# Chapter 33
Dohyun stared intently at the dumbfounded man with a confused expression, then slightly nodded his chin, directing Manager Gu.
“Escort the actor outside first.”
“Yes.”
Manager Gu gave a slight bow and firmly supported Seowoo’s back, leading him toward the entrance. Even amid the confusion with many people moving about, no one forgot that Seowoo stood at the center of this situation. Dozens of eyes instantly fixed on him.
Although Seowoo was accustomed to numerous stages and dazzling spotlights, this kind of attention was completely unfamiliar. Being treated as a criminal? Thinking about it made him indignant. To corner someone like this without a single piece of evidence.
‘…Are they all crazy?’
The man flinched his wrist dramatically as if he was about to jump up, shake off the grip, and leave.
“No, who gave you the right to…”
“If he wants to leave, why not? What, do you think this person is someone you can treat however you please?”
Dohyun, who had been gripping the man’s hand with simple pressure, now openly applied more force as if daring him to feel pain. The muscles in the man’s wrist were properly compressed, causing his limbs to tremble finely from the pain.
“Agh…!”
Despite the man’s short cry, Dohyun didn’t even blink and instead smiled pleasantly. It was the residents standing around who were concerned about them.
They glanced sideways at the two men, but the atmosphere wasn’t aggressive or coercive enough to be considered violent. Yet, Dohyun’s strangely intimidating attitude made people hesitant to speak up carelessly.
Dohyun rummaged through his inside pocket with one hand and pulled out his business card from his wallet. The neatly printed gold foil caught the eye.
“We’re late with introductions. I’m Seo Dohyun, CEO of T&C. The person you just tried to handle as you pleased is our precious actor. I don’t know if you were aware…”
“No, let go of… Look, I understand, so let go and let’s talk, ugh.”
Dohyun seemed to have properly heard the request to let go, but instead, he gripped the inner part of the man’s arm even more tightly and pulled him closer. The attention of people that had been scattered now returned and fixed on the two of them.
“Why were you trying to drag him away? Did someone pay you to do this?”
“Anyone could see he was suspicious!”
The man pointed at Seowoo’s back with his free hand, looking as if he had been wronged. Seowoo, who had been walking away, glanced back at the shouting voice.
“Anyone could see? You people surrounding one person in a remote location and raising your voices seemed more suspicious. I have quite a vivid imagination, you know? Let’s speak properly before assumptions become facts.”
“No, that person…”
“‘That person’?”
“…That person entered Kyungho’s house without permission and tampered with his belongings!”
Unlike the now respectful form of address, the content was not respectful at all. Somehow, that voice was even confident, as if it carried strong conviction.
Beyond saying he had hidden here, now there was a specific accusation. Theft! Earlier, Seowoo had been too stunned to react properly, but not anymore. Seowoo, who had unconsciously stopped walking, turned around sharply and glared at the man.
“What nonsense have you been saying all this time?!”
“What’s your basis for making such absurd accusations?”
“T-there’s someone who saw it…!”
So that’s it. Even though they had hastily judged him as a criminal, Seowoo had thought it strange how boldly they tried to drag him away. In their minds, they had grounds for their actions. They didn’t even feel the need to question the truthfulness of the witness’s testimony, assuming everyone knew each other anyway.
“There’s a kid who saw this per- I mean, this person entering the house? The kid said they clearly saw him fleeing and hiding in here.”
“…”
How could someone witness something that never happened? Seowoo couldn’t suppress the incredulous laugh that escaped him.
“You cornered me like that based on such unreliable testimony? Ha, this is really…”
“No, unreliable?! Your beha- behavior was actually kind of suspicious… Think about it. If the kid didn’t see it, how would they have known this person was here?”
The probability that a local child would deliberately frame Seowoo was slim. Most of these people didn’t seem very interested in the latest movies or dramas, to the point where they might not even recognize Seowoo’s face as an actor’s.
Especially since this neighborhood had been used as a filming location for other productions several times before. While it didn’t have enough attractions to draw tourists, the natural scenery was quite beautiful. It was enough to make fans curious enough to visit after seeing the work.
If they knew his identity as an actor and still singled him out to harass him, it would actually be disadvantageous. If a fight broke out and filming had to be abandoned, the neighborhood would suffer more losses than gains.
Dohyun glanced at the man who was stumbling through his words with an expressionless gaze. Without releasing the hand he had grabbed, he abruptly moved forward.
