I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 22

Ryu Jung-min couldn’t take his eyes off Kang Woo-jin.

“……”

It had started with his own misunderstanding, thinking Woo-jin was a manager, but now it was because of Woo-jin’s acting skills, which were even more impressive than his initial impact.

‘That acting… where exactly is it ‘just enough,’ that bluff?’

The male lead of ‘Profiler Han-ryang’ was Ryu Jung-min, but at this moment, the protagonist of the reading session was Kang Woo-jin. Not only Ryu Jung-min but all the actors were staring intently at Woo-jin. Their gazes were all the same.

It had changed from ‘Who are you?’ to ‘What the heck are you?’

Of course, the various officials stationed in the large hall felt similarly. Among them was CEO Choi Sung-gun, with his long hair tied in a ponytail. He was the CEO of BW Entertainment, the agency of top actress Hong Hye-yeon. He was also the hidden investor in the recent short film ‘Errand Service.’ CEO Choi Sung-gun had come separately from Hong Hye-yeon and was sitting on a temporary chair near the entrance.

And the ponytail-wearing CEO Choi Sung-gun was now speechless.

“…How long does it take to get into character? How is his emotional switch so fast?”

It was all because of Kang Woo-jin. An unknown actor that Hong Hye-yeon had shown interest in, and that PD [Production Director] Song Man-woo and writer Park Eun-mi had suddenly cast. Frankly, CEO Choi Sung-gun’s first impression of Woo-jin was just that he was okay.

But now it was different.

The moment he saw Park Dae-ri that he had shown in an instant, CEO Choi Sung-gun’s mind went blank. He was confused about what he was currently seeing, and whether he was even qualified to judge the man performing it.

‘I’ve never seen acting like that before.’

How much analysis and practice would it take to achieve such a level of execution? No, could it even be achieved through practice alone? The current Kang Woo-jin was beyond any standard of an actor.

Yes, he was just Park Dae-ri. Just Park Dae-ri.

Around this point, Park Dae-ri changed his gaze and expression. The intense eyes that had been filled with murderous intent and pleasure now held a calculating smile. For some reason, a child was reflected in his face. A twisted fairy tale. A calculated innocence. And then he picked something up. Then, a low line was spoken.

“Cute. So fluffy. Makes me want to burst it.”

Park Dae-ri slowly turned his head as if looking for something around him. The focus was clearly on his face. But the fingertips of Park Dae-ri, who was holding something, trembled slightly. It wasn’t from fear.

It was from the restlessness of excitement.

Here, CEO Choi Sung-gun, who was watching Park Dae-ri, unknowingly rose from his seat.

‘…A sociopath who finds pleasure in sight.’

Fun. Park Dae-ri was having fun in sight. By destroying something. At this moment, no one in the large hall doubted that the man was Park Dae-ri.

It was impossible.

It wasn’t just imitating what was written in the script. That’s how smooth, clean, and seamless Kang Woo-jin’s acting was. And what about the lines he spoke in a low voice? CEO Choi Sung-gun was constantly impressed.

‘A single short line captivates people.’

The expression ‘bewitched’ would be appropriate. Around this time, CEO Choi Sung-gun suddenly remembered something.

‘Wait a minute, he said ‘just enough.”

The order that PD Song Man-woo had given to Woo-jin was ‘just enough.’ It was a request to only do enough to set the tone of the play. In other words, all the acting that Kang Woo-jin had shown was just enough.

At that, the ponytail-wearing CEO Choi Sung-gun couldn’t help but be flustered.

However, Kang Woo-jin’s expression after finishing the first part of Park Dae-ri’s acting was too firm. No, it was detached. His face said that the acting just now was very light.

Even.

‘As soon as the acting ended, the Park Dae-ri persona disappeared like a ghost. It’s the same blank expression, but his eyes are completely different? How is his emotional control so fast??’

The process of Kang Woo-jin entering and exiting acting was so fast that it was insane. As CEO Choi Sung-gun, who had been in the acting scene for over a decade, it was a sight he had never seen before.

