I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 117

Chungcheongnam-do, Buyeo.

The massive set complex for ‘Island of the Lost.’ It was past 2 PM. The script reading for ‘Island of the Lost’ was scheduled for 3 PM, and as a result, numerous staff members were running around frantically.

“Art team!! The director is looking for you!”

“We’re short on chairs, where are they?!”

“Over there! They’re stacked behind the bus!”

Inside the set complex they were entering, a rather large village had been created. It felt like a diverse mix of modern and old styles. Old houses made up 60%, and here and there, there were also 2 or 3-story buildings. It was exactly the picture of an island village.

However, it was somewhat eerie.

Because there were strange bloodstains on the overall color scheme of the village, the trees, and the roads, and clothes and shoes were scattered everywhere.

Anyway.

“30 minutes left! Hurry up!!”

The reading room, where the busy staff were setting up, was near the entrance of the complex. It was a one-story building that felt like a conference room, built separately because it was needed during the set construction. Desks and chairs were being set up in the space for production meetings.

Then, name tags began to be placed.

At the head of the U-shaped table, the first name tag to the right of Director Kwon Ki-taek’s seat was Ryu Jung-min’s. And then.

-[Private Jin Seon-cheol / Kang Woo-jin]

It was Kang Woo-jin’s seat.

‘Private Jin Seon-cheol,’ the role Woo-jin was cast in for the renowned director Kwon Ki-taek’s ‘Island of the Lost.’ Behind it, name tags for numerous roles began to appear on the table. There were a considerable number of them. Even though only the main and supporting roles were participating, it was more than three times the number in ‘My Guy Best Friend.’ It was natural, given the large scale of the movie.

The cast actors were also very diverse.

Except for Kang Woo-jin, the main cast were all top-tier, and among the supporting cast, there were those famous for their scene-stealing performances, those who were called ‘prolific actors’ due to their numerous appearances, and some of the most respected veteran actors. Just looking at the overall lineup was enough to greatly increase expectations.

With so many actors gathered, it was clear that the reading would be heated and intense.

As the name tags, drinks, and scripts were being arranged, the making team, who would film the production videos and various promotional videos for ‘Island of the Lost,’ began to set up cameras in the reading room.

“Whew—there are so many actors, one or two cameras aren’t enough, we’ll need to bring about three more?”

“Yes, yes! I’ll go get them right away!”

Key staff members such as the director of photography and the lighting director began to take their seats around the U-shaped table. Of course, the actors’ managers and film company officials did the same. As the reading room became increasingly crowded.

“To think that Kang Woo-jin would actually play ‘Private Jin Seon-cheol.’”

The lighting director, with a protruding belly, muttered while looking at the name tag for ‘Private Jin Seon-cheol’ on the table.

“Honestly, when I first heard it, I thought it was a joke.”

The director of photography next to him replied. He looked to be about the same age as Director Kwon Ki-taek.

“Well, I thought so too. ‘Private Jin Seon-cheol’ is a big role, not someone a rookie can handle. In the first place, a dual personality is difficult even for veterans.”

“That’s what I’m saying, senior. Moreover, he was practically cast without an audition, a complete rookie, right? Now, ‘Hanryang’ has become a hit, but… I’m a bit worried.”

“He’s good at acting though. From what I’ve heard about ‘Hanryang,’ he seems to be holding his own on set.”

“If that’s the case, it’s a relief, but still—isn’t he a bit lacking in experience? Mentally, I mean, this is Kang Woo-jin’s first proper feature film.”

It wasn’t wrong. Currently, Kang Woo-jin was going back and forth between various projects, but the only one that had been released to the world was ‘Profiler Hanryang.’ Moreover, Hanryang was cut from the fourth part, ‘Detective Agency’ was a short film, ‘Drug Dealer’ was a fill-in, and ‘My Guy Best Friend’ was a one-act play.

In other words, ‘Island of the Lost’ was his first time with a long-form project.

Short and quick projects were completely different from sticking with something until the end.

“I’m worried that he might do well in the beginning but then lose steam in the latter half.”

“Haha, Director Kwon must have figured it out.”

From this point, several people joined their conversation.

“It’s a gamble. How will he express ‘Private Jin Seon-cheol’s’ dual personality… Even if he’s analyzed it well, today there are several top actors and all seniors, right? What if he gets overwhelmed by the atmosphere?”

“That’s true, and it’s also the set of Director Kwon Ki-taek’s work, right? Even sitting at the end of the supporting cast is a burden, but if he’s a main villain… whew, I might pee my pants during the reading. And how many eyes are watching?”

Key staff members, including the sound director.

“Well, isn’t that the fate of a hot actor? He has to endure even if it’s tough. But it’s true that the hurdle is a bit too high for an actor who debuted only six months ago.”

“And isn’t Woo-jin currently filming a rom-com?”

