The Road To Glory [EN]: Chapter 1401

< 140. Chaos of Confusion >

[The order of performances is solely at Coachella’s discretion. Not even the headliner can interfere with the schedule.]

That was Coachella’s response when August Veil contacted them after finding Roh Hae-il’s name in Coachella’s official announcement.

They were begging to book Halo just yesterday. Once it was confirmed, Coachella cut them off decisively.

It was as if they decided they needed to show the record label who was boss in times like these.

However, it didn’t take long for Coachella to contact Veil back. They probably didn’t expect to reject him so firmly and then call back within a few hours.

Coachella’s representative was so urgent that they kept calling Veil, and as soon as they got through to August Veil, they immediately got to the point.

[What the hell is going on right now?]

“I’m not sure what you’re referring to,” August Veil retorted slyly, gesturing to Chairman Arbo and Halo before getting up from his seat.

[Are you asking about what’s happening in Paris?]

“Paris. Such a beautiful city.”

[Are you serious?]

The representative was so desperate that they continued urgently.

[Is the request to place Roh’s performance before Halo’s related to the current situation?]

Coachella, which would be monitoring the situation of festival attendees due to the upcoming festival, discovered the video shortly after it was uploaded and called an emergency meeting.

This was also the most important thing for them.

Wasn’t it about Halo’s identity?

As August Veil continued to play dumb, Coachella went back to begging like before.

“I don’t know who Roh is.”

[Veil! Please, just tell me this one thing. Is Roh Halo? If so, we will seriously consider your request, so please answer.]

“Hmm.”

However, August Veil’s answer was not forthcoming.

After a moment of silence, Coachella, now in the position of the supplicant, was going crazy, unable to hang up the phone until the answer from August Veil, the one in control, came.

Around that time, August Veil’s voice was heard again.

“But is that important?”

[Huh?]

“Whether Roh is Halo or not, the whole world is paying attention right now. Soon, people all over the world will know the name Roh Hae-il, so does the truth matter?”

[!]

August Veil’s sly tone continued.

“The stage of a boy suspected of being Halo, followed immediately by Halo’s stage. What does this mean? Is it because the boy is the real Halo? Or is it a device that Coachella deliberately created to attract attention?”

[…]

“Whether he is the real Halo or not, the important thing is that the truth will eventually be revealed on the Coachella stage.”

Veil’s words were not the answer they wanted to hear at all. But it was also a statement that clearly cut to the core.

Right. Wouldn’t anyone be curious?

He was also going crazy with curiosity.

Wasn’t that why he urgently contacted Veil like this?

The representative felt a thrill at the thought that ‘the truth will be revealed at Coachella.’ The more he thought about it, the drier his mouth became.

[Regarding the stage and rehearsals… We will seriously consider your request.]

In the end, the words he could say were limited.

[…However, there is one thing I would like to ask.]

“Hmm?”

[You can answer or not answer. This is not a question from the Coachella director, but a personal curiosity. I won’t tell anyone.]

August Veil listened to his question.

[Roh… Is he Halo?]

Soon the call ended, and August Veil returned to his seat and clinked glasses.

“Perfect timing. I know an amazing recording studio in Paris. But are your members ready?”

Halo smiled faintly and replied.

“Yes, they said they arrived safely.”

#

When the day dawned, the world was not as calm as a wide ocean… On the contrary, a storm was brewing uncontrollably.

Of course, a busking video of a boy suddenly appearing on terrestrial television was out of the question.

No broadcasting station would rashly report on it without being sure if he was Halo. -There was also a precedent where the media had become a laughingstock due to a fake Halo report in the past- The news bureaus regretted having to just watch this hot topic.

However, things were different in places with fewer restrictions, no need to worry about authority, and where production and consumption occurred simultaneously.

In that space, countless people appeared and expressed their opinions, arguing fiercely until now, and as they had done until now, or even more so than they had done until now, a full-scale debate was taking place.

It was just one video.

However, the ripple effect of that video spread infinitely.

[That’s definitely Tae-yang’s voice]

At first, it was just impressions of the voice.

Then came the story of the boy with that voice.

