An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 282

282. #50 – Breaking Free from the Loop (5)

Ding-dong.

The person who came to my house that morning was none other than Manager Kim.

“Hey, you’re here?”

“Yeah, you’re up early?”

“Of course, I promised to meet you at 9.”

I greeted Manager Kim, noticing the coffee in his hand, and said,

“Did you stop by a cafe this morning?”

“Yeah, I know you like coffee.”

“Thanks. Come on in.”

The reason I met Manager Kim at home instead of a cafe was simple.

It felt more natural to meet at home.

We couldn’t comfortably discuss work in a public cafe.

And we didn’t have a company office to discuss work matters.

We hadn’t secured an office yet, so the only places we could talk about work were my house or Manager Kim’s house.

Manager Kim and I sat down at the living room table, not in the study.

We got straight to the point, skipping the small talk.

This wasn’t a place for casual conversation; it was our makeshift company headquarters.

“Hee-sung, let’s look at this as a chance to breathe,” Manager Kim said, his eyes gleaming.

But I knew it wasn’t just happiness I saw. I felt the same way.

I was trying to force myself to be happy and think positively about the project’s cancellation.

Nevertheless, the abrupt disappearance of the project was still a hard pill to swallow.

“…Yeah, it’s already canceled, and it’s not like we can revive it.”

“That’s right. It’s better this way. After the project ended, we wouldn’t have had the energy to find a new one and set up the company. Let’s use this opportunity to properly establish the company and get started.”

Manager Kim and I took a sip of coffee. He raised his eyebrows and asked,

“Did you go straight home yesterday?”

“Yeah, I went up and crashed immediately. What about you?”

I knew Manager Kim had an appointment after dropping me off the previous day.

And that the appointment was with a head of department at WG Entertainment.

However, I wasn’t going to pry into what happened or what they discussed.

“I went to the appointment yesterday and went straight home. I drank a lot and got an earful from my wife. Haha.”

“Oh, you deserved the scolding. Haha, your sister-in-law is pregnant now, so you should go home early.”

Manager Kim also didn’t tell me what happened with the head of department.

Knowing his personality, he would have definitely asked about the movie ‘Turntable’.

The fact that he didn’t mention it meant something.

I suspected there was a reason.

I could guess that WG Entertainment had pushed for the movie’s cancellation.

Otherwise, if we were misunderstanding, Manager Kim would have clarified that WG Entertainment wasn’t involved.

It became increasingly clear that WG Entertainment was behind it, but I didn’t want to confront Manager Kim directly.

There was nothing to gain from discussing it; it would only fuel our anger.

Manager Kim and I both understood that building our strength was the priority.

“Hyung [older brother/term of endearment], let’s hurry up and prepare the company.”

“Yeah, I’ve already talked to the real estate agent….”

Manager Kim showed me a list of potential offices, as if he had been preparing for this all along.

That’s how we began preparing, step by step.

“Yeah, let’s not rush. Let’s look carefully and meticulously. I should start preparing for the next project right away.”

“Okay, I’ll look for some scripts.”

I looked at Manager Kim, my eyes filled with determination.

“Let’s go with something really amazing this time.”

* * *

After the project was canceled, Manager Kim and I found our time passing quickly.

We lived such busy days that we were mentally exhausted.

Manager Kim, using his years of experience in the entertainment industry, solidly established our production company.

Although he had only worked as a manager, he had been observing how entertainment companies operated, preparing for his future.

He had been paying attention to office spaces, and as a result, Manager Kim was able to set up the company flawlessly.

It wasn’t just about submitting paperwork and being done.

He formally established a corporation, created an office worthy of an entertainment company, and even hired employees.

Manager Kim told me it felt like the first time in his life he had worked so hard and put in so much effort.

He was completely dedicated.

I also immersed myself in scripts every day.

Because Manager Kim believed in me and left WG Entertainment.

And for my future, I frantically searched for the right scripts.

Even scripts I would have liked enough to work on in the past were now being excluded.

I wasn’t just looking for a project I wanted to do.

I wanted to choose a project that was appealing, with solid artistic merit, and destined to be a hit.

Because I was betting everything on this project.

It wasn’t just a project for me, but also for Manager Kim’s future, so I was even more careful.

That’s why my standards for evaluating scripts became more demanding.

Because I had to succeed.

For days, I had been holed up in my house, buried in scripts.

And today, as always, I woke up in the study.

These days, it was always the same.

I would read scripts in the study until sunrise, then fall asleep leaning against the chair.

When I woke up, I would rub my eyes and look at the script again.

“I think I can do a good job with this script… No. I need a slightly more interesting script….”

I pushed the script I had been looking at for hours to the side.

My standards for evaluating scripts were several times higher than before.

Then.

Ding-dong.

The doorbell rang through the open door of the study.

I tilted my head and got up from my seat.

“Didn’t Hyung say he was going to check the documents today?”

I hadn’t made an appointment with Manager Kim, so I frowned and approached the front door.

“Huh? What.”

The person standing in front of the door was not Manager Kim, but Song Yuna.

I was startled by her visit and immediately opened the door.

“Yuna, you went to film in the countryside. What’s going on? You didn’t even contact me….”

As I opened the door, Song Yuna shouted, her face flushed.

“Is it true?”

“Huh?”

“Is it true that the movie ‘Turntable’ was canceled!”

Song Yuna’s face was full of anger, not worry.

“Ah… that….”

She started to get angry without even listening to me.

“WG Entertainment did this, didn’t they?”

