In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

We rode a large bus to our destination, Jungpyeong Rest Area.

In the bus fitted with cameras, we chatted happily with the cast, played games, and got plenty of footage.

“Fold fingers if you’re under sixty.”

“Aaaah!”

“What are you doing? Hurry up and fold them.”

At Teacher Yang Okbun’s prompt, everyone folded their fingers.

Immediately after, Ri Hyuk—who had lost the bet—inhale a helium balloon and sang miserably, “I’m a firefly~.”

Amid everyone’s roaring laughter, we said,

“This is Ri Hyuk’s autobiographical song.”

“He only has us as friends, you know.”

“True. We’re his only friends.”

Flushed red, his pale face cried out in a helium squeak:

“I’m not friends with you land gods!”

“But your expression says otherwise, right? You look happy since we called you a friend~”

“Nooo!”

While teasing Ri Hyuk as he turned as ripe as a tomato, PD O Taejun signaled to us and the cast—just as we were wrapping up bus footage—

“All right! In about forty more minutes, we’ll arrive at our destination, Jungpyeong Rest Area. You’re all ready, right?”

“Yes!”

“I’ll explain today’s mission.”

PD O Taejun read from the memo on his phone.

“Today’s mission: one-day restaurant!”

“Ta-da—!”

“Your task is to sell pork bulgogi set meals to holiday travelers returning home.”

“Delicious cuisine~!”

We added harmony, and the PD beamed with satisfaction.

“We had originally planned both lunch and dinner service, but due to time, we’ve decided to do only lunch.”

Everyone wiggled in their seats and gave high fives.

“Wooooah!”

“Ah, that’s a relief. Haha.”

“Yeah. Taejun, honestly dinner would have been way too much.”

At Hyungseok Oh’s remark, everyone nodded in agreement.

If we’d stayed until dinner, word would spread and crowds would be huge—causing massive traffic jams.

Not to mention the veteran actors’ stamina.

“Instead,”

PD O said,

“lunch service will run until 2:30 PM or until ingredients run out—whichever comes first.”

“How much ingredients do we have?”

“With what we have now, we could probably last until 3:00 PM.”

So realistically, service would run from about noon to three.

Yeohyeyeon asked,

“Director, so what exactly is the mission?”

“Today’s mission is to achieve the highest daily sales ever recorded at the food court of Jungpyeong Rest Area. The success criteria are simple.”

Director O Taejun held up a chart of benchmarks.

“They have an all-time high daily sales figure. If you exceed that, it’s a success.”

“With just one lunch service...?”

“If business goes well, it’s possible. Absolutely.”

We blinked and looked at Ri Hyuk. Under everyone’s gaze, he ran the numbers mentally and gave us the OK sign with his fingers.

“We can do it.”

“He says we can.”

Everyone accepted that.

Just then, Jiho shot up his hand.

“Director! What about the reward?”

“We have preset sales tiers,” PD O said. “Each time you hit the next tier, we’ll give you one more die to roll.”

Like in Blue Marble, the Jusehan cast roll dice to choose their next destination. The better our sales, the more dice we’d earn.

Yeohyeyeon gave me a trusting look and said,

“But wouldn’t one die be enough? We could just have Wooju roll it once.”

“That’s true!”

“Wooju, do that little cheat for us later.”

At that, Teacher Woo Jaeyong’s eyes widened as he looked at me.

“Really? Wooju’s that good at cheating?”

“I can’t even explain, sir. It’s all on NewBlack TV. People say the leader even won at Go-Stop by cheating.”

“Impressive.”

At Song Jinwoo’s playful tease, everyone burst out laughing.

But the plan to have me roll the dice was immediately quashed by production.

“Ms. Wooju—you can’t roll it.”

“Aww.”

Seeing us deflated, I asked,

“Then what about us, PD?”

“For our NewBlack guests, there’s a separate reward. For this special, we partnered with a sponsor.”

PD O Taejun explained,

“They’ll send unlimited pork to NewBlack.”

