LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 92
Chapter 92
Muk Hye-sung confirmed that the absurd claims of some people, who said On Raon received special treatment on the broadcast due to their relationship, had quieted down with On Raon’s elimination. He then put down his phone.
Muk Hye-sung had called his cousin and On Raon’s mother, Jang Haena, a few days before Pick Heart’s final broadcast.
Better known by her American name, Hennah Jang, Jang Haena was a renowned jazz pianist.
Despite the roughly ten-year age and gender difference between Muk Hye-sung and Jang Haena, they got along quite well as fellow musicians.
– “Hyesung, it’s been a while. What’s the occasion?”
“Do you have time to talk now?”
– “Sure, go ahead.”
“It’s about Raon.”
– “…What about him?”
A brief silence interrupted their usually smooth conversation, and Jang Haena’s previously languid voice now had a hint of tension.
“Do you remember what you told me before?”
Without further explanation, Jang Haena immediately understood what Muk Hye-sung was referring to.
Long ago, a drunk Jang Haena had confided in Muk Hye-sung, who was just close enough but still distant, about her second child who didn’t feel like her own.
– “…I spent years trying to love the child I carried for ten months? But it’s not working. His eyes resemble mine, and his nose resembles his father’s… He’s so… so very beautiful and kind. It’s not just me; his father and older sibling feel even more strongly, and living together only seems to hurt both the child and me. It’s driving me crazy… Maybe it’s better to live apart. But if not me, who would take care of him even a little… What’s wrong with me…?”
Jang Haena had regretted sharing this story as soon as she sobered up, and regretted it again at this moment.
– “Muk Hye-sung, do you really remember what I said while drunk? Just forget about it.”
At the time, Muk Hye-sung had been somewhat intoxicated as well, so he had forgotten about it until he met On Raon in person.
“The child has grown up. If you meet him now, you might feel differently.”
– “…I heard he went on an audition program. Is that where you met him?”
“So you do know what he’s been up to.”
There was a long silence after Muk Hye-sung’s pointed remark.
– “It’s strange.”
Jang Haena repeated, “It’s strange.”
Her tone wasn’t mocking, so Muk Hye-sung remained calm.
“What’s strange?”
– “That someone is talking to me about my younger child first. And it’s in a good way. That the person saying this is you. It’s all strange, but it doesn’t feel bad, so tell me more.”
Muk Hye-sung calmly described the way On Raon had appeared on Pick Heart.
Listening to all the overwhelmingly positive stories, Jang Haena fell into deep thought.
– “I see… I thought he was very busy lately because he’s been out of touch, but I’m glad to hear he’s doing well.”
“Is that all?”
– “What else can I do?”
Having seen On Raon for the first time after reuniting with his soul, Muk Hye-sung couldn’t understand Jang Haena’s attitude toward her second son.
Sensing this, Jang Haena spoke.
– “…If what you’re saying is true, and I no longer feel strange about him.”
Jang Haena continued in a sharp tone, like a blade cutting through her own heart.
– “Should I then start acting like a mother now? Pretend all the neglected time never happened?”
She suddenly spoke in a voice filled with despair, like someone who had given up on many things.
– “I don’t want to hate or dislike him. He’s my child, so I don’t want to hurt him. But I also can’t stand the feeling of doing something wrong.”
“…”
– “I’m fine with how things are. Being able to hear his voice occasionally and genuinely worrying about him. I know I’m failing as a mother, but…”
“Hye…”
– “I think this is the best I can do.”
Cutting off her painful words, Jang Haena hung up the phone without waiting for a response.
Muk Hye-sung realized that during their entire conversation, Jang Haena hadn’t once mentioned her son’s name.
Muk Hye-sung, who hadn’t expected such strong rejection, felt a bit taken aback.
The Jang Haena he knew wasn’t a particularly harsh person, though she could be cold. And she wasn’t one to change her mind once it was made up…
Messages came in rapid succession.
[Sorry]
[Take good care of him]
Muk Hye-sung couldn’t change her mind.
So, he did what he could.
* * *
No matter how many times I thought about it, it was absurd.
If I was going to cry, I should have done it alone at home.
Why didn’t I think to move somewhere else, or even just lift my head slightly to hold back the tears?
Recalling my actions, dominated by some inexplicable early morning sentimentality, I kicked at my blanket several times with my feet or curled up like a pill bug.
[Muk Hye-sung is both relieved and astonished by your excessive normalcy. Muk Hye-sung’s favorability +0 Current favorability +20]
“…”
“…”
At some point, the homeowner had opened the door and was staring at me. I hastily gathered the blanket I had been violently kicking as if it were my archenemy.
“How are you feeling?”
“Oh, I think I’m okay…”
Apart from my throat being a bit scratchy, I felt fine. There were no lingering status effects either.
Muk Hye-sung handed me a glass of water and spoke.
