Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Claiming the Masterless Song
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"Ahaha... Yeah. It'll work."
When I asked if it was okay for me to sing a song like this, the composer gave a rare small laugh and said that.
"I was actually hoping to find the right owner for it."
"Is that so... But am I really the right owner?"
"Well, what if you're not?"
"Huh?"
What if not?
What did that even mean?
"If it's you, Miro, you might not be the song's owner but a great companion instead."
"A companion? What does that mean?"
"You'll find out later."
The composer, uncharacteristically cryptic, put on a serious face again and said,
"So, what do you think after hearing the song? Shall we sign a contract?"
I really had to think hard about this question.
I wanted to do it, but could I handle it?
This wasn't a featuring gig.
Not like the group song from the Heavenly Realm Project either.
Just me. Solo.
I'd have to fill a full four minutes or so from start to finish with my voice alone.
Could I pull it off?
And the difficulty level looked insanely high too...
Still...
But...
"...I'll do it."
Honestly, I couldn't pass it up.
How could I give up the chance to be the singer of this song?
I had no greed for fame or money, but it was too good an opportunity to let slip.
"Perfect. Let's sign the contract then."
"But what name do we use? Suhyun? Or Miro?"
This was a big deal.
Suhyun or Miro.
I'd already decided not to do anything more as Suhyun, but that was just words, right?
No contract signed or anything, so I could break it if needed.
"Whichever's easier for you."
"Honestly?"
"Yeah, honestly."
"Suhyun's easier. No need to worry about the viewers."
"Doing it as Miro would boost popularity, bring in more traffic."
"That means they'd expect more from me too, right?"
Personally, I was having a blast streaming, super relaxed.
If a ton of casuals flooded in just from hearing the song, it'd mess things up for me and the regulars. Our streams were pretty niche even by my standards.
But anyway, was I overthinking it...?
"Haha, aren't we getting ahead of ourselves with the kimchi soup?"
"Ahaha... I was thinking the same."
We shouldn't worry about this until it actually happens, right?
"Then let's contract under Suhyun."
"Yeah, but is it just releasing the song? No music show appearances or anything...?"
Don't singers usually do that? Helps promote the track.
"Well, we'll figure that out later. If you're not into it, you don't have to."
"Really?"
"My priority is finding the song an owner."
For real? You really mean I don't have to go on shows?
To reiterate, the difference between doing them or not is huge.
And he's saying it so confidently... Does he really just care about finding the song's owner?
"Don't look at me like that. I want my songs out there on every music show across the country too."
"Ah."
"But you hate it, right? Felt like a burden, so I said forget it."
"You just told me now..."
"You're not the type to back out over a little talk."
"True."
"Let's get the contract done."
And just like that, the contract went through smoothly.
I'd heard since I was a kid not to sign contracts lightly... But with 42 years of life experience, I could judge for myself.
"No rush, so take your time recording it while doing your second album."
As we parted, the composer looked somehow relieved as he said that to me.
I'd impulsively taken on something massive, but... whatever, it'll be fine.
Who am I?
The featuring artist on "Wonderland" from Slim Gold's album *Fantasy*, which was dominating the realtime charts.
Plus, Heavenly Realm Project 1st Gen member and NerTube sub-100k VTuber Miro.
Damn, looking at it like this, it's insane.
Yeah, I've done well so far, so I'll keep doing well.
With that thought, I headed home.
**
On the way home, I checked my phone and the group chat was blowing up.
Wondering what was up, I saw the members were curious about what the composer and I talked about.
They'd all be meeting him one by one within the next couple weeks anyway, so why the fuss? But since they were curious, I shared what questions came up in voice chat. Stuff like why he gave certain opinions, or that we'd pick and choose from them later—basically recapping everything. Then my fingers suddenly stopped.
Only two things left: the Hyunsu stuff and becoming the owner of the composer's ownerless SSR-grade song. Should I tell them?
Everyone would find out eventually anyway, so spill now?
Or keep both secret and surprise them?
I hesitated a bit.
...Maybe one of them would feel more than necessary about my situation.
Even I thought I was pretty damn lucky—okay, really lucky.
So for now, I kept it secret.
(Me): But have you guys heard this? Great song (link)
Eh, I left a tiny hint.
I figured sharp ones would catch it, but the reply came faster than expected.
(Mahohyun): What? You knew about it too, Suhyun? I've been listening to it a ton lately!
Listening a ton?
(Me): Yeah? What do you think?
(Mahohyun): Just love it? It's totally my taste.
