Chapter 46: Walking Luxury (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 46: Walking Luxury (1)
PD Jang Hyun-soo hurriedly checked the footage Yu-seok had captured.
As soon as he connected it to the monitor, he couldn't help but marvel.
"The camera itself is high-quality, but you really have an eye for this. Yu-seok, you’ve got talent. Ever thought about becoming a director?"
"My camera skills were honed solely to record my sister."
"Then you can just cast her in every project."
"But if I’m the director, I won't be able to focus entirely on taking care of her."
"I like how clear your dream is. It’s not easy to be that certain at your age. Though, it seems like you’ve already achieved it?"
"I have. But this is only the beginning."
Jang Hyun-soo, the assistant director, and the camera director all watched the footage Yu-seok had filmed in awe.
The scene of Lee Yu-jin eating the sorrowful boiled pork with cabbage was as elegant as a masterpiece painting.
"We could put this straight into the drama. Just a bit of color grading."
"It’ll be a bit of a headache to edit out the people walking around in the background with CG, though."
"We have to do it anyway. The actress looks this good; we absolutely have to use this."
There would be some work involved with the grading and background CG, but it was a small price to pay for such quality.
Jang Hyun-soo laughed heartily and praised Yu-seok.
"You did a great job."
"As long as I can make my sister a world star and become a CEO manager with a high salary, I’ll do anything."
*
"Wait, your mother made this, Sunbae?"
"Yeah, she runs a Korean restaurant."
"Wow, I bet business is booming. Could you tell me where it is?"
"I can, but it’s a secret even to the employees that I’m her daughter."
"Don't worry. I’ll visit quietly when I have some free time."
Yoon Se-rang gave her the address.
Since she had just transferred schools and was busy with filming, it would be hard to find time now, but she planned to visit once filming wrapped up.
PD Jang Hyun-soo approached with her younger brother, a wide grin on his face.
"Yu-jin, you did a fantastic job. We got a scene that truly pulls at the heartstrings. I can already imagine the viewers crying out for the writer and director to be rewarded. It feels great."
"Pardon? What do you mean?"
"That scene of you eating the boiled pork with cabbage so sorrowfully—your brother caught it perfectly. I’m planning to use it."
Yoon Se-rang clapped her hands.
"Oh, really? I want to see it too."
"If you’re finished eating, let’s go take a look."
I didn't even know he was filming. I must have really lost my mind over the taste of Eonnyeoni’s boiled pork.
'Why did the pork Yoon Se-rang’s mother made taste like Eonnyeoni’s cooking?'
The question floating in her mind was shattered the moment she saw the monitor for feedback.
"Is... is that really me?"
"Yes. Don't you look so elegant and sorrowful? Your face isn't contorted with crying, but the tears just stream down... that mournful expression perfectly captures the grief..."
"This... this must be destroyed. This video should not exist in this world."
Yoon Se-rang looked at her as if she were being ridiculous.
"What are you talking about? You look so pretty it makes me jealous."
"If a video of me blubbering like a child is broadcast to the whole world, I’ll die of embarrassment."
"Sis, you look great! What are you talking about? It was a stroke of luck that I borrowed the camera from Uncle Guk-shin!"
Jung Yoon-ah crossed her arms and nodded.
"I know what you’re thinking. I get how you feel. But this is too good to throw away."
PD Jang Hyun-soo listened quietly before speaking up.
"Then let’s try a retake. We’ll keep going until we get a quality that Yu-jin is satisfied with."
Thankfully, PD Jang Hyun-soo spared her, and they went back into filming.
After several more takes, PD Jang gathered all the scenes, including the first one, and showed them to Yu-jin.
"Which one do you like best, Yu-jin?"
"Ugh... uuuugh..."
"It’s frustrating, but you have to admit it, right? Your brother was right."
"I’ll... I’ll go with that one..."
The thought of her blubbering being broadcast worldwide made her want to die of shame.
However, the scene that best fit the keyword 'sorrowful' was the one her brother had filmed.
The difference in concept was simply overwhelming.
Fine, I have to earn that 700 million won for two hours of running time.
"I’m sorry. I was stubborn and just made the shoot longer for no reason."
"An actress requesting a retake because she wants to show a better performance? I’ll welcome that anytime."
"In the future, I will absolutely, absolutely not question your choices, PD-nim."
"You can question them as much as you want. I can be wrong too. Mutual feedback is always the right way to go."
*
Today, the child actor Jang Dong-hyun made her laugh several times with some funny jokes he’d picked up somewhere.
Inside the Carnival on the way home, Jang Ji-hye spoke up.
"Yu-jin, Yu-jin, can I sleep over at your place again today?"
"Sure. Tomorrow is the weekend anyway, so we’re going straight to the set. It’ll be easier if we move together."
