Chapter 1116: Welcome to Alaska (2)

My heart was pounding.

"There'll be Souffle waiting for us on the other side of those doors, right?"

Just imagining the fans who had come all the way to welcome us on unfamiliar soil made my heart race.

"We've been to places like Texas and Florida before, but we've never been to Alaska. They must've been just as excited as we were when they heard we were coming, don't you think?"

"..."

"..."

Despite my enthusiastic chatter, no one answered.

The others simply let out long, heavy sighs.

Looking at the members staring vacantly at the floor, I asked in confusion,

"What's wrong with everyone? Aren't you excited?"

"I..."

Ri Hyuk spoke in a cracked voice.

"I didn't sleep a single minute. Why do you think that is?"

"Was the flight uncomfortable?"

"...Because of you!"

He grabbed the legs of his bell-bottom pants and shook the floral sweatshirt he was wearing.

"I have to meet our fans dressed like this!"

"...?"

I genuinely didn't understand.

"But it's cute."

"Please keep in mind that your sense of aesthetics is not the same as a normal person's. Seriously... how are we supposed to face our fans looking like this...?"

Everyone looked utterly miserable.

"I don't want to go out anymore. I want to go home. I miss my dad."

"Hyung... are we really going out dressed like this?"

"The outfits you picked... no matter how I look at them, we all resemble pests that eat sweet potato crops."

They all looked at me pleadingly.

I remained firm.

"I'm not going to raise you to be weak."

"...!"

"Glaring at me won't change anything."

The others despaired, insisting they couldn't possibly face the fans dressed like this.

I did my best to encourage them.

"It might feel embarrassing now. But ten years from now, people will finally appreciate these outfits."

"Isn't that timeline a little too long...?"

"Come on! Biju!"

Throwing an arm around Biju's shoulders as he stared blankly into the distance, I marched forward energetically.

Drag...

Shuffle...

The lackeys dragged their feet behind me.

As I walked at the head of the group, the automatic doors slid open.

And then—

"Kyaa—!"

"Gah!"

"Eek!"

Instead of the thunderous cheers I'd expected...

Several hundred Souffle let out the strangest noises imaginable.

Some dropped their banners.

Others suddenly started hiccuping.

"Hic!"

...That was certainly an intense reaction.

Even a tourist couple holding up a phone to film stood frozen with their mouths hanging open.

They looked like they had just witnessed some incredible natural phenomenon.

"Hello, everyone!"

We waved.

The Souffle bowed their heads while shouting excitedly.

Normally they'd be looking us in the eyes.

Instead, they all seemed desperate to find somewhere else to look.

"Hmm..."

I called out to them.

"Souffle! Are you feeling shy?"

"Yes!"

"I knew it."

"We're embarrassed for you, Oppas!"

"..."

Oh.

So that's what they meant.

Junghyun spoke in overly formal English.

"We had no free will. This man forced us to wear these clothes. We are suffering."

"Please help us."

Jiho joined in, and everyone burst into laughter.

When I saw Biju holding up his phone with SOS displayed across the screen, I couldn't help laughing too.

After their initial embarrassment, the Souffle quickly became excited again.

We took selfies.

Shook hands.

I asked,

"Have you been waiting long?"

"Yes."

"We missed you too."

Technically we'd never met before, so I wasn't sure "missed you" was the right phrase.

But somehow...

Nothing else felt more appropriate.

"Thank you for waiting for us."

The Souffle greeted us with banners.

One featured our faces edited onto a glacier.

Another had us standing beside polar bears and igloos.

Welcome to Alaska

I smiled.

Looking at those banners made it finally sink in.

We had really come somewhere new.

Just greeting fans took nearly an hour.

Partly because this wasn't somewhere we'd be able to visit often.

Partly because the crowd kept getting larger.

"Could I get a picture too?!"

"I'm from the Netherlands! Did you know your songs are really popular in my country?"

