The Road To Glory [EN]: Chapter 851

< Episode 85 An Ominous Feeling >

Nothing had changed.

“tonight”

Park Seung-ah hummed as she stirred the pot. Inside the vigorously boiling pot were jujubes, licorice, cinnamon, and burdock root – all good for soothing the throat.

On the table were ginger syrup and bellflower juice, both known for their beneficial properties for the throat. Once finished, she planned to take them to her son’s studio refrigerator.

Professor Noh Yoon-hyun looked at the students burying their heads in their exam papers and sighed, wondering if the question about the globular cluster was too easy.

Then, he looked at the sky beyond the window.

Not exactly gloomy, but a slightly overcast sky.

“Is it going to rain?”

It was early June. He seemed to recall from the weather forecast that the last spring rain was expected.

[dancing in the rain]

On the other side of the world.

August Veil, having a classic morning, turned on the music. A melody that was both joyful and somewhat melancholic greeted him.

[I can hear a song]

The song told the story of a man dancing alone in the rain, lost in his own world.

However, the album art he requested did not depict a man dancing alone. It was a picture of intertwined legs, dancing in a rain puddle.

August Veil looked at the album cover and smiled faintly, thinking that his feelings were very different from when he made his sixth album. Good things are good.

Employees were listing everything from identity reveals to conspiracy theories upon seeing the change in the HALO album cover, but this wasn’t new.

It was always like that.

Nothing had changed…

Moon Seo-yeon arrived at the studio and was startled.

As soon as she entered the studio, specifically Noh Hae-il’s label [H], she felt an unknown aura.

Something big seemed to be happening.

Moon Seo-yeon’s eyes darted around.

‘But why does that bastard’s face look like that?’

He looked like he was melting, as if he had been hit by a taser gun.

He was originally a bit crazy, but this gave her goosebumps.

“Hello…?”

She briefly noted that everyone seemed to have gathered at the studio unusually early, but that wasn’t the important thing.

The reason she came to work earlier than usual.

Moon Seo-yeon shouted.

“President! You made a mistake in the transfer.”

“?”

Moon Seo-yeon opened her phone.

She was horrified when she saw the amount transferred while talking to her friend. It was marked as [H] label, but she initially thought it was a voice phishing scam.

“Too, too much has come in!”

The problem wasn’t that it was too little, but that it was too much.

Nam Gyu-hwan replied as if she was being ridiculous.

“…That’s right, though?”

“?”

This is right? Two more zeros had been added.

Moon Seo-yeon blinked.

Then, Nam Gyu-hwan frowned and asked out of the blue.

“Didn’t you listen to HALO’s music?”

“No.”

“Why?”

Nam Gyu-hwan retorted, as if he was dumbfounded.

Who is dumbfounded? Moon Seo-yeon’s expression crumpled. Did he think she was a fanatic like him?

“Do I have to listen to it?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

It would only be obvious to a fanatic.

Moon Seo-yeon was speechless, but she felt wronged and opened her mouth again.

“I’m not a fanatic like you, so why do I have to listen to it? And I don’t really like HALO.”

“!”

Nam Gyu-hwan was startled by those words.

As if he had heard something he shouldn’t have.

And the strange thing was that Nam Gyu-hwan’s gaze flickered to the boy and then returned to normal, like a tumbler doll [a weighted doll that rights itself when knocked over].

In her opinion, Nam Gyu-hwan seemed out of his mind.

“Why?”

“HALO’s music is too intense. It’s not my taste. I like soft, well, your songs, President. Songs that make me remember moments, not just music. And-.”

“…”

“That person hasn’t even revealed his face yet, which is kind of strange. What should I say…”

“Ominous.”

Nam Gyu-hwan’s shoulders flinched. Moon Seo-yeon didn’t notice and handed a sandwich to the boy, smiling.

“A person should be clear and transparent, like our president.”

“…Is the president soju [a clear, colorless Korean distilled beverage]? Clear and transparent?”

Nam Gyu-hwan then immediately asked,

“So you don’t listen to HALO’s music?”

This bastard. Moon Seo-yeon frowned.

She had just explained it all, but he didn’t listen.

“Why do you keep telling me to listen? Did HALO reveal his identity or something?”

“…”

And silence.

Moon Seo-yeon blinked.

“Did he reveal it?!”

“Just listen to it.”

“What, you keep telling me to listen.”

Nam Gyu-hwan put headphones on her, and Moon Seo-yeon reluctantly listened.

She would have to listen to the song someday anyway.

She said it wasn’t her taste, but well-made music is still well-made, and soon it would top the charts and be heard everywhere.

Latin percussion. A cheerful melody in 4/4 time.

This song with a strong retro feel-.

“This song is pretty good…”

Moon Seo-yeon was talking when she suddenly tilted her head at the familiar melody.

“…”

Why is it familiar?

There’s no way she’d be familiar with HALO’s song.

