Crisis and Beginning
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll hold on tight."
When Yeon-woo asked Ji-eun behind him, she nodded, wrapping her arms around his waist.
After checking their condition, the director called for action again.
"Alright, then—let's start once more. Yeon-woo."
At the director's cue, Yeon-woo spurred the horse forward again.
Receiving Yeon-woo's signal, the horse shot off at high speed.
Yeon-woo lowered his posture slightly, and Seo Ji-eun clung to his waist with all the strength in her arms.
The two of them rode smoothly for several meters.
On the horse that rocked up and down, Seo Ji-eun hung onto Yeon-woo's waist and managed to keep her balance reasonably well.
Director Lee also nodded as he watched the field monitor.
This pose is definitely much more dynamic.
A sharp twinge.
At that moment, residual pain from yesterday's stalker incident flared through Ji-eun's left arm, and her strength suddenly drained away.
She tried to force power into the arm, but the pain was too severe, so she gripped Yeon-woo's waist even tighter with her right arm alone.
"Kyaaah—!"
On the moving horse, with force applied only on one side while being jostled up and down, she gradually tilted and was about to fall sideways.
The silk costume she was wearing was slippery, making it even harder to hold her position.
"Uh-oh."
The staff, startled by the sudden situation, froze in place.
Yeon-woo felt the grip of Ji-eun's arms around his waist go slack. He quickly released the reins he was holding, fixed his toes in the stirrups, and twisted his waist hard.
He spotted Ji-eun sliding off to the right, being pushed farther and farther from the horse's back.
Swiftly he grabbed her left shoulder and hauled her up.
"Whoa, whoa."
He called out to stop the horse, but without the reins the animal would not listen.
He patted the horse's neck again to signal it to halt, yet the horse kept charging forward.
He had managed to pull Ji-eun's tilting body back up, but if he tried to stop the horse like this she might fall—her center of gravity already lost, one arm unusable. If they kept going, both of them would end up on the ground.
Ji-eun was in a panic, eyes squeezed tightly shut.
"Ji-eun! Stretch both legs straight out in front!"
In the urgent situation Yeon-woo had no time for formal address.
Hearing her name, Seo Ji-eun cracked her eyes open and came to her senses.
"Both legs straight out!"
At Yeon-woo's voice again, Seo Ji-eun stretched her legs forward. He lifted her with both hands, spun her around, and brought her in front of him.
Ji-eun, who had been sitting behind Yeon-woo, was now moved forward so they were face to face.
He wrapped one arm around her, leaned forward, found the fluttering reins with his other hand, gripped them tightly, and urgently brought the horse to a halt.
"Whoa, whoa."
The galloping horse gradually came to a stop.
The staff who had been watching the sudden emergency rushed over in a hurry.
"Are you okay?!"
Director Lee Sang-hun came running, having thrown aside the script he'd been holding, panting hard.
It had been a close call that nearly turned into a major accident because of his own greed for a more dynamic shot.
Ji-eun opened her eyes as she watched the staff running toward her. She looked bewildered to find herself facing Yeon-woo, having somehow moved from behind him to in front.
"You're not hurt anywhere? Are you okay?!"
"I-I'm fine."
Seo Ji-eun nodded and answered as the startled staff asked.
Looking at her, Yeon-woo's expression hardened.
He could feel Ji-eun's body trembling violently in his arms.
"Fine, my ass. Gi-hun hyung, help Ji-eun noona down, please."
Yeon-woo asked one of the larger lighting crew members who had run over to take care of Ji-eun.
With the staff's help, Seo Ji-eun got down from the horse, and filming was temporarily halted.
Director Lee Sang-hun came over to the actors who had nearly been in a serious accident because of his greed and bowed his head repeatedly in apology.
They would need a hospital visit to be sure, but it seemed Seo Ji-eun had slightly strained the ligaments in her left arm.
Seo Ji-eun comforted the director instead, saying it was because she had overexerted her arm yesterday and that it wasn't his fault.
The scene of them riding out in pursuit on horseback had been the last shoot of the day, and the first take they'd filmed was usable enough, so filming wrapped as is.
The manager, who had rushed over upon hearing the news, took Seo Ji-eun to a nearby hospital for an examination. After the actors left, the remaining staff packed up the equipment at the set.
As he watched the set being cleaned up, Director Lee Sang-hun spent a long time berating himself for his greed. Still, as a professional, curiosity got the better of him.
"Hey... that footage we just shot. The near-accident. Did the cameras catch it well...?"
At the director's question they reviewed the footage. It had captured perfectly how skillfully Ryu Yeon-woo had handled the urgent situation.
"...If we cut the scene right up to here, it might actually be usable."
Then he lightly slapped his own cheek and shook his head.
"Aigoo, I've completely lost it over filming. Lee Sang-hun, get a grip."
But contrary to his self-reproach, Director Lee Sang-hun could not take his eyes off the footage on the screen.
In the car heading up to Seoul, Min-su asked Yeon-woo.
"I heard there was almost a big accident on set today, Actor."
"Ah, not me—Ji-eun noona."
"Still, be careful. I hear a lot of accidents happen on historical dramas."
