GIJS

Chapter 125: A Suitable Candidate

Since coming to modern times, one of the various hobbies that the scholar had developed was watching "mixed martial arts."

Mixed martial arts is a combat sport where two athletes fight fiercely using every part of their bodies—fists, feet, elbows, and knees—on an octagonal arena that resembles a wrestling mat.

Watching these fighters engage in such intense battles, the scholar felt his heart warming deeply.

"Wow, even in this civilized modern age, there are still such warriors!"

However, even in these war-like matches, when a male fighter is hit in the groin, the match pauses to allow the injured fighter time to recover.

Even a fighter who seemed ready to tear off the opponent's head just moments ago, would become docile and focus on recovery after a blow to the groin.

Each time the rope was caught between the legs, the scholar felt as though he understood the agony of the mixed martial artists.

"It hurts, it really is painful!"

Fans watching the streaming channel opened by the audience also fell into collective panic.

[Oh no] [;;;;;;] [Is that okay?] [I've seen that technique used in tightrope walking] [Nooo] [What if it bursts?!] [I can't watch this] [Scholar, stop with the groin! !] [OMG OMG STOP STOP] [Protect the precious center of my youth! It's a treasure for all of us.] [Brazilian fans are against traditional play! Your eggs are still intact!] [Hahaha, see how the foreign sisters are angry] [Really, what should we doㅠㅠㅠㅠ Scholar's expressionㅋㅋㅋ it's funny but I can't laugh]
Softly—.

No, it's impossible to jump back up now!

The scholar, now standing again on the rope, began to feel the pain intensely. Cold sweat ran down his back from the pressure in his lower abdomen. His trembling legs seemed incapable of jumping any further.

But the scholar smiled.

"Ho ho, ho ho ho."

If 50% of the performance was comedy, then the other 50% was improvisation.

Even though the scholar faced an unprecedented crisis, if he could smoothly handle it as part of the performance, he would truly be a performer.

As if it were a joke from fate, the scholar was now dressed as a woman.

Had something major happened to the gentleman's precious place?

This was not a mistake or unexpected pain. It was the completion of a transformation.

"Oh ho ho ho—."

Laughing in a high tone, the scholar began to walk gracefully on the rope.

Unlike his previous swaggering steps as a nobleman, this movement, fully embracing the body's line, even gave the illusion that the scholar's gender had truly changed.

"Ah hahahaha—!!"

"Wow, how beautiful—!!"

Despite being born male, the scholar on the rope was not constrained by his birth. The pain in his groin had instead inspired him. The crisis overcome with humor had become an opportunity.

Whirl, whirl, whirl—.

Performing dazzlingly with his arms in a wacking dance, the scholar then jumped and moved on the rope like a soldier on the battlefield.

Twooosh—.

Next was a high jump followed by a back tumbling.

"Ahhh—!!"

Screams erupted among the female audience, but when the spinning scholar landed lightly on the rope like a bird, those screams turned into applause. Whether online or offline, the reaction was at its peak.

[Our scholar going from tightrope walking to girlish danceㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [Look at the dance line of Seonbiㅠㅠㅠ so adorable] [Truly an unparalleled characterㅠㅠㅠㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [If it were anyone else, it would just be a big laugh] [Since he's so skilled with his body, it all looks like part of the performance] [Why is the wacking so well doneㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [Scholar, be careful not to get hurtㅠㅠㅠ] [My heart sinks every time scholar does a risky move] [Me tooㅠㅠㅠ but still so cool]
The final trick of the scholar, who alternated between acrobatics and girlish choreography, was four consecutive back tumbles.

Whirl, whirl, whirl—.

Completing the trick flawlessly with dazzling movements, the scholar finished the performance by standing on one end of the rope and raising his right arm in triumph.

Maintaining the newly adopted identity as "Yu Gunsun" until the end, the fans sent laughter and applause.

"Ha ha ha ha—."

"Wow—!!"

As the final move concluded, the troupe members rushed to help the scholar. The leader, who had been full of doubts before climbing the rope, now looked at the scholar with the reverence of a devout believer encountering a deity.