‘Just enough… might be right.’

And he admitted it. Yes, he didn’t know what was what, but that guy. That monster did just enough. That composure couldn’t come out if it wasn’t just enough.

In that way, Kang Woo-jin overwhelmed everyone in this large hall.

Whether it was low or high, whatever the expectation was, Kang Woo-jin far exceeded it with just one ‘just enough’ performance. It was proven by the fact that over a hundred people, including the actors, were speechless.

“……”

“……”

Before they knew it, everyone was casting the same gaze at Kang Woo-jin, who was sitting silently.

Ah, I see why he’s sitting there.

On the other hand, Kang Woo-jin.

‘Whew- that was a bit tough. Sitting down and acting isn’t easy.’

He felt like he was sitting on pins and needles with the burdensome gazes of over a hundred people fixed on him.

‘More than that, everyone’s glaring at me. Was my acting bad? That can’t be. Anyway, my turn is over, so why isn’t it progressing? Should I just wait?’

He also had a slight urge to run away. Still, Kang Woo-jin maintained a poker face for now. His tension was still at its peak, but he somehow kept up the pretense of being dignified. He was chanting orders like ‘Time, go faster.’

That was even more shocking to Ryu Jung-min, the male lead across from him. His face was blank.

‘How can he be so calm? That level of acting… is it really nothing??’

Then, the veteran actor with over 30 years of acting experience, sitting next to him, lightly tapped Ryu Jung-min’s shoulder.

-Tap.

And then he whispered to Ryu Jung-min.

“Don’t lose your mind.”

“…Yes?”

The veteran actor gestured with his chin towards Kang Woo-jin, who had a firm face across from them.

“He captivated everyone with just one performance, he’s playing with the flow as he pleases. That guy isn’t a rookie. He has a past.”

At this moment, Kang Woo-jin was firmly imprinted on the minds of all the actors in this hall.

“Where did such an absurd thing come from? You better keep your head straight, or your acting will be eaten up?”

“……”

As an absurd monster actor.

Back.

The second part of ‘Profiler Han-ryang’ began according to the script. Kang Woo-jin’s vision was not of the reading room. Woo-jin. No, Park Dae-ri was walking down the street. Licking an ice cream. His clothes were casual. As if he had just come out of the house.

The place Park Dae-ri arrived at was the police station in front of his house.

-Squeak.

Park Dae-ri, who had put the rest of the ice cream in his mouth, opened the police station door without much thought. The police all seemed busy. No one paid attention to Park Dae-ri, who had just entered. Soon, Park Dae-ri tilted his head and knocked on the open door.

-Knock, knock, knock.

It was then that one of the police officers took an interest in Park Dae-ri.

“How can I help you?”

Park Dae-ri’s answer, with a calm face, was simple.

“I’ve come to turn myself in.”

Here, PD Song Man-woo changed the scene.

“Inside the interrogation room, Yoo Ji-hyung and Park Dae-ri are facing each other.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Park Dae-ri looked at the male lead, Ryu Jung-min. That is, Yoo Ji-hyung. Park Dae-ri’s expression was strange. Somewhere between a smile and indifference. However, his intense eyes, with a faint madness, were full of Yoo Ji-hyung.

The conversation started with Park Dae-ri.

“You’re angry.”

Before starting the acting, Ryu Jung-min looked at Park Dae-ri across from him and muttered to himself.

‘He’s not even looking at the script. No, does he not need to? Well, with that level of Park Dae-ri’s execution, he must have analyzed the script like crazy.’

With that misunderstanding, he spoke his lines as Yoo Ji-hyung. His tone was mixed with annoyance, like his nickname, Yoo Han-ryang [a person who is free-spirited and doesn’t care about social norms].

“I’m not angry. I’m just excited, seeing that great serial killer in front of me.”

“Great. Right. I was great, once.”

Park Dae-ri, who had rolled his eyes as if reminiscing about the past, lowered his head and looked at his handcuffed hands.

