Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 239

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 239.
Not All Children Are Angels (9)
Soon, roughly twenty boys from the Choir fell silent. The soloist’s voice echoed through the rounded ceiling.
The white light you followed
I too can see that light
Years spent lingering in darkness
When I trembled beneath curses
I thought there was no tomorrow to walk toward
I believed no one would take my hand
Yet behold, brilliant light
That light which has finally come to me
A joy beyond what prayer can express shall reach until the world’s end
You have driven out the darkness within me
You have wiped away the tears from my eyes
From such a small frame poured forth a soprano so exquisitely refined it seemed impossible—the audience was left breathless before soon exchanging whispers of excitement. The voice was naturally effortless, crystalline and beautiful enough to raise goosebumps. With rosy cheeks and a face as lovely as a porcelain doll, the child inspired admiration from everyone present.
Ivnoa was electrified. Theo, who had anticipated her jumping from her seat, barely managed to restrain her. The soloist was Ivnoa’s younger brother, Joshua. Even for someone like Ivnoa, who lacked understanding of musical sophistication, there was every reason to be moved.
As the choir concluded, the first act repertoire ended. There was a brief intermission before the second performance began.
Once the Choir had exited in orderly fashion, Ivnoa hurried forward, hiking her skirt up to her ankles as she spoke.
“Theo, let’s go see Joshua! Hurry!”
Theo did not answer immediately, instead feigning other business to buy time. No matter how many times Ivnoa urged him, he merely said “just a moment.”
By now, the Dressing Room would be flooded with bouquets and gifts. Though Arnim and his wife had not come, people who knew their family well would certainly have gathered, creating a chaotic scene. Standing among that throng would only diminish his own value.
Theo knew how to choose terrain favorable to himself. He asked Ivnoa to check what she had placed in her pocket before the performance. When Ivnoa withdrew and unfolded the paper bundle, a small ring meant to fit on the little finger emerged. Inside the ring, letters were engraved. Ivnoa, who had not studied and could not read well, pestered him to read its contents.
Though it was merely a craftsman’s mark left on the ring itself, Theo deliberately spoke in roundabout ways to make Ivnoa anxious with anticipation. By the time Theo read the inscription aloud, the intermission had already ended.
The members of the Choir knew why Grundt always withdrew a handkerchief after conducting. He claimed it was because he was moved by the Choir’s singing, but this had not always been the case. It was a habit that began after Joshua joined the Choir.
Grundt, who valued fairness, never showed it openly, but he regarded the little prodigy as the Choir’s treasure. Of course, even if Grundt did not show it, the boys were no fools. The older members of the Choir, when the teacher was not looking, would fan their noses and make expressions of disgust.
The new members did not yet understand such an atmosphere. The four new members that day had come as audience members to watch the performance. The little soloist, from such a distinguished household that he rarely attended practice, was someone they heard for the first time, and they were all excited. Among them, twelve-year-old Tomison Gugelhoper was seized by something beyond mere excitement—he could not even remember how the first act had ended.
Tomison had begun singing only a few months prior. There had been no one around capable of recognizing his talent, as he was the son of a poor farmer. By chance, he caught the eye of the principal of Mona Sid School, and his admission was decided under the extraordinary condition that the school would provide all his tuition and lodging.
In recent months, Tomison had, for the first time in his life, heard lavish praise and encouragement, arriving here with his feet barely touching the ground. With newfound confidence, he had even harbored a dreamlike hope that among the famous Mona Sid Choir, there might not be a child who sang better than he did.
Tomison was not suffering from his dreamlike hope being shattered. From the day he understood singing through that small child’s voice, he had glimpsed the new world he had always envisioned. It mattered not that it was not his own voice. The mere existence of such a voice, the fact that he had heard it, was enough to move him deeply. So, despite knowing the regular members would dislike it, Tomison rushed to the Dressing Room and found Joshua among the throng of members.
It was somewhat unexpected. The child sat alone on a chair set apart, exchanging not a single word with the other children. At his feet lay evidence of people’s passage—baskets of flowers and gifts piled high—yet he showed no sign of having touched them.
“Um….”
When their eyes met, Tomison was taken aback. It was because Joshua’s gaze was expressionless.
Expressionlessness was not a sin, but not today. Tomison, who had just been invited as a guest to the kingdom of music, naturally could not understand. How could the very person who had just sung such a beautiful song wear such a weary expression?
“Why?”
Hearing the other’s voice, the emotion from moments before faintly revived, and Tomison forgot his confusion. He spoke with enthusiasm.
“I, I mean, your song was so good. In my whole life, the best… oh right, I’m Tomison. I just joined. You haven’t seen me before, right? I, so… your voice is the first like it. That is, um….”
Unable to express his feelings well in words, Tomison’s speech was clumsy. Joshua listened still expressionless, yet with deep patience.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m twelve years old, and because they said I sing well, the teacher… but coming here, just hearing your song is wonderful! I’m so glad I came to Mona Sid. It was so good, and you made it even better. Really. You believe me, don’t you? How old are you? When did you start singing? Do your parents sing too? My parents are farmers, so they don’t even know what I do, but I, I also want to sing as well as you. How should I practice…. You must have worked really hard, right? How much must you love singing to become like that?”
