The Road to Glory

[Creative musical ‘Rock’ scheduled for late December or early January… Jeongwoo, a Korean University student, faces the world of rock]Halo scrolled through the article sent to him.[‘Rock’ is a musical based on the script ‘Rocker’, which won the grand prize at last year’s Seoul City Musical Script Contest. It deals with the story of Jeongwoo, a Korean University student who lived during the early days of Korean rock in the 60s and 70s, and the band ‘Red Dragonfly’. Jeongwoo, who will become the vocalist and guitarist of ‘Red Dragonfly’, will be played by Park Hyuk and Dokgo Yeong. The other ‘Red Dragonfly’ band members – guitarist Minseop, keyboardist Hyerim, and drummer Suil – will be double-cast with Shell/Seo Dohyun, Kim Heeju/Joo Yeonwoo, and… respectively.]“I wondered why she sent this.”Halo chuckled.There was no special message. All that was sent to him was this article. However, the intention was obvious from one familiar name.It seemed to have been sent as a sign that Joo Yeonwoo, who was proudly cast as Hyerim, a member of protagonist Jeongwoo’s band, had kept her word from when she recorded the featuring.-I’ll sing Roh Haeil-ssi’s song beautifully then.Well, since she couldn’t get Jeongwoo’s role, she still wouldn’t have a chance to sing his song.The article didn’t contain any special content other than the plot of the musical that everyone knows, and comments from the cast actors and producer.So the list of staff involved in the rock musical, especially the composers, was not visible. Since they’ve already called in popular singers like him and Sin Joohyeok, they clearly won’t keep it hidden for long, and will likely reveal it before ticket sales.For musical fans who already know about and are looking forward to the existence of the musical ‘Rock’ with its star-studded cast, award-winning script, and reliable general director, it wouldn’t be good to have good news break right before ticket sales.Musical ticket sales have never been easy, and if they attract fans of singers as well, it could lead to more than just ticket sales – it could cause excessive bleeding.Since Joo Yeonwoo didn’t seem to be expecting a reply, Halo didn’t bother to respond. The read receipt should be enough.Just as he was about to put down the pad, an alarm went off. He had long since turned off email notifications, so this was a message notification.Normally he would have checked it later, but Halo paused because the sender’s name was particularly familiar.It wasn’t someone he often contacted, but one he had just seen in the article-.[The general director of the musical Rock, producer Nok Jidam, stated, “The musical Rock has been a long-term production since last year. I apologize for making many audience members wait due to unexpected delays. We will repay the audience’s support.”]It was [General Director Nok Jidam].It had been a long time since the composition was finished, so there should be no reason for this person to contact him.[Roh Haeil-ssi.]It was when he read the first sentence of the message.Halo put down the pad and raised his head.Footsteps were heard on the stairs.It was a bit different from when Scorpion came. It wasn’t a sudden visit, but an appointment already discussed, and it was when the reporters who usually waited in front of his label had briefly left their posts due to a recent top star’s dating rumor breaking.As the leisurely sound of shoes drew closer, Halo’s face brightened. The one who finally appeared was-.“It’s a bit hot.”An old man wearing a stylish beret, August Veil.As he took off his hat and entered, making eye contact with him, Halo spoke first.“Good morning, Mr. Veil.”“Indeed… Good morning.”A greeting not as if they hadn’t met in a long time, but like people who met often. August Veil was still the same, but felt overwhelmed seeing the boy who had become closer to a young man.#For a reunion after a long time, the two didn’t immediately pour out many stories. Just like usual.Whirr.It had been quite a while since he got a semi-automatic espresso machine that might be used in a cafe, as it was troublesome to order delivery from cafes.Now skilled like a barista, Halo pulled two shots of espresso and placed them on the table.Until then, the old man looked around the workspace where Halo had been working until now.From the recording studio where all of Roh Haeil and HALO’s previous albums were recorded, to the conference room used during the planning of Roh Haeil’s first full album. The control room filled with state-of-the-art equipment. The bar table used as both a kitchen and cafe space.Among them, the most impressive was the rest area flooded with sunlight. The moment you enter the label, the lobby catches your eye first.A long fabric sofa and a recliner where anyone can comfortably lie down. A turntable placed on a wide tea table, an L-shaped bookshelf filled with books and albums, LP records and decorative items – it’s an attractive rest area by anyone’s standards.However, what catches the eye is the deeply recessed window. The windowsill, deep and wide enough for an adult man to sit in, could be used as a shelf, or as a chair or table.Perhaps the boy had placed his notebook there and composed while looking out the window. When inspiration didn’t strike, he might have sat there playing the guitar, or simply enjoyed a moment of leisure with an espresso while basking in the sunlight.The sun and moon must have changed places outside that window while he clinked glasses with his members, pondered together, and created music.How beautiful must have been the time he idly let pass by. August Veil once again regretted the time he hadn’t come to find the boy.“By the way, where are your members? I’d like to see them once.”He always heard the voices of the members over the phone, but today the studio was unusually quiet. August Veil worried that the members might have made considerations for him.