Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 145

< 145. Include Me in That Conversation >

“If Woo Yeon-woo approaches Joo Min-seo, saying, ‘I’ve seen you around,’ Joo Min-seo will lead the conversation according to the script and situation she’s been assigned, right? Woo Yeon-woo, you just need to create a ‘friendly atmosphere’.”

“A friendly atmosphere?”

“You know, actions that you might do for someone you’re interested in. Something that makes you wonder if you’re flirting or not. Not quite flirting, but you’re sure that if you meet like this three or four more times, you’ll definitely be flirting…”

What nonsense is this? Rembrary raised an eyebrow.

“What is ‘flirting’?”

“Huh? You don’t know?”

“I don’t know.”

“Uh… well…”

These kinds of words are hard to explain when you’re asked for their exact meaning.

The VJ [videographer/video journalist] was the same. When Rembrary asked about a word he assumed everyone knew, he stammered.

“From the outside, it should look like, ‘Does that person have an interest in this person?’ Act in a way that makes the other person think, ‘Does that person have an interest in me?'”

In the end, the VJ avoided the difficult word.

But with just that much, Rembrary roughly understood the nuance.

“Ah, I understand.”

It just means subtly persuading a believer from another temple to come to our temple, right?

He’s done that often. He was confident.

“Then later, Jo Sa-yeon will come and be jealous without realizing she’s jealous. Woo Yeon-woo, you just need to step back appropriately then.”

“Underst, ood.”

“Fighting!”

“I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“Can I contact Jo Sa-yeon separately after filming?”

The VJ blinked for a moment, then laughed and said, of course, he could.

Rembrary felt relieved, thinking he could at least confirm one of the three suspects today.

***

The group finally arrived at a cafe near the broadcasting station where they were filming today.

Before entering the cafe, the VJ explained to Rembrary once again.

“Woo Yeon-woo, you’ll meet Joo Min-seo while ordering at the cafe. Min-seo will come next to you while you’re ordering, so just talk to her.”

“Can I order anything?”

“Huh?”

“Who’s paying?”

“It’ll come out of the production budget, I think?”

“Thank you.”

“Yes?”

Rembrary straightened his clothes and entered the cafe.

The VJ followed, bewildered.

Perhaps it was because it was a program that was ranked second in viewership among entertainment shows.

As Rembrary entered with a camera, people immediately recognized him, saying, “Is that it?” “I think that’s it?” “Two-timing, two-timing?”

Rembrary kindly waved to those who recognized him, but stopped when the VJ shook his head, telling him not to.

“I’ll start rolling the camera.”

The VJ raised the camera to shoulder height.

Rembrary nodded and approached the counter.

‘Wow, it’s Woo Yeon-woo.’

Then, the employee behind the counter also became nervous and swallowed hard.

They had been informed that Woo Yeon-woo would be coming for filming, but seeing Woo Yeon-woo up close was more handsome than they had imagined, making them nervous for no reason.

They said he was handsome enough to be crazy, and he really is handsome.

The employee admired inwardly, focusing on Woo Yeon-woo’s lips to take the order without making a mistake.

“Give me everything from that end.”

“?”

“All the way to that end.”

But the question Woo Yeon-woo asked was too easy.

It was so easy that even though it’s slang, they should acknowledge the expression ‘fucking easy’ as standard language.

“All of that…?”

The employee looked back at the store’s menu, which they already had memorized, and then at the menu that Woo Yeon-woo was pointing at, and swallowed hard in a different sense than before.

How many is that? Fifteen drinks and six kinds of desserts.

Is he going to eat all of that?

“Is it a mukbang [eating broadcast]?”

“It looks like a mukbang shoot, not a dating show?”

Unlike the employee, customers who didn’t know the exact name of the program were whispering among themselves.

The employee glanced at the VJ, who had a resigned smile on his face.

Then, when their eyes met, he nodded.

It seemed like he was telling them to just accept it, so the employee said okay and started entering the drinks Rembrary ordered into the cash register.

In the meantime, the next person in line, Joo Min-seo, appeared and stood next to Rembrary.

Joo Min-seo had just entered the cafe, so she didn’t hear Rembrary ordering. Thanks to that, she had the calmest face.

She cleared her throat quietly next to Rembrary.

Rembrary, who was happily looking at the menu photos, recognized Joo Min-seo as the person he had seen at the meeting before and greeted her, saying, “Oh?”

“You’re someone I see often around here?”

Joo Min-seo pretended to be waiting for her turn to order, then pretended to be surprised and exclaimed, “Wow, Woo Yeon-woo!”

Then, as if she was happy that a popular celebrity had recognized her, she asked.

“Wow, wow, it’s Woo Yeon-woo, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Where did you see me?”

Even as she asked the question, she immediately prepared the answer.

If Woo Yeon-woo said he often saw her near the broadcasting station, she was planning to say she was a long-time fan of Jo Sa-yeon.

Since the only possible answer for a celebrity who often sees another person’s fan would be that answer.

‘Answer broadcasting station! Quickly!’

In fact, Joo Min-seo was a bit troubled when she heard that Woo Yeon-woo would be joining this shoot.

Isn’t that person the culprit who twisted the concept of the two-timing team in a strange way?

Joo Min-seo liked the original story of the transfer team.

She wanted to go along with this story and pretend to be lovers with Jo Sa-yeon at the end.

But of all people, Woo Yeon-woo had to be brought in…

So, as soon as she heard about Woo Yeon-woo, Joo Min-seo decided. I will never be swayed. No matter what Woo Yeon-woo does, I will never be swayed. I will protect this story.

That’s why she was calculating Woo Yeon-woo’s answers and questions in her head in advance.

Since Woo Yeon-woo seemed to be tilting his head, she quickly gave him the answer sheet in advance in case he gave a strange answer.

