I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 19

Expressionless? Kang Woo-jin’s face was certainly quite indifferent right now. He was just staring blankly at the goddess smiling in front of him. No, the top actress, Hong Hye-yeon.

“······”

His mind was also calm. Extremely serene. But this wasn’t true peace. It was just that his thoughts had stopped due to the sudden situation.

‘Huh?’

Kang Woo-jin had been frozen since Hong Hye-yeon’s appearance, and his expression had stiffened. This naturally maintained Woo-jin’s concept. Who wouldn’t have their thoughts stop? It was surprising enough that a goddess had suddenly appeared.

“You’re not surprised at all? Anyway, can I do ‘The Fixer’?”

She wanted to do a short film.

‘Ah- wait a minute. Wait, wait. What… how is this happening?’

Why would the lead actress of a mega-drama come here to do a short film? If there had been any hint, it would have been understandable, but Hong Hye-yeon hadn’t provided any pretext. No, in the first place, Woo-jin hadn’t talked much with her.

‘Isn’t this another strange turn of events?’

Kang Woo-jin barely restarted his stalled brain. This was a bigger deal than when he had overturned Director Shin Dong-chun’s plans, thousands of times bigger.

It was at this moment that Hong Hye-yeon’s laughter-filled voice was heard.

“Woo-jin, you’re too calm, aren’t you? Did you perhaps expect me to say I’d do ‘The Fixer’?”

No, not at all. Kang Woo-jin didn’t speak because he was still in shock. He was worried he might make a mistake. So, he just shook his head.

-Slightly.

Hong Hye-yeon tilted her head slightly and asked again.

“But why are you so calm? It’s no fun. I thought you’d be a bit surprised this time.”

He was surprised. Very much so. He could be honest about this. Soon, Woo-jin managed to speak in a low voice.

“I was surprised.”

“Funny, you don’t look even a bit moved.”

Around this time, Kang Woo-jin was struggling to think. About why this goddess was here. Then, something flashed through his mind. Kang Woo-jin muttered it.

“Did Song Man-woo PD [Production Director] tell you about it?”

Director Shin Dong-chun and PD Song Man-woo were close. If there was a connection to Hong Hye-yeon, it was this, and whether it was the right answer or not, Hong Hye-yeon smiled and swept back her long hair.

“Half right.”

She smelled good. Ah, no. Kang Woo-jin suddenly came to his senses. First, he needed clear confirmation.

“…So, you’re really going to do ‘The Fixer’?”

“That’s what I said. Is it not okay?”

“If you’re joking.”

“I’m not? I know it seems like I’m always playing around, but I’m busy. I don’t have time to joke.”

Even her pouting was goddess-like. Whatever it was, he was thankful, right? Very, very thankful. Kang Woo-jin’s reputation had risen endlessly, but his inner self was still that of a commoner.

And now, Hong Hye-yeon was saying she would join the project that commoner was trying to do.

‘Combat power increased by a million times.’

In an instant, Kang Woo-jin’s passion soared.

“If you want to do it, I guess it’s okay.”

“Yeah, it’s a go, right?”

Meanwhile, Shin Dong-chun, the square-jawed director, was standing there dumbfounded, watching Woo-jin and Hong Hye-yeon’s conversation.

“······Ah.”

He covered his face with one hand and opened his mouth.

“Um, Hye-yeon. Please, sit down first.”

But Hong Hye-yeon shook her head.

“No. I have to leave soon because of my next schedule. Ah, Director Dong-chun. It’s been a while. I’m saying hello now.”

“Ah… yes. It has been a while. But, Hye-yeon, are you really, truly going to do ‘The Fixer’? I’m sorry. It’s a bit hard to believe.”

“Yes, I want to do it.”

Hong Hye-yeon, who had answered briefly, placed a bundle of papers she had brought on the desk. It was ‘The Fixer’ script.

“I’ve already read the script several times. If the director is okay with it, I’d like to play the ‘wife’ role.”

“Hye-yeon… you know exactly what you’re doing, right? That wife role isn’t a lead role, it’s a supporting role, and this ‘The Fixer’ is just a mediocre short film, right?”

“Yeah, yes. I know. And I heard this film is going to be submitted to the ‘Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival’?”

“…Huh? How did you know that?”

At the question, Hong Hye-yeon smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

“My talented CEO told me.”

“Wait, wait a minute.”

