The Road To Glory [EN]: Chapter 1661

< Our Words to Say - 166 >

Eight PM.

As the sun set and darkness descended upon the forum, save for the lights and cell phone screens, elegant patterns appeared on the floor of the protruding stage and the three large displays.

Shapes composed of circles, triangles, and flowing golden lines.

The emblem, resembling the sun leaning on a crescent moon or the sun floating in the shadow of a crescent moon, was clearly Halo’s signature logo.

As I blankly stared at the unfamiliar yet expressive emblem, a countdown began. Starting from 16 instead of 10, the white numbers descended.

People naturally knew that these numbers signaled the start of the concert.

Soon, they began to shout the numbers as if waiting for the New Year.

The elegant numbers quickly fell from 10 to 9, and the moment they dropped from 6 to 5, and then from 5 to 4, golden fireworks exploded in the sky.

The enormous light, captivating the eyes of the crowd, illuminated the forum that had been plunged into darkness in an instant, before fading back into the shadows.

But darkness did not truly return.

Though the fireworks had already burned out and disappeared, their afterimage lingered in people’s eyes.

At the same time, the sound of the session began.

The countdown completed, and a boy’s voice was heard.

At that moment, people couldn’t help but scream.

The Coachella stage was automatically brought to mind.

13th album, Until Dawn Comes.

The dawn that vanquishes chaos and darkness begins to break.

The sun had already set, and it was eight in the evening, but it felt as if another sun was rising.

With that, Halo snapped his fingers, and all the lights in the stadium lit up.

People could find the boy in the convergence of all the lights.

The boy, who might seem small to some and large to others, greeted them with his usual nonchalant expression.

However, he didn’t offer a proper greeting until after singing five songs in a row.

#

The words ‘calm’ or ‘composed’ didn’t suit the boy.

At least, not for today’s performance.

Having rested for so long, and with only ten performances scheduled, he wanted to have real fun.

So, this could be seen as a game.

A game of who gets tired first, you or me.

Despite giving them cushions to sit on, Halo didn’t give them any time to sit down.

Starting with HALO’s 13th album, he showed why he had been called the Sun or King last year.

Unlike the time when people were mindlessly swept away, they willingly surrendered their minds.

They had already become accustomed. They were enjoying it by throwing themselves into it.

And starting with the 13th album, then the 12th and 7th, after running wildly, Halo greeted them with a satisfied face.

“Hello? Has everyone been doing well?”

Olivia blankly listened to the boy’s opening remarks from backstage.

“It’s only just begun. You guys seem pretty tired.”

No! People screamed at that one word.

Seeing them shout that they weren’t tired at all and to keep going, the boy smiled contentedly.

That smile was quite similar to the face he had in Ever Since.

Unlike then, his physique was bigger, and his hair color was different, but the aura of someone who wasn’t swayed by the world but rather stood above it was palpable.

Just like he was shaking the 20,000 people in his grasp now, he had done the same back then. Although the number was much smaller than now, he had left a strong impression on the people who visited Ever Since that day, the employees of Ever Since, and her world.

It wasn’t just a memory.

She had gained a great opportunity from that Ever Since performance.

A famous producer, who was deeply impressed by the Ever Since performance uploaded to YouTube, directly offered to produce her. That became her first album, put her on the Billboard charts, and allowed her to become a singer.

After meeting a famous producer and becoming a star overnight, she received quite a few calls from people around her. Most of them were people she didn’t know or wasn’t close to, so it was hard to block them, but she couldn’t bring herself to change her number.

The note she had given to the boy.

Because someday, the boy might remember and contact her.

People pointed to the producer as her benefactor, but Olivia’s benefactor had always been fixed.

On a shabby stage,

Wearing a shabby dress,

Towards the one person who breathed life into a woman left shabbily in the gaze of her friends and professors who had come to see her.

To be honest, it wasn’t that she didn’t know anything about the boy’s identity.

In the 21st century, there were countless eyes watching the popular videos uploaded to YouTube, and those eyes existed in many places at the same time. It meant that there were people who knew K-pop well, or Koreans, there.

Yes, they kindly told her who the boy in the video was, and Olivia was able to learn everything from the boy’s name to his music.

The boy had really beautiful music.

It was music that made you feel like you knew what he was saying, even though it was in a language she didn’t understand.

It wasn’t just her opinion, as there were many people who recognized the boy’s talent and charm.

In that country.

However, that country was too small.

She thought the boy should receive more attention and love from more people.

Because he was a much cooler person than her and someone who deserved a bigger world.

So, she wanted to bring the boy into this vast world.

She couldn’t wait and eventually contacted the boy.

However, the boy didn’t need her.

He didn’t contact her, and when she reached out, she didn’t receive a reply.

Then, one cold winter, she saw the boy in the middle of Paris.

Clearly, he didn’t need her.

