Chapter 204: Year End (4)

Translator: Dreamscribe

Kang Woojin emerged from the dressing room within the large set complex of ‘Island of the Missing,’ dressed in a military uniform and draped in a long padded coat. It was a familiar look for the shooting of ‘Island of the Missing,’ but there was a slight change in the condition of his uniform.

It was stained with a lot of blood and torn in many places.

This alone indicated how far the shooting of ‘Island of the Missing’ had progressed. Before leaving the building, Woojin stretched out thoroughly.

‘Ahh! Let’s go-‘

He had to snap out of the dream-like Hollywood and Miley Cara, and return to reality. Now, his schedule was filled solely with his main profession, acting. Soon after, Kang Woojin checked his poker face again before moving to the filming site.

-Swish.

The site quickly came into Woojin’s view. Reflectors and lights were set up, along with multiple cameras, boom mics, various equipment, and Director Kwon Ki-taek watching the monitors, surrounded by dozens of staff.

The shooting was already underway.

“One, two- Cue.”

After observing the site for a moment, Woojin felt as if he was back home.

‘Indeed, I feel most at ease on the set. Huh? Since when did I find the set comfortable?’

It was strange. He used to be filled with tension just stepping onto a set, but now, he felt none of that. Perhaps the drastic changes in the surroundings had something to do with it? It was when Kang Woojin was casually dismissing these thoughts that someone tapped his shoulder.

-Tap tap.

Turning around, he saw the assistant director smiling at him.

“Woojin ssi, we just started that scene. If you go to the standby tent, we’ll call you when it’s your turn.”

“Ah- Got it.”

Woojin replied and made his way through the densely packed set buildings to a large tent booth located at a three-way intersection. He entered the biggest booth among the contiguous tent booths.

-Swoosh.

Inside the booth, which served as a waiting room and rest area for actors, there were desks and chairs, and outdoor heaters were turned on here and there. Greeting Woojin as he entered were several staff members, along with Jeon Woo-chang and Ha Yu-ra. The other actors, including Ryu Jung-min, were currently in the middle of shooting.

Soon, the muscular Jeon Woo-chang waved at Woojin.

“Woojin ssi! Over here!”

He was wearing a thick short padding jacket over his military uniform, and Ha Yu-ra was in a beige long coat. Woojin approached them, who were sitting together drinking coffee, and bowed slightly.

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Jeon Woo-chang responded quickly.

“Eh?? What for?”

Ha Yu-ra, with her graceful image, also tilted her head in confusion.

“Just calling me over is consideration?”

As Woojin pulled out a chair to sit, he replied softly.

“I think I may have caused some inconvenience to the actors due to my temporary absence from the schedule. Both in terms of the shooting schedule and acting.”

It wasn’t incorrect. In ‘Island of the Missing,’ Woojin wasn’t just a minor character; he was one of the central figures. The character ‘Corporal Jin Sun-cheol’ that Woojin was playing had many scenes with the other actors, and initially, these were mostly group shots. During his unavoidable brief absence, the actors had to shoot scenes that did not involve Woojin.

This meant that without Woojin, they had to pull scenes forward that only involved the other characters.

Normally, scenes weren’t shot in the order of the script, and shooting scattered scenes was routine for the actors. However, having to shoot without Woojin and then, upon his return, trying to recalibrate the emotional line was not an easy task. For example, even if they had proceeded with scenes depicting after Woojin’s character’s death, they had to revert to performing with liveliness as if he were alive.

Kang Woojin was expressing his gratitude to the actors for this reason.

Obviously, this was discussed at the beginning of the ‘Island of the Missing’ project, and although the actors were aware of it, as the most junior and a newcomer, Woojin felt the need to show respect to his seniors again. Of course, it was Choi Sung-gun who had imparted this knowledge to him.

Anyway, Jeon Woo-chang laughed heartily as if it was nothing serious.

“Hahaha! I thought it was something serious! It’s okay, it’s just work. Besides, it’s not like we made a lot of progress without Woojin ssi.”

Ha Yu-ra, who chuckled softly, joined in.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. Honestly, after Woojin ssi left, a bunch of issues popped up and gave ‘Island of the Missing’ a ton of publicity, right? That alone did the job.”

“Agreed! ‘Drug Dealer’ alone hit 7.85 million viewers with an R-rating! And ever since, ‘Island of the Missing’ has been mentioned a lot, hasn’t it? Even Jung-min hyung was like, ‘Don’t I get anything?’”

“Woo-chang, you’re really quiet something, huh?”

“Ah! Noona, I’m just average. It’s Woojin ssi who’s extraordinary.”

As the conversation seemed to tire her, Ha Yu-ra undid her ponytail and suddenly asked Woojin.

“Which award ceremonies are you going to this year-end?”

“The Blue Dragon, Grand Bell Awards, and the Acting Awards at SBC, KBC.”

