Episode 52
'The Korean film industry really has been ignorant all this time.'
They’d make child actors perform cruel scenes, and then never provide any care afterward.
Honestly, there must be a lot of child actors carrying trauma.
It had been changing, little by little.
Honestly, I don’t need the care.
But even so, shouldn’t I make a strong case for the sake of the other child actors?
Things like this have to set a precedent. If it gets out that a famous kid like me received psychological care, everyone else will follow suit.
Mr. Deoksu asked again, this time seriously.
“Understood. And there’s one more thing I’d like to request.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“If the shoot runs long, please make sure to give him nap time.”
Director Lee Jin-hwan nodded.
“Yes. Yes, of course we will.”
“Thank you. Then I’ll pass that along to Ma Soo-jung.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Ah, but I also think the child’s own wishes matter. Gongza, do you want to be in the film?”
Huh? Why was he talking like that?
And so what if his manner was gentle and his face was smiling? If he looked at me with those terrifying eyes, then…
Whew. Since I know he’s a good person, I’ll let it slide. If it were someone else, I’d be rolling my eyes.
I broke into a wide grin.
“Yeth!”
“I see. Understood. Oh dear, I haven’t even offered you tea.”
Mr. Deoksu rose from his seat.
“Please wait a moment.”
“Huh? Yes!”
He headed to the kitchen, but the two still looked restless.
“You didn’t put something weird in the tea, did you?”
“No, but a nanny?”
“Who hires a gang enforcer as a nanny?”
Oh, dear.
I whispered again.
“Big Dog Mister! It’s okay!”
Really. Throw away your prejudices. Not every big dog is vicious, you know.
“R-really, Gongza?”
“Yeth! He won’t bite!”
Ah. I’d accidentally let something slip while thinking about dogs.
“B-bite?”
“When he gets mad, does he, y-you know, tear people apart?”
Good grief.
Unfortunately, before the atmosphere could recover, Mr. Deoksu came back with coffee.
Watching the two of them tremble as they drank, I let out a long sigh. There was definitely still a long way to go.
* * *
Mr. Deoksu strapped me into a car seat.
“If you’re uncomfortable, let me know. We’ve got a long way to go.”
To be honest, I wasn’t uncomfortable at all.
“It’s okay!”
“I see. Then let’s buckle up and off we go.”
Vroom vroom.
It’s nothing special, but somehow it sounds weird when Mr. Deoksu says it.
Well, if I started counting strange things, I’d be here forever.
I looked around. This was actually my first time riding in a car.
It’s not a sedan, it’s a van.
And the inside was remarkably clean.
Is this thing brand-new?
Just as I tilted my head, Mr. Deoksu said, “Ma Soo-jung prepared this for our Gongza.”
Wow, Mom.
She bought a brand-new vehicle.
That must’ve cost a fortune.
Still, she does make a lot of money.
Even so, my mom was bold.
Mr. Deoksu started the engine. The van rolled forward smoothly.
“Do you know where we’re going today?”
I nodded.
“Camera! There’s camera!”
“Yes. That’s right. It’s a filming set. It’s very crowded there, with a lot of people. Gongza seems brave and strong, but please do take care of him.”
I blinked. Mr. Deoksu continued in his calm voice.
“There are a lot of dangerous things, so be careful.”
He really was worried, wasn’t he?
“Yeth!”
“Good. Let’s go. Sleeping is fine too.”
He really was meticulous in every way. I swung my legs and drew in a breath.
Ah, I’m excited.
A film shoot.
Well, I did film City of the Dead, so this is my second time.
Back then, I was just an unnamed baby. Today, I was the child actor playing the lead’s younger self.
Come to think of it, is Han Woo-jin really going to appear?
I wanted to ask, but I was still a baby.
Babies don’t ask questions like that, right?
Maybe because I was still so young, my capacity for information was limited. I squirmed around and closed my eyes. Honestly, Mr. Deoksu was right.
