Ranker's Return

Supplementary Story 61

‘Ah, this is the reason why...’ Reina saw the scene in front of her and cocked her head. She could clearly see why Hyeonu’s face was stiff on the way to the airport.

“Junggu, that person’s words...”

“Hyung-nim, how can you say that now? I am a person who cares about my good name. Huh?”

“Hyung-nim, sit down for a minute. Sijong hyung-nim’s words aren’t finished yet.”

Kim Seokjung, Gang Junggu, and Hyeonu—these three people were drunk and chatting about anything that came to mind.

“Are they like this every time?” Reina asked the nearby Yeongchan in a soft voice.

“I think it is less severe this time? Originally, he should have collapsed already...” Yeongchan replied.

“It’s usually worse…?” Reina had an expression like she found it hard to believe. Even now, they were showing her what it meant to binge drink.

Thump!

Just then, Hyeonu’s head tilted back as he was talking to Gang Junggu. He collapsed.

“Oh, my... He is gone, gone.” Yeongchan shook his head and clicked his tongue.

“Shouldn’t we take care of Hyeonu and stop the two of them from drinking?” Reina couldn’t understand Yeongchan’s reaction. Even if he was calm, this was too calm. It was like it didn’t really matter.

“Just wait a bit,” Yeongchan discouraged Reina, who was about to get up from her seat.

“Wait?” Reina did as Yeongchan said and examined the three people a bit more. Soon afterward, she witnessed a very amazing sight.

“Take him and lay him down well.”

“I understand, Hyung-nim.”

Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu, who had seemed to be drunk like Hyeonu, were now talking in a perfectly normal manner. It was as if they hadn’t drunk anything. While Reina was feeling surprised, Gang Junggu disappeared with Hyeonu, who had collapsed.

“Should we have a drink?” Kim Seokjung approached Yeongchan and Reina with glasses of alcohol in each hand.

“That sounds good, Hyung-nim.” Yeongchan stood up and accepted the glass held out by Kim Seokjung.

Kim Seokjung turned his head to ask Reina, “What about you?”

“I’d like that as well.” Reina smiled and received the glass of alcohol from Kim Seokjung.

Kim Seokjung emptied his hands and sat in front of Yeongchan and Reina with the cup he originally used.

“Are you with Hyeonu...?”

“Not yet. But I don’t think it will take much longer.”

“That is good news. Very good.” Kim Seokjung burst out laughing and held out a glass of alcohol. Reina and Yeongchan also held out their glasses and bumped them against Kim Seokjung’s drinking glass.

“I hope this trip will be an opportunity to shorten that time period,” Kim Seokjung gave a light toast before drinking.

“I hope so as well.” Reina smiled and emptied the glass in her hand in an instant.

***

“...Yo, Hyeonu.”

Hyeonu felt his mind awaken due to the thin voice that entered his ears.𝐟𝘳𝑒𝗲𝘸e𝒃𝘯𝒐𝐯e𝚕.c𝒐𝒎

‘When did I collapse?’

The moment Hyeonu came to his senses, he naturally recalled the memories from before he collapsed. The constant drinking and endless conversations… It was up to here. He had no memories after that.

‘That’s right. Who woke me up?’

Hyeonu opened his eyes when he remembered that someone had called him.

“You woke up?”

Hyeonu opened his eyes and saw Reina’s face.

“Where are we now?” a hoarse voice emerged from Hyeonu’s mouth.

“We are almost there. This is why I’m here to wake you up.”

Hyeonu quickly stood up after hearing Reina’s words. “Uh...? “Uh!!”

His body had been unconscious since a few hours ago, so it couldn’t listen to him so easily. The plane shook slightly, and Hyeonu’s body swayed several times more violently.

Reina grabbed at Hyeonu’s reeling body. Naturally, Reina fell into Hyeonu’s arms. After a while, Hyeonu came to his senses and took a step back. “I’m sorry. I’m still not sober.”

“I liked it though?” Reina smiled at Hyeonu and turned around. The moment Reina was about to leave, she turned around again and said something to Hyeonu, “Hurry and come out. Everyone is waiting for you.”

“I’m coming, I’m coming.” Hyeonu staggered after Reina.

Outside, the rest of the people except for Hyeonu were already gathered.

“You woke up? Hurry and eat this. You need to relax your insides.” Gang Junggu looked at Hyeonu and tapped the plate next to him.

“Hyung-nim, are you okay?” Hyeonu walked like a zombie and settled down next to Gang Junggu.

“I’m fine. Hyung-nim is fine as well. You are the only one with a problem. You are so young, yet you are already like this...” Gang Junggu clicked his tongue when he saw Hyeonu’s red face.

Hyeonu was diligently picking up the food on the plate when he saw Yeongchan sleeping on a reclined chair. “Did he drink alcohol as well?”

“After you collapsed, Yeongchan and Reina drank with us.”

“Reina?” Hyeonu’s eyes widened.

It was a really surprising story.

‘She looks normal though?’

The Reina that Hyeonu knew seemed like a person who didn’t drink.

“How much did Reina drink?”

“How much did she drink? I think the two of them drank a bottle each?” Gang Junggu glanced at Yeongchan and Reina.

“They drank a lot.” Hyeonu nodded. At this time, it was understandable why Yeongchan had collapsed.