[He’s not Black, he’s Asian]

[Why are you bringing up race now, you f***ing racist]

[More than that, he looks too young]

└ Asians all look like teenagers

└ I heard he’s actually a teenager

If the above was the argument that took place on the day the video was uploaded, the next day, dozens of times more people recognized the existence of the ‘video,’ and the debate increased hundreds of times.

The most representative thing was, of course, the image.

The most people were intensively analyzing the images of the Venetian plague doctor and the boy.

Someone even extracted the boy’s image from the Paris busking video and created a 3D model like the Venetian Halo.

In a three-dimensional space consisting of X, Y, and Z coordinates, a crow doctor and an Asian boy with white hair stand back to back.

Of course, the doctor wearing a large mask, suit, and coat appeared larger…

[This is a bit…]

Although it wasn’t a 100% accurate real-life image due to refractions of umbrellas, rain, and cameras, it was clear that they looked similar to the naked eye.

[No way]

[Is it just me, or do they look similar?]

[Could it be that they look similar because they are both thin and tall?]

It didn’t take long for the name and personal information of ‘Roh Hae-il’ to become known all over the world.

[The boy, ‘Roh,’ is a famous Korean idol!]

[He’s also a rookie who debuted last year, and he’s the hottest star in Korea right now]

In fact, it wasn’t strange.

It happened last year that even ordinary people became popular stars if they showed a match rate with Halo.

Not an ordinary person, but an entertainer from one country.

It was only natural that the personal information of a rising star would spread quickly.

[I just got some hot news about ‘the boy’! Roh debuted last year and swept the music charts as a super-large K-pop singer. And he’s now 16 years old]

└ What music?

└ He debuted with a mini-album in February last year!

└ If it was February last year, Halo also released an album then?

└ Then it’s not him

└ (Writer) And I don’t know if this is true, but I heard he released two singles in the summer and one full album in the fall

└ ?

[I brought Roh’s album! You can see it on YouTube Music (in chronological order)]

– From now OST Album : Two songs

– Another Life (Roh’s 1st Mini & Debut Album) : four songs

– 2030 SONG FESTIVAL, Rendez-vous Album : single

– Lighthouse at night (Roh’s 1st Single album) : single

– My world (Roh’s 1st full-length album) : 12 song

└ Huh?

└ Wait, it’s not just one or two songs? How many songs is that in total?

└ Didn’t he debut last year? Has the meaning of the word ‘last year’ changed without me knowing?

└ Did someone hold a gun to his head and threaten him to release 20 songs?

└ But I heard he doesn’t promote much in Korea

└ What? He released 20 songs and didn’t promote?

└ If twenty songs is not promoting… What kind of country is Korea? Do singers release fifty songs a year?

└ More than that, he’s only 16! Seriously, this is child abuse

[Can someone compare how many times Halo released an album last year?]

└ That just requires knowing how many months are in a year 🙂

└ Aha! I didn’t realize that!

From the songs he released to the broadcasts he appeared on, all his activities began to be revealed.

More obsessively than ever.

What was a bit unusual was that Halo’s malicious fandom, the so-called Heligans, who would bite at anything that seemed even slightly off, kept their mouths shut.

Some mocked that they had gone to harass the kids on the ‘liar list’ again, and others thought they were being lenient because he was a 16-year-old minor.

However, people who knew the Heligans well said that they would never be lenient just because he was a minor.

The confusion did not subside easily.

Rather.

The more the personal information of the boy who most recently resembled Halo became known, the more they seemed to be entering a maze rather than getting closer to the truth.

[I’m sure of it. That song, that voice, is only Tae-yang’s, unless God deliberately created another person with the same voice]

[Everyone admits that the appearance of the plague doctor and Roh almost match]

[And that guitar case.]

[Maybe we shouldn’t have assumed that the plague doctor was Halo in the first place]

└ How far are you going? He is Halo

└ I know Tae-yang’s voice even if I don’t know my parents’ voices!

└ Your parents probably know Tae-yang’s voice even if they don’t know your voice

└ Then what’s the truth? If the plague doctor is Halo and matches that boy, does that mean he is Halo?

There were many obstacles between Halo and ‘Roh,’ including race, culture, and age.

However, the biggest obstacle among them was that ‘Roh’ was a very active singer in Korea.