“Ah—Netflix’s ‘My Guy Best Friend’?”

“Yes, yes, he should be in the middle of filming according to the schedule, can a rookie manage his emotions well? Compared to this, the emotional lines are not just changing, he’d have to forget everything about ‘My Guy Best Friend.’”

“There are cases where actors who play the lead in mini rom-coms get so used to that acting that they keep doing only rom-coms. Of course, if he does well, he’ll be known as an actor with a thousand faces…”

At this, the director of photography with a wrinkled face chuckled.

“Whether he falls on his face or makes everyone fall, either way, it’ll be a day that marks a milestone for Kang Woo-jin as an actor.”

In the end, everyone agreed.

Meanwhile.

While most of the staff were gathered in the reading room, the actors of ‘Island of the Lost’ were looking around the massive set complex. Ryu Jung-min, Kim Yi-won, Jeon Woo-chang, and other supporting actors, about a dozen in total. Ha Yu-ra was nowhere to be seen, as if she was looking elsewhere, and the rest of the actors were looking around wherever they wanted.

Anyway.

“Wow—the set is really something, isn’t it?”

Kim Yi-won, with his strong features, exclaimed while looking at the set complex. Following him, the muscular Jeon Woo-chang continued.

“It seems like more than that. After filming ends, this could be used as a tourist attraction.”

“Of course, they would. How could they destroy this? They must have talked with the authorities to make it this big.”

“But how did they find a place that matches the scenario so perfectly? I’m more curious about that.”

“They traveled all over the country.”

The two’s admiration quickly spread to the other actors, and just as the actors were getting busy talking about the set.

-Swoosh.

Kim Yi-won stuck close to Ryu Jung-min. Ryu Jung-min had been silent since earlier.

“Hyung [older brother/male friend], is something wrong?”

“…No. It’s just that seeing the set makes me realize it’s finally happening.”

“Ah—I see. I’m a bit nervous too.”

Jeon Woo-chang, who was smiling wryly, joined in.

“Me too. It’s been a while since I’ve been in a movie of this scale, haha. I’ll just tag along with you guys.”

“But I don’t see Woo-jin? I saw him come earlier.”

“Ah—that’s right. Did he go to the reading room first?”

“Woo-jin is quite the person of interest on set, so he must be getting a lot of attention, but he seems very calm.”

“He seems to be a naturally cool person.”

“By the way, I wonder how he’s prepared ‘Private Jin Seon-cheol.’ Right? Hyung, you praised him so much, I’m really looking forward to it.”

“You said he’s a student from abroad? And also—ah, that he acts casually but devours everything.”

“Still, a dual personality villain… it’s really difficult. Honestly, it’s quite a burden. Both the role and the scale of the movie.”

Ryu Jung-min’s short reply.

“Well. We should just worry about ourselves.”

At this, Kim Yi-won and Jeon Woo-chang looked at each other and shrugged. Behind them, Ryu Jung-min, who was standing in front of a private house and still wearing a hat pulled down low as if he was growing out his hair, took in the entire set complex.

“……”

Even for him, who had been a top star for over a decade, the scale of the set complex was one of the largest he had ever seen. Ryu Jung-min’s heart rate gradually began to increase. Conversely, his mood became calm. It was as if his mindset was completely different from the past.

‘I only think of myself, only myself.’

It was as if he had almost completely put down the burden of being a lead or a top star. Now, his mind was filled only with acting. Ryu Jung-min recalled the role he was cast in.

‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae.’

In ‘Island of the Lost,’ ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ was an important character who led the story. However, he wasn’t the one who started the incident first. The first incident in ‘Island of the Lost’ started with ‘Private Kim.’

No, to be precise, the beginning of everything was ‘disappearance.’

Disappearances occurred in a village in the countryside. Of course, they were villagers, and there were three in total. Because of this, a large-scale search operation was launched in the village. The police, fire department, and even the military were dispatched, but in the end, the three missing people could not be found. To make matters worse, the situation escalated as villagers testified that they had heard gunshots.

Then, an even bigger incident occurred.

While the search operation continued, a dozen more military personnel went missing. Among them was ‘Private Kim.’

What on earth was going on?

The village wasn’t very big and was covered by mountains. The most likely place was the mountains behind the village. The search operation was intensified, but the missing people could not be found. There were over a dozen missing people.

This was when ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae,’ played by Ryu Jung-min, appeared.

He and his unit were also deployed in the search operation, and while searching, ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ discovered a strange cave at a certain point. It was a foul-smelling cave. After noting the location of the cave, ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ selected a few personnel and explored the entrance and the area near the inside of the cave. That’s when it happened.

From deep inside the cave, the sound of people screaming was heard.

Multiple voices overlapped. This was it. There was something inside here. ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ was convinced that the missing people were inside. However, going deeper was a concern. There were already over ten missing people. More missing people was something that should never happen.

