Chapter 164
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 164
Chapter Title: One Step in Action
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With his graduation ceremony over, Seojun was now on a long winter break until his entrance ceremony at Yeoul Arts Middle School in March. This meant he could now film on weekdays too.
“It's your winter break. Are you sure you're okay with just filming?”
“Yes! Filming is so much fun!”
An Daho, who was driving, smiled at the excitement in Seojun's voice.
Seojun looked out the window. Today's scene involved a lot of extras, so the studio parking lot was already bustling.
“Seojun's here.”
At Seojun's arrival, the staff of *Yeok (Reverse)* stirred with excitement. Lee Seojun and his manager were walking through the studio entrance. Grinning staff members handed Seojun flowers they had bought themselves. It was a surprise graduation celebration they had prepared.
One by one, the brightly bloomed flowers gathered until they filled Seojun's arms, forming a large bouquet.
“Seojun, congratulations on your graduation!”
“Actor Lee Seojun, congratulations!”
He had already received plenty of graduation messages from his family, friends, and fans, and now he was getting a flood of them from the staff as well.
Holding the flowers, the boy, Seojun, smiled brightly at their heartfelt congratulations.
“Thank you!”
Ugh!
Struck by the 'boy-with-a-bouquet' effect, the staff clutched their hearts at the sight of Seojun's sparkling face. Seojun burst out laughing at their dramatic reaction.
Seeing the friendly interaction between the star actor and the staff, the minor actors, who had been cautiously glancing over, also offered their congratulations as they passed by. Seojun smiled brightly and thanked them.
Park Unyeol and Kim Hoyoung, who had arrived earlier, handed Seojun the flowers they had received from the staff. Seojun laughed and carefully placed the large bouquet to his side.
After the lively celebration, filming began.
Director Woo Junghan shouted.
“Ready, action!”
“His Majesty, the King, arrives!”
With the resonant cry, Lee Hongwi walked into the royal court. The officials all bowed their heads in unison. Though fear crept in amidst the heavy atmosphere of the court, Lee Hongwi held his head high.
From now on, he had to lead the nation with these men. Hiding his trembling hands by clenching them into tight fists, Lee Hongwi ascended the dais.
From the dais, the ministers were even more visible. Spotting the familiar face of Kim Jongseo among the officials closest to him, Lee Hongwi let out a sigh of relief and sat on the throne.
The ministers raised their heads. Seeing the young king, who looked as if he would be crushed by the enormous throne, they all sighed inwardly. But none of them were foolish enough to let such thoughts show on their faces. They all concealed their feelings and carried on with their duties.
“The office for the royal funeral must be established.”
Lee Hongwi's first duty was to arrange King Munjong's funeral. A temporary government office was to be set up to oversee the proceedings, and officials were appointed one by one to manage the funeral.
“Please appoint Yun Saro as the director of the royal funeral office.”
When someone raised an issue, the three high councilors provided the answer. They also asked Lee Hongwi, but unable to grasp the details, he could only nod. He didn't know who this Yun Saro was, but he understood the need for a director to oversee the funeral.
*'If the Left State Councilor recommends him, he must be fine.'*
Even as he listened to the ministers, Lee Hongwi's gaze kept flicking toward Kim Jongseo.
The ministers' discussion continued. As Lee Hongwi listened intently, his shoulders began to slump. The nation's problems were as difficult as he had expected, and their solutions were even more so.
Lee Hongwi swallowed the sigh that threatened to escape. He knew the cause and the answer, but it was the answer from the books. The brilliant Lee Hongwi was well aware that the answers required in reality were different from those in texts.
Looking down at the ministers from his high seat, Lee Hongwi felt as if water was lapping at his feet. The dark water that had been pooling at his toes was now slowly trying to rise to his ankles.
Lee Hongwi realized this water was the phantom feeling of pressure. How could he get rid of this cold water, this pressure? His eyes darted around as he recalled the words of his grandfather and father.
*'Learn.'*
As Lee Hongwi looked down at the ministers, his eyes sparkled.
