Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1266

“He’s acting up.”

“Pardon?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Choi Yeon-ha chuckled.

Go Ah-reum must be feeling a burning frustration inside right now. The way to deal with someone like Go Ah-reum isn’t to prove I’m stronger in the ring.

I just need to make her realize that I’m already beyond the level to even be in that ring.

No matter how much Go Ah-reum rises in the industry and tries to catch up to Choi Yeon-ha, Choi Yeon-ha is already in a higher world and can’t be matched. What could be more futile for Go Ah-reum, who has set Choi Yeon-ha as her goal?

‘Though that’s not going to happen anyway.’

There’s such a thing as potential.

Still, Choi Yeon-ha has been in this industry for ten years. Just by looking, she can tell if someone will succeed or not.

There have been countless actors who have gained more buzz and recognition than Choi Yeon-ha for a year or two. But none of them have maintained that momentum and surpassed Choi Yeon-ha.

That’s why Choi Yeon-ha doesn’t cling to popularity.

Popularity can rise and fall in an instant, depending on the fickle mood of the public.

What’s needed to survive in this industry is a solid weapon that allows you to be chosen regardless of rumors or scandals.

Go Ah-reum didn’t have that.

‘Still, we need to finish filming well, I’m worried.’

Since it’s a two-shot with Choi Yeon-ha, it would be good if the picture comes out nicely. No, well, it doesn’t matter if it comes out weird. Whatever happens, Choi Yeon-ha benefits.

“You seem to be in a good mood?”

“Do I?”

Kang Jin-ho, sensing a subtle nuance in her reply, simply shut his mouth. He has now established his own way of dealing with Choi Yeon-ha through experience.

“My girlfriend came back after being belittled by some young punks for being old, and you say I look like I’m in a good mood?”

“…You’re not old.”

“Yes. That’s probably how it is in your standards, Kang Jin-ho. A very young chick, I guess.”

Damn it, I chose the wrong answer.

Kang Jin-ho, who was painfully hit by a wrong answer, quickly searched for the next answer. But he couldn’t find the right words.

“It’s just like that.”

“Huh?”

“I used to think those kinds of kids were crazy.”

“Like they don’t know their place, and even if they act up, they can’t step on me, so why are they doing that… Now, I kind of understand it. The pie is limited here anyway.”

“Being an actor is a strange job. No matter how hard I work, I can’t share the pie. Because the number of dramas, commercials, and movies produced in a year is somewhat fixed. In fact, if I get a lot of those because I’m popular, it means I’m taking away opportunities from someone else.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

Just because an actor is doing well doesn’t mean a new slot is created for that actor. It just means that the slots that actor appears in increase.

In the end, it’s a zero-sum game.

“So they must be desperate. They have to get that popularity, that opportunity, to survive in this industry. Even if they don’t understand it perfectly, they probably know it roughly, right?”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

“So, did you give her advice?”

“No. I crushed her, didn’t I? A growing sprout?”

Kang Jin-ho looked back at Choi Yeon-ha with a slightly blank look. Choi Yeon-ha smiled brightly as if asking if there was a problem.

“Usually, you’re not supposed to step on growing sprouts, are you?”

“It’s okay. They’re weeds.”

That’s right.

Even weeds are sprouts.

“They’re not the type to be crushed by being stepped on once, and they’ll survive well on their own. If they can’t, that’s their limit.”

“So, you water the ones that aren’t weeds, and step on the weeds.”

“No. I step on the ones that aren’t weeds even harder.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled gently.

Ah, that’s right.

This was the kind of woman she was.

I forgot for a moment.

“I have to make a living too. What am I, some great person, that I should nurture the kids who are trying to climb over me? They’re the ones who will eventually take away my rice bowl.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled awkwardly.

“Then, the company’s juniors…”

“They share the money they earn with me, so they’re an exception.”

It was a concise and clear answer.

‘Certainly…’

‘There’s something to learn from her.’

It feels a bit cold, but Choi Yeon-ha is very realistic. She clearly distinguishes what she can do and what she can’t, and what she should do and what she shouldn’t.

Choi Yeon-ha was much more mature than Kang Jin-ho, who was vaguely blurring those two areas.

“Anyway, you did well. You dressed up nicely. If you had come down today in a tracksuit, you would have seen hell for about a month.”

Cold sweat dripped down Kang Jin-ho’s forehead.

It seems like it was a stroke of genius to dress up for the date after a long time.

“Well, you’d still look handsome even in a tracksuit.”

Choi Yeon-ha smiled and looked at Kang Jin-ho. Kang Jin-ho put his hand to his mouth and coughed. Sometimes, when Choi Yeon-ha looks at him like this, it feels very awkward.

“For an old man.”

“Ahem, ahem!”

It’s not awkward anymore.

Now.

“But why suddenly?”

“Does a girlfriend need a reason to go on a date with her boyfriend? Is that how it is at that age?”

Kang Jin-ho turned his gaze forward with a slightly sad look.

I shouldn’t have said anything. I should have kept it a secret until the end.

“I’m just kidding. Don’t pout.”

“I’m not pouting.”

“It’s just. I’ve been under so much stress lately, I wanted to see your face.”

“Does seeing my face relieve stress?”

“Um, have you heard this saying?”

“Huh?”

