Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 29

29. Is It Because You Remember?

“Trying to stop him?”

“He’s been saying that the most lately. Oh, and…”

Hye-gyeol, swaying her head as if about to fall asleep, started nodding off.

Rembrary tapped the table in front of her.

Waking up at the sound, Hye-gyeol quickly continued.

“You’re so rude, *hyung* [older brother/male friend]. You always say things like ‘idol this, idol that’.”

The topic had naturally changed.

Rembrary waved his hand in front of her and asked.

“Continue what you were saying. Who did I try to stop?”

“Huh?”

“You said I tried to stop someone.”

“Ah, that…”

However, before Hye-gyeol could answer.

Suddenly, a ‘clang’ sound rang out, and

“Ah, shit!”

a curse burst out from the side.

Hye-gyeol stopped talking and turned her head.

A glass had fallen over, and the water from it was spilling on Tae-in.

“Ah, watch where you’re going, you bastard!”

Tae-in cursed and snapped, and Jung-seo, who was sitting in front of him, apologized.

“Sorry. I was reaching for the sesame oil.”

“If you can’t reach, ask for it!”

“Sorry.”

It was strange timing.

Jung-seo apologized repeatedly, but Tae-in was annoyed the whole time.

‘Did Jung-seo spill it?’

Kesh was sitting next to Jung-seo, and the cup was located somewhere in the middle of the two.

Kesh could have spilled it too.

On the other hand, Tae-in, who was sitting across from them, was definitely not in a position to spill the cup.

‘Did they spill the cup to stop the conversation? Or was it just a coincidence?’

After thinking about it, Rembrary asked Hye-gyeol again.

“Who was I trying to stop?”

However, Hye-gyeol

“What? You trying to stop someone?”

asked back.

She had no idea what she was talking about.

“You said I was trying to stop someone. Recently.”

When Rembrary pointed it out, Hye-gyeol

“Huh?”

tilted her head and answered.

“I don’t know.”

Then, she said she urgently needed to go to the bathroom and got up and left.

Rembrary looked over the members.

Tae-in was still annoyed and busy wiping the water off his clothes.

He looked like he was about to throw the dishcloth he was holding if asked about the old days.

Jung-seo was wiping the spilled water on the table with a napkin.

Kesh was checking her phone, and Jong-woo was…

“Don’t tell me it’s Yul-ri in the midst of all this?”

He was grilling her.

It wasn’t a situation to ask anything.

It didn’t seem like CEO Im would know about the personal life of a celebrity, especially one who wasn’t even popular.

But just in case, as he was about to look over,

“You seem pretty drunk. Let’s get up now.”

CEO Im said, getting up first.

“Everyone’s finished eating, right?”

There were only one or two pieces of meat left, so Jong-woo and the members readily got up.

In the meantime, Hye-gyeol, who had gone to the bathroom, returned.

“Are we leaving already?”

She seemed completely sober.

Since it had come to this, there was no choice.

‘I’ll have to get her drunk next time…’

* * *

Before starting on the new song, the members were given a complete break.

Once they started preparing for the new song, they would be very busy, so they were told to rest in advance.

Even though the break they were given was only one day.

Anyway, the members were happy just that Jong-woo’s surveillance system was lifted for a while.

By one o’clock in the afternoon, there was almost no one left in the dorm.

‘Should I go out too?’

Rembrary thought, sitting on the living room sofa.

He had no money and didn’t know the area, but wouldn’t it be better to wander around nearby?

However, unexpectedly, Jung-seo suggested it first.

“If you have nowhere to go, want to come with me?”

“Where to?”

“Ah, I have to go to the hospital for a bit.”

“Are you sick?”

She looks fine? I don’t feel any illness.

When Rembrary asked in surprise, Jung-seo made an uncomfortable expression.

“Not me.”

Then, as if it was a story she didn’t want to talk about anymore, she immediately changed the subject.

“I’ll stop by the hospital and take you wherever you want to go.”

“Wouldn’t that be a bother?”

“It is a bother. But I’m the leader.”

At the relentlessly honest answer, Rembrary got up from the sofa without hesitation.

“Then I’ll ask for your help.”

“Get ready quickly.”

“Can’t I just go out like this?”

“Mask. Sunglasses. Sunscreen. Hat.”

Jung-seo, rattling off the items, went into the room herself and brought a cap, mask, sunglasses, and sunscreen, throwing them on the sofa before returning to the bathroom.

And 10 minutes later.

The two left the dorm in very suspicious attire.

“Wouldn’t this make us stand out more?”

“We’ll stand out.”

“Won’t people think we’re suspicious?”

“They’ll think we’re either suspicious people, celebrities, or attention seekers.”

“But do we really have to go out like this?”

“Yeah. They won’t know that we’re Wild Animal’s Han Jung-seo and Woo Yeon-woo.”

The way to the hospital was about 20 minutes from the dorm.

Rembrary, who was riding the subway for the first time, sat in the elderly seat, crossed his legs, and got on before people could get off, causing some minor incidents, but the two arrived at the hospital safely.

Jung-seo thought it was fortunate that she made him wear a mask.

Otherwise, a photo might have been uploaded the next day or the day after with the caption ‘Woo Yeon-woo’s true colors revealed again’.

“Sorry. I didn’t know because it was my first time.”

“It’s okay. I didn’t know when I rode it for the first time either.”

Jung-seo casually comforted Rembrary, who looked apologetic, and went to the hospital counter.

While Jung-seo was receiving a visitor’s pass for the inpatient ward at the counter, Rembrary looked around the hospital.

It was as big as the hospital he had come to for a comprehensive check-up before.

There were a lot of chairs in what appeared to be the waiting room, but there were so many people that the chairs were not enough.

