Chapter 410 |
Side Story (27)
Beep, beep, beeeep.
The sound of the door, shut in vain, automatically locking echoed out.
As if he’d thought another prey had arrived, Nagi Zen snatched Han Seungbeom’s headband and put it on his own head before dashing toward the front door.
“Welcome, mas…….”
The moment he spotted Seo Yuseong’s face, he jumped like a startled cat, spun around, and threw himself at me at the same speed he had been running.
“Wh-what! Why are you like this! What do you expect me to do?”
I tried to peel Zen off my back where he was clinging like a koala, but his resistance was so fierce that I failed. Does he think I’m some kind of shield?
“Emergency. Unexpected situation. Please hide me.”
“I’m scared. The other hyungs are fine. But not Seo Yuseong-sunbaenim.”
The rest of Prism are all ‘hyung’, so why is Seo Yuseong ‘sunbaenim’?
I found it as absurd as me being ‘young master‘ while Choi Jeokhyeon is ‘master’.
Well, there was quite a gap in seniority. If the senior didn’t ease the atmosphere first, it wouldn’t be easy for a junior to approach.
‘Did he say that the other Prism members, except for Seo Yuseong, allowed him to speak comfortably?’
Prism members don’t particularly like getting close to new people. Even if they’re artists from the same company, they usually just give a light nod in passing. But since they knew I cared about the Pantheion members, they seemed to try their best to treat them well.
‘And the kids seem to hold Prism in special regard among their seniors.’
“Where’s Inchan hyung? Is he not coming today?”
Among Prism, the Pantheion members especially adored Jo Inchan.
If they ran into him at the company, they’d rush over and practically fling themselves into his arms.
‘I heard Lee Danbi even consulted Jo Inchan about his worries.’
I mean, I know I can come off as a bit blunt and don’t really do physical touch, but shouldn’t I still come first?
Even if I grumble and push them away. Jo Inchan is a really good guy. When I’m exhausted to death from life, I end up clinging to him for healing too. So I did think it’d be nice if Pantheion got close to him. Still,I’ve known them much longer. Why do they headbutt me but act all cute and snuggle up to Jo Inchan with such pretty looks? Especially Do Yuda and Nagi Zen. I’m making a mental note of this.
“Phew.”
Oops, I lost my cool for a second there.
The doctor said it’s not good for me to get angry this often.
While I was sinking into deep contemplation, Zen, who had been staring at Seo Yuseong from a distance, gasped. Realizing belatedly that bolting away the moment he saw his face might seem rude, he hurriedly bowed deeply toward Seo Yuseong.
“H-hello, sunbaenim!”
‘His Korean suddenly got fluent.’
I wondered if he really needed to be that tense.
Seo Yuseong doesn’t even enforce discipline, yet the Pantheion members were particularly terrified of him.
Sure, they act like they’re afraid of me to my face, but when it really matters, they seem to think they can sweet-talk me however they like.
Reason.
Sometimes they cross the line, but if they act cute, I let it slide.
In the food chain of YT Entertainment, if my natural enemies are Pat and Mat, then Seo Yuseong is essentially the natural enemy of those fools.
‘Lee Danbi did say he finds Seo Yuseong comfortable because he can just speak to the point, but that doesn’t mean he’s easy to get close to. Even Lee Hwayoung, who’s known the Prism members for a while, seems a bit uncomfortable around Seo Yuseong.’
Maybe a senior who actually disciplines you would be better. I thought it would be pretty scary to have a superior who shows zero reaction no matter what you say, and just turns away as if he never expected anything from you in the first place if you happen to make a mistake.
“……”
Even after Zen bowed, Seo Yuseong stood there silently for about twenty seconds.
Then he glanced at me once and only then quietly accepted Zen’s greeting with a soft, “Hello.”
‘Good.’
He seemed to be listening well to what I’d told him about responding when someone greets you. I nodded in satisfaction and explained the current suspicious situation.
“I agreed to appear as a guest on the kids’ show, and it looks like that was today.”
Seo Yuseong quickly seemed to lose interest, nodded, took off his shoes, and stepped inside.
And when he ran into Han Seungbeom in the kitchen, he gave a slow blink as a greeting. Han Seungbeom instinctively moved a step closer to Seo Yuseong and lowered his head. No, actually, perhaps saying he offered his head is a better way to put it?
‘Oh…….’
