Chapter 362

After long deliberation, I settled on buying a pair of classic-designed shoes.

Shoes, like rings, are sensitive to size, so they didn’t feel all that suitable as a surprise gift, but that didn’t really matter to me.

‘Thank goodness I know the size.’

I answered the staff right away when they asked for the size, but honestly, it hit me like a reality check. We really have known each other for way too long , I thought, and the realization left me feeling a little sick.

But the real problem wasn’t something as trivial as the shoe size.

“Hyung, calm down.”

In the waiting room, Do Yuda let out a cutting remark at me as I sat there glaring daggers at the shopping bag, which held shoes a bit smaller than what my original body used to wear, but far larger than Han Seungbeom’s.

“I’ve been calm this whole time.”

“Don’t lie. I can see you fidgeting, hyung. Just because you’re keeping a straight face doesn’t mean you can completely hide what you’re feeling!”

“…Be quiet.”

That’s what I said, but honestly, I was pretty shaken inside.

Somehow … I felt strange the whole time. I felt proud, curious about how he’d react, and anxious he might not like it. These emotions all blurred into something I couldn’t put my finger on. The only word that seemed to capture it all was ‘ nervousness ‘.

I wasn’t usually the kind of person who wasted time on such trivial thoughts.

There was a reason I had never personally chosen gifts for anyone before, and yet I had gone and brought this disaster on myself.

‘If this weren’t the last gift, I could just toss it to him and say I picked it up on the way.’

The filming for the self-produced content had finished ages ago, but this maddening ticklish feeling just wouldn’t go away. The unfamiliar sensation I couldn’t get used to lingered so long that it was nearly indistinguishable from discomfort .

‘Is it just because I’m not used to this? Or is this just how it normally is?’

Drowning in self‑reproach, I found myself thinking that, and all the countless things Choi Jeokhyeon had given me flashed through my mind.

‘…It always seemed like such an easy thing for that guy.’

I only realized after doing it myself how much there really is to consider when personally choosing a gift for someone. From little things like figuring out their size and what designs they might like to even deciding how to give it to them, every step required thought.

Was this how Choi Jeokhyeon felt every time he gave me a gift? I’d only ever been the one receiving, so the process of thinking over and over about what someone might like and agonizing over it felt completely unfamiliar to me.

‘Ha, f**k…….’

I was consumed by nervousness for quite some time, and when I finally reached my limit, I eventually resorted to an aggressive thought to soothe my anxiety, ‘ Whether he likes it or not, shouldn’t he just accept it gratefully if I give it to him? ‘. Yet even then, when I imagined him not looking particularly happy…….

‘Aaaagh . ‘

I’ll kill myself, I’ll kill these shoes, I’ll kill Choi Jeokhyeon, and I’ll end everything.

I was busy thinking that kind of ridiculous nonsense to myself when, belatedly, the thought struck me, ‘ Ah, I really might die ‘. I froze, holding my breath, like someone who’d just realized something shocking.

‘…I’ve been doing things so unlike myself. I must have lost my mind.’

Then, Do Yuda, who just moments ago had been grinning and teasing me, started comforting me with a worried expression.

“Are you acting like this because you’re afraid the person receiving the gift won’t like it? Almost no one would dislike getting something that expensive, so don’t worry, hyung. Even if it’s not his style, he’ll wear it when he wants to show off!”

“…….”

“Besides, out of basic manners, if someone went to the trouble of giving you a gift, it wouldn’t be right to openly dislike it. And it’s not just some random person. It’s someone you keep close, hyung. There’s no way that person would be that awful, right?”

Since he said it without knowing that the one receiving the gift was Choi Jeokhyeon, it didn’t really comfort me all that much.

Still, the way that kid flailed his arms and legs, trying so hard to cheer me up, was pretty adorable. It felt like my heart, which had sunk for a moment, had returned to its proper place.

“…That’s not it.”

“What’s not it?”

“To that bastard, that’s just the price of gum 1 , but you’re spouting nonsense about him showing off. And you, little punk, where did you even pick up stuff like that?”

In the end, I let out a laugh that was more like a hollow chuckle and rubbed my face roughly with the palm of my hand before placing it on top of Do Yuda’s head. His hair, never once dyed and still naturally smooth, slid between my fingers. Then, his head leaned into the curve of my palm, as if asking for more pats.

While I didn’t push him away and kept slowly stroking his hair, Do Yuda, who was mumbling things like, “How can that be the price of gum? It costs a few hundred.”, and darting his eyes around, suddenly snapped his head up.

Then, with an ambiguous smile, he asked, “If that looks like the price of gum to him … surely it’s not the CEO-nim, right?”

“…It’s not.”

“I see.”

Ah, damn it.

The moment I caught sight of Do Yuda’s mouth curling up cutely, like some cartoon animal character, a wave of stress seemed to crash over me.

“Ah, hehehe. I seeee. Well, everyone in Korea knows how incredibly devoted the CEO-nim is to you, hyung, so you should return the favor once in a while too. A gift isn’t about the price anyway, it’s the thought that counts, so don’t worry about it!”

“Cut that ‘ah-hehehe ’ nonsense. I said it’s not.”

“Okay, I’ll go along with that then~ So, when are you going to give it to him?”

“…After the concert.”

“Ah, so that’s why you asked the manager for one more guest seat last time?”

“No, that one was for Han Seungbeom’s aunt. Besides, that guy’s probably already got the best seat anyway. He’d probably say he doesn’t need it even if I gave it to him.”

“Woow, as expected of our CEO-nim! He’s so cool! A man of capability!”

