Prince From Another Dimension Becomes An Idol [EN]: Chapter 24

#24.

It was just past midnight.

Heungmin and Woocheol bought snacks at a convenience store and headed back to their dorm.

The snacks, just crab sticks and carbonated water, felt essential to satisfy their late-night hunger.

“Oh! Look at that, hyung!” Woocheol, swinging the bag as they walked, stopped abruptly and pointed towards the bus stop.

Displayed on the bus stop’s electronic signboard was a birthday advertisement:

Happy birthday to you!

Myungwoo-ya,

You’re the only real thing in my life!

-Yoo Myungwoo Fan Union->

The advertisement featured a photo of Yoo Myungwoo, a member of THE ORIGIN, the recently debuted group from New Entertainment, taken during his trainee days.

“Wow…. New Entertainment is on another level. How can a member who debuted just a week ago already have a birthday ad?”

Woocheol clicked his tongue, his voice a mix of jealousy and envy.

“Big agencies like New Entertainment have fans even from their trainee days…….”

“I knew that, but it’s still amazing to see. I heard their album sales are already huge.”

Heungmin nodded silently.

He would have been consumed by envy in the past, but after learning about Dojae’s situation, he felt a sense of unease.

He later discovered more details about the incidents through a trainee friend at another agency, revealing even more severe bullying than Dojae had described.

There were instances where they inflicted bruises under the guise of jokes and game penalties.

Simply because he was poor and unremarkable.

Because he endured their bullying without complaint.

“He’s probably one of the guys who bullied Dojae hyung, right?”

“Well, he wasn’t as bad as that Song Hwan guy, but he was probably similar.”

Since they were in the same group, he must have at least been a bystander.

“Ugh. Thinking about it that way, even his face looks unlucky. Ugh, so unlucky.”

While agreeing with Woocheol, Heungmin glanced around the empty street for no particular reason.

“Still, be careful what you say. We’re debuting soon, too.”

“I don’t know, I don’t know.”

“What do you mean, you don’t know?”

“I mean… how could they bully Dojae hyung…….”

Woocheol stared at the electronic display, unable to continue, as if dumbfounded.

It had been shocking when he first found out, but the more time he spent with Dojae, the harder it was to comprehend.

In Woocheol’s eyes, having lived with Dojae for almost a year, barely ever apart, Dojae was, in a word, near-perfect.

He always woke up the earliest, worked diligently, and was meticulous in his self-management.

He was also a man of upright speech who never uttered a curse word, no matter how difficult things got.

It was as if he had been raised in Cheonghakdong [a traditional village known for its strict Confucian values], not as a trainee from New Entertainment.

“I’d understand if they bullied him for being too perfect…. But it’s not like hyung tells others to be perfect like him.”

“I know, right? What exactly was so easygoing and unremarkable about him…….”

“How did Dojae hyung endure it for three years? Looking at him now, it doesn’t seem like he would have endured it at all.”

Just because he didn’t curse didn’t mean he couldn’t speak his mind.

Dojae was the type to show respect to adults and express his opinions without hesitation, as he did with the music video director a while ago.

Therefore, while he felt sorry and angry about the fact that Dojae was bullied and ostracized, he couldn’t completely accept it.

“Well…. Dojae was younger back then, too.”

“Maybe he was a little less perfect.”

Woocheol said, giggling with a slightly relaxed expression.

He felt anew that Dojae was amazing when he thought about how he would be doing a Han River run while they were going to the convenience store.

***

“We’re here! Whoever wants to eat, come out quickly.”

Heungmin shouted as he returned to the dorm and placed the bag of food on the living room table.

Gyuseong and Louis came out to the living room, except for Gijun, who had fallen asleep early.

“Old man. As if we don’t know who’s the oldest.”

Heungmin, who had been properly scolded by Gijun during additional recording a few days ago, grumbled for no reason.

Even so, Heungmin had secretly prepared a red ginseng drink for Gijun, feeling sorry for him working on debut preparations and song work alongside them.

Then he realized that Dojae was missing and asked.

“Where’s Dojae?”

“He went for a run! He is awesome. I don’t know if he ever gets tired.”

Louis clicked his tongue as he tore open a bag of chicken breast sausage.

“He’s still not back? I think he left over an hour ago.”

“That’s right. Why isn’t he back yet? He said he’d only run lightly for thirty minutes today because of the profile shoot tomorrow.”

Gyuseong, who shared a room with him, said.

“It’s hot just breathing…. Did he collapse while running?”

Woocheol’s worry was just a simple joke, and everyone took it that way.

Everyone knew about Dojae’s amazing stamina.

But it was also true that it was strange that he hadn’t returned yet.

If he said he would run for only thirty minutes, Dojae would really come back right on time.

“Call him. He’ll be hungry when he gets back, so we can leave something for him.”

“Yes sir.”

Louis called Dojae on behalf of everyone.

Louis tilted his head while holding his phone for a while.

“That’s weird. He’s not answering?”

“He probably can’t answer because he’s exercising, what else could it be.”

Woocheol was about to clean up when Louis’s phone rang.

It was Dojae.

“Oh! Hyung! Why aren’t you here yet? Uh, uh oh?!

Louis, who had been rattling off questions as soon as he answered the phone, suddenly stopped.

Then, Louis screamed like a monster.

“Ho, hospital?!”

The movements of everyone in the living room froze.

It was a complete shock.

