chapter 32

Chapter 32. CSAT

-Ah, sorry. I meant to contact you sooner, but I've been busy.

-Jung Soo-yeon: No worries! You must be busy studying these days. I heard from the staff that you're a good student.

-Haha, not really. It seems like you've finished filming?

Yeon-woo exchanged casual messages with Soo-yeon as he walked home.

It had been a while since he started tutoring his friends. He had a knack for teaching, and Sung-sik and Joon-soo's grades had improved dramatically.

Explaining concepts to his friends helped solidify his own understanding, and he realized, as he had during his brief stint as an acting instructor, that he enjoyed teaching.

Yeon-woo was now a god-like figure to Joon-soo and Sung-sik's parents. He had guided their gaming-addicted sons back to the righteous path of studying, and their grades were soaring. They greeted him with enthusiastic cheers of "Ryu-nim!" whenever he visited.

Han Hae-woon, through persistent investigation, had finally found Jung Hye-min. She was the owner of a Pilates studio in Incheon.

"With no job history and no social media presence, it was difficult to track her down."

Unlike Jeon Su-hwan, who was listed as deceased, she was living an ordinary life. This was the first person from his dreams he had managed to find in real life.

However, this discovery only made him more conflicted. He had no grounds for an official investigation, and following a civilian without a valid reason was borderline stalking. What would he say if he was questioned about his motives?

"I followed her because she appeared in my dreams? I'd sound like a lunatic."

If he did approach her, he would have to be discreet. Incheon was quite far from Busan, and he would have to conduct the investigation during his vacation time.

Having discovered that the person he had been searching for was an ordinary woman with no apparent connection to any criminal activity, Prosecutor Han Hae-woon became even more cautious.

As Han Hae-woon continued his investigation, time flew by for Ryu Yeon-woo, and the CSAT (College Scholastic Ability Test) was just around the corner.

He had focused on his studies for the past few months, only taking on short, one-day schedules like photoshoots.

Tomorrow was the culmination of his high school life and the starting point of his acting career.

As if on cue, his phone began buzzing with calls and messages that evening.

"Hello, Jin-wook hyung."

–"Hey, you have the CSAT tomorrow, right? I saw it on the news and thought of you."

"Thank you. I heard you're starting a new project."

–"Yeah, it's going to be tough. There's filming overseas in Southeast Asia."

"At least it's during winter, so it won't be too hot."

–"True, I should think of it as a vacation."

As soon as he hung up, another call came in.

"So-hyun noona."

–"Yeon-woo, did you study hard?"

"I studied as usual, haha."

–"I can't believe I have a younger brother taking the CSAT! It makes me feel old."

"Don't I usually seem like a student?"

–"Not at all! You're Leader Ryu. What high school student can prepare an octopus like that?"

"Haha."

After chatting with Han So-hyun, he received calls from Ahn Joon-ho, Jung Chul-min, and even Director Kim Han-soo, all offering words of encouragement.

Bzzt Bzzt

He assumed it was another call, but it was a message.

-Jung Soo-yeon: It's tomorrow! Get some rest and good luck on the exam!

He and Soo-yeon hadn't met since the film shoot, but they had stayed in touch online and had become somewhat friendly.

-Yeah, you too! Fighting!

Yeon-woo went to bed early. The next morning, he said goodbye to his mother and sister and went down to the parking lot to meet his father.

"Actor Ryu!" Min-soo called out, emerging from a waiting van.

"Min-soo hyung! What are you doing here?"

"It's been a few months." It had been three months since their last encounter, during a photoshoot.

"You came all the way to Daejeon?"

"Of course, I have to be here for my actor on such an important day. Hello, sir. Please get in."

Ryu Cheol-woong thanked Min-soo and got into the car.

They arrived at the test center. Min-soo escorted Yeon-woo and his father inside.

Fortunately, no one recognized Yeon-woo, as he was wearing a hat and a mask.

Yeon-woo looked at his father and Min-soo. "I'll be going in now."

"Fighting, son!"

"Fighting, actor!"

They cheered him on as he bowed and entered the test center.

"I'll drive you home, sir. Please get in."

"Oh, thank you."

The 2019 CSAT began.

There was a brief commotion when some students recognized Yeon-woo, but everyone was too nervous, and without their phones, they couldn't take pictures, so it quickly subsided.

The students from Dongwoon High School, who were assigned to the same test center, acted as Yeon-woo's bodyguards, deterring any students who tried to approach him for autographs.

