Chapter 175

The lively sound of an electric guitar echoed.

The music resonated along with the following accompaniment.

Since it was an unfamiliar piece, the audience and panel mostly wore puzzled expressions.

It was as if Seo-yeon had chosen a song from an old animation.

However, back then, at least there were people in the audience who had that “Ah, I know this!” look on their faces.

It was such a famous piece that even if it was rearranged, plenty of people recognized it.

On the contrary, most reactions were of the sort, “I’ve heard this somewhere, but it’s a cartoon song?”

Thus, there were many comments deeming it unique, and even if it felt awkward, not everyone had such unfamiliar expressions.

The show “Masked Singer” wasn’t a place for revealing original songs, after all.

Naturally, the audience came to see how the respective singer would perform already existing songs.

It wasn’t a venue to witness the strange and unusual.

Seo-yeon knew at least that much.

‘This is…’

But when the electric guitar’s sound first filled the stage, and the Ashen Crow grabbed the microphone, realizing that the music was starting, she understood.

It was a song she had heard before.

Just recently, in fact.

“Is this a CD? What is this?”

Ji-yeon had an old PC at home.

One that still had a CD drive.

These days, most PCs don’t even carry a slot for CDs.

Hardly anyone still has one.

Unless you deliberately order such a part separately, it has become something of an ancient relic that you can’t even attempt to run.

“I heard it was a game CD.”

“Joo Seo-yeon, if you keep picking up random weird things—”

“My parents said it’s the first memory game CD they made back in high school.”

“Sometimes you can stumble upon memories like this when you pick up any random thing. Isn’t that just lovely?”

Ji-yeon’s sharp scolding softened in an instant.

Seo-yeon narrowed her eyes as she observed that attitude, but Ji-yeon only slyly looked away.

How could she have guessed that the CD she suddenly brought was that significant?

More importantly, it was the first time Seo-yeon had heard about her parents making games in the past.

Did they participate in some gaming club activity in high school or something?

Considering what they do now, it wasn’t particularly strange either.

Click.

Anyway, through the old PC at Ji-yeon’s house, Seo-yeon was able to run the old CD.

She had considered buying a device that could read CDs, but there were once again compatibility issues, so that wasn’t an option.

Who knew if a homemade game from ten years ago would run on the current operating system?

However, thanks to Ji-yeon having that old PC, she was able to run it without issue.

“This is…”

Ji-yeon murmured quietly.

The game turned out to be unexpectedly ordinary, exuding a strong scent of nostalgia.

The only special point noted was:

“Wait, there’s an opening?”

The song that flowed as the game launched had been inserted in it.

The track didn’t seem to have a specific name, simply labeled as “Opening” in the corner of the screen.

The song was relatively calm.

It suited a typical fantasy RPG, cheering on travelers setting off on adventures.

But for some reason, Ji-yeon thought the voice sounded familiar.

And it didn’t take long for her to realize.

‘Isn’t that Yeo-hee?’

While Seo-yeon remained oblivious, Ji-yeon, who genuinely loved Yeo-hee’s songs, could faintly feel it.

Slightly inexperienced but the voice of the singer bore a striking resemblance to Yeo-hee’s.

Of course, the skill couldn’t possibly match the current Yeo-hee, but considering she was a high schooler, the level of singing was shockingly impressive.

‘…Could it be?’

Thinking back, she remembered they were schoolmates.

Back then, she thought of them merely as classmates, but after hearing this song, it felt different somehow.

Had it not been for this, they wouldn’t have participated in making a game in the first place, right?

So what on earth was this situation? A thought raced through Ji-yeon’s mind.

She glanced at Seo-yeon.

Wondering if perhaps Seo-yeon had noticed as well.

But Seo-yeon simply kept listening to the song quietly, with no sign of realization whatsoever.
But Seo-yeon just sat there, listening to the song without any particular expression.

Opening.

The video that flowed with the song looked haphazard, as if it had been hastily thrown together.

It was almost like a compilation of illustrations, commonly called a mad movie.

However, the fact that the song was included was special in itself.

It’s a game that gives off a fresh feeling as if it tried to create a certain atmosphere.

A strangely ticklish song for the heart.

Seo-yeon lifted her head.

She stepped down from her stage and looked at the singer who had newly ascended the stage.

Ashen Crow.

No, at this point, it was clear she was connected to either Suah or Young-bin.

Could that even be possible?

Doubt arose, but this song was proving it.

Opening.

Even without a title, it was fitting for this song.

The opening song.

A mature voice that had changed from the freshness of that time.

