3. Regression, the Start of a Quest (2)
— Ding!
[Quest: Adapt to the Regression!! (2)]
▶ Know their hearts! : ★ACHIEVED★]
[Reward is being issued]
[Additional Reward: Obtained ‘Speak Honestly’ (lv.1)]
When the skill is activated, the probability of the target honestly opening up about their worries increases.
‘Oh.’
It was an unexpected additional reward. Do I get surprise gifts like this from time to time?
First, to test the performance of the leveled-up “Voice of the Heart,” I immediately asked a question to read Woo-hyun’s mind.
“Hey, is it that good? Did you really want to eat this that much?”
“Don’t talk to me. I’m busy eating.”
[Mmm, Yeon-oh, this guy. His sense in picking menus is still alive. How did he know I wanted pizza?]
Oh, the inner thoughts were much longer now.
Woo-hyun was eating so happily it was a joy to watch. Even though he’s my friend, to me—who returned from the brink of thirty—he just looked adorable. I smiled warmly at him.
If this was the result, I felt I had paid him back enough for “stealing” a peek into his mind.
- “Ah, that was really delicious.”“We used to eat a whole pizza each. Our stomachs must have shrunk.”
“Hey, you’re going to be a celebrity. you have to manage yourself.”
- “Ah, that was really delicious.”“We used to eat a whole pizza each. Our stomachs must have shrunk.”
We had polished off a large pizza in an instant, but pizza after regression was simply heavenly. Every bite felt like a flavor explosion.
‘Well, back then, I was right in the middle of a strict diet.’
The collaboration of greasy, spicy, and salty toppings combined with savory cheese. How could my tongue not welcome it?
While Woo-hyun finished the last of the pasta, I opened the status window again.
Name: Song Yeon-oh
Age: 17
Status: Trainee
Vocal (Rap): C+
Dance: B+
Visual: B
Charm: A
Composition: –
Skill: Voice of the Heart (lv. 2), Speak Honestly (lv. 1)
‘Now, shall I read Woo-hyun’s thoughts one more time?’
“What do you want to do now?”
“Uh…”
— Ding!
[I want to go to a coin karaoke booth for the first time in a while… but is it okay to go with him? He probably practices that stuff until he’s sick of it.]
He probably felt it was hard to ask me to go to a karaoke booth since I was a trainee. His heart was on the popup window, but he couldn’t say the words.
In that case, let’s try the ‘Speak Honestly’ skill. I wanted to see what kind of skill it was and how effective it would be.
I opened the status window and activated the skill.
— Ding!
Then I asked Woo-hyun again.
“Don’t you have something specific you want to do? Just say it.”
“Hmm, I want to go to a coin karaoke booth. I really love them, but it’s been a long time since I’ve been…”
He was a kind guy who wouldn’t normally say what he wanted out loud. But perhaps because of the skill’s effect, Woo-hyun poured out his inner thoughts easily.
“But since you’re a trainee, you sing and dance every day and practice that stuff all the time… it might be a bit much to ask you to go to a karaoke booth, right?”
After saying it all, he seemed surprised at himself and finished with an awkward laugh. He really blurted out his inner thoughts much faster than I expected.
It was a small conversation, but I clearly learned the effect of the skill. I decided to reward this grateful friend by playing with him at the karaoke booth.
“I’ve been practicing all day, so I might as well show off to you, man. Let’s go, to the karaoke!”
After that.
Woo-hyun, seeing my singing skills, was horrified and asked me several times if I was okay and if I could really debut.
I could only give a bitter smile internally.
‘My vocal rank is C+, Woo-hyun…’
But I couldn’t exactly reveal my stats. I’d have to come back to the karaoke with him after I raised my vocal stats. With that resolve, I returned home.
***
I sat in my room again and pulled up the status window.
I had new skills and learned how to use them. Now I needed to think slowly about the future.
Name: Song Yeon-oh
Age: 17
Status: Trainee
Vocal (Rap): C+
Dance: B+
Visual: B
Charm: A
Composition: –
Skill: Voice of the Heart (lv. 2), Speak Honestly (lv. 1)
“Voice of the Heart” had risen to level 2, and I gained “Speak Honestly.” Through these abilities, I would have to conquer the upcoming events one by one. Fortunately, since I knew everything that would happen, I felt quite relieved that there wouldn’t be any unexpected scenarios.