Having heard that much, Joshua suddenly spoke.
“I don’t really like singing that much.”
“What… what did you say?”
Tomison Gugelhoper’s eyes widened. The words seemed so unbelievable that he thought he must have misheard.
“Singing, that’s just… it. I don’t hate it, but I don’t have the passion you do.”
As this bizarre conversation repeated itself, Tomison Gugelhoper found himself at a loss for words. Joshua gazed at him with eyes full of regret. Tomison Gugelhoper could not fathom what lay behind that look.
“Then how did you become so skilled at singing?”
“I’m not that skilled.”
“What are you talking about! That can’t be right!”
“No, it’s true. My voice grows tiresome after a few listens. Too polished. You’ll understand once you hear it more.”
Those words were nothing short of a riddle. I wanted to say he must be mistaken. But the person speaking was the very one who had sung that song. How could he speak so mercilessly about his own voice, his own performance?
As Tomison Gugelhoper stared blankly, Joshua murmured softly after a moment.
“I’m sorry.”
Tomison Gugelhoper shook his head, sensing something was terribly wrong. What should he say in a moment like this?
Then Joshua turned away from him and leaped from his chair. Realizing Joshua was about to leave, Tomison Gugelhoper suddenly grasped what he had failed to say and instinctively caught Joshua’s shoulder.
“Wait…”
In that instant, a profound resistance emanated from the shoulder beneath his hand, and Tomison Gugelhoper quickly withdrew it.
The other choir members whispered nearby, but none dared intervene. Yet when Joshua turned back and looked up at Tomison Gugelhoper with eyes gleaming like polished glass, he could not bear to hold back the words that had risen to his throat.
“I can’t agree with what you’re saying. Your song was perfect. Even if you don’t love singing as much as you claim, it was perfect regardless. And because I love singing, I was satisfied hearing your voice. I’ll be satisfied for the rest of my life. I truly thought it was an angel’s voice! May I call it angelic?”
When Tomison Gugelhoper spoke the word “angelic,” his eyes shone with such sincerity that Joshua’s own eyes wavered slightly.
Soon after, Joshua extended his hand and grasped Tomison Gugelhoper’s wrist, which hung uncertainly in the air, then lowered it. He smiled, but it looked precisely like the bitter smile of an adult.
“I think you just said the word in this world that suits me the least.”
3. Tomison Gugelhoper
Perhaps the one who created such a creature was God, or perhaps the Devil,
Or perhaps the Devil’s mischief had slipped into God’s handiwork.
The only certainty is that as long as he exists, whether God or Devil must also exist.
Oh, the irrational works of an absolute being!
Without their breath and will, such a creature could never have been born,
And so I have come to have faith.
Joshua’s habitual “I don’t know, I can’t” easily worked on people he met for the first time. But recently, there was one person it did not work on. Even after hearing the repertoire Joshua primarily used on those who marveled at his singing, this person did not relent. He even offered firm counterarguments.
But as a result, Tomison Gugelhoper, branded as Joshua’s worshipper, had recently become the laughingstock of the entire school. Indeed, nothing good ever came from being entangled with a Demonic. Tomison Gugelhoper seemed to know this fact as well, for his schedule was arranged so it never overlapped with Joshua’s, and they rarely crossed paths within the school. Whenever Joshua appeared even from a distance, Tomison Gugelhoper deliberately stepped aside.
But in the Choir, this was impossible. When Joshua and Tomison Gugelhoper appeared during practice, mischievous glances rippled through the members. Yet contrary to expectations, the two kept their eyes lowered and pretended not to know each other.
“Hey, you chased him all the way to the Dressing Room on performance day and told Joshua about the angel’s voice and all that, didn’t you? Ugh, just hearing about it embarrasses me.”
In front of Mona Hall, the Choir’s practice room and performance venue, Tomison Gugelhoper was cornered by a senior member. As he had done recently, Tomison Gugelhoper kept his eyes lowered and spoke briefly.
“I thought it sounded good to me.”
“Hey, do you think there were only one or two seniors who sang that well at his age? But you know what voice change is, right? Geez, did one song really make you think he was the best in the entire world?”
There were few children at Mona Sid School as honest as Tomison Gugelhoper. He was beginning to realize this himself.
“Listen to the seniors’ songs later. Music is such a deep and vast world—how dare someone who only trusts a pretty voice and doesn’t even practice presume so much? Someone like that will quit the moment his voice changes even slightly. Besides, his voice has so much technique in it that it becomes tiresome after a few listens.”
Children of Ron – Winterer
Author: Jeon Min-hee
Publisher: 14 Month’s Books
The copyright to this book belongs to the author and 14 Month’s Books.
All or part of the contents of this book may not be reused without written consent from both parties.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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