NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor - Chapter 247

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 247. Movie “Moon” 1/4

The beginning of the movie flowed with a sense of speed.

 

The audience swallowed their saliva and stared at the screen as Ryu Yeon-woo and Hong A-yoon became Cha Su-hyeon and Hong Yu-jeong respectively, exchanging tiki-taka.

 

The audience could understand the situation Hong Yu-jeong was in now because they had watched from an observer’s perspective how she came to the past.

 

From the departing space exploration ship through the Ferris wheel in the dream to Cha Su-hyeon’s house.

 

– Ah, is this also a manifestation of my unconscious? Is that why this handsome man keeps telling me what I want to hear?

– …You’re really not in your right mind.

 

From the audience’s perspective, knowing all the information, the conversation between the protagonists who each only knew different incomplete information was amusing.

 

Soon after, Hong Yu-jeong’s inner thoughts were heard as narration when she discovered her mother’s necklace around her neck.

Watching Hong Yu-jeong gradually realize this wasn’t a dream or mental breakdown, the audience sensed that the story would begin in earnest.

 

– The nearest police box from here is farther than you’d think? Let’s take that bicycle.

 

When the two got on the shabby silver bicycle, coming down the mountain path with a lantern, installation artist Yoon Ha-neul’s eyes moved busily as she watched the movie.

 

Installation artist Yoon Ha-neul had mobilized all her connections to get tickets to this movie’s preview screening, even while busy preparing for her solo exhibition.

 

And the reason was precisely this scene, which was also used as the movie’s poster.

 

‘Aesthetically perfect…’

 

It was a quiet summer country road in the dark night where only the sound of frogs croaking could be heard.

 

On that road, the silver bicycle carrying Ryu Yeon-woo and Hong A-yoon was slowly moving forward, relying on the dim light of the lantern.

 

Most of the audience might just be captivated by the beautiful cinematography and the actors’ visuals.

 

Of course, that’s the right way to appreciate a movie intuitively.

 

Still, since Yoon Ha-neul’s specialty was arranging these visual elements – that is, mise en scene – she could feel what Director Lee Yong-su’s intention was in capturing the two actors’ figures in a long shot.

 

‘Like a comet crossing the night sky. No, in this movie it would be a space exploration ship.’

 

It was visually suggesting through the silver bicycle that Hong Yu-jeong’s travel companion had changed from other astronauts to Cha Su-hyeon.

 

Watching this scene, Yeon-woo, the protagonist, also realized the same thing as Yoon Ha-neul.

It was something he hadn’t noticed during filming, but seeing the final result, he understood.

 

‘Ah, so that’s why the director insisted we had to do drone filming.’

 

During filming, he had wondered what difference drone filming would make since it was dark at night anyway, but the director had never intended to show the surrounding scenery in detail.

 

Rather, the image of two people moving along the dim country road in the darkness unconsciously made viewers feel psychologically closer to the two protagonists.

 

This feeling had nothing to do with whether the audience consciously noticed the hidden meaning of that scene.

 

‘As expected of a master in the CF industry. He’s the best at controlling viewers’ emotions through visual beauty.’

 

***

 

Two days had passed since discovering that a blue barrier visible only to Hong Yu-jeong’s eyes surrounded the village and she couldn’t go beyond it.

 

Cha Su-hyeon, who initially couldn’t believe such an absurd story, finally acknowledged that there was an invisible barrier in the air only after pushing and pulling Hong Yu-jeong himself.

 

“So you’re saying you came from the future…?”

“You asked yesterday and this is already the third time today.”

“Well, it’s such an unbelievable story.”

 

Hong Yu-jeong shook her head at Cha Su-hyeon’s words.

 

“It’s just as unbelievable for me too.”

 

Cha Su-hyeon sat on the main wooden floor of the house, gazing at the front yard, then spoke up.

 

“Hmm, then it’s settled. This one thing is certain.”

 

Hong Yu-jeong looked at Cha Su-hyeon at his random comment.

 

“What’s certain?”

“I’m the older brother. You were born in ’96, right? I’m from ’86.”

“…”

 

Hong Yu-jeong, who had been looking at him with an incredulous expression, soon chuckled.

In a way, this might be the first time in Earth’s history that someone met a person from the future, but was that what mattered?

 

Though it was an absurd comment, Hong Yu-jeong’s tension suddenly dissipated as her mind, which felt like it would explode from complex thoughts, instantly relaxed.