The fact that he had released about 20 songs, and that those 20 songs were of such high quality that they entered the K-pop music charts -although not Billboard- was proof that the two could not be the same person.

If they didn’t know he had a personal label, they would have reported him for child abuse, as the boy was living harder than anyone else.

With the person who could get them out of this maze missing, their frustration was growing.

[Everyone is saying that the release of the music is incomprehensible, but what I find even more incomprehensible is that even in Roh’s Korean music, I can hear Halo’s voice, so what have the Korean kids been doing until now? Is Halo not popular in that country? This debate should have happened long before Roh disappeared]

└ I agree. Roh is not unknown, and he’s the hottest star in Korea, right?

└ Asians are usually quiet

└ Or maybe they’re hiding it to share it among themselves?

└ I think so too. They might be hiding it on purpose to keep it to themselves because they have a sneaky side

└ Maybe Roh has already returned to his country and they’re hiding it?

Koreans are indifferent to others, but at the same time, they are overly conscious of their gaze.

Therefore, they were generally aware of the situation that was causing a stir overseas, and when the arrows of controversy flew to Korea, they were really frustrated.

[My foreign friend asked if they don’t listen to Halo’s music in Korea]

└ What are you talking about?

In fact, Korea was the most chaotic.

There had been a Roh Hae-il = Halo theory from before.

But that wasn’t a main issue, and everyone laughed it off. No one imagined that the ‘Roh Hae-il = Halo theory,’ which only occasionally came up in Korea, would be imported from overseas.

[Is Roh Hae-il really Halo?]

[Where did Roh Hae-il really go in the midst of all this?]

[Did Roh Hae-il return to Korea?]

└ If he had returned, would it be this quiet?

└ Only Roh Hae-il’s band returned

└ Roh Hae-il’s Paris video was recently uploaded, so what are you talking about? He must be in Paris now;;

They also had many things they wanted to ask Roh Hae-il, and that’s why they were genuinely curious about where he was.

However, the label that would officially represent Roh Hae-il was like a ghost company with no employees, and it was doubtful whether the Byeol Gram, where nothing had been uploaded yet, was Roh Hae-il’s real account.

Roh Hae-il’s band, who had returned to Korea, also disappeared at some point, and Roh Hae-il’s house had also been empty for a long time.

As Roh Yoon-hyun’s father being a professor at Korea University was once a hot topic, reporters flocked to Korea University, but the only answer they could hear was that it was a sabbatical year.

Why was this year Roh Yoon-hyun’s sabbatical year of all years?

Inevitably, they went to Roh Hae-il’s elementary and middle school teachers, but they couldn’t give a definite answer. Rather, they were more puzzled and asked back if Hae-il was Halo, and the principal, who had prejudices against Halo after seeing the Heligans’ news, gave irrelevant answers such as that our students are all kind and don’t drink or smoke.

Broadcasting stations were also in chaos.

Everyone coming and going to the broadcasting station talked about Roh Hae-il and Halo, and they argued about whether it was true or not. What was even more embarrassing was that there was a protest in front of the broadcasting station demanding that the truth be revealed.

The broadcasting station also didn’t know anything.

It wasn’t for nothing that they were just replaying the broadcasts that Roh Hae-il had appeared on. All they could do was that and contact the JTC entertainment bureau. To the ‘Spring Again’ team, who might know the truth in this situation.

“PD [Production Director] Park, tell me!”

‘Spring Again’s’ PD Park was dragged (?) to the broadcasting station upon his return to Korea. And he was immediately brought before the higher-ups, and they directly questioned him.

Whether Roh Hae-il was Halo.

He didn’t know that the butts of the higher-ups, whom he had seen once or twice, were so light [meaning they were quick to act].

It seemed like he had seen their faces to the point of disgust. And, PD Park realized at the same time. No matter how high they were, they all came running because they couldn’t stand not knowing what they were curious about.

“I-.”

PD Park, who came out giving the same answer like a parrot, was now called to the next highest-ranking people.

The question was the same.

“Is Roh Hae-il really Halo?”

“I, I don’t know either.”

“How can you not know! What did Roh Hae-il say? Did he really not say anything?”

“Yes, he just sang and left.”

“No, what did you do as a PD without holding him back!”

