NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor - Chapter 308

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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 308. Sweet and Spicy

Vincent Clerc looked at the prop gun that Miss Meow had offered.

It was a gun with a matte black barrel and unremarkable design.

The shape was ambiguous to consider it a replica of any specific pistol model design.

‘Hmm, even if we shoot with this, it shouldn’t feel too out of place.’

Since today’s filming studio had the concept of an abandoned brick building, he thought it would suit quite well if they used a gun.

‘Come to think of it, when casting Mr. Ryu, the director definitely prepared some reference about a survival game…’

Vincent Clerc had chosen Ryu Yeon-woo simply because he was the model whose appearance best matched the design he was pursuing.

The fact that he was an actor with quite high recognition in Asia also played a part, given the timing of their aggressive marketing push into the Asian market.

However, he hadn’t watched “Survival Island.”

He had heard people around him talking about an interesting series appearing on Netflix, but he didn’t particularly favor the violent feel of shooting guns or fighting each other.

Being a pacifist through and through, he had thought it was just another mindless show that Americans would enjoy and hadn’t watched it…

“Okay. Let’s give it a try.”

Vincent Clerc took the pistol that Miss Meow offered and personally entered the frame to hand it to Yeon-woo.

“Mr. Ryu’s stylist made a suggestion – could you pose with this?”

“Mm, of course.”

Yeon-woo nodded and gripped the pistol.

“Alright, let’s resume filming.”

At the staff’s call, Yeon-woo, standing within the camera frame, focused again.

‘A pistol…’

There must be a clear reason why Lee Ye-eun had given him the pistol.

Since there was no way she could know his true identity, thinking about his recent works, there was only one reason for giving him the gun.

‘She must have wanted me to show that special agent-like image I displayed in “Survival Island.”‘

Yeon-woo raised his head and looked straight at the camera.

Through his swaying hair, with clear and intense eyes, he made eye contact with the camera, the monitor displaying his image in real-time through electrical signals, and the people on set watching it.

Vincent Clerc’s eyes lit up seeing that challenging gaze.

‘This is 180 degrees different from the image he’s shown so far…’

Ryu Yeon-woo standing before the camera in a dark charcoal suit was definitely handsome.

He could fully understand why he was said to be running first place in recognition in the Asian market these days.

It was certainly a visual that inspired admiration.

It matched perfectly with the Armani suit he was currently wearing.

‘Hmm…’

But that was all.

It was certainly a satisfying visual that matched the image Armani was pursuing these days, but would consumers be captivated and have their gaze stolen when they encountered a large photograph hanging on the wall while riding escalators in Parisian luxury department stores like Le Bon Marché or Printemps Haussmann?

It didn’t seem likely.

Having flown all the way to Asia on the other side of Earth, expectations had built up proportional to that distance, making his threshold for satisfaction high.

***

“Cut, okay.”

Though positive signals kept coming, Yeon-woo wasn’t naive enough to miss reading the atmosphere flowing in the air.

‘He seems to feel something is lacking.’

However, since his expression wasn’t dark, the results seemed quite good, but he appeared unsatisfied by just a hair’s difference.

‘Probably no “A-cut” yet.’

Then a filming staff member called out.

“Let’s take a brief break and then continue.”

During the brief pause in filming, Yeon-woo looked down at the pistol in his hand again.

‘A gun…’

Yeon-woo looked around his surroundings.

It was a factory-style studio decorated with old red bricks exposed on various wall surfaces.

‘What suits this place isn’t the restrained appearance of a special agent.’

Places have power.

When wearing clothes, it’s usually expressed as matching TPO, which stands for Time, Place, and Occasion.

There’s a definite reason why place is one of those three elements.

‘This location and the special agent concept seem like they should match, but they’re subtly misaligned.’

Just because you hold a pistol, wear a suit, and strike a cool pose doesn’t make everything the same.

‘Sister Ye-eun seems to expect James Bond from me, but today doesn’t seem to be that direction.’

It needed America, not England.

Specifically, New York right after World War II ended.

“Can we resume filming?”

When Yeon-woo called out, the staff returned to their positions.

***

There are several movie filming sets in Korea, but he knew well what kind of movies were mainly shot here.

‘A studio where noir films are shot…’

When organized crime members appear in a dark atmosphere, it’s commonly called the noir genre.

Noir means ‘black’ in French.

It started when British crime and thriller literature that emerged after the 18th century crossed over to France, where novels of this genre were called ‘Roman noir.’

It’s a film genre that mainly deals with the underworld, handling dark atmospheres and decadent elements, and because of the paradoxical beauty that stems from that, it’s a genre with many enthusiasts.

Yeon-woo thought what suited this location wasn’t James Bond.

And his gaze changed.

No, even the air felt different.

‘…!’

Both the photographer and Vincent Clerc, who were watching him through the lens, momentarily held their breath.

It felt like their hearts dropped.

Yeon-woo’s appearance in their eyes was definitely different from before.

The eyes that had shown a strong impression and resolute character had somehow relaxed slightly, appearing languid.

