Episode 18
A chord accompaniment rang out clearly.
Listening to it, Seong Yuri began to play the violin.
—!
The resonance of the strings poured out like a gallop over the piano sound.
Clear and tender, yet at the same time, flamboyant and dazzling notes ceaselessly spilled out.
'It's exactly the intro I imagined.'
A sound so intense it seized the ears.
Biting the tail of that intro, Kim Drum picked up the beat.
—Doo, dong. Dudong.
The bass was already continuing the rhythm with the exact same breath as him.
A flawlessly laid-out tempo. Using that as a foothold, two electric guitars added harmonies like whispers.
—Ziiing….
And so, our team members continued the performance of the prepared first verse.
Precisely, right before the beat changed as it transitioned to the next verse.
'Today, we stop here.'
I raised my hand and stopped the music.
"We'll stop here."
When I looked ahead with the microphone in hand, teachers with subtle expressions came into my view.
It was a time to check in advance the stages that would go up for the concert.
Today was the day of that mid-point check.
"…It's good. The song you used during the last open stage, rearranged for the band. I enjoyed listening to it."
Sim Yujin's evaluation comment was heard.
"But the part where it ends with a G pedal…."
After pondering briefly, she soon looked at me.
"…I suppose it's fine to end without showing what comes after?"
"Yes."
I understand her concern. But I can't reveal my trump card here in advance.
"Alright, this team's mid-point check ends here. Next team, please come up."
"Good work."
Fortunately, we were able to come down without letting them hear up to the core part, the second verse.
It was probably because the preceding performance alone showed good chemistry.
"So this ends in one go."
With no particular points to criticize, the team members seemed somewhat excited.
I slowly looked around at them.
There were no holes worth pointing out.
Regardless of individual capabilities, the musical chemistry was like that.
…Musically speaking, at least.
"Ah, I almost lost the beat because of Yun Jongcheol. Why is the bass walking so fast? You trying to finish quickly and hit the bathroom or something?"
"What about you, why is your kick so damn slow? Did someone put a club on your four legs?"
The sounds of Kim Drum and Bass growling at each other were heard.
Why do they get possessed by Gordon Ramsay the moment they hear each other's music?
"How did it look to you?"
"Hmm…."
Kim Drum looked at me as if asking me to pass judgment.
To be honest, both of them had sections where the rhythm shook a little.
"Well, same difference."
Yet it was precisely in those sections with mistakes that the combination of those two shone.
Guys who opened their ears and listened only to each other's breathing for the four minutes the song played.
Thanks to that, they followed even small mistakes and made them into an agreed-upon rhythm.
They were delivering exactly the synergy of the accompaniment I had expected.
"If you mess up, you mess up together. Both at fault."
"Ha, it's a draw this time. Yun Jongcheol."
As we were having that conversation, we sat in the audience seats.
Only then did I notice that Seonji was staring blankly.
"…Something to say?"
"Ah, no."
Seonji quickly turned her head and gazed at the stage.
'She's been looking at me like that several times since all the team members gathered….'
I was curious what she was thinking, but for now, I turned my head too.
It was time to hear what kind of music the other teams had prepared.
"Who's left for the mid-point check now?"
"Uh… a first-year team, and Park Yunseok."
"Park Yunseok? I'm kind of looking forward to it."
The conversation from before came to mind.
A guy who came up with so many ideas even from a brief conversation.
What would that prodigy with spine-chilling talent bring this time… I looked forward to it.
"We will begin immediately."
Beneath everyone's gaze, Park Yunseok's mid-point check began.
And his rap was, quite literally—
"…Wow. Park Yunseok is Park Yunseok."
"He's really good."
He tore the inspection stage apart from the very first phrase.
His groovy rap spread throughout Seoun Hall.
What was scarier was that the details had improved unbelievably.
'Did he get influenced by talking with me?'
I recalled his growth rate from my previous life once.
"Hmm…."
Indeed, he hadn't risen this fast back then.
Now he was faster.
'Especially the layback. The layback hitting the off-beats is almost at a completed stage.'
Layback—intentionally pushing the beat slightly off from the on-beat.
