Chapter 424: Reunion - Lee Jin-Sung’s Point of View

When laughter echoed from the audience, Goh Yoo-Joon quickly checked his own expression on the screen and tried to stifle his smile.

“Was my face really that weird just now?" he asked in a subdued tone, his voice laced with embarrassment.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

I shook my head and averted my gaze, trying to reassure him. “Not really. You were justifiably surprised."

After all, their first task was appearing on

Pick We Up Two

, where their friends who had not debuted previously or had walked different paths from what they knew were now prominently displaying their skills and achieving good results. Plus, these were the same people who once belonged to a major agency in their timeline, so it was understandably shocking.

How strange was that? How eagerly had they awaited this?

Perhaps the trio from Elated was experiencing the same whirlwind of emotions I had felt during the first Sequence's performance. How could anyone deem their expressions strange when they were likely overwhelmed by such poignant memories?

As the performance continued, Goh Yoo-Joon and the others didn’t divert their attention from the stage until the sequence had ended, though more composed now.

“It’s a spectacle we might never witness again,” Goh Yoo-Joon murmured contemplatively, his voice a mixture of awe and a touch of sadness.

Sequence’s performance ended. They greeted their fans in front of the camera with practiced ease, and they waved and bowed at us as they left the stage. Watching Sequence greet us was always something special. Though our own greetings were brief, it was clear that there were complicated emotions among the Elated trio.

Shortly after, the audience calmed down, and announcer Jeong Gyu-Chan appeared at the host's table.

“That was an amazing performance by Sequence! Over there...” Jeong Gyu-Chan pointed in our direction, and the large screen showed us. The audience was still caught up in the excitement of the performance, and they cheered loudly.

“Sequence's direct seniors, Chronos, are watching! I bet that made the performance even more nerve-wracking for them. So, we’ve seen all the stages prepared by each group. What did you think?” Jeong Gyu-Chan engaged with the audience smoothly by starting the countdown for the score tally.

“Five! Four! Three!”

Wow, it had been a while since I felt this kind of excitement. Hearing the audience’s loud voices echoing throughout the concert hall filled us with a mix of nostalgia and joy as we joined in the countdown. Soon, the grand soundtrack concluded and signaled that the scores had been tallied.

All the groups that performed climbed back onto the stage, and the ranking announcement began. The tension was palpable even in the audience, and Joo-Han was unable to take it. He took Yoon-Chan’s phone and changed the supportive message from "Sequence is awesome" to “You did so well, everyone!!"

Goh Yoo-Joon covered his mouth again as he tried to stifle a laugh at the absurdity of it all. On the other hand, Lee Jin-Sung looked surprisingly calm, possibly because he was a judge on

Pick We Up Five

in his original world.

Seeing him so composed made Yoon-Chan, who was approaching to calm him down because he usually got too excited in such moments, stop and sit back down in confusion.

The rankings from sixth place onward were revealed one by one, with mixed reactions from the audience. Some of the contestants on stage tried to maintain their composure, but a few looked like they were about to burst into tears.

When the announcement reached the top two, the host paused to build suspense.

“Ah!” The audience groaned in anticipation, urging the announcer to hurry up. Jeong Gyu-Chan was used to such reactions, so he laughed and nodded.

“Thank you for your patience! Now, only the first and second places are left. And the winner of today's

Pick We Up

is... We will reveal both places at the same time!”

Jeong Gyu-Chan’s playful demeanor could be frustratingly endearing. Remembering how he was both loved and hated by fans in the previous season, I couldn’t help but smile.

“And the winner is... Sequence! Congratulations!”

Fireworks exploded, cheers erupted, and Sequence received their bouquet and trophy. They gave their acceptance speech amidst the applause. We stood up, clapping and congratulating them.

“This feels so strange. I might cry,” Goh Yoo-Joon said softly. He murmured to himself, “I wish this was really my life.”

His words made me pause and look at him. I realized then that Goh Yoo-Joon, Lee Jin-Sung, and Joo-Han would have to return to their original world. Then, all of this would become just a dream for them.

The face of Elated’s Lee Jin-Sung, when I first saw him a couple days ago, flashed in my mind again. To them, my existence and the debut of Sequence were all just dreams.

‘Do they... do they not want to return to their timeline?’

Before I could delve deeper into that thought, Sequence finished their acceptance speech, and the filming ended.

***

In the car on the way back to the dorm, the sky was gradually darkening. As I felt the creeping fatigue, I closed my eyes tightly for a moment before looking around at the members.

Yoon-Chan was skimming through a script, while Goh Yoo-Joon stared out the window with a complicated expression. Joo-Han seemed lost in thought as he was staring blankly at his phone.

And then there was Jin-Sung...

“Lee Jin-Sung?” I called out his name without thinking and drew the attention of everyone in the car.

“Huh?” Lee Jin-Sung replied with his eyes wide open.

