The Road To Glory [EN]: Chapter 231

[Extra] 33. The End of ‘Seulgi’s Island Life’ Filming

Last time, I was too busy playing to solve more than two problems.

The sound of the sea led me to the conch shell on the beach. Following the boat with the conch shell drawn on it, I found a treasure chest also engraved with a conch shell.

The kids mentioned it was always there.

I’m not sure who placed it, but I thought the treasure chest was a good start.

Opening the treasure chest revealed the second problem.

[It opens slowly like a rose. It leads us to a canyon filled with stars.]

I discussed the riddle of ‘it’ that opens slowly like a rose with the children, but I didn’t pursue it. I just felt like playing on the beach. Besides, it felt a little eerie.

“You want me to go in here?”

Lee So-ra pointed to a narrow alley.

Lee Jung-min nodded.

“If you go, the path will open like a rose. Wide open.”

There was even a flower bud drawn on the wall, clearly a clue for children.

Fortunately, the sun hadn’t completely set yet.

“But I haven’t seen any villagers today.”

“Maybe they’re trying to get to bed early since you guys worked so hard today?”

“Maybe.”

Kwon Jae-ik cautiously entered the path.

The path genuinely widened as he walked.

I decided to follow until it led me to the ‘canyon filled with stars.’

“What is this place?”

There’s a small, wooden outhouse-like structure in the alley.

Kwon Jae-ik, wondering if he should really go inside, entered alone, as the space was too cramped for four people, and looked around.

“What is a canyon filled with stars? Is this a canyon?”

Kwon Jae-ik, shining a flashlight in the dark shack, soon found a treasure chest engraved with stars.

Is this what they meant by stars?

I found the next problem, but it was hard to immediately grasp.

That’s when it happened.

“Ah.”

Halo exclaimed first.

Lee Jung-min followed, “Oh!” realizing it.

Lee So-ra pointed at Kwon Jae-ik.

“It’s a star.”

“…Me?”

Surely they weren’t referring to him as a celebrity (star).

Kwon Jae-ik tilted his head, then looked down and exclaimed in admiration.

Fragments of light sparkled on his clothes.

Sunlight streamed through the holes in the planks of the shack and the black, opaque cloth serving as a roof, creating star-like patterns.

Right now, at sunset, there were only red stars, but on a bright day, when the children were walking around, this place would probably truly be a ‘canyon filled with stars.’

“Hey, this is fun. Let’s do more.”

“What’s the next problem?”

[A silver mountain peak and a golden Eden guide me. I cross it and learn patience. Finally, I reach the magic spring. Inside is the last milestone.]

“This is easy, right?”

“There’s only one place that represents patience.”

The summit of Baegun Island, often covered in clouds.

It’s too easy to guess that the golden sun-drenched Eden refers to the fields near the mountain.

“Ugh, you want me to climb up there.”

Lee So-ra, who believes that mountains should only be admired from afar, put her hands on her hips.

“Let’s go.”

“We have to go.”

“I’m curious about what’s there.”

They were determined since they had to go around the village and head back home anyway.

Because they were all so dedicated to self-care, only the cameraman and Na PD [Na Young-seok, a famous Korean TV producer] following them were panting.

They followed the path up the mountain.

The sun began to set.

We had just gotten home.

Should we turn on the flashlights and climb the mountain? Just then, they encountered a figure.

The island chief, no, the village leader was there.

For some reason, he had a lantern.

“Oh my, you scared me! Why are you wandering around at night?”

“Island chief, where are you going?”

“No, I’m not going anywhere.”

It seemed that one of the streetlights was broken.

Lee So-ra pointed to it, saying it was a good thing.

“Then can we borrow that?”

“Yes? Ah, yes. Take it.”

The village leader, conscious of the camera, used awkward Seoul dialect again and lent them the lantern. Lee So-ra took it and thanked him. Thus, the lantern expedition began again.

They climbed the mountain, accompanied by heavy breathing and the swaying lantern.

It was called the back mountain, but the path was well-maintained, probably because many people had walked it. We just had to make sure not to stray onto unfamiliar paths.

There were lights in some places.

The people who found exercise equipment and hoses for the mineral spring understood why there were lights.

“Isn’t the mineral spring the magic spring?”

“There’s no spring there. It’s just connected to a faucet.”

“And we haven’t climbed enough to say we’ve learned patience yet, right?”

“Let’s go up further.”

The cameraman following behind seemed to be already learning patience.

We should have come during the day.

