Become A Music Monster Overnight! [EN]: Chapter 103

Music Monster Overnight! 94

First, a skill check.

I was curious to see how well these guys could handle ‘Late Dinner.’

“Three days should be enough, right?”

“Huh? For what?”

“You don’t expect us to master this in three days, do you?”

“Hahaha. Surely you wouldn’t ask for something so ridiculous.”

“Impossible. Impossible. Master! Impossiburu!” [A playful mispronunciation of ‘impossible’ in a Japanese-influenced style.]

“…….”

I was surprised by their reactions in many ways.

‘Those innocent and cute guys are gone now.’

I could understand Jiwon being like that, but I didn’t expect Hyungwoon and Mayoon, who used to be so innocent, to act like that too.

‘Youngshik always had that kind of vibe.’

That’s probably why he was able to lead the G1 band as a leader at such a young age.

Anyway, unable to watch them play games any longer, I continued with an angry face.

“Stop talking nonsense and bring me the results in three days.”

“……Yes.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Hahaha. Understood, Master.”

“Hmph, hmph.”

Even in the midst of all that, Jiwon was shedding tears with sound effects, showing his reluctance, but Youngshik and the others seemed to think this was too much and dragged him away like a piece of luggage.

“Then, shall I loosen up my hands for a while?”

I decided to leave the house and go to the company for the first time in a long time.

Regardless of the enormous amount of money I had earned, I hadn’t changed houses, so there wasn’t a proper practice room at home yet.

* * *

“Damn! Look how skinny he is.”

“It’s been a while since we’ve seen that precious face.”

“Let’s see. Hmm. He looks better. Last time I saw him, he looked like he was dying.”

“Hehehe. Looks like you’ll have a hard time getting back in shape.”

“By the way, I heard you gave a song to the youngsters?”

“…….”

As soon as I arrived at the company, my uncles greeted me enthusiastically.

Unlike their playful appearance, I could tell how much my uncles had worried about me.

It was lunchtime, and they had rushed over without even finishing their meals when they heard I had arrived.

“How are you all doing? Have your skills improved a bit?”

I was grateful for their concern, but I also felt mischievous and greeted them that way after a long time.

“Oh? Look at this guy. Such provocative comments!”

“Ahem. You’ll be surprised!”

“You’ve improved a bit, but not that much, right?”

“No. We’ve improved a lot.”

“No, from Youngchan’s perspective, it could be said that it’s just so-so.”

Even the cautious Uncle Park Siyoung and the timid Uncle Moon Ilbeom showed concern while expressing positivity, which seemed unusual.

The last time I checked, they were making slow progress, but had they had some kind of epiphany in the meantime?

“Let’s go straight to the practice room… No, let’s eat first.”

If I were alone, I would have just grabbed something to eat, but since I was meeting my uncles after a long time, I couldn’t do that.

So, we went out to eat, and we had quite a hard time.

It wasn’t strange.

Due to my father’s insurance case, I was already the center of attention, and it was the first time in a long time that Black Tiger had reunited, even in a private setting.

“We should build a cafeteria.”

I naturally had this thought.

“Yes, good idea. YC Entertainment is big enough now to have a proper cafeteria.”

“Yeah, you have a lot of money. Bring in chefs from 5-star hotels.”

“Are you crazy? It’s not like we’re feeding just one or two people.”

“Isn’t it possible? I heard they don’t get paid as much as you think.”

“If not, we can just make one for executives.”

“Don’t be stingy with food!”

Uncle Kwak Dohun, who is serious about eating, protested, and I chuckled but soon thought it would be a good idea.

As Uncle Jang Taeshik said, I knew that 5-star hotel chefs didn’t earn as much as people thought.

That’s because the guy in my memories actually built executive cafeterias in the US and Korean branches.

It wasn’t just to be extravagant.

Rather, it was suitable for managing the company’s top stars, who had difficulty going outside, and for entertaining guests from outside.

Above all, it was also a motivation for the trainees.

The cafeteria used by trainees and general employees was as good as those of large corporations, but people compare themselves to others to divide happiness and unhappiness, right?

This was surprisingly effective, and some of those who debuted after being trainees said in official settings that they really wanted to eat here.

The new building, which started construction last year for expansion and will be completed in the second half of next year, is so large that adding such things would be a piece of cake.

While thinking about this and that, I arrived at the practice room before I knew it.

Without saying anything, my uncles and I found our respective places. Even though they knew that this was a place to evaluate their practice, they didn’t show any signs of nervousness.

‘This is really exciting!’

I tried to hide my pounding heart and chose ‘Old Soldiers Never Die’ as the first song.

‘Old Soldiers Never Die’ is the song that best represents Black Tiger’s identity, and the level changes depending on the uncles’ skills, so I can feel the change most realistically.

-Doo doo doo doo doo!-

-Jijijijijing!-

With Uncle Kwak Dohun’s drum sound and the harmony that followed, I couldn’t help but turn my head.

‘What!’

For a moment, I wondered if I had misheard.

It was understandable because the uncles’ skills had improved so much that I couldn’t help but wonder if they had sold their souls to the devil.

