“What…?”
Q Emergency. Detecting HBN’s Crisis
Break through crisis situation
Upon Success: –
Upon Failure: –
Rather than the bright red flashing, this window that didn’t even have rewards properly prepared felt much more urgent.
“What is it!”
I immediately stood up.
What crisis could possibly come during the rest period to cause this fuss?
First, I walked down the corridor and called Go Won.
“…Ha….”
The kid who always answered the phone no matter what prank he fell for was completely silent.
“Hey, you bastard…, your life isn’t just yours….”
In the end, I ran around directly looking for places Go Won might go. The first was naturally the practice room.
I rushed there wondering if he really got ganged up on by Newton, but it was already darkly lit off.
However, unlike the cool corridor, heat still remained in the practice room.
He couldn’t have gone far. I turned my body and kicked off down the corridor. Then, my phone vibrated.
…It was Go Won.
Tension rising to my head and relief collapsing my shoulders came simultaneously.
– Sunbae-nim, did you call?
Fortunately, his voice wasn’t different from usual.
“Hey, you, why… didn’t you answer the phone?”
– I put my phone in my bag so I didn’t know.
“Check your phone on time. Okay?”
– Understood…. Is something wrong?
“Where are you?”
– …Did you order delivery? If I bring it to the studio now, I think it’ll be late.
“Ugh, no, so where are you?”
– On my way back to the dorm.
I grabbed the elevator as if running and immediately pressed the 1st floor button.
“Hey, Go Wo….”
– ……! ……? ……?
The communication wasn’t smooth in the elevator. This was highly likely because the kid’s phone was shitty.
“Ha, shit….”
– Sunbae-nim?
When the door opened, the voice was properly heard again.
The diligent kid didn’t hang up and kept waiting for my answer.
Thanks to standing still like that, I could see the kid’s back standing blankly in front of a convenience store near the company.
“Got it.”
– What? Was something wrong?
“No.”
Not yet, anyway.
Since I was going to catch up anyway, I just hung up.
Go Won looked at his phone screen with a blank expression for a moment, then entered the convenience store.
After wandering between shelves for a while deliberating, the kid picked up a large, cheap cup ramen.
I opened the convenience store door and entered. Just then, Go Won was loitering in front of the refrigerated section and picking up one more chicken breast hot bar. As soon as the kid heard the chime bell sound, he pulled up his mask and pressed down his hat.
“Please ring me up.”
So what does that do? The voice is the same.
Below the counter, colorful jellies and chocolates that kids would like were displayed. When I approached behind Go Won, the kid smoothly moved sideways to distance himself from a stranger.
What is this, not even a cat…. With this level of wariness, nothing could happen.
I plopped down several bags of jelly on the register, then snatched Go Won’s cup ramen.
“Take this out, just ring up to here in front.”
Only then did Go Won turn around. The moment I entered his field of vision, his eyes widened.
“Uh….”
“No matter how much it’s the off-season, you’re trying to eat a sin. No.”
“…What about the jelly?”
“Vitamins A, B, C, D.”
“….”
“Customer, should I give you a bag?”
“Yes.”
I held out my card and stood next to Go Won while the payment processed. He didn’t run away like when he thought I was a stranger earlier, but the sight of him squirming and moving his toes while maintaining a certain distance was a bit funny.
“Didn’t you eat dinner?”
“…Yes.”
“If you eat in front of a convenience store, you’ll get one picture taken per spoonful. If you’re doing this because you don’t have energy to go home, rather buy one energy bar and eat it, then go home and eat.”
“…I was thinking of eating after going into the dorm.”
“Rather than eating instant food, eat restaurant food. You, if you keep doing this, your body….”
I want to threaten that everything you built will break down….
Even though nearly ten days had passed since entering the rest period, seeing shoulders and back not much different from when standing on stage left me speechless. …Is that the power of being twenty?
Hey, it’s good if the kid with Kwon Taeyoung’s investment, Cha Yeonsu’s entertainment career, and Baek Hanje’s abilities is maintaining solidly well.
“Let’s go. I’ll buy you meat.”
