Chapter 213
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 213
Chapter Title: Back on Stage
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Italy, Rome.
It was the city filled with both romance and sorrow from Park Miseon's youthful days when she shone the brightest.
There were plenty of good memories—and bad ones, too.
She had attended classes in clumsy Italian, performed on dazzling stages, endured criticism, and even won the Concours prize. She had been hurt by a conductor steeped in racial prejudice, but also comforted by fellow musicians who stood by her side.
When her recital was canceled and she tripped on the way home in tears, severely injuring her hand, she thought the world had ended. But that was all in the past now.
"Rome, it's so good to see you."
The wistful feeling probably came from having far more good memories than bad.
"You've led quite the tumultuous life."
As she shared bits of old stories during her treatment, both the attending physician and the observing doctor marveled in admiration.
"Heh heh, I burned it all."
She truly believed she had.
There was a time when she couldn't live without music—pounding away at the piano, over and over.
After devoting herself to that one pursuit for over twenty years, she finally discovered something more precious than music itself.
Or so she thought.
"I thought I'd burned it all away, but there were embers left. I'm going to play again."
Marriage, two children, and the glittering stage and grueling practice room gradually faded into distant memories.
But lately, she could no longer suppress the urge to play the piano.
Park Miseon had confided in an acquaintance in the performance world.
"If you come back, we'd welcome you with open arms! I'll plan a comeback recital right away! Oh, it's been nearly ten years since your return—our venue won't seem too shabby, will it?"
"Oh, what are you saying? I wasn't even expecting a recital. I just asked if there might be an opening for a guest spot."
To her surprise, he immediately suggested a solo recital.
Would tickets even sell? It had been ages since classical enthusiasts had thought of her.
She worried endlessly, but fortunately, tickets sold out.
Park Miseon threw herself even deeper into practice.
'Ugh!'
But at some point, her fingers began to hurt terribly.
'Why now, of all times...!'
It had been four full years since the dull ache first started.
At first, she thought it was her old finger injury from Rome acting up. Then she wondered if it was poor postpartum recovery.
The doctor said that with her profession as a pianist, excessive strain on her finger joints over the years was to blame.
Anyway, it hadn't been severe back then.
A single acupuncture session had fixed it right away.
It would flare up again if she overexerted with the kids, but a day or two of rest always did the trick.
But now, she couldn't afford to rest.
For the recital, she had to push through without a single day off.
'This won't do. It hurts too much.'
She endured as long as she could, but the night before the concert...
The pain was so intense it brought tears to her eyes.
'Any Korean medicine clinics open late...?'
She remembered one recommended by a longtime acquaintance—the clinic attended by Melon Soda Horizon.
She wasn't big into bands, but since a student of hers, a music professor, was the keyboardist, she'd listened to quite a bit of their music.
She had been impressed by the youthful passion in the videos her acquaintance showed her, and since the recommended clinic wasn't far, she'd made a mental note to check it out someday.
'Thank goodness!'
It wasn't too late.
Park Miseon rushed straight to the clinic.
And agreed to the director's proposed knife-edge acupuncture treatment.
'Kyaaaaah!'
Screaming internally, she turned her head away and endured.
It didn't hurt as much as she'd feared, but the idea of a knife slicing into her terrified her.
"Oh my god! It feels so much better!"
When she flexed and extended her fingers after the treatment...
"The mobility has improved dramatically too."
It was noticeably different.
Playing a melody in her head in the air, a soothing energy seemed to spread from her fingertips inward.
"Right? Get plenty of rest tonight, and tomorrow it'll feel even better. Sometimes it throbs when it's iffy, but you were so stiff, so it should feel great now."
"Oh, what a relief!"
She had feared her fingers would derail her comeback, but it was the opposite.
Thanks to miraculously encountering this director, she felt ready to deliver her best performance ever.
Her fingers felt incredibly light.
Even though she'd just been playing the piano right before coming to the clinic, her heart raced with the desire to play again.
"Rest up today for sure. That knife-edge treatment alone was a big stimulus to your ligaments."
...As if reading her mind, the physician emphasized it once more.
Right, she needed to rest today. It was already night.
She listened to instructions—no more stimulation, rest deeply. Cold compress if it felt stiff—and left the clinic.
Her condition was at its absolute peak.
The next day, recital day.
Despite it being her comeback after an incredibly long hiatus, a huge crowd turned out for the performance.
The gaze of hundreds, thousands of eyes on the performer.
The thrill of pressing the first key.
The fullness of complete immersion in the music—it all exhilarated Park Miseon.
She had practiced and rehearsed plenty, but nothing could match the beauty of the live performance.
Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap.
The performance ended before she knew it, met with thunderous applause.
Pride? Happiness? No, it was exaltation—like rediscovering the purpose of life.
Park Miseon trembled endlessly.
A moment later, in the performers' waiting room.
"Congratulations on your comeback. You were magnificent, as always."
"Oh, Chairman! If you'd let me know you were coming, I'd have sent an invitation...! I'm so sorry. I just assumed you'd be too busy."
Familiar faces she hadn't seen in ages offered bouquets.
"I'm just a retired old man and an ordinary audience member—what invitation? As a fan, I'm just glad I got to hear Pianist Park Miseon play again before I die."
"No, Chairman, what are you saying!"
"I followed our virtuoso all the way to New York for your Carnegie Hall performance. You think I wouldn't come to a venue right here in Busan?"
Their bond had started when she performed at a corporate event he hosted.