“W-wow...!”

My teammates murmured excitedly.

As we gaped and swallowed hard, PD O nodded and said,

“As you guessed, like with the Jusehan members, the higher your sales tier, the longer the unlimited pork period.”

“......” 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

“You understand the rules, right?”

We all nodded.

Then we shared fiery looks with the Jusehan cast and reached out across the table.

“To pork.”

“To our European trip.”

Nodding with intense gazes exchanged, Hyungseok Oh chuckled and said,

“But this sounds easy, right? Even without promotion, word will spread on SNS quickly. Then customers will flood in.”

“Exactly. It should go smoothly.”

“Piece of cake compared to past missions...”

As Song Jinwoo trailed off and narrowed his eyes, he muttered,

“Wait. Our show isn’t known for running smoothly...”

“Look at him, Taejun. He’s smiling, right?”

Feeling something off, Variety Star Namiri—who’d been examining PD O’s sales records—said,

“Oh my, that’s strange. If that’s the all-time high, it must include holiday periods. Why is it so low?”

“Indeed...?”

Even for someone unfamiliar with rest areas, the top-five daily sales figures at Jungpyeong Rest Area looked paltry.

Ri Hyuk immediately googled on his tablet, then went pale.

“Uh...”

“What’s wrong?”

“I just checked current sales for Jungpyeong Rest Area. Turns out it’s the lowest in the Chungcheong region...?”

“...!”

Everyone looked at the tablet screen Ri Hyuk was holding. The reviews attached to the rest area read:

“Who decided to build a rest area in a dump like this?”

“This should be called a shelter, not a rest area. Even North Korean troops would pass by without noticing.”

“I recommend going to Jungpyeong Rest Area if there’s a war, haha.”

“The location sucks... Maybe because it’s between two huge rest areas.”

It seemed there was a better rest area just a little further, and Jungpyeong was small and unpopular.

Biju smiled brightly and said,

“We can still do it. Hitting the highest daily sales....”

“Hmm? Those years are odd.”

At Hyungseok Oh’s remark, we studied the chart again. The records labeled “all-time high sales” mostly stopped around 2012.

“......”

Staring at it, I looked up to see PD O Taejun smiling.

“They say sales have dropped recently.”

“‘Recently’ meaning?”

“For about the last five years...”

“Taejun, come out here. Over here! Hey! Hey!”

Excited Hyungseok Oh erupted, slamming the chart down, while everyone else stared blankly out the window.

Jiho said,

“Shouldn’t we rename the mission? Like, ‘Save the Rest Area’...”

“How about ‘Survive the Rest Area’?”

“Hmm, that’s too old-school.”

Even then, our maknae spoke her mind.

At that moment, PD O Taejun added,

“By the way, guests can promote us via SNS or calls, but you yourselves can’t ask them to.”

“Taejun. Then how do we attract customers? You just said there aren’t many to begin with.”

“Given it’s the Chuseok holiday, I think we’ll get a fair number.”

We all shivered.

Objectively, the mission was doable, but we couldn’t shake a sense of anxiety.

Unlike the jittery Jusehan cast, we felt calm.

“...This is bad. What if we finish before people arrive?”

“Are you anxious?”

“I am... Aren’t you?”

At Hyungseok Oh’s question, we replied,

“We have one good idea.”

“What is it?”

All eyes turned to us.

“Junghyeon.”

“I’m bringing it out.”

Junghyeon rummaged in his backpack and pulled out a thick hardcover book.

We laughed softly and said,

“Junghyeon’s Magic Book...!”

“Oh.”

“We’ll use this to divine today’s fortune.”

After explaining how the magic book worked, Junghyeon solemnly chanted “Jelly Jelly” and flipped the pages.

Rustle, flap!

His finger landed on one page.

[Sometimes lightning strikes out of nowhere.]

Teacher Woo Jaeyong looked worried and said,

“Isn’t that bad?”

“Sir, it’s reversed.”