"Could you say hello to my friend in Rwanda? His name's Milton, and he's a huge fan!"

Travelers from all over the world kept asking for photos.

Even when we finally boarded the bus waiting outside the airport, one of the security guards wearing a fluorescent safety vest called out,

"Hey!"

Apparently his daughter was a fan too.

He mimed pressing a camera shutter with his fingers.

"Wow."

Jiho loosened the bright yellow scarf around his neck.

"Overcook really is unbelievable."

"Everybody recognizes us. Did you see the lady working at the airport gift shop waving at us earlier?"

"I did."

"How does everyone know who we are...?"

This wasn't at all what we'd imagined Alaska would be like.

We'd pictured a cold, snowy city where people barely glanced our way.

Kind of like those travel programs where celebrities visit Northern Europe and the locals couldn't care less.

Instead...

Everywhere we looked—

"NewBlack!"

People recognized us instantly.

It was both surprising...

...and incredibly gratifying.

"Can we take a picture together later?"

Even the local bus driver, chewing gum behind the wheel, explained that his daughter was a fan.

We happily agreed.

Before the bus pulled away, I opened the window and waved toward the Souffle gathered outside.

"Thank you, everyone!"

"Waaaaaaaaaah!!"

Even as the bus disappeared into the distance, they kept waving.

Only after they vanished completely from sight did we close the window.

"Whew... it's cold."

"Yeah."

It was October.

Autumn in Korea.

Alaska was in autumn too, though noticeably chillier.

Biju flipped through the guidebook.

"It says even midsummer here feels like early autumn in Korea."

"I see."

As the bus drove through Anchorage, we looked out the windows in fascination.

"There isn't as much snow as I expected."

Whenever people thought of Alaska, they imagined endless snowfields, glaciers, and igloos.

Instead...

Outside was simply a crisp autumn landscape.

According to our local guide, Alaska actually had four distinct seasons.

The Alaska we'd imagined was either wintertime—or the far northern Arctic.

The real Alaska was lush and green during summer, full of wildlife and forests.

Looking around, Biju asked,

"So... what are we doing first?"

The producer answered.

"You must all be getting hungry."

"Yes!!"

"We're heading to a restaurant in Anchorage called Korean Garden. They serve bulgogi, bibimbap, and seafood pancakes."

"...!"

My mouth immediately started watering.

"After lunch, your free travel officially begins. We've prepared a list of recommended destinations, and you'll be free to choose where to go."

The overall theme of this trip was survival.

The first half focused on independent travel.

The second half would involve wilderness survival experiences.

"Surviving in the wild is important, but surviving in civilization matters too. We'll be watching to see whether you can manage this trip... without any help from the production staff."

"...Planning."

Junghyun accepted the map with a troubled expression.

I glanced at the producers before quietly whispering,

"Junghyun."

"Yeah?"

"Think of it as farming."

"...!"

"You're deciding which fields to work today."

His eyes widened.

Immediately, he began laying out the travel route.

Meanwhile, Ri Hyuk was admiring the scenery outside.

"Ri Hyuk."

"Yeah?"

"Let's make some good TV."

He nodded, opened his glasses case, and put on his glasses.

Jiho clapped enthusiastically.

"It's time for Leader Seo's Fun Facts About Alaska!"

"Wooooo!"

Ri Hyuk immediately began his lecture.

"First of all, Alaska is enormous. Texas is considered one of the biggest states in the U.S., right? It's roughly three times the size of the Korean Peninsula."

He pointed out the window toward the majestic snowcapped mountains surrounding Anchorage.

"Alaska is about eight times that size. It's the largest state in the country."

The scale really was overwhelming.

"On the other hand, hardly anyone lives here. The entire population is only around 740,000. Anchorage is Alaska's largest city, but even it only has about 300,000 people—roughly the same as Chuncheon."

He continued explaining.

Most of it sounded familiar.

