Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 54

Kim Kitae felt like he was in a bad dream. He couldn’t believe what was happening, and the reason was standing right there: Seo Woojin.

Kim Kitae thought, “No matter what happens today, I will destroy those freshmen.” These new students were in his way of winning the Grand Prize. He just couldn’t understand it.

At first, he was furious. He forgot that his own father had helped him before. He just believed these rude freshmen were cheating to steal *his* prize. But as he waited, his anger changed. He still thought they were cheating. If he could prove it, he could still win.

He thought, “The contest isn’t over yet.” Even if they cheated to get to the finals, they probably didn’t really understand their design. He could beat them with his amazing presentation.

“Fools,” he thought. “I’ll show them how wrong they are. They will really regret this.”

This was Kitae’s plan. First, he would win the Grand Prize by giving the best presentation. Maybe the freshmen would be happy with second place, but Kitae wanted everything.

“This business is small,” he thought. “It will be easy to find out the truth.”

After the awards, he would ask his father to show everyone how the freshmen cheated. Then, with proof, he would write a detailed story to destroy their second-place win.

“I’ll make sure they can’t work in this field ever again.”

Kitae’s plan seemed to be working perfectly, at least after his presentation. It was the first one.

“Kim Kitae, excellent!” one judge said. “This design is so amazing, I can’t believe it’s from a student!”

Another judge added, “Yes, your understanding of nursing homes is excellent… and the design is very modern.”

Kitae finished his speech and bowed, looking very sure of himself.

“Thank you,” he said. “I couldn’t have done it without my junior students who are here.”

Everyone clapped and praised him. Even Professor Yoon Chihyung, who was known to be very strict, nodded in approval.

Kitae thought, “That was perfect.” He didn’t think he could have done any better. But still… as it got closer to Seo Woojin’s turn, he started to feel nervous. His mind told him he would win, but his stomach felt uneasy, like something was wrong.

“Okay, calm down,” he told himself. “My plan is perfect.”

Then, Seo Woojin walked to the front. Their eyes met for a second. Woojin’s lips moved a little. Was it a smile? Or was he laughing at Kitae?

Kitae’s hands became fists, shaking slightly. He could only wait. Thirty minutes. That’s how long Woojin would be up there.

Woojin was nervous. He wasn’t nervous when he first came into the building, or even when he met the judges before. But now, walking to the stage for his final presentation, his heart raced.

“Is this really SPDC?” he thought.

As he walked, he saw important people in the audience. Not just the judges, but leaders in design who had come to see the student presentations. Woojin recognized some famous faces. His mouth felt dry. He had thought his real start as a designer was still far away. But now he saw that today could change everything.

He forgot about the other students in the audience. Not because he didn’t care about them, but because he believed in his design. He knew how hard he and his team had worked for a month.

“If I can just show them everything I’ve prepared,” he thought, “the prize doesn’t matter.”

From the start of the competition until just now, Woojin had wanted to win the Grand Prize. But walking to the stage, something changed. Now, he wanted everyone here to remember the name Seo Woojin. He wanted to be seen as a designer, not just a student. That was his new goal. Of course, if he gave a great presentation, he might still win. But even if he won, if he didn’t give a presentation he was proud of, he would be more disappointed than if he lost.

Woojin could feel his heart beat. Everyone was watching him. He looked out at the audience again. Then he saw Kim Kitae’s face. Kitae looked angry and miserable. Woojin, who had been serious, almost laughed. Now he saw how silly Kitae was being.

“Why is he so upset?” Woojin thought.

Kitae looked like a dog who had lost its bone, shaking with anger and staring at Woojin. He tried to hide his feelings, but Woojin could see right through him.

“What a joke,” Woojin thought again. Kitae wasn’t even a real rival anymore. Woojin had already won, no matter what the judges said. So Woojin smiled as he started his presentation. Funny thing was, seeing Kitae like that made Woojin feel much calmer.

Woojin bowed to the judges and started his presentation, feeling much better now.

“I am Seo Woojin, a freshman from K University. I will begin.”

Because it was the last presentation, the room was very quiet. Everyone was holding their breath. It felt like Woojin’s nervousness had spread to the audience. Woojin pointed the laser pointer at the screen.

The first thing everyone saw was Jayden’s sketches. Lots of them, messy but full of energy.

“Every design starts with a tiny dot,” Woojin said. “Dots make lines, and lines make shapes. Dots, lines, and shapes – that’s how we build architecture.”

Woojin had learned something important from Jayden during this competition. Jayden had said, “Woojin, if you only think about how things work, won’t your designs be boring? Your designs are good, but I want to create something amazing. I want to build things no one has ever seen before. To do that, shouldn’t we start with a blank page?”

Usually, Woojin thought about how a building would work first. He focused on making the space useful and efficient. But working with Jayden changed his mind. Jayden said, “Woojin, I think good design should be beautiful too. If we only care about making things easy, all buildings will end up looking like boxes.”

Some people might think Jayden’s ideas were just silly dreams of a student who didn’t know the real world. But maybe that’s what’s special about students. They can imagine things that seem impossible because they haven’t learned what’s “realistic” yet. Woojin, who had worked in design for years, had forgotten how to think like that.

So, Woojin decided to try a new way of designing. Before, he would plan the inside of the building and then just put walls around it. This time, he wanted to create a beautiful shape first, and then fit the inside into it. He thought about the nursing home, the feeling of that word, and the stories of the people who would live there. He started sketching shapes, trying to capture the feeling in his mind. He wanted to create a beautiful “frame” that would hold everything together, not just something practical.

“Look, Woojin!” Jayden had said. “It’s starting to look amazing!”

So Woojin, Jayden, and Soyeon worked together, drawing sketch after sketch. As they drew, the rough shapes became clearer and stronger.

“We started with images,” Woojin explained, “then dots, lines, and shapes. By putting them together, we created our unique design.”

As Woojin clicked the laser pointer, the sketches flashed by quickly. At first, they were simple shapes, but they grew more complex. They started to look like buildings. After showing over a hundred sketches, the “frame” of their design was finally complete.

“Architecture is about finding the best possibilities within limits,” Woojin said. Everyone was listening closely. “These ‘limits’ include the place where the building will be, what it will be used for, the money available, and the building rules. We have to consider all of these things.”

Woojin paused, his throat dry. He looked at the audience and said, “And we decided to add one more limit.”

He waited a moment, then said confidently, “That limit is ‘Design'”.