Ranker’s Return

“Everyone, I turned on the stream at the karaoke as promised. However, all the team members are already out of their minds. I would be grateful if you take that into account,” Hyeonu told the viewers as he grabbed a seat near the camera.

The room was already a mess. Everyone was running wild due to Dwayne’s exciting selection.

-Everyone is very excited.

-I would think it was a dance crew doing a performance somewhere rather than a professional game team.

-It is really like an event.

The viewers confirmed Hyeonu’s words. The sight of the five people dancing in a trance right in front of him proved it. Seeing this, the viewers noticed that Hyeonu’s words were by no means an exaggeration.

“Hyung, let’s dance together. Why are you sitting out like that? You didn’t do this before.” Mason grabbed Hyeonu, who was still standing near the camera.

While Hyeonu was trying to talk to the viewers more, he was helplessly taken away by Mason and brought over to the others. Lee Hoon handed Hyeonu a cup and said, “Hyung, take this first.”

Hyeonu quickly accepted it. This was because it would drop on the floor if he didn’t receive what Lee Hoon gave out.

‘This...?!’

The liquid that Lee Hoon gave him was a fruit-flavored beverage. It was a drink made by mixing fruit juice with syrup and sparkling water, not alcohol.

‘It isn’t alcohol, so...’

After confirming that it wasn’t alcohol, Hyeonu consumed it coolly. The sparkling carbonated drink went down Hyeonu’s throat with a pleasant stinging sensation. Hyeonu held the half-empty glass and started moving. He didn’t move much and just bounced slightly, specifically his shoulders, back, or knees.

-Alley Leader is a boss.

-His body lines are alive.

-A dancing machine.

-Could this be called a sense of rhythm? Isn’t it amazing?

The viewers who saw Hyeonu’s movements admired them. His dance moves weren’t gorgeous, but they were cool. Although they were just small movements, there was no shortage in their ability to grab the attention of the viewers. Dwayne’s exciting song ended in no time. There were no reserved songs since everyone was focused on dancing. So Hyeonu approached the camera and read the small chat window.

-One song from our goddess...

-Right! We also have the freedom to listen to the song!

-I want to hear Alley Leader sing...

‘Yuri’s singing?’

Hyeonu realized that messages about Yuri took up the largest share of the chat window, so he grabbed a microphone and approached Yuri. Having finished dancing, Yuri was now sitting in a chair and drinking something. She looked at Hyeonu who had suddenly approached and handed her the microphone.

“Yuri, the viewers want to hear you sing.”

“Hear me sing?”

“Yes, they want to hear your song. I think it has been a long time since I’ve heard it as well.”

“I understand, Oppa.” Yuri nodded and grabbed the microphone. Then she pressed the remote control and entered a number without opening the book like she had done this often.

-Wow, picking this?

-Watch our goddess’ singing skills.

-I’m carefully envisioning a legendary out-of-tune sound.

The accompaniment flowed from the speaker. When the viewers noticed Yuri’s song selection with just the accompaniment, they admired that. In particular, the Koreans who were familiar with Kpop were surprised. This was a song that all women who went to karaoke were said to have sung. It was an attractive song with a high key, but it was very difficult to sing. This was the song that Yuri wanted.

A light and intense beat flowed out of the speaker and rang throughout the room. As the accompaniment came out, Yuri headed toward the camera with the microphone.

“Jump all together!” Yuri called out instead of skipping over the interlude. She even enjoyed this part of the song and encouraged the people in the karaoke room as well as the viewers to respond.

-Run, run!

-Run together!

-The vocalization is so good!

-This is completely like a singer enjoying herself at the local karaoke room.

After the interlude, Yuri began singing in earnest. She raised her treble pitch in a clear voice, singing just like a professional singer. Her vocals were much better than some of those who were called idols.

“Erase everything!”

Every time she hit the high notes, the other players sang along. It was a type of chorus. Among them was a particularly loud and strong voice. This voice belonged to Hyeonu. He wasn’t using a microphone at all, but his voice was almost as loud as Yuri’s. It was like they were singing a duet.

“Yaiyaaaaaaa!!!!” Yuri finished the song with a clear treble.

Clap clap. Everyone in the room stood up and clapped. Like most rock songs, Yuri’s performance raised the atmosphere excellently. However, it was just a pity that it wasn’t the best type of song for her.

-She sings so well, but... it is a bit disappointing.

-It’s rock, but it is too clear. Her voice suits a ballad better.

-How well do you sing that you can evaluate the quality?

-It isn’t an evaluation. I’m just saying. What’s wrong with this?

Yuri’s voice was very beautiful. There wasn’t any scratchiness in her tone; it was just clear. Perhaps it might be different if she went up to a higher note, but it was slightly lacking to convey the unique feeling of rock.

“Yuri, I didn’t know you sang this well.” Hyeonu received the microphone from Yuri with a surprised expression.

‘Has she always sung that well?’ Hyeonu had never gone to karaoke with Yuri before, so he didn’t know. He thought he’d heard her sing when they went to play on Kim Seokjung’s island, but he couldn’t remember it very well.

Hyeonu shifted his gaze to look at the camera’s chat window. ‘Why are they fighting?’

The chat window was very chaotic due to the fight between the viewers. After reading the chat window for a while, Hyeonu found the reason why the viewers were fighting each other.

