Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 681

◈ 681. Rembrary’s Press Conference

‘Is it going to be alright?’

Jongwoo stood next to Daeju, arms crossed, anxiously looking ahead.

It had been almost a year since they established a cooperative relationship with LLL, but he was nervous because this was the first time he was in charge of Rembrary.

Daeju was easier to manage than their own agency’s celebrities.

He followed directions well and even applied them in positive ways.

With his cold yet elegant image, Jongwoo would have wanted to suggest, “Why don’t you try acting?” if it were before the Cataclysm [a large-scale disaster]. Though, he wouldn’t have even met him before the Cataclysm.

But Rembrary…

‘Strangely, watching him makes me lose confidence.’

Jongwoo had known Rembrary longer than Daeju, but he had never accurately predicted Rembrary’s actions.

How many times had he seen even Woo Yeonwoo get swept up by Rembrary and scream?

Moreover, looking at Rembrary kept reminding him of Woo Yeonwoo’s amnesia, making him instinctively shrink back.

He felt like an ordinary person facing a pitcher who throws powerful curveballs.

Jongwoo eventually asked Daeju cautiously,

“Um, what kind of person is Rembrary? Is he good at this kind of thing?”

No sooner had he spoken than Rembrary walked onto the platform and grabbed the microphone. Jongwoo covered his face and twisted his body.

‘Is he a singer! Why is he taking the fixed microphone and holding it!’

Daeju also watched the scene, sighed briefly, and replied,

“The High Priest is a free spirit.”

“What does that have to do with the microphone?”

“He secretly likes to sing.”

“I mean, what does that have to do with the microphone? Even people who like to sing don’t take the fixed microphone at a press conference. No, even if a singer holds a press conference, they don’t take the fixed microphone.” Jongwoo grumbled inwardly and asked,

“Doesn’t ‘freedom’ not really suit a clergyman? Don’t clergymen live more strictly?”

“Some people are organized even in places without rules. The opposite is also possible.”

“…Isn’t the opposite just someone who ignores all the rules?”

Daeju shrugged at Jongwoo’s dubious question.

Jongwoo had a lot he wanted to argue, but since he wasn’t there to bicker, he decided to focus on Rembrary first.

Daeju seemed to think the atmosphere was right, so he gestured to Rembrary that he could start talking.

In fact, although he pretended to be calm, Daeju was just as worried as Jongwoo.

It was because he knew Rembrary well, unlike Jongwoo.

In fact, Daeju had even considered hiring a professional moderator to manage the overall flow of the press conference.

However, he didn’t hire a moderator because he was worried that if the press conference felt too professionally prepared, people would think Rembrary was just ‘reading a prepared script.’

“Ah, microphone test.”

But when Rembrary tapped the microphone and mumbled, Daeju regretted not bringing in a moderator, even if it was a last-minute decision.

The reporters, who had been preparing to take notes as soon as Rembrary opened his mouth, were also taken aback and stared at him.

On the other hand, Rembrary seemed satisfied with the sound quality and looked around at the reporters before opening his mouth.

“Hello, this is Rembrary.”

Daeju immediately regretted it again.

‘Should I have just told him to speak informally? Still, he’s representing Redrine Hunter Company at this press conference.’ This time, he felt it lacked too much gravitas [seriousness or importance].

“His tone is a bit… He doesn’t sound dignified if he doesn’t speak in his usual tone.”

Jongwoo also pointed this out.

Even though he had the same thought, Daeju defended him, feeling inexplicably defensive.

“It’s better than making a mistake with a dignified tone.”

Whatever Daeju and Jongwoo thought, Rembrary continued to speak in the meantime.

“I’ll tell you how I’ve been living for the past two years.”

‘He sounds like someone invited to give a speech!’

The reporters were just as taken aback by his tone, but Rembrary continued, confident that he was also very good at giving speeches.

Daeju and Jongwoo had now forgotten about his tone and were anxiously watching to see if Rembrary would make a mistake.

However, Rembrary spoke surprisingly well about the prepared content, even if his tone lacked some dignity.

He spoke so naturally that it seemed like he was just thinking of it on the spot.

Jongwoo was a little impressed that he had brought the script but didn’t even look at it.

‘He speaks so naturally. Just like when Yeonwoo lost his memory?’

Finally, Rembrary, having finished his prepared remarks, looked around at the reporters and asked,

“Does anyone have any questions? I’ll take a few questions.”

Reporter 1 raised his hand, and Rembrary pointed to him.

At Rembrary’s signal, Reporter 1 stood up and asked,

“You said you were unconscious for two years due to the aftereffects of closing the Demon Domain [a dangerous area]. Does that mean you received help from someone during that time to stay safe and return after being unconscious for two years?”

“That’s right.”

“Who were you with?”

Unexpectedly, a sharp question came up from the start, and Daeju wondered if he should step in and looked at Rembrary.

However, Rembrary did not ask Daeju for help and answered immediately.

“The CEO of Mirage.”

The reporters began to murmur.

“Isn’t the CEO of Mirage also missing?”

“What is the CEO of Mirage doing now?”

Some reporters threw out questions without getting the floor.

Daeju was taken aback that Rembrary would express Lumena like that.

He watched anxiously, worried that he might make a mistake, but Rembrary didn’t care and replied,

“How would I know what someone else is doing?”

