Top Star By Luck [EN]: Chapter 21

21.

When Lee Min-ki failed the Daon audition, he thought to himself:

‘I would have made it if I had done better.’

He judged that it was entirely due to his lack of skill.

He didn’t know why he failed, but he didn’t want to attribute his failure to any other reason.

He didn’t look for the cause externally.

At least, Lee Min-ki didn’t know the truth that there was a predetermined winner in that audition.

Because he didn’t know, he wasn’t internally wounded.

Since he wasn’t hurt, he didn’t make excuses.

Because he found the reason within himself, he could immediately arrive at the best course of action.

‘Let’s do better next time.’

It was about taking another step forward.

‘What kind of acting can I do better?’

Strictly speaking, he thought he was best at playing a gangster at the time, but he ultimately failed.

He judged that if he recycled acting that had already failed once, he would only repeat the same failure.

‘Even if I play a gangster, I can’t just be a plain gangster. I have to make a change. At least in a better direction than now.’

In times like these, there was always the best method.

‘Let’s go back to basics.’

The basics of acting.

It was observation.

Lee Min-ki’s gaze turned from the monitor to reality.

He decided to gain motivation from people he could vividly experience around him.

As a result, there was someone he found.

[Eleven! Eleven and a half! Eleven and a half of a half of a half! Eleven and a half of a half of a half of a half!]

It was Director Kwon Jun-yong, the director of the gym near his house.

Except for not being good at arithmetic, he wasn’t a bad person. Rather, he was quite funny.

Lee Min-ki decided to observe his actions and incorporate them into his acting, and that’s how he found it.

“Sir, that’s because you only paid for 15 PT [personal training] sessions for one month. It’s unavoidable.”

A gym gangster trainer character.

“Originally, we don’t usually say things like this, but our gym is celebrating its 8th anniversary this time, so there’s an additional discount. Originally, it’s 1.5 million won for 50 sessions over 3 months, but this time, we’re giving you an additional discount of 1.3 million won! Plus, the trainer can give you an additional 100,000 won discount, and if you pay in cash, you get an additional 100,000 won discount.”

You can see right through him.

You can clearly see that he’s awkwardly trying to sell.

But that’s why, coupled with a subtle brazenness, the character came to life as if you could grab it.

‘I’m glad there’s a script that fits.’

Just a year ago, JC Actor participated in a project.

The title of the work was [God of Diet].

The trainer who appeared there was very famous for being annoying. You could say he was annoying, but you couldn’t hate him completely.

It was a character with a pathetic charm who would hand you a scoop of protein after doing something wrong and apologizing.

“You don’t exercise in the spring because you’re tired, you don’t exercise in the summer because it’s hot, you don’t exercise in the fall because it’s the season of high skies and plump horses [a Korean idiom referring to autumn, a time of abundance and leisure], and you don’t exercise in the winter because your fat is hidden by your clothes. Then when are you going to exercise? Sir?”

Of course, while maintaining the trainer’s unique nagging tone.

Lee Min-ki’s eyes widened as if they were about to become entirely white.

His arms stretched out as if to grab someone by the collar.

“You think you won’t gain weight if you eat vegetables and fruits? Sir, elephants and hippos are also herbivores. But your amount of exercise is even less. Do you think the savanna is a joke?”

The words that flowed out of his mouth were pathetic and brazen.

It was obviously nonsense.

But you can’t turn away from that nonsense.

In the original work, this character boasted an ambiguous physique that seemed half-made, which was exactly Lee Min-ki’s body right now.

Here, CEO Yoo Gyu-eon’s aesthetic sense made the body stand out even more.

‘I can do it.’

All the time Lee Min-ki had spent was condensed into a short performance.

The aptitude he found in his past life.

The gangster expression he built up in the Daon acting, and the trainer’s behavior description he obtained through observation.

Director Kwon Jun-yong’s training and CEO Yoo Gyu-eon’s fashion.

Everything gathered like dust to form a mountain.

And the result was.

“Hehehehe.”

It was Director Seo Jeong-woo’s laughter.

“Hehehe, pfft.”

The judges, who were supposed to be seriously observing the acting, couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

He even lowered his head to the desk and laughed heartily.

‘Did he laugh?’

Lee Min-ki was embarrassed in reverse.

He didn’t know, but in fact, Director Seo Jeong-woo was a person who laughed easily.

Only when it came to this kind of ‘trainer gag’.

Even up to this point, it was clear that the acting itself was a success.

But stopping here is for first-rate actors.

‘I’m going further.’

Lee Min-ki decided to put the stamp on it and continued to speak.

“Do you see it? Muscle? I’ve really worked hard to make this body so far. Touch it. Is it thick? Is it firm? This wasn’t just made. Hard training and state-of-the-art sports science. And diet. If even one was missing, this body wouldn’t exist.”

At the same time as those words, Lee Min-ki turned around and struck a pose, spreading his back wide.

It was something he used to do in front of the mirror at home.

“You want to make a body like this too, right?”

No.

No one would think that.

Literally, Lee Min-ki’s body is ambiguous. But that brazenness soon led to the life of the character.

“Pfft.”

Following Director Seo Jeong-woo, even trainer Kim Ah-seong burst into laughter. When these two laughed, the judges who came with them laughed without paying attention to what others thought.

‘That person is amazing?’

Kim Tae-yang noticed the calculation underlying Lee Min-ki’s acting and admired it purely.

‘I feel like Min-ki is unlucky.’

So did Yoo Seon-ah.

The only ones who couldn’t laugh in this place were the remaining participants.

‘Did I come to see an actor audition or a comedian audition?’

‘Are you kidding me?’

‘Isn’t this cheating?’

