Chapter 188
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 188
Chapter Title: Cameo Appearance
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The waiting room for the ‘Escape’ child actor auditions.
Kim Jookyung, Yang Joohee, and Kang Jaehan were tapping away at their phones. Some of the other children were reviewing their own acting, recorded at their academies, while others stepped outside to talk with their guardians, trying to ease their nerves.
Muffled murmurs could be heard from inside the audition room, but nothing distinct. The audition process involved three applicants entering, receiving designated lines, memorizing them for ten minutes, and then performing in a randomly decided order.
“Do you think the lines will be hard?”
At Jookyung’s question, Joohee shrugged.
“It’ll probably be something we know, right? Since we’re child actors, I doubt they’ll ask for anything too unusual. A zombie role might need some practice, but they’d probably teach us that after we pass.”
Jookyung and Jaehan nodded in agreement.
“Oh, the kids from Class 2 are here too.”
When the kids who spotted familiar faces waved, the newcomers waved back.
“The Class 1 kids are here.”
“Aren’t they the ones who hang out with Lee Seojun?”
The Class 2 kids, now seated, whispered among themselves. The trio who were always with Lee Seojun were quite famous at Yeoul Arts Middle School. Kim Jookyung was known thanks to ‘One Step’, Yang Joohee was well-connected as the Class 1 president, and many kids found Kang Jaehan to be like a little brother.
“Looks like Lee Seojun didn’t apply this time.”
“Well, it hasn’t been long since he finished filming ‘Yeok’.”
The Class 2 kids, who were thinking how fortunate it was that one less competitor was in the running, flinched.
Just a moment ago, Kim Jookyung and Yang Joohee had been sitting side-by-side, seemingly texting on their phones. Now, they had quietly moved to either side of Kang Jaehan, smacking his back repeatedly.
Wincing from the stinging on his back, Kang Jaehan squirmed and tapped on his phone with trembling hands, as if sending an SOS signal. The signal must have gotten through, because Kim Jookyung and Yang Joohee returned to their original seats with bright smiles.
The other children in the waiting room let out small laughs at the sitcom-like scene.
A relaxed atmosphere settled over the waiting room as the tension seemed to melt away.
But that, too, soon changed. The audition room door opened, and three applicants came out with a staff member. At the staffer’s appearance, the next three applicants waited with tense expressions, hoping their numbers would be called.
The staff member checked a paper and called out the next numbers.
“Jaehan. We’re going in first.”
“Fighting!”
It was Kim Jookyung and Yang Joohee’s numbers.
All three had been assigned consecutive numbers, but they couldn’t audition together. Jookyung and Joohee were in an earlier group, while Kang Jaehan was alone in a later one.
Because of this, Kang Jaehan, who had to perform by himself, was more nervous than the two who would be auditioning together.
“Don’t be too nervous.”
“Want another one to cheer you up?”
At the sight of Jookyung spreading her palm, Kang Jaehan quickly shook his head. Jookyung and Joohee chuckled at his reaction before heading into the audition room, and Jaehan picked up his phone again.
>Seojun: Really? I’m on my way home now.
>Seojun: I have plans today.
>Seojun: Is your back okay?
<ㅠ Their hands sting so much ㅠㅠ
At Seojun’s question, Kang Jaehan’s face scrunched up. The stinging was gone, but he could still feel the phantom sensation of their palms smacking his back.
>Seojun: lol Good luck with the audition.
Kang Jaehan let out a long breath and waited for his turn.
* * *
“Is today the audition day?”
At An Daho’s question, Seojun, who was in the passenger seat, nodded.
“Yes. Some kids from my school are there.”
“I hope they pass.”
“But there are only a set number of spots…”
“The archery club has five members, right?”
“Yes.”
“Only five will get in. It must be competitive.”
Seojun nodded. *I really hope my friends pass.* After a short prayer, Seojun asked An Daho.
“Daho Hyung. Have the lead actors been decided?”
“Yes. It’s an actor you know, Seojun.”
Seojun fell into thought at An Daho’s words.
He knew most actors. Not just the leads and supporting actors, but he could even name extras if their roles were memorable or if they acted well.
‘If it’s not just actors I know by name, it must be someone I’m close to. Who could it be?’
As Seojun pondered, An Daho said with a smile.
“It’s actress Lee Dajin and actor Kim Jongho.”
Seojun’s eyes widened at An Daho’s words.
“Dajin Nuna and Jongho Samchon?!”
He truly hadn’t expected that.
An Daho chuckled at Seojun’s surprised voice.
“That’s right. I was surprised too. Apparently, neither of them knew you were starring in Escape, but you all managed to end up in the same project.”
“Really?”
It was hard to believe.
Jongho Samchon and Dajin Nuna.
