Prism, which formed with Seo Yutae as the center, had been known for its professionalism and tenacity since their rookie days.
[Prism sunbaenims are dancing like they’re about to break their bodies, but look at these juniors half-assing it lol]
[Wow, their tenacity is insane hahaha. How much must they have practiced? The stage conditions are that terrible, but they’re not even fazed by it]
First of all, since they were the members personally chosen by the Seo Yutae, their diligence was a given. On top of that, each of them had such intense ambition and pride in their work that even when practical problems arose, they gritted their teeth and pushed through on sheer willpower. It was no wonder that a rumor spread throughout the entire industry that they were a group of ruthless, tenacious guys.
Even within such Prism, if someone asked Seo Yutae, “Who’s the most tenacious member?”, his answer would often change depending on the time and situation. Still, the name that came up the most was Yoo Jay.
“I have no idea when that damn brat will finally learn to listen.”
“I did once tell Yoo Jay to just work himself to death, but sometimes that guy takes it a bit too far.”
Prism’s fiery tenacity certainly stemmed from its leader, Seo Yutae. However, he wasn’t the kind of leader who threw himself blindly into everything. He approached decisions with a cool head, carefully weighing the pros and cons to choose the most efficient course. For example, if a member’s condition wasn’t ideal, he would postpone any non‑urgent schedules and allow time for rest, ensuring they could deliver a high‑quality performance.
Jo Inchan was also one of the members Seo Yutae considered exceptionally diligent. However, he was the type to quickly comply whenever Seo Yutae told him, “Don’t go on stage”, and because he often practiced alone out of sight, there weren’t many occasions for Seo Yutae to rein him in.
“You’ve got a fever, you crazy bastard.”
“…I’m still going to do it.”
“Somebody smack him on the back of the head, knock him out.”
“Bright and bubbly 23‑year‑old Nam Yihwon, volunteering!”
Yoo Jay was the type who couldn’t be satisfied unless he followed through on whatever he set his mind to, no matter what anyone said. He was stubborn enough to insist he’d rather collapse on stage than not perform at all. So, when the same Yoo Jay, who once tried to go on stage with a blazing fever, failed to appear for a schedule, there was no way Seo Yutae would take it lightly.
The members of Prism had this baseless confidence that as long as they didn’t explain Jay’s condition themselves, Seo Yutae wouldn’t find out anything. However, in reality, the moment he saw the article saying Yoo Jay had missed a schedule, Seo Yutae immediately grasped the situation.
Something had happened to Yoo Jay, serious enough to make him lose consciousness, and those insolent brats were actually trying to hide it from him. He didn’t even need Choi Jeokhyeon’s help to figure it out.
The members of Prism, realizing it too late, began to tremble in fear.
“I should have gotten a four-person room instead of a single…….”
A foolish guy, regretting not securing a civilian witness in advance.
“Namu Amitabha. Amen.”
An audacious guy, calling on gods he’d never even believed in, as if that counted as a prayer meta.1
“Everyone, focus. This is the only way we can survive.”
There were all sorts, and among them was a brave guy with the admirable courage to try to find a way to survive even just a minute longer.
Among the three who came first in age order, Jo Inchan and Yoo Jay’s eyes turned to the last person, the only one who still had some semblance of hope.
The blue-haired man cleared his throat, grabbed Jay’s shoulder, and spoke in a voice full of desperation.
“Jay-ya, you’re in so much pain right now. It hurts so much you feel like you’re going to lose your mind. Even when you’re just lying still, it’s all ‘ow, ow’, so you really need to rest properly.”
“…It doesn’t hurt that bad. The painkillers make it bearable. After finally getting some sleep, I actually feel healthier than I did before I collapsed. You know that, hyung. Wasn’t that why you were teasing me earlier about not being able to eat?”
“Shh, my baby fox. Don’t say another word, or you’ll hurt yourself. You’ve got a hole in your stomach. You just had surgery. Of course it hurts.”
As he rambled nonsense into the empty air, Nam Yihwon muttered loud enough for everyone to hear, “Has hyung gone crazy from fear?”, but Lee Chise showed no reaction and calmly laid out his irrational plan.
