Debuting by Riding the Returnee’s Bus Chapter 45

I figured those with low rankings or those who realistically believed they had no chance of debuting wouldn’t have bothered taking such a risk. 

 

Of course, someone might have set him up simply because they found Kim Haejun obnoxious and wanted to see him destroyed socially… but even so…

 

‘They wouldn’t go that far.’

 

For those in the lower ranks, surviving—and continuing to survive—was the absolute priority, rather than worrying about plotting setups like this. They didn’t even have the luxury of worrying about those at the top of the rankings.

 

And…

 

‘I can also rule out the Nobility class, including Joo Wooyoung.’

 

In the first place, the Noble and Commoner classes lived in different areas, so they didn’t have the environment to easily access Kim Haejun.

 

Once you exclude the Slave class, who fall into both of the above categories…

 

‘That means the culprit has to be among the Commoners.’

 

It was the only logical conclusion.

 

— Th-then the culprit must be in the Com… Commoner class. Sh-should I look around? Search here and there…?

 

“No. Don’t do that.”

 

— Huh?

 

“It won’t be good for you to get too far away from me.”

 

— Ah….

 

‘Because Joo Wooyoung might notice you.’

 

Of course, since JH hadn’t turned into a malevolent spirit, I didn’t think Joo Wooyoung would necessarily take action against him. Joo Wooyoung likely hadn’t learned Conversation with the Dead, so he wouldn’t even be able to talk to JH anyway.

 

Still, there was no reason to stir up unnecessary trouble. Since we had to stay together for a bit longer, I judged that I should be careful while I had JH in tow.

 

Leaving the mumbling JH behind, I walked quickly out of the practice room. I thought I heard No. 123 calling me in the distance, but I ignored him and kept going. Finding Kim Haejun was the priority.

 

It was then that JH, who had been following me quietly, spoke up.

 

— Um… th-this is just my opinion, but… that No. 123 guy… I mean, the one named Jung Taehee… d-don’t you think he’s a bit suspicious? No matter how you look at it, he looks like the most likely suspect. He was so busy cursing Haejun Hyung earlier, wasn’t he?

 

“No. It’s not him.”

 

— What?

 

“Of course, No. 123—I mean, Taehee—seems to hate Haejun hyung a bit… for no apparent reason… and his follower ranking is quite high… but he’s not that kind of kid.”

 

— B-but….

 

“Taehee is just honest with his emotions. He doesn’t care much about what others think. In fact, he’s too honest. He’s not the type to secretly pull strings in the back or frame someone… he’s not that kind of person.”

 

— You think so?

 

“Yes. I’m sure of it. Honestly, the roommates are the most suspicious. Their follower rankings are fairly high, and they’d have the easiest access to Haejun hyung. Actually, the list of candidates has narrowed down quite a bit.”

 

— Wh-who is on it?

 

“Why do you ask? Are you going to curse them if I tell you? Just so you know, you can’t use curses. That’s only possible for intermediate-level malevolent spirits and above.”

 

— …….

 

“Anyway, right now the priority isn’t finding the culprit; it’s better to go see Haejun hyung first.”

 

— Okay….

 

“He might be talking to the writers about quitting right now, and if he suspects someone, asking him would be the fastest way.”

 

JH nodded and followed behind me.

 

At the same time, I was starting to feel uneasy. Even though I was the one who’d said it…

 

‘He really might be talking about withdrawing. Or maybe he’s already packing his bags.’

 

I didn’t know Kim Haejun well as a person yet, but just from a glance, I could see he wasn’t the type to sit still. The possibility seemed very real, which only made me more anxious.

 

Especially considering what had happened back during TOP9.

 

This guy didn’t seem particularly desperate to debut. His stance was a bit different from the other trainees. It was the same in reality. Unlike some trainees who seemed to have staked their entire lives on Idol Classism for their own reasons, Kim Haejun wasn’t in that kind of desperate situation.

 

Of course, I didn’t know how much his penalty fee was or how well-off his family was, but Kim Haejun clearly had confidence and pride in his own abilities. Even if he weren’t an idol, he could easily make a living. Seeing him doing features here and there, writing songs and lyrics, his talent was undeniable, which meant he had more options than others.

 

To be honest…

 

‘I don’t understand why he even bothered coming on Idol Classism.’

 

‘He must have already experienced how messy the industry is.’

 

‘Look at his career. Judging by his SNS, he has some connections… he’s already building a career in the underground scene. Honestly, it wouldn’t be strange if he just left without any regrets. If he wanted to establish himself over there, wouldn’t it make more sense to get rid of the idol label altogether?’

 

It wouldn’t be strange at all for him to take the stance of, ‘I’d rather leave on my own than deal with any more of this filth’.

 

Lost in these thoughts, I arrived in front of Kim Haejun’s room…

 

‘Yeah. I knew it.’

