episode_0127

“I think I might have won.”

“…Excuse me? What do you mean…?”

Mr. Jo Jin-yeol plopped down on the empty seat next to me, leaned in close to my ear, and whispered.

“Actually, there were four judges today. Well, technically… not exactly four.”

This was news to me.

I knew the judges consisted of three people, with one of them being the director of Aosora Memorize.

But there was another one? Or rather, not just one?

“Largissimo Channel selected 100 subscribers and donors who supported them with a certain amount of money for a secret live broadcast.”

“Wha—what?!”

I exclaimed, but Mr. Jo Jin-yeol quickly hushed me.

“Shh. Keep it down. The judges don’t know yet.”

“…?”

Hidden cameras, the content of deceiving the judges.

Mixing professionals and amateurs in the audition, to see if they can really distinguish the pros.

Pretending a professional with a concours-winning background as an auditionee to surprise them.

Inviting a YouTuber with a music background to give a daily lesson, then playing recordings of experts in the field—like Professor Jang Geon-se—creating confusion.

So, today’s content was along those lines.

“Mr. Yoon Kwan-chul seems to think this is our showdown content… Maybe he’s mistaken something big. Perhaps he didn’t look into NewTube closely because he didn’t like it?”

“Uh… But wasn’t it a showdown? Inviting a YouTuber and a pro for a blind audition… and then revealing the winner to surprise them…”

I pretended to be clueless, and Mr. Jo Jin-yeol smiled brightly.

“From the judges’ perspective, it might seem that way. But during the performance of two assigned pieces, the order of performers was a lie.”

“…Really?”

He glanced at the staff waiting for the next performance.

I looked at her too. What’s going on?

She shrugged and chuckled. In short, I was the first for the first piece, but Mr. Jo Jin-yeol was first for the next piece.

Tricked!

“But how did you know all this, Mr. Jo Jin-yeol…?”

To prepare for the next performance, he relaxed by tapping his fingers.

“Well, because I was the one who planned this content from the beginning.”

“………. Huh?”

I stared at Jo Jin-yeol with a dumbfounded expression.

He whispered so only I could hear.

“Mr. Yoon Kwan-chul, in a way, is like a ridiculous clown who came to my stage of his own accord.”

Wait a minute.

So.

Jo Jin-yeol was the one who planned this content from the beginning… and he chose the most famous Jo Jin-yeol in Korea because Mr. Yoon Kwan-chul didn’t know who the other pianist would be?

Did the situation just happen to fit like that?

What kind of situation is this…?

“There was no winner or loser in this showdown from the start. It was all about a tie.”

“If one side wins or loses, there will be public opinion. NewTubers can’t beat pros after all. What pro loses to a NewTuber? It’s like…”

Jo Jin-yeol shook his head, taking a short breath.

“That’s awkward. I highly appreciate A’s performance. I don’t know if you’re aware, but the account I showed you earlier is a sub-account. In fact, I’ve been subscribed for a long time.”

He then showed me something on his phone.

Subscribed for 30 months. It was on par with Yoon Ji-chang.

“Mr. Yoon Kwan-chul’s son, Jichang, is also a friend of mine. So I couldn’t help but know what was going on.”

“Well…”

“Trying to fight Yoon Kwan-cheol alone is fictional. However.”

I know Jo Jin-yeol’s past. I know the background of the 2nd place winner of the concours. I have read all the way up to his evil fate, how it came about.

“It’s better to have two than one. It’s better to have three than two.”

He was genuinely worried about me. Like himself, he feared creating an ill-fated relationship with a respected adult, nurturing a future formidable enemy.

He is truly a good person. It wasn’t for nothing that I liked his performance….

“So. Let’s make the broadcasted competition a draw.”

Although the concours may divide the rankings, music is relative, and evaluation cannot be absolute.

However, Jo Jin-yeol, who has reached the top position, seemed to be preparing to challenge the concours again, pondering over his past defeat.

“Shall we have a proper match off-screen? Of course, we’ll keep the results between us.”

Everything is fine, but this way, I won’t be able to meet Siwoo and Jo Jin-yeol.

I could have arranged a meeting based on today’s outcome.

“Then… If I win the match, can I meet my friend?”

“Oh, Siwoo?”

“Yes. You remember his name….”

“He seemed to be a precious friend of yours. Ji Chang mentioned him a few times. I don’t know anything more.”