Daeju couldn’t tell if that was a good answer or not, so he looked at Jongwoo.

Jongwoo was frowning and tilting his head as he looked at Rembrary.

“What’s wrong? Is that answer that bad?”

Daeju asked, even more worried when he saw that, but Jongwoo quickly shook his head and stammered.

“No. No, that’s… No, it’s not that. I was just having a really weird and stupid thought that’s not related to this.”

“?”

The expression on Jongwoo’s face as he said he was having a stupid thought was too serious to be believable.

Daeju was puzzled, but since Jongwoo didn’t seem like he would tell him, he looked back at Rembrary.

Anyway, it didn’t seem like Rembrary’s answer was the reason for his reaction.

Besides, now was not the time to worry about Jongwoo.

“Anyone else have a question?”

“The mortality rate has risen significantly since Rembrary disappeared. Do you have anything to say about this?”

“From now on, I’ll make sure you see―”

Just as Rembrary’s true nature was about to be revealed, as if to scold Daeju for looking away for a moment.

Before Daeju’s heart could drop, Jangtae turned off the microphone first.

Rembrary was puzzled when the microphone suddenly stopped working and looked at Daeju.

Daeju shook his head and made a signal to slap his mouth.

Only then did Jangtae turn the microphone back on, and Rembrary became sullen and gave the floor to another reporter.

“I’ll take the next question.”

“You said earlier that there were some side effects. What kind of side effects are they?”

“I’m starting to have a little faith in Redrine.”

“Wouldn’t that be a natural phenomenon after receiving such a miraculous treatment?”

“If it were a natural phenomenon, the same thing wouldn’t have happened two years ago.”

“!”

The reporters fell silent at Rembrary’s words.

Jangtae was sure that Rembrary would make another mistake and stood by the microphone machine, ready.

Only Rembrary asked nonchalantly,

“Anyone else have a question?”

The reporter who had asked the question earlier raised his hand again. When Rembrary gestured for him to speak, Reporter 2 asked,

“The people who have become aggressive among the Jellyfish Hunter victims are all detained now, right? But there’s not enough space to accommodate them, the number of people to accommodate keeps increasing, and the aggressiveness and contagiousness are severe, so many people are worried about a zombie situation. There’s even talk about euthanasia because of this. Are you aware of this?”

“No.”

“?”

“I am not.”

“Two years ago, you helped a lot with that incident. Are you still going to treat those victims now?”

“I’ll have to.”

While answering the reporters’ questions, Rembrary naturally learned some of the ‘various’ reasons why Redrine’s image had improved over the past two years.

It seemed that the significantly increased mortality rate after Rembrary disappeared and the treatment of the Jellyfish Hunter victims, which continued to receive attention, were noticeably compared.

When Rembrary was there, the victims were treated and returned to normal, but after he disappeared, there was even talk of euthanasia.

Moreover, the reporters. They asked sharp questions, but they didn’t raise their voices, get angry, or whisper insults to each other. These reporters also played a part in Rembrary’s realization of the changed atmosphere.

As he was doing that, he saw Daeju gesturing to Rembrary. It seemed like he was signaling him to stop taking questions.

Rembrary nodded and said to the reporters,

“I’ll take one last question.”

The reporter who had been raising his hand all along but had never gotten the floor raised his hand quickly.

When Rembrary pointed to him, the reporter quickly stood up and asked with a mixed expression,

“Don’t you resent people at all?”

“I don’t.”

“Is it because the Earthlings were inadvertently caught up in it? Or is there another reason?”

“Because I expect―”

Jangtae, who had known Rembrary for a long time, immediately guessed what he was going to say next and turned off the microphone again.

Rembrary, who witnessed the scene, narrowed his eyes and looked at Jangtae, but Jangtae pretended not to notice and avoided his gaze.

In the meantime, Daeju quickly stepped forward, took the microphone from Rembrary, and greeted,

“We’ll take questions up to here. The High Priest has just returned and hasn’t even had a proper night’s sleep yet. Thank you all for coming here.”

Daeju’s voice quickened as he tried to smooth things over.

However, since he had only invited friendly reporters in the first place, the reporters were not offended.

Everyone knew that Rembrary was saying strange things, so they vaguely understood the atmosphere and smiled and greeted him together.

Daeju was relieved by that, but Jongwoo kept tilting his head at the rising sense of déjà vu [a feeling of having already experienced the present situation].

* * *

Did anyone see Rembrary’s press conference today?

Am I the only one bothered by the microphone being cut off twice in the middle?

1. I’ll make sure you see well from now on.

2. Make sure you see well from now on.

I think he was going to say one of these two before it was cut off.

I can’t even guess what he was going to say after ‘Because I expect’

―The former is definitely 2… Absolutely 2…

ㄴIf it’s Rembrary, it’s definitely 2ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴ33333 Redrine seems to have been surprised and cut it offㅋㅋ

ㄴJust let him say it. Then it would have remained as legendary footage in about 10 yearsㅋㅋㅋ Make sure you see well from now on!

―You guys are too much. Rembrary lost consciousness for two years because he was misunderstood. Do you want to misunderstand him again? Humans are really too much.

ㄴHe was misunderstood for his actions, not his personalityㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴNo, he always talked like a crazy person;; This is all recorded

ㄴThen what do you think Rembrary was going to say in that situation?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Redrine was also embarrassed and turned off the microphoneㅋㅋㅋ