Chapter 74
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 74
Chapter Title: Bad Guy
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Scene 74
Bad Guy.
Allan, who was behind the wheel, glanced at the atmosphere in the back through the rearview mirror and casually struck up a conversation.
“English?”
At Allan’s question, the manager stammered, “Uh… uh…” but Jennifer, who had been staring out the window with a bored expression, answered for her.
“Yes. I can.”
“Oho, good. Okay, good.”
Hearing that Jennifer spoke English, Allan exclaimed, “Okay, good,” with a pleased look on his face.
“Is there something you wanted to ask?”
When Jennifer posed the question, Allan nodded as if it were obvious and pulled out his signature line.
“Do you know Camu?”
“Eh?”
“What?”
Seeing their bewildered expressions, Allan, as always, began to boast about the Camu farm.
“Jennifer. What’s that man saying?”
“Ah, unni. Well, according to him.”
“Yeah. According to him?”
“The place we’re going to… is a paradise on earth, the likes of which the world has never seen?”
“Paradise?”
The manager shot a slightly incredulous look at the back of Allan’s head.
She knew that everyone felt pride in where they lived and wanted to show it off, but talking about a paradise on earth seemed a bit much.
“And the owner there is the kindest man in the world… Is this translation right?”
Jennifer tilted her head in the middle of interpreting Allan’s words.
“Why? Does it sound strange?”
“No. It’s just that I’ve lived in the States for a long time, so my vocabulary for certain situations can be a bit weak.”
“And?”
“He’s bragging about the farm owner. Respectable. Cool. Scary…? Anyway, he’s talking with some complex mix of meanings. I’m not sure how to explain it.”
“Respectable, cool, and scary?”
“But he also says he’s kind. And Don Karman? It sounds like it could be a name. Or maybe a title.”
“What is he talking about? There’s no one like that in the world.”
The manager let out another scoff, following her reaction to the paradise comment.
After the farm owner, Allan now began to boast about his son.
“The farm is named Camu because the owner’s son’s name is Camu. And Camu is…”
As the word “Camu” left Allan’s lips, the manager chimed in knowingly.
“That’s the word from ‘Do you know Camu?’ earlier, right?”
“Yes. He says Camu is the name of the farm and the owner’s son. But…”
“But what?”
“He says he’s the most handsome man in the world…”
“Wow, that man. He’s just a compulsive liar. A paradise the world has never seen, its owner the most wonderful person in the world, and his son the most handsome man in the world? Is he for real, or just talking nonsense?”
Jennifer giggled at her manager’s words.
“So what else is he saying? I’m curious to see how far this ‘never before seen in the world’ series goes. Keep translating.”
“That person, Camu… Huh?”
“Why? What is it?”
“He says he’s a drama writer? What does that mean?”
Jennifer tilted her head, not understanding.
“A drama writer? For the one we’re filming now?”
“Yes. That’s what he’s saying.”
“Wait a minute.”
The manager wore an expression of dawning realization and asked Jennifer to translate for her.
“Driver. By any chance, is this Camu person the original author of *The Urus Murders*?”
“Okay! Camu is the one who wrote that novel. Pfft, is that all? I only found out recently myself. Well, Camu also wrote the script for *Urus Club* and is co-writing or something for the drama they’re filming now.”
Allan praised and boasted about Camu endlessly, as if he were his own son.
“What’d he say? Is it true?”
“Yes. He says that Camu is the original author.”
“Wow! Really? I’m a huge fan! This is amazing.”
The manager clasped her hands together and wondered aloud, “Do you think I could get an autograph when we get to the farm?”
As if understanding what the manager’s reaction meant, Allan chuckled and asked Jennifer, “A singer?”
Jennifer stroked her guitar case and nodded.
“Nice. Very nice.”
Allan was in such a good mood that he even started humming. But as Jennifer listened to his humming, her expression changed to one of curiosity.
“Excuse me. Sir.”
“Yes.”
“The song you were just singing.”
“The song? Ah. The one I was humming?”
“Yes. That one… May I ask what the title is?”
“I don’t really know the title. Why? I guess it didn’t sound too bad to a singer, huh?”
At Allan’s question, Jennifer nodded quickly.
“By any chance, could you tell me who made… no, who sang that song?”
“This one? Of course. But why the sudden question?”
Allan was about to say who sang it but instead posed a question of his own.