 

Sure enough, I saw Kim Haejun packing his things into a suitcase.

 

“…….”

 

“Um… Hyung?”

 

“…….”

 

“Haejun hyung.”

 

Without any expression, he continued to press his belongings into the bag. Without even glancing at me, he spoke.

 

“Are you happy?”

 

“I am sorry?”

 

Screwing me over like this. Are you happy?”

 

“Wha-what?”

 

“The bracelet. You’re the one who took it, aren’t you? Because I gave you a hard time during that abandoned school livestream before… this is just you getting back at me, isn’t it?”

 

“What?”

 

‘Wait. Why does he have such a massive victim complex? I’m here to help you….’

 

Just how did I look to him that he’d think I’d go that far? Did he think I was some world-class piece of trash who would act this despicably just to send him to the abyss over a minor grudge?

 

Of course, if I had actually intended to feed him to the wolves, I might have used a similar method. But this wasn’t something an ordinary person would normally imagine.

 

Even if Kim Haejun had realized that I didn’t call the other trainees by their names… normally, people wouldn’t let their imagination fly this far. This was an idol debut survival show, not some historical drama about palace infighting.

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Haejun hyung.”

 

“What? Don’t play innocent. I know you took it.”

 

“It’s really not like that….”

 

“I didn’t plan on being an idol anyway. I’ll leave just like you want. Go ahead and debut and succeed. I can’t stand this filth anymore. That’s what you want, right?”

 

“No. I honestly don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

 

“Shut up and just give me the bracelet. Then I’ll really disappear like you want.”

 

“I told you, I didn’t take it!”

 

“Fine, to hell with it. Just keep it then. I… I… I don’t… need it anymore anyway.”

 

He even shoved past me to try and leave the room. Naturally, I had no choice but to hurriedly grab his arm.

 

“Wait, don’t leave.”

 

“What?”

 

“Even if you’re going to leave, at least talk to me first. I don’t understand why you’re acting like this. I don’t know what I did to make you treat me like this.”

 

“You’re asking that because you truly don’t know?”

 

“I just… I just feel like you’re hating me for no reason….”

 

‘Right. I should probably cry.’

 

“Sniff. I just don’t know… what I did… to deserve this.”

 

‘This is the only way. I can’t reason with him. He’s too wrapped up in his paranoia.’

 

“…Why… are you treating me like this…?””

 

It was the perfect timing for tears to flow. To be honest, the situation was pretty miserable.

 

I didn’t know if he was exceptionally intuitive, or if he developed hostility toward me while resisting the Demon Eye, or if he just felt an instinctive rejection due to being sensitive to mana, but if anyone had the right to feel wronged, it was me.

 

Strictly speaking, from an outside perspective, Lee Unha was the one getting beaten up for no reason. I was being hated without cause and attacked without cause.

 

Him thinking I stole the bracelet, his belief that I intentionally refused to learn the other trainees’ name—those were all Kim Haejun’s own thoughts. None of it was factual; it was all a conspiracy theory born from his own delusions.

 

In reality, the one being bullied wasn’t him—it was me. From the very beginning, I’d been called a disgusting bastard, and now I was being framed as a thief. Anyone could see he was the villain here.

 

Kim Haejun didn’t look stupid enough to not realize that eventually.

 

And crucially… even if he was feeling an instinctive rejection toward me, he would find it hard to reject the current Lee Unha.

 

Because right now…

 

Lee Unha was…

 

‘It looks similar, right?’

 

I was mimicking JH.

 

The timing of my speech. The strangely insecure tone. Even the habit of scratching my cheek. Since my time with JH had been very short and we hadn’t talked much, I couldn’t mimic him perfectly, but I believed my actions were enough to evoke JH in his mind.

 

It wasn’t a difficult task. Mimicking others was easy. I’d had no choice but to become good at it thanks to that mad dark mage who loved role-playing.

 

It wasn’t classified as a ‘skill’, but this was an area I was quite confident in—a craft I excelled at.

 

Just as I had performed as a dark mage on stage before, I was now perfectly mimicking JH.

 

I continued to let tears trickle down as I sobbed. I let my shoulders tremble slightly, as if I were being bullied. With eyes that lacked confidence and an expression that suggested low self-esteem, like helpless prey standing before a predator, I looked at Kim Haejun.

 

At least in this moment, I was…

 

Not Lee Unha, but his old friend and dongsaeng, JH.

 

Sure enough, before long, Kim Haejun’s voice reached me.

 

“I’m… I’m sorry….”

 

Had he changed his mind and realized everything was a misunderstanding? A look of absolute helplessness was reflected in my eyes.

 

“I’m really… sorry….”

 

It was, for all intents and purposes, a declaration of surrender.

 

— Uh… um… Hyung?

 

JH’s voice, sounding extremely flustered, came from behind me.

 

— Um… Shaman-nim…?