Chapter 134…
John’s Identity… No way?
[Umm, I… umm… I feel like I used to do a lot of things.]
“Sonya, stop humming.”
[So? Ah! Cow! Puhaha!]
“I wasn’t trying to make you laugh.”
At my cold remark, John—who’d been cracking up—quickly averted his gaze.
Sure, I brought him here, but he’d better cooperate properly if he wants a peaceful send-off.
[Sorry……]
“‘Sorry’? ‘Sooorry’?”
[Don’t be mad! Calm down. I’ve been trying to help too.]
“Help with what?”
I didn’t even realize how busy I’d been—going to Gramps’ place, drawing that painting, helping restless ghosts move on.
Meanwhile this guy was busy wandering around doing who-knows-what.
Honestly, I forgot about him sometimes… but every time he popped back up yelling “Hey bro!” You wouldn’t get pissed?
It would’ve been better if he hadn’t come back at all.
[I think I’m good at lots of things.]
“Like what.”
[Look at this movement! I must’ve been a martial arts master!]
He jabbed the air with practiced motions.
And? What am I supposed to do with that?
“Everybody can do at least that much.”
I showed him, too.
My martial arts?
Well, technically I didn’t learn them—just got them as a spiritual-sendoff reward skill.
[Uh… hmm.]
When I threw in some kicks and flashy moves, he got embarrassed.
[Then… was I an actor? Look at this. Hmm hmm.]
He rubbed at his face, changing his expression—his whole vibe shifted.
Then his tone changed too. Same John, but different aura.
[Um, hehehe! Korea! Kimbap! Very good! I am tourist man!]
Suddenly he was giving off middle-aged–tourist energy.
I sighed without thinking.
I changed my expression and slouched like him.
“Look at you. Some white boy talkin’ all sloppy?”
[……shit.]
“Oh, you little— I should just force-send you off. Try cursing again!”
[Please stoooop!]
If it weren’t for Yeon-joo, I’d have forcibly exorcised him already.
He said he remembered things he could do… but everything he listed were things I could also do.
[Ah! I can speak French!]
“…You mean that dirty kissing thing?”
[That’s French kiss. Ew! You’re gross!]
“Sorry… only French I know is sil vous plait and merci beaucoup. That’s all you need for begging.”
Two phrases I learned for dealing with foreign buyers.
[Wait! Umm, I can speak Chinese! Ni chi fan le ma?]
“I ate already. And you picked that phrase on purpose, didn’t you?”
[Kekeke!]
He’s laughing?
Unbelievable, this little—
His behavior… it suddenly clicked.
He knows a bit of everything, can change his face and vibe like me,
but he doesn’t show up in any records.
“…You were a beggar, weren’t you?”
[What?]
“C’mon! You’re just like me! Look at the similarities!”
[O… M… G……]
He grabbed his head in shock.
“Am I wrong?”
[S-so I was a beggar? Beggar??]
“Yeah, a beggar! Bee-guh! Hungry guy!”
[B-but this guy looks normal though?]
“What, I don’t look normal? Beggars look normal once they’re washed, okay? And look at your clothes. If you look closely, they’re totally beggar-like!”
[Um… h-hip?]
[Maybe he thought the ripped clothes looked stylish…]
“I can’t believe I picked up a beggar……”
[Noooooooo!]
Ugh. This is so ridiculous.
He was so shocked he sank down holding his head.
“No wonder we couldn’t find you. A foreign beggar came to Korea and died alone, so you never showed up. So you were undocumented?”
[……I-I think you might be right. My appearance doesn’t settle into one image. Intellectual… rich guy… model……]
“When I was a beggar, I imagined stuff like that all the time. You long for what you never had.”
[Really?]
“Yeah… beggars are like that.”
He looked so pitiful that I almost felt bad.
Maybe because I’m not a beggar anymore, he seemed even more miserable.
“That’s probably why you kept wandering. Beggars want a roof, but if it’s not their place, they get anxious and scared. Afraid they’ll get kicked out.”
[Really? Then were you like that at Mister Gam-dong’s place too?]
“Of course. Though I stuck to his grandma to deal with it.”
“What are you talking about? You lived here doing whatever you wanted.”
Gam-dong—who had been listening—joined in.
“I tiptoed around so much!”
“Yes, yes. Sorry.”
“No, you didn’t do anything wrong. I’m grateful to you.”
“…Oh. Ahem.”
He really meant it.
Gam-dong actually blushed.
This guy… keeps making me fond of him.
Then he cautiously asked:
“But… from what I heard… John was a beggar?”
“Mm. His behavior matches mine.”
“Huh… what sins did I commit in my past life to have beggars gather around me…….”
“I’m not a beggar anymore though.”
“Ahem, I meant your origins.”
This guy really likes stabbing people with facts.
“Well, at least we got new info. Maybe things will progress. But if he entered illegally, that’ll complicate things.”