“It’s not certain. The investment was canceled by the investment company. Yuna knows this kind of thing happens in the industry.”

I tried to persuade her, but even my words couldn’t suppress her anger.

“I knew it. WG Entertainment, are they crazy?”

“It’s okay. First of all, let’s not do this here, come inside.”

I pulled the agitated Song Yuna into the room.

I handed her cold water and said, sitting in the living room,

“Yuna, drink this.”

“Okay.”

She was thirsty from venting her anger, so she gulped down the water.

“Did you come because of the project being canceled?”

Song Yuna nodded, putting down the empty glass.

“Yeah, I just heard the news from my manager. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Yuna, I was worried about you. It’s not good news… and you were filming. So I was going to tell you when we met.”

I thought that telling her bad news wouldn’t solve anything.

Rather, I thought it would only make her feel uncomfortable.

I hadn’t been feeling well for a while either.

Moreover, I thought it was even more wrong to tell her this news when she had to focus on filming.

“You should have told me anyway. I didn’t know.”

“I’m sorry. But you don’t have to worry that much.”

At my words, Song Yuna shook her head and replied.

“No, I’m not worried, I’m angry. WG Entertainment… even so, how can they do such a terrible thing to someone who used to be a member of the same company?”

Song Yuna’s face turned red, as if her calm heart was boiling again.

“Yuna, don’t be angry. There’s no certainty that WG Entertainment decided to withdraw the investment from the investment company. And nothing has been revealed.”

She frowned with her arms crossed.

“It’s obvious. WG Entertainment’s doing….”

Song Yuna got up from her seat as if she couldn’t relieve her anger, even though it was something that happened to me.

“We can’t just let this go. I clearly warned you. If you mess with Oppa [term of endearment for an older brother or male friend], I have no reason to stay at WG Entertainment anymore.”

“Are you saying you’re going to leave the company?”

“Yeah, when you terminated your contract, I told the CEO. I can’t trust this company either.”

Seeing her so agitated, all I could do was try to stop her.

Because Song Yuna was running wild without looking back.

And because my project was canceled, she was going to leave the company?

I couldn’t just stand by and watch that.

I held her hand tightly and opened my mouth.

“Yuna.”

“Yeah, Oppa. I’ll take revenge for you. You know, if I leave WG Entertainment, the company will falter. I’ll help WG Entertainment go bankrupt.”

At her words, I smiled faintly and shook my head.

Then, I pulled her arm and sat her down in front of me.

“No, that’s not true revenge.”

“Then, are you just going to let this resentment pass?”

“I’ll do it, that revenge.”

Song Yuna sat down with a thud and furrowed her eyebrows.

“How are you going to do it….”

“I’m going to take revenge with my next project. If they want to block my way, then me being more successful is true revenge, right?”

She bit her lip and took a long breath.

I continued to speak to her, who was calming down.

“So Yuna, you stay at WG Entertainment.”

“But I also want to do something for Oppa….”

“Yuna, you have to be there so I can look like a fool who doesn’t know anything.”

She tilted her head and asked.

“Why is that?”

“That way, WG Entertainment will be complacent. They won’t think Yuna knows what they did. And they won’t think I know either. I want to appear with an amazing project then.”

Song Yuna was lost in thought for a moment at my words, then nodded.

“…That would be better.”

Her appearance seemed to have regained her reason.

I raised the corners of my mouth and patted her shoulder.

“Then, that’s much better. Besides, Yuna, your contract is not far from expiring. You can fulfill it and move to another company with good conditions, rather than getting into trouble and having articles written about it.”

She became a meek lamb to my words, as if she had never expressed anger.

“Okay. I’ll do that.”

* * *

Several days had passed since I had been holed up in my house looking for scripts.

“Ugh… this is not good either.”

Nevertheless, I couldn’t find a script that caught my attention.

“Have my standards become too high… Are my expectations too demanding?”

But I had no intention of lowering them.

The higher I set my sights, the better the project I would find.

A project that could captivate me as before could not succeed.

The measure of success I want is clearly different from before.

WG Entertainment… To overcome those who blocked me, I have to grow first.

I shook my head vigorously and vowed not to compromise.

“Yeah, even if it takes a little time, I have to go for sure success.”

Just as I was rubbing my tired eyes to regain my focus.

Buzzz.

A call came from Song Yuna.

I cleared my throat to get rid of the stuffy voice from reading scripts.

“Ahem.”

Then I immediately clicked the receive button.

“Yeah, Yuna.”

-What are you doing?

“I’m looking at scripts.”

-Is there anything you’ve decided on?

“No, nothing is appealing yet…. What about you?”

-I’m at home, but that’s not important. I met the director today.

“Yeah.”

-There’s a new project the director is working on, and he told me that he’s interested in actor Jin Hee-sung?

“Really?”

-Yeah. I saw it, and the project is really good. The director, writer, and investors are all amazing.

“What kind of director is it?”

-Director Park Ho-chan.

“The Director Park Ho-chan I know?”

I opened my mouth wide and exclaimed.

If you’re in the film industry, how can you not know him?

He’s a director who has been hitting the jackpot with every movie he’s made in recent years, so all the actors were interested in his new project.

Just appearing in Director Park Ho-chan’s project, even in a minor role, would double your value.

-Yeah, Director Park confidently said, ‘This script is a jackpot.’ Director Park is interested in Oppa first, so there’s no need to worry about it!

At her words, the corners of my mouth naturally turned upward.

A project with Director Park Ho-chan.

And Director Park looking for me… Of course, there was nothing to worry about.

I bit my lip and clenched my fist with conviction.