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Chapter 04
“Finding the Lost Dream (2)”
‘…Alright. It’s not like I didn’t expect this.’
Squatting in the playground in front of my house, I tried to organize my thoughts while soothing my throbbing head. I had rushed out wearing slippers, so my feet were freezing—like they might develop frostbite at any moment.
I pulled down my long padded jacket as far as it would go, covering my toes, but the cold still seeped in. After wearing it for about four years, maybe it really was time to throw this thing away.
Anyway, I had to come up with a plan within ten minutes.
“System window. Emergency que… quest.”
My teeth chattered so badly from the cold that I mispronounced it, but whatever—I was alone, so it didn’t matter. I zipped my jacket all the way up and checked the status window that popped up.
[System Alert: Emergency Quest!]
Content: A child’s wound becomes a parent’s scar. Earn your mother’s recognition for reclaiming your dream.
Time limit: Linked to SQ 01 (D-53)
Penalty on failure: 75% increase in probability of 5th regression activation
“?”
In that split second, a penalty had been added. I silently glared at the system window, but nothing would change, so I gave up.
“Seriously… what kind of life did the first regressor live, you damn fragile-mentality bastard…”
At this point I was genuinely worried about the “first regressor’s” mental stability. Yeah, no wonder they regressed four times. Even I, with mental stabilization buffs, felt like my head was going blank at the idea of another regression. The system probably got so frustrated it decided to assign me as some kind of “mentor” or whatever.
“But still… isn’t 75% way too much like a glass cannon stat?”
I kept muttering irritably, and before I knew it, two minutes had passed. Time was running out. I had to convince my mother within eight minutes.
‘Studying would be easiest.’
Having lived as my mother’s son for 19 years (roughly 30+ years including past lives), I knew her well: if I could just say something like, “I’ll prepare for college while training to become an idol,” it would actually open a negotiation window. I could even present concrete grades and scores.
But the problem was…
‘That’s too late. It takes too long.’
The college entrance exam was already over, and I needed to become a trainee within two months. Balancing studying and trainee life sounded easy, but in reality it would be like sacrificing my youth and burning my lifespan.
And idols were always like that anyway.
[System Alert: 5 minutes remaining!]
“…Thanks a lot.”
My nose and cheeks were starting to go numb. Think, Kang Ha-jin. If I don’t, I’ll freeze to death.
I searched through every experience of my lives to find the most effective way to convince my mom.
A hunger strike? Impossible—my mom’s cooking was too good.
Running away from home? Look at me right now. I’d just suffer.
Crying and throwing a tantrum? Didn’t work since I was five years old obsessed with transforming robots.
“…No, no.”
Should I just give up? Honestly, spending the next two months memorizing lottery numbers from ten years of draws might be easier. With my mental buff, I could probably endure it…
[System Alert: 3 minutes remaining!]
[System Alert: Mental care system is not invincible!]
“Now you’re even commenting? Fine, do whatever you want.”
[System Alert: Request acknowledged.]
This system clearly didn’t understand Korean sarcasm. Definitely a half-baked Korean patch.
“Hyung. Mom says if your ‘teenage concept’ is over, come in and eat.”
While I was glaring at the system window, my still small and annoyingly cute younger brother—who I still wasn’t used to seeing as 18—called me with obvious irritation.
Seeing him, my nonexistent motivation flared up again. Right, I can’t give up. If I give up, you’ll end up going to the military three times or something.
“What do you mean concept? I’m serious.”
“A serious person runs out like that?”
“Do you know how much sincerity was in each step I took?”
“Your acting earlier, screaming ‘Mom knows nothing~’ while crying, was sincere? Then you’re hopeless, hyung.”
Hearing my brother mimic me made me feel a bit of existential shame. I didn’t think I looked like a teenage drama protagonist parody.
“……You don’t understand anything.”
“What war are you fighting, hyung?”
“This is war.”
A war between re-enlistment, re-entrance exams, and re-employment.
“Hyung, try to understand. Mom’s been thinking a lot lately too.”
“….”
His awkward tone suddenly made the atmosphere heavier. Only then did I realize—it was the winter of my 19th year.
“Dad’s situation too…”
Unemployment.
As someone who knew the future, I knew my father would land a stable job after a few interviews next year, turning things around completely. That future was the reason I could endure living in a semi-basement apartment instead of a sunny one.
But before that future arrived, our family was stuck in an unending winter.
Wearing hand-me-down clothes, my brother looked like he might cry any moment. I finally understood—this was that cold winter.
“I want to help with living expenses by working part-time, but I can’t even do that.”
His frustration hit me.
“Ha-won.”
“What.”
“Just focus on what you want to do.”
“….”
“Right now, that’s how you help mom and dad.”
He didn’t answer.
I stood up, forcing strength into my freezing legs. Something inside me felt like it was being pulled tight.
I had to stop this regression. I couldn’t leave my family trapped in this winter forever.
“Ha-won.”
“…Why do you keep calling me?”
“Hyung is going to become an idol this time.”
“How are you going to get mom’s permission?”
[System Alert: 10 minutes have ended!]
“There’s a way.”
* * *
Ha-jin’s mother, Young-in, looked at her unusually quiet son with suspicion.
‘Why is he so quiet?’
It had been days since he suddenly dropped the bomb that he wanted to become a trainee again. She had prepared herself for conflict, but he simply ate two bowls of rice and even did the dishes like nothing had happened.
‘…Was that his strategy?’
Recently, he had also started doing more housework. Not that she disliked it—she was just suspicious.
“Ha-jin.”
“Yeah?”
“…No, never mind.”
Even when she tried calling him, he was calm as always.
Honestly, she wanted to tell him to follow his dream freely. That was her own regret too.
But she had learned that blind encouragement could sometimes push a child into a cliff’s edge.
She still remembered that day.
-The day he said he would quit his five-year trainee life.
-When he said: “I’m afraid of my ordinary future.”
That memory haunted her.
So when he said he wanted to become a trainee again, she felt fear.
Then—
“Mom.”
Her younger son called her.
“Your brother wants you in the room. Dad too.”
“What?”
Something felt off.
She went into the bedroom quickly.
And there he was.
Ha-jin, in school uniform again, sitting in front of the computer with unnervingly formal posture.
“…Ha-jin?”
Her husband gestured awkwardly.
“He said he’s going to do something.”
Ha-jin smiled brightly.
“Mother. Father.”
And then—
“From now on, I will begin Kang Ha-jin’s Life Plan Presentation.”
* * *
“To begin, I believe we must first clearly understand what I currently have and what I’ve done so far.”
Had I ever mentioned I was pretty good at team project presentations?
“This is a SWOT analysis of my strengths and weaknesses.”
Addendum: I was actually very good at PowerPoint.
The carefully designed slides—clearly tailored for my parents’ readability—flipped with smooth transitions.
Fonts were clean. Keywords were minimal and precise. I had basically spent nights secretly working on this while pretending to study online lectures.
Frankly, I had never worked this hard even for school finals.
“Ha-won, are they teaching this at school now?”
“It’s just my brother being weird.”
I calmly continued.
I presented my target university admission strategy, entrance rankings, extracurricular plans… and then moved on to Mi-ro Entertainment, explaining why I chose it and my future vision.
Ha-won, already half-convinced and sitting next to our clapping father, muttered:
“…My brother is cheating.”
I heard you, idiot.
