Chapter 123: Casting Is My Decision (7)
The trip went more smoothly than expected.
Stopping at rest areas to buy Kim Da-on all sorts of snacks, dipping their feet in the seawater upon arriving at the beach, browsing the traditional market—everything that felt like a hassle to Kim Si-woo was a completely new experience for Kim Da-on.
“Is it fun?”
“Yes!”
“Then that’s good enough.”
Watching Kim Da-on hold his hand while looking around curiously, Kim Si-woo couldn’t help but smile.
If he had a youngest sister or a daughter, would it feel like this?
‘Well… adopting her myself would be a bit much. What about Mom and Dad?’
In truth, his parents had really wanted a daughter.
But unfortunately, the first child turned out to be a boy—Kim Si-woo.
They held onto hope and had a second child, but again, it was a boy—Kim Seung-oh.
After that, his parents gave up on having a daughter and raised their two sons.
“Oh my, how cute. Da-on, what do you like to eat?”
“Chicken.”
“Chicken? But we’re at the beach, so chicken feels a bit out of place…”
“Da-on also likes king crab. Last time, she ate two all by herself. Today we’re going to eat king crab and lobster.”
“Oh my. What’s gotten into our son? Did you hear that, Da-on? King crab!”
“Yes!”
By the time evening rolled around, Kim Si-woo and his family arrived at the seafood restaurant where he had eaten with Kim Seung-oh before.
It was the same place where he had also met Kim Ji-hyun.
“Welcome. How many in your party?”
“One more coming soon, so five in total.”
“This way, please.”
Following the server to a table inside, Kim Si-woo stood and placed the order right away without sitting down.
“Boss. Five blue king crabs.”
“Five?”
The price of high-quality blue king crab was astronomical.
At the restaurant, it cost well over 100,000 won per kilogram.
But Kim Si-woo was one of the top-earning writers in South Korea.
On top of that, he didn’t have many places to spend money.
“Yes. Give us the sturdy ones.”
“Got it.”
The owner personally weighed and showed them A-grade blue king crabs before immediately putting them in the steamer.
Most were between mid-2kg and 3kg.
Of course, his father and mother’s hawk-like eyes were there to ensure there was no funny business.
“And five butter-grilled lobsters, please.”
“Ah, yes. Right away.”
The owner, clearly not expecting just five people to order this much, looked flustered as he hurried off.
Just the king crabs alone would easily exceed 1 million won.
‘As expected, I’m still not used to spending money like this.’
A little while later, when his younger brother Kim Seung-oh arrived, he too looked bewildered upon seeing Kim Da-on.
“Who’s this kid?”
“Can’t you tell? My secret daughter.”
“Whose daughter? Dad’s? Doesn’t seem like hyung’s…”
When Kim Seung-oh looked at their father, Kim Dae-kwon, he glared back alongside him.
“What are you looking at!”
“Guess it is true.”
“Guess it is true? You little—looks like you need a beating.”
Kim Dae-kwon swung his fist, but as a former taekwondo athlete, Kim Seung-oh was adept at taking hits.
Thwack. Thwack.
“Block the face! Block the body!”
He knew that dodging would only make it worse, so it was a quick judgment call.
“Both of you, stop it and sit down.”
“Yes.”
At Kim Si-woo’s mother’s words, Kim Seung-oh replied and sat next to Kim Da-on, who stared at him with curiosity.
“But she kinda looks like hyung?”
“You’re saying the exact same thing as Mom.”
Since it had been a while since they last met, they chatted about various things, and soon the steamed king crabs that had been prepared first were placed on the table.
“Please enjoy.”
Steam rose gently as they began seriously pulling apart the king crab legs.
Kim Si-woo’s parents ate first, and only then did Kim Si-woo tear off a leg, extract the meat, and place it on Kim Da-on’s plate.
“Eat slowly. It’s hot.”
“Okay!”
Seeing that, Kim Seung-oh was dumbfounded.
“Wow… Is that really you, hyung? You hate kids.”
“What kind of bull— No, what are you talking about, little brother?”
Kim Si-woo barely held back the curse that almost slipped out and glared coldly at his younger brother.