PD Park’s pupils shook, and his face was as pale as someone suffering from food poisoning. Anyone who saw him would think he was a criminal being interrogated.

“Hey, Park In-soo.”

“I… I really don’t know.”

“Hey, look up. No, are you okay?”

Only his senior CP [Chief Producer] looked after his condition. However, PD Park’s mind had long turned blank, and the same words came out.

“I really, really don’t know anything. What’s going on? I don’t know anything.”

“Why I couldn’t hold onto Roh Hae-il. Really…”

The CP, who had been watching him quietly, sighed.

“The only one who can solve this situation now is Roh Hae-il, but you really don’t know where he went?”

He thought it was lucky to have met Roh Hae-il at first, but he had been in this state ever since Roh Hae-il sang ‘Supernova.’

He couldn’t come to his senses as if he had been electrocuted. He couldn’t understand anything. His voice sounds like Halo’s. But he can’t give a definite answer unless he knows for sure.

Everyone else is holding him and asking questions. Is Roh Hae-il Halo? But he really wanted to grab Roh Hae-il and ask.

‘Hae-il, are you really Halo?’

It was a regret of a lifetime that he sent him away without asking then.

The CP, realizing that PD Park was not in a state to answer, tapped the table.

“Then who would know?”

“August Veil?”

“Would Veil even take our calls now? Also.”

“Roh Hae-il’s parents and Roh Hae-il’s band would also know, right?”

“Surprisingly, they’ve all disappeared.”

As if they had all made a promise.

“We just need to find one member of Roh Hae-il’s band.”

The CP couldn’t stand the frustration and took out a cigarette. It would be a jackpot if we could just find them.

He had no idea where these people, who didn’t show up at the label or come home, had gone. Are they hiding in some mountain village in Gangwon-do [a province in South Korea known for its mountains]?

#

“Guys, come in, this is our hideout.”

“Wow! Hello.”

“This is Gong-hak, and Deok-soo.”

“Hello, my name is Nam Gyu-hwan.”

Moon Seo-yeon looked around the hideout.

A band hideout that you would only see in movies unfolded.

Wow. She couldn’t hide her admiration.

“Shall I show you where to put your luggage?”

“Ah, yes! I would really appreciate it if you would.”

“F-follow me. You can go upstairs. It’s empty right now…”

Han Jin-young and Bae Gong-hak giggled behind Kim Deok-soo, who was stuttering unlike himself. Kim Deok-soo, who was only a macho man in 2D, couldn’t stand the presence of a real woman.

“But is it okay to go up like this without permission?”

Moon Seo-yeon asked as she went up the stairs to the empty room.

“It’s okay.”

Kim Deok-soo, who cut off the conversation like that, belatedly realized his mistake, and Han Jin-young continued the explanation.

“It’s okay. This is Deok-soo’s building.”

“!”

“A building owner higher than the creator?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Kim Deok-soo waved his hand as Nam Gyu-hwan looked at him with respectful eyes.

“I just happened to win the lottery first prize…”

“Wow!”

“Happened to win the lottery first prize.”

“I just bought a few buildings with real estate profits. I don’t have a talent for stocks.”

“Hyung-nim [term for older brother or respected male], I respect you!”

“Please take good care of me in the future.”

Moon Seo-yeon and Nam Gyu-hwan instinctively pledged their loyalty.

And they looked around the spacious second floor and nodded.

“I’m glad we have a place to practice.”

“Right, if we had done something wrong, we would be being tortured to reveal the truth right now, right?”

“If we hadn’t known in advance, that’s probably what would have happened, right?”

Han Jin-young muttered with a complex expression.

“Anyway, I’ll contact the president that we arrived safely!”

“Okay. Ah, and when you’re done practicing, let’s go to the studio where Hae-il recorded his first album.”

“First album?”

“I mean HALO’s first album.”

“! Is it a sacred place…?”

“A sacred place? Is that what it’s becoming?”

Nam Gyu-hwan made a more dramatic expression than ever.

Han Jin-young chuckled and nodded. He thought he should contact Mr. Kang Young-min after a long time.

Soon the 1 in KakaoTalk [Korean messaging app] disappeared.

[President, we have arrived safely! We are now starting to practice recording the 12th album!]