WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

[ Translation - Aren ]

I'm a Reporter, Please let me get off the Stage

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Chapter 28

“……”

His dark, grape-like eyes glowed fiercely, not moving a single bit.

Right.

Seo Haedun also looked like he was quite angry.

Did he feel as though they were dismissing his choreography as nothing more than an ‘unattainable and absurd ideal’?

And then there was Baek Gyeom’s insolent attitude to top it off.

Even I could tell that Baek Gyeom had been seriously annoying him.

Well, that guy’s way of talking in general was a little, you know……

Yoon Sanho, too, had thrown around quite some barbed jokes, like asking to be whipped with a ‘spinning top string’ to spin better.

It probably seemed like a roundabout way of saying that the choreography was simply too difficult.

However, every little comment like this must have greatly irritated Haedun who was already pretty sensitive.

Seeing that the members weren’t dancing as well as him, or weren’t throwing themselves into practice with the same intensity as he did, probably ate away at him.

The internal division within WEEKANIZ was even more serious than I thought.

For Haedun, the perfectionist, all of this was incredibly dissatisfying.

And for Baek Gyeom, he got tired seeing Haedun being like that.

This dissonance……

“Yuyoung-hyung, say something, too… No, never mind. Since you can actually do the turn, I guess you wouldn’t have anything to say. You don’t get why I’m acting like this, do you?”

What?

What did he just say?

“……Are you seriously going to keep talking so rudely?”

“……?”

[The other party is flustered. Calculating impact on Eloquence……]

“Say it again. What was that? You think I don’t understand?”

Ah, I can’t hold it in anymore.

A kind leader who calmly mediates conflicts and patches things up?

Yeah, forget it. I’d rather say everything I want to say, even if it ends up killing me?

“Yeah, right. I don't understand. I don’t understand why, when we’re all working hard and trying to do well together, you’re just sitting here fighting instead.”

“No, I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Beak Gyeom, how many times have you stayed behind to practice in the last week?”

“Erm……”

Baek Gyeom’s pupils were shaking slightly.

His eyebrows twitched a bit.

Gotcha brat, didn’t see that coming, huh?

I wouldn’t give a damn even if he called me an old fart or something. I was furious.

Whining a truck load about how he couldn’t do it without even trying properly?!

Even I’ve been pulling all nighters memorizing this damn choreography with these ridiculously overpowered buffs!

You think just because this wasn’t a life-or-death situation for you, it was fine to just slack off?

Meanwhile, your leader you keep calling Hyung had to put his life on the line (literally) to turn himself into a machine like this.

However as my emotions boiled over, I found that my mind, oddly enough, felt a little clearer.

‘Yeah, sometimes one just needs to let off some steam.’

If I didn’t establish some discipline now, this group would probably repeat its past mistakes.

Just wanting success wasn’t enough to do well.

But to those who didn’t even have the desire and will, this luck would never find them.

I had always believed there were no shortcuts in life.

If one didn’t even have the will, even the smallest bit of luck would take one look at you and just run off.

“So far, Sanho has stayed back twice, Ire four times, Haram six times. Even Haedun hasn’t missed a single session, and Tae Oh, who actually can do the turn, has stayed back three times. But you?”

“I was with Yoon Sanho though, right?”

“Okay, so, did you master it? No, you didn’t.”

Baek Gyeom averted his gaze from me, at a loss for words.

He showed quite obviously how annoyed he was.

Hah, I was trying to be reasonable here…… Seriously, did he want me to snap or something?

Who did he think he was trying to argue with using logic right now?

“If you’ve done something, then say it clearly.”

“Nothing?”

“It’s not nothing. I’ve been working really hard, too. But honestly, the choreography is just too hard. It’s not like I’m the only one who can’t do it.”

“I see, I see. So, the fact that you’re not the only one who can’t do it somehow explains why you can’t do it?”

“By your logic, your inability is due to external factors. So basically you’re saying that none of this is your fault, right?”

“That’s not what I mean. Why are you twisting my words? I tried, okay? It just didn’t work out. I’m frustrated too, really!”