***

“Doctor, doctor! Come quickly! This patient’s heart rate……!”

“Agh, it hurts! Please be gentle!”

“Waaaaah. Mommy.”

From patients with upset stomachs to patients with life-threatening conditions, the brightly lit emergency room was chaotic.

And in the corner, on an emergency room bed, sat someone with bandages on their shoulders and arms.

Dojae stared down at Song Hwan with emotionless eyes.

Even with painkillers, Song Hwan groaned and writhed in pain at the slightest movement, indicating significant discomfort.

“You’ll be moved to a general ward after you finish this IV drip. Please wait.”

“……Yes.”

Song Hwan answered sullenly to the nurse’s words.

As the nurse left, Dojae asked sternly, like a judge questioning a criminal.

“Why now? Why did you do that?”

“…….”

This time, Song Hwan’s mouth remained shut.

Dojae clicked his tongue, noticing Song Hwan’s shoulders shaking as if filled with resentment.

He had thought it before, but this guy… Song Hwan was just too stupid.

What Dojae encountered as he left the building was a surprise attack by a drunken assailant.

Dojae narrowly avoided the assailant’s hand reaching from behind.

‘I almost had a big problem because I was careless.’

As the Third Prince, he was relatively safe, but he always did his best to protect himself in the Daehan Empire [Korea under a monarchy].

When he went outside the palace, not only Kim Naegwan [a royal attendant] but also the Royal Guards escorted Dojae.

However, in the Republic of Korea, Dojae was still just an ordinary young man in his twenties.

He was free to go wherever he wanted, and there was naturally no threat to his safety that he had to be wary of.

So he never dreamed that something like this would happen.

If Dojae’s body, which had lived as a prince for 20 years, had not moved instinctively, he would have been in big trouble.

Since he had been learning self-defense from a very young age, Dojae easily knocked down the assailant who had attacked him from behind.

The assailant, who was about to punch Dojae in the back of the head, was instead thrown to the ground.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

Because Dojae knocked him down without showing any mercy, the assailant felt a bone-crushing pain at that moment.

If it hadn’t been for the alcohol, he might have passed out.

The man rolled on the floor and cursed.

“You son of a bitch!”

At the familiar voice, Dojae frowned and took out his cell phone to shine a light.

The one lying on the floor in a mess was Song Hwan.

“You…….”

Dojae was dumbfounded.

Even while cursing, Song Hwan was just flailing and couldn’t even get up.

After briefly considering whether to call the police or an ambulance, Dojae had no choice but to call an ambulance first.

The police side could complicate things, so it seemed like he could hear the story once Song Hwan came to his senses.

After coming to the emergency room, getting a simple examination, and receiving treatment, a lot of time had passed.

After calling the members so they wouldn’t worry and returning, Song Hwan had also sobered up.

So Dojae asked.

Why on earth did he do this?

‘I thought he might retaliate.’

When he left New Entertainment, or when he heard that Song Hwan had been kicked out of New Entertainment, he thought that Song Hwan might retaliate.

That’s why he had his mother quit her cleaning job at the building.

But since it was quieter than he thought, he assumed Song Hwan was too busy taking care of himself…….

“You, you. Do you think I’ll let you get away with this? I’m going to report you for assault.”

Song Hwan said something else in response to the question of why he attacked him.

Dojae let out a hollow laugh and pointed out the facts in a cold voice.

“I should be the one suing. You’re the one who attacked me drunk at night.”

“I’m the one who got hurt as a result……!”

“I was acting in self-defense. Can’t you even tell the difference? There are CCTVs in front of the building, and there’s also evidence that you bullied me before, so no matter how you look at it, I’m the one who should be suing.”

“Damn it!”

Song Hwan cursed for no reason. Dojae frowned.

“Now that I see it, it doesn’t seem like you had any thoughts in particular. Seeing you act like this, does that mean you’ve given up on becoming a singer altogether? Good thinking. Someone like you appearing on TV…….”

“It’s all because of you. You son of a bitch!”

Song Hwan interrupted Dojae and shouted.

He shouted so loudly that those in the emergency room looked at them.

“Patient! Be quiet! This is an emergency room.”

The nurse who was passing by scolded Song Hwan.

Song Hwan continued, panting.

“You’re the one who stopped me from debuting! You ruined my life! You son of a bitch.”

“You’re the one who ruined your life. You’re the one who bullied me.”

“Did you have to go this far just because you were ignored a little? If it weren’t for you…. I’d be on stage right now!”

It was absurd, but it was clear why Song Hwan had come to find Dojae after drinking so much that he was unconscious.

‘He must have been sick to his stomach seeing THE ORIGIN, which he belonged to, debut and be successful.’

Dojae frowned.

“When did you say you were just going to leave! Anyway, what you recorded…. It’s not a big deal, and the company can stop it enough. The company was going to debut me!”

Song Hwan’s words were unexpected.

No, Dojae thought so at first too.

That New Entertainment, with its low morals, might debut Song Hwan as he was.

“…But?”

“You kept threatening the company. Even Myungwoo…. So, so Myungwoo had no choice…….”

Threatening?

After leaving New Entertainment, Dojae never went near New Entertainment.

He never contacted Yoo Myungwoo.

After thinking for a moment, Dojae soon came to a conclusion and muttered pitifully.

“Even foolish and dull.”

“…What?”

For some reason, he felt sorry for ‘Kang Dojae’ for being taken advantage of by such a stupid guy.