Chapter 5

5. Arpeggio (Arpeggio, Spread Chord) -2

The pianist, who became known to the world by winning awards at the 1969 Reventlow and Busoni Competitions and the 1971 Naumburg Competition, is the best pianist of South Korea.

Among the many academies that branched out from the music school he founded, M Studio focused on talent selection.

Starting from Senior Jungseok, who became known as a pianist in an orchestra while still active, to Kim Minho, who would later reach the final stage of the Queen Elisabeth Competition.

M Studio became a place that discovered and nurtured various musicians, exerting significant influence in the music world.

That place was M Studio.

After parking in the underground parking lot, Senior Jungseok said, "Why are you so nervous?"

With a smile, he nudged me with his elbow as we waited for the elevator, adding playfully, "You know what this place is, right?"

"I know."

I nodded in response.

In 2009, M Studio wasn't yet at the height of its fame, but it was still well-known among people preparing for music.

"It's a place that gathers people who want to enjoy music, right?"

"What?"

Senior Jungseok's eyes widened in surprise, even though his mouth was still smiling, as if he had just been hit.

"People who want to enjoy music... That's an interesting way to put it."

"Is it wrong?"

"No, it's right. It's just that I've been hearing a lot about being the first or second in the country lately, so it feels fresh."

'A place that looks for people who enjoy music'

Actually, those words weren't something I had just come up with.

The person who said this was none other than Senior Jungseok himself, a bit older than he is now.

He often gave special lectures at Mihyang High School, and I had heard this from one of those lectures.

"Geniuses really do think differently, don't they..."

"Huh?"

"Ah, no. The elevator is here. Let's go quickly."

Senior Jungseok looked more shocked than I had expected.

However, he didn't seem to want to continue the conversation and fell silent.

Thanks to that, I was able to calm my racing heart.

"See those stairs? If you go up one floor, you'll see the practice floor. Go straight in, and there's an independent practice room. Can you wait there? I'll be right back after a brief greeting."

"Sure."

After giving me a short direction, Senior Jungseok headed to the first-floor office.

It seemed he had a meeting with someone.

I went to the second-floor practice room as he had instructed.

"Wow!"

The view as I climbed the stairs was truly impressive.

The rooms, made of perfect soundproofing materials, lined up one after another.

-Piano

There were more than ten practice rooms with such signs.

Considering the other rooms prepared for various instruments, you can get a sense of how massive M Studio is.

"The facilities at my university can't compare."

It felt a bit awkward to say this as a middle school student, but the equipment at the place that cost over 4 million won in tuition was really incomparable.

As I moved deeper in, I saw a sign that read "Independent Practice Room."

The moment I slightly opened the door, I heard piano music. It was a familiar tune, though the sound was faint.

"Kim Minho?"

It sounded like him, and as a big fan, I immediately recognized it.

However, the pianist wasn't Kim Minho.

Still, the performance, which somewhat awkwardly mimicked Kim Minho's powerful technique, drew me in.

Then, I saw a person.

Just by looking at the back of the person playing the piano, I knew who she was.

A female student with long, black hair, moving her whole body enthusiastically as she pressed the keys.

"It's Choi Ji-eun."

Although she never surpassed Kim Minho, she was a pianist known alongside him as a "genius."

Choi Ji-eun, the perennial second place.

We were in the same group once during school, and despite her sharp, cat-like appearance, she was kind to any student who was passionate about the piano.

Of course, I was in the midst of a deep frustration at the time, so I never heard her speak kindly to me.

Instead, I only remember receiving harsh glares as if she wanted me to die.

"Hey, who are you?"

Suddenly, a loud voice came from behind me.

I turned around to see a large boy.

He glared at me with a scowling face and raised his voice again.

"Who are you to be peeking at Ji-eun? How did you get in here? Do you think M Studio is a playground?"

His continuous, condescending tone made my face crumple.

To make a loud noise while the performer is deeply engrossed in playing,

Is he out of his mind?

Boom-

Sure enough, the sound of the keys being hit hard was heard.

Choi Ji-eun stopped playing and turned her head sharply, looking back and forth between me and the large boy.

"Park Eun-ho, be quiet."

She then shouted irritably at the large boy.

Park Eun-ho?

Hearing that name, a figure came to mind.

Park Eun-ho, a troublemaker who had been rumored to be expelled from M Studio for pretending to be a Casanova during school.

Now I understand.

Although I don't remember clearly, the boy in front of me seems to be that Park Eun-ho.

"Can't you see I'm practicing?"

Choi Ji-eun glared at Park Eun-ho, clearly angry.

"No, that kid was staring at you creepily. He's some kind of pervert."

Park Eun-ho pointed at me, looking indignant.

What's with the pointing?

However, Choi Ji-eun seemed curious about my presence and looked at me alternately with the boy before asking,

"Who are you? I've never seen you before."

The way she crossed her arms and kept her distance suggested that she was on high alert.

Although not as much as Kim Minho, Choi Ji-eun was one of the pianists I had always followed.

