Joseon Idols

 

The star-filled night sky, without a trace of electricity, still felt alien to me. The stars seemed as if they might tumble down at any moment, and even the flickering lamplight offered little comfort.

 

On the first night, the stars were beautiful, and the lamplight seemed romantic. Now, neither held much appeal.

 

‘Is this really the right thing to do—making these guys practice singing and dancing here?’

 

I glanced over at Byeolho, who was lying on the wooden floor, lazily tapping his stomach.

 

Despite chopping wood all day, he was still brimming with energy even past midnight.

 

“Byeolho, do you want some food? How about a bowl of soup and rice?”

 

“Really? If you don’t mind! But, how’d you know? It’s like you read my mind, Daephyo Noona—you’re like a ghost. A real ghost, I tell you.”

 

“…Yeah, yeah. Eat something while you wait. Not like you’ve got anything better to do.”

 

I watched him as he went through two hefty bowls of rice soup every three hours like clockwork.

 

It made me wonder whether I was raising an idol or a cow.

 

Even in Seoul, Byeolho had always been a big eater. He’d binge-watch food shows like

“Search for Delicious Places”

and

“Tasty Kids”

, salivating the whole time. His social media was practically a shrine to food, stuffed with photos of every meal he devoured. Offers to appear on food-themed variety shows came pouring in.

 

‘How much trouble did I go through to keep him from going overboard…’

 

His looks were the epitome of charisma when he kept quiet: lean muscle sculpted into his frame, sun-kissed skin, and a sharp, edgy profile. Everything about him screamed star material.

 

‘Actually… does he look even better now than he did back in Seoul?’

 

Byeolho’s slightly loosened jeogori revealed a physique that could never be crafted in a gym. His body was undeniably forged by the natural labor of wielding axes and tilling fields—purely organic strength.

 

“Have I kept you waiting?”

 

At that moment, Yeolha stepped into the tavern, his expression bright as he waved a hand.

 

‘How does a guy like him end up being a magistrate?’

 

As soon as Yeolha entered, he began stepping in rhythm, his enthusiasm leaking out uncontrollably. Even if he tried to suppress it, his body betrayed him. Truly, he was someone whose mind and body operated on entirely separate wavelengths.

 

“Hey, farmhand. Get up.”

 

Clearly wanting to assert some authority, Yeolha straightened his shoulders and deepened his voice, its weight nearly drilling into the ground.

 

Lying down, Byeolho sighed and reluctantly rose to his feet, his lips curling slightly in defiance.

 

‘Still, Byeolho’s physique is on another level…’

 

There was no way Yeolha, who had spent his life studying, could compete with Byeolho in raw physicality. Yeolha’s eyes traveled up and down the towering figure of Byeolho, who stood at least five centimeters taller than him.

 

“Ah, so you’ve spent your days stuffing yourself and flailing your limbs, have you? A man! And what, you think there’s any use for a body like that? Hm?”

 

“There’s

plenty

of use for it. You don’t know how popular I am with this body. My fans go wild for it… Well, not that a magistrate would understand.”

 

Byeolho’s response dripped with sarcasm as he gave Yeolha a smirk.

 

Byeolho shook his head in disbelief, while Yeolha’s face flushed a deep red. Watching the two of them, I let out a soft sigh.

 

“Alright, enough of that. Sit down and have a bowl of soup. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

 

At my words, Byeolho and Yeolha settled down on the wooden platform. Yeolha barely touched his meal, picking out a few pieces of meat with his chopsticks. In stark contrast, Byeolho, who had already emptied his bowl, began eyeing Yeolha’s with undisguised longing.

 

I grabbed my spoon and whacked Byeolho on the forehead.

 

“You glutton! You better start earning your keep! Do you think I’m running this tavern just to feed you? Huh?”

 

“…D-Daephyo Noona… you’re kinda scary when you’re mad.”

 

“Enough with the whining. Now, Yeolha, you said you’re free during the day tomorrow, right?”

 

“Yes, that’s right.”

 

“Oh?

That’s right?

I told you already, didn’t I? If you want to keep dancing and singing—or, well, pursuing this idol thing—then the first thing you need to fix is your tone when speaking to me.”

 

Yeolha straightened up at my scolding, but Byeolho burst into laughter, only to quickly suppress it under my stern glare.

Yeolha nodded with a somewhat indifferent expression.

 

“Alright. I’ll do it just this once.”

 

I let out a small sigh before continuing.

 

“Starting tomorrow, we’re going to begin market research.”

 

“Market research?”

 

“We need to figure out where our stage is going to be, and how we can gather people.”

 

Byeolho gave me a lukewarm look, his expression clearly showing he didn’t quite understand.

 

On the other hand, Yeolha nodded as if he understood.

 

“That’s right. Just like how you can’t talk about a dish without trying it… we need to see the stage before we can perform on it.”

 

“Exactly. I heard that a group of street performers is coming nearby. Tomorrow, let’s all go watch them, and each of you will submit a report afterward.”

 

“Noon- Noona!”

 

Byeolho turned pale as if struck by lightning. His fearful expression made me tilt my head in confusion.

 

“Why? What’s wrong?”

 

“I… I…”

 

“What? Why are you acting so scared?”

 

“I… I can’t read!”

 

He looked between me and Yeolha with a pitiful expression, as if on the verge of tears. I could almost feel a vein popping on my forehead in anger.

 

“Then just get Yeolha’s help and submit it. Right? You two are practically inseparable friends now.”

 

“Are you saying that I should be friends with someone who can’t even read?”

 

“I don’t make friends with people who don’t have muscles in their arms!”

 

The two of them each rejected the idea of being friends in their own way.

 

‘It’s true that hard feelings linger for a long time…’

 

I lightly ignored their comments and brought up another topic.

 

“After the market research, we’ll start the real dance and singing practice.”

 

“Are we really going to perform on stage?”

 

“Before we do that, we need to show our professional… no, artisan spirit. Yeolha, since you have a good voice, find a place to practice singing. And Byeolho…”

 

Byeolho looked at me, his eyes sparkling.

 

“…First, eat well. Okay? Take care of yourself.”

 

“Understood! Don’t worry about that, Noonim!”

 

“Alright…”

 

Byeolho… His cheerful nature was a blessing, even here.

Hi everyone! It's Flo here!

I usually translate BLs but I wanted to try something new and it's very interesting and fun for me to read so I hope you guys enjoy it too! The chapters will be updated every Thursday!

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