Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 89

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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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89. Soccer is played with feet, basketball with hands (3)
I finally gained my freedom once lunchtime arrived.
Today’s lunch wasn’t a packed meal but a Food Truck. Nam Da-down, today’s special MC, had personally prepared it because he wanted to treat his juniors to a meal.
As I heaped Food Truck rice onto my plate—something I rarely got to eat even during my assistant director days—I found myself thinking strategically.
‘The opportunity is now.’
My eyes gleamed like a hyena stalking prey in the jungle. In my field of vision came the Yellow Team members, divided into two groups and eating their meals.
The first group: Kim Won-ho and Lee Do-ha.
‘Honestly, that side would be easier….’
The problem was that this side’s mission difficulty was far too high.
With lunch lasting only an hour, it seemed impossible to accomplish something deep enough to both recruit a teammate and raise trust levels within that timeframe.
I turned my head to check the second group eating at the table right beside us.
‘Now that’s a combination I hadn’t considered.’
Seo Tae-hyun and Lee Yu-gun.
I’d assumed they’d naturally be close since both came from the Special Class, but….
The two of them seemed far friendlier than I’d expected.
‘Lee Yu-gun—isn’t he the type who shuts out the world?’
He was always alone in the Waiting Room or Practice Room, so I thought he was the solitary lynx type. Yet surprisingly, since the sports day began, Lee Yu-gun had been talking a lot with Seo Tae-hyun and joking around frequently.
‘Lee Do-ha treats everyone the same anyway. Kim Won-ho seemed to get closer during the last Team A event…. But being close with Seo Tae-hyun—that’s unexpected.’
My hesitant steps ultimately headed toward where Tae-hyun and Yu-gun were sitting. Today, I needed to figure out what kind of person Lee Yu-gun really was.
“Ha-jin, come quick. Just sit wherever’s comfortable.”
“Your table looks too cramped. I’ll sit here instead.”
“Yeah, actually that’s what I wanted to say.”
Passing by Kim Won-ho’s table, which didn’t seem to have room anyway, I pulled up an empty chair and took a seat at the table where Tae-hyun and Yu-gun were sitting.
When my eyes met Yu-gun’s in the process, I flashed him a smile and naturally threw out a comment.
“Wow, Yu-gun, you’re really good at sports. Tae-hyun kept giving me a hard time today, but you guys saved me.”
I sent an SOS signal with my eyes to Seo Tae-hyun, meaning ‘I want to get close with this guy, so help me out.’ Tae-hyun, who noticed that look while sipping his thick miso soup, let out a small cough, set down his spoon, and joined the conversation.
“He’s good at everything physical. He can even do b-boying.”
“Really? Yu-gun, you do b-boying too? That’s insane.”
I offered natural praise and directed my gaze at him. Lee Yu-gun, who’d been chewing on stir-fried fish cakes wedged between us, gave me an awkward nod. Then he looked at Seo Tae-hyun as if bewildered.
“What?”
“What what.”
“Why are you praising me now that this hyung showed up?”
“What are you talking about again.”
“Seo Tae-hyun, you were just nagging me to do better…. Ugh!”
“Hey, just eat your rice.”
Seo Tae-hyun mercilessly jabbed Lee Yu-gun’s side as he kept chattering. Witnessing that scene, I couldn’t hide my slight surprise.
‘They really are close, huh?’
Seo Tae-hyun was the type who became more friendly and affectionate the more unfamiliar or difficult someone was.
Having been in entertainment since childhood, being kind to people he wasn’t close with had become his habit.
‘But once he thinks you’re close, he relaxes and acts naturally.’
So Seo Tae-hyun was actually teasing Lee Yu-gun by touching him? That was quite bold.
It meant that Tae-hyun viewed Yu-gun as someone genuinely close to him.
“Hyung, you just saw what happened. Don’t go anywhere—stay here. If you leave, he’ll start on me again… Ah!”
“Yu-gun, aren’t you hungry? Just eat something. Stop talking nonsense.”
“Stop pinching me, please. It really hurts.”
Lee Yu-gun spoke to Ha-jin with playful ease, showing no particular wariness.
Was he not the type to be intimidated by people? Ha-jin found himself slightly bewildered by Yu-gun’s increasingly enigmatic personality.
‘Come to think of it, he was the one who approached me first back then too.’
It was when I’d asked him to choose Kim Won-ho’s second mission song.
Ha-jin observed the increasingly suspicious Yu-gun. Since Tae-hyun and Yu-gun bickered and squabbled on their own without me doing anything, it made observation convenient.
