Chapter 296
It felt like it was the first time in a long time that I had a warm, home-cooked meal.
Of course, Kang Si-yoon, who shows off his excellent cooking skills, occasionally makes food at our dorm, but it doesn't have that special feeling that mothers make.
The soybean paste stew, tteokgalbi, stir-fried anchovies, and spinach salad that Heo Yu-bin's mother personally made for us somehow seemed to keep my stomach warm for a long time.
"Eat a lot, everyone, hahaha! Everyone, eat."
Heo Yu-bin's father, who came home from work, laughed heartily and repeatedly patted me and Ji Yoon-chul on the back.
While eating dinner, he talked about how Heo Yu-bin looked when he was young and how he often got into trouble in kindergarten.
If you look closely, it's hard to understand how Heo Yu-bin, who has a timid personality, came from a father who has a cheerful personality and a mother who is sly and talkative.
After finishing dinner, we prepared to go home before the sun completely set.
"Everyone, be careful."
"You don't have to go outside, so go inside and rest, Yubin. Don't stay up late and go to bed early. Got it?"
"You told me that three times before, hyung-nim."
"That's how much I'm asking for you."
Heo Yu Bin, who came out to the front door to see us off, smiled with a slightly lethargic face.
Ji Yoon Chul, who was putting on his shoes, suddenly raised his head and quietly said to Heo Yoo Bin.
"...Get well soon, hyung."
"Thank you. If I take medicine, I'll be fine."
"We should hurry up and do the Star Us Live broadcast that we promised our fans."
Heo Yu Bin, who is an expert in composing, included one of his own compositions as the title track of the
When we used it as the last song of the fan meeting, there were even comments saying that they wanted to keep watching the
Seleves, who were curious about Heo Yu-bin's other self-composed songs, had fervently requested that he perform a composition studio live, and Heo Yu-bin, who had received permission from our agency, now just had to decide on a date to broadcast.
Heo Yu-bin smiled slightly and scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"It'd be really awkward to do a live alone.........."
"It's okay, Yu-bin. We'll visit as guests every now and then to change the mood."
"...I think I'd be more tense if hyungs or Yoon-chul came?"
"We'll intentionally create tension so that hyung can focus more."
"Hmm, hm. I think it'd be more effective if we suddenly visited without prior notice."
"Ha, haha.........."
Heo Yu-bin's already pale face seemed to turn even paler with tension.
His parents, who had been quietly eavesdropping on our conversation behind Heo Yu-bin, seized the opportunity and handed me a large shopping bag.
"There aren't many side dishes in the dorm, right? I put in ribs, bean sprouts, and kimchi, so don't skip meals and make sure to eat well. Okay?"
"Thank you so much, Mother. I'll eat well with the members."
"Thank you!"
When Ji Yoon-chul and I nodded and greeted each other, Mother looked at us with a pleased look.
"I'll send other side dishes later with Yubin. Everyone, take care of your health! If you get a summer cold like Yubin, you'll be in big trouble."
"I'll be careful. Mother, always take care of your health."
"Oh my, how can you speak Korean so well? It's amazing no matter how many times I see it."
Meanwhile, Heo Yubin's younger sister opened the door slightly and stuck her head out.
I didn't forget her presence and waved.
"Take care at school, Yujin. I'll see you again when I get the chance."
"Yes, yes! Goodbye, sir."
"Why is she always speaking informally to me? I can't get used to it."
"What should I do?"
".....?"
Huh Yu-bin, who was once again unilaterally beaten by his younger sister, could only blink his eyes.
Ji Yoon-chul and I laughed and said our final goodbyes, then opened the front door and left.
"...It was really fun."
"Me too, Yoon-chul. Yu-bin's personality is not at all similar to his parents."
"That was a bit strange. His father and mother are both very active.........."
I closed my eyes slightly as I breathed in the air that was much cooler than during the day.
It was a warm feeling that I hadn't felt in a long time.
Eating dinner with parents whom you could rely on, playing with younger siblings who bicker with you but take care of each other more than anyone else. And trustworthy friends who come to give you strength.
It felt like the warm feeling I had forgotten for a long time was wrapping my heart warmly.
I had lived with parents who I could not rely on.
However, as if to fill in the things I had lost during that time, countless relationships came to me.
The countless relationships I met after being possessed in a game, my younger sibling who followed me to the real world.
And most of all, the members who I could trust and confide in more than anyone else.
I opened my eyes and smiled at Ji Yoon-chul.
".........Should we go back now?"
***
Four days had already passed since the vacation we had been given.
The other members had gone down to their parents' house, but I was resting alone in my quiet studio to recover my strength.
When I woke up in the morning and thought about it.
'I feel like it would be more comfortable to go to the dorm than to be here alone.'
Now, the dorm where I spent a lot of time with the members is much more comfortable than this studio.
Since there are side dishes sent by Heo Yu-bin's mother, I can have a hearty meal.
Since there's even a game console left by Yoo Min-ha, I won't be bored.
And I can be the first to greet the members who are returning to the dorm after their vacation.