He was someone who could come on his own without her calling or helping him.

Perhaps the day that was like a miracle to her was just another day passing by for him, as he was living a special life.

In February, she stopped contacting him.

He seemed to have forgotten her, so she didn’t want to bother him.

-Would you like to perform with me? This time, at my concert.

So, she never expected to receive such a message.

When they met again, she couldn’t give any answer.

She just kept nodding, afraid the boy might misunderstand.

That she would definitely do it.

“I’m going to show you a slightly different stage this time. It will be a more special stage.”

Olivia returned to reality and waited for Halo’s comments.

The stage she had wanted to see unfolded before her eyes.

The boy’s stage, which so many people had come to see.

Again, she wanted the boy to come out into this bigger world like this.

The stage lights went out.

Now it was her turn to go out.

Olivia lifted her dress with both hands and stepped onto the stage.

“But.”

Olivia muttered unconsciously.

This should have been the scene she had wanted the most.

She must have been stupid.

“-This stage is too small too. For you.”

Even this stage, where countless artists and groups had left their mark, seemed too small to contain the boy.

Perhaps she was the one trapped in a small world.

Soon, she stepped onto the stage that was big for her and small for him.

In the darkness, the accompaniment began.

It was a familiar sound, but not from a familiar session.

Even people who weren’t musically sensitive knew.

That the thing covered with black cloth in one corner was definitely a piano. Seo Moon-seon, who had moved her seat, began to play the piano, followed by Nam Gyu-hwan’s conga and Han Jin-young’s contrabass.

Some people here might have noticed, and some might not… well, there would be some.

As Noh Hae-il’s identity as Halo was revealed at Coachella in April, all his actions were reviewed, and the anecdote that took place in a small cafe in California was no exception.

Even the Coachella official himself made it more famous by saying, “I saw Roh there and decided to scout him – actually, he was kept as candidate D.”

The video left by someone on their phone also became a sacred place.

In the first place, wasn’t it Olivia’s pre-debut stage that put her first album on the Billboard charts? The already famous video had its views increase dozens of times in April.

Anyway, what they were playing was HALO’s 8th album, No One Was There, but when a faint light illuminated a female singer and a boy with a hollow-body guitar. They couldn’t help but realize that they were recreating that time.

And with the female singer’s first words, this place transformed from a rock concert venue into an elegant ballroom.

Having been shaken by emotions all along, people were able to heal, and they provided the chorus to the jazz-arranged music.

The female singer in a recital dress and Halo in casual attire seemed to be in different places, but their voices blended well.

What people especially liked was when Olivia talked about the anecdote at that time.

“Actually, I didn’t expect Halo to remember me. It was a short time, less than half a day, and a lot has happened since then, right? Everyone knows about the Paris Revolution, right?” [Referring to a significant event or change in Halo’s career or public image].

Halo wasn’t usually one to talk about his personal life, so people listened with a smile, and the back-and-forth between the two was also quite enjoyable.

“Even if it was someone else at that time, you would have helped him, right?”

“Well. I think I would have.”

Halo readily agreed.

If he was bored and could perform together, he would have done it.

“But no one would have shown as impressive a stage as Olivia.”

“Oh my.”

So, that’s why you still remember?

Oh, I’m so honored.

Olivia playfully retorted to the jokingly added words.

“Olivia, can you show us that stage again?”

“Of course.”

Soon, Halo held the full hollow-body guitar again.

If he had roughly memorized the sheet music and played it back then, this time he had practiced properly and even gone through rehearsals, so there were no problems.

[Do you know the shape of love?]

Olivia had never forgotten that memory.

So, it might have been natural for her to hold the microphone in front of Halo at some point.

Halo looks at her and smiles when she does something she didn’t do during rehearsal.

And the jazz that comes out of his mouth.

If the people there could only hear it for a few seconds,

They could hear it for much longer in this place.

[HALO, successful LA concert, everyone expected yodeling, but this time jazz]

[Isn’t his logo so beautiful? But what’s with the jazz? He sang jazz??? Jazz he’s never sung before? Is the next Monthly Halo jazz?]

[Beautiful night, beautiful music, and a beautiful duet]

[@Daily_starrrr I hope he comes of age soon]

[@TopOf_Tabloid Honestly, I agree. I think we’ll be busier when he comes of age]

[He made us rest with jazz, and then made us run until the encore]

[I even saw someone being taken away in an ambulance]

[NEW Unidentified body found in the California desert]

[I heard there are people who haven’t come home?]

[Look at the gift he gave. I’ve never used it, but a cushion is so sweet, isn’t it? The way home is so enjoyable]

Numerous articles and comments were mixed and uploaded.

This time, there were many songs to listen to, as many B-sides were selected instead of the title track.

[Ah, jazz… I really like jazz… I guess he won’t sing it next time?]