“Ugh, I’m getting up because I’m so upset from Seo Tae-hyun picking on me.”
“That’s funny. Lee Yu-gun, you’re going to get more side dishes, aren’t you? I knew it.”
“Crap, caught. So what are you getting? Do you need anything, hyung?”
“I’m fine. But seriously, don’t put on airs just because hyung is here.”
“I’m good too.”
Lee Yu-gun stood up lightly, carrying his tray.
Seeing how he teased Seo Tae-hyun, I’d thought he was an endlessly carefree type—but that didn’t seem to be the case either.
The way he naturally asked what Tae-hyun and I needed wasn’t the work of someone who’d only looked after people once or twice.
‘This is starting to get genuinely suspicious.’
It was the kind of consideration that wasn’t easy for a typical nineteen-year-old Korean high school boy to possess.
His social skills weren’t poor, yet he’d kept his distance from the other trainees until now. And that comment about not debuting last time….
‘Is that guy actually a reincarnator?’
A warning alarm blared in my head. One thing was certain—there was definitely something suspicious about this guy.
As Yu-gun moved toward the food truck and disappeared from view, Ha-jin pulled his chair closer to Tae-hyun and casually broached the subject.
“Seems like you two are pretty close? You’re always joking around.”
“Oh, after Cha Min-seok left… in the Special Class, he and I were the only ones the same age.”
No, here comes that bastard again….
The atmosphere grew slightly somber at the implicitly forbidden name. Noticing the shift, Tae-hyun quickly continued.
“Anyway, we just ended up getting close somehow. We’re both in dance positions too.”
“I didn’t know he had such a playful personality. He seemed quiet normally.”
“Hyung, is this your first real conversation with him? That’s all an act. Look at how he is with me.”
As Ha-jin listened to Tae-hyun’s explanation, he glanced over at Yu-gun in the distance. Something seemed to have happened—Yu-gun was waiting in front of the food truck for an employee.
So this was the timing to extract even a little more information through Tae-hyun.
“But considering all that, you don’t seem particularly close with the other Special Class kids besides him? That’s why I wondered if he might be a case similar to Eun-chan.”
Ha-jin spoke in a careful tone and gave a slight shrug. Quick-witted Tae-hyun caught the implication and rapidly shook his head.
“Oh. No, no. Han Sung-woo hyung didn’t touch him either.”
“Really? Then that’s a relief.”
“Lee Yu-gun… well, aside from me, he doesn’t really get close with anyone else. But he’s not a bad guy.”
Seo Tae-hyun swallowed something he’d been about to say, yet still spoke favorably of Yu-gun.
And that, more than anything, ignited Ha-jin’s suspicions.
‘Why is someone so problem-free not even interested in debuting, yet still clinging to this company?’
Of all times, Thirteen had to be absent at this crucial moment. I’d been wondering what he was up to since earlier, given how quiet things had been….
[System Notification: ※Exhausted by the fixed returner’s pathetic athletic skills, taking a brief leave※]
[System Notification: (Catching up on pending tasks….)]
[System Notification: (System maintenance in progress….)]
‘Honestly, he’s not helpful at all, not helpful.’
Just then, Lee Yu-gun, who had successfully refilled the side dishes, was making his way back to the table.
I decided to wrap up the conversation about Lee Yu-gun here. If the conversation went any deeper, there was a risk that perceptive Seo Tae-hyun might start suspecting my true intentions.
But Seo Tae-hyun seemed to be thinking something, as he rested his arm on the table, propped his chin on his hand, and gazed at me. Then, with a smile that suggested he couldn’t help himself, he spoke.
“Hyung, so you kept talking to him after all?”
“Huh?”
“Looking at it, you’re really… amazing.”
“…Amazing how?”
“Is it because you were worried he might be ostracized by the others like Eun-chan, so you deliberately looked after him more?”
No, that’s not it….
I tried hard to hide my bewildered expression. And I answered.
“Just… reminded me of my younger sibling.”
Seo Tae-hyun interpreted my answer however he pleased, and I could see him shaking his head with a pleased smile.
A twinge of guilt struck me, but I deliberately turned away from it.
‘Sorry, Ha-won. I’m selling you out a little more today.’
Kang Ha-jin’s signature #misunderstanding strategy…. Working overtime again today!
* * *
After lunch, the second part of the sports festival began.
While the first part had focused on the trainees’ impressive athletic abilities, the second part was a full-fledged entertainment moment.
-Alright, everyone! From now on, by the authority of this special MC! There are bonus points!
Nam Da-down, who had barely been holding back since this was his first meeting with the juniors (and he had indeed been holding back), finally let loose.