That weapon he would use as his main arsenal in the future was now unfolding on stage nearly completed.
'Should I make my skill set a bit tighter?'
I checked over the rap I had prepared for the second verse.
But I immediately shook my head and dismissed the thought.
There was no need to be so fixated on skills. Not for this concert, at least.
After all, there would be a fundamental difference between him and me.
"But, it is a bit too Park Yunseok."
Kim Drum, who had been continuing his appreciation, opened his mouth again.
"I can't quite put it into words but…. Doesn't it feel like only Park Yunseok stands out?"
When I looked at him, Kim Drum continued as if asking if I didn't agree.
"The session members in the back don't really catch the ear. It's like he's just performing to an MR track."
It was a more proper analysis than I expected.
Team Park Yunseok.
As the name suggested, a band that leaned heavily on him.
'That's what you call a one-man team.'
Considering his ear, he must have chosen students with solid skills, yet it was still like this.
"…Could it be that their main genres are all different?"
Seonji, who had been listening quietly, said.
"That's right."
I quietly nodded and opened my mouth.
"We gathered kids who are all good, but only a limited number of them can shine using the strengths suited to the selected song."
That was why Team Park Yunseok's session didn't catch the eye.
"So in the end, the accompaniment ended up making only Park Yunseok shine, huh."
Kim Drum opened his eyes wide as if he'd realized something.
The difference in how the accompanists were utilized.
That was the biggest difference between our team and his team.
'Of course, making the main character stand out is the purpose of a session, but…'
That wasn't the purpose of the concert.
Isn't it a stage where every student's sound should captivate the audience?
"…It's different from Jahun, who gathered players that fit the genre perfectly for every member."
At that moment, Seonji spoke as if tossing it out casually.
Staring at me intently like before.
While softly murmuring that it was amazing.
"Hold on…. Then did you recruit us all while thinking about that?"
Surprised, Kim Drum looked around.
To be honest, Seonji's words were right.
Kim Drum and Ahn Bass, and even the two guitarists were each students specialized in jazz and classical, respectively.
"Ha…. Park Yunseok wouldn't have even thought of something like this."
"For his level, it's still a decent showing."
It would be rather strange to figure out every student's characteristics and assemble a session.
It was because I knew from having seen the concert 10 years ago.
"Then it must be the same for the one you recruited over there."
There sat Seong Yuri, facing forward with perfect posture.
"Seong Yuri?"
"Yeah, I've never seen her on stage so I didn't know at all. How did you know?"
To be honest, it was because the sound was familiar to my ears.
'It would look strange if I said I'd listened to her tracks occasionally.'
I mixed in a suitable amount of truth and answered.
"Well, just. She seemed to like hip-hop."
"Huh, really?"
Kim Drum looked puzzled. It made sense. He probably wouldn't think of it yet.
Despite that image now, in the near future, she would become a producer creating classical hip-hop.
I remembered that she had made a lot of music utilizing the sound of her major instrument, the violin.
So I thought she would naturally show a good side in hip-hop beats with mixed genres.
'Well, our directions differed, so we never worked together before.'
At the point where everyone's mid-point check had ended.
"Good work. I hope a more completed-sounding song will be performed at the concert."
When Teacher Sim Yujin announced the end, the students relaxed and left Seoun Hall.
"Phew, it was nothing."
"I saw you all nervous earlier."
"That can't be helped. It's a stage, after all."
Grinning, Kim Drum cracked jokes.
"Anyway, with the concert practically over…. Want to hit the karaoke?"
"Go alone."
"Ah, come on. You got somewhere to go?"
When he put it like that, it made me want to make plans even if I didn't have any.
'Wait…. What day was it today?'
While organizing thoughts that suddenly came to mind, I tapped Kim Drum's shoulder.
—Pang, pang!
As expected, it's a sturdy shoulder.
"Thanks to you, I remembered a schedule I'd forgotten."
"What is it? Don't tell me it's a practice you forgot... or something?"
"…What do you take me for."
The producer who would work with me a lot in the future, and who had just released his second album today.
"I have to go buy Bay Code's album."
"Whoa, you even time it to the album release...? You're a real music nut."
I exited Seoun Hall and leisurely waved my hand.
