𖹭 Chapter 8 𖹭
Soon, Esid was filled with shock.
Pieria’s piano was overwhelming, grand, and deep.
Her skill was far beyond not only Esid’s daughter, but all the other contestants as well.
Even if Esid had been half asleep, she would have woken up instantly at Pieria’s performance.
The low and middle bass tones drew everyone’s attention and pulled them in.
It was calm, yet fast.
Simple, yet brilliant.
Heavy, yet lovely.
Quiet, yet passionate.
The piece felt like a festival of stars spread across the night sky—
And at the same time, like a portrait of one person chasing a distant dream symbolized by those stars.
Esid watched every moment of it without missing a single thing.
She did not even have time to swallow.
The pressure Pieria gave off, even from far away, fixed Esid’s eyes on her.
It was amazing that such a small body could give off such an aura.
This was not a performance you judged.
It was a performance you could only admire.
‘No… maybe…’
Maybe admiration alone was enough—
Because it had already gone beyond the standard of judgment.
Her breathing grew uneven, and her head felt blank.
So this was how people fainted when they heard truly good music.
Esid felt like she might become one of them.
When she barely regained her senses, panic rose in her.
At this rate, she could no longer be sure that Vibrephon would win.
People always say a parent sees their own child through loving eyes—
But objective truth was another matter.
‘It’s fine. This is the complete opposite of the theme, “clear sound”…!’
Esid forced herself to stay calm.
Just as she thought, the piece Pieria had prepared had a low and dark melody, the exact opposite of the image of clear sound.
Even if Calliope favored Pieria, it would be difficult to make her the winner after performing a piece like this.
The performance ended.
Or rather—
Pieria’s hands stopped moving.
“Now, look!”
Esid immediately stood up in the audience and shouted proudly.
“Pieria’s performance does not fit the theme of this concours at all!”
Several people turned to look at Esid.
She kept going, using the momentum.
“Look at her! She jumped in without even understanding the theme—serves her right!”
The reason Esid suddenly brought up the topic of Pieria’s performance and the concours theme was simple.
She wanted to change the mood—
And make people forget Pieria’s skill itself.
But when Esid looked around, she realized her attempt had failed.
Most people were still staring at Pieria with eyes full of admiration.
As if they had not even heard Esid’s words.
Click.
At that moment, a sound came from Pieria’s side.
Pieria was holding a recording magic device in her hand.
‘No way. Only members of the Trache family have something like that!’
Esid doubted her own eyes.
She could not believe Pieria had a recording magic device.
‘How does she have something that expensive? Don’t tell me… the Trache men gave it to her?’
If that was true, then it all made sense.
Why Pieria had been sitting beside Duke Trache.
Esid panicked.
Everything was slowly falling apart.
The song Pieria had just played began to flow out from the magic device.
Pieria stood up.
Then she climbed onto the chair she had prepared earlier.
She sat on the outer ring of the grand piano—the wide frame surrounding its body.
Esid had no time to point out that it was improper.
Because a strange sound suddenly came from the piano.
Right after the prelude from the magic device ended, Pieria took out a guitar pick.
Then she plucked the piano strings.
A fresh, bright sound rang out.
Like drops of water splashing.
Like shooting stars falling.
Every time she plucked the strings along with the part she had played strongly before, a new atmosphere was added.
The dark and lyrical melody, which had felt almost like accompaniment before, became filled with mystery and wonder.
Rich color awakened sleeping senses.
It was the clearest and brightest sound a piano could make.
The piece Pieria had prepared was finally complete.
“……!”
Watching all of this, Esid felt chills run all over her body.
A strange feeling she had never experienced before wrapped around her.
Her legs trembled so hard that she had no choice but to sit down.
Now Esid had only one thought.
‘How could she think of something like this?’
Then suddenly, the piano lid came into her view.
The long strings inside were reflected on it.
Inside a piano, the strings were like organs inside a body.
They took up the most space—
And yet received the least attention.
Esid had never once paid attention to the strings.
Even though they had always been there.
Why had she never thought of it before?
That the strings were also part of the piano.
Pieria kept plucking the strings.
Each sound felt like it was stabbing different parts of Esid’s body.
It was as if something she had hidden tightly away—
Her own weakness—
Was being torn out and displayed for everyone to see.
Ah.
That feeling was jealousy.
Her defeat was already obvious.
The only person who could win this Junior Concours—
Was Pieria.
Because no percussion sound could beat the clear sound of strings.
This was the result of Pieria’s careful planning—
A result made to suit Calliope’s taste for unique attempts, and also to ensure she could win no matter what pieces the other contestants brought.
The reason Pieria had needed the recording magic device was also to create a dramatic moment.
It would have been better if there had been two pianos, or if someone else could have helped her—
But this time, she had to prepare everything alone.
So she had no choice but to use the recording magic device and repeat the same piece twice.
Because of that, the way the piece changed when the string sound was added became even more striking.
The performance ended with the same repetitive but strangely addictive melody of the first-stage score.
No—
To be exact, it ended with Esid’s own recorded criticism.
“Pieria’s performance does not fit the theme of this concours at all.”
“Look at her! She jumped in without even understanding the theme—serves her right!”
When the piece ended like that, Pieria erased the distant, dreamy look from her eyes and looked straight at Esid.
Then she smiled and said,
“Do you still think so now?”
At the same time, the audience burst into standing applause and cheers.
Some people put two fingers in their mouths and whistled.
Some shouted for an encore.
It was an unusual scene for a concours, which was normally conducted with strict seriousness.
Contestants and audience members alike were all thinking the same thing.
It had been a long time since they had heard such a good performance.
So this was what a performance that seized the eye and captured the heart felt like.
Pieria stepped down from the piano onto the stage.
Then she smiled and bowed, as if returning the audience’s applause.
It was proof that Esid’s claim—
That the performance did not fit the theme—
Had already been destroyed.
Shame covered Esid’s whole body.
It had become clear that she was the only one in this place thinking differently.
She felt like the only fool here.
At that moment, Calliope stood up.
It meant that one of the highest powers in the empire was about to speak—
But everyone was too excited to notice at first.
Normally, Calliope should have silenced the crowd or scolded them.
But he simply waited until the hall became quiet.
“Pieria.”
At the Duke of Trache’s call, everyone held their breath.
Because until now, Calliope had never spoken first to a contestant.
“I listened well.”
“Thank you.”
“What does your original composition mean?”
“Stars.”
“Stars?”
What did stars have to do with this piece?
Calliope tilted his head slightly.
It was hard for him to understand how that word connected to the performance.
Pieria smiled softly at his reaction and began to explain slowly.
“I thought musicians are people who chase the star called music.”
Her voice was soft, but there was strong belief inside it.
“Musicians resemble stars, because they follow shining, fleeting moments and want to express that beauty.”
Calliope’s expression still did not soften, but he adjusted his posture slightly, as if interested.
Pieria quietly met his gaze for a moment before continuing.
“Past musicians who have already left this world and musicians who are alive now may seem like different beings, but they share one basic thing.”
“And what is that?”
Though Calliope tried to sound indifferent, his question clearly showed interest.
“They pursue music. Even if they can never meet in person, they can still share emotions and atmosphere through music.”
As she spoke, Pieria drew a small circle in the air with her fingertips.
The motion made it feel like she was showing that connection with her hand.
“I wanted to express the longing all musicians carry in their hearts.”
Pieria paused for a moment, then sat down at the piano again.
She placed her hands on the keys and slowly pressed them. Each note rang out one by one.
“The keyboard sounds and the string sounds in this piece may seem different at first, but in truth, they both come from the same piano.”
Calliope’s eyebrows lifted slightly.
He sat quietly, listening carefully to the music flowing from Pieria’s fingertips.
“Through this piece, I wanted to create a hymn of youth for all beings who communicate through music across time.”
When the final note sounded, Pieria gently lifted her hands from the keys.
Then she looked at Calliope and added,
“I believe this piece is not just a simple melody, but a conversation among musicians connecting the past, the present, and the future.”
Calliope stayed silent for a while.
His face remained expressionless, but soon the corner of his mouth rose slightly.
There was understanding and sympathy in his eyes.
“Now I understand what kind of star your piece meant.”
He spoke softly.
“There is no need to say who the winner of this concours is.”
