Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 258. This is the Slice of Life Part. Probably. (1)

“…A 2-week broadcast?”

“Yeah. There was too much content, so they hurriedly changed the programming. It looks like the PD really liked you guys.”

Kang Hajin, who was lying stretched out on a wide leather sofa, stopped fiddling with the cube that a fan had gifted him. He leaned his head back against the sofa’s armrest and looked upside down at Ji Suho, who was working at his desk. Hajin lightly supported his chin with both hands.

“Of course. Do you know who I am?”

“…Sometimes, I think you’re the most shameless one among the leaders.”

“You didn’t know? That’s my charm.”

Hajin, who was laughing playfully, sat up straight.

The news that the show *Touch High!* they appeared on had its run extended to two weeks was quite good.

It meant that their performance was even more impressive than expected, and that they had enough buzz to catch the attention of a veteran who had over 20 years of experience in variety shows.

‘We managed to put together a nice portfolio before the awards season.’

Anyway, the reason Hajin had barged into Suho’s office today was for a different matter.

After placing the completed cube on the sofa table, Suho, who had just finished an urgent task, approached and sat down on the opposite sofa with a bottle of orange juice from the mini-fridge.

As Hajin, who quickly accepted the juice and unscrewed the cap, Suho casually asked, “How’s the atmosphere at the dorm lately? Taehyun seems more sensitive than I thought.”

“Ah.”

Hajin downed more than half of the cool orange juice in one gulp, then put the bottle on the table and commented with a slight bitterness.

“Siwoo hyung got kicked out of the room.”

“…Why?”

“He said his sleep pattern was disturbed because that hyung keeps waking up in the middle of the night….”

Hajin stared into the air with a wistful look in his eyes.

He could vividly recall the sight of Jung Siwoo, who had been evicted to the living room a few days ago, holding a pillow and blanket in his pajamas.

He still couldn’t forget how he felt when he found Siwoo sitting on the living room sofa with a shocked expression after coming out for a drink of water in the middle of the night.

– Hyung, what are you doing there…? No, first of all, I’m not sick today, okay? I’m perfectly fine. I just woke up and got thirsty, so I came out for a drink of water….

– Hajin.

– Wh-What?

– I got kicked out.

– …Wha↗t?

– This is the first time something like this has happened to me….

Jung Siwoo, who had the expression of a romance manga protagonist saying, ‘The first person to treat me like this is Seo Taehyun,’ was miserably slumped on the living room sofa, as if he had just been dumped.

The strange sense of fear(?) from that time was still fresh in Hajin’s mind. He shuddered slightly as he gulped down the remaining orange juice.

“So, is Siwoo sleeping in the living room now?”

“Of course not. There’s no way we’d make our precious main vocalist sleep in the living room. Until the college entrance exam is over, Yugeon and Siwoo hyung decided to swap rooms. Yugeon is studying with Taehyun anyway.”

“Yugeon is studying?”

“…He opens the book. For now.”

Though it was a temporary roommate swap, they seemed to get along surprisingly well.

Jung Siwoo, exhausted from dealing with the chaotic energy of the younger members, would collapse and fall asleep as soon as night fell, while Seo Taehyun and Lee Yugeon, despite their constant bickering, were living a somewhat convincing life as exam students.

Thinking that occasionally swapping roommates like this might be a good idea, Hajin tossed the empty juice bottle into the trash bin.

“Taehyun seems to be feeling more pressure about the college entrance exam than I thought. Take care of him. He’s probably feeling a bit unsettled… With the upcoming debut of Rene Chagio, and constantly running into Believer, it seems like it’s getting to him.”

Hajin looked up at Suho with a slightly surprised expression at how attentively he was considering Taehyun.

Suho, who had been fiddling with the completed cube, met Hajin’s gaze as he noticed the contemplative expression on his face.

“Why? Do you have something to say?”

“…No, it’s just. I was reminded of something from the past.”

“What past? Your past life?”

“Ah, I told you, it’s not a past life. It’s not some kind of resurrection… Anyway, not that time.”

Hajin leaned back against the sofa and propped his chin up with the hand resting on the armrest.

Hajin’s light gray eyes slowly moved through the air as if drawing a picture.

“When I first met the Director. In front of my house.”

“……”

“The things he said back then… I’m realizing now they were really sincere… It’s a bit of a revelation.”

