I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 71

What? She said we were in the same department? This is crazy. Kang Woo-jin almost revealed his true feelings to the female employee. Like, ‘You know me? I don’t know you?’

He barely managed to hold back his reaction. Instead, Woo-jin stared intently at the female employee, trying to recall the past.

‘Who is she? Ah—wait a minute, why can’t I remember? Think, quickly.’

But it was no use. Time had passed, and the female employee’s face was unfamiliar.

‘No, I really don’t know her? Who are you?’

Were they close? No way. If they were even a little close, he would remember. It was ambiguous. No, to be honest, he didn’t have any close female friends. Kang Woo-jin was practically an outcast in college.

Besides, Woo-jin knew very well.

‘Women are so fickle.’

Having a younger sister made it even clearer. In the past, Kang Hyun-ah was like a different person when she was lazing around at home versus when she was going out. So, Woo-jin often teased his sister.

‘Wow—is your room a plastic surgery clinic? Where’s my sister? Why does a different person come out?’

‘Ugh! Shut up!’

‘You should go in the Guinness Book, for having two faces.’

‘Mom! Oppa [older brother] is teasing me!’

That’s how much women can change with just a little makeup. Right, the woman sitting in front of him could have had plastic surgery after graduating college? Besides, the design department Woo-jin attended had more women than men. More than double. How could he remember them all?

Anyway, Woo-jin was anxious.

‘No, it’s okay. I didn’t do anything in college. I never stood out, right? Stay calm. I can get through this.’

His college life might be exposed.

On the other hand.

“Ah—so you really don’t remember me?”

The woman, with a hint of disappointment, seemed to remember Kang Woo-jin clearly. This was awkward. But pretending to know her when he didn’t was too much.

‘Ah, whatever.’

Kang Woo-jin maintained his persona while gritting his teeth and pretending not to know her.

“I have no idea who you are.”

“······Ah.”

The female employee’s expression immediately turned awkward.

“Well, that can happen. It’s been quite a while.”

At that moment.

-Swish.

Choi Sung-gun, who had gone to the bathroom, returned quickly.

“Oh my—I’m sorry! I had to go to the bathroom urgently.”

Choi Sung-gun, who was smiling jovially, noticed the awkward atmosphere in the meeting room. There was a strange vibe in the air. Choi Sung-gun, who sat next to Woo-jin, tilted his head.

“Um, were you guys talking about something?”

The man who seemed to be the highest-ranking among the ‘Maxnald’ employees across the table answered.

“Haha, no. It’s just that our employee seems to be Woo-jin’s college classmate. But Woo-jin doesn’t remember her.”

The ‘Maxnald’ employees chuckled, looking at the female employee.

“Ah—then she’s not a classmate, is she?”

“That’s right. If Woo-jin doesn’t remember her, she’s just a stranger. Yeah.”

The teasing intensified, and the female employee’s face turned slightly red.

“Ah! Team Leader! Please stop!”

Kang Woo-jin’s low apology fueled the atmosphere.

“I’m sorry.”

“Hehe, no, Woo-jin, you don’t have to be sorry. It just seems like our Hye-ju’s presence was a bit faint.”

“Stop it! Just stop it now!”

Choi Sung-gun, who had roughly understood the situation, nodded.

‘As my recognition grows, it’s time to start meeting people I know. Like Kim Dae-young or that female employee.’

He glanced at Kang Woo-jin next to him.

‘With that kind of face and unique vibe, he would have stood out enough. Maybe not a celebrity, but rumors would have spread.’

Regardless, Woo-jin was anxious. Now that Choi Sung-gun was back, he needed to move past this atmosphere quickly. Right, let’s push the work forward. Just as Woo-jin, having made up his mind, was about to speak solemnly.

“But, Woo-jin-ssi, you didn’t major in acting, did you? If you were in the same department as Hye-ju, it would be design, right? That’s unusual—”

“I know. It’s not that there aren’t any actors who didn’t major in acting, but a design major is quite unique, isn’t it?”