“Wow, four places. What about you, Woo-chang?”

“I’m skipping the Grand Bell this time. Just the Acting Awards at MBS. And you, noona?”

“I’m only going to the Blue Dragon and Grand Bell Awards. No need for the Acting Awards.”

“Ah- right. Noona, you haven’t done any dramas since last year because you were busy running around Hollywood.”

“Do you want to die?”

Jeon Woo-chang dodged Ha Yu-ra’s threat and pointed at Kang Woojin with his index finger.

“Why- It’s true, isn’t it? Right now, Woojin ssi might even debut in Hollywood faster than noona. Who knows? Maybe he’s already been contacted by Hollywood?”

“Really??”

Kang Woojin flinched inwardly.

‘Jeon Woo-chang······this guy has a surprisingly good intuition.’

But since his concept was strong, he downplayed it nonchalantly.

“That’s not true.”

“Hahaha, maybe not now, but soon we might see Woojin ssi in Hollywood, my instincts say so.”

“······Woo-chang, you know you’re an actor too, right?”

“Ah- I’ve given up on Hollywood. First off, my English isn’t good enough. Besides, Woojin ssi, are you really going to four award ceremonies this year-end? Isn’t that a first?”

“Indeed, attending award ceremonies in one’s first year of debut is rare, let alone being a nominee at four.”

Soon, the beaming Jeon Woo-chang leaned towards Kang Woojin.

“Are we going to see a scenario where a first year sweeps over more five trophies?”

Ha Yu-ra sighed.

“Woo-chang, you should try improving your acting too.”

“I know, but this year’s a bust for me. Instead, I’ll live vicariously through Woojin ssi.”

“Ha······”

Ha Yu-ra’s sigh deepened as she locked eyes with Kang Woojin.

“But Woojin ssi, have you prepared everything?”

Prepared what? Suddenly confused, Woojin remained cynically silent, so Jeon Woo-chang answered instead.

“What’s there to prepare?”

“What else? Tuxedos, items, Ah- and.”

Ha Yu-ra chimed in again.

“Acceptance speeches.”

Acceptance speeches? As Kang Woojin pondered inwardly, the assistant director appeared in the tent and shouted.

“Kang Woojin ssi, standby!!!”

Not sure, but for now, Kang Woojin pulled himself together as ‘Corporal Jin Sun-cheol.’

Meanwhile, at the same time.

In the large conference room of the newly established production company DM Production, PD Song Man-woo looked very serious. Of course, seated beside him were the production manager and other key staff of ‘Beneficial Evil.’

“······”

“······”

Everyone wore stern faces. They were all intently staring at the man seated alone across them, Choi Sung-gun in a black coat.

“Hmm.”

However, Choi Sung-gun was not here as Kang Woojin’s manager today but as the CEO of bw Entertainment. The reason was simple.

-Flap.

He was currently reviewing the formal contract proposed by the ‘Beneficial Evil’ team. Naturally, this meeting had not just started; it had been underway for about an hour. Choi Sung-gun, having scanned the contract, asked PD Song Man-woo in front.

“PD nim, what’s the total production cost for this ‘Beneficial Evil’?”

The response from the stolid-faced PD Song Man-woo was swift.

“It’s going to be around 20 billion won.”

“I see.”

Choi Sung-gun, slowly nodding his head, murmured inwardly.

’20 billion won- they say it’s 20 billion, but it’s probably close to 30 billion. Production teams tend to underreport initial funding.’

The average production cost for a Korean drama nowadays, which includes numerous technologies, starts at 10 billion won as a baseline. With top actors involved, and if it involves overseas shooting, it easily exceeds 20 billion won.

”Beneficial Evil’ also has overseas shooting. Moreover, it’s not 16 episodes but a total of 12. Even so, 30 billion is quite significant.’

It was directed by PD Song Man-woo, who had a blockbuster hit with ‘Profiler Hanryang.’

‘In such a major production, our Woojin is the lead.’

Once a mere ‘Park Dae-ri,’ Kang Woojin was now the sole male lead. Satisfied, Choi Sung-gun as Kang Woojin’s agent extended his hand to PD Song Man-woo.

“I look forward to working with you, PD nim.”

“Ah Yes?”

“Yes. Let’s seal the deal.”

As Choi Sung-gun stood up, a clause in the contract he was viewing caught his eye. It was Kang Woojin’s fee.

-80 million per episode.

Based on 12 episodes, it nearly reached 1 billion won.

Two days later, on the 23rd, at a hotel near Buyeo.

It was just past 9 AM. Kang Woojin could be found at a luxury hotel used by the ‘Island of the Missing’ team.

“Ack!! Man, I slept like a log.”

He stretched fully as he came out of the bathroom, his hair damp, likely just after a shower. It seemed he had been up for a while. Being alone in the room, he had dropped his persona. Soon, Woojin, picking up a hairdryer to dry his hair, checked his phone.

As usual, there were numerous messages waiting.

Among them, Woojin first checked the message from Choi Sung-gun, who was currently in Seoul. It detailed some changes in today’s schedule and included a few articles. Woojin’s schedule today was relatively simple yet tight.

First, he had to shoot ‘Island of the Missing’ in the morning.

He needed to catch up on as much filming as possible due to his earlier absence. Later around noon, he would return to Seoul and head straight to bw Entertainment for some checks and a meeting.

There was a very, very important event today.

After spending time in a styling studio for a style check, he had to arrive at a booked salon to get dressed up. All of this had to be completed before 7 PM.

The reason could be seen in the articles Choi Sung-gun had sent.

『[Official] Blue Dragon Film Awards, to be held today (23rd)… The area in front of the ceremony is already crowded』

『Dozens of reporters and fans around the Blue Dragon Film Awards red carpet have been camping out since morning / Photos』

Today was the opening day of the Blue Dragon Film Awards.

Tonight, Woojin would attend the largest film festival in Korea for the first time in his life, likely a once-in-a-lifetime event, especially as a likely award recipient.

“Whew- jeez, this is crazy.”

Woojin’s heart, which had been insanely nervous the night before, fluttered wildly again. Then, trying to calm his nerves, he checked other messages.

Soon.

“Huh?”

Woojin paused at one particular message. It was from Hwalin. The message simply read, ‘Call me when you see this.’ Curious, Woojin cleared his throat before calling Hwalin.

The connection tone was brief.

“Ah- thank goodness.”

Hwalin’s somewhat excited voice came through the phone.

“I was worried I wouldn’t be able to reach you, Woojin ssi.”

“What’s the matter?”

“No, it’s not that there’s a problem… Where are you right now, Woojin ssi?”

“I’m currently in Buyeo.”

“Why are you still there?? Aren’t you preparing for the Blue Dragon?”

“I am, I’ll head to Seoul after the morning shoot.”

“Ah, I see.”

After a brief pause, she asked again.

“Then, could you possibly meet me for a bit when you get to Seoul?”

Woojin, feeling puzzled, replied with a steady voice.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to make time separately. I’ll be visiting the agency, then the fitting studio, and finally the shop.”

“I’m off today. Can I drop by the fitting studio or the shop for a bit?”

“Why would you do that?”

“Well, I wanted to give you something before you go to the Blue Dragon.”

“What is it?”

“Just a small thing. A gift. For thanking you, and for that incident before.”

She must be talking about the incident with the assailant with an awl, right? Anyway, Kang Woojin slightly tilted his head and asked.

“A gift?”

Over the phone, Hwalin replied calmly.

“Yes, a gift. It’s a watch.”

At this moment, Hwalin was sitting on the sofa in her living room. She appeared to have just woken up, still in her pajamas, and her long hair was a bit disheveled. Naturally, she was bare-faced, though the mole under her eye was prominent. Interestingly, despite her calm voice, her face was evidently tense.

“Is that okay?”

Soon, Kang Woojin’s response came through the phone.

“I don’t mind. Do whatever is comfortable for you.”

With a sudden smile, Hwalin replied as calmly as she could.

“Ah, then just let me know the time. I’ll adjust my schedule to meet you.”

“Got it.”

“Yes- see you in a bit.”

-Click.

As soon as the call ended, Hwalin, who was putting down her phone, suddenly sprang up.

“Done!”

For the record, Hwalin is not attending the Blue Dragon Film Awards today. She might go to other network’s award ceremonies, but today was her day off. The smile that had spread across her face gradually faded. Then, the pajama-clad Hwalin slowly turned her head.

Towards the center of the living room table.

There lay a very luxurious-looking paper bag. Inside was a watch case, intended as a gift for Woojin. Both the paper bag and the case were green.

As she stared intently at it, Hwalin muttered to herself.

“Maybe saying it was small was a mistake?”

She belatedly covered her face with her hands, regretting her words. However, for Hwalin, overlooking her favorite actor’s first movie festival and red carpet appearance felt almost sinful.

She couldn’t make too much of a fuss.

That’s why she had chosen a watch as a gift. She picked a watch that would go well with a tuxedo. Indeed, these past few days, this had been her priority over anything else. She was pleased with the watch she had purchased.

Now, all that was left was to give this gift to Kang Woojin.

“A, Am I going too far? No, it’s fine. It’s enough for a token of gratitude, right? Yes. It will look perfect with Woojin-nim’s tuxedo… I’ll take a lot of photos.”

Yet, for some reason, Hwalin sighed briefly as she looked down at the watch. It was because of the price of the gift.

“What if Woojin-nim feels burdened by it? Ah- I shouldn’t have said it was small.”

Calling something that costs over 30 million won ‘small’ didn’t make sense.