Debuting by Riding the Returnee’s Bus – Chapter 81

Author: LyraDhani

Comrade, friend, party member, friendship.

I figured these were the words that would resonate most with Joo Wooyoung’s heart. After all, it was his many comrades who supported the Hero Joo Wooyoung after he was dropped alone into that other world.

That wasn’t to say Joo Wooyoung was nothing without them. Naturally, Joo Wooyoung was perfect and flawless in his very existence.

It started with him being chosen by the Holy Spear. Once the Holy Spear selected him as its master, Joo Wooyoung gained divine power that was near infinite. The moment he revealed his Stigma, he could use special abilities like Sanctification without penalty, and he was proficient in several divine spells.

The stories saying that not a single scar remained on his body despite going through so many battles were by no means an exaggeration. To top it off, he was naturally gifted in physical combat; word spread far and wide that within less than a year of picking up a spear, there wasn’t a single spearman who could best him, so what more needed to be said?

‘There’s plenty more besides that….’

I couldn’t explain every little detail, but the point was that he was a cheat character among cheat characters, enough to make even other geniuses spit out fire in envy.

“…….”

However… despite all that, if Joo Wooyoung hadn’t had his comrades by his side, I suspect he would have faced great difficulty in completing his quests.

Without the Archmage, he would’ve never been able to travel across that vast continent as though walking through his own backyard, nor could he have solved the puzzles of the dungeons. Without the Great Thief, he would have wandered aimlessly for ages. And of course, the countless others who assisted him behind the scenes cannot be overlooked.

Yes, the reason Joo Wooyoung stood where he did today was because all those companions had been with him. And unlike some fools, Joo Wooyoung understood that fact better than anyone. He was the kind of person who, despite achieving such incredible success, never became arrogant, the type who could call his own success ‘our success’.

That was probably why my words had brought such a satisfied smile to his face.

“…….”

‘Did I… score points?’

It was obvious. It even felt like Lee Unha’s reputation had gone up. Perhaps he now saw me as someone who cherished his teammates, companions, and friends. I didn’t know what would come of it, but it was certainly a welcome development. I even felt like I should manufacture more scenes like this, even if I had to force them.

In my current situation—and in the situations to come—earning Joo Wooyoung’s trust was more important than anything else. Certain that continuing with this stance was the right answer, I subtly moved my hand and placed it over Baek Suhyeon’s.

It was to further demonstrate that Lee Unha cherished the comrades he worked with. Of course, there was also the hidden intention of bringing Baek Suhyeon over to my side.

As expected, Baek Suhyeon reacted with deep emotion. Encouraged by his reaction, I spoke a little more.

“I don’t know who’s going to debut or what’ll happen yet, but let’s do our best together. We’ll rely on each other, lean on each other, and support each other while we work together. If things ever get too hard, you can call me anytime. Honestly, I ended up doing that today too…”

“…….”

“You don’t have to handle everything alone, you know.”

Of course, the act of comforting someone wasn’t familiar to me. I didn’t know if I was doing a good job or if I was truly comforting Baek Suhyeon, but even without saying anything particularly profound, he seemed to understand exactly what I meant. To begin with, what he’d wanted wasn’t really a romantic relationship; hHe’d simply needed someone to lean on.

“Re… Really?”

“Of course.”

His gaze felt a bit too sticky, but this was enough. To top it off….

“I’ll be there for you too, Suhyeon.”

Even Joo Wooyoung was patting the guy’s shoulder, bestowing his holy blessing.

“…….”

This was probably the sight Baek Suhyeon had longed for most. As if to prove my prediction correct, I saw tears welling up in Baek Suhyeon’s eyes. Perhaps feeling his pride would be wounded if he let them fall, he desperately strained his eyes before nodding energetically.

“Y-Yeah!”

Of course, business was business. This was one thing, and that was another.

“So, can you give me your phone for a second?”

“Huh? No, I’ll….”

“No, I’ll handle it. Just let me check if my hunch is right first….”

“Huh?”

“If I’m wrong, then we can always explain things afterward. I’m not trying to hurt the other person’s feelings. I’m just testing something.”

“Oh… u-huh. Okay….”

“…….”

‘This isn’t exactly hard, after all.’

I couldn’t know the full details, but considering the tone and the depth of the vocabulary used, the identity of Viscountess Talia was likely….

‘Not an elementary school kid… maybe a middle schooler? Just some middle school boy who likes games?’

Since the requested gifts were all culture vouchers or things a boy that age would use, that narrowed things down considerably.

‘In times like this, this is the only answer.’

— [Talia. What… what should I do?] [10:07 PM]

[What’s wrong, oppa?][10:13 PM]

— [My phone bill was way too high T_T My mom got so mad TTT She’s yelling at me to check the gift purchase history, so I locked my door and I’m hiding in my room. Ugh, I’m so annoyed TTTTTTTTTTT Should I just run away from home?] [10:17 PM]

[What?] [10:17 PM]

— [Where are you right now? I really want to leave… should I just go over to your place?] [10:17 PM]

That alone was enough. The moment the person saw this message, they would immediately fall into a panic just like I did earlier, and they would start looking for the only exit.

‘What’s left besides running away?’

As expected, no reply came.

“How’d it go, Unha?”

“Just wait a second. I’m waiting for the reply.”

“Still?”

“Yeah. Still… looks like she blocked you and ran. The message hasn’t even been read.”

“Still… no reply?”

“Yeah. I told you, they probably ran away.”