“Hye-ju, was Woo-jin popular in college?”

The ‘Maxnald’ employees were curious about Kang Woo-jin’s past. Woo-jin was genuinely flustered. Shut your mouths, please. He wasn’t popular at all. He was an outcast, remember? Suddenly, a critical situation had arrived. So, Kang Woo-jin quickly intervened.

“No. I was just air.”

“Come on—that can’t be true. You look like you would have had girls lining up for you?”

“It was mostly guys.”

At that moment, the female employee who had gone to the same college as Woo-jin moved her lips. Her expression was slightly indifferent, unlike before.

“Well—I don’t remember exactly either.”

She seemed a bit sulky.

“It’s just that Woo-jin was good at design. I think he won quite a few awards in contests.”

“Oh my, he was an elite?”

At this moment, Choi Sung-gun, with his ponytail, was slightly surprised inside.

‘He was studying acting on his own while not neglecting design? Does he have two brains?’

Whatever the reason, it was fortunate for Woo-jin that the female employee was sulking. She was clearly pretending not to know him out of pride. Woo-jin didn’t miss this timing.

“No, I was just average. More importantly, about the advertisement.”

Of course, he put on a cynical tone. At this point, the ‘Maxnald’ employees picked up the materials they had brought and returned to the main topic.

“Ah, I’m sorry. It’s just that it’s so amazing that our team has Woo-jin’s classmate.”

“We were all surprised when we picked Woo-jin as the model and Hye-ju said she was his classmate.”

“Then, let me show you the concept first.”

Choi Sung-gun leaned close to Woo-jin and whispered.

“It’s you again. Weren’t you only focused on acting? How did you manage to do design too? Did you have talent in that area?”

Talent? What talent? Woo-jin had just worked his butt off to survive. But he couldn’t say that. Kang Woo-jin decided to gloss over it.

“I just worked hard because I needed to.”

“······Needed?”

At that moment.

‘Ah.’

Choi Sung-gun seemed to have realized something on his own.

‘Could it be… did he do design because it helped with acting? Creativity or reverse thinking, something like that.’

After that.

After Woo-jin’s unexpected crisis, the meeting about the ‘Maxnald’ advertisement went relatively smoothly. It was natural since ‘Maxnald’ was already eager to have Woo-jin.

“It’s the shrimp burger line, and we’re planning to include a new product. As you can see from the concept, you just need to capture the ‘Manager Park’ vibe.”

The content was roughly similar to what Choi Sung-gun had guessed. They would be doing 1-minute, 30-second, and 15-second versions, which would be aired on TV and various video platforms, including YouTube. It would be a short-term contract, and the contract extension would depend on the product sales.

“The advertisement shooting date will be coordinated with Woo-jin’s schedule, and it will probably be done in one day.”

After various discussions, the key numbers were brought up.

“Next is the appearance fee.”

From this point on, the indifferent Kang Woo-jin was internally going ‘wow, wow.’ It was natural. Millions of won were being thrown around casually. It was incredibly fascinating. Well, Woo-jin had already received several million won for his appearances in various works.

‘Advertising is amazing. They give this much for just one shot? What’s the cost-effectiveness?’

Getting millions for just one advertisement was surreal.

And so.

“Please take care of us, Woo-jin-ssi.”

“I will do my best.”

With Kang Woo-jin’s signature, the ‘Maxnald’ advertisement contract was officially signed. With this, Woo-jin solidified his position as the hottest rookie actor of the year.

“Then, we’ll see you on the shooting day.”

After Woo-jin and Choi Sung-gun left the meeting room, the ‘Maxnald’ employees immediately started giving their evaluations of Kang Woo-jin. They were generally over the top.

“Wasn’t Woo-jin-ssi so charismatic? I didn’t know he had that kind of vibe.”

“I know, right? His real personality is quite serious.”