“Maybe near the broadcasting station?”

“No.”

It was useless, though.

“At the temple.”

Joo Min-seo retorted in exasperation.

“Isn’t it near the broadcasting station? I’m not Buddhist.”

“I’m not Buddhist either.”

But what business would we have seeing each other often at a temple, you crazy person!

Joo Min-seo shouted inwardly and insisted once again.

“Isn’t it the broadcasting station? I spend most of my day near the broadcasting station.”

“No. I don’t spend most of my day near the broadcasting station.”

You celebrity!

Whether Joo Min-seo shouted inwardly or not, Woo Yeon-woo firmly denied it this time and asked.

“What’s your religion?”

“I’m non-religious. There’s no possibility we met at a cathedral or a church.”

“Why are you non-religious?”

“Excuse me?”

“Think about it again. Do you really need to be non-religious?”

“Huh? No… apart from need, there is no God, right?”

“Think carefully. It’s a loss if there is a God and you don’t believe, but there’s nothing to lose if you believe when there is no God.”

“Huh? Oh?”

While Joo Min-seo, who was strangely convinced, hesitated.

The people watching the filming had almost the same thought.

‘He’s proselytizing [attempting to convert someone to a religion]?’

‘It’s proselytizing.’

‘Woo Yeon-woo is proselytizing.’

‘I think I’ve seen that on the street before.’

The VJ, unable to watch any longer, waved his hand greatly to signal a change of direction.

The two-timing team’s story was fun in its own way. That side was a roller coaster running almost out of control.

It was fun, but it was definitely not the direction that a virtual dating show was pursuing.

Besides, a broadcast that is difficult to control is bound to have an accident somewhere.

Although they were leaving it alone because the viewership was so good and the reaction was good, they couldn’t Woo Yeon-woo-ize the safe transfer team as well.

Fortunately, Rembrary understood the VJ’s signal.

He thought he was going to act like he was drawing believers of other gods to his own, but it seems he was doing it too much like his real job.

But… Rembrary frowned slightly.

It became difficult. He had no idea how to look interested in an attractive woman.

Then, should he just do it like he does for his believers?

What did the believers like?

They liked it the most when he used his divine power.

Next, they liked prayer.

Next, they liked…

‘Ah.’

It was when Rembrary made eye contact and gazed at them intently.

Rembrary, recalling the old days, put on a slightly warmer smile than usual and turned to Joo Min-seo.

Then, he bent his knees to meet Joo Min-seo’s eyes and stared into her pupils.

Joo Min-seo was inwardly seething, but when she received Rembrary’s gaze, her anger vanished in an instant.

Woo Yeon-woo’s shell was a very handsome face.

Joo Min-seo didn’t know what Woo Yeon-woo was doing now, but she felt happy for no reason.

And Rembrary accurately recognized that Joo Min-seo was falling for him and gently seduced her.

“Shall we pray together?”

Watching that scene, the onlookers whispered among themselves again.

‘Is it proselytizing after all?’

‘It’s proselytizing.’

‘He’s proselytizing.’

The VJ quickly shook his head, signaling to Rembrary that it wasn’t that either.

In the meantime. It was time, and this time Jo Sa-yeon was brought in.

The cafe door opened with a jingle.

Jo Sa-yeon, who entered the cafe, smiled and called out to Joo Min-seo as if she had accidentally met her while coming to the counter.

“Min-seo. I see you here?”

Joo Min-seo, who had almost been swept away by Rembrary, hurriedly came to her senses and looked at Jo Sa-yeon.

Jo Sa-yeon approached this way quite naturally, then pretended to belatedly discover Rembrary and recited her lines again.

“Oh… it’s Woo Yeon-woo? From Wild Animal… right? An idol?”

Even so, she made a face that said, ‘Who is this and what is he doing with Min-seo?’

It was quite natural acting.

“Yes, hello.”

Rembrary straightened his bent knees and greeted her together.

The onlookers, who were briefly confused as to whether it was a mukbang or proselytizing, were convinced that it was indeed a shoot when Jo Sa-yeon appeared and quietly watched again.

Numerous eyes were directed at her, but Jo Sa-yeon didn’t care and smiled.

Then, she looked back and forth between Joo Min-seo and Rembrary and asked a pointed question.

“But you two… do you know each other? It looks like you know each other since you’re doing that?”

The original line was, ‘Do you two know each other? You were talking so friendly?’, but since Rembrary and Joo Min-seo were not talking when she came in, she made a slight modification.

The VJ was impressed by her professional attitude, and Joo Min-seo hurriedly waved her hand.

“No, I don’t know him. He’s just someone whose face I know because he’s on TV often.”

“You seem close for someone you don’t know.”

Jo Sa-yeon asked, perfectly creating a slightly jealous expression.

“What were you talking about?”

In the meantime, the employee was busy preparing 21 kinds of coffee and desserts.

Rembrary watched Jo Sa-yeon and answered instead.

“Religion.”

Joo Min-seo rubbed her forehead with her hand.

Jo Sa-yeon was about to show her jealousy in earnest when she tilted her head forward slightly, saying, “Huh?”

“What are you talking about?”

At that moment.

A slight flinch was seen in Jo Sa-yeon.

Rembrary captured that moment with precision.

And seeing that, Rembrary changed his mind.

Instead of meeting Jo Sa-yeon separately and grilling her, he decided to look for loopholes here. Because even if she felt guilty during filming, she wouldn’t be able to run away.

No, she might even confess under pressure.

After making his decision, Rembrary smiled and suggested.

“Jo Sa-yeon, would you like to talk about religion too?”

‘He’s proselytizing again.’

‘Woo Yeon-woo keeps proselytizing.’

< 145. Include Me in That Conversation > End