A Flaw in the Jade
"Roughly 17,000 people."
The Gocheok Dome—a venue so massive that even top-tier idols or veteran superstars couldn't fill it solo, only managing with joint concerts.
And right now, that seating was packed to the brim with all sorts of people from every walk of life.
Most of them had gathered to watch the final performances of the three contestants who made it to the Singer Star Season 5 finale.
For Joo Jinwoo, who until recently had been just an ordinary student prepping for school reinstatement, the mere fact that he was about to stand on this stage felt like a dream.
"Hoo..."
He took a deep breath, preparing to step onto the stage. Just then, the members of Blooming brushed past him as they came down after their performance.
"Oppa, fighting!"
"You got this."
"We're rooting for you~!"
The girls' faces were bright. And why wouldn't they be? They'd just delivered a flawless live performance without a single mistake, even under the crushing pressure weighing on their shoulders.
Sure, it was a song they'd practiced endlessly, but for Joo Jinwoo, who now had to face this massive crowd, the fact that they'd pulled it off perfectly was nothing short of incredible.
Joo Jinwoo chuckled softly.
A dream stage he couldn't have imagined just a few months ago.
The realization that he was moments away from stepping onto it hit him anew.
Hongdae indie bands usually aimed to become big enough to fill Jangchung Gymnasium. That level of draw made you major league.
But no one dreamed of playing the Gocheok Dome.
This was a stage reserved for the absolute elite of the elite.
A dream too lofty for them to even dare imagine.
"Joo Jinwoo-ssi, get ready."
At the junior writer's voice, Joo Jinwoo finished preparing to ascend to that dream stage.
The song Joo Jinwoo chose was Under the Black Sun, a legendary masterpiece in this world.
From the early 2000s, it was the final track left by a legendary rock band that defined the rock era before disbanding. Nicknamed "the song humans can't sing" for its insane difficulty and gut-wrenching lyrics.
Joo Jinwoo had dragged this monster out for his finale to cap his career at its peak.
The stage was bare—no decorations whatsoever.
A massive pipe organ sound rumbled through the Gocheok Dome's floor, signaling the intro.
Joo Jinwoo gripped the mic with both hands, head bowed like a condemned prisoner on the scaffold.
Under the sky turned to ashes,
I alone pick up my burned dreams.
From the first line, the air shifted.
Joo Jinwoo's voice was rougher, drier than usual.
A dual emotion—craving something desperately while abandoning everything—rode the cold dome air straight to the audience's skin.
As the song hit the second verse and heavy drum beats started pounding hearts, Joo Jinwoo revealed his true colors.
Burn brighter! Burn even blacker!
Until the places my final breath can't reach!
The chorus exploded with a barrage of ultra-high notes soaring past three octaves.
High notes that felt more desperate than beautiful.
Joo Jinwoo wrung every muscle from his vocal cords to belt them out. If Blooming's stage was their story, Joo Jinwoo's was proof of his very existence.
He'd ditched his signature ballads for classic Korean rock.
That bold choice was fusing perfectly with his flawless live, becoming the ultimate decision.
Watching from the waiting room monitor, I gripped my coffee can harder without realizing.
...He's fearless. Trying all that in head voice? One slip and it's over. Everything ends.
The song's highlight: the bridge.
All instruments cut out, leaving only Joo Jinwoo's vocals echoing off the dome ceiling, shaking the entire space.
Followed by 15 seconds of screaming long tone.
His intense high note crashed like a massive wave.
The 20,000-strong crowd felt swept away, unable to even breathe.
Joo Jinwoo's face was bloodshot, his body slick with sweat and gleaming, but in that moment, he looked like the biggest thing in the world.
When the final note ended in a scream and the lights went out, the Gocheok Dome fell into an eerie silence laced with dread.
How many vocalists in Korea could fully digest that song?
I doubt even ten.
Honestly, pulling it out for the finale with Joo Jinwoo's skill bordered on a gamble.
Even if the peak range was within his reach, the relentless highs in the chorus, plus shuttling between lows and highs while conveying raw emotion—it was tricky for him.
In practice, he'd struggled to finish it properly.
Yet on this crucial stage, he'd powered through without faltering once.
Of course, there was a mistake.
Just once, but that flaw marred his otherwise perfect stage.
It might not show now. But if I deliver perfection, that tiny slip could be the stumbling block.
"It's been a while since I held a guitar on stage."
In my hands was the kid-sized guitar Park Hansu had given me long ago.
Small, but a premium one with great sound for its price.
I'd debated using an AR track or playing live, but once my live stability was solid, I figured playing and singing myself would work.
Plus, strumming while singing just looks cooler.
That morning, support messages had flooded in from everyone—orphanage friends and kids, Park Hansu, the PC bang owner, even dropouts like Baek Yuyeon and Lee Hyejin.
"No wonder they didn't make us prep... they had this."
Who could it be?
Honestly, only one guess came to mind.
Probably the Evergreen Sky Nursery kids.
Obvious, predictable—but a tear gas weapon all the same.
Sure enough, the screen switched to the nursery.
"...Huh?"
The sight hit me with shock I couldn't hide. The Evergreen Sky Nursery looked... different. Way different.
What? The playground's huge now... and when did they remodel the building?
Questions aside, soon the 3-4-year-olds I'd been close with as Seo Siyeon appeared.
The kids on screen wore spotless new clothes, jumping and waving in the revamped auditorium.
The usual snot-nosed seven-year-olds who trailed me everywhere stood before the camera.
Behind the kids, the Nursery Director and teachers smiled warmly, waving.
Wait, the Director's belly looks off. Pregnant?
Her belly was hugely swollen. She'd been a sharp, attractive middle-aged woman before—now she looked even rounder than your average neighborhood ajusshi.
The MC's shout rang out, and the lights went black.
The 17,000 in the seats held their breath in unison.
Over the ashes scorched by Joo Jinwoo's Black Sun, a quiet, dreamy synth pad sound seeped in like mist.
I cradled my small guitar and walked to center stage.
Spotlights flickered on one by one, following my steps in the dark.
Countless seasons I'd faced as a composer and producer in my past life.
And now, as Seo Siyeon, a new spring.
I stood at the mic and slowly closed my eyes.
It was time to let it all go—the lingering regrets of my past life that bound me, the fears hidden behind the "orphan" label. Everything.
Twing—
I lightly plucked the guitar string. A clear ring filled the vast Gocheok Dome.
And softly, I began the first line.
The gentle season, like scattering petals—
I fear my life will fade the same way.
The true Four Seasons of Seo Siyeon was just beginning.