Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 118

< 118. I Know Everything >

– Well. I don’t know.

“I see. Okay, then I’ll be going.”

– Just a moment.

“What is it?”

– We need to set a time to meet.

“I didn’t say I would meet you.”

– You said you understood.

“?”

– ?

Because they didn’t understand each other, both Rembrandt and Woo Sungwoo were silent for a moment.

About 15 seconds later. Rembrandt asked first.

“Why should I meet him?”

– What?

“Why should I meet that person?”

– He wants to see you.

“I don’t want to see him.”

* * *

“Brothers are such a pain.”

Rembrandt muttered as he came in from the veranda after ending the call.

Jungseo was about to go out to find Rembrandt at Jongwoo’s direction but ran into him at the veranda door and asked.

“Why? What’s wrong?”

Even as he asked, Jungseo’s eyes scanned Rembrandt’s phone. But Rembrandt’s phone only showed a black screen, and there seemed to be no problem on the surface.

“No. But it seems my brother wants to make trouble.”

“That brother who keeps picking on you, saying you’re not you?”

“Yes. He’s very strange.”

At Rembrandt’s complaint, Jungseo frowned.

“Why? Is he picking on you again?”

“There’s someone who walks around with a leash on a… person’s neck, and he keeps telling me to meet that person.”

After hearing Rembrandt’s words, Jungseo completely forgot about the SNS [Social Networking Service] fight Jongwoo had mentioned. He was dumbfounded and asked back.

“Is he telling you to get a sponsor? From someone with such a bizarre taste?”

Even if their relationship worsened after losing his memory, this isn’t something a brother should suggest to his sibling, is it?

“No, he’s not telling me to get a sponsor. He just wants me to meet him.”

“That’s the same thing!”

“Is it?”

“Yes! It usually starts like that. Come over, just show your face, let’s have a meal, are you free tomorrow, are you free tonight, suddenly giving you random things, let’s make a mutually beneficial deal, like this.”

“Ah.”

“Tell me more details.”

Jungseo wanted to hear the story in detail, but since it involved topics like yokai [supernatural creatures in Japanese folklore], Nakru [likely a reference to a specific character or entity within the story’s universe], and his brother, Rembrandt vaguely glossed over it and took refuge in the bathroom.

But unlike what Jungseo said, he didn’t think that man in the suit was looking for him to talk about sponsorship. The person he had on a leash was a yokai, not a person, and a Saint, or a person, is still a person.

Jungseo couldn’t follow him into the bathroom but stood blankly outside the door, looking worriedly at the door.

* * *

The next day.

LLL Entertainment became noisy.

Everything seemed to be resolved with Hyegyeol’s return, but once Hyegyeol regained her strength, the problem reverted back to its original state.

Summer is almost over, so if they want to release a summer album, now is the last chance. The company was once again divided on who would sing that ‘amazingly good’ summer song.

Some employees said, “Hyegyeol must have been shocked by this incident, so it’s better for her to be excluded from the album,” while others said, “It’s better for her to give up the title track and participate with a less burdensome B-side track.”

On the other hand, some employees argued that “that’s too much for Hyegyeol” and insisted that Hyegyeol should continue working. Hyegyeol herself was in the position to sing the title track.

Since Hyegyeol is originally the main dancer, she hasn’t always received a significant part in group songs. But this time, she was going to sing an outstanding song entirely with her own voice for the first time. She didn’t want to miss this opportunity because of this incident.

In the end, another sluggish meeting was called.

Sagamjae argued, “Let’s just postpone it to next summer and prepare more calmly,” but as he was still a rookie and didn’t have a diligent image, his say was too weak.

Rembrandt, noticing Sagamjae’s expression, defended Sagamjae’s words, but Rembrandt, who had decided to completely withdraw from this title track, also had a weak say because he was an outsider.

Then, the worst suggestion came out.

“How about having each of the five members sing one song each, bringing out their own individuality? Like a rock version, an acoustic version, something like that.”

Moreover, the employees, who were tired of the ongoing conflict, all agreed that the idea was good when they heard it.

On the other hand, Sagamjae’s face turned pale. If things went wrong, four members would be hanging on the Underworld Tree one after another, so he couldn’t help but be disgusted.