“I told you it’s not him.”

“Aww, of course not. Oh. My. Gosh. Our. CEO-nim. Can’t. Even. Come. To. The. Concert. What. A. Tra. Ge. Dy. My heart hurts for him.”

“…….”

I … I gave up on talking to this guy.

Shaking my head, I got up from my seat and stepped out of the waiting room at a staff’s request to do a final check of the concert VCR. But Do Yuda still followed right on my heels, babbling all the way.

“Hyung, hyung, don’t ignore me! Are you embarrassed? Hyung, hyung, hyung! I have some common sense too, so I won’t spill everything and ruin the surprise. Promise!”

“Of course you better not spill it.”

It seemed there were two conditions I had to meet in order to enter the world where Han Seungbeom was.

The first was having Choi Jeokhyeon by my side. The game Han Seungbeom was trapped in was never designed for outside intrusion, and Han Seungbeom himself didn’t seem able to leave on his own. To force my way in and bring him out, I absolutely needed Choi Jeokhyeon, who could cause a glitch in the system.

And second, I needed to have the laptop with me while Choi Jeokhyeon was by my side. Unlike Seo Yuseong, I couldn’t use a status window, so without the laptop, I had no way to access that game. It was an obvious necessity.

‘It would be nice if I could get help from Seo Yuseong, but that guy doesn’t seem to care at all about Han Seungbeom’s life. Having him around might even make things harder.’

The biggest obstacle to meeting these conditions was, of course, Choi Jeokhyeon and Seo Yuseong.

Given their personalities, the moment they realized I might disappear, they’d definitely do whatever it took to stop me. Those two were the very people who could deal the most critical blow to my plan.

‘I must never let them find out about my plan.’

As soon as the concert ended, I had to hand over the gift without giving him any time to think, and then immediately put my plan into action.

“Haah, hyung, slow down. Why are you walking so fast?”

Ignoring his whining, I stopped at a spot where I could clearly see the massive electronic screen in the concert hall, and the video began to play with a booming sound.

Since the opening video had to clearly convey the concert’s concept, we’d planned it carefully and revised it multiple times, and I was quite satisfied with how the final product turned out.

The opening VCR began from the perspective of someone holding a flashlight, wandering through a dim museum.

After passing by several famous paintings, the person stopped in front of a massive piece depicting Greek mythology. Among the many gods densely painted across the artwork, the members of Pantheion were seamlessly blended in with CGI.

The camera panned across the members’ faces one by one, then slowly zoomed in on a specific part of the painting. The moment my face filled the entire screen, a resounding ‘ boom ’ rang out, and my face, frozen at a diagonal angle, turned to face forward.

As soon as my mouth opened in an extreme close-up, the screen faded to black, and white subtitles appeared.

[<Γιγαντομαχία>]

[<gigantomachia>]</gigantomachia>

It was the name of Pantheion’s final concert.

Do Yuda, who had watched the VCR with me, seemed incredibly satisfied; his eyes sparkled as he bounced up and down on the spot.

“Wow, that gave me chills! I was shocked by the high production costs, but it’s definitely worth every penny! It’s so cool!”

“If you try to cut corners where you’re supposed to spend money, you’re 100% bound to fail.”

“Hyung, you look like someone worn down by the world. Your eyes are empty ……. how pitiful…….”

I ignored Do Yuda’s teary eyes and told the staff, “I think we can go ahead as is.”. The other VCRs were already finalized, so there was no need to check them again.

Then, just as the staff was about to turn around and leave, I called them back and pointed out the stage defect I’d noticed when I entered the concert hall earlier.

“The lift platform feels a bit unstable right now, so please check it again. If it’s like this during the actual show, it could cause an accident.”

“Oh, yes, yes. I hadn’t checked that part. As you mentioned last time, I’ll pass it on to the team in charge so you can keep track of the progress.”

“And the lighting as well. We need to review the members’ movements and readjust the lighting to ensure it doesn’t block the audience’s view. The concert is just around the corner, so how can we still be having issues like this? Please make sure everything is perfectly prepared so the final rehearsal can run exactly like the real show without a single problem.”

“Yes…….”

When I piled yet another batch of tasks onto them, the staff’s face, which had been bright and clear when the VCR got approved, clouded over again. I felt a little guilty, since it seemed like all I did was point out flaws even though they were working hard, but what choice did I have? Even a quick glance was enough to spot the problems.

‘Anyway, this darn concert never has a perfectly smooth rehearsal.’

“Once the issues I just mentioned are resolved, let’s start the rehearsal again from the Hercules stage.”

As I picked up my phone to inform the members that there’d be a short break, a familiar name caught my eye on a news page packed with headlines.

[Prism’s Yoo Jay Absent from Schedule Without Prior Notice … Agency Checking]

Startled by the news, I was about to contact the Prism members, but a sudden feeling that something wasn’t right froze me on the spot.

“…….”

Even though something this serious had happened, not a single member of Prism contacted me.

That fact sent chills down my spine and, in a strange way, filled me with fear.

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Translator’s Corner:

Yuda is just straight up shipping …. I just know CJH going to say yes to anything he asked later when he moved to his company

But like … Idk whatever genre this novel is anymore … I can’t even defend it anymore (9999+). Those two like the kind of couple that everyone assumed they were dating when they actually aren’t. Someone go write review on NU and put warning do not read if homophobic …. because from here, it will only get WORSE. At this point someone will give this story 1 star because they read it expecting wholesome, purely friendships idol story but then got hit with Choi Jeokhyeon,

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