*'Learn, and learn again.'*
He wanted to become a great king. A benevolent father to his people. Just like his great grandfather and father. Lee Hongwi straightened his shoulders, which had been slumping with disappointment in himself. He sat up straight and listened intently to the ministers' discussion.
*'I must remember this well and ask the Left State Councilor or the other ministers about it later.'*
A few who noticed the change in Lee Hongwi's demeanor began to watch him discreetly.
* * *
The filming for *Yeok (Reverse)* went smoothly.
Due to Lee Jiseok's schedule, they filmed scenes with Seojun and Kim Hoyoung in the morning, and scenes with Lee Jiseok in the afternoon. It was the first time Grand Prince Suyang and King Danjong would be filming a scene together.
“Ready, action!”
Seated on a royal cushion, King Danjong unfolded a petition. Watching the king slowly progressing, Head Eunuch Kim, who had served three generations of kings, smiled with satisfaction. Though still young, he was undeniably the heavens. A benevolent and wise king.
The camera zoomed in on Head Eunuch Kim quietly wiping away tears of emotion and King Danjong engrossed in the petition.
Director Woo Junghan shouted.
“Cut! Okay!”
At the call of 'cut,' Seojun instantly broke character from King Danjong, while Kim Hoyoung slowly composed himself. Watching the earnest Danjong made his heart ache, as if he were looking at his own daughter.
“Is that it for the morning shoot?”
Director Woo Junghan replied to Seojun's question.
“Yeah. Since there were hardly any NGs, we finished quickly.”
“When do we start the outdoor filming?”
While Seojun and Director Woo Junghan were talking, with lunchtime approaching, Kim Hoyoung turned on his phone as usual.
“Uh...”
[5 Missed Calls]
His heart sank with a thud. A sense of foreboding washed over him. Kim Hoyoung checked his missed calls. The caller was his daughter, Kim Jisu.
Kim Hoyoung's hand, holding the phone, began to tremble. With a shaking hand, he called his daughter. He remembered her bright smile from that morning, excited about going out to play with her friends.
“Jisu... Jisu...”
Noticing the actor's unusual state, the staff, who had been chatting about what to have for lunch, all turned to look at him. Seojun and Director Woo Junghan also directed their gazes toward Kim Hoyoung.
Oblivious to their stares, Kim Hoyoung remained glued to his phone. After several attempts, someone finally answered.
“Jisu!”
Kim Hoyoung shouted.
* * *
Two hours earlier.
“Jisu!”
“You're already here!”
Kim Hoyoung's daughter, Kim Jisu, smiled brightly at her friends.
“Look at this. A picture of my dad and Lee Seojun.”
“It's real! It's Lee Seojun!”
The phone screen Jisu held out showed a picture of Lee Seojun and Kim Hoyoung. Jisu and her friends giggled.
“They said a new coin karaoke place opened here.”
“If it's new, we have to check it out!”
Jisu and her friends, who had conquered all the coin karaoke spots in the neighborhood, stepped into the new one.
The trouble started while they were in the middle of singing.
Weee-ooooh! Weee-ooooh!
The sound of a fire alarm blared, drowning out the music and their voices from the microphones.
Startled, the children froze. A suffocating silence fell over the karaoke room. The mix of idol music and the blaring alarm created a cacophony.
Among the frozen children, Kim Jisu was the first to come to her senses.
[(Pre)Moss Tribe's Associative Memory is activated.]
Like a video playing in her mind, the fire department's public service announcement, *One Step,* came into sharp focus. Infused with the composure of the children in the video, Kim Jisu spoke up.
“First, let's get out of here.”
“Okay!”
The children quickly left the room. The hallway was a mix of panicked and calm kids milling about. Perhaps because it was winter break, there were quite a few children there for a weekday morning.
“First, we need to call 119...”
“I'm on it!”
A child raised a hand and said, holding a phone to their ear. Jisu nodded.
“Then let's head to the exit.”
“If you have tissues or a handkerchief, wet it and cover your mouth.”
