Free Web NovelAfter laughing for a long while and finally catching her breath, Do Gyeoul met the eyes of the staff who were staring at her blankly.
‘Ah, again....’
Moments like stray bullets that scratched at the surface of everyday life. But now, Do Gyeoul knew how to handle situations like this.
“Unni! I leveled up!”
She held up a game app she barely even played. Only then did the stiffened staff finally laugh.
“You were so busy tapping away, I wondered what you were doing!”
“You’re not a kid—do you really like games that much?”
“She seriously loves cute things. Come here. Let me fix your lip.”
The atmosphere, which had been slightly marred, smoothly returned to normal.
As she replayed Han Yeoreum’s interpretation draft in her mind once more, Do Gyeoul thought about the schedule for 〈The Great Garland〉.
‘Ah, it’s too far....’
* * *
Reporter Wi stepped into KBC with trembling nerves. The low murmur of reporters who had already arrived reverberated against the ceiling in a dull hum.
From the very beginning, 〈The Great Garland〉 was making a statement that it had come fully prepared.
Most of the actors seated around the long gray table were well-known names. The two leads stood out the most, along with the child actors seated beside them.
‘They put in the effort.’
‘The composition’s perfect for photos.’
The rapid-fire clicking of shutters rang out in succession. The unusually frequent and persistent camera sounds—far more intense than at an ordinary script reading—made it feel as though the ratings were already guaranteed.
The curtain rose on the script reading with Myeong Jeha’s crisp voice. The reporters’ hands moved faster.
‘Wasn’t Myeong Jeha from Seoul?’
‘Yeah, Seoul... looks like he took dialect lessons.’
‘He’s good. A triple ten-million actor really is different.’ freёwebnoѵel.com
The reporters exchanged glances. It was a role that could easily turn laughable if mishandled.
Even if people in the capital region might not notice, locals from that area would be sensitive to the slightest misstep in intonation. Myeong Jeha executed it flawlessly.
“What’re you doing.”
It was completely different from the acting he had shown on screen so far.
He had discarded the refined, gentle tone entirely. His breathing was raw and unpolished, rough around the edges.
In front of the young Huijae, Taeseok appeared as an awkward boy. He delivered his lines with breaths that seemed to suppress a trembling heart.
“Did it hurt.”
Reporter Wi realized why Myeong Jeha’s Taeseok felt more vivid.
‘He talks differently to different people?’
The scene they were currently reading took place when Taeseok was about seventeen.
The voice of a boy steeped in poverty was coarse in some way. It had the same grain as the coal and firewood he carried himself. A tone that felt like it could cut your palm if you ran your hand across it.
And he was taciturn. Taeseok’s lines were mostly limited to answering questions as briefly as possible. Poverty inevitably carried exhaustion with it.
Flip—.
In the quiet reading room, the sound of a script page turning echoed, and at last Yeoreum opened her mouth.
‘Yeoreum!!!’
The moment Reporter Wi heard about 〈The Great Garland〉 audition news, he had sincerely regretted ever choosing journalism as a career.
‘I should’ve done drama....’
Through word of mouth, he had heard that Han Yeoreum at the audition had been no joke.
The fact that Director Ja—who usually half-ignored whatever others said—had listened with full focus had stirred everyone who knew him.
“I don’t know... how to say it.”
“You should say Joseon person.”
“Jo-seon... person.”
Yeoreum’s precarious voice, as though it might scatter smoothly into the air, harmonized perfectly with Myeong Jeha’s quiet, rough tone.
She accurately reproduced the distinctive half-slurred accent of an overseas Korean.
“I... am grateful.”
The rougher Gi Taeseok was, the more Yeon Huijae’s purity came alive. The earnestness of a child making her first friend tugged at Reporter Wi’s heart.
‘This is so good....’
As the script reading continued, Reporter Wi noticed something.
“Taesgi-! Is the work manageable?”
“Yes.”
“If they’re well-off bastards they should at least shove a little allowance your way, but that damn son of a dog acts like he’s some kind of Jap, doesn’t he?”
It was a conversation shared with a laborer. Gi Taeseok answered briskly.
It was a harsh era. Right after liberation, Jinhae was not merely a small seaside town—it was a naval port city. In the aftermath of Japan’s defeat, remnants of the Japanese military, the U.S. military government, and chaotic public order were tangled together.
Port operations, warship clearance, weapon withdrawals, repatriation of Japanese nationals—urgent and dangerous ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) tasks never ceased.
That wasn’t all. Moving and organizing goods at docks, ports, and warehouses was a race against time.
Departure times, loading times, unloading times—every minute and second was money.
A delay meant no different from dropping your purse onto the ground. If a reply came even a moment late, the construction foreman’s harsh hand would come flying down.
For Taeseok, every action and response was directly tied to survival.
“How’s that house?”
But whenever it involved Huijae, he slowed by a beat.
“...It’s pretty. Very.”
It was the same when he spoke with Huijae.
As if helplessly swept away by a wave of emotion he had never experienced before, as if gasping under the unavoidable surge of first love, Taeseok answered with breath that sounded almost exhaled out of him.
