The day of the showcase was approaching quickly.
“Ye-rin!”
“Umm….”
“Ye-rin! Ha Ye-rin!”
“Hmm…? Hye-jeong unni…?”
When I opened my eyes to the desperate call of someone, I saw Lee Hye-jeong shaking me.
“Get up quickly, Ye-rin! It’s time!”
“Oh… really?”
“Yeah. Everyone is having breakfast and getting ready.”
Hearing Hye-jeong’s words, I hurriedly tried to sit up, but….
“Ugh…”
For some reason, my body wouldn’t cooperate.
It felt strangely cold and my body was sluggish…
Having trouble getting up from the bed, Hye-jeong looked suspicious.
“Ye-rin, are you sick? You seem unusually tired today.”
“…Yeah. I went to bed early yesterday… but I might have caught a cold.”
Since I had the highest stamina stats among the members, I rarely got sick.
I had always gone to bed later than the other members and woke up early…
‘Looks like Yoo-jin is up too…’
My roommate Seo Yoo-jin, who usually woke up the latest, wasn’t beside me, indicating that I was the last one up today.
Both Hye-jeong and I tilted our heads, surprised by this unusual situation.
Then….
“Ah… wait a minute…”
The first to notice was Hye-jeong.
She snapped her fingers as if she just remembered something and brought over a calendar from the desk.
“…Ye-rin, could it be…?”
“…Huh? No, not yet. There’s still a little time… um…”
I shook my head at Hye-jeong’s words but paused as I felt a familiar pain below.
It seemed like Hye-jeong was right about it.
“Hmm… there was still a bit of time left, so why so soon…?”
“Maybe it’s because you’ve been overdoing it with all the showcase preparations lately? There are always some trainees whose cycles go crazy when they overdo it.”
“That could be it.”
I wasn’t feeling great at all.
Now that I realized it, the discomfort only intensified.
Frowning as I got out of bed, Hye-jeong said worriedly, “What are you going to do about the showcase today…? Ye-rin, do you want me to bring you some medicine?”
“…No, I’m fine. It’s really nothing.”
It wasn’t bravado; I genuinely felt okay.
Although my body wasn’t at 100%, it wasn’t that painful either…
I just felt a bit throbbing and off.
“Unni, hurry up!”
“Hurry and eat, Ye-rin!”
As expected, the members were already sitting at the table, eating breakfast.
No, actually… most of them had already emptied half their bowls, and some were done eating.
I sat down at the table to start my breakfast, albeit late.
Of course, the menu was salad.
I needed to make sure to avoid feeling bloated before the showcase, so the breakfast was as light as possible.
Thus, I, feeling pretty miserable, was just munching on the greens.
With my bad mood and the tasteless menu, eating was taking forever.
By the time I had halfway through my salad, the other members were already done washing up and preparing to go down.
Other members, except Hye-jeong, looked at me oddly.
“Hmm? Unni, haven’t you finished eating yet?”
“You’re slower than usual today.”
“Come to think of it, your expression doesn’t look great… Ye-rin, are you sick?”
As I hesitated with their rapid-fire questions, Hye-jeong stepped in to whisper to the others.
“Guys, it’s….”
“Ah…”
Upon hearing Hye-jeong’s words, the other members nodded in understanding and started glancing at me.
“…Unni, take your time eating.”
“Yeah, we have plenty of time. If you’re late, I’ll tell the President for you.”
“…Thank you.”
With their permission, I slowly finished my meal.
By the time I finished eating, Sang-gu oppa, who was supposed to drive us, and Kang Hyung-man were already almost due to arrive, and all the other members were fully ready to go down.
“Ah… the boss is calling.”
It seems Kang Hyung-man called right as we arrived at the parking lot, so I urged the members to go down first.
“…Don’t wait for me, just go ahead.”
“Hmm? But…”
“No, I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me… Please tell them I’ll take a little longer.”
“Ah… okay.”
So, after sending all the other members down to the parking lot, I went to the bathroom to wash up.
“Ah… why is this happening today?”
Today was a very important day for our new group, ISIS.
It was especially frustrating to feel unwell on such a day.
“Hah…”
With my current mood and physical state, I had a feeling today wouldn’t go smoothly. I quickly started washing my face.
From rookies to ISIS.
Many fans felt uneasy with the name change…
Yet, the fans who loved the members themselves remained fans of ISIS.
The same went for Yoo Chang-seon.
After the Rookies disbanded, he felt an inexplicable emptiness for a month, but once Rookies regrouped as ISIS, he regained his energy.
Not wanting to miss ISIS’s first showcase, Yoo Chang-seon had successfully secured tickets and was planning to dive back into fan mode starting today.
However… unlike other days, he wasn’t alone today.
After arriving at his friend’s apartment to attend the ISIS showcase together, Yoo Chang-seon’s eyes bulged.
“Whoa, I’m here. Wow… but what’s up with the front gate of your apartment? It’s insane!”
