Godsent Top Star [EN]: Chapter 6

006. Finding the Hidden Actor

2021.11.06.

“……?” When faced with an absurd situation, a person’s mind escapes from reality. Yeon-woo was in exactly that situation. The thought of using the talisman the moment Kwon Seong-hyun moved vanished without a trace. The slight sense of crisis he had felt due to the tremendous presence of the living spirit also scattered like smoke. ‘What is this? Is this some new kind of screwing over?’ It was around that time that Kwon Seong-hyun attempted another attack. [Are you an angel?] This time, Kwon Seong-hyun’s attack was effective! Yeon-woo suffered serious mental damage! ‘To strike at my blind spot. He’s an even bigger deal than I thought!’ He might be thinking of catching me off guard and escaping in the meantime. Instead of running away immediately, he’s launching a mental attack. As expected of someone at the pinnacle of the dog-eat-dog world of entertainment? He’s no ordinary opponent. ‘Kang Yeon-woo, don’t get drawn in.’ He’s quite skilled at distracting me. Truly a power befitting someone who exudes such a tremendous presence even as a living spirit. The difficulty of what I thought would be a simple task of bringing him along is steadily increasing. What should I do? It was as Yeon-woo’s worries deepened that the unpredictable situation took a sudden turn. Kwon Seong-hyun strode closer and grabbed Yeon-woo’s hand before he could even react.

[Are you here to pick me up, angel? I’ve been waiting.] And at the same time. -Ding! A familiar window popped up. -Name: Kwon Seong-hyun (25/Male) -Occupation: Famous Actor -Alignment: Chaotic Good -Skills: Masterful Acting [S], Atmosphere Control [S], Memorizing Scripts [A+], Presence Domination [S], Speaking with Eyes [S], Captivating People [S], ……. -Affection: Highest -Current Physical Condition: – (Currently separated from the physical body) -Current Emotional State: Joy ***Some items cannot be opened at this time. ***Detailed information about this person is hidden. ***Lifespan cannot be harvested from this person at this time. The status window that appeared spontaneously upon contact. Yeon-woo reflexively scanned it, and his mind went blank for a moment. ‘Affection: Highest……? Emotional State: Joy……?’ He didn’t even have time to be surprised by the skills riddled with S grades. ‘……Wasn’t he trying to shake me up mentally to escape?!’ The sudden ‘angel’ talk. I thought it was definitely a trick to confuse me and run away. Of course. What sane person would look at someone else and utter such cheesy words like ‘angel’? Moreover. ‘Angels……. Shouldn’t that be more fitting for him?’ A belated visual shock washed over him. To be honest, Yeon-woo wasn’t bad-looking either. He was often told he was cute when he was young, and he had never been ignored for his looks even after growing up. Besides, he was from the Kang Yeon-hwa bloodline, so he couldn’t be anything less. But even that faded in front of Kwon Seong-hyun. Surely, if I looked in the mirror now, there would be a squid. [Angel?] Yeon-woo desperately suppressed the rising goosebumps and replied, “I’m not an angel.” I need to correct the facts first. [Aren’t you here to pick me up?] “That’s right.”
[Then you are an angel.] Kwon Seong-hyun smiled brightly. Yeon-woo was able to experience the disorienting feeling of seeing a man’s smile, something he didn’t particularly want to experience. ‘Did something go wrong with the vessel while the soul and body were separated?’ Does he seem out of his mind? “Kwon Seong-hyun, do you know what’s going on right now?” [Aren’t I dead? That’s why the angel is here to pick me up.] I knew it. There was a reason why Kwon Seong-hyun was running around while leaving his body behind. He must have thought he was dead, so he didn’t even think about returning to his living body. [Thank you for being so kind as to come and pick me up. I thought a grim reaper would come when I died, but no one came, so I was a little lonely, but I feel relieved that an angel came. Am I going to heaven now?] “Um……. First of all, Kwon Seong-hyun, you are not dead.” Your body is alive and well in the hospital. [I’m not dead?] “Yes.”
[But no one recognizes me? I can pass through walls, and I can fly……. Isn’t that because I’m dead?] “Yes. No. Kwon Seong-hyun is, in industry terms, a living spirit. It’s a state where the soul has temporarily left the body. You said you had an accident, and you must have been shocked and bounced out and separated. Sometimes that happens.” Kwon Seong-hyun made a troubled face at Yeon-woo’s words. ‘He must be confused.’ It’s understandable. He’s been thinking he was dead all along, and now he’s suddenly being told he’s alive, so he must be dumbfounded. Kwon Seong-hyun’s troubled face was also like a painting. [Then…….] Kwon Seong-hyun’s lips slowly opened. [Does that mean you’re not an angel?] Is that all he could think of! Yeon-woo replied with a straight face. “Yes, I’m not.” [But you’re filled with such brilliant light, and you’re not an angel?] “Light?” [Yes. Golden shimmering things are surrounding you.] Yeon-woo looked down at his body. There’s nothing there. ‘He’s definitely out of his mind.’ Yeon-woo easily diagnosed Kwon Sang-hyun’s condition. “Let’s go back to your body first. You’ve been away from it for too long, so your condition isn’t good. Do you see this string?” [Yes.] “This is the string that connects you to your body. If this breaks, you die. It’s very thin now, so we need to go back quickly.”
[Am I really not dead?] “Yes.”
[Ah, I see.] Kwon Seong-hyun nodded. [I’m a little disappointed. I was actually a little happy. It was amazing that no one recognized me.] It’s a plain tone, but somehow there’s a weight to his words. It revealed the unique fatigue of someone who lives a life always surrounded by people. Kwon Seong-hyun, who seemed to be looking into the distance, turned his clear gaze back to Yeon-woo. [You said you weren’t an angel, right?] “Yes.” What about me looks like an angel? Yeon-woo seriously wanted to ask that. But he decided to stop because he couldn’t imagine how Kwon Seong-hyun would answer. He couldn’t even guess what kind of terrifying answer would come out. This is a first. He’s such an unpredictable person. ‘Are all actors like this?’ But then there’s Jung Cheol-woo, who was so easy to read. ‘Maybe Kwon Seong-hyun is just a unique person.’ Kwon Seong-hyun is called a genius of acting. And it is said that geniuses usually have some eccentricity. So, it wasn’t strange that Kwon Seong-hyun was eccentric. Yeon-woo completed the miraculous three-stage logic and accepted it. Kwon Seong-hyun asked again. [Then if I die, I won’t be able to see you?] “Well, yeah.”
[I can only see you if I go back to my body.] “Well, that’s probably right. I’m just a human living on Earth.”
[I see. Then I’ll go back.] Kwon Seong-hyun nodded obediently at Yeon-woo’s answer. That was a relief. It didn’t seem like he was planning to run away, but it wasn’t certain. Kwon Seong-hyun was an unpredictable person who Yeon-woo was experiencing for the first time. ‘He seems a little mentally unstable, but well……. If I put him back in his body, he’ll sort himself out.’ Even if something goes wrong for a while, he will return to normal if he merges with his body again. ‘Let’s just bear with the angel talk until then. He might not even remember it anyway.’ Kwon Seong-hyun’s current state as a living spirit is similar to dreaming. Just like forgetting the dream you had all night when you wake up, he may naturally forget this situation as well. Of course, there is a possibility that he will remember. ‘……I don’t know what it will be like because he has divine power. But for now, let’s just go along with it, and if he remembers it even after waking up, I’ll correct it somehow.’ Moreover, he’s someone I’ll never see again after this is over. Kwon Seong-hyun lived in a different world. ‘Okay, let’s just bear with it.’ Even at this point, Yeon-woo didn’t know that that little bit would never end as just a little bit.