-What’s the most important thing in an idol sports festival!
-First place? No. Championship? Nope.
-It’s being handsome! Looking cool! Physical education student moments! Youth sports film visuals!
-So from now on, trainees who pull off handsome scenes during the games get bonus 100 points!!!!
At Nam Da-down’s command to look handsome, the trainees fell into a panic.
Look handsome? What does that even mean? How do you do that?
And while everyone was flustered, a trainee emerged who had secured the first bonus points.
-Ah, foul! That’s a foul, Captain Jeong Si-u.
In the footsal match formed by combining two teams each, the ball Jeong Si-u kicked went over the line and was called a foul. However, Jeong Si-u didn’t panic at all upon seeing the foul ball and seamlessly continued with his next action.
-Oh, what are you doing right now?
With one hand, he smoothly swept back his neatly parted bangs in a cool manner, then gazed into the distance as if he’d just hit a home run!
His face, with his hand shielding the sunlight after sweeping back his hair, one eye slightly squinting….
-Ahhhhh!!!! So handsome!!!!!!
…was undeniably, unmistakably handsome.
True to his nickname of “First Love Manipulator,” his face was the kind that made you miss a nonexistent baseball club senior from your past.
-Jeong Si-u, Captain!!! Bonus points, 100 points!!!
-Haha. Thank you~.
‘So they’re just scoring the handsome guys?’ I thought, but Nam Da-down actually had his own sense of fairness.
He wasn’t just looking for “objectively” handsome faces—whenever the trainees pulled off a moment the fans would love, he simply scattered points everywhere.
-Ah, Phoenix Team! The way you just checked on your fallen teammate and lifted them up with one hand! Here’s a bonus!
-Hey, Lee Pa-rang! The moment you tripped, you winked at the camera—that sense!! Bonus points, 100 points for you!
-Seo Tae-hyun, Captain, what are you doing right now as you’re about to cross the finish line? …Ah! The ending fairy! You’re doing the ending fairy! Bonus, bang bang!
At this rate, measuring entertainment value had become more important than determining the actual game’s winner.
Once the trainees grasped how the system worked, they threw everything they had at creating “it” moments.
In short, it was chaos.
‘I can’t even guess how this is going to air anymore.’
I lay sprawled on the ground, confronting the harsh reality of it all.
This was the aftermath of abandoning bowling to strike model poses with Kim Won-ho instead—a consequence of succumbing to Seo Tae-hyun’s relentless pressure, blinded by the benefits.
After repeating games like this several times over, the end of the sports day was finally approaching.
“Everyone, did you have fun today?”
“…Yes!”
“Hmm? Your voice is too quiet. Did you have fun!”
“Yesssss!”
Right to the very end, Nam Da-down kept the trainees on their toes. I had moved beyond mere admiration—I was now acknowledging Nam Da-down as transcendent.
‘How does his throat not give out after screaming for six hours straight?’
Truly remarkable….
As I gave him an internal thumbs up and marveled once more, the winning team of the day was finally announced.
“Today’s winning team is….”
Nam Da-down, who had been building suspense, unrolled the scroll he held vertically. The color inside the scroll determined today’s winning team.
And inside the unrolled scroll was purple, everywhere….
‘Huh? Purple?’
“Today’s winning team is Lilac Team! Congratulations!!!”
How?
Everyone’s eyes widened in confusion as they looked around. Even Lilac Team themselves seemed bewildered.
“While you all were ignoring the games to rack up bonus points, Lilac Team steadily competed and accumulated match points!”
“….”
“Since I distributed bonus points fairly evenly among the teams anyway, it’s only natural that Lilac Team, with the most match points, wins, right?”
“….”
“So everyone, remember—you can’t let your guard down for even a moment in entertainment~.”
At that remark from Nam Da—no, that rigid bastard Nam Da-down, everyone was left speechless.
Gong Seok, the captain of Lilac Team who had unexpectedly won the trophy and benefits, grabbed the microphone with a stiffened expression.
“Um, uh… well. Thank you. That is, so… I, I dedicate this honor to Destiny?”
“Ooh, great closing remarks!”
At Nam Da-down’s gesture to applaud, the trainees now produced applause and cheers like reaction machines. As I joined in the congratulatory applause, I thought to myself.
‘I’ll go home and sell Nam Da-down out to his account….’
There’s nothing worth saying anyway, but I’ll do it regardless.
‘I lost in variety show sense!’
Kang Ha-jin, a former variety show PD, suffered a humiliating defeat to a 13-year veteran professional idol.

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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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