“First, Jo Inchan, stand in front of the door. When hyung arrives, you have to be the first to talk to him. Greet him nicely and try to keep the conversation going as much as you can. It’s okay if you have to cling to him and physically block him. He won’t be too harsh with you, so you’ll be fine. Now repeat after me, I am the breakwater.”2
“…I, I am the breakwater.”
“Good. Once Jo Inchan calms hyung’s fury a little, I’ll try chatting to make him feel even a bit better. Woon-hyung, you should calmly explain the situation step by step. Maybe just say, ‘We didn’t contact you because we were worried you might be too tired’. You know if you stammer or if what you say doesn’t add up, there’s no turning back, right? And Nam Yihwon……”
“And me?”
“You just stay hidden somewhere out of sight. Don’t make a sound.”
“No, why is it always me? What did I even do?”
Suddenly being told to just stay quiet, Nam Yihwon got a bit irritated and started arguing, but Lee Chise just winked at him and responded with confidence.
“With you, it seems like hyung’s going to get angry just by you opening your mouth.”
BANG!
Before anyone could even argue against that unbelievably unfair remark, a terrifying sound suddenly broke out.
At the sound, which was presumed to be someone roughly placing their hand above the door, all the Prism members stiffened in tension. Then, as if straight from a horror movie, the door slowly slid open.
Seo Yutae stepped silently into the hospital room.
“…Hyu-hyung…….”
The Prism members were all bracing for Seo Yutae to storm in shouting and swearing, but instead, he simply scanned the members in silence, and the tension in the room became unbearable. It was only after Lee Chise gave a subtle signal that the Breakwater finally came to his senses and hurried toward Seo Yutae. But the moment those dark, lifeless eyes locked onto him, he immediately lost his courage and backed away timidly.
“…….”
Watching Jo Inchan get subdued by a single gaze, the Prism members instinctively shut their eyes, realizing their plan had been doomed from the start.
Seeing Seo Yutae neither shove Jo Inchan away nor push him aside, but merely shoo him off with the back of his arm, they realized that if Jo Inchan had been bold enough to cling and act cutesy without shame, it might actually have worked. But there was no way Jo Inchan had that kind of guts. Seo Yutae was soft on him precisely because he wasn’t the type to act that way.
In the end, all they could do was pray that Seo Yutae’s suffocating, murderous gaze wouldn’t turn on them.
“Your body.”
“I’m fine now.”
“…Really?”
The very first thing Seo Yutae did was check on Yoo Jay’s condition. The members tensed as his gaze traveled down each IV line hanging from him. Yoo Jay quickly answered, but Seo Yutae hardly seemed to listen. Instead, he reached out with a swift, unhesitating hand and yanked the blanket off.
And after confirming the surgical scar, he slowly blinked.
Seo Yutae was, in his own way, desperately holding back his anger.
“Woon-ah.”
“Yes.”
Hearing his name called without the usual surname and in a voice that, by his standards, was affectionate, Cha Woon suddenly found a memory flashing through his mind like a phantasmagoria.
“Hyung, why is it that when you’re really mad, you call us without our surnames? You normally talk in that blunt way, always calling us by our full names, like Cha Woon, Cha Woon, every time.”
“Ah, if I don’t do that…….”
“If you don’t?”
“I’m afraid I might forget you’re my cubs and want to kill you all…….”
If he really meant that, didn’t it mean Seo Yutae wanted to kill them right now? The thought made his stomach drop, and a cold sweat ran down his back. Whether he sensed his fear or not, Seo Yutae spoke in a calm, subdued voice.
“I told you over and over, didn’t I? If you’re not confident you can fool me perfectly, don’t even think about tricking me from the start.”
“…You did say that.”
“Do I have to find out what happened to you guys from the news? Seriously, me?”
“No…….”
“And I’m supposed to accept that every call I make just gets ignored?”
“No.”
“Then why did you act like that when you knew better?”
“We just … thought you were busy your concert preparations, so we didn’t want to make you worry for no reason, hyung…….”