“Shouldn’t we tell Manager Yoo about this new information first?”
“I’m not sure if these are memories or fantasies he imagined.”
“Hmm.”
Anyway, looks like the search for John’s identity will continue for a while.
“Hmm.”
Then suddenly—
I remembered the flood of foreign comments that recently appeared on my shorts.
“John. Pay for your food.”
[What?]
“What are you gonna make him do?”
“He came here wanting to eat something anyway, so let’s film a mukbang. In English.”
“That’s… not the worst idea.”
Gam-dong nodded but looked uneasy.
“Who knows? Maybe I’ll get into Hollywood.”
“That was your goal?”
“Yeah. America! The great country! Awesome!”
“Your visa might not be approved if you were a beggar. It’s super strict.”
“……”
“And who’s going to act? John?”
“Uh… hmm.”
Who knows.
But at least I can film shorts.
Park Yu-cheon froze as he watched the short Woo Su-han uploaded.
“Why is his English so smooth?”
More precisely, CEO Lee Ji-yong had come smiling brightly with the short in hand.
Thanks to this video, Su-han’s image had improved a lot.
He filmed a public service ad, and brands began sending advertising inquiries.
Though they refused that one ad request requiring cross-dressing for a dual-role chicken commercial.
“Well… I did say foreign buyers require foreign languages. Haha……”
He did know some foreign languages.
Yu-cheon had made him try speaking them—
and he was exactly at the level of a typical Korean survival-English speaker, knowing random greetings and thank-yous from various countries.
Amazingly, even that was impressive.
Basically, he could string random known vocabulary together so the meaning got across.
But the fluent, butter-smooth English in that video?
It was painfully obvious:
‘That foreign ghost…….’
He wasn’t even surprised anymore.
Su-han summoned Yeon-joo and even used spiritual possession for mukbangs—
of course he’d let a foreign ghost speak through him.
“Think Hollywood might contact him? He’s already getting popular overseas!”
“Yes… that would be great.”
Yu-cheon answered the excited CEO with a hollow smile.
Just then, his phone rang.
“Oh!”
He excused himself and answered.
“Director! Hello!”
The word “director” made the CEO’s eyes widen.
—PD Lee Jeong-cheol
“Ohhh!”
Yu-cheon pointed at the caller ID and the CEO’s eyes sparkled.
—Manager Park, long time no see.
“Yes! Time for a new project, right?”
PD Lee was a hit-maker—the S-class of directors.
—I’m calling because of that.
“Wow! Thank you so much. Our actor Kim Daeseong has been resting, so this is perfect timing!”
—Really? Well, that’s a bit unfortunate. I’m more interested in actor Woo Su-han this time.
“Oh! I see!”
At the name “Woo Su-han,” the CEO practically held his breath in excitement.
—I’m preparing a major project. Not public yet.
“Yes, I heard rumors but nothing concrete. What is it?”
—Well……
Seems my shorts are finally paying off.
“A drama?”
“Yeah.”
“And the director personally picked me?”
“Yeah.”
But something felt off.
It was clearly good news, but Manager Park’s smile looked… complicated.
Like he wanted me to take it, but was worried I might refuse.
“Who is it?”
“Director Lee Jeong-cheol……”
“Whoa! THE Lee Jeong-cheol? No way!”
Judging from how Gam-dong freaked out, the guy must be super famous.
“Gam-dong, is he that big?”
“Director Lee Jeong-cheol is a legend! You know Goblin, right?”
“Yeah! Dude with a sword in his chest looking for someone to pull it out so he can get married—that drama! Ohh!”
“Exactly! He also made You’re Crazy, Because You Love!”
“Wowww!”
Turns out he made a bunch of dramas I knew—
and all huge hits.
Then why the weird expression?
“Well… the role is a supporting role.”
“Huh? Supporting? But I’m a six-million-views lead now……”
Gam-dong mumbled disappointedly.
“In terms of career, it’s better to continue with lead roles. But the director insisted he wants to work with you specifically.”
“Aha.”
So that was the issue.
Once I started getting leads, the agency avoided non-lead roles.
In this industry, going up is hard but falling down is easy.
If you’re rising, you keep rising.
That’s how they saw it.
“But it’s not like he’d give you a random role.”
“The role is… a beggar……”
“…Excuse me?”
After all that work to shake off the beggar image,
after filming all those shorts showing my range—
they want me to play a beggar?
What kind of beggar-ass situation is this?
“It’s not just any beggar! The King of Beggars!”
“…Does that make it better?”
“Well… he is a king?”
This guy knows it sounds ridiculous—he’s laughing awkwardly.
If he brought me a beggar role after everything he preached,
he must really not want to lose this director’s project.
“Fine. Everyone knows I used to be a beggar anyway. What exactly is this ‘King of Beggars’ role?”
I don’t mind.
Honestly, why would I be bothered?
I wasn’t the one worried about the ‘beggar image’ anyway.
I’ve always been confident.
