translation by mourningmoor
Hanjoon carried PD Choi on his back and ran all the way to the camp.
But the camp was even worse.
From the smell of the wind, it seemed like rain clouds were approaching, but the roof to shelter from the rain still wasn’t finished. Plus, the campfire hadn’t even been lit yet.
One of those things needed to be done to avoid feeling sorry.
So I made a small move.
The moment Hanjoon, carrying PD Choi, ran into the camp, I used the opportunity to throw fire into the campfire. Lee Hanwoo must have thought it was me because he was struggling to start the fire.
Well, even if the timing seemed off and it was strange that the fire started, the situation was too urgent to dwell on it.
After all, PD Choi, one of the pillars of King of the Jungle, had collapsed.
Lee Hanwoo slapped PD Choi’s cheek, but he still didn’t come to his senses.
“Is he really just fainted? Not bitten by a snake?”
Hanwoo fussed, saying that we needed to know that to administer proper treatment.
That’s when Jaewon stepped in.
“They did meet eyes with the snake, but he wasn’t bitten.”
“…?”
Earlier, Jaewon had acted like he was about to faint, but now he had regained his composure and added his input.
“He just looked at it and fainted.”
“He fainted just from looking at the snake?”
“Yeah, the snake was…”
Jaewon made a snake head shape with his hands and explained what happened in the forest.
“It was squirming up the tree like it was dancing, and seeing that, Hanjoon-hyung screamed.”
Hanjoon, out of breath from running while carrying PD Choi, collapsed onto the ground, waving his hand weakly.
“Scream? What are you talking about? I was just warning that it was dangerous. It was right next to Ichan’s face!”
For a regular person, it would have been a dangerous moment.
“From the way it raised its head, it was about to attack, you know?”
That was true too. At first, the snake had raised its head and was approaching, looking for the right time to attack. But then it realized it had chosen the wrong opponent and was about to retreat.
“Wow, but then…”
As Hanjoon started, Jaewon quickly took over.
“Ichan-hyung grabbed its jaw with his bare hands.”
Jaewon stretched his hand out to the side, pretending to grab something, then mimicked throwing it like in baseball.
“He threw it so far away!”
Everyone stood there, mouths agape. Most of them were looking at Jaewon and me in disbelief, as if they couldn’t believe it.
“Hyung, are you alright?”
Even so, Roa and Siu seemed to believe Jaewon’s words.
“Didn’t it bite you?”
They rushed to me, checking if I was alright.
Now, breathing a little easier, Hanjoon shook the sand off himself and stood up.
“If he got bitten, do you think he’d be fine like that?”
Then, he quietly approached and sat down next to me.
This guy instinctively realized that in order to survive in the jungle, he had to stick by my side. So did Jaewon.
Even without using an ear-binding spell to control the shadows, both of them stuck close to me, as if they were one body, not separating from me.
Things were heading in a rather bothersome direction.
Still, it was a hundred times better than running around recklessly and causing problems, so staying cautious and close was for the best.
At least I wouldn’t get the image of being a troublemaker.
We needed to build an image as versatile, adaptive idols.
“It looks like it’s going to rain, so think of a way to keep the fire going. I’ll go get some leaves.”
I forcefully separated Jaewon and Hanjoon, gave them some tasks, and went back into the forest.
Roa and Siu followed me.
I really hope these two don’t get too panicked. Please.
* * *
It was unexpected.
Hanjoon and Jaewon, who seemed like carnivores, were busy screaming and making a fuss, while Siu and Roa, who seemed like herbivores, were fearless.
To be precise, it wasn’t that they were fearless, but they were generally calm.
So, when told to do something, they moved carefully and did their tasks as instructed. In the process, they even discovered Roa’s unique talent.
He was good at climbing trees.
Roa, who didn’t seem to know he had such a talent, climbed the tree with excitement.
Thanks to that, they were able to gather a few coconuts.
While Roa was climbing the tree, Siu collected so many leaves that they had enough to use as a roof and to spread on the ground.
I should’ve brought these two earlier.
When we returned to the camp, things were progressing well here too.
In the meantime, Hanjoon had managed to build up the fire, and Jaewon, who was quite skilled with his hands, had woven the surrounding leaves to create a barrier to protect the bonfire.
Seeing the pride on their faces, it seemed they were feeling a sense of accomplishment.
To think they’d make such expressions over something like this—truly, the members off-stage are nothing to scoff at. They don’t know how to embellish things, nor do they know how to scheme. They’re not greedy either.
And that’s why I liked them. That’s their greatest strength.
“Ichan-ah.”
At that moment, Lee Hanwoo and Kim Isaac approached.
Looking around, it seemed they had just succeeded in lighting their own bonfire. Kim Seokhwa was frantically fanning the flames and adding wood.
“We’ve got the fire going, and we can tidy up the shelter later, so we need to find something to eat before it gets too late, right?”
Then Roa pointed to the coconuts he had placed by the bonfire.
“Should we share some coconuts?”
Lee Hanwoo’s eyes widened.
“You got coconuts?”
“I climbed the tree and got them.”
“You climbed the tree?”