Director Shin Dong-chun sat weakly on his chair, overwhelmed by the many things happening at once. At this moment, something flashed in his mind, and he made eye contact with Hong Hye-yeon again.

“Ah! But Hye-yeon, the appearance fee… it’s impossible for me to match it.”

“I know that too.”

Hong Hye-yeon, who had quickly muttered, took out a business card from her jacket pocket. She handed the business card to Director Shin Dong-chun.

Her smile deepened.

“But we’re the investors, so I don’t think you need to worry about that?”

“Yes? Investors, you say.”

Director Shin Dong-chun, who trailed off, checked the business card he had received.

-bw Entertainment.

-CEO Choi Sung-gun.

The business card had Hong Hye-yeon’s agency and CEO’s name on it. Director Shin Dong-chun, who was looking at the business card, raised his head again.

“Ah, CEO Choi.”

“You know him?”

“Of course. He’s someone who would be stranger if I didn’t know him. But does that mean bw is also in charge of the investment?”

“Yes. If you contact the CEO directly, the details will be worked out.”

Things were rapidly escalating. Kang Woo-jin just maintained his poker face and watched. He didn’t know what was going on, but he decided to just keep quiet. Around that time, Hong Hye-yeon turned to leave, then stopped.

“Ah, and Director Dong-chun. Please keep my joining and other things related to me a secret from the outside. If possible, until the film is submitted.”

She grabbed the door handle of the rental office, then suddenly turned to look at Kang Woo-jin.

“But why ‘The Fixer’ of all things?”

He had heard a similar question somewhere. So, Woo-jin gave a similar answer with a solemn expression.

“By gut feeling.”

“…Gut feeling? Ha! You’re really something. You know you’re a bit of an oddball, right?”

“I don’t know.”

Hong Hye-yeon, who had a slightly dumbfounded expression, muttered softly and left the office.

“Well, I’ll see when I see it. I’ll contact you.”

-Click.

As soon as the door closed, Director Shin Dong-chun immediately rushed to Kang Woo-jin.

“What is going on?! Woo-jin! Did you have no idea either??!”

However.

“······”

Kang Woo-jin remained silent with a firm expression. This wasn’t about maintaining his concept.

It was just that.

‘…Contact me??’

He was amazed by Hong Hye-yeon’s words to contact him.

That same afternoon. Kang Woo-jin’s one-room apartment.

Because of the chaotic events that had happened since morning, Kang Woo-jin was now lying sprawled on his bed. Staring blankly at the ceiling was a bonus. Various thoughts crossed his mind, but the biggest one right now was Hong Hye-yeon, whom he had seen in the morning.

Of course, it was good. Director Shin Dong-chun felt the same way. Still, it felt a bit like walking in a dream.

“Does this mean I’ll be working with Hong Hye-yeon on two projects in a row?”

At this moment, Kang Woo-jin thought of his regular friend, Kim Dae-young. What would he think if he heard this? Wouldn’t he be genuinely amazed? After thinking such useless thoughts for a while, Kang Woo-jin suddenly got up.

One thing was certain.

“I can’t just sit still.”

Kang Woo-jin’s motivation and combat power were burning fiercely compared to yesterday. What Woo-jin picked up was the official book script of ‘Profiler Han-ryang’ Part 1, which he had received yesterday. The cover was light purple, and the title was in white, with a brushstroke feel.

“This is the official book script- it definitely looks impressive.”

Unlike the bundle of papers, the official book script had the power to excite people. At least, that’s how Kang Woo-jin felt right now.

“Cool- I’ll be looking at this while I’m on set, right?”

He also had fantasies. Himself looking at this book script on a film set with numerous staff running around. Thanks to that, Kang Woo-jin felt a sense of seriousness.

-Slightly.

He smiled faintly and casually poked the black square attached to the side of the book script. Soon, Woo-jin was sucked into the subspace.

The endless, dark space.

The feeling of the infinite subspace was still the same. However, Kang Woo-jin was now very calm, except for a slight fear. He had been in and out of it quite a bit, so it was natural.

“Let’s see-”

Kang Woo-jin turned and moved towards the white squares floating in the air. What was interesting was that the number of white squares listed had become quite simple.

Now, only three were visible.

Originally, there should have been more than three. The reason was simple. Woo-jin had learned the ‘delete’ function through subspace experiments. The method was simple. Select the unnecessary white square and say delete out loud, and it would disappear.

