Debuting by Riding the Returnee’s Bus – Chapter 5

Author: LyraDhani

“What exactly are you?”

There was no way I could miss the many layers of meaning hidden behind that casually thrown question.

“…….”

Did I approach him too recklessly? Had I been too careless? Those thoughts began to fill my head. I had deliberately shown off the Succubus Eye during my self-introduction performance to draw attention and catch Joo Wooyoung’s interest, but now I couldn’t help wondering if that had been a terrible mistake.

Within the mark revealed in Joo Wooyoung’s eye was a pattern resembling the cross I’d only ever heard described in rumors. They didn’t look holy; they felt terrifying.

‘Is he… really planning to kill me?’

Joo Wooyoung was a good man, but he was merciless to his enemies. Of course, as far as I knew, he had never killed a human—but those were just the official records. Had Joo Wooyoung truly never killed another person?

Could a guy who spent seven years rolling through that world and experiencing all sorts of things really have never harmed a single human?

‘No. Probably not.’

I wouldn’t know for sure, but I doubted it. I had never entered a dungeon myself, but I had heard stories of human hunters prowling those places. Joo Wooyoung must have encountered such people at some point, and he surely dealt with them with his own hands. Because right now…

‘He’s just like my master.’

He had eyes that looked at life as if it were worthless. Eyes that looked at me like a disposable item that could be discarded at any moment.

Furthermore, Joo Wooyoung saw me as a demon. If he truly believed I was a demon, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill me right here. He would snap my neck instantly and dump my body somewhere.

Knowing that Joo Wooyoung had slaughtered every demon he encountered ever since he lost his early companions to them, I was even more consumed by the thought that I might die.

For a brief moment, I debated whether it would be better to tell the truth or just play dumb, but before I could even think, my voice came out first.

“I… I don’t… know what… you’re… talking about….”

It was a voice born simply out of the primal urge to survive.

“…….”

“I really… I really don’t know what you’re talking about… Hyung.”

I projected a terrified expression—eyes that screamed that I couldn’t possibly understand what was happening, filled with fear, panic, and a hint of revulsion toward him.

Naturally, tears welled up in my eyes. My breathing turned shallow and uneven. I gasped for air as though I were about to suffocate.

Fortunately, Joo Wooyoung withdrew his overwhelming presence almost instantly.

“No… I was just asking how you’re so good on stage, that’s all.”

‘That’s your excuse? You actually think that’s a believable excuse?’

Despite my inner sarcasm, I was relieved that he had backed off. The tension immediately drained from my body, and I almost began to wonder if I’d been the only one having a panic attack regardless of what Joo Wooyoung had actually intended.

I looked up slightly at Joo Wooyoung. He was staring back at me with a smile as bright as the sun.

Strangely, the terror I felt just moments ago vanished. Instead, a warmth spread through my entire body. I didn’t know if it was the effect of Joo Wooyoung’s holy power, but what had just happened almost felt like something that had occurred in a dream.

I glanced around. The hallway was empty. In front of me was Joo Wooyoung, continuing to talk as if trying his best to help me relax. The way he spoke so casually made it feel as though nothing at all had happened.

Of course….

‘Is he still on guard?’

He didn’t seem to have completely let down his guard. I could feel him observing every inch of me even as we engaged in small talk.

“The judges gave me feedback saying I didn’t look at the camera even once. Actually, I did look a few times… so I was a bit shocked that it came across that way. Compared to me, you seemed to catch every single camera without missing a beat. It looked as if you were obsessively checking them, like you had a compulsion to make eye contact with the lens….”

‘Is he checking for mana?’

“I was just curious how you could do that so well.”

My body hadn’t fully calmed down yet, so I continued to catch my breath while Joo Wooyoung patiently waited for my response.

“But why did you suddenly react like that… Are you okay?”

“No… ah… It’s nothing. I just got a little dizzy all of a sudden… I-I’m sorry. Hyung, what did you say again?”

