Chapter 31
“…What’s this?”
Myeongjeon handed over the pamphlet. Iseo accepted it, skimmed through the contents, then passed it straight to Hyeona.
“There’s so little information that, uh… can any band participate as long as they’re a band?”
“It kind of looks that way.”
The two of them were completely lost. Seoha, however, seemed to know something.
“Oh, this. A band run by an older guy I know participated here last year, so I heard about it. Apparently, they were knocked out right away. It’s surprisingly tough.”
“Really? How good were they?”
“They were people who took being in a band pretty seriously, though their skills were only so-so.”
“If ‘so-so’ by Horang’s standards means that, then honestly, they’re probably good by ordinary people’s standards.”
“I wouldn’t call that good…”
Watching the three of them exchange words, Myeongjeon recalled the past. A few years ago, there had been some band members who wanted his advice about this project.
‘Now that I’m in this body, we aren’t connected anymore, so I can’t ask them.’
Thinking he should have at least listened to what they had to say back then, Myeongjeon snapped his fingers to draw their attention. The children, who had been chattering away, fell silent in an instant.
“There are two eligibility requirements. First, you must have debuted after 2019. That condition isn’t a problem for us, but…”
As he spoke, Myeongjeon pointed to the eligibility requirements section on the pamphlet. The second condition.
“Second, you must have at least two original songs. It says three on last year’s version… Anyway, this is the part that’s a problem.”
“Original songs… Two? We don’t have even one.”
“If applications are open until March, we only have two months. Can we really make two original songs?”
Hyeona and Iseo expressed concern about the requirements. Myeongjeon, however, didn’t think the requirement to make two original songs in two months was much of a problem.
“Writing a song itself… shouldn’t be much of an issue. For example, Guns N’ Roses’ Sweet Child o’ Mine was supposedly written in five minutes. In reality, it probably took another day or two, though.”
“Of course, I’m no Slash, and we don’t have a lyricist like Axl Rose, so creating a masterpiece like that in a day is almost impossible for us… But either way, composing a song itself doesn’t take that long.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“Once we make original songs and start practicing them… it’ll basically become impossible to practice by playing cover songs together. We’ll need to practice our original songs.”
Seoha said what Myeongjeon had been about to say. At that, Iseo fell into thought.
“Of course, that doesn’t mean we’ll stop playing covers altogether, and it’s not like we’re immediately entering the world of professional bands. There are still tons of songs I want to try covering, and professionals play cover songs at concerts too.”
“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that if we participate in this project… we’ll have no choice but to approach this band differently from how we have until now. We’ll be receiving funding and releasing an album, after all. We’ll also be spending far more time on it than we do now.”
When he finished speaking, Myeongjeon looked at the other three. Each of them was lost in her own thoughts.
It might have seemed a little sudden for him to bring this up, but Myeongjeon thought it was something he needed to address at this point.
Ha Suyeon (Seo Myeongjeon) had been playing guitar for several decades, planned to continue playing for decades to come, possessed enough skill to make a living from it, and came from a wealthy family, so he had no reason to worry about his future.
But the same couldn’t be said of the others.
Although he didn’t know her family circumstances, it was obvious that Seoha was aiming to become a professional.
This band was only a hobby for Hyeona, but she planned to attend an arts college for piano, so it seemed clear that she would choose a career related to music.
And Iseo was living a life completely unrelated to music. She seemed to be learning bass and playing in a band simply as a hobby, without giving much thought to her future.
Each of them had different circumstances.
Even just looking at music… Seoha wanted to pursue a career in bands, while Hyeona seemed headed toward classical music, far removed from band music.
Although their career paths might look similar, their actual roads led in completely opposite directions. The same was even more true for Iseo.
Of course, Myeongjeon wasn’t even sure whether this band would grow enough to warrant discussing its grand future.
If they failed to produce decent original songs, were rejected from the project, or failed an audition, wouldn’t all of this be meaningless?
But as an adult, Myeongjeon felt he couldn’t help worrying about them.
‘Life is long. Even after you reach your twenties or thirties, you’ll still have opportunities to change your future.’
But would words like that mean anything to teenagers? Would telling them that studying wasn’t the only path, that music wasn’t the only path, and that there were countless ways to make a living and find success in life actually get through to them?
Absolutely not.
That was why he needed to tell them to make a careful decision. Otherwise, they might impulsively throw themselves into it, waste their time on a passing emotion, become pessimistic about their circumstances, and do something reckless.
“Putting that aside, there’s also the matter of what I did in the past, which we need to discuss today. You all know that I used to bully a lot of kids.”
Myeongjeon told the children lost in thought about his plan. He would offer sincere apologies to the children he had bullied for no reason, and look for ways to deal with the other incidents.
“I hope all of you will consider all of this before making a decision. Let’s say we participate in this project and then enter an audition afterward…”
“If that happens, this band won’t be able to remain an ordinary hobby anymore. Even if it isn’t every day, you’ll have to set aside four or five evenings a week for band activities. That could affect Iseo and Seoha’s studies, and Hyeona’s entrance exams for arts college.”
“Of course, even though I’m putting it this way, it might not actually be that grueling. You might try it and decide it isn’t for you, then go back to treating it as a hobby.”
“But because that possibility exists, I have to bring it up.”
“Do you really intend to keep this band going for more than a year, even while preparing for your entrance exams? Is it worth it? Are you prepared for it? What about your parents? Your family circumstances? And anything else?”