“Ahaha….”

Jo Jin-yeol extended his hand to me as if asking for a handshake.

“Let’s do this. If I win the match, an official collaboration between Aclert and Jo Jin-yeol. On the other hand, if you win, I’ll arrange for you to meet your friend, provide counseling and advice as you wish.”

It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.

I shook his hand confidently.

“Alright. We need to finish today’s content to the end…. Let’s change the order and proceed.”

As Jo Jin-yeol stood up from his seat, he straightened his black suit collar and said, “And what I said earlier about losing seems real.”

“Is it a lie?”

With a strange smile that revealed nothing, Jo Jin-yeol said, “That…. We can confirm it properly in the next match, right?”

“Don’t lie, Jo Jin-yeol.”

“Samdu Archangel, I may have prepared harder than I did for the concours.”

“Why go to such lengths….”

“Well. In your field of expertise, wouldn’t you want to try winning once?”

Seeing the sincerity in his eyes for a moment, I couldn’t definitively say it was a lie.

“Today will surely end in a draw. I look forward to the next match. Just as you wanted to challenge me in the classical field, I wanted the same. Thanks to the musical muscles honed by Chaewon and my own enlightenment.”

I, who had never won a prize at the concours, now stood shoulder to shoulder with Korea’s top pianist.

Perhaps that’s why I missed Siwoo.

I wanted to meet the very small Chaewon hidden within him.

I wanted to thank her, run to her, and embrace her tightly.

“You’re truly a pro.”

Jo Jin-yeol smiled and added a word of praise.

“To be honest, the content was a bit off. Even you, a true professional.”

I managed to endure when we first met, but I couldn’t bear the continued praise. Blushing, I stammered with a trembling voice.

“If you keep praising me like that…. It’s embarrassing. Do you know that I can talk about your greatness for 4 hours straight?”

“… Oh.”

“Even if you don’t praise me, I understand your feelings, so please stop…. Otherwise, I’ll start a 4-hour essay on Jo Jin-yeol in front of everyone…!”

As I angrily protested, Jo Jin-yeol ran away on the piano, saying, “Be careful!”

***

After playing the Samdu Archangel BGM, the professors evaluated the A performer and the B performer.

However, as mentioned earlier by Jo Jinyeol, the production team’s claim that they would play a different piece in the same order was a lie.

The order of the second piece was the opposite of the first, with Jo Jinyeol leading and Min Chaewon following.

This caused great confusion among the professors. More specifically, it was only Professor Yoon Hakcheol who was thrown into confusion.

If there had been a clear difference in skill, it would have been easier to distinguish. But because there was no gap between the two in terms of technique and skill, it was difficult to tell them apart.

“Who exactly is Jo Jinyeol…?”

Even though it was said that they would play in the same order, for some reason, the second performance felt like the roles of leader and follower had been reversed.

Baek Jung-eon looked around, hoping for some clarity, but

“I will choose the leader. As I mentioned earlier, I clearly felt the emotional highs and lows in the leader’s Chopin performance. My decision remains unchanged.”

He confidently chose the leader. It was as if he was saying that the leader was Min Chaewon.

Although it was impossible to differentiate between the grand, fast-paced background music of the Three-Headed Archangel and Min Chaewon’s bright color, there was a clear difference between their performances.

On one side, the rawness of a young performer was evident. On the other, the maturity of a seasoned performer exuded.

It was relative, and a subtle difference, but it was clear that Jinyeol was the mature one.

And in Yoon Hakcheol’s opinion, the mature one was the follower. In both the Chopin performance and the Three-Headed Archangel performance.

Having made up his mind, he wrote the winner on the whiteboard and held it up high.

[Follower]

“Alright. The two professors have made their choices, and our director has chosen the follower. Any reasons?”

“I’ve listened to the original Three-Headed Archangel piece a lot. It seemed like the follower had a higher fidelity to the original piece.”

“I see.”

Baek Jung-eon’s expression soured at Director Ha Yongjin’s choice of the follower. Despite putting on an act, the final score was ‘Follower 2 vs Leader 1’.

Yoon Hakcheol sensed victory. Today, he would secure the necessary funds for himself, and Yoon Gwancheol would obtain Min Chaewon.

“However, in reality, there was one more judge present today.”

But with a smile of repentance from the host,

The eyes of the two professors met.