And his body, which had been tensed with disciplined strength, naturally shifted its center of gravity to one leg.

A decadent gaze that seemed indifferent but contained inherent chaotic violence within.

Not a trained shepherd, but a wolf prowling and looking for openings.

Seeing that appearance, Vincent Clerc clearly realized what this actor had changed.

‘…It was New York, not London.’

It was The Godfather, not James Bond.

The film of the same name based on Mario Puzo’s novel “The Godfather” is still considered a textbook of the noir genre to this day.

“…Let’s look at that cut just now.”

At Vincent Clerc’s words, the photographer nodded vigorously.

Even if he hadn’t suggested it, he was planning to look.

The moment he pressed the shutter, he had a strong feeling of ‘this is it.’

When the cut they had just shot appeared on the monitor, admiration echoed throughout the filming set.

“Wow, this is unedited…”

When someone muttered that, another staff member next to them nodded.

“We’re going to adjust the colors and do post-processing from here. The final result is going to be insane.”

“Anyone can see this is definitely an A-cut.”

Vincent Clerc’s mouth also fell open seeing the result.

“Oh mon dieu! (Oh my God!)”

***

Vincent Clerc didn’t regret coming all the way to Korea.

Of course, he didn’t show it at all, but initially, it was true that he had some dissatisfaction about having to personally visit as a world-renowned designer.

It wasn’t because he was authoritarian or arrogant.

Normally when doing shoots, it’s standard for the model to come to you.

It’s customary to invite them using the format of an ‘ambassador invitation.’

But what could he do.

The one who needs something more goes first.

After seeing the results now, he didn’t have such thoughts at all.

“Bravo, perfect. I’m glad I came all the way here. This season is finished with this photograph.”

As the results came out satisfactorily, the tension eased and hunger naturally set in.

“Hmm, I should eat something.”

At that moment, a local Korean staff member approached Vincent Clerc.

“Designer. There’s food sent by Mr. Ryu’s fans prepared outside, so why don’t you go out and at least taste it?”

“Food? You mean catering? Of course I’ve heard about it, but Korea’s fandom culture is quite fascinating. To think fans even prepare separate catering for filming sets…”

The staff member scratched his head at Vincent Clerc’s words.

“Well, it’s a bit different from catering…”

Vincent Clerc went outside the filming set with the staff member.

Then he was captivated by the scent of something spicy and sweet seasoning and the savory smell of broth that brushed past his nose.

Reflexively looking toward where the smell was coming from, he saw a vehicle parked with a large sign he couldn’t read.

Looking at the sign, there was something written in small English letters below the Korean text.

– Boonsik car

“Boonsik?”

“In Korean pronunciation, it’s ‘bunsik truck’.”

At that moment, Yeon-woo approached from behind Vincent Clerc.

“Please try some. I think you’ll quite like it.”

Looking at the foreigner facing the snack truck, Yeon-woo was reminded of his friend and top music director Chrissy Monroe in LA.

‘Chrissy really loved Korean street food back then too. I wonder if it’ll suit the taste of a French person famous for being picky.’

He approached the snack truck together with Vincent Clerc.

“Oh, what’s this? It looks just like Italy’s Farfalle pasta…”

“This is a dish called tteokbokki. It’s probably difficult to pronounce. Do you eat spicy food well?”

Vincent Clerc nodded his head.

“We use peperoncino quite a bit when cooking too. I’ve heard Korean food is spicy. I haven’t been able to experience it since I’ve only eaten hotel buffet food since arriving, so let me try it.”

Vincent Clerc loaded his plate with plenty of the interesting-looking red pasta chunks.

Yeon-woo quietly got another plate of sundae and sat next to Vincent Clerc.

“That looks interesting too.”

“This is called sundae. Hmm, you could think of it as similar to Boudin noir among French dishes.”

After Yeon-woo mentioned the French sausage made using intestines like sundae, he smiled slightly as he coincidentally remembered that dish’s name also contained ‘noir’.

Meanwhile, Vincent Clerc put the interesting-looking long and round pasta in his mouth.

‘He said this was called tteok.’

He stabbed it with his fork, put it in his mouth, and chewed, tasting the red sauce.

‘…!’

It was spicy.

Though it had a sweet taste mixed in, the basically spicy flavor seemed to sting his tongue.

But when his teeth chewed and cut through what was called ‘tteok’, he was captivated by the chewy texture felt through the cut cross-section and the spicy-sweet seasoning covering it.

‘Whew, it’s spicy but I want to keep eating.’

It was just like Mr. Ryu’s acting from today’s meeting shoot, alternating between sweet and spicy moments.

Beside him, Yeon-woo quietly pointed to the sundae.

“Try dipping this in that seasoning too.”

At Yeon-woo’s recommendation, Vincent Clerc moved his fork as if enchanted and stabbed the sundae.

Following his advice, he dipped the sundae in the tteokbokki sauce and put it in his mouth.

‘…!’

Vincent Clerc looked at Yeon-woo and then looked back at the snack truck behind them once more.

“…I love Korea.”

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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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