“Let me ask you one thing. Did you really give it your all?”

“Then let me ask another. Do you think we should just cut something out of the choreo because two or three people, including you, struggle with it? If that’s the case, then why can’t you keep up? You said you tried your best, but it still didn’t work out? Then……”

“…….”

“……are you saying that this is the limit of WEEKANIZ, Baek Gyeom?”

Baek Gyeom had his head lowered.

I simply stood there, staring down at the top of his head.

“If you’re admitting that this is your limit, I’ll accept it. But think about it carefully. Can your arms and legs really not pull it off? Is this absolutely beyond your reach?”

I spoke calmly, my tone firm, leaving no room for argument.

Baek Gyeom stayed like that for a long time, his head still lowered.

Honestly, his pride must have taken a massive hit.

……I did that on purpose.

Beak Gyeom might grumble, whine, and start fights everyday, but he wasn’t spineless.

He wasn’t someone who didn’t have any pride.

“You’re giving up just because it’s a bit hard, without even trying to do your best. Are you sure you won’t regret it?”

“……I got it.”

Baek Gyeom finally answered.

His voice was quite subdued, but I could hear him well.

He slowly lifted his head.

……And his expression was wonderfully sulky.

I thought he would say something like ‘Yuyoung Hyung, you’re wrong’, and pick a fight again.

I almost felt relieved that he was like this now.

At least he wasn’t seething with rage or looking deeply hurt.

“I’ll just stay and practice. Jeez, what’s with all the nagging……”

Look at that.

He was being so obvious. His pride was clearly wounded, but he was trying not to show it, but I could see right through him.

What should I do? Should I appease him a little?

If I did, we could probably end this conflict right then and there.

But……

“If you don’t want to do it properly, then go ahead and create a new move to fit the four beats. If we all agree it should work out, we’ll just adjust to it.”

I decided not to coddle him.

“Oh, but I was the guy who composed this whole song, remember?”

Baek Gyeom snapped back at me, his tone clearly showing his dissatisfaction with my decision.

He was clearly trying to mock me.

This little brat didn’t realize yet that words meant to stab others would eventually end up stabbing himself as well.

“Oh, is that so?”

I took a large step forward toward him.

Baek Gyeom, still sitting on the floor, looked up at me.

“Then.”

“Why don’t you just break your leg and sit on the stage for the entire comeback week?”

Baek Gyeom stared at me with eyes widened in shock.

This time he didn’t evade my gaze either.

Rather, he glared at me intensely.

It might have been a bit exaggerated, but his gaze was sincere.

At this point, trying to change the choreography because it was too hard wasn’t possible anymore. It would completely ruin the team’s atmosphere.

As for the move we were debating over, even though Sanho was struggling a little, Haram and Ire were already managing quite well to keep up.

If we gave in to Baek Gyeom’s (habitual) whining right now, the overall quality of the final result would inevitably suffer.

But, most importantly, it was crucial for me to take a firm stance here.

That was the only way I could prevent any unnecessary conflicts between members, like the one between Haedun and Baek Gyeom, from happening. 

Mediating petty fights between team members wasn’t really my style.

I would much rather have them direct their frustration at me instead. That way, I could handle them as their leader and keep things under control.

Even if that meant giving myself a massive headache.

Even if I was voluntarily making my life harder for myself……

Wasn’t this just another hidden stage in this quest to settle my karma?

Taking the easy way out would only end in my death at some point.

“I’m not mocking you, and I’m also not saying that I actually want you to break your limbs.”

“But the thing is, we’ve all gathered together to make this work, pouring all our precious time and energy into this. Saying you can’t do something without even really trying is seriously disrespectful to all the others in the group.”

Baek Gyeom lowered his head again.

Was his neck sore or something?

Still, he had to listen. I knew that I might sound like a nagging old fart, but there was nothing I could do about that.

I was at an age where these guys might actually see me as an old fart after all.

