Chapter 369: Choose (12)

The show began. Everything was going smoothly until my first interview part came up, and that was when Joo-Han's lips curled into a subtle smile.

- Hello.

I greeted the cast member and the audience in a weird dialect.

"Hahaha."

"Ahahahaha! Oh my god! Pfft!!!" Goh Yoo-Joon couldn't hold back his laughter and clutched his stomach every time I spoke.

"You little rascal, did you misinform him on purpose? Huh?" Joo-Han asked, his eyes briefly flicking to Goh Yoo-Joon before focusing back on the screen.

"It's funny, isn't it? But did you really speak like this all the time? Didn’t anyone tell you it sounded weird?" Goh Yoo-Joon asked, prompting Joo-Han to glance at him again before returning his gaze to the screen.

"But hyung, it doesn't seem that bad," said Jin-Sung.

"Umm... I agree," Yoon-Chan added, eyeing Joo-Han cautiously. "It just looks like he’s trying not to get caught. It's cute and funny. I think it's fine..."

Yoon-Chan’s voice trailed off as he faced forward again. Jin-Sung, Su-Hwan, and even a tired Goh Yoo-Joon straightened up and focused on Joo-Han. Despite their comments, Joo-Han remained silent, just slurping his instant ramen while watching the show like an ordinary viewer.

Joo-Han’s chopsticks paused briefly during my performance. The members, who had been making comments, fell silent to watch. My voice was slightly muffled by the mask, but it remained clear in pronunciation and breath control. The training from Reina had paid off as it resulted in a perfect stage performance. My gestures, however, were too distinctively mine.

"Suh Hyun-Woo, it's like you didn’t even try to hide it by the end."

"By the second verse, it's unmistakably you, hyung."

"No matter how much you practice in front of a mirror, it ends up like this after the second verse."

"You always sound great, Hyun-Woo."

"No, hyung. I’m better," Goh Yoo-Joon teased, nudging Joo-Han’s shoulder. Joo-Han agreed and offered Goh Yoo-Joon a bite of his ramen.

𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

His chopsticks resumed their journey between the bowl and his mouth as the talk session started.

- Thank you... very much.

After I thanked everyone after my performance, the screen cut to Reina looking shocked.

‘Oh no...’

I felt embarrassed, so I clutched my head and hung it low. Even during the shoot, I had felt something was off, but seeing it on TV was even more embarrassing. Goh Yoo-Joon started snickering again.

- Really... it’s an honor.

- Hyun-Woo, you can stop now! I feel too sad watching this!

- Reina, this is the perfect timing. Everyone's been curious but too afraid to ask. Allow me. Is Eden really Suh Hyun-Woo?

- No.

Reina was red-eared, but she calmly denied the question.

Joo-Han let out a deflated laugh. "Pfft."

"See, hyung thinks it’s funny too," Goh Yoo-Joon noted.

"...Haha, yeah. It

is

funny," Joo-Han admitted and pointed at the TV. "Hyun-Woo, keep it up. I don’t mean the dialect, though."

I lifted my head, surprised. I had expected a scolding similar to the one Reina had given me for my antics.

"I knew Joo-Han hyung would like it. He loves quirky and funny stuff like this," Yoo-Joon said, earning a stern look from Joo-Han.

"But that doesn’t mean you did the right thing by teaching him the dialect wrong."

"Hyung, it was more about Suh Hyun-Woo’s acting skills than my teaching. I already told you!"

Indeed, Goh Yoo-Joon knew things would end up like this when he tricked me. Ridiculous.

I shook my head. "So you planned this all along, huh? I will never ask you for help from you ever again!"

"Enough, both of you. It was funnier than expected, so it's fine. Senior Reina might even change her mind after seeing the edited version."

"Yoo-Joon hyung’s pranks always turn out well. It’s weird," Jin-Sung remarked.

"It’s because I’m smart," Goh Yoo-Joon said, tapping his temple. I ignored him and focused back on the TV. "Hey, are you ignoring me?"

Goh Yoo-Joon playfully put me in a headlock, but I kept my eyes on the screen. My performance had ended, and Isaac’s stage was about to begin. I wanted to see how the stage I hadn’t witnessed appeared on TV to confirm if Isaac really was the creator god.

"Oh, right. I heard that Isaac guy is very unique."

"In what way?"

"I don’t know, but the stylist noonas were complaining about him being really annoying." Jin-Sung mimicked the stylists’ tones. They must have been really upset that the new singer didn’t greet me.

"I heard he sings really well. What did you think, Hyun-Woo hyung?" Yoon-Chan asked.

"Me? I don’t know."

I hadn’t heard him sing. All I had seen was his annoying face and strange comments.

"A new singer in third place will definitely get a lot of attention. Just like Eden did."