In the end, ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ decided to return to the cave entrance for now.

But something was strange. Was the cave they came through originally like this? ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ and his unit felt puzzled. Because the shape of the cave had changed. Things that weren’t there when they came in were now visible. Bloodstains on the walls and animal carcasses scattered here and there. As their unease grew, a sergeant shouted, ‘There!’

Because an exit was visible.

‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ and his unit quickly exited the cave. At the same time, they realized. This wasn’t where they were before. It was clearly daytime, but when they came out of the cave, it had turned to night.

Above all, the landscape of the forest was completely different.

The muddy ground, the smell of seawater carried by the wind, and the feeling that the forest was several times denser. This was something that everyone, including ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae,’ noticed. The unit members who were supposed to be waiting at the cave entrance were gone. No, there was no one there except them. The sound of the wind hitting the forest was the only sound. Everything else was silent.

It was certain. This was a different place.

Then where on earth were they? At that moment, one of the unit members found something on the muddy ground. Human footprints. Quite a lot of them.

Right at that moment.

“Gurgle—”

A strange sound came from inside the cave, and something long and thin shot out and grazed the neck of one of the unit members.

-Thud!

His head was separated from his body and stuck into the muddy ground. ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae,’ the officers, and the unit members froze. They could only look at the head stuck in the ground. It felt surreal.

At the same time, the strange sound was heard again.

“Gurgle—gurgle—”

Following the sound, something long and thin flew out of the cave again, and one of the unit members’ bodies was split in half. A neck being cut off and a body being cut in half horizontally. Neither was something that was easy to see in reality. It was chaos. At this, a sergeant lost his mind and fired his gun into the cave.

The sparks of the shots briefly illuminated the dark surroundings.

For a moment, ‘Private Jin Seon-cheol’s’ smile was visible. No one noticed it though. The sergeant fired ten shots. ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ stopped his firing. Following that was silence. The strange gurgling sound disappeared. But it could reappear anywhere. ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ gathered the personnel as quickly as possible and escaped the scene.

The two corpses had to be recovered later.

Everyone ran and ran through the dark forest. The officers were in the lead, and ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ was at the very back. How long had it been? The sun began to rise over the ridge. The world that had been dark became bright. ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ ordered everyone to wait and then looked around alone.

He pushed through the bushes, passed strange statues, and went over abandoned houses.

And he found another decaying head rolling on the ground. It was ‘Private Kim’s.’ Around this time, the sound of waves crashing reached ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae.’ It was close. There shouldn’t be a sea.

In the first place, the area around the village where the missing people came from was all mountains.

‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae,’ swallowing hard, slowly walked towards the sound. Soon, the edge of the forest, a cliff, appeared. Beyond it, the sea stretched endlessly.

It didn’t make sense. But it was reality.

Where on earth had he come to? ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae,’ with wide eyes, moved his gaze along the coastline. A village, no, a town was visible. It was completely different from the village where the missing people came from. The village was surrounded by a dense forest, and the forest was surrounded by the sea.

In other words, it was an island.

‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ was absurdly on an island. What was this? Had they teleported? The problem was that there were signs of life in that village. People lived there? There were clearly gunshots at night. If so, they should also be wary of them. No, everyone on this absurd island should be suspected.

‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ thought as he returned to where his unit members were.

The cave, the strange creature, the sudden strange island, and the people on it. He pieced together all the clues and fragments of memories he had seen so far. Disappearance, like the missing soldiers before them, ‘Lieutenant Choi Yu-tae’ and his unit were also in the same context. For some reason, this place didn’t feel real.

But they would lose their lives.

There was a high possibility that this ‘Island of the Lost’ was a lawless zone.

At that time.

Kang Woo-jin, dressed casually in a white t-shirt and jeans. He was currently exploring the area around the set complex. Or rather, taking a walk? The script reading was scheduled to start at 3 PM, and he was looking around the area at Director Kwon Ki-taek’s recommendation.

-Swoosh.

Although it was summer, the forest was slightly cool thanks to the dense trees blocking the sunlight. It wasn’t a high terrain like a mountain. It was like a small park created in nature.

Of course.

‘What is this? These creepy statues.’

There were strange things that the production team had created in the middle. Dug-up graves, strange statues stuck upside down, bloodstains on trees, abandoned houses that were hard to enter, and so on.

Except for those things, it was a generally satisfying walk.

‘How long has it been since I’ve done something like this, it’s kind of healing?’

Kang Woo-jin smiled inwardly.

At that moment.

“Eek!!”

Woo-jin was startled by the model of an animal carcass on the road. He immediately realized his mistake. It was a groan that couldn’t come out of his solemn concept.

And right behind him.

“H-Hyungnim [term of respect for an older male]!!”

Road Manager Jang Su-hwan was there.

End