Chapter 109
Error (過誤).
The word is written with gwa (過), meaning “to pass beyond,” and o (誤), meaning “to be wrong,” and refers to ‘a mistake or fault stemming from carelessness or negligence.’ It can also mean an error caused by an incorrect judgment.
She watched Suyeon, whose expression had soon returned to its emotionless state. With her guitar slung diagonally across her body, Suyeon stood before the microphone and stared at the audience with distant eyes.
The stage was completely dark, filled only with white spotlights and smoke. The four girls stood at their respective positions, waiting for the start.
Four signals came crashing down.
The piano in the intro had deep reverb. Over the bass and drums laying down a solid foundation, the guitar first played a stroke-focused part… then leaped to the forefront and began delivering its melody.
Overall… it was a song in a color Group Sound had never shown before. Typical ‘modern Korean rock.’ A genre leading modern Korean indie rock, with jangly guitars pouring down over an atmosphere that felt shrouded in fog and clouds.
People cheered at the addictive, easy-listening melody.
Everyone knew they possessed phenomenal skill and an almost insane narrative… but until now, listening to Group Sound’s songs had required considerable effort. This time was different. The simple melody came straight into their ears.
Then the guitar melody ended, and the song began.
One day, if you choose
one of the countless roads,
could I really tell you
not to go?
The gap left by the guitar was not filled. Only the vocals rose over it. That seemingly empty space instead gave people a sense of reassurance. It was a simple, unadorned sound, as though everything unnecessary had been removed and only what was needed remained.
One day, even if you choose
one of the roads and regret it,
could I really tell you
that you shouldn’t have gone?
The guitar was added again as though filling that gap, heightening the audience’s mood with a rich sound that contrasted with what came before.
Tomorrow’s you wipes away your tears,
but you’re not yesterday’s you.
Tomorrow’s you kneels down,
but you’re different from yesterday’s you.
Then the guitar began playing its main melody again. Amid the cheering audience, she captured Suyeon’s face on camera as Suyeon maintained a sharp, emotionless expression.
The other three girls moved around with cheerful smiles and interacted with the audience. Suyeon, by contrast, continued playing her guitar with an expressionless face. Even during the brief solo that followed, Suyeon merely tapped her foot to the rhythm, playing with her head lowered.
‘…I see.’
This was a song of remorse.
An autobiographical song about her life.
A confession of the wrong choices she had made in the past.
Watching Suyeon, she thought that it would be difficult to create a more perfect scenario than this.
That was what she had learned about Suyeon’s life. She had been the last student of the famous session guitarist ‘Seo Myeongjeon,’ taken on about a year before his death. For some reason she did not know, the girl had lived the life of a wild delinquent while harboring a sense of honor deep in her heart…
At some point, she met someone who was facing death.
Before they knew it, they had become teacher and student. A prodigiously talented but wayward student, and a teacher who recognized that student’s ability and began nurturing it.
And they both collapsed around the same time. The teacher passed away, while the student was caught in an accident, crushed beneath the weight of her own reckless life.
What happened afterward was like a work of literature. The student found her teacher’s belongings, bid farewell to her reckless life, and apologized to countless people. She entered competitions and moved toward victory despite being slandered… and in the end, she confessed her own misconduct and apologized to the world.
She thought that was why Suyeon did not raise her head.
How could anyone not cry?
You’re simply looking up
as countless stars fall before your eyes.
What on earth,
what path did you ever want to take, and when?
When she looked around, she occasionally saw people crying like her even as they enjoyed the music. Perhaps they had initially only enjoyed the well-made easy-listening song, but after savoring the lyrics, their emotions had welled up.
It was understandable. She was doing the same thing now, pretending not to notice as she wiped away a few tears.
Tomorrow’s you wipes away your tears,
but you’re not yesterday’s you.
Tomorrow’s you kneels down,
but you’re different from yesterday’s you.
As the chorus repeated, singing quietly began to rise from among the audience. People were singing along even though it was their first time hearing the song.
Tomorrow’s you kneels down,
“But you’re not yesterday’s you…”
Tomorrow’s you kneels down,
“But you’re different from yesterday’s you…”
The sound of everyone singing together grew louder.