Yeon-woo smiled gently at Min-su, who was worrying about him.
Just then Yeon-woo's phone rang. Looking at the screen, it was a call from Seo Ji-eun.
"Yeah, did you go to the hospital?"
"Ah, Yeon-woo. They said it's just a slight ligament strain. Doesn't seem like a big deal."
"That's a relief. At least it's not a serious injury."
"Thank you so much for today. If it hadn't been for you, I really would have gotten badly hurt."
As he talked with Ji-eun, who was expressing her gratitude, they soon passed through the Seoul tollgate.
"Alright, you get some good rest too, noona. Anyway, for the next few days Yu-han is doing overseas location shoots, so they'll be filming other scenes."
Taking advantage of the situation, the director decided to give Ji-eun a few days off and adjusted the schedule to focus on scenes she wasn't in.
"Okay. Yeon-woo, thank you so, so much for today!"
After ending the call with Ji-eun, they arrived at the officetel not long after. Historical dramas were definitely more tiring than modern ones; as soon as Yeon-woo got home, he fell asleep almost immediately.
Han Hae-un had found a lead on the "Baek Noya" from the note Ryu Yeon-woo had written for him.
"Noya" was generally a respectful term for an elderly man.
Han Hae-un took out his smartphone and looked at the message.
He mulled over Ryu Yeon-woo's message, which outlined several courses of action and precautions, several times.
After that, having heard that the man frequently appeared at a captain's fishing spot, Han Hae-un investigated the area around the fishing grounds whenever he had time.
Several days passed like that, and just as he was thinking he might need to search other fishing spots near Busan...
Click—.
At the metallic locking sound from behind him, Han Hae-un got a feeling and quietly raised his hands.
"I heard a young man was looking for me?"
At the elderly voice from behind, Han Hae-un slowly turned around with his hands still raised.
In Han Hae-un's field of vision was an ordinary old man holding an automatic speargun used for fishing.
He had thought the metallic sound was a gun, but it seemed to be from that speargun.
More importantly, the old man was missing one arm.
That matched the description Ryu Yeon-woo had given him.
"Elder, I came looking for you because I have something to ask."
"Where did you come from?"
"Pardon? I'm from Busan."
The old man quietly shook his head at Han Hae-un's words.
"No—who sent you? I heard from down below that you came from the prosecutor's office."
It seemed the information he had given the fishing spot owner while inquiring about Baek Noya a few minutes earlier had already reached the old man's ears.
Or perhaps he had known since Han Hae-un started searching other fishing spots days ago and had been observing him steadily.
"Are you Baek Noya, Elder?"
"My name will change depending on where you came from."
Convinced by the old man's words and appearance that this was the Baek Noya Ryu Yeon-woo had spoken of, Han Hae-un slowly reached into his coat.
The old man's expression did not change at all at Han Hae-un's action.
Han Hae-un looked at the sharp tip of the automatic speargun the old man was holding and briefly considered drawing the pistol in his coat, but recalling Ryu Yeon-woo's message, he pulled out the note from his inner pocket instead.
"I came on Jeon Su-hwan's orders."
Han Hae-un carefully unfolded the note bearing Ryu Yeon-woo's handwriting and looked at the old man.
Then the old man raised a hand toward the underbrush.
"That will be enough."
At the old man's words, the underbrush rustled. From within, a large man carrying an automatic rifle walked out.
...If I had drawn my pistol, there would be bullet holes in my body right now.
Cold sweat ran down Han Hae-un's back.
Then the old man approached Han Hae-un and held out his hand.
Thinking he was offering a handshake, Han Hae-un reached out, but the old man withdrew his hand again.
"No. The note."
"...Ah, yes. Here it is."
An awkward Han Hae-un handed over the note Ryu Yeon-woo had written to the old man.
"Hmm, it's correct. Would it be alright if we cover your eyes and move locations?"
"Ah, yes. That's fine."
Then the large man with the rifle approached holding a hood.
"We'll return you unharmed, so don't worry."
With the hood over his head, Han Hae-un soon got into a car and was taken somewhere.
Meanwhile, the day Han Hae-un met Baek Noya was also the day the first broadcast of Star Beyond the River began.
Because MBS's major production Baldur, which had received massive investment and been made with great care, had started airing a week earlier, the production staff and actors had a lot to worry about.
Last week, the competing drama in the same time slot, Baldur, had recorded a 24 percent viewership rating for its first episode, and dark circles had settled heavily under Director Lee Sang-hun's eyes.
At the barbecue restaurant they had reserved to watch the first episode together, Director Lee Sang-hun tried to hide his tension as he led the toast.
"Alright, alright—let's raise a glass for the success of our drama."
"Ooooh."
As the staff's attention gathered, Director Lee looked at Yeon-woo beside him.
"Shall the lead actor say a few words to start the toast?"
Having grown naturally closer during filming and speaking casually with the actors, Director Lee passed the toast to Yeon-woo, who stood up.
Somehow, every time there's a company dinner, I always end up giving the toast.
When he was the youngest, because he was the youngest; when he was the lead, because he was the lead—Yeon-woo stood.
With the first broadcast of Star Beyond the River about to begin, he called out the toast.