Chapter 78
Chapter 78
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Tensions on Set
-----------------------------------------------------------------
With the successful booking of Chu Dong-hyun for the ad, Lee Dae-hyuk's standing in the PR team had risen sharply.
"Haha. Hahaha."
Park Min-chan let out a stream of forced laughs.
He should be happy right now.
Genuinely so.
But Park Min-chan's expression said otherwise.
Forcing a smile, Park Min-chan mumbled in a crawling voice.
"...Good work."
"...Is that it?"
After Jin Soo-young, they'd landed a star like Chu Dong-hyun for the ad contract.
And that was all? Just a laugh?
Joo Hyo-min felt a flicker of annoyance at Park Min-chan's reaction, but unlike her, Lee Dae-hyuk showed no sign of it.
From Lee Dae-hyuk's perspective, where he'd been certain of the Chu Dong-hyun deal from the start, there wasn't much to celebrate.
Seeing Lee Dae-hyuk's utterly unchanged expression, Park Min-chan sniped.
"As a congratulatory gesture, why don't you treat us to some iced coffee? It's been a while since we've tasted Lee Dae-hyuk's brew."
"......"
Joo Hyo-min bristled at Park Min-chan's not-so-subtle jab.
But.
"Sure thing. It's been a while—let me show off my skills."
Lee Dae-hyuk just flashed a bright smile and breezed off to the pantry.
"......"
.
.
.
A few minutes later, in the pantry.
Joo Hyo-min, arms crossed, shot Lee Dae-hyuk a glare.
"With Jin Soo-young and now this—you're not mad?"
"Why would I be? Everything went great."
Pouring water into the instant coffee, Lee Dae-hyuk grinned nonstop.
His primary goal was to become chairman of Daekwang Group.
Daekwang Construction doing well was a win for him too.
Besides, what was the point of praise from someone like Park Min-chan, who didn't mean a word of it?
"I never wanted praise from the boss in the first place."
"Why? Don't like it?"
At Joo Hyo-min's question, Lee Dae-hyuk glanced around.
Luckily, no one else seemed about to walk in.
"Hey, hold on a sec."
He beckoned her over, and Joo Hyo-min took a step closer.
As she drew near, Lee Dae-hyuk leaned in carefully toward her ear.
"......!!!"
Joo Hyo-min's face flushed red as Lee Dae-hyuk suddenly approached.
Thump-thump-thump—!!!
Her heart pounded so hard she couldn't speak.
Gazing softly at her expression, Lee Dae-hyuk slowly shared his honest thought.
"It's because of the bad breath."
"What??? Me???!!!"
Joo Hyo-min's voice shot up.
Lee Dae-hyuk waved his hands frantically as she rushed to cover her mouth.
"No, no! Not you, Deputy Joo—the boss. The boss."
Freeze—!!
Hearing Lee Dae-hyuk's clarification, Joo Hyo-min felt her whole body turn to ice.
'Oh god, mortifying. Aaaah!'
Screaming inwardly, she fled the pantry.
Now alone, Lee Dae-hyuk stared blankly at the closed door.
"......"
He probably should've specified the subject clearly—maybe she got mad for a second there.
But still...
'Is that something to get so red-faced over?'
Lee Dae-hyuk couldn't make sense of Joo Hyo-min's reaction.
"Sigh."
With a sigh, he finished brewing the coffee.
Tomorrow, once the shoot with Chu Dong-hyun and Jin Soo-young wrapped, he'd quit the company and prep for the move to America.
He'd already mapped it out that way, but...
Somehow, it felt bittersweet.
'Guess I've grown a little attached after all.'
Having tasted 'ordinary life'—or something like a memory of it—through his time at the company, Lee Dae-hyuk left the pantry in high spirits.
Step-step—!
"Coffee's here."
He bustled about, handing out paper cups of coffee to the staff.
"Thanks, Dae-hyuk."
