NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor - Chapter 302
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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 302. Sudden Attack
Kim Su-hyeok looked at the young actor extending his hand in front of him.
“Nice to meet you for the first time. I’m actor Ryu Yeon-woo.”
He naturally knew that Ryu Yeon-woo was a celebrity under this company, but he hadn’t expected him to attend the contract signing.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Su-hyeok.”
Kim Su-hyeok shook hands and greeted him, then thought to himself.
‘Somehow he feels familiar. Is it because I’ve seen him a lot on TV?’
This was definitely their first time meeting in person, yet he felt a sense of déjà vu as if he’d seen him somewhere before.
Kim Su-hyeok felt embarrassed to call himself a fan of someone at his age, but he had recently binge-watched the dramas and movies starring Ryu Yeon-woo.
While he found it fascinating that such a person was speaking to him right in front of him, this was still part of his mission, so he shook off his idle thoughts.
“From now on, our Friedwen will thoroughly handle security not only for domestic schedules but also when you have overseas schedules.”
Yeon-woo nodded at Kim Su-hyeok’s words.
“That’s reassuring. I guess we’ll be seeing each other often from now on.”
***
After signing the security contract with Friedwen, Yeon-woo headed to the cafe on the 3rd floor.
CEO Kim Ju-seong, who was wiping cups, looked at Yeon-woo entering the cafe.
“Your usual coffee?”
“Yes. Please.”
CEO Kim Ju-seong smiled and operated the coffee machine while continuing to speak.
“「Parabola」 achieved first place in viewership ratings for its time slot. Congratulations, Yeon-woo.”
“Thank you. CEO, you should gradually return to the industry now. It’s been almost a year since you’ve only been running the cafe.”
At Yeon-woo’s words, Kim Ju-seong chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.
“What would you use this old man for? Director Yoon and Representative Jung are already doing well.”
Then Yeon-woo tilted his head.
“Old man? CEO Kim Ju-seong is at the prime age for work. You’re such a capable person that there’s plenty of work to be done.”
In Yeon-woo’s face as he looked at Kim Ju-seong, the same gleam appeared as when he was contemplating how to utilize An Jun-ho who had just been discharged.
It was too much of a waste of human resources to keep such a capable talent as Kim Ju-seong confined to just the cafe.
However, since Director Yoon Mi-yeon and Representative Jung, who currently run Saebyeol, weren’t failing at their jobs, it seemed he would need to create something separate that CEO Kim Ju-seong could be interested in and enthusiastically focus on soon.
“Hmm, that look is definitely the kind of gaze that those in positions of managing people have. I guess Chairman Seo of Ihan Group was right after all.”
At Kim Ju-seong’s words, Yeon-woo chuckled.
“When did you and Chairman Seo talk about me separately?”
“He contacts me often. It seems like Actor Ryu has really caught his fancy? How about visiting him and paying your respects when you have time?”
“Hmm, understood.”
Yeon-woo nodded.
Chairman Seo Tae-gwang of Ihan Group had, in a way, made a ‘value investment’ since the days when Yeon-woo wasn’t very famous.
At that time, the advertising contract fee from Ihan Tech was such an absurd amount that one might have suspected some ulterior motive, but looking at it now, it feels rather cheap due to Yeon-woo’s increased fees.
‘I’ll need to renew the contract soon.’
Probably, if they renew the contract this time as discussed with Chairman Seo Tae-gwang back then, not only Ihan Tech but other affiliates of Ihan Group spread across various fields like an octopus would also plan to use Yeon-woo as their main model.
While he was organizing his thoughts for a moment, CEO Kim Ju-seong extended a tray with a mug on it.
“Your coffee is ready.”
“Ah, thank you.”
Taking the coffee, Yeon-woo sat in a corner with a view of the window and opened his smartphone.
– Today we need to split open the belly.
– Han Hae-woon: Understood. It looks like the inside is packed full, so I was going to contact you anyway. Then I’ll start the operation.
