Chapter 118
Chapter 118
Another Accomplice
“Who is that? He’s handsome.”
“Is he going to the CEO’s office?”
A man in a suit, exuding an extraordinary presence, knocked on the door of the CEO’s office. The trainees’ eyes were fixed on Im Seung-hyeon’s back. A listless voice from inside answered, telling him to come in.
“You’re the one who called?”
“Yes.”
“Uh… just clear a spot and sit down. We’re a small company, so… Can I get you some coffee?”
“No, I’m fine.”
Im Seung-hyeon cleared a space for himself and sat down, then offered his business card. It wasn’t a Juseong Group card, just a plain white one with simple contact information.
“So, what were you so curious about that you came all this way?”
The man sitting across from him stroked his beard. A cot was tucked in the corner, suggesting he lived and worked here.
Im Seung-hyeon posed the question his young master wanted answered.
“Twinkle… a nostalgic name…”
After a moment lost in reminiscence, the man cleared his throat with a cough under Im Seung-hyeon’s intimidating gaze.
“It’s been almost twenty years, so I don’t remember much.”
“Even a hint would be helpful. A particularly memorable anecdote would be good too.”
“Hmm…”
The man, who had been rocking back in his chair while lost in thought, suddenly stopped and looked at Im Seung-hyeon.
“Ah, there was one unbelievably crazy guy.”
“A stalker?”
“Yes, the anti-stalking law is only just now being established… Back then, there was nothing like that, and there was this attitude that it was a virtue for celebrities to just endure it. Anyway, the stalker was no joke.”
Im Seung-hyeon watched the man quietly, not interrupting as he rambled on about a memory from so long ago.
“All sorts of people were drawn to them. One guy somehow found out where the girls’ dorm was and tried to tear off the security bars to get in. Another would camp out in front of the dorm and rush them when they got out of their car.”
“That’s serious.”
“Yes, and among them, there was one who was a real piece of work.”
The man frowned, as if trying hard to remember.
“That… Hui-seo, he kept terrorizing the company with calls, saying he and she were dating and that we shouldn’t make his wife work. He even sent a marriage registration form written in his own blood.”
“Hah…”
“At first, we thought he was just a common delusional patient, since he was only harassing the company. But then…”
Im Seung-hyeon unfolded his arms and focused on the man’s words.
“I think it was during the filming of ‘Under the Persimmon Tree.’ That guy got a role as an extra and managed to approach Hui-seo.”
“What did he do when he approached her?”
“It seemed like he was trying to harm her, but if it hadn’t been for her manager at the time, it could have turned into a major incident.”
So it was just an attempt. That was a relief, at least.
A delusional patient who believed he was married to Lee Hui-seo. Im Seung-hyeon guessed this was the person Yu Yeon-seo suspected. It was hard to be certain yet, but…
“Did you report him to the police?”
“We tried to… but the producer probably just swept it under the rug, saying it would interfere with filming.”
“I see.”
“Honestly, even if we had reported him, the perception of stalkers back then… they probably would have just let him off with a warning.”
“Then he must have caused a scene at the news of the deceased’s marriage.”
“Oh, don’t even get me started.”
The man waved his hand and let out a sigh, as if he didn’t even want to recall it. As soon as the news of Lee Hui-seo and Yu Geon-min’s marriage broke, the stalker had gone to the company and Twinkle’s dorm and caused a rampage. It was said that blood was even shed in the process.
There was a rumor that after their marriage, Yu Geon-min had pulled some strings to secretly deal with the stalker and other industry people who had harassed Lee Hui-seo, but it was just hearsay.
“Do you happen to know the man’s name?”
“Well… they said he had a pretty significant role as an extra, so wouldn’t his name be in the cast records if you looked them up?”
“Thank you. Is there anything else you remember?”
“Yes, good work.”
Ending the call with Im Seung-hyeon, Yu Yeon-seo let out a small sigh. ‘Under the Persimmon Tree,’ huh… He suddenly recalled Lee Seon-ja, who had appeared with him in ‘Dreaming.’ Since she had played Lee Hui-seo’s mother in ‘Under the Persimmon Tree,’ she might remember the stalker.
