Chapter 258

Those fools fighting was an everyday occurrence, so it wasn’t particularly surprising. However, this was the first time they’d fought with actual force, so I stared at Lee Danbi in utter shock.

“They’ve probably already bitten each other two or three times.”

His next words threw me even further into confusion, and I began to desperately rack my brain.

Bitten?

Where … with what?

There was so much I wanted to ask, but I didn’t know where to start.

“Guhk, kek!”

As I desperately coughed after choking on the coffee I had hurriedly swallowed, Lee Danbi slowly exhaled and looked up at the ceiling.

And then, as if talking about something completely mundane, he muttered in a monotone, “Even my younger siblings don’t bite each other, so I have no idea how to treat this. Hopefully, bandages and ointment will help with bite wounds.”

As I realized that my intelligence was declining with all the pointless observations running through my head, Lee Danbi handed me a tissue and continued.

“Don’t worry. You know it too, hyung, both of them are way too gentle to fight properly. To be precise, Zen-hyung is quite a bit bigger than Yuda-hyung, and he’s also a judoka, so he can’t really lay a hand on Yuda-hyung. That’s why, instead of throwing punches, they’ve resorted to biting and hair-pulling, like a dogfight.”

“…….”

“Yuda-hyung is bravely fighting without even realizing that Zen-hyung is going easy on him. Meanwhile, Zen-hyung is arguing in Japanese with someone who only knows how to say ‘ Itadakimasu 1 ‘ and ‘ Oishii ‘ 2 . Watching them is kind of funny. Is this why comedy shows died out?”

No, it doesn’t sound funny at all.

Saying those words with such empty eyes, that dry tone, and that grown-up expression only emphasized the strangeness of the situation.

“It is fortunate that the man who was with you got us a room, hyung. Otherwise, they would’ve ended up brawling in the hallway, rumors of discord would’ve spread, and the group would have fallen apart. There’s not much time left in our promotion period, haha.”

Lee Danbi’s fake laughter echoed emptily inside the elevator before silence followed. When it became unbearable, I spoke up first.

“Why are they fighting like that?”

So, how did things escalate to that point?

When I asked that fundamental question, Lee Danbi furrowed his brows as if finding it difficult to answer, then fell into thought for a moment before asking me.

“Are you asking about how the fight started? Or are you asking what they’re fighting about right now?”

‘Ah.’

After I heard his question, I started to get a feel for what was happening.

Since ancient times, the hallmark of a fight between two idiots has been forgetting why they started in the first place yet never considering stopping midway. By now, Nagi Zen and Do Yuda were probably in the middle of a fight that had strayed far from its starting point.

Sensing that, I let out a small sigh and responded quietly.

“…First, the former.”

“Oh, if it’s that, I can explain. I’d have to give up quite a lot to figure out the latter.”

What on earth would he have to give up?

His dignity as a human being? His determination to regard the members as fellow human beings?

I was anxious because I thought the current Lee Danbi would answer that way.

Just as I was feeling uneasy, Lee Danbi continued speaking without looking back at me even once.

“Things started to go a bit awry since we talked with you earlier. Zen-hyung’s stance was, ‘ I only understood 10% of what Leada said, so we need to go back and get a proper explanation. Plus, we can’t leave Leada with that suspicious, handsome rich man ’. On the other hand, Yuda-hyung’s stance was, ‘ Didn’t you see Seungbeom-hyung yelling earlier? He clearly doesn’t welcome us, so barging in will only make things worse, and there’s no way we’ll get a proper explanation. Also, I’m scared of this whole situation, and I’m also too scared of Nicholas-hyung’s uncle to go back ’. So, they argued at the door for quite a while. In the end, Nicholas-hyung, who was furious, kicked them out without even hearing what was going on, so we ended up going the way Yuda-hyung wanted.”

‘Ah.’

Lee Danbi’s explanation gave me a rough idea of how things had gone down.

Zen was always the type to deal with problems head-on, while Do Yuda preferred to go in circles and postpone them for as long as possible. In a way, it was only natural that they would end up clashing like this.