I should probably sleep now.
If I wanted to be bright-eyed and energetic on set, that is.
I wish I’d grow up faster.
The van glided along smoothly. I closed my eyes. Maybe because I was young, sleep came quickly.
* * *
Mr. Deoksu was pushing the stroller while holding a pink bag.
A stroller, with a black suit.
It was very strange, but if I started talking about strange things, there’d be no end to it. Sitting in the stroller, I looked around.
Ah, this is the film set.
It definitely looked like a low-budget production.
“Oh my, Gongza!”
“Director! Gongza’s here!”
People gathered around. I greeted them with a bright smile.
“Hello!”
“Eek! So cute!”
No, staff member. Why does your scream sound like a crow?
The director came out and beamed.
“Ah, our savior has arrived!”
Huh? What did he mean by that?
“Gongza really is our savior.”
“Just the fact that Han Woo-jin is in it…”
“We’re saved!”
“And he helped us secure funding too!”
“Though it’s still a low-budget film!”
What was this, Han Woo-jin?
He actually agreed to it?
No, why?
There’s a bit of a class gap here, isn’t there?
Han Woo-jin was an incredible actor, after all.
“He even adjusted his fee for us.”
The director clenched his fist.
“I still remember that day. I really persuaded him with all my heart and soul.”
“I’m glad he agreed so readily.”
“And it was lucky he had some free time.”
“He even postponed a trip to Africa for our project.”
Wow, Han Woo-jin. So that’s how it was.
Wait, Africa?
I remembered.
Han Woo-jin got sick there in his previous life and really suffered, didn’t he?
I’d heard he’d been bitten by some kind of new tick.
It wasn’t life-threatening, but I remembered him saying it was a huge ordeal.
Then appearing in this film is a much better deal.
If his schedule had shifted, maybe he wouldn’t have gotten bitten by that tick.
And Han Woo-jin in this project, too.
A grin crept onto my face.
It won’t flop.
Han Woo-jin was a ticket-power actor.
It’ll probably be easier to sell overseas too.
He was popular not just in Korea, but abroad as well.
Still, even if I’m great, it’s hard if the adult role feels wrong.
I was glad Han Woo-jin was here. Excited, I clapped my hands.
“Kyaa!”
“Oh, Gongza’s laughing.”
“Gongza, why are you laughing?”
“I’m happy!”
“Oh, what’re you happy about?”
Because this film looks like it’s going to succeed.
But I can’t exactly say that.
I glanced around and said, “There are lots of cameras!”
Everyone started murmuring.
“Looks like the baby likes cameras.”
“Thank goodness. He isn’t scared.”
The director said carefully, “Gongza. Um, today you need to do as I tell you, okay?”
Oh, was that acting direction?
“Yeth!”
“Haha. How adorable. Um, today Gongza will be appearing with a grandmother.”
Ah, so there was a scene partner?
“The grandmother’s going to act really scary. But it’s just acting.”
That was an explanation tailored perfectly to a child.
Come to think of it, who am I acting with?
Last time, it was just an actress whose name I didn’t know. But the casting had changed, so I had no idea now.
Then a voice came from behind the director.
“Oh, this is the child actor playing the lead?”
A thin actress stepped forward. I recognized her at once.
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun?
Actress Yoon Jung-hyun. A veteran performer who had worked steadily for decades.
She even went on variety shows later and became a success.
But even before that, she was already a highly respected actress.
We were in the same production in my previous life.
Come to think of it, she’d been quite fond of me back then.
All at once, old memories came flooding back.
Thinking about it, this is the first time I’ve met someone I knew in my previous life.
I looked at Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun. Sure enough, because of my regression, she was much younger than the woman I remembered.
“Oh, this little one is strange.”
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun said, meeting my eyes.
“The kid’s looking at me with such a wistful expression.”
Oh, no.
She was a sharp one.
