The Best Moment of My Life
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The tragedy that would befall Han Ye-seul was connected to an incident that had occurred a week earlier.
It wasn't exactly a tragedy on that side.
No, in fact, at that time, Kang Min was experiencing the greatest moment of his life.
"...Here's the shooting schedule for Unbelievable."
"......."
"King and Sovereign only has a few key scenes left, so you're good to join. You'll be coming from the variety department next."
Kang Min took the schedule and script from the weary-looking Kim Kang-hyun, head of the department.
His mood was—blank.
It didn't feel real.
Huh.
Ignoring the department head's nonsense about paying tens of millions in penalty fees instead of appearing on Unbelievable, Kang Min fiddled with the schedule.
Memories of the past few months flashed by like a montage.
They had been agonizing days.
Days when he wasn't even sure if he could endure, let alone achieve what he wanted.
Countless villains—Hong Ji-ho, Han Ye-seul, and others—had blocked his path, and he'd had to claw his way through them all.
But in the end,
he'd won.
Heh heh.
Finally, reality sank in, bringing euphoria with it.
Hahaha! HAHAHAHAHA!
That euphoria unleashed a massive flood in his brain...!
Dopamine.
Serotonin.
Beta-endorphins.
Oxytocin.
Dai-dolphin...!
"Ahem, how about 100 million in penalty instead of Unbelievable? 100 million. The boss says it's feasible considering the ratings."
"...Yeah, got it, got it. What about 150 million? 150 million. You could buy a few cars with that. Sound good?"
"When exactly should I join the shoot?"
"......."
What do you even say to a madman—
Kim Kang-hyun, head of the department, just stared blankly at the ceiling.
Two days later, in the MBS Unbelievable meeting room.
A somewhat ominous rumor had been circulating among the crew with 21 years of history for the past few days.
"...Our show's getting canceled?"
"It might be canceled, or maybe just a few months off for revamping... Anyway, that's the rumor."
"Damn it."
The cinematographer scratched his head furiously.
It wasn't entirely unexpected. Unbelievable, which had dipped to the 2% ratings range lately, had survived so far mostly on its cost-efficiency and legacy.
Great ratings for the budget it received.
But if they tried something else without it in the lineup, no one would complain.
The cinematographer, who had been thrilled at the thought of a budget increase because of the hottest actor joining, couldn't help but feel bitter.
"Is that actor Kang Min only doing a few weeks because of this? Like a last supper?"
"Probably part of it... Back in the early days of King and Sovereign, there was that lunatic called the Unbelievable villain, right?"
"He's still around."
"Yeah, that. Like the AD said, seems like they're trying to brush that off lightheartedly..."
"Or maybe his agency or someone stirred up the wind."
Either way, they didn't have the setup to ride that wind—
The cinematographer sighed, eyeing the scant staff and indie-film-level equipment.
Unbelievable's poor production conditions were infamous. Special guests sometimes gossiped, "Can you believe they made me do my own makeup removal?"
It used to be better, but as the budget shrank and even studio shoots vanished, it was all downhill.
If Kang Min's few weeks of special appearances marked Unbelievable's end, it would be pathetically shabby.
"If I were Kang Min, I'd lose my composure the moment I saw this set."
"...Lucky if he doesn't run barefoot."
The cinematographer and staff sighed in unison.
He was the lead actor who'd skyrocketed from rookie to 40% ratings. His standards must be sky-high.
Having dealt with how diva-ish "rising stars" could be, the cinematographer and staff just hoped Kang Min was at least half as polite as the rumors said.
And on shooting day,
their assumptions went completely off track.
"I'm Kang Min! Please take care of me!"
"Y-Yes? Oh, please take care of me too..."
"Haha! No need to be so formal—you're like my big bro!"
"...?"
Kang Min was even more cheerful and courteous than they'd imagined.
With a beaming smile, he greeted every staff member one by one, then grabbed PD Wi Min-jun's hand, bowing deeply and asking for their support going forward.
The staff couldn't help but be moved.
"That guy's the real deal...!"
"Right? It's one thing if he were a veteran, but a breakout rookie acting like this? Tough!"
"When I mentioned the makeup room, he laughed it off—said as a 7-year no-name, how could he complain?"
"Jealous of the King and Sovereign crew."
But honestly, Kang Min's energy right now was so high even Baek Chae-i—with her rose-tinted glasses—would've gone "Eh?"
Unbelievable's set was undeniably shabby. Even King and Sovereign, with its minimal support and patchwork operations, looked like a dinosaur compared to this.
But Kang Min felt a profound peace, like returning home.
This is it... This is what I've been running toward all these years...!
Kang Min swallowed tears as he crumpled the script he'd received.
A script shorter than half an episode of King and Sovereign.
But the role dies in one episode!
Dies!
Just killing off Hui-yul took so many steps... To die this cleanly...!
To keep a gem like Unbelievable going long-term, of course he'd build constructive relationships with the staff, right?
For Kang Min, it was perfectly natural behavior.
...Whatever the ulterior motive, the meeting was harmonious.
"So, we're shooting the reenactment first and narration later?"
"Yes, that's right."
"I thought Unbelievable's process was the opposite..."
"Usually, but since it's a special appearance, we're accommodating."
