Chapter 21
Chapter 21
Translator: Penny
Chapter 21
A promising tree is recognizable from its sprouts.
Those were the words Kang Seon-woo heard from a judge during his first talent audition as a rookie, fresh out of becoming an adult and having just come up to Seoul, looking very nervous.
And now, Kang Seon-woo has truly become one of the top five actors in Korea.
“So, is acting that feels comfortable even after countless repetitions, acting that feels like you can do it again and again, good acting?”
Kang Seon-woo vividly felt the interviewer’s sentiment from back then at Ha-eun’s response, who didn’t show even a hint of embarrassment at the reporter’s calculated question, only a calm voice.
Of course, he already knew that Ha-eun was an extraordinary child in many ways.
Over the past few months of filming "My Next-door Neighbor," he couldn't help but be amazed by Ha-eun's high-level acting more than once.
However, that was only within the realm of the camera screen.
There were definitely child actors who could be compared to Ha-eun's level, even if they didn't quite reach it.
During Kang Seon-woo's past filming of various dramas and movies, he had met children born with beautiful appearances.
Children who had already learned how to convey emotions to others.
Children who naturally exuded an aura that drew attention.
However, precisely because he had met them.
Because he had already met children born with what people commonly call the "destiny to become an actor," he could be certain.
“Isn’t it that feeling acting is hard means you’ve done your best in acting?”
Ha-eun shouldn't be grouped into the same category as those children.
That was a talent of a different kind than acting.
“So, I think I’m lucky that I can act as Kim Jia with difficulty.”
Unwavering gaze.
Word choice that fundamentally blocked any room for misunderstanding.
Decisively, that relaxed smile, as if she already saw through the reporter's shallow intentions.
The eerie sight of turning the person who laid the trap into a stepping stone to make Ha-eun stand out even more.
'...Seriously, how is that a 7-year-old?'
Kang Seon-woo felt as if he were facing a thousand-year-old serpent.
After all, the ability to manipulate others to one's liking was not a given to just anyone.
One way or another, the current Ha-eun was merely a sprout of only 7 years old.
That meant there were still more than 10 years left until Ha-eun became a full-fledged tree.
He couldn't help but look forward to what that already-skilled child would look like as an adult.
To what shape the future of a child who deserved to be called a genius would take.
"Good job, Ha-eun."
"...Kang Seon-woo, you too."
However, for some reason, ever since the press conference ended.
To be exact, from the moment they returned to the waiting room, she was being difficult, even using the title of actor, Kang Seon-woo, as if she was finding Kang Seon-woo difficult to approach.
Even when he told her to just call him Seon-woo uncle comfortably.
Or even Kang senior, Ha-eun didn't budge, so he spoke to Song Na-yeon, puzzled.
"Um, Ha-eun's mother. Did I perhaps make a mistake with Ha-eun?"
"Well... I've only heard good things about Kang Seon-woo..."
The truth that it wasn't Kang Seon-woo himself, but the overwhelming popularity of Kang Seon-woo that she felt burdened by, neither Kang Seon-woo nor Song Na-yeon knew.
Therefore, Kang Seon-woo couldn't help but feel disappointed at Ha-eun's sudden distancing.
He thought they had become quite close while filming "My Next-door Neighbor" together for the past few months.
Well, anyway. Thanks to Ha-eun, the press conference, which was full of scheming from some reporters, ended well.
And since there wouldn't be any particular reason to meet Ha-eun after today.
"Then, it's about time for dinner. Let's go to a company dinner, Ha-eun."
"Yes? A company dinner...?"
"Yeah, a company dinner. Usually, after finishing something like a press conference, everyone goes to eat something delicious together."
He took Ha-eun, who hadn't had a proper meal other than the piece of cake in the waiting room, to a Korean set menu restaurant he had booked in advance.
Of course, with Ha-eun's mother, Song Na-yeon, as well.
In fact, he had already contacted the other cast members and some of the filming staff in advance, so familiar faces soon appeared at the Korean set menu restaurant.
One way or another, this company dinner was also to commemorate the end of all the production processes of "My Next-door Neighbor."
The only reason he had been constantly debating until today whether or not to have Ha-eun, who played a very big role in making "My Next-door Neighbor," attend the company dinner was just one.
'Hmm... I wonder if tteokgalbi will suit her taste.'
Because there was hardly any food that children of Ha-eun's age would like at the high-end Korean set menu restaurant that was chosen as the venue.
A fancy restaurant that only served Korean set menus, not even selling the common pork cutlet.
Even so, he thought it wouldn't make sense to have a company dinner without Ha-eun, who was clearly the lead of "My Next-door Neighbor," so he brought her along for now.
But from the first page to the last page of the menu, the only dish Ha-eun could eat was the mini tteokgalbi.
"Okay, everyone, thank you for your hard work all this time~!"
"““Thank you for your hard work!”””
Even until all the ordered dishes came out and the sounds of spoons and chopsticks moving here and there began to be heard.
