The Idol Who Returned from Hell Chapter 112

“Everyone, pay attention.”

I looked at the members seated on the living room sofa and clapped once.

“Our first fan meeting is coming up soon.”

“Yes!”

“Yeah!”

“I want to make an announcement in preparation for that momentous day.”

Since I’d never formally gathered everyone like this to make an announcement before, they all straightened their backs and listened attentively.

Today’s topic was simple.

A fact I discovered last night while exchanging private messages with MILLENNIUM right before falling asleep.

“Has anyone heard about our fan meeting cut?”

“Fan meeting cut?”

“I’m talking about the number of albums you need to buy to guarantee entry to our fan meeting.”

“Ah.”

Ma Si-hyeok nodded after hearing Kang Seon-woo’s explanation.

“Our albums cost 16,500 won each…… Just buying 10 copies already exceeds 160,000 won.”

“Right. Simply buying 10 copies is already enormous, but our fan meeting cut was 110 copies.”

“What?”

Everyone’s eyes widened at my words that fell like lightning.

I showed the members the message I had captured right before sleeping.

“I-it’s real.”

“Wait, hold on. 110 copies, 110 copies…… Th-then they spent almost 2 million won just to see us—?”

“Oh my God.”

When Yu Ha-woon came out with the exact figure, Chae Ha-ru collapsed right onto the sofa.

It seemed like a big shock since that was an enormous amount of money he’d never even thought about in his life.

Only Seong-hwi raised the corners of his mouth as if he finally understood.

“The fans must have had heated competition among themselves. That’s why our initial sales shot through the roof.”

“Why aren’t you making a surprised expression?”

“Ahaha, rather than surprising, I feel so good? It’s proof that CENTIX has achieved some level of success. But Brother Si-hwan, you wouldn’t have made such a serious expression just to talk about this, right?”

I hate perceptive guys like this.

I glared at Seong-hwi slightly and cleared my throat.

“Ahem. Anyway, the fans poured tremendous effort and sincerity just to see us briefly. So I think we should also express our sincerity for those who attended the fan meeting.”

“Oh, then are we doing a reverse gift? Reverse gift! I’ve wanted to do this so badly!”

The moment my main topic came up, Yu Ha-woon shouted with sparkling eyes.

“This was my dream! Preparing gifts for fans in reverse. Everyone would react so well, and imagining them posting on SNS makes me excited too!”

“Mm, reverse gifts are definitely trending these days. Si-hwan, what were you thinking about?”

“Uh……”

I trailed off slightly at Kang Seon-woo’s sudden question.

“Actually, I brought this up to discuss what we should do.”

“Oh. This is the first time I’m seeing this side of Ryu Si-hwan.”

“What kind of side of me is that supposed to be?”

“In 〈ISL 2〉, you always planned everything perfectly in advance and executed it smoothly. This unplanned Ryu Si-hwan is unfamiliar and exciting!”

“……That kind of nonsense is banned today.”

I quickly threw up a barricade before it could turn into another CENTIX-style, no, Kang Seon-woo-style chaotic conversation.

Meanwhile, Yu Ha-woon was raising his hand and stomping his feet.

“I just thought of a great idea! Since we received lunch boxes as our first support, how about we make lunch boxes for the fans in return?”

“Mm, lunch boxes. Not bad.”

“Sorry to object to the youngest’s opinion.”

Chae Ha-ru, who had been briefly unconscious after hearing about the fan meeting cut, spoke up.

“We need to assess the given situation coldly. First, our fan meeting is in two days.”

“Right.”

“Then we need to prepare the reverse gifts in one day tomorrow, and if we’re going to prepare lunch boxes, the food inside would be considerable.”

I recalled the support lunch boxes we received.

They boasted hotel-level luxurious quality.

Of course, that was made by professional chefs, so the standard was too high, but still, to be worthy of the ‘lunch box’ title, we’d need at least 4 side dishes.

And considering this fan meeting has 100 winners total.

“Lunch boxes won’t work due to time constraints. No matter how quickly we learn to cook, 100 servings of lunch boxes seems impossible.”

“I think so too.”

“Ah, the idea was good though. Too bad, Ha-woon.”

“It’s okay! We can try it later when we have more time!”

“Hmm.”

Seong-hwi, who had been deep in thought while resting his chin, quietly listed conditions one by one.

“Something we can finish in one day. Something we, cooking beginners, can make 100 servings of. And since it’s a special event, something that can look somewhat decent visually.”

Then he grinned as if he’d found the answer.

“No matter how I think about it, desserts seem to be the answer.”

“Desserts are good! Like Hwi said, they look pretty and can be made more simply than other dishes, right?”

“That seems like the best option.”

Desserts are definitely faster to make and simpler in cooking method compared to regular dishes.

We roughly decided on the genre, so now the question was what kind of dessert.

“Alright, I’m taking suggestions.”

“Cupcakes!”

“Macarons?”

“Um…… chocolate cookies?”

“How about rice cakes for something unique?”

“Cream puffs?”

When I asked what would be good, all five gave completely different answers.

“Ha-ru, can we make rice cakes?”

“I wonder? Shouldn’t it be possible?”

