In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 271 

After the three-day mobilization training, Woojoo returned to reality.

He said goodbye to the people who were in the same squad as him and took a group photo. Then he looked for the people who were waiting for him.

“Long time no see, everyone!”

Their reaction to Woojoo’s return was strange.

The production staff with cameras and the siblings holding a placard that said ‘Looking for Jenmin’ widened their eyes.

Bijoo pointed at Woojoo’s face with his finger.

“My face? What’s wrong with my face?”

“No, your face…” Bijoo said with a surprised face, “It got much better in three days. Your skin looks soft and shiny.”

“Wow. The dermatologists couldn’t do what the reserve army did.”

“You were shocked for a moment, right? I changed so much.”

Woojoo laughed cheerfully at the siblings’ words.

He was happy to receive compliments, as a narcissist, but it was also thanks to eating well and sleeping well for three days.

He felt vitality in his body.

“Do you want to join the army if you’re jealous? PD-nim, there’s still room, right?”

“Of course.”

When Woojoo turned around and asked ‘How about it?’ the three of them waved their hands with disgusted faces.

Then they all laughed.

Woojoo was in a good mood, and the siblings seemed to be in a good mood too.

The sky was clear without a single cloud.

After the ‘Men Go’ production staff filmed the necessary scenes, Woojoo picked up his phone and checked the weekly schedule.

“I feel really good. What should I do now? First, I’ll check the work status of the A&R Team and the composers…”

“You won’t be able to meet the A&R Team members. They all took a leave of absence from today.”

“Why did they take it today of all days? That’s too bad.”

Then he would just meet the composers. Whatever.

Woojoo gave them the studio and asked them to do some supplementary work while he was away.

He was excited to see the results.

“I’m having fun! Ha ha!”

“Are you okay? You didn’t hit your head or anything, did you?”

“I’ll take a look.”

The guys who examined Woojoo’s head came to a conclusion.

“But your head is really pretty.”

“Woojoo Hyung’s head is always round…”

“What do you mean by head? His head is the size of a pea.”

Woojoo smiled happily at Rihyuk’s crooked compliment.

The siblings also looked good after sleeping enough for three days.

Everyone had a refreshing expression.

There was only one thing he regretted…

“This… It’s a bit weird without Junghyun.”

“Yeah. It feels a bit empty without him, right?”

“Well. We’re going to see him soon, right?”

They nodded their heads.

The schedule was packed.

The first schedule was to go and pick up Junghyun.

A certain unit in Gyeonggi-do.

They stood with their hands on their chests, along with the ‘Men Go’ production staff.

“He should be out by now, why isn’t he coming out?”

“There’s nothing wrong, right?”

“But did he do well in the training? I’m worried.”

It was like waiting for a child in front of the college entrance exam site.

But they weren’t worried about Junghyun.

“Hanjo-ssi is secretly weak, the members said.”

“Yeah. He has a flea-like stamina.”

“It doesn’t seem like someone else’s business.”

“I’m worried. Namu Hyung said Hanjo-ssi’s muscles are balloon muscles. He shrinks if he doesn’t drink enough water.”

They whispered to each other, conscious of the production staff.

“When are they coming?”

“They said they might be late. The new manager put the wrong navigation,” Jiho whispered as he looked at his phone.

The writer laughed at their anxious appearance.

“Are you worried about Junghyun?”

“No, we’re worried about Hanjo-ssi right now.”

The writer looked at them with a ‘Oh, you’re taking care of the other group too?’ expression.

‘I think you’re misunderstanding something.’

‘You don’t know Junghyun Hyung yet, do you?’

‘He’s the kind of person who would knock down a power pole if he bumped into it…’

They exchanged glances with each other.

Soon, they heard a buzzing sound from inside the camp beyond the infirmary.

Their main vocal, who had sensitive ears, picked up the voice.

“It sounds like a bear talking in a cave.”

“It’s Junghyun!”

They were getting ready to shake the placard that said ‘Junghyun & Hanjo, good job’.

The production crew with the camera surrounded the two trainees and the instructor who came out.

“Junghyun-ah!”

“Hanjo-ssi!”

They turned their heads.

They expected them to wave back at them, but they only greeted them with their eyes.

They looked stiff, like fresh recruits who had just left the training center.

Of course, there was a difference between them.

Unlike Hanjo, who was tense, Junghyun looked relaxed. He had the vibe of a newly commissioned officer or a non-commissioned officer, rather than a recruit.