[Oh, you’re already here? But I might take a bit longer, so come in and wait. My parents aren’t home. The front gate? I’ll unlock it for you.]
“…Oh.”
Beep Bang.
As soon as the call ended, the sturdy gate opened.
Walking inside, Yoo Chang-seon was awestruck by the overwhelming view of the luxurious apartment.
“Wow… I knew their family was rich, but not to this extent! …This is crazy.”
He had thought a Gangnam apartment would be nice, but not like this…
The garden was well-maintained, the roads were clean, and there were numerous CCTV cameras…
Yoo Chang-seon curiously looked around as he headed to Block A, where his friend lived.
But….
Swish.
“……?”
Heading toward Block A… he suddenly felt an eerie sense of déjà vu from a man who just passed him, making him pause.
‘…What was that? I feel like I’ve seen that person somewhere….’
Above all, if they lived here, they were likely quite wealthy, but the man looked gaunt and unkempt, not fitting in with the residents.
Most disturbingly…
A long scar crossing the side of his face.
“Ugh, where have I seen him?”
Yoo Chang-seon tilted his head and turned back to check the path the man was taking.
The man was heading in the opposite direction toward Block D.
‘Well… whoever that guy is is none of my business.’
Yoo Chang-seon decided to stop trying to remember who the man was and continued to Block A.
La la la.
Excited at the thought of seeing Ha Ye-rin again… especially in the dome where Rookies had their last concert, he hummed a tune and moved along.
It takes a long time for girls to wash up.
And I was no exception.
No, actually… I had much longer hair than the average girl, so it took me even longer.
Finally coming out after trying to dry my long hair, I realized I was already 30 minutes late for our appointment.
“Ah… what should I do…? Haah… everyone must be waiting.”
Having worked multiple part-time jobs before, I was sensitive about being on time.
I hated it when others were late, and I hated being late myself even more.
Especially on an important day like today.
Of course, there was a lot of leeway time, so it was fine, but I was disappointed in myself.
Throb.
It was just an excuse that my period started early, making me feel unwell.
I dragged my heavy body and dreary mood toward my room to change as quickly as possible.
But….
“……Hmm?”
Something on the dining table caught my eye.
Approaching for a closer look…
“……”
They were luxurious chocolates and painkillers.
The chocolates must have been prepared by Kang Hyung-man…
[You’re always the best.]
Kang Hyung-man’s handwriting peeked from the wrapper, and on the painkiller, it said…
[Just in case!]
It looked like something the members had prepared for me, and it was written by Hye-jeong.
They must have set it there while I was washing up.
“What the… seriously…”
Looking at the chocolates and painkillers, I suddenly felt a wave of emotion.
It was partly because today was that day, making it hard to control my feelings, but also because it reminded me of the past.
In the past, even when I was sick, I was always alone.
Even when I was in agony… no one was by my side.
This was the case in this life too.
When I was young and sick… my parents were usually out and about and didn’t even know.
But now, I was different.
Now, even if I felt a bit sick or if I looked a bit off, there were people who looked after me like this.
With tears welling up, I swallowed a painkiller first…
Gulp.
And then ate the chocolate that seemed to have been prepared by Kang Hyung-man.
Woosh.
As soon as I ate it, I felt something rise inside me.
At the same time…
‘At least you look happy these days; I’m glad.’
I recalled the words Yoo Seol had said to me last time.
Back then, I answered that I was happy.
…And I still feel that way now.
If anything, I feel even happier now than before.
My period? That was no problem at all.
With a single painkiller and a chocolate…
I felt my mood soar as if I’d never been glum.
“Let’s do well at today’s showcase.”
Thus, I shook off my bad feelings and refocused my mind.
With people around me taking care of and cheering for me like this…
I had to meet those expectations.
It goes without saying that I had never slacked off with the Rookies.
But with ISIS, I would work even harder to…
Make Brotherhood Planning the best agency…
And though I don’t understand its full meaning yet…
I was determined to make ISIS the greatest idol group.
Absolutely.
Just then, my phone chimed.
“……!!”
I thought it was gone, but the familiar notification sound rang in my ears again.
I turned my head…
“Ah…”
The status window I thought was gone was greeting me.
[Quest Complete: Become the Greatest Idol]
[Reward will be given now.]
“Reward? But I don’t even know what being the greatest idol means….”
I tilted my head in confusion, but the status window remained steadfast.
In a way, it felt nice, as if the status window was recognizing me as the greatest idol.
By the way, it said it would give me a reward…
[The reward is at the door.]
“…What?”
Ding dong.
Along with the message that the reward was at the door, the doorbell suddenly rang.
‘If it’s a quest reward, then surely….’
If I recall correctly, the quest reward was definitely ‘something I desperately wanted.’
What I desperately wanted.
That was definitely…
‘But how could they deliver that as a reward?’
Ding dong.
The doorbell rang again, as if urging me to check.
Unable to resist my curiosity, I went to the entrance in my pajamas.
And….
Creek.
I opened the door.