The test was relatively easy. Yeon-woo proceeded smoothly, answering the questions without any major mistakes.

Finally, the bell rang, signaling the end of the exam, and the students erupted in a mix of relief, exhaustion, and anxiety.

Min-soo was waiting for him outside.

"Actor!"

Yeon-woo said goodbye to his friends, who had escorted him to the gate, and rushed towards Min-soo.

"Min-soo hyung! You didn't leave?"

"Where would I go when my schedule isn't over?" Min-soo replied with a grin.

Yeon-woo smiled. "Thank you."

They got into the car.

"How was the test?"

"I did well," Yeon-woo replied with a confident smile.

Min-soo was surprised. "Wow, it's the first time I've heard a student say they did well right after the CSAT."

"Hehe, I prepared diligently."

Min-soo nodded, recalling how Yeon-woo had focused on his studies, ignoring the numerous casting offers that had poured in. Most young stars neglected their studies after achieving fame, but he had never seen Yeon-woo act arrogant or complacent.

They arrived at Yeon-woo's home, chatting. Yeon-woo bowed deeply to Min-soo and went inside.

They celebrated with a samgyeopsal party at home, declaring it a must-have after such an important event.

The weekend passed, and Yeon-woo returned to school on Monday for the answer key release.

The classroom was filled with the relaxed atmosphere of seniors who had just finished the CSAT.

"Yeon-woo, how many questions do you think you missed? Did you get a perfect score?" The students flocked around him as he entered, their main concern being whether he had achieved the coveted perfect score.

"I haven't checked the answer key yet, but I doubt I got everything right. There were a few tricky questions." He had never gotten a perfect score on the mock exams, so he doubted he had aced the CSAT. There had been several ambiguous questions he wasn't sure about.

However, even if he hadn't achieved a perfect score, he was confident he had done well enough for Korea University.

Not only the students but also the teachers were interested in Yeon-woo's score, as he had become the school's biggest success story.

Just then, the classroom door opened with a bang.

"Hey, you're in the other class, why are you here?"

"Who cares about classes now that the CSAT is over? Be grateful I even came to school."

Joon-soo and Sung-sik entered, bickering as usual.

Sung-sik spotted Yeon-woo standing at the back of the classroom, rushed over, and knelt dramatically.

"Oh, Ryu-nim! Your disciple has arrived!"

"My disciple, how did you fare on the exam?" Yeon-woo played along.

"I have given it my all and have no regrets."

"Good. That is all that matters. You have achieved enlightenment."

The other students chuckled at their playful exchange, enhanced by Yeon-woo's acting skills.

"Joon-soo, how about you?"

"I have a good feeling about it. Based on the answer key, I think I achieved my goal."

Joon-soo's goal was Yeonha University, one of the top three universities in Korea, so he must have done well.

The homeroom teacher, Lee Jung-tae, entered. This was his second year in a row as Yeon-woo's homeroom teacher.

"Alright, everyone, take your seats. Woo Sung-sik, go back to your class."

After a brief morning meeting and a congratulatory message from the teacher, followed by applause from the students,

"Since there are other classes in session, please keep the noise down. You have free time. Yeon-woo, come to the teachers' office."

"Okay."

The teacher left, and Yeon-woo followed him.

"Yeon-woo, did you check your answers?" the teacher asked as they walked to the office.

"No, I wrote down my answers, but I haven't graded it yet." Yeon-woo handed him his answer sheet.

"Good. Let's go to the office and input your answers."

They arrived at the office, and Yeon-woo entered his answers into the computer at Lee Jung-tae's desk. The other teachers gathered around, curious about his score.

"I'm done, sir."

"Let's grade it."

Click!

The screen showed two incorrect answers across all subjects.

"Wow, Mr. Lee, two wrong answers? That's first in the school, right?"

"Based on what we know so far, Ji-seon from the science track missed four, so Yeon-woo has the highest score." While the actual ranking depended on the weighting of each subject and the standardized scores, they used the number of incorrect answers as a simplified measure.

Yeon-woo thanked the teachers, who patted him on the back and offered words of encouragement, and returned to the classroom.

The classroom had turned into a playground, with some students playing maltukbakgi (a Korean game similar to hopscotch) and others playing gonggi (a game played with small stones).

Regular classes ended quickly, and during lunch break, Sung-sik suddenly coughed, looking at his phone.

"Check this out! Did you see this?"

"What is it?" Joon-soo looked at Sung-sik's phone screen, which was filled with news articles.