"Wow, today's King's Match is really difficult."
As the MC of
It had already been several years since they started filming
They had already mastered the art of reacting.
"I am the Ash Crow. It's been almost half a year since a King who entered the Hall of Fame appeared, right? It's about time one came out."
"Ah, but Max Level Rabbit's skills are also extraordinary, so I'm not really sure."
The words were staged to make it seem like a close match, but in reality, most were predicting an Ash Crow victory.
It was probably because the color Max Level Rabbit had shown so far had been consistent.
Avoiding songs that required technique, and mostly singing songs embellished with emotion.
Of course, that alone was excellent enough, but it was about time they hit a wall.
If she didn't bring some kind of change in the finals, it would be Ash Crow's victory.
Most people thought so.
'If this were a live broadcast, I'd be a bit curious about the reaction.'
Song Byung-soo thought so as he looked at the two who stepped onto the stage.
The reactions on internet communities also favored Ash Crow.
But there were also those who raised their hands for Max Level Rabbit.
"Then, Max Level Rabbit, who will challenge the King! Her singing skills are also max level! Let's listen together to see what song she has prepared today!!"
Song Byung-soo said that and first handed the microphone to Max Level Rabbit—that is to say, to Seo-yeon.
'Please, don't hype me up too much.'
Seo-yeon genuinely thought so.
Honestly, she didn't expect to make it to the finals of this stage.
She also worked hard on the arrangement in her own way, but....
'No.'
She shouldn't say weak things.
She still made it to the finals, after all.
Looking at the audience, she could see her mom and Soo-yeon clapping.
Her dad sitting next to them was yawning, but she knew he was still cheering for her.
Lately, he must be hiding the fact that he had his own worries.
'Of course, the same goes for me.'
But it was a problem hard to find an answer to.
Because of that, it was relatively hard to focus on
As the instrumental intro started playing, people's gazes changed.
Perhaps because it was an unfamiliar song?
No, since there were so many arrangements, there were many songs you couldn't recognize just by the intro.
The reason their expressions changed was for another reason.
'An anime song?'
'Wow, here?'
The song Seo-yeon chose was a song of memories.
The theme song of an anime that was originally inserted in Korea.
In the past, imported anime often had original theme songs inserted like that.
The song Seo-yeon chose now was quite famous among those theme songs.
So it was a song somewhat familiar to the public.
However, they never expected her to bring it to the King's Match.
Song Byung-soo, who had been listening quietly, was also surprised.
Of course, it wasn't like there were no cases of arranging anime theme songs and bringing them.
But he didn't expect her to pull it out at the King's Match.
Especially since Max Level Rabbit had mainly chosen emotional songs all this time.
This song arranged by Summer Girl is called "Silence".
This song was originally sung by a famous Korean rocker.
'I'm pretty sure it was an anime about guns.'
But it wasn't rock, and it was a song with a rarely emotional theme.
If you just listened to the song, no one would even guess it was used as an anime theme song.
Of course, Seo-yeon hadn't seen the anime, so she didn't know well.
All she had heard was what she heard from Soo-ah.
Seo-yeon brought the microphone to her lips and looked at Soo-ah in the audience.
Soo-ah and Young-bin in the audience had their eyes wide open.
As if they never expected Seo-yeon to choose this song.
Seeing that, she felt the tension that had filled her chest disappear.
"At the time, Mom was in a game club."
At that time, Soo-ah had said while explaining this song.
She said there were exactly three members in the game club.
"Mom's friend, and a kid who somehow ended up joining."
Originally, there were about three more, but Mom's friend was so serious about making games that they couldn't endure and all left.
"They probably thought it was a club for playing games."
Not a club for making games, but playing them.
But Soo-ah's friend was serious about making games.
But, where to start and how.
And what kind of game to make, they were at a standstill.
"I don't know if my friend wrote really well... but she planned the story really well."
But when they tried to make it into a game, it wasn't implemented well.
In the first place, there was no one who could handle programming, so Soo-ah, who drew pictures, somehow ended up taking on that job too.