‘Unless something huge changes, things will flow according to the diary.’
The debut survival, the final lineup, the debut. The time I had already lived through. And the time that was about to unfold.
Knowing how difficult that time was, my fists naturally clenched.
‘But… it will be different this time.’
After returning, I had mostly finished organizing what I had. If I gained the ability to know the future and change the present, but let things flow the same way as the past, that could only be called my own incompetence.
Preparation was over.
It was time to move into action.
As if reading my thoughts, the system rang a cheerful notification.
— Ding!
[Quest: Adapt to the Regression!! (3)]
Now it’s time to run for your dream!
Preparation to change everything is complete.
Use your earned abilities to get closer to the members!
Return to the Willow-i dorm. You will receive a helpful reward!
▶ Return to the Willow-i dorm!
Deadline: By midnight, December 16, 20XX
Reward: Sharp Eyes (lv. 1)
‘Sharp Eyes’…
It was a bit sudden, but I’m sure it’ll be helpful.
Setting aside the reward, I felt even more energized by the warm message of encouragement.
“Okay, let’s go back tomorrow.”
There was no need to delay here any longer. I said goodbye to my parents early the next morning and took the KTX back to Seoul.
***
Exit 7 of Ban-ui Station, lined with high-end boutiques and “Instagrammable” cafes. The Willow Entertainment building was located on one side of this sophisticated cafe street.
If you walk for about five minutes behind the building, there is a small villa—that was the dorm for Willow Entertainment’s trainees, the so-called “Willow-is.”
We moved to a different dorm immediately after officially debuting as Hexad Carmit.
Still, it was the place where I lived from the time I came to Seoul at 14 until I debuted at 18, so it was impossible to forget.
I hurried up to the 3rd floor where the Willow-i dorm was. Then I pressed the door lock password, which I still remembered clearly.
Beep, beep, beep, beep…
I entered the dorm with a nervous face…
‘No one is here…’
The dorm was empty.
Come to think of it, though I lost my sense of dates after returning, today was Sunday morning. It made sense that no one was here…
But at that moment, a popup window appeared.
[Quest: Adapt to the Regression!! (3)]
▶ Return to the Willow-i dorm! : ★ACHIEVED★]
[Reward is being issued]
[Reward: Friend List (NEW!), Sharp Eyes (lv. 1)]
Focus on someone who looks like they have a worry! A numerical value from 1 to 100 will display the degree of their worry above their head. Once checked, a person’s worry level can be viewed through the Friend List!]
‘What’s a Friend List?’
When I opened the status window, I noticed tabs that were now forming a complete system.
[Status] [Quest] [Skill] [Friend List]
When I pressed [Friend List]…
“Oh…”
A new window labeled Friend List appeared. However, it was empty. I was momentarily confused until I found and pressed a selection button at the bottom.
‘Ah, I have to choose the people first…’
Opening the list, I saw a long list of people I had interacted with, sorted alphabetically. Friends, and even my fellow 2nd-generation Willow-is.
I didn’t really need information on the others. I checked the names of the five people who were members of Hexad Carmit before I returned.
Immediately, their names appeared on the status window.
[ Friend List ]
Ga Du-in: –
Han Ji-hyuk: –
Kang Su-woo: –
Cha Un: –
Hong Ui-rim: –
Since I hadn’t met them or learned anything yet, no specific information was displayed. However, there were a few things I could tell through this [Friend List].
‘So that’s what Sharp Eyes is.’
While the members’ names were listed in a column, the first tab of the horizontal row listed ‘Worry Level.’ It was blank right now, but it seemed it would update once I met them and checked their worry levels.
I thought I understood the system’s intention in giving me this skill as a reward for returning to the dorm.
‘It’s telling me to be the first to speak up when someone has a worry.’
My personality wasn’t the type to step forward proactively; even before the regression, I tended to avoid problems. However, I learned something while raising my nephews. Avoiding a problem solves nothing. To get my nephews to talk when they were pouting over a worry, I had to keep talking to them until they finally opened up. The system seemed to be telling me to take the lead and talk to those who were struggling. By doing so, I could manage the members’ worry levels and lead them toward harmony.