‘Not knowing which side was right must have made it even more of a problem.’

Zen, due to his straightforward nature, had once gotten himself into trouble by blatantly criticizing a senior trainer. On the other hand, Do Yuda had once tried to resolve a situation as amicably as possible, only to end up making matters worse. They were still young and inexperienced, so both of them had clear shortcomings.

Normally, they would each confront the issue in their own way, and if a crisis arose, I would step in to pull them out of trouble. But this time, the problem was that I was the cause of the crisis.

‘I guess I should say that the situation was resolved because Lee Hwayoung played my role at the beginning.’

Lee Hwayoung likely settled the situation right after he left the room, considering both the possibility that the Pantheion members might be taken advantage of by an immature adult and the risk that their presence could mentally affect me, who hadn’t fully recovered yet.

‘But since Lee Hwayoung isn’t that interested in the other members, he probably just left them to their own devices after that.’

In that situation, seeing me with Prism must have reignited the conflict they had worked so hard to suppress, so it was only natural that their differences escalated to the extreme once again.

“After that, hyung, they kept arguing about whether to come back to you or not. But when we saw you with Prism-sunbaenims, that’s when things really blew up. Prism-sunbaenims aren’t people we can easily get close to, either in terms of age or career, but they saw you treating them so comfortably, hyung. They couldn’t just brush off what you said earlier anymore. That’s when the second round started.”

Sure enough, as the words confirming my expectations continued, I let out a deep sigh.

“Haa … So, what are they fighting about now?”

“I don’t know. I’m not really curious.”

Right now, at this moment, what I feared most was our youngest’s dead eyes.

He looked like he was staring at something utterly pathetic as he thought of his hyungs, and it made me feel like I was being despised right alongside them. I just wanted him to act his age, like a child.

I pressed my hand to my temple, feeling a mild headache as a multitude of troublesome thoughts came rushing in at once. Then, Lee Danbi glanced at my reflection in the elevator door before asking in a small voice.

“…Hyung, are you feeling a little better now?”

It felt a little different from earlier.

His expression and tone remained the same, but I could tell he was also nervous, judging by the increased frequency of his blinking and the subtle tightening of his grip on the plastic bag.

‘He’s pretending to be fine.’

“…Yeah, I’m feeling a lot better now. I’m sorry for scaring you, and for putting you in this situation.”

When I responded with a faint smile, finally seeing a glimpse of his true feelings, Lee Danbi pressed his lips together, as if something didn’t sit right with him, and replied in a firm manner.

“I didn’t ask to hear an apology. I just asked because I really wanted to know if you were okay.”

As I smiled once more at his response, the elevator arrived at the floor where our rooms were located.

Ding!

After scanning the quiet hallway, I told Lee Danbi that I would walk him to his room. He nodded, and as we slowly made our way down the long corridor, he suddenly came to a halt when he saw the room getting closer.

When I turned around, not hearing the small sound of footsteps following me, I saw Lee Danbi standing still, his gaze fixed on the floor.

“My parents, my younger siblings … ever since long ago, whenever they had any trouble, they would come to me to vent and rely on me. At some point, I gradually got used to it and started thinking it was a given, but somewhere along the way, I also started to feel a little overwhelmed. That’s why, even though I was called selfish, I left home to pursue my dream.”

I found his suddenly listed words a bit puzzling, so I approached him and bent down slightly to meet his eyes. However, he kept his gaze fixed on the floor and continued.

“After I met you, hyung, and after I met the other hyungs in Pantheion, the people who tried to rely on me disappeared. At first, I definitely found it more comfortable. But lately, I’ve started to feel like this isn’t quite right either.”

“Why?”

“Because it occurred to me that sharing each other’s vulnerabilities doesn’t always have to lead to dependence … The world you showed me, hyung, was like that. Isn’t love about understanding the wounds of someone you cherish, and wanting to hold them close so they won’t be hurt anymore?”

“…….”