"I'm sorry for doubting. This was the most amazing tightrope act I've ever seen."

"You're too kind."

"Well, do you think you might perform with us again in the future...?"

"Haha, if the opportunity arises, I will definitely come back."

The leader looked disappointed at the scholar's response. The phrase "If the opportunity arises" was a typical polite expression.

But there was no such thing as a polite lie for the scholar. Though he had to focus on his main job for now, he genuinely intended to return here someday. The moment of performing on the rope had thrilled him as well.

Now that the performance was over, the last remaining challenge was to get home. Just then, Team Leader Seo Eun-woo and Director Lee Yong-jung appeared through the cloud of the audience to escort the members.

The members, who had barely gotten into the van, had their shoulders slumped. This unexpected outing had not been reported to the management team. Team Leader Seo Eun-woo was sure to scold them.

"You've really caused a spectacular fuss again."

"···."

"Who was responsible for this idea this time?"

Gunja clenched his teeth. In fact, wasn't this outing his suggestion? His colleagues have no fault in this. If someone should be scolded, it should be him.

"Team leader, this outing was entirely my suggestion."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, it was."

"I see. Well done."

"Excuse me?"

He had anticipated a scolding, but instead, he received unexpected praise.

"Unexpected actions are not something to be reprimanded for. Rather than reprimanding, it deserves reward. In that brief moment, over 200,000 people gathered on the streaming channel. And it was on an unofficial channel."

"I see?"

"The response has been very positive. There are already articles about it. Of course, if we had followed up and provided proper coverage, the quality would have been better, but the fact that it was a fan-shot stream gave it a more spontaneous event feel."

"I see."

"Mr. Yu Gunja, did you plan this outing to this extent?"

"No, not to that extent..."

"Indeed, you remain humble as a scholar."

At the praise of being 'scholar-like,' Gunja's lips curled up. Seeing Gunja's smiling face, his colleagues playfully teased him.

"Wow, Yu Gunja is trying to take all the praise for himself!"

"Scholar, are you only showing off for yourself!?"

"We were embarrassed to go out in women's clothing too!"

"Hahaha, I had fun~"

Despite his colleagues' teasing, Gunja's smile did not waver.

'Scholar-like'—what a pleasant compliment!

* * *

After the storm-like time in Gyeongju.

Hyeon Si-woo, who was in charge of the project's direction, began the casting process in earnest.

"Hahaha, for now, Asanya is confirmed for Gunja~"

Gunja had proven his ability to perform action through the tightrope walking in the playground.

Although his acting ability was still unknown, Hyeon Si-woo was convinced by Ji Hyun-su's words that 'Gunja's face is credibility itself,' and Gunja's excellent cross-dressing also played a role.

The role of the stonemason Asadal was given to Cha In-hyuk. Cha In-hyuk's serious eyes and quiet stone carving suited the role perfectly.

Ji Hyun-su took on the role of Asanya's sidekick, a servant. Although he was awkward in other roles, his performance as a devotee praising Gunja was at a level akin to Heath Ledger, so Hyeon Si-woo created a new role for him.

Next, Ha Hyun-jae was cast as the handsome merchant and informant, Kwon Tae-woong as the head monk of Bulguksa Temple, and Ki Yu-chan as the hidden secret weapon and guardian deity, Gwangmokcheon.

While the casting was relatively smooth, finding the right actor for one key role was not easy.

A spy who provided false information to confuse Asanya—the fallen monk.

An actor with a wicked nature but the ability to hide it behind a seemingly harmless smile was needed.

However, casting a mature actor wasn't an option.

Since the characters are all in their late teens to early twenties in this idol parody, the actor needed to fit the style.

"Haha, this is not easy~"

Eventually, Hyeon Si-woo brought the casting issue to the meeting, but Gunja responded calmly, as if it were no big deal.

"So you need someone who can perform evil roles."

"Hahaha, yes~"

"And it would be even better if they were young and had excellent looks."

"Hahaha, if it turns out like that, it's a perfect score~"

"In that case, there is a suitable candidate, so why hesitate?"