ID Chapter 12

It was Endorphin’s first live stage since their comeback. It was a Sky Singing Stage held in the sky. To showcase Endorphin’s reputation as a skilled group, they’ve performed the 3S (Sky, Sea, Sand) stages at least twice with every comeback. This time, given the sandstorm concept, they’d likely do a lot of Sand Singing.

“Ira.”

As Ira was putting on his Windy Shoes, Yong-jun hyung called him quietly. His hyung had an embarrassed expression.

“We found the malicious commenter on the live app… It’s a middle school student, only 14 years old. Her parents are earnestly begging for leniency… What would a child know?”

“Ah, middle school? Let’s just get a letter of apology and move on. She probably wrote it without fully understanding.”

“You’re always so mature. But Jae-yi keeps insisting on a strong response, you see…”

He targeted the moment Jae-yi was away, huh.

“Don’t worry, hyung, I’ll talk to him.”

“…Alright. I’m always grateful to you… and I’m sorry.”

Yong-jun hyung left awkwardly, and Ira finished putting on his shoes.

“Expel the hateful Ira.”

14? A 14-year-old middle school student. Ira let out a hollow laugh. But he knew that age didn’t really matter. Even if they were 18, 22, 30, 40, or 60, age didn’t matter.

Ira hadn’t yet brought up Choi Su-han to the CEO and Yong-jun hyung. He wasn’t sure why. There had been plenty of time to talk, but he just didn’t want to.

Choi Su-han had sent him a text yesterday, asking “[Is this your number?]” at 3 AM. Ira replied, “[Go to sleep lol].” Choi Su-han then said, “[Replying at this hour means you weren’t sleeping either.]”

What was he doing not sleeping at dawn? Doesn’t he have work? He was introduced as an S-class Aura Adapter during the recording, so he must be famous.

While he was at it, Ira decided to search for him, so he picked up his phone. He went to a portal site for the first time in a while and searched for the name, but nothing came up. His profile wasn’t registered on other portals either. He’s an S-class Aura Adapter, so why isn’t he showing up? As he stared at the screen in confusion, Jae-yi approached him.

“What are you doing? What’s the occasion, you on the internet?”

“Hey, didn’t you say Choi Su-han was a famous Aura Adapter?”

“Choi Su-han?”

“That Aura Adapter doctor.”

“…Choi Su-han?”

“We recorded with him a few days ago, remember? Jae-yi, this older brother is seriously worried about your brain function.”

“…I remember… but why that doctor?”

“I searched for him, but only celebrities and lawyers came up. He doesn’t seem very famous.”

…….

Jae-yi furrowed his brow.

“Why are you searching for him?”

If he answered “Because I’m curious,” a “Why are you curious?” question would probably follow.

“No, just because.”

“Hey, the Aura Adapter who recorded with Endorphin wasn’t Choi Su-han, it was Kwon Su-han.”

“Ugh.”

Clueless Han-sae suddenly cut in, pressing down on Ira’s back. His upper body suddenly bent forward, making him groan like a zombie.

“Search for Kwon Su-han, you idiot.”

“His last name was Kwon? That’s why it didn’t come up. Damn it, why are you pressing on my back?”

“Ira, this older brother is seriously worried about your brain cells.”

“Don’t press on Ira.”

Jae-yi commanded quietly, and Han-sae naturally followed. Ira smacked away Han-sae’s arm, which was still resting on his back.

“I can forget, you jerk.”

“Hmph. It’s all because you don’t eat. When you don’t eat, you lack nutrients and your memory declines. Soon, the first idol with dementia will be born. Congrats, congrats, congrats!”

“He’s putting a lot of effort into spouting nonsense. I just wasn’t interested whether that Aura Adapter’s last name was Kwon or Choi.”

“Pfft. If you’re not interested, why are you holding that heavy phone and searching for him after three hundred years?”