He smiled leisurely whenever the instructor said something.

Finally, they ran to them as they came out of the main gate.

“Junghyun-ah!”

“Hanjo-ssi!”

They surrounded them at the same time, feeling sorry for Hanjo who had no members, and played rock-paper-scissors while saying ‘Ya-ya~ Ya-ya-ya-ya!’.

The instructor who was watching them said goodbye.

“You guys did a great job.”

“Yes!”

“You did really well. And… I hope you show a good image on ‘Men Go’ in the future. And Junghyun-ssi.”

“Yes.”

The instructor raised his thumb.

“You’re the best soldier I’ve ever seen. If you weren’t a celebrity, I would have asked you to join our unit.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re the first perfect soldier I’ve ever seen. Everything you do is flawless. You have a great military spirit. Oh, what a waste…”

He looked at Junghyun with a greedy expression, saying ‘You have a military aptitude’.

They looked at each other, wondering if they heard wrong.

Woojoo was less surprised because he had heard some rumors during the mobilization training, but their kids were making ‘What… what are you talking about?’ faces in real time.

Forget about the angle. He was armed with a military spirit.

It was absurd.

The person who suited the word ‘free lunch’ more than ‘mental armament’ was their kid.

They were all confused when Junghyun introduced Woojoo as ‘This is Woojoo Hyung’.

“Woojoo?”

The instructor muttered.

Whack!

Woojoo was startled by his head turning like a tank turret at 90 degrees. He came close to Woojoo and blinked his eyes.

“Woojoo?”

“Yes, I’m Woojoo…”

“The famous Woojoo-ssi!”

He grabbed Woojoo and praised him, saying that it would have been nice if he had lived in his unit during his active duty, and talked for a long time.

What was going on?

As Woojoo stood there blankly, the instructor turned his head from him and looked at the two trainees.

“Then I hope to see you again if I can. You worked hard for a few days.”

“Salute!”

When Hanjo and Junghyun saluted, the instructor lightly returned it and walked away.

Then Hanjo breathed a sigh of relief and they welcomed him warmly.

“You did a great job!”

“You worked hard. It must have been tough, right?”

“How was it, the army? Tell us some army stories.”

Hanjo opened his lips first, curious about their growing children.

He had a smile that seemed detached.

It seemed like his soul was leaving and coming back every time he breathed.

“Woojoo-ssi…”

He called Woojoo with a voice that clenched his teeth.

Eek.

Woojoo tried to dodge quickly, but failed. His siblings pushed him from behind, as if they wanted me to be eaten.

Woojoo faced him reluctantly.

“Ha, Hanjo-ssi…”

“Woojoo-ssi.”

“Le-let’s calm down first. Let’s speak in our language.”

“Can I grab your collar?”

Woojoo nodded at his calm request. Hanjo grabbed his shoulder and shook him lightly.

“Ahhhh. Seriously, I won’t let you off easy.”

“I’m sorry…”

Their siblings looked deflated by his gentle revenge.

Hanjo said with a sad face, “I came here thinking it was a training camp. I was in that mood…”

“No?”

“Not at all. This…”

He didn’t say anything, conscious of the production team, but his eyes said it all.

While they were chatting loudly for lonely Hanjo, the two cars they had been waiting for arrived.

Rattle.

The car doors opened at the same time.

A mischievous face popped out.

“Na-nim is here…!”

The rough faces that followed him shouted.

“Aww, how embarrassing! Go back in, persimmon!”

“Persimmon goes in.”

“Don’t misunderstand! We don’t know them!”

Someone was pushed back in and the muscle men started to get off.

“Lee Hyunjo!”

“Hyunjo! Are you okay?”

“Oh no! Oh no! Our Lee Hyunjo’s face is all shaved!”

Hanjo muttered with a detached face, “…They don’t even call me Hyung anymore.”

Eight people ran up and hugged Hanjo.

While the camera covered their aftermath, they exchanged glances and left with Junghyun.

“Junghyun, eat this jelly.”

“Oh. Thank you.”

Junghyun’s face warmed up with a smile as he took the jelly bags they handed him by type.

With one hand gesture, the bear opened the bags at the same time and slurped the jelly.

“How was it? Was it okay?”

“Hmm…”

Junghyun recalled the past and nodded.

“Yes, it was better than I thought.”

“…Better?”

“They said they gave me sausages on purpose because they were filming. The production team liked it every time I reacted to eating.”

