Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 65

< 65. One Good Thing About Having a Negative Reputation >

Oh Jungshin’s misjudgment stemmed from not realizing Rembrary would take his instructions so literally.

Jongwoo had been worried Rembrary would revert to eager growling, barking, and yelping, but thankfully, it wasn’t that extreme.

Rembrary simply got on his hands and knees and barked in a monotone.

“Woof.”

It was half-hearted, but even that brought Oh Jungshin immense satisfaction. He imagined the scene as a GIF, spreading online and diluting the humiliation from their previous encounter.

Suppressing a smug smile, he glanced around, grabbed a small ball, tossed it, and commanded, “Fetch.”

Oh Jungshin’s manager anxiously bit his nails. Ever since the “slave incident” and the subsequent shouting of Woo Yeonwoo’s name during sparring, he’d been on edge. He resolved to bring expensive liquor as a gift to PD [Production Director] Kim Murok as soon as filming wrapped.

Rembrary walked over listlessly, tapping the ball back with his hand.

“You’re supposed to bite the ball and bring it back. Your master is playing with you.”

“······”

“Answer.”

“Woof.”

When Oh Jungshin rolled the ball again, Rembrary, looking utterly bored, trudged over and tapped it back with his hand.

Oh Jungshin, who had thrown himself into the slave role, frowned, disliking the performance.

“What kind of dog does that? Have you ever even seen a dog?”

“Woof.”

“You can talk like a person. Have you ever seen a dog?”

“I’ve never owned one.”

“Still, you have a general idea, right?”

“Does the senior [term of respect for someone more experienced] want a more realistic dog?”

“Yeah.”

Having said that, Oh Jungshin threw the ball again and demanded, “Fetch.”

Rembrary sighed deeply.

Oh Jungshin expected Rembrary to tap the ball back again, clearly annoyed.

Instead, Rembrary walked straight to Oh Jungshin and bit his leg.

It didn’t hurt, but the unexpectedness of it stunned Oh Jungshin.

Belatedly, he frowned and shouted, “Are you crazy? Are you a dog? Why are you biting people?”

“You told me to be a dog. You told me to be realistic. We haven’t known each other long, so trust is still a bit weak.”

Oh Jungshin’s forehead furrowed. What was this unnecessary dose of reality?

“Be a loyal dog!”

Oh Jungshin ordered firmly. He couldn’t allow his past to be further tarnished by this guy’s antics. He needed to create bait that the anti-fans would eagerly devour.

Rembrary wore a look that screamed, ‘You’re really annoying.’

But instead of acting immediately, he paused and asked, “Can I use my phone? I want to search for information about loyal dogs.”

Rembrary truly had never owned a dog.

“Five minutes.”

Rembrary nodded and quickly pulled out his phone to search for ‘loyal dog.’

After quickly scrolling, Rembrary finally grasped the image Oh Jungshin wanted.

“Ah. I understand.”

Rembrary nodded and then beckoned Oh Jungshin with his finger.

“Do it.”

Oh Jungshin flinched at the feeling of being ordered around, but he muttered ‘Woo Yeonwoo’s dark history’ in his mind and threw the ball as far as he could.

Then he called out as if he were dealing with a real dog, “Good boy. Fetch it.”

It didn’t matter if Rembrary did it half-heartedly. It would contrast with his own dedicated performance as a slave, making him look cunning.

Of course, he’d also be labeled as having a bad personality, but that could be smoothed over later with variety show appearances, claiming it was all scripted or an agreed-upon production.

However, unexpectedly, Rembrary ran with enthusiasm and brought back the ball. His sincerity was so overwhelming that Oh Jungshin was taken aback.

Oh Jungshin instinctively reached out to receive the ball.

But it didn’t end there.

Rembrary didn’t stop. He kept running towards Oh Jungshin.

‘Huh?’ The moment Oh Jungshin realized something was wrong.

“Ugh!”

Rembrary threw himself at Oh Jungshin with full force.

“Shit!”

Oh Jungshin cursed instinctively as he fell backward onto his butt.

‘What is this crazy bastard doing now? Is he trying to start a fight in front of the camera?’ The thought flashed through his mind, but Rembrary didn’t attack further.

He simply opened his mouth and dropped the ball.

The ball bounced off Oh Jungshin’s face and rolled away.

Belatedly, Oh Jungshin got angry and shouted quietly, “I told you to be a loyal dog, not a rabid dog!”

“When I searched for videos, dogs that are close usually rush in like crazy.”

Oh Jungshin was practically choking on curses. Was this bastard doing this on purpose?

If Rembrary said one more word, he felt like he’d unleash a torrent of swear words, camera or not.

He gritted his teeth and signaled Rembrary to get off.

“Okay, so get off?”

When Rembrary obediently got off, Oh Jungshin roughly dusted off his clothes and stood up, forcibly composing himself.

‘You think you’ve won? Let’s see who gets cursed when this scene airs, you crazy bastard.’

Oh Jungshin’s manager breathed a sigh of relief as Oh Jungshin seemed to be regaining his composure, even while fuming.

Even when angry, Oh Jungshin was still a professional. Besides, the other party was unpredictable and difficult to reason with, so the thought of continuing the dog games vanished. It was a relief.

On the other hand, Jongwoo remained tense. He knew Rembrary always dropped bombshells when everyone was most relaxed.

It seemed the situation would end soon, as Oh Jungshin looked like he was debating whether to continue. But Jongwoo had to be vigilant until the very end.

Jongwoo hoped Oh Jungshin would pretend to be gracious and say, “I’ll just do this much for the penalty,” considering the broadcast.

