’t think they were ‘objectively’ remarkable achievements.
‘The end-of-month evaluation was ultimately 10th place, and honestly, the title track mission had lower quality compared to Team A. Even the second mission—Sarin only gave it a good evaluation because of her personal circumstances. I heard disappointing feedback from the other mentors.’
So Ha-jin had always feared his limitations becoming visible.
He’d feared looking at himself objectively.
Like that day in his past life when he’d ultimately failed at everything, lost his sense of purpose, and wandered aimlessly.
‘I don’t want to be confirmed as nothing.’
I don’t want to be confirmed as someone who couldn’t become anything, who could never become anything.
“…Damn, why is this happening.”
Tears began streaming down Ha-jin’s face.
Startled, Ha-jin quickly raised his head and tried to wipe away the tears, but by then, inexplicable sobs had already risen to the back of his throat.
“Why is this happening, so pathetically.”
Passersby were beginning to stare. Ha-jin thought he had to somehow escape this insane situation, but every time he became aware of the small achievement in his hands, the tears wouldn’t stop flowing.
[System Alert: The system gifts the fixed returner a small message.]
Within that chaotic blur of vision, words were now converted into sound and rang in Ha-jin’s ears.
-Kang Ha-jin? This guy’s vocal power is insane. I thought it was AR, but hearing his voice, I can tell it’s live lolol
-No, Black friends, but our Hajin is so amazing that he sings the 3rd verse chorus right away with the dance center, and he doesn’t lose his breath at all.
-Kang Ha-jin’s tone is really unique… At first I thought it was husky? But I don’t think so. Actually, Si-woo seems to be the husky one. Ha-jin’s voice is so smooth and solid…? It’s totally my taste
-Honestly, Team A’s main vocalist seems to sing better, but Team B’s guy nails that third verse chorus. Once you hear that, this feels empty. I can’t listen to it anymore. Wait, that’s not how it’s supposed to be sung;;; Anyway, this one’s it
-Kang Ha-jin’s attention to detail is insane. Even Team A’s members struggle with that section and just slur their fingers, but in Team B, only Ha-jin! He executes every single finger movement with precision!!
[System Alert: Yesterday… I was so curious I couldn’t help myself! I looked it up!]
These seemed to be internet reactions that Thirteen had impulsively searched for.
Unable to see clearly through his tears, Ha-jin listened as Thirteen personally converted those reactions into voice and played them for him.
“Damn… you bastard Thirteen….”
[System Alert: The system is flustered, saying this wasn’t supposed to be an emotional moment;;;]
Those warm, affectionate voices were enough to bring Ha-jin to his knees, despite how stubbornly he’d been holding on.
In the end, Ha-jin broke. In the middle of the road in front of the Subway Station where people hurried past, he collapsed and wept without even having time to worry about being a nuisance.
“Ah―, what is this.”
And only after falling apart like this could Ha-jin finally admit it. That he still hadn’t escaped that cramped bed from when he was twenty-nine.
Kang Ha-jin, who had grown accustomed to failure and feared loneliness, was still here.
“Wow, this is really pathetic….”
Ha-jin was, in truth, starving for recognition.
I needed the conviction that I was capable of accomplishing so much more.
I desperately needed to believe that everything I’d done up until now hadn’t been in vain.
I just wanted to love every single moment of my existence.
[System Alert: ‘Kang Ha-jin’ gains enlightenment.]
[System Alert: ‘Kang Ha-jin’s’ enlightenment exerts significant influence on Quest progression.]
[System Alert: ‘Kang Ha-jin’s conviction’ stabilizes the fixed returner’s state.]
‘What?’
Numerous system windows updated rapidly.
[System Alert: ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode reduced by 10%…. (Loading)]
[System Alert: ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode reduced by 10%…. (Loading)]
[System Alert: ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode reduced by 10%…. (Loading)]
[System Alert: ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode maintained at 50% or below and deactivated (Current: 48%)]
Ha-jin stopped crying in shock and stared blankly at the system window.
The final updated window contained something he had never anticipated.
[System Alert: ‘Kang Ha-jin’ responds to you (Response Rate: 100%)]
[Recruitment of ‘Kang Ha-jin’ is possible.]
[Will you recruit? (Y/N)]

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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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