“It’s not like that, they’re sleeping downstairs.”“Downstairs?”“We all stayed up all night yesterday.”Halo briefly recalled last night.His members had been quite displeased with Scorpion’s attitude of not following the rehearsal, and cursed for quite a while.-That person, I really don’t like him! He didn’t do anything according to the rehearsal. Of course, boss, you did very well, but… Anyway, I don’t like him.-Me neither.-I don’t like him either. How dare he try to casually call a name I don’t even dare to utter out of preciousness. This heathen bastard. Next time he comes, I’ll show him properly.-That… I think you’d lose though.-Are you good at fighting? The conversation quickly devolved, but they all shared some gossip together. Of course, they didn’t spend all night talking behind people’s backs.-How’s the composition coming along?-Uh… Well… Boss. Could you take a look? This part seems a bit off.-Of course.-I’ll review a bit more before I go.-Want to practice, Gyuhwan? Then I’ll practice a bit more too before sleeping. Let’s do it together.-Didn’t you have an appointment, hyung?-Gonghak is working overtime. Deoksoo said he’s going to cheer early tomorrow at some concert or animation at Megabox.-What cheering?That’s how everyone went downstairs to sleep after the sun rose, and why Halo was alone in the label now.“I hope I can see them next time.”Halo smiled faintly at the words anticipating a next time.“Stay for a long time. You’ll quite like it.”“I already like it plenty.”“There’s a lot I want to show you too.”After drinking a cup of espresso, the conversation opened up.From business talk about HALO’s future album release schedule, to yesterday’s anecdote about Scorpion.In fact, from the moment he said he had gossiped with the members, August Veil seemed to have a lot he wanted to say.“I knew that bastard would end up speaking.”“Actually, I thought so too.”At the concert. He clearly knew that Scorpion was about to call his name. He didn’t just bring up the anecdote from England for no reason.But for some reason.He hesitated at the last moment, and in the end, didn’t utter the name HALO.It was a puzzling moment.He still couldn’t understand why the guy who barged into his label recklessly and recklessly dropped hints to people hesitated at the last moment.He wondered if August Veil had said something to him, but the old man seemed puzzled too.“If Scorpion had revealed your identity as he pleased, how do you think you would have felt?”“Well, just that it was revealed.”The boy smiled gently.It was an attitude of indifference.“Still…”His face, shadowed by the backlighting, looked a bit cold for a moment.“I wouldn’t have liked it, right?”Though he asks lightly with a smile, the old man realized those words were sincere. And once again, he realized that the boy’s personality was not ordinary. In his experience, people like this tend to be ruthlessly clear in their connections and disconnections.Perhaps Scorpion hit the brakes at the last moment because that sharp intuition activated once more.“By the way, your alarm keeps going off. Don’t you need to check it?”The vibration had been going off for a while now.It didn’t seem to be a call.The boy finally lowered his head and pressed his phone.His expression, which had been stiff, returned to normal, and the old man felt a bit relieved.‘What was it?’Halo discovered that the messages he couldn’t check earlier had piled up. The sender was [General Director Nok Jidam].The contents were as follows:[Roh Haeil-ssi, have you been well? I’m sorry for texting you suddenly, but could you check your email?][I sent it a few days ago, but it seems you haven’t checked it yet.][…Roh Haeil-ssi, are you perhaps sleeping?][Roh Haeil-ssi][Are you really sleeping?][You haven’t blocked me, have you?]He thought the person wasn’t ordinary from the moment he was thrown the role of general director, but this gave him chills in a different sense.It would have been scarier if it was 3 AM, but fortunately, the current time was brunch time.“Excuse me for a moment.”Halo hurriedly checked his email.Hundreds of unread emails had piled up over the week.From music show appearance requests to advertisement inquiries.Among them, contacts about the musical ‘Rock’ were classified separately, so they quickly caught his eye.“It seems a troublesome matter has come up.”“It’s not troublesome, but from the musical side…”“Musical?”As August Veil was puzzled by this unfamiliar topic, Halo read the contents.“…”To summarize, it was an SOS from the general director.In fact, it was a problem the general director had already worried about once.Two numbers composed by Roh Haeil.They sounded good since Roh Haeil had directly recorded guide vocals and even guitar, but from the perspective of the musical actors who had to actually perform these songs, there had never been such difficult songs.It seemed an actor felt they couldn’t manage alone while practicing and directly requested feedback on vocals and guitar performance from the composer. The general director, in agreement with the sound director, was requesting feedback and producing from Roh Haeil.As the boy silently looked at the email, the old man spoke up.“Something came up, didn’t it?”“It’s not an urgent matter. It’s something I could refuse.”However, the old man noticed.That the boy didn’t want to refuse.He didn’t know what kind of matter it was, but something he wanted to do had come up. Rather, this was good. August Veil wanted to see the life of The Sun, whom he revered.It was good to talk like this too, but on the other hand, he wanted to see the miracle the boy would show from beside him, like a manager or family member.“Is there any need to refuse? If you need to go far, I’ll drive you.”