- Oh, it's okay if you go to the dorm first. Don't your parents have any plans to come to Korea?
"I haven't asked them yet. They're both so busy."
- That's too bad. You probably want to see your parents for once. If you're lonely being alone in the dorm, should I go and play with you?
"It's okay. I can play well by myself."
- This guy is secretly a tough guy.
After getting permission from our manager, I packed my bags and returned to the dorm right away.
It was the first time the always noisy accommodation was this quiet, so it felt a bit awkward.
However, the awkwardness was short-lived, and the comfort of my home came over me.
'I should learn how to cook by myself a little.'
I looked at my hand holding the knife while cutting the tteokgalbi sent by Heo Yu-bin's mother into bite-sized pieces.
I was still using the way I held the knife when I was killing beasts or monsters in
This method works best for me, but as Kang Si-yoon said, it can be dangerous and it can also look weird to fans, so I should change it.
If you look at the track record of Sigma Entertainment's planning department, they will definitely be able to give us our own cooking-related content in the future. When they do, I will have to show a more advanced side of myself than before.
So I practiced holding the knife in the normal way for a little while.
I tried to discard the familiar grip I used to use when slaughtering goblins while deliberately cutting onions and cutting green onions.
Well, I still feel a strange sense of alienation.
'I guess I can practice whenever the members aren't around.'
After finishing my meal alone, I checked my phone and suddenly saw Owen's name.
Now that I think about it, I was so out of it while I was in Japan that I couldn't contact him at all.
Thinking about my brother, who must be waiting for me to contact him, I felt sorry.
I called him right away, but Owen answered before the call even rang three times.
- Hyung-nim, did you have a good trip to Japan?
"I had a good trip without any problems. "I hope you've been doing well too."
- I've been busy with work lately because of my busy schedule. It was physically quite difficult, but I was able to hold on.
Jerene also had decent results since their debut album, so they must have been getting love calls from all over the place.
I thought back to our rookie days, which were already a year ago, and reminisced for a moment.
"Being busy is actually a good sign, so it's good."
-Thank you, hyung-nim. But I watched all your videos from time to time. The black suit you wore at the Tokyo concert was the most impressive.
"You remember what I wore too."
-Yes, of course. The last Kobe concert
"Haha...."
I was a little speechless at Owen's words.
It means that you watched all our Japan concert videos despite your busy schedule.
It's really amazing.
I heard Owen laughing brightly on the other end of the phone.
- I'm really happy to be able to talk to hyung-nim like this after such a long time. Above all, I feel relieved because you look so healthy.
"I thought I should contact you too, but I'm sorry for doing it so late."
- No, hyung-nim. So you're back at the dorm now?
"Yes, it's vacation time now."
-Are the others still staying at their parents' house?
"Yes."
Owen laughed again at my answer. He seemed like a child who had received an unexpected gift.
- I also got a vacation today or tomorrow. That's great. I'll be able to have a nice chat with hyung-nim after a long time.
"Hmm, hmmm."
I smiled faintly as I recalled the faces of Yoo Min-ha and Kang Si-yoon.
"There are definitely no people of interest who could disturb us, so we can talk comfortably."
- I'm also very comfortable because there are only two people left in the dorm. Even the rest are still in dreamland, so I don't have to worry about what others think.
"Then........... I guess we can continue the conversation we had back then."
- Yes.
The reason Owen came to the real world just like me.
The Demon King who disappeared without a trace in
The direction all of this points to.
"...Owen, do you think the Demon King came to this world like us?"
- It's a ridiculous situation. There's even a soldier who witnessed you beheading the Demon King. But haven't so many ridiculous things been happening right now? Hyung-nim and I, who shouldn't have been able to come to this place, met like this, and came here to be an idol. Then, it's not impossible to hypothesize that the Demon King used magic to survive.
'He even created the 'seed', a magical tool that damaged the system of
"And you said that the moment you touched that magic tool, you were transferred here."
-Yes.
This is the maximum information that the two of us can gather.
Anything beyond this is unknown territory itself.
Has the Demon King really come over to the real world?
Or is it simply our overestimation.
How on earth could the being whose neck I cut off with my own hands still be alive?
All of this was something we had no way of finding out right away.
I drummed my fingers on the table, lost in thought.
"...Owen. If Seir really came to this world, where on earth would he be and what would he be doing?"
- Well. It would be hard for me, a human, to guess the way the Demon King, the leader of the Demon Tribe, thinks.
Owen paused for a moment and then continued slowly.
- If I were the Demon King and followed hyung-nim to the real world.... I would probably want to take revenge on the person who cut off my neck.
"Reve.....nge."
- Yes. Wasn't that written in the ancient imperial documents? The highest level of curse magic feeds on deep 'resentment', and the magical tool that Demon King Seir created wasn't made of ordinary sorcery. It was imbued with power beyond what we know of common sense. Assuming that the Demon King had that much resentment..........
I swallowed hard and listened to Owen's soft words.
- Perhaps this time he will come for hyung-nim's neck in return.
-