translation by mourningmoor
The birthday song flowed through the stage as the fan song ended.
Jaewon and Roa were singing in perfect harmony, making it sound amazing.
Behind them, Siu was walking forward, holding a cake.
Hanjoon appeared, holding a whole champagne bottle.
“…Crazy.”
When did these guys even get that?
Since I had completely shut off my mind’s presence during the concert, I didn’t even notice.
Before I knew it, the entire Hong Kong Expo Arena, filled with 16,000 people, was singing the birthday song in unison, creating a grand atmosphere.
319 years—no, as of today, exactly 320 years. But this was the first time I had a birthday party like this.
Before I became a Grand Mage, I never had the luxury to celebrate my birthday. And after I became one, my birthday turned into a continental festival, making it feel completely unreal.
To me, birthdays were nothing more than just another event for the people of the continent to enjoy—they weren’t something personal to me.
But birthdays in this world felt… different.
My day had started with an early morning call from my mom.
[Did you eat? You’re not feeling sick, are you?]
She still wouldn’t say happy birthday, even if it killed her.
Then, maknae and Roa showed up at my room.
[Chanie hyung-ah, let’s go down and eat together.]
And in the hotel’s breakfast buffet, they handed me a three-minute seaweed soup.
[Hyungnim always makes seaweed soup for us on our birthdays, but we can’t cook… Sorry.]
Then, Siu came down and handed me a gift.
[Ichan-ah, this is your present. All the members pitched in to buy it.]
It was a huge Boston bag. According to maknae, it was a luxury brand.
[You always carry that same old backpack around.]
[We really struggled trying to pick something cool like hyung-ah’s style. We suffered, really.]
Then, the three of them started nagging, saying I should start paying attention to these kinds of things.
Hanjoon, who had slept in, smacked me hard on the back in the car on the way to the venue.
[Birthday punch. This much is fine, right? Also, when else am I gonna get to hit you, huh?]
As if the members weren’t enough, congratulatory texts kept rolling in.
Kim Jeongsoo, Seo Hanul, Kim Wooyoung, Pyo Cheonhee, Kim Junmo, even writer Jeong Haeseong sent me messages.
And the contents of those messages… were unbearably cheesy.
Saying they love me, wishing me happiness, telling me I’m precious.
It was ridiculous. It was strange.
Something felt off in my chest. There was this weird discomfort, like something dry and hot was constantly heating up a spot inside me.
It was uncomfortable.
Honestly, the birthday event that the fans had prepared felt much easier to handle.
Seeing them celebrate my birthday like a festival reminded me of the people from that other world.
For the past two weeks, birthday advertisements had been put up all over Seoul, gifts were flooding into the company, and birthday cafes had been set up. Some even donated in my name.
Everything was so similar to the culture of that world. That’s why it felt familiar.
There was no emotional waste, so it was comfortable.
And yet, my own fans betrayed me like this.
They had teamed up with the members to shake me to my core.
Why the hell were they doing this?
Just for a moment, I activated Heart’s Resonance.
And in that instant, emotions surged in like a tidal wave, and I nearly choked up.
I quickly shut it off and pressed my left hand against my lips. My breathing had gotten rough.
These people… they’re being sincere.
Like they always are.
Every moment, every time, they are always sincere.
To the point that it’s almost blind devotion.
Maybe that’s why it feels so maddeningly beautiful.
Suddenly, my eyes felt hot, and it startled me.
Still, I didn’t end up crying until the very end. But I couldn’t stop the tip of my nose from turning red. And I couldn’t avoid my voice trembling either.
The members, who had come right up to me while singing the birthday song, looked slightly blurry.
Damn. But I’m never going to cry.
Who do you think I am? I’m Jesquière.
“Hyungnim. Blow out the candles.”
“Ichan-ah, blow them out before the wax drips any more.”
Roa and Siu urged me. Jaewon and Hanjoon also nodded excitedly.
These guys… They’re happier about my birthday than I am.
I glanced at the members and blew out the candles on the cake that Siu was holding out. The moment I did, Jaewon pulled the party popper, and Hanjoon popped the champagne.
They must have shaken it a lot because the champagne burst like fireworks, spraying everywhere.
The sound of the members’ laughter wavered beautifully.
The applause and cheers erupting from the audience seats made my adrenaline soar.
My hair and face got wet from the champagne, but I was happy.
I swept my wet hair back, took a deep breath, and picked up the mic.
“Filament.”
At my call, the applause gradually died down.
At that moment, the fans all simultaneously raised their slogans.
Dreaming Star, Kang Ichan. Thank you for sending him to us.
You are the greatest gift in our lives.
Every day is a birthday because of you. Happy Birthday.
The three slogans densely filled the entire concert hall.
I was about to say thank you, but suddenly, my words got stuck in my throat.
Swallowing hard, my throat felt sore and stiff.
“Wow, this is a foul play.”