Perhaps remembering the times he got hit by Kim Si-woo in their childhood, Kim Seung-oh averted his gaze.
Soon, Kim Si-woo corrected himself, saying he didn’t actually hate children in general.
“This hyung doesn’t hate kids—he just hates kids who don’t listen. And maybe the messy ones a little…”
At Kim Si-woo’s words, Kim Da-on, who had crab meat smeared around her mouth while eating, flinched.
“It’s fine. Just eat deliciously. But no smacking sounds, okay?”
“Okay!”
“Good. If you want more, just say so.”
Kim Si-woo diligently alternated between his own crab and Kim Da-on’s, tearing off legs and extracting the meat.
Just as everyone finished devouring their king crabs, the crab innard fried rice and butter-grilled lobsters arrived right on cue.
“Round two begins.”
After the battle-like meal ended, everyone rubbed their bellies.
“Ugh… I’m going to burst.”
“Then let’s walk it off on the beach.”
“Sounds good.”
After settling the bill and stepping outside, Kim Si-woo dragged his heavy body along the shoreline.
“Phew… I’m so full.”
“Me too.”
Kim Da-on walked alongside him, mimicking his belly-rubbing perfectly.
Whooosh. Boom.
At that moment, the sound of fireworks exploding from one side of the beach made Kim Da-on turn her head.
Her gaze fixed on the fireworks; she kept walking forward but with her head turned completely toward them.
“Hey, Kim Seung-oh.”
“Yeah?”
“Go buy some fireworks.”
“What?”
“I’ll give you allowance.”
“Okey!”
“Hey, buy all different kinds.”
At the mention of allowance, Kim Seung-oh dashed off to buy fireworks.
Ten minutes later, Kim Seung-oh came running back with an armful of fireworks.
“Huff… huff… Hyung, here.”
“Good job.”
Kim Si-woo took the fireworks from his brother and placed a sparkler in Kim Da-on’s hand.
“Come here.”
“Okay!”
“Hold it tightly.”
Kim Si-woo lit the sparkler with a lighter, holding it with her just in case she got startled and dropped it.
Sizzle.
As the fuse burned inward, the gunpowder inside ignited, sending up red sparks.
Whooosh. Boom.
It was a very small firework, but to Kim Da-on, it was a breathtakingly beautiful one that completely captured her heart.
With her mouth agape, staring at the sparks, Kim Da-on looked up at Kim Si-woo with an expression begging for the next one as soon as the first finished.
“Want to hold this one by yourself?”
“Yes!”
This time, after lighting it, he stepped aside and took photos and videos with his smartphone.
“I’m glad it looks fun.”
After that, they used every type—fountain, rapid-fire, and sparklers.
Kim Da-on especially loved the sparklers because, as she said, you could draw pictures or write words with them.
Seeing Kim Da-on’s face full of smiles, Kim Si-woo thought it had been a great idea to come on this trip.
“Alright, time to head home now.”
“Okay!”
As promised, Kim Si-woo handed his brother a generous allowance before quickly heading back home.
***
While Kim Si-woo was on his day trip to Gangneung, the actors cast in his film were each putting in effort to fully embody their roles.
In particular, Jung Pil-gyu, whose desperation was greater than anyone’s, left his pregnant wife behind and went to a blacksmith forge every day to learn the craft.
As each actor interpreted the script in their own way, an unexpected email arrived for Kim Si-woo.
It was from Arimura Noa in Japan.
“What is this?”
Opening the email, he found a message saying that filming had safely wrapped up, along with the date for the preview screening.
“What? Didn’t they say it would finish around winter?”
Kim Si-woo immediately called Arimura Noa.
“Hello?”
-Writer-nim! Seeing that you called, you must have read the email?
“Yeah, well… Didn’t you say it would end in winter?”
-We did… but all I can say is that we did better than expected…
“I see. You all worked hard. Is everyone doing well?”
-Of course. They’re already preparing for award ceremonies, thinking about winning prizes.
“Hahaha. Anyway, I’ll head to Japan on the preview date.”
-Yes, Writer-nim. Please contact me again before you depart.
After exchanging pleasantries with Arimura Noa, Kim Si-woo also informed Lee Hae-soo about the news.
