Chapter 96

Reincarnation of the Reckless Genius Composer - Chapter 96 (96/482)

For the past few days, Kang Hajun had been suffering from depression.

“Sigh….”

He had been so engrossed in practice, trying to shake off his distracting thoughts, that he had sweated profusely and before he knew it, morning had come.

However, the fatigue compounded by his depression had completely enveloped his body, making it impossible for him to move a finger.

“I need to practice more….”

In the end, he lay flat on the floor of the practice room, staring blankly at the ceiling before closing his eyes.

Ah, I need to pull myself together.

Despite his resolve, his eyelids wouldn’t open easily. Perhaps he should just close his eyes and rest for a moment.

No, no… The competition is only a few days away.

A few days later, the TOP 5: Semi-Final Round would be held, where participants would prepare the stage together with a judge.

Given the opportunity to receive coaching from a musician with extensive stage experience, it was a valuable opportunity for the participants.

However.

He was disappointed that it wasn’t the judge he wanted.

‘I also wanted to work with Mr. HS….’

Indeed, the root of Kang Hajun’s depression was ‘HS’. The fact that he had missed the chance to receive coaching from him and that Yoon Ji had taken that opportunity instead made him feel powerless.

‘Wait a minute—!’

Kang Hajun abruptly sat up, as if spring-loaded. He had just remembered that he hadn’t sent the recording file for today’s assignment.

‘This isn’t the time for that.’

Right, he already had the opportunity to record HS’s song, after all.

Though it was a bit disappointing….

It was a much more valuable opportunity than just coaching. He would receive close direction from HS.

“I need to do it quickly.”

Thinking he needed to send the file to HS as soon as possible, Kang Hajun quickly got up from his seat.

‘He must be eagerly waiting for my recording file…!’

Although his deep depression had been resolved….

It seemed he had fallen into a deep misunderstanding.

* * *

Despite having gone through two stormy live rounds, there was not a moment to catch his breath.

Since the competition was live, there was only a six-day gap between the end of one round and the start of the next.

There was no time to bask in the relief of advancing to the next round.

Three of the six days had already passed.

“Sigh….”

Yoon Ji, as usual, boarded the subway with his guitar case slung over his shoulder. Recalling the incident in the city last time, he wore a mask and a cap today.

‘Did I overdo it?’

But if something like that happened again, he might be late for his appointment with HS, so he had to prevent that.

Soon.

He arrived at his stop and quickly made his way to the exit. Across the street, a building of imposing size came into view.

Thump, thump—.

As he spotted the building, his heart began to beat violently.

‘Even at a glance, it’s the LS Entertainment headquarters….’

Now that it was his own agency, but he had never actually been there, so it still didn’t feel real.

“Wow….”

He whistled, looking up at the grand headquarters, which could be seen from the other side of the Han River, befitting the name LS Entertainment.

After being overwhelmed by the size of the headquarters for a while.

Beep—!

A text message arrived from HS.

Through recent communication with HS for the next round, he had learned one thing.

He mainly used short replies and read and replied to messages….

No, no.

He was even more taciturn than the rumors suggested.

Of course.

He also knew that HS could offer calm and warm encouragement.

And….

He was fortunate that HS was the one who had created the song he had long admired and loved.

Thud, thud—.

Yoon Ji soon crossed through the busy crowd and headed into the headquarters. As he entered through the main door, he saw a gate inside the spacious lobby.

“My name is Yoon Ji.”

As HS had instructed, when he mentioned his name, the security guard checked the document board and quickly opened the gate for him to pass through.

Just by passing through the gate….

He began to feel a little more like he was part of LS Entertainment. He had always thought of himself as someone with terrible luck, but it seemed that a great fortune was about to be bestowed upon him.

“Is this it…?”

Lost in thought, he found himself standing in front of a studio with an ‘HS’ nameplate.

“Phew.”

Yoon Ji took a deep breath and, with his trembling hand, knocked on the studio door.

Knock, knock, knock—!

Soon, a voice from inside said, “It’s open.” When he opened the door and entered, he saw the back of HS, who was wearing a helmet and sitting in front of the console, typing on the keyboard.