“I’m going to reach out to my sister again someday. And I’ll try to understand her better by telling her everything I’ve been going through, and listening to everything she’s been through, without hiding anything. Because now I realize how foolish it was for me to reject her for her sake. But what if the person who helped me realize that is left all alone?”

It was the kind of pure, innocent talk unique to young children, and at times, it seemed as though it could pierce the hearts of adults.

As I was left speechless, taking in a breath, the child’s hand grabbed my arm.

“Hyung, I know that you care about us more than anything, and I’m really grateful for that. I’m sure the other members feel the same way. If they had truly become uncomfortable with you, they could have just left without any need for a fight, but we’re all still here.”

“That’s…….”

“So, let’s go together. Everyone is waiting for you.”

***

As soon as I opened the door to the guest room, led by Lee Danbi, a roll of toilet paper flew aggressively straight at me.

‘…What is this?’

After reflexively catching it and looking up, the first thing I saw was Nagi Zen, with bite marks on his cheek from being bitten several times, biting Do Yuda on the top of his head, while Do Yuda, screaming like a strangled duck, was grabbing Zen’s hair.

“Huhhuuhuh, guys, don’t fight. Uhhh. Please, can’t you just make up? It’s my fault……”

“Kiryang-ah, watch out!”

“So? Didn’t I tell you that he couldn’t contact us because he had a cold?”

“I need to know the details to report to the company. I can’t just say ‘ he had a cold ‘ and leave it at that!”

“Is it really fine for the company to interfere so excessively in the personal life of an artist, which isn’t even mentioned in the contract? It hasn’t caused any disruption to our schedule, has it?”

Baek Kiryang, crying and flailing his arms, Woo Kangwon, protecting Baek Kiryang from the things the two fools were throwing at each other with a pale face, and even Lee Hwayoung, arguing with the manager with his arms crossed in the back—nobody was in their right mind.

In short, it was a total mess.

“Pig! Are you seriously thinking of tasting my arm too now?! Armor confiscation! Confiscate the armor! Wearing padding alone and going into battle is a red card offense! You despicable, ignorant snipe, you’ll face the judgment of humanity!”

“Do you even know what ignorant means, you fool!” 3

“Nagi Zen is a genius, so he knows Korean that Do Yuda, a Korean, doesn’t know. Don’t ever disrespect the Naju Na clan 4 again.”

As I looked at the chaotic room with a troubled mind, Lee Danbi, who was still holding my arm, calmly said,

“Hyung, please close the door. It’s embarrassing.”

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Translator’s Corner:

(Most famous is the Jeonju Lee clan btw, since it originated from the royal family. Do not look up for idols from this clan since most articles in the google search result and AI result are just spreading misinformation …. the actual ones among popular idols are * check notes * Eunhyuk & Donghae & Sungmin SJ, Sunny, SNSD, Onew & Taemin SHINee, IU, Junho 2PM, Dino SVT, etc. Yeah those people are still from the same clan. They can attend clan gathering together.).

omg I got distracted.

Here, Nagi Zen is referring himself as Nagi Na clan because … idk. I just gave up understanding him. Since Nagi Zen is 나기 젠 and Nagi Na is 나주 나 … I think he either learned the clan thing wrong, or just self-insert himself. ↩︎

Just put his maknae in front of Seo Yutae and he will do anything……

Zen is so real. Instead of overthinking about what does his friend mean about stealing his child’s body, he’s just “I can’t leave Leada with that handsome rich man who looks suspicious” … #priority

I did something today but I’m scared about the outcome, so I’ll just stay quiet for now…..

Anyway, the new SM girlgroup (they’re Red Velvet’s juniors, so I checked them out….) debuted today and the members are all pretty. But I found the song. Not really. Idk. Even RIIZE and NCT Wish debut songs sound more … memorable, so I’m really not sure why they’re choosing that kind of song for a girlgroup debut ….. it’s not bad, it’s good to listen actually, just not ??? memorable ??? and not making me want to put in on the repeat. You guys try give it a listen.

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