Native peoples had lived here peacefully.

Then white settlers arrived.

Everything changed.

"It originally belonged to Russia. But Russia was under financial pressure, so they sold it to the United States."

Apparently the American Secretary of State who negotiated the purchase had been ridiculed endlessly at the time.

"People mocked him for buying such useless land..."

"Until they discovered it was overflowing with resources?"

"Exactly."

Then came the gold rush.

Later, in the 1960s, massive oil reserves were discovered as well.

"So these days everyone says buying Alaska was one of the smartest decisions the U.S. ever made."

"What a wild history."

Just as I felt I was beginning to understand Alaska a little better—

Grrrrrr...

My stomach growled.

Apparently I wasn't becoming more knowledgeable.

I was just getting hungrier.

While searching online for Korean restaurant menus, Junghyun announced,

"I've got our itinerary mostly figured out."

"Already?"

"Want to see?"

We gathered around his plan.

"..."

"..."

It's really good.

Seriously good.

The whole concept of this reality show was that we weren't allowed to interfere with each other's assigned roles.

Even so...

Junghyun had done far better than any of us expected.

Noticing our expressions, he smiled proudly.

"If you're farming, you need a plan. You have to prioritize. If you try to grow every crop perfectly, you'll fail."

"That's true."

"So I treated the destinations like sweet potato fields. Which ones absolutely had to be harvested today? Which ones could wait until later? How could we cover everything before sunset?"

"Oh..."

He'd approached travel exactly the way he'd approach farming.

The itinerary struck a perfect balance between priorities and efficiency.

From farther away, I heard the producer mutter,

"What...? Why is it actually good?"

The rest of us exchanged glances.

We'd assumed everyone's mismatched assignments would turn this trip into a complete disaster.

Maybe...

...this might actually go better than we expected.

A small sense of hope began to grow.

The staff behind NewBlack's Travel Diary were professionals.

Which meant...

The cast has to suffer for the show to be entertaining!

Watching celebrities scream and struggle—that was what audiences loved.

And what made producers happy.

In that respect...

The Travel Diary production team had spent the past two seasons in misery.

"If we score 100 points on the karaoke machine, will you give us more spending money?"

Back in Season One on Jeju Island, NewBlack had completely outplayed the staff in every mini-game tied to the budget.

Then came Australia.

The producers had limited their travel funds so the members would experience a humble youth trip.

Instead—

"We're going busking~ Hehehe!"

They earned a fortune busking.

Then proceeded to enjoy an extravagant vacation anyway.

That was why, this season, the staff had come prepared.

"We can't lose again! This time we'll definitely win!"

"Hear, hear!"

"How do we make this trip descend into complete chaos? Any ideas?"

After countless marathon meetings...

They reached one conclusion.

Swap everyone's roles.

Just give each member the job they were worst at.

That was the concept.

Everything had gone exactly according to plan.

NewBlack's ridiculous airport fashion had already delighted the staff.

Now let's see how badly everything falls apart.

They watched with smug anticipation.

Then...

The trip actually began.

And everything unfolded in the exact opposite way they had expected.

"Huh?"

"What?"

Biju.

The designated navigator.

He...

...was navigating perfectly.

Impossible.

Biju can't find his way to save his life.

Normally he'd somehow wander a kilometer away from everyone without noticing.

Yet somehow...

He was leading the group flawlessly.

"...?"

"...??"

Seeing the stunned production staff, Biju smiled.

"I'm always getting lost, right?"

"That's true..."

"So this time I decided to do the opposite. Every time I thought, 'It's definitely this way,' I deliberately went the other way."

"...!"

A complete reversal in thinking.

Since his instincts were always wrong...

He simply trusted the opposite.

The producers stared in disbelief.

This isn't how this was supposed to go...

They'd imagined Biju leading everyone hopelessly astray.

The members wandering through the wilderness asking, Where are we?

Instead...

Nothing.

