Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 020
Chapter Title: Life is Real Combat (3)
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“What? Director, what do you mean…….”
Lee Deokchun’s eyes flew wide open in bewilderment. His pupils shook wildly left and right at the unexpected turn.
“What the hell does Lee Deokchun even do on set?”
Director Heo was the type who let even a ton of NG cuts slide without a single complaint.
‘Of course, with Min Yerin here, he can’t say shit to me either.’
Honestly, Lee Deokchun had even started seeing the director as a pushover.
What good was a fancy title like famous director? Just some guy peeking at the agency and sponsors.
That’s all he’d thought.
But now.
“Why pick a fight with someone who’s just standing there quietly? Is Lee Deokchun an idol or a thug?”
“No, Director……? That’s not……”
Lee Deokchun tried to make excuses, but someone else cut in faster.
“That’s right. Yeonwoo wouldn’t do that. It’d make sense if Lee Deokchun had choked Yeonwoo instead……”
Min Writer, who had slyly appeared, backed up the director.
“He’s been messing up the vibe from the start and now he’s really throwing a tantrum.”
“If he’s an idol, he should act like one and stick to idol stuff. What’s he doing strutting around the acting scene like he owns it?”
“Hey, they can hear you. Lee Deokchun’s got a nasty temper, it’s famous.”
“Let ’em hear. He’s that nasty. Did he get cast on merit? He rode Min Yerin’s coattails and now he’s being a pain in the ass.”
“Even Min Yerin got here early to wait, and this guy shows up late acting all high and mighty.”
Whispers spread.
Onlookers who had gathered in droves chimed in one by one.
Each time, Lee Deokchun’s face grew redder and redder.
The finishing blow came from Kwon Seonghyeon.
“What do you think you’re doing right now?”
Kwon Seonghyeon’s already imposing presence was amplified by his chaebol third-gen aura.
His low, quiet voice carried an icy rage no one could miss.
“What did you do to my manager that’s got this sweet guy so pissed off?”
“No…… It wasn’t me, it was that punk……”
“Punk? Watch your words.”
“So…… that…… guy…… choked…… my neck……”
“Yeonwoo choked your neck? You?”
It sounded just like, ‘What the hell would he gain from touching trash like you?’
Lee Deokchun’s face had gone beyond bright red to a dark purple.
“I saw it over there. Lee Deokchun dragging the manager to the corner.”
Someone tentatively raised a hand and spoke up.
That sparked it.
“I heard it too. He was picking on the manager out of nowhere. Cursing first and saying he got in through Kwon Seonghyeon’s connections.”
It was a set with eyes everywhere.
Witnesses who’d seen Lee Deokchun hassle Yeonwoo started speaking up one after another.
The stares pouring onto Lee Deokchun were ice-cold.
“So you’re saying you made up this horrific story just because you didn’t like one staff member?”
The director, having heard it all, summed up the situation.
“No, that’s not……”
“What do you mean not? Murderer? You’re the murderer. Ruining an innocent person’s reputation like that is social murder!”
“No……”
Lee Deokchun repeated “no” like a broken tape.
“If you don’t wanna do this drama, just say so! We don’t need you!”
Finally, the director dropped the death sentence.
“Director! That’s not it……! It’s all a misunderstanding! When did I ever pick a fight with that punk……!”
“Lee Deokchun. I told you to watch your words.”
“Damn it. So…… that guy……”
“Damn it? You cursing right in front of me now that things aren’t going your way?”
Startled by Kwon Seonghyeon’s sharp, chilling warning, Lee Deokchun stammered and completely blew up.
“N-Noona! Yerin Noona! Say something, Noona!”
Unable to take it, Lee Deokchun yelled at Min Yerin, who stood a step behind the director.
‘Min Yerin?’
The whole set had crowded around, drawing even Min Yerin, who seemed uninterested in such drama.
‘Wonder how she’ll react?’
For some reason, Yeonwoo grew curious about her response.
Same agency, would she cover for him? Or……
“……”
Min Yerin stared at Lee Deokchun silently for a moment, then turned away without hesitation.
“Noona? Noona?!”
She left without a shred of reluctance, ignoring Lee Deokchun’s wail.
Yeonwoo clicked his tongue.
‘Damn.’
Getting abandoned even by a same-agency colleague? How much of a scumbag was this guy?
“How can you lie like that? Such a horrific lie? Yeonwoo’s such a good guy. He can’t stand seeing others in pain—he even gives shiatsu massages when he doesn’t have to. No way he’d choke someone.”
He had done it.
But as long as Yeonwoo didn’t spill, no one would know. No big deal.
‘Guys like that need some education anyway.’
The world doesn’t revolve around you.
Yeonwoo’s lesson would sink in deep.
With Min Writer piling on, public opinion flipped completely.
Lee Deokchun’s reputation was already trashed, but now he’d dropped from “annoying prick” to “utter scum.”
“He goes ‘shame on you,’ but look how shameless he really is. Tried to bury a staffer he didn’t like by pulling out attempted murder.”