"Our Dae-hyuk's a real barista. Barista."
"Why not open a coffee shop?"
Beaming at the compliments from around the office, Lee Dae-hyuk grinned ear to ear.
***
As usual, riding to work in Yoon Tae-ho's security SUV, Lee Dae-hyuk felt an odd sensation.
'Two months already gone by.'
A whirlwind two months.
Life in the PR team had been fun.
Sure, there were annoyances like Park Min-chan, but he liked colleagues like Joo Hyo-min and Lim Soon-chul.
Even Kim Jae-oh from HR had grown on him.
'Clean out the trash, nurture the good ones.'
If he had the time and leeway, he'd love to join as a regular employee like this again, scouting trends across affiliates.
But achieving his goals and plans came first.
Right then.
'Huh?!'
An idea flashed through his mind like lightning.
'Should I create a secret inspector unit?'
A secret inspector unit.
In simple terms, a department dispatched to affiliates to gather internal intel and monitor employees.
'To set that up, I'd need fresh talent first.'
Of course, the group already had an inspection team.
But from what Lee Dae-hyuk had dug up, their cover was so blown that nearly everyone knew who they were—a total mess.
In reality, the team wasn't effective at all.
It might be tough now, but after returning from America, handpicking new staff to form a team didn't sound bad.
Mulling over the plan, Lee Dae-hyuk's face turned wistful.
'Something feels off.'
Gazing out the window, his eyes brimmed with regret.
Today was the first day of shooting for Jin Soo-young's ad.
For ordinary company man Lee Dae-hyuk, it would be his last.
Perhaps reading his expression, Yoon Tae-ho's worried voice came.
"Are you that sad to leave?"
"A little—no, yeah... pretty sad."
For Lee Dae-hyuk, this was his first taste of normalcy.
Even in his past life as Kim Gun-woo.
And now too.
His life had always been far from ordinary.
'It's fine. Some distance is necessary.'
Lee Dae-hyuk quickly composed himself.
To get revenge on Yoo Jae-man, he had to keep battling guys like Park Cheon-ho and Wolfgang nonstop.
Only when that fight ended could he relax.
Until then, he had to keep his distance from regular folks.
"Young Master."
As Lee Dae-hyuk sank back into thought, Yoon Tae-ho spoke.
"If you're enjoying this life, you don't have to quit. You could stay a bit longer..."
"I owe a lot to a lot of people. I'll enjoy myself after I pay them back."
Was he afraid of wavering resolve?
Lee Dae-hyuk cut Yoon Tae-ho off.
If it were just revenge for himself, maybe he'd linger a bit.
'Struggling with depression yet learning English... Dae-hyuk, you're impressive.'
Lee Dae-hyuk praised the original owner of this body.
Last night.
Dealing with cockroaches, he'd accidentally opened the storage room door.
And there, stacks of English books.
Through them, he'd glimpsed another side of 'Lee Dae-hyuk'—a desperate wish.
To overcome depression and live anew.
'Dreaming of emigrating to America, huh. Even attending cram school.'
A boy abused, studying to escape nightmares by fleeing abroad.
The fact hit so hard it ached in his chest.
'Poor kid.'
Right now, Lee Dae-hyuk hadn't fully absorbed the original 'Lee Dae-hyuk's' memories.
They surfaced only with specific triggers.
So something nagged at him.
'Weird.'
A depressed suicidal type attends English classes, masters conversation level?
'And ends up killing himself?'
It didn't add up.
That version of 'Lee Dae-hyuk' must've been brimming with life.
He figured there was something about the death he didn't know yet.
'Yeah. I'll find out eventually.'
Lee Dae-hyuk pushed the nagging question aside.
It was a mystery to solve someday, but today was his last day at work.
Screech—!!!
One kilometer from Daekwang Construction, roadside.
Stepping out of the halted security SUV, Lee Dae-hyuk said to Yoon Tae-ho.
