Shake, shake, shake.

My legs are trembling.

Shudder, shudder, shudder.

My body is vibrating endlessly.

'What did I just witness?'

Lee Min-ha, the writer of High Dream, had goosebumps all over her body. Honestly, if it were up to her, she would’ve run straight to Kim Dong-hoo, regardless of the filming site or anything else.

'Kim Dong-hoo!'

When she asked him to show his acting, she didn’t expect him to bring "Lee Jae" to life so completely.

“Th-thank you so much, PD-nim.”

Lee Min-ha, trying to calm her trembling heart, managed to speak, one word at a time.

“Huh?”

“I mean… thank you for letting me meet Kim Dong-hoo.”

It was lucky that she met him at his lowest point. Just imagine meeting that actor in another project.

'Wouldn't I go crazy?'

I should’ve found him first! I could’ve given him an even better script to act in!

The one who saved her from sleepless nights of such thoughts was none other than PD Kim Young-mo, the one in the bucket hat.

“Haha, what are you thanking me for? It’s all thanks to Kim Dong-hoo coming to the audition.”

Kim Young-mo PD sincerely believed that. The acting he just witnessed wasn’t just acting—it was like watching the life of an entirely different person unfold right in front of him.

'They say method acting is really tough for young actors.'

Since young actors can act more emotionally, the boundary between reality and fiction blurs, which sometimes leads to them mentally breaking down.

That’s why child actors can cry so easily, but at the same time, it's hard for them to separate from the role.

'But there's no sign of that with him.'

Despite acting with such deep emotions, Kim Dong-hoo looked perfectly fine. Without even a hint of inner turmoil, Kim Young-mo, who had seen countless child actors, could tell—this was the kind of emotional control even veteran actors struggle with.

Step by step.

Unable to hold back any longer, Kim Young-mo approached Dong-hoo and asked.

“Dong-hoo, where did you learn to act?”

How could he act like that? But the answer that came back was unexpected.

“I haven’t learned from anywhere.”

“Y-you’re self-taught?”

“Yes.”

Upon hearing that, Jang Geon-ho, who was looking after Kim Dong-hoo, furrowed his brow deeply.

'Is he really self-taught?'

It was a playful answer during the script reading, but now it felt different.

Is that even possible? But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

'Of course, it’s possible because he's self-taught.'

He hadn’t learned from any academy, agency, or talent company. Instead, he had gone through countless trials and errors alone to reach where he was. It was hard to believe that he had achieved all this at just fourteen, but the results were undeniable, standing right in front of them.

But on the other hand, it was worrying. As much as the director, writer, and himself were happy to see an actor perform well—

'The other rookies are going to struggle.'

For the new actors debuting alongside Kim Dong-hoo, the main and supporting roles would feel like a massive weight on their shoulders.

Honestly, after facing him once, they’d likely realize that something was off, that things might go awry if they didn’t push themselves from the very start.

And Jang Geon-ho's prediction was spot-on.

“…What was I doing when I was fourteen?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t know, just seeing that kid makes me wonder what I was doing at his age. Probably buying Apollo candy from a stationery shop.”

Jin Soo-hyuk, who played Song Cheol-soo, the male lead of High Dream, laughed in disbelief.

“When I heard a fourteen-year-old had been cast through an open audition, I really underestimated him. I mean, how good could a kid that age be, right?”

But this was way beyond what anyone expected.

“To be honest, what just happened was an NG situation—we didn’t say a single line. But do you know why they didn’t stop filming?”

“…Because it felt natural.”

“Exactly.”

Glancing at the monitor.

Jin Soo-hyuk watched the scene from earlier, now playing on a loop, where he stood, silent, overwhelmed by Lee Jae’s presence.

Rather than arguing back, it was more natural to look at the ground like a mouse before a cat.

Obviously, he hadn’t planned it that way. It just happened naturally.

Crrrk.

His fist clenched tightly. This wasn’t something his pride as an actor could allow.

'Kim Dong-hoo.'

I’ll catch up to you for sure.

Jin Soo-hyuk wasn’t the only one thinking this. Everyone who had been engulfed by Kim Dong-hoo’s performance had resolved the same.

From the very first filming, an unusual competitive spirit was ignited.

'Our Dong-hoo has become quite the stimulant, huh?'

Kim Yu-ryun, observing this, smiled contentedly.

As the tyrant whipped, the minnows struggled for their lives beneath him. In a way, it was only natural, part of the ecosystem’s cycle.

 

After the successful completion of the first day of shooting, I, taking advantage of being only fourteen, was able to skip the after-party and head straight home.

'This is intense.'

Both the acting and the filming set. There wasn’t a single moment to relax.

