“My brother doesn’t remember anything the day after he gets drunk.”
Ariana handed over three gold coins. Ruben felt his throat tighten at the light weight.
Ariana turned her head to the members who were staring blankly at this scene.
“If you all keep your mouths shut, I can keep today’s events a secret. As I said, my brother won’t remember anything when he wakes up.”
Several members gulped.
The decisive moment when she struck Edward’s head with the flute still lingered before Ruben's eyes.
“But will something like today really happen only today?”
The members each made serious expressions at the calm question.
“Everyone.”
Ariana’s eyes sparkled quietly as she looked back at the members.
“Are you satisfied with the treatment you received at the Lopez Opera House?”
The members’ eyes widened in an instant.
Ariana slowly looked back at them.
Where should I start? The conclusion came quickly.
She glanced at Edward, who was still lying down, oblivious to the world, and said.
“The music at the Lopez Opera House is all my work. Not his.”
Silence fell.
“...”
The members exchanged glances with astonished faces. Not a single one of them seemed to believe it.
“Oh my God...!”
Except for Ruben, who covered his mouth in shock.
“Haven’t you ever thought it was strange? My brother, he had a strange lack of sense for music. He would constantly nitpick and tell you to tune his tuned instrument. He would insist that the right notes were wrong, and he would ignore them even when you played them wrong.”
He’s just like his father in that regard.
Ariana smiled faintly, swallowing her next words.
“Forget about the firing. The violin is the lifeblood of this piece.”
The faces of the violinists, who had been pale with despair, instantly brightened at those words.
“Let’s end this pointless rehearsal. And, Mr. Ruben.”
“...Yes, yes? Yes?”
Ariana approached Ruben, who answered in a dazed voice.
Ruben’s vision was clouded by the platinum hair that shone almost silver in the light.
Her eyes, which seemed to be covered in green, and her graceful demeanor made it hard to believe she was only twenty years old.
Ruben couldn’t take his eyes off her, even though his hand was throbbing.
“Give me your hand.”
“...Yes?”
Ruben was startled as if he had just woken up from a dream.
Ariana spoke again with a calm, yet firm expression.
“I told you to give me your hand.”
“My, my hand? Why, why are you...”
Ariana let out a small sigh.
“I know.”
“Yes, yes?”
“It’s hurt. The back of your hand.”
“...Yes?!”
He could be proud that he didn’t show it at all.
‘But, how.’
How did this lady, who had been watching from afar, notice something that even his colleagues hadn’t noticed?
“How... How did you know?”
“The sound shook slightly. Especially when you played the trill. It was on the index finger of your right hand, right? That’s where it hurt.”
Ruben opened his mouth as if he had met a ghost.
“Uh, uh, how could you be so precise...”
“Because I heard it.”
Ariana answered calmly and handed Ruben something shiny.
“Go to the hospital. If you don’t overwork it anymore and get treatment, it’ll get better in a few days.”
“Ah...”
Ariana smiled faintly, swallowing her next words.
“Forget about the firing. The violin is the lifeblood of this piece.”
The faces of the violinists, who had been pale with despair, instantly brightened at those words.
“Let’s end this pointless rehearsal. And, Mr. Ruben.”
“...Yes, yes? Yes?”
Ariana approached Ruben, who answered in a dazed voice.
Ruben’s vision was clouded by the platinum hair that shone almost silver in the light.
Her eyes, which seemed to be covered in green, and her graceful demeanor made it hard to believe she was only twenty years old.
Ruben couldn’t take his eyes off her, even though his hand was throbbing.
“Give me your hand.”
“...Yes?”
Ruben was startled as if he had just woken up from a dream.
Ariana spoke again with a calm, yet firm expression.
“I told you to give me your hand.”
“My, my hand? Why, why are you...”
Ariana let out a small sigh.
“I know.”
“Yes, yes?”
“It’s hurt. The back of your hand.”
“...Yes?!”
He could be proud that he didn’t show it at all.
‘But, how.’
How did this lady, who had been watching from afar, notice something that even his colleagues hadn’t noticed?
“How... How did you know?”
“The sound shook slightly. Especially when you played the trill. It was on the index finger of your right hand, right? That’s where it hurt.”
Ruben opened his mouth as if he had met a ghost.
“Uh, uh, how could you be so precise...”
“Because I heard it.”
Ariana answered calmly and handed Ruben something shiny.
“Go to the hospital. If you don’t overwork it anymore and get treatment, it’ll get better in a few days.”
“Ah...”
Ariana handed over three gold coins. Ruben felt his throat tighten at the light weight.
Ariana turned her head to the members who were staring blankly at this scene.
“If you all keep your mouths shut, I can keep today’s events a secret. As I said, my brother won’t remember anything when he wakes up.”
Several members gulped.
The decisive moment when she struck Edward’s head with the flute still lingered before Ruben's eyes.
