The Genius Composer Starts Again - Chapter 34
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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As I entered the underground seminar room, there was an unmistakable musty smell. Even with the air purifier whirring away, it seemed there was nothing to be done about it.
“Should we sit here?”
“Sure.”
Today too, Mun Ah-rin naturally claimed the seat next to me as if it were obvious.
I was almost looking forward to Professor Cha Moon-ho’s class, the only one where I could attend alone.
As I sat down and prepared for class, I heard a familiar voice beside me.
“Seol, hello!”
When I turned my head, I saw Lee Hyun-ji and the other study group members standing there.
Since the study group, we’d often run into each other when our classes overlapped, and Lee Hyun-ji would always greet me with a smile each time.
“Hello.”
“We’re going to sit around here too!”
“This is the best spot, right? The professor can’t see us as well.”
Is that so?
I just sat where Mun Ah-rin recommended, so I wouldn’t really know. When I nodded vaguely, the study group members all crowded into the seats in front of us.
“Ugh. I’m seriously dying from all these assignments. How is it that every professor gives us weekly assignments?”
“Tell me about it. I never dreamed I’d be pulling all-nighters like this every day.”
“Maybe it’s from eating late-night snacks all the time. I’ve already gained 5kg.”
I was half-listening to their chatter from in front when I noticed one person was unusually quiet today.
‘Han So-yeon should have started picking a fight with me by now?’
The person who used to openly show her displeasure was strangely quiet today, which bothered me. When I glanced over, Han So-yeon was sitting alone in a corner seat with headphones on.
She had a blank expression as if lost in deep thought.
Just as I wondered if something had happened, Yu Da-yeon smacked Han So-yeon on the back and shouted.
“Hey, Han So-yeon! Take off those headphones already!”
Han So-yeon frowned deeply and lifted one side of her headphones.
“What? Why?”
“You should take off your headphones when talking to people.”
Yu Da-yeon spoke in a tone as if she were a kindergarten teacher. Choi Dong-hyeok waved his hands dismissively and added.
“Leave her alone. She’s been like this ever since Lee Ha-in’s new song came out.”
Lee Ha-in’s new song?
My ears perked up involuntarily at this sudden topic.
“She was pretending not to care, but she’s completely hooked.”
“You’re still streaming Lamia though, right?”
“Ah! Come to think of it, I saw entertainment news saying 【Shatter】 is about to break through Lamia’s chart domination.”
It seemed that despite being a Lamia fan, Han So-yeon had completely fallen for Lee Ha-in’s new song, which could be considered a chart rival.
“I-I’m still streaming Lamia too, so it doesn’t matter!”
Han So-yeon jumped up in protest. But like a thief with a guilty conscience, it wasn’t very convincing.
“I’m just listening to it when I’m bored, that’s all. Hmph.”
Han So-yeon said this while putting her headphones back on properly. It was clearly an escape.
Lee Hyun-ji and Yu Da-yeon looked at each other and burst into giggles.
I almost let out a chuckle myself but barely held it back. It might look strange to others.
However, hearing that my song was good made a gentle smile naturally spread across my face.
Seeing someone add it to their playlist and like it enough to listen repeatedly right before my eyes. It was both unfamiliar and deeply moving.
I’d composed music by myself to the point of exhaustion. But having that music deeply move another person was an entirely different story.
I felt strangely elated. Just as I was thinking this must be what it feels like to float above the clouds.
“Seol.”
I snapped back to attention at the soft voice by my ear.
When I turned my head, Mun Ah-rin was staring intently at me. A chill ran down my spine. How long had she been observing me?
Her expressionless face suddenly broke into a bright smile as if nothing had happened.
Then she whispered to me in a subtle tone.
“That Lee Ha-in song is causing a complete sensation lately. I looked it up, and it was made by ‘Producer Min Chan-hyeok’ from ‘V-Tunes’!”
“Huh?”
“What’s with that reaction? Don’t you remember? The comment on your SAPL!”
I felt my heart sink.
Is she testing me?
Of course, it was quite a coincidence to call it simple chance. It was a new song from the very place where someone had commented asking for the source.
