translation by mourningmoor
Mihyang couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling.
Yesterday, out of nowhere, Ichan suddenly showed up and handed her a bankbook.
[This is the money I set aside just for you, Mom. Buy a house, get a car, buy some luxury clothes. That’s my wish as your son.]
Then, he placed a necklace around her neck.
[Do whatever you want with the money, but this necklace—never take it off. Not when you sleep, not when you wash. You have to wear it all the time. Got it?]
Mihyang traced the necklace dangling near her collarbone with her fingers, and for some reason, her heart ached.
Her son, who had become a singer, felt more distant than ever.
[Once I leave for the U.S. tomorrow, I won’t be back for well over a month. I might not even be able to call. But just assume I’m doing fine, okay? Don’t worry about me.]
If her only son’s wish was for her not to take off the necklace, then she had to grant it.
With a faint smile, Mihyang looked up at the sky.
Her eyes, gazing upward as if trying to catch sight of a plane that wasn’t even visible, were filled with longing.
* * *
I figured he’d make a move since we sent the invitation.
But I didn’t expect him to move like this.
“Our sponsor lineup is…”
“Crazy.”
The moment we arrived at JFK Airport, the first thing that caught my eye was our concert billboard.
Since we’d been too busy until now, neither I nor Kim Chanyeong had seen the North American tour poster before. At the very bottom of the poster, three global corporations were listed as sponsors.
One of them was the SS Group.
Which meant that in exchange for major sponsorship, they had secured the right to be deeply involved in the tour. That bastard, the Master.
It seemed like Yoo Noah had already known about this.
The guy sidled up to me and whispered in a low voice.
“That’s why I came along. In case it gets dangerous.”
Even so, the moment we walk out that door, we’ll be swarmed by reporters and fans. Why follow me all the way here? What good would it do if he gets caught in a photo?
“I booked the same hotel, so don’t worry. Jess. I’ll stick close and cover you.”
“And how exactly are you going to stick close and cover me? Do you even have the ability?”
At that, Yoo Noah gave a slow, sly smile. It was so wicked that the title of Demon King wasn’t wasted on him.
“Memory manipulation?”
The Demon King, the pinnacle of mental magic, could invade and control anyone’s mind.
“If Jess causes trouble, I’ll erase it. Just like back at Hotel Ohana.”
Well, it wasn’t a bad idea.
Who knows what could happen during this tour?
“Besides, I can heal you. Like a few days ago, setting up barriers and all. Isn’t that nice?”
But that’s only if the Demon King is purely on my side.
“That’s really all there is to it?”
A mischievous glint flickered across Yoo Noah’s face.
“What else could there be?”
“As if the Demon King’s motives would be that selfless.”
There’s a reason why this bastard is called a 2,000-year-old piece of trash.
The Demon King doesn’t have something as trivial as a conscience.
A being that lives for fleeting pleasures, fleeting glory. That’s what a Demon King is.
“For all I know, the moment your calculations shift, our alliance could break. How am I supposed to trust that?”
If anything, he’d be the most troublesome opponent to deal with if he ever turned against me.
Right now, there’s nothing more untrustworthy than the invisible depths of this guy’s mind.
Yoo Noah didn’t seem to like my reaction.
“Well, think whatever you want.”
He shrugged and started walking ahead.
“But just so you know, the only one who can help Jess is me. Got it?”
Then, together with his manager, he passed through the immigration gate first.
Ha, the Demon King, pouting?
As I stood still, watching his retreating figure, Kim Chanyeong approached.
“Team Leader Lee Gyuhyung says he’s waiting outside. He told us to hurry. We need to go straight to the broadcast station.”
* * *
And so, our North American tour began.
With my arrival in New York, we were now complete as a group and got dragged around everywhere, handling interviews and various schedules.
And all of it was caught on camera.
It seemed like they were planning to make a documentary covering the entire North American tour.
On top of that, as soon as the New York concert ended, we had to start filming our own content, <L.I.T. House>.
For the next tour stop in Chicago, instead of staying in a hotel, we were renting a house and filming ourselves cooking and living together. Anyway, that’s the plan.
After completing our second day of schedules, we turned on N Live.
It was to let our fans know that we had arrived safely in America.
As soon as the live started, the viewer count skyrocketed.
This wasn’t just a matter of a thousand or ten thousand viewers anymore.
Seeing the numbers on the screen, Roa whispered to me with a slightly surprised expression.
“Hyungnim, as soon as we turned it on, 200,000 people joined.”
“Oh yeah? Then let’s quickly say hello and get started.”
At my signal, the members stopped what they were doing and faced the camera.
“Two, three. Hello, we are L.I.T.”
After greeting the camera, the members quickly got back to what they were doing.
Honestly, we hadn't had time to eat, so we had been starving until now, and we were finally just starting our meal.
If we ate first and then started the live, it might affect tomorrow’s concert, so we had no choice but to eat while streaming.
As soon as we explained the situation, the comment section exploded.