“About the cameras.”

“Ah! I… phew… I actually thought you were even more impressive, hyung. Honestly, looking at the cameras isn’t that difficult.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. It’s a solo stage anyway… and they’re bound to follow you during the killing parts of the choreography. Sometimes they even zoom in. I just kept that in mind.”

“Ah….”

“Especially since the choreography I made mostly involved just twirling my finger around… There’s no way I could do that while dancing as intensely as you did, hyung. Everyone is probably the same, since we aren’t used to cameras yet….”

“I see.”

“Oh! And as you know, once the actual broadcast stages start, the camera setup will be completely different from now, so you don’t need to worry too much.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Even if you don’t consciously look for them, there will be a director specifically assigned to capture your parts. You just need to make eye contact then. Right now the cameras are pretty stationary. They don’t move around very much…”

“Ah. Now that you mention it, I think you’re right.”

“What we just did was a rank evaluation. While it is a place to introduce yourself to the public, the main goal is to be evaluated by the judges. That’s why the cameras stay fixed in one spot instead of moving wildly. In a way, you being faithful to showing everything to the judges without minding the cameras was more in line with the purpose of the stage. Getting feedback about not looking at the camera just means that was the only thing they could find to criticize.”

“Ah….”

“I’m sorry. Was I talking too much?”

“No, not at all. It was helpful. I think I understand what you mean now. Come to think of it, you said you were at an agency, right? Did they teach you all that?”

“No. This… isn’t really something you ‘learn’ or ‘don’t learn’….”

“Then, was what you said true?”

“Which part?”

“That you want to be the world’s best K-pop star.”

Of course, it wasn’t true. Honestly, chasing a dream like that with my life on the line wasn’t my style to begin with.

“Yes. I’m serious.”

But that was the only correct answer to give.

Sure enough, I saw Joo Wooyoung nod quietly. Although he still didn’t seem to have completely rid himself of his suspicions toward me even after our rather lengthy conversation, it looked like he’d decided to simply keep watching me for now.

I had successfully avoided being branded a demon.

Of course, since Joo Wooyoung had noticed the Succubus Eyes….

‘He’ll keep a close watch on me.’

He’d probably consider all kinds of possibilities—whether supernatural abilities existed on Earth, whether he’d simply imagined what he’d seen, or whether the human named Lee Unha might be someone who’d made a contract with a demon.

The best outcome for me would be making him believe that Lee Unha was unconsciously using an awakened ability he himself hadn’t yet realized he possessed. I had no idea whether awakeners actually existed on Earth or not, but it would be enough if Joo Wooyoung came to believe that there were people on Earth who possessed powers without realizing it themselves.

‘He’ll definitely take an interest in me.’

And he should. After all, no one understood better than Joo Wooyoung just how dangerous uncontrollable supernatural abilities could be.

“Do you have an Insta—?”

“The writers told us to deactivate all our social media.”

“Ah. Right… then give me your number later. Is that okay?”

“Sure, hyung.”

“Promise.”

‘He’s surprisingly… a bit of an airhead?’

I realized there were sides to him that were different from what I had imagined. While parts of him were exactly as I expected, strictly speaking, he looked like someone who hadn’t fully adjusted to modern life yet.

In fact, Joo Wooyoung gave off such a strange vibe that I felt I had adjusted to the world much faster than he had.

‘That expression too… and how he immediately revealed his Stigma and cross-patterned eyes….’

Would it be an exaggeration to say it felt like looking at a bomb that could go off at any second?

My case was one thing, but in Joo Wooyoung’s case, I was truly worried… I even started wondering if someone like him should even be allowed in modern-day Earth.

“Shall we go in then? We need to get our dorm assignments and unpack quickly.”

“Yes, hyung.”

Maybe he wanted to make a little more small talk. Looking at the busy staff members running around, Joo Wooyoung spoke once more.

“The staff must have it rough too.”