‘But since she can’t be certain that the faceless composer YULE and I are the same person, she’s probably testing me like this.’
The comment back then was definitely just about the source.
It wouldn’t make sense for a nobody like me, a newcomer, to take on a role important enough to get my name on the credits.
But maybe there was something suspicious about it that made her act this way.
I replied in a deliberately calm tone.
“It was probably an imposter.”
I shrugged my shoulders.
“It couldn’t have been real, right?”
“…Really?”
“Yeah. When they’re making new songs, they put out calls everywhere. An imposter probably saw that and borrowed a plausible name.”
Mun Ah-rin stared intently at me with persistence. As if searching for traces of lies.
Then she soon smiled brightly and responded.
“That could be it! Seol is so smart!”
“Not really. I was lucky you stopped me back then. I almost got fooled for a moment.”
I deliberately went further and even thanked Mun Ah-rin.
As if I truly believed Mun Ah-rin had saved me.
Then Mun Ah-rin finally seemed relieved and pulled me into a hug.
“This is why I need to take care of our Seol~! If anything similar happens in the future, you must ask me first. Got it?”
“Yeah.”
When I obediently agreed, Mun Ah-rin smiled like a satisfied lion.
Seeming pleased, she began rambling about other topics while still hugging me.
“But it was interesting. This time, that new song’s composer was all over the news as a mysterious faceless artist.”
“Yeah.”
“People are going crazy saying that despite being a newcomer, their skills are incredible. Why won’t they reveal their identity?”
Mun Ah-rin tilted her head as if she truly couldn’t understand the reason.
“Who knows. Maybe they want to live quietly.”
Or maybe they don’t want their identity discovered by a friend who will kill them in the future.
“If it were me, I would have stepped forward instead. After all, composers are also self-employed people who need to sell their music. What’s wrong with branding and promoting yourself?”
Indeed, Mun Ah-rin had done exactly that.
Using her pretty face and young age, she solidified her title as a genius composer. She said the public goes crazy for geniuses.
“These days, everyone needs to become a celebrity. It’s a world where people applaud whatever you do once you’re famous.”
A strange longing had crept into Mun Ah-rin’s murmuring.
I could clearly feel emotions like ‘I could have done better if I were in that position.’
“There must be some circumstances.”
When I brushed it off appropriately, Mun Ah-rin chuckled and whispered.
“Right. There must be a reason they can’t step forward. Maybe they have a huge scar on their face, or they’re so fat they can’t leave the house?”
I couldn’t help but flinch at the tone mixed with sarcasm.
Perhaps sensing my reaction, Mun Ah-rin quickly let go of her embrace and put on a smiling face.
“I mean, to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, you should step forward confidently. There will definitely be people with malicious intent trying to find fault.”
The Mun Ah-rin saying this showed no trace of the person who had just spilled those barbed words.
Rather, she had an expression as if she was genuinely worried about the misunderstandings and speculations surrounding YULE.
Her gently downturned eye corners and features that looked cute as if she knew nothing bad about the world.
I even found myself wondering if I had misheard what she said earlier.
‘But that can’t be right.’
Rather, the malicious words that had just slipped out were probably closer to Mun Ah-rin’s true nature.
Only I could read that gap.
I forced the corners of my mouth to curl up.
“You’re right. That must be it.”
Just as I finished with an appropriate smile, the professor happened to enter and the conversation was cut off.
“Alright, I’ll take attendance~.”
While names were being called one by one,
Buzz-.
My phone vibrated.
When I checked, it was a message from Min Chan-hyeok.
[ Producer Min Chan-hyeok : Hey Seol ]
[ Producer Min Chan-hyeok : Heyyyy ]
[ Producer Min Chan-hyeok : Emergency emergency ]
Messages popped up one after another. I sent a brief reply.
[ ? ]
Then Min Chan-hyeok continued as if he had been waiting.
[ Producer Min Chan-hyeok : Come to the studio tonight right now ]
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Frieren
How many times does Seol have to ask herself if she misheard Mun Ah-rin?🙄