Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 115

117

“I, I didn’t have taxi fare.”

At her absurd words, the director wore a dumbfounded expression. Even with just a thousand krang [Korean currency, roughly equivalent to a dollar], it would be more than enough for taxi fare. The director firmly believed she was lying.

“You didn’t have taxi fare? Are you trying to wind me up right now?”

“Absolutely not. I really didn’t have any money.”

“Then what was your agency doing? You should have an electronic notebook [a common device in this world, similar to a smartphone or tablet]; you could have received a transfer online!”

“That’s… recently, things haven’t been good, so our agency doesn’t have any money either. That’s why we absolutely have to take this CF [Commercial Film, a type of advertisement]. Otherwise, our agency will go bankrupt.”

The CF director clutched his forehead and neck simultaneously. He had carelessly entrusted the role to her, thinking she was just a background extra, but it turned out he had scouted a beggar. It was the first time in his life he had seen an entertainment agency that couldn’t even afford taxi fare.

He waved his hand towards the door, pushing Karen’s back.

“Hey. Don’t get on my nerves, and just leave while I’m asking nicely. I already called someone else, so there’s no spot for you.”

“No, I have to appear today and earn money.”

Bum-suk, who had been watching their argument from afar, stood up. He thought it was too harsh to kick her out when she was in such a desperate situation that she was late because she didn’t have taxi fare.

He calmly walked over and called out to the CF director.

“Director. She seems to be in a tough spot, so just include her.”

The director turned around with a troubled expression.

“It’s a bit difficult. I’ve already contacted another agency.”

“I heard you talking about that. But it hasn’t been long, so you can cancel it, can’t you?”

“That’s true, but… anyway, this girl caused a big disruption to the filming, so she needs to be taught a lesson.”

“Caused a disruption? I’m in the same boat. Today’s CF shoot is delayed, so I’ve canceled all the training scheduled for the afternoon.”

“Then we should punish her even more. She made things difficult for Bum-suk.”

Bum-suk wore an annoyed expression.

“I’m not saying we should argue about who’s at fault. I’m asking you to be generous to her since I’m bearing the loss, considering your situation. Frankly, the reason for the delay in filming is this girl, but isn’t the responsibility on you? After all, you’re the chief supervisor of this CF shoot.”

The director closed his mouth as if he had swallowed honey. He had no response since Bum-suk was arguing based on principles. They were the ones who scouted Karen, so Bum-suk’s loss of time was all due to the director himself.

“Th, that’s true, but…”

“It’s not like she did it on purpose, so just understand and move on. I won’t feel good if you kick out that poor woman.”

The director hesitated for a moment, then nodded as if he understood. Since Bum-suk, the victim, was saying this, he couldn’t be heartless.

“Tch. Alright. Then I’ll include her and start filming. Is that okay?”

“Hehe. You made a good decision.”

Karen, who had received unexpected help, approached the director with a bright expression and bowed.

“Thank you so much. I won’t forget this favor.”

“Don’t thank me. If it weren’t for Bum-suk here, I would have kicked you out right away.”

Karen bowed to Bum-suk once again.

“Th, thank you for your help.”

“It’s nothing. But you need to change your clothes in the dressing room. It’ll be hard to film in this state.”

Indeed, her appearance was a mess. Her makeup was smudged and smeared due to the moisture, and her hair was tangled as if it was greasy. It seemed like she needed a thorough makeover for the shoot.

However, Karen had not brought her makeup tools. They were in the office, but they had a red tag on them, so she couldn’t take them out.

“Um, well, I don’t have any clothes to change into or makeup tools. They’re currently under seizure.”

Hearing this, the director wore an exasperated expression and called out to a staff member who was passing by. He couldn’t have her participate in the filming in that state, so he needed to get her touched up.

“Hey. Take this girl to the dressing room. And get someone to doll her up.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The staff member immediately answered and took Karen to the dressing room outside the set.