Oh Jungshin actually intended to do just that.

However, seeing Rembrary casually stand up and dust off his clothes, and glancing at the wall clock, he felt cheated.

He had spent three full hours playing the slave role. Why was this bastard trying to finish after only fifteen minutes? Five of those minutes were spent searching on his phone.

Enraged, Oh Jungshin sneered spitefully.

“I saw you imitating a sloth well on TV before. You’re terrible at imitating a dog?”

“Sloths are my symbol.”

“Why a sloth? Honestly, a dog suits you better.”

“Do you think I’m cute?”

“You crazy mi······”

Oh Jungshin quickly cut off the curse, shook his head, and sat down on the sofa.

Rembrary stood awkwardly, staring at Oh Jungshin, and asked, “Is the penalty over now?”

“You were searching hard about dogs earlier. If there’s anything else you want to imitate, try it.”

“Eating. I’m a bit hungry.”

“You’re asking for a lot, dog-nim [term of mock respect]. Starve. What did you do to deserve it?”

“Then can I sit down and rest?”

“No.”

“Then can I lie down and rest?”

“I was busting my ass for three hours straight before? No. And don’t just try to do what’s comfortable for you. Try doing something dog-like.”

“Mounting?”

“No······ Hey!”

* * *

The next day, when the results of the 7th competition and the execution of the penalty were broadcast, the internet exploded.

The conflict between Oh Jungshin and Woo Yeonwoo became a trending topic across online communities, news comments, and social media.

Oh Jungshin’s manager visited PD Kim Murok and presented him with several expensive bottles of liquor, pleading for a “mild edit.” But Kim Murok was a man who would sacrifice anything for viewership and buzz.

The scene where Oh Jungshin smiled and said to Rembrary, “Become a dog,” was replayed endlessly in previews, clips, the main broadcast, and highlight reels.

The caption accompanying his words read, ‘Rebellion of the Slave.’

– Oh Jungshinㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ He said he wouldn’t do anything harsh, but suddenly ‘Become a dog’ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Sudden dogㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– If becoming a dog isn’t a big deal, what does Oh Jungshin usually do for fun?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– I heard they don’t get along well. It’s not just a little bad, it’s really bad.

ㄴ They’d probably grab each other by the collar when the cameras aren’t rolling

ㄴ They probably did it after that too

In the video where Woo Yeonwoo threw his whole body at Oh Jungshin, pretending to be a dog, Rembrary’s nonchalant face and Oh Jungshin’s widened eyes were alternately zoomed in and slowed down.

– ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ ㅅㅂ Isn’t that wrestling?ㅋㅋㅋ

– Big splash? I think I’ve seen that technique in wrestling?

– Since when did dogs body-attack humans?

– Woo Yeonwooㅋㅋㅋㅋ He doesn’t even change his expression while flyingㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴ Woo Yeonwoo -_- and Oh Jungshin ㅇㅁㅇ!

ㄴ Oh Jungshin’s pupilsㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Oh Jungshin’s fans were furious and agitated.

– What if Jungshin hurts the back of his head doing that!

– Isn’t that too dangerous? What if he really hits something and gets seriously hurt?

– Woo Yeonwoo is so mean ;; His personality is really wow.

ㄴ 222 He’s so full of double standards. He used him as a slave as much as he wanted, but he doesn’t want to play the dog role and is trying to cheat

ㄴ 333

Rembrary’s fans, on the other hand, cursed Oh Jungshin.

– ㄴㄴㄴ Playing the slave role was a broadcast penalty decided from the beginning. Yeonwoo made Oh Jungshin play the slave role just following the broadcast rules, right? But Oh Jungshin is making someone act like a dog to get revenge?

ㄴ That’s right. He pretended to be nice, but his true colors were revealed.

– Those kinds of kids usually badmouth you more behind your back.

– You can’t trust the image for broadcast.

The accumulating dissatisfaction erupted into a fan war between Oh Jungshin and Woo Yeonwoo.

However, the general public mostly found it amusing.

– Mountingㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ ㅅㅂ Woo Yeonwoo is such a nutcaseㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– They’re like Tom and Jerryㅎㅎ

– It’s all scripted anyway, so I don’t know why Oh Jungshin’s fans and Woo Yeonwoo’s fans are fighting.

– Even if it’s not scripted. Woo Yeonwoo is just being Woo Yeonwoo;;;

– I agree. Rather, Oh Jungshin is the surprising one. I heard he was kind and nice, but his temper is no joke?

– Does someone usually say ‘become a dog’ just because they’re angry?

After the broadcast, Jongwoo breathed a sigh of relief after monitoring major online communities and news portals.

Woo Yeonwoo and Oh Jungshin’s fans were at each other’s throats, arguing over who was to blame, but the general public’s consensus was that they were equally bad.

It was harsh to demand someone “become a dog” on air, and it was equally harsh to actually act like a dog when told to do so.

However, since Yeonwoo’s image was already negative, everyone simply thought, ‘That’s just him.’ In other words, there was no room for his reputation to worsen. It was already at rock bottom.

On the other hand, Oh Jungshin’s image as a ‘passionate idol dedicated to dancing and singing’ had been effectively tarnished.

To mitigate the damage, their managers could later release statements claiming it was scripted or a setup, but some people would inevitably remain unconvinced.

Jongwoo smiled to himself, pleased with the outcome.

However, Jongwoo had no idea how this broadcast would reverberate the next day.

Neither did Oh Jungshin, who vowed never to associate with a crazy bastard like Woo Yeonwoo again.

< 65. One Good Thing About Having a Negative Reputation > End