“Do you see me as someone so awful that I’d be happy finishing a concert without even knowing one of my members was sick?”
In the icy, frozen atmosphere, the only thing that could be heard was the eldest getting chewed out on everyone’s behalf. There’s hardly a situation more terrifying or guilt‑inducing than this. Five big, broad‑shouldered guys groveling before one skinny boy … anyone watching might have even found it a bit amusing.
“…I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking it through. I won’t do it again.”
Despite looking so dejected he seemed on the verge of whimpering, Cha Woon still never said, “Jay told me not to say anything”. Even though it wasn’t entirely his fault, he seemed intent on taking all the blame himself. Perhaps that sight softened Seo Yutae a little, because only then did the harsh atmosphere ease as he let out a quiet sigh.
Then, when he turned his head and spotted Nam Yihwon huddled in the corner, his face twisted into an obvious scowl.
“What the hell are you wearing this time?”
Because what Nam Yihwon was wearing couldn’t possibly be considered proper attire for a hospital visit—it was straight‑up sportswear. At Seo Yutae’s words, Nam Yihwon lowered his head and gave himself a quick once‑over.
He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly before answering, “…I was in the middle of working out when I suddenly got the call that the kid had collapsed, so I had no choice.”
“Ah, right. I’m the only idiot who was kept in the dark, huh?”
Sensing that the topic Cha Woon had worked so hard to bury was about to resurface, the members’ murderous gazes instantly locked onto Nam Yihwon’s face. Realizing his slip, he let out a silent “Oops” and clung to Seo Yutae’s arm, putting on his cutest act.
“Nooo, why are we back on that topic again?”
“Get back in.”
But Seo Yutae’s reaction was frosty.
“Eung…….”
“He doesn’t just get angry when I open my mouth. He even gets angry just for making eye contact.” Muttering that to himself, Nam Yihwon nodded and shoved his big frame back into the corner as he was told. The sight, which looked like he was being put in a time‑out chair3, made it hard for Lee Chise to suppress a laugh at such an ill‑timed moment, and he had to grit his teeth.
“Do you have any idea how I felt when I couldn’t reach you guys?”
But as soon as Seo Yutae spoke again, the smile disappeared from his face, and he dropped his head low.
Indeed, with what state of mind must Seo Yutae have spent his days from the moment the article came out until now? He must have felt as if his insides were burning, just like how Yoo Jay had been staying up all night worrying about him ever since that day.
Likewise, Yoo Jay seemed to have caught on. He kept his head lowered, drew in a sudden, deep breath as if steeling himself, and finally opened his mouth.
“I’m sorry, hyung. I asked the hyungs not to tell you.”
“I figured. If you hadn’t told them not to, these bastards would’ve come tattling to me a long time ago.”
As soon as he confessed the truth, the reply came without a moment’s hesitation. His words hit hard, as if he could see right through everything. Yoo Jay froze for a moment, then thought to himself, ‘Right … this is just the kind of person he is’, stifling a hollow laugh before continuing.
“Do you remember? When I suddenly showed up at Lee Saehwa’s house … Back then, after parting ways with you like that, I was really lost. I felt like I was completely useless, and the more I tried to help you, hyung, the more it felt like I was only making things harder for you.”
“…….”
“…And that’s why my condition went downhill too.”
When he honestly confessed the reason his condition had deteriorated, Seo Yutae’s shoulders flinched, then went still.
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Translator’s Corner:
“Do you have any idea-” uh, not trying to disturb your fury, Yutae-ya, but I think they do have the idea ???? please reflect….
This chapter is very funny to imagine. Remember this is not Yutae in his body He’s in Han Seungbeom’s beautiful, Cha Eunwoo-like, body … meanwhile Prism look like a group of athletes
Also I was rereading from chapter 1 and omg … there are typos … and awkward sentences ….. i’m going to die from shame …. they’re right about if you want quantity, you have to sacrifice quality …. i can’t believe i made that many mistakes and didn’t realize it all this time asdfghjkl
And happy 365 chapters … it felt like a year has passed since it’s 365 ….
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