Choi Yeon-ha said in a slightly cheerful voice.

“People feel the most affection for the person who makes them the happiest around them. For example, by saying nice things, buying gifts… something like that?”

“Is that so?”

“But handsome men and beautiful women just make you feel happy by being there, so they accumulate affection stats just by existing.”

Choi Yeon-ha was calmly saying something that would make the ordinary people of this world cry out.

“You’re not good with words, and you don’t really know how to make people happy… Well, just exist next to me. Then I’ll fill up my affection on my own.”

“…Thank you.”

I don’t know if it’s a compliment or an insult, but I think I know what I need to do.

Choi Yeon-ha leaned slightly against the seat and sighed deeply.

“I’ve been thinking about this lately.”

“About what?”

“I should go visit my former agency’s CEO and bring him some red ginseng.”

“The CEO lost a lot of hair while I was with him. I thought it was because he was getting old, but now that I’m in his position, I realize that I pulled out half of that hair.”

That’s why people need to put themselves in others’ shoes.

Kang Jin-ho was realizing a simple truth anew. If it were Choi Yeon-ha before she started running her own agency, she would never have said such a thing.

“Those who wouldn’t have even dared to talk to me before. Asking me to do this, asking me to do that, why can’t this be done… I should have pulled out their hair, not the former CEO’s.”

“Ha, haha…”

I can’t laugh. I’m really worried she might do that.

“So, are there any results?”

“Are you already pushing me to produce results?”

“Absolutely not.”

Choi Yeon-ha chuckled as Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“Some parts are going better than expected, and some parts are not going so well. Overall, I’d say things are progressing faster than initially planned?”

“That’s good, right?”

“From the company’s perspective, it’s nice. But from my perspective, it’s not so good. It’s busy, it’s a headache, and there are a lot of annoying things to do.”

Choi Yeon-ha glanced at Kang Jin-ho.

“So, I’m also reflecting a bit.”

“Huh?”

Choi Yeon-ha stared at him as Kang Jin-ho asked back.

“I realized that I’ve been complaining to the busiest, most headache-inducing, and most annoying person in Korea. If I’m in this situation and Kang Jin-ho was whining, I would have been very annoyed too. That’s not necessarily related to affection.”

“I’ve never thought about that.”

“I know. I’m just reflecting on my own. I thought that if Kang Jin-ho was just a little more ordinary, he might have been overloaded because of me.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled slightly without answering.

That could have been the case.

But Kang Jin-ho is not ordinary, and Choi Yeon-ha is not ordinary either. Perhaps that’s why this relationship was able to continue.

“What are you doing?”

“Huh?”

“You should tell me to cheer up. Don’t just smile.”

I can’t help but laugh.

Kang Jin-ho often found himself laughing because of Choi Yeon-ha’s unexpectedness. The feeling of his mind, which had been complicated by the general meeting, was clearing up.

“Cheer up.”

“Yes, Chairman. I will work hard and bring money to the company.”

“…Not that kind of cheer up.”

“Then what kind of cheer up?”

As Choi Yeon-ha subtly asked, Kang Jin-ho slyly turned his head. It was the look she had when she was about to tease someone.

“Isn’t it Kang Jin-ho who should be cheering up, not me?”

“Huh?”

“Are you naive, or just stupid…”

“Huh?”

“Never mind.”

Choi Yeon-ha waved her hand.

“Anyway, I’ve realized one thing while running around here and there this time.”

“Yes.”

“Kang Jin-ho, if you have any headaches, call me.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Choi Yeon-ha, not knowing what she meant.

“I might not be able to give you a solution, but I think I can make you feel a little more comfortable. After experiencing it myself this time, I think people need time to clear their heads without worrying about work.”

That’s right.

Isn’t he feeling it right now?

“So, I’ll play with you when that happens.”

“You’re busy.”

“If the Chairman calls, I have to cancel my schedule and run. I’m a salaryman with a precarious life.”

“Then I’ll try that.”

“Oh, really?”

Choi Yeon-ha and Kang Jin-ho looked at each other and laughed.

They do different things and have different areas of understanding, but they can talk to each other and make each other comfortable.

That’s enough.

“Oh, but I can’t do it in the middle of next month.”

“Huh?”

“I have to go to China.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Choi Yeon-ha with a subtle gaze.

“China?”

“Yes. I got a CF offer. And I also need to discuss the casting for the next drama.”

His brow furrowed slightly.

“Why?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled and lightly stepped on the accelerator.

‘China…’

The faces of Chai Ke-chang and Hong Wang came to his mind.

‘Hong Wang.’

He thought he should put aside his thoughts about Hong Wang for now. That’s why he was a person he consciously didn’t think about. But once the thought of Hong Wang came to mind, it completely took over Kang Jin-ho’s mind.

‘He must have gotten stronger.’

Just as much as Kang Jin-ho has.

So….

“Wah!”

“Click!”

Kang Jin-ho, startled, unknowingly slammed on the brakes. The swaying car barely regained its balance and moved forward.

“Wh-what!”

“How dare you think about other things when your girlfriend is next to you! You have no manners!”

No manners?

It’s the first time I’ve ever heard that in my life.

“This won’t do. Pull over somewhere close. I’ll make sure you can’t think about anything but me today.”

There was a woman next to him who was scarier than Hong Wang.