Suho recalled a day from almost a year ago now as he listened to Hajin’s words.

– We really want you, Hajin, to believe in us, no, in me, and come along with us.

– You’re going to do great, Hajin. I guarantee it.

What kind of expression did Hajin have when he heard those words?

He couldn’t remember exactly, but he could clearly tell that the Hajin of then and the Hajin of now were very different.

Suho, watching Hajin, who seemed deep in thought, pushed the orange juice he had brought for himself toward him.

“Does that mean you trust me now?”

“If I didn’t trust you, I wouldn’t have come this far.”

An artist’s trust is the most valuable asset and portfolio for a manager.

Feeling a warm satisfaction, Suho checked the time on his wristwatch and clasped his hands together, ready to get back to work.

“So, what’s up today? You came because you have something to say, right?”

“Yes. It’s nothing complicated…. What’s our schedule for the rest of the year? The big ones, mostly.”

“Let’s see.”

Suho opened the calendar app on his tablet that he always carried. After scanning through the densely written schedule, he slowly listed Kairos’s remaining activities for the year.

“First, you’ll be doing music shows after tomorrow’s digital single comeback, then the end of the year will be packed with various award shows and performances. There’s a song coming out at the end of the year, but that’s already been recorded, so no need to worry about it. There are a few events, but nothing major.”

“And next year? Will we be busy at the start?”

“Not yet? There are some individual schedules, but we’re trying to push back any new schedules on our end as much as possible. The contract terms are different when you’re a total rookie compared to when you’ve won a few rookie awards by the end of the year.”

Hajin nodded quietly, listening attentively to Suho’s words.

After scanning the calendar for a moment, Hajin spoke up.

“Then, could you give us some time off at the beginning of the year? About 2 nights and 3 days?”

“Time off? Suddenly?”

“I’m not just asking for it. If we win the Rookie Award at the award ceremony. Maybe around January or February, just for 3 days.”

“Well, we’re not planning to make a comeback right at the start of the year, so we could adjust things….”

Suho trailed off, then asked Hajin.

“Is there a reason for this? Is it related to Haru?”

“……”

Seeing Hajin hesitate to answer, Suho pressed on with a voice full of certainty.

“I told you we’re on the same boat now. If you have a plan, share it with me. That way, I can help you, Hajin.”

Despite Suho’s strong insistence, Hajin hesitated to speak.

But Suho waited.

And then, after taking a deep breath, Hajin slowly began to express his thoughts.

“If we win the Rookie Award at the end of the year.”

“……”

“I think ‘Chosen Regressor’ Dan Haru will fix the timeline.”

“That means….”

“Since that would be the happiest day, he’ll try to trap himself in that day forever. That would be the end of Dan Haru and also mean that bastard Dolja would finally take over his body.”

Since Suho had already been briefed on what Hajin had learned so far, he could relatively easily understand what Hajin was saying.

Hajin continued.

“I’m thinking it might happen on December 31st. It’s also that bastard Sparkling’s birthday…. It would be a meaningful day, after all.”

“I’ve been wondering for a while, but if Haru makes that choice and loses his body, what happens to Haru? Does he become like a possessed ghost or something?”

“He disappears.”

“Disappears?”

“I asked him before. He said that once Dan Haru loses his body, all traces of Dan Haru as a person will completely disappear, and that bastard Dolja will start using that body with a ‘new’ setting. We won’t even remember that Dan Haru ever existed.”

Recalling the sad ending route in this fantasy genre that he had heard from the ‘Entity’ before, a sharp shadow crossed Hajin’s eyes.

“Anyway, that’s why I’m thinking of taking out a little insurance. So that Dan Haru would want to live as ‘Kairos’s Dan Haru’ even next

year.”

“And that’s the vacation?”

“I’m planning to suggest a trip together if we win the Rookie Award. …To Haru’s grandmother’s place.”

“Haru’s grandmother… You mean the orphanage director?”

“Yes. That should be something Dan Haru would look forward to, right?”

Hajin shrugged, a smile on his face, but behind that smile was a shadow that words could not describe.

At that moment, Suho instinctively felt that there was something more hidden behind Hajin’s proposal for a vacation, but he didn’t press further.

He knew well that there was a reason Suho didn’t speak about certain things.

So Suho simply nodded.

