Episode 27
"There are still so many people."
Hongdae, one week after the busking had ended.
Seong Yuri looked around as if seeing the place with fresh fascination.
*It must feel different from when she came before.*
Setting aside that this was their first time coming alone, their very purpose for being here was different.
I had come to prepare for the next mission, and Seong Yuri had come to properly experience hip-hop.
Every time they passed people performing hip-hop, Seong Yuri’s gaze refused to fall.
"Everyone here is so good. I should have listened to some beforehand."
"…Why?"
"I just thought it would be nice if I could at least talk with someone about it."
Since I had a hunch about the reason, I didn’t beat around the bush and asked directly.
"Did you think of this while talking with Hong Hyeonsik?"
"Huh? How did you know?"
Seong Yuri chuckled, saying I was sharper than she’d thought.
"I wanted to be able to talk with my dongsaeng about what he likes, at the very least."
"But you kept getting tongue-tied and the conversation wouldn’t flow. Is that it?"
Seong Yuri quietly nodded.
I could understand how she felt, but honestly, it was only natural.
"Don’t worry too much. It’s expected. You majored in classical music—how can you speak fluently about something you don’t know?"
Hong Hyeonsik probably knew just as little about classical music as Seong Yuri did about hip-hop.
It was an information imbalance: what was obvious to one person was inevitably unfamiliar to the other.
"Why don’t you try talking to him about something else instead?"
"Mm… that’s a bit hard."
"Hard?"
"Even if it’s another topic, all I can really talk about is school life…"
A slightly bitter expression spread across her face.
"Hyeonsik doesn’t like those kinds of stories. At his previous school…"
Then she stopped and forced a faint smile.
"Never mind. Pretend you didn’t hear that."
I deliberately feigned deafness and asked back.
"What? I can’t hear you over the music."
"Pfft. That was so awkward. Still, thank you. Anyway, that’s why I wanted to come today—to learn a bit about hip-hop too."
It made sense. This was likely the first place where she could properly listen to and interact with hip-hop.
"Yeah, learn plenty today."
"Thanks. But I don’t look weird or out of place, do I?"
Wondering what she meant, I followed her gaze and saw people passionately spitting rap.
They had the kind of look that made their pride in hip-hop immediately obvious.
"What do you think? If a kid who did classical music suddenly showed up wanting to listen to hip-hop like this."
From her expression, she seemed genuinely worried about it.
Though it was close to a useless worry.
"I wouldn’t think anything."
"Really?"
"Yeah, and…"
I briefly recalled the music she would make in the future.
*So those were the beats born from these worries.*
Frankly, because they were far from mediocre, some still lingered in my ears even now.
Thinking of those sounds, I continued decisively.
"You’ll be good at hip-hop."
Seong Yuri’s face flushed slightly.
"…Thanks. You’re the first person to tell me something like that."
I smiled softly and nodded.
"You can believe me."
Probably among all the hip-hop artists out there, and even counting Seong Yuri herself.
I would be the one who knew best what kind of music she would end up making.
"We’re here."
Having finally reached our destination, we quickly turned our gazes to search for someone.
It didn’t take long.
*His voice is no joke, as expected.*
I approached the direction from which rap lyrics could be heard.
—Even on the day the world ends, I’m Lil Pecks—.
—Nas, 2Pac, Biggie. Course by course, it’s a rap buffet—.
The rapper who was practically the symbol of Hongdae at this point in time.
Lilpecks was there, delivering an explosive rap.
At the moment the rap finally ended.
Lilpecks blinked and welcomed me.
"Huh? Bard! Long time no see!"
"Hyung-nim, it’s been a while."
"Puhaha, it’s only been a few days. Anyway, I’m glad to see you. I heard you weren’t coming because of filming or something?"
"Today’s filming is over. After that, my mouth started itching again."
Seeing his expression asking what I meant, I continued right away.
"If you have time, can we rap together?"
"Rap? How?"
I pointed at the mic and amp he held.
"A cypher. Let’s do a round."
* * *
Beats playing at random.
Rappers spitting impromptu to match them.
It was the sight of a 'cypher,' where several rappers built a stage together.
At the point when my turn ended.
"Keh, I told you he’s good."
I felt the gazes of the gathered rappers.
Lilpecks, seeming proud of that, thumped my shoulder.
"Wow, did you make up all these lyrics on the spot?"
A bench I walked over to briefly to wet my throat.
Seong Yuri, who had been sitting and watching us, asked.
"Mm… not exactly. Usually you spit a prepared rap matched to the beat."
