Chapter 71
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Oh, You’re a Doctor!
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Scene.71
Oh, so you were a doctor!
Click-clack. Whirrr. Clack. Tap-tap-tap!
From the makeshift editing room set up in a corner of the pension, the sounds of a keyboard and joystick, punctuated by someone’s manic giggling, echoed repeatedly.
PD Lee Hye-jin, having just returned from the dawn shoot, approached the editing room with the new tapes.
Suddenly, someone grabbed her by the shoulder.
“Director Bae?”
“PD Lee. Don’t go in.”
“What?”
Hye-jin tilted her head, looking at Bae Cheol-su.
“I have to deliver the footage from the dawn shoot…”
“Right. Yeah. Just leave it over there. I’ll take it to him in a bit.”
Bae Cheol-su, his face etched with exhaustion, pointed to a corner of a desk.
As Hye-jin stared, bewildered, at Bae Cheol-su and then toward the editing room, a disturbing “Heh heh” laugh drifted out from behind the partition.
Realization dawned on Hye-jin’s face. She placed the tapes on the desk and quickly turned to leave.
But it was too late. Yu Han-seong pushed aside the partition and blocked her path, his eyes bloodshot.
“Hye-jin.”
Matted hair and bloodshot eyes.
Dark circles that reached his chin.
Dull, greasy skin dotted with breakouts like late-blooming acne.
On top of that, he had lost so much weight that he looked like a zombie. With a crazed gleam in his eyes, he grabbed Hye-jin.
“CP… nim.”
“You can’t just come and go without stopping by the editing room…”
“Ah… no. I still have more shots to film. I’ll come back later.”
Hye-jin, her face a mask of horror, tried to shake off Yu Han-seong’s hand and escape. But even as he staggered, looking as if he might collapse at any moment, his grip was like the devil’s claw, refusing to let go.
“Hye… jin. You can’t just leave… You have to… see the trailer I made.”
With a limp, swaying motion, Yu Han-seong dragged Hye-jin past the partition and into the editing room.
“CP… No, sunbae. I can watch the trailer later.”
“N-no. You… you have to… watch it now…”
Yu Han-seong licked his parched lips and forced Hye-jin into a chair in front of the monitor.
*Ugh! It’s filthy! A hikikomori’s room after ten years would be cleaner than this!*
Tapes and snack bags were strewn everywhere. There were piles of indecipherable scribbles and socks that had been carelessly kicked off.
It felt like walking into a refugee camp.
“Now… play… the button… hurry…”
Yu Han-seong pointed at the file on the screen, glaring at her as if to ask why she wasn’t playing it already.
Hye-jin shrank back, eyeing the sticky desk and the greasy keyboard and mouse.
She couldn’t bring herself to touch them, repulsed by an unidentifiable film of what could be either grime or sweat.
“You… you play it, CP-nim.”
“Should… I?”
“Yes. Please!”
As Lee Hye-jin nodded her head like a madwoman, Yu Han-seong held out a pair of sticky headphones with strands of hair tangled in them.
“You… have to hear the sound, too.”
Hye-jin’s face contorted in horror as she pointed to the small auxiliary speakers.
“It’s a trailer, right? Wouldn’t it be better to get the feeling of watching it on TV? From a viewer’s perspective!”
“Ah… is that so? Right. You’re right, Hye-jin.”
Muttering, “To get the full viewer experience,” Yu Han-seong unplugged the headphone jack and pressed the spacebar, playing the promotional trailer for *Lovers in Malta*.
A moment later, Lee Hye-jin, who had been cowering, found herself leaning closer and closer to the monitor without realizing it.
“CP… I mean, sunbae-nim.”
“So… what did you think…”
“Fuck! This is incredible!!!”
“R-really? That’s a relief. Now, pass the baton.”
“Huh? What baton?”
“If you don’t want to be cleaning up my corpse, Hye-jin, you should handle the next edit…”
Yu Han-seong couldn’t finish his sentence before he passed out cold.
“Aah! Sunbae-nim! Wake up! Sunbae!!!”
*
At the same time Lee Hye-jin was being held captive by Yu Han-seong to watch the trailer, breakfast was being served as usual in the main building’s dining room.
Kim Seong-hui, now a regular at breakfast, was there, along with Han Mi-ra, who had been lingering around the house after the dawn shoot. A man named Jaden, who seemed to be in some discomfort, also joined them at the table.
“You’re a friend of Yu-hyeon’s?”
Kang Man-dong asked Jaden as he served the food.
“Pardon? Ah, yes.”
Jaden nodded with a stoop, and Kim Seong-hui, who was watching from the side, spoke up.
“I heard you’re with Doctors Without Borders.”
Kim Seong-hui said, her pronunciation awkward.
With the increasing number of English speakers on set, she had recently been trying to converse in English, even if it was just a few short phrases.
“Yes. That’s also correct.”
A doctor with Doctors Without Borders.
This wasn’t a fabricated identity; it was Jaden’s real one.
The problem was that while other doctors chose the path of service to help those in need, Jaden had used it as a pretext to travel around and indulge in his hobbies—an impure motive, to say the least.
