Chapter 196
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 196
Chapter Title: The Unseen Zombie
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A human's imagination is a remarkable thing. In a drawing that looks like a hat, one might see a boa constrictor swallowing an elephant, and in a simple drawing of a box, one might imagine a little lamb.
Looking down at his shoes, stained with blood as red as a rose, Seojun recalled ‘The Little Prince’ from his language arts class.
‘Hmm. I guess that means the Little Prince was special.’
Seojun tilted his head, remembering the baffled protagonist.
Anyway, it just goes to show how powerful the human imagination is.
Many works chose to express brutality, sadness, and fear indirectly rather than showing explicit scenes.
It was an effective directing technique, allowing each member of the audience to conjure up the worst-case scenario in their own mind, which was often more powerful than showing it outright.
‘This must be what Director Choi Daeman is hoping for.’
“Seojun, are you ready?”
“Yes!”
Director Choi Daeman's voice came from the other side of the door.
“The door looks thick, but it's thinner than it seems, so don't worry if it gets dented. We have plenty of spares, so just relax and go for it.”
“Yes!”
‘Then I'll hit it as hard as I can!’
Seojun lifted the bag-like object the assistant director had handed him.
This ‘bag’ was a prop meant to stand in for ‘Samuel's body.’
It was a small, rectangular punching bag with handles attached by the art team. Hitting the door with the punching bag would create a louder sound than using bare hands, and it would crumple a wider surface area, as if a real person were being slammed against it.
‘If I slam this against the door, it should get pretty dented.’
Drawing on the faint memories of a zombie and the stories he'd read in the Book of Life, Seojun considered where and when to strike the door with the bag.
‘I can't just strike with a machine-like rhythm. The prey is alive and struggling, so the timing has to be erratic, and the method of attack needs to vary.’
On top of that, he had [(Evil) Scent of the 9th Infected Zombie - Low Grade], which he had acquired for a school practice, and [(Good) Mid-Grade Angel's Fan - Mid Grade] to counteract it.
[(Evil) Scent of the 9th Infected Zombie - Low Grade]
The scent of the 9th infected zombie.
Slightly increases the anxiety of prey (humans).
The effect is amplified in enclosed spaces.
[(Good) Mid-Grade Angel's Fan - Mid Grade]
A warm breeze blows.
Has a chance to cure targets of abnormal status effects.
Highly effective against demonic energy of mid-low grade or lower.
Having quickly decided how he would act, Seojun gripped the bag's strap-like handles with both hands, like a zombie eyeing its prey, and shouted.
“I'm ready!”
***
From the other side of the door, Seojun's voice was heard.
The camera lens focused on the door to the Life Extension Team's lab. The tightly shut door looked perfectly ordinary.
Evan Block, Richel Hill, and the four other actors, knowing full well the realism of Seojun's acting, watched the set with eyes full of anticipation.
What kind of performance would he show them this time?
They had a rough idea, but Seojun always delivered something beyond their expectations, so the actors' eyes sparkled with interest and excitement.
“Ready,”
Director Choi Daeman's voice echoed across the set.
“/I heard he's a good actor... but can he pull it off in a situation like this?/”
“/How can you act when your face isn't even visible?/”
Having witnessed the filming of many zombie movies, Jenna Tride and the Mirror Team watched the set with a look of half curiosity, half skepticism.
Hearing their comments, the leader of the dance team, still in his zombie makeup, chuckled softly. It seemed Jenna Tride and the Mirror Team hadn't seen *Yeok (Reverse)*.
‘If they had, they'd know that Lee Seojun doesn't need to be on screen to make an impact.’
“Action!”
After Director Choi Daeman's shout, the set fell silent.
It was quiet.
So silent, in fact, that Assistant Director Park Jaemin was just about to move, wondering if Seojun had even heard the ‘Action’ call.
Thump!
A loud noise came from behind the door.
The impact was louder than expected.
It was starting. The staff recalled the directions written in the script.
[Life Extension Team, the lab door shakes. With thumping sounds, the zombie seems to be devouring Samuel. Unfortunately, Samuel's life clings on stubbornly, his heart continuing to pump hot blood, further exciting the zombie.]
Thump!
The sound echoed again. Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on the closed door.
The lab door, meticulously crafted by the art team, looked thick but dented more easily than one would think.
As if to prove it, the bottom of the door bulged out slightly, as if a human body had been slammed against it from the other side.