“Isn’t it good for the future?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Reina can drink a lot.”

“That is true if she can drink a bottle of whiskey and be in good shape. So what?”

“Then you can drink together.” Gang Junggu laughed.

‘Everything is good.’ Hyeonu shook his head at Gang Junggu.

-We will be arriving at the airport soon. Please sit in your seats and fasten your seatbelts.

Just then, the in-flight announcement rang out.

“Have you sobered up a bit?” Reina asked as she sat in the seat next to Hyeonu’s.

“A little bit. I think I can live now.” Hyeonu smiled slightly.

“Are you going to get some rest until the others come?”

There were only five people on the plane that Hyeonu and Reina were on, including Yeongchan, Kim Seokjung, and Gang Junggu. However, there were far more people invited to the party.

“I am going to do that. I’m thinking about lying down and enjoying the sea breeze.” Hyeonu nodded. He didn’t think he could do anything at this rate.

“Take a rest with me. There is a place I saw when I came here last time.”

“Is that so? Then let’s go.”

Hyeonu was smiling when his expression hardened.

‘Right. There was that.’

He realized he had work to do when he arrived on the island.

“Why? What happened?” Reina wondered when she saw Hyeonu’s stiff expression.

“I have to stream when I arrive there.”

“Streaming? Why?” Reina asked with a puzzled expression. The Hyeonu that she knew was a streamer who rarely streamed outdoors. He had a style that clearly distinguished between work and rest.

“I made a promise to the viewers that I would stream it.”

“Hyeonu?”

“In fact, I made a bet and lost.”

A few days ago, Hyeonu announced that he would take a break from streaming to come to the island. Understandably, the viewers were stirred up like a swarm of bees. Hyeonu had a long war of words with the viewers, and the result was the ladder game.

“Rest, make up for it later, or go there and stream—I had to choose one of the three...”

“The one you landed on was outdoor streaming? You are really unlucky, aren’t you?” Reina smiled and shook her head. Hyeonu always had problems when he left things to luck. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say he was the icon of bad luck.free𝒘ℯ𝗯𝙣𝗼ν𝑒𝗹.𝒄o𝒎

“So I gave up. The viewers asked me to try double or nothing... I thought it would be a loss since I had to do it anyway.”

Hyeonu knew it as well… just how atrocious his luck was.

“Well done. False bravado isn’t good. Is there anything I can do to help you?” Reina comforted Hyeonu.

“Will you help me? Let’s chat and communicate with the viewers together.”

Hyeonu thought it was definitely good if Reina could help. If she were present, he would only have to talk half the time.

“Yes.” Reina looked at Hyeonu with a smile.

***

The moment Hyeonu’s live stream was turned on, more than hundreds of thousands of viewers joined in an instant.

-Oh, he really turned it on.

-I believed in you.

-Look at the landscape.

-Wow, the sea is really pretty.

It wasn’t Hyeonu’s face that welcomed the viewers who entered but the scenery of the beautiful island.

“Everyone, take a look at the scenery. It is a very beautiful place.” Hyeonu smiled happily when he saw the fast-growing number of viewers.

-By the way, who is coming here?

-Where are you?

-Is Reina coming out today?

-Is Mason coming as well? The hyung-nims?

The chat window quickly filled with messages asking about what they were curious about.

“I don’t know who is coming. I will just talk about the people I know... Mason and Dwayne are definitely coming. In addition, this is an island owned by Hyung-nim. Reina...” Hyeonu answered questions from the fast-moving chat window.

“Hello, I’m Reina. It is nice to see all of you.”

“She is next to me right now. Today, she is my streaming communication assistant. I called her because I’m having a bit of a hard time right now.”

-???

-No, I can only hear her voice.

-Isn’t this a recording? Give us the real thing.

-The two of you are holding hands, right?

-Shouldn’t the face be shown?

-Shine it on the two people, not the landscape.

The viewers reacted suspiciously to Reina, who only had her voice present in the stream, just like Hyeonu.

“Why do you have no faith? Is this all the trust there is between us?”

-Yes, this is all we can do.

-The person who is trying to take a break from streaming while pretending not to know anything is making this comment.

-It is outrageous, outrageous.

Hyeonu sighed at the viewers’ messages and got up. Then he turned the camera that was filming the sea to the other side. The image of Reina reclining on a sunbed under a parasol appeared on the stream.

“Do you believe it now?”

-It is really Reina.

-Looking at it like this, the island is also pretty.

-Reina is pretty.

-By the way, why is it just the two of you?

“There are people who haven’t come yet. The others are busy doing their own thing. Argon is probably streaming as well?”

-That’s right. Argon is streaming.

-He is introducing the resort.

Like Hyeonu, Yeongchan was also streaming.

-Are the two of you still not dating?

-I think it has been more than a dozen times that the two of you have been photographed together.

-Are you in a secret relationship? If so, blink twice.

-Just tell me if you are in the pre-relationship fling stage. Please ㅠㅠ

The viewers were now genuinely curious about their relationship. Every time, the two of them said they weren’t dating, but there were dozens of photos of the two of them holding hands and walking down the street circulating on the Internet.

“That’s right. We are in the pre-relationship stage. Were you that curious?” Hyeonu grabbed Reina’s hand and waved it at the viewers.