At first, he had tried to give a fake name and identity, but each time, a large Black man would make a phone call, and his lies were immediately exposed.
Yu-hyeon had let out a dry laugh at Jaden’s attitude and said this:
‘If you want to become a late bloomer.’
And then, a physical conversation had begun.
Jaden had foolishly thought that if he just held out for a bit, they would let it go. He was nearly sent to his grave without being able to utter a sound.
Realizing he could take no more, Jaden had recited the 40 years of his life in meticulous detail, his voice pleading and his eyes sincere.
His story was verified again through the mysterious Black man, and only after most of it was confirmed to be true was he allowed to live.
The moment Kang Man-dong heard Jaden was a doctor, his expression changed instantly.
“Oh, so you were a doctor!”
Kang Man-dong clapped Jaden on the shoulder as if pleased to meet him.
*Aaaargh! My bones… my joints! My… my shoulder!*
Except for his face and hands, his entire body had received a deep tissue massage, so even a light pat felt like it would make him scream.
His body was already frail, but as Yu-hyeon had warned, the gym education had turned him into a “late bloomer” (the kind that screamed at the slightest touch).
However, with Yu-hyeon staring him down from across the table, tracking his every move in milliseconds, he couldn’t even pretend to be in pain and had to force a smile.
“But this is a resort, not some remote village in Africa. If you’re with Doctors Without Borders, shouldn’t you be somewhere else?”
When Kang Man-dong looked puzzled, Jaden recited the lines he had agreed on with Yu-hyeon.
“I needed a short break.”
“I asked him to be on standby in case anyone gets hurt during the action scenes. He’s better than he looks. His specialty is surgery.”
“Ah, is that so? Well now. Doctor, we’re counting on you.”
As if understanding the deeper meaning, Kang Man-dong patted Jaden’s shoulder again.
*Aaargh! Stop it! Stop touching my shoulder!*
He wasn’t sure if the pain was because he had truly become a late bloomer or if Kang Man-dong’s touch was just that fierce, but every time his shoulder was patted, a crushing pain shot through his collarbone.
Jaden’s suspicion became a reality soon after.
Once the simple but neat breakfast was finished and Kim Seong-hui and Han Mi-ra had left, Kang Man-dong, who had been smiling and calling him “Doctor, Doctor,” suddenly turned and snarled.
“I hear you’re the killer who came to murder my son.”
“What? Huh? No… that’s not… Gack!”
Kang Man-dong’s brutish hand shot out, seizing Jaden by the neck and lifting him effortlessly into the air.
“Uoogh!”
Kang Man-dong pulled Jaden’s face close to his, speaking as if he were about to chew him up and spit him out.
“Hey, killer.”
“Urgh… uh…”
“Do you have any idea who you messed with?”
“…Ugh. Huh?”
“I’m a member of the Cosa Nostra Commission.”
“…!”
Cosa Nostra? A member of the traditional Mafia’s commission?
*An Asian man? That’s impossible…*
“What’s an Asian doing in the Cosa Nostra, you ask? Well, I managed to pull off the impossible.”
“…”
“And you, Mr. Killer, had the gall to mess with the son of the man who did.”
“…!”
Jaden had been in this business for eight years. He knew there were certain people you didn’t mess with, and at the top of that list was the Cosa Nostra.
They showed a certain degree of etiquette in legitimate duels, competitions, or business conflicts. But in most other dealings, they were utterly ruthless, and once they deemed someone an enemy, they would use any means necessary to finish them.
That was why, while business conflicts might arise, the unwritten commandment in this world was to never create a grudge with them.
“Carve this deep into the dull folds of your brain. My name is Don Karman. And my son is the adopted son of the Cosa Nostra Commission.”
*The… the Commission’s adopted son? The Mafia bosses collectively adopted a son?*
Jaden’s eyes darted toward Yu-hyeon.
“Count yourself lucky. If my son had gotten so much as a scratch, not only you, but your family, relatives, and friends would have all tasted hell.”
Kang Man-dong shook Jaden by the neck from side to side before roughly throwing him to the ground.
*Thump.* Jaden, sprawled on the dining room floor, clutched his bruised neck and gasped for air.
As Jaden stared at Kang Man-dong with terrified eyes, Yu-hyeon gestured with a finger, as if telling his father to stop showing off and sit down.
Jaden cautiously pushed himself up and perched demurely on the edge of a dining chair.
Yu-hyeon looked at him and spoke calmly.
“Still got any bright ideas left in that head of yours?”
“N-no, sir!”
Jaden shook his head frantically, as if to say he had no such intentions.
Seeing Jaden’s desperate expression, Yu-hyeon and Kang Man-dong nodded as if they would be watching him from now on.
Then, as if they had never been angry or cold, they reverted to being an ordinary father and son.
More terrifying to Jaden than their previous snarling was the sight of them calmly clearing the table and washing the dishes as if nothing had happened.
*What… what the hell! Don’t just switch expressions like that! It’s even more… more terrifying!*
After finishing in the kitchen, Yu-hyeon offered Jaden a fragrant cup of coffee.
“You said you had a job to do with me, right?”