It was a very intuitive system.
As if cheering for my regression, it was scratching exactly where I itched. What a grateful thing.
Then, as if reading my mind, the system window immediately popped up a new message.
— Ding!
[Main Quest ‘Adapt to the Regression’ (1), (2), (3) Cleared!]
[Reward for completing the linked quest is being issued]
[Reward: Sharp Eyes (lv. 2)]
Now, through ‘Sharp Eyes,’ you can see others’ Likability toward you. To observe Likability, a certain amount of interaction with the target is required. Likability levels can be checked through the Friend List!]
As if responding to my thoughts, the system window flashed.
Being able to see how much others like me. The system was getting more detailed by the minute. Let’s see…
[ Friend List ]
Ga Du-in: –
Han Ji-hyuk: –
Kang Su-woo: –
Cha Un: –
Hong Ui-rim: –
The Friend List was blank just like before. However, unlike before, I saw another column for “Likability” next to “Worry Level.”
Seeing as Likability was also blank, it seemed this also starts from the point after regression. If it were before regression, the members’ Likability toward me would have probably been… negative.
My job would be to lower the Worry Level and raise the Likability Level.
‘Good… excellent.’
Confidence surged within me.
With the system window feeding me like this, I couldn’t possibly fail a second time.
It was time to show the power of a second-life idol (17 years old, possesses status window).
‘Beep-beep-beep—’
Just then.
The front door opened, and a crowd of Willow-is poured in. It looked like they were coming back from lunch.
“Yeon-oh, you’re back? Did you rest well?”
Han Ji-hyuk, a 3rd-generation Willow-i junior and two years older than me. He greeted me warmly. Thinking back, since I was such an outsider back then, Han Ji-hyuk was about the only one who looked out for me like this.
I used to think Han Ji-hyuk was very mature because he was two years older. But seeing his smiling face looking so fresh and young made me feel strange. Now that I looked at him, he was just a green 19-year-old. Hiding my happiness, I just gave a slight nod.
“Yeah, I rested well.”
Han Ji-hyuk gave a light smile and went into his room. I proceeded to look at the Willow-is following behind him, one by one.
There were 10 Willow-is in total from the 1st to 6th generations, and among them, six—including me—were from the countryside and lived in the dorm. Among these, the ones I had to immediately put on my Friend List and keep a close eye on were the future members of ‘Hexad Carmit.’
Han Ji-hyuk and Kang Su-woo, who were from the same city (Daejeon) as me, lived in the dorm… Ga Du-in, from the 1st generation, was from Seoul but lived in the dorm because he found it more convenient. The group’s youngest, Hong Ui-rim, was from Seoul and commuted from home. Cha Un, from the 6th generation and originally from Busan, hadn’t even been a trainee for two weeks yet. At this point, he hadn’t moved into the dorm.
The members of Hexad Carmit who once spent every moment together. How many years has it been since I saw them in person?
Just before I returned, they were the guys sweeping every award on TV and standing at the pinnacle of success.
‘They really were all just babies. They were so young.’
My eldest nephew Han-bin was 15 before I returned, and they felt like they weren’t much older than him. No, in reality, they were only a few years apart. Looking at them again, every one of their faces looked almost cute.
Why did I used to feel so nervous in front of them for no reason? Now, no matter what kind of trouble they caused, I felt like I could look at them with a generous heart.
‘To think they were such “fuzzy” kids…’
Ah, anyway… is it time to try the ‘Sharp Eyes’ skill?
I sat on the living room sofa and subtly glared at the group of Willow-is. Then, like magic, numbers began to float over the heads of the trainees as they wandered around.
‘It said 1 to 100, and they’re almost all the same.’
Was it because they were all trainees living with similar worries? But even so, the degree to which one accepts the same problem should differ quite a bit depending on personality. It was strange that the numbers were nearly identical.
Anyway, just as I was finishing my assessment of the surroundings with my “sharp” eyes.
I caught sight of one person’s number suddenly rising at a rapid pace.