***

Kwon Seong-hyun was like a very obedient dog. This is not an insult. He really was like a large dog. [Angel, but would it be okay if we looked around a little more before we go? The sunset looks the prettiest from here.] “No.”
[Okay…….] Kwon Seong-hyun’s shoulders drooped at Yeon-woo’s curt reply. Yeah, that’s what I mean by dog-like. ‘Usually, wouldn’t a top star recognized by everyone have a strong sense of pride and stubbornness?’ Most people who have a position or status, and who know they are good, have that much pride. Kwon Seong-hyun was even a man called a genius. ‘I thought he would throw a big tantrum, but there’s none of that.’ The human is a bit strange, but he doesn’t seem like a bad guy. Even nameless actors act up just because they’re celebrities, but Kwon Seong-hyun, who is actually a top star, is unexpectedly kind and innocent. He tries to strike up a conversation every now and then, but when Yeon-woo cuts him off, he quietly agrees. He could say something he doesn’t like, but there’s none of that. Well, there was something a little strange about him. [Angel.] “I told you I’m not an angel, didn’t I?” It gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. Who would call a man in his twenties ‘angel’ in a cheesy way? You have to admit that denial pops out like a spinal reflex. [Still…….] This human doesn’t seem to get tired of it. [But really, do I look that incredibly, awesomely cool to our Yeon-woo?] In the meantime, Dongja-ryeong subtly chimes in. [Yes. The golden light is sparkling, making you look like something out of a myth or a sacred painting.] [Like a halo?] [That’s similar. Ah, it’s not backlit like a halo, so I can see your face well.] [I’m curious……. Where on our Yeon-woo is there a golden aura? I want to see it too. How can I see it?] [Well……. I’ve always been able to see it.] I don’t know when they became so close that they were exchanging conversations back and forth. This is probably after that time. After Kwon Seong-hyun decided to follow Yeon-woo back. Yeon-woo briefly recalled the situation at that time. ‘It was quite a sight.’ It was the moment when it was revealed that Dongja-ryeong and Kwon Seong-hyun could see each other. Of course, Dongja-ryeong, who was a TV addict and Kwon Seong-hyun worshiper despite being a ghost, was overjoyed. -Yeon-woo! Our actor can see me! Is this real?! -Do you usually see ghosts or anything like that? -No. Not really. Just a little bit……. Like people’s auras? It was strange that he couldn’t see other ghosts except for Dongja-ryeong, but well. ‘This industry is a place where nothing strange is strange, so whatever.’ In the first place, it doesn’t make sense that Kwon Seong-hyun sees human auras. Anyway, since then, Dongja-ryeong, who had started talking, achieved his wish of chatting with his one-pick actor, Kwon Seong-hyun. [But Yeon-woo and an angel is a bit funny. It doesn’t suit him.] [Why? It suits him well…….] [He’s more like a devil…….] “Are you aware that the human who’s more like a devil is listening?” [Oops!] Dongja-ryeong, who deliberately made a surprised expression, whispered. [See? He even threatens me like that? How is he an angel?] [You call him an angel, so I call him an angel, but you tell me not to call the angel an angel…….] “…….” What is this? Is he Jang Geum or something? Yeon-woo rubbed his head, recalling the protagonist of the old classic historical drama that his mother, Kang Yeo-sa, used to enjoy watching. ‘Being with Dongja-ryeong makes the destructive power not just double, but multiplied.’ Throb, throb. The slight headache is definitely a bad sign. “Just call me by my name.” [Ah, really? Is that okay?] Kwon Seong-hyun was unexpectedly delighted. [Then……. Tell me your name.]