“Everyone’s struggling equally. I don’t know if it’s because it’s the first day, but the filming hours are just so long. The staff members are tired, the trainees who have to sit there and give reactions are tired, I’m tired… and you must be tired too, hyung.”

“I guess so.”

“Hm?”

“You’re right, Unha. I was tired too.”

But watching him smile quietly again, he really did just feel like a boy of that age.

‘What do you mean, you’re tired? You’re not tired at all. You don’t even feel the cold or heat, and you’re not even out of breath… Give me a break.’

I wanted to turn this crisis into an opportunity and engage in more casual small talk, but unfortunately, Joo Wooyoung seemed lost in thought and unable to continue the conversation.

Of course, since he had mentioned exchanging numbers, I could say we had built a bit of a relationship… but this alone wasn’t enough.

Just this wouldn’t be enough to become Joo Wooyoung’s companion.

‘I don’t know when an opportunity like this will come again…’

Or maybe I should be grateful things had gone even better than I’d expected.

It was as we reached the set that a person with a hat pulled low approached Joo Wooyoung and me.

“Trainee No. 111 Joo Wooyoung… and Trainee No. 112 Lee Unha, you’re both here! Could we talk for a moment while you’re on your way?”

“Who…?”

“She’s a writer, hyung.”

“I’m sorry.”

‘He’s really surprisingly clueless.’

“No, no. It’s only natural not to know. I’m one of the junior writers, after all. I mostly handle miscellaneous work. I only joined as a fill-in, so you didn’t even see me during the pre-interviews. I’m actually more surprised that Mr. Unha knows who I am.”

“No, well… it’s just written on your name tag. Writer Kim Jaehee…”

‘This lady’s a bit of an airhead too.’

“Ah, right. Anyway, I’ll get straight to the point. I just need you to answer a few questions. Think of it as a casual interview. Actually, there isn’t any room for full interview footage in episode one… so it’ll probably just be your voices….”

‘She really says things she doesn’t need to say.’

“Yes, Writer-nim.”

“After the performances ended, I noticed that Mr. Wooyoung kept watching Mr. Unha the entire time.”

Ah! They’re trying to get our inner thoughts for that scene?’

It was standard procedure to pack as much as possible into the first episode of a survival program. They couldn’t waste screen time on full-face interviews for everyone, and airing individual interviews out of nowhere could lead to controversies over favoritism… so they intended to take just the audio and paste it over the scenes. Of course…

‘This is also a privilege… a massive one.’

The mere fact that we had caught the writers’ eyes meant our screen time would increase significantly. Though, of course, whether that would be a benefit or a loss depended entirely on the editing.

“Could I ask why you were constantly glaring—I mean, staring at Mr. Unha? Was it perhaps because you both share the dream of becoming the world’s best K-pop idol? Like a strange sense of rivalry…?”

‘Look at how subtly she’s trying to lead the answer.’

If he didn’t give a satisfactory answer, the interview would probably drag on. She would keep nudging the conversation in the direction she wanted. However…

“Because he stands out.”

“I am sorry?”

“Unha kept catching my eye. During his whole stage, the judges said so too—that he has an unexplainable aura. It felt like he had something that I don’t.”

“But… Unha was placed in the <Slave> class. You, on the other hand, were unanimously ranked in the highest class. Even so…?”

“Regardless of that, I think he just stood out.”

“Then, when you saw his stage, what class did you think he would get?”

The junior writer seemed to like Joo Wooyoung’s answer.

‘The rivalry gimmick.’

She was definitely going to use this for a ‘beautiful friendship’, ‘fair competition’, or ‘rivalry’ narrative.

Then, Joo Wooyoung opened his mouth.

“I thought Unha would be placed in the <Nobility> class.”

‘No. Not that. Don’t do that.’

I had no idea whether he was forcing himself to praise me because he felt guilty for directing killing intent at me earlier, or whether he was deliberately setting me up for something later, but it was such an absurd answer that even Writer Kim Jaehee standing in front of us looked caught off guard.