The more the chorus repeated, the clearer it became. The audience enjoyed the song with enough energy to keep singing forever if only they were given the time.
But that feverish energy soon cooled as a silence descended. As the stage gradually grew quiet and settled,
“Today’s you, I wonder
…where you wanted to go.”
The song ended with Suyeon’s quiet voice.
Thunderous applause followed at the end of the song.
* * *
“And the long-awaited winner is…! Group Sound!!”
Fireworks exploded as the audience erupted in cheers. Iseo received a panel displaying the prize money of 100 million won, raised it overhead, and let out a roar. Seoha took the panel, saying she wanted to try it too. Hyuna looked flustered, unsure whether she was supposed to copy them, while Suyeon gave a bitter smile at the farce.
“Please give us a few words about your victory!”
At the MC’s words, Suyeon picked up the microphone.
“I’m so dazed after experiencing countless things in this short period of less than a year. I’ll work harder to make songs and sing them with even greater dedication. Please continue to support us in the future.”
After that, Iseo, Hyuna, and Seoha gave their comments as well. The second-place team, WEKIDS, and the third-place team followed with their remarks.
“I’m saved.”
Watching the scene, Donguk muttered those words. WEKIDS had done fairly well, but they could not match Group Sound, who had come out with their knives thoroughly sharpened. The difference was overwhelming, judging from the reaction at the venue alone.
If the difference had been no more than a hair or two, there might have been room to meddle. But with a gap this wide, the moment WEKIDS won, a rigging controversy would erupt no matter what they did.
That was why Donguk let out a sigh of relief. Before the live broadcast began, he had already told them to cancel the preparations for rigging the results.
‘I’d rather take the abuse from Director Park… Besides, Director Park is the one who’s going to get killed by CEO Im of Clear Sky anyway.’
Director Park might drag him away and slap him. He might even get kicked in the joints. But if he rigged things in this situation, his career as a producer would simply be over. He would immediately be branded a cheater and never be allowed back into the broadcasting industry.
In that case, he could just take a few slaps from Director Park, let Director Park deal with CEO Im however he pleased… and enjoy the title of the PD who had created the great achievement of ranking first among cable programs in the same time slot.
That would be enough.
What roused Donguk from his thoughts was someone beside him clearing his throat. When he turned, PD Choi was standing there with an anxious expression.
“You should be over there. Why are you here?”
“Uh… well, you see. How should I put this?”
Watching PD Choi hem and haw, Donguk felt puzzled. This wasn’t like him. Had he eaten something bad?
“If you’ve got nothing to do, go gather the kids and get things organized. We should start sending the audience home. Did you bring pajamas? We’re going to be up all night.”
“Well, the thing is, um…”
“Ah, you bastard. Just say it already. What are you trying to say?”
Watching PD Choi repeatedly twitch as if he were about to speak, Donguk grew frustrated. Either say it or don’t.
“PD Choi, you don’t need to explain. I can do it myself.”
Donguk, already irritated, instantly froze at the sound of that voice. Director Jung. A man from a different faction with whom he was not on good terms. The man who had opposed Yoon Donguk’s reinstatement to the very end.
Why had that man come here? He was not even involved with this program. Had he come to make trouble and turn everything into a mess because they had ranked first in the same time slot?
“What brings you here, Director? Did you come to benchmark our ratings?”
Donguk tossed out the remark while pretending to be at ease as Director Jung approached with a genial smile. But Director Jung did not so much as twitch as he walked up to Donguk and stopped in front of him.
“Donguk. I know you wanted to suck up to Director Park like hell, but you crossed the line this time.”
“…Pardon? What are you talking about?”
“You bastard. If I’ve come all the way here, you should know everything’s already over. What are you talking about?”
Director Jung’s words settled heavily over Donguk. Had he been found out? But he had not even carried it out. There was no evidence, so how could he have discovered it? It made no sense.
“You were planning to rig it. I heard everything. I heard you ordered the people under you to make WEKIDS win. My, you’ve got some nerve. You told them to make those agency kids win over the people capable of putting on a stage like that?”
