Chapter 68: Crisis and the Beginning

"Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll hold on tight."

Yeonwoo asked Ji-eun, who was behind him, and she nodded, wrapping her arms around his waist.

After checking their condition, the director called out the cue again.

"Alright, let's start again. Mr. Yeonwoo."

With the director's cue, Yeonwoo took a step forward.

Receiving Yeonwoo's signal, the horse galloped out at a fast speed.

Yeonwoo slightly lowered his posture, and Seo Ji-eun, who was behind him, wrapped her arms around his waist with all her strength.

The two, riding the horse smoothly, moved forward a few meters.

Seo Ji-eun, hanging onto Yeonwoo's waist on the horse that was bouncing up and down, managed to maintain her balance.

Director Lee nodded, watching the field monitor.

'Indeed, this posture is much more dynamic.'

Zing.

At that moment, the tingling pain from yesterday's stalker incident spread through Ji-eun's left arm, and she suddenly lost her strength.

Trying to put strength into her arm, but the pain was too intense, so she wrapped her right arm even tighter around Yeonwoo's waist.

"Ah-!"

On the moving horse, with only one side of her body exerting force, she started to lean and was about to fall to the side.

The costume Seo Ji-eun was wearing was made of silk, making it slippery and harder to maintain her balance.

"Ah."

The staff, surprised by the sudden situation, froze.

Yeonwoo, feeling the strength in Ji-eun's arms around his waist weakening, quickly let go of the reins and, with his feet firmly planted in the stirrups, turned his body sharply.

Seeing Ji-eun slipping and sliding to the right on the horse's back, he quickly grabbed her left shoulder and pulled her up.

"Whoa whoa."

He tried to stop the horse by making a sound, but the horse didn't listen because he wasn't holding the reins.

He tapped the horse's neck again to try to make it stop, but the horse continued to move forward.

Although he had pulled Ji-eun back, if he tried to stop the horse, she might fall due to the loss of balance and her injured arm. If they continued, both would likely fall.

Seo Ji-eun, in a panic, squeezed her eyes shut.

"Ji-eun! Stretch your legs forward."

Yeonwoo, in the midst of the urgent situation, had no time to use formalities.

Hearing her name, Seo Ji-eun opened her eyes slightly and regained her composure.

"Stretch your legs forward!"

Hearing Yeonwoo's voice again, Seo Ji-eun stretched her legs forward. Yeonwoo then lifted her with both hands, turned her around, and brought her to the front.

Seo Ji-eun, who had been sitting behind Yeonwoo, moved to the front, now facing him.

He wrapped one arm around her, leaned forward, and with the other hand, found and gripped the reins flapping in the wind, stopping the horse abruptly.

"Whoa whoa."

The horse, which had been galloping, slowly came to a stop.

The staff, who had been watching the sudden emergency, rushed over.

"Are you okay?!"

Director Lee Sang-hoon, who had thrown away the script he had been holding, ran over breathlessly.

It was a close call, almost turning into a major accident due to his desire to capture a more dynamic scene.

Seo Ji-eun opened her eyes, seeing the staff running towards her, and realized she had moved to the front, facing Yeonwoo.

"Are you hurt anywhere? Are you okay?!"

"I'm, I'm fine."

Seo Ji-eun nodded in response to the staff who had run over in alarm.

Seeing her, Yeonwoo's expression hardened.

He could feel Seo Ji-eun's body, which he was holding, trembling.

"Are you really fine? Director Lee, please help Ji-eun get down from the horse."

Yeonwoo asked a large staff member, who was in charge of lighting, to help Seo Ji-eun.

Seo Ji-eun was helped down from the horse, and the filming was temporarily halted.

Director Lee Sang-hoon, who had almost caused a major accident due to his desire for a more dynamic scene, bowed his head and repeatedly apologized to the actors.

Seo Ji-eun, who seemed to have overextended her left arm, needed to go to the hospital to be sure, but she comforted the director, saying it wasn't his fault and that she had overexerted herself with her arm yesterday.

The chase scene on horseback was supposed to be the last scene of the day, and the first scene they had filmed was also usable, so the filming was concluded.

The manager, who had heard the news, rushed over and took Seo Ji-eun to a nearby hospital for a check-up, while the staff at the remaining filming site packed up the equipment.

Director Lee Sang-hoon, who had been blaming himself for his desire, was curious about his profession.

"Hey... I heard we filmed something just now. Did the camera capture the near-accident well...?"

Upon checking the footage, it was clear how well Yeonwoo had handled the urgent situation.

"Maybe we can use this scene up to this point."

Director Lee then lightly slapped his cheek and shook his head.

"Oh, I'm really obsessed with filming. Lee Sang-hoon, get a grip."

However, despite his self-reproach, Director Lee couldn't take his eyes off the footage on the screen.

In the car heading back to Seoul, Min-sung asked Yeonwoo.

"Actor, I heard a big incident almost happened at the filming site today."