“Let me see the phone again for a sec….”

“Here.”

I saw Baek Suhyeon fiddling with the phone. He looked like he was checking if there was a problem with the message I sent or if the Viscountess might have been hurt, but there was nothing to worry about. I’d simply thrown out some bait.

Finally, after quite some time had passed, I saw Baek Suhyeon nod his head. It was a predictable ending.

“As I thought, my prediction was right! I actually knew all along.”

‘Don’t try so hard to act fine. It just makes you look sadder.’

“It was just someone I met online anyway!”

‘Right, right.’

“Since I never even saw her face, it doesn’t really matter. I’m not hurt at all.”

‘Mhm. You’re absolutely right.’

“Even if you hadn’t stepped in, Unha, I was planning to end it soon anyway. I was only half-serious about it myself. Who would seriously do something like this? We all know what it is. It’s just… playing around.”

‘It didn’t look much like playing around, though.’

I didn’t know for sure, but it seemed certain that his pillow would be soaked with tears tonight. Seeing him forcing himself to act cheerful only made me more convinced.

“Let’s stop worrying about someone like that and focus on what we’re supposed to do.”

“Are you okay, Suhyeon?”

‘Don’t comfort him, Wooyoung hyung. When you get comforted at a time like this, it just makes you want to cry.’

“Ah. Yes. I’m fine, Wooyoung hyung.”

“…….”

“I’m really fine. It’s nothing….”

“…….”

“It’s nothing at all….”

“…….”

The guy was choking up, unable to continue.

“…….”

Naturally, I spoke up to him.

“I-Instead of this, why don’t we film some simple Shorts videos?”

“Ah! S-Sure!!!”

“What do you think, Wooyoung hyung? It’s a bit late, but… do you need to head home?”

“Uh….”

“I decided to sleep over at Suhyeon’s tonight. Why don’t you sleep here too, hyung?”

“Mmm… actually….”

“Stay the night~”

“Huh?”

“Stay the night~! Please?!”

“…….”

“We can monitor the show together, talk, and film some challenges. We could even turn on a live stream. Oh! Should we do a live stream?”

“A live stream? Is that allowed?”

“Of course. They didn’t give us any specific announcements against it. In the first place, telling us to pack up the dorm life and go home sounds like they’re telling us to handle things on our own from now on. I bet everyone else is doing something too, not just us.”

“Hmm….”

“Just because we left the dorm doesn’t mean Idol Classism is over. Since they’ll eventually hold a vote… you have to do your own PR. Right, Suhyeon?”

“Huh? Oh… yeah….”

“If a livestream feels like too much, we can do something else. It’s not often the three of us get together….”

“But I feel like I’d be a burden to Suhyeon….”

“Come on! Suhyeon says it’s fine. Right?”

“Huh? Oh… it’s fine.”

“…….”

“Sigh… actually, it’s not just Suhyeon… I’m worried about you, too.”

“Me?”

“Because… that incident happened just a while ago. I wanted you to get some proper rest.”

“Ah….”

“…….”

‘Wooyoung hyung… were you worried about me?’

Well, the topic had suddenly shifted to Baek Suhyeon, but the original reason Joo Wooyoung came here was because of Lee Unha’s panic attack…. He truly seemed to want me to rest well; he had an expression of genuine concern. He’d probably seen many people suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. He likely thought rest was the top priority and probably knew exactly how to handle someone in that condition. Did Lee Unha look like he was pushing himself too hard in Joo Wooyoung’s eyes?

“Ah! I’m really fine! In fact, I feel like staying idle would make it worse… S-So for now! Let’s do something? Okay?”

“…….”

“Sigh… alright. Let’s do that.”

“…….”

“First, let’s post a picture on social media showing that we’re all hanging out together!”

The timing felt perfect. Just a few hours ago, I was stressed because of the forces trying to drive a wedge between Joo Wooyoung and Lee Unha. Plus….

‘It’s not exactly a lie, anyway.’

Rather than resting quietly, I preferred this boisterous atmosphere. After immediately erasing the unpleasant incident from earlier from my mind, I focused on planning this short event.

‘At 11:00 PM… let’s take some photos with a pajama party concept….’

If we showed everyone that, on the very first night after leaving the dorms, Joo Wooyoung and I were happily spending the night together, the people trying to pit us against each other would lose their momentum.

‘It’s an unexpected combination, too. It’ll give people something to talk about.’

Baek Suhyeon being there would be a big help. Despite the minor issue earlier, he was talented enough to be in the Noble class. Unlike his personality, he had a good physique and a likable face, so he was surprisingly well-known. I had been unsure at first, but he really did have skills befitting the Noble class. An all-rounder with versatile talents—a hexagon. That was my assessment of Baek Suhyeon.

‘And we’re the same age….’

The fact that Baek Suhyeon and I had been trainees together for a short time would likely be spotlighted again. Of course, I didn’t know if he would actually debut, but since my goal was to stay close to him, giving him a boost right now wouldn’t hurt.

“Suhyeon.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you have any pajamas?”

“Pajamas? Oh! Of course I do.”

“I’d like some cute-looking ones.”

“I have some. But they’re from when I was a bit younger… though they’d fit you perfectly, Unha.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. Do you need them? I don’t use them anyway, want me to just give them to you?”

Since it was a pair of pajamas he didn’t even use, refusing the offer would be rude.

“Sure!”

Nodding energetically is the only way to repay someone giving you a gift.

“Thanks, Suhyeon!”