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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: An Orchestra of Individuals
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"Huh?"
The performance ended. Seo Eunchan led a dazed Seojun backstage.
Seojun had been acting strange all day, so he just figured it was more of the same.
"Seojun! You really came?!"
"Hyung. What's wrong with him? He's completely spaced out."
"I don't know. They said he's been like this since this morning."
The zoned-out Seojun snapped back to reality and called out to Brown Black, who were wiping away their sweat.
"Hyungs. How was the performance just now?!"
"The performance just now?"
Kevin, who was closest, tilted his head and answered.
"It was great. I feel like it was even better than usual, for some reason."
"I agree. The dancing felt smoother too."
Choi Siyoon, who was stretching, nodded. Park Seojin and Hwang Yejun, who were drinking water, agreed as well.
"Our voices came out well, it was good."
"Yeah. Yeah!"
Seojun's jaw dropped. Even in his opinion, Brown Black's performance had been amazing.
And that was without the [Connection of an Orchestra Conductor]! Why?
"How was it compared to the Christmas Eve performance?"
"Christmas Eve? That was over half a year ago. You think we'd remember?"
Seo Eunchan crossed his arms and retorted, but contrary to his expectations, Brown Black recalled it without a moment's hesitation.
They remembered Christmas Eve vividly. It was when they had overcome their slump. When they had put on a performance they never could have imagined.
Park Seojin, who had been deep in thought, spoke first.
"That one was incredible too. It felt like someone was in the center, conducting us, telling us what to do. I could feel that direction and think, 'Ah, he's going to sing this way next. I should go a bit higher.' I made judgments like that and sang."
"It was the same for me. It was like someone was teaching us where everyone would stand on stage. Or that it was okay to do a solo dance here. Those thoughts just popped into my head."
All four of them nodded. Hwang Yejun tilted his head and said.
"It was like a perfect performance, you know? Like everything was already decided and all we had to do was follow along? Compared to that, today's performance didn't feel like that. It felt a little more free."
"Now, even without that feeling, I can guess where you guys are standing. Yejun is right, too. I didn't realize it before, but performing while constantly thinking about you guys... I think it felt a little restrictive."
At Kevin's words, the members of Brown Black nodded.
Restrictive. They hadn't noticed it before, having grown accustomed to amazing, unimaginable performances, but today's stage made them feel it clearly.
Seojun asked with a stiff expression.
"So, which do you like better? Before or now?"
"That's obvious. Now, of course."
Seojun nodded at Brown Black's answer.
'I see.'
Just then, a staff member announced the start of the second part. Brown Black got ready to go back on stage. Choi Siyoon asked Seojun.
"How about we go get something delicious after the second part? There's a really good marinated galbi place near here."
"Yeah! Let's go. Good luck on stage, hyungs!"
Seojun returned to his seat with Seo Eunchan. Lee Minjun, who was already seated, greeted them. Seojun didn't even notice his dad's welcome, sinking into the plush chair, lost in thought.
Why? The usefulness of the ability was undeniable. And yet, they said they liked it better now. Why?
Seated on either side of Seojun, Seo Eunchan and Lee Minjun exchanged a look. Lee Minjun's expression asked, *What's wrong with him?* Seo Eunchan just shook his head. *I don't know.*
Just then, a voice reached Seojun's ears. It was a conversation between Brown Black fans sitting nearest to him.
"I think today's performance was amazing."
At Lee Miyeon's words, Park Seong-ah asked.
"I didn't see much of a difference from the last performance I saw."
Lee Miyeon shook her head.
"The old performances were... how should I put it? They were perfect stages, crafted without a single flaw. But today's performance really brought out each member's individuality. Brown Black's performances never used to have ad-libs, but there were quite a few today, right?"
"That's true."
The audience quieted down. Everyone's ears perked up. They were fans who had also noticed the difference between past performances and today's. They had been wondering why it was different, and here was someone scratching that itch for them. Unaware of this, Lee Miyeon smiled brightly and continued talking to her friend.
Seojun also strained his ears to listen to their conversation.
"If their old performances were like an orchestra with a 'perfect conductor,' where each instrument had to hide itself to blend with the others, then today's performance was like a stage where various instruments, each capable of a solo, could show off their skills and individuality while still harmonizing with the others. I liked today's performance better because each member of Brown Black's personality shone through."
Seojun realized.
Restrictiveness.
Wasn't that what they meant? The feeling of being a small instrument in a grand orchestra? Unable to play as you please, forced to move only to the conductor's predetermined gestures.
Seojun looked at the palm of his left hand. The pattern of [Connection of an Orchestra Conductor] shimmered.
He probably hadn't felt the limitation of being an 'orchestra' when the skill was at its lowest level. The skill was weak, and Brown Black's abilities were still developing.
But as the skill leveled up to Low-grade, it grew stronger. And Brown Black's skills had also improved dazzlingly over the past few years.
The 'time' when the ability hadn't activated became the key.
Surely, there would be performances where one had to suppress themselves and play without any freedom.
Conversely, there would be performances where they needed to express their individuality and lead the stage freely.
And Brown Black's performances were the latter.
'I don't think I need this anymore. I should put it in the Library when I get home.'
On the way to the fan meeting, Seojun had been seriously worrying, *Will it be okay to slap my hyungs' cheeks?* Now, he let out a sigh of relief.
And two months later, Brown Black made a comeback with a new album featuring spectacular performances that highlighted each member's individuality.
***
The long-awaited September finally arrived.
This time, Lee Minjun, instead of Seo Eunhye, was to accompany Seojun as his manager and guardian.
Kim Heesang kept his promise and adjusted Lee Minjun's schedule. Of course, he didn't forget to load Minjun up with a mountain of work that could be handled from the US.
The plane departed from Korea and, after many hours in the sky, arrived in the United States.
