Free Web NovelGaldaeguk’s condition was better than ever.
Even the freezing cold that felt like being thrown into the Northern Sea Ice Palace could not bother him.
Because filming had gone smoothly for days.
“Uwahahahahaak-!!! Today’s filming was another successsss!!! Everyone, you may disperseeeeee!!!”
In particular, the single ray of sunlight that appeared during Im Ria’s introduction scene and the action sequence on Zhivopisny Bridge during Matteo’s escape had made Galdaeguk’s heart pound as though someone had struck it with the Great Crimson Fist.
Aside from the kiss scene that had opened the filming schedule, everything had satisfied him.
Unlike Galdaeguk, however, Ma Eungyo seemed to be withering away in real time.
She looked as if she had fallen into qi deviation.
“Eungyoooo!!! Are you planning to lose sleep again toniiight?! At this rate your body won’t surviveeeeee!!!”
No matter how brutal the filming schedule was, writers were writers.
And like most writers, Ma Eungyo had developed the habit of chewing over things again and again.
She had pretended to coolly move on from Ria and Taeo’s first kiss scene on the first day.
But she was still revisiting it whenever she found even a spare moment.
Storyboards and scripts were scattered all over the table as Ma Eungyo once again tried to understand the emotional flow.
“They’re characters I created myself, but I don’t understand.... I don’t really know, but apparently when you make characters too three-dimensional? They sometimes feel like real people, and you end up not understanding what’s inside them.”
She picked up a storyboard page whose edges had already become frayed.
On the rough sketch drawn with quick strokes was Han Yeoreum’s Im Ria.
“What exactly is lacking? I don’t really know, but people say that with a single instruction from me, actors can suddenly perform method acting even in areas they’ve always struggled with. So why....”
It was definitely the same part she had seen during script reading.
Han Yeoreum’s delivery was still highly persuasive.
Her skill had improved beyond what it had been when she played Huijae in 〈The Great Garland〉.
She had exceeded expectations.
And visually, the two actors were as pleasing as could be.
Galdaeguk would gladly wager his left wrist on the belief that Han Yeoreum was the only actress capable of creating that level of chemistry beside Han Yohan, the man famously cursed in romance projects.
Ria’s voice was exactly the same as before.
So the scene should have been good.
On top of that, there was now the passionate kiss scene that had not existed during script reading.
The scene should have been great.
“But....”
Yet something was lacking.
Both Ma Eungyo and Galdaeguk had expected the scene to carry tremendous weight before filming began.
It was a scene that revealed both characters completely.
A declaration of war announcing the beginning of a true action romance.
Im Ria grabbing Matteo by the collar and kissing him.
Matteo allowing the kiss despite being fully capable of overpowering a woman much smaller and lighter than himself.
A woman determined to uncover everything.
A man determined to hide everything.
The brief connection between them.
Just imagining the emotions that moment would deliver to viewers was enough to induce a trance.
Action belonged to Han Yohan.
Romance belonged to Han Yeoreum.
Galdaeguk had considered it perfect balance.
He had been certain that once filming started, the performances captured within the frame would prove him right.
“Right now, Baby is getting overshadowed.”
“We haven’t even filmed the explosion scene yet, so of course she issss!!!”
“If things stay like this, I’m not even confident about the explosion scene.”
So far, Han Yeoreum’s scenes had mostly been devoted to showcasing the Russian locations.
The conversation during the walk through VDNKh Park that highlighted her charm.
The Moscow subway scene that demonstrated Ria’s analytical abilities through lengthy dialogue.
Meanwhile, Han Yohan had been performing absurdly difficult action sequences.
Jumping from tall buildings.
Fighting groups of giant men.
Sprinting across a red bridge like a madman.
Rolling down steel staircases.
The weight naturally tilted toward Han Yohan.
“That scene is the most important one....”
Yet Han Yeoreum also had a scene capable of creating impact.
A scene they had deliberately postponed for the sake of actor condition, immersion, and proper preparation.
“What are we going to do about the explosion scene?”
Ma Eungyo anxiously shook her leg.
She squeezed her eyes shut as if recalling everything Im Ria had been up to now.
Galdaeguk stared at her in silence.
‘My, myyyy-!!! Eungyo and Baby alike can’t seem to let that scene gooooo!!!’
Galdaeguk knew.
Even if the kiss scene still felt lacking, the edited version would be completely different.
Countless detailed shots from multiple angles would appear on screen.
Han Yohan clenching his fists behind his back.
Han Yeoreum rising onto her tiptoes while clutching his collar.
The two of them against the distant Russian scenery.
Add music on top of that, and the scene would be indescribably complete.
Even so—
That final one percent sought by people obsessed with perfection was larger than expected.
Which was why they needed to save as much time as possible.
Because unforeseen disasters could strike at any moment.
And because he fully intended to grant them a reshoot of that scene.
‘But something is strangeeee!!! Eungyo isn’t usually the type to get hung up on something this longggg!!!’
Ma Eungyo was a writer who understood subtext better than anyone.
Galdaeguk knew better than anyone that she had never spent this much time analyzing a character.
‘Has she fallen into a heart demonnnnn?!’
* * *
I sat quietly in a corner of the set, sipping warm barley tea.
Han Yohan truly didn’t spare his body.
As a result, he hadn’t produced a single NG.
‘If Galdaeguk weren’t so obsessed with action that he kept asking for extra takes, every scene would have been one take....’
Han Yohan was so good at action scenes that it was hard to believe he wasn’t an actual field agent.
The angle of his punches alone was art.
‘Meanwhile, I....’
I had kept my promise not to make any NGs.
The long dialogue scenes had gone smoothly.
The problem was still that scene from the first day.
‘I still haven’t figured it out.’
What exactly had been lacking?
The fact that I hadn’t even noticed the problem before seeing Galdaeguk and Ma Eungyo’s reactions was shocking.
Even Han Yohan’s explanation of blind faith hadn’t truly clicked for me.
‘Because after Im Ria’s confession to God, the object of her blind faith changes.’
Im Ria turns her back on God and redirects that blind faith toward Matteo.
But that didn’t make sense.
It was contradictory.
‘How could Im Ria make Matteo the object of blind faith after seeing so many special agents?’
She knew perfectly well what kind of profession he had.
A profession where death followed like a shadow.
A man who could never stay by her side no matter the circumstances.
‘How could she trust him without thinking about any of that?’
No matter how much I thought about it, there was only one conclusion.
An Interpol agent couldn’t behave that way.
I felt as though I had slammed into a wall.
Just as every case has a beginning, middle, and end, emotions do too.
I knew how Im Ria’s love began.
I knew how it ended.
But the middle—
How should one emotion connect to another?
What kind of person did she need to become for the scene and the events to feel believable?
Cold wind blew across the set.
My right cheek felt numb from the chill.
I was desperate enough to wish someone would just slap me across the face and shock the answer into me.
“Um....”
“Ah! You scared me!”
My thoughts shattered.
Han Yohan had somehow appeared beside me without making a sound.
It was honestly impressive how little presence he could have.
Han Yohan held out a hand warmer.
“I already have one.”
“You still shouldn’t catch a cold....”
Silently, I accepted it.
Han Yohan sat down beside me.
Watching the staff reconfigure cameras and lighting, I suddenly felt like I was the one person on set failing to do their job properly.
“You’re lucky....”
“With what?”
“Usually when you come on location shoots.... everything that can go wrong does go wrong.... A truck carrying equipment gets into an accident.... Memory cards get corrupted and scenes need reshooting.... Ah, actors sometimes fight each other too.... Or the writer and director fall out and one of them walks away....”
As if comforting me, Han Yohan spoke quietly.
“Sometimes a location that’s already fully contracted suddenly refuses to let you film.... Or half the staff gets food poisoning.... Or actors get sick because of the climate or the water....”
