Chapter 15

Reckless Genius Composer Returns - Chapter 15 (15/482)

A few days had passed since then.

During that time,

Hyunsung had moved all his belongings to the studio and completed the setup.

“Hyunsung!”

Manager Kim arrived with a broad smile.

“Why are you so happy?”

“It feels like a friend has moved in next door.”

“But we saw each other every day even before I moved in.”

“At least we can go to the cafeteria together at every meal.”

Just as Hyunsung was shaking his head,

Knock knock.

Someone knocked on the private studio door.

“I'm here to install the coffee machine.”

“Come in, come in.”

Manager Kim gestured as if he were the host.

“What's this about a coffee machine all of a sudden?”

“You drink coffee often.”

“Did Manager Kim buy it for you?”

“I was going to buy it, but…”

After a brief pause, Manager Kim added,

“Jini bought it first, apparently.”

“Do you mean the Seo Jini I know?”

“Yes, that Seo Jini. I was a bit surprised too.”

Manager Kim patted Hyunsung's back and continued,

“Thanks to you, Jini's stock has risen a lot lately, and she's very busy.”

He then poked Hyunsung's side and whispered,

“She contacted me, saying she wanted to buy you a coffee machine despite her busy schedule.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Jini listens to you well, and she even gives gifts….”

“Well, you did achieve results worth giving gifts for, didn't you?”

“More than that, she might want to become a bit closer….”

Hyunsung cut off Manager Kim and shook his head.

“Manager, have you ever read any folk tales?”

“I've read a few.”

“Like the magpie, the swallow, the dog, and the tiger.”

He then added softly,

“Even animals know how to repay kindness.”

“So?”

“Seo Jini is a human, after all.”

Hyunsung shrugged and said,

“She's probably just trying to repay a favor.”

“Maybe….”

“Anyway, why are you here?”

Manager Kim seemed ready to discuss work and pulled out a notebook from his jacket pocket.

“By the way, who do you want to work with next?”

“Can I choose anyone?”

“You managed to succeed even with Jini, who was a headache.”

Manager Kim added after a pause,

“Most of the time, it should be okay.”

He moistened his finger and flipped the notebook page with a rustle.

“I've listed all the singers preparing new songs. They'll all be profitable projects.”

Hyunsung interrupted, “Hold on.”

“By the way, when will the monthly trainee evaluation results be out?”

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Manager Kim asked with a puzzled look,

“Why? Do you know any of the trainees?”

“No, not really.”

“Just so happens there was a monthly evaluation today.”

“What about the results?”

“They'll be out by tonight….”

Manager Kim glanced at his wristwatch and muttered, “It should be soon,” before asking again,

“So, why did you ask?”

Hyunsung, who had been evading the question, suddenly grinned like a mischievous child and asked,

“Can we decide on the next project tomorrow?”

Manager Kim, unable to easily respond, stared at Hyunsung, whose intentions were unclear.

‘What’s this kid up to…?’

For some reason….

He felt a chill, but dismissed it as just a feeling.

* * *

In the middle of the night, when everyone was asleep.

“Aerin, it's possible that your ambiguous talent is wasting your youth.”

Jeong Aerin, squatting in the practice room, kept mulling over the trainer's words.

“I don’t know if giving you false hope by telling you that you can do it is really for your benefit.”

“I also want to tell you to endure and keep trying, but I wonder if it’s just irresponsible encouragement without any real plan….”

She knew that crying and throwing tantrums wouldn’t solve anything….

“Please, just one more chance….”

She clung to the trainer's pants, who had been with her for years.

“It’s already decided. You need to move out of the dorm by the end of this week.”

His voice was firm, despite the evident regret.

Thus,

After delivering the news, the trainer turned away without hesitation.

“Is this really the end….”

She sat alone in the practice room for hours after everyone had left.

She couldn’t bring herself to leave, even though she had to.

Unable to accept that it was the end, she muttered to herself for a while.

“Alright, let’s go….”

It was time to wake up from the dream and return to reality.

She had spent most of her teenage years as a trainee.

She had dug one hole with stubborn determination….

‘What should I do now….’

The thought that the hole she had dug so stubbornly might become her grave made her even more hesitant to move.

