What You Want Doesn't Come Easily (3)
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Having spent seven years as an aspiring actor, I had a decent grasp of how a film set operated.
Crank-in—the first day of shooting—starts with a pig's head offering and a ritual. It's less about genuine superstition and more like a tradition.
Of course, food gets passed around—and though it's rare these days, if booze starts flowing too, the serious atmosphere quickly dissolves into the way of the world. That's why crank-in days usually wrap up after a casual run-through in-house.
King and Sovereign was supposed to follow suit.
That is, until some balding middle-aged guy showed up grinning ear-to-ear and staking out the set.
"Ah, there’s our lead actor!"
"Y-Yes...!"
"Looking forward to working with you. My neck's on the line with Yi Hwan-jae's acting skills, heh heh. Hopefully better than his last project."
"O-Of course! I'll give it my all!"
Kim Kang-hyun, head of the drama department.
Well, provisional head, but whatever. When even a newbie CP rarely drops by the set, the fact that this much higher-up was personally greeting every staff member and actor was the real shocker.
What the hell is this...!
Why's that guy here!
I could feel the bewilderment rippling through the crowd without even looking.
Even the veteran actors' faces had stiffened; the juniors were beside themselves.
As Yi Hwan-jae, playing the Crown Prince, backed away sweating bullets, the staff couldn't even muster that much—they were trembling outright. To them, it was like the division commander inspecting the troops.
I had no idea what kind of insane situation this was...
"Uh, PD Yu Ho-hyeon? The crew's wondering how long the department head will stick around..."
"He's staying the whole time."
"...Pardon?"
"He's taking charge of the special episode scheduling. He'll even grab the megaphone for me now and then."
"........"
And with that, Yu Ho-hyeon PD informed us that the division commander would be hanging around all day, sharing the trenches for this special whatever-it-was.
At this mad announcement, actress Kim Suk-hee—who'd stepped up like a scapegoat—looked utterly dazed, while the assistant directors behind her wore faces straight out of Munch's The Scream.
It was a nightmare beyond anything I'd heard or seen.
...But the actual shooting that followed wasn't quite as horrific.
"As you all know, Episode 1 centers on the Crown Prince—living like a spoiled tyrant until he's ousted in the Left State Councillor's coup—meeting the heroine Yeon-ju."
Yu Ho-hyeon's eyes gleamed wildly.
"Three key points here. A tyrannical Crown Prince who's not hateable! A Left State Councillor whose true intentions are inscrutable, radiating charisma because of it! And their fateful encounter!"
"......."
"A strong start is half the battle! We'll nail the Crown Prince's character first!"
Unfortunately, Yi Hwan-jae—the actor tasked with opening the drama—faced three massive hurdles.
First, getting past Yu Ho-hyeon PD's scrutiny.
Next, satisfying the veteran actors.
And even if he cleared those, the provisional department head would go "Hmm," with a skeptical frown.
It was pure terror.
"Th-Thank you...!"
The set plunged into dread as the lead actor—fresh off 82 retakes in the first scene alone—nearly collapsed on the spot.
Even I felt a chill at this lunatic scenario.
"Terrifying, writer-nim. Never imagined crank-in would be this brutal."
"...Yeah."
"What the hell happened to make it like this...!"
"......Yeah."
For some reason, Baek Chae-i had turned into a 'Yeah' machine, and it didn't end with Yi Hwan-jae barely scraping by.
The actors who followed were equally gripped by fear at this triple trial.
One actor, known for his mild temper, even grabbed his manager from behind and started pounding on him.
"You said we'd just get past the script reading! That it was just weird back then!!"
"N-No, that's..."
"This is worse than last time!!"
But hey,
the harsher you wring tears from the actors, the better the scene—that's the iron law of shooting.
A satisfied smile crept onto Yu Ho-hyeon PD's lips, and Baek Chae-i the writer didn't look displeased either.
Maybe I shouldn't get too chummy with writer Baek Chae-i...
Such escapism only lasted a moment.
Eventually, my turn came.
"Tian Yuan Zha Shou."
Yu Ho-hyeon PD smiled slyly.
"Scene 27, Hui-yul."
All eyes on set turned to me in an instant.
"While the Left State Councillor plays Go alone, the Minister of Rites bursts in to protest the sudden conscription edict. Amid their argument, the Left State Councillor's true motives subtly emerge."
