🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 15. Take Him Away (2)
Ha-ryeong was waiting on the set of the drama .
Just a few days ago, she would have been looking at her script nervously, but right now, she had put the script down.
“Ha-ryeong, I don’t think this is right.”
“Whyy.”
“No! You’re Ha-ryeong!”
“So what. And I’m only Ha-ryeong when I’m an idol. Right now, I’m an actress, and a rookie one at that.”
“Still, does a signing bonus of 50 million won make any sense?”
“They said they’d give me a really good settlement ratio instead. 2 : 8. You heard it too, unni.”
“Ah… You dummy.”
The two of them were talking about the contract terms Chang-su had proposed yesterday.
“Just go to another company instead. Then you’ll get a bigger signing bonus too. You can probably get a similar settlement ratio!”
“Then there’ll be a lot more I have to do. Like singing activities.”
“Don’t you feel like the 7 years you spent as an idol are a waste? It’s 7 years in words, but if you include your trainee days, it’s 10 years.”
“It is a waste. But honestly, I don’t have much presence in Love Day. You know I barely have any parts.”
“Still, you’re popular! In this industry, being popular is the best thing.”
“I want to do what I’m good at.”
“Haa… Still, if you’re going to do it, it’d be better to be treated better while doing it. I know President Park is famous, but every company has someone like that.”
The manager was a little frustrated. She wanted Ha-ryeong to join a good company if possible, and she could not understand why she was trying to join a newly established company with an uncertain future.
“Ha-ryeong. You don’t have to take unni with you. So go to a good company.”
An Yeon-hui had been with Ha-ryeong for a long time, so she wanted her to make a proper choice.
“It felt like he was really trying to take care of me.”
“That’s only natural! He’s starting a company now, so of course he has to coax you somehow!”
“Let’s say that’s true, but I feel like he suits me well. You know I’ve been hearing that I’m good at acting ever since President Park coached me.”
“Haa…”
“For now, I want to try working with him.”
Just then, someone knocked on the car door.
The manager who opened the door blinked with a slightly flustered expression.
“President Park… What brings you here?”
“Ah! I had something to do, and I was passing by, so I stopped in. Ha-ryeong, hello. It’s nothing much, but please have this. You need some energy for filming to get proper acting out. I didn’t buy it, though! A local resident bought it for you!”
Chang-su handed over vitamin drinks and a black plastic bag.
“It’s nothing special, just sweet potatoes! You aren’t dieting, right? Well, sweet potatoes aren’t really a problem even for dieting.”
“Thank you! I’ll enjoy them!”
“Then do well with filming today too! Fighting!”
Without saying a single word about the contract, he only handed over the snacks and left.
Then the manager shook her head and said to Ha-ryeong,
“You didn’t get swayed by this tiny drink and some sweet potatoes, did you?”
“I think I might.”
“What?”
Ha-ryeong pointed outside the window and smiled.
“Who takes care of someone like this when they haven’t even signed a contract?”
“This much is… And he said earlier that a resident gave it to him.”
“That’s just something he said to make me feel comfortable. Even right now, he’s taking care of everyone outside, all the way to the filming team, isn’t he? That alone must have cost quite a bit. There’s no way a local person would do that. If that were true, all the neighborhood people would have come out and handed them out.”
“Is that so…?”
“I’m telling you, that’s right. I think the director is really considerate too. He probably didn’t mention his name and just said a resident gave it to him because he was worried things might get awkward with my current company.”
“So what!”
“It’s his own money going out. And you can say it’s only one drink, but the mood outside got better because of this too.”
“Haa…”
As if Ha-ryeong had already been won over, she smiled brightly while watching Chang-su handing drinks to people.
* * *
A few hours earlier.
Chang-su was on the verge of fainting.
As soon as he arrived in the morning, he heard something absurd.
“Are you allowed to do that? Are you sure it’s okay?”
“Yes. I’m more tired than usual, but I’m okay.”
“This kid must be crazy. Why did you sleep in the living room when you have a room! What were you going to do if something serious happened!”
Myeongin had told Chang-su, who knew everything about him, all about what happened last night too.
“If I do it the way Mom taught me, it’s okay.”
“What did Teacher tell you! Let me know too!”
“She said this would happen from the moment the moon shone on me, and that as long as I didn’t tell them my name with my own mouth, there would be no problem.”
“Whoa…”
Still.
He could not understand the fact that Myeongin had even thought about meeting a grim reaper.
“You’re really okay, right?”
“Yes. I’m okay.”
“But why did you suddenly do something like that?”
“I was scared too, but there was something I was worried about.”
“What?”
“You know the grandfather we saw at the filming set yesterday. I felt another soul inside that grandfather.”
“Huh…?”
“It’s not like I have spiritual powers. You know how I said a grim reaper showed me a murderer’s life before? I think that’s why I felt that person.”
At those words, Chang-su remembered Myeongin’s expression yesterday.
That chilling expression he only showed when he was acting.
“So that’s why your expression was like that yesterday?”
“Yes. As soon as I saw that grandfather, that expression just kept coming out without me realizing it.”
“Then you should have told me first!”
“I wasn’t sure. I was going to tell you after I confirmed it.”
If he were an ordinary person, it would have been impossible to believe, but Chang-su, who had experienced hard-to-believe things while assisting a shaman for a long time, believed Myeongin’s words.
“Still, why are you confirming something like that. Do you know how scary grim reapers are!”
“I was a little scared too… but still, if it wasn’t his own will, that grandfather might end up doing something bad. If things went wrong, he could kill someone again.”
“Haa… So what happened?”