"But when are you moving to Hannam-dong?"
"There’s literally nothing there yet. I need to get things ready before I move in."
After a long time, she logged into League of Legends to protect the peace of the Rift.
Jang Ji-hye, who had changed into her pajamas, sat cross-legged on the bed and watched her play while she had Discord open.
"I’m going in now. Hey, what is the Support doing? You should’ve followed immediately. With reactions that slow, do you think you can even make it to the quarterfinals of this tournament?"
—Sorry.
"Back off, back off. Now, again! There we go. Wipe them all out. We won this teamfight. Ah, don't chase the enemy Jungler, just let him go. No need to chase."
After finishing several hours of practice matches, she turned off Discord and stretched.
"Yu-jin, Yu-jin, what was that about the quarterfinals?"
"The guys I was just playing with are a pro team. I was filling in as a mercenary for their practice match."
"No way. So you were coaching pros?"
"I’m a Challenger of Challengers. I’ve received countless offers to go pro."
"Exactly how good is a Challenger?"
"The top 0.016% of the entire server population. It’s capped at 300 people."
"That’s insane. And you’re the best even among those 300?"
"I’ve got a permanent spot at rank 1. I might drop down a bit when I can't play, but I climb back up quickly."
"Rank 1 on the server? Wow, seriously amazing. I guess being an Elf with good reflexes makes you good at games too!"
Jang Ji-hye suddenly started rambling with an excited face.
"It was Shin Sang-hyun, right? Even I know him. Can you beat someone like him?"
"Not a chance. He’s my idol. My Idol."
Shin Sang-hyun—he was like a creator god who built the very world of the Rift.
How could a mere Challenger of Challengers like her dare to infringe upon his status?
"Your game tag is Rocktten Jupiter Bell? Do you like rock music?"
Many people made that mistake.
Even her brother didn't know the meaning behind the name.
"It’s 'Locked-in' shortened to 'Rock-ttwin,' and 'Peter Bell' is a combination of Peter Pan and Tinkerbell. It means Peter Pan trapped inside Tinkerbell’s body."
"Peter Pan? Oh, the kid whose nose grows when he lies?"
"That’s Pinocchio. And it’s not lying; his nose grows every time he fails to meet his daily quota of matches."
"Was it? I guess you’re right."
In the Peter Pan fairy tale her mother read to her as a child, the episode where Peter Pan swapped bodies with Tinkerbell was particularly memorable.
That’s why she chose that summoner name.
Because it felt like her own situation in this life.
"But do the pros you play with know you’re an actress?"
"Probably not. They’ve never seen my face. And since they’ve poured their lives into LoL, they don't watch dramas or movies at all."
She herself barely watched dramas or movies.
She hadn't even watched Hwan's Torch, which she appeared in.
Like last time, Jang Ji-hye slept on the bed while Yu-jin spread a blanket on the floor.
Technically, since men and women shouldn't sit together after age seven, she should have slept in the living room, but she didn't want Ji-hye to feel uncomfortable.
"Yu-jin, Yu-jin, you haven't talked about retiring lately. Have you finally decided to take this seriously?"
"Envidium alone isn't nearly enough to pay property taxes and maintenance fees..."
"I think money is a good motivation. You know the saying? 'We were done long ago, we’re just doing it for the money now.'"
"Once I’ve earned enough to last a lifetime, I’m really retiring."
"By then, you’ll have another reason to delay it, so I’m fine with that."
Yu-jin gave half-hearted responses to Ji-hye’s trivial chatter until she fell asleep.
Actually, there was something she was too embarrassed to tell Ji-hye.
Acting is more fun than I thought.
Working for a few months and getting 700 million won couldn't possibly be boring, but the acting itself was just fun.
It definitely wasn't just because of the money.
Curator Han Ji-woo... should I contact her? To ask for management.
For the first time in a while, she had a pleasant dream.
Eonnyeoni appeared and made her boiled pork and pickled cabbage.
Her face was blurred and unrecognizable, but the taste on the tip of her tongue was vivid.
*
The next day, Saturday, she went to the set in the Carnival with Jang Ji-hye and worked hard on her swordplay.
"Yu-jin, the most emotionally difficult scenes are over now. It’ll be easier from here on out."
"But are you really going to keep using formal speech with me?"
"Once I put down the megaphone and retire, I’ll treat you as my daughter’s friend. Until then, you’re an actress."
Seeing how he was even politely formal with the child actors, PD Jang Hyun-soo definitely had his own brand of madness.
Today, she only worked the morning shift and left early after lunch.
"Jang Ji-hye, I feel like I should really pay you a salary."
"Suddenly? Forget it, don't. I don't need it."