“No, not the food. The training…”

“Oh.”

Junghyun thought hard.

“It was doable. Every time I did something, the instructor praised me with sparkling eyes. He said he wanted to do pile-driving with me.”

“He meant pile-driving, right?”

“That’s not pile-driving?”

“…No, it’s not. I’ll explain it to you when we get home.”

“No.”

This time, the crane intervened with a flap.

“It’s not home, it’s the dorm.”

“Rihyuk is in the car with Namu.”

Rihyuk pouted his lips unhappily.

As they were going back to the car with someone who was slurping jelly, Woojoo remembered something he had forgotten.

“Hey, wait a minute. Junghyun.”

“Yes?”

“I was wondering because his reaction was weird earlier, what did you say to him there?”

“I didn’t say much. Just mentioned you once or twice during the training.”

That didn’t seem like the reason for his reaction.

Woojoo gave up on asking more because their kid was notorious for being bad at explaining.

Woojoo just squinted his eyes as he watched Junghyun calmly say ‘jelly is good’.

“You didn’t say anything that would make my image weird, did you?”

“Of course not.”

Junghyun made his eyes round as if to ask Woojoo to trust him.

“I have a lot of good stories to tell you.”

▶ [Men Go – Junghyun and Hanjo Basic Training Tape #1]

#1.

[Junghyun, who performed the required PT movement perfectly, stands firmly in front of the instructor.]

Instructor: Well done, Trainee.

Junghyun: Thank you.

Instructor: Your movement was flawless. Is it something you practiced often?

Junghyun: Yes, I learned it from Woojoo Hyung, who is in the same group as me!

Instructor: Woojoo…?

#2.

[During the shooting skills pre-training (PRI), the instructor pauses when he sees Junghyun lying down and shooting.]

Instructor: Did you learn this movement beforehand?

Junghyun: Yes, I learned it from watching Woojoo Hyung shoot for prizes.

Instructor: …Did you lie down and shoot just to get a doll?

Junghyun: Yes! I held it horizontally for him!

Instructor: …

#3.

[After the training, the instructor, who was instilling military spirit in the absent-minded Hanjo, looked at Junghyun standing at attention.]

Instructor: Trainee. What were you thinking earlier?

Junghyun: I wasn’t thinking anything.

Instructor: You weren’t thinking anything?

Junghyun: Yes! I thought I should do whatever the instructor tells me to do.

Instructor: …Excellent. Where did you learn such a spirit? Is this also from Woojoo Hyung?

Junghyun: Yes. That’s right.

Instructor: (Satisfied)

As those scenes flashed by on the monitor, silence fell over the editing room.

The assistant director blinked his eyes.

‘What the hell is going on in New Black?’

He somehow imagined Woojoo whipping the members and saying, ‘Ha ha! Obey my command!’

Of course, that wasn’t true, but it wasn’t completely wrong either.

For someone.

“Huuuuuuu…”

“Are you tired?”

“Huui, nohohohoho…”

A dazed laughter rang in his ears.

“Have some red ginseng. Red ginseng.”

The composer, Na Sangyoon, teared up at the red ginseng Woojoo handed him.

He looked good when they met after finishing the mobilization training. His cheeks had hollowed out in no time since they met.

Now he looked like a dried worm in the sun.

“Is it hard to work with me?”

“Um, no? That’s not it. I’m really happy to work with you, Woojoo.”

The composer, who was inhaling the red ginseng little by little, gave a faint smile.

“People like me who have no connections and no skills in the industry, it’s rare to have a chance to work while being treated like a human being. I really like that part. It feels like I’m really making music when I work with you, Woojoo.”

“I’m glad. I was a little worried. I’m glad you’re not tired.”

“…Yes?”

“Good.”

Woojoo rubbed his palms and reached out for a high-five.

“Shall we sprint then~?”

“…”

“Fighting?”

“Yeees…”

Woojoo recharged him with delicious drinks and coffee while preparing for the album.

It was fast because he used external manpower.

At this rate, if Junghyun joined them… If they worked together, it would be over by the middle of next month.

Woojoo checked the progress of the album while stopping by the company from time to time.

He went to a local specialty event and sang trot with the elders.

He visited the pediatric ward where Bijoo’s younger brother Minjun was hospitalized and performed for the children there.

It was thanks to Professor Choi, who contacted him after a long time.

-Could you please do a short performance for the children if you have time or if it’s possible?