You should eat first before going live. Why haven’t you eaten yet? ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Don’t starve! Your health comes first.
You’re eating way too late. ㅠㅠㅠ What if you get sick?
Most of the comments were full of fans worrying about us.
Some were also curious about what we were eating.
At that, Jaewon held up his bowl and showed it to the camera.
“Gyuhyung-hyung and Director Kim Chanyeong got us some Korean food, and it’s really good.”
Siu nodded in agreement at Jaewon’s words.
“It’s from a famous spot in New York. I’m having stir-fried spicy pork and radish soup, and it’s really good.”
Then, a flood of questions came in asking if the stir-fried spicy pork was tasty.
Hanjoon, who had barely shown his face because he was busy eating, finally chimed in.
“Nothing beats the stir-fried spicy pork that Ichan makes, so I’ll pass on that. I’m having Jeonju-style yukhoe bibimbap. This is good too.”
The comments went wild again.
Kang Leader, we want to eat your stir-fried spicy pork too!
Ugh, I wanna see you cooking. Can we make that happen?
Wow. Even cooking? Ichan, MARRY ME!
Then, a Filament left a comment that was slightly out of nowhere.
Ichan-ah, how’s your honeymoon?
…What? Honeymoon?
Everyone tilted their heads in confusion.
We had been too busy after arriving in the U.S. to monitor social media, but suddenly someone was talking about a honeymoon? That was way too random.
“…Did I get married?”
As soon as I asked, another wave of comments flooded in.
LMAO ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ, even the person involved doesn’t know about their honeymoon.
Yes, oppa, there’s a rumor that you went on your honeymoon ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ with ARCHE’s Yoo Noah-oppa.
…Damn. What the hell is this?
At that moment, Roa held out his phone to me.
He must’ve searched it up in the meantime.
“Hyungnim. I think it’s this.”
Because we had been too busy, I had neglected monitoring, and now there was a ridiculous story circulating on Universe.
First-class flight to New York: honeymoon couple Yoon Noah, Kang Ichan.
(photo) (photo) (photo)
The two of them kept talking with their heads together like it was something serious.
They were all cozy, drinking coffee together in the lounge, and even on the plane, they sat next to each other the whole time, constantly looking out for one another.
After landing, Yoo Noah stepped out first, and Ichan followed behind.
Ichan going to New York separately, Noah coming to New York even though he had no schedule—it’s obvious they’re dating.
…Insane. What kind of post even was this?
While I was still in shock, Hanjoon was the first to speak.
“It’s true that Yoon Noah sunbaenim came to New York for vacation and that he’s staying at the same hotel as us, but calling it a honeymoon is a bit much.”
Roa also added his thoughts.
“Yeah, Ichan hyungnim came separately because of his Be My Idol shoot, and Noah sunbaenim said he was here for a vacation. A sabbatical? That’s what he called it.”
“That’s right. Noah sunbaenim is on a sabbatical, so the one who sent the concert invitation wasn’t Chan-hyung—it was me.”
All eyes turned to Jaewon at the same time.
This was news to all of us.
Jaewon, who had been eating naengmyeon (cold noodles), put down his chopsticks and explained.
“I ran into Noah sunbaenim a couple of weeks ago, and he was saying that he didn’t really know what to do during his sabbatical. So, I told him to just follow our concert tour.”
The rest of us were in shock at how casually he said it.
Of all people, it was Yoo Noah from ARCHE.
To say that to someone with such an enormous fanbase…
“Hey, but still, telling such a legendary sunbaenim to ‘just follow our tour’—are you crazy?”
“What? Noah sunbaenim really liked the idea.”
Jaewon still looked innocent, but it seemed like he was starting to realize the gravity of the situation.
His voice gradually trailed off.
“S-So, that’s why he actually followed us here?”
Eventually, Hanjoon stepped in.
“Well, since it’s already come to this…”
Hanjoon, who had just finished his bibimbap, looked straight at the camera and made a declaration.
“ARCHE fans, don’t worry. Since Yoo Noah sunbaenim is on a sabbatical and trying to stay hidden, we’ll make sure to closely cover his daily life and report back to you.”
Jaewon chimed in.
“When we move to Chicago, we’re filming Lit Up. We’ll make sure to feature Noah sunbaenim too.”
Since ARCHE was on a hiatus, their self-produced content had also been paused for a year. That was what their fandom missed the most—aside from individual activities, they wouldn’t be able to see the members at all.
Jaewon had hit the jackpot with that comment.
Because there was some overlap between our fandom and ARCHE’s, the reaction was great.
Fans were even asking us to do it for real.
“At this rate, Yoo Noah sunbaenim might become our sixth member.”
And then, it happened.
Amidst the flood of comments, one stood out, posted by a user named <YooNoah_Real>.
You promised. You said you’d invite me to Lit Up. I’m 200% willing to appear.
The chat exploded.
Even Yoo Noah himself was watching our N Live.
We were in for a headache.