People wearing matching clothes were walking around pulling something that looked like a long, triangular window, and there were also people sitting in chairs with wheels (wheelchairs).

They also glanced strangely at Rembrary, who had his entire face covered.

“Let’s go.”

In the meantime, Jung-seo, who had received the pass, pulled on the sleeve of Rembrary’s elbow.

“Is it done?”

“Yeah. Come this way.”

Jung-seo took Rembrary to the front of a place that was blocked on all sides by glass.

Then, she held the card to a strange device in the center.

He wondered what she was doing, but when she held the card up, the glass split and the structure changed so that they could enter.

“A dungeon…?”

“What did you say?”

“Is this place a dungeon?”

“?”

Jung-seo grabbed Rembrary’s elbow again, who was flustered.

They took the elevator to the 8th floor.

There was a similar glass device on the 8th floor, but the number of people was much smaller than on the 1st floor.

Moreover, except for places like the counter, it was all wide hallways, so it felt a bit like a maze.

As he was looking around, Jung-seo walked down the hallway with signs that said 801~810, and Rembrary quickly followed behind.

Jung-seo stopped in front of a door with a sign that said 807.

But this time, she didn’t take Rembrary with her and asked him to wait.

“Sit on the chair next to it and wait for me.”

“Me?”

“…I want to go in alone.”

When Rembrary nodded, Jung-seo pointed directly at the chair with her finger and went inside the door alone.

Rembrary sat quietly on the chair and frowned.

The structure was like a dungeon, so he was momentarily taken aback.

Being here made him realize that this was a place where sick people were gathered.

Many of those he encountered had deep-seated illnesses.

‘How unfortunate.’

Seeing a child of about three or four years old walking while holding his father’s hand, Rembrary frowned even more.

The child’s body was deeply afflicted with illness.

‘The person Jung-seo came to visit must also be sick.’

That’s when it happened.

The child pointed at Rembrary as he passed by and shouted,

“Don!”

‘Don?’

Wondering what he meant, he saw the child

“Don, don, don!”

shouting and slapping his father’s leg.

It seemed like he had seen him during the first round of the Sing Survival competition.

“That’s not him, let’s go, Yoo-min.”

The child’s father didn’t recognize Rembrary as Woo Yeon-woo, and smiled as he gently pulled the child’s arm.

But the child was sure and shouted at Rembrary again,

“It’s Don *hyung*!”

Rembrary thought for a moment and then slightly took off his sunglasses.

Now the child’s father seemed to recognize Rembrary as well

“Wow.”

he said with a small exclamation.

“I left the Sing Survival program on in the hospital room, and the child watched it with me. But the child doesn’t fuss and enjoys listening to Woo Yeon-woo’s song, so I kept playing it on my phone.”

Then he quickly took out his phone and asked.

“Could you take a picture with our Yoo-min? My child really likes Woo Yeon-woo.”

Rembrary smiled happily and said,

“Yes.”

He had taken off his sunglasses anyway, intending to make contact with the child.

“Thank you.”

As the child’s father held up his phone, the child, with good sense, quickly came and sat next to Rembrary.

Rembrary naturally put his arm around the child’s shoulder and sent divine power.

After a few clicks, the child’s father put his phone back in his pocket and bowed with tearful eyes.

“Thank you.”

Then he picked up the child and coaxed him,

“Say goodbye to Don *hyung*?”

The child smiled brightly and waved his hand, and Rembrary waved back at the child.

As the child and father turned the corner and disappeared, Rembrary put his sunglasses back on.

Turning his head, he saw Jung-seo standing by the door, looking a bit surprised.

Through the open door, he could see a pure white blanket and a gaunt arm.

Noticing Rembrary’s gaze, Jung-seo hurriedly closed the door and asked.

“Do you like kids?”

“Should I not show my face?”

“No. You did well.”

Rembrary cautiously glanced at the door and asked.

“The person inside is…?”

“Ah. My mom.”

After saying that, Jung-seo quickly left the spot instead of talking more.

He had guessed since she went into the hospital room alone, but she seemed to dislike topics related to it.

While riding the elevator down, Rembrary asked cautiously.

“We’re members of the same group, shouldn’t I say hello?”

After all, they were members of the same group, and Jung-seo was the leader who took the best care of him in the group, even if it was obligatory.

He wanted to heal Jung-seo’s mother.

But Jung-seo said firmly,

“It’s okay.”

After that, Jung-seo kept her mouth shut until they left the hospital.

‘Is there a story behind it?’

It was after they had walked about 5 minutes away from the hospital that Jung-seo spoke again.

“I’m done with my business, what about you? Is there anywhere you want to go? I’ll take you.”

There were many more things he was curious about, but Rembrary didn’t pry into Jung-seo’s affairs.

Instead, he asked about something he had thought about in advance when going out.

“Are there people here who exorcise demons or talk to gods?”

“…What?”

Jung-seo asked back with a dumbfounded expression, so Rembrary was about to continue.

He had searched online first, but there were too many joke posts, he was about to say something like that.

“Did you remember something?”

However, the moment he heard Jung-seo’s next words.

Rembrary was surprised and asked back.

“Remember something?”

“You were investigating things like that even before you lost your memory.”

“I was?”

“Isn’t it because you remembered? Why, you and Hye-gyeol…”

“Hye-gyeol and I?”

Rembrary was shocked.

This was something he had never thought about.

Jung-seo warned Rembrary, who was flustered, with a serious expression.

“It’s your taste to be interested in the occult [supernatural beliefs and practices]. Just don’t get too involved in strange things.”

“Strange things?”

“There’s a cult that’s been rumored about in this field lately.”