Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 142. Invincible Youth (1)

No matter what happened below the stage, or what was happening now…

At least on stage, you had to forget about it.

Hajin agreed with this statement, but it wasn’t because he was set up with an idol mindset full of professional spirit.

It was just that, after living in society for some time, he had come to realize that life was all about that.

Even if you broke up with your lover yesterday, you still had to go to work today.

Even if your body felt like it was about to die, the clients wouldn’t care.

No matter how exhausted you became day by day, living hand to mouth…

It didn’t give you the right to be rude to customers.

Because of that, when Hajin stepped onto the stage with a complicated heart, he smiled.

He smiled as brightly and cheerfully as he could, doing his very best.

Among the people gathered here, there must have been some who had come running from far away, purely wishing for his happiness with their whole hearts.

“Yes! The Youth Unbeaten team. Since you have successfully passed the team mission of absolute pitch, you have won today’s most essential item, ‘band instruments’! Congratulations!”

The team mission for Hajin’s team, ‘Youth Unbeaten’ (a name coined by Gong Seok), was an absolute pitch test where they had to quickly pronounce a word, stressing each syllable. The mission word was “Destinestiomysteolmaighty,” and they were on the brink of a gestalt collapse, but they managed to do it.

“…We almost had a band live without a band.”

“If we don’t secure the mic stand now, that’ll be a big problem too.”

“We absolutely have to get the stage LED as well.”

“I wonder what the individual mission will be…? I hope it’s not too difficult…”

The items at stake for the Youth Unbeaten team were instruments, a mic stand, and stage LED.

They had already secured the most important item, the instruments, and now all they needed to do was succeed in the individual missions to present their stage safely. Since only the majority needed to succeed, they had two chances out of four.

“So, who will take on the first Destiny mission?”

When MC Yeonwoo asked, Haru and Seok naturally turned their gazes to Hajin. It seemed they thought Hajin had good variety show instincts and usually took the lead in situations like this.

Even Hajin thought that if he were in his usual condition, he would have stepped forward first to boost morale. But…

“……”

Though he was trying not to show it, Hajin was having trouble focusing on the entire situation. The sun was slowly setting, and the lights around the square were shining brightly, making it easy to see the faces of the audience filling the square, even from the stage.

He saw placards with his name and Destis holding up LED-lit phones in various spots, and every time he saw them, his feelings grew complicated. He didn’t want to think about it, but it wasn’t easy.

But that was that, and this was this.

As Hajin took a short breath to calm himself and was about to say he’d go first…

“I’ll take on the challenge!”

“Oh, Trainee Dan Haru. As expected of the youngest, full of spirit?”

“Yes! I will definitely win the mic stand and present it to my hyungs!”

Dan Haru, burning with indomitable will to win the mic stand even if he couldn’t pluck the stars from the sky, eagerly raised his hand and volunteered.

Before Hajin could react, Haru had already moved to the center. While Yeonwoo conducted a brief interview with Haru, Siwoo, who had quietly moved to stand next to Hajin, lightly tapped his back as if to snap him out of it.

“Yes, Trainee Dan Haru’s Destiny mission is…”

“Uh… Please let it be easy…”

“…is the ‘Trainee Quiz’!”

“…?”

“Trainee Dan Haru, who is the youngest member of Miro Maze and nicknamed the ‘Hyung Collector.’ This mission will test how well you know the hyungs you love so much. There will be three quiz questions. You must answer all three correctly to succeed.”

Haru nodded solemnly, his face tense with determination.

Even though they would still have three more chances if he failed, Hajin couldn’t help but smile when he saw how seriously Haru was taking it.

“Now, here’s the first quiz question. In the first episode of Miro Maze, which drama did Trainee Gong Seok reenact with Trainee Park Jaeyoung to escape the maze?”

“Oh! The answer is *Shoot for the Moon*!”

“What was the line from *Shoot for the Moon*?”

“The only alcohol that can intoxicate me in this world… is your lips…☆”

“Ahhh…! Stop…! Please stop…!”

It was Haru who mimicked the famous line, but it was Gong Seok behind him who suffered in agony.

Even as Siwoo patted Gong Seok on the back as if to say, “Hang in there,” Haru beamed with pride for quickly answering the first quiz correctly.

Haru then breezed through the second quiz, which asked, “What song did Jung Siwoo sing during the Miro audition?” Yeonwoo, displaying good sense, requested Siwoo to sing a verse, and Siwoo, who never missed a beat, delivered a soulful, impromptu a cappella performance on the spot.

And finally, it was time for the last question.

“Now, if you get this right, you’ll have succeeded in 50% of the Destiny mission. Here’s the final question.”

“……”

“Trainee Kang Hajin’s favorite ice cream flavor is mint chocolate. O? X?”

Hajin lifted his head at the unexpected revelation of his own TMI.

At the mention of “mint chocolate,” which had now become a polarizing debate topic akin to the sesame leaf controversy, the audience buzzed with excitement.

Haru, resting his chin on his hand like a detective deep in thought, shook his head firmly and answered decisively.

“It’s X. He likes mint chocolate, but it’s not his favorite flavor.”

“Then do you know what his favorite flavor is?”

“Hajin hyung has different favorite ice creams for different brands! But mint chocolate is definitely not his favorite!”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure!”

“Do you know what his favorite flavor is from the 31 flavors?”

It seemed like the production crew signaled Yeonwoo to drag it out a bit more, as he asked an additional question instead of giving away the answer. Haru, still serious, pondered deeply before answering cautiously.

“Umm… There are a few flavors he usually eats, but lately, he seems to favor Rainbow Sherbet!”

“Rainbow Sherbet…?”