That was all I could barely say.
“It’s just my birthday, and you’re going this far?”
Then, shouts erupted from all around, saying, “Just? Absolutely not.”
“Filament.”
My voice trembled.
“You know I love you, right?”
The audience went wild. A deafening roar of cheers erupted, almost like screams.
“Since I believe that you know, I dare to say this.”
A simple ‘thank you’ wasn’t enough to express how I felt.
“If you give me one, I want to give you two. If you give me ten, I want to give you a hundred. So don’t provoke me like this. You’ll just make yourselves tired.”
Laughter broke out from different spots.
“And don’t be sad that I’m not crying.”
Then, I tapped my chest.
“In here, I’ve already cried.”
The audience fell silent again.
Everyone was holding their breath, listening to me.
“The reason I don’t shed tears is because I have my own resolve. Our members and you all—I am determined to protect you.”
The members approached and gently placed their hands on my shoulders. The hand ruffling my hair was probably Hanjoon’s. The one holding my hand tightly was Siu.
“Actually, during the Seoul concert, I read a note, and I got choked up then.”
It was the most memorable message, and it made my heart ache.
“If an ocean appears before us, we will fill it in. If a mountain stands in our way, we will tear it down. If a valley blocks our path, we will build a bridge. Just be happy as you are now.”
I even took a picture of that note and posted it on SNS.
So the fans already knew the words well.
“I’ll return those words to you exactly as they are.”
Taking another deep breath to calm my tightening chest, I recited the note from memory.
“Is there a mountain in front of you? We’ll remove it.”
A thunderous cheer erupted, loud enough to tear my ears apart.
“Is there an ocean ahead? We’ll fill it in.”
I couldn’t meet the eyes of all 16,000 people, but I made sure not to avoid the gazes that met mine.
“Is there a rough valley? We’ll build a bridge. So please, just be happy as you are now.”
Out of all the concerts I’ve done so far, this was the loudest cheer I had ever heard.
“You are my ultimate favorite.”
Then, the members grabbed their mics and started shouting, “Me too!” over and over.
The song prepared for the encore stage began to play.
As the music played, we adjusted our formation and gave our all until the very last moment, delivering the best performance we could.
* * *
Shocking, we tried to make Kang Ichan cry, but instead, the Filaments ended up crying.
Most of the fan reactions on Universe and Twittle were like this.
But honestly, I don’t think it was a total failure. Ichan’s red nose tip, his teary eyes. Completely adorable.
└ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Seriously. Seriously, seriously, he was so adorable.
I was at the first Hong Kong concert today, and the moment Ichan’s voice started trembling, it was game over. Sixteen thousand Filaments started sobbing.
└ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ No, but seriously, I saw it too. Everyone was crying at an uncontrollable level.
└When your bias calls you his bias, how are you supposed to not cry?
Wow. His visuals are one thing, but why does he speak so well? As expected, a leader is a leader.
└Our Kang Leader was born to be one. I’m telling you, he was meant to be a leader.
└Kang Ichan being the leader was the best decision ever. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
It all started the moment Ichan lifted his mic and shouted, “Filament!”
Juhee and Inyoung both burst into tears.
He didn’t shed a single tear, but his trembling voice held everything in it.
The Filaments, who cried on his behalf because he couldn’t, couldn’t forget the emotions of that day. The next day, and even the day after, they kept uploading related photos and videos, suffering from Kang Ichan withdrawal.
But for Juhee, the most touching moment was something else.
The exact moment when Ichan, who was holding back his tears so well, looked at the members.
When they came up on stage with a cake, singing happy birthday. When he couldn’t even look at them properly, afraid he might shed a tear, and just blew out the candles.
For a second, a jewel-like drop of dew shimmered in Kang Ichan’s eyes.
And then, the members tousling Ichan’s hair, holding his hands, wrapping their arms around his shoulders, hugging him tight. The way they all huddled together as one, comforting each other—it was the most moving sight.
Juhee, who didn’t miss capturing that moment on camera, carefully put together the content.
"The Ultimate Relationship Goals: L.I.T, More Like Family Than Family. Why They’re So Essential to Each Other."
That was the title Juhee decided on before uploading the video.
It was content specifically aimed at the antis that had surfaced recently.
And just like that, the four-day-long concert in Hong Kong had come to an end.
* * *
As soon as the last concert ended, we rushed to Hong Kong Airport.
There was no time to delay because we had a music show scheduled the next day.
Kim Chanyeong caused a fuss with PD Pyo over the flight seats, but it got rejected because there was no way to suddenly get first-class tickets.
So, just like when we came, we ended up flying Prestige class.
Honestly, sasaengs could still follow us even if we were in first class, so it wouldn’t have made much of a difference. The only thing that would change is that I’d be a little more exhausted.
That’s what I was thinking when I entered the Prestige lounge.
A familiar woman approached with a bright smile.