Chapter 37
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Does He Speak English?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
That guy, does he know English at all?
A half-dozen people were huddled together in a conference room, clutching their heads in frustration. Their faces were etched with clear worry and anger.
"Damn it. What the hell are we gonna do?"
"What do you mean, what? We scrap all that bastard's footage and reshoot everything..."
"Crazy son of a bitch does drunk driving. And on the day shooting wrapped, no less."
"Enough. Let's focus on what we need to do right now. I've pulled the list of scenes we have to redo, and we're way short on time. Manager, handle the press properly. And Casting Director."
"Yes."
"You got anyone good? His counterpart is Eun-ha—no random hack will do. At least a decent mask would be nice."
At those words, the casting director adjusted her glasses and straightened up.
"Director, I've got an actor in mind already. Everyone knows Jung Woo-jin, right?"
The director's eyes lit up at her words.
"Oh? The villain from that smash hit Fixer from Hell?"
"Yes. His arc just wrapped in Part 3, and I checked with his agency—they say no firm schedule right now. As you know, his mask is killer, and his build fits Ho-young perfectly."
"Hmm. He's definitely got the looks... but that guy, does he know English at all?"
"Ah..."
"Ho-young lived abroad and came back to Korea, so it doesn't have to be native fluent, but if his pronunciation sucks, that's a problem too. That's why we cast Hwang Jin-su in the first place."
"Should we at least check?"
"We don't have much time. If he can do English, set up a meeting right away. If not, move on quick. Alright, let's hustle!"
""Yes, sir!!""
Fixer from Hell's Part 3 ratings climbed slightly to 22.2%, beating last week's numbers.
Not a rom-com, but impressive for a genre piece.
And a drama's success meant success for its actors. Word was, the agency was flooded with inquiries.
The downside? Because of the chilling villain Hee-chan I played right up to the end, most roles coming my way were similar in vibe.
Killers, gang enforcers, brutal drug dealers, and so on.
"I'd love to try a role I can relax into... maybe hit up auditions."
I set down the script I'd been skimming and was about to head home when Manager Jin-woo showed up.
Knock knock knock-!
"Hyung! It's Jin-woo."
"Yeah, come in."
Jin-woo scratched his head as he spoke to me.
"Hyung! So, the promo team's asking about a project."
"Huh? What'd they say?"
"Hyung, they wanna know if you speak English..."
"What?"
Both Jin-woo and I stared at each other, dumbfounded.
Jin-woo recovered first.
"Sorry, hyung. I'll tell them no."
I stopped Jin-woo as he turned to shut the conference room door.
"Wait, hold up!"
English. Not impossible. Hell, I could do it.
I'd just forgotten because I hadn't needed it—until now. I'd already coveted three English-related talents.
From Baek Hee-jin, who'd studied abroad in the UK.
- Native-level English Conversation (B+)
- Refined British English Pronunciation (B)
And from Son Sia, Fluent English Conversation (B)—absorbed into the B+ one.
"Hey, Jin-woo. Get me that script first."
A project needing English conversation? Already piqued my interest.
The script Jin-woo brought had this on the cover:
Just Friends
"Kinda weird title?"
The role they wanted me for was the lead: male protagonist Ho-young.
Flipping through, I saw why they needed English.
"Ah, scenes dealing with overseas clients. Essential? Would stand out if the English is good."
I muttered one of the English lines to myself.
The dialogue flowed from my mouth naturally, like it was etched in my brain. Surreal, yet it felt... normal.
Wondering if it was just reading lines, I tried turning a Korean direction into English.
"We trust you will make every effort to revise your prices."
I startled myself saying it. Short sentence, sure, but...
No mental translation like most Koreans do—no process at all. English just poured out.
"Man, if I'd had this in high school..."
All those hours memorizing vocab and parsing passages, only to end up with Konglish...
Now, I conversed like a native.
My god. Thank you, Mammon.
As I marveled at my own ability, Jin-woo poked his head back in.
"Hyung... Promo team's waiting for confirmation..."
"One sec. Let me check the script first. You, sit down too."
Interest sparked, but script check came first.
Movie: Just Friends
If anything, the genre was romance.
It starts in elementary school: a girl protects a bullied boy, sparking their bond.
They walk to and from school together daily, chase disinfectant truck fog through alleys, train at taekwondo together—childhood pals.
The friendship lasts to high school. Inspired by a TV ad, the girl studies hard for Korea University's Advertising department. The boy?
- Where you going?
- Korea University Advertising.
- Korea U? Toughest school in the country?
- Yeah.
- ......
The boy hesitates, then pops the last tteokbokki in his mouth.
- Korea U... Got it.
The platonic duo shares youthful dreams, burning bright.
But mutual attraction stalls at friendship.
Afraid a confession would ruin things.
And predictably, the movie splits them.
The boy follows his parents to the US; the girl aces into Korea U alone.
Years later, post-grad, she's a mid-level ad firm team leader when the boy returns as a client exec—story kicks off.
"Eh. Pretty standard."
Solid but safe. Childhood first loves reunite, rekindle romance.
Not like Inner Beauty—no 'Ooh, this could be good.'
Meh.
"Jin-woo."
"Yes, hyung!"
"Let's go meet promo."
A meeting couldn't hurt. Curious who the female lead was.
The meeting with the Just Friends team happened fast.
Six of us in Bombaram Pictures' conference room.
Stone Actors: me and Team Leader Seok Woo-hyung.
Bombaram side: director Min Woo-jung (middle-aged woman), casting director, producer, and a familiar face.
Min Woo-jung spoke softly.
"Woo-jin, thanks for squeezing us in on short notice. We're past pre-prod—shooting started—but an incident blew up. Ahem. Anyway, heard you speak English. True?"
English. Damn right I did.
"Of course."
"Mind... showing us a bit?"
"Sure, a few lines from the script."
"Oh...? You can?"
"Mr. Hans, I would appreciate your comments on the designs. I look forward to hearing from you."
"Whoa..."
"......"
The room went dead silent as I nailed the line flawlessly.
Disappointment? Hardly. My near-native English floored them—shock on every face.
Min Woo-jung's jaw dropped.
She'd wanted British accent since the lead studied there, but this was gold anyway.
"Uh, uh...? Woo-jin, your English is... incredible?"
I glanced at the woman seated quietly aside.
Cool-toned skin suiting bold red lips, sharp jawline and eyeline giving chic allure. Yet her faint smile oozed seduction.
Im Eun-ha: former top visual idol, now thriving solo.
Like a fox incarnate—my heart raced.
Her A+-level beauty alone sold me on the movie.