But what came from Director Jung’s mouth betrayed Donguk’s expectations. How had he found out?
“I never did anything like that.”
“Like hell you didn’t, you fucker. One of the people under you came to our PD Kim and told him exactly when and how you gave the order, you bastard.”
Watching Donguk stiffen, Director Jung let out a harsh laugh. That bastard had always been irritating, so seeing him get caught after spouting crazy nonsense while acting as Director Park’s lackey was immensely satisfying.
“PD Kim has already gone to report to the boss. You tried to rig it while riding Director Park’s line, even with PD Kim onto you? You bastard… Start preparing to go somewhere with beautiful mountains and clear water. Or look for another line of work. Actually, the latter might be better. I have a loose tongue, so I might go around the industry spreading the name of the bastard who dared attempt to rig the results.”
Donguk’s face was deathly pale as he looked at Director Jung speaking those words. He opened his mouth as if he were about to say something, then lowered his head completely.
Director Jung’s attitude was understandable. Donguk had been demoted after causing one scandal and had only barely returned, but now he had caused another. He was facing permanent demotion. On top of that, if word spread that he had attempted to rig the results, no broadcasting station would take him in.
But that was none of Director Jung’s concern.
* * *
[Exclusive) ‘Invasion 2024’ PD Abuse-of-Power Controversy and Allegations of Deliberately Disrupting a Participating Band’s Filming]
…Mr. J, a former member of participating band M, said:
“PD Yoon Donguk’s abuse of power was truly unbearable. During the third-round mission, he announced without warning that he would tear the bands apart. When the other bands said they couldn’t film that way and threatened to leave, he summoned us and threatened us. He said, ‘Do you want to end your relationship with the broadcasting industry for the rest of your lives? For someone like me, it would be easy to keep you from appearing on any other program.’”
But that was not the end of his story. He also opened up about his former band, ‘M,’ and another band, ‘V.’
“The funny thing was that once we had agreed to it, whether because of threats or whatever, we should have submitted. But all the members of our band and the other band kept asking whether we were really going to lose to the PD like this and saying we should sabotage things. The leaders would work to pass, while the rest of the members scattered and sabotaged the shoot. We even came up with a detailed plan.”
“And when I joined the band of one of the likely winners, the other band members started egging me on. At first, they only picked fights with me, but later they started saying things like, ‘Hey, hold it in for now and blow up during the performance.’ I thought, ‘That sounds good!’ and got carried away…”
J said that what awaited him after he went through with it was cold treatment from the other band members. He said it hurt him even more than PD Yoon Donguk’s abuse of power.
“But we were supposed to do it together. Even if it was wrong, if we agreed to do it together, shouldn’t we have done it together? But once I actually caused trouble, they started asking why I had done it. It was ridiculous…”
‘Was this why?’
Myeongjeon sipped his coffee while looking at his phone. He had not been able to understand why that bastard had pulled that shit, but after reading this article, everything seemed to fit together clearly.
Had he picked a fight at the beginning, then become cooperative after briefly going out at night and returning, because they had egged him on? And despite that, they had played dumb and even kicked him out. Even Myeongjeon could see how that would make his desire for revenge flare up.
“No!! Ms. Suyeon!!”
“Hey, my ears are going to burst. Keep it down.”
“Pay attention!!”
Hyuna banged on the café table. Myeongjeon frowned and replied, “People are staring.” At that, Hyuna looked at Myeongjeon with a face that seemed ready to burst from frustration.
“We have to decide where we’re going and what we’re going to do…! Are we really going to just sit around during the trip?”
“Why plan every little detail? Just go, say, ‘Wow, this is fun,’ take some pictures, and rest when your feet hurt. Isn’t that enough?”
“Then we might as well just stay home and do that…!”
At Iseo’s words, Hyuna suddenly raised her head as though her anger had reached its limit, then dropped it again like a doll whose strings had been cut. Watching Iseo soothe Hyuna with an “Ahahaha!”
Myeongjeon thought, It’s over, one way or another. The audition, and the other problems too. Now everyday life would begin again. It would be a little different from before, though.