Woojoo agreed to do it as a goodwill ambassador for a good campaign proposed by the hospital.

The performance format was improvisational theater.

Junghyun was the tin woodman, Jihyo was Dorothy. Ryuk was the stepmother. Bijoo was the goblin and Woojoo was the talking goblin stick.

“Hi, I’m a talking goblin club.”

“How can a club talk?”

“Your words hurt my heart, Madam. I have human rights too.”

The theme was human rights.

They improvised most of the performance, but the kids laughed and the parents joined them. It seemed like they had captured their interest.

After the show, they also had some time to do fan service for the kids.

“Who are you guys?”

“History Discovery, right?”

“I don’t know!”

“…You don’t?”

It was an educational program made for kids, but somehow the adults seemed to know it better.

Woojoo figured they wouldn’t know even if he told them, so he just imitated some famous characters and played with them.

Because of that, by the end of the event, all the kids were following them around like chicks.

It was a fun experience in many ways.

“Here, take this. My father asked me to deliver it to you.”

Woojoo also received a gift from Professor Choi Yongjae.

It was meat that Grandpa Choi Ikhyun, whom he had saved, had sent to their members.

He also said that he was working hard to promote New Black at the nursing home, which made them smile.

After taking the beef set, Woojoo’s steps were very light.

“That’s how the world works. Good deeds bring good results, and bad deeds bring bad ones.”

“We’re in trouble.”

“Why?”

“You did a lot of bad things to the A&R Team, didn’t you?”

“Jiho, you just eat soup or soy sauce braised here.”

“Then you don’t eat the spicy chicken ribs that my dad sent.”

They had a friendly conversation and crossed off one big schedule after another from the list.

The last one was PBS’s ‘Music On – 2015 Mid-Year Review.’

It was a time to invite the singers who ranked first in the first half of the year and show their stages, and they recorded it in advance on a separate stage with a fancy stage device.

“Wow…!”

The waving light sticks in the dark were so bright, beautiful, and dazzling.

“Guys, guys, I’m crying.”

“Me too.”

“It’s so bright…”

The moonlight was so bright.

The singers cried, the fans cried, and the staff nearby cried.

After a few trials and errors, they concluded that the third level out of ten was appropriate.

On the other hand, the mid-year review was a meaningful time for both the Soufflé and all of them.

They showed their changed position to other fandoms.

As the singers changed, titles like ‘1st place in the 1st week of February’ or ‘1st place in the 2nd and 3rd week of March’ popped up above the song titles, but their Windflower made the other singers and fandoms pause.

【1st place in the 4th week of April & 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th week of May】

▷ New Black – Windflower

They had three lines when others had one.

It was like the title of a king who was ‘the dignified king of the kingdom, the guardian of the land of something, and the lawful something’.

It was the first time Woojoo felt like a king of the end as they walked around.

He felt the taste of success.

But the best part of the mid-year review was not that success, but the time they spent with Soufflé at the mini fan meeting.

There was no happier moment in the world than when the singer and the fan looked into each other’s eyes and felt connected.

“Okay, let’s try it when I count to three!”

“Yes!”

“Here we go. One, two, three!”

The singer and the fan shouted together.

“Soufflé!”

“New Black!”

They held their light sticks like a ‘cross’.

“Yap!”

“Yap!”

Flash-

They closed their eyes and shook their king sticks, and Soufflé also closed their eyes and shook their Kim Bongdal enthusiastically.

Oh, the moonlight. Well.

The pedestrians walking on the street stopped and looked at them with a bewildered expression.

There was someone who was filming in the middle, so maybe they would see a title like ‘The Frenzy of Idol Flash Mob’ on YouTube.

And then it was so funny.

They laughed and talked with hundreds of fans for a long time and decorated the end of the first half.

All the major schedules had passed and the heat of Windflower that sang of spring was slowly fading away.

The days were getting more humid and hot.

People’s clothes were getting lighter, and the news was talking about the heat wave and monsoon for this summer.

Finally, the recording of ‘Men Go’ was approaching.

But…

“What? Where?”

“Where, sir?”

The meeting place that the production team had told Seokhwan Hyung was somewhere Woojoo never expected.

“…Airport?”

Junghyun blinked at the following story.

"They told us to bring our passports too?

“Passports? Why?”

“You guys take a look.”

Seokhwan Hyung showed them the message from the production team and Junghyun and Woojoo blinked.

Airport.

The place where they would shoot the opening of the recording was Incheon Airport.