It was that exact scene from the original King and Sovereign script I'd gotten from Principal Hong Ji-ho.
"But the real heart of this scene isn't their dialogue. It's that the Left State Councillor and Hui-yul recognize each other."
But unfortunately, Baek Chae-i had flipped the scene's head and tail completely.
"Canted angle. Rare in dramas—looks cheap if you're not careful—but with great actors, nothing captures opposition like it."
The Go board is set.
Cameras capture me from all sides—decked in unfamiliar hanbok and makeup I've never even tried.
Beside me stands 25-year veteran Park Seong-ho.
In front of him sits 34-year veteran Yi Hoon.
And sandwiched between them: me, the ten-day wonder.
This situation was insane.
"Let's roll!"
All eyes lock on.
Some scoff, some brim with expectation, others wear inscrutable expressions.
I can do death acting.
Even better if it's from a dream.
But Hui-yul never appeared in my dreams, and he doesn't die in this scene either. No nightmare tonight, but that's it.
I'm screwed.
...Well, it was bound to happen someday.
I let out a sigh.
Just as Hur-lock Holmes could never be Sherlock Holmes, my true acting chops were destined to show eventually.
Better to take the hit upfront—show my level clean on the first shoot.
[My lord!]
[It's been a while, Minister. What brings you?]
[You have to ask?!]
As Park Seong-ho and Yi Hoon's acting kicked off, I gazed out the window at the sky for a moment.
After Yu Ho-hyeon PD's relentless grilling, dusk had already fallen.
Sunset outside the window.
The sunset Hui-yul on the brink of death would have seen, the one blanketing countless deaths naturally.
And I was Hui-yul.
From now on, I had to become Hui-yul.
Hui-yul and the sunset.
Hui-yul and the sunset...
.......
This might actually work.
At the script reading, Kang Min's acting had captivated the veterans, PD, and writer in one go.
But naturally, it hadn't won everyone over.
"When someone's collapsing, you just rush over worried. What's so special about that acting?"
"Exactly!"
"The vibe got all weird after that Kang Min guy collapsed anyway. Honestly, it's annoying."
They were often people who hadn't seen the full picture, or lacked an eye for acting, or simply resented a distant junior getting preferential treatment.
Not many, but not few either.
These malcontents grew even more irked watching Kang Min's demeanor on set today.
"Everyone's on the verge of tears with the mood in shambles, and he's cool as a cucumber? Chatting with the writer like it's not his problem."
"Thinks he's hot shit."
"Cocky bastard."
Well, Kang Min's inner thoughts were different, but seven-year aspiring actors master expression control by default.
The haters didn't know that—and even if they did, it wouldn't change a thing. That's the crowd they ran with.
And that discontent peaked when Scene 27 started shooting.
[My lord!]
[It's been a while, Minister. What brings you?]
[You have to ask?!]
Yi Hoon's presence exploded.
Park Seong-ho poured emotion from every fiber.
Surpassing even that fearsome script reading—acting that made decades of experience look effortless.
[A pointless question. If you don't know, you'd say so; if you bully me, even if I did, I'd pretend not. But I'm in a good mood today, so I'll answer anyway.]
[You...!!]
The slithering Left State Councillor and the rage-filled Minister of Rites locked eyes.
Actors at their peak infuse swords into words, command the air with gestures. But today, the intensity was otherworldly.
Yet Hui-yul didn't meet expectations.
Kang Min just stood there blankly, staring at the sky outside.
No lines, but faint ripples of unease spread.
What the hell is that?
Is this okay?
He looks frozen...
Retake incoming.
First time, whatever.
Parachute kid living up to it—
His true level's out.
Seniors were vibing too.
Worriers, dismissers, schadenfreude fans, the disappointed—they wove a subtle wave of tension.
Even the provisional department head frowned faintly, glancing at Yu Ho-hyeon PD like should we cut?
But Yu Ho-hyeon held back.
[You plan to drag all Joseon's people into war's pit?!]
[Indeed.]
Hui-yul lowered his gaze quietly behind the Minister's stunned face.
And,
......!
Everyone swallowed hard.
The man had changed.
No—appeared out of nowhere.
No other way to describe the shift.
Some blankly rubbed their eyes.
This is.
What the...?
Hui-yul was a crow of a man.
Not the shabby black robes, but weary eyes and rigid pupils.
