The humiliation stopped her sobbing voice. Afterwards, the rabbit mask didn’t say anything and the rehearsal thus came to an end.

  ‘Some time or other’ became Kaeul’s song.

  On the way home, the kids congratulated Kaeul and noisily praised her, or cursed the rabbit mask. Whenever Yeorum displayed her discontentment, Gyeoul showed her agreement while Kaeul smiled like a puppy.

  However, she sometimes turned blank, seemingly worrying about something. It was probably related to Jung Yuran.

  The Regressor pondered whether he should have a 1-on-1 chat with her or not. If he were to have a chat, it would be in a way that would change her life a little, so he had to be prudent.

  In the dormitory, he continued thinking on the sofa when Bom walked up and sat next to him.

  “What are you thinking about?”


  “About Kaeul.”


  “Ah…”


  “Bom. Can I ask you something.”


  “Yes.”


  “Should I say it or not.”


  Bom widened her eyes.

  The question was way too out of context. It might be that Bom felt like an answer sheet for the Regressor.

  “What kind of question is that?”


  “What would you choose if you had to choose one.”


  “You have to say it.”


  “Why.”


  “Because no-one will know if you don’t say anything.”


  “It might be better for me to not say it though.”


  “…”


  Lifting her face up, she stared at the ceiling. It was unclear whether she was thinking about something or looking into Providence, but she remained silent for some time.

  “Do you trust me?” Breaking through the silence, she asked.

  “Of course.”


  “Can you trust us?”


  He needed to think about this question a bit, but after thinking about it, he realised that now he could.

  “I can.”


  “What if I’m wrong? I can’t always be correct either.”


  “It’s fine if you’re wrong. I won’t be blaming anything on you.”


  “So everything will be your responsibility, ahjussi?”


  “Yes.”


  “…”


  Bom looked at him with a slight pout before opening her mouth with a sigh.

  “I think, it’s better for you to say it.”


  “Really?”


  “Nn… if you’re worried, please console her. If she has to change, please help her and if you treasure her, please give her a quiet hug. That will be the best thing to do. I think.”


  Apparently, some green dragons tended to live like a soothsayer in Askalifa. Perhaps that was why, but although the words were like a riddle, the Regressor felt slightly more certain.

  “Thanks.”


  ***

  “Hehe. Chirp chirp~”


  Chirp chirp!

  An afternoon walk with the baby chicken. When Kaeul and the baby chicken were leaving the house for a walk, he followed them outside.

  Sitting on a bench, they stared at the setting sun painting the world in orange.

  “Did something happen? Why did you want to come with us?”


  When it was time to rest after walking for a long time, the blonde pair of eyes turned towards him.

  “Because there was something I needed to tell you.”


  “Nn? What is it?”


  Looking back,

  The Gold Dragon of the 4th iteration was also a child. A child that didn’t know anything, that debuted at the age of 18.

  The show business in the US was rather rough. Interpersonal relationships there couldn’t even be compared to Lair. Before her name value increased in size, there were questions about a casting couch and after she became famous, people tried to bring her down.

  Unlike hostile comments that were always shared through the media, interpersonal strifes tended to happen near her for a set period of time and the young 18-year old BY used to cry very often.

  He could remember her sobbing, ‘I don’t understand why everyone is doing this to me,’ to the counsellor.

  However, BY continued contemplating interpersonal relationships by herself. She pondered it and later fixed her words and her attitude. By the time she reached 25, she wasn’t easily hurt by others when dealing with other people.

  She had grown after countless wounds, events and contemplations.

  “Can you hold my hand.”


  Yu Jitae reached out to the child. Holding hands was something a little bit more special to the dragons so a question mark appeared in her eyes.

  “Your skin is too rough though…”


  “Just hold it for a bit.”


  “Okayy…!”


  While carrying the baby chicken in one hand, she held his hand with the other hand. Slowly and naturally, the dragon’s mana started seeping into his body and he didn’t stop it.

  “Are you worried?” he asked.

  “About wat?”


  “Her. Jung Yuran.”


  “Ah…”


  She nodded.

  “Yes… a little bit.”


  “Because of what she might say?”


  “Yes. I didn’t do anything wrong… but… I, did trust her.”


  “…”


  “Even though now I know that she’s not my friend, there’s still the feeling of betrayal… instead of getting mad, I want to run away if possible.”