Uncle Park Siyoung, who was originally the most outstanding, had become worthy of the title of master, followed by Uncle Kwak Dohun, Uncle Kim Il, Uncle Jang Taeshik, and Uncle Moon Ilbeom, with slight differences, rising to the ranks of masters.

That meant that Black Tiger had become a truly legendary band, not just through tricks.

Realizing that, I raised my right hand.

“What’s wrong?”

“???”

The music stopped at the same time, and my uncles looked at me with puzzled eyes. Uncle Moon Ilbeom looked nervous, so I chuckled and quickly continued.

“Hahaha. Why else? I’m going to join in. What on earth has been going on?”

“Kyahahahahaha!”

At my words, my uncles burst into laughter with various meanings.

I later learned that the uncles had been playing day and night and had simultaneously crossed a wall at some point, so they couldn’t grasp how skilled they were.

It was clear that their skills had improved, but since it wasn’t in terms of technique, there was no easy comparison.

That’s why they were so excited to be evaluated by me.

And before we even finished one song, they laughed like that at my suggestion to find a guitar and play together.

“That was the best compliment in the world.”

I quickly set up one of the guitars in the practice room and immediately started playing.

-Jijijijijing!-

I unleashed a flashy guitar solo that I had never done before.

In the past, or even at the beginning of this year, none of my uncles would have been able to react to my guitar, but it was different now.

-Doo doong! Doo doo doong!-

-Jijijijijing!-

Starting with Uncle Kwak Dohun making thunderous sounds, the uncles began to blend in with my guitar.

Of course, my guitar, which had already reached the end of mastery, was on a different level from the uncles’ playing, but it wasn’t a problem to harmonize and blend in with it.

I enjoyed playing passionately and then approached the microphone, which I hadn’t faced in a long time, and made a sound.

“Ah ah ah~ Yes, I’m back. Just like always!”

At that moment, I felt an overwhelming feeling that my heart would burst.

It was ‘Old Soldiers Never Die,’ which I had sung countless times, but the ‘Old Soldiers Never Die’ that we were singing now was a different version from the first time we sang it.

If the grade of the ‘Old Soldiers Never Die’ we sang before didn’t exceed SS+, the current ‘Old Soldiers Never Die’ could easily be considered SSS grade.

Maybe if we refine and arrange it a little more here, we might even be able to reach the Painkiller level [Referring to the iconic Judas Priest song, known for its intensity and technical prowess].

‘Maybe it’s possible.’

If we were to simply consider the completeness of the song, the solo version that I played, recorded, and made alone would be better.

But that alone couldn’t fill my musical worldview.

Even Painkiller, which is said to be the greatest in the history of rock music, couldn’t satisfy it.

‘Only Black Tiger can satisfy it.’

The problem was that, unfortunately, the uncles had to come up to the level I wanted for that to be possible.

And the level I wanted was not quite Marvin [Likely referring to a musician known for exceptional skill and musicality, though the specific reference is unclear without more context], but something similar, which was virtually impossible for the uncles, who had only been talented to the extent of geniuses.

That’s why it was a wish that I had half given up on, but when I received this unexpected gift, I had no choice but to reconsider that desire.

However, these thoughts were soon erased.

‘I didn’t know, but I must have been too hungry.’

Once I grabbed the guitar and the microphone, I went crazy about the music.

It was so different from when I came here just to loosen up my hands.

I wasn’t the only one who was crazy about music.

The uncles were the same, and thanks to that, we held a concert just for ourselves.

We cheered and enjoyed each other’s music as the audience. I was at the center of it, and I immediately started arranging the music on the spot, and the uncles continued to play in the form I wanted, even though I didn’t say anything.

The small but thrilling concert ended after a full five hours.

“Phew~ Is it because it’s been so long? I thought I was going crazy today.”

“Hehehe. It’s not that you thought you were going crazy, we were crazy. Wow~ Youngchan has to be here.”

“Hahaha. That’s right. It can’t even be compared to that idiot Siyoung’s vocals!”

“You bastards! You forced me to do something I didn’t want to do…”

“Hehehe.”

“Hehehe.”

After the concert, we all lay down on the spot and felt the afterglow, saying useless things.

While we were feeling the afterglow, Uncle Kwak Dohun suddenly cleared his throat and shouted.

“Hey!”

“Why?”

“Not you, you bastard?”

“Uh… me?”

“Yeah… What are you going to do?”

“About what?”

Uncle Jang Taeshik chuckled at my sudden question and spoke on behalf of Uncle Kwak Dohun.

“What that bastard is asking is whether you’re going to start performing again.”

“Ah!”

I could finally understand what he meant.

If it had been before I entered the practice room, I would have understood Uncle Kwak Dohun’s words right away.

But now, my passion for music had returned so much that I couldn’t think about such things.

It was as if the river of longing for hot music had started flowing again.

So, the answer I had to give was obvious.

“Why bother saying that? I’ve already started.”

“What? This bastard!”

“Is this what they call a wise answer to a foolish question?”

“Do you think you can do this without passion? You crazy bastard!”

“Hehehe.”

“That’s right. You’re suffering because of your stupid uncles.”

“You. You bastard. I’m going to break your back when I get up.”

“Hehehe.”

Even at Uncle Kwak Dohun’s words that he would break his back, Uncle Jang Taeshik just smiled, unlike usual.