...Hoping it wasn't what I thought, I probed more, but she didn't seem to notice my featuring.
Maybe the composer was the impressive one for spotting it from this.
(Mahohyun): But who’s the woman on the featuring? Searched after hearing it, nothing comes up.
Felt like testing me for a sec, but Maho wasn't the type, so I answered straight.
(Me): Just some part-timer, whatever.
(Mahohyun): Nah, that's the artist name.
...?
Artist name?
Well, technically...
(Me): Who names an artist "Part-timer"?
(Mahohyun): Happens a lot, right? Old singers had names like that—Fire Truck or whatever. Probably some old-timer.
No! It's not!
This misunderstanding?
Wait, thinking again, yeah, kinda.
Who'd think a featuring was done by a part-timer? They'd just figure it's a quirky name.
Gotta talk to Hyunsu about this.
A nameless master who features once as a part-timer and vanishes is cool, but "One-Hit Part-Timer" as a nickname? Lame...
I said it'd be just this once so it didn't matter—that blank would pull more aggro—but deep down, I liked the mysterious master vibe.
So I resolved to fix it somehow, and by the time I was almost home.
Near the entrance to my apartment building, a guy was standing there smoking.
"...Downstairs neighbor?"
The one who'd come up when I was drunk-streaming songs recently.
I'd apologized the next day... What are the odds of running into him here?
Coincidence, but no plans to chat.
I just shoved the embarrassing memory down and hurried inside.
Weather was brutal lately. I'd been in AC-blasted subways or the composer's studio most of the day, but even a few minutes walk had me sweating buckets.
Back home, I showered off the grime, then crashed on the bed.
Way smaller than the composer's studio, but the cool AC air felt fresher than ever.
Stay like this and I'd pass out quick, so I grabbed my phone, tossed aside earlier.
Gonna handle that thing I planned before dozing off.
Namely...
"Hello?"
[Hey, Suhyun sis, what's up?]
Gotta fix it before I become the weird "One-Hit Part-Timer."
"Hey, Hyunsu. Saw you topped the charts. Congrats."
Started with congrats.
Gotta handle celebrations.
[You saw?]
"Yeah, an acquaintance composer showed me. He noticed it was my featuring."
[The one who did the Heavenly Realm Project song?]
"Yeah, the guy whose mass-produced song you trashed."
Gotta tease him a bit since I called.
[Wh-when did I say that?]
"You said something like it, right? Told him straight, and he was pissed."
[Pi-pissed? You told him that? He’d blow up... You okay?]
"Me? Whatever. It was your words."
[Huh?]
"Just said a singer friend told me, and he knew it was you instantly."
[Huh??]
"Industry's small, you know better. Just a couple handshakes away, so send him a Chuseok gift or something."
[For real?]
Hyunsu sounded genuinely flustered, rare for him.
Even geniuses fear seniors.
Especially big ones. Age gap's double.
"Ahaha... Kidding."
[Right?]
"Half a lie."
"Yeah? So you got chewed out, sis?]
"Nah, the anger part was the lie."
[Aaack...]
"Don't sweat it, scheduling made it unavoidable? So he just let it slide."
"Still... If he knew it was me...]
"Sorry... But it sounded like I was bashing the song, so I just told the truth..."
[Wait, so you sold me out to defuse?]
He caught on quick?
Sharp for a social noob.
"Anyway, not why I called."
[Not letting it go, huh... Fine, what's up?]
Hyunsu sounded a bit sulky, voice dropping.
"Good news, so cheer up."
[Good news?]
"Yeah, but bad news first."
I told him how I'd become some weirdo artist named "Part-timer" instead of a nameless featuring master to others.
His reaction was... subtle.
[...So?]
"So? Don't you get how serious this is?"
[It's just once and done, right? Who cares what they think.]
Damn... True.
Whining about it not being cool would be pretty pathetic for an adult.
Good thing I had one card left.
"Actually... The composer gave me a track."
[Huh? Solo? Not Heavenly Realm Project?]
"Yeah, said it fits me perfect, so we're collaborating."
[How? He only gives to top idols...]
"Anyway, I'm doing his song as Suhyun, not Miro. 'Part-timer' for a face reveal? Weird, right?"
This hit home; finally, agreement from the other end.
[Ugh... Yeah, true.]
"Right? Gotta change it."
[Got any ideas?]
"Yeah, one just now."
My desire was that nameless master vibe, right?
So, make it so.
"Leave the slot blank."
[Huh?]
"Erase the name. Just blank."
No name means done, right?
From now on, I'm truly nameless.