“Oh, hello.”
He felt someone greet him warmly and turned around. Now that his face was frequently in the media, the number of people who greeted him like a next-door neighbor, even if they’d never met, had increased.
Yu Yeon-seo narrowed his eyes at the person, then they widened.
“Hello, Writer-nim. Fancy seeing you here.”
Min Ju-gyeong’s eyes sparkled with favor. She was the writer of ‘The Imperial Seal,’ and she had run into Yu Yeon-seo while buying coffee before the script reading.
“Oh my, you recognize me?”
“Of course I do. I’m about to start working on your project.”
The appropriate lip service made Min Ju-gyeong stomp her feet and laugh.
‘She seems to like that a lot…’
As it turned out, the writer had apparently written the screenplay with Yu Yeon-seo and Shin Ye-won in mind from the start. And JSTV had acquired ‘The Imperial Seal’ on the condition that they could cast the writer’s desired lead actors.
‘Is this what she meant when she said I didn’t have to do it if I didn’t want to?’
Or did she just go for it, assuming I would do it? In any case, Choi Yu-jin was a formidable woman.
“What would you like to drink?”
“Are you buying for me too?”
Yu Yeon-seo nodded. He didn’t have much to do, and he was curious what the writer thought about the character in the script, so he joined Min Ju-gyeong at her table.
“The reading isn’t for another hour, you’re here early.”
“I’ve always liked coming early to have coffee. You too, Yeon-seo?”
“Something like that.”
To be honest, it felt a little suffocating at home. It was quiet enough that he shouldn’t hear auditory hallucinations, yet it felt like he did. At least when he was among people, the visions were relatively less bothersome. Maybe this was why the original Yu Yeon-seo threw money around in busy streets and caused a scene.
“What did you think of the script?”
“It was interesting. Reminded me of someone.”
“Who?”
“My brother.”
The male lead of ‘The Imperial Seal,’ Seong Hyeon-woo, was born the illegitimate son of a chaebol family, but he was handsome and competent, making him a celebrity and a third-generation chaebol with high public favorability.
Yu Eun-ho had also been famous as a genius since childhood, was good at his job, and was so handsome he enjoyed popularity on par with most celebrities.
When Yu Yeon-seo answered with a smile, writer Min Ju-gyeong laughed awkwardly.
“To be honest, I did use him as a motif for Hyeon-u.”
“Ah, that explains it.”
Yu Yeon-seo replied, fiddling with the script in his hand. Since he was living with his brother, interpreting the character wouldn’t be a problem. The only difficulty was the romantic emotional arc, which still felt challenging.
“As for Seo-eun, I drew a little inspiration from you, Yeon-seo.”
“From me?”
He hadn’t expected that.
The female lead, Lee Seo-eun, was the sole princess of the Daehan Empire, striving to become the next emperor and possessing the ability to do so. She garnered a lot of public interest, but she was forced to become an issue-maker after taking the fall for her good-for-nothing cousin.
“Now that you mention it, I can see it… but unlike her, I did whatever I wanted.”
Writer Min Ju-gyeong took it as a joke and chuckled softly.
“Actually, a lot of writers use you two as models. You’re great source material. Two brothers from a chaebol family, the capable older brother and the issue-maker younger brother. Just stick a female lead between them, and it’s perfect!”
Min Ju-gyeong spoke quickly in her excitement. Yu Yeon-seo chuckled, watching her. Maybe I should be charging a fee for this material.
“How does it feel to be back in romance after only doing thrillers?”
“Well, what is there to feel?”
Now she was trying to interview him. What an interesting person. Not all writers could be like this… Yu Yeon-seo looked at her with curiosity.
“This time, it’s strictly a one-and-only male lead, so it was comfortable for me to write.”
He didn’t remember it, but it wasn’t as if he had never done a romance drama. ‘Our Moment,’ where he was overshadowed by the second lead, had been a romance. In truth, it was a drama even he couldn’t watch to the end. The original owner’s acting had been that bad…
“If you have any questions after reading the script, feel free to ask.”