As Han Seungbeom approached slowly, Seo Yuseong lightly rubbed the top of his head with the back of his hand, as if he still had the habit of greeting a cat.
‘Back when Han Seungbeom was a cat, he spent a lot of time beside Seo Yuseong. Maybe because he’s so quiet.’
When he was young, there had been quite a few near-accidents, so I’d been pretty anxious at first about letting Seo Yuseong stay near animals. But he and Han Seungbeom got along much better than I’d expected.
‘It seemed like Seo Yuseong liked him well enough too, since Han Seungbeom was warm, soft, and very well-behaved.’
I remember feeling a sense of relief whenever I caught the two of them sleeping side-by-side. It was proof that I had raised that guy well.
Watching such a familiar scene made my chest itch faintly.
I instinctively covered my mouth with the back of my hand to hide the smile that slipped out.
“……”
Seo Yuseong shot me a look filled with dissatisfaction.
To others, it might look like his usual blunt expression, but to my eyes, he looked slightly pouty.
“It’s because you’re cute. Because you’re cute.”
After I explained myself, he returned to his blank expression and strode toward me.
Then he grabbed the front of the robe I was wearing—his robe—and stared at me as if to ask, ‘What is this?‘
It didn’t seem like he was upset that I was wearing his clothes; it was more like he was questioning the pitiful state I was in.
‘Can’t he see that ridiculous maid and butler over there? There’s a mountain of things more concerning than me.’
“I was sleeping in just my underwear when the cameras suddenly barged in, so I couldn’t help it.”
I hurriedly covered my chest, which had been exposed because of his grip, and explained.
“Have you eaten?”
At the next question, Seo Yuseong shook his head.
Then Nagi Zen, who had been quietly blending into the dorm’s atmosphere, came sprinting over like that wasp ahjussi meme1 to serve up a fresh plate of omurice.
“Please say moe moe kyun. Hurry, moe moe kyun!”
‘He’s scared to death of Seo Yuseong, yet he’s still insisting on doing that.’
He even dragged Han Seungbeom out from behind the wall and made him squeeze ketchup.
“T-the spell that makes it taste good…….”
“That’s not good enough! More energy! And you call yourself a maid?”
“Ahh ……. I don’t want to be a maid……”
“Now, repeat after me. Oishiku nare!”2
“Ughh, please have mercy on me.”
Isn’t this basically abusing Han Seungbeom?
This is all because of weird memes and trends spreading on social media. Maybe maid-and-butler cafes and SNS should just be wiped out.
‘It’s more fun than I expected, though.’
Seo Yuseong, seemingly unbothered by the two’s spirit-bomb3 chant, sat at the table expressionlessly and began to eat. Either he adapts quickly or he simply doesn’t care. I know it’s the latter.
“Chew properly.”
I quietly watched him eat slowly without making a sound, then brushed aside his slightly long side bangs and tucked them behind his ear. The filming staff’s mood instantly turned warm.
‘Why. What.’
“So what’s the theme of this shoot? It can’t just be barging in wearing weird costumes and waking me up.”
“For twenty-four hours today, I will assist every part of the young master’s life. A butler’s, total, one-on-one, care.”
As far as I know, Nagi Zen isn’t very skilled at housework. He’s also a fool, so the production team probably aren’t expecting professional care from him. The fun of this show will probably just be guests getting dragged around by Nagi Zen and showing their everyday selves. That’s about it.
“…In those outfits?”
“Yes, sir. I shall not leave your side for even a single second.”
‘I see. So, I’m working from home today.’
You don’t argue with Nagi Zen.
You just accept it.
“Even if you stick to me, there won’t be much to do. Fortunately, the housekeeper came by last night.”
“I can’t do housework. The omurice is store-bought.”
“Then what on earth are you wearing that butler outfit for?”
“Because it looks cool.”
“Yeah ……. I guess it’s better that you’re at least confident about it…….”
The longer I talked to him, the more my head started to ache, so I dragged my hands down my face in a dry wash.
After the staff burst into laughter once more and got enough footage, Nagi Zen finally confessed the truth.
“Actually, the main part of my mission today is ‘Seo Yutae’s No-Smoking Campaign‘. I’ll be monitoring you all day.”
‘As expected…….’
“Just what did that guy do to brainwash you all into being such loyal little dogs?”
“We all become someone’s dog just to make a living. That is modern society.”
Even before the company was founded, the Pantheion members had met Choi Jeokhyeon once.