“But will something like today really happen only today?”
The members each made serious expressions at the calm question.
“Everyone.”
Ariana’s eyes sparkled quietly as she looked back at the members.
“Are you satisfied with the treatment you received at the Lopez Opera House?”
The members’ eyes widened in an instant.
Ariana slowly looked back at them.
Where should I start? The conclusion came quickly.
She glanced at Edward, who was still lying down, oblivious to the world, and said.
“The music at the Lopez Opera House is all my work. Not his.”
Silence fell.
“...”
The members exchanged glances with astonished faces. Not a single one of them seemed to believe it.
“Oh my God...!”
Except for Ruben, who covered his mouth in shock.
“Haven’t you ever thought it was strange? My brother, he had a strange lack of sense for music. He would constantly nitpick and tell you to tune his tuned instrument. He would insist that the right notes were wrong, and he would ignore them even when you played them wrong.”
The members’ eyes shook greatly.
Instead of trying to persuade them any further, Ariana walked over to the piano.
“The ‘Adulteress’ Aria’ sheet music you are holding is a heavily rearranged version. The original is like this.”
And immediately the performance began.
Clink!
The sound continued like a rush, without any time to panic at the strong first note.
“...”
Several members slowly opened their mouths.
It was definitely a similar melody and a similar structure. It wasn't much different from the song they were playing.
But that subtle and minute difference completely changed the impression of the song.
Ariana's expression was calm. The fingers that struck the keys were as elegant and delicate as a nun's.
But the melody those fingers evoked was incredibly explicit.
The heroine covets her friend's husband who is like a sister.
The gloomy and sloppy desire was entangled in each note. It was music so messy and full of sullenness that it made the listeners blush.
'I can't believe music can express this kind of emotion... '
Until now, music has generally been a tool to express positive emotions such as love for God or joy or pleasure.
So everyone thought that this 'Aria of the Adulteress', which dealt with an unusual subject like adultery, was an interesting attempt.
The song was also quite excellent, so it was predicted that it would definitely be a hit.
However, this, this music was something more than that.
When this music was released, critics would be shocked. Some would go wild, saying that this was an insult to music, the art of God.
However, it would certainly capture the ears of many more people.
The members stared blankly at the performer as they listened to the raging performance.
Similar thoughts were running through their heads.
'It's real.'
The lady playing the keyboard freely before their eyes, and this lady's music was real.
It was a truth that no one could deny since they had heard it with their own two ears.
"...”
Whoo.
Ariana let out a short breath after finishing her performance.
She raised her head in the suffocating silence. And she found dozens of eyes staring blankly at her.
“...Ariana.”
Orchestra Master Louis broke the silence and stepped forward.
He took his seat in front of Ariana with a respectful attitude and slowly opened his mouth with a complicated expression.
“When you asked, ‘Are you satisfied with the treatment at the Lopez Opera House?’, was it because you wanted to offer us another option?”
“You got it right.”
Ariana closed the piano lid and continued slowly.
“I would like to offer you a new job. An orchestra that I will run, not my brother’s. Of course...”
Instead of trying to persuade them any further, Ariana walked over to the piano.
“The ‘Adulteress’ Aria’ sheet music you are holding is a heavily rearranged version. The original is like this.”
And immediately the performance began.
Clink!
The sound continued like a rush, without any time to panic at the strong first note.
“...”
Several members slowly opened their mouths.
It was definitely a similar melody and a similar structure. It wasn't much different from the song they were playing.
But that subtle and minute difference completely changed the impression of the song.
Ariana's expression was calm. The fingers that struck the keys were as elegant and delicate as a nun's.
But the melody those fingers evoked was incredibly explicit.
The heroine covets her friend's husband who is like a sister.
The gloomy and sloppy desire was entangled in each note. It was music so messy and full of sullenness that it made the listeners blush.
'I can't believe music can express this kind of emotion... '
Until now, music has generally been a tool to express positive emotions such as love for God or joy or pleasure.
So everyone thought that this 'Aria of the Adulteress', which dealt with an unusual subject like adultery, was an interesting attempt.
The song was also quite excellent, so it was predicted that it would definitely be a hit.
However, this, this music was something more than that.
When this music was released, critics would be shocked. Some would go wild, saying that this was an insult to music, the art of God.
However, it would certainly capture the ears of many more people.
The members stared blankly at the performer as they listened to the raging performance.
Similar thoughts were running through their heads.
'It's real.'
The lady playing the keyboard freely before their eyes, and this lady's music was real.
It was a truth that no one could deny since they had heard it with their own two ears.
"...”
Whoo.
Ariana let out a short breath after finishing her performance.
She raised her head in the suffocating silence. And she found dozens of eyes staring blankly at her.
“...Ariana.”
Orchestra Master Louis broke the silence and stepped forward.
He took his seat in front of Ariana with a respectful attitude and slowly opened his mouth with a complicated expression.