“Oh, upside-down~?”

To the focused Jusehan cast, we showed the back of the page. In small print it read:

[Indeed. It’s a money lightning bolt.]

While PD O’s face fell, we all cheered and laughed in delight. Today’s fortune was completely clear skies.

We arrived at Jungpyeong Rest Area and got off. The parking lot was spacious, but the buildings were small.

“So there really is a rest area here.”

“Indeed.”

At that moment, our maknae—who’d been looking around—pointed at a large building and exclaimed,

“There’s a big building over there.”

“Looks like a restroom?”

“......”

Perhaps because it was early, there were almost no cars in the lot.

As production staff moved to set up equipment, we joined PD Koo Jaeyoung’s advance team, which had arrived earlier.

“Haallo! Welcome, honored guests to this humble place...”

The rest area manager—looking delighted—greeted us, gave a rough overview of the ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) facilities, delivered a stirring speech line, and left.

“We’d like to...”

“Yes!”

“Please save us.”

That speech had been truly stirring.

Meanwhile, we entered the restaurant the crew had prepped.

“Oh...!”

“The food court is surprisingly spacious. Lots of tables.”

“But is that the kitchen...?”

The cooking area was very small compared to the dining space—so cramped it felt like the designer harbored a grudge.

Biju smiled brightly.

“But it’s decorated very nicely.”

“It is pretty.”

The original food court sign had been replaced with a neon sign reading “NewBlack & Jusehan’s Kitchen.”

The menu board listed “NewBulBaek & Old-School Pork Cutlet Set.”

“This really feels like a real business.”

“Isn’t it fun? We’ve always dreamed of this—talking about starting a business, but only in words.”

I couldn’t help but smile, recalling when I sold soufflé breads and dreamed of opening a bakery.

“All right! Let’s get to work!”

“Yes!”

We checked ingredients in the fridge, verified cooking tools, and while Ri Hyuk and Teacher Woo Jaeyong learned order-taking from the cashiers, we prepared dozens of signs.

As service time approached, we held a meeting.

“First, we need to draw a crowd early! Tell anyone headed to the convenience store to come eat with us.”

Agreeing with Yeohyeyeon that attracting customers was crucial, we decided to spread word-of-mouth once we had a few diners.

“We’ll do the street promotion.”

“Oh! Wooju.”

“Junghyeon and I have something prepared, just in case.”

Junghyeon and I stood at the center of the hall.

Palalala—!

I flapped my sleeves and danced like an inflatable celebration doll, and everyone burst out laughing.

Behind the cameras, the writers giggled while Teacher Okbun pinched her forehead and shook it.

“Look what he’s doing now.”

“That’s immature, teacher.”

Feigning hurt, I shot her an offended look. She replied,

“Who uses that face? Customers will freak out and leave.”

“......”

“Exactly, Wooju.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t do that stunt. Just stand out front and calmly say, ‘Please come eat~’”

“Calmly?”

“Yes.”

So our ambitious inflatable doll plan failed. And the street promotion plan fell apart—no cars were entering the rest area.

With a shortage of kitchen hands, we just prepared and waited for customers.

“Welcome~!”

At Ri Hyuk’s cheerful greeting, I whipped my head around.

“A customer!”

“A customer!”

A middle-aged man walked in, hesitated, then, seeing the food court sign, came back inside.

“Uh...”

“Welcome!”

“I came to eat....”

“Yes, this is where you eat.”

The man, looking bewildered at the dozens of cameras, the Jusehan cast, and us, paid for his meal and sat at a table, staring blankly.

I smiled and asked,

“You must be surprised?”

“...What exactly are you doing here?”

“We’re selling dishes with Jusehan today—old-fashioned pork cutlet sets and NewBulBaek.”

He seemed awkward under the observation cameras and our dozen staff. Our prepared dishes went out immediately.

Ding-dong!

“Your pork bulgogi set is here!”

“Ah, thank you.”

The customer picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of NewBulBaek—and in that moment,

“...!”