It was similar to the ‘exit’ command to go outside.

Kang Woo-jin, who liked to organize things, liked this function quite a bit. It was easy to see and neat, wasn’t it?

Whatever it was.

-Slightly.

Woo-jin checked the three white squares that had been reduced.

-[1/Scenario (Title: The Fixer), B-grade]

-[2/Script (Title: Profiler Han-ryang Part 1), A-grade]

-[3/Script (Title: Profiler Han-ryang Part 1), A+ grade]

Soon, he spoke to himself as if he had expected it.

“As expected. The rough draft and the official book script are recognized separately.”

It was about ‘Profiler Han-ryang’. In fact, until yesterday, there were two white squares in Woo-jin’s subspace. But just now, one was added, making it three.

In other words, the official book script of ‘Profiler Han-ryang’ Part 1 was listed.

If this was the case, the answer was simple. The rough draft, which was a bundle of papers, and the official script, which was a book script, were separate. It was natural. The content was the same, but the official book script had slight modifications, such as the atmosphere.

Around this time.

“Huh?”

Kang Woo-jin, who was looking at the white squares, found something different in the one that had just been added.

-[3/Script (Title: Profiler Han-ryang Part 1), A+ grade]

It was the grade displayed at the end.

“A+? A + was added?”

The original rough draft was just A-grade. But this official book script had a + added. In other words, the grade had gone up.

“A+ above A-grade? Then what’s above that, A++? Or S-grade?”

Whatever it was, it was a new discovery. It was the first time he had seen the A+ grade, but Kang Woo-jin focused on something else.

“This grade isn’t a fixed value, is it?”

It meant that there could be changes. Well, it wasn’t that strange. There could be many processes and changes in order to make one work. Then why did the grade of this official book script go up?

Was it because the quality had improved? Because there were some modifications?

Either way, the fact that the grade had gone up was a good sign. It would be a problem if it went down, but it was okay if it went up. Kang Woo-jin, who had muttered appropriately, turned his attention to what he was going to do.

“If possible, let’s do all the readings (experiences).”

Experiencing the characters in the official book script of ‘Profiler Han-ryang’ Part 1. If possible, all of them. Of course, ‘Manager Park’ was also included.

In a way, this was practice for Kang Woo-jin.

“The goal is to master all the characters.”

Having the perspective of all the male characters in ‘Profiler Han-ryang’, not just Manager Park’s perspective. This would increase his understanding.

“I’m lacking in this area anyway, and more than anything, if I want to maintain my concept among these amazing top actors, I need to have something.”

Kang Woo-jin didn’t know that this was an important part of script analysis, understanding each character and their rhythm. He had no idea that this would further improve the quality of his acting. It was just a simple conclusion drawn from the perspective of an ordinary person.

And so, Kang Woo-jin.

-[You have selected 3/Script (Title: Profiler Han-ryang Part 1)]

-[Listing the characters available for reading (experience).]

-[A: Yoo Ji-hyung, B: Jung Sang-min, C: Bae Se-jun······E: Manager Park]

First, he chose the male lead role.

[“Preparing to read ‘A: Yoo Ji-hyung’······”]

Soon.

[“······Preparation complete. It is a script or scenario with very high completion. The implementation rate is 100%. Starting the reading.”]

Kang Woo-jin was sucked into Yoo Ji-hyung’s world, not Manager Park’s.

Two days later.

It was when Kang Woo-jin, who had woken up late in the morning with messy hair, was rubbing his eyes and moving to the bathroom.

-♬♪

Woo-jin’s cell phone rang loudly. At first, he thought it was an alarm? But it wasn’t. It was a phone call. The caller was Director Shin Dong-chun. Soon, Woo-jin, who was tilting his head, answered the phone. There was no need to lower his voice.

-Slightly.

Because it was firmly locked since he had just woken up.

“Yes, Director.”

On the other hand, Director Shin Dong-chun’s voice on the phone was excited.

“Woo-jin! Haha, you need to go somewhere with me a few hours later, around late lunch!”

“Where to?”

“You’ll see when you get there! Ah, do you have any plans?”

Plans? Not really. But pretending to be too free would be a problem for his concept. So, Woo-jin pretended to think for a moment.

“Um- around lunchtime is impossible. How about around 3 pm?”

“Okay, let’s meet around that time.”