"Haha, this is Unbelievable with 21 years under its belt. Who am I to flip your process? Do it your way."
"Heh heh..."
Unbelievable splits into narration/info with stock footage and reenactment by actors.
Obviously, pre-making the former and slotting in the latter is easier.
The crew was even more touched by an actor considerate of such details.
Thus, episode 1080 proceeded as always: narration first, reenactment slotted in.
—Unfortunately, that was the start of all the tragedy.
"Pavlovsk Experiment Station, huh..."
"Have you heard of it, Actor Kang?"
"I saw something online about scientists starving to death guarding seed stocks."
"Exactly! It's been floated in meetings since last year, but the reenactment seemed tough and pricey, so it kept getting shelved. Thanks to you, the budget bumped up a bit. Worth a shot, no?"
Plus, the characters were foreigners.
No way any acting from Kang Min would top Hui-yul in King and Sovereign. Better to slap on a wig and mustache for a goofy vibe—might hook viewers.
Kang Min agreed easily.
"Not sure if I can pull off goofy, but I'll give it a try."
"Haha, goofy comes from the look. With full makeup, anything's hilarious."
The crew laughed it off.
Kang Min brushed it off too—after all, the role dies.
The plan finalized: Serious Pavlovsk story pulled in by Kang Min's star power and comic disguise.
PD Wi Min-jun, pleased with the foolproof scheme, suddenly asked while tidying papers,
"Oh, Actor Kang. English okay?"
"English?"
"It's a foreign story."
No need for fluency. Stiff textbook reading might even be funnier.
That's what PD Wi thought.
But Kang Min seemed hesitant.
"Why English?"
"Pardon?"
"They're all Russians, right? Shouldn't it be Russian?"
"......?"
To reiterate, Kang Min felt like he was home.
This role dies.
And I'm the King of Death Acting.
So why not recreate every detail of the role?
Kang Min suddenly felt his limits expanding infinitely.
And soon, that burst into reality.
"Can you do Russian?"
"I think it's possible if you study. Dumayu, eto vozmozhno, esli vy uchites'."
"......."
Hm?
Something about that came out a bit weird—
As everyone gaped and Kang Min tilted his head, PD Wi stared blankly.
Looking back,
Up to this point, there was still a chance to turn back.
"Eh...?"
"What's up?"
The public's reaction to news of Kang Min's special appearance on Unbelievable was roughly this.
No one could make sense of it.
An actor drawing massive attention from King and Sovereign, flooded with offers from directors' next projects and S-grade variety shows—choosing four weeks on Unbelievable?
Why?
Even industry insiders were baffled.
"Pissed off? The Unbelievable villain popped up recently. Maybe getting revenge on that guy..."
"No actor picks a gig for that! He's got multiple S-grades lined up!"
"So we buy he always dreamed of Unbelievable?!"
"Ugh, that's pure BS..."
"MBS must've pulled some contract trick, right?"
"Likely."
Of course, Kang Min had sincerely expressed his thrilled feelings about joining Unbelievable.
A truly honest interview—but as Kim Kang-hyun had foreseen, no one bought it. Far more suspected MBS of foul play.
That's how the world worked.
The reaction was fiercer than expected.
"If he'd really done Unbelievable for a year, the network would've been shredded, sir."
The vice president's chuckle was exaggerated, but 20% serious. A genius actor who'd single-handedly driven 40% ratings carried that much buzz.
But now, it didn't matter.
The vice president laughed heartily.
Their plan was flawless.
"Unbelievable off-air for 10 months post-revamp in 6 weeks..."
"We planned that anyway. Just pulled it forward a few months."
"Brilliant move, sir! No contract issues."
They'd pay massive penalties to avoid bad blood, issue apologies.
But worth it.
They'd snatched the 40% line against 300-billion-won Black Forest (nearly 500 billion with grants/subsidies).
Exports, rights deals—MBS gains endless.
So they had to keep it going.
"Approved terms for next project reeling in that madman... Chaebol Hunter?"
"First offer out. 100 million per episode— he said okay."
"...S-grade treatment."
"Worth it, right?"
Vice president and Kim Kang-hyun shrugged.
Cackling laughs and sinister growls.
Fitting for vile villains stealing 800k-per-episode Unbelievable for 100-million luxury drama.
Movies and such always paint execs this way...
"And this Unbelievable goes comedic."
"Perfect! Viewers riot 'What is this?'—that nutjob'll get the message!"
"Indeed."
"Hahaha!"
"Heh hahaha!"
But,
overtly evil plans never last.
...What?
That omen hit PD Wi Min-jun on set at the same time.
To be precise, he was breaking a cold sweat.
This mad...!
This thing...
Put this in the narration?!
"......."
"......."
The cinematographer stared blankly.
He said in a trembling voice,
"Wh-what now, PD Wi?"
"......."
"You really gonna slap this on the narration?"
The PD gritted his teeth.
Schedule was maxed. Couldn't remake narration now.
Two choices:
Scrap the shoot, skip a week,
or put 'this' on 'that'.
Kuh...!
Cold sweat beaded on Unbelievable PD Wi Min-jun's forehead, cornered like never before.
—And airdate arrived.
Unbelievable and a Very Fine PD (3)