"Still, considering everything you’ve done for me on set, I can't keep making you volunteer for free."
"No. If I take money from a friend, the purity of my friendship will be ruined."
"Shouldn't a fair exchange be made for a friendship to last long?"
"Then I’d be your employee, not your friend."
Take the salary.No.Please take it.I won't...
After bickering, they reached a compromise.
"Then I’ll buy you something you need. I just got my appearance fee, so I’m loaded right now. If you refuse this, I won't let you be my stylist anymore."
"Hmph. Then let’s go to a department store."
"A... department store?"
"Buy me some clothes. It’s about time I refreshed my wardrobe."
Yu-jin had bad memories of department stores because of her mother. The never-ending shopping marathon that any man could relate to.
"Oh, wait. You’re famous now, so you can't just go to a department store, right? Then forget it. I’m fine."
Seeing her smirking face, Yu-jin realized.
Ji-hye had deliberately suggested the department store because she didn't want to receive anything in the first place.
"Jang Ji-hye, you really know how to push my buttons, don't you?"
"What did I push?"
"Fine, I’ll gladly let you push them. A department store? I’ll go with you. No matter what or how much you buy, I’m going to show you the greatness of a friend’s credit card today."
"People will swarm you for autographs, and you won't be able to shop."
"Optime convenit. Nunc tibi ostendam quomodo peregrinum me simulare possim."
(That works out perfectly. I’ll show you how well I can pretend to be a foreigner.)
"Pretend to be a foreigner? But your silver hair hasn't fully grown back yet."
"I have a silver wig in the trunk. I can just wear that."
It was perfect timing.
Her plan was to move around in a black wig made from her own hair when she was 'Actress Yu-jin,' and to go about in her original hair color when she didn't want anyone to recognize her.
Today would be the perfect test.
"But the scene where Yeon Si-ho the Elf awakens is the most intense one. Won't people recognize you immediately if you go around with silver hair?"
"People think it’s dye and makeup anyway. I just need to do some really heavy smoky eye makeup."
"Hmm, will that work? I don't know."
"That depends on your makeup skills, doesn't it?"
"Ha, is that a challenge? Fine, I’m in."
Despite the moving car, Jang Ji-hye flawlessly applied heavy smoky makeup and secured the wig.
Even Ji-hye, who had done the work, gasped and covered her mouth in surprise.
"Wow, it’s the same silver hair, but the vibe is completely different from Sword Spirit Yeon Si-ho. I wouldn't recognize you at all. You look like an assassin elf out to hunt down a traitor of her race."
The smoky makeup, a first for her, was a shock to Yu-jin as well.
Who... who are you?
She was startled to see a "tough girl" character in the mirror, looking like she could jump out in a full black suit with a minigun at any moment.
"Yu-jin, Yu-jin, I think you’d be great in a role as a beautiful Hollywood secret agent later."
"Whatever. Let’s just go shopping."
Before long, the car arrived at Gangnam New Land Department Store.
Yu-jin smirked as she flicked her credit card.
"I’ll show you today. The purchasing power of a friend’s card."
"Wow, so I get to go shopping today arm-in-arm with a smoky-eyed, silver-haired elf friend from Northern Europe?"
"I’m not linking arms with you."
"No, no! Then we’ll look like friends who are on bad terms."
"Ji-hye-nim, watch closely. See how many times I get hit on every few minutes today."
"Got it! I’ll make sure to keep count!"
The moment they got out of the elevator from the underground parking lot and stepped into the first-floor lobby.
Nearby gazes shifted toward them, and a ripple of interest spread like dominoes.
"Yu-jin, Yu-jin. I’m scared. Everyone is staring at us."
"Don't be intimidated. They’re not looking at you."
"You just poked at me again, didn't you?"
"Act like you don't care at all. Move with the mindset that there are just mannequins everywhere."
Yu-jin took the lead.
Ji-hye worked hard, so let’s start light with a few Chanel bags.
The reason she chose Chanel was simple.
Among the various ambassador offers, Yoon Se-rang and Jung Yoon-ah had said Chanel would be the best.
She had no intention of becoming an ambassador, but she wanted to see what the store was like. She was also curious why women were so obsessed with Chanel.
They boldly stepped into the Chanel boutique.
"Hic amicae meae conveniant sacculos aliquot pulchros ostendere potestis?"
(Could you show me some beautiful bags that would suit my friend here?)
Luxury brand employees are accustomed to foreign languages.
Especially at top-tier brands like Chanel.
But they probably hadn't heard Classical Latin, a language even cardinals only vaguely understood.
As the staff flustered about in confusion, Jang Ji-hye grabbed Yu-jin’s arm and whispered with a giggle.
"You really sounded like a princess from a Northern European royal family just now."