“Well. It sounds very similar to a song someone I know used to sing…”
At Jennifer’s answer, Allan tilted his head with a look that said, *That can’t be right.*
“That’s strange. This song has never been on the radio or broadcast anywhere.”
At Allan’s reply, Jennifer’s eyes flashed.
“Really? You mean it’s not a released song?”
“That’s right. It’s a song the neighborhood kids sing.”
“What? The neighborhood kids?”
“That’s right. But you’ve heard this song before? Have you ever been to Malta?”
*No. No way.*
*This is the first time I’ve even heard the name Malta.*
*And my first time visiting!*
*But that song you were humming…*
“Um, by any chance.”
Jennifer swallowed hard and continued.
“Is that song a local folk song or…”
“Folk song? What are you talking about? The kids were bored and pestering him to play with them. Camu played it for them on his guitar, and I guess it’s catchy. The kids started singing along right away. My kids sing it when they’re bored, and I’ve heard it so often I started humming it too.”
At Allan’s answer, Jennifer swallowed a dry lump in her throat.
“That person, Camu. How old is he?”
“He’s not thirty yet, I think?”
*Thirty…?*
Jennifer strained to recall a memory from the past.
How old was that person back then?
He definitely seemed older than her. Twenty? Or maybe twenty-two, twenty-three?
*It’s been seven years…*
Jennifer leaned forward, poking her head between the front seats.
“This Camu person. Is he a native here?”
“Not exactly, but he’s as good as a native.”
“By any chance, did he live in the United States or…”
As Jennifer’s questions continued, Allan grew wary and quietly clammed up.
“Excuse me? Sir?”
“Ahem. I’m not sure why you’re suddenly asking these questions… If you’re curious, wouldn’t it be better to ask the person directly?”
“What? Please don’t be like that. You can at least tell me if he’s ever lived in the States.”
Seeing Jennifer’s somewhat frantic demeanor, Allan started to worry that he might have said something he shouldn’t have.
The manager also sensed something was off about Jennifer’s behavior and pulled her back.
“Jennifer. What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”
“No. It’s nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“The song the driver was humming sounded familiar, but I can’t quite place it.”
“Oh, honestly. Even now, you’re all about music. Get some rest while we’re traveling. You’re going to make yourself sick if you keep this up.”
Not knowing what was really on Jennifer’s mind, the manager patted her shoulder as if to tell her to take it easy.
She was already worried sick about Jennifer’s punishing schedule, and if she actually got sick, it would be a disaster not just for her, but for everyone at the company.
With Allan, who had been chattering away on his own, now quiet, a strange silence fell over the taxi.
“What’s with the driver? He was talking up a storm by himself, and now he’s tired out?”
Jennifer shrugged, as if she didn’t know either.
*He definitely knows something, so why did he suddenly shut up? What’s the reason? Did I ask too abruptly and make him uncomfortable? I should have been more subtle.*
Jennifer pondered how to bring up the subject again, then opened her guitar case.
“Why the guitar?”
“Just a moment.”
Jennifer took out her guitar, tuned it briefly, and then began to play a song, as if for Allan to hear.
The manager started to stop Jennifer but then held her tongue.
Sometimes, when she took out her guitar and strummed like this, an amazing song would be born.
Up front, Allan’s expression changed to one of surprise at the sound of Jennifer’s playing.
A longer, more stable melody than what he had just been humming flowed from the instrument.
Jennifer met Allan’s eyes in the rearview mirror and this time began to add her voice to the music.
♬♪♩~ Don’t give meaning to your tears.
♬♪♩~ Don’t give meaning to your sadness either.
♬♪♩~ Don’t find your meaning in fear.
As Jennifer’s vocals layered over the guitar, Allan’s hands on the steering wheel began to tap along to the beat.
♬♪♩~ The world’s door is open to everyone.
♬♪♩~ Don’t stop, just one step. If you just take one step.
Allan, who had only been tapping his fingers, started to unconsciously move his lips, mouthing the lyrics.
And as the song rushed toward its climax, the same words and the same notes formed a harmony between Jennifer and Allan.
♬♪♩~ Don’t forget. You, and I. That our world is always beautiful.
The manager, who had been listening to the music with her eyes closed, now looked back and forth between Jennifer and Allan with a bewildered expression.
It was clearly a song she was hearing for the first time, yet the taxi driver was singing along as if he had known it for ages.