“Sir…”
“I told everyone we’re friends. What’s with the ‘sir’? People will think it’s weird.”
“Th-then what should I…”
“Say ‘yeah’.”
“Y-yeah.”
As Jaden cautiously said “yeah,” glancing at Kang Man-dong, Yu-hyeon continued.
“About that job you were planning to do.”
“Th-that, I’ve already given up on it!”
“Calm down.”
“…”
“Continue with it. But as a failure.”
“What?”
Yu-hyeon frowned as if to ask if he’d forgotten “yeah” already. Jaden, with a heavy heart, forced out a questioning, “Uh… yeah?”
“Because of what you do, cars will get wrecked, people will get hurt, and dangerous situations will arise.”
“…Yeah.”
“However, no one is to get seriously hurt. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“So, you just want me to stage convincing incidents.”
“Exactly. You catch on quick. And whenever something like that happens, don’t forget your duty as a doctor.”
“Y-yeah.”
“And send photos of the scenes you stage to your client.”
“I’m not supposed to contact them until the job is done…”
“I know. But in life, there are always exceptions.”
Jaden nodded to show he understood.
“When you send the photos, be sure to add this message.”
“What…”
“‘I failed this time, but I’ll succeed next time.’ Ah, and make the information one-way. You don’t need to worry about the client’s response.”
“Why… go to the trouble?”
The job had already failed. He didn’t understand why they were making things more complicated when they could just end it here.
“Because they messed with the Cosa Nostra. They have to pay the price. Until we say it’s over.”
*D-damn it!*
Jaden realized he was caught in a nasty situation, but he couldn’t say he wouldn’t do it. If he did, their relentless focus would shift from his client to him.
“And you saw Writer Kim Seong-hui earlier, right?”
“Y-yeah.”
“Good. From now on, stick by her side. If she asks questions, give her advice. Embellish your experiences a little and share them. Think of it as helping her write the script.”
“My… experiences?”
He looked confused, unsure if Yu-hyeon meant his experiences as a doctor or his… other hobbies.
“Both.”
“Uh… um. What if she thinks it’s strange…”
“If you can’t even handle that much, is there any reason for you to be here?”
“No, sir! I can do it well!”
“I told you, friends don’t use formal language.”
“Y-yeah.”
*Damn it. Can’t you just let me use formal speech? I break out in a cold sweat every time I have to say ‘yeah’!*
After dropping Jaden off with Seong-hui, Kang Man-dong called Yu-hyeon over for a talk.
“Yes, Father.”
“The Cosa Nostra. Didn’t we draw a line with them back then?”
“With what you and I did, do you think drawing a line would ever sever the connection?”
Kang Man-dong’s expression was tinged with regret. If only he had been a little more cold-hearted back then, he never would have gotten involved with people like that.
“There’s no such thing as kindness without a price.”
“You don’t have to worry. They’d have to show me this kind of kindness dozens more times before the scales are balanced.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I think Bishop Duan could explain it better than I can.”
“Duan? That talkative priest?”
“Yes.”
“Alright, I understand. I’m curious about the story, but as you said, I’ll ask Bishop Duan.”
*
The piping-hot trailer and the edited first two episodes arrived from Malta, and the broadcast executives gathered in one room.
What had started as a simple filler program had snowballed into a drama that now held the fate of the network.
The production budget was overflowing, and thanks to the full-throated support of HS Group, the ad slots were sold out even before the show aired. On top of that, a Hollywood star and a writer from the Urus Club had joined, and with a Hollywood crew from Fox Studios on board, the scale had become immense.
Director Yang San-do swallowed nervously as he looked around the screening room, where even the president of GBS was in attendance.
He’d been in broadcasting for decades and had seen his share of incidents, but this was a first, and he found it hard to quell his anxiety.
President Pyo Chang-ho gestured to Yang San-do.
“Yes, President-nim.”
“I have high expectations for you, Director Yang.”
On any other day, the president’s attention would have made him smile, but today, he was being extremely cautious.
He had no idea how the trailer and the first two episodes from Yu Han-seong had turned out, but with the stakes this high, if the content ended up being merely mediocre, he wouldn’t just lose his shot at an executive position—he’d be lucky to keep his director’s seat.
“I will do my best.”
President Pyo Chang-ho shook his head at Director Yang’s formulaic response.
“I expect not your best, but the best results.”
*Damn it. What pressure.*
Director Yang bowed his head again.
“Yes, President-nim. Shall we begin the screening?”
“Let’s.”
As President Pyo nodded, Director Yang gave a signal to PD Park Chan-seong.
The lights in the screening room dimmed, and the trailer for *Lovers in Malta* (The Birth of the Urus Club) began to play.
*
While the urgent screening was taking place in Korea, a temporary holiday was declared in Malta following Yu Han-seong’s collapse.
Having run themselves ragged without a moment’s rest, both the production team and the cast were exhausted, and they decided to take a short break to recharge.
And that evening, the third blind date for Yu-hyeon, which Kim Seong-hui had promised Kang Man-dong in exchange for the filming location, appeared at the farm, an acoustic guitar slung over her shoulder.