Trapped in the Idol Universe

The original plan was to found a guild when Star Hero ended

But damned Detention Bureau got in my way...

‘Wait. Should I call the team Shooting Star?’

It wasn’t a bad idea, all that mattered was people calling us Shooting Star

‘Maybe it’s for the best...?’

What I’m about to do could easily count as a crime

Taking down Salvation Church!

I’d uncovered suspicious circumstances but still lacked proof

Even if Galbi helped, there was no guarantee we’d secure evidence

So I needed a fallback—now that I had official cover, I could use the Bureau

Grandpa Hoho promised full support, after all

‘Ah. Lucky Roy, as always’

Until now I thought I’d been the one at a disadvantage, but maybe the Bureau got played

Feeling good, I spotted a quiet café and went over. A “For Lease” sign on the glass door caught my eye

‘Are they not in business?’

I assumed a neighborhood café would have customers, but maybe they’d failed. As I hesitated by the handle, someone inside—presumably the owner—ran up, out of breath

“We’re open for business!”

His desperate eyes were so earnest I couldn’t turn away

“Then... an iced Americano and a chocolate latte, please”

Like a chaebol heir, I ordered two drinks and took a window seat in the corner. If I went home now, Rose would keep me busy, so I had to finish my errands first. Pulling out my phone, I opened my notes and started listing what needed doing

D-day is next Sunday

But I can’t wait that long. Hojin still wears that ring on his finger—and it’s not just any ring. The same one cult members turned Blood Fiends wore

It surely won’t be harmless...

‘I told him to cut off his finger and reattach it already’

Luckily there’s a capable healer in the wasteland

S-rank Baek Eunseong

One blink and Guild Master would stitch it back on beautifully. He’s timid, though

So I have to act before the next shoot

‘Let’s finish this before filming starts again’

That’ll put my mind at ease. Strike while the iron’s hot—I called Galbi right away

“Galbi! What’re you doing tomorrow?”

Salvation Church holds an Awakened service every Wednesday. Tomorrow’s Wednesday

It had to be a divine sign to infiltrate as a newbie

[“Ha...”]

Confused by his sigh, I tilted my head

“So that means you’re in? Okay then. Meet at the station by 6 tomorrow”

A strong no means yes! I took his deep sigh as agreement and set the plan unilaterally

I’ll figure out the details later

Unlike Hojin, Han-gyeol hasn’t shown any sign of awakening yet

I thought we’d meet often on set, but he’s barely appeared

I wonder if he’s avoiding me on purpose

‘Should I talk to the director and ask for him to make room?’

I don’t need meetings with the big three guild masters—just get me face-time with Han-gyeol

When else will I use my connections?

‘The question is how to awaken him...’

I know plenty of methods

Throw him on the beach on a summer night, force him to watch a horror movie with his crush, have him run into a Blood Fiend...

The last one worked wonders for me and Hojin. We both nearly died and then awakened

The community’s “awakening tips” might not be so absurd after all

‘Then maybe drinking an Awakened’s blood...?’

If needed, I could slip some of Hojin’s blood to him on set

And next, the most important task of all

As critical as defeating the Chaos Evil

Failure means death

Wouldn’t it be great if everyone blinked into an S-rank clean and sharp?

Han-gyeol might be late to the party, but I’m not too hopeful

‘I’d be relieved if he at least avoids a D-rank’

Anyway, while preparing for the 2nd survival round, God-Gong unlocked his third eye

Now truly a god, I began seeing unbelievable things

Like personal quests?

But my grasp of my own skills is shaky—how could I understand others’?

The cryptic conditions leave me cross-eyed

Yeon-woo does something with knitting, Tae-eon makes creations—something like that

I still have no idea

‘But hey. It’s not every day you get to re-awaken people’

Even if it’s a headache, I have to pull it off. Solo hunts for Chaos Evil are a no-go

‘I’ll bring some knitting supplies and make Yeon-woo do it’

Just then my cluttered mind cleared

Relieved, I downed the iced chocolate I hadn’t even noticed on the table

When I held that much liquid in my cheeks, I felt so good I started humming

Murmuring the Shooting Star anthem, I decided to check the Awakened community

With an A-rank Elemental Awakener appearing, it must be wild

└ To put it in context, outside Korea the most recent Elemental Awakener was in the U.S. ten years ago

Sure enough, the community buzzed with Hojin’s story

Praise and some hate comments wondering what the Elemental Corps even does

But no real damage—compared to the hate I saw in Shooting Star days, these were love notes

‘Good thing Hojin’s identity isn’t exposed’

It was worth sneaking him out through the Bureau

Next up: image-making 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

‘An idol must be cute and engage well with fans’

After these rough days, how’s my fan club doing...

└ Huh? Where? At Shero audience???

└ Saw him drinking two drinks alone in front of me

└ Two? He’s got power...

Is this... me?

Slowly raising my head, I finally noticed the crowd

What was once an empty café now had no seats left

The owner’s grin stretched to his ears beneath the barrage of orders, and the line from the counter snaked outside

But it didn’t end there

Those who couldn’t get in pressed against the windows, staring at me

“...!”

Startled, I froze with wide eyes. I thought I was well disguised, so how did they spot me?

Then I realized—I’d pulled my mask down to my chin while drinking

Hurriedly lifting it back up, I next saw the hat on the table

‘When did I...?’

I must have removed it absent-mindedly while concentrating

Turns out I’d been fooling myself about hiding my face

As I stood, screams erupted in welcome

“Ka-aah!”

There was no bursting through that crowd without injuring someone, and being friendly to all would mean staying here until night

My lips twitched in embarrassment when

“Roy!”

Cutting through the mass of people came Hojin, wearing a white t-shirt—my White Knight

[Your boyfriend is passing by]

Damn...

Who are you?

✧

└ Isn’t that that butler shirt?

└ What’s that?

└ (Café Hojin candid.jpg)

└ Oh, it’s nicer than I thought... where’d he get it?

└ Sold out lol

└ How is he an angel?

└ 1-second cat doppelgänger. Brothers?

└ No, different surnames. But they look alike lol glad I’m not the only one

└ When the butler ventilated the place, he snuck out and must’ve been caught

Rescued by the Butler long ago, I made it home safely

But the countless photos and videos taken made me unwantedly famous

And on top of that, that crappy shirt became a trend overnight

The next morning I left at dawn and almost fainted at the subway scene

The world was full of boyfriend shirts