Chapter 18
Yang Chunja had cared for her granddaughter Hong Siyeon since she was little.
It was simple.
Because her son and daughter-in-law had died in an accident.
So she raised Hong Siyeon and Hong Suyeon under her wing.
And so, she knew.
That Hong Siyeon was born with natural charm.
That even without trying, many people would love her.
And even her face was beautiful.
That was why she worried.
That worry turned into caution when she nearly got kidnapped.
She thought it might have been one of her enemies, but when she realized he was just a crazy criminal who had been bewitched by her beauty, she understood how serious it was.
But that didn't mean she could hurt such a lovely child.
So while looking for a solution, she made one suggestion.
Change your hair color and eye color.
This society called South Korea rejects anything that feels too foreign.
Then what about red hair and golden eyes?
Wouldn't that stand out especially in a Korea overflowing with black hair?
As a result, her worries eased somewhat.
Of course, she had to pull a few strings here and there to make it happen, but couldn't she do even this much for her beloved granddaughter?
Even so, the charm Hong Siyeon possessed was still dangerously powerful.
But then—
There was a man who didn't fall for her granddaughter's charm?
"Huh."
Yang Chunja closed her eyes.
After a low groan, she let out a small sigh.
"I once saw a man like that too."
"Huh? Really?"
"Yes. Your grandfather was just like that."
"Wow..."
"That reminds me of those days."
The time she decked Heeja from the neighboring village and won him over.
Even when they were dating, there was no shortage of filthy bitches flirting with her husband.
No, even after they got married, it was the same.
"Did Grandpa cheat on you?"
"No, he was an honest, steadfast man."
Once they started dating, and even after marriage, he never once looked at another woman.
Even so, there were plenty of women after him, and every time, Yang Chunja's spicy fists had no choice but to move.
"Heh heh. I was really young back then too."
And hot-blooded.
At the sight of her grandmother blushing slightly and looking shy, Hong Siyeon couldn't help but laugh.
"Anyway, if there's a man like that, make sure you catch him."
"I want to, but he isn't falling for me at all."
"Really? I like that even more. Hmm, that's how a man should be."
Yang Chunja nodded repeatedly, saying her own husband had been the same.
"So what does he do?"
"He's someone we just brought in as an outside director at our company. I even gave you the report."
"Hmm? Ahhh. You mean the guy who helped blow that bastard Jang Guhwan away."
Remembering the report she had received then, she nodded.
"Tell him to have a meal with me sometime."
***
"Greetings, everyone."
-Noa hyung!! I'm screwed right now!
-I'm even more fucked! Hyung, help me too!!
-Me first! Me first! Hyung! My boss is such a bastard I'm thinking of changing jobs...
It's chaos again today.
Because he only took ten people a day, the chat and donation messages were overflowing like an explosion.
"Guwon, the job you're doing now is so shitty you want to quit? That's not a good choice. If you quit your company now, you won't be able to get a job."
I gave advice to a friend who had gotten a job but was debating whether to quit because his immediate superior was a bastard.
"Hang in there a little longer. And put what's in your superior's drawer on the department head's desk. He'll be the one leaving instead of you."
The evidence that your superior, the assistant manager, has been embezzling company money is in that drawer.
With that, Guwon could escape the crisis and pressure he was feeling.
"What? At your hof bar, there are punks hanging around who might or might not be minors, and you're wondering whether to let them in? Don't serve them. They're minors. They forged their IDs, so call the police immediately."
For a middle-aged man in his fifties who retired and now runs a hof bar, a 30-day business suspension is too harsh.
Even the problem was caused by them.
So I gave him advice.
"Uh. And also..."
Trivial as they may be, they were important matters to the people involved.
While I was working through them one by one, a single line in the chat caught my eye.
-Gastang : I'm running a fine dining restaurant, but I haven't had any customers lately. Should I close shop or not?
Fine dining?
I don't really know much about restaurants that fancy.
Anyway, I looked into his future.
"Hey. You're going to be on a show?"
-Gastang : Huh? Really?
"Yeah. If the broadcaster asks, accept it no matter what. That's the road to turning your life around."
He had worked at a three-Michelin-star restaurant, then returned to Korea and opened a fine-dining restaurant.
But running it wasn't easy.
Still, he somehow kept it going, and just when he thought he couldn't take it anymore, he got the call.
An Eteflix show.
He wins there and goes on to become hugely successful through both broadcasting and cooking.
But if he closes his own restaurant here and goes to work at another one instead?
Then appearing on the show would be difficult, and in the end, he'd just live his life that way.
-Gastang : Thanks! Then I'll hang in there a bit longer!! If it really works out, I'll invite you, so you have to come!! I'm buying for real!!
By the way, a broadcast...
Isn't it about time for drama filming already?
-Ring ring!!
It's PD Jang Wookyung.
He said he'd contact me when it was time to film, so I guess the time has finally come.
"Hello?"
-Hello! Mister Kang!
"Yes. Have you been well?"
-Yes! Yes! The shoot is coming up soon!
"I see. Where should I go?"
-I'll come pick you up myself!
He said it was up in the mountains anyway, and there weren't even any buses, so we should go together.
If I'm going with the main PD himself, there shouldn't be any problem.
The filming day is... the day after tomorrow, I guess.
