Black Label [EN]: Chapter 10

Black Label 9

10. Now, Let’s Get Started

The moment a faint gray dot was imprinted on the pure white paper.

An unbelievable thing began to unfold.

Shwak-! Shwashwak-!

As if someone was manipulating him, his hand began to move on its own.

Jae-seung’s hand, gripping the pencil tightly, showed no hesitation.

There was not a single unnecessary movement, only a smooth flow.

‘My hand is moving on its own…?’

Before long, Jae-seung unconsciously muttered his thoughts aloud.

“What, what is this…?”

Just as Jae-seung couldn’t hide his surprise, Young-guk, who was sitting next to him playing with his phone, asked in a nonchalant tone.

“Why? Is it not working out?”

“No, it’s not that…”

Jae-seung hesitated for a moment, swallowed the saliva that had already filled his mouth, and then spoke again.

Gulp-.

“Honestly, this is too good…”

Soon, Young-guk looked at the drawing in Jae-seung’s notebook and exclaimed, “Wow-!”

“Hey, what is this? Have you always been this good at drawing?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

“Let me see. Let’s take a good look.”

Eventually, Young-guk picked up the notebook and examined it closely, squinting his eyes.

In the meantime, he didn’t forget to exclaim in admiration. Jae-seung himself was just as surprised.

‘What on earth is going on…?’

What was drawn on the notebook was a *fashion diagram* [a technical drawing used in fashion design] of jeans that he had visualized in his head yesterday.

To use Go [a strategic board game] as an example, it was similar to the opening strategy, and to use drawing as an example, it was similar to a sketch.

It was the task of perfectly sketching not only the front and back of the clothes he would make, but also the overall silhouette, cutting lines, and partial details.

Jae-seung had experience drawing so many diagrams that it was easy to exceed thousands of sheets.

That’s why there were a few things he knew even better.

First of all, the fact that ‘diagramming’ is not something that can be produced so quickly and at once.

Even if you have visualized it in your head, it is common to go through several revisions.

Because it is a task that requires considerable precision, errors often occur or the proportions of the lines are misaligned even when using a ruler.

Also, as mentioned earlier, you have to deal with not only the front and back of the clothes you are trying to make, but also the overall silhouette of the clothes, the sewing lines, and the detailed parts including the seam allowance.

At least, it wasn’t something that could be drawn in less than a minute, like Jae-seung had just drawn.

‘Besides, my drawing skills aren’t that high in the first place….’

Clearly, in his past life, he had spent much more time practicing drawing than others.

It wasn’t because of his ambition to draw diagrams and illustrations at a much higher level than others.

It was just because he had a particularly poor talent for drawing.

Only after pouring in tremendous effort, Jae-seung was barely able to reach the level of drawing skills similar to others.

That’s why he could be even more sure.

‘This is not a diagram I drew with my own power.’

The diagram currently drawn on Jae-seung’s notebook was so precisely drawn that it resembled a real picture, except for the coloring.

Soon.

Jae-seung’s trembling eyes turned to the pencil in his hand.

To the extremely clever pencil that was hiding its true value behind its ordinary appearance.

“Haa-.”

He exhaled the hot breath he had been holding back without realizing it.

His heart began to beat uncontrollably, and his head throbbed as if he had been standing in the scorching sun for a long time.

The pencil was a much more special object than he had expected.

A tremendous object that could maximize his efficiency.

Such an object is now in his hand.

As he quietly stared at the pencil, other objects suddenly flashed through Jae-seung’s mind. Objects whose true value has not yet been revealed.

The glasses he is still wearing, and the magazines and watches that are still intact in the 택배 [Korean word for delivery] box.

‘That’s right. There’s no way only the pencil has this kind of power.’

A strange light flickered in Jae-seung’s eyes.

Young-guk, who couldn’t even begin to guess Jae-seung’s complicated feelings, was just making a fuss and showering him with praise.

* * *

After examining the objects for a long time, Jae-seung muttered quietly.

“Sigh- I don’t know. I’ll figure it out slowly.”

Since returning home, he had been examining the objects, but he had not found out anything.

Soon, Jae-seung slowly began to organize the objects.

He put his glasses back on and put the magazines and watches back into the 택배 [delivery] box.

Anyway, it was clear that something as special as the pencil was hidden.

Just staring at it won’t give you the answer, and the object doesn’t have feet so it won’t run away.

He decided to think a little more leisurely.

“Ah, that’s right.”

Soon, Jae-seung took out the ‘Wall Flower Pencil’ from his pencil case and put it in his drawer.

There’s no point in carrying it around. He was planning to use it only at home if possible. Even then, only when it was really necessary.

‘Because pencils are consumable products….’

It wears out as you use it, and if you keep wearing it out, it will disappear someday.

If you overuse it at any time, you may not be able to use it when you really need it.

Tak-!

At the same time as closing the drawer, he turned his head and looked at the clock on the wall.

5:50 PM.

‘Has it already gotten this late?’

Even if he is completely immersed in work from now on, he will only have about two hours to use the sewing machine.

Jae-seung frowned and stared at the clock, then shook his head a few times.

‘If I move diligently, I might be able to finish two or three pieces.’

Soon, Jae-seung immediately began the basic setup for the work. First, he took out his old digital camera.

By the way, the life of the remodeling work is the comparison of before and after photos.

The first thing to do was to take pictures of the original appearance of the clothes to be remodeled today.

A black plain hooded T-shirt with no pattern.

Two ordinary Levi’s jeans.

A total of three pieces of clothing were scheduled to be reborn as completely new clothes through Jae-seung’s hands today.

Jae-seung, who was constantly pressing the shutter, began to check the photos taken with the camera.

“Not bad in its own way.”

Since it was an old digital camera, he didn’t expect much in the first place. When he looked at the pictures taken, the quality was not very good, but it still looked usable in its own way.

The diagram was ready, and the filming was over. It was time to start the main work.

Jae-seung immediately installed the sewing machine and took out a lot of subsidiary materials to use.

Soon.

“Shall we start in earnest….”

Jae-seung, who muttered quietly, carefully placed his foot on the sewing machine pedal.

Jiiiiiiiiing-!

A pleasant noise that I haven’t heard in a while.

A deep smile suddenly appeared on Jae-seung’s lips.