Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 57

Woojin felt very happy and proud. He walked slowly down from the platform.

As Woojin returned to his seat, his teammates, Soyeon and Jayden, greeted him with excitement.

“Woojin! Amazing! You’re insane! Absolutely insane!”

“Oppa……!!”

Jayden jumped on Woojin like a wild animal and hugged him tightly. Soyeon quickly pulled Jayden away and hugged Woojin herself.

Woojin was a little surprised by their strong reaction, but he enjoyed it.

It felt good to share his success with his friends.

“I never knew Woojin was such a good speaker. I thought I was good at talking, but Woojin was amazing today!”

Jayden looked very confused and talked without making sense, as if he didn’t know what he was saying.

“Oh, I’m so happy! What if we win the grand prize? I think I’m going to cry.”

“Soyeon is already crying.”

“No, I’m not crying yet! I haven’t cried!”

Soyeon was still holding onto Woojin like glue, hiccuping as she denied she was crying.

Woojin raised his hands and spoke with an awkward look.

“Hey, guys… could we maybe take a step back? Just a little?”

“Ah…!”

Soyeon realized how she was acting and took a few steps back.

But the excitement was too high for them to be quiet.

“Woojin, I think our team is definitely going to win the grand prize.”

“The results aren’t out yet, Jayden.”

“But I’m sure of it.”

“That’s right. I’m sure of it.”

“Please, try to be quiet, you two.”

No matter how good Woojin’s presentation was, celebrating too early might make other teams feel bad.

The spectator area was very large.

The other teams were not close enough to hear Jayden and Soyeon, but Woojin was still careful.

‘Of course, I agree that we’re likely to win the grand prize, but….’

Woojin, Soyeon, and Jayden sat down in their seats at the back of the spectator area and watched the rest of the event.

As time passed, his two teammates became less excited.

Woojin’s team had given the last presentation, but there were still some things to do before the event was over.

The emcee, a woman with a bright smile and a voice that boomed through the hall, stood at the podium. Her cheerful voice echoed, filling the large space and drawing everyone’s attention back to the stage.

“I would like to thank all the participants and guests who came to the 2010 SPDC.”

“Because of your interest, we saw some amazing work this year, and we got a glimpse of the future of Seoul’s architecture.”

The audience agreed with the emcee’s clear voice.

Even if you didn’t count Woojin’s work, this year’s SPDC was the best ever.

“Finally, I would like to show the work of the four teams that made it to the final round again…”

The emcee showed the work of the four teams on the screen.

“The results will be posted on the SPDC website later today.”

“That will be all for today.”

The SPDC was over.

Bruno Sanchez quickly left the judges’ area.

As soon as the event was over, he stood up and walked out.

The interpreter next to Bruno was also surprised. She stood up and asked him.

“Bruno, where are you going? The judges’ interview is about to start…”

“The interview is not important right now, Miss Lim. There is someone I must meet.”

“Excuse me?”

Bruno stopped walking as if he had just realized something.

“Miss Lim, I’m sorry, but could you come with me?”

“W-well…”

“I would appreciate it. It won’t take long.”

Bruno took the interpreter, Lim Jiyeon, with him.

The person he wanted to meet was Korean, and Bruno did not speak Korean.

‘If he speaks English well, there won’t be any problems, but it’s better to have an interpreter just in case.’

Bruno was the first to leave the hall, so the main hall was still empty.

But soon, people started coming out of the hall.

Bruno saw the face of a young man.

‘Woojin! That’s him.’

He was tall and well-dressed.

He had thick eyebrows and a strong look in his eyes. He was the young man who had finished the SPDC.

Bruno walked quickly towards him and spoke immediately, without saying hello first.

“¡Espere! (Wait!)”

Bruno and Woojin looked at each other.

Woojin recognized the foreigner.

He was the only non-Korean judge, a man with white hair and a white beard.

He looked like he was in his forties, and his handsome face made his white hair stand out.

Bruno was easy to remember.

“Nice to meet you, Woojin. Ah, I should introduce myself first.”

Bruno smiled and took out his business card.

He spoke in Spanish, but the interpreter translated it into Korean.

“Thank you, Judge. I’m glad you remember my name.”

“Of course. I think all the judges who heard your presentation will remember ‘Woojin’.”

Woojin looked curious.

He didn’t know why the judge had come to see him.

‘Hmm, what country is he from? The language seems like it’s from the Latin family…’

Woojin took Bruno’s business card.

Woojin’s surprised expression changed completely.

The business card showed who the white-haired foreigner was.

Seeing the name on the card was completely unexpected.

Studio ‘De Pinos’

Guest designer

Bruno Sanzchez

Woojin picked up the business card. The logo of “De Pinos” was printed in a stylish font. *De Pinos…* Woojin knew that name well. De Pinos was a famous design company from Spain, known for its amazing buildings. He even remembered Kim Kitae, who used to be a team leader there – a man Woojin had unfortunately clashed with in his past.