She hadn't spread the word much, not wanting to bother him, so she never expected Chairman Choi Gwijae to show up.
"How have you been? Let's have a meal sometime."
"I've got nothing but time—these outings with my friend are my only joy. Tomorrow works."
She wondered who his companion was—it turned out to be someone who ran a major gallery in Seoul.
Park Miseon exchanged greetings and made plans with her too.
"Tomorrow I've got to visit the clinic, so that's tricky. The day after..."
"Clinic? If it's a Korean medicine clinic, I know a great one!"
"Oh, the director at the one I went to yesterday is an amazing physician."
Chairman Choi Gwijae and his companion both insisted their clinic's director was the best.
Park Miseon just smiled and asked where it was.
No plans to switch, but it didn't hurt to know.
"Seongsu Clinic? You both go there too?"
"Pianist Park Miseon too?"
"Yes, I went just yesterday for knife-edge acupuncture on my fingers."
"I'm close enough with that director to go hiking together."
"Oh my, what a coincidence... I stumbled upon it by chance, but it turns out it's really famous? No wonder there was a teacher from Rome there."
Even Chairman Choi Gwijae's companion knew the doctor.
Apparently, he was a physician sponsored by an Italian tycoon the director had treated before.
"Planning to open a branch in Rome? That's fantastic!"
Most of her friends in Rome were around her age.
Hands and shoulders worn from instruments, bodies aching with age—they all complained of pains everywhere.
She'd been dying to brag about her finger treatment, and now this.
"Introduce me to lots of people when it opens."
"I will."
Flexing her fingers once more, Park Miseon nodded.
"Ah, have we kept you too long? We'll head out."
"Thank you so much for coming. Next time, I'll reach out first!"
Beyond Chairman Choi Gwijae, plenty of others came to greet her personally.
Park Miseon spent the after-party blissfully happy.
'Ah, Ms. Park Miseon.'
The name of the patient here for her second treatment appeared on the chart.
She had played piano right after the knife-edge treatment—hope it held up.
It had been unavoidable, but I worried she might have worsened things by overdoing it afterward.
"Hello, Director."
Unlike two days ago, when she looked exhausted and anxious, today's Park Miseon seemed relaxed.
"Looks like the recital went well."
"Yes, thanks to you, I didn't have to worry about my fingers at all. It was the best time ever."
"Congratulations. How are they feeling now?"
"Hmm, a bit more throbbing than yesterday. But way better than before the treatment the day before."
Good, it hadn't gotten worse. This was within the normal ups and downs.
"Acupuncture today. Knife-edge just once a week."
Park Miseon visibly relaxed at that.
"What a relief. Truth be told, it scared me a little."
It felt bad to say this to her beaming face, but...
"Acupuncture isn't exactly painless either."
"Gasp."
Her eyes seemed to well up for a moment, but she smiled warmly.
"If it's needed, then it's needed. I want to recover and get back to performing full-time."
Her resolve was solid—perfect.
Unlike Kim Jaegyu, who benefited from activity, this condition thrived on rest.
Not as extreme as Melon Soda Horizon, but I stressed minimizing hand use.
"Got it."
Park Miseon even shared how she'd run into other clinic patients at the recital.
Chairman Choi Gwijae and Grandma Heo Sunnam.
Choi Gwijae seemed like he'd attend every cultural event, but Grandma Heo... Ah, she didn't seem the type, but thinking about it, she was far more deeply tied to the arts.
Guess I'm the only one whose cultural life is all video games.
"And if you're into classical music, I'll bring tickets next time!"
Classical, huh.
I hadn't touched it since high school music class.
"I'd be honored."
Might be worth developing an interest this time.
Park Miseon smiled, as if sensing my shallow cultural depth.
"My playing won't bore you."
Well, even a martial arts novice would gasp at Heavenly Demon Supremacy Step.
This woman had the aura of a peak master. More like a retired hero running a noodle shop, maybe.
"Alright, acupuncture time."
"Eep!"
Just needles, and she had the heroic endurance of Guan Yu facing surgery?
"B-by the way, did that teacher from Italy head back?"
Maybe talking distracted from the pain—Park Miseon brought up Sandro.
"Not Rome—back to Seoul."
I gave a brief rundown of his situation.
Studying in Seoul, planning to open a practice in Italy like a Korean clinic later.
"Ah... Let me know when the Rome branch opens! I want to tell my friends."
"Will do. Probably three more years, though."
Even polite words were appreciated.
"All done. Since it's acupuncture, stay like this for about twenty minutes."
"Yes, thank you, Director."
After finishing Park Miseon's treatment, I returned to the exam room.
We'd chatted daily with him always around.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder, or something.
Sandro had gone back to Seoul thrilled at all he'd learned, but I'd unintentionally picked up some good stuff from him too.
Like finding overseas papers easily, or Taijiquan.
Today, during Kim Jaegyu's treatment, he mentioned the Taijiquan dojo.
Luckily, the dojo master at the place Kim Jaegyu and Shin Yongmin had knocked on was super passionate.
"They call it moving meditation. I'm just learning basics now, but later they swing spears and staffs too."
"Ooh..."
As he shared his training, it went beyond loosening muscles—opening acupoints to draw in energy, resonating with heaven and earth. True to the essence.
Sounds good.
Beyond Kim Jaegyu, plenty of our patients could use mind-body training.
Like Mr. Kim Jinsang... Maybe recommend it next visit? Park Seonyoon and he had both been scarce lately.
Ding-dong—.
Speak of the devil.
Kim Jinsang's name popped up on the chart.