Just as the director was relieved that it was over, the filming studio door opened again, and two uniformed police officers entered. They looked around, then walked towards the director and asked.

“Excuse me. Has an old man with white hair and a woman with pink hair come in here?”

“Well, why do you ask?”

“The thing is, these people illegally parked a broken-down flying car on the street and took a flying taxi, but they ran away without paying the fare. Their destination was said to be here, so we’re checking just in case.”

The director roughly understood and chuckled in disbelief. He tried to hold it in, but this was too much.

“Hehehe. You’re saying they skipped out on the taxi fare and ran away.”

“Yes, that’s right. Here’s a photo of them in the taxi; take a look.”

After checking the photo, the director walked out the door and looked around. One person was in the dressing room, so he was looking for the other, the white-haired old man. He spotted an old man washing up in the restroom in the distance and glared. He was definitely the other person in the photo.

“Hey. You, old man. Come over here!”

The old man saw him and quickly approached.

“What’s going on?”

“Are you the one who brought Karen here?”

“Ah, yes. I’m her manager.”

The director pointed to the police with his thumb and said.

“The police are here to arrest you. What are you going to do?”

The startled old man slowly backed away. He had committed a crime, so he couldn’t help but fear the police.

The police officers, who had been watching this from afar, hurriedly ran over. Since the person in the photo was trying to escape, they had a duty as law enforcement officers to arrest him. They grabbed the old man’s collar and spoke in a businesslike tone.

“Excuse me. You’ll have to come to the police station with us.”

“Hey, you guys. Why would I go there?”

“We received a report that you skipped out on the taxi fare and ran away.”

“Th, there was a reason for that. I’ll pay it back later…”

Bum-suk, who had been watching their argument from the side, shook his head and took out a 500 krang bill from his wallet and stepped forward. Since he had already helped, he was going to see it through to the end.

“Excuse me. Just a moment. It was an unavoidable mistake due to an urgent situation; is it really necessary to go to the police station?”

“Urgent situation? What is it?”

He handed the money to the police and immediately answered.

“Yes. There’s an important shoot right now, and a performer that the old man brought was late. So, they were in a hurry and temporarily forgot that they had to pay the money. So, take this taxi fare and just let it go.”

The police officer who received the bill released his grip on the old man’s collar. Whether it was true or false, they didn’t need to make unnecessary trouble since they had received the money. The taxi company would understand and let it go if they heard about this situation.

“Ah? You had such a situation. I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”

“Inconvenience? No, this side made a mistake. Just handle it well so that there are no problems later. And this is for your trouble in coming here; use it for lunch.”

Bum-suk took out a 1,000 krang bill and deeply stuffed it into the police officers’ pockets.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have. Anyway, we’ll take it.”

The police officers quickly took the money. Since there were two of them, 1,000 krang was not considered a bribe. According to the public officials’ ethics clause, meal entertainment up to 500 krang per person was not a problem.

“Yes. Then get back to work. We’re busy with filming.”

“Alright. Then good work.”

The old man, seeing the police leave, wore a somewhat relieved expression and approached Bum-suk.

“Young man. Thank you. I will never forget today’s help.”

“It’s alright. Now, go inside. Filming will start soon as Karen arrives.”

However, the old man hesitated and was reluctant to go inside. He was also soaked from the rain, so his appearance was a mess. It would be a nuisance to enter the set in this state, so it was better to wait here.

“Young man, I’m fine. I’ll just be in the restroom or lounge, so don’t worry too much about me.”

“No. Still, you’re the manager, so you should watch Karen perform. I have a team emblem tracksuit, so change into that.”

Bum-suk had Venus bring the tracksuit. The old man was embarrassed, but he eventually accepted the tracksuit and changed his clothes in the restroom. He also wanted to see Karen filming.

Meanwhile, Bum-suk followed the director to the set. He was preparing for the CF shoot to begin as soon as Karen arrived.

“Alright, did you complete the camera test?”

“Yes!”

“Good. Then lighting team, check the lighting again.”