“If you still weren’t feeling better by today, I was going to take you to the hospital, whether you liked it or not.”
Hearing that, I remembered saying in my sleep that I didn’t want to go to the hospital.
‘How ridiculous…’
Pretending I didn’t remember, I asked.
“How long did I sleep?”
“Three days. You woke up briefly now and then, but you mostly slept.”
“I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”
I shouldn’t get used to sleeping for days, but sadly, it wasn’t too surprising.
‘I did feel like I had messed up then.’
While Muk Hye-sung went to get something to eat.
I took a moment to retrace the situation.
After the live broadcast ended, I was supposed to go back to my officetel in Kwak Sang-hyun’s car, but Muk Hye-sung, who called himself my uncle, took me to his house instead.
I probably washed my face briefly and fell asleep as soon as we arrived at this house…
‘Isn’t this beyond just being rude? This is almost a nuisance.’
In front of my eyes, several system windows, including one notifying me of quest completion, floated in the air.
[Main Quest
[Processing quest rewards.]
[Level Up!]
[Reached level 20, a new burning stat can be designated.]
[You can now turn off name displays. (Current setting: Name Display ON)]
With a short breath, I turned off the setting.
[Names will no longer be displayed.]
As I pondered what to designate the burning stat, Muk Hye-sung came over with a tray holding porridge and some side dishes.
The three letters [Muk Hye-sung] were no longer above his head.
“Eat slowly.”
“Thank you.”
“…You said you were sick all the time. Has it always been like this?”
He seemed to be concerned about the conversation we had on the phone last time.
“No. Not always, someone else took care of me once.”
“……”
“……Did you make this porridge, sir?”
“No. I bought it.”
“……”
“……”
This person… was feeling as awkward about this situation as I was.
He could just leave the room, but he didn’t seem to want to do that either.
For a while, the only sound was the clinking of my spoon against the bowl as I ate the porridge at a suitable temperature.
“Thank you.”
“It’s fine.”
……It seemed like maintaining a teacher-student relationship rather than a family relationship would be better for both of us.
* * *
Having regained my strength after eating the expensive porridge Muk Hye-sung bought from an expensive store, I contacted everyone who had shown me kindness so far: Grandpa Go Soo-jong, the trainees I knew from Pick Heart, the people from SEED, and others. I expressed my gratitude to them one by one.
Reflecting on the kindness I had been suppressing because of my weakness, whether they were NPCs or not.
It felt like chewing several pieces of hard candy that might melt away without a trace at any moment.
After a while, I started thinking about the future instead of the past.
In front of me were over ten business cards spread out.
‘When did I receive so many?’
I remembered accepting them one by one from entertainment agency representatives at the live broadcast site, but seeing them all together, it was quite a lot.
Moreover, there were several text messages from unknown numbers, asking me to contact them whenever convenient, claiming to be from some company or another.
Muk Hye-sung casually mentioned,
“You’re probably the highest-valued trainee in the country right now.”
“Really?”
It was true that I was the highest-ranked among the remaining trainees who narrowly missed the debut spot, but to be called the best?
“…Before you sign any contract, make sure to ask me if the terms are favorable.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
“You don’t have to thank me for every little thing.”
“If I don’t say thank you for things I’m grateful for, what’s the point of the word ‘thank you’?”
Muk Hye-sung’s favorability slightly dropped.
His consistency was reassuring.
“Is there any place you particularly want to go?”
“Um… Actually, besides True, I don’t know any other places.”
“Not there.”
Muk Hye-sung decisively removed True’s card from the stack.
Then, he picked one card and handed it to me.
“How about AJ? Jena might take care of you.”
AJ, one of the four major agencies, was where Jena belonged, and it had a peculiar nickname, ‘Ah-jae’ (old man).
For reference, Jena had personally slipped me this business card, saying she would treat me to a meal later.
“But didn’t AJ debut a boy group earlier this year? I’d have to wait a while to debut there.”
“As a solo…”
Muk Hye-sung stopped speaking.
“……Why did you stop mid-sentence?”
“It seems difficult.”
“…….”
It looked like Muk Hye-sung’s brutal honesty wouldn’t end even after Pick Heart ended.
“Not because of your skills, but because of your personality….”
“Yes.”
For a while after that, we compared several business cards.
Muk Hye-sung filtered out companies with serious issues first, and while doing so, he occasionally answered casting inquiries over the phone, making time fly by.
None of them particularly appealed to me.
There was no urgent need to rush my next steps, but the sooner, the better.
There weren’t many people in modern society who had the luxury to wait indefinitely for a trainee with no updates.
‘……But why haven’t these people contacted me?’
* * *
At that moment, at SEED Entertainment.
CEO Ban Ga-eul had just asked a serious question to his nephew sitting across from him.
“Yo-han, do you want to be an idol?”