‘So, that's the sound of the living Samuel and the zombie…’
Someone swallowed hard.
The previously ordinary door and the space beyond it had their atmosphere completely transformed by just two loud thumps.
And then, a strange smell began to emanate from somewhere.
The faint odor wasn't strong enough to fill the large studio and was whisked away by the ventilation fans. Still, a trace of it lingered.
A slight sense of unease made people anxious and fearful. A staff member who had been sniffing the air a few times muttered.
“Maybe it's because we were just looking at the zombies in makeup. This is terrifying.”
“Right? I feel it too.”
Thump!
As if hearing the quietly talking staff, another sound rang out.
The staff members who had been speaking instinctively recoiled, pulling their necks in like turtles. Their shoulders tensed up, and their palms grew sweaty.
These were ordinary people, accustomed to the comfortable and safe lives of the modern age.
Their survival instincts, long dulled, slowly began to awaken.
THUMP!!
At the distinctly louder noise, several staff members unconsciously took a step back.
Ready to flee at a moment's notice.
The tense set fell silent once more.
Hhhh, hhhh.
The sound of people's ragged breathing could be heard. Feeling as though their own breaths were deafeningly loud, they quickly covered their mouths with their hands. Their hearts pounded wildly.
Beyond the door. Something dangerous was there.
Just as someone swallowed audibly,
Thump!
The upper part of the door bulged out slightly.
Thump!
The lower part of the door bulged out slightly.
Thump!
The lower part of the door caved in.
A brief lull.
The silence stretched on.
As the tight-lipped staff became aware of the cold sweat running down their backs and began to relax their tingling, tightly clenched fists,
THUMP!
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-THUMP-THUMP!
With the continuous, massive impacts, the door that should have been firmly shut was mercilessly dented, shaking as if it would burst open at any second.
“Eek!”
A zombie rampaging to snuff out the last breath of its victim.
Though unseen, the scene was so vividly imaginable that screams erupted from all around.
The camera shook violently, as if the cinematographer was startled too, but Director Choi Daeman, his eyes on the set rather than the monitor, didn't even notice.
He had asked for this, but he never expected it to be this perfect. He couldn't help but marvel at Seojun's ever-improving acting.
CRUNCH!
The thick door, their last line of defense, crumpled in half. The locked door, now misaligned with its frame, creaked open.
The people, who had been cowering, unconsciously stumbled backward.
Fearing it would burst out at the slightest sound of breath, some even stopped breathing. Their eyes remained fixed on the door as their hands fumbled around, searching for anything that could be used as a weapon.
In that moment of taut tension,
Through the gap in the door, which felt like the final boundary, a shoe damp with blood appeared.
Gulp.
The sound of someone swallowing seemed to echo loudly.
Sweat pooled in the hands that gripped their makeshift weapons.
The urge to turn and run was overwhelming.
When is it coming out? Is it even coming out? Should I run?
Just as the staff, swallowing hard and clutching their weapons for dear life with trembling hands, began to wonder why the zombie wasn't emerging.
“Director, was that an NG?”
The dented door swung open, and Seojun peeked his head out. At the sight of his fresh face, everyone was dumbfounded.
[(Good) Mid-Grade Angel's Fan is activated.]
As a warm breeze blew from somewhere, their frozen brains slowly began to function again.
Huh?
Oh.
Oh!
“Gah!”
This was a shoot, right?!
Startled, the staff registered the situation, looked down at the brooms and sticks they were unknowingly holding, and, shocked again, threw them to the floor.
Evan Block and Richel Hill also quietly set down the folding chairs they were holding.
Lee Jiseok and Kim Jongho also let out a groan, placed the fire extinguishers they were holding on the floor, and relaxed their tense shoulders.
Lee Dajin and Park Dohun, as if their tension had snapped, collapsed into their chairs. The two were clutching their cell phones tightly, as if they had been about to throw them.
Clatter.
Clang.
The sound of things dropping could be heard from all over.
“/Wow.../”
Jenna Tride and the Mirror Team, who had seen countless zombies and zombie performances throughout their careers in special effects makeup, were no different. John, a member of the Mirror Team, furtively placed the special effects knife he was holding on a table and called out to Jenna Tride.
“/Jenna. Your hand./”
“/Huh? Oh, sorry!/”
At John's glance, Jenna Tride gave a start and carefully set the steel pipe she was holding on the floor. In that short time, she had somehow detached a leg from a collapsible table and was holding it.