"Hi! Seojun!"
"Aunt Nara!"
"How is it that you seem to be on vacation every time you come?"
Nara, who had come to the airport to pick them up, waved her arms wide to welcome the two.
It was Nara Kim, still with her sharp bob cut and black sunglasses. Seojun ran up and gave her a hug.
"Seojun, you've gotten so big!"
The two, who got along perfectly, laughed and spun around in circles, holding hands.
At the heartwarming sight, people nearby applauded. A blushing Lee Minjun covered his face with one hand and sighed. Soon, the two calmed down and walked over to him.
"You might not believe it, but I worked my butt off just so I could come pick you up!"
"In that case, thanks."
"Thanks, Imo!"
Lee Minjun and Seojun loaded their luggage into Nara's car and got in. The three of them buckled up tightly and left the airport, heading for their destination.
Seojun gazed out the window at the city he was visiting for the first time.
After a while, large buildings came into view. There were many people, too. Not just locals, but also plenty of tourists with cameras, taking pictures everywhere.
Nara pointed to one of the buildings.
"That's the Empire State Building. It used to be the tallest building in the world."
"Whoa."
Seojun's eyes sparkled.
The city that never sleeps, New York.
The filming location for *Shadowman 2*.
After dropping Seojun and Lee Minjun off in front of their hotel, Nara showered Seojun with gifts.
She said she just bought things whenever she thought of him while out shopping, but perhaps because they hadn't seen each other in almost a year, the amount was staggering.
When stacked next to the suitcase, the pile was taller than Seojun. Lee Minjun wondered, *How am I going to get all this back to Korea?*
"Well, I've gotta go."
As Nara got into her car, Seojun asked.
"Imo. Are you going to work?"
"Nope. Going home. Well, have a good shoot. Call me if you need anything."
Waving her hand, Nara was gone in the blink of an eye. Lee Minjun, holding gift boxes up to his chin, laughed helplessly.
"So she came all the way from LA to New York just to give Seojun presents. Nara is really something."
"Imo is the coolest!"
"Yeah. She is."
Seojun and Lee Minjun smiled as they carried the suitcase and gifts into the hotel.
The next day.
Seojun and Lee Minjun were lazing around in their hotel room, adjusting to the time difference and resting before the shoot, when they received a call from Director Ryan Will.
After a brief greeting to Lee Minjun, who answered the phone, Ryan Will spoke to Seojun, who took the phone from his dad.
-You've been so busy practicing, I don't think you've had a chance to meet the other actors. If you're free this evening, how about everyone gets together to say hello?
Seojun's gaze shifted to Lee Minjun. Listening in, Minjun smiled and nodded.
"Okay! But who's coming?"
-Evan Block and Richel Hill. They're the only two actors you'll be working with.
"Wow!"
-I'll text you the time and place. Have you memorized your lines?
"Of course."
Seojun nodded at the phone, even though Director Ryan couldn't see him.
It hadn't been long since he received the script, but the clever Seojun had already memorized all of his parts.
Besides, the emotional acting required for his role in *Shadowman 2* was similar to the one-man play he had practiced for eight months, so he could handle it with ease.
-Got it. See you later, then.
"Okay."
After hanging up, Seojun was so excited by the text that arrived soon after that he paced around the room before pulling the *Shadowman 2* script from his bag.
One might think he was practicing his own lines, but he wasn't. He was reading the lines of the two actors he was about to meet, glancing at the clock intermittently. The hour and minute hands seemed to refuse to move.
With the clock seemingly moving slower than usual, Seojun kept pestering his poor dad.
"Dad, Dad. How much time has passed?"
"Um. Five minutes?"
This was already the third time he'd asked. The fact that Seojun, who could tell time perfectly well, kept asking showed just how much he was looking forward to meeting the two actors.
Lee Minjun opened his laptop and called out to Seojun, who was rolling around on the bed, reading the script, looking at the clock, then reading the script again.
"If you're bored, should we find a movie they were in and watch it until it's time to go?"
"Yeah!"
Seojun shot up and sat next to his dad. A search for the actors' names brought up a list of films they had appeared in.
Evan Block, who played Shadowman, and Richel Hill, who was appearing for the first time in *Shadowman 2*.
The two were looking through Evan Block and Richel Hill's filmographies when they discovered something interesting.
"They were in a movie together."
"Let's watch this one!"
"Should we?"
Lee Minjun and Seojun watched 'With,' the teen movie the two actors had starred in together, chatting quietly.
And elsewhere, two other people were watching a different movie. The two, who had become close friends after meeting on the set of 'With'—a teen movie they now couldn't bear to watch with their eyes open—munched on popcorn as they watched.
"This is my favorite part."
*Jingle!* The sound of a bell rang out. Richel Hill stared at the large television screen, her face full of admiration.
"The CG is insane, but his acting is just incredible."
Evan Block nodded at Richel Hill's words. The inner dialogue with the god was clearly added in post-production.
No matter how good the editing was, could it really look that natural?
"Last year, you called me saying you saw Seojun Lee's latest movie, and I barely managed to find a theater showing it. I never thought the director himself would send us a clip. You're really something else. How did you even find it?"
"I need to know what kind of acting my co-star does."
Richel Hill shook her head. Evan Block pulled the [Seojun Lee] notebook from his bag. Richel Hill clicked her tongue at the sight of the dense, black script filling the pages.
'He probably has a notebook with my name on it, too.'
She was curious to see his assessment, but also scared of what harsh criticisms might be written inside. Richel Hill chewed on her popcorn.
"Analysis time again? So, what do you think? Jun's acting? People say it's method acting."
"Well..."
Evan Block stroked his chin as he watched the screen. A golden beast moved about. Evan Block's blue eyes flashed as he stared intently at the light.
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