It was a bit different from freestyle.
Of course, there wasn’t a strictly fixed form. Since a cypher was, by nature, about multiple rappers completing a single stage together.
"By the way, is the filming going well?"
"Huh? Yeah. It’s filming well."
Before the rap started, Seong Yuri had asked if she could film, wanting to watch it again later.
Since being captured on video was an interesting experience in its own right, everyone had nodded readily.
"But you’re surprisingly professional? You were making eye contact with the camera in between."
Seong Yuri chuckled, saying anyone would think I’d stood on stage dozens of times.
I briefly checked the video she showed me on her phone and fell into thought.
*…I should film one more.*
I felt like I needed something to compare it to.
After checking the time, I went straight back to Lilpecks.
"Shall we do one more?"
It was almost midnight.
*Seong Yuri will have to go home soon, and the hyungs…*
Wasn’t this the time they’d go grab a drink?
However, contrary to my worry, Lilpecks nodded gladly.
"Okay. Let’s go right now. BJ, drop the beat!"
As the beat dropped, rappers gathered around the mic.
"Lilpecks! Turn up!"
"Next, Bard will go right after!"
The heated atmosphere was passed on consecutively until the last rapper.
*Definitely… everyone’s skill level is high.*
The skills of Lilpecks and the other rappers were too outstanding to simply call it a street cypher.
Not only was there no one stumbling or stammering, but there was also the veteran skill of matching their rap to the beat.
Above all, there was teamwork that showed awareness of one another’s breathing and styles.
"This makes me want to rap."
"Right?"
Lilpecks spoke with satisfaction.
I was in quite a good mood too, since it had been a while since I’d exchanged bars with other rappers.
*Though they’ll probably handle it differently on broadcast.*
No matter how much they called it a team battle, this feeling wouldn’t come through.
If they changed the rules little by little for broadcast entertainment, it would end up feeling strongly like an individual competition anyway.
Still, I tried hard not to forget this feeling.
In my field of vision, I could still see Seong Yuri sitting and watching us.
*Still, it’s a team battle.*
In a direction where the burdens one would shoulder alone… could be shared together.
That was how I intended to prepare for the mission.
"Ah, Lilpecks-hyung."
"Yeah?"
There was one more thing I was trying not to forget.
"By any chance, do you remember my first verse and my second verse?"
"I don’t remember everything, but I know what they felt like. Why?"
"…Did you happen to feel any difference between them?"
"Mm… both were good, but."
At my question, Lilpecks narrowed his brows, seeming to recall what had just happened.
"I guess the first one stuck better in my ears? Now that I think about it, the lyrics and structure were similar…"
*So it sounds like that after all.*
Two cyphers. Lilpecks said the rap I did later was a bit disappointing.
I had actually thought that would be the case.
[Cubase — Bridge performance completed.]
[Content — The bridge existing from playback time 18:70:25 to 18:85:98 was successfully performed.]
The system window that had come to mind when I spat the second verse.
What I had been conscious of was the content that appeared right after.
[The effect of Bridge (1) disappears.]
*The effect wore off while we were doing the cypher.*
The effect that had even made tired producers focus.
It was a shame that it had ended, but understanding that effect precisely was more important.
Surely that difference would be captured in the video as well.
"Did you film it well?"
"Huh? Yeah, you were very aware of it this time too. Hehe."
I took the phone from her and checked the video.
*…So this is how it sounds.*
After finishing the check, I raised my head and looked at Seong Yuri.
"Can you send this to me?"
A video containing the scene of the rap I did today and this cypher.
It was going to serve as a clue for the next mission.
* * *
[Seong Yuri: Did you get home safe? Ah, I’ll send the video first (video file)]
After returning from Hongdae, I lay on my bed and stared at my phone.
Following a short notification, Seong Yuri’s check-in message and videos arrived.
*It filmed well.*
Truthfully, from the standpoint of someone who does music, the habit of recording was always the right choice.
Not only to remember that day’s stage, but because of the most important element in music….
*I was a bit short of breath here.*
…monitoring.
Not relying on my own memory or the testimony of those around me, but being able to see myself objectively.
There was no more certain feedback than this.
—The morning the sun rises, my introduction begins—.
—Recalling countless dreams, escaping the night, blooming my talent—.
First, the verse I had performed first.
It was the same lyrics as the rap I had done at the School Rapper filming set.
Though it felt different from when I’d done it to Basecode’s beat, I had controlled the tempo and finished the verse in my own way.