“But his acting sucks so bad, he blew it completely. Ugh, what a joke. If you’re gonna put on a show, at least act decently. Oh wait, he always sucked.”
The whispering staff mocked Lee Deokchun.
How much had he pissed everyone off in that short time? Not a single soul defended him.
“I didn’t do it! That bastard really choked me!”
No one believing him drove Lee Deokchun mad.
“Enough already. Still clinging to that story? What a hopeless case.”
Director Heo shook his head.
“I mean it. Quit if you want. I’ll tell your agency myself. You’ve got two choices: walk away now, or shut up from here on, stay out of the way, and behave.”
The director’s momentum was set to boot him off entirely.
With even Min Yerin turning her back, Lee Deokchun had no lifeline left.
‘Why’d you pick a fight with someone out of your league?’
A faint sneer curled Yeonwoo’s lips.
Lee Deokchun’s fatal mistake was misjudging his target.
The guy stared blankly, contemptuously watching the people walk away from him.
‘Trash like this only learns after a real beating.’
How many had Lee Deokchun tormented with his narrow-minded bullshit?
Obvious without thinking.
The obsessive thoughts clinging to him like glue told the whole story, didn’t they?
[Whoa, damn! That felt so good! Jerks like that need real-world beatdowns!]
The Child Spirit, who’d watched anxiously from Yeonwoo’s pocket, yelled something weird like, “Boss! Gimme a bowl of soda!”
[Could’ve just killed him then. What good’s a guy like that to humanity? Oh, but karma buildup’s bad, right?]
The Child Spirit wriggled and muttered.
[Still, that was some solid soda. Tripping over his own feet? Hilarious!]
Like watching a drama, the spirit vented refreshingly.
Seemed satisfied with that much.
But.
‘Ending it here feels a bit unsatisfying, no?’
Yeonwoo had no intention of stopping.
***
After Director Heo’s boot-out warning.
Lee Deokchun looked ready to pack and bolt.
But surprisingly, he stuck around the set.
Face like death, glancing around nervously—probably got chewed out by his agency.
“Good.”
Exactly what Yeonwoo wanted.
The Child Spirit asked curiously.
[What is?]
“Honestly, ending it like that felt a little off, right?”
Lee Deokchun’s rep on set was rock bottom.
Thanks to Yeonwoo’s input, he wasn’t fired on the spot, but the cold stares said he could go anytime.
‘Worried he’d cry and run, but he’s got a shred of grit.’
[Oh yeah! True. So what now? Too many eyes to beat him up.]
“Didn’t even consider that. First time’s fine, second time you get caught.”
[Then what?]
“People should stick to what they’re best at.”
[Ah……!]
The hamster’s whiskers perked up.
Yeonwoo offered sunflower seeds to the enlightened hamster face.
Child Spirit was gross, but hamsters were cute.
Cute hamsters were innocent.
‘Grown even more, huh.’
Just two days ago, he’d cleared some short-lifespan obsessive thoughts, but nasty, bulky ones had filled the gaps and multiplied.
Lee Deokchun’s ashen face probably came from that too.
‘Perfect.’
More obsessive thoughts meant bigger nightmares to swallow him whole.
“Hey.”
Yeonwoo approached Lee Deokchun, slumped in a set corner.
“Eek! W-What?!”
“Why jump like that when you see someone? Makes me feel gross.”
“What do you want? Why’re you here?!”
“Can’t I? It’s the set—you didn’t rent it out.”
Lee Deokchun’s eyes darted around anxiously.
Sure enough, some folks watched.
Worried Yeonwoo might get jumped.
Step.
“D-Don’t come closer!”
Yeonwoo took a step forward.
Scramble!
Lee Deokchun scrambled back a step.
“What?”
“You’re the one! Why show up outta nowhere acting friendly?! Get lost!”
“You yelling at me now?”
Still clueless.
Then.
Yeonwoo caught the staff whispers.
“That punk’s at it again? Hasn’t learned shit.”
“Went to lighten the mood on purpose, and the ungrateful bastard. That manager’s too nice. Worries about disrupting the shoot even for the guy who framed him.”
“The writer said the manager begged not to boot him right away.”
“How? If he wasn’t Kwon Seonghyeon’s friend? He was so polite to the manager. Thought he was the manager at first.”
Kwon Seonghyeon’s attitude during the incident put Yeonwoo in the spotlight unintentionally.
[How close are they for the manager thing to piss him off that much?]
That thought spread.
Kwon Seonghyeon’s usual deference to Yeonwoo fueled it.
Plus.
-Though he did wrong, cutting him now would hurt the set vibe and the drama. No need on my account.
Yeonwoo’s direct plea to the director made the staff view him even more positively.
Forgiving his framer and caring about the set’s harmony.
That was their take on Yeonwoo.
Yeonwoo’s real reason? Not consideration, but ‘Running off too soon’s no fun. Haven’t finished educating him yet.’
The misunderstanding deepened, but no one caught on.