  The ground hardens after the rain. Only after accepting countless roots that try to pierce into them can people turn strong enough and learn the art of not getting hurt in a conversation.

  If she wanted to live on, she had to learn it. Without a doubt, she would cry a lot and feel very hurt like BY.

  However, the Regressor didn’t want her to feel such things again. Therefore, he was planning on cheating a little.

  “I’ll tell you a story about a girl I know.”


  “A girl? Who is it?”


  “No need to know. Anyway, she was a softhearted girl. She cried while talking to other people and couldn’t sleep at night after getting swore at.”


  “Hehe. She had a weak mentality I guess.”


  “She did.”


  Yu Jitae brought back the memories of that time. Her conflict with the manager and the conflict with the company. Conflicts with fans that crossed the line and male singers that had vulgar thoughts. Conflicts with jealous older singers; conflicts with the song writer, choreographer, the vocal coach.

  – Sit. I’m telling you to sit.

  – Don’t you understand? What I, your employer, is saying?

  – Or are you looking down on me as well?

  As well as the conflict with him.

  Although she did go astray a little in the end, BY was very good at forming relationships both on the stage and behind the curtains. Not a single blemish was found from her until her parrot made a mistake.

  But that also meant that the media created false rumours and spread them to push a normal person down the drain.

  “…”


  With a vacant look on her face, Kaeul immersed herself into his story. Since she got absorbed in his memories and emotions, Kaeul was able to accept the story despite the Regressor’s words being all over the place.

  When the story finally ended, Kaeul asked him with a blank-minded look on her face.

  “Who is, that girl…?”


  He let go of the child’s hand.

  “Just someone I know. Why?”


  “I feel so sorry for her…”


  “Do you?”


  “Yes. She’s pitiful and… it must have been rough…”


  She patted the baby chicken that was dozing off. Her immersion was revealed behind her bright expression and Yu Jitae could see a reflection of the child from back then, which he had long forgotten.

  In any case, he had to tie a firm knot right now.

  “Can you promise me something?”


  “Sorry?”


  “What you’re feeling right now. Don’t bring it back lightheartedly.”


  “Uhh… this is a very burdensome emotion so I don’t think I can do that anyway but… then when should I bring it back?”


  “When someone is trying to hurt you, or when you have to sincerely say something to someone else. Otherwise, you shouldn’t reflect on what you’re feeling right now. Okay?”


  In response to his words, Kaeul stared at him with a blank expression. She then slightly lowered her head diagonally.

  A condescending gaze and a decadent smile appeared on her face.

  Soon, she opened her mouth.

  “…Why should I?”


  ***

  “Ayat!”


  After receiving a flick to her forehead, she chuckled out loud. “Was that obvious? It was a joke, a joke…! I’ll promise!” She said while lifting her pinky finger. Although he found such things meaningless, Yu Jitae still wrapped his little finger around her pinky.

  Yu Jitae started paying more attention to Kauel after that, but she was the same as always and also regained her bright smile like before.

  But that didn’t mean that she could avoid the inevitable event.

  One day, there was a message from the society that wanted everyone to gather. Kaeul had to go to the club room and Yu Jitae decided to follow from a distance.

  What was to come had come and Kaeul looked slightly anxious on the way there. After arriving at the club room, she was met with Jung Yuran who was chatting with other cadets.

  He stood far off in the corridor and stared at the two of them.

  He was slightly worried. The pressure felt from a conflict with another person. Being betrayed by a trusted friend, and being put in a situation where she might get hurt even more. Even if she immersed herself in BY, would she be able to properly deal with it?

  Yu Jitae watched with the mindset that he would immediately leave with her if anything went wrong.

  ‘You’re right. It was me.’


  However, the moment Kaeul opened her mouth and the confident expression from the past appeared on her face, his worry disappeared.

  Jung Yuran’s expression turned sharp like a blade.

  ‘You… I didn’t know you were like that. I’m really disappointed, Yu Kaeul.’


  She must have said something already to the other friends, and the other cadets also didn’t look very comfortable.

  ‘Then you must have been looking down on me a lot whenever I made you sing? Is that what you like doing? Making other people a fool?’


  ‘What are you saying. When did I do that?’


  Perhaps because Kaeul’s expression was unusual and different, people watched with a questioning gaze.

  ‘I didn’t like you from the start. You should stop acting pretty and foolish. Did you think no-one knew how you were swinging your tail to the boys?’


