Chapter 29 : The Heavenly Voice (3)

I slightly opened my mouth.

I had only said two words—「Heuuung heuuung heuuung heuuung」

「Wait… were they actually a girl? ☺️☺️☺️☺️☺️」

「That voice is insane, what the heck;」

「Washing my ears now~」

「Silver Silver, I love you!!!」

It was hard to believe this was the same chat that had been burning with hostility just moments ago.

Like a lie, the atmosphere had completely flipped 180 degrees.

‘Right… this is a male-dominated stream, isn’t it?’

Rydel’s stream was known for having an overwhelmingly male audience.

To be exact, 94% were male, and the remaining 6% were suspected to be kids using their mom’s accounts.

How did I know that?

Because there was a meme of Rydel crying on the internet after seeing the ridiculous gender ratio, despite hoping for more female viewers.

「It’s been so long since we had a girl here.」

「Silver, please insult me. I’m begging you!」

「I can’t take it anymore, urghhhh!」

In short, the majority of the viewers were like starving beasts desperate for female interaction.

Of course, the miraculous shift in atmosphere wasn’t just because of that.

《‘Dellamance’ donated 5,000 won!》

So they weren’t dating after all, lol.

「So it really was just baseless hate? LOL」

「As if Delbung #3 would ever date a guy…」

「My horns feel at peace now…」

「Silver haired Punch! Silver haired Punch! Silver haired Punch! Silver haired Punch! Silver haired  Punch!」

The biggest cause of the drama—the idea of a guy—had been removed.

With all misunderstandings cleared in an instant, there was no room left for trolling.

“It’s a misunderstanding. I am dating Rydel.”

“W-What, Silver?”

「LMAO they actually went along with it.」

「For real, LOL.」

「The entire Antarctic is melting…」

「Damn, this is some peak content…」

「Setting everything on fire~~」

「If a polar bear acts up, it’s dead meat.」

「😊😊😊😊😊😊😊」

「I fully support this…….」

「So this was the cause of global warming, LOL.」

I had thrown it out there without much thought .

But Rydel’s flustered reaction and the chat going absolutely wild.

The response wasn’t bad at all.

Anyway.

The chat, which had been fiercely arguing over whether Rydel had a boyfriend or not, had now become incredibly clean.

It was like a torrential downpour had suddenly extinguished a wildfire just before it could spread.

“Ahem! Anyway, today’s content is Rydel’s Trusted and True Karaoke Stream, featuring Silver!”

Rydel quickly took control of the chaotic atmosphere.

“So, Silver, have you ever taken singing lessons?”

“No, I’ve never learned from anyone.”

I never had any aspirations to become a singer.

The only experience I had with singing was a kindergarten talent show and the occasional trip to karaoke with friends.

Naturally, I had never received any formal training.

“Ah, that’s a shame. But I, Rydel, am quite confident in my singing! How about taking this opportunity to learn from me?”

Rydel’s offer to teach me how to sing.

It wasn’t a bad suggestion.

Rather than just singing randomly, it was better to have something interactive to do together.

「???????」

「Where’s your conscience?」

「Rydel / Controversy」

「Listened to Delbung’s singing, and my upstairs neighbor came down;」

「Hmm, is it that bad?」

However, judging from the chat’s reaction—Rydel’s singing skills didn’t seem to be all that well-trusted.

《‘Eungae Punch’ donated 2,000 won!》

The fact is, they actually paid a vocal trainer to teach them, LOL.

「That’s just throwing money in the trash….」

「Basically, they’re this year’s Philanthropist of the Year.」

「Why on earth would they do that…?」

「Some things in this world just can’t be fixed with effort, LOL.」

“Agh, you guys are just hating for no reason again. Honestly, at this level, I’m actually a really good singer, okay? Even my vocal trainer said I had talent.”

「Did the trainer say that while punching you?」

「‘I have talent, right?’ (grabs collar)」

「Hmm.」

「That trainer’s job must be tough.」

“Ahem! Silver, just ignore them. They’re always like this.”

Rydel took a big gulp from a bottle of water before starting up the karaoke backing track.

“I’ll sing one song first. Time for my special move!”

It was a pop song that had been popular a few years ago.

Originally sung by an idol group, it was well-known, energetic, and a good choice to hype up a stream.

“Without this pain, I have no meaning~”

Rydel, clearly having put in some effort, gritted her teeth and poured everything into her performance.

About four minutes passed.

“Phew. Well? You can really feel the emotions, right?”

《‘UghUgh’ donated 1,000 won!》

After listening to this song, all my cancer cells have died.

Thank you.

「Whew~」

「As expected, Rydel is the ultimate cure.」

「Who needs medicine when we have this?」

「Might lose my hearing, though.」

《‘HungryRabbit’ donated 1,000 won!》

You tried your best.

Have a drink.

「For real, you put in the effort.」

「That’s a totally new vocal technique (seriously, never heard it before).」

“Agh, seriously, stop hating! Silver, what do you think? I could totally be a vocal coach, right?”

“…Silver?”

「🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲」

「Looks like they ran away.」

「We’re sorry!」

「Come back, Silver Hair ! Come back, Silver Hair ! Come back, Silver Hair! Come back, Silver Hair!」

“Oh, sorry. I got disconnected for a moment, so I couldn’t hear the song.”

“…No, you were connected just fine…”

Of course, that was a joke.

The voice link had been perfectly stable the whole time.

Not that it mattered—since the stream was running, I could still hear everything anyway.

‘She’s really giving it her all.’

Rydel’s singing skills.

To be honest, I wouldn’t say she was good.

She was more like an average person putting in a lot of effort.

No, to be precise, she was an off-key average person putting in a lot of effort.

‘Her voice isn’t bad, though.’

I could see why the chat was reacting the way it did.

“Ahem. Then how about a duet this time? Silver, why don’t you try singing with me?”

Rydel spoke in a teasing tone.

A duet.

Was she suggesting this for my sake, since this was my first time doing a karaoke stream?

Singing together meant that if one of us messed up, the other could cover for them.

“Tell me a song you know. I’ll match you.”

“Songs I know, huh…”

Even though the world had changed, most of the songs had remained the same.

So singing wouldn’t be a problem.

Still, I didn’t know that many songs.

The only times I’d sung before were a few passionate performances at karaoke with friends.

The songs in my brain’s database were mostly old foreign pop songs—basically some otaku songs.

And a few mainstream domestic hits.

Not nearly enough to leave a strong impression.

“How about this one?”

But among them, there was one song.

A song recommended by a friend who only listened to European band music.

I had memorized it back when I was trying to study English.

By now, it was so faint in my memory that it was barely there.

But after the collab with Rydel was planned, I had gone over it enough to sing it.

“Rydel, do you happen to know this song?”

I was prepared to sing it alone if she didn’t,But luckily, Rydel nodded.

“Oh, of course! I like this band too.”

「What the hell is that, you damn otaku.」

「How do you not know this band, you ignorant fool?」

「The song is actually good.」

「Silver has good taste in music, lol.」

“Alright, let’s start right away.”

Rydel clicked her mouse a few times, and a familiar instrumental began to play.

“Hoo…”

Viewer count.

It had already surpassed Rydel’s average of 5,000 and had now soared past 10,000.

10,000 people.

A staggering number that I couldn’t quite wrap my head around.

Singing in front of that many people was nerve-wracking.

‘Well, it’s not like they have high expectations anyway.’

Relax.

I wasn’t here as a singer anyway.

Even if I sang poorly, it wouldn’t be a big deal.

I just had to go with the flow and sing however I felt.

“~♬”

As I was thinking that, Rydel began singing the first verse.

Following her lead, I added my harmony to her voice.

***

“Haaahm.”

In a studio in Bangbae-dong, Seoul.

Music producer Shin Changseok yawned as he stared at his laptop with a bored expression.

“I just can’t find a voice that really clicks with me.”

“Hyung, you’re saying that again? There are talented singers everywhere these days.”

His younger colleague, Kim Seokhoon, handed him a cup of instant coffee.

Shin Changseok took a sip, then frowned.

“Seokhoon, I told you to put in two packets when you make instant coffee. It’s too weak with just one.”

Getting up from his chair, Shin Changseok grabbed another packet and adjusted the concentration to his liking.

“There are plenty of technically skilled singers. With the K-pop boom and everything, parents these days have their kids learning to sing from a young age. But…”

Satisfied with the now-sweetened coffee, Shin Changseok continued.

“But there’s just no soul—nothing that truly resonates deep inside. Honestly, if I close my eyes, I can’t even tell who’s who.”

‘What kind of nonsense is that?’

Kim Seokhoon frowned slightly at his words.

As someone who analyzed music purely through data, he had little patience for Shin Changseok’s vague sentiments.

Either you sing well, or you don’t.

If Shin Changseok hadn’t been responsible for so many hit songs, he would have just ignored it.

While he couldn’t fully understand his own standards, his ability was so exceptional that ignoring him wasn’t an option.

“So what have you been watching since earlier?”

“Oh, this? I’ve been watching some internet broadcasts lately.”

What he was watching on his laptop was Soopjijik’s broadcast.

“Rydel? She seems pretty famous. She’s doing a karaoke broadcast and has over 10,000 viewers.”

At that moment, Rydel’s karaoke broadcast was attracting a lot of attention, and the viewer count was pumping up.

Naturally, her broadcast was exposed in the higher ranks.

As a music producer, Shin Changseok, who usually watched broadcasts centered around music, was immediately drawn to it.

“Hmmm. There’s only one person on screen, but it looks like there’s someone else singing along?”

“Her visuals are okay.”

“Yeah. She’s pretty. But, of course, the important thing is the voice.”

Shin Changseok gave a lifeless response to the comment about her visuals.

For him, the only thing that mattered was the voice.

‘I don’t have high expectations.’

He hadn’t expected much from an amateur to begin with.

Watching the broadcast was more of a way to kill time.

And then, behind Rydel’s voice, a song by Yoo Seoyeon started playing.