“These are more solid than I thought. They hurt a little.”

Yoo Ji-hyung rested his chin on his hand.

“You look comfortable. Aren’t you scared? This is an interrogation room. There are police outside.”

“I know, there are probably police behind that mirror too.”

“That’s right.”

“But surprisingly, I’m not scared.”

Yoo Ji-hyung suddenly asked Park Dae-ri.

“You’re a psychopath, right?”

Park Dae-ri, with a crude smile, answered the question with a question.

“A profiler? Is that what you are?”

“Well, yeah. Just got caught up in a troublesome situation.”

“Then you have to do something. I’m looking forward to it.”

Yoo Ji-hyung sighed annoyedly, but he was also grasping every small movement of Park Dae-ri.

“Why did you turn yourself in? If you had just lived as you were, it would have remained an unsolved case forever. Wouldn’t that be a medal for you?”

Park Dae-ri, who had put his hands together, looked at Yoo Ji-hyung for a moment and then tilted his head slightly.

“How many is it?”

“What?”

“The people I killed.”

“…Four. If that serial killer is definitely you.”

“I guess so?”

“Why did you turn yourself in?”

Repeated question. Park Dae-ri looked at Yoo Ji-hyung and then twitched the corners of his mouth. He was holding back a laugh. Because the current situation was going according to his plan. He was also the protagonist of the moment.

“Because I was pissed off?”

“About what?”

“You know, when you’re misunderstood for no reason, you can’t stand it.”

Yoo Ji-hyung opened the file he had brought.

“What misunderstanding? You made a splendid comeback with the four murders in the past and this one?”

Park Dae-ri, narrowing his eyes, pointed at the file with his index finger. His tone was meaningful.

“That’s why I turned myself in. Someone is imitating my great work. It’s a fake, that thing.”

“…Imitating?”

“Yes, and too clumsily. The police didn’t even suspect it?”

“The method is the same as yours?”

Park Dae-ri chuckled and leaned forward slightly.

“Profiler. Do you know why they tell kids not to watch violent movies?”

“Because they imitate it.”

“That’s right, and um- I didn’t kill that old man who died this time. There’s a real culprit who imitated me.”

“……”

“Don’t you believe me? If you investigate, you’ll find out. My alibi is solid. Ah, you haven’t been able to do that yet.”

As if he had said everything he needed to say, Park Dae-ri leaned back in his chair.

“That’s why I turned myself in. To prove that I didn’t kill him.”

Yoo Ji-hyung asked back with his arms crossed.

“There’s another real culprit?”

A serial killer turned himself in, claiming innocence.

Several hours later.

The script reading was over. It had started early in the morning and was finished around the afternoon. But the temperature inside the large hall was still hot. At this time, PD Song Man-woo poured cold water on it.

“Everyone, you’ve worked hard! We’ve prepared a lot for the after-party in two hours, so please enjoy it! Of course, if you want to rest, you can stay comfortably in your room!”

As soon as his declaration ended, some of the dozens of actors got up from their seats. In the meantime, they glanced at Kang Woo-jin. The actors who were slowly leaving the hall also glanced. They all looked sideways at Woo-jin, who was sitting with a blank expression. Of course, the actors who remained were the same.

Their perception had changed 180 degrees from the beginning.

Of course, there was also constant whispering.

“Wasn’t his acting amazing?”

“Yeah, he was the spitting image of Park Dae-ri. I wonder if the writer wrote it based on him.”

“It was a fresh shock after a long time. But… he seems like a difficult type to get close to, right?”

“I agree. Maybe it’s because I saw that Park Dae-ri acting, but his blank expression is so intense that it’s a bit hard to approach him.”

“But where did they find that guy? A theater group?”

However, since Woo-jin was still a bit cynical, the actors didn’t approach him for now. It was even worse after seeing his intense Park Dae-ri acting.

“Is he recovering his emotions? The atmosphere is a bit heavy.”

“It’s understandable. After seeing his acting, I think you have to be careful not to become a real sociopath.”