Seeing Han Hae-woon’s immediate response, Yeon-woo nodded.
The secret workshop in Gimpo that Kim Su-hyeok and Lee Kyu-jin had been continuously monitoring was like a piggy bank.
The mysterious items constantly transported by freight trucks never came out once they went in.
Whether they had built the underground facility quite large, things began piling up neatly, and it seemed like now would be the perfect time to split open the belly of the piggy bank.
***
“We’re in big trouble.”
Kim Gye-sik frowned at the man who burst in without even knocking and immediately reported that they were in big trouble.
“What’s with all these big troubles lately? Can’t we have some small troubles for once?”
“Well… This is really big trouble. Gimpo has been hit.”
“What?!”
Kim Gye-sik’s eyes widened as if they would tear, having tried to casually take the man’s words as a joke.
Drrrk─.
As he shot up from his seat, the wheeled office chair slid backward and crashed into the wall.
“Are you saying that Gimpo is the Gimpo I’m thinking of?”
“···Yes. That’s correct.”
Kim Gye-sik’s complexion turned pale in an instant, and he asked the man giving the report again.
“No, shit···. What kind of bullshit is this about getting raided? It’s not like thieves broke in, so tell me straight.”
The man then bowed his head with a grim expression and answered.
“The prosecution obtained a search and seizure warrant and just raided the place. The small fry who were already inside have been arrested on the spot, and there are so many investigators around that it’s risky to even approach.”
At the man’s words, Kim Gye-sik opened his mouth with an incomprehensible expression.
“They processed a search and seizure this quickly without us knowing? There are more than a few people in the prosecution and the court who’ve taken our money. How does it make sense that we didn’t know when these bastards were sticking their noses into our inner sanctum?!”
“Well···. An unidentified informant made a direct tip to the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors’ Office, and it seems Kwon Chang-jung went to the scene personally.”
Kim Gye-sik, apparently irritated, roughly ran his hand through his hair and tapped the desk with his fingers.
“Kwon Chang-jung···. You’re talking about that bastard, right? Pitbull.”
“That’s right.”
“Hah, this whole thing has gone to shit.”
Pitbull Kwon Chang-jung was famous for bulldozing through any drug-related cases without asking questions.
And since Pitbull Kwon Chang-jung’s superiors weren’t the type who could be pressured through lines that Baeksol could control, it was realistically difficult to cover this up now.
Pitbull’s father was Kwon Doo-yeop, who served as Minister of Justice during the civilian government, and his family was a traditional legal family where numerous members were either sitting judges, prosecutors, or ran major law firms.
“Damn it. First, cut off all the tails we can, and just kill the bastards who might be dangerous if caught and throw them in the sea with cement.”
“Understood.”
Looking at the man who bowed his head with a grim expression, Kim Gye-sik shouted again.
“What are you doing not getting out of here quickly, you bastard. Run right now!”
“Yes!”
It was truly a fire on their doorstep.
Watching the back of his subordinate who hurriedly opened the door and left, Kim Gye-sik rubbed his face with his hands as if washing his face dry.
“Ha, how am I going to report this. I think I need to somehow track down this anonymous tip first.”
It hadn’t been long since the Okinawa incident broke out.
His head felt like it was going to explode, not knowing where things started going wrong.
***
Leaving the progress of the work to the prosecution, Yeon-woo and the agents quietly went underground.
‘I didn’t expect to catch anyone with this from the beginning anyway.’
Given the nature of those who operated in a thoroughly compartmentalized structure, there was no way they could catch the owner of the warehouse just by finding one warehouse.
They could only inflict financial damage by confiscating the drugs that would have been war funds for the guys in the warehouse.
But what was effective in the current situation was that financial damage.
Baeksol, which had suffered a major blow in Okinawa, couldn’t meet the distribution volume of drugs they originally handled, so they would have gathered emergency funds hidden here and there to buy the insufficient amount of drugs from Southeast Asia or the Middle East.