She sighed deeply and quickly left the practice room, heading towards her personal locker.

Creak—.

As soon as she opened the locker, she thought,

‘It’s so empty.’

After living there for about 6 years,

It didn’t look like a locker used by a typical teenage girl; there wasn’t even a single common cosmetic item.

She had endured her trainee life as if she were on a battlefield.

She had never predicted that her trainee life would end so futilely.

She stuffed her training clothes, emergency medicine, and bandages into her bag.

Bang—!

Just as she was closing the locker door in frustration,

Thud—.

A small rectangular piece of paper fluttered to the ground.

“Huh?”

Picking up the paper, she saw it was a business card from LS Entertainment.

‘Oh, that’s the card from that person….’

She suddenly remembered the composer who had visited the practice room.

“If you fail as expected, give me a call.”

At the time, he seemed like a strange person.

“He might help if he feels like it.”

If his words were true, he was the person she needed most now.

‘HS, in-house composer’

The neatly printed name on the card was unfamiliar to her.

Jeong Aerin didn’t hesitate for long.

She immediately took out her phone and started to call.

Ring—.

How long had it been?

— Yes, who is this?

Soon, a male voice came from the other end of the line.

— Who are you?

The person on the phone asked in an irritated tone.

“Hello, I’m calling based on the business card.”

— Business card?

“I met you at the practice room last time!”

— Practice room? What practice room?

“I’m a trainee preparing for the monthly evaluation.”

— What trainee?

“I remember you giving me the business card, don’t you?”

There was a moment of silence.

— Oh.

It seemed he finally remembered.

— You were supposed to be expelled after failing the monthly evaluation, right?

“It was possible that I would be expelled….”

— Really? From my perspective, it was a definite expulsion.

Jeong Aerin frowned.

‘What’s going on? Is he doing this on purpose?’

As she was considering whether to hang up,

— Anyway, are you calling to ask for help?

After a moment of hesitation, Jeong Aerin weakly replied, “Yes.”

— Let’s meet and talk.

“Where should I go….”

— 2nd floor, B area, room 103, LS Entertainment building.

Just as Jeong Aerin was frantically searching her bag for a pen to write down the location,

Thud.

The call ended abruptly.

“What? Really…?”

She burst out laughing, feeling ridiculous.

What kind of person was this?

It was unclear whether he could actually provide the help she needed, but….

‘He might really be able to help….’

She was in a desperate situation where she could only cling to the slightest hope.

Just once, just one time.

She decided to meet ‘HS’ and see what would happen.

* * *

The 2nd floor B area of the LS Entertainment building was where all the composers had their private studios.

Despite spending a considerable amount of time as a trainee, this was her first time entering this area.

Approaching room 103, she hesitated to knock on the door.

She was reminded of the various rumors she had overheard about the company.

“Seo Jini was supposed to have her contract terminated after this album, but the new composer saved her.”

“I heard he doesn’t sleep at all? He works like a dolphin, sleeping only 5 minutes a day and creating songs….”

“He’s said to have a very bad temper? Even Seo Jini behaves like a puppy in front of him.”

“Still, thanks to this incident, he’s now favored by the CEO and the board.”

A new composer with a mysterious reputation, though his name was unknown.

‘Could this strange person be that composer?’

After a long moment of contemplation, she finally gathered her courage and knocked on the closed studio door.

Knock knock.

But no matter how many times she knocked, there was no response.

“Hello—?”

Jeong Aerin slightly opened the door and peeked inside.

“Excuse me….”

Inside the studio, instead of a person, an odd song was playing.

– Rabibobetdau…♬

Drawn by the cheerful sound coming from the high-quality speakers, she stepped into the studio.

– Bububadu, Rabibebu…♬

It was a song she had never heard before.

Was it from an anime?

Or was it in a foreign language?

It turned out to be the OST from the game ‘Animal Island’ that Hyunsung played whenever he had free time.

It seemed someone was there, as the desktop was on and humming, and…

When she moved closer to the monitor, she saw a search window open on the portal site.

‘Why is he searching for this?’

The search bar read, “Factors causing the price of turnips to rise.”