“Hey, just put on your shoes. Mun hyung! This guy hasn’t even put on his shoes yet!”

Ira called for Mun hyung to drive Han-sae away. Mun hyung opened his eyes like a goblin, and Han-sae looked at Ira resentfully before leaving.

Jae-yi, who had been watching silently, sat down next to him.

“Did you get in touch with that younger brother you said you knew?”

“Yeah.”

“Why did you search for him?”

“Just because.”

…….

“I just searched to see how old he was. Why are you looking at me like that… like you’ve never searched someone’s name before…”

Ira cowered under Jae-yi’s intense gaze. Jae-yi ruffled Ira’s hair. But he didn’t relax his expression. They met each other’s eyes. Jae-yi’s hand remained on Ira’s head, and they silently stared at each other until the stylist noona rushed over, worried about Ira’s hair.

Once that solo performer’s stage was over, it would be Endorphin’s turn. Before going on stage, Ira lightly warmed up. He’d already warmed up, but he did it again to relieve tension. As he put his hands on his waist and bent backward, his eyes met Jae-yi’s again; Jae-yi had been touching his sword. Jae-yi chuckled and approached.

“Stretching? Need help?”

“…Yeah.”

Jae-yi sheathed his sword at his waist and pressed down on Ira’s back. Press, press. Ira could feel the hard calluses on Jae-yi’s palm even through his clothes.

“Your body’s stiff. Is this all you can bend?”

“This is pretty flexible, you know? Not everyone’s a Motioner.”

“If your fingers don’t touch the ground, you’re stiff, you idiot.”

“Ugh, Han-sae too, why do you all keep calling me an idiot? Could you please stop discouraging my brain cells???”

“Excuse me, Ira-ssi, Jae-yi-ssi.”

Someone who appeared to be a staff member approached hesitantly. Ira straightened his back. Jae-yi’s hand remained on his back.

“My younger sister came to visit today… She said she’s an Endorphin fan and really wants to meet you just once. It would be great if you could just give her an autograph.”

Jae-yi didn’t answer, and Ira quickly looked for Yong-jun hyung and Mun hyung, but they were all clustered around Han-sae. He’d been lazy about putting on his shoes and was now hurriedly trying to get them on…

“Yes, that’s fine, but all the members are over there.”

“Ah, Jiyoung said she’s only a fan of the two of you.”

“Just the two of us…?”

“Tell her to come over. We’ll take a photo with her too.”

“Thank you! Could you please tell her to study hard too?”

For some reason, Jae-yi allowed it in a strangely good mood. The staff thanked her and called towards the back, “Ji-yeong, come here.”

The girl who had been hovering around earlier came running breathlessly, her face flushed.

“I really like you oppas…hngh. I accidentally came here today with my classmates for school homework, but it’s so great that you oppas accidentally came too… It’s amazing…”

“Haha, calm down.”

How cute. The girl requested an autograph on an Endorphin clear file. Seeing the everyday scratches on it, she seemed like a true fan. Jae-yi signed first, and I signed next to him. I didn’t forget to add a note encouraging her to study hard.

“This… I didn’t know I’d see you oppas, so I bought it in a hurry… I’m sorry it’s nothing special…”

“What are you sorry for? Thank you. I’ll drink it well.”

The staff clutched their stomach, laughing, “Nothing special, hahaha!” The girl glared fiercely at her older brother, but when she looked at us, her expression melted. Truly cute.

The gift the girl claimed was nothing special was a drink. Not homemade, but fruit juice sold at a convenience store. Jae-yi’s was grape, and mine was Apple Juice.

Just then, feeling thirsty, I quickly inserted the straw and was about to drink.

“Looks delicious.”

“Hey, why are you taking it? You have grape juice.”

“Give it to me.”

That Jae-yi suddenly did something he never did. He’d been acting cool until a moment ago, but suddenly pushed his face close and coveted the straw in my Apple Juice. That brat Jae-yi was taller than me, so I was helpless and about to surrender the juice. This guy, why is he doing crazy things he never does in front of his fan?