He couldn't help but glance at Ha-eun, wondering if he had forced her to come to a restaurant that only suited the tastes of adults.
And, not long after, Kang Seon-woo realized one unexpected fact.
"Um, do you have to pay extra for side dishes separately?"
"Huh? No, they'll bring them back if you ask..."
The concept of being picky about food didn't exist for Ha-eun.
Without even touching the neatly placed tteokgalbi in front of her, Ha-eun's chopsticks were heading towards the foods with the so-called "healthy taste."
Starting with perilla leaf pickles, spinach, cucumber kimchi, lotus root, and carrot stew.
Even the eggplant salad!
"Um, Ha-eun. If you're forcing yourself to eat─"
"?"
"Ah, no... It's nothing. Eat a lot."
Just in case, he carefully asked if Ha-eun was forcing herself to swallow foods that didn't suit her taste.
But no matter how he looked at it, that expression wasn't the expression of someone eating something bad.
After that, she ate well with a calm expression without even frowning once.
She even refilled it twice, three times, because once wasn't enough.
This was clearly a sight that completely shattered Kang Seon-woo's common sense that children don't eat things like that.
He briefly considered the possibility that Ha-eun was acting, but there was not a single reason to eat those things while putting on a poker face.
At this point, Ha-eun was even scary.
Was Ha-eun, who was showing off her tremendous chopstick skills towards various spring greens right next to Kang Seon-woo, really a 7-year-old child?
'...Could that also be called a talent? Really?'
And so, the dinner, which was a slightly different scene than what Kang Seon-woo had expected, ended.
Since the second round, a pub, was a restricted area for minors like Ha-eun, it was time to say goodbye to Ha-eun.
'Um... The abalone is fresh. It feels like it was caught just a few minutes ago.'
Even the steamed abalone, which could look scary enough to children, was skillfully peeled and eaten, and the image wouldn't leave his head.
This was because Kang Seon-woo himself had previously assessed Ha-eun as an extraordinary child in many ways, but he had never thought that it would apply to this extent.
-Click.
-Click, click.
"Hmm..."
It was about two months after the release of "My Next-door Neighbor."
Just like she did during the previous Matchstick music video, Ha-eun was currently looking up what kind of reviews her acting was receiving from people.
However, since there were still more than 10 years left until Ha-eun was old enough to watch "My Next-door Neighbor" without any problems.
Even after reading and rereading various comments and blog posts on the internet, she couldn't really know what kind of feeling Ha-eun's acting actually gave.
Even from her mother, who had finished watching "My Next-door Neighbor" on the first day of its release.
Even from the kindergarten teachers who had taken the time to watch "My Next-door Neighbor" on the weekend.
She only heard the abstract expression that Ha-eun's acting was very excellent.
She wanted to hear in great detail what emotions were felt in which scenes, but honestly, she felt a bit hesitant to ask that much.
<"My Next-door Neighbor" #1 for 5 Weeks in a Row!>
<"My Next-door Neighbor" Surpasses 5 Million Cumulative Viewers!>
'...That's a relief.'
Through articles about "My Next-door Neighbor," she only grasped that the box office success of "My Next-door Neighbor" was gradually starting to resemble the box office success that Ha-eun knew.
She had been worried that it would record a lower score than the box office success Ha-eun knew because Ha-eun took on the role of Kim Jia instead of Min Da-yeon, who was originally Kim Jia.
As a result, it hadn't changed much yet.
Above all, since "My Next-door Neighbor" was already a type of work that had left Ha-eun's hands.
"Mom, I'm going out with Jeong-yun unnie for a bit."
A work that hadn't left Ha-eun's hands yet.
In other words, she headed to the vacant lot near her house again today for the kindergarten "Autumn Sports Day" scheduled for a few days later.
One way or another, Ha-eun, who had been doing various small exercises regularly and systematically for quite some time, was the ace of the Dal-nim class.
There were more than one or two roles that Ha-eun had to play at the Autumn Sports Day.
"Ready, set... go!!"
At Ju Jeong-yun's signal, who had prepared a stopwatch in advance to measure Ha-eun's running record, she crossed the vacant lot in a straight line.
It wasn't exactly 50 meters without a single error, but the result of running a roughly similar distance was 9.11 seconds.
Considering that the 50-meter running record for a typical upper-grade elementary school boy was in the late 9-second range, it was a very fast record.
Ha-eun herself said that it came out slower than she thought and ran a few more times, and only stopped running after finally getting a record in the 8-second range.
"I heard Ha-eun is the last runner in the relay race?"
"Yes."
"Then, unless they're behind by about a lap, Ha-eun's team will win."
She thought that Ju Jeong-yun's praise was just something she was saying.
Perhaps because she had a body that had difficulty even with ordinary jogging, let alone running with all her might in her previous life, Ha-eun found it difficult to objectively judge her physical abilities.
Still, well, she was going to do her best this time as well.
For the sake of the classmates who trusted Ha-eun and selected her as the last runner in the relay race, she wasn't even thinking of slacking off.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny