Chapter 44. Doll

Yeonwoo, lifting her hips slightly, squeezed in front of the monitor, pressing against Masukdo beside her.

"Ah, it's so tight! This elephant."

Masukdo, adjusting his breathing to match the confident start of the now clearly changed Yeonwoo, was comically pushed back by her petite frame.

"Ah, oh my."

"Really? Oh my?"

Pierre Choi glared at Guak Jicheol, drawing out the last syllable.

Jicheol, intimidated by the fierce gaze, stammered in response.

"S-S-Stop bullying me! Oh my. Really."

"Hahaha."

Suddenly laughing like a madman, Pierre Choi turned his head and cracked his neck.

His face, as if possessed by a demon, transformed into a terrifying expression, exuding charisma.

"Hey, Guak Jicheol."

Jicheol's large frame shrank like a lizard at the low, deep voice of Pierre Choi.

"Do you think the ransom for the team members I called can be covered by the fee you offered? That deer won't move for less than five hundred thousand won."

Pierre Choi pointed at the monitor.

In the monitor, Jennifer, having just escaped from Park Kang-woo's grasp, walked to the water cooler to drink water, flipping off the CCTV camera.

"Why did I accept this job? To fleece those guys? Well, that's one reason."

Yeonwoo nodded, pointing at the monitors showing the thugs.

"…I thought you accepted it out of pity for my family's situation."

Jicheol, making as much space as possible by hunching his large frame, offered his chair to Yeonwoo.

"Pity? That's funny. In my world, such low-level harassment isn't even reported to parents by kids."

"…But, Mr. Fixer, what does using the chair have to do with this…?"

Pierre Choi suddenly pulled out a gun from his pocket.

Jicheol, startled, stepped back and raised his hands.

In fact, Masukdo, who was genuinely surprised by the unexpected turn of events, had a realistic expression of shock captured on the screen.

"Guak Jicheol. Your instructor here says, 'Get down and spread!'"

"Y-Yes, sir!"

The camera, set to capture the seated position, only showed Masukdo's large back and buttocks as he lay down and spread.

This made the situation even funnier.

"The reason I accepted this job is just one, Mr. Guak Jicheol."

Click.

As Pierre Choi pulled the trigger of the gun, a lighter flame pitifully emerged from the barrel.

"Isn't it fun? A joke."

Smirking at the CCTV camera, showing Park Kang-woo, Pierre Choi's smile exuded an aura that was untouchable.

"Okay! Cut!"

After half a day, the director finally called it good.

The applause and cheers erupted on the set, impressed by Yeonwoo's sincere and 'spontaneous' performance, which was actually well-planned.

On the other hand, Yeonwoo quickly helped Masukdo, who was still lying down, to his feet.

"Masukdo, I'm sorry."

"Sorry? But when did you prepare this? I was really surprised."

With the successful take, Masukdo's mood lightened, and he patted Yeonwoo's shoulder.

"It looks like the scene turned out well. Good job, Yeonwoo."

Yeonwoo smiled, grateful to Masukdo for delivering the ad-lib as intended.

Director Park Chan-hong turned to the assistant director and spoke.

"The spark of creativity from the actors on set. Today, the young actor has taken a step forward."

This is precisely why the assistant director respects Director Park Chan-hong, even though it sometimes feels like the director is passing the buck to the actors for important scenes.

Meanwhile, an hour earlier.

"Do you even sell those things these days? Where did you get it from?"

Desperately driven by Yeonwoo's request for a toy lighter gun, Minsoo drove to the city of Paju, where the set was located.

He had already visited four convenience stores, stationery shops, and a large discount store, but the staff said they hadn't seen such items in a while.

Seeing Yeonwoo's hard work from the morning shoot, Minsoo's heart ached.

Ryu Yeonwoo was no longer just an actor he was responsible for.

She was a kind younger sister and the best employer, who gave him generous bonuses on top of his monthly salary.

This made Minsoo eager to help.

While driving to another store, he saw a shop.

"Hmm? …Could it be here?"

He quickly parked the car and ran inside, a shop that had been popular a few years ago but had since declined— a claw machine arcade.

"Please, please."

Desperately, Minsoo began inspecting the claw machines.

After a quick search, he found a lighter gun hanging from a prize.

"Wow! It's here. It's here!"

He wanted to shout in triumph, but the prizes in the claw machine were not yet his.

He exchanged a lot of money at the unmanned change machine and tried several times.

However, most of these items are bait, making them hard to win.

After a few minutes, he had already pulled up three prizes near the lighter.

"Ah, this is almost impossible to win."

Then, he noticed a sign on the wall.