In other words.

To express all of this in one word.

Lee Min-ki killed it.

* * *

The audition was over.

It’s better to get hit first, so Lee Min-ki was able to comfortably observe the acting of others.

And he felt it.

‘Hmm, it’s more subtle than I thought.’

The acting of the scholarship students wasn’t that special.

“The land you’re standing on. Do you think it just appeared? All of our seniors worked hard to plow the land instead of studying at school. Hey, what about a construction worker? We were a nation of construction workers.”

What should I say?

‘It’s subtle.’

It seems like they’re doing well, but would it be appropriate to say that’s just about it?

This was entirely because Lee Min-ki was someone who had experienced the field even as a minor role.

No matter how talented they are, there are talented people all over the country. It was rare for people to shine on the field.

Moreover, Lee Min-ki had excessively high expectations for their skills.

‘It’s a shame.’

And another big reason.

That was because of Lee Min-ki himself.

‘I have to do better than that person from before, what should I do?’

‘Look at how cold the atmosphere is.’

‘He was laughing earlier, but why is there no reaction to my acting?’

Lee Min-ki had previously blown up the audition hall with his acting skills.

This was the same as shaking the psychology of the other participants.

Even if you try to act calculatively, an actor is a job where you can’t exclude psychology.

[Emotionless acting is like a formal dinner without wine.]

That’s what a famous French actor said.

As the saying goes, once they started to waver, there was no way they could perform properly.

Of course, there were exceptions.

‘I think those people are just so-so.’

It was Yoo Seon-ah.

“Jiwoo, huh? Eat this. Mom has to go meet a friend for dinner later, okay? There’s stew in the fridge, so heat it up and eat it. Don’t be late for school. Oh, and if Dad asks, tell him Mom went out because she had something to do.”

There wasn’t even a speck of shaking in her acting.

The reason was that she had been practicing acting with Lee Min-ki by her side.

That’s why no matter how great Lee Min-ki’s acting was, her eyes were already used to it.

Rather, she just couldn’t understand the rest of the participants who were shaken by it.

Other than that, maybe it was just Kim Tae-yang, who was originally calm.

‘I roughly get the picture.’

Thanks to that, trainer Kim Ah-seong was able to feel a little relieved.

By the time all the participants had finished acting.

“Yes, please leave through the left door in order. We will contact you individually with the results of the screening in a few days.”

The participants in the audition hall could guess the results a little without looking.

Lee Min-ki was no exception.

‘……Did I do pretty well, by any chance?’

He couldn’t be sure about passing, but he couldn’t help but know that he himself had done well.

His condition was at its best.

He suspected that if he failed here, he would fail anywhere.

Good.

Lee Min-ki decided.

‘If it’s this good, I can buy some pork belly on the way home.’

He decided to give himself a reward.

‘When else would it be if not today? Director Kwon Jun-yong might say something, but I’ll think about that again then.’

Lee Min-ki became arrogant in the meantime because he did well for a moment.

He was about to leave the audition hall as the last person, filling his stomach with a happy heart.

“Excuse me. Mr. Min-ki.”

There was a voice that grabbed his ankle as he was about to leave.

‘This voice is.’

When he turned around, it was Director Seo Jeong-woo.

He said with a faint smile on his face, as if the serious expression he had just had was gone.

“You can look forward to good results in this audition.”

“Yes?”

“We will contact you soon.”

What did he just say?

Lee Min-ki couldn’t believe what he had just heard.

It was because it was something he had never even thought he would hear.

That evening.

Lee Min-ki couldn’t fall asleep.

* * *

A few days later.

There was a place where Lee Min-ki was suddenly called.

That place was.

“Have you arrived?”

It was the director’s office.

Director Park of Jam Acting School had a broad smile on his face.

At the same time, his eyes rolled around.

Lee Min-ki took a step back, feeling uncomfortable with him, and said.

“Um, what’s going on?”

“It’s nothing special.”

Director Park wore a kind expression that had been honed through years of running the academy.

“I haven’t had a chance to talk to Mr. Min-ki lately, so I took the time to do so. I was wondering if you are satisfied with our academy.”

“Thanks to you, I’m doing well.”

“Ah, that’s a relief. I was worried that Mr. Min-ki might be uncomfortable.”

Director Park smiled warmly again and again.

As if he had always had great favor for Lee Min-ki.

“Please sit down. Which do you prefer, coffee or green tea?”

“Water.”

At that, Director Park even personally fetched water and placed it in front of Lee Min-ki.

Clearly, it was a striking action.

With every move, Lee Min-ki’s antenna stood on end.

‘Why is he doing this?’

Director Park isn’t this kind of person.

The suddenly kind treatment, as awkward as it was, was not welcome.

It was because it was something he had never received in the past year he had been at Jam Acting School.

The immediate guess that Lee Min-ki came up with in his head was this.

‘Is he changing his attitude now that I’m doing well?’

It was disgusting.

He himself knew best what kind of treatment he had received at the academy.

It was neglect.

It had improved in the last few months, but before that, he was treated like a failure on a daily basis.

The gazes around him, the teachers, and the director.

Even if you don’t show it, there are things you know if you’re the person involved.

Of course, Kim Tak didn’t have any particular thoughts.

At least, he only thought of Director Park as a rigid person.

‘Why is he acting friendly now?’

Lee Min-ki was feeling awkward about Director Park’s every move.

“The reason I called Mr. Min-ki today is not because of anything else.”

The next moment.

What Lee Min-ki heard was something he had never expected to hear.

“I called to see if you would be interested in receiving a scholarship provided by our academy.”

“Yes?”

“Of course, only if Mr. Min-ki is okay with it.”