His eyes widened. He tried a bite of the cutlet, then ate in silence. He finished the entire serving in just five minutes.

We grinned and asked,

“Delicious, right?”

“...Could I order another? Is that allowed?”

“We have a rule of one serving per person.”

Pointing to the seventeenth notice sign Ri Hyuk had written, we said,

“I’m glad you enjoyed it so much.”

He exhaled a long breath, then began making a phone call.

“Hey, Daehyeon. It’s me. I’m at Jungpyeong Rest Area with the TV crew. The food is amazing. Uh...”

He looked toward the kitchen and said,

“What’s your name again...?”

“NewBlack!”

“No, I mean you next to Wooju...”

“Oh, I’m Song Jinwoo...”

As Jusehan and we laughed, Jinwoo stared into space. Meanwhile the call continued.

“Yeah, there’s NewBlack and Jusehan, and that guy from TV—Song Jinwoo, right?”

On the other end, someone said they’d drop by to try it.

As we were about to thank this unbidden promoter, he said,

“Ah, that was great~”

“Stay longer if you like!”

“I’m in a hurry. Thanks for the meal~!”

Our first customer left coolly.

Silence fell again in the empty restaurant. Looking at the desolate rest area with no new cars, Hyungseok Oh muttered,

“...Should’ve tried to strike up a conversation with him.”

“But he ate so fast, we had no chance.”

Staring at the empty dining hall, we wondered,

“Will any more customers come...?”

Behind the cameras, production staff watched the worried cast and laughed. Though there were no customers yet, they looked relieved.

“This is how we needed to start.”

“If customers had come flooding in at first, we couldn’t handle it.”

They’d picked this location almost by force and had no intention of attracting crowds.

“Too many people to manage.”

Even a Jusehan special draws clouds of fans. Adding NewBlack had thrown their plans into disarray.

“Who could’ve predicted the word-of-mouth would spread like this?”

Originally, they’d imagined NewBlack and Jusehan developing dishes together, inviting a few celebrity friends for cute chats, and getting some traveler interviews in a quiet rest area.

They’d calculated massive crowds based on the names NewBlack and Jusehan brought—but they hadn’t counted on:

Before they knew it, a Hallyu star was reviewing it, TNT and TeenSpirit were guests, and buzz exploded.

Their problem was that the guests performed too well.

So they’d actually been trying to suppress crowd size.

“Still, it’s Chuseok weekend. Who’d break from rest at home to come here?”

“Right? Even if they start driving now, lunch time will almost be over.”

“We’ve set up enough that even a rush should be manageable.”

As they talked, the second customer arrived: a family of four.

An older sister and younger sister, middle school–aged, practically screamed when they saw NewBlack and began furiously tapping their phones.

“It’s starting.”

Probably texting friends that NewBlack was here.

True to production’s expectation, word spread rapidly online:

[Crazy; NewBlack and Jusehan selling food at a rest area RN]

Immediately, SNS shares exploded.

“NewBlack’s selling bulgogi at a rest area? Jungpyeong Rest Area in Chungbuk.”

“That’s far. Won’t lunch time be over by the time we get there?”

“Still, let’s go.”

As information spread online and offline,

“They say the bulgogi is amazing...?”

“They sell cutlets too? Sounds good.”

“Until what time do they serve?”

Vehicles nationwide began moving: locals driving to the rest area, highway travelers making detours, distant fans searching transportation options.

Everything unfolded as production predicted—but they hadn’t foreseen two things:

“Ah, this is NewBlack’s real promotional power!”

One, NewBlack’s effect on word-of-mouth was far greater than they imagined. Two,

“This is something people absolutely have to eat.”

The Korean obsession for delicious food kicked in. Almost ten times the crowd they’d expected nationwide began moving.

“Oh.”

“Why, Junghyeon?”

“I just have a good feeling.”

“...This is big.”

This was the moment Jungpyeong Rest Area earned its nickname “Hell-pyeong Rest Area.”