 

“Hey, that’s not right. Even if that’s the birth year, I’m originally thirty years old, you know? I’m the older sister.”

“But you were still born 10 years after me, weren’t you?”

“Then let’s fairly speak formally to each other.”

 

Cha Su-hyeon nodded at Hong Yu-jeong’s words.

 

“Alright. Will you eat lunch?”

“…Let’s not do that.”

 

 

Suddenly, cohabitation that neither of them had planned for in their lives began.

 

Hong Yu-jeong had no choice but to adapt to the given situation.

 

She had thought about contacting the government or institutions, but calling them out of the blue would be fortunate if she wasn’t treated as mentally ill.

 

She had tried calling the Aerospace Research Institute with the chocolate phone she had grabbed, but only heard a message saying it was a non-existent number.

 

“Come to think of it, the current Aerospace Research Institute is probably busy launching Arirang-2, which I only saw in textbooks back then. The organization and the people in it wouldn’t be the Aerospace Research Institute I knew.”

 

And whether the phone connected or the government believed her, what would change?

 

Even with future technology, time travel was an unimaginable realm.

 

“Sigh, I need to adapt quickly.”

 

As she was sighing, Cha Su-hyeon’s voice came from the kitchen.

 

“Come eat. The sujebi is ready.”

“Okay!”

 

Still, if that man hadn’t been there, it would have been really terrible.

Though she grumbled on the outside, the more she thought about it, the more grateful she was to him.

 

Within Hong Yu-jeong’s accessible range, there was only Cha Su-hyeon’s house where she was currently staying, the mountain with few hikers, and Yeongjin Supermarket that straddled the barrier’s boundary, which she had seen when riding the bicycle last time.

 

‘Even then, only half of the supermarket is accessible.’

 

Though it was a tiny corner store, the counter where the grandmother owner sat and the ice cream refrigerator were fine, but the shelf area with ramen and coffee was blocked by the blue barrier that split the supermarket in half, making it inaccessible.

 

‘How did I end up in such a situation…’

 

Hong Yu-jeong let out a deep sigh as she ladled sujebi into her bowl.

And Cha Su-hyeon watched her quietly.

 

In Cha Su-hyeon’s eyes, Hong Yu-jeong seemed to be withering away day by day due to depression.

 

***

 

The next day, Cha Su-hyeon was fiddling around on the wooden floor, making something.

 

Hong Yu-jeong, who had been lost in thought alone in her room all morning, opened the door and came out to discover Cha Su-hyeon like this.

 

“Su-hyeon, what are you doing?”

“Oh, you’re up?”

 

Cha Su-hyeon held up two paper cups connected by red string.

 

“…A paper cup phone?”

 

Hong Yu-jeong tilted her head.

Wasn’t this usually a ‘mom-made science activity’ that mothers made for their children when they were young?

 

Then Cha Su-hyeon grinned, stood up, and stretched the string long through the gap of Hong Yu-jeong’s room door to his own room.

 

“It’s our communication device. Call me if you’re bored at night. I don’t have that smartphone thing you mentioned, but I’ll answer this phone.”

 

Hong Yu-jeong chuckled at his unexpected words.

 

“Will this even work? The distance is quite far though.”

“You call yourself a scientist but have no faith in science? Go into your room.”

 

Hong Yu-jeong tilted her head and went into her room.

 

Whether it worked or not, seeing Cha Su-hyeon’s effort to cheer her up seemed to peel away a layer of her depressed feelings.

 

– Testing, can you hear me?

 

As she put her ear to the paper cup, Cha Su-hyeon’s surprisingly clear voice came through.

 

Hong Yu-jeong’s eyes widened as she put the paper cup to her mouth and shouted.

 

“Yes! I can hear you! It works much better than I thought?”

 

When she put it back to her ear, Cha Su-hyeon’s voice came through.

 

– See? I told you it would work well. How can a scientist not know something like this?

 

Hong Yu-jeong smiled.

 

“Hey, scientists don’t know everything. This is my first time seeing a paper cup phone.”

– Yeah. It’s my first time making one too.

 

That day, though it was nothing special, she spent time until sunset alternately putting her mouth and ear to the paper cup, having various conversations with Cha Su-hyeon.

 

Although he was right next door, talking without facing each other felt like actually having a phone conversation with a friend.