“I’ve heard that accidents happen when they do that. In Hollywood.”

“It’s a bit dangerous.”

Their judgment was wrong. The expressionless Kang Woo-jin was currently lost in thought.

‘I’ve been so tense, I’m starving. I’m going to destroy the meat at the after-party. I should hold back on the alcohol, right? If I get caught acting out of character, I’m screwed. I hope the meat is beef.’

He was also subtly timing things. To be precise, he was watching the situation.

‘Everyone’s starting to leave. Should I get up too? No, should I stay a little longer? There are a lot of people right now.’

Thanks to the seriousness that Woo-jin had put on, everyone felt heavy about him, but he himself was craving beef. Dozens of people in the hall were just watching Woo-jin, who seemed to be in such a sensitive state. Various entertainment officials, reporters, actors including Hong Hye-yeon and Ryu Jung-min, and the production team of ‘Profiler Han-ryang’, etc.

It was then.

-Tap tap.

Someone tapped Kang Woo-jin’s shoulder. When he turned around, he saw about six people led by a woman. Two of them were holding cameras on gimbals. Soon, the woman at the front smiled awkwardly.

“Hello, Woo-jin. We’re the making team.”

The making team? Ah, I’ve seen it on YouTube. So that’s how they film it. Around this time, the gazes towards Woo-jin in the hall increased. The actors and others who were leaving the hall also paused. Then, Kang Woo-jin’s low answer spread.

“Yes, hello.”

“I’m sorry you must be tired, but we’d like to ask you a few questions.”

What’s tiring? But they’re asking me questions? Ah, I’m a bit nervous. Kang Woo-jin nodded.

“Okay.”

As soon as he gave permission, the woman’s expression brightened.

“I really enjoyed your acting! I heard that the role of Park Dae-ri is very difficult, but you acted so realistically that I was surprised. How much did you analyze and practice? Did it take you a long time to grasp the subtext [the underlying meaning] (the hidden meaning in the stage directions or lines)?”

Around this time, writer Park Eun-mi, who was sitting at the head of the U-shaped table, took off her headband and tapped PD Song Man-woo’s shoulder next to her.

“PD-nim [PD is an honorific title], shouldn’t we stop that? Should Woo-jin pass on the making? If it’s the Woo-jin we know, he’ll answer without any filtering, like ‘It wasn’t that difficult.'”

But PD Song Man-woo, who was stroking his beard, was calm.

“It’s a question they usually ask other actors. It doesn’t look good if we cut it. And that’s his charm. A different kind of star quality. A justified self-esteem.”

“There are reporters too?”

“It’s okay. The reporters are only supposed to write articles about the reading. It’s also an opportunity to firmly establish the character of the actor Kang Woo-jin to the remaining people. All the entertainment companies that attended must be drooling over Woo-jin.”

“…Still.”

PD Song Man-woo calmed Park Eun-mi, who was worried with a mother’s heart.

“Haha, it’s okay. There are a lot of people, and even if Woo-jin doesn’t care about other people’s opinions, he’ll answer appropriately.”

Kang Woo-jin was just lost in thought.

‘Hmm- analysis? Practice? What’s subtext? I think I need to answer this question with some professional terms.’

It was a hall full of top actors. If he answered vaguely, it might show.

‘I might look like a hack, and then my concept might be questioned. I’ll just use some social skills to deflect the question here.’

Woo-jin, with a nonchalant expression, answered the making team woman briefly.

“The script was just good.”

At that, writer Park Eun-mi, who was watching the interview, was slightly moved.

“Oh my. Just like that?”

The making team woman smiled and asked another question.

“Ahaha, I see. Right, the script is amazing, isn’t it? Um- Woo-jin, you suddenly appeared like a comet, were you in a theater group? Did you build up your acting skills in a theater group?”

At this moment, the actors, including Ryu Jung-min, and the entertainment officials pricked up their ears, and Kang Woo-jin’s answer was very concise.

“No, I’m self-taught.”

In an instant, everyone left in the hall blinked their eyes.

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