  Jung Yuran seemed to be thinking that it was the time to say everything and revealed everything that was on her mind. However, Kaeul was smiling – it was a scoff as if she knew it all along.

  ‘I knew it. I just found out how your mind was dirty, but I was a little bit surprised,’ said Kaeul.

  ‘What?’


  It was very obvious now but Kaeul was strange. The cadets that were watching from the side with nervousness also widened their eyes. Her bright tone of voice was still there but that instead made it feel even more bizarre.

  ‘You didn’t like me from the start? Don’t you think it was you who had the victim mindset instead of me swinging my tail?’


  ‘Yu Kaeul. Stop saying nonsense. What do you even know?’


  ‘Ahh, I see, so that was why. You made me sing because you wanted to force me into something you were good at and look down on me? How sad…’


  ‘You.’


  ‘I’m sorry. It’s because I’m not good at reading the mood. If I was, I would have kept on pretending to be a bad singer for you.’


  ‘You–! Can you shut your mouth?’


  ‘Stop shouting. Or your mother in heaven might hear it.’


  Kaeul’s sudden words that even cursed Jung Yuran’s mother caused the friends to cover their mouths in shock. ‘I think that’s going too far, Kaeul…’ said one of them.

  ‘Oh so you guys don’t know anything? About what happened between me and her at the PR department?’


  ‘Shut up. I told you to shut up!’


  She shouted.

  ‘Listen guys. So what happened two days ago is…’


  ‘Yu Kaeul! Why are you doing this to me…! What, what did I do wrong!!’


  It was unclear whether she was out of her mind or embarrassed, but Jung Yuran crouched and started weeping out loud.

  Yu Jitae didn’t know why she was suddenly like that, but Kaeul knew instinctively after immersing herself deeply into someone else, that Jung Yuran was crying intentionally.

  ‘Kaeul. What happened to you today.’


  ‘Calm down first… Yuran’s crying…’


  ‘I think you are both getting too emotional.’


  Suddenly, the atmosphere started making Kaeul the bad one. However, it was nothing more than a child’s play to BY who had to survive between the cracks of strong-willed women in the past.

  Drop–!

  Kaeul threw her drink over the crying girl’s head.

  ‘Can you guys please step aside? Unless you want to see me go crazy.’


  The plastic bottle crumpled and the drink splattered. Six other girls that were inside the club room were flustered and didn’t know what to do.

  Before they came to themselves, Kaeul approached the crying child and crouched near her. She then whispered into her ears.

  ‘Yuran. Should I tell you a secret?’


  ‘Back then, I was actually recording everything with my watch.’


  ‘Do you see my left wrist?’


  A startled gaze suddenly turned towards Kaeul’s wrist through the gaps between the fingers that were covering her face. Her sobbing voice also came to a stop. The screen was dark but upon closer inspection, she realised that everything was being recorded even now.

  The dumbfounded gaze looked up and met the gold pair of condescending eyes.

  Kaeul stared at her with an indifferent expression before whispering into her ears yet again.

  ‘Half a year is not a short time right?’


  ‘Don’t you have a lot of friends that love to blabber. Like you.’


  ‘Then who do you think I should give the recording to?’


  When Jung Yuran raised her head again, she found a pair of pitying eyes looking down at her.

  ‘Leave the club.’


  ‘And give up on the singing contest.’


  ‘Don’t come ever again, unless you want to become miserable.’


  Jung Yuran lowered her hands and there was a look of stupefaction on her face. With an indecent smile, Kaeul placed her lips near her ears and gave her a kiss.

  ‘It was fun.’


  *

  “Uhh… I must have been crazy… Like, like…! I wasn’t thinking of saying such shocking things, you know?!”


  On the way back, Kaeul jumped up and down.

  “What should I do? Ahjussi, don’t you also think I was being too harsh…?!”


  “No. You did well.”


  “Whaat? I did well? I said super harsh things to her…!”


  The Regressor patted her gold hair. Meanwhile, the baby chicken kept babbling on and on and repeatedly asked if it was okay or not, and he kept telling her that it was fine.

  He was completely uninterested in whether others got hurt or not.

  He wanted Kaeul to be unhurt,

  And today, she didn’t get hurt.

  “Next time, give them a slap as well.”


  The Regressor was therefore satisfied.