 

“…So after my parents died in an accident, I was selected as a science prodigy and grew up as an astronaut and researcher with continuous support from the state and foundations.”

– Then somewhere right now, there must be a young Hong Yu-jeong who’s a science prodigy?

“Well, I’ve thought about that, and probably yes. But I have to avoid interfering with young Hong Yu-jeong’s life since I don’t know what might happen.”

 

There’s a famous thought experiment called the grandfather paradox.

 

If someone goes to the past and shoots their grandfather, can they be born?

Since this itself is a contradiction, it was often used as evidence that time travel is impossible.

 

But since Hong Yu-jeong had already time traveled, it became something to avoid rather than a contradiction.

 

– Ah, so you must have graduated from university too?

 

Hong Yu-jeong chuckled at Cha Su-hyeon’s question.

 

“Of course I graduated from graduate school too! I may look like this, but I graduated early from KAIST.”

– You were an amazing person. Originally, what mission were you going to do in space? Each researcher has their main field.

“I was going to create a map of Helium-3 buried in moon craters. My mission was to narrow down the range from the size of a vast sea to the size of a playground. In the future, it emerges as a spotlight energy resource, so all countries competitively explore the moon.”

 

As Hong Yu-jeong talked about various things regarding herself, she suddenly became curious about Cha Su-hyeon.

 

“But why do you live alone in a place like this?”

– Well, I’m not trying to compete over who’s more unfortunate, but I don’t have parents either, just like you. I was abandoned at a temple when I was young and raised by the monks. The head monk gave me this house.

 

At Cha Su-hyeon’s words, Hong Yu-jeong looked around the room and then came out to the wooden floor as if something had occurred to her.

 

“Su-hyeon. Come outside for a moment.”

“What? Is the call over?”

“No, I’ve been so lost in thought until now that I didn’t think about it, but how do you cover living expenses? I’m just a parasite wasting food right now.”

 

At Hong Yu-jeong’s words, Cha Su-hyeon scratched his head.

 

“Well, it’s still okay for now? I still have money left from working part-time jobs consistently after graduating high school…”

“Don’t say that, just give me some part-time work like gluing eyes on dolls. It’s better than doing nothing at home.”

“…Doll eyes?”

 

Cha Su-hyeon tilted his head and said to Hong Yu-jeong.

 

“Rather than that, since you came from the future, wouldn’t it be better to do something like investing?”

“Huh?”

 

Hong Yu-jeong made a dumbfounded expression.

 

 

The audience chuckled softly as they watched her.

 

‘Right! If you went to the past, you should make it big with stock investments! But wait, this is supposed to be a romance, right…?’

 

Jung Yu-jin had already watched all six of Ryu Yeon-woo’s works, from dramas to plays.

Jung Yu-jin, a Hansae Daily reporter and Woods member, tilted her head.

 

It was the same in Berlin.

When she first watched “Sketch,” she couldn’t grasp the genre of the film in the early parts.

Only after watching the entire movie could she understand the whole picture.

 

And that composition somehow made her head spin while leaving a deep impression on the audience.

 

‘Even when the director changes, most of the works Ryu Yeon-woo appears in are like this. Is this the power of the actor?’

 

***

 

“What happened in 2006? Ugh! The only thing I can remember is the World Cup! And it’s not like I remember the exact scores… Should I bet on wins and losses or something?”

 

Watching Hong Yu-jeong lost in various thoughts, Cha Su-hyeon tilted his head.

 

“Well, you don’t need to become a chaebol right away. I just mentioned it thinking it might be better than gluing doll eyes. I don’t really need much money. After all, I was raised by monks from a young age. Non-possession and finding joy in poverty.”

“Finding joy in poverty isn’t Buddhism, it’s from Anyen, a disciple of Confucius, you know? And I’m all about full possession.”

 

Cha Su-hyeon smiled faintly as he watched Hong Yu-jeong burning with determination.

Still, it was fortunate that she seemed to have escaped from depression and gained some sense of purpose.

 

“Listen! Next year, the subprime mortgage crisis will happen, okay? And soon smartphones will dominate the world. Oh! Su-hyeon, have you ever heard the word Bitcoin? No, of course you haven’t. It doesn’t exist in the world yet.”

“Bit what…?”

 

It seemed like all that passion was being directed at him, which was somewhat troubling.

 

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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