“He’s aloof but also kind. And his voice was great, right? Ah—he’s totally my type.”

However, one female employee was slightly tilting her head. It was the employee who was Woo-jin’s college classmate.

“Hmm—I don’t think he had that kind of vibe.”

Soon, the other employees gathered around her.

“Yeah, yeah. Spill the tea. What was he like? Were you close to Woo-jin-ssi? But why can’t he remember you?”

“Ah—we weren’t that close. Well, as I said before, he was quite good at design. He was also popular among the girls. There were a lot of girls in the department, and in the beginning, about half of them were interested in Woo-jin.”

“Well, with that face, he must have been popular. You too, Hye-ju?”

“Ah! Not me!”

“Is he the type who doesn’t know he’s popular?”

“Something like that. But his vibe wasn’t that heavy. He was quiet, but not that cynical. I never heard he was acting.”

“Acting is a private matter, so you wouldn’t know. As for the vibe—maybe he was just putting on a business face at school? There are quite a few people like that.”

“······Maybe?”

It was quite a long time ago, so the female employee seemed confused about the past.

“Anyway, Hye-ju must be so amazed. A friend you did design with suddenly became a huge actor.”

“Totally. My friends’ group chat exploded when Woo-jin-ssi’s drama came out.”

Meanwhile, Kang Woo-jin.

-Thump!

He just got into the van. He was still trying to calm his surprised heart.

‘Ugh—that was close. I can’t believe I met someone from college. But this isn’t something you can avoid by being careful, is it?’

That was true. There were dozens of places for meetings, and he couldn’t avoid them all. This part had to rely on Kang Woo-jin’s wit.

‘Should I prepare a few lines?’

The next day.

New news was thrown into the internet, which was still noisy with ‘Profiler Han-ryang’.

『[Star Talk] Hot ‘Kang Woo-jin’ Lands Maxnald Advertisement』

It was the issue that Kang Woo-jin had landed his first advertisement. The sources were, of course, BW Entertainment and ‘Maxnald’. They had agreed to start the media play at the same time.

『Maxnald Side: “We Expect Good Synergy with Actor Kang Woo-jin”』

Since Kang Woo-jin was already a rising star, BW Entertainment’s goal was to continue the buzz, and ‘Maxnald’ also aimed to promote their brand and new product advertisement by leveraging Woo-jin’s popularity.

『From Han-ryang to the Advertising World? ‘Kang Woo-jin’ Starts Advertising with Maxnald / Photo』

Therefore, from Tuesday morning, the flood of news related to Kang Woo-jin’s recognition was like a waterfall. The film industry was calling him the best Chungmuro [Korean Hollywood] blue chip of the year, and the entire entertainment industry was in an uproar over the ultra-large rookie.

The entertainment industry always loved the word ‘first’.

And Kang Woo-jin had many achievements to justify that ‘first’. First of the year, shortest period, acting award, viewership ratings, big names, etc.

The character of ‘Manager Park’ also played a part.

The ‘Manager Park’ syndrome or meme. What started in communities had infiltrated YouTube and broadcasting.

-What if you go to a voice chat room as Profiler Han-ryang Manager Park? LOLOLOL｜MemeBoxTV

-I tried ordering at a sandwich shop focusing on ‘less appealing?’｜If I order, I do!

Parodies were pouring out. YouTubers whose content was voice impersonation, short dramas, and various BJs [Broadcasting Jockeys, similar to streamers] were imitating Kang Woo-jin’s Manager Park.

Not only that?

Manager Park’s meme was also imitated in comedy programs and stand-up comedy shows on TV. It was a trend. An issue, like a catchphrase, is transmitted to people in some form.

Of course, everyone was doing it for their own benefit.

There were many reasons, but it could be summarized in one thing. People’s interest. Creating new stimuli based on the fact that Kang Woo-jin was definitely selling.

Anyway, Kang Woo-jin’s recognition was growing without end.

