Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: The Grandmother Fairy's Gift
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Yeonwoo didn't stop playing the piano even as he worked on composing tracks using the tablet his aunt had given him.
His fingers weren't fully developed yet, so he couldn't play exactly the pieces he wanted, and that frustration made him reluctant to rely on his aunt's help.
His aunt was amazing at handling the software, but when it came to playing the keyboard or piano, she couldn't even hold a candle to half of what his grandmother could do.
But asking his grandmother for help wasn't an option either—she didn't understand MIDI keyboards at all. Sometimes, it even seemed like she disliked them.
That left only one solution.
He just needed to play the piano better than his aunt and handle the keyboard even better himself.
The software was tricky, but if he played virtual instruments using the keyboard—which was no different from keys—then he could leave the programmatic parts to his aunt.
Both before his aunt arrived and after.
Yeonwoo's piano never stopped.
The Grandmother Fairy watched over him like this every day.
What was fascinating was that the brighter and more vivid her light grew, the more Yeonwoo's piano playing improved.
Yeonwoo figured it was because his own skills were gradually catching up to hers.
‘Am I right?’
When he asked, the Grandmother Fairy wouldn't answer.
She simply smiled quietly, just like his grandmother.
But today was different.
Just as Yeonwoo finished playing through a full piece he'd composed on the piano, the Grandmother Fairy stood up from her spot.
As Yeonwoo looked at her in bewilderment, she clapped for him while walking over to the piano keys.
“……?”
‘What’s wrong?’
The Grandmother Fairy gazed at Yeonwoo with tender eyes in silence before gently caressing his hands.
At that moment, the blue light emanating from her seeped into Yeonwoo's hands.
Yeonwoo stared at his hands glowing blue.
‘What is this?’
Yeonwoo looked at the Grandmother Fairy.
Having given her light to him, the Grandmother Fairy now looked dim and faded, bereft of her glow.
She was even fainter than when he'd first seen her.
Seeing this, Yeonwoo made a sad face.
‘Are you okay?’
The Grandmother Fairy nodded.
Then she pointed to the keys.
As always, she was gesturing for him to play the piano.
Yeonwoo placed his glowing hands on the keys and pressed the middle C.
In that instant, he felt it.
He understood what the light the Grandmother Fairy had given him truly was.
Yeonwoo's piano playing became even more fluid, even more like hers.
Yes—this light had enhanced his piano skills.
Realizing this, Yeonwoo looked at the Grandmother Fairy with a puzzled expression.
‘Why give it to me now……?’
If she'd given it sooner, he wouldn't have had to struggle like this.
The Grandmother Fairy shook her head sternly.
She seemed to want to teach him that nothing came without effort, but the young Yeonwoo, not grasping the meaning, simply tilted his head before getting swept up in the thrill of his rapidly improving piano skills and losing himself in the music.
“What in the world? I thought Mom was playing the piano from morning, but it was our Yeonwoo all along?”
Just as Yeonwoo immersed himself in the performance, Jiyeong woke up to the sound.
With her short-cropped hair sticking out in all directions and a tousled, sleepy face, she'd thought her mom was at the piano upon hearing the music from outside.
But when she came out? Not even close.
It was Yeonwoo playing.
She knew his piano skills were improving day by day, but to reach this level so soon was astonishing.
“As expected from Grandma's little gumdrop—he's the spitting image of her on the piano, too.”
Jiyeong chuckled at the sight of him as she brewed a cup of drip coffee, pulled over a dining chair, and settled near Yeonwoo to enjoy his playing.
Yeonwoo started with jazz, transitioned into pop music, and then flowed into the pieces he'd composed himself.
Just a few days ago, this kid had struggled even to play his own compositions, but now he handled them with graceful ease.
As his repertoire ran dry, Yeonwoo turned around and looked at his aunt.
“Why?”
Yeonwoo picked up the tablet he'd placed beside the piano and scribbled something.
[Now I'll play the keyboard]
Jiyeong flinched at Yeonwoo's words—his Hangul had improved quite a bit by now.
Not even comfortable with a MIDI keyboard despite practicing so hard on the piano keys?
Perhaps... his piano improvement had come from her own pitiful playing?
As she had these self-deprecating thoughts, Yeonwoo headed to the kitchen.
“What are you doing?”
Yeonwoo mouthed the word “rice.”
At just six years old—barely entering elementary school next year—Yeonwoo had hands that were surprisingly deft, as anyone could tell from his piano playing.
He pulled bread from the fridge, made toast, and fried an egg.
Worried he might burn himself, Jiyeong hurried over to help.
Around then, Heo Ok woke up.
“To think I'd live to see Jiyeong making breakfast.”
At her mom's words, Jiyeong pouted.
“Like you're any better—you've never made it for me.”
“True enough. Guess I've got grandchild luck in my old age.”
Heo Ok said this while stroking Yeonwoo's head. Yeonwoo beamed and set a cup of coffee in front of her.
And so the three of them began—and quickly finished—their morning meal.
Without being asked, Yeonwoo put the eaten plates in the sink and went off to brush his teeth.
“Seriously... When he's home, even adults skip brushing sometimes, but he does it every time without fail.”
“The only one who skips is you in this house.”
“Hmph!! Bet Oppa skipped on weekends when he lived alone?”
“He's not the type. He's thorough about everything.”
“Yeah, so all the lazy and naughty stuff is me, right? Hmph!!”
