Devil’s Music

Chapter 161: Song of the Himalayas

Chae-eun and Geon quickly became close. Chae-eun approached Geon in a friendly manner, asking him to call her "sister" despite the ten-year age difference and their different genders, which led them to open up and become friends quickly. They soon forgot they were in front of a camera and started chatting away, salivating over the traditional Nepali dishes brought by the staff.

Producer Yeong-seok, standing behind the camera, said, "The dishes being served are traditional Nepali foods: 'Dal Bhat,' 'Jaoi Yen,' and 'Lemon Tree Steak.' In particular, the Lemon Tree Steak, made from buffalo, is a must-try dish. Please, go ahead and taste them."

Chae-eun, with her experience in variety shows, cautiously asked Yeong-seok, "Can we just eat? Normally, you make us play games for food and sleep, don't you?"

Yeong-seok, raising his arms, responded, "Ah~ Today, it's on the house. Enjoy to your heart's content!"

Though Chae-eun looked at Yeong-seok suspiciously, Geon, having no experience in variety shows, immediately started eating the 'Jaoi Yen,' a type of Nepali fried noodles, as soon as he was told to eat. Filling his mouth with noodles, Geon gave a thumbs-up.

"Wow, this is really delicious. The spices are strong, but it's tasty. You should try some too, sister."

Chae-eun, looking worriedly at Geon as he eagerly ate, said, "Geon, I heard from our manager that Yeong-seok CP is a total devil. He said not to just take food because you never know what might happen."

Laughing, Geon offered Chae-eun some of the fried noodles and said, "Worrying won't change anything. If we're going to be put through trials, might as well eat first. It's not like not eating will spare us the trouble, haha."

Unable to resist the tempting aroma of the noodles, Chae-eun began to eat. Seeing their expressions as they savored the taste, Yeong-seok smirked devilishly.

After making sure the camera captured them eating, Yeong-seok announced from behind the camera, "Enjoy your meal. You need to come down to the lobby by 9 AM tomorrow. From there, we'll move to the helicopter pad and then fly to our destination. Make sure your personal belongings are packed in your suitcase and loaded onto the helicopter."

The two buried their faces in their dishes, making circles with their fingers as if to say everything was delicious, prompting Yeong-seok to continue filming with a circular motion of his finger.

**

The next morning, everyone gathered on the first floor of the hotel on time, and the production staff, wearing double blindfolds, escorted Geon and Chae-eun into a car. Feeling her way with her hands, Chae-eun said, "Ah! Where are we going with these blindfolds? I'm scared."

Resigned to his fate, Geon, blindfolded, was loaded into the car. Soon, the sound of helicopter propellers whirring could be heard, and they were escorted onto the helicopter. Unable to see, Chae-eun held onto Geon's hand tightly as they sat on the helicopter and wondered, "Where are we going?"

Geon, holding Chae-eun's hand reassuringly, said, "Don't worry, sister. Worrying won't make it any easier."

Geon then patted Chae-eun's back with his other hand, easing her anxiety as she leaned back comfortably. The helicopter flew for over an hour. Eventually, it stopped its forward motion and hovered in the air before landing at a location, where the staff helped Geon and Chae-eun off the helicopter.

Following the staff's lead, they felt their way to a spot and then heard the helicopter leaving, prompting them to shout, "Ah!! My suitcase! It's still on the helicopter! Did you take it down?"

Chae-eun, unable to see anything because of the blindfold, stomped her feet in frustration. As the sound of the helicopter's propellers faded into the distance, Yeong-seok's voice could be heard, "Now, you can take off your blindfolds."

Geon, reaching into his pocket while still blindfolded, removed his blindfold at Yeong-seok's instruction. Squinting against the strong sunlight, he waited for his vision to return. As Geon's sight adjusted to the light and he lowered his hand, he looked around.

"Wow!!! It's really magnificent!"

The Himalayan mountains unfolded before Geon's eyes. Far away, beautiful snow-capped mountains touched the sky, and the majestic landscape of the overwhelming mountain range made Geon spread his arms and spin around, laughing. Chae-eun, too, was amazed by the view of the mountains and turned around to see Geon, who was smiling brightly far away, looking like an angel against the backdrop of the Himalayas with his somewhat short hair, fair face, and a tall figure with an innocently bright smile.

Yeong-seok gestured for the camera director to capture Chae-eun's expression. The camera director quickly moved to a position where he could capture both Geon and Chae-eun in one shot, lifting the tripod. Geon, still smiling, spun around, enjoying the view of the mountains, then approached a cliff edge to look down. Below, clouds obscured the view, but through them, the endless mountain range stretched out. Turning to the right, he saw a very small village on a hillside, shimmering in the sunlight. Standing at the edge of the cliff, Geon felt the mountain wind on his face and closed his eyes.