“…Alright. I’ll try to find a 3-day slot with no schedules. Any longer would be difficult, especially with Taehyun’s MC schedule.”

“Three days is enough. Honestly, even one day would be fine, but I’m asking for more just in case.”

“Got it.”

“Thanks, as always.”

Hajin smiled sincerely and opened the cap of the second orange juice Suho had given him. The orange juice quickly disappeared by half again.

Hajin, who had been deeply leaning into the sofa, sat up straight and put on his usual playful smile.

“Well, that’s settled. Shall we talk about work? How’s our schedule for the end of the year?”

“Well, it looks like you’ll be performing on all three major networks, and various award shows are contacting us… We’ll probably have to go to as many as we can, even if it’s tough. When you’re a rookie, it’s most important to make a good impression everywhere.”

“Our Doha is going to be super busy. He’s working on arrangements with the A&R team right now, right?”

“Some of the songs are being done with Doha’s participation, and some are outsourced. Taeil wanted to work with him, but this time Utopia also has to make the rounds for the end of the year.”

“What about Enderway seniors?”

“The Endup guys have been focusing mostly on overseas activities this year. They’ll probably be touring Japan and the US again, including domestic ones… And there are some personal circumstances.”

Seeing Suho’s expression that hinted not to ask further, Hajin nodded and lightly tapped his fingers.

After checking the calendar once more, Suho suddenly remembered something and spoke up.

“Oh, by the way. QBS is planning a senior idol cover stage for the end of the year and asked us to prepare something. Any songs come to mind?”

“What’s the criteria for senior idols?”

“These are the options they gave us.”

Suho showed Hajin the list of senior idol songs provided by the broadcasting station through the calendar. Hajin scanned the songs with his eyes and responded casually.

“There are songs by Utopia hyungs? Then we should cover one of their songs, right? …If we don’t, I feel like they’ll call us. Those hyungs.”

“Since you’re from the same agency, it would look good for you to cover their song. Alright, I’ll let the broadcasting station know.”

“If we do a Utopia cover stage… Ideon will be happy. Our song comes out tomorrow at 6, right? With the MV.”

“Yeah.”

“The music charts have been pretty empty lately. I’d be thrilled if we could even make it into the Top 100.”

Hajin clicked his tongue softly.

Currently, the power of male idol songs on the domestic music charts was almost non-existent, to put it mildly.

Although Kairos’s debut album had been a big hit in terms of album sales, it hadn’t performed as well on the streaming charts.

Despite being a well-crafted, refreshing pop genre song with lyrics and composition by Seo Taeil, it didn’t rank very high on the charts.

“Unless the song is really good, male idol songs don’t usually get much attention outside of their fanbase.”

“I’ve always thought that streaming culture is really… bizarre. It’s like you have to grind your fans’ labor to make your music succeed. A song that’s listened to a million times by one person is different from a song that’s listened to once by a million people, isn’t it?”

“Isn’t it the same with album sales? These days, it’s a world where one person buys a hundred copies ten thousand times to reach a million sales.”

Hajin sighed deeply and scratched his forehead with his long fingers.

“Honestly, I’d like to tell our fans they don’t need to do that, but knowing this industry ranks us dozens of times a day with those numbers, it’s hard to say that.”

Hajin’s sighing concern made Suho check the time again and chuckle. It was a smile full of affection.

“What can you do? The idol industry isn’t going to change overnight. We just have to repay the fans by making albums worth buying a hundred times and releasing songs that don’t get old even after a hundred listens.”

“…Can I use that line in an interview later?”

“Was it a cool line?”

“Yes. It’s awesome.”

“Taeil said it, so you’ll have to ask him about the copyright.”

With a smile, Hajin nodded as if to say, ‘Of course.’ The grumbling voice that followed carried a hint of admiration and respect.

Realizing that it was time to get back to work, Suho stood up and asked Hajin, “How’s this new song? Are you confident? It’s your and Doha’s work, after all.”

When Suho asked about the comeback song, set to be released at 6 p.m. the next day, Hajin, who was packing up his cube, hesitated for a moment.

Soon, Hajin stood up, following Suho, and his lips curved into a smooth arc.

“If this song flops, I’m quitting the idol business.”

“…Seriously.”

Suho, unable to help it, burst into laughter at Hajin’s shameless yet well-founded confidence.