"Ah, it wasn't me, it was Ji-eun."

"Still, be careful. I heard a lot of accidents happen in period dramas."

Seeing Min-sung's concern, Yeonwoo smiled.

At that moment, Yeonwoo's phone rang, and he saw it was a call from Seo Ji-eun.

"Yeah, did you go to the hospital?"

- Ah, Yeonwoo. They said it's just a slight strain in the ligament. It doesn't seem to be a big deal.

"That's a relief. You're not seriously hurt."

- I'm really grateful to you. If it weren't for you, I would have been seriously hurt.

Talking to Ji-eun, who was expressing her gratitude, Yeonwoo realized they had already passed through the Seoul tollgate.

"Sure, get some rest. Anyway, the director said they'll be shooting other scenes for a few days because Yoo Han is going on an overseas location shoot."

The director decided to give Ji-eun a few days off and adjust the schedule to focus on scenes where she doesn't appear.

- Got it. Yeonwoo, I'm really, really grateful to you today!

After ending the call with Ji-eun, Yeonwoo arrived at his apartment building shortly after and fell asleep as soon as he got home, as period dramas were indeed more tiring than modern dramas.

***

Han Hae-won found a clue to the 'Baek No-ya' mentioned in the note written by Ryu Yeonwoo.

'No-ya' is a respectful term for an elderly man.

Han Hae-won took out his smartphone and read the message.

- When you approach Baek No-ya, comply with his demands and mention Jeon Su-hwan's name. And...

He mulled over the message from Ryu Yeonwoo, which provided several guidelines and precautions.

After hearing that Baek No-ya often appeared at a fishing spot in Gijang, Han Hae-won investigated the area whenever he had time.

A few days passed, and he was considering whether to search other fishing spots in the Busan area.

Click.

Hearing the metallic click behind him, Han Hae-won quietly raised his hands.

"I heard a young man was looking for me."

Turning slowly with his hands raised, Han Hae-won saw an ordinary old man holding an automatic harpoon.

He thought it was a gun at first, but it seemed to be the sound of the harpoon.

Moreover, the old man was missing one arm, matching the description given by Ryu Yeonwoo.

"Sir, I have a question for you."

"Where are you from?"

"Excuse me? I'm from Busan."

The old man shook his head quietly.

"No, where were you sent from? They said you were from the prosecution below."

The information he had given to the fishing spot owner a few minutes ago about investigating Baek No-ya must have reached the old man's ears.

Or perhaps he had known since the other fishing spots a few days ago and had been observing him.

"Is your name Baek No-ya?"

"My name changes depending on where you're from."

Believing the old man was indeed Baek No-ya based on his description and appearance, Han Hae-won slowly reached into his pocket.

The old man's expression didn't change at all.

Han Hae-won looked at the sharp tip of the automatic harpoon, considering whether to pull out his gun, but remembered Ryu Yeonwoo's message and took out the note instead.

"I'm here on the orders of Jeon Su-hwan."

Han Hae-won carefully opened the note with Ryu Yeonwoo's handwriting and looked at the old man.

The old man raised his hand towards the bushes.

"That's enough."

In response to the old man's words, the bushes rustled, and a large man with an automatic rifle emerged.

'...If I had pulled out my gun, I would have been full of holes.'

Cold sweat trickled down Han Hae-won's back.

The old man approached Han Hae-won and extended his hand.

Thinking it was a handshake, Han Hae-won reached out, but the old man pulled his hand back.

"No, the note."

"Ah, yes. Here it is."

Feeling embarrassed, Han Hae-won handed over the note written by Ryu Yeonwoo.

"Hmm, that's right. Can you cover your eyes and move to a different spot?"

"Ah, yes, that's fine."

The large man with the rifle approached with a mask.

"I'll make sure you return safely, so don't worry."

Han Hae-won was masked and soon got into a car, which drove off to an unknown destination.

***

Meanwhile, the day Han Hae-won met Baek No-ya was also the day the first episode of "Beyond the River" was broadcast.

Due to the early release of the grand production "Baldur," which had received a large investment from MBS, the production team and actors of "Beyond the River" were in a dilemma.

The first episode of "Baldur," which aired at the same time last week, recorded a 24% viewership rate, causing dark circles to appear under Director Lee Sang-hoon's eyes.

At a restaurant where the team had gathered to watch the first episode together, Director Lee tried to hide his tension as he proposed a toast.

"Let's raise a glass to the success of our drama."

"Ooh."

As the staff's attention turned to him, Director Lee looked at Yeonwoo, who was sitting next to him.

"Should the lead actor say a few words before we toast?"

Having grown close to the actors during filming and speaking to them informally, Director Lee passed the task of the toast to Yeonwoo, who stood up.

'Somehow, I always end up giving the toast at these gatherings.'

Yeonwoo, who had to stand up either as the youngest or the lead, gave the toast before the first episode of "Beyond the River" was about to air.