‘Is the helmet part of his concept, or is it just an accessory he wears every day…?’

Looking at him, who was wearing the helmet even in his personal studio, Yoon Ji felt a certain barrier. Moreover, HS didn’t even turn his head.

“Um, hello….”

After standing there for a while, Yoon Ji cautiously spoke up.

“If Mr. Composer is busy, should I leave and come back later?”

“No, just sit there for a moment.”

It seemed that the ‘there’ HS was referring to was probably the sofa. There was only one long sofa in the room, large enough for two people to lie down on.

How long had it been?

HS finally stopped his busy hands and turned his chair to face Yoon Ji, who was sitting on the sofa.

“Are you ready?”

“Huh? Ready for what…?”

“Preparation for filming.”

He then took out a self-cam and placed it on the table.

Yoon Ji, who had been staring at the self-cam, let out a small sigh as if he had realized something.

“Ah….”

Yes, in typical audition programs, the practice process is usually filmed.

Even during the dormitory stay, cameras were installed in various places to monitor the practice process.

However, he realized that there were no cameras in the studio today, and it was just the two of them.

The reason he felt particularly comfortable was because of this.

“Then, are we going to film the coaching process with this self-cam today?”

In response to Yoon Ji’s question, HS nodded and muttered, “You feel more pressure with the camera, don’t you?”

Suddenly, a warm feeling welled up in Yoon Ji’s heart. HS had deliberately not called the filming crew, considering how he would feel more intimidated in front of the camera.

‘It’s really fortunate that HS, whom I have long admired, is such a person.’

Actually, the reason HS didn’t call the crew was simply because he found it bothersome and stressful….

But so what?

The self-filming began in a rather warm atmosphere. The filming proceeded in a format where Yoon Ji sang the song they had chosen together, and HS listened and gave brief feedback.

“Done.”

However, the filming ended in less than 20 minutes with just one word from HS.

“Done?”

Yoon Ji, surprised, repeated the question.

“Really done…?”

“Yes, done.”

No, is the coaching really over like this? He hadn’t even started yet….

Yoon Ji looked at HS’s face (*helmet) with a somewhat disappointed expression.

“Then, can I leave now?”

“Where are you going?”

“Huh? Well, you said the filming is done….”

HS scratched the back of his helmet, making a “scritch” sound, as if he was frustrated.

“No, I meant the filming for show is done.”

“Huh?”

“Now, let’s get into the real game.”

With that, HS quickly took off his helmet, as if he was frustrated, and ran his hand through his messy hair to tidy it up.

“Phew, I almost died from the heat.”

Yoon Ji, without realizing it, covered his mouth with his hand and held his breath, “Huh!”

“Why are you doing that?”

“Well, it’s just….”

He was startled by HS’s face, which he saw for the first time.

‘He looks much better than the montage I saw on the community….’

However.

His surprise didn’t last long.

.

.

.

After about an hour of coaching, the handsome face began to look like a terrifying demon.

“You keep emphasizing that this one line is the most important point.”

“Are you not paying attention? Do you want to do it alone?”

“Don’t relax in the low range and don’t add unnecessary breaths.”

“No, the final note should only go up half a key.”

For a full six hours….

Sharp criticisms, as sharp as Hyeon Seung’s fierce eyes, rained down on Yoon Ji like a concentrated downpour.

When her heart was thoroughly drenched and about to sink, his coaching finally ended.

“Make sure you memorize the points I pointed out today and sing them 100 times, no, 300 times before the competition.”

Then he took out his phone, which had been ringing non-stop in his pocket.

As usual, Kang Hajun’s relentless KakaoTalk messages had started. He always sent a file with the recording and waited a minute as if he was on standby, with a sense of urgency.

“Sigh….”

Hyeon Seung, after checking the KakaoTalk messages, shook his head for a moment.

“Oh.”

Suddenly, he continued as if he had remembered something.

“I’ll send you the MR file I arranged today, so send me a recording via KakaoTalk every day.”

Yes, while Kang Hajun’s other KakaoTalk messages were useless, the method of checking the recording was quite useful and practical.

This way, he could confirm that