Chae-eun watched him from behind, her hands involuntarily touching her flushed cheeks as she stared blankly at Geon. A beautiful melody flowed from Geon's lips as he sang with his eyes closed.

(The Almighty of the Mountain.)

(I am happy in the mountains.)

(Every tree speaks to me through you.)

(Nature is a book made by God.)

With arms spread wide, Geon's voice singing as he gazed at the distant snow-capped mountains resonated far and wide along the ridges of the Himalayas. Chae-eun, astonished by Geon's beautiful voice, covered her mouth with her interlocked hands and looked at him with dreamy eyes, as his figure merged with the mountainside. Raising his arms higher, Geon sang with a louder voice.

(I am now on the roof of the world.)

(Here I look down on everyone, but I'm too small.)

(The Almighty of the Mountain.)

(I am happy in the mountains.)

(Every tree is talking to me through you.)

(Nature is a book made by God.)

Even after the beautiful song that flowed from Geon's lips had ended, Geon's eyes remained closed. Chae-eun, who had been staring at Geon with her mouth agape, the filming team capturing Geon, and even Yeong-seok, who should have been giving directions to the filming team, all experienced a momentary suspension of thought, intoxicated by the magnificent Himalayas, the beautiful young man standing before them, and his song.

After a while, Geon opened his eyes and looked at the scenery below the cliff. The cool mountain breeze fluttered Geon's hair, and he turned to Chae-eun with a smile. Chae-eun, startled by Geon's gaze, quickly cooled her flushed cheeks with her hands and asked, "Wh-What kind of man is so beautiful... And what was that song? It's the first time I've heard it, and it's so good."

Geon shrugged and said, "It's a song I just made up. Just a tune that flowed out, haha."

Chae-eun, wide-eyed, looked at the production team, and even Yeong-seok had a surprised expression. Chae-eun looked back and forth between Yeong-seok and Geon, thinking, 'He's not called a genius for nothing!'

Chae-eun, with the Himalayas as a backdrop and hands on her hips, asked Geon with a smile, "Geon, how did you start music?"

Geon, stepping onto a small rock and closing his eyes to feel the wind, said, "I don't know when it was. One day, someone whispered to me. And at some unknown time, I began to sing, and that brought me many connections. My debut in a drama OST was really a chance occurrence."

"Someone whispered to you?"

"Yes! Someone whispered to me every night. They said to make the world happy with your songs."

Chae-eun was speechless. Yeong-seok, too, just looked at Geon blankly with his arms crossed. After a moment, Geon looked at the camera and asked, "Bro, what should we do now?"

Yeong-seok, a bit startled by Geon's sudden question, shook his head and said, "Ah, sorry. Now, you two, see the luggage over there? Go and check it."

Geon turned to see his guitar placed a short distance away. Upon closer inspection, the luggage consisted of Geon's J-200 guitar, two flashes, a map, and a rolled-up letter. Geon first secured his guitar, and Chae-eun approached to read the letter.

"Welcome to the song of the Himalayas. Enclosed is a map with today's destination marked. Please arrive there within the next eight hours. If you arrive on time, you will receive a survival kit to aid in your survival."

As Geon unfolded the map, a large map of Nepal expanded, with a flag drawing and "Deurali" written below. Geon lowered the map and told Chae-eun, "Today's destination is a place called Deurali. But looking at the map, I can't tell where we are, so I'm not sure how long it will take, sister."

Chae-eun approached and looked at the map curiously. Geon pointed to the small village he had seen earlier and said, "Let's go there first, sister, and ask around."

Chae-eun, looking worriedly at the village Geon pointed to, said, "Will English work there? I'm not worried about English with you here."

"Well, we'll find out when we get there. But, Yeong-seok bro! What about our suitcases?"

Yeong-seok smirked and said, "The helicopter took them."

"What? Then what about us? Our clothes are in there."

"Fend for yourselves. Completing the arrival mission will solve the basics. Of course, if you don't complete it, you won't get anything."

"Wow, you're really a devil PD!!! Arghhh!!!"

Yeong-seok chuckled and shrugged, and Geon, resigned, looked back at Chae-eun and said, "Sigh, sister, let's just head to that

village for now. It seems like a Sherpa village, so there should be someone who speaks English."

After walking for about 20 minutes, Chae-eun and Geon reached the entrance to the village. The village was a small settlement of about twenty Sherpas and their families, with a total of nine old buildings that could be considered houses.

Approaching an elderly man sitting at the village entrance, Geon greeted him. The elderly man, with poor eyesight, squinted at Geon as he approached. As Geon got closer, the man's eyes widened, and he pointed his finger, saying, "???? ?? ???? ??? ?? (Deva? Are you a celestial being?)"

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