Just standing there drained my energy. If I hadn’t kept up with my exercise routine, I might’ve collapsed already.

“Son, today was your first day of filming, right?”

As soon as I got home, Dad, who had been waiting for me, immediately heated up some short ribs.

“Sorry I couldn’t pick you up. I’ve been so busy lately.”

“It’s fine. You’ve got a lot going on, Dad.”

“Still, I’m sorry.”

Dad had been having some busy days lately. Life always seems to throw another problem your way as soon as you solve one. Just as the issue of Mom’s cancer treatment costs was resolved, now there was a visa problem.

Mom's health was indeed improving, and she had even been declared cancer-free, but it wasn’t 100% over yet.

Dad wanted Mom to continue her treatment in the U.S. for as long as possible. Extending the visa to prove her need for long-term care had become a complicated process.

“Don’t worry too much about it.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

“Hehe, time to eat.”

I gave Dad a couple of pats on the back before diving into the ribs he had heated up. While eating, I checked the calendar hanging on the wall.

'Five more years to go.'

How could I ever forget the moment I lost my parents in that tragic accident? If I can just get past that day, I should be able to keep enjoying this happiness.

Ka-tok! Ka-tok! Ka-tok!

Just as I was thinking that, a series of KakaoTalk messages came through.

First day of filming today, right? Did you do well??? Honestly, you must not be impressed by actors or idols anymore, right? I must be the prettiest, come on, be honest, right?

Of course, it was Soo-jin. She’s always like this, such a character.

< I don’t know, honestly. >

As soon as I sent that reply, a message came back in less than a second.

What? What do you mean by that? Do you want to die? I’m the prettiest ㅡㅡ You only think that because you’ve only seen me on-screen. I’m way prettier in real life.

< Sure, sure. Let’s go with that. >

Knowing her personality, I immediately waved the white flag.

'Anyway.'

Glancing back at the calendar, I mentally went over my schedule. My role as Lee Jae wasn’t exactly a main or supporting role, so my appearances were fewer than I thought.

Though the role was significant, the villain wasn’t supposed to appear too often in a youth drama.

'The PD said he’d let me know when the next shoot is.'

Guess I’ll have to wait.

 

Meanwhile...

"The film is almost fully set up."

"That’s right. The studio is mostly built, and we’ve secured location sponsorships."

"Now we just need to shoot?"

S-t-r-e-t-c-h.

The man who spoke stretched his arms, clearly feeling relieved. From securing investments to picking a distributor and casting actors, the amount of work it took just to prepare for a movie was staggering.

The preparation was more exhausting than the actual filming. Though he complained, the smile never left his face.

"Director Kang, so you’re ready to start filming right away?"

"But, but, you know, CEO Park..."

At the words of Kang, a director with a long beard like Guan Yu, CEO Park Geum-gang’s face twitched nervously.

“W-wait, what is it now? Is there something else you want to add?”

He sounded weary, utterly fed up. This was already the tenth time that Director Kang had asked to add something to the movie. And yet, no matter how absurd the request, it always ended up enhancing the film’s quality, making it impossible to refuse.

"...Our movie, you know? We need to really show the horrors of war."

"Of course."

Director Kang got up and casually walked to the whiteboard, as if making such requests was second nature to him.

Pop.

With the crisp sound of a marker lid, Director Kang began his new proposal.

“No matter how fictional it is, our movie ultimately highlights the tragedy of the Korean War, right?”

“Yes, I know, Director.”

Of course, I know. How could I not? I’ve heard it so many times that I practically have calluses on my ears. So, I already knew what he was going to say next.

“The brutal battles for the White Horse Ridge! The endless back-and-forth ownership of the ridge, right? That’s our story!”

“Right, right. We even named it Icarus Ridge, didn’t we?”

“Exactly! It’s an anagram of Korea, you see? The battle was just that fierce.”

Scribble, scribble.

As Director Kang explained, he energetically scribbled on the board, resulting in one bold word.

<Student Soldiers>

“If we could just have one student soldier role, it would really be perfect.”

“But we already have young actors, don’t we?”

“They’re still a bit too old. What I want is something fresher, you know?”

“Uh, excuse me?”

“I’m thinking of casting a middle schooler.”

But I want them to be really good at acting.

As soon as CEO Park heard that last part, he had to hold back his frustration.

‘Does he think actors who are good just fall from the sky?’

He wanted to say something, but he held it in. After all, the script for this movie was too good to pass up.

No matter how he looked at it, this film was bound for success.

Glancing at the corner of the whiteboard, CEO Park looked at the title of the movie.

<Endless Frontline>

The thought of finding the perfect middle school actor for this brutal war film already made him feel stuck.