Naturally, Lee Hae-soo was flustered, stammering as she checked her schedule.
She then quickly ended the call, saying she needed to apply for vacation right away.
“Hmm… Good thing it’s after the script reading.”
By a narrow margin of just one week, the preview date fell after the script reading for ‘Peerless Joseon.’
If they had overlapped, Kim Si-woo might have been in serious trouble trying to decide.
After eating lunch and spending more time writing a new script, Kim Si-woo was about to head home when his smartphone rang.
“Ji-young noona?”
Answering the call from Shim Ji-young, he heard her clear, lively voice.
“Si-woo! Let’s go out and have fun.”
“Huh?”
“I said let’s go play. To the Korean Folk Village.”
At the mention of the Korean Folk Village, Kim Si-woo paused to think.
It certainly wouldn’t be bad to visit the Korean Folk Village theme park, one of the filming locations.
‘The Folk Village? Not a bad idea. Is she planning to practice acting there?’
Of course, Shim Ji-young was thinking of it as acting practice combined with a date, but Kim Si-woo’s thoughts went in a completely different direction.
“The Folk Village… Sounds good. Then, can I set the schedule?”
“Huh? Really? Sure, just let me know the date and time, and I’ll match it.”
“Okay, I’ll contact you soon.”
A few days later, Thursday.
A large group of people had gathered in front of the Siwoo Film building.
“How has everyone been?”
“How have I been? Did you really have to drag this old lady along?”
“Come on, you said it feels like a long-overdue group outing and you’re excited.”
“Wh-when did I ever! Ugh, tch.”
The oldest actor in ‘Peerless Joseon,’ Lee Ok-ja, grumbled until her manager exposed her true feelings.
‘Huh? Her name is the same as Da-on’s old one?’
Kim Si-woo had a brief, irrelevant thought.
Besides her, Choi Seung-yong, Park Se-yong, Kim Ji-hyun, Park So-yul and her mother, Kim Da-on, Shim Ji-young, Jung Pil-gyu, Park Jun-ho, and other actors appearing in ‘Peerless Joseon’ had all gathered in one place.
“Somehow… he agreed way too easily.”
“Pfft. Sunbae-nim, you suggested going to the Folk Village to Writer-nim, and he turned you down for a date, huh?”
“What? Come here. Let’s drop the ranks today and go at it for real.”
“You think you can handle it? I’m in my 20s.”
“Yeah? You know how many martial arts I’ve learned for action acting over the years? I’m planning to use them all today.”
Once Kim Ji-hyun figured out the situation, she kept teasing Shim Ji-young, and the two started bickering again.
In fact, after receiving Shim Ji-young’s Folk Village suggestion a few days earlier, Kim Si-woo had immediately called the actors.
It would be a good chance for everyone to get closer before filming and to test their chemistry.
Naturally, the actors didn’t refuse Kim Si-woo’s proposal.
Most of the famous lead actors already had a personal connection with him or owed him a favor.
And upon hearing the news, other supporting actors quickly volunteered, saying they wanted to join too.
In this industry, attending something like this was practically mandatory for survival.
Going to the Folk Village with them? There was no better opportunity to build connections.
Or so they thought—but far too many people ended up coming.
In fact, because so many showed up, it actually worried some, including Park Se-yong.
Moving this many celebrities at once was difficult even during actual filming.
And with this level of fame, it was obvious they’d be swarmed by people at the Folk Village.
“Sigh… Are you sure this will be okay, Writer-nim?”
“Director-nim, don’t worry. Even though it looks like this, I’ve prepared thoroughly.”
Not long after, when the large bus arrived at the Korean Folk Village, Park Se-yong’s worries eased.
Just as Kim Si-woo had said, from the entrance onward, staff from the Korean Folk Village theme park and security guards were there to welcome them.
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TL Note:
This novel is now translated and finished at Chapter 176
If you’d like to continue right away, the remaining 53 chapters are available on My Patreon Premium tier, along with extra chapters from my other 5 ongoing translated novels.
There’s also a Plus tier with 48 advance chapters, updated at 7 chapters per week.
Link: https://www.patreon.com/cw/Vritratls
For this novel specifically, check the collection under “Genius Writer”
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