“It’s true. According to actress Lee Dajin’s side, she wanted to try a ‘fantasy’ project like this after her children’s play, ‘Spring’. But there aren’t many works that mix in fantasy elements. So she kept doing other projects, but when Escape came along, she accepted right away.”
“Wow!”
Seojun’s eyes sparkled.
Lee Dajin.
She was the friend of the main character in the children’s play ‘Spring’, played the hunter, and was the cheerful Nuna who had MC’d his fan meeting.
‘And she’s a great actress.’
Seojun beamed.
“What about Jongho Samchon?”
“Actor Kim Jongho had done modern dramas, so he wanted to try fantasy. The script for Escape came in right at that time, so he accepted.”
Kim Jongho, who played Grand Prince Seongnyeong’s father, King Taejong, in Naeuiwon. The memory of him bickering with Lee Jiseok made Seojun smile.
…Aha!
Seojun, who had been grinning, had a realization.
“So that’s why Jongho Samchon called me today!”
In the end, Seojun couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
* * *
Beef with snowflake-like marbling was placed on the grill. With a sizzle, the meat began to cook, and Kim Jongho grinned.
Lee Jiseok and Park Dohun, sitting opposite him, watched Kim Jongho with peculiar expressions. He had been laughing like a deflating balloon for a while now.
“Samchon. Did something good happen?”
“I know, right? For Hyung to be buying us all beef.”
“Just wait a bit. I’ll tell you when Seojun gets here.”
‘Something’s strange.’
Grinning and occasionally shooting them a look that screamed ‘look at me,’ Kim Jongho was acting very suspiciously. Lee Jiseok’s eyes narrowed.
“Hello! Jongho Samchon, Jiseok Hyung, Dohun Hyung. I’m here!”
“Seojun, welcome!”
“How have you been?”
“Daho-ssi, it’s been a while.”
“Yes. Have you all been well?”
Just then, the door to the private room opened, and Seojun and An Daho walked in. They greeted the three actors before sitting at the same table. It seemed the three actors had come without their managers.
After a brief chat about what they’d been up to, Kim Jongho puffed out his chest and spoke.
“Ahem. You guys. Do you know who I’m filming with?”
Lee Jiseok, who was popping a piece of quickly-cooked beef into his mouth, tilted his head.
“Why should I know that?”
“Are you filming your next project, Samchon?”
Unlike the cynical Jiseok, Park Dohun asked with a smile.
‘That cynical brat. If only he were half as nice as Dohun.’
Kim Jongho, looking displeased for a moment, started grinning again and said.
“I’m filming with Seojun!”
At his words, Lee Jiseok and Park Dohun looked back and forth between Seojun and Kim Jongho in surprise.
“Seojun, you’re doing another project?”
“Already? It hasn’t been that long since ‘Yeok’ ended.”
“A good project came up. I wanted to do it, so I decided to.”
Seojun replied, and Kim Jongho laughed loudly.
“See? Seojun chose the very thing I wanted to do!”
Ignoring the boastful Kim Jongho, Lee Jiseok and Park Dohun racked their brains.
“What is it? A movie? A drama? What scripts have come in recently?”
“I know. What’s there? I don’t think there was anything with a child actor.”
No matter how hard they thought, they couldn’t recall anything that would have caught Seojun’s interest.
“It’s a zombie movie. The title is Escape.”
At Seojun’s words, Lee Jiseok recalled a rumor he’d heard and his eyes widened.
“…A zombie movie, you mean that one they said didn’t even have its leads cast yet? You’re filming that?”
“They kept saying it was going to flop… but I guess there’s no way it can flop now.”
Park Dohun was also shocked.
With Seojun and Kim Jongho starring, it felt like the movie couldn’t fail even if someone held a ritual for it to.
“But why aren’t they promoting it?”
At Lee Jiseok’s question, Kim Jongho laughed and said boastfully.
“That’s the promotion plan. They’re going to let it get noisy with negative reactions, like noise marketing, and then slowly release the news that Seojun is in it.”
Kim Jongho’s words made Seojun and An Daho nod.
“You need some noise for noise marketing or anything else to work. Jongho Samchon. This is practically buried.”
Park Dohun was right.
Unless you were a fan of zombie films, no one was paying attention. A typical movie in that state would have flopped for sure.
But even as he said it, Park Dohun tilted his head.
“But why am I not worried?”
“What’s there to worry about? Proper promotion can wait until after filming is done. With Seojun in it, it’ll be resurrected in no time even if it’s buried deep.”
At Kim Jongho’s proud and excited words, Lee Jiseok grumbled.
“Then why didn’t the script come to me?”
“Jiseok Hyung, you were in ‘Yeok’… the director wanted to see a different combination.”
“Who’s the director?”