“Wha…! W-what are you doing?!”
The man shouted loudly as he was dragged along by Dohyun’s strength. Dohyun raised his eyebrows.
“You asked how the kid could have known, right?”
“Well…”
“Let’s ask the person directly. Where is this kid?”
❖ ❖ ❖
Sure enough, the atmosphere was not good.
A director watching cautiously, confused staff members, an angry CEO, an actor with a tired expression. Doubtful but suspicious neighborhood residents and a student who seemed to be at least a middle or high school student rather than a “kid,” receiving everyone’s attention.
The place where they stood was a house with worn walls, a slate roof, and a yard, no different from the countless other houses strung throughout the neighborhood. However, looking at the mess inside through the wide-open sliding doors, it couldn’t be said to be completely identical to other houses.
“So according to this kid’s testimony, he saw Seowoo-ssi sneaking out of this house and hiding in the public restroom? And he followed him there?”
“Yes…”
The man’s voice, which had been consistently confident, had softened considerably and even become subdued. It wasn’t easy to act recklessly in front of Dohyun, who was clearly furious and even exercising force.
The “kid” Dohyun referred to stood awkwardly among the adults. The neighborhood wasn’t large, so even if they gathered all the people, there weren’t many, and this student was among the few teenagers.
With an impression that was not just well-behaved but unremarkable, tightly closed lips, firmly clasped hands, and an unobtrusive outfit, he was nearly colorless and odorless. He was the type you might commonly see at school but wouldn’t notice. If he hadn’t been called out and made to step forward, no one would have even known such a child existed in the village until filming was completed.
“Your name?”
“Kang…”
“Kang Euntaek, the only son of the Kang family.”
A middle-aged woman standing close behind the student interrupted. It was clear that if the situation had allowed, she would have acted as a spokesperson for the student. It was only because Dohyun had insisted that the person directly involved should speak that she had reluctantly stepped back.
Even setting aside his eloquence, tone, or behavior, Dohyun exuded an intimidating atmosphere from his posture, height, and even his facial features. There was no resident here who wanted to maintain their position by getting into a verbal argument with such an opponent.
The student, Kang Euntaek, nodded slowly as if agreeing with her. Dohyun tilted his head slowly, as if genuinely perplexed.
“Is something terrible going to happen if this friend opens his mouth? People keep helping him out from here and there since earlier.”
“No, how much can a child know… Our Euntaek is originally a kid who can’t speak up for himself, so imagine how shocked he must have been. Oh my, look how nervous he is.”
“Taking a child like this, who has never even been in a fight with friends and doesn’t know how to do anything bad…”
The whispers grew louder. Although they didn’t step forward directly, it seemed that not a single person thought Kang Euntaek’s testimony was false.
Reputation helped everywhere. Even when telling such a nonsensical lie, everyone shook their heads in unison, saying he couldn’t possibly do such a thing.
But Euntaek hung his head low like someone who had committed a crime, unable to properly raise his eyes as if something had fallen on the ground. At first, Dohyun thought it might be due to a timid personality, but that wasn’t it. This student had already roughly anticipated what was about to happen.
“Student Kang Euntaek. Do you have a TV at home?”
Everyone’s curious gaze focused on Dohyun’s unexpected question. It seemed to have been unexpected for Euntaek as well, as he blinked repeatedly and looked up at Dohyun.
“…Yes, I do.”
“Do you watch dramas?”
“No…”
“You should start watching them. Not knowing Seowoo-ssi’s face, getting caught with this kind of explanation without needing one—regardless of right or wrong, it makes me upset.”
Dohyun lightly indicated Seowoo, who was standing beside him, with a nod of his chin. No, I’m fine, so why is he getting worked up over this… Seowoo glanced at Dohyun with a lukewarm expression.
Euntaek didn’t give any proper response and remained silent. Rather, it was the residents surrounding Euntaek who were more in an uproar.
“The kid is so intimidated…”
“Shouldn’t we at least hear what the kid has to say?”
“Thanks to the spokespersons who kindly explained everything, there’s no need to hear a rerun from the mouth of the completely intimidated person himself. According to this student, our actor somehow identified a house that had received rotating savings money a few days ago and robbed it. In a neighborhood where all houses look the same, and even leaving during filming to do so?”
At Dohyun’s concise summary, everyone’s mouths naturally shut. Hearing it like this, there was virtually no part that made sense. There was no logical coherence except for the statement “I saw it.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