‘If that was their first impression of him, wasn’t it the absolute worst?’
At the time, Choi Jeokhyeon had been pushed to his limit, and cracks had formed in the solid shell he usually wore. I’d even worried the Pantheion members might get scared and refuse to sign with what is now YT Entertainment.
‘It’s a relief they trusted me and came along. Though, to be fair, there wasn’t any other way for us all to stay together.’
That past now felt like a lie.
“The CEO gave us his card and told us to eat something good for dinner! Whoa, it’s my first time touching a black card. We’re having premium Korean beef omakase.” “This? It’s a gift sent to the CEO, but he said he didn’t need it and told them to give it to the staff and the artists at the company.” “The CEO’s the best. Anyone who gives us good food is the best.”
As the company stabilized and more data on Choi Jeokhyeon accumulated, the Pantheion members seemed to conclude that Choi Jeokhyeon was a better guy than they’d first thought. After all, as long as you didn’t do anything particularly irritating, he tended to smile gently and treat you courteously.
The Prism members would click their tongues watching Pantheion.
“Those kids are something else. They bounce back so quickly just because he treats them well, and now they’re following him so loyally. I wish I could do that too, but I still find the CEO a bit hard to deal with.” “He’s a good business partner, that’s for sure. He’s competent. Even though he pours money into employee benefits like that, he still makes insane profits. His business sense is seriously impressive. Or maybe he invests in manpower and extracts just as much in return.” “I watched a NeoTube video recently. Apparently YT Entertainment doesn’t even make up a big portion of his income. The companies he originally managed are his main business. This place is supposedly just a hobby to him.” ” …Probably just a rumor. Our company ranked first in revenue in the entertainment industry this quarter. If that’s the case, how much is he actually making? Actually, forget it. Don’t tell me. I’d rather not know…….” “Why would someone like that even bother expanding into the entertainment industry?” “Why else?”
Maybe they’re just naive and easy to win over because they’re young.
Well, since I’m watching over them from the side, I guess it’s fine if everyone gets along.
“Master is very worried. At this rate, Leada will die.”
“…Don’t kill me off on your own!”
‘If I quit smoking, what am I even supposed to use to relieve stress?’
Choi Jeokhyeon drinks like a fish himself, so I never imagined he’d be this obsessed with making me quit smoking.
Choi Jeokhyeon doesn’t even play golf like rich people supposedly do. He doesn’t seem to have any interest in movies or dramas, either. He eats good food, sure, but it doesn’t look like he actually derives happiness from it. He reads quite a lot, but it feels more like preparation for social and professional life than enjoyment.
‘Come to think of it, even when he’s with me, he keeps taking work calls. Does his work ever even end?’
He lives like a mess himself, but I’m the only one he’s hounding.
An unreasonable sense of injustice flared up inside me, and I immediately pulled out my phone and called that guy,
Ring. Ring.
“Yeah.”
As expected, the call connected before the ringtone even played a few times.
“What are you doing?”
“I have an appointment.”
‘An appointment? As if he even has friends. If it were a meeting, he’d just say it’s a meeting.’
His voice sounded different than usual.
Is he in a bad mood?
“Wait, I’m talking to you right now, and you suddenly…….”
‘…Huh?’
A woman’s voice suddenly came through.
At this moment, a very rational suspicion began to bloom.
‘No way … is he on a blind date?’
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Translator’s Corner:
- This is a reference to a famous clip from a nature documentary where a middle-aged man, while being interviewed, suddenly spots a wasp nest and sprints away at incredible speed.
You can watch the original video on https://youtu.be/JYbybEKfchc?si=wVMg2JsJgFteJFuw ↩︎
- Japanese phrase for “Become delicious”. It is the first half of the “Moe Moe Kyun” incantation usually used in maid cafes. ↩︎
- Spirit Bomb here is is a cultural reference to Dragon Ball. ↩︎
Oh Yutae sweetie, you kinda sounded like…..
No but isnt it funny how he knows well how busy Choi Jeokhyeon is, but he’s just calling him as he pleases….
Please tell me if theres any repeated sentence, typo, or else. I dont have time to proofread asdfjfdkhgjfd I was planning to use the day off to speedrun translatings, but apparently, I DIDNT EVEN GET ANY DAY OFF THIS MONTH ASDHFJKFD and i will only have one day off on March. Guys please pray everything went well from me …. I literally came home at midnight and went to sleep and wake up to go to work asdhfkjfd free time where……