I wondered why I had called him. There was a reason, but it wasn’t something I wanted to discuss in front of everyone. I shook my head. “Never mind. I’ll tell you when we get back to the dorm.”

He looked visibly anxious. His eyes darted around before he reluctantly nodded. “...Okay.”

Something was off. He seemed incredibly uneasy, almost on edge. His complexion appeared paler than usual, though that could very well be a trick of the dim light. Earlier, he had seemed in good spirits after watching Sequence’s performance.

‘Could something have happened?’

The creator god was known for causing trouble whenever he felt like it, so it was possible he had done something to Lee Jin-Sung. The Elated members had to have come to this timeline for a reason.

‘I will ask him when we get back to the dorm.’

Though they might say it was nothing and that I wouldn’t have to worry about it, just like always. But, contrary to my expectations, Jin-Sung grabbed my arm as soon as we arrived at the dorm.

“Hyung!”

“Whoa, what’s wrong?”

The members turned to look at us as they sensed the seriousness of the situation. I gently pushed him toward my room to talk privately.

“Let’s talk here.”

I didn’t want to discuss this in front of the others, especially not with Yoon-Chan there. But Lee Jin-Sung looked at something I couldn’t see, then urgently said, “I’m... I’m going back soon...”

His voice was weak but clear. The other members, who had been heading to the living room, stopped dead in their tracks.

...What did he just say? The suddenness of his words left me momentarily speechless. Joo-Han quickly ushered Lee Jin-Sung into my room and shut the door behind us.

“Don’t come out until you’ve sorted things out! Make sure you guys talk it out, okay? Understood?”

Joo-Han’s quick decision-making gave us the privacy we needed.

“...” I started to understand what was going on. “You guys are going back? To where you originally came from?” I asked. Lee Jin-Sung nodded with a somber look in his eyes. “Now?”

“Maybe soon?”

His response left me speechless as I stared at the closed door. Was one of them going back first, or all three at the same time? Judging by Joo-Han’s expression, it didn’t seem like all of them were going back right now.

It would be best to discuss this as a group... but Joo-Han seemed to have left us alone to ensure Yoon-Chan wouldn’t feel isolated and clueless.

My gaze dropped to the floor, and I asked after a moment of hesitation, “Are you leaving suddenly because you fulfilled the condition?”

Lee Jin-Sung’s eyes began to fill with tears. “I completed it a long time ago. I had no choice but to do it. I tried to hold on as long as I could because...”

“What kind of condition was it?”

“I wanted to stay with you a bit longer... But now, if I go... I won’t be able to see you anymore.”

He finally broke down in tears. Watching him cry until his face turned red, I couldn’t bring myself to ask anything more.

I could only sense that this moment, this conversation, was the last time we could face each other like this.

***

‘I have to say it. I have to tell him. Before I go back, I need to explain everything so that Hyun-Woo hyung understands.’

I kept repeating what I had to do in my mind, but all that came out of my mouth were sobs. During the twenty-four hours given for choosing and watching Hyun-Woo live his life here, I realized what I needed to choose and what I had to sacrifice.

- Accompany the regressor

(The regressor’s world will be integrated, and players will be synchronized)

- Keep your world

(You will return to the original world, and the regressor will remain here)

※ If the world is integrated, your physical body will disappear (due to the regressor's choice), and the memories will be transferred to the current world’s Lee Jin-Sung.

Accompany the regressor... Did this mean that I should stay here and live as part of Chronos?

Keep my world... This meant leaving Hyun-Woo in this timeline and returning to my original world, living as I always had.

If I chose to accompany Hyun-Woo, I could live a different life here as a successful member of Chronos alongside him. If I chose to maintain my world, I would go back to what I was doing before coming here. I would live in a world without Hyun-Woo, and he would live in this timeline with the members of Chronos.

At first, I intended to choose to accompany him. It seemed obvious, didn’t it? I chose to come here to meet Hyun-Woo again after enduring living without him for about two years. I wanted to walk together with him again and make up for the time we lost.

But I soon realized that choice was not a sacrifice. Accompanying was the selfish sacrifice the creator god talked about, sacrificing my time as an Elated for my happiness. Thinking only of what choice would be for Hyun-Woo’s sake, I spent the limited twenty-four hours with the members here.

Then, I realized that Hyun-Woo now cherished the Lee Jin-Sung of Chronos and the memories with Chronos more than anything. The true sacrifice for Hyun-Woo was not accompanying him, but going back to my world.

So, I chose that. Even if it hurt, I chose to sacrifice for Hyun-Woo. I bit the bullet and made my choice. For the one who had lived a lonely and painful life until death in my original timeline....

“I had so much I wanted to say when I met you again, hyung...”

The remaining time after the choice was short, and I had to say my final goodbye to Hyun-Woo. There was no time to cry, yet the tears kept flowing despite knowing this.