It was also because Soo-ah had a personality that couldn't easily refuse.
"But the teacher said we needed one more person..."
A warning came out that they wouldn't be able to maintain the club like this.
So while each of them was looking for someone, Soo-ah happened to get entangled with a male student.
"That was your dad."
If he likes games, he'll definitely like anime too!
She had that thought, and also thought it would be easier to talk about the same topics.
Soo-ah mustered her courage and talked to him.
"But Mom was talking about the original song of that anime, while Young-bin oppa was thinking of the song arranged in Korea. I was so embarrassed back then."
No wonder their conversation was missing each other.
Anyway, it was a coincidental opportunity like that, but Young-bin ended up joining the game club following Soo-ah.
At the time, he had nothing to do, and it looked somewhat fun.
"And your dad, he came in and we fought a lot."
Saying things like, is this it, there's no goal, and is it over just by making a game.
If we're going to do it, we should do it seriously.
Words to that effect.
Doing so, one thing led to another, and although many things happened, they really made a game.
They even won an award.
Really, she didn't know how that happened.
"This song is the song that became the first opportunity for Mom and Dad to get entangled."
A song that precious.
And, the song where Dad's dream began.
"Dad probably didn't know he would end up like this when he heard this song."
A small opportunity.
You never know what opportunity will start something.
Seo-yeon realized why Soo-ah was saying that.
Probably, the character named Yoo-ju that Seo-yeon was playing.
And she must be talking about the opportunity that led Seo-yeon to do the drama.
Young-bin too, looking back, was a case where he started something accidentally at someone's recommendation.
"But I think it's different from Yoo-ju."
Yoo-ju was a character who couldn't see anything else.
What she learned was only that, and she couldn't even choose other options.
So, Soo-ah thought Yoo-ju, played by Seo-yeon, was very pitiful.
"But, Seo-yeon, you wanted to do something else since you were young, right?"
At first she thought it was acting, but as Seo-yeon grew up, she realized it was a little different.
"You're acting now, surely there's some reason, right? It's just that Seo-yeon also knows that reason... but you don't know if it's right."
Opportunity.
The opportunity for Seo-yeon to become an actress started with Soo-ah's recommendation.
Same as her father, Young-bin.
But, with that recommendation, Young-bin decided his future and his dream.
Was she like that too?
'Did I really decide to become an actress because of Mom's words?'
She didn't know well.
Making up her mind to become a great actress was genuine.
But there was a part of her that wavered a little about whether the opportunity that made her think that way, whether that reason, was right.
And the thing she wanted to do, too.
In the end, if you ask if that is 'Joo Seo-yeon's dream, she didn't know well.
Isn't it a legacy left by her past self?
Soo-ah said Yoo-ju and Seo-yeon were different, but she thought that statement was wrong.
Joo Seo-yeon and Yoo-ju are the same.
In that they are bound to the past. Especially.
Of course, the opportunity is different.
Because Yoo-ju couldn't see anything else.
Joo Seo-yeon absolutely couldn't forget what she saw in the past.
Isn't it that, like Yoo-ju, she naturally can't think of anything else?
That's why she can't do it easily.
Because it was what she so desperately wanted in her past life, and if she chose that, it felt like she would become her past self, not Joo Seo-yeon.
'So, that's why I chose this song, but.'
Seo-yeon choosing this song wasn't simply because of Soo-ah and Young-bin.
Silence.
Because the title of this song was like talking about her past life.
Because it was a life that ended without properly gaining a single thing.
The sparkling things she saw back then, that lingering attachment was what held her back until now.
That silence. That kind of solitude.
Deep emotion flows out from Seo-yeon's lips.
Her clear vocal capacity captivated the audience and echoed across the stage.
'Did she do this well?'
The MC of
Originally, Max Level Rabbit did sing well.
That's why she made it to the finals.
But he thought the fact that her opponents were relatively weak this time also played a part.
Either they originally lacked skill.
Or they chose a song where they couldn't show their original skills.