There’s no way she could have heard the song released yesterday in advance.

Then, when…

Moon Seo-yeon saw a stupid expression in front of her.

Nam Gyu-hwan was waiting for her with his eyes wide open.

And Han Jin-young was watching with interest, and

The boy with his chin resting on one arm.

The moment she made eye contact with him, Moon Seo-yeon felt déjà vu.

The cheerful melody of the electric piano in her ears, the chicken scratch unique to the wah-wah pedal.

This is…

“!”

Moon Seo-yeon covered her mouth.

Nam Gyu-hwan spread his hands, waiting for her answer, and the other two seemed to be subtly expecting it too.

“No way…”

After stuttering for a while, she asked.

“It’s not, right?”

“If not, I have to refund the pay.”

Nam Gyu-hwan couldn’t stand it and said, and the balance in her bank account flashed before her eyes.

“It seems right…”

She tentatively agreed, half in doubt.

The song played on the headphones.

The sessions of not only the title song but also the B-sides followed the same melody that she had once read the sheet music and recorded.

“That-. No.”

Moon Seo-yeon still couldn’t continue speaking with her round eyes. Cognitive dissonance set in.

Then she remembers.

The words she just said… no, the outrageous remarks.

‘HALO’s songs are not my taste.’

Thump.

‘That person is kind of ominous.’

Thump, thump.

A stone fell [meaning she realized the gravity of her mistake].

She looked at the boy with trembling eyes.

The moment their eyes met, her face turned white, and before anyone could stop her-.

“Aaaaaah!”

And ran out of the studio.

“Uh…”

A silent studio.

The eyes of the three people briefly met.

Soon, HALO chuckled and stood up.

Moon Seo-yeon couldn’t go far and squatted down against the outer wall of the studio building.

Her heart was pounding.

All sorts of confusion and her outrageous remarks were mixed together, and she didn’t know what judgment to make.

Moon Seo-yeon took a deep breath.

Implementing the only breathing method she knew!

Hihihu! Hihihu!

Then, with a presence, a shadow fell over her.

Her heart sank.

She was about to raise her head, but she saw familiar shoes and lowered her head again.

“Are you angry?”

“No.”

“Then why are you bowing?”

“I’m just feeling self-conscious.”

Then the person standing in front also bent down.

Moon Seo-yeon raised her head slightly, but lowered it again when her eyes met.

“Thank you for liking my music.”

“!”

“I can’t really understand that my other music isn’t your taste, though.”

Moon Seo-yeon slowly raised her head.

The boy in front of her was smiling and talking to her.

“You’ll soon like it as we play together.”

As if it were natural.

Moon Seo-yeon stared blankly at him.

The boy was shining brightly as if he were on stage.

“So, will you continue to be in my band?”

The boy, HALO, held out his hand to her.

Moon Seo-yeon looked at his hand and slowly reached out.

The boy lifted her up when they touched.

“Shall we greet each other again?”

“How?”

“Just a greeting.”

Haeilro said with a faint smile.

“Nice to meet you as Noh Hae-il and as HALO.”

“Me too…”

Moon Seo-yeon was about to say that she was glad to meet him, bewitched by the boy, but she blurted out a thought that suddenly came to mind.

“When did you use this on a woman, President?”

The boy, who chuckled, didn’t answer.

He just looked at the members who followed him and asked.

“Shall we have a company dinner today?”

#

Originally, a company dinner has a basic framework of 1st round is dinner, 2nd round is alcohol, 3rd round is also alcohol, 4th round is also alcohol, and 5th round is hangover cure.

However, since the owner of the card, the boy, is a minor, and the laws of the Republic of Korea prohibit minors from entering bars, the places they could go after the feast were extremely limited.

“What’s so important about age! We can have a little bit!”

Everyone was sad to go home like this.

Because there wasn’t as much conversation as they thought during dinner.

In fact, whenever HALO’s ‘H’ was heard, Moon Seo-yeon and Nam Gyu-hwan looked around like criminals.

Anyway, those who had alcohol seemed to have calmed down a bit. At least the unnatural behavior seemed to have lessened.

Suddenly, Nam Gyu-hwan raised his head.

“I just thought of a place…”

“Where?”

“The studio?”

That’s not likely.

Nam Gyu-hwan looked at HALO with shining eyes.

A space that is open at this hour and where minors can enter.

Nam Gyu-hwan led them and stopped at one place.

The stairs leading to the basement unfolded at his fingertips.

“Ah!”

Moon Seo-yeon opened her eyes wide and shouted.

“Karaoke, it’s been a while.”

Han Jin-young’s eyes were also filled with emotion.

She didn’t expect it.

Unlike them, HALO, who was here for the first time, looked around and went inside. There was no one in the hallway. However, with every room they passed, they could hear voices and songs. Among them was a familiar melody.

“Wow, President’s song!”

Noh Hae-il’s new song was heard from the next room.

And HALO’s song was heard from the opposite room.

