Chapter 9
"Wow, our dorm!!"
Kim Eden, who was standing in the hallway, ran into the living room.
As I followed him in, the simple interior caught my eye.
It felt cramped for five tall men, but it wasn't bad for a dorm provided to a rookie who will debut.
'I like it the most because it's close to the office building.'
Actually, I had some time until next week when I decided to start working on the song in earnest.
There was no need to move into the dorm so hastily.
I was tempted by the team leader's words that it was close to the office building, so I said that I would move in today.
At a time when every minute counted, I didn't want to waste time going back and forth to my house, so I basically lived in the office building for a while.
'But it didn't necessarily mean that all five of us had to move in today.'
But the rest of the members also started talking about moving in today.
In the end, we all moved into the dorm on the same day.
We simply packed our bags and gathered at the office building, then rode the manager's car together to the accommodation.
'It's about 10 minutes by car, so it'll probably take 30 minutes on foot.'
The manager had a refreshing personality.
"If you need anything, let me know right away! Did you get the notice of the commuting hours?"
"Yes! Thank you~"
From now on, it looks like the manager will personally pick us up when we go to work.
I'm in a debut group, so I guess the treatment has changed.
It didn't take long to look around the dorm. One large room and two small rooms.
"This room is the biggest!"
When I looked into the largest room at Kang Se-hyun's words, there were two single beds and basic furniture like a desk and a closet.
The smallest room was exactly half that size.
'But it's okay because it's a room for one alone.'
The middle room was also a double room with a similar structure to the large room, but it felt like the furniture was crammed in.
'It's definitely a single room.'
I've lived alone for over 10 years.
Now that I'm here, it's uncomfortable to live with someone else.
"Yoo-hyun hyung! Can't I share a room with hyung?!"
Kang Se-hyun, who was looking around the accommodations, asked me brightly.
Kang Se-hyun and Kim E-den were aiming for a double room, or to be exact, the largest room.
It's lonely to be alone for them. I slightly avoided Kang Se-hyun's eyes.
"The two of you can share. You both said you like double rooms."
When I suggested this while pointing to Kim E-den and Kang Se-hyun, Kang Se-hyun frowned and refused.
"I really don't get along with Kim E-den~"
"Hey, I don't like you either!"
"What, man? What's wrong with me!"
In my opinion, it seems like a match made in heaven.
Since they've been trainees together for a long time, they fit together really well. As the bickering between the two youngest members continued, Shin Yeon-woo, who was smiling kindly next to me, stepped in to mediate.
"Then should we decide by playing rock-paper-scissors?"
***
Damn.
This is how it ends up.
"Which one do you want?"
"What about PD-nim?"
Choi Sung-jun shook his head at my title.
"What PD-nim? We're the same members and same age anyway, so just call me whatever you want."
In fact, I was waiting for that.
I nodded happily for a moment, then sighed as I looked at the bed again.
Well, I guess it'll be similar either way.
The distance between the two beds didn't even seem to be 30 centimeters. At this point, wouldn't it have been better to just sleep on the floor or put a double bed?
"I don't really care."
"Then I'll just use this."
Choi Sung-jun, who was standing on the left, put his luggage on the left bed.
'It's good because it's simple.'
We played rock-paper-scissors with more serious expressions than ever before to decide on the room arrangement.
Shin Yeon-woo, who easily won first place, chose a single room without hesitation.
Since there was no other choice, I aim for the biggest room as a second choice….
- Oh! I have a big room!!
In the end, it went to Kim E-den, who came in second. However, Kim E-den's joy didn't last long.
- Hey, you should be in a different room! You said you don't want to share it with me!!
Because Kang Se-hyun, who came in fourth, changed his stance and chose Kim E-den's room.
Choi Sung-jun, who came in third place, chose the middle room right before, so it was clear that he decided it was better to share it with the easygoing Kim E-den than the scary Choi Sung-jun.
'Choi Sung-jun made a strong first impression. We'll be seeing each other more often, so we'll have to get used to each other quickly.'
I, who came in last, didn't even have a choice.
So naturally, I ended up sharing the middle room with Choi Sung-jun, who was the only one left.
Choi Sung-jun had an unexpectedly calm expression. I like being alone.
'But it's fortunate that it's Choi Sung-jun.'
If I were to share a room with those noisy guys, I would probably get into trouble even after work.
I unpacked my luggage in no time.
It wasn't really anything to be called luggage.
All I had were simple toiletries and a few sets of clothes.
And they were all training suits.
'I guess I should buy some clothes first.'
After finishing some cleaning, I laid down on the bed.
The day was so damn long.
From evaluation to moving to the dorm.
In the meantime, today's daily quest hasn't arrived yet.
What kind of outrageous quest will they give me this time?
'By the way, the only clue related to the reason why the debut group fell through is Choi Sung-jun.'
UJ Entertainment's Tighten.
Since they were a group that debuted the year I entered college, they are probably the new male idols from UJ Entertainment who are rumored to debut this year.
'Was Choi Sung-jun in the TP debut group before the regression?'
I can't figure out if the situation has changed since before the regression or not.
If it's the former, the ending where the debut group fell through due to Choi Sung-jun's different choice from before the regression is likely to change, but if it's the latter, the situation becomes more complicated.
What if Choi Sungjun had originally joined the TP debut group, and then returned to UJ Entertainment in the middle and the TP debut was canceled?