But it wasn’t just “De Pinos” that made Woojin’s eyes widen. It was the name printed in bold letters in the middle of the card: BRUNO SANZCHEZ.

*Bruno Sanzchez? The* Bruno Sanzchez? Woojin’s heart gave a little jump. This was one of the architects he admired most, someone he had looked up to even before he came back to this life.

‘The real Bruno Sanzchez? Now that I think about it, Bruno would likely be in Korea around this time.’

Before Woojin regressed.

The ‘Glacial Tower’ built in Yongsan, Seoul, was one of the most famous landmarks. It was the tallest 85-story skyscraper in Yongsan and one of the most luxurious hotel buildings in Seoul. It was very tall and shiny like ice, and stood out in the city.

The designer of that building was none other than Bruno Sanzchez, and the year of its completion was 2010, this year.

It made sense that Bruno was invited to be a judge for SPDC.

‘Bruno Sanzchez, with this kind of image!’

So Woojin couldn’t help but feel a little excited, purely delighted at meeting an architect he held in such high regard.

“Bruno! The Bruno Sanzchez who designed AT Tower?”

Bruno smiled warmly. If Woojin knew about him, it would be a little easier to talk.

“Oh, you know about me.”

“Of course. Wow, Mr. Sanzchez, it’s really amazing to meet you!”

Soyeon and Jayden stood behind him, looking very surprised as Woojin and Bruno exchanged greetings, but only for a moment.

They soon had to move. With all the attendees pouring out, the hall had become too noisy and chaotic. People were talking loudly and bumping into each other.

“Would you care to join me for a cup of coffee?”

Woojin readily nodded at Bruno’s suggestion.

“Of course.”

Soyeon and Jayden, who were standing behind him, also nodded, looking somewhat bewildered.

The reason Bruno sought out Woojin wasn’t anything grand. He simply wanted to meet and talk with this extraordinary young man who had stimulated his design philosophy after a long time. Of course, along with that conversation, there were a few proposals he wanted to make. He was not only a guest designer at ‘De Pinos’ but also an honorary professor at the Barcelona School of Architecture.

“Your presentation today was truly impressive, Woojin.”

“Haha, it’s an honor to hear you say that, sir.”

“How did you ever come up with such an idea?”

“What idea are you referring to?”

“That you considered the design itself as one of the constraints of architecture?”

“Ah, that?”

“Thinking of design as a way to achieve architecture is a wonderful idea.”

“I owe it to this friend here.”

Woojin nudged Jayden, who was sitting next to him, and he wore an uncharacteristically shy expression.

Later, Woojin learned from Jayden that Bruno Sanzchez was also an architect whom Jayden respected.

“Oh, my! It seems I’ve only been praising the presenter. That wonderful work was a collaboration of you three. Haha.”

Initially, the conversation with Bruno was mainly focused on Woojin, but eventually, the four of them were chatting together in a friendly atmosphere. Especially Jayden, who was fluent in English, got excited and chattered away with Bruno in English while Woojin went out to make a quick call.

“Bruno, would it be okay to visit Barcelona later?”

“Of course. Your visit would be welcome anytime.”

Jayden smiled. “If Bruno invites us, even Barcelona by itself would be amazing!”

Soyeon, whose English skills were much better than Jayden had anticipated, understood the entire conversation.

“Ibiza? What’s that?”

“Wait, Soyeon, you speak English? Since when?!”

“Of course. Did you think I got into K University by playing poker?”

“Damn it. Pretend you didn’t hear that.”

Soyeon asked Bruno with her fairly decent English skills.

“Bruno, what kind of place is Ibiza?”

Bruno replied with a smile.

“Ibiza is a place of night and music, a place where people feel very alive and free.”

“……?”

Woojin quickly finished his call and soon returned to the room.

After that, they chatted happily for another 30 minutes or so.

“Very well. I would have liked to have a longer conversation with you all, but I have another appointment.”

“We’re disappointed as well.”

“Next time, I’ll invite you to my office in Yongsan. As I mentioned, I plan to stay in Seoul until this fall.”

“If you would, we would be happy to visit.”

Jayden and Soyeon couldn’t help but have their eyes sparkle at Bruno’s invitation. Bruno’s office was undoubtedly the Glacial Tower site office in Yongsan, and the two were architectural students with more passion than anyone else. Woojin wouldn’t have any romantic notions about the on-site design office, but Soyeon and Jayden were just ordinary first-year undergraduates.

“Well, shall we get up?”

At Woojin’s words, Soyeon and Jayden brushed off their bottoms with regretful expressions, and Bruno extended his right hand towards Woojin to shake hands.

“It was nice meeting you today, Woojin.”

“Likewise, Bruno.”

And lastly.

Woojin handed Bruno a business card he had in his pocket.

“I received one from you, so I should give you mine as well, right?”

The moment Bruno took it, his eyes couldn’t help but widen.

Golden Print