“I feel like the kneading alone would take forever. Let’s just make something simple like macarons.”

“Ch-chocolate cookies are simple too.”

“Brother Si-hyeok, cupcakes are simple too! Should I look up a recipe right now? I saw it somewhere before—”

If I left them alone, they’d obviously keep arguing among themselves.

I clapped again to end the discussion.

“I’ll tell the manager that we want to do a reverse gift event, so let’s leave what to make to the experts. Okay?”

“Yes!”

Up until then, I thought everything would flow smoothly.

I was wrong to underestimate these guys.

* * *

When I mentioned the reverse gift event, the manager seemed very happy.

“We can make a NeoTube video out of this! Like a behind-the-scenes feel.”

Of course, like a working person living off capital, his thought process immediately went in that direction.

The company also gave the OK sign and quickly arranged a baking class and expert.

So the next morning.

“Ahahaha! I definitely need to film this.”

“Do I look that funny right now?”

“No, no. Hehe, it’s not funny. It’s just such a contrast from your usual appearance that I like it. I should keep this private and not post it anywhere.”

“You’re seriously like a pervert.”

We had entered the baking studio wearing clean aprons.

And beside me, Seong-hwi was letting out happy laughter.

The camera team Rave Entertainment had already sent was starting to film, so there was no need to record with phones.

But Seong-hwi didn’t seem to want to just pass by my apron-wearing visual.

Honestly, I’d reached a certain level of enlightenment by now, so it didn’t really matter.

{Sniff sniff! Master, there’s a delicious smell!}

‘We haven’t even started serious baking yet?’

{No, no, there’s a sweet smell vibrating from somewhere right now!}

Cerberus, in transparent mode on my shoulder, was sniffing enthusiastically.

I wondered how there could be a sweet fragrance when no instructions had been given yet.

“Ugh, sorry! Sorry! I shouldn’t have tried to set up early!”

Looking back, I saw sugar spilled generously over Yu Ha-woon’s table.

It seems he tried to prepare ingredients in advance and made a big mess from the start.

‘Somehow I have a bad feeling about this.’

{Master, can I eat what we make later?}

‘That’s not allowed. These are ingredients for people to eat.’

{Aww, that’s mean!}

‘I’ll take you to a dog cafe when I get vacation later. They sell lots of dog-specific desserts there.’

{As expected, Master! I knew I could trust you!}

‘Isn’t your attitude change too fast?’

After the baking teacher helped clean up Yu Ha-woon’s sugar explosion, the real lesson began.

“Making cookies isn’t difficult at all. And today we’re making a beginner-friendly size, so don’t worry too much—”

Among various dessert candidates, the cookie set that was easiest in difficulty and could be completed quickly was selected.

Honestly, in terms of style and quantity, cake types would be superior.

But I had no confidence in making 100 in one day, so this was fortunate.

Equipment like hand blenders was already prepared, so we just needed to add ingredients appropriately.

I looked at sugar, flour, and eggs while letting out an internal sigh.

‘I’ve never made dessert dishes before.’

First, the baking teacher said we needed to dissolve the flour to make dough, then mix it with sugar in the right ratio.

I was carefully stirring the dough following the instructions when.

Again, noisy sounds erupted from the younger members behind me.

“Ahhhh! Why am I like this today!”

“Ugh, this is really salty.”

Wondering what happened, I glanced at the situation and Yu Ha-woon’s dough state seemed unusual.

Chae Ha-ru, who was right next to him and had poked the dough with his finger, was making an uncharacteristic frown.

“What happened this time?”

“Ha-woon put salt instead of sugar.”

“Th-the packages looked too similar! Ah, I have to remake the dough from the beginning. Sigh.”

How could anyone confuse sugar and salt?

I looked intently at Yu Ha-woon, whose cutting skills already seemed somewhat clumsy.

“Ha-woon, you’ve never cooked before, right?”

“Yes. The most cooking I’ve done in my life is probably cup ramen?”

Can cup ramen be considered cooking?

Well, Yu Ha-woon grew up in such a well-off family that he wouldn’t have needed to do this kind of cooking.

He was the guy who came to my studio apartment during the mid-vacation of 〈Idol Stove League Season 2〉 saying he was lonely because his parents went on a trip to Europe.

I remembered that when Yu Ha-woon was staying, we ate delivery food for all three meals.

Still, since there’s an expert here too, I figured it would work out somehow.

After the basic dough was finished, we just needed to portion it into cute sizes.

“Si-hwan, how about putting marshmallows inside the cookies?”

“You mean like s’more cookies?”

“Yeah. Honestly, plain chocolate chip cookies are kind of boring.”

“The taste would be good, but it seems difficult. Ask the teacher.”

“I’m going to walk my own path!”

We were supposed to mix various ingredients to make cookies filled with personal preferences, but Kang Seon-woo abandoned the easy path and chose the difficult one.

But contrary to appearances, he was surprisingly skilled with his hands, so it was turning out quite nicely.

Knowing my baking skills were just average, I switched to plain chocolate chip cookies.

We had time to check each member’s progress before putting them in the oven.

“Oh, Si-hyeok! Have you made things like this before?”

“I’ve tried it a few times as a hobby.”

This is where an unexpected ace appeared.