At the mention of an ice cream as divisive as mint chocolate, Siwoo, who had been maintaining his composure until now, turned to look at Kang Hajin with a shocked expression.

Hajin, who had been listening indifferently to Haru’s answer, responded to Siwoo’s gaze with a nonchalant reply.

“Why? Hyung, don’t you eat Big Bar?”

“What’s wrong with Big Bar?”

“You also eat Bar Babinga.”

“……”

“And Carp Bread.”

It was as if he was saying that since their tastes were similar, they shouldn’t fight.

Understanding Hajin’s peace gesture, Siwoo quietly closed his mouth and turned his attention back to Haru.

Hajin decided not to reveal that he also liked Big Bar, Bar Babinga, and Carp Bread.

“Yes! That’s correct! Trainee Dan Haru, you’ve successfully completed the Destiny mission!”

“Wow! Hyungs!! I did it!!!”

“Yes, our brave little rabbit.”

“Excuse me? What kind of warrior?”

“Uh, I just meant you’re amazing. Now we just need one more success.”

Hajin patted Haru, who was jumping around in excitement as he returned to the hyungs’ arms.

Did I ever tell him I have different favorite ice creams for different brands?

A small doubt suddenly surfaced in his mind, but he pushed it aside for the time being.

* * *

Youth Unbeaten managed to secure all the items by having Gong Seok successfully complete his mission of “guess the song by its lyrics” in quick succession.

As the instruments and equipment were set up on stage, the Destis erupted in cheers of anticipation. The cheers grew even louder when Hajin, rather than Siwoo, took a seat at the keyboard, which had drawn sighs from the crowd ever since they took the stage.

“Alright, while the hyungs are checking their instruments, why don’t Trainee Dan Haru join me for a little interview?”

“Oh, yes! I’ll give it a try.”

Since the team members were busy checking their instruments, leaving a gap in the action, Yeonwoo naturally pulled Dan Haru, who was quietly standing nearby, to the center.

The fans holding up support cards for Haru let out soft exclamations. Haru responded with a bright smile and waved his small, white hand to greet his fans.

“What song has the Youth Unbeaten team prepared for today?”

“We’ve prepared a mashup of ‘Where am I’ with another song. As for what the other song is, Siwoo hyung will explain it.”

Like a student asking for the principal’s speech, Dan Haru pointed to Jung Siwoo, who was tuning his guitar behind him. Siwoo, who had been checking the tuning carefully, let out a small “Ah” and grabbed the microphone attached to his mic stand.

“The other song… doesn’t have a title yet. We’d be happy to take title suggestions from the Destis listening today.”

“Is it perhaps a song composed by Trainee Jung Siwoo?”

“No, it’s a

song my father wrote.”

The cheers that erupted at the mention of Siwoo’s self-composed song grew even louder when it was revealed to be his father’s song. This added another layer to the persona of “Miro’s Noble,” the “Prince of Classical Music,” causing Siwoo’s fans to stomp their feet in excitement.

“Wow, a song written by your father. That’s truly impressive. But Trainee Dan Haru, while all the other hyungs seem to be playing an instrument, don’t you have one to play today?”

“Oh, no! I do have an instrument. It’s my special one!”

When Yeonwoo asked, Dan Haru’s eyes sparkled as he turned around and proudly brought out his secret weapon from the floor. The instrument, covered with cute stickers all over, was…

“A xylophone?”

“Yes! It’s a xylophone.”

Yeonwoo laughed a little, surprised by the adorably charming choice of instrument.

“I’m curious why you chose the xylophone out of all the many instruments.”

“Well… The hyungs taught me a lot of instruments, but when we were finalizing the arrangement, they thought the xylophone would sound pretty, so I took on the xylophone.”

“What instruments did you learn?”

“I learned the recorder, drums, and Siwoo hyung taught me a bit of acoustic guitar. And, um… a kabe? Kaho?”

“Cajón?”

“Yes, that’s it. I learned that too. It’s really difficult.”

“Rhythm instruments can be tough when you’re just starting.”

Yeonwoo nodded in understanding. He seemed to think that after trying out several instruments, Haru had settled on the easier xylophone. The audience must have thought the same, as they began to murmur about how cute Haru was.

Observing the whole situation while lightly flexing his fingers on the piano, Kang Hajin thought to himself.

‘Everyone will be shocked when they see the practice scenes on the broadcast.’

Dan Haru had quickly mastered all the instruments the hyungs had taught him over the past few days.

Not just the piano, acoustic guitar, and recorder, but he also mimicked playing rhythm instruments like drums, cajón, and djembe, as well as the violin and bass guitar.

The reason Haru was playing the xylophone today was genuinely because they needed the sound of a xylophone.

It wasn’t because Haru couldn’t play anything else.

‘That’s why I’m even more convinced he’s the Chosen Regressor.’

Hajin recalled one of the past details Thirteen had confirmed about the Chosen Regressor—something about “having learned to play instruments.” While Haru had no memory of having regressed, his experiences were certainly accumulated to some degree…

If Haru were the Chosen Regressor, it would make sense that he picked up the instruments so quickly.

“Okay. Now, let’s move on to the performance…”

“Oh, wait. Can I say one more thing?”

Yeonwoo, who was about to wrap up with the final remarks after confirming that the stage was almost ready, paused and checked the prompter for time before nodding, signaling Haru to go ahead.

Haru clasped the microphone with both hands and, in a soft voice, began to speak.

“Before the performance, there’s something I really want to say to the hyungs.”

…To us?

All the team members, who had been busy adjusting their instruments, looked up simultaneously to stare at the bold and spirited back of their youngest teammate standing in front of them.