He didn't speak. But if he did, some ominous rasp would replace words.
The room was overwhelmed.
Not by acting—by sheer aura.
[Tian Yuan.]
[What?]
[You know, Minister? The world's full of copycats. Dead Gogu did this, so now we must; dead Ju-hee did that, so now we must—idiots like that.]
[Confucianism is our national doctrine! You’d abandon it?!]
Hui-yul seemed to stare at the Left State Councillor. And yet, at some infinitely distant place.
Strapped to his waist: a crude dark sword.
Everyone knew it—a cheap prop from a previous sageuk, used for ten minutes then tossed.
But,
somehow, that blade gleamed ominously dark.
[Abandon the suzerain and Confucianism? What's the problem? Didn't King Taejo abandon the Yuan suzerain and Goryeo royals? Didn't Goryeo before that abandon millennium Silla?]
[Wh-What...!]
[Only fools cling to laws set by the strong, thinking that's the whole world! No—it's all we have now! This moment is the one chance to uproot the fools' world from its roots! If we must pay in blood for hundreds of thousands anyway, now's when it fetches the highest price! Miss it, and it's scattered as cheap trash! How can you not see?!]
[My lord... you're mad!]
[Mad works! Your precious suzerain was founded by a mad beggar monk! The world is made by madmen! And you fools enshrine their works like heaven's law, praying in temples!]
The Left State Councillor spat fervor.
Captivating the room, a zeal that chilled the flesh.
But no matter how he ranted, no matter how he amplified his presence, the crow-man's aura lingered.
Like a shadow growing sharper in brighter sun.
Human eyes differ from cameras. No matter the focus, others intrude.
Yet viewers felt the illusion: only those two existed.
The crow opened his beak.
Voice low, a hissing whisper.
[Best to stop, my lord.]
[Nonsense! What are you blathering—!]
[I get the gist. But words never sway those who haggle over human lives. As a similar sort, talking to this man is pointless.]
The Left State Councillor—Jeong Ji-uk's—gaze turned.
The old monster's bulging eyes glared. But unwittingly, a flicker of unease crept in.
Veterans knew: not Jeong Ji-uk's, but Yi Hoon's.
Yet it fit perfectly.
A rookie's first gig shaking a legend—some eyes bulged.
[...And you are?]
[A sword-for-hire.]
[Not what I asked.]
[I know.]
The man shrugged.
But after all that blood-price talk—
[A true sword-for-hire speaks with steel for even three pennies.]
Inscrutable words.
But the Left State Councillor hardened further, as if grasping them.
A simple standoff.
Yet tension soared endlessly.
Bulging gaze met weary one.
It was,
something that choked even those who knew it was acting.
And,
how much time passed—
"Cut!"
"Whew, exhausting...!"
The mood shattered.
Park Seong-ho slumped like he'd run a marathon.
Yi Hoon, seated, wiped sweat discreetly with a handkerchief.
The elders loosened up after one take, but no one dared call it whining.
They simply realized: this had to be okay.
And that a mere ten-day actor drew it out.
The harshest critics went mute as clams, faces blank, exchanging baffled glances.
Yu Ho-hyeon grinned.
And,
"Perfect."
The provisional department head strode off like he'd seen enough.
Phone out, he dove straight in.
No need or reason to delay.
"Yeah, it's me. That cooperation request to the news desk guy—send it now."
"Procedures take forever! Just do it! If issues pop, I'll cover!"
"Do it! We've got the cards—time to raise and stack chips!"
"Push it through!"
The lingering doubts vanished clean.
Replaced by ironclad certainty: he'd seized a golden chance.
This'll work! That actor—no way it won't...!
In the provisional head's mind, a video played: "Why SBC Fainted, KBC Kneeled, and TVM Prostrated, Begging for Kim Kang-hyun's Leadership Secrets."
He clenched a fist in ecstasy.
Unquestionably, the ace card...!
And so,
lost in rapture, he naturally missed Park Seong-ho and Kang Min's private chat later.
"Ahem, junior Kang Min. You killed it today. An actor speaks with acting, right?"
"......."
"And that thing earlier—I overdid it at first, but you fed me shit too, yeah? Honestly, kinda harsh. Get me?"
"......."
"We're both at fault, so let's call it even. I'll treat big-time, okay?"
"......."
"...Junior?"
"Gahk...!"
"?"