Fashion Genius Collects Stars - Chapter 71



Only Noblemtl

Episode 71: Stars and Fans

Thump thump.

Sometimes.

People have something called premonitions.

A mysterious phenomenon in which the body reacts before any signs are noticed.

Thump thump.

Kim Min-kyung, who was wandering around looking for Millie, was seized by a strange premonition and headed to the first floor of the department store.

As I walk down the escalator, I hear faint singing.

‘Ah, Millip!’

Her pace became faster and faster.

And when she finally reached the first floor, she saw.

Millief sitting in the lobby on the first floor and singing.

Kim Min-kyung slowly approached, holding back the tears that were about to pour out with both hands.

The sound of a guitar bouncing off the walls of a department store and Millie’s voice added to it.

It was a song I heard for the first time.

‘New song?!’

My heart was pounding twice as fast.

Kim Min-kyung had listened to all of Millief’s songs on the Internet. She could tell just by listening to one syllable that this was a new song that Millief had never sung before.

Could this be Millief’s new song?

It’s not even a cover song?

You can see it right before your eyes?

Kim Min-kyung approached Millief as if possessed and listened to her singing.

Millief sang, and a woman sitting next to her played guitar and harmonized.

Who could it be?

The voices matched Millie’s and Ghost’s perfectly.

And when I listened closely… … .

‘No way. Are you making up a song on the spot right now?’

I got goosebumps all over my body.

As the woman holding the guitar led the mood of the song by sometimes repeating the chords and sometimes varying them, Millief was improvising a melody and lyrics to match.

The song, sometimes exquisite and sometimes slightly hazy, continues endlessly, developing and taking shape little by little.

Kim Min-kyung had to keep her mouth shut again.

now.

Me now.

Are you witnessing the sight of Millif creating a song?

The birth of some greatness,

Am I witnessing this?

It seems as if space and time are twisted around the chairs where the two people singing are sitting.

Is this really reality?

Kim Min-kyung bit her lip.

‘I wanted to say thank you… … . Thank you for being born. I wanted to say I hope you’re always happy… … .’

Is that really necessary?

To someone who is already so perfect?

To Millief, who fills me so much with her mere presence?

I really wanted to speak first today… … .

‘You’re the first one to talk to me again… …’

What should I say about this feeling?

Tears welled up in Kim Min-kyung’s eyes.

* * *

The duet between Millip and Sung Jin-hee was fantastically well-suited.

Moreover.

‘No. How is that a song that was made on the spot?’

A song that sticks in your ears.

If I go home like this, I feel like I’ll just hum to myself all day…

That’s an improvisation.

A genius is truly a genius.

Millipede is like that too. Seong Jinhee is like that too.

As I was staring blankly, someone came up to me and muttered.

“It’s really good… … .”

Looking back, it was Mr. Im Ho-ah, the branch manager of Mirinae Department Store’s Myeongdong branch.

Not flashy, but luxurious.

Even though she’s just wearing a blouse and a long skirt, she somehow shines.

It was such an admirable fashion that it felt like the epitome of the so-called old money look.

He looks young. Mid-twenties? Younger than me.

Then she looked back at me and said.

“Thank you, Designer Lee Yong-won. Thanks to you, I am able to enjoy such luxury.”

“We appreciate you letting us use your lobby so readily.”

“No. If Millif came here, shopped, and even performed, it would go viral. We would be grateful.”

Yeah, that’s true.

“Ah. Designer Lee Yong-won. So… … . How about opening a store for in our department store?”

“yes?!”

I was surprised.

Department store opening?

Although we are doing well these days… … .

Isn’t the store opening in Mirinae Department Store a different level?

Isn’t this similar to saying that the National Intelligence Service will scout a street fighter to become a first-class agent?

I looked back at Branch Manager Im Ho-ah with a bewildered expression.

“Is that possible…? We’re not even a luxury brand….”

He speaks slowly, like an idiot.

Branch Manager Im Ho-ah smiled brightly and said this.

“It’s not easy. It has to fit the image of the department store, and the performance has to match. There are also other small regulations. It would have been impossible in the original.”

“however…….”

“But I want to do it. Then the people above will accept it too. I get a lot of love.”

You say you receive a lot of love?

I looked at Branch Manager Im Ho-ah with renewed eyes.

Well, it doesn’t make sense that you would be the branch manager of a prestigious location like the Myeongdong branch at the age of mid-twenties.

Probably the royal family. Something like that.

Mirinae Department Store is part of the Kookmin Group… … Wow. It’s really a diamond spoon.

“So, what do you think? Are you interested in opening a store in our department store?”

“I totally agree. I need to discuss it with my partner, but I totally, totally, totally agree.”

Isn’t this Mirinae Department Store?

Even if I can’t eat this, I have to run.

The moment we open a store here, the value of our brand will skyrocket.

No. If it’s not enough, you can just launch another brand.

Popular brands and luxury brands. You can go along these two tracks.

In any case, it was a huge leap forward for our business.

“Hehe. Very good. Here is my business card. Talk to your partner and contact me. Opening the store will be possible in the latter half of this year at the earliest. At the latest, it will be possible by the end of next year.”

I exchanged business cards with her.

So I added another big name to my contacts.

Good.

In the front, there is a song by Millip and Sung Jin-hee.

Business discussions with big shots on the side.

I feel like I’ve become something.

huh?

But what is that?

Suddenly, a group of people came rushing in and started installing things around Millip and Seong Jin-hee.

‘Lighting? Sound equipment?’

The voices of Millip and Sung Jin-hee, which had been flowing out calmly without a single microphone, now resonate clearly through the installed amplifier in an instant.

The lights in the lobby seemed to be dimming, but the newly installed lights focused on the two people.

Millip and Sung Jin-hee sparkled in the soft darkness.