Roa, with his eyes crinkling into a smile, scurried over to the bonfire and brought back the coconuts.
“Here, two for now.”
When Roa handed over two coconuts, Kim Isaac awkwardly smiled and accepted them.
“Th-thank you.”
“Would you like some leaves too?”
This time, Siu handed over a few leaves.
“We have a bit too much, so…”
Lee Hanwoo and Kim Isaac’s faces clearly showed surprise.
Just by looking, you could tell they were thinking, “Wow, what’s up with these kids?”
At least Lee Hanwoo seemed to really like our members. With this, we should be able to get some good screen time.
With a warm, neighborly smile, Lee Hanwoo nodded as he watched Han Jun gathering firewood and Jaewon building the shelter.
“You’ve done well with the fire, but are you really going to make do with just coconuts for a meal? We need to hunt properly and eat properly.”
At the word “hunt,” the members’ expressions turned serious. It was clear they knew what was coming.
“What? Did you practice this too?”
Siu and Roa swallowed dryly and nodded.
“We practiced free diving and spear throwing.”
“Really?”
Seeing Lee Hanwoo’s nostrils flare, it seemed he was quite pleased. On the other hand, Kim Isaac’s face was souring.
“Since this is a team challenge, at least one person from each team needs to go to the sea and the forest, right?”
They needed to decide who would gather fruits, crabs, or edible insects in the forest and who would go to the sea to catch fish.
“We’ll probably need to leave only one or two people to guard the shelter and the bonfire, and the rest should go out.”
So, the answer was clear.
“First, Jaewon needs to finish building the shelter, so we’ll leave him here. Siu is good at swimming, so he’ll go to the sea, right?”
“Yeah. I’ll go to the sea and come back.”
“Roa is good at climbing trees, so he’ll come with me to the forest.”
“Yes.”
“What about you, hyungnim…?”
“I’m definitely going with you.”
Hanjoon, showing a firm determination not to be left behind, stood close to me.
“What if you freak out again when you see bugs? I’ll just leave you there.”
“I won’t.”
His stern expression as he shook his head reminded me of a disciplined Doberman.
But when he smiles and eats, he’s like a Retriever.
No wonder the fans call him Joondaeng.
Well, it’s better than nothing, so let’s take him along. He’s the strongest among us anyway.
“Alright. Then me, Roa, and hyungnim will go to the forest to find food.”
“Sounds good.”
“Alright.”
* * *
It took the members exactly a day and a half to adapt to the jungle.
Anyway, their adaptability is truly impressive.
Hanjoon still feared bugs, and Jaewon was scared of reptiles, but they seemed to have adapted somewhat, as they weren’t struggling as much as before. Hanjoon’s way of avoiding bugs like he was dancing was quite cute, so I’d say we achieved our goal.
When the chief told them to hunt, they did it well, and when they were told to eat something strange, they did so without a single frown.
In fact, they even enjoyed the dish made by boiling cassava in coconut milk, and Hanjoon even did a mini mukbang.
No wonder Lee Hanwoo and PD Choi adored us.
Just a while ago, during lunch.
As we were enjoying the crab dish, Lee Hanwoo started talking.
“Wow, I was a bit worried at first when I heard young idols were coming. But now, I can’t imagine what we would’ve done without you.”
He didn’t forget to mention how idols usually require a lot of attention and energy.
Then, PD Choi chimed in.
“Chief, you haven’t seen them perform on stage, have you? Have you seen their NewTube videos? Or their self-cams?”
PD Choi’s face was filled with pride.
“If you see those, you’ll understand why we couldn’t not cast them.”
“Well done.”
Lee Hanwoo’s smile as he praised PD Choi was filled with affection for us.
As time passed, even the members of the other team started relying on us.
We caught fish, freshwater shrimp, and even crabs to share with them.
Roa's popularity was especially through the roof.
Whenever he had the chance, he climbed trees to bring back breadfruit or coconuts, so everyone kept saying “our Roa” with affection.
The camera and lighting directors were also busy following us around, filming everything.
Even before bed, we captured the scene of us lying in a row inside the cramped leaf shelter, putting on face masks.
We were loved by most people and secured plenty of screen time.
Most people.
Which means there were definitely some who didn’t like us.
Namely, Kim Junmo, the idol-turned-variety star from the opposing team.
Kim Seokhwa had called Kim Junmo a “pathetic fire-starter,” which led to him being nicknamed “Ji Buljo” (T.N. short for “pathetic fire-starter”). From the third day, he started showing blatant hostility toward us.
“Idols who’ve barely been around for a year getting cast on a show like ‘King of the Jungle’? What do you guys even have?”
He was implying we had some kind of backing.
“Blade Entertainment isn’t even one of the big four agencies.”
He was looking down on us for coming from a small company.
“What, is this all you can do, so they sent you here?”
This was a jab at both us and the show itself.
“I heard your songs aren’t that great either.”
So, he had at least listened to our music.
“Your performances are just so-so.”
Oh, so he’s watched our stages too.
“Hey, I could do better than that.”
It seemed we had touched a nerve with his insecurities.