"I'll probably work late tonight."
"...Yes. I'll stand by."
"I meant take the night off."
"You just had vacation. Gotta work extra for that. Let's go!"
At Yoon Tae-ho's order, the driver turned the wheel.
Watching the security vehicle pull away, Lee Dae-hyuk sighed.
'Right. Not the type to listen anyway.'
A bit burdensome at times, but that loyalty—he was grateful.
'Thank you.'
With a silent thanks to Yoon Tae-ho, Lee Dae-hyuk headed toward Daekwang Construction's headquarters.
***
That afternoon.
Model house in a corner of Seoul.
Today, they were shooting at an actual model home, not a set.
The concept was simple.
A newlywed couple wakes up in pajamas on the bed, shares a light embrace.
Then breakfast, each taking the elevator to work.
Husband buys chicken for wife on the way home; wife grabs beer for husband. Simple storyline.
"Boring."
At Jin Soo-young's complaint, manager Kim Seung-hyuk clutched his forehead.
"We've got a shoot soon—what's boring about it?"
"Someone like me should be living in a luxury apartment. This place is... too middle-class. Boring."
Kim Seung-hyuk glanced around at Jin Soo-young's retort.
"Someone might hear. Please, for the love of god, watch it. Yeah?"
"It's just you in here, oppa."
Kim Seung-hyuk frowned at Jin Soo-young's grumbling while she checked the storyboard in the van.
She seemed to needle him on purpose sometimes, and it grated, but what could he do?
It was the job.
'Right. Just think about the paycheck.'
Wise employee that he was, Kim Seung-hyuk forced an awkward smile.
"Anyway. No trouble—just shoot the ad quietly."
"Got it."
"Good. Makeup done? Let's go."
"Ten more minutes."
"Huh?"
"Main character showing up too early kills the hype."
"......"
Kim Seung-hyuk dropped his head at Jin Soo-young's words.
'Fine. Down from twenty to ten—progress. She's growing up.'
As he consoled himself with a sigh of relief.
'Patience. Hold it together.'
A man fresh from makeup on set grimaced unconsciously during the camera test.
Chu Dong-hyun.
'Wrinkles. Wrinkles.'
Chu Dong-hyun had driven himself to the shoot.
An hour early.
Makeup done, and he'd waited twenty whole minutes.
Yet his co-star, Jin Soo-young, hadn't even shown her face.
"Hoo..."
Forcing his face to relax while psyching himself up, but irritation was bubbling over.
Chu Dong-hyun was rough-talking and aggressive but a diligent businessman.
He kept time strictly.
"I swear I saw her van earlier... How long do I have to wait?"
He asked a staffer.
"Oh, probably makeup. She'll be out soon."
"Makeup or disguise—who knows. How long? Didn't think Jin Soo-young was the type, but manners are trash."
Grumbling through his rising frustration.
But right then.
"Chu Dong-hyun-ssi."
"!!"
After twenty minutes, Jin Soo-young appeared.
Exactly ten minutes post-makeup.
Normally, she'd enter beaming.
But.
Having overheard Chu Dong-hyun's bitching, she let a hint of her true colors show.
"You've got a habit of talking behind people's backs. Terrible for social life..."
Chu Dong-hyun turned at her voice and let out a scoff.
Perfect timing—Jin Soo-young popping up right then.
"Nice to meet you, Jin Soo-young-ssi."
Chu Dong-hyun smiled and greeted her.
He was annoyed, sure, but he was a pro.
Had to swallow emotions for the job.
But.
"......"
Unlike him, Jin Soo-young kept her displeased look and ignored his outstretched hand.
"Shouldn't an apology come before greetings?"
At her true face(?), Chu Dong-hyun felt anger rise.
He wasn't ordinary either.
Real fight or staredown—he never planned to lose.
"...Hahaha."
Force-laughing, strength entered Chu Dong-hyun's eyes.
Boss, Become a Chaebol