I recalled the memory while pricking my ears.
—A start later than others, that time difference was hard to catch up to—.
—A train running at an increased half-tempo, those subjects that shook because of it too—.
Next was the verse I had performed second.
This was a slightly modified version of the verse I had done during a lesson after my regression.
And at the same time… it was a rap done after the bridge had ended.
I ended the video and fell into thought briefly.
*…Hm.*
The two raps were different. Definitely.
The first one had been subtly easier to focus on.
The system’s concentration correction had produced an effect that could even be felt through the video.
At first, I had thought it was simply an ability to draw people’s gazes….
*But not just that. There was definitely some kind of correction to my rap as well.*
The same had been true when I was spitting the rap myself.
I had a memory of rapping in a way I had never felt before.
Checking the video filmed right after, I had failed to apply it immediately.
But what was certain was the memory of my rap being corrected by the system.
If I recalled this well and made it my own….
*I can chew up live stages even more.*
Anticipation arose.
Rappers who were re-evaluated every live stage brushed through my mind.
—Anyone who saw J Reidious’s stage today can’t talk shit anymore.
—A rapper obviously has to be good at live, no?
—There are so many people who can’t do that obvious thing, lol.
Even the comments I could recall right now felt like this.
Not just Korean rappers, but rappers praised overseas as well.
They received praise not just for their work, but also for their stages at concert venues.
The thought that I might rise to the ranks of such rappers tickled my heart.
Above all, School Rapper, which was the most urgent, conducted its competition through stages starting from the main rounds.
[Me: Thanks for the video.]
Finished with my thoughts, I sent a message to Seong Yuri, who would be waiting for a reply.
[Me: Ah, and send this to him too.]
[Seong Yuri: Who?]
[Me: Hong Hyeonsik.]
[Seong Yuri: …Is that okay?]
Wasn’t that obvious?
Anyway, to smoothly make it to the main rounds, the team members needed to perform well across the board.
*Since he’s probably the weakest when it comes to cyphers.*
[Me: Send him the video and try talking more with him about what you saw and heard today.]
After giving a final few words, I turned off my phone.
*By the way, that’s a nice sight.*
No matter how close a relative, it wasn’t easy to lend an ear to family to that extent.
*Family….*
I looked at the empty rooms and closed my eyes.
Because memories I had long forgotten before my regression were surfacing.
I fiddled with the phone, its screen now dark.
*…I have to make it to the main rounds, no matter what.*
So that my song could reach him even without him having to listen closely.
* * *
"Mr. Park, long time no see."
A school in Seoul in the middle of summer vacation.
A woman walked in among the teachers who had come to work for supplementary classes.
None other than Sim Yujin, a teacher at Seun Arts High School.
"…Yu-jin."
A teacher who spotted her made a displeased expression.
*Is he still holding a grudge?*
Sim Yujin calmly sat down next to the teacher.
If she were the type to be disappointed by such a cold attitude, she wouldn’t have come in the first place.
"Are you in touch with your son?"
"…He’ll reach out if there’s something absolutely necessary."
"You still don’t plan to contact him first?"
"Same as before. I’ll do it when the time comes."
Sim Yujin shook her head inwardly.
What a stubborn, closed-minded person.
She wondered if he needed to be this stubborn just because his son had said he wanted to do music.
*I really still don’t know what Ye-jin saw in him.*
She recalled her friend who had married the man before her eyes.
What was so good about such a closed-minded man that she had married him?
But she was now in a place where she couldn’t be reached, so Sim Yujin kept the thought buried in her heart.
"That’s why I came. To tell you that your son is doing well."
"…No matter how well a high schooler does, it’s all the same."
Sim Yujin unconsciously raised the corners of her mouth.
*In a way, it’s pitiful. To be the only one who doesn’t know his son’s talent.*
Didn’t this make one want to tease him just a little?
"He said he’s appearing on a program."
"Program?"
"Yes. You might soon be checking the news about your son on television."
"Please don’t speak such nonsense about my son."
"As I told you from the beginning… let’s wait and see. What will happen."
Before it had been a vague thought, but now she was certain.
*That child will never turn out the way this man thinks.*
Park Jahun, whom she had brought along after much persuasion.
Unlike what his father, who had opposed music, had believed… he would not meet a sluggish conclusion.
No, rather….
*I’m actually looking forward to seeing what bigger stage he’ll stand on.*
Unlike herself, who had faced despair in front of her dreams, Sim Yujin thought he was someone who could stand proudly before his dreams.
The Regressor on the Beat