“They said it was a soul they hadn’t caught. So they caught it.”
“…”
As if it were his own business, Myeongin stroked his chest in relief and continued speaking.
“I heard from the grim reaper yesterday that there are many cases like that. So I asked whether the possessed person has to pay for the sin in those cases, and they said that’s not it, but there’s nothing they can do for the people who were harmed. They said that’s a big problem because causality doesn’t apply to that. That’s why they try to catch them.”
“…”
“How unfair must it be for the victims.”
“That’s not a problem you should worry about.”
“I know, but I couldn’t just stay still. Still, they said Choi Yeong-bae’s soul entered a weak grandfather, so he didn’t have the strength to commit any crimes. That’s a relief at least.”
After finding Choi Yeong-bae’s soul yesterday, Myeongin had heard various behind-the-scenes stories from the grim reaper.
There were still things he had not said, but seeing Chang-su’s still-worried expression, he thought it would be better not to talk about that much.
Just then, Chang-su, who had been organizing his thoughts, opened his mouth.
“Did you ask to go to the filming set because you wanted to see that old man?”
“Yes. The grim reaper didn’t tell me that part… so I was worried in case even the grandfather had gone wrong.”
“Haa…”
A few hours later, the first place the two went as soon as they arrived at the filming location was the supermarket.
Since they did not know where the grandfather lived, they went there to get information.
“That old man? How did you know? It was no joke at dawn yesterday.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know! Suddenly, there was a scream loud enough to make the whole neighborhood leave their houses. So everyone came out, and the police came and everything. That old geezer caused that whole mess. Then he got carried away in an ambulance.”
“Whoa… Did he pass away?”
“I don’t know. I hope he just dropped dead.”
Perhaps because of everything she had suffered from him until now, the supermarket lady did not seem able to speak kindly.
But Myeongin, who knew what had happened to the old man, became worried.
Just then, the supermarket door opened, and someone came in.
The owner lady immediately frowned and shouted.
“Why! Why did you come again! I told you I’m not selling anything to you, old man.”
When Myeongin turned his head, that grandfather was standing there. But unlike yesterday, he had an incredibly gentle feeling about him.
Sure enough, instead of yesterday’s sharp way of speaking, a tone that could be called gentlemanly was heard.
“I’m sorry.”
“…What did you say?”
“I don’t know why I acted that way, but it seems I behaved terribly. Honestly, I don’t really know what happened, but I remember that I did those things. So I came to apologize.”
The owner lady examined the grandfather with an expression still full of suspicion.
The grandfather continued speaking with a genuinely apologetic expression.
“I’m truly sorry to you, boss. It seems something must have gone wrong with my head because of an accident in the past.”
“Hmm…”
Myeongin, who had been listening quietly, opened his mouth on behalf of the owner lady, who did not answer.
“Are you all right now?”
“Pardon? Excuse me, but who are you…”
“I saw you at the filming set yesterday.”
“Ah! Ah… I acted terribly yesterday, didn’t I? I’m sorry. I must not have been in my right mind.”
At the sight of him even bowing at the waist, Myeongin smiled in relief, and Chang-su covered his mouth alone in surprise.
He seemed not to know that he had been possessed, but he seemed to remember to some extent the things he had done.
Seeing that, the owner, who also remembered what the grandfather had been like before his accident, remained suspicious but seemed curious as she asked the grandfather a question.
“Have you really come back to your senses?”
“Ha ha, yes. I must not have been in my right mind. Why on earth did I act that way?”
“I guess it’s true. You always spoke down to people and started by cursing…”
“I’m truly sorry to you, boss.”
“Oh my… What in the world is this.”
The owner clapped as if she had remembered something and said,
“So it really was because of that accident back then? Goodness! We didn’t even know that, and we thought you had gone senile!”
“Ha ha ha, anyone would have thought so. Even I don’t understand it.”
Myeongin looked at the grandfather in wonder.
That gentlemanly appearance was nice to see, and at the same time, thinking that he might have lost that appearance forever if Myeongin had not been there made him feel a little proud.
Just then, the grandfather took out his wallet and opened his mouth.
“You have a lot of drinks, don’t you?”
“Why drinks?”
“I want to apologize a little to our neighbors I’ve caused trouble for all this time.”
“Oh! What do you need to apologize for. Didn’t you just come from the hospital? Just get some rest.”
“Rather, I feel more refreshed than before. The hospital said I was perfectly fine too.”
“Really?”
Just then, the grandfather looked at Myeongin and Chang-su and continued speaking.
“You two work at that filming set over there, right?”
“Pardon?”
“I want to apologize for yesterday’s incident.”
“No. It’s all right. Things like that happen all the time.”
“No. Because of me, our neighborhood’s image got worse, so I can’t just stay still. Ah! Instead of that, I’d like the drinks for the filming team to be from the residents of Sinan-dong. Could you do that for me?”
“It really is all right. To be honest, I’m not part of the filming team either.”
“Since you said you were there yesterday too, it seems you’re connected to them somehow. I know it’s troublesome, but please do me this favor.”
While Chang-su scratched his forehead in awkwardness, the supermarket owner’s voice was heard.
“500 Bacca should do, right? First, I have to place an order, so wait a little. If it’s the filming team, would 8 boxes of 10 be enough?”
“Ah…”
“Since Teacher is treating everyone for our Sinan-dong, I can’t just stay still either, so I’ll boil some sweet potatoes for them. While those are boiling, I’ll bring the drinks right away. It’ll be quick, so wait just a little!”
And so, thanks to the excited owner lady, Myeongin and Chang-su ended up delivering drinks and sweet potatoes against their will.