“When you asked, ‘Are you satisfied with the treatment at the Lopez Opera House?’, was it because you wanted to offer us another option?”
“You got it right.”
Ariana closed the piano lid and continued slowly.
“I would like to offer you a new job. An orchestra that I will run, not my brother’s. Of course...”
Ariana was about to take out her important card, promising a much better salary than now.
“I will go.”
Louis said firmly.
“I will follow you, Ariana.”
“...”
Ariana blinked for a moment at the faster response than expected. Then someone came running out.
“Me, me too.”
Ruben raised his hand and shouted.
“I’ll follow you too! I’ll get my hand treated quickly. I promise I won’t be a hindrance! Really. So please take me too.”
The boy begged in an earnest voice.
“Please let me play the music you just played.”
“...”
Ariana swallowed the strange feeling tickling her chest and looked around at each member. The members were waiting for Ariana’s answer. They all had nervous expressions on their faces, perhaps misunderstanding that she was going to choose only a few of them. Ariana moistened her dry lips with her tongue and opened her mouth.
“...That’s too bad.”
“Huh?”
The members looked at Ariana with bewildered eyes. Ruben looked as if he was about to cry. Ariana looked at each of them with a serious expression.
“I was just about to say that I would promise you a much better salary than what you’re getting now.”
“Huh...!”
“Since you’re all here before I make the offer, then I guess there’s no salary increase...”
A commotion. The startled members looked at each other. Ruben said with a determined expression during the commotion.
“Oh, there’s nothing I can do.”
What can I do? Ariana smiled as she looked back at the boy who was giving off an immature vibe.
“I’m joking. Please, all of you, join me. I promise you a much better salary than what Lopez House is paying you now.”
“...!”
The members’ eyes widened in unison. Louis was the first to catch his breath and answer.
“Thank you, Ariana. I will never let Ariana’s music become a burden.”
“Yes, thank you!”
Ruben cried out, then. The other members looked at each other and shared excited looks. It was around that time that they heard an unexpected noise.
Kuuul!
“...”
Those who turned towards the noise for a moment forgot what to say.
Edward, who had been lying down, was now lying down comfortably and snoring.
Ariana muttered, looking down at her drunk brother.
“Now we have to clean this up...”
“We’ll clean it up, the Count!”
“Arianna, don’t worry about the cleanup, just go back!”
“Yes! We’ll definitely clean it up.”
The members said confidently.
If Edward doesn’t remember what happened today, as Ariana said, they can pretend that he got drunk and collapsed on his own.
Ariana hesitated for a moment, then nodded with a faint smile.
“Then I’ll trust you and ask you to do it.”
“Yes! Leave it to us!”
The members answered vigorously and supported Edward.
They frowned at the overwhelming smell of alcohol, but they couldn’t just carelessly carry out their first mission given to them by their new leader.
“This is it, um...”
The dark audience.
The man leaning against the darkness, Elias Reiner, roughly stroked the back of my head.
“You’re beyond my expectations.”
Reiner muttered to himself in vain, then let out a hollow laugh.
“I figured you weren’t some ordinary lady since you reached out to me... Oh, really. It seems like there are always surprising things to come when I follow you around.”
Reiner looked back at his old friend with sparkling eyes.
His red eyes were staring straight at a single spot on the stage without a single waver.
“Isn’t that right? Dante.”
“...”
Instead of answering, the man who had seeped into the shadows darker than darkness lifted the corners of his lips.
Edward, who had been lying down, was now lying down comfortably and snoring.
Ariana muttered, looking down at her drunk brother.
“Now we have to clean this up...”
“We’ll clean it up, the Count!”
“Arianna, don’t worry about the cleanup, just go back!”
“Yes! We’ll definitely clean it up.”
The members said confidently.
If Edward doesn’t remember what happened today, as Ariana said, they can pretend that he got drunk and collapsed on his own.
Ariana hesitated for a moment, then nodded with a faint smile.
“Then I’ll trust you and ask you to do it.”
“Yes! Leave it to us!”
The members answered vigorously and supported Edward.
They frowned at the overwhelming smell of alcohol, but they couldn’t just carelessly carry out their first mission given to them by their new leader.
“This is it, um...”
The dark audience.
The man leaning against the darkness, Elias Reiner, roughly stroked the back of my head.
“You’re beyond my expectations.”
Reiner muttered to himself in vain, then let out a hollow laugh.
“I figured you weren’t some ordinary lady since you reached out to me... Oh, really. It seems like there are always surprising things to come when I follow you around.”
Reiner looked back at his old friend with sparkling eyes.
His red eyes were staring straight at a single spot on the stage without a single waver.
“Isn’t that right? Dante.”
“...”
Instead of answering, the man who had seeped into the shadows darker than darkness lifted the corners of his lips.
Support Novellate!
Not creepy at all.
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