One Step Further on the Hundred-Foot Pole
Seeing Jeong Do-hong, the martial arts director, approach him swiftly, Suhyeon felt it once again.
His senses are sharp. As expected, he's the real deal.
As Jeong stood before him, Suhyeon greeted him with a bright, fresh smile.
"Hello. You're Jeong Do-hong, the martial arts director, right?"
"That's right. I'm Jeong Do-hong. From the look in your eyes, it seems you've properly trained in the martial way. So who might you be?"
"I'm Suhyeon, leader of the idol group BBG. I'm here today for the audition for Moonlight Escort."
"An idol? Do idols these days have to learn martial arts instead of dance to debut? I'll ask again. Who are you? Where did you learn the martial way?"
At that moment, the athletic woman in workout clothes who had handed Suhyeon the receiver and mic earlier approached.
"Master. Director Jang Jin-seok says he needs to discuss something about the audition and asks you to come to the office right away."
Jeong turned to the woman and replied.
"Mm. Got it. Minji, tell him I'll be there soon."
He turned back to Suhyeon and asked.
"No time, so I'll keep it simple. What do you think a true martial artist is?"
Suhyeon hesitated briefly at Jeong's question before answering.
"In my personal opinion... Yoo Jae-sik and Park Byeong-su are the top duo of true martial artists."
Jeong's face twisted slightly at Suhyeon's lame joke.
"What nonsense is that? Are you messing with me? Why is a young guy like you beating around the bush, trying to hide something? Give me a proper answer on what a martial artist is. I'm genuinely interested in hearing your thoughts."
Suhyeon inwardly cursed at Jeong's words.
Damn. It's only been how long since I decided to show my true self to the world? I still can't shake the habit from my strategist days of hiding my true intentions. Sigh. Even after Park-siljang warned me so many times, I haven't fixed it.
Suhyeon reaffirmed his resolve not to hide himself from the world anymore and met Jeong's gaze with a clear voice.
"Whew. Director Jeong, do you know the saying one step further on the hundred-foot pole?"
"Mm. Of course I know that one."
"A hundred feet is about thirty meters in modern units, right? If you're hanging at the top of a pole that high, people below would look up and think, 'That guy's up in such a dangerous spot—he must be amazing.'"
"Sure."
"But that's just the level of technique. It's no different from performing circus tricks. Standing on the pole and showing off skills—nothing more. But true Dao can't be attained in that state. You have to take one step further, literally advance from there."
"One step further? Wouldn't that be dangerous?"
"Of course it's dangerous. Perfect height to fall to your death. But the Way isn't some cheap thing you can glimpse without risking your life. You have to be prepared to die just to catch a tail-end view of it. The same goes for a martial artist, don't you think? Someone who trains in martial arts with death on the line—that's a true martial artist."
"Hmm. So... have you ever trained that way? Prepared to die?"
At Jeong's question, memories of his past life surfaced, drawing a wry smile from Suhyeon.
"I have, many times in the past. Can't go into details, though."
"I see. A young guy like you prepared to die for training before. My eyes didn't deceive me. Thanks for sharing your serious thoughts. You said you're here for an audition?"
"Yes."
"Got it. Good luck."
Jeong flashed a beaming smile like a blooming flower, patted Suhyeon's shoulder a few times, and headed back to the office. Soon after, the auditions for the sword guards Song Hae-seop and Oh Geom began.
The next morning, Suhyeon was chatting in the Actor Team 1 office with Manager Park Dongju.
"Suhyeon, what the hell did you do at that audition?"
"Huh? I just acted out a few lines. 'Captain Kim Dong-su! You must retreat quickly. The enemies are coming. I'll lead the breakthrough.' 'Princess! It's dangerous.' Stuff like that. What special lines does a sword guard have? And it's not even the lead, just a supporting role."
"Hmm. Really? Then why is Jeong Do-hong, the martial arts director, insisting on you? Saying it's you or no one, practically demanding it?"
"Didn't I tell you before I'm confident in physical roles? Guess I nailed the action acting."