“/Seojun Lee. He's incredible./”
“/To think he can do that without any makeup. He'd be terrifying with it on!/”
“/...It'd be total chaos, wouldn't it?/”
John shivered, imagining it for a moment.
As Jenna Tride was discussing Seojun's performance, her eyes landed on the dance team leader, who was still in his zombie getup.
Once bitten, twice shy. Seeing the zombie sitting there, its legs seemingly having given out, made Jenna Tride and the Mirror Team flinch.
They weren't the only ones; other staff members passing by also yelped in surprise at the sight of the zombie before realizing it was just makeup and sighing in relief.
“/...Let's get that off him, quick./”
“/Yeah./”
***
Because the camera had shaken mid-take, they filmed it once more. Before, he had used [(Evil) Scent of the 9th Infected Zombie - Low Grade], but this time he adjusted the amount of demonic energy.
[[The grade of (Evil) Scent of the 9th Infected Zombie - Low Grade] is temporarily lowered.]
[(Evil) Scent of the 9th Infected Zombie (Lowest Grade) is activated.]
Perhaps because of that, it seemed no one went so far as to search for weapons this time. Still, everyone shook their heads in amazement and gave Seojun a thumbs-up for his performance.
Director Choi Daeman, who was reviewing both takes with Seojun, spoke.
“The first one was better, but... acting that's too intense isn't always a good thing, so let's go with the second take. You need to blend in with the other zombies. If you come on too strong from the start, the zombies that appear later will seem bland.”
“Okay.”
Seojun nodded at Director Choi Daeman's words.
That evening.
“...I don't think I can watch it.”
After hearing Evan Block and Richel Hill praise his son's acting with words like 'amazing,' 'terrifying,' and 'his zombie performance was incredible,' Lee Minjun covered his face with both hands in despair.
“Stay strong! I'll tell you when the zombies come on. You can watch with your eyes closed.”
“...But then I'll only hear the sounds, and that's even scarier...”
At Lee Minjun's words, Seojun, Seo Eunhye, Evan, and Richel burst out laughing.
***
Thanks to the shoot, the weekend flew by in a flash, and Monday arrived.
His friends, who had been waiting all weekend for this day, swarmed Seojun like zombies the moment he walked through the classroom door.
“...Man, those slaps on the back sting.”
Seojun writhed under the barrage of slaps on the back from his friends.
“So, what happened?”
Jookyung asked in a small voice. Only these three knew about Seojun's role; he planned to tell the other kids closer to the filming date.
‘I should probably tell Jiho in advance, right?’
Han Jiho from Class 2 was on the archery team with Joohee and Jaehan, so he had a scene to film with Seojun.
‘His name is similar to Jihu and Jio, so he feels familiar.’
At Jookyung's question, Joohee's and Jaehan's eyes lit up. Seojun answered in a hushed voice as well.
“Director Choi Daeman sent me the synopsis, so I agreed to do it. I was the first one cast.”
“So it's true that a Hollywood special effects team is here?”
“Who's the investor?”
“Yeah. The Hollywood special effects team is involved, but it's still a secret. They're planning to use it for promotion. The investor is Plus+.”
“Wow. This is going to be a huge hit too.”
The kids' eyes sparkled at the news of another blockbuster in the making. Joohee, who had been celebrating with a small high-five with Jookyung, looked at Seojun.
“Are you hiding anything else?”
“...No comment.”
“You are!”
“It'll be more fun if you find out later. You can look forward to it.”
For the one and only Lee Seojun to say it was something to look forward to, they couldn't even begin to imagine the scale of it. They were dying to ask what it was, but the kids managed to suppress their curiosity.
“Ugh. I'm so curious, but I'll hold it in.”
Joohee and Jookyung nodded in agreement with Jaehan's words.
“Oh, by the way, you're attending too, right, Seojun? Congratulations in advance.”
“Huh?”
Seojun blinked at Jookyung's words. Jaehan and Joohee also smiled and congratulated him.
“Attending? What?”
Seeing Seojun tilt his head in confusion, the three kids answered, looking puzzled themselves.
“The Blue Dragon Film Awards.”
Aha.
Right, that was a thing.
I was so engrossed in *Escape* that I'd completely forgotten.
‘This must be what Daho hyung said he had to talk to me about.’
November, when the cold winds blow.
It was the month of the Blue Dragon Film Awards, a festival created to improve the quality of Korean cinema and contribute to the development of the film industry.