Since the song was in English, she didn’t understand the lyrics, but if it was a new song Jennifer had written, there was no way the driver could sing along.
“This… is it a Maltese folk song?”
Jennifer shook her head at the manager’s question.
“No.”
“It’s not? Then how does he…”
“Exactly. I’m very curious about that myself.”
Jennifer curled the corners of her lips up into an unreadable smile.
As Jennifer was putting her guitar back in its case, Allan cleared his throat, “Ahem, ahem,” and looked at her in the rearview mirror.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Uh… well. By any chance, did you know our Camu?”
At Allan’s question, Jennifer replied with a bright smile.
“We have the kind of relationship you don’t forget.”
“Oh, I knew it. Somehow. I had a feeling. So, when did you meet Camu?”
“It’s already been seven years.”
“So you’ve known each other for a long time. I had no idea. Haha. Are you, by any chance, friends?”
Allan asked with a pleasant smile, but he sucked in a sharp breath at Jennifer’s next reply.
“The bad guy who left a woman all alone and disappeared without a word.”
At Jennifer’s answer, Allan fell silent.
*Damn it, I had a bad feeling about this. I should have just pretended I didn’t know anything until the end.*
He had thought it was suspicious how she kept prying about Camu.
But to think she was a woman from his past.
Unaware of the conversation that had just transpired, the manager focused only on Jennifer’s last words.
“Is the title of this song ‘Bad Guy’?”
Jennifer almost burst out laughing at her manager’s question.
“Yeah. Something like that.”
As the vehicle Jennifer was in entered the farm’s entrance, the manager’s expression began to change.
“I don’t know about ‘never before seen in the world,’ but… the atmosphere here is incredible.”
When the car stopped, Seong-hui and the production team, who had been waiting for Jennifer, greeted her warmly.
Director Choi Pil-yeon and Im Han-sol got out of the car, followed by the staff and Jennifer.
The moment Jennifer stepped out, Allan, who had been watching with a nervous expression, quickly ran toward the main house.
“Camu. Camu!”
At the sound of Allan’s voice calling for Camu, Kang Man-dong showed his face.
“Allan? Why are you looking for Camu?”
“It’s… it’s a disaster.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden? A disaster.”
Kang Man-dong put down the plate he was holding and rushed out to the backyard.
He feared that those bastards targeting his son had made another move.
“Well, you see.”
“Ah, for heaven’s sake! You’re frustrating me. What is it?”
“Ca…Camu abandoned a woman in America.”
At Allan’s sudden, context-free announcement, Kang Man-dong’s expression went blank for a moment.
*Who abandoned who?*
*What kind of bullshit is this?*
“The… there was a woman among the guests I just brought.”
“Yeah, there was.”
“She was asking all sorts of questions about Camu.”
“So?”
“So, I thought something was strange and casually asked her if she knew Camu.”
“And then?”
“And you know what? Right away. She called Camu a no-good bastard.”
“What does that mean? Speak clearly. You know what kind of person Camu is.”
“She said. Seven years ago in America. He left her all alone and just disappeared without a word.”
Kang Man-dong wondered what all this was about.
“Sev… seven years ago?”
Seven years ago was indeed when Yu-hyeon had been busy traveling back and forth to the US.
“Anyway, the atmosphere felt really tense. You know. You see it in dramas.”
“See what?”
“A woman who was betrayed by a man in the past, and after a decade or so, she returns as a successful woman, dreaming of revenge…”
“Damn it. What nonsense.”
Kang Man-dong scowled, telling him not to talk nonsense.
It couldn’t be his son, of all people, who would do such a despicable thing.
“What’s the woman’s name? Did you get her name?”
“Yes. Jennifer, I think? She seemed to be a singer.”
“Who?”
“Jennifer.”
“So. The singer who came from Korea?”
“Yes.”
Allan nodded eagerly.
“Alright, I get it. I’ll handle it, so you just be careful what you say.”
After sending Allan away, Kang Man-dong went inside, intending to confirm it with Yu-hyeon directly. But he was nowhere to be seen.
“Mi-ra. Have you seen Yu-hyeon?”
“Yu-hyeon? He just went out to the front yard.”
*Damn. A step too late!*
He didn’t fully believe Allan’s story, but just in case.
If something even remotely similar had actually happened…
Kang Man-dong rushed out to the front yard.
*Damn it. What should I do? I’ve never considered a situation like this!*