The Voice That Belonged to No One
“······Again. This time, do it all the way to the end.”
Kim Hyeok-jung steadied his mind and requested another try.
One mishap could be pure coincidence.
Or it might have been beginner’s luck, or a slip of the tongue.
Deok-su read the lines again in a daze.
“As a servant, I have always devoted myself to the peace of the people, grinding my bones to dust in the service of my nation! But the price of that sacrifice is······.”
“······That’s enough.”
He didn’t need to hear any more.
The tone was identical to the first time.
One coincidence was possible.
But two? Not a chance.
Kim Hyeok-jung scratched his head roughly and frowned.
‘What the hell is this guy? He must have trained his voice like crazy. The pronunciation and breathing are all over the place, and yet he somehow······.’
Deok-su was still panicking inside.
‘Did I actually hear a ghost’s voice?’
To be blunt, he might as well have been possessed by a ghost right now.
Any supernatural phenomenon would have been less shocking.
Deok-su reread the lines more carefully.
“As a servant, I have always······ Huh?”
This time it was his original voice that came out.
He tried again, but the same thing happened.
Deok-su tilted his head in confusion and steadied his emotions, putting strength into his throat.
“As a servant······ hic!”
The moment he focused, a deep, commanding voice flowed out.
Deok-su nearly fell over in surprise and quickly clapped a hand over his mouth.
‘No way… was it because of the emotion? I decided to act like this guy properly, and then······. Yeah, immersion! Once I immersed myself, the voice changed. Haa, what the hell is this······.’
He had found the cause, but the confusion remained.
He couldn’t say it out loud. It would be lucky if he wasn’t labeled crazy.
Luckily, unlike Deok-su’s worries, Kim Hyeok-jung didn’t ask for an explanation.
He simply stopped scratching his head and let out a sigh.
“Hey, Kim Deok-su.”
Kim Hyeok-jung took something from his pocket and tossed it to him without warning.
It was a cork used for wine bottles.
“Why this······?”
Instead of answering, Kim Hyeok-jung placed the cork in his mouth.
Only then did Deok-su realize its purpose. It was a tool to practice pronunciation while sucking on it.
“Practice for one hour every day. Also bring your script for the one-man play.”
“Is there no more practice today?”
“······Do it up to what you can manage until next week. We’ll talk details then.”
“I will work hard.”
“······Your answers are good.”
Kim Hyeok-jung looked at Deok-su holding the cork carefully and tilted his head.
‘If it weren’t for that Kim Deok-su, teaching him would have been fun······.’
In acting, as important as eye contact was the voice.
He had wanted to teach him right away the moment he heard Deok-su’s voice.
But the person was Kim Deok-su······. He couldn’t easily suggest practice.
There was nothing more futile than passion wasted on nothing.
After Kim Hyeok-jung left, Lee Hui-yeong entered.
“Thank you for your hard work. Are you going home today?”
“No. Instead, I’d like to work out. Could you check if I can use the company fitness room?”
“You can use it. But the company fitness room is only for trainees······. It might be inconvenient.”
“I’m not that picky about cold or hot rice.”
Lee Hui-yeong smiled bitterly.
Signature members originally had a separate team for managing images. They also provided dedicated trainers, styling, and makeup.
But currently, for Kim Deok-su, there was no support as a Signature member.
Deok-su headed to the fitness room run by JMT Entertainment along that path.
The fitness room was on the seventh floor of the main building.
Just like JMT Entertainment’s reputation, the facilities were spotless and most equipment was state-of-the-art.
Deok-su was about to enter the changing room when Lee Hui-yeong spoke cautiously.
“U-um······ Senior.”
“What is it?”
“T-the trainees might be noisy······. I-I’m not saying I don’t trust you or anything······.”
“Don’t worry. Hui-yeong, nothing like that will happen again.”
After reassuring Lee Hui-yeong, Deok-su entered the changing room.
“Ah, hello!”
“Senior! Hello!”
The moment they saw him, the trainees greeted him at a perfect ninety degrees as if the changing room was disappearing.
Deok-su noticed fear and hesitation deep in their eyes.
“Don’t pay attention to me and just do your business.”
“Ah, no! Senior! We were just about to finish.”
The trainees hurriedly packed their things and left.
Quite a few trainees who had come to work out fled instead.
The same happened in the fitness room.
Trainees who had been working out started watching each other nervously, then one by one slipped away.
Within ten minutes, only Deok-su and one female trainee were left, carrying a barbell on her shoulders.
Deok-su shrugged and began his workout.
‘Ugh······ What kind of little fish is this······.’
Deok-su struggled and set down the 4-kilogram dumbbell.
Ironically, Kim Deok-su’s arms and chest were already bulging.
‘I also need to manage diet and workout methods······.’
He researched YouTube and materials to build his body, but creating a physique alone was not easy.
At the same time, investing money in personal training was out of the question.
He wasn’t short on living expenses, but since he didn’t know when his earnings would come, he had to be frugal.
When he was at a loss, the unexpected person who helped was Lee Hui-yeong.
“You’re a beginner at exercise right now. There’s no rush to build your body for a drama. At times like this, it’s better to build your basic stamina than to force muscle growth.”
“Yeah, exercise is something you do for life······.”
“Exactly. Start with what you can do and build gradually······ Oh, I said too much······. Sorry?”