'Would Tighten have been able to debut as it was without Choi Sungjun?'
The group couldn't have functioned properly without Choi Sungjun in the first place.
Choi Sungjun was truly a core member of Tighten in many ways, so the Choi Sungjun I've watched over wasn't a disloyal guy.
If that was the case, he wouldn't have held out until the end to protect that Tighten.
'Was there another reason?'
Why did he throw away TP, which he had joined until the debut group, and debut in UJ?
My head was complicated.
I checked Choi Sung-jun's status window while silently looking at the back of his head. He was organizing his desk.
[Choi Sung-jun]
Appearance: A-
Singing: A
Dance: A-
Talent: B+
Acting: B+
'As expected.'
There was a reason why the company joined him right away without evaluating him for the debut group.
It was the most splendid and evenly distributed ability among the trainee status windows I've ever seen.
I've watched Choi Sung-jun's idol activities for 5 years since my return.
If he stays in TP, he'll definitely become a solid core member.
My chances of surviving will also be much higher.
'No matter what the reason is, for now, there's no other solution than to make sure Choi Sung-jun sticks to TP as much as possible.'
Let's keep an eye on him until debut.
I finished my thoughts and took a breath.
My eyelids were starting to feel heavy as I felt the soft bed for the first time in a long time.
The wake-up sound effect rang out.
'It can't stand seeing such a peaceful sight.'
I checked the system window and raised my eyebrows.
[Daily Quest Arrived!]
[Build teamwork with your members through a heartfelt dish you've personally prepared!]
[Reward lifespan 24:00:00]
"... Hey."
"Why."
"Did you eat dinner?"
"?"
Is today a day off?
Well, this level of quest is nothing special.
***
"Are you going to burn down the entire dorm from the first day?"
Choi Sung-jun muttered absentmindedly, looking at the frying pan with smoke rising slightly.
This kid is overreacting. It burned a little, but that's......….
"Hey, hyung! What's that smell?!"
"Where's the fire?"
"...."
Yeah. I did burn a little too much.
As I held back my cough from the smoke that had filled the kitchen, Shin Yeon-woo, who had already come out and been watching me cook, quietly opened the window after hearing a rattling sound.
"Hyung, what is this? Nurungji [*Scorched rice]?"
"It's kimchi fried rice."
"......Does kimchi come out black these days?"
Stop it.
I stared at Kang Se-hyun, who was slyly smirking, but he seemed rather pleased.
"Why are you doing that to hyung? If you try it, it might be delicious."
Kim Eden picked up a spoon and quickly scooped up something black that was rice.
Crack-
I think I just heard something breaking.
Kim Eden rolled up a tissue with a consistently smiling face and turned his back.
I can see him pretending to wipe his mouth and spitting it out.
"Hyung, should we order?"
I want to do that too, but the system tells me to eat it.
I thought it would be easy, but for some reason, it's the most difficult quest I've ever done.
I've always just had a quick meal, so I'm far from cooking, but how am I going to feed these guys like this?
I let out a deep sigh of frustration.
"Come out."
Choi Sungjun cleared me out of the kitchen, and he grabbed a knife and started making something.
Soon after, a delicious smell rose, and before I knew it, there was a delicious fried rice on the table.
'It's delicious.'
Even Kim E-den and Kang Se-hyun, who had been hesitant in front of Choi Sung-jun, got excited and gave a thumbs up after taking a bite.
"Still, I'm so grateful for your heart, Yoo Hyun-ah. Aren't you just trying to cook for us?"
Choi Sung-jun added to Shin Yeon-woo's mature greeting.
"From now on, I'll only accept your heart. You're banned from the kitchen from now on."
The youngest laughed quietly at that determination. Even Shin Yeon-woo was laughing out loud.
'These bastards....'
Yeah, I hope the mood lightens....
I was thinking about whether I should give up on today's daily quest and just move my spoon.
Tiring-
[Daily quest success!]
[Teamwork improved with a cozy mealtime!]
...You said to make the food myself?
If it was okay even if it wasn't me, you should have told me more clearly.
'I just threw away the food that was precious.'
Please only order things that I can do from now on. I smiled bitterly as I filled up the life that I received as a reward.
***
After completing the eventful daily quest.
My whole body felt sluggish because my stomach was full and my tension was relieved.
Choi Sung-jun also went out to wash up, so there was no one in the room. I quietly called the mailbox.
[Main Quest Completion Reward]
When I click on the text, a new pop-up window appears.
[Special Item Draw]
: Items can be reused (but be careful of the cooldown!)
Reusable.
Does that mean I can keep using the same booster from last time?
Even considering the cooldown, it looks pretty good.
'I hope it's something useful.'
Actually, anything is fine.
A practice efficiency booster like last time would be perfect, but if it's an item that can be used multiple times, I'll probably end up using it somehow.
When I pressed the draw button, the gift box icon appeared again this time.
Burrr-bang-!
The icon that was shaking lightly soon spit out an item along with an effect of the box exploding.
"..."
Bang!
As soon as I saw the item name, I unconsciously slammed my fist into the bed.
[Congratulations! You have acquired the
[Aegyo Artisan's Path]
: Show off your freestyle aegyo for 1 minute. (Cooldown 24:00:00)
"Ahhhh...!"
F*ck. Should I throw it away?
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