[Noh Hae-il’s style is to never sing it. The concept never overlaps even in small theaters]

[Please, even a cover song…]

But soon, when the moon was full, people belatedly remembered the existence of the golden ticket.

[I thought he would draw or invite someone on stage, but I guess not]

[I was having so much fun that I came home and remembered. So, what’s the golden ticket?]

This is the community at 1 AM.

And at 4 AM.

One article covers all the reviews.

[So, what was the golden ticket?]

The article didn’t bother to write long words.

It was enough with the watch Halo wore to the concert and the authentication of one golden ticket holder.

[??????]

[Wait]

[What the…]

People who didn’t understand what it meant at first just typed ??????. But the meaning of the article was clear.

They could understand why there was something called ‘Noh Hae-il’s true colors’ in Korea.

And the Korean fandom, which had already experienced it, exploded.

[ㅅㅂ Ah PTSD] [Korean slang expressing extreme shock or trauma]

[Wait, the golden ticket is that?]

[No, the music box was already too much, but it’s really a watch?]

[I broke my savings to buy the Halo edition…]

[Ah, what watch lol. What crazy bastard gives luxury watches as concert goods]

[Ah, please no no no no no]

[It’s a real golden ticket. Gold comes out of the ticket ahㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [Korean slang expressing disbelief and amusement]

The identity of the golden ticket soon spread around the world.

It didn’t take long.

[Looking for a golden ticket…]

[Oh No]

The fact that the golden ticket, which was already trading for tens of thousands of dollars, disappeared completely.

:

Meanwhile, this is a story from a few hours before the article was posted.

Just before the concert. So, around 7:30 PM.

‘This is…’

John Doe gasped for breath.

His hands trembled.

He felt like he had the Powerball winnings in cash. At the same time, the people sitting around him looked like robbers. Like they would hit him over the head at any moment and snatch the shopping bag.

Especially the man in the next seat was the most threatening.

Ignoring the words of the concert staff, John Doe opened the gift without thinking, and the moment he opened the box, he made eye contact with the man in the next seat.

Until then, he had been indifferent, but John Doe knew that the moment this was revealed, his eyes would change.

Why wouldn’t they? He was already losing his mind.

‘Is this the golden ticket?’

His heart was pounding.

His quick reflexes to close the box as soon as he opened it shone.

The man in the next seat didn’t see what was inside, but was just puzzled by the unfamiliar box.

Because he didn’t have this box.

Clearly, it came out of that shopping bag.

As the man’s expression became sharper, John Doe quickly turned his head.

“Oh, it’s a gift for my wife, ha, ha, ha. Today is, uh, our wedding anniversary.”

John Doe regretted saying it after he said it.

Because it didn’t make sense at all.

Who brings a gift for their wife on their wedding anniversary and comes to a Halo concert alone?

But, surprisingly, the man in the next seat nodded once with a pitiful look and soon turned his gaze indifferently.

Of course, the man in the next seat also knew that it didn’t make much sense.

But he didn’t see what was inside properly, and since he said it was a gift, it was strange to pay attention to it.

Clearly, it seemed to have come out of the sealed shopping bag. He just tilted his head once.

John Doe couldn’t even look at him and was doing psychological warfare alone while keeping the man in check with the whites of his eyes.

‘How am I supposed to watch the concert after receiving this…’

Since the golden ticket wasn’t just for one person, someone might reveal it suddenly. John Doe was torn between wanting to go home right away and wanting to see the Halo concert.

Anyway, he thought he wouldn’t be able to concentrate on the concert properly because of the unbelievable existence of gold… Surprisingly, that wasn’t the case. Before he knew it, he was jumping in place to the point where his joints hurt, and for some reason, he was shoulder to shoulder with the man in the next seat.

“Do you want to go for a drink together?”

The man, who had developed a sense of inner intimacy after the concert, offered him a drink, but John Doe, who recognized the existence of the watch again, felt a weight that felt like his arm would fall off.

“Oh, sorry. It’s, uh, my brother’s birthday, so.”

John Doe, not realizing he had made a mistake, hurried out, and then came home and was able to see the dazzling watch. One thing was certain. He would never wear it again.

John Doe stared at the perfect luxury watch, complete with a warranty and watch straps, even a limited edition, all night long.

As the night deepened, joy filled him more and more.

But fear was also present.

Would it be better to just stay quiet, or would some guy certify the golden ticket in the community? [Online fan community].

John Doe trembled, wondering if anyone at that concert would remember his face.

He was so scared. He was confined to his house for a week, tormented by nightmares that someone would steal the sacred object.

And nothing happened for a week, and John Doe was slowly able to feel relieved.

He thought he should build muscle to protect the watch, so it was natural that he went to the gym.

At that time, he didn’t know.

That he would run into the man who was sitting next to him at the gym.

“Hi.”

An arm as big as an adult man’s torso grabbed his shoulder.

“We have something to say, right?”