Of course, he should be dancing with joy, but Woo-jin, the person involved, was also slightly worried. He didn’t know the exact reason. He just had that feeling.

“Somehow—I feel a bit uneasy.”

Was it because too many things were happening at once? Was it too dreamlike? Was it too much to handle? Was it just unnecessary worry? But as if Kang Woo-jin’s faint worry didn’t matter.

『[Exclusive] Hwa-rin and Kang Woo-jin Join Netflix’s ‘One-Act Play Project’』

In the late afternoon of the same day, Netflix joined the chaotic internet with numerous issues.

『[Issue Pick] Why is Hwa-rin Doing a One-Act Play? Let’s Look at the Netflix Project She’s Doing with Rising Kang Woo-jin』

『Netflix Side: “Hwa-rin and Kang Woo-jin’s Chemistry Will Likely Be a Rom-Com”』

Moreover, this time it was big. Including Kang Woo-jin, even Hwa-rin of the girl group ‘Elani’. The combination of Kang Woo-jin and Hwa-rin created a huge impact.

The public was going wild. Woo-jin’s interest was high, but Hwa-rin’s firepower was enormous.

-OMGLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL?

-I know Hwa-rin unnie [older sister] started her solo activities… but suddenly a one-act play??

-One-act play or whateverㅠㅠㅠㅠRom-com is good!!

-Wow… Kang Woo-jin is doing so many projects??? Isn’t he already in a few?

-But it’s a bit random LOLOLOL Why is Kang Woo-jin with Hwa-rin?

-Unnie!!!!!! I’ve been waiting!!!!!!!!

-Kang Woo-jin… rom-com?… *drool*… wait, give me more information, it’s not appealing enough!!!

-But Kang Woo-jin’s projects are small again LOLOLOLOL

-LOLOLOLOL What’s up with Hwa-rin LOLOLOL Why a one-act play????

·

·

·

Rising Kang Woo-jin’s first rom-com. His co-star is Hwa-rin. There were bound to be countless question marks.

However.

『[Official] BW Entertainment: “It’s True that Kang Woo-jin Has Joined Netflix, He Will Work Hard”』

BW Entertainment admitted it.

『”Seeking Change” JML Entertainment Acknowledges Hwa-rin’s One-Act Play Debut Through SNS』

Hwa-rin’s agency, JML Entertainment, also readily nodded. Following that, Netflix revealed the official title of the work.

『[Entertainment Pick] Hwa-rin and Kang Woo-jin’s One-Act Rom-Com Title is ‘Guy Friend’, Anticipation↑』

‘Guy Friend’ was the first announcement.

Wednesday, the 3rd.

Around 9 a.m., Kang Woo-jin was at a shop in Cheongdam-dong. He had many schedules today as well. Interviews that had been narrowed down, meetings including Netflix, and some missing post-production filming for Han-ryang.

Anyway, Woo-jin, who had a cloth draped over his body.

“······”

He was sitting in his seat, looking at himself in the mirror, feeling tired.

‘I’m sleepy. I can’t do this, I need to go to the subspace and rest a bit after this.’

At that time.

“Woo-jin-ah.”

Choi Sung-gun, who was downstairs, walked up with a smile. He showed Woo-jin his phone. A YouTube video was playing on the screen.

“It just came out. The full ‘Sports Day’ episode.”

It was the news that the full video of the ‘Sports Day’ Han-ryang episode, which had over 3 million views for the trailer, had been uploaded.

The funny thing was that within 30 minutes of uploading.

-EP.1! The Han-ryang Team is Insane! Confused… Confused… The ‘Han-ryang’ Team is Full of Enthusiasm, But What’s the Result…?｜Sports Day X Profiler Han-ryang

-[SBC]/ENG SUB

-243,554 views

It had already surpassed 200,000 views. At this moment, Choi Sung-gun grinned and pointed at Kang Woo-jin.

“But more than half of the comments are about you.”

End