Let's keep that time open.
.
.
.
Two days later.
I arrived at the filming location.
Maybe because it's a filming set deep in the mountains, it's incredibly hectic.
Or is every filming set like this?
"Get the cameras ready!!"
"Are the actors all ready!?"
"What are you doing!! Do you want to blow this shoot?!"
Staff members shouting and running around everywhere.
Supporting actors getting dressed and preparing for filming.
On top of that, the lead actors were also having serious discussions with the assistant directors.
"Where are the hunters?"
"They're over there."
Among the gathered group, there were as many as five people carrying guns.
Their gear looked good and the guns were in proper condition, so this seemed trustworthy enough.
Still, since people's lives were on the line, maybe I should take a look?
One of the five had a stern face.
With his pale face and snow-white beard, he had a sturdy build that didn't lose out even to a young man.
This man.
This man would be the one to catch the wild boar.
"Hello."
"Hello there."
"You're a hunter too?"
Do hunters have some kind of competitive streak or something?
It looked like they hadn't even greeted each other.
"Haha. I'm here because I know the director."
"Hmph. Really?"
"Well, you could say we know him too."
"Normally, when filming in a mountain like this, they don't even gather hunters like us."
"So how good is everyone? I caught two wild boars last month."
"Two wild boars? That's nothing. I caught a tiger."
"Hey, old man. This isn't the Joseon era—where would there be wild tigers in Korea...?"
Like fishermen, hunters like to casually boast about the game they caught.
But there was one exception.
The old man who would catch the boar today, Gwak Seong, said nothing and only fiddled with his gun.
"Old man, have you caught anything?"
"What's so special about a hunter catching a pest animal?"
Ahem. He cleared his throat and looked around.
Then, with a gruff face, he took jerky out of his pocket and held it out.
"Eat."
"Oh. Thank you."
Looks like homemade jerky.
The first bite tasted amazing.
"This is really delicious."
"Hmph. A real hunter should know how to cook game like this as a basic skill."
The taciturn old man said it matter-of-factly.
Even so, he gave me a little more of the jerky he'd brought.
I should accept it gratefully.
The other hunters also offered nuts or dried squid.
"If we had beer too, this would be perfect."
"Khh~! Shall we go have a drink after this?"
While the hunter uncles were chuckling and chatting, a man who looked like the assistant director approached.
"Oh dear. You've all worked hard. You're tired from waiting, aren't you?"
"There's nothing to be tired about."
"But... with it this noisy, do you think the wild boar will come?"
He'd only said it because he felt awkward about having called in hunters like this.
At that, the hunters answered firmly.
"It will come. It will come out."
"I don't know about the old days, but these days they're running wild."
"They come down without caring even when people are around, and they often show up in town too."
"When you're hunting in the mountains, especially in a place like this where wild boars might appear, it's safer to have hunters like us here."
"The best thing is for them not to come at all."
The assistant director was flustered by their blunt judgment.
He'd only said it because he was embarrassed that nothing had happened, but everyone was so hard-line.
"Filming starts now!!"
Then came the shout.
As the assistant director went to the shooting spot, the hunters stood up too.
They must have felt it was time to start watching the surroundings.
"And you are...?"
"I'm not a hunter."
I'll just watch from here.
And so the hunters left, and I watched the filming.
Since it was a fusion historical drama, everyone was wearing elaborate hanbok.
Running away in those clothes wouldn't be easy...
-Kweeeeeek!!
Then a fierce cry rang out from the hill.
It's the boar.
As if it had gone berserk at the sight of the male lead in red clothes, it was charging madly toward him.
"Kyaaah!!"
"G-get out of the way!!"
"Aaaah!!"
Everyone was expecting a major disaster.
But among the hunters here, one was calmer than anyone else.
-Bang!!
The single gunshot echoed across the filming set.
The shot fired into the air was enough to make even the charging boar tremble with fear and flee.
"I'll track it down and catch it."
"Uh... yes."
The taciturn, white-haired old man.
Gwak Seong said calmly and headed up the mountain.
Was it because of that calm composure?
The tense atmosphere on set gradually began to ease.
"Wow... that's so damn cool."
It looked like there were a few people who'd fallen for that macho vibe.
.
.
.
The filming ended well.
The captured boar wasn't eaten by the staff; the hunters split it among themselves.
"You really went through a lot."
PD Jang Wookyung kept bowing over and over.
If it hadn't been for the hunters, the shoot would have been a disaster.
"And you too, sir... really, truly..."
"Haha. I'm glad it worked out. Things will be smooth from here on, so don't worry and just keep filming."
"Yes!! Thank you!"
His future changed.
His wife's surgery went well.
The PD who turned the drama into a success and made the King's Return happen.
Everyone involved in this would be satisfied with the outcome.
"Old man."
"Hm?"
I approached the old man as he was putting his gun away.
And I held out the card.
"What about it?"
"Would you like to turn it over once?"
He looked at me with a sullen expression, then turned the card over without saying anything.
The people around watched me with interest.
"You have a grandson, don't you?"
"...How do you know that?"
A murderous gaze fell on me.
Even so, I didn't back down.
"Your grandson... may die soon."
Losing his beloved grandson to a random assault.
I couldn't turn a blind eye to the future of an old man who would shoot the culprit dead and then kill himself.