Everyone was climbing because they were curious about the treasure, but it was clear that the problem was designed for the children to wander around during the day.

“Oh, this must be it.”

“It’s a spring.”

The light of the lantern reflected off the water.

They reached a large open space.

Large trees, probably hundreds of years old, surrounded the open space, and there was a spring in the middle.

“But why is it a magic spring?”

“Does it make you healthier if you drink it?”

Halo approached the spring.

That’s what the problem said. [Inside is the milestone]

Probably the last problem existed inside the spring.

However, there was no treasure chest or any hint in the spring.

Kwon Jae-ik reached out and rummaged through the spring.

Of course, there were only stones, and the water became murky from the disturbance.

“Magic spring···.”

It’s a problem that children have to solve.

So, we have to approach it according to the children’s thinking.

Adults might take it for granted, but children don’t.

Everyone sat around the spring and waited for the water to return to its original state.

Before long, the dirt settled.

“It’s magical how the murky water returns to its original state.”

“There must be fish living here too. It’s magic.”

“Maybe it means it’s good for your health if you drink it?”

This is the imagination of adults.

Halo stared at the spring.

Then he lifted his head.

The stars were visible in the open sky.

Like stars reflected in the spring.

“···Huh?”

Halo looked at the spring again.

The reflections varied depending on the angle, but when the children found the spring, they went to the place where they would stand first and looked at the spring water, and the trunks and branches of the trees were reflected.

“Could it be.”

It’s hard to see at night. Maybe it would have been easier to see during the day.

Halo borrowed the lantern and shone it on the tree.

A large cloth was hanging on the trunk of the tree.

So this was the trick he used when drawing murals with Winter.

“I see.”

Lee Jung-min realized it belatedly.

“It’s magic that you can see it but can’t catch it.”

It was a simple trick.

When Halo pulled the cloth, it came loose, and something hanging with it fell with a thud.

It was a small capsule.

When the capsule was opened, the last problem was revealed.

[Come to me by finding the tail]

“Is that all?”

“What wings?”

People looked around.

Trying to find something similar to a tail.

As everyone scattered to search, the cameraman pointed at something.

“Could it be that?”

People’s heads turned.

And they soon discovered the ribbons hanging on the trees along the path they had come from.

“Aren’t those hung up so people don’t get lost?”

“The directions are different.”

If the wide path had guided them so far, the ribbons were simply guiding them deeper into the mountains.

Should we go into a place like that at night? What if animals come out?

As everyone was contemplating, Na PD suddenly raised his head, remembering something.

Could that be it over there?

“Shall we go? I don’t think it’s that far.”

People nodded at Na PD’s suggestion.

The ribbons weren’t hung sporadically but on every tree facing one path, so there was no way to get lost.

It wasn’t exactly a mountain path, but the ground was strangely even, as if people had been walking on it.

And above all, there was light in the distance.

People walked towards the light.

Halo stopped walking.

There was no problem, but the sound of the sea and wind was strong.

Finally, they reached the source of the light.

The people who arrived shone their lanterns and exclaimed, “Wow!”

Pinwheels stuck in the wooden safety railing were spinning, as if telling them not to go any further.

The people who saw the colorful pinwheels put down their lanterns and moved forward.

“So this is it.”

“This is what they wanted to show the kids.”

The village’s scenery unfolded on the observation deck installed on the cliff.

The night sky and even the scenery with a little light were so pretty, I wondered how beautiful it would be during the day. It was a place where you could see everything from the harbor to the beach, the fields, and all the houses.

People leaned against the wooden safety bar and looked at the village.

There was no gold, silver, or hidden power, but they were satisfied with this.

How long had they been looking around?

As it slowly got colder, someone said.

“Shall we go now?”

We had a good time. I think this is enough to clear my mind.

One by one, they turned their heads.

And finally, even the boy was about to turn around.

Light was seen in the distance.

“Wait a minute.”

At Halo’s call, people turned around again.

And they soon discovered it.

The real treasure.

The lights in the harbor began to increase one by one.

It wasn’t that they turned on the lights.

Small lights were floated on the sea, and they spread out along the waves.

“!”

As if stars were spreading along the Milky Way.

The villagers’ wish lanterns floated along the waves.

Winter puts the lantern on the waves with her mother.

The wish lantern reads, ‘Please let us meet again next time,’ Winter’s wish, and ‘Always be happy,’ her mother’s wish, and drifts away.

“What is this.”