“Director Choi Daeman.”
“…”
For a moment, Lee Jiseok felt a tinge of betrayal. Weren’t they on good terms, keeping in touch since his debut film? Jiseok took out his phone and started tapping furiously. The recipient was likely Director Choi Daeman.
Everyone else burst out laughing at the sight.
“Then why didn’t he send it to me?”
“Dohun, you look too young, so your image didn’t fit the roles.”
“Ah, that’s a shame. I could have filmed with Seojun. Hyung and Samchon have both filmed with Seojun, but I haven’t. Let’s do one together next time, Seojun.”
“Okay!”
Seojun quickly nodded at Park Dohun’s disappointed face.
The other party wasn’t picking up, so Lee Jiseok put his phone down.
“Seojun. Do you know where Director Choi Daeman is? He’s not answering his phone. Is he out looking for filming locations again?”
Recalling the time of ‘The Devil’, Lee Jiseok asked Seojun. Seojun thought of his friends at the audition and smiled.
“He’s holding auditions for child actors right now. He probably can’t answer the phone because he’s there.”
Having given up on calling Director Choi Daeman, Lee Jiseok looked at the grinning Kim Jongho. The teasing expression was so obvious on the actor’s face that Jiseok’s own expression soured.
‘No wonder this hyung offered to buy us beef.’
“So this is why you called us today.”
“That’s right. You have no idea how much you bragged about filming with Seojun.”
He had heard it so much during filming and even after the premiere that his ears were about to fall off.
“Let me have a turn. To brag! Aren’t you jealous? Super jealous, right?”
Watching the teasing Kim Jongho and the indignant Lee Jiseok, Park Dohun, Seojun, and An Daho burst out laughing.
From the moment Daho Hyung told him about Jongho Samchon’s casting, he had a feeling it would turn out like this.
“Seojun. Are you preparing well for the shoot?”
“Yes. My character is an archer, so I’m learning archery.”
“You’re good at that too, right?”
“Hehe. Yes. My teacher says I’m doing great. Dohun Hyung, have you decided on your next project?”
“I haven’t found a project I like yet, so I’m still thinking about what to do.”
While Lee Jiseok and Kim Jongho bickered as usual, and Seojun, An Daho, and Park Dohun chatted warmly,
“Dohun-ah!”
Lee Jiseok called out to Park Dohun. Seojun and the other two turned their heads towards Jiseok. Even Kim Jongho, who had been teasing him, blinked at the sudden call.
Gone was the man who had been grinding his teeth in frustration. Lee Jiseok was now cackling like a villain.
“Let’s appear in that movie too.”
“…What?”
“As cameos!”
“…Whaaat?!”
At Lee Jiseok’s words, not only the other three, but even the teasing Kim Jongho stared blankly at the cackling actor.
* * *
“Found it!”
“If I ever work with Director Choi again, I’m not human.”
“Hahahaha.”
As if he couldn’t even hear the location manager, Director Choi Daeman was running around, examining the building closely. He loved the exterior, but the inside could be a different story.
‘We can just fix up the inside.’
The location manager, panting, took out his phone. Director Choi Daeman, lost in his own world, seemed to have no intention of contacting the production company.
Catching his breath as he looked down the path they had struggled to climb, the location manager spoke.
“Yes, CEO. We found it.”
-You found it quickly.
“There aren’t many buildings that fit the criteria, so it was more like scouting the candidates. It’s a bit small, but if we film it from different angles, it should be fine.”
‘Though finding those candidates was the hard part…’
It was still better than ‘The Devil’, which had required them to wander all over the countryside.
-Where is the location?
The location manager explained the location. It was a little ways from Seoul, but not too far. There was a pension nearby, making lodging and meals convenient.
-Good. What about vehicle access? Is there a parking lot?
“There’s a road, but it needs to be repaired. The parking lot is also a mess with trash, looks like it hasn’t been cleaned since the typhoon last summer.”
-Alright. Let’s repair it. It would be good to build a sturdy new road and a new parking lot.
The location manager, phone to his ear, looked around.
He could see the area that was once a parking lot and the cracked asphalt road. With repairs, it would be perfectly usable. And they wouldn’t destroy the repairs just to restore it to its original messy state, so…
‘The building owner just hit the jackpot.’
Just then, CEO Lee Hansol spoke from the other end of the line.
-Then please contact the building owner.
“Yes. We’ll just lease it, right? It’s going to be tough to restore all this background scenery to its original state.”
-No.
CEO Lee Hansol chuckled softly.
-Buy it. The building.
“…What?”
-The fire department did a good job.
CEO Lee Hansol’s eyes gleamed as he recalled the ‘One Step’ tour, which had now become an almost mandatory tourist course.
-Let’s try making one of those, too.
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