Below it, a list of search terms appeared: turnip hoarding, turnip market price, turnip coin, full buy of turnips….

She couldn’t understand any of it.

Of course,

These terms referred to the price of turnips in the game ‘Animal Crossing’ that Hyunsung was playing, but…

From Jeong Aerin’s perspective, it only added to her confusion.

‘He might really be a strange person….’

As she was considering whether to leave the studio,

Creak—.

The studio door opened.

“Damn, the price of turnips dropped again. I bought them all….”

This was the first thing Hyunsung said as he entered the studio.

‘Turnip price? Is he really investing in turnips?’

A large question mark appeared above Jeong Aerin’s head.

She had seen people invest in Bitcoin, stocks, and real estate, but…

This was the first time she had seen someone invest in turnips.

“What? When did you get here?”

Finally, Jeong Aerin and Hyunsung’s eyes met in the air….

Hyunsung glanced at her indifferently, moved to his chair, and asked,

“Did you fail as expected?”

Hyunsung plopped down on the sofa and asked,

“Yes, as you predicted.”

“How long have you been a trainee?”

“About 6 years, I think.”

“After all the hardships and challenges, you’re being expelled….”

Hyunsung added in a flat tone.

“It must be disappointing.”

Jeong Aerin narrowed her eyes.

“Are you calling me here to rub it in?”

“Of course not.”

“You said you could help me.”

Hyunsung let out a “Hmm” and then spoke.

“Let’s get this straight, you were definitely expelled, right?”

“Yes, I was expelled very clearly….”

“It’s a shame, but a decision that’s already been made can’t be changed.”

“You said you could help me!”

There was a moment of silence.

“I’ll debut you through a different method.”

“Really?”

“If you follow my instructions.”

Jeong Aerin bit her lip, a habit she had when deep in thought.

No matter how she thought about it, they were complete strangers. He was offering to help her, a person he had never met….

Moreover, the condition that she follow his instructions seemed suspicious.

“Why? Don’t you want to?”

It was hard to trust him, and she was worried about what he might demand.

But if she refused, she would be labeled as a “trainee expelled from LS Entertainment.”

No other agency would look at her favorably if she left the building with that label.

Leaving the building would mean the end of her long-held dream.

She had defied her parents and pursued this path, and she couldn’t face them if she gave up now.

Finally, after biting her lower lip, she asked in a defeated tone,

“Can you really debut me?”

“Of course.”

“Then what do I have to do?”

“Follow my instructions.”

At this, a wave of unease washed over Jeong Aerin’s face.

The entertainment industry was sometimes a place that defied imagination.

Entertainment culture, sponsors, and other such things….

‘Come to think of it….’

Even among her close trainee friends, many had been hurt and left the industry after falling for such sweet talk.

Swallow—.

As Jeong Aerin looked at Hyunsung with a worried expression,

“Now, repeat after me.”

“Yes.”

“I am merely an ‘instrument’.”

It was a truly strange request.

“I am merely an instrument….”

After a moment,

“Can an instrument speak?”

“No.”

“Can an instrument have a personality?”

“No.”

“An instrument only makes sounds as the player intends, right?”

“Yes.”

After answering Hyunsung’s consecutive questions,

“Exactly, that’s it.”

Hyunsung stood up with a satisfied look.

“Now, let’s start with a simple test.”

“What kind of test?”

“To see if you have the value to debut with my song.”

At this, Jeong Aerin was startled and asked,

“Is this it?”

She expected more unreasonable demands to follow.

She couldn’t accept everything, but…

She had already braced herself for some demands.

For example,

Asking her to get a large sum of money from her parents.

Or to attend gatherings with high-ranking officials.

Such ominous and unsettling requests.

On the other hand,

Hyunsung seemed genuinely surprised.

“Is that it?”

“Yes?”

“Never mind.”

There was a moment of silence.

“Then, would an instrument that takes away a player’s time with pointless questions exist?”

At this, Jeong Aerin moved her lips but finally answered,

“No, it wouldn’t.”

After a moment,

“Exactly, that’s it. Let’s start with the test.”

It seemed clear that

‘This person…’

was treating her as a mere ‘instrument’.