Myeongjeon downed his cold coffee in one gulp.
“Think about it carefully. Think about how you feel about this band. No, before that… think about how you feel about music.”
“Whether you want to leave this band as nothing more than a light hobby, try to do something with it, or stake your life on it.”
It might have been a question far too harsh for young people growing up in this era.
‘But I had already made my decision at their age.’
But judging by his own experience, it wasn’t an unreasonable question to ask. They were old enough to decide what to do with their lives. And if they couldn’t decide, they could always ask their parents.
“I’ll give you about a week. I’ll be composing during that time… Iseo, there’s something I need you to do.”
“Huh? Me?”
“Yes. No matter what direction things take, we need performance experience… So I’d like you to contact that otaku party—or whatever it was—the band performance I mentioned earlier—and tell them we’ll participate. Could you coordinate the schedule too? Everyone agrees, right?”
At his words, the other three nodded. Myeongjeon happened to glance out the window. The sun had already set. Was it evening already?
“How about we go get dinner? We can talk some more while we eat.”
“Why don’t we order something? It’s cold outside.”
“Um… I think my mom will be here soon.”
“Why does that matter?”
Iseo asked as though there were no problem at all. Myeongjeon, however, felt strangely awkward. Wasn’t it a little strange to introduce his friends to his parents? Either way, it made him uncomfortable for some reason.
“It just feels a little weird.”
“Why not?”
While they were bickering, the door lock beeped. Then Ms. Lee Hyein came in, flinching when she saw the unfamiliar children before breaking into a bright smile at the sight of Myeongjeon.
“Are these Suyeon’s friends?”
* * *
“Come visit sometime. There are days when Suyeon and I go busking together, so if you contact us, you can come along.”
“There’s no need to go that far…”
“Oh, thank you so much! We had fun today! We’ll be going now~”
The three children bowed deeply and left the apartment. Suyeon’s mother followed them to the entrance, waving while hugging Suyeon, who looked embarrassed.
“She’s a nice person.”
“Yeah. She seems well-off too… How much do you think a place like this costs?”
“Even if I don’t know for sure, probably two or three billion won.”
“That much?”
“This is right in Seoul. It’s incredibly convenient for getting anywhere, too.”
“She really must be rich. Somat, how did you meet Suyeon?”
“No, we just met because we’re classmates…”
After chatting about this and that, they came to a stop. What they had discussed today was too important to leave unaddressed.
“What are you two going to do?”
At Seoha’s question, Iseo and Hyeona couldn’t give an immediate answer. Seoha continued before either of them could respond.
“As for me… I think I’ll keep going. Even if you two decide not to.”
“Really?”
“She plays guitar ridiculously well, Suyeon does… I’m not sure what I should call her. Anyway, looking at that guitar skill, sticking with her is definitely the smart choice.”
Seoha laid bare her honest feelings. She believed her own drumming skills wouldn’t be out of place anywhere, but Suyeon’s guitar skills were an outlier in the truest sense.
Someone who could captivate an audience with nothing but a guitar. Someone with the skill and stage presence to make people go wild even with an unknown song, or one they might otherwise reject.
“I guess… Horang is aiming to become a professional, after all. Right?”
“Yeah. But aren’t you aiming to become a professional too?”
“I suppose I am… But I don’t have it in me to stake everything on Roselia… Anyway, I need to think about it too.”
Hyeona fell silent after saying that. Iseo briefly held back a laugh at the sudden otaku reference, while Seoha checked her phone and said goodbye.
“I’ve got to go because of my subway schedule. See you next time!”
At that, Hyeona waved and said she should be going too before disappearing in another direction. Iseo stood there for a moment, then started walking home.
‘What should I do…’
Iseo looked at the bass standing on a stand in the corner of her room. It was the instrument she had used the day before yesterday, yesterday, and that very morning. Since buying it, she felt like she had used it longer than her phone. By now, it was almost like one of her own hands.
A white Mexican Fender Precision Bass.
She had started playing bass—and gotten into music—after watching an anime. Even while taking lessons, she had wondered whether she could keep doing it for long.
But before she knew it, she had formed a band and was practicing every day. She had come to love bass and music so much that she had pushed aside fashion and makeup—the things she used to love more than food.
“Iseo~ Are you eating dinner?”
“I ate already.”
Iseo answered briefly, then looked back at the bass. What should she do?
Quitting didn’t seem like an option. Wasn’t she the one who had drawn Suyeon, who had been living quietly by herself, into this? Even as a matter of basic decency, if Suyeon was going to make music, Iseo felt she should continue alongside her.
‘But won’t I just become a burden to Suyeon with my level of skill?’
Suyeon said that Iseo herself had improved a lot, but Iseo recalled what Seoha had said and the skill she had witnessed from Suyeon firsthand. It was truly beyond the limits of ordinary ability.
If Iseo stayed by Suyeon’s side to the end, wouldn’t that itself interfere with Suyeon’s potential, given the level of skill Suyeon possessed?
Iseo shook her head and brushed away her distracting thoughts. Knowing Suyeon, if Iseo became an obstacle, Suyeon would tell her herself.
So she would simply trust Suyeon. Trust that she, Iseo, was someone who could help Suyeon.
Iseo opened her phone and launched social media. She could worry about everything else later. For now, she needed to carry out the task Suyeon had entrusted to her.
[I inquired about participating once before. Would it be possible for us to participate? I’m sorry for asking so suddenly ㅠㅠ]
Preparing for the second performance.