Later, a few hours later.

Woo-jin, who was wearing a padded jacket because the weather had warmed up, came out of his one-room building and walked a bit. He saw Director Shin Dong-chun, with his square jaw, smiling brightly on the side of the road.

“Woo-jin! Get in!”

Behind the energetic Director Shin Dong-chun, a black van was parked.

“Hahaha, I rented it for a long term because I needed it.”

It didn’t feel bad to be picked up by car. Woo-jin imagined his future manager as he got into the van, and Director Shin Dong-chun, who was somehow very excited, quickly got into the driver’s seat.

-Vroom!

The van started moving. The van entered the highway and quickly gained speed. Meanwhile, Director Shin Dong-chun, who was driving, kept talking to Woo-jin in the passenger seat.

“The investment was thankfully resolved very cleanly, hahaha. Hye-yeon is a very valuable person, a very valuable person.”

He said that bw Entertainment was the new investor, that they had immediately found a film company, and that the recruitment of actors was also fast. Around this time, Woo-jin just showed a relaxed attitude by nodding his head. After about two hours of driving?

-Screech!

The van arrived in Paju, Gyeonggi. Kang Woo-jin got out of the car. Then, Woo-jin looked ahead. He couldn’t help it. There was nothing around except for a rather large villa in front of him.

“Ah.”

As soon as he saw the villa, Woo-jin felt it.

“That villa.”

It was very similar to the villa in ‘The Fixer’. As if to prove this, Director Shin Dong-chun, who was standing next to Woo-jin, smiled happily.

“That’s right. This villa is the main filming location for our ‘The Fixer’.”

A two-story building, a living room with large windows that showed the inside, a secluded surrounding road, and a mountain full of trees behind the villa, etc.

It was a carbon copy of the villa in ‘The Fixer’, with a slightly eerie feel.

Director Shin Dong-chun, who had walked a few steps towards the villa, added an explanation.

“The production budget is tight, so we can’t even think about sets. Most short films are in a similar situation.”

I see. But how did they find such a similar villa? As Woo-jin muttered inwardly, Director Shin Dong-chun, who had turned around, continued.

“I accidentally found this place during the early stages of the scenario and kept it in my mind. When the investment was resolved this time, I immediately contacted this place.”

After that, Director Shin Dong-chun laughed, saying that the elderly couple who owned the villa had readily agreed. Then he.

-Slightly.

Suddenly, he walked in front of Kang Woo-jin and showed him a white envelope he had brought from his side. Soon, Director Shin Dong-chun, who had changed to a serious face, muttered with a confident voice.

“Woo-jin. Both the investor and the film company have been resolved. The rest of the actors will also be cast without any problems, thankfully. Hye-yeon too.”

“That’s a relief.”

“It’s all thanks to Kang Woo-jin.”

Contrary to Woo-jin, who thought he hadn’t done anything, Director Shin Dong-chun, who had slightly reddened eyes, handed the envelope to Kang Woo-jin.

“Now, the contract is for the last main character. It’s the official contract.”

Kang Woo-jin received the envelope calmly. With this, Kang Woo-jin’s first lead role in a movie was confirmed. Although it was a short film. Then, Director Shin Dong-chun made eye contact with Woo-jin and continued his briefing.

“However, because there’s no time, the script reading and the actual filming schedule will overlap. The actual filming will start on March 10th. The filming period is expected to be 5 days.”

Today was Friday, February 28th. In other words, there were about ten days left until March 10th. The filming was suddenly approaching. Thanks to that, Kang Woo-jin muttered inwardly while maintaining his cynicism.

‘Wow- it’s a bit nerve-wracking now that it’s actually happening.’

At this moment.

-Vibration.

Kang Woo-jin’s cell phone vibrated briefly. It was a text message that had arrived, and Woo-jin, who had asked for Director Shin Dong-chun’s understanding, checked the sender and the content of the text.

-PD Song Man-woo.

-[Sharing the schedule for the script reading and team-building MT [Membership Training]]

-[March 7th Saturday ~ 8th Sunday, 1 night 2 days schedule]

The script reading for ‘Profiler Han-ryang’ was a week later.

And that day, March 7th, had arrived.

『[Star Talk] ‘Profiler Han-ryang’, with a large number of top actors joining, is going on an MT for script reading… Departing tomorrow』

It was in the blink of an eye.

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