It sounded like Han Yohan really had seen it all.
Strangely, hearing those stories made me feel a little better.
“But right now everyone’s healthy.... Nothing has gone wrong....”
“That’s true.”
“That’s what matters.... So don’t make things too difficult for yourself.... Otherwise you’ll wear yourself down.”
“Coming from the person destroying his own body more than anyone else, I can’t exactly hold my head up.”
“That’s not good....”
I sighed.
White breath drifted into the air.
“Come to think of it, I shouldn’t be acting like this. If you noticed, then the staff definitely noticed too. They’re probably all thinking, ‘Han Yeoreum’s in a bad mood today,’ right?”
I couldn’t make everyone worry about me when I wasn’t even doing my own job properly.
I stood up.
Clutching the hand warmer Han Yohan had given me, I forced a smile.
“You know, when I started this project, I made a promise to myself. It’s honestly embarrassing to say now.”
“Really....”
“I decided I’d personally save your romance filmography, Senior. I actually thought that.”
“Did you....”
“So I can’t sit around feeling depressed. I swear! Somehow, I’ll get that reshoot. You see that building over there? I’m going to make Director Galdaeguk jump all the way to the third floor. Just wait. Just wait.”
“Wow.... I’m looking forward to it.”
Han Yohan nodded at my confident declaration.
Good.
Don’t lose heart.
Don’t sit around wasting time thinking about walls and limitations.
‘I have to figure it out.’
There wasn’t much time left.
This wasn’t the moment to relax.
‘I remember their reactions perfectly.’
That director who always bounced around like a lunatic had stayed perfectly still that day.
I was absolutely getting revenge for that.
And then, a few days later—
“GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Galdaeguk really did leap high enough to reach the third floor.
“AN ENEMY OF THE MARTIAL WORLD HAS DARED TO INFILTRATE MY SETTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Not because of me.
Because of another actor.
‘That crazy bastard....’
Cold sweat ran down my back.
This was something I had never experienced before.
And I could say with confidence—
Among all the disasters that could strike during a location shoot, this was one of the absolute worst.
* * *
A bomb had gone off.
“Senior, did you see this?”
“See what?”
“〈Code Name: Time Seven〉 got hit with a school bullying scandal.”
“Huh? Probably just a rumor.”
Reporter Wi reacted indifferently.
The phrase school bullying simply did not fit Han Yeoreum or Han Yohan.
“Not ‘viewer abuse causing heart attacks’?”
Another reporter chimed in.
Considering the combination of Galdaeguk and Ma Eungyo, it seemed more believable that some new phrase had been invented.
After all, neither Han Yeoreum nor Han Yohan could possibly be associated with school violence.
“With Ma Eungyo and Galdaeguk?”
“Must be that.”
The other reporters were also ready to dismiss it—
Until the rookie reporter shouted in frustration.
“Kim Jisang! It’s Kim Jisang!”
The moment another name entered the conversation, Reporter Wi froze.
“Oh.... Him....”
“The second male lead from 〈Code Name: Time Seven〉! You saw him at script reading!”
Reporter Wi immediately rolled his chair over to the rookie’s desk.
On the monitor was a newly uploaded exposé post.
[BEST TALK / The school bully who ruined my school years is about to appear in a major drama]
Reporter Wi’s mind went blank.
In summary, the post said:
This bastard was the king of delinquents.
His criminal record is impressive.
And somehow this piece of human trash has been cast as the second male lead in a major drama.
The history described was severe enough that it was difficult to understand how someone like him had ever decided to become a public figure.
The kind of history worthy of a nine o’clock news headline.
The evidence was meticulous.
Detailed enough to show how deeply the victim hated him.
Even journalists who made fact-checking a daily habit found it disturbingly credible.
“Holy shit....”
“But if this is true....”
The Daily Media reporters turned pale.
Because if that happened—
“The drama’s image is screwed.”
Before a trailer had even been released, the first sparks of a boycott movement had already begun to spread.
