Chapter 1289 – ##10_Top Star (2)
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1.
What happens when a person suddenly encounters luck that bursts through the door?
Especially luck that was completely unexpected, the kind you might only whisper about in your daydreams.
For Director Moon, at least, the answer was ‘anxiety.’
“I don’t understand it.”
In a cramped pantry that felt like a closet, Director Moon, his hands trembling, added creamer to his coffee, repeatedly wiping his face with his dry hands.
He was so bewildered that he couldn’t seem to come to his senses.
“Dude! This is a huge deal, isn’t it!”
“I know it’s a huge deal. I just don’t understand it.”
“Is understanding it the problem right now? This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to turn things around!”
“I know. I get it.”
Kívele Periwinkle.
The witch who recently made a new mark in the history of Korean marketing.
The cosmetics she advertised were so popular that they were practically impossible to find in Korea, and she became a driving force for the K-beauty industry, which had been slowly losing ground to Chinese cosmetics.
What if she agreed to appear in ‘The Witch’s Tale’?
The guarantee to give Periwinkle wouldn’t be an issue.
The production company making the movie, and the distribution investors who put money in to make more money, would hand Director Moon a blank check.
Not only could he cast her as the lead, but he could also fill the male lead and supporting roles with all sorts of luxurious actors.
“My life has never gone this well. Is this a scam? Isn’t this a scam? Why would that amazing witch want to do this?”
“Why would that amazing witch try to take advantage of a nobody like you? Don’t you think?”
“I guess that’s true.”
“Make a good impression. This is more important than a formal meeting with the parents. You have to make a good impression.”
Director Moon, who was approaching the sofa with stiff steps, flinched.
“Huh?”
It wasn’t because of the witch, who was showing off her thighs and crossing her legs.
Well, that was partly it, but it was also because a man who looked like a bodyguard suddenly stood up behind her.
“Is that the company president…?”
“Ah, this is… Manager Shin. Introduce yourself.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Ah, yes… Nice to meet you.”
So, he was a manager.
But with his slicked-back hair, sunglasses, and broad shoulders that made his suit look sharp, he also looked like a bodyguard.
At the same time, his looks, which couldn’t be hidden even with his eyes covered, made him seem like a movie star…
Yet, his presence was so faint that it was kind of strange.
“I’m sorry that the reception is not great. At least have this…”
“I hate wasting time. Are you going to do it or not? I’ll be the lead, so Director Moon, you start planning.”
“Of course, I’ll do it! I want to do it! Please let me do it!”
The witch didn’t even glance at the coffee that Director Moon had brought, let alone pick up the cup. Instead, the assistant director, still in a daze, knelt down and bowed his head deeply.
“I like how fast you are.”
“Wait a minute. Before that, I have a question.”
“Are you crazy, dude?”
However, Director Moon’s expression didn’t brighten.
There’s such a thing as experience accumulated over a lifetime.
Everything comes with a price.
Above all, the witch he was meeting in person didn’t look like a benevolent and charitable volunteer.
He could say with certainty.
The investment company director and the production company president who made Director Moon tremble were nothing more than insignificant puppies compared to the witch in front of him.
His sharp, artistic instinct was warning him.
“May I ask why you chose me?”
“I told you earlier. I enjoyed your ‘Scream.’ The directing was good, and the story was interesting. It wasn’t too much or too bland, so I think it’ll bring out my beauty well.”
“But I don’t have any big hits, and I’ve always turned down the opportunities that were too good for me… Ah, I was preparing a scenario about a witch, and I’m really confident this time… Still, why would you give me this opportunity…”
The witch’s gaze at Director Moon changed.
At first, it was the gaze of an arrogant and impudent noblewoman, but now it was a gaze that seemed a little surprised or amused.
“Opportunity? By the way, I’ve never acted before. I don’t know if I’m good or not.”
“……”
“If the lead is a witch, that alone will be good for promotion, but it’s your ability that will make the movie a success. If you’re going to crash headfirst into the ground, isn’t it more fun to do it from the same bottom? That’s the reason.”
“……”
“Dude! Please!”
Unlike the assistant director, who was so anxious he looked like he was about to fall apart, Director Moon didn’t seem to accept it easily.
The witch smiled as if she liked that.