As time passed, it began to spread out into the world from a small stage.

*

In a way, this was just a small whim.

“Sis, are you crazy? There are so many other songs!”

“No, why?”

“Who would know that this song exists?”

Isn’t it practically an original composition?

No matter how you think about it, it’s not a song that fits [Masked Singer].

“Why not? Someone sang it at that music festival back then. It kind of became an issue, you know? The theme song inserted into a game made by a high school student~.”

“But it has no title.”

The song’s title was simply Opening.

Nothing else, just that.

When trying to come up with a title back then, nothing appropriate came to mind.

So, Young-bin had said to himself at that time.

“Opening is nice.”

It marked their first beginning, after all.

What could be a more fitting title for a song for adventurers facing upcoming challenges?

Well, it could have just been that he was too lazy to think more.

Looking at the stage, he could feel a bizarre rabbit mask gazing up at him.

Of course, he couldn’t see the expression, but the look of surprise was evident.

Unlike his father, this child seemed to overthink things unnecessarily.

Maybe it was something inherited from Suah.

Yeo-hee held the microphone.

An unfamiliar piece, an unfamiliar song.

But it’s okay.

Songs that stir human emotions stem from empathy.

And given the nature of [Masked Singer], unfamiliar songs could feel weirder than any other stage.

But perhaps the lyrics and theme could resonate.

Perhaps there might even be someone who’d actually heard it before.

It wasn’t a lie what she had said to her manager.

It had indeed become somewhat of a topic back then.

It had circulated online, a self-composed song inserted into a game made by a high school student.

Well, at that time, people didn’t care much about copyright, so it had circulated illegally without a second thought.

‘Anyway, it is what it is.’

She shifted her gaze from the rabbit and looked at the audience.

A sea of numerous spectators.

Amidst their rhythmic movements, she spotted the two who were frozen.

She had seen them from far away during the semifinals, but seeing them up close on stage was a different experience.

Aged more than before.

Their appearance clearly showed that time had passed.

Her manager had told her this.

That it had become just a memory.

Well, it wasn’t an incorrect statement.

In the end, she had become just a memory, positioned where they couldn’t meet.

Regardless, she thought their changed looks were splendid, but she didn’t entirely like everything about it.

Unlike her, they’d built families.

With things to protect, they must have had more things to contemplate.

However, she was still just a kid.

She could only remember the words they once said back in the day.

“Creators must live young.”

Back then, when she was feeling down, he told her that.

“…What?”

“Literally.”

“You mean I’m childish?”

Maybe it was when she received harsh criticism about her song back then.

There are so many talented singers out there, like stars.
You can’t just sing well and survive in this world.

In that overwhelming feeling, wondering if you can live with this song in the future, the answer is no.

Maybe I felt a bit down.

“You like singing, don’t you?”

“Just liking it doesn’t solve anything.”

“But you have to like it. Keep liking it.”

Creators need to live young.

He always said that.

At first, I thought it was just nonsense, but now I get it.

“It’s a dream, right?”

A creator must love what they do and be able to keep loving it.

But since there are no eternal emotions, in the end, they inevitably fade away.

So you must keep liking it.

You need to keep that youthful heart to like your dream.

If you get worn down by society and the times.

If you can no longer like your dream because of reality.

That’s when you truly grow old.

You can’t be a kid anymore.

Once you age, you can’t go back.

If your dream becomes work, you can’t even like what you like.

“Then I should stay a kid for as long as possible.”

He said that while reaching out to the younger version of himself that was crouched down.

“You don’t need to rush.”

It seemed to say that your dream is a weak thing that can’t wait even a moment.

It’s okay to start a little late.

If you can keep liking it, surely an opportunity will come one day.

“You sing well.”

Sometimes, a simple compliment can kickstart everything.

I think it was definitely like that back then.

Just hearing a classmate say I did well made it feel like it had to really happen.

That leads to dreaming those vague dreams.

‘I was lucky, but…’

Of course, that might just be a fleeting wish.

There are countless people who sing well, like stars.

In whatever you want to do, there are countless competitors.

Having the talent to realize your dream is a great blessing in itself.

But even so…

Isn’t it alright at any time?

Before I stood on this stage for the first time.

Originally, Yeo-hee was going to sing a different song.

She had prepared a familiar song for the public.

But it was obvious why she didn’t go that route.

The moment a dream becomes work,

He said,

Is your dream something that fragile that it can’t wait even a few years?

Of course not.

And he must have lived like that too.

So, he hesitated.