“Not at all. Keep doing that.”
After that, Lee Hui-yeong grew bolder, as if peeling off layers.
Deok-su took care of her in various ways, and she became more comfortable expressing her opinions.
As time passed, their chemistry improved.
“Thank you for today’s work. The gas bill was a little burdensome.”
Deok-su personally negotiated with the accounting team and secured Lee Hui-yeong’s gas bill.
The accounting team, which had ignored a new manager’s persistent requests, stamped the approval in less than ten minutes once Deok-su spoke up.
“Commuting from Bucheon to Gangnam every day, this is nothing. From now on, I’ll be traveling nationwide while receiving company money. I’ll have to use a lot of gas.”
“Yes.”
She answered, but Lee Hui-yeong was half doubtful.
‘······Still, unlike what the seniors said, he doesn’t seem like a brute.’
Deok-su’s training continued.
After his first acting training, he now received vocal training.
Since Kim Deok-su had been a singer, Deok-su had some expectations going into the lesson.
Vocal trainer Park Young stopped Deok-su’s singing and tilted his head.
“Mr. L’Vyu. What is the meaning of these lyrics?”
“I love you but am pushing away the woman. While secretly wishing her happiness······. It’s complicated.”
“Good. If it were this man, how would Deok-su sing······. Huh?”
Park Young noticed his mistake and turned pale, covering his mouth.
“S-s-sorry! I unintentionally······.”
He had called out his real name without realizing it. This guy hated it more than anything to have his real name heard.
Park Young quickly apologized, but Deok-su, not hearing it, calmly continued reading the lyrics.
‘What the hell?’
Park Young was bewildered.
Kim Deok-su was a ghost that could hear real names called out. He had caused the collapse of more than five trainers because of it.
“Let me try once.”
“Ah, y-yes.”
“Forget me—your memories with me are pain—”
Deok-su steadied his emotions and raised his voice.
Immersed in the emotion, a pleasant tone flowed as he recited the lines.
Deok-su wondered how wonderful the song would be.
“Wait a second. Hmm······. It really was long for a year. Breathing is lacking.”
Park Young stopped Deok-su’s singing and shook his head.
Deok-su was disappointed.
He had immersed himself fully, but what came out was his ordinary original voice.
He tried multiple times, and the result was the same.
“······Let’s stop here for today. Mr. L’Vyu, you worked hard.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Let’s go slowly. Seeing you, Mr. L’Vyu must have a voice capable of standing on stage with just singing······. Maybe seven years? Ah! I’m talking about when it’s finished, so don’t misunderstand.”
Deok-su clearly understood.
He had been kindly told that he had no talent for singing.
Even the special voice he had somewhat expected never exploded.
‘It seems he really has no talent for singing.’
After vocal training, he received dance training.
“One, two. Turn around, one, two again.”
The dance was no joke.
His feet tangled on their own, his hands flailed wildly, and his joints ached like an old lady in the rain.
Fortunately, because his body remembered Signature’s dance, practice was easier than vocal training.
But he couldn’t say he danced exceptionally well either.
‘I should have danced for six years······. This isn’t exceptional either.’
In addition, he received training in foreign languages and pronunciation. Deok-su figured out where to put his strength.
Meanwhile, JMT Entertainment’s publicity team released an article.
······.
The article was a full denial of Deok-su’s real estate investment rumors.
Although late, the agency cited the time needed for fact-finding.
······.
After finishing his workout, Deok-su sat in the break room and sighed.
There were still many bad comments, but there were quite a few decent opinions.
“I checked the part-time job IPs and positive comments mobilized by the company. They weren’t the part-time jobs.”
“Really?”
“This is enough to flip it. What matters now is the future.”
Lee Hui-yeong set down her tablet PC.
While Deok-su was training, she analyzed and showed the public opinion surrounding him.
Deok-su had always thought Lee Hui-yeong was just a rookie, but he was amazed by her abilities.
“From now on, I’ll manage your SNS. It’s time to start improving your image.”
“Since I’m doing it, think of it as mine and do it properly. People are sensitive to fakeness these days, so be careful. You might even get backlash.”
Lee Hui-yeong observed Deok-su’s reaction and gave up.
After a few days, Kim Deok-su was completely different from what rumors said.
He seemed more diligent than the trainees despite claims of being unreliable, and more considerate than his uncaring reputation.
He also showed a coldness toward articles full of bad comments.
“Then wash up and come out. I’ll wait outside.”
After Lee Hui-yeong left, Deok-su stood in front of the vending machine.
He thought of buying her a drink, but he only had two ten-thousand-won bills in his wallet.
Sighing, he turned around, and a woman entered the break room.
When she saw Deok-su, she flinched and put money in the vending machine.
“One can?”
“No, it’s okay······.”
“You don’t have to refuse, Senior.”
Deok-su carefully accepted the Ion drink she offered.
She was the trainee who had been exercising with him in the fitness room.
“I’ll drink it well. I’ll treat you later.”
“Um, Senior?”
Deok-su had tried to avoid trainees as much as possible.
Any small issue could spark gossip.
But she pressed her face close to Deok-su as he turned to leave.
“Whoa, I’m really upset. I tried ignoring you for days, but you just ignored me like this. Is this really it?”
Her sudden words left Deok-su bewildered.