"Let’s see how good he is."

The host Seo Han announced that it was Isaac’s turn, and the show began with an introduction by Hye-Yeon. My lips were drying up as I watched the colorful lights and the excited faces of the panelist members with grand background music.

I wondered if Isaac was the creator god, or if he was just someone else who borrowed his form for a while. However, I couldn’t be certain of his identity as I watched the show. Although Isaac had the same appearance and voice as the creator god, he had a very well-socialized stage manner and decent singing voice.

On top of that...

- Just the thought of it bothers me so much. I’m so sorry... Would it be okay if I introduce myself now?

- Nah, you are okay~

- Isaac had to go to hospital since he didn’t feel well right before the shooting. But no one could notice that you were sick, Isaac. You did really well!

- He is such a nice guy!

There were also discussions I didn't recognize. What was I doing while Isaac was being interviewed by the host? I appeared to be sitting still with my mask on and just watching Isaac's interview. It didn’t make sense that the creator god would be on stage here in the first place.

‘Ugh, I have no idea.’

I just wanted to stop fretting about anything.

"He sings pretty good."

The words came out of my mouth with a hint of despair. I decided to pretend that I didn’t know him from now on. I wanted to stop holding on to secrets that only I knew and struggling with.

If this guy was the real creator god and if he had come to tell me something, he would come back.

I had mixed feelings. I wanted him to come back and tell me what was going to happen to me, but I also wanted to be able to go about my business and live in peace.

Immediately after the episode ended, community trends were dominated by keywords related to Eden, Isaac, and Oh Yoo-Wol. More and more people were looking forward to the moment when Eden would be unmasked as days went by. This was a favorable situation for me and Reina, but it was hard not to feel anxious.

"Suh Hyun-Woo. Did something happen earlier? You don't seem to be in a good mood."

"Huh? I'm fine."

"Did you get scolded by Reina? Are you mad at me for not teaching you the dialect properly?"

Goh Yoo-Joon looked at me like he wanted to say something and scratched his neck nervously. He must have been worried that if I got in trouble with Reina.

I let out a laugh. "I thought you said you were just having fun."

"Oh, it was just..."

"I don't know. It was just a verbal slap in the face compared to the ones we got when we were trainees. Don't apologize. It's cringe."

"Oh, uh."

Goh Yoo-Joon was about to leave the room, but he grabbed the doorknob and looked back at me. "By the way, I have been having some weird dreams lately."

***

"Now that the concert is over and you've had enough rest, you’re going to start working on the album."

This was the first time since Allure and Chronos switched to a label headed by Su-Hwan that they held a meeting to discuss their next album.

"This time, the album will be produced by Joo-Han. Since Joo-Han is producing, I want the rest of the Chronos members to actively participate in the album production."

"Yes!"

"We will talk about the concept and such after we discuss it a bit more. Along with this comeback, your group variety show that we’ve been putting off will also be launched."

"Hooray, finally!" Jin-Sung cheered, looking up toward the heavens. The company had been saying that we were going to do a solo variety show, but it hadn't come to fruition until now. No one actually discussed it, so the members and the Rings had given up on the proposition.

It seemed that our long-awaited project, the group variety show, would be promoted only once we were transferred to the new label. Seeing the members' excitement, Su-Hwan grinned and continued. "And one more thing, we have a schedule for you."

Su-Hwan handed over a document. I flipped to the first page and saw a very familiar logo.

"...Pick We Up Two?"

"Yep. It's the second year since you guys debuted. Also, the first season of

Pick We Up

, where Chronos was revealed to the public for the first time, is also entering a new season."

I couldn't believe how much time has passed already. Usually, popular contest programs were released in one-year increments, so

Pick We Up Two

must have been in the works.

‘But why is he showing us this?’

It was not like he was asking us to compete again.

Seeing us hesitate while holding the documents, Su-Hwan smiled and shook his head. "It's not that we want you to compete again, it's that our label is planning to launch a new idol group this time."

"A new idol group?" Yoon-Chan asked.

Su-Hwan smiled. It seemed like very good news for us. "It's a seven-member group that includes many of our existing trainees. The team includes On-Sae, who will be making his second appearance on

Pick We Up,

as well as Han Jun, Il-Seong, and the members who participated in the song ‘History.’"

‘On-Sae and Han Jun will be debuting together!’

All of the members brightened up at Su-Hwan's words. The trainees who had been training with us had finally realized their dreams.

"Thank God."

I was more glad about the news since On-Sae, who was unintentionally brought into discussion, would also debut.

"So, are these members going to participate in

Pick We Up Two

?" Joo-Han asked.

Su-Hwan nodded. "And you guys, Chronos, have agreed to be the daily teachers for

Pick We Up Two.

So you can cheer up the juniors from the agency and promote your new songs."