Even though they were strangers, a few children stepped up to lead the panicked ones. They brought water bottles from their rooms and poured water on handkerchiefs, tissues, and sleeves.
*'And... and...'*
The *One Step* video she had watched with her dad flashed through Jisu's mind. She felt like she finally understood why the children in the video had acted so diligently.
It's scary.
But she couldn't just stand there being scared. She missed her dad. She didn't want to leave him all alone.
Her eyes becoming as resolute as Seojun's in the public service announcement, Jisu shouted.
“There might be people in other rooms who haven't come out, so please check the rooms as we move.”
“If the doorknob is hot, don't open it.”
The child who had called 119 added to Jisu's words.
WEEE-OOOOH!!
Leaving the deafening noise behind, the children headed for the exit, checking empty rooms along the way. With about ten of them moving and checking quickly, it didn't take long.
“We can't go this way.”
When the children reached the exit, a sweat-drenched part-time employee from the karaoke place was there. The employee spoke with an urgent expression.
“The fire is on the floor below.”
As soon as the alarm went off, the employee had checked the escape routes. They intended to pinpoint the fire's location and evacuate the customers.
“The smoke is rising from below, so we probably can't go down through the main exit or the emergency exit.”
Hearing the only adult's words, the children's faces filled with anxiety. Jisu thought.
*'Does that mean we have to go into a karaoke room, block the gaps, and wait like in 'One Step'?'*
Which room should we go to? Jisu looked back.
[(Pre)Moss Tribe's Associative Memory is activated.]
Hoo— The employee let out a breath, calming their frantic mind, and remembered the rooftop key the owner had put in a drawer. The building owner had locked the rooftop door, but the owner had made a copy last year after watching the *One Step* video.
The employee quickly took the key from the drawer.
“Let's go to the roof. I have the key.”
“Okay!”
The employee looked at the children and handed the key to Jisu, who seemed the calmest. The child who had called 119 led the others to the rooftop stairs. After receiving the key, Jisu looked at the employee with worried eyes.
“What about you?”
“The CCTV showed no more customers in the karaoke rooms, but I need to check the restrooms. You guys go up first.”
Jisu wet the tissue she had to cover her mouth and handed the handkerchief she'd been using to the employee. Seeing the soaking wet handkerchief, the employee realized their mistake. They had been in such a rush that they had forgotten to cover their own mouth and nose.
“Thanks.”
“Be careful.”
“Okay. You guys be careful not to fall.”
Jisu and her friends, who had been waiting for her, nodded and started up the stairs to the roof. As smoke slowly crept up the stairwell, the children kept their mouths tightly covered as they climbed.
“There's no key?”
“What are we supposed to do if the rooftop door is locked!”
In front of the emergency door, customers from other stores in the building were shouting angrily.
“I have the key!”
Jisu held up the key. The adults quickly made way, and Jisu opened the rooftop door. A cool breeze rushed over the people who had fled the smoke. But they soon smelled the scent of burning mixed in with the wind.
Once everyone was on the roof, someone said.
“The smoke's going to come up. Shouldn't we close the door?”
At the person's words, the children shouted.
“She isn't here yet!”
“No!”
Hearing the children's loud voices, no one said anything further.
Black smoke billowed into the sky from the windows of the floor where the fire had broken out. The people who had evacuated to the roof moved to avoid the smoke. Some called their families, others the fire department. The rooftop filled with cries of relief and desperate pleas for rescue.
Jisu and her friends also called their families on their phones while they waited for the employee.
“Why isn't she coming?”
“I know.”
As they stared anxiously at the stairwell, they heard footsteps.
“You're here!”
It was the employee, covering her mouth with Jisu's handkerchief. Exhausted, she collapsed to the floor. Still, a smile graced her face.
“There was no one in the restrooms.”
“That's a relief!”
The children smiled brightly.
And just a few minutes later, a thunderous sound cut through the blaring alarm and the thick black smoke. It was the sound of a fire truck, redder than flames, rushing to save them all.