I should buy plenty of that guy's albums that probably haven't sold many copies yet, shouldn't I?
* * *
"It's been a while!"
I dropped by the record store as soon as school ended.
As I opened the door and entered, the owner greeted me warmly.
"You look very excited."
"Of course, I've finally acquired a new audio interface. I've been itching to show it off when you came by, hehe."
The owner subtly took out a box and showed it to me.
"Antelope…?"
"How about it, don't you want to record right away?"
He looked at me with eyes asking, 'You can't resist this, right?'
"Ahem, but isn't it a bit odd to lend this kind of equipment to a student who doesn't even let me hear his songs?"
…It seemed he'd been holding this in since I'd been visiting less often lately.
'It's tempting, but I'm not falling for it.'
Sorry, but I'd already experienced every piece of equipment found in recording studios before my regression.
A temptation of that level wasn't enough to make me bat an eyel—
"The song you're working on now. How about it—come record it right away, deal?"
"Kuh, that's not bad."
—but putting the owner in a good mood comes first, after all.
"So what brought you here today? From the looks of it, seems you weren't planning on playing me a song either."
The owner lamented, looking at the guitar hanging on the wall.
"Ah, today I came as a listener myself. I came to buy an album. Do you have any albums released today?"
"Hehe, no need to worry. If it's a song worth listening to, I'm scrambling to collect it."
It wasn't an empty boast. The new album corner the owner pointed to was packed with the hottest hip-hop albums of this era.
'Although I already knew and came looking for it.'
How could I not know? I had bought it here on this day before the regression, too.
"I'll take this."
I pulled out the album with the darkest cover among them.
"Hmm, let's see. Bay Code?"
It must be an unfamiliar name. This musician still needed time before becoming famous.
"So you've liked this person since last time. Is this rapper that good?"
He's not a rapper, he's a producer…
It seemed the owner hadn't really listened to this guy's album much.
Just as I was about to open my mouth to correct Bay Code's profession—
"He's a producer. He'll become incredibly famous soon."
"Huh…?"
Those weren't my words.
An unfamiliar voice popped out from beside me, answering.
"To think you're listening to Bay Code—you must be a student with quite an ear for music?"
I turned toward the source of the voice to see a woman walking toward me, flashing a bright smile.
"Ah, yes."
The woman came up to the counter and paid for the albums she'd brought.
'She must really love hip-hop, too.'
As I was thinking that while looking at the hip-hop albums she'd brought—
"Wait a moment. Could it be…"
The woman grabbed my shoulder and stared at my face as if scrutinizing every detail.
As if realizing something, the woman's eyes grew wide.
"First Martini?"
"Huh?"
"Are you the student Park Jahun who sang that song? It was trending on Fakebook…!"
When I couldn't think of anything to say at the sudden interrogation, the owner cut in.
"Oh! Did you see that video too, ma'am? That friend is indeed this friend right here. Keh, he sounds even better in person than in that video!"
"Right? Right?"
…Why are the two of them having a conversation while leaving the person himself out of it?
The woman held my shoulder for a while before quickly letting go as if she'd come to her senses.
"Ah…. I'm sorry. I didn't expect to run into you here."
Then, from her bag, she pulled out a white paper rather than a payment card.
It was none other than a business card.
"This is who I am."
The letters written there were enough to surprise me.
[Nent Writer - Yeon Jimin]
'…Her? This person?'
Unbelievable, I looked at the woman once more.
Though I didn't know her in person, I couldn't forget the name.
Because it was a name I had seen at Crack Window.
"It's not a profession worth being that surprised about."
As I blinked repeatedly while thinking, Yeon Jimin spoke as if embarrassed.
"But I am someone who does surprising things."
Then, Yeon Jimin extended her hand to me.
"Let me introduce myself properly. A hip-hop survival for students. I'm Yeon Jimin, the writer of School Rapper.
[Cubase - The encoding of the new remix file has been completed!]
Right at that moment, a system window popped up, flashing.
It was telling me that this was not a hallucination.
'…It's different from before the regression.'
At this moment, I was certain.
That the flow of life had completely changed from the past.
The Regressor on the Beat