Rembrandt was also worried, but even if the two of them voiced their opposition, they were outnumbered.

In the end, Rembrandt thought he should at least save Jungseo, so he subtly suggested again.

“Instead of all five of us doing it. Jungseo and I could do a different song, ah, like a song the two of us sing? Jungseo said he wanted to try a duet with me before.”

“I did?”

“Why, a few days ago…”

Jungseo was bewildered by the story he was hearing for the first time, but he matched Rembrandt’s words for now.

“Ah, yes. I want to do it too. A duet.”

Fortunately, Jungseo and Rembrandt had a low profile in this album, so the A&R [Artists and Repertoire] team leader told them to go ahead and excluded them.

* * *

On the way back to the dorm.

Rembrandt took Jungseo, who was still unaware of the situation, into the back seat of the car and subtly told him the situation.

“That song. Something strange is attached to it.”

“Something strange?”

“Evil spirits, ghosts, things like that.”

“Really? Then Hyegyeol too?”

“Probably. It’s not good to sing it. It would be better if no one sang this song…”

Jungseo seemed a little embarrassed for a moment, but soon whispered calmly.

“I’ll find a way.”

Meanwhile, the car finally stopped.

Rembrandt and Jungseo, who were in the very back seat, were the last to get out of the car.

But as they got out of the car and tried to enter the dorm, they saw a familiar person standing there.

The person was leaning against a car parked in front of the dorm, and the members greeted him familiarly as they passed by and entered the front door.

Rembrandt frowned and stopped in front of that person.

“Why did you come?”

The person was Woo Sungwoo.

At Rembrandt’s stiff question, Woo Sungwoo replied indifferently.

“I said I had something to discuss.”

“I said I wouldn’t see you.”

“Just give me 15 minutes. It’s important.”

“Those 15 minutes are important to me too.”

“It’s for you.”

“I’m doing it for myself too.”

As Rembrandt was having a war of nerves with Woo Sungwoo, Jungseo, who couldn’t stand it, went next to Rembrandt and blocked him.

“Yeonwoo [Rembrandt’s real name] is very tired today because he had a lot of work. Why don’t you make an appointment and come later?”

“Oh, Jungseo. Hello. But this is not your business, so please step aside.”

“Yeonwoo is very tired from practicing all day.”

“It’ll only take 15 minutes. And it’s really important. For Yeonwoo. Have you ever seen me do anything that harms Yeonwoo?”

“Good intentions don’t always lead to good outcomes.”

Woo Sungwoo’s eyes turned cold, as if he was displeased with Jungseo’s strange words.

Rembrandt was annoyed, but he didn’t want Jungseo to get caught up in the fight, so he ended up stepping in himself.

“Okay. Jungseo. You go make a tomato smoothie. I’ll talk for 15 minutes and go in.”

“Should I stay with you?”

“It’s okay.”

When Rembrandt patted him on the shoulder, Jungseo nodded reluctantly and went up the stairs.

Once they were alone, Woo Sungwoo asked awkwardly.

“I thought you guys weren’t on good terms before. Did you get a little closer in the meantime?”

“Why did you call me?”

Woo Sungwoo pointed to the car with his chin.

“Get in.”

“You said 15 minutes.”

“3 minutes to get in the car. 3 minutes to get here. 9 minutes to talk. Get in.”

Rembrandt reluctantly got into the car and turned on the timer on his phone.

Woo Sungwoo chuckled at the sight but didn’t bother to stop him.

The car stopped exactly 3 minutes and 15 seconds later.

Rembrandt paused the timer and showed it to Woo Sungwoo, warning him.

“You’ll have to calculate correctly.”

“Okay. Keep it on. Who cares.”

Rembrandt restarted the timer and looked out the window.

The place where Woo Sungwoo stopped the car was a dark alley. A tall street lamp was on, and a reddish-orange light spread out like a persimmon below.

Under it, the man in the suit that Im Yoohan used to call president was standing. Next to him, the faceless yokai was standing side by side again, with a leash around its neck.

Rembrandt sighed and was about to get out when Woo Sungwoo said briefly.

“I’ll get out if there’s a problem while you’re watching from here.”

It was a voice filled with concern, but Rembrandt refused firmly.

“Just keep time.”

