‘Making a strong friend isn’t such a bad idea after all.’
With that thought, Sang-woong smiled and extended his hand.
“My name is Park Sang-woong.”
Kyung Yoon-seul grasped Sang-woong’s hand firmly and said,
“Thank you so much, Parsi. You won’t regret this. We at Taeseong Guild promise to be your steadfast partner.”
A bright smile bloomed on her face as well.
***
Several days had passed since Sang-woong had formed a solid alliance with Taeseong Guild.
During that time, Lee Hye-won immersed herself completely in music, building her own world with renewed vitality.
Next to her guitar case, in front of the keyboard, surrounded by piles of sheet music, every moment of hers was devoted entirely to ‘Forest Melody.’
One night, after having pushed the completion of the song to its limit, the final breath was gently breathed into the melody, and it mysteriously echoed through her small room.
Lee Hye-won took a deep breath, filling her chest, and with trembling hands pressed the play button.
Clear piano notes began to fill the space, followed by a lively beat, and finally, a rich synthesizer sound unfolded like waves.
As the song played, she opened the notebook she had placed nearby.
The pages were densely covered with lyrics painstakingly crafted over the past three days.
The pages bore the marks of countless revisions—erasures and sticky notes piled up like traces of time.
Clutching the notebook with lyrics, she took a deep breath.
Now, it was time to give voice to this beautiful music and tell its story.
She started with the very first verse.
“Under the green leaves in the sunlight, small footsteps softly tiptoeing…”
She tried to match the lyrics to the gentle rhythm of the piano melody.
To express Trick’s delicate movements, she concentrated on pronouncing each syllable softly and carefully, like feathers.
For the phrase ‘softly tiptoeing,’ she wanted to evoke the feeling as if the sound of a kitten’s footsteps could be heard nearby.
She sang it over and over, trying to find the most natural and musical flow.
Sometimes she sighed, sometimes she nodded in satisfaction.
Moving into the pre-chorus, she filled her voice with tension and anticipation, matching the song’s rising atmosphere.
“From afar, resounds a mighty sound of footsteps…”
In this line, she articulated clearly and powerfully to convey Leon’s vibrant energy.
“Running freely, cutting through the wind like a spirit…”
Here, she sang in a whispery tone to give the sensation of the wind passing through the night.
Finally, it was time for the chorus.
“Dancing through forests and fields, singing songs of happiness…”
As this part held the core message of the song, she sang it with all her heart and soul.
Against the grand synthesizer sound, her voice grew stronger and clearer, reaching up to the sky.
“For proud Minky and magnificent Leon,” she sang softly, filled with loving emotion, and in the line “painting freedom inside our hearts,” she aimed to deliver overwhelming hope and emotion to the listeners.
She poured her feelings to the fullest, trying to vividly express the meaning of the lyrics.
Her voice trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes.
In the second verse, she returned to a calm mood, imagining a cat rolling on the grass and feeling the sunlight.
“Running freely across the vast plains, shouting out to the world,” she sang with vitality, as if the dog’s free-spirited cry appeared right before her eyes.
During the bridge, she worked hard to bring out the emotional atmosphere of the song.
“Every breath we take is a magical moment…”
When singing this line, she wanted to express a mysterious feeling as if time had stopped.
Her voice rang even softer and warmer, matching the melody of the cello and violin.
“Your image is the melody of a brilliant life,” she focused on delivering the lyrics with sincerity, as if engraving their meaning into her soul.
The final chorus exploded with even more intense and overwhelming emotion.
All the instruments blended together, moving towards the climax, and her voice soared to its peak.
In the last outro, she softly sang the line “With loving eyes made of snow, running freely,” as if whispering beside the gentle piano notes, closing the song.
It was as if she was earnestly wishing for Minky and Leon to run and play happily forever in the forest.
After the recording ended, Lee Hye-won took off her headphones and exhaled deeply.
It felt like returning home after a long journey.
The song she had sung with her own voice made the story in the lyrics come alive even more vividly.
Music and lyrics united to convey her initial feelings of happiness and freedom with even greater intensity.
Lee Hye-won smiled with satisfaction and played the song again.
Hoping this song would go out into the world and bring warm comfort and happiness to many people.
Outside the window, dusk had fallen deep and thick, but in her heart, the melody of the forest shone brightly.
***
A few days later, the full-scale music video meeting began at Lee Hye-won’s house.
“Welcome,” Lee Hye-won greeted Lee Ji-an and Gu Eun-woo with a warm smile.
“Congratulations on finishing the song, unnie!” Lee Ji-an exclaimed with her characteristic lively voice.
“Unnie, congratulations as well,” Gu Eun-woo said quietly but sincerely, bowing his head.
“Thank you,” Lee Hye-won replied, smiling with her eyes.
The three of them sat around the kitchen table and naturally continued their conversation.
“Lately, the subscriber count has really skyrocketed.”
Lee Hye-won said in awe.
Lee Ji-an excitedly tapped the table.
“That’s right. The subscriber count exploded when the kittens were born.”
“Well, Minky is cute, but the kittens really are like dolls. I was surprised the first time I saw them.”
Lee Hye-won praised the adorable kitten brood as if admiring a set of beautiful dolls.
Gu Eun-woo quietly joined the conversation.
“The kittens’ cuteness is huge, but honestly, Leon is the biggest reason.”
At Gu Eun-woo’s words, Lee Hye-won nodded in deep agreement with Leon’s great loyalty.
