Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 181

181. I Didn’t Want to Do This

“Yeonwoo, I really… I don’t know how many times I have to tell you this…”

Jongwoo, who had been opening and closing his mouth, touched his forehead and looked up at the ceiling.

However, Jongwoo couldn’t bring himself to continue and just sighed. What could he say? Back then, the MC [Master of Ceremonies, the host], the director, and even the members themselves had glossed over it naturally.

“I don’t know why you keep not believing me, but I didn’t change it on purpose.”

“Yeah… you just weren’t interested. But the problem is that other people aren’t interested in your excuses either.”

“Don’t be too sad.”

At the voice that comforted him so deeply, Jongwoo slumped powerlessly in his chair.

It was fortunate that the viewers’ eyes were sharp. People didn’t think Rembrandt had mistakenly changed the group name and song title of , but they also didn’t criticize him, perhaps because they thought had thrown the first punch.

* * *

The calls you’re waiting for never come, but why do useless calls find you so diligently?

“Is it this guy again?”

Rembrandt, who had been slumped on the sofa, threw his phone away after seeing the text message from Woosungwoo.

“Ugh, hey!”

Fortunately, Keshi, who was passing by, caught the phone in shock, so the screen was safe.

“What are you doing?”

“Hyung [older brother or male friend] is calling me again.”

“No, I thought your relationship was getting worse, but why is he calling you so often these days?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

Annoying. Rembrandt took the phone with a nonchalant expression. But even if it was annoying, he had to go. He had twelve commercials held hostage.

In the end, at eleven o’clock on the appointed night, Rembrandt put on a hat and mask and went out of the dorm. Woosungwoo, who had been waiting in advance, once again put Rembrandt in the car and stepped on the gas to somewhere.

“What is it today?”

“As always, practice. Training.”

“I think I forgot, so let me remind you again, I’m only going to help a few times and then quit. So, it’s better to cherish those few times, right?”

“I think you forgot, so let me remind you again, I was against you doing this and I’m against it and I’ll be against it. Rather than a blind member following you, trusting only your ‘eyes,’ and both of you getting hurt, it’s better for me to take a slacker like you with me.”

“Does that mean… I’m officially allowed to slack off?”

“I’m an idiot for expecting you to thank me, right?”

While they were bickering, the car stopped in a dark, deserted alley again.

Woosungwoo, who parked the car right against the wall, took out his phone and looked at something in the photo app.

Rembrandt stretched his neck to look and saw a picture of a monster. It wasn’t a properly taken picture, but a silhouette taken from a distance, with a very long waist and very short legs.

“Are we here to catch that?”

“The number of monsters has increased too much these days.”

“What?”

“The one we’re here to catch this time is also a person who has turned into a monster.”

Woosungwoo turned the phone around so that Rembrandt could see the picture properly and muttered.

“I wonder if the number of people who have turned into monsters has increased rapidly, which is why the number of monsters has increased.”

“Is that true?”

“Yeah.”

Rembrandt, whose expression became serious, unbuckled his seat belt and thought. Is it related to that brush?

Is the culprit who stole the brush going around shaking the brush everywhere?

Daeju hadn’t said anything in the meantime. Or maybe he’s moving without saying anything.

If Daeju hadn’t had the brush stolen, and was just using that brush to wield it personally at will… Did he try to use it as another way to grant wishes, and this is how the side effects occurred? Or is the purpose of wielding the brush to increase the number of monsters in the first place?

First, Rembrandt got out of the car. As Woosungwoo followed him out, the sound of the car doors locking was heard.

“Where do we go?”

“Rumor has it, that way.”

“Didn’t you come here in advance?”

“It’s not really appropriate to come during the day.”

“What about last night?”

“Didn’t you hear? This place is awkwardly located between our jurisdiction and Team B’s jurisdiction. Yesterday was Team B’s responsibility.”

The fact that the person in charge had changed meant that the monster had moved.

“Explain in more detail. Ugh, you’re so frustrating.”

“It seems to be quite a violent type. The last trainee took revenge on someone he didn’t like, and the next guy pushed people passing by on the stairs, right? This time it’s a bit more-”

Before he could finish speaking, a rumbling sound passed by. It was the sound of iron wheels colliding recklessly in all directions, the sound you hear when climbing the stairs before riding a roller coaster.

“Violent, huh.”

Woosungwoo, who added the afterthought, put his hand near his waist. He’s probably going to take out that strange weapon.

Rembrandt agreed with Woosungwoo’s words, dodging a caterpillar floating in the air. Definitely. There are more bugs in the air than last time. That means it’s that much more dangerous.

At that moment.

The sound of a roller coaster train going up began to be heard from the left and right.

‘Why from this direction?’

As soon as he had the question, something soared up from below. Rembrandt moved to the side.

What came up noisily was something that looked like a centipede.

“It doesn’t look good.”

Rembrandt clicked his tongue.

The ‘thing that looked like a centipede’ was made up of people’s heads in each segment of its body. Each head had a different face and a different expression. Even each of those heads was talking.

“It doesn’t, does it.”

Woosungwoo also clicked his tongue, as if he was seeing the appearance of this monster for the first time.

“Damn it, are those all heads, or is there a main head separately?”

“Isn’t the one in the front with the long hair the main one?”

“The bald one over there looks like the front, though?”

At that moment.