‘It is childish.’

“Don’t fight. Yuri definitely sings very well. In addition, they’re not wrong. Yuri does in fact suit ballads more than rock.”

It was difficult to bring out the original feeling of rock with such a clear and fair voice. Rockers wanted a rough voice for a reason.

-It doesn’t seem right even if it is Alley Leader.

-I don’t think that Goddess Yuri’s singing skills can be evaluated by Alley Leader...

-Right. It seems that Alley Leader is just talking.

Hyeonu’s eyes narrowed. ‘I’m just talking?’

The other players saw Hyeonu’s expression and cocked their heads. They didn’t see the chat messages, so they couldn’t understand why he was making this expression in such a lively atmosphere.

“Why is he acting like this?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps someone is fighting in the chat window?”

Mason and Lee Hoon discussed it together in one corner of the room. They had no interest in the chat window Hyeonu was watching. It was much more important for them to play and have fun. Moreover, they wanted to avoid being picked next by Hyeonu.

“Will you sing next?”

“Me? No, I’ll wait for after Hyeonu hyung picks the next person.”

“I understand how you feel.”

They didn’t want to be humiliated in front of a million people. If this were uploaded to Alley Leader’s channel, they didn’t know how many people would see it.

‘I don’t know if I’m good, but I’ve never heard someone say I can’t sing...’ Hyeonu’s pride was hurt. He didn’t have a sense of pride in his singing skills, but it wasn’t to the extent where he could be dismissed and disparaged like that without feeling anything.

“I will sing the next song.” Hyeonu was planning to show clearly that he wasn’t a stranger to singing. He headed to a seat to find the song number in the book.

The viewers who saw this started chatting.

-Okay, the operation is a success. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-As expected, he will do it straight away if his ego is scratched, right?

-As a pro Alley Leader audience member, isn’t this degree very light?

This was a deliberate provocation by viewers. It was designed so they would get to listen to Hyeonu sing. However, Hyeonu didn’t know about it and was caught easily, biting the bait that the viewers had thrown out. The players of Crescent Moon approached Hyeonu, who was currently searching through the karaoke book. They wondered what song Hyeonu would sing and were looking forward to it. After all, they already knew Hyeonu’s singing skills. Hyeonu’s hand stopped turning the pages of the book, and he pointed to a song on one side of the book. 

“Um... This is probably the most famous one?” Hyeonu said.

“This? Hyung, you’re picking this song?”

“Oppa, won’t it be hard because your voice is so thick?”

Lee Hoon and Yuri knew the song that Hyeonu chose, so they were worried. This song definitely wasn’t easy. Although complex skills weren’t required, he needed the ability to produce high notes and breathe deeply. In other words, it was a song that could only be sung if his foundation was really solid or if he had a huge vocal range.

“Huh? I’ve sung this often.” Hyeonu looked at these two people with an expression that was asking what the problem was. This was a familiar song for Hyeonu. It wasn’t Hyeonu’s favorite style of song, but it was a famous song. A man’s high-pitched song—it was a song to brag about being able to reach high notes. It was a song more famous in South Korea than in foreign countries.

Hyeonu acted without hesitation. He picked up the remote control and entered the number from the book—1677. Soon, familiar keyboard sounds played from the speakers. Hyeonu got up from his seat and stood in front of the karaoke machine. To the viewers, only his side profile was visible.

-Wow, amazing.

-He picked this?

-Is this for entertainment?

-If this is an entertainment show, then his entertainment senses are fully alive.

-If this is a documentary, then his skills are alive.

Mason saw the chat window and cocked his head. It was the first time he was hearing this song, so he couldn’t understand the reaction of the viewers and others. Mason asked the viewers, “Is it hard to sing? Everyone is reacting like this...” 

-Of course...

-Oh, you don’t know because you’re a foreigner. This is a song that crosses three octaves.

-Just listen, and you’ll know.

‘Three octaves?’

A song like that was something Mason had never dreamed of doing. He was just an ordinary man when it came to singing, and it was common for cracks to appear when he reached the high notes. Just then, Hyeonu’s began to sing. A deep and heavy voice filled the karaoke room. It wasn’t just thick. There was a sharp, metallic scratching to it.

“I’m to blame~” 

A deep feeling of longing and loneliness was heard in Hyeonu’s voice. The viewers were quickly immersed in the song and forgot to chat. They just felt admiration for him.

-His voice is amazing.

-It’s more charming than I thought.

-Why does he have it all? Face, skills, voice... Even his singing is good...

Hyeonu’s singing was sounding better and better. Accordingly, his pitch went up little by little. The higher it went, the more questions the viewers had.

-It is such a thick voice with a scratch to it. Can it go up that high?

Hyeonu turned his head slightly and smiled slightly at the camera. Then he turned his head back and started making a sound.

“Girl!!!”

This high note was on a totally different level. It completely rang through the room with a sound so loud that the speakers crackled like it couldn’t bear the output.

“Lady!! Oh, lady!!!”

Hyeonu’s high note continued endlessly. He repeated the rise in pitch like he was going up a steep mountain. Moments later, Hyeonu finished the first verse, found the remote control, and pressed the cancel button. Then he smiled again at the camera.