“Yes! Understood.”

Amidst the busy staff, Bum-suk stood on the set.

Today’s CF was a promotional program for Zeus Group’s new large-scale real estate rental business. He and his subordinate elves had to appeal to viewers by portraying a luxurious life inside a lavishly decorated interior space. It was only an 18-second clip, so there weren’t many lines, but it required delicate facial expressions to convey a lot of information in a short amount of time.

‘Well, just think of it as coming to my comfortable home.’

While Bum-suk was fiddling with the bed and electronic devices on the set, a woman in a neat business suit entered with a file in her hand. It was Karen. She was playing the role of an employee guiding Bum-suk and his subordinate elves through the set.

“If you’re here, hurry up and get on set!”

At the director’s shouting, Karen rushed to the set. Bum-suk, who had been smiling at her, widened his eyes as she approached. He hadn’t noticed when he saw her soaked in the rain, but now that he saw her dolled up, her appearance was extraordinary.

Her pink hair, which had been drooping, bounced with elasticity with every step. Her features, like ivory carvings, were soft and delicate, and her sapphire-blue eyes shone exceptionally brightly. Her figure, revealed by the tight-fitting business suit, was very thin, but her chest and hips were noticeably curved.

‘Amazing. Is it because she’s a celebrity?’

Bum-suk, who was interested in her appearance, immediately opened Karen’s information window.

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Name: Karen Lefford.

Classification: Human (18 years).

Affiliation: Lefford Planning.

Fame: 22.

Infamy: 0.

Favorability: 58.

H Status: None.

Stamina: 630/700.

Sociability: 89, Strength: 6, Stamina: 7.

Agility: 9, Sense of Balance: 11, Intelligence: 74.

Mental Strength: 88. Judgment: 65, Skill: 91.

Luck: 77.

Current Skill/Potential: 517/618.

————————————————

Trait: Echo of Heaven.

Special Notes: Currently active as a singer under Lefford Planning, an entertainment agency owned by her grandfather, who was a famous singer in the past. Currently looking for part-time jobs due to the agency’s financial difficulties.

————————————————

‘What is this? Incredible. How can someone like this exist?’

Karen’s stats were excellent even though she was quite young at 18 years old. Her skill, which was essential for a singer, was 91, and her sociability and mental strength, which played an important role as a celebrity, were also in the late 80s. Moreover, her potential was 618, so her future was promising.

However, the reason Bum-suk was surprised was her trait, ‘Echo of Heaven.’ It not only increased her skill+20, sociability+15, and mental strength+15 when singing, but it also gave her a bizarre trait of gaining fame equal to 1/1,000 of the number of viewers or audience members. If she were to sing on a global broadcast like WBS [World Broadcasting System, a fictional global broadcasting network], her fame would immediately reach its maximum, and she would become an unprecedented global star.

‘The problem is that it’s completely useless to me. Too bad.’

If Bum-suk were the president of an entertainment agency, he would be ecstatic, but unfortunately, he was the chairman of a professional gladiator team. The only place he could use Karen was to have her sing at pre-match events, so there was no reason for him to covet her abilities.

‘But it doesn’t matter. Her looks alone are enough.’

Whether she was useful in conquering her or not was irrelevant. The only reason was to roll around in bed and gain sexual satisfaction. With this level of beauty, it was worth spending time conquering her, even if she wasn’t related to gladiatorial combat.

He approached Karen, who was pacing on the set, and spoke to her in a friendly manner.

“You’re Karen, right?”

“Yes. And you’re Bum-suk, right? I’ve seen you often on TV during gladiator matches.”

Oppa [Korean term used by females to address older males they are close to]. What a thrilling word! Bum-suk immediately grinned widely and stroked her hair.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

The weather has become much colder. I don’t think I’ll be able to go out in running clothes anymore. Everyone, be careful of catching a cold during the change of seasons.

Then I’ll see you at the same time tomorrow. Everyone, have a rewarding day.