“……Let’s just give it a bit more effort. Don’t get worked up, stomping your feet asking why it’s not working yet. Take it one beat at a time, catch your breath, and try again. You can do this. It’s not like you’re lacking anything. You’ve got more than enough ability to do this, so wouldn’t it be a waste to just give up because it’s a bit hard?”

I spoke gently, looking down at Baek Gyeom’s bowed head.

Then, I lifted my head to look around me.

Starting with Haedun who was standing next to me.

Tae Oh, who completely froze while in the middle of sipping some water.

Sanho, who was stiff as a board, looked as if he was being scolded together with Baek Gyeom.

Ire, drenched in copious amounts of sweat, had a worried expression on his face.

And Haram stood as straight as an arrow, back perfectly aligned.

All of them were staring at me with wide eyes.

……What the hell was with these completely shocked faces?

Don’t tell me……

Was there seriously no one among them until now who could bring Baek Gyeom under control?

Baek Gyeom wasn’t a bad kid. If someone guided him properly, he was the type to fall in line pretty easily.

Was it because of the softer tone I used at the end?

Baek Gyeom slightly lifted his head.

……His lips were faintly pouting.

But unlike earlier, his eyes looked a bit more subdued.

I felt like I had seen that type of expression somewhere before.

Where did I see it before?

That expression……

“Baek Gyeom.”

It was the same one he wore when I first met him after entering Ahn Yuyoung’s body.

Back then, even while he threw out snide remarks, he had awkwardly rubbed his nose, mumbling if we could eat some kimbap before heading out.

……It was like something was swirling inside of him.

It was neither anger nor frustration.

If anything it was closer to ‘sadness’......

Yeah, that’s what this was.

Hmm.

I softened my tone even further as I spoke to Baek Gyeom.

“And besides, it’s been a while since we all came together like this, giving our all. Honestly, fighting like this is just a waste of time. Instead, It would be much better if we just put our heads together, encouraged each other, and go over the routine again.”

“So what I’m saying is…… This isn’t about blaming you, Baek Gyeom.”

“……Let’s try to do well. Together.”

While I did intend to soothe him with those words, I absolutely meant them.

Of course, if we didn’t pull this off, I would lose my life! I couldn’t just ignore that terrifying fact.

Still, after practicing together for the past week, it was clear to me that every single member was truly determined to make this comeback a success.

How unfortunate would it be if such genuine efforts were wasted by external circumstances which didn’t allow them even the smallest chance to shine?

This comeback needed to succeed, for both my life and honoring their hard work and dedication.

Besides…… This might just be a personal aside, but…

……When looking at Baek Gyeom’s pouty face, how could anyone not want to console him?

What made it even more painful was that this expression usually only graced his face when he ended up embarrassed or sad after he did something wrong.

“……Fine. Stop nagging already. I’ll do it.”

“Good. Then get up.”

Muttering under his breath, Baek Gyeom quickly stood up before I even had the chance to offer him a hand.

He looked quite awkward even when he was just standing there.

“Let’s take a 15-minute break and go over it again. Haedun, focus on syncing the beats for the parts each member is struggling with. If we let ourselves get too ahead of things mentally, our bodies will only wear out.”

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

Tae Oh wasted no time and bolted out the door.

……Judging by his fast steps, it was in the [Urgent] - [Relief] category.

I felt kind of sorry for him.

Baek Gyeom scratched the back of his head awkwardly and quietly left as well.

Haram mumbled something about getting water before leaving.

Meanwhile, Sanho and Ire just plopped themselves down in a corner, immediately pulling out their phones.

[Hidden Mission Complete! - The Wise Mediator Leader: Successfully resolved conflict among the members!

Reward : + 50 points]

Even the status window acknowledged my efforts.

I felt my mood slightly improving as though I had won a long fight. 

“……You’re acting weird.”

It was then.

A small voice came from beside me.

It was Seo Haedun.

“What?”

I tilted my head slightly and asked back.

“……You’re not like yourself.”

“……Yet you’re so much like yourself.”

After saying that, Haedun fell silent and walked across the practice room, heading outside.

‘You’re not like yourself, yet you’re so much like yourself.’

……What the hell was that supposed to mean?

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