Chapter 460

There were no journalists at the press conference who were blunt enough to ask me difficult questions.

After all, there were hundreds of fans gathered behind me, so who would have the courage to do that?

The questions were mostly predictable, and I answered them with a bit of lip service mixed in with what they wanted to hear.

How do you feel about winning the Fields Medal? I’m happy to be recognized.

There were opinions suggesting you would leave for America? I never said I would leave.

What are your goals for the upcoming national exchange tournament? Definitely to win.

Any greetings for your Korean fans? I hope everyone stays happy.

In this way, the press conference lasted about 10 minutes and was brief.

Since Yuna’s family offered to drive us home, we all moved toward the parking lot.

Along the way, we found Seoyun who had been left behind.

“How is Yoonseul unnie getting home?”

“I took a taxi here, so I have to take a taxi back.”

Upon hearing this, Yuna quietly grabbed Yoonseul’s collar and said,

“Unnie, then come with us. Our brother’s car can fit nine people, so there’s plenty of space.”

“Oh, I’m really okay though…”

“Yeah. Come with us. What’s the point of taking a taxi alone? Maru oppa is fine with it too, right?”

“Y-Yes! You’re always welcome!”

“Isn’t that a bit too enthusiastic?”

“I- I never said that!”

I may have hit a nerve, as Semaaru stumbled over his words.

Beep beep—

A black Carnival van honked from a distance and then stopped right in front of us.

The passenger window rolled down, and Yuna’s mother greeted us with a bright smile.

“Oh my, NaMe! I’m so happy to see you, it’s been so long!”

“Hello! How have you been?”

“Thanks to you, I’m extremely healthy. Hello to NaMe’s father as well. No-Eul, what are you doing? Hurry and open the door.”

“Just a moment, I’ve opened the door. You can get in now.”

Professor Cheon and Semaaru got in first, sitting in the middle seats, while Yuna, Yoonseul, and I sat in the back.

Seonoel, who was in the driver’s seat, turned around to look at us.

“Wow, NaMe, you don’t seem to have changed at all. Have you grown taller?”

“Yeah, oppa, you’ve lost quite a bit of weight.”

“Hey, that’s not true. No, Mom. NaMe is teasing your precious son.”

“Seonoel, when will you grow up? Hurry and start driving.”

“Ouch! That hurts!”

Thus, our noisy journey to home began.

Yuna’s mother mentioned that even after receiving a complete recovery diagnosis, she was steadily doing rehabilitation exercises to stay healthy.

Semaaru found work as an editor, which suited him well, and is also editing for another streamer, while Seonoel has entered physical education college.

According to my brothers, the most changed person was Seoyuna.

“Yuna has become totally bratty. I think she’s in her rebellious phase now. She’s always been like that with us, but last time she even snapped at Mom!”

“Um, back then Mom spilled water on my vocabulary book, and I lost it… It was the day before the exam!”

“Ah, I see. This way of speaking. Seoyuna is slowly showing her true colors.”

“You’re in elementary school and putting tints on your lips. Tsk, tsk, she doesn’t even realize she’s a student.”

“Haha, Maru, but actually Mom started wearing makeup from elementary school too.”

“See! Mom used to wear makeup when she was young! Are you dissing our Mom right now?”

“Oh, no! Mom, how could you reveal that…!”

Seoyuna was cornered by my brothers’ combined attack.

She narrowly escaped the attack from Mom’s playful teasing.

Mom laughed heartily and asked Professor Cheon,

“It’s true that Yuna has become quite assertive lately. What about you, NaMe? Do you not feel neglected at home?”

“Yeah, well, not yet.”

“You’re really blessed. NaMe is so gentle and nice.”

“Mom says I’m gentle. What do you think?”

“I’m not that gentle.”

I lightly acknowledged that much and moved on.

“Hahaha. Honestly, I’m already getting worried about NaMe’s upcoming teenage years.”

While the adults continued their talk, Yuna and Yoonseul were showing each other photos taken in America.

Yuna was sitting close to me, poking my cheeks with her hands.

“Ehh, Yuna, stop it!”

“Wow, NaMe, your skin is really nice.”

“Speaking of which, you also changed your hairstyle.”

“You just noticed that?”

“No more twin tails?”

Yuna grew her bangs long and swept them to the sides.

She twisted her hair with her fingers and said,

“Yeah. Honestly, I felt a bit embarrassed doing it… I think I look too young.”

“What do you mean too young?”

“No, no! If NaMe did it, it would look amazing! NaMe’s face is already a bit babyish.”

“Babyish?”

“Aha, NaMe, are you getting eaten up by your friends now?”

Yoonseul was clutching her stomach and laughing beside us.

At that moment, I thought maybe dropping out of the academy was a good choice.

Even though Yoonseul is technically older than me, if I were treated as younger by my classmates, I might fall into a pit of self-doubt.

“NaMe, can I sleep at your house tonight?”

“Hey, Seoyuna! NaMe just got back from America today; she needs some time to rest.”

“No, it’s okay. Do you want to come over?”

“Hmm… if I’m too tired today, I’ll just come over later.”

“Why wait until later? Come over today.”

“Really? Is it okay? Yay!”

Yuna turned around from her seat, knelt, and rummaged through the trunk.

Then she pulled out a teddy bear pajama and spread it out with both hands.

“Yay, good job bringing pajamas.”

“That’s the one I gifted you a long time ago. You still have it?”

“Yeah, hehehe.”

“NaMe, please tell Yuna to wear that only until today and then throw it away. It’s been two years old and the stains won’t come off, the sleeves are short.”

“Hmph, I like this the best.”

“It’s definitely looking worn. I’ll buy you a new one.”

“Yay, I love it! You’re the best, NaMe.”

Yuna was satisfied with the deal.

During this time, the car passed through a long tunnel densely packed with orange stars and entered a place crowded with buildings.

Once we entered the downtown area, my last memory was getting caught at a red light with a narrow margin.

As the conversations among everyone gradually decreased and the carbon dioxide concentration increased, I started to doze off.

While laughing, chatting, and sleeping, we had quietly arrived home.

“We have arrived. Can someone wake NaMe up?”

“Mmm… I’m not sleeping…”

Thud—

“Ugh, it’s bright!”

I was hit by the sudden indoor light.

“Those marks on your cheeks are quite noticeable.”

I quickly rubbed my cheeks with my hands to get rid of the marks.

The family all took bags out of the trunk and carried them up to the apartment.

“Thank you for bringing me. You must have worked hard.”

“NaMe, make sure to rest well at home. Yuna, you shouldn’t bug NaMe too much. We’ll be leaving now.”

“Okay.”

The group took the elevator down.

Seoyun said she had to get back to broadcasting and headed up the stairs.

“I wonder if Saetbyeol cleaned the house.”

“Is your sister at home now?”

“Yeah. You’ve never seen my sister, right? But why?”

“Just… what if she’s scary.”

“Right. You really are shy. She isn’t a scary person.”

Yuna is quite unique.

She can talk so freely with close friends but struggles to speak with strangers.

So I heard she can’t even place orders alone at restaurants.

Originally, kids who are sensitive to others’ opinions tend to have that tendency, but I’m sure she will eventually overcome it herself.

Ding ding—

“Saetbyeol! Come here and take the suitcase.”

I opened the entrance door and called for Saetbyeol.

Actually, there was no need to call her so hard; she was already waiting for us in front of the shoe rack.

What’s going on?

Puu— Puu—

A strange trumpet sound came from the house while I was taking off my sneakers.

“What the heck…!”

I turned my head in surprise only to see Saetbyeol blowing a toy trumpet.

“Congratulations on your safe return!”

But that wasn’t all.

She wore the tacky pants sold at the market, round Leon sunglasses, and a flower-patterned scarf on her head.

When Seoyuna entered behind her and saw this, she dropped the bag she was holding.

“Ugh. A-foreign person? NaMe, who is this?”

Saetbyeol, not expecting me to bring guests, dropped the plastic piece she had in her mouth.

“What in the world is this?”

Her dialect came out in a thick accent.

Oh no, I’m really embarrassed.

I slapped my forehead with my hand and shook my head.

She’s not scary; she’s just bizarre.

“I’m nobody. Call the police.”

* * *

For now, I left the luggage I brought from America in the suitcase without unpacking it.

With what’s already at home, I could live comfortably, and unpacking would be quite bothersome.