I smiled brightly and said, “Hello! I’m Gongza!”
“Oh, I know. I heard you’re famous. Apparently all the clothes you wear sell out so fast nobody can buy them.”
Well, that’s true.
“My daughter-in-law called me yesterday and told me to help her find one.”
“Oh, teacher. What did you do?”
“I told her to just dress the kid simply. Children grow up so fast anyway.”
Oh, I kind of agree with that.
My mom doesn’t seem to think so, though.
If I opened my closet, it looked like the clothes were overflowing and about to burst out.
Maybe I should tell her to ease up later.
But getting to see photos of me in cute clothes seemed to be one of her little joys, so it would be hard to stop her…
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun looked me over from head to toe.
“Cute.”
“Right?”
“No, I mean your face. A kid like this will grow up handsome too, won’t he?”
Will he? Good eye.
“And he’s Ma Soo-jung’s son, right? Wow, this child’s got a lucky fate.”
I very much agree.
“It’s not just his face, Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun. Did you see the ending scene of Emergency Room?”
“No, I didn’t. But that’s why I’m asking—does he act well? No, can he even act at all?”
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun looked at me with eyes full of suspicion.
“What, did you test him before casting him?”
Huh. Come to think of it…
They were so busy with the investment issue that they rushed the casting.
Now that I thought about it, they hadn’t even checked my acting ability.
The director wiped his forehead and said, “W-well, he was really good in Emergency Room.”
“You. You didn’t check? Wait, how can you cast someone without verifying anything?”
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun let out a deep sigh.
“I already don’t have great chemistry with child actors.”
Goodness.
But don’t worry.
I’m good at this, teacher.
“I-I’ll do my best to direct him. He’s not a kid who’s never stood in front of a camera before.”
“Sigh. Now I’m worried. I already have a headache from not sleeping enough.”
I blinked.
She had a headache?
In my memory, she was a very healthy woman.
Ah, no!
Why had I forgotten this?
At this point in time, she had lost her son.
That was why she’d developed insomnia.
I’d heard she slowly got better over the course of several years, though.
I grabbed the hem of her skirt and said, “Are you very hirt?”
“Huh?”
“Are you achy?”
Was she seriously unwell?
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun blinked. Then she looked at me and smiled a little.
“Oh, look at this one. This tiny thing is worrying about me.”
She patted my head.
“I’m fine. Gosh, cute face and a kind heart too.”
“Ms. Yoon, Gongza is famous for that. He’s got an angelic heart.”
“Oh, really? Then maybe I’ll look him up when I get home.”
I smiled bashfully and said, “Don’t be hirt!”
You have to stay healthy.
“Oh my. All right. Though even if I know that, I can’t just make the insomnia go away on command.”
She really did seem to be suffering.
There’s a way after all!
I had coins.
And now I even know the price!
I shouted inwardly, Coin use! Cure Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun’s insomnia and tell me the coin cost for the toll!
To learn the toll, 200 coins will be consumed.
To cure veteran actress Yoon Jung-hyun’s insomnia, 77,777 coins are required.
The toll will be that she smells like lavender for one month.
What the heck.
A weird toll?
Can a smell really be a toll?
Still, come to think of it, there have been plenty of weird tolls before.
The cost in coins was no small amount, but I had plenty right now, so it was manageable.
And it’s Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun.
In my previous life, she had said many good things to me.
Put that way, it doesn’t feel wasteful at all.
I immediately shouted inwardly, Execute coins!
Executed.
Everything comes with a toll.
The stated toll will now be applied.
Now sleep well, teacher.
Ms. Yoon Jung-hyun kept stroking my hair.
“Oh?”
She seemed to have noticed something strange. She lowered her nose to the top of my head.
“Hm. Smells kind of nice?”
Wow, teacher.
For a second there, I thought she was my grandmother.
Come to think of it, if there’s a scent, is it always decided that it has to come from the top of the head?