I firmly patted Go Won’s back. Though it was still March with remaining chill in the weather, the kid’s clothes were thinner than expected. Young, so young.
Q Emergency. Detecting HBN’s Crisis
Break through crisis situation
Upon Success: ■■■■■
Upon Failure: Scenario quest progress suspended
The problematic crisis window was being updated bit by bit.
Since it meant the situation wasn’t over yet, it would be better to stick around a bit more.
“Follow me. Quickly.”
“…Yes….”
Go Won still followed well keeping about three steps distance, then hesitated in front of the meat restaurant.
“Isn’t this too expensive?”
“Am I appearing in tomorrow’s newspaper business section?”
“…What?”
“For me to feel the cost of a meal for two is expensive, I’d have to be scammed or go bankrupt in stocks.”
“……”
“If you know any news, tell me in advance. So I can prepare mentally.”
“…Sunbae-nim, why do you always speak like that….”
Oh my, now he even knows how to grumble and add a word.
“If you’re going to point out my speech, you should’ve debuted 12 years before now. What were you doing at age eight?”
“……”
An employee approached, put down side dishes and the ordered meat, and placed it directly on the grill. Then, Go Won sneakily laid out the utensils and poured water into cups.
“Oh, the sunbae who bought you the most meals didn’t teach you this, so who did you learn from?”
“…I was always good at it. It’s just that sunbae-nim always weirdly called me to the studio so I couldn’t do it….”
Following that, Go Won hesitated then picked up the tongs and scissors the employee left. And tried to cut the meat chunk placed on the grill. Of course, the meat still practically raw wasn’t so much cut as squelchingly crushed by the scissors.
‘He’s tearing that with force again….’
The employee who saw that from afar was startled and approached.
“Customer, we’ll grill it for you. Just stay there.”
The employee flipped the meat and stood guard for a moment in case Go Won touched the grill again for no reason. Then cut it into an incomparably neater shape than Go Won.
The meat cooked deliciously, leaving the scratch Go Won made lengthwise in the center. Go Won, whose tongs were taken away, muttered quietly while looking at the grill.
“If you knew I did it wrong, you should’ve stopped me….”
“Hm? I thought you were trying to make tteokgalbi for your old sunbae-nim in case his teeth are bad.”
“Sunbae-nim isn’t that old either. Always….”
Go Won had an expression saying let’s stop talking, but ate the grilled meat well. Thinking I’d see how much he eats, when I quietly kept ordering, meat was endlessly sucked into his mouth. When I just ordered stew, rice, and cold noodles without asking, he ate them well.
“You’re going to get growing pains again tonight.”
“What? Why?”
“Never mind… I just talked to you.”
“……?”
It was a peaceful evening. To the point where I didn’t know where a crisis would come from.
Even after finishing an amount unbelievable for two people to eat and completing payment, the emergency quest was still up.
“Um, thank you for the meal. I’ll be going now.”
“Should I give you a ride?”
“It’s a 10-minute walk from here.”
“The time got late buying you food, so all the lights on the way to the parking lot are off. I’m scared and can’t go alone. Go together.”
“……?”
Go Won seemed seriously curious if I was in my right mind, but with an expression giving up on understanding, trudged toward the parking lot.
No matter how I look at it, this Go Won himself doesn’t seem like he’d cause problems.
Will this bastard get hit by a blind motorcycle?
Or will he get into a fight with a passing drunk?
‘…I don’t know, so shall I escort him to the dorm?’
I’ve become a servant, I’ve become a servant.
“Go Won.”
He himself doesn’t know anything, but.
“Yes?”
“Do you have any worries?”
“…Ah, no.”
Right, I understood well that you do. How delicate and complicated you are.
“Tsk.”
“Ah.”
“Ah? Huh? Hoobae-nim, did you just get angry?”
“…No.”
The mouth answering that is sticking out as much as when slurping cold noodles earlier.
Looking at the reaction, it doesn’t seem like something anxious that needs immediate resolution.
After faithfully seeing me off to the parking lot, I forcibly put the kid who said he’d just walk into the car and drove through the night streets.