"I'm Lee Seong-hyun."

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to visit M Studio today at the recommendation of Teacher Jungseok."

I maintained a calm attitude and deliberately mentioned Senior Jungseok, to which Choi Ji-eun's reaction was intense.

"Teacher Jungseok? Senior Kim Jungseok?"

Choi Ji-eun immediately uncrossed her arms and approached me without any guard.

She had been a passionate fan of Senior Jungseok since she was very young.

"Uh, is something wrong...?"

I asked calmly, pretending to know nothing.

"No! More importantly, you mean Senior Jungseok brought you here?"

"Yeah, I came in his car. What's the big deal?"

"Really? For real?"

It seemed that all her attention was on Senior Jungseok, not on me.

Choi Ji-eun's guard was instantly lowered.

We chatted about Senior Jungseok, and Park Eun-ho, who had been left out, suddenly butted in and raised his voice.

"Don't lie. Do you even know how busy Senior Kim Jungseok is? Why would he bring someone like you who can't even play the piano?"

Park Eun-ho, trying to get Choi Ji-eun's attention, was acting like someone who prioritizes women over music.

"What's a lie?"

I sighed inwardly at his pitiful attempt and asked.

"He doesn't even look at someone who can't play the piano, do you know that?"

"I can play the piano."

"What? Piano? I've never seen you before."

Park Eun-ho looked me up and down and said dismissively.

He probably assumed I couldn't play the piano because he had never seen me before, despite playing the piano for a long time.

"If you're just showing off because you played a little in church or a club, get lost now."

"Ah, so you're saying I can't play the piano because I learned it in a club?"

"Is that even a statement?"

Park Eun-ho, blowing his nose, was already acting arrogantly at the age of 14.

I was new to M Studio, and arguing with him would look bad.

So, the only option was to provoke Park Eun-ho into exploding.

"Hmm, but I don't think that's necessarily true."

"What? Are you saying you can play the piano better than Ji-eun and me?"

Park Eun-ho, trying to side with Choi Ji-eun, spoke confidently.

So, I immediately shook my head and politely extended my palm towards Choi Ji-eun.

"This guy plays the piano really well, but you ruined a good performance."

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean, I think he can play better than someone who can't even show basic manners."

As I said this, I slowly turned my head from Choi Ji-eun to Park Eun-ho.

Park Eun-ho's face contorted as he realized I was provoking him.

Given his personality, I knew he would react like this:

"Damn, are you done talking?!"

Yes, I knew he would explode like this.

But just as Park Eun-ho shouted, a voice came from the slightly open door of the independent practice room.

"What's going on?"

Turning my head, I saw a calm expression that could soothe anyone with its gentle eyes.

A world-class pianist who, with his kind demeanor and good looks, could even win over people who had no interest in classical music.

It was Kim Minho.

"Minho."

Park Eun-ho, surprised by Kim Minho's sudden appearance, his growling face relaxed.

I couldn't help but widen my eyes as well.

Although he looked younger than in my memory, he was someone I had been looking forward to meeting since I returned to the past.

"Ah, nothing. Minho."

Park Eun-ho, who couldn't even look Kim Minho in the eye, was a far cry from the confident boy who had just shouted at me.

"Nothing? I heard your shouting as soon as I left the practice room."

"It's not that. That guy was secretly watching Ji-eun, so I was scolding him."

"Is that so? Then, why didn't you just call someone instead of shouting? It seems like you disturbed Ji-eun's performance."

"Sorry."

Park Eun-ho, looking truly pitiful, shrank.

"Can you explain what happened?"

As Park Eun-ho quieted down, Kim Minho approached Choi Ji-eun and asked.

Choi Ji-eun briefly explained the situation, mentioning that Senior Jungseok had brought me.

From this, it was clear how much she cared about the matter.

"Wow, Senior Jungseok brought someone?"

Kim Minho, muttering to himself, looked at me.

I understood his thoughts.

Senior Jungseok often gave advice to many students but rarely brought anyone to M Studio himself.

The obvious interest in his eyes.

He immediately approached me and extended his hand.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Kim Minho."

His dark eyes looked straight at me.

Although it had only been a few days since I returned to the past, I had thought about this moment many times.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Lee Seong-hyun."

Thanks to that, I was able to shake his hand without any awkwardness.

Then, with a bright smile, Kim Minho asked me directly.

"Have you seen the movie 'The Secret' that came out two years ago?"

"Uh, yeah, I've seen it."

Hearing my hesitant answer, his face lit up with a mischievous smile, and he called out to Park Eun-ho, who was trying to leave.

"Good. Eun-ho, come here."

Park Eun-ho, without showing any displeasure, returned to Kim Minho's call.

"Since it's about the piano, we should settle it with the piano, right?"

At that moment, I realized what Kim Minho was thinking.

He often engaged in such challenges, especially at Mihyang High School.

The highlight scene from the famous piano movie 'The Secret',

A piano duel.