“Wow, I’ve never seen such a smart and loyal dog. Leon used to run freely in the forest and fields every day, but when he stayed put in front of Minky’s house, I thought he was just keeping her company. But when I realized he was protecting the kittens… my heart was truly moved.”
“That’s right, unnie! That video was filmed with the camera that mister bought, and I really thought my heart would stop!”
Lee Ji-an’s eyes widened as she began her story.
Thanks to the cameras Gu Eun-woo had received from Sang-woong and installed around Minky’s house, this scene was captured.
One day, one of those cameras caught an unbelievable sight.
A man greedily eyed one of Minky’s adorable kittens.
“Some man… in the blink of an eye, reached out his hand and swiftly snatched a kitten away!”
Lee Ji-an’s voice carried all the shock, anger, and tension of that moment.
The kitten let out a faint, pitiful meow, but the man, feeling only greedy satisfaction from the small life in his hand, paid no attention to his surroundings.
Just as the cute little kitten was about to be taken away, a black shadow suddenly appeared, racing at lightning speed from afar.
It was Leon.
Though the man was still quite a distance away, he instinctively recognized the overwhelming presence and intense aura radiating from the dog.
“Aaagh!”
Seeing the massive dog charging fiercely at him, the man screamed in panic and began to flee in total chaos.
But as Leon sprinted at full speed, the distance between them closed in an instant, and the man, barely able to take a step, was caught.
Leon blocked the man’s path directly in front of him.
The man trembled with shock and fear.
The dog before him was unlike any dog he had ever seen—bigger, with black fur that seemed threatening.
The fierce aura made it feel as if the dog could bite him and crush his bones at any moment.
“Grrr…”
Leon growled low and threateningly from deep in his throat.
He lowered his shoulders, ready to pounce at any second.
“Get that dog away from me!”
Overcome with terror, the man finally wet his pants.
Warmness trickled down under his soaked trousers.
Then, discarding the kitten in his hand like trash, he immediately turned and fled in haste.
In that instant, Leon sprang like lightning.
Opening his mouth precisely toward the kitten falling through the air, he caught it softly with not an inch of error.
“Meow.”
The kitten let out a faint cry, as if comforted by Leon’s strength.
In truth, Leon felt extreme anger, as if he wanted to bite to death the man who dared to intrude into his owner’s territory and threaten a family member as precious as the kittens.
But Sang-woong had firmly ordered, “Never bite a person,” so Leon forcibly suppressed the surge of instinctual fury.
After giving the fleeing man a cold glare once more, Leon turned his back without hesitation and ran toward Minky.
He gently placed the unharmed kitten into Minky’s arms.
Since that incident, Leon never left Minky’s doorstep for even a moment.
Even when he briefly left to take care of his own business, he always kept the house in his sight, never dropping his guard for a second—a loyal and devoted guardian.
“Oppa Eun-woo edited that scene and uploaded it on YouTube, and it caused a real sensation!”
Lee Ji-an couldn’t hide her excitement.
Their channel had been steadily gaining subscribers thanks to the doll-like kittens, but Leon’s heroic rescue video caused explosive growth.
“Unnie, to be honest, I was a little worried about filming and posting the music video on our channel, which didn’t have many subscribers yet. I was afraid it might hurt your image…”
Only now did Lee Ji-an let out a relieved sigh and open up.
“But after this, the subscriber count shot up so much—I can’t tell you how happy I am!”
“Ji-an, I’m not that great of a singer,” Lee Hye-won said modestly, smiling.
“Oh, come on, unnie!”
Lee Ji-an gave her a cute wink.
“I looked it up—your fans are everywhere, right? For someone like you to willingly collaborate with a newbie channel like ours, we’re truly grateful.”
Having said that, Lee Ji-an blinked her eyes eagerly and looked at Gu Eun-woo.
“Oppa Eun-woo, let’s start by showing the storyboard we worked hard on.”
At Lee Ji-an’s urging, Gu Eun-woo carefully opened the notebook he was holding.
The pages, filled with dense writing and drawings, seemed to show all the passion and effort they had poured in over time.
“When I first heard Hye-won nuna’s ‘Forest Melody,’ images like clear watercolor paintings naturally came to my mind.”
Though his voice still trembled slightly, his eyes shone with confidence and passion.
“How can I put it… It’s natural, unadorned, and unexaggerated. It’s the pure happiness and the echo of a free spirit hidden inside. I wanted to capture that feeling in the music video.”
Speaking calmly but firmly, he explained the concept behind the music video he had envisioned.
Turning the page, delicate sketches appeared.
Each scene’s composition, character movements, and camera angles were carefully calculated—a perfect storyboard.
Every drawing showed deep thought and outstanding talent.
“Wow… these drawings are really good!”
Lee Hye-won couldn’t stop marveling.
“Turns out, oppa Eun-woo used to dream of being a webtoon artist. He had to give it up due to health issues, but he said he’d start again soon.”
Lee Ji-an added proudly.
“No wonder! I thought the framing and editing style of the YouTube videos was unique.”
Lee Hye-won nodded, acknowledging his skills and offering sincere praise.
“Especially the idea of inserting those cute characters you drew throughout the video—it was so fresh and fun.”
“Thank you.”
Gu Eun-woo blushed slightly at the compliment and shyly bowed his head.
Then he pointed to the next page of the notebook and began the full storyboard explanation.