“Do you know how to drive?”As the boy raised his head in puzzlement, August Veil smiled benevolently.“Do you think I’ve been driven around by others since I was young? I also had a time when I managed someone.”The history of Augustus Records began from the staff of a certain Hollywood star.August Veil skillfully inserts the key and drives. Familiar even though driving laws in England and Korea are quite different.Without realizing someone had photographed August Veil in the driver’s seat and the boy in the passenger seat, the van began to move forward smoothly.:“Roh Haeil-ssi! Seeing you today is especially delightful! I thought you had already forgotten about me.”The general director, who had been busy giving directions, brightened up as soon as he saw him and approached. Then, patting his shoulder familiarly, he said:“Just in case you don’t know, I’m telling you. If you ever become interested in being a general director, let me know. I can make it happen anytime.”“I have the same thoughts as before.”“Oh. That’s a shame.”If it was a yellow suit then, today it’s a blue suit. His attire was always as unique as his personality.The general director was about to talk about what he had requested by email when he suddenly noticed the old man standing behind the boy.A person he hadn’t seen before.“And who might this be?”Obviously a foreigner with an extraordinary presence.And what caught the general director’s eye was the suit the old man was wearing.He didn’t know the brand, but it was clearly not an ordinary material, custom-made. It was clearly made in a high-end shop that makes custom suits, like in the Kingsman movies.With such a high-end suit and his unique charisma, the general director unknowingly used honorifics.However, he didn’t think that the old man was August Veil, a figure currently drawing attention in the entertainment industry.Although he knew the name August Veil, he didn’t know his face. If he had looked up the news, he would have known, but he was too busy with the general direction at the moment, and didn’t have the luxury to consider overseas music distribution.It’s not that Korean musicals never sell licenses overseas, but that’s only possible after successfully completing the first run.Halo looked at the old man and smirked.“This person is…”Their gazes met.August Veil roughly understood the nuance and was curious how the boy would introduce him.There were many words that could describe him.From distribution company CEO to sir, manager, old man. Numerous words that had been used to address him flashed through his mind.“My…”What would the boy say?Just saying it’s a business relationship seems like it would hurt his feelings.No, before that, would he be able to understand Korean?The word that soon came was a modifier he had never heard before and…“Fan.”It was also Korean that he could understand.The old man acknowledged with a smile.#Meanwhile,“What’s that?”John’s eyes widened.He had been waiting in front of the label for a long time when he spotted August Veil reflected in the window, and clenched his fist for a moment.First, he picked up his camera and doubted his eyes.The boy who came out with August Veil was, for now, the special guest invited to Scorpion’s concert.It was the boy named Roh.John quickly captured the two subjects on camera and wondered what conversation had taken place upstairs. It was enough time for contract talks, but the old man was empty-handed when he left the hotel.What was more surprising wasn’t that.The old man was now driving the van.The old man, who has a chauffeur, the genius who made it to TIMES during his tenure at Augustus Records and wrote the legend of the record company, was driving like he had become the manager of a boy.Of course, the boy didn’t have a license, but John didn’t consider that far. He didn’t know the boy didn’t have a license, and in fact, August Veil could have summoned a driver right now if he wanted to.John, who followed where the van was going, couldn’t enter the parking lot. It was a place with very strict security, so he had to pull out his car.While waiting for them to come out, John checked what he had just photographed. There was no The Sun, but this itself seemed like quite good material.Not simply a party that Veil company wants to contract with, but a singer that August Veil personally drives and attends to!He had never seen August Veil care this much about someone before.In fact, there are only two reasons why August Veil would care to this extent.Either it’s a party he desperately wants to contract with.Or a party he’s already contracted with, but still desperately needs.Rekka had a similar conversation with his colleague before. It wasn’t that long ago, it came up when August Veil accompanied Scorpion to his concert.-I’ve never seen Veil treat someone like that before. I guess Scorpion isn’t just anyone.-That’s not what’s important right now.-Then what?-Now we can find the answer based on Veil’s attitude. If Veil goes to that extent, it’s got to be one of two things, right?-…-Either a party he desperately wants to contract with, or one he’s already contracted with but still desperately needs.-So what.-He meets a singer he’s already contracted with and treats them that respectfully? Who would be worth Veil going that far for?John pointed to the sky.-Wouldn’t it be the brightest star in the universe?John grinned.“Of course, this guy is the former. But if he’s driving for a singer he’s already contracted, then that person must be The Sun.”A few hours later.An article broke with the title [Which K-pop star is being courted by Veil, the music distribution company that has The Sun?]Hi everyone, I've completely translated this novel! For those who love this novel and wanted to binge read until the last chapter, you can go to my Patreon "Shop" page. There, I have a product in which you can read them with discounted price!