In the drama, Seong Hyeon-woo proposes a contract marriage to Lee Seo-eun to beat his incompetent brother and take over the Cheon-o Group. The Daehan Empire in ‘The Imperial Seal’ was set up to possess immense resources and power.
Lee Seo-eun plans to use the publicly popular Seong Hyeon-woo to boost her own fallen approval ratings. The charm of ‘The Imperial Seal’ was how they went on dates according to their contract and developed romantic feelings for each other in the process.
“It seems like they have some kind of shared history from their childhood?”
“Ah, I was going to tell you about that after the reading…”
It turned out the two protagonists had met as children, and the male lead, Seong Hyeon-woo, never forgot it and devoted himself to Lee Seo-eun. This was the source of the drama’s key line, ‘I will make you the emperor. You don’t need to know.’ Lee Seo-eun, however, had lost her memory and didn’t remember Seong Hyeon-woo.
‘Lost her memory? Hah, how exquisite.’
In any case, it was a charming character. The drama would probably receive a lot of attention once it aired. However…
‘How can I achieve 100% immersion?’
There was a limit to how much he could superimpose the image of a child actress onto Shin Ye-won, like he did for the photoshoot. He needed to figure out how to make viewers’ hearts flutter.
After finishing the script reading for ‘The Imperial Seal,’ Yu Yeon-seo returned home and his eyes widened in surprise at the empty house.
‘No one’s here?’
Just then, a message came from Yu Eun-ho.
(Brother) I’ll be late.
Which meant it was finally free time. Yu Yeon-seo grinned.
‘I’m starting to feel better, shall I start again?’
The fact that filming started the day after tomorrow was a bit concerning, but he was quite used to the pain now. He would just have to endure it and manage somehow.
‘Beta, let’s begin.’
< Due to the ‘Relive Memories’ perk, the memories may continue from the last synchronization point. >
‘Good.’
That was better for him. It was a headache trying to piece together fragmented memories to fit the situation. It would be more taxing on his body, though.
‘I hope I get something out of it this time, too.’
< Commencing. >
After a brief moment of darkness, he opened his eyes on a film set.
“Cut! Yeon-seo, just a moment…”
The director called out to him, his voice laced with a sigh.
“You’re too wooden. Can’t you just be a little softer?”
Do you think you could act well if you saw that?
Yu Yeon-seo scowled, a surge of frustration rising in him. It was a silent protest, asking if anyone could act well while seeing that shimmering form hovering right above the other actor.
“I’ll handle it.”
“Haa…”
The director shook his head at his protest. Filming resumed. Yu Yeon-seo delivered another performance with the same bad acting as before, earning sighs from the numerous staff members.
‘So there was a reason he couldn’t act.’
Watching the memory, Yu Yeon-seo began to understand the original owner. He should be thankful the guy could even deliver his lines properly while seeing something like that.
Ah, surely that thing won’t interfere when I’m filming ‘The Imperial Seal,’ right? he thought idly as the memory faded to black once more.
And when he opened his eyes, the childhood memory he had so desperately wanted to see unfolded before him.
‘Strange.’
Everyone is so careful around me, but that man is different.
Thinking this, the young Yu Yeon-seo headed back to where his family was gathered. He had just encountered the suspicious man.
“You rascal, where have you been?”
“It’s no fun being with you, Grandpa.”
After getting an earful from his grandfather, Yu Yeon-seo ran back outside as if escaping. He headed for the annex, where Lee Hui-seo would be.
The memory didn’t continue after that, but he must have discovered Lee Hui-seo’s body.
Returning to reality, Yu Yeon-seo scowled deeply.
‘It’s too short.’
The young Yu Yeon-seo spots a suspicious man, gets scolded by his grandfather, and then heads back to where Lee Hui-seo is. The elapsed time felt like only a few minutes.
No matter how little Lee Hui-seo weighed, it would be impossible to hang an adult woman in such a short time without leaving a trace. At least, not alone. In that case…
‘There’s another accomplice.’
At least two people. Or maybe more. Why had he always assumed it was just one person? Because the mansion’s security was so tight?
Yu Yeon-seo ran a hand through his hair in frustration and leaned his head over the sink.
‘This is getting complicated.’