"It's more than that. I heard if Jeong doesn't get you, he won't do martial arts direction for this film—practically blackmailing Director Jang Jin-seok."
"Hahaha. What would I know?"
Damn, whether past life or this one, these martial obsessives are all so stubbornly single-minded. Well, if they weren't, who would walk that thorny path their whole life?
"Anyway, good for you. If Jeong pushes that hard, you've got a solid shot at the supporting role. Nice work. And around next week, there's an audition for No Reason Like Dying, so read the script ahead."
"Huh? You said I have a good shot at Moonlight Escort? Another audition? What if the schedules overlap?"
"Like you said, it's not the lead, just supporting. Barely a few cuts—what's to worry? Focus on prepping."
Suhyeon sighed at Park's words.
At the end of that talk, he smiled, but there was fire burning in Jeong's eyes.
"Just a bad feeling my scenes might multiply if I get cast."
"Even better! What's the worry?"
As Park grew even happier, Suhyeon realized further talk was pointless, stood, and left the room.
Moments later, arriving at BBG's practice room, Suhyeon found the members dancing in formation to their released song.
As he entered, they all waved hello. Suhyeon waved back and said,
"What's with the intense practice? Sudden Love Mode promotions are over, right?"
Marvin replied for the group.
"Got a pumassi gig tomorrow. Just running through it lightly."
"Pumassi?"
"Yeah."
Suhyeon searched his mind for the term.
A relatively simple cooperative labor system in rural areas—unlike dure, which is communal, pumassi is more personal...
"We heading to some farm tomorrow for weeding volunteer work?"
"What nonsense is that? Pink Berry has an event tomorrow, so we're doing pumassi with them."
"......So what's that?"
"You get weird sometimes lately. The accident messing you up? Simple explanation: Pink Berry's a rookie girl group that hasn't even dropped a single. Company's testing them out. To gauge public reaction, they need stage time, but no one's booking them without a name. So senior idols from the company bundle with them for gigs."
Seongbin, who had been listening quietly, chimed in.
"That way, Pink Berry gets paid enough for meals or makeup. In return, they back us up for free at concerts. We call it pumassi—our company's old tradition. Helps rookies survive the nameless days."
"Ah, got it. Then I'll practice with you guys too."
The members stared at him with wide bunny eyes in shock, and Marvin cautiously asked,
"You're going on pumassi? You never do those. Waste of time since no pay. We were practicing without you, assuming you'd skip."
Suhyeon's brow furrowed slightly at Marvin's words.
This shit-stirring lump... no end to it. Sigh.
"How can the leader skip a good event like that? I'll make sure not to miss anymore. Let's practice together."
The others nodded, surprised but accepting.
Soon, the intro to Roller Coaster Boy rang out from the practice room speakers: doong-dang ttiriri~ doong-doong-dang ttiririri~.
It was Suhyeon's first dance practice with BBG since reincarnating, so he felt a twinge of nerves inside.
Dance was decent even for this body's previous owner, and I know the choreo. Just don't mess up.
Taut with tension for his first group practice, Suhyeon focused his mind, heightened his senses, felt the members' movements through his skin, matched them perfectly, and danced hard.
Midway through Roller Coaster Boy, the highlight hit: knees bent, squat low, hands high shaking like riding a roller coaster.
To the whii~ oo~ ung sounds, Suhyeon slammed down firmly, thrust hands skyward shaking them, sprang up powerfully for the next move, then squatted again shaking hands, dancing fervently.
In the midst of it, Seongbin—the best dancer in BBG, who created the choreo himself—stood up mid-dance, staring blankly at Suhyeon.
The other members gradually stopped dancing, stood, and stared at Suhyeon too.
As they halted, Suhyeon stopped too, turned, and eyed them suspiciously.
"Why'd everyone stop dancing to stare at me?"
As Seongbin opened his mouth to answer,
the practice room door burst open, and six young, pretty girls rushed in, shouting energetically in unison, drawing all eyes instantly.