“I didn't say naughty.”
As Jiyeong pouted and brought her coffee to her lips under her cool, firm T-Mom's words, Yeonwoo returned from brushing and tugged at her arm.
“Why? Starting on tracks already?”
Yeonwoo nodded.
Truth be told, it wasn't exactly creating new ones.
He just wanted to release into the world the pieces he'd already realized through the fairies.
Up until now, Jiyeong's playing hadn't satisfied him, and his own skills had fallen short, but now it seemed possible.
He was eager to properly realize the tracks he'd poured his heart into.
Yeonwoo checked the program Jiyeong had opened and busily tapped away at the keyboard.
Jiyeong watched quietly, fulfilling whatever he requested on the spot.
Unlike his previous tracks, this one used no virtual instruments except for one wind instrument.
Yeonwoo built the entire song with pure synth sounds, boasting an extremely fast BPM.
A dance track?
She couldn't tell since Yeonwoo had monopolized the headphones.
Anyway, it seemed like she'd have to wait until the rough draft was done to listen.
Layer by layer, elements piled onto the beat until finally, the first draft was complete.
Yeonwoo pulled the headphones from the speakers and looked at Jiyeong with a resolute expression.
“Wanna listen together?”
Nod nod.
“Alright, let's play it.”
Jiyeong hit play, brimming with anticipation.
High-pitched beats blasted from the speakers like they might tear them apart.
The flashy hand movements Yeonwoo had used on the keyboard, combined with the upped BPM, created something so addictive and intense that anyone would want to dance on the spot.
Jiyeong's eyes went wide as she listened to Yeonwoo's very first attempt at a track.
It was fresh.
Not just off the trend—it was something she'd never heard before.
Yet it felt familiar somehow.
Had he cleverly twisted some cliché?
That's when it hit.
Heo Ok, who had been quietly listening from the doorway, smiled and spoke.
“It's jazz.”
“…Huh? Jazz? This? Anyone can see the EDM bass is the base!”
“No, it's jazz. That bass in the track—it's jazz bass.”
“No way, jazz? Right, Yeonwoo?”
At Jiyeong's question, Yeonwoo quietly moved the mouse.
Following what he'd learned over her shoulder, he lowered the BPM, dropped the key, and played it again.
Slower than before, synth sounds evoking piano and winds flowed out.
“Ah…….”
It was jazz.
Swing jazz at that—the kind Yeonwoo loved most, packed full of it.
She could only gasp in admiration.
She'd thought jazz would stay jazz no matter if you tweaked it into EDM or whatever, but Yeonwoo had broken free of the mold.
Suddenly, she wondered if this really was a six-year-old.
“What do you think as a producer? This track?”
Amid it all, Heo Ok asked.
“As a producer, how's the song?”
“Obviously good.”
Yes, it was really good.
Technically polished up, there were countless tracks like this on Yeonwoo's tablet (originally Jiyeong's own) that could sell.
Dismissing them as a six-year-old's hobby felt wrong—they were too sophisticated. Letting them sit unused might even be a sin.
“Yeonwoo, would you trust these tracks to Auntie, by any chance?”
“……?”
Yeonwoo looked at her, wondering what she meant.
“Like I saw on YouTube—sell them so other people can sing your songs.”
Sell the songs?
You could sell songs? The concept was new and fascinating to Yeonwoo.
Anyway, the key point was other people singing his creations?
That hooked his interest.
“What do you say? Leave it to Auntie?”
Yeonwoo nodded eagerly.
Jiyeong stroked his head and transferred all the tracks from his tablet to her computer.
“But can I just send them as-is to others? Or do you want to rearrange or tweak anything?”
Nod nod.
“Alright, what needs fixing?”
Yeonwoo used Jiyeong—his excellent tool(?)—to fill in the shortcomings and revise the tracks.
Five tracks in total were completed.
As he played each finished one, blue fairies popped out in droves and danced.
Watching them fondly, Jiyeong asked Yeonwoo,
“Happy with them? All done?”
Nod nod.
Yeonwoo gave a thumbs-up.
“Good. Now Auntie will send these five tracks to every agency out there. Oh, but don't get your hopes up too much. So many songwriters send stuff like this that they often don't even open them.”
Of course, with her experience, they'd at least look, but she said it just in case he got overly excited and disappointed.
Yeonwoo shrugged like he didn't mind.
Jiyeong felt he didn't grasp what this meant yet, so it hadn't sunk in.
Well, a six-year-old couldn't really feel the weight of his songs getting picked up and released to the world.
She sometimes forgot his age because this barely-school-age kid was pulling out impossible genius tracks.
‘Anyway... this is exciting.’
Come to think of it, while the tracks were Yeonwoo's, she was the one spreading them—maybe they'd even hire her as producer based on this.
If so, what concept should she build the album around?
Fun to imagine, but it hinged on the tracks getting picked or her getting hired as producer.
Yeonwoo owned the songs, and she was just the agent spreading them; the agency would hire whoever to make the album. So as producer, she could only daydream.
Truthfully, even Jiyeong hadn't fully grasped it yet.
The impact those five scattered tracks would have.
Meanwhile, Yeonwoo replayed one of his creations.
A new fairy was born amid the twisting melody, radiating brilliant light.
This unusual fairy, born with butterfly wings, smiled brightly at Yeonwoo, spread her wings, and fluttered off somewhere.