So he judged that she had advanced to some extent by benefiting from the circumstances, but... now he wasn't sure.
The audience was also listening as if bewitched by Max Level Rabbit's song.
There was no tremendous technique, but it made people immerse themselves in the emotion of the song more than ever.
So that they could naturally assimilate into the emotions melted into the song.
"……."
As the microphone fell from Seo-yeon's lips and the song ended.
For a moment.
Silence fell on the stage.
But that was only for a moment.
"That concludes Max Level Rabbit's stage!"
With the shout of Song Byung-soo, who came to his senses late, cheers came from the audience.
Shouts and applause.
"You're the best!!"
It was a word mixed in the shouts, but Seo-yeon heard it clearly.
Soo-ah wiping her tears slightly, and Young-bin, who clapped and shouted that she was the best.
Seo-yeon saw that and smiled under the mask.
Still, thinking that expressing it like this with a song wasn't bad.
And.
'...No, that's cowardly!!'
There was one more person immersed in lingering attachment here.
***
"This song was originally the song that became the opportunity for my parents' first meeting, they say."
After the song ended, Max Level Rabbit said in a modulated voice.
Hearing those words, Ash Crow.
Yeo-hee tilted her head askance.
No, she knew.
Of course she knew!
How could she not know.
Anyway, separately from that, she could feel her manager, A-ram, sitting in the audience, sending her a pitiful look.
Like eyes looking at a woman who can't forget her lingering attachment.
Since she roughly knew the circumstances, it was certain she was looking at her with such eyes.
'It's a song of your parents' memories.'
'That's right.'
'Then aren't you in those memories too, unnie?'
'I suppose so.'
'You've become a memory...'
'…….'
It was roughly an exchange of gazes that gave that kind of feeling.
Well, it could be her own delusion.
Anyway, it was true that her manager was looking with pitiful eyes.
'Does she really know my identity?'
Yeo-hee looked at Seo-yeon, who was giving a short interview to the audience with a modulated voice after the song ended.
Separately from that, this side was also overflowing with lingering attachment, whatever it was.
Since she's still young, is there something she's worrying about?
'But I don't know what she's worrying about so much.'
Then again, at that age, one could be full of worries about everything in the world.
Because she was like that too.
And she still is now.
But that's natural as long as you're human.
Yeo-hee looked at the audience; she heard Young-bin's voice shouting something towards Seo-yeon.
He seemed to be chattering about how it was the best or something.
Depending on how you look at it, it was a very cheerful sight, but Yeo-hee roughly knew.
Because she had heard their previous conversation, she knew the worries hidden in that cheerfulness.
'How funny.'
To be honest, it was an unfamiliar sight to Yeo-hee.
Because the person she knew was someone far removed from deep anguish.
A guy who would keep charging forward even if his head broke, since when did he start having such hesitations?
'It means time has passed.'
While she is still a kid.
Young-bin and Soo-ah might not be.
Did she feel sadness at that sight?
Never.
"Wow, that story is beautiful. A song containing your parents' memories. Even for Ash Crow, this won't be easy!"
At that time, Song Byung-soo looked back at Yeo-hee, who was next, and said.
His face seemed to be saying that no matter how good she was, it wouldn't be easy this time.
Of course, Song Byung-soo wasn't such an unskilled MC to show such rude emotions.
"The final King's Match, with the King's seat right before your eyes!! Against the strong opponent Max Level Rabbit, do you think you can seize victory?"
To him, who said so and handed over the microphone, Yeo-hee smirked under her mask.
Well, Seo-yeon did well today.
A song that utilized 100% of her strengths.
Honestly, Yeo-hee also clapped without even realizing it.
"Well."
But, unfortunately.
She absolutely didn't want to lose.
"My memories will win."
At least, today.
With those words, Yeo-hee gestured behind her, and the sound of an electric guitar rang out.
The moment the band that had been preparing started the accompaniment.
'……!!'
Seo-yeon, who was coming down from the stage, turned to look back.
The intro of the song starting now.
Was a song Seo-yeon had heard recently.