“...Hello. I’m Gi Taeseok.” freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Ji Haebeom’s low, resonant voice filled the reading room. The accent was strong, but the rise and fall were natural. There was a refined weight to it.
‘That’s different from Myeong Jeha too!’
Reporter Wi suppressed the swell of emotion with effort. Years of analyzing countless dramas alongside Aetami kicked in.
For teenage Taeseok, the speed of his responses had meant survival. In contrast, the adult Taeseok spoke with leisure.
‘That relaxed tone of someone accustomed to others waiting for him... the ease of someone who holds power.’
Just through speech patterns, the change in environment was conveyed.
‘Alright, then finally—Eun Baekhap...!’
Anticipation layered upon anticipation. All the reporters waited for the moment Eun Baekhap opened her mouth.
Her voice was rarely heard unless it was during an interview.
“I am glad to be recognized.”
A light voice, as though it carried air within it, spread gently. As if it bore no deliberate weight.
‘That’s it...!’
‘Is there not a single weak link here?’
The moment Eun Baekhap’s voice joined in, the reporters thought the same thing. This was different from the previous SBC anniversary drama.
There was nothing that could possibly block 〈The Great Garland〉 from succeeding.
A master director, a renowned writer, top-star lead actors, two solid child actors, and even a strong OST lineup.
“It can’t fail even if it tried....”
After the script reading ended, someone muttered under their breath. But no one objected.
* * *
Manager Hong carefully checked the press release.
“Good. Let’s move from Seoryeong to a real first love.”
The image of Seoryeong, the shaman who had set the nation ablaze last summer in 〈Strange Tales〉, was already beginning to feel naturally distant from Yeoreum.
“Radio, variety, theater... and of course, this is the period at the end of the sentence.”
[〈The Great Garland〉 script reading scene... a heart-fluttering first love, Han Yeoreum as Eun Baekhap’s child counterpart]
The hidden key was Eun Baekhap, who shared Yeoreum’s role.
Even if you converted the popularity of a hit radio program into TV ratings, it would only be about 1.5%. The peak rating of <EmBubu> had been 7.0%. Even combined, they were insignificant compared to the 20% rating impact of 〈Strange Tales〉.
“But with Eun Baekhap, it’s a different story.”
Eun Baekhap was a top actress with multiple hit works. Far more people recognized her name than Han Yeoreum’s.
The lingering traces of shaman Seoryeong would be erased through Eun Baekhap’s influence.
“Hey, rookie—did you monitor it?”
“Yes. The response to the article about her as Eun Baekhap’s child counterpart is very good. Especially strong among the historical drama target demographic. And since she’s a student under Geum Bitgang, there’s a favorable atmosphere about her public network debut.”
“And?”
“It seems the Daehakro theater left a strong impression. Not just first love—she’s building a diligent image.”
Manager Hong checked the buzz metrics. Han Yeoreum’s public appeal far exceeded the baseline by a wide margin.
* * *
From the very beginning, 〈The Great Garland〉 drew public attention.
[KBC 50th Anniversary Blockbuster 〈The Great Garland〉 Unveils Its Veil and Finally Cranks In... “This Is the Value of Your License Fee”]
[A Weighty, Authentic Historical Drama 〈The Great Garland〉—A Jaw-Dropping Jinhae Set]
Director Ja was famously called “Director Ja” because he did whatever he wanted. But this time, he had a reason to heed the investors.
It was the largest scale among all historical dramas produced so far. The 〈The Great Garland〉 filming site was constantly bustling.
“One more pass on the finishing touches over here!”
At five in the morning, before the sun had risen, the air in Jinhae was chilly. The art director of 〈The Great Garland〉 sipped warm coffee while scanning the entire set.
‘It’s actually happening....’
Money really was good. With the large-scale investment, a convincing space had been realized. Thanks to preexisting Japanese-style buildings, the art team had been able to focus intensely on detail.
An old cart purchased in its entirety from Namdaemun Antique Market. Flower-patterned plates bought from an antique shop in Itaewon. The gravel laid in Huijae’s garden had been deliberately scattered in different types and colors to contrast with the dirt yard in front of Taeseok’s house.
“Team Leader Park—lower that wall a bit!”
The art director issued instructions through the walkie-talkie. As they turned the calendar back one day at a time, cherry blossoms bloomed and fell, and early summer arrived.
Red brick, green streetlamps, beige signboards. Between them, the image they had been waiting for finally came into view.
Director Ja, arriving on site, took in the entire frame at a glance. The more he looked, the more he could only marvel.
“Hurry up, hurry....”
The one who could seize control in a single move.
That was how Director Ja defined Han Yeoreum.
When she analyzed a character, she was like a microscope—probing into every microscopic detail. Then, in an instant, she would pull away like a telescope, surveying the whole. Zooming in and out at will—he wanted to see Han Yeoreum do exactly that.
And so, naturally—
“Actress Han Yeoreum has arrived!”
On the first day of 〈The Great Garland〉 cranking in, it began with Han Yeoreum.