And that wasn't the only problem.

"Leader Seo!"

"Yes?"

"Where should we go next? We can either take the boat tour on the lake or head to the national park."

Why had they made Ri Hyuk the leader?

Because...

"...Ummm..."

He overthought absolutely everything.

He knew too much.

Analyzed too much.

He always struggled to make decisions.

Except...

"We'll decide with a coin toss."

"...?"

Ri Hyuk pulled out a ten-cent coin.

He flipped it high into the air.

Caught it.

"It's tails. National park."

"Yaaaay!"

Instant decision.

No hesitation whatsoever.

The producers blinked.

Finally, Ri Hyuk explained.

"My strength is narrowing choices down to the best options. I'm very good at that."

He adjusted his glasses.

"My weakness is spending forever deciding between equally good options. But once you've narrowed them down, the difference in value is usually tiny. So instead of wasting time overthinking, it's more efficient to let chance choose."

That was why he flipped a coin.

Watching everyone excel in roles they were supposedly terrible at...

The producers turned desperate eyes toward one final person.

Jiho...

You're our last hope.

Surely Jiho would overspend.

He'd buy piles of souvenirs.

Then discover the wallet was empty.

Cry,

"What?! We're out of money?"

Beg the staff for more.

The producers would laugh...

Assign a penalty mission...

Perfect.

That was the plan.

It really had been.

Until—

"Jiho."

"Yeah?"

"Can I buy this?"

One of the members held up a glacier-shaped souvenir.

Jiho folded his arms and firmly shook his head.

"No."

"If you buy that, we'll go over today's budget."

"Our meal budget will have to be reduced."

"So no."

"Aww..."

"No means no."

The heir to a conglomerate managed the finances with ruthless precision.

The carefree "Hooray for spending~!" Jiho from earlier had completely disappeared.

In his place stood a cold, calculating accountant.

Jiho shouldn't be like this.

When he was on that parenting variety show, wasn't he the one begging for toys until the kids got embarrassed?

Nothing made sense.

While the members went off to buy some snacks, the production staff hurried into an emergency meeting.

"Is it just me?"

"No."

"I feel the same."

"How...? This isn't right."

It was as though NewBlack had rehearsed everything in advance.

Then someone spoke up.

"By the way... did anyone notice Wooju whispering something to everyone earlier?"

"Really?"

They immediately reviewed the footage.

And the truth came out.

"We're lost..."

"Biju."

"The opposite."

Wooju quietly whispered those two words...

Then slipped away before the producers noticed.

The staff slowly turned toward the leader laughing cheerfully in the distance.

It was you.

Of course it was you.

Even without the official title...

A leader was still a leader.

He understood every member's personality and quietly nudged them toward success.

The more they reviewed the footage...

The more examples they found.

"Junghyun."

"Think of it as farming."

That was how he'd helped Junghyun with planning.

"Ri Hyuk."

They watched Wooju casually slide a coin into Ri Hyuk's hand while quietly whispering something.

One secret after another was exposed.

Then someone asked,

"Fine, I get everyone else. But what on earth did he say to Jiho to turn him into a calculator?"

The footage answered.

Wooju walked over.

"Jiho."

"Worried about managing the money?"

"Yeah."

"Today..."

"You're playing your father."

"...!"

Every producer slowly turned toward Jiho.

He was carefully recording every expense on his phone.

Muttering to himself.

"No revenue coming in."

"Only expenses."

"We need aggressive cost reduction."

"Feed everyone cheap but filling food."

"If they're missing nutrients, compensate with sugary snacks."

"We also need to reduce spending on tourist activities."

"I'll have to ruin the hyungs' fun whenever necessary."

He sounded...

Suspiciously like a ruthless corporate executive.

As Jiho stood there with his hands behind his back, deep in thought...

The producers suddenly saw another man's face overlapping his.

Chairman Wang Hyeontak...!

At last...

The mystery was solved.