“If it’s hard to accept, then just think of it this way. The sexy witch in front of you is your luck.”
“Ah…”
Director Moon saw it.
Arrogant, fickle, and transcendent.
A presence that felt suffocating just by being near it, and a huge, unshakeable ego.
A ‘real’ witch who moved as her interest dictated, like a cat, and placed herself at the center of the world.
Compared to the real thing, the witch that Director Moon had written in ‘The Witch’s Tale’ was just an artificial character from his imagination.
A thunderous inspiration swept down Director Moon’s spine, leaving a chilling thrill.
“So. You have a scenario written? Can I take a look?”
“I did.”
Director Moon threw the worn-out script he had been holding like a treasure into the trash can.
“Please wait just one week.”
“Oh, I like your spirit.”
The witch laughed heartily.
2.
Today’s dinner location wasn’t the pork rind place that had become their regular spot, but an eel restaurant that grilled over charcoal.
-Sizzle sizzle sizzle
“You eat this? Really?”
Kívele, her brow furrowed, stared at the grotesque, wriggling, crimson creature on the grill.
Her slightly open mouth showed no sign of closing.
She could barely understand the pork rind, but the eel seemed to be far beyond her standards.
“…You always take me to these weird restaurants?”
“Hey, trust me. The pork rind was good, right?”
“Yeah, but no, not this.”
“Don’t say that. Ah, open your mouth.”
Siwoo made a fresh eel and perilla leaf wrap and held it to Kívele’s mouth.
Kívele made a face like a child being forced to eat broccoli, turning her head this way and that.
Eventually, she squeezed her eyes shut and put the wrap in her mouth in one go.
“Mmm…”
“It’s good, right?”
“It’s infuriatingly delicious?!”
An exclamation mark appeared above her head as she grimaced as if she were chewing on a bug.
Today, too, she had been introduced to a commoner’s meal, and now, as if it were natural, they were sharing soju, and the meal began.
“Are you confident about the movie?”
“No? I’m not.”
“But you’re just going for it? I don’t know anything about the movie business, but it seems like you’re starting from the very bottom.”
Director Moon and his office, sorry to say, looked like nothing special.
At first, she thought she had come to some kind of gangster office.
“That’s how it balances out. The lead is a real witch, and I have the looks. If I went to a big production company, even if I only did half of what they asked, I’d already reach ten million viewers, right?”
“Is that it?”
“That’s it. Which means it’s boring.”
Kívele’s debut as an actress was for self-realization.
She wanted to see how far she could go with her own abilities, without the help of luck.
“Even if I can’t help the fact that I’m a witch, I’ll feel like my self-realization is incomplete if I don’t succeed with an unknown movie director.
Kívele, who had downed her soju in one go, paused.
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
“You’re really cool, noona. Aren’t you worried about completely failing? If it were me, I’d be too scared of failing after talking big to do that.”
“If I completely fail… then I’ll cry in your arms. Isn’t that what husbands are for?”
Kívele gave a sly smile.
-Ding
A text notification came from Director Moon, and she checked it.
[This is Moon Ki-hoon. I was too flustered earlier to send it, but I’ve attached the synopsis file. Please check it. Thank you so much for the opportunity.]
It was a short text, but it was filled with gratitude and the passion of a creator who had been ignited.
“What does it say?”
“It’s the synopsis.”
The two of them put their heads together and focused on the small screen.
The content wasn’t particularly complicated or had any special twists.
A meeting between a boy and a witch in the ruins of Seoul after the Korean War.
A tender love that grows against the backdrop of the turbulent history of Korea.
An inevitable separation due to the difference in lifespan.
The witch sadly reminiscing about the memories.
It was a tear-jerking story like that.
It was just a synopsis, but it seemed highly likely to fall into melodrama.
It was also cliché.
Honestly, she was a little worried.
“Do you like it?”
“I guess I’m lucky after all.”
“Is it that good?”
But somehow, Kívele’s eyes shone like an explorer who had discovered a treasure.
“Good. You owe me a promise, right?”
“The clover price? Yes, I do.”
“I’ll use it. You’re going to play the male lead as a child.”
“Sure, why not.”
It was worth a life.
Siwoo, who had decided to readily agree to any request, paused.
Wait a minute.
A child role?
“I want to see little Siwoo.”
Kívele licked her lips.