The torso in the very center suddenly came forward, and the order of the heads changed with a rustling sound.

Instinctively, the two people who felt goosebumps stepped back.

“Why are you backing away with me? You fight.”

“What about you?”

“Your precious brother will close his eyes here.”

As Rembrandt watched Woosungwoo, who spat out a curse, rush forward, he quickly searched for cute pictures on his phone to find peace of mind.

Seeing the appearance of furry four-legged beasts finally calmed the goosebumps that had risen.

Rembrandt let out a sigh of relief.

* * *

“What the hell is that?”

On the other hand, those who were watching this could not be as calm as Woosungwoo and Rembrandt.

“Crazy… crazy… crazy…”

The onlookers muttered curses and grabbed the walls and streetlights with trembling hands, barely maintaining their balance.

The two were a reporter and a cameraman who were convinced that Rembrandt had received sponsorship and signed twelve commercials.

When they first saw Woosungwoo and Rembrandt sneaking out at night. The two didn’t follow, thinking, ‘Surely he wouldn’t go to a sponsor with his manager, would he?’

The temperature had dropped a lot, so it was especially cold at night.

However, when Rembrandt went out ‘again’ with Woosungwoo alone at night, they thought it was strange.

Why do they always meet at night, late at night, when they’re meeting with his manager? What are they doing at this hour?

Besides, Wild Animal had a busy schedule yesterday due to commercial shoots, but today’s schedule was empty.

Only the leader, Jungseo, was away during the day with Jongwoo for a movie shoot.

Even that Jungseo returned not long after, and after that, the other members stayed inside the dorm.

But they leave that daytime empty and meet at night? Not even in the evening, but at night?

Since they were suspicious, they had to investigate. The two took their coverage equipment, such as cameras and recorders, and chased after Woosungwoo.

And… this was the situation.

“Ah, I heard it was a sponsor. That’s not a sponsor, it’s a monster!”

“Hey, can’t you lower your voice?”

“Run- run away-”

“Take a picture first. Take a picture quickly.”

“I have to run away-”

“How far away are we that they’d hear the sound I’m making here? Take a picture first. Let’s take a few pictures and run.”

The cameraman raised the camera to his eyes with trembling hands.

And the moment he pressed the shutter.

“Hick!”

One of the monstrous heads that came into the screen suddenly flashed its eyes this way.

The cameraman dropped the camera.

“What’s wrong?”

As soon as the reporter asked the question, he realized why the cameraman was doing this.

The disgusting-looking monster that had been wriggling over there was running towards them at an incredible speed.

The speed seemed as fast as a train entering the platform.

“Ugh!”

The reporter, startled by the terrible appearance, hurriedly rolled his body to the side.

It wasn’t that he knew where the monster was coming and avoided it, it was instinct.

The reporter, who had rolled on the floor, struggled to get up, flailing his arms and legs.

Run, I have to run away. I have to run away.

He floundered and ran forward.

“Aaaaaaack!”

At that time, a terrible scream tore through his eardrums.

When watching horror movies, there are always people who turn around while running away. The reporter always clicked his tongue whenever he saw that.

Isn’t that crazy? Who in the world turns around while running away? Isn’t that too lacking in plausibility?

The reporter wanted to swallow his words back.

He was doing something he had always considered pathetic.

But he was with his colleague, and his colleague didn’t seem to be around, and such screams were heard from behind, so he couldn’t help but turn around.

“Aaaaaaa…”

As soon as he turned around, the reporter also screamed and collapsed.

One of the cameraman’s shoulders had completely disappeared.

It was as if the cameraman was a person drawn on paper and that part had been torn off, that part had literally been torn off.

A piece of arm was visible in the mouth of one of the multi-headed monsters.

“Haa! Haa! Ugh!”

The cameraman, who was lying on the floor, reached out his remaining hand towards the reporter, but he couldn’t even get up because his legs were weak.

The thought that he had to get up and run away soared to the top of his head, but the thought that he had to go over there and take care of the cameraman didn’t even occur to him.

No, rather, he thought that he could run away while that monster was paying attention to the cameraman.

As soon as he had that thought, a sense of disgust towards himself soared, but he was just as afraid.

Before he knew it, he had barely managed to get up.

However, the monster felt more interested in the moving side, or perhaps it thought that it couldn’t miss a single prey, so it abandoned the cameraman and this time rushed towards the reporter.

Just before the collision.

“It’s a hassle.”

Just as he thought he heard a low voice from behind the monster’s body, the monster suddenly changed direction.

Behind the monster, which had twisted its body, was Woosungwoo’s manager holding a long sword.

He’s alive.

His relief was only temporary.

Woosungwoo’s manager, who seemed like he was going to continue fighting the monster, suddenly made his weapon disappear when the lights came on here and there in the neighborhood.

He pressed something and the weapon shrank very small, and he immediately took it and ran back the way he had come.

“Where are you going?”

When Wooyeonwoo, who he didn’t even know was there, asked, Woosungwoo’s manager said, “I have to go,” and grabbed his brother’s arm.

Go away. Go away with the monster.

The reporter thought, but the monster rushed towards the reporter again as Woosungwoo tried to leave.

The moment he widened his eyes.

He saw a miracle.

“I really didn’t want to touch this.”

Wooyeonwoo, who grumbled in a very ominous voice, was grabbing the hair at the very end of the monster.