After a 12-hour flight, I washed off my sweaty hair and body so that I could come out feeling fresh.

While I was drying my hair, Saetbyeol and Yuna were inside my room having fun playing Nintendo together.

“Dodge! Dodge! Dodge! That’s it, NaShot! Come quickly and save me!”

“Ahhhh! I’m alive, unnie! Hehehe!”

“Hey, there’s someone behind you! Get away!!!”

As a game character died, Saetbyeol shivered and trembled as if she’d been electrocuted in great agony.

Are you really not electrocuted?

“NaMe, come and join us.”

“I’m not really into games that require finger dexterity.”

“If you don’t play, I won’t either.”

“Hey, buddy, that doesn’t make any sense. You must finish what you started!”

When I lay down on the bed, Yuna leapt up trying to dive onto me.

Before she attached herself to me, I wrapped the blanket around her face.

“Wop wop wop!”

“Saetbyeol, what’s with all these blankets on the floor? Why did you bring two pillows?”

“Yuna and I are going to sleep here. We even made a place for you in the middle.”

“Why should I have to sleep on the floor when there’s a perfectly good bed?”

Saetbyeol and Seoyuna.

Both of them are known for sleep talking quite a bit.

I can’t afford to have my precious sleep time disturbed.

“Phew! Why did it take you so long to shower? I thought I’d lose my voice waiting. If you’re not going to play the game, do you want to watch me dance?”

“She really dances well. This picky Saetbyeol acknowledges it, for real.”

“Really? Show me. What song should I put on?”

“The Escape High-Peak of Unnie’s ENVI!”

Ah, that song that kids love.

And it’s not limited to Korea; it’s a song I’ve also heard endlessly in America.

Of course, I mean it in the context of being sick of it, but the song itself is genuinely liked due to its addictive hook.

As the beat played, Yuna threw a serious expression, lowering her head.

The impactful intro kicked off with drums and vocals.

To the speedy moombatón rhythm, Yuna executed a stiff and precise choreography with her arms and legs.

“Wow, that’s awesome!”

Her dance didn’t last past the first verse and chorus, but it was enough to leave a strong impression.

“Hehe, that’s all for now.”

“Yuna, you really did well. When did you learn that?”

“After school. I signed up for broadcast dancing.”

“Good job, good job.”

“NaMe, look at this too. I collected this much of the ENVI unnie’s postcards.”

She had a lot to share.

Saetbyeol and I watched Yuna’s performance with satisfied expressions.

The way she babbled about which ENVI member is like what and what roles they have was quite adorable.

“Right. Originally, ENVI was supposed to debut as a five-member group, but one member left right before debut. Isn’t that sad? They could have been a famous idol group; if it were me, I would regret it every day.”

“Well, if it’s about Rika, she’s probably doing well.”

“Wait, that’s right! How did you know about Rika?”

“The unnie who sat next to me earlier was Rika. Kariri. Seoyun.”

“…!”

Yuna’s eyes widened, almost popping out of her head.

Saetbyeol also squinted, looking surprised.

“Our CEO almost debuted in ENVI?”

“Yeah. Didn’t you know?”

“No, I knew she was an idol trainee before but didn’t know it was the ENVI debut team. Ah, so that’s what happened with Chae Na.”

Anyway, that side of the industry seems to have a very complicated history.

One person left before debut, and another committed suicide.

Then they moved to a large agency, recruited new members, and successfully reformed it into a four-member group. This time, they succeeded in making the names of all members well-known.

Now they are undeniably a top-tier idol during college festivals.

It’s still too early to let Yuna know about such things, so I quietly admired the beautiful postcards.

“I’m definitely going to the ENVI unnie concert when I get older.”

“When you become an adult? How short is an idol’s lifespan? Will they still be around by then?”

Saetbyeol immediately made a heart-wrenching comment.

Yuna’s eyes glistened as her expression turned gloomy.

I suddenly thought of something and rummaged through my mailbox.

“What did you say the ENVI agency was?”

“Blue Sun Entertainment.”

“I got an email from them; do you want to go check it out together?”

“Huh? Really? Are they asking NaMe unnie to debut?”

“Not at all; there’s no way they would say that to me. I think they were asking for help filming a music video in April, but I didn’t look at it in detail.”

“NaMe, let’s definitely go! We have to go!”