The natural feeling of busking up until now was good, but the volume was low and it felt distracting… …. When the lights and amplifiers were turned on, the two people’s singing became even clearer.

The space itself feels dreamily immersed.

“Wow. What is it… … ?”

“Isn’t that Millief Erethicia… … ?”

“No way. Why is Millie performing here?”

“But if not Millif, who else would perform in the lobby of a department store in Mirinae… …?”

“uh……?”

Even people who just entered the department store start to admire the two people’s performance as if they were entranced. People here and there raise their cell phones and start taking pictures.

It was a completely different reaction from before when there were no lights or amplifiers.

I was a little surprised and looked back at Branch Manager Im Ho-ah.

It hasn’t even been 20 minutes since I asked for your cooperation to busk… … Where did you get all that equipment?

“Do department stores always have equipment like that in stock?”

“No. They just take up space and are difficult to handle. There’s no reason to keep them.”

“Then how did it happen so quickly… … ?”

Branch Manager Im Ho-ah said with a pretty smile.

“There are many reasons why I am loved.”

ah.

Not only are they from the royal family, but they are also very capable?

“And. I told you not to pull out placards like . They look cheap. You can’t help but recognize a real luxury item. Right?”

Im Ho-ah’s eyes sparkled as if asking for praise.

surely…….

It makes sense.

I raised my thumbs up and Im Ho-ah tapped my elbow as if he was pleased.

Well, what can I say? Unlike what you would expect from a child of a wealthy family, he seems to be very friendly.

Thanks to Im Ho-ah’s performance, Millip and Sung Jin-hee’s busking shined even more.

A luxury department store on a weekday afternoon. It was naturally quieter than Myeongdong Street, but there were still quite a few people gathered to watch Millief and Sung Jin-hee busking.

Among them, there were some familiar faces. People I had encountered earlier while shopping.

“Wow… … . Wow… … ! Right?”

“So… … it was a real millipede.”

The male and female couple I ran into while changing clothes earlier. No, they weren’t a couple. They were a male and female friend, right? But their relationship was somehow meaningful.

It seems like the guy brought his girlfriend along on a blind date… … .

It looks suspicious to me.

Men’s side too.

The women’s side too.

Anyway, it seemed like they were just about to leave the department store when they were sucked in as if possessed by Millie and Sung Jin-hee who were performing in the lobby.

“It’s really good… … .”

As the woman muttered vaguely, the man muttered as if he had lost his mind as well.

“That’s right… … . Is that why you came with me? Something special is happening… … .”

Then the girlfriend glares.

“What are you talking about? You were making a fuss earlier, asking what I was doing making memories with you.”

“Hey… … ! That’s… … .”

The man started to get angry, then said in a slurred voice.

“sorry…….”

“Huh? Oh, no. I wasn’t trying to hear an apology.”

“No. That’s not it. Sorry. I didn’t have the courage to do that.”

“uh?”

“Actually, there was no such thing as a blind date. I just lied because I wanted to go out with you.”

“What… … ? You said that… … .”

“i like you.”

Oh. Holy moly!

As I was looking over there with interest, someone tapped my elbow next to me.

When I looked back, it was branch manager Im Ho-ah.

She too is watching the two men and women with sparkling eyes.

She spoke in a very proud voice.

“We did a really good job.”

“Hmm. That’s definitely true. It’s like going to heaven.”

When I looked back, the man and woman were holding hands with their faces flushed.

Oh my gosh.

“Whoa!”

Branch Manager Im Ho-ah cheers softly and taps me on the shoulder.

We looked at each other and laughed happily.

Seriously.

There seems to be some magic in songs by top artists.

Everyone here feels friendly and gives me a strange feeling that only good things will happen from now on.

As I was looking around at each person, one woman caught my eye.

The face in the uniform that came out of the store looked familiar.

‘Ah… … . That person… … .’

It was the store employee who had recognized Millif earlier and was trying to talk to her. Her name tag said Kim Min-kyung.

however.

That guy was a huge fan of Millie.

I felt a little sorry for pretending nothing happened and running away earlier.

Because that guy.

Because I was crying just now.

He took off his glasses and wiped away tears so much that the backs of his hands were soaked.

All the way until Millie and Sung Jin-hee finished writing a song and finished busking.

Cheering crowd.

People asking for autographs and pictures.

The employee continued to cry while blankly staring at those people.

I approached her as if possessed.

“hey.”

“Huh? Oh, huh?”

I said to her, who was flustered and quickly wiping away her tears.

“Aren’t you going to get an autograph?”

Then she shakes her head and says:

“No. It’s okay. I’ve already received… … so much, how can I be greedy for more? If too many people gather, Millie will get tired too.”

and…….

That’s a truly admirable, pure fandom.

I couldn’t stand it.

“No. If you get an autograph and take a picture with her, she’ll be happy.”

“Huh? Oh, huh?”

I gently pushed her shoulder as she panicked.

“Let’s go together. Kim Min-kyung. Let’s get an autograph and take a picture. This kind of opportunity may never come again in your life. It’s okay to be selfish at times like this.”

At my words, she bit her lips tightly and nodded.

“Never again in my life… … . Yes! I understand… … !”

I pushed through the crowd with her and stood in front of Millif.

Although it was short English, he whispered it into Millie’s ear.

“Milliph. This person cried. I guess he’s a real fan.”

Millif looks at Kim Min-kyung. Seeing her eyes red with tears, he hugs her tightly.

“Hipp!”

Millif whispered to Kim Min-kyung, who was hiccuping. In a voice so small that only I, who was standing next to her, could hear.

“Thank you. It’s thanks to people like you that I can sing.”

Kim Min-kyung’s face turned red.

Stars and fans.

I found out for the first time that day.

Those two words had such a thrilling resonance.