Haeilro concentrates on the sound with a curious face.

Some friends have disappointing intonation, and some are just immersed in their own emotions. But it’s still fun.

Following the sound, they arrived at the innermost room, their room.

“Shall we sing?”

As soon as they entered, everyone simultaneously handed the microphone to HALO. It’s like a recording studio, but a closed space with an audience.

It’s an unfamiliar place, but it’s not unfamiliar.

Haeilro smiled and took the microphone.

#

“Hey, be quiet. The next room is crazy.”

“I know. Wow, I’ve never seen anyone sing HALO’s song so well.”

When you finish your song in a karaoke room, it’s always common to hear someone else’s song like a chorus. If you hear that song and think, ‘I can sing better?’, you might request the same song.

But two women and one man, listening to HALO’s new song from the next room, canceled the HALO song they had requested. I should sing Noh Hae-il’s song.

“But is he really a singer?”

“He sings really well, really. Anyone who sees him would think he’s HALO.”

They looked at each other and laughed, and no one thought that he would really be there.

The sound quality of the microphone, the soundproofing of the karaoke room, etc., did not fully convey the voice, and their condition was not perfect, and other voices made them pass it off as ‘that’s right’.

“It would be fun if he was a real singer.”

“Oh, I think I saw that story somewhere. Someone sang Liv’s song exactly the same, and then Liv actually came out.”

“Then, is there HALO in the next room?”

The two women hiccupped and laughed, saying it was impossible. The situation in the opposite room was the same.

And again, the main room.

In a space that had become a karaoke room again after going through HALO’s concert, everyone complained of thirst and fatigue.

Moon Seo-yeon, who had been running around excitedly, stretched out on the bed, and Han Jin-young handed out water.

The calm song that had been requested was playing from the machine, but no one was singing it.

Moon Seo-yeon rested her chin and looked at the boy in amazement. HALO, and Noh Hae-il.

She alternated between calling out the names, and then she realized again that Noh Hae-il becomes ‘Haeil Roh’ in English, and she was amazed. She didn’t say it, but there were so many clues, and now she couldn’t understand why she didn’t know.

Anyway, she slowly accepted the boy’s secret and completely acknowledged it in the karaoke room.

The process of recognition was not complicated either.

She just had to think that the two geniuses were one.

While HALO was away for a while, Moon Seo-yeon said with a bright face.

“All the people I liked… have bad results, so I’m glad it doesn’t seem like it’s going to fail this time.”

Nam Gyu-hwan, who already knew, snorted, and Han Jin-young asked kindly.

“Who did you like?”

“Zeus?”

They were once called genius idols, but the group disbanded due to the members’ sex scandals.

“Pinocchio.”

He is a rapper who lost the trust of fans due to frequent lies.

“And…”

The more she listened, the darker Han Jin-young’s expression became.

“The most recent one is JJ.”

“Wow, your taste. At this point, it just seems like you’re cursed. Come to think of it, your baseball team too-.”

Nam Gyu-hwan clicked his tongue, and Moon Seo-yeon was furious.

“Baseball is doing well these days?”

“Which team is Seo-yeon on?”

“Her hometown is Daejeon.”

“Ah…”

Han Jin-young’s low exclamation.

Moon Seo-yeon, who was upset, entered the number wildly, grabbed the microphone, and sang her 18th favorite song [a song they sing often at karaoke].

“I am happy~”

Han Jin-young and Nam Gyu-hwan grabbed their stomachs and laughed, and soon started singing along. As they repeated the rest and singing together, the service time ran out.

The city is as bright as day even in the dark night.

Moon Seo-yeon’s eyes sparkled as she climbed the bright stairs.

“It’s raining.”

As she said, it was raining.

Thin raindrops were visible in the streetlights.

“It’s the last spring rain.”

Moon Seo-yeon reached out her hand and moved forward, saying it was okay to get wet. Nam Gyu-hwan followed behind her, and Han Jin-young also went.

Haeilro watched them and reached out his hand outside.

Raindrops brushed past his hand.

“President! Come on.”

They reached out their hands to Haeilro, who was standing still.

Haeilro smiled faintly and slowly joined their march.

“I can hear a song-“

Someone hums the melody that they had been singing in the karaoke room.

Someone’s voice was added on top of it, and before they knew it, they were stepping to the disco rhythm.

Mumbled lyrics.

Real disco music is heard over the humming and laughter.

“Tonight”

A woman dancing, led by the song, and

A man led by that woman.

“Dancing into the rain.”

In the song, the man ended up dancing alone, but

Under the streetlights.

What was reflected in the puddle were four pairs of legs.

#

When spring was going and hot summer was slowly coming. ‘The Midday Show HALO Special’ was broadcasted in Los Angeles, USA.

A special feature that became a hot topic with influencers of various unique and diverse concepts.

However, what attracted the most attention from the public was the boy who seemed the most ordinary on the outside.

With the last name Roh.