“No!”

Suddenly, the girl cried out sharply, like a scream.

“Ira oppa absolutely, absolutely must drink the Apple Juice. Jae-yi oppa cannot drink it!”

I was dumbfounded. Jae-yi’s lips were about to touch the straw of the Apple Juice I was holding, but stopped.

“Why can’t I?”

“Apples are good for Ira oppa~~ Jae-yi oppa is greedy.”

“Hehe, alright.”

Jae-yi laughed lightly and moved away. The arm that had been pressing on my shoulder also disappeared.

“……”

I… looked at the fan again more closely. Wearing a school uniform… she seemed to be a middle school student… I thought the acne on her face must be a source of stress… her flushed cheeks… Behind the cute young fan’s innocent appearance, a dark shadow was visible. In her two eyes, it seemed a snake was lurking. A venomous snake coiled and sitting, aiming for its prey’s weak spot, ready to strike its neck.

My heart pounded violently.

I almost fell for it.

My hands trembled. Masquerading as such a cute person, even roping in her older brother, to kill me…

“Kids, let’s go! The pre-stage is over.”

Just then, the pre-stage ended. The staff told them to stop bothering us and took the girl and her brother away. The child was smiling brightly until the moment she left.

Jae-yi even entrusted my juice to Yong-jun. I quietly whispered to Yong-jun that we had to throw away the Apple Juice. He looked puzzled. Without time to explain in detail, it was time to go on stage. I, still dazed, received applause and soared into the sky.

Although in reality it was 5 stories high in the air, because the song’s background was a sand desert, I had to create an illusion of sand from beginning to end. Although I am A-class, I can fill a dome the size of a baseball stadium.

While the intro began, I spread sand, creating a desert out of the entire space, excluding the audience seats outside the barrier. I added desolate winds, burning sunlight and heat haze… My Soul Aura rapidly drained, and I was already out of breath. This wasn’t a stamina issue.

Next to me, Jae-yi created withered cacti and desert lizards, keywords for this title track. Jae-yi glanced at me and asked with his eyes if I was okay. I smiled.

Mun’s first line began. Creating illusions in sync with the members’ lyrics required meticulous attention. I tried to shake the Apple Juice from my mind, but it wasn’t easy.

Every moment I sang, danced, and manifested my Soul Aura, the audience’s cheers followed. Flying through the sky, I looked at the people.

It might be among them. The person who came to the fan signing event with a Cyanide Cookie to kill me was a high school girl. At that fan signing event, everyone who gave me gifts were young female fans. Just like the child who gave me the Apple Juice.

It might be that girl in the school uniform, waving a picket sign that says ‘Endorphin My Joy’. It might be the fan with pigtails, screaming in ecstasy. It could be one of the fans in the very front row, holding a camera and silently recording every scene. Secretly damaging my Windy Shoes and quietly waiting for the moment I fall. It must be. Look over there. The camera lens is following my movements. They’re even smiling. They’re waiting for me to fall.

“…”

Suddenly, my Windy Shoes felt heavy. I felt the aura being emitted from my right Windy Shoes disappear.

“Ira!!!!”

A shout was heard. It wasn’t a delusion. Unable to maintain balance, I was slowly falling through the air. The audience’s cheers turned into screams. As I blinked a few times, I felt something firm wrap around my waist.

“Ira!! Snap out of it. Are you okay??”

“…Jae-yi.”

“Your shoes seem to be broken. For now, the stage is halted. Let’s go down.”

Jae-yi spoke calmly. He turned off his own shoes’ power, activated his Motion Aura, and landed on the ground while holding me. I dispelled the desert illusion and blankly held onto Jae-yi’s arm. My hand trembled a little uncontrollably, and perhaps Jae-yi felt it too, because he muttered a small curse.