Then he slammed the door shut and approached the man in the suit.

As Rembrandt approached, the man in the suit smiled faintly.

“Long time no see.”

Rembrandt habitually wore a gentle smile in return but didn’t say he was glad to see him.

Whether he cared or not, the man in the suit put on gloves and naturally offered a handshake.

‘Why gloves?’

But because wearing gloves wasn’t natural, Rembrandt frowned slightly.

If the man in the suit had just offered a handshake, he would have grabbed it unconsciously.

If the man was just a god or an ordinary person, he would have just greeted him.

However, since a suspicious person suddenly put on gloves before greeting him, it felt very strange.

“Take off your gloves, and I’ll shake your hand.”

So when he said it reluctantly, the man in the suit apologized, saying he was sorry.

“I’m sorry if I made you feel bad. I have mysophobia [fear of germs], so I always wear gloves before shaking hands with people.”

“I’m sorry. I also have some kind of… phobia where I only shake hands with people who have bare hands.”

At Rembrandt’s firm words, the man in the suit sighed. Then, after thinking for a moment, he asked.

“Then forget about the handshake. Would you like to try on a necklace?”

Is this guy crazy? Why did the handshake suddenly jump to a necklace?

While Rembrandt was wondering, the man in the suit really took out a necklace from a small paper bag he was carrying on his arm and held it out.

It was called a necklace, but its appearance was exactly like the dog collar worn by the yokai next to him.

Rembrandt was about to firmly question the man about why he was talking about a necklace when he suddenly remembered Jungseo’s story about sponsorship and stepped back.

He thought it was related to yokai… Is it really about sponsorship? And that necklace?

As Rembrandt hesitated, the man in the suit smiled and said.

“I heard from your brother, but I’m not a strange person.”

“I didn’t hear anything.”

“Ah. Anyway, I’m not a strange person.”

“…”

“It’s just that if you try on this necklace, I think we can make a deal that benefits everyone.”

That’s exactly what Jungseo told him. The flow is the same.

As Rembrandt flinched, the man in the suit pointed to the yokai standing next to him.

When the yokai received attention, it tapped the leash around its neck with its finger and made only its lips smile on its blank face.

However, Rembrandt had already heard everything from Jungseo, so he was very wary and said firmly.

“Do you think I don’t know your intentions?”

The man in the suit raised his eyebrows as if Rembrandt’s words were unexpected.

“…You know my intentions?”

In fact, it was understandable that the man in the suit thought it was unexpected.

Most people didn’t know, but the necklace that the man in the suit carried had the effect of detecting and sealing yokai.

So if an ordinary person wears it, it’s just a necklace with a unique taste, but if yokai or ghosts with dark power wear it, a control line comes out.

However, people without ‘eyes’ couldn’t see this leash itself at all, and the number of people who knew this secret was so small that even his subordinates with ‘eyes’ only regarded this necklace with a leash as their boss’s embarrassing taste.

Even if Rembrandt wasn’t human like the devil’s words, he couldn’t know that this leash had such an effect.

The original purpose of this necklace was to control evil spirits or yokai, but on the outside, it was made to make yokai or evil spirits feel curious, as if a cat was fascinated by catnip powder. Most yokai tried to take the necklace in different ways when they were shown the necklace.

But it was unexpected that Rembrandt said that. Whether he was human or not, it was unexpected that he said such a thing itself.

“What are my intentions?”

At this, the man in the suit smiled. He regarded Rembrandt’s words as mere bluff.

It was a bit unexpected that he came out without hearing anything about himself from Woo Sungwoo, but it was just because of that that he was looking at people strangely and being wary. It didn’t seem like he was really saying it after understanding his intentions.

“Isn’t the deal a trap? You just want to keep me, don’t you?”

However, when Rembrandt pierced the truth quite plausibly in a cold voice, the man in the suit couldn’t help but admire him.

That’s right. He thought that if Rembrandt wasn’t human like the devil’s words, if he wasn’t human but dared to avoid his gaze and talk and hang out with Nakru, he would definitely want to collect him.

“You seemed foolish on TV. Were you pretending to be foolish?”

“Yes.”

Rembrandt, who spoke sharply, straightened his shoulders proudly.

< 118. I Know Everything > End