Lee So-ra exclaimed in a low voice at the lights spreading from the harbor, then raised her hand and touched her eyes.

“···.”

Lee Jung-min, who was about to say something, closed his mouth and looked at the beautiful sight.

I heard someone sniffling next to me. When Kwon Jae-ik made eye contact, he wiped his nose, saying it wasn’t him.

Candles were lit one by one in the harbor and slowly swayed.

Kwon Jae-ik couldn’t hold back his tears either.

This was the villagers’ real farewell gift.

The regretful feelings flowed away.

The scene of stars falling from the sky to the ground was captured on camera.

“Ah.”

The captain’s voice was heard in the boy’s ear as he watched it.

-My wife said something.

The reverberation washed over them along the waves.

-Each person has a story that only they can tell, and that is beautiful in itself.

“···In itself.”

The stories of people, the lanterns containing the wishes of people, were pushing back the darkness.

It shone in itself and was beautiful.

Halo seemed to know something.

That’s why he strangely wanted to make music in this village, and why it wasn’t difficult at all to make music.

“So this is it.”

The reason why he wanted to make music like Nohaeil, but couldn’t.

It was a beautiful last night.

#

The villagers returned to their daily lives.

As if last night was a dream.

The only ones who came out to see them off were Winter, the island chief, and the captain who would take them to the mainland.

But they weren’t disappointed at all, and instead, they comfortably waved their hands towards the village.

“Come visit anytime. Contact me if you want to. You know how to use it, right?”

Winter, thinking of the laptop at home, nodded with a swollen face.

“You won’t forget me, right?”

His embarrassing past came to mind, so he couldn’t forget it.

Halo, still embarrassed that Winter was a girl, carefully stroked her head.

“Goodbye.”

“Yeah.”

Eventually, Winter burst into tears again.

The ship moves away.

It seems to be moving away the same way as before, but it feels sadder.

In the end, the island chief comforted Winter, saying it was okay.

And those on the ship also wiped away their last tears and began to wrap up the filming.

Leaving only one camera behind.

“Everyone, you’ve worked hard.”

“Let’s do season two again.”

“It was really fun.”

“Winter-.”

“Why are you crying?”

After saying goodbye to the production team, the participants sat down.

Lee So-ra, who had taken motion sickness medicine and applied a patch, no longer fed the fish.

“Are you going back to your drama now?”

“Yeah, I have to get back to my main job. What about you?”

“I already have a script I’ve been looking at.”

“Ooh. What about Jung-min?”

“I’m going to take a break.”

“Taking a break is really important too. Good thinking.”

Lee So-ra smiled gently.

The last one left was the boy.

The eyes of the three people turned.

Halo said as if it was natural.

“I’m going to release my second full album now.”

“Oh! Halo album? People will love it.”

“No, this is Nohaeil.”

“!”

People’s eyes widened.

That sound-.

“Nohaeil’s second full album.”

“You’re still doing your main character [referring to his persona].”

“Then ‘Halo’ is taking a break for a while?”

Halo?

I hadn’t thought about it.

The boy, who thought for a moment, suddenly had a good idea.

“No. I think Halo will also release an album. ···I think I’ll hear the news that Halo will release an album soon.”

It was a playful third-person perspective, but no one understood.

“?”

“Huh? You said you were releasing a Nohaeil album.”

“What about Halo?”

“That’s easy. I already had some made.”

“!”

“???”

I don’t know what you’re talking about.

Easy? What? Already made?

Ignoring people’s reactions, Halo continued the joke.

“Maybe Halo and I will have overlapping release dates this time. It will be a very interesting competition.”

“···.”

“I was impressed by Halo’s awards ceremony recently, so I’m thinking of going too. The Grammy Awards.”

If it were someone else, they would have laughed, but this side didn’t even laugh.

Lee So-ra belatedly came to her senses and asked.

“Haeil, weren’t you in a slump?”

‘Ah, that’s right.’

Halo realized it then.

‘I was in a slump.’

What just came to mind was revealed one by one.

But soon he said with a bright face.

“I think I’ve overcome it now.”

Ah···ah···

There was an exclamation that everyone couldn’t relate to.

Maybe this will remain a hot topic for viewers to argue about ‘whether it was a slump or not’ for a long time to come.

Well, what does it matter if it’s like this or like that?

Na Hye-joo PD checked that it was filmed cleanly.

It will come out well.

The ending of this program.

The ship crosses the sea.

End of ‘Seulgi’s Island Life’ Filming.