"If the machine is broken or you have any issues, please call the number below."

Minsoo quickly dialed the number.

- Yes, hello?

"Ah, are you the owner of the claw machine shop? I'm filming a movie, and I urgently need a lighter gun from the prizes. I'll pay you well, so can you come and get it out for me?"

A hesitant voice came from the other end.

- Ah, what should I do? I'm quite far away… I'll come, but it will take about 40 minutes.

"Ah, then I'm sorry, but please come as soon as possible. I really need it."

After hanging up, Minsoo exchanged all the bills in his wallet and stacked them next to the claw machine.

"Damn. Let's see who wins."

For 30 minutes, Minsoo targeted one prize, attacking with the claw's three prongs.

"Come on! That's it, that's it."

Finally, the claw's attack penetrated the yellow rubber band holding the lighter and the prize.

Wobbling precariously, the prize with the lighter gun began to rise.

"Oh, please!"

Zing—.

Thud—!

The prize with the lighter gun fell into the slot.

"Yay!"

Alone in the claw machine shop, Minsoo shouted in triumph.

After a 30-minute battle, he achieved his goal 50 minutes after leaving the set.

"But, this isn't the time for that."

Minsoo hurried back to his car.

Since he had already won the prizes, he carried them in his arms and ran to the car.

***

After successfully completing the day's shoot, Yeonwoo, exhausted, returned to her apartment.

She held Minsoo's hand with both of hers, her eyes sparkling with gratitude.

Reflecting on the day, she felt that her acting skills had improved.

But… was there something like this in the car?

"Minsoo, did you always have so many dolls in your car?"

"Ah, that's a long story."

Minsoo's car headed from Paju to Seoul.

***

As the cherry blossoms, which had bloomed so beautifully, began to wither in mid-April, the film shoot proceeded smoothly.

While the scenes were not shot in order, according to the script, they were in the middle of the story.

According to the information collected by the informant 'Junk Shop,' Park Kang-woo, who had been involved in organized crime in Incheon, had a powerful backer named 'President Roh.'

Park Kang-woo had incurred a debt to President Roh due to financial management issues and missed the payment deadline, falling out of favor with President Roh, who valued trust above all.

As Park Kang-woo expanded his influence in Gyeonggi Province, he hired Guak Jicheol to intimidate and threaten, a necessary choice due to the unstable financial situation of his faction.

Pierre Choi had recorded the voice of one of President Roh's close associates, and Guak Jicheol had used a program to alter the voice.

Then, using the SIM card Jennifer had swapped into Park Kang-woo's phone, Guak Jicheol successfully hacked the smartphone and called Park Kang-woo, making the caller ID appear different.

Ring. Click.

- Ah, Mr. Gu, it's been a while.

The call connected, and Park Kang-woo's voice, raised in apparent excitement, came through.

Wearing headphones, Guak Jicheol gave the okay sign, and Pierre Choi spoke into the microphone.

"Mr. Park, or should I say, President Park. I heard you've transformed into a construction company."

- Hahaha. President? I'm afraid President Roh might hear that.

Pierre's voice was perfectly altered to sound like President Roh's close associate, Mr. Gu.

"Then, let's call you Mr. Park. Mr. Park, there's a banquet hosted by the president."

A party where people supported by President Roh gather to exchange information and network. Being invited to this party implied that President Roh was willing to support Park Kang-woo.

Park Kang-woo had never been invited to such a banquet, even when he was receiving support from President Roh.

- …To me, you're talking about the banquet…?

"President Roh has decided it's time to bring you back. Didn't he always favor you, Mr. Park?"

- Oh, what an honor. Please convey my gratitude to President Roh, Mr. Gu.

"Yes, Mr. Park. I'll send someone soon. You know, you must keep the banquet a secret and attend alone."

Park Kang-woo, though unaware of such rules, was filled with hope at the prospect of returning to the mainstream of the underworld and repeatedly bowed to the unseen phone.

- Yes, I will remember.

Click.

The call ended, and Guak Jicheol, who had been listening in real-time, high-fived Pierre Choi in celebration of the successful operation.

Pierre Choi, smiling, extended his hand but suddenly changed it to a fist, playing a trick.

Guak Jicheol, who had high-fived the air with his large, muscular arm, scratched his head, embarrassed.

"Ah, that's embarrassing. I'm not a kid."

"Really? A kid?"

Pierre Choi's drawn-out words were now familiar to Guak Jicheol, who put his headset back on and muttered.

"Phew, there's so much work to do."

Pierre Choi chuckled at the sight of Guak Jicheol.

"Okay, cut!"

At Director Park Chan-hong's okay sign, Masukdo took off his headset and spoke.