85 Leak

In my previous life, I considered design and structure the most important things when making music.

I used to believe that only by laying down a solid foundation and adding a melody on top could I create a song that would appeal to the public.

Now, looking back, I think the reason I believed that was probably because I didn't sing the songs myself.

I couldn't enjoy it, and music made out of obligation could never contain any soul.

In this life, as time passed, I gradually came to realize that the most important thing in making music was ‘immersion.’

That was because most of my hit songs had been born through that process of immersion.

They were the results of focusing solely on the melody that grabbed my ears, forgetting even the passage of time and my hunger.

Most of the melodies I obtained that way had a special charm, even to my own ears.

“…Don't you think this is really good?”

This song was somewhat special, in a way.

I had deliberately gone all the way to an amusement park in search of inspiration, and a melody had suddenly flashed into my head during the process.

Of course, the process of fleshing out that inspiration couldn't exactly be called short…

But when I actually finished the song, it turned out quite good.

Good enough to make me want to put it out into the world right away.

“Should we send it over to them for now? Honestly… now that I mention it, this song is so good that using it for this tie-up almost feels like a waste.”

“…From a commercial standpoint, that might be true, but I'm doing this for my own satisfaction.”

“But isn't work on Mikansei's second album already behind schedule?”

That was true.

Lately, I had been so focused on the tie-up that work on my other songs had come to a complete stop.

Even if we could put Mikansei's second album off until later, it would be somewhat problematic if NOIRIS's work fell behind.

I answered while subtly avoiding Lee Ha-jun's eyes.

“…Well, I'll finish it by the deadline. There's still plenty of time left, anyway.”

“If it's too much, you don't have to. For a group on NOIRIS's level, we can always find good songs from outside.”

“Once I've started something, I have to see it through.”

It was true that I was paying less attention to NOIRIS.

But that didn't mean I was selfless enough to hand a group I had taken responsibility for over to someone else.

Putting everything else aside, NOIRIS itself was a group with an extremely promising future.

Using the Y2K concept I had brought from my previous life and the unfamiliar genre of Jersey club, their chart performance was soaring, and I sometimes thought they might one day reach the pinnacle of the girl-group world… That was the kind of group they were.

Naturally, I had no desire to see someone else's name engraved on the monument they would build instead of mine.

“Don't push yourself too hard. At your age, your health comes first.”

“Honestly, I'm getting plenty of rest.”

I'm only a little busy these days. Normally, there isn't actually all that much for me to do.

After all, I'm only responsible for the musical side of things.

If that hadn't been the case, it would have been impossible for me to stay this active with my individual activities in the first place.

“In any case, I'll send this song through our Japanese branch. They already said the previous version was good enough, so… they'll be more than satisfied with this version.”

“Do I not have to go there myself?”

“No. The branch there is also being properly staffed and organized.”

Having plenty of money really did make anything possible.

The fact that a company the size of Bluesky Entertainment was establishing a branch in Japan to enter the Japanese market was practically absurd in itself.

I heard through the grapevine that they had absolutely loved the final version I sent them.

Apparently, they had also said they definitely wanted to work with me if a second season was ever made… but honestly, I wondered whether a minor sports series like Empress of the Ice could become popular enough to get a second season.

After some time had passed, I received a video with an animated music video set to the song I had sung.

“…Wait, this quality is something else.”

And the direction of the video was truly overwhelming.

It began with rhythmic violin and synth melodies ringing out together.

A scene flashed by of the long-haired protagonist resolutely tying her shoelaces.

Then came images of the girls gliding across the ice.

The animation itself was excellent, but above all, the skating choreography and the way tiny shards of ice sprayed up during the movements were breathtaking.

“Wait, now that I think about it, there weren't any highly anticipated anime this season…”

There weren't any.

There were no second or third seasons of famous series, either, nor any works based on particularly high-profile manga or light novels.

“…Maybe it can become a bigger hit than I thought?”

But, as with everything, it takes time.

Even after recording, mixing, and mastering were complete, I couldn't release the song because the anime was scheduled to air the following season.

It was standard practice for tie-up songs to be released just before or around the anime's premiere.

The release date had also been specified in the contract.

In the meantime, I had quite a few things to do as well.

I had to compose several songs for Blooming and NOIRIS, and I also had to attend school diligently to make up for my lack of attendance.

And then there was what could be called the most important thing to me right now: entering middle school.

I also had to attend the arts middle school's interview for skipping a grade.

And at that interview, I unexpectedly saw a familiar face.

“So… Yu-jin unni?”

“Ah, ahaha… Long time no seeee.”

So Yu-jin, who had stayed with me at the dorm during Singer Star, had suddenly appeared as a teacher.

* * *

To be honest, there was a group chat for Singer Star's top ten, but I didn't check it all that often.

“…I told you in there that I'd also become a schoolteacher.”

“I-I'm sorry. Hehe.”

If I had been an adult, it would have been a great discourtesy, but right now I was nothing more than a cute elementary school student.

So a single hehe was enough to resolve the matter immediately.

Because I was cute.

“Siyeon can get away with that. You're busy, after all.”

“B-but are you also sitting in on the interviews?”

“No? I'm only here to help manage things as a new hire this year.”

There was still no one else in the waiting room.

Had I come unusually early, or were there simply very few kids being interviewed today?

“Ah, today we only called in the special-talent applicants. There aren't many kids, either… They'll probably just ask some basic questions and wrap things up.”

“…Isn't this special treatment?”

“I-it is, isn't it? Since it's an arts middle school, kids who are currently active in the industry inevitably receive special treatment. You'll probably be accepted without question.”

That did seem likely.

Even if it felt a little self-important, my name carried enough weight that they couldn't exactly reject me from an arts middle school.

Still, I hadn't expected them to offer such blatant preferential treatment.

Good for everyone, I suppose. Since it was a private arts middle school, the government had no particular reason to interfere, and the people receiving special treatment were happy to accept it, so this was probably a system that continued without any problems.

“…How have your activities been lately?”

So Yu-jin wasn't a charting artist either, but she was carving out a path of her own in the OST field.

Her strengths were a unique voice, like that of a voice actress, and the unusual timbre that came with it. She mainly sang OSTs for domestic otaku games.

“There are lots of game OSTs these days, so I'm happy! Someday, I want to sing a Japanese anime OST, so I have to keep working hard toward that goal.”

“H-hope it goes well.”

Honestly, for a Korean singer, singing a Japanese anime OST was not easy.

It was even more difficult for a soloist.

There was a reason I had said that breaking into Japan under Seo Siyeon's name wouldn't be easy.

‘In my case, it might have been possible somehow… but it won't be easy for So Yu-jin.’

When I entered the interview room, several teachers were there along with an elderly man who looked like the principal.

The questions were really just basic personal ones, and I was a little flustered when they asked about when I would return, but I brushed it off by saying I was tentatively thinking about the middle of next year.

Then, when I left the school before lunchtime, I suddenly found several messages from Lee Ha-jun waiting for me.

“Huh? A leak…?”

I immediately went onto Twitter and ran a search, and I was able to find the cause in an instant.

“…I mean, how good could it have been?”

The cause was a post by Akane, the author of the original manga.

-The opening tie-up has been decided! It's by a singer I absolutely love, so I'm incredibly excited!

She hadn't mentioned Mikansei anywhere, but she frequently said on Twitter that she liked Mikansei's songs, so it seemed people had quickly figured out that I was the one singing the tie-up.

“…Well, does it matter?”

Apparently, it mattered to quite a few people.

Starting the next day, some decidedly nasty malicious comments began appearing on Mikansei's YouTube channel.