And when those goods entered the country and filled the piggy bank’s belly, Yeon-woo and the agents wielded the blade called Pitbull to cut open that belly.
No matter how rotten this country’s legislative, judicial, and administrative branches were, there were people everywhere who had conscience and fulfilled their calling.
Just like Jeon Su-hwan in his previous life.
– Things have already progressed this far and there’s sufficient evidence, so if we leave it to Pitbull, even those bastards won’t be able to steal the already confiscated drugs.
– Han Hae-woon: Of course. The confiscated amount alone is in tons, so if something like that happened, South Korea would be turned upside down.
Yeon-woo nodded after seeing Han Hae-woon’s response.
– After they put out the fire on their doorstep, they’ll be desperate to find out who started it, so stay quiet for a while and just monitor their movements.
– Han Hae-woon: Understood.
Yeon-woo, who had put down his smartphone, looked at the report placed on the table.
This time it wasn’t one he received from Han Hae-woon, but a report provided by Saebyeol Entertainment.
– 8th Scenario Contest Special Judge Appointment (scheduled for February next year)
– Survival Island Global Match (currently in negotiations)
– Year-end Awards Ceremony Schedule Information
– Global Brand Ambassador and Overseas Event Casting Information
After skimming through the report, Yeon-woo stroked his chin.
‘There are many scheduled events. Actually, this works out well. Since I need to move quietly for a while···.’
Moving quietly as an agent meant, conversely, that he needed to be active as an actor.
‘Hmm, episode 5 will air next week, so it’s time for the story to really get going.’
Episodes 1 through 4 of 「Parabola」 mainly progressed with stories explaining the characters’ backgrounds since there were many leading roles.
In the drama, Jin Yu-han and Son Jin-wook gave personal lessons to Ryu Yeon-woo, who had ability but was hopeless at basketball, naturally revealing the backgrounds of those two.
The content about how Jin Yu-han, who was evaluated as a promising player, suddenly got injured at the crucial moment before college entrance and had his dream of becoming a professional basketball player shattered.
And the content about Son Jin-wook, who quit his teaching job after winning the lottery and searches for what he truly likes and wants to do.
However, there wasn’t much content about the main character Ryu Yeon-woo himself.
Just the ‘resolution of deficiency’ – that although he suffers from an illness, he finds comfort only when playing basketball.
And the ‘anticipation’ that his mental illness, which makes everything appear slow due to his intense concentration, actually becomes a special ability when playing basketball, allowing him to show outstanding performance.
Since sports, especially basketball, isn’t mainstream in the drama industry, they approached it very gradually so viewers could develop interest.
Having drawn viewers in through the protagonist’s ‘resolution of deficiency’ and ‘anticipation,’ this was the part where they needed to explode with something that would create complete immersion.
‘That’s what will be in episode 5 that’s about to air.’
Ryu Yeon-woo in the drama didn’t really fit with this drama, except for the fact that his headaches disappeared when playing basketball.
Despite being the protagonist, he felt disconnected compared to the other members.
Netizen feedback about this point also appeared through internet public opinion.
Negative views began emerging mainly from clubs that professionally analyze dramas and movies and share opinions with each other.
– It’s interesting but it’s not giving me what I expected
– At least it doesn’t seem like it’ll be a typical K-drama that just puts on a basketball skin and suddenly becomes romance, but I’ll have to keep watching
– I think it’s because of Ryu Yeon-woo. The role and character don’t match. All the roles he’s played so far were characters he proactively led, but now he’s a passive character who gets dragged along, so it doesn’t fit.
└ Oh really accurate analysis yes
Some harshly evaluated that while it was luxurious casting, having Ryu Yeon-woo with his excessively glamorous looks in the protagonist’s position was actually a negative factor.
However, setting up the drama’s beginning that way was somewhat intentional.
The final puzzle piece essential for the protagonist.
Now it was time for ‘strong motivation’ to appear.
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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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