To grasp reality or to continue to like the dream.

To remain a child or become an adult.

Forty.

It’s definitely not a young age.

Anyone would see it as middle-aged.

Everyone would say it’s too late to chase dreams.

But Yeo-hee was still fine with it.

She was always a child.

And she will continue to be.

A woman full of longing.

Even if she remains a child, bound to the past twenty years ago.

She could accept that too.

So what? Isn’t it cool?

Simply being able to keep liking something.

Some might say it’s foolish.

Some might point fingers.

But if I don’t think so, then it’s enough.

If creation is pain, then isn’t this pain also part of oneself?

Isn’t being foolish and stubborn also part of me?

Just like the title of this song I’m singing.

My life has always been an opening.

*

Seo-yeon thought.

Singing can sometimes move a person’s heart.

At least it did for Seo-yeon.

“I might have been impatient.”

Surely, Seo-yeon had been hesitating recently.

Wondering why she became an actress.

And about the things she wanted to do in the past.

Her hesitations were for very personal reasons.

She had been pondering whether those dreams were truly what Joo Seo-yeon wanted.

Being a virtual YouTuber was something she wished to do in her past life.

Wanting to do that ultimately meant she couldn’t escape from her past self.
Eventually, being unable to break free from her past self.

Thinking that if she did that, she might never become ‘Joo Seo-yeon’ for the rest of her life.

Maybe a bit of an exaggerated thought, but…

Somehow, it felt that way to her.

The same goes for being an actress.

At first, it was something her parents pushed her into, and deciding to become a great actress from the aquarium was genuine.

But lately, she started to wonder if that was really ‘Joo Seo-yeon’s’ true intention.

It was when she met Yoo-na.

She realized she was still entangled in her past.

Perhaps the reason she started acting was because of her lingering sentiment towards her past.

The countless videos she watched to learn emotions.

All the numerous actors she saw there.

Through TV…

Through the movie theater screen.

The desire to show herself to her past parents.

Wanting to signal that she’s doing well, to let them know.

It was that thought that made her question if acting was really the reason she continued.

What she told writer Min Se-hee also fell under a similar context.

If she could graduate from her past perfectly, wouldn’t there be no need to have such worries?

That’s what she thought.

So, she might have been anxious.

Thinking she had graduated from her past self perfectly.

She believed that if she wrapped it all up, she could move forward as Joo Seo-yeon.

But the song seemed to deny that very thought.

Funny, but the memories of her past…

A song that felt painfully sentimental.

Yet, the person singing didn’t seem to care at all.

So what?

That was their attitude.

As if Seo-yeon’s worries seemed foolish.

Including such sentiments, it felt like they were saying that was all part of them.

The lyrics had this line.

“Is your dream something so weak it cannot wait even a moment?”

So there’s no need to be impatient.

True words.

As long as she keeps loving it, it’s something she can do anytime.

If she’s still worried, she doesn’t need to rush and can take her time to find the answer.

This song…

Seemed to tell her the answer to her past that she had been constantly pondering.

There’s no need to forcibly forget.

Having lingering sentiments isn’t bad.

What’s important is how she acts with that sentiment.

As long as she keeps loving it, her dream will never leave her.

Even until the very last moment she closes her eyes.

Until the very end, when she strums the guitar strings and the song ends.

Seo-yeon gazed at the stage.

Probably, she wasn’t the only one.

Surely, there was yet another person.

Someone who had similar worries was present there.

*

“Sadly, we lost by just a 2-vote difference. Are you okay with that?”

“Yes.”

Slowly, Seo-yeon spoke as she took off her mask.

As she removed it, there was a little commotion from the audience.

That’s how impressive the song sung by ‘Man-Lap Rabbit’ was.

Naturally, everyone thought she was the singer.

But who would have guessed Joo Seo-yeon would show up here!

Amidst everyone’s surprise, the Ashen Crow.

Yeo-hee was able to rise as the honored champion.

By a mere two votes!

With a somewhat ambiguous expression, the Ashen Crow, Yeo-hee, watched Seo-yeon’s interview from the stage below.

Her manager was looking at her with a very pathetic gaze.

“Isn’t nostalgia stronger?”

“Well, you won, so let’s celebrate.”

“By just two votes?”

Well, it could happen.

Somehow, she felt a bit chaotic about what Seo-yeon said during the interview.

But for her, it was more than that; she was focused on another aspect.

Amidst the commotion in the audience, someone subtly gave a thumbs up without saying a word.

Yeo-hee responded by raising her thumb and smiled under her mask.

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