I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 308

Joseph Felton, a man over 190cm tall, arrived at the shooting range for the first time just as Kang Woo-jin was finishing up his explanation with the range’s chubby owner. The car he arrived in was parked next to Woo-jin’s van, which had been set up earlier. Joseph Felton and Megan Stone, with her brown bobbed hair, stepped out of the car.

The reason these famous Hollywood figures came to this particular shooting range was simple: to meet Kang Woo-jin.

The decision had been finalized that morning when Joseph and Megan met at a cafe. As the saying goes, ‘strike while the iron is hot,’ Megan contacted Choi Sung-gun. The reply from Choi Sung-gun’s side came surprisingly quickly: ‘I’m free until this afternoon.’

A peculiar detail was that Kang Woo-jin was said to be going to the shooting range. Joseph suggested to Megan that they visit the range around lunchtime, and Megan readily agreed. That’s how their visit to the shooting range came about.

Anyway, Joseph and Megan got out of the car. Joseph was the first to spot Kang Woo-jin through the range’s window. He stopped Megan from moving.

“Wait a minute.”

The tall Megan tilted her head.

“Why?”

“Let’s not disturb him for now.”

“Ah.”

They were surprise guests, after all. Joseph wanted to appear after Kang Woo-jin had finished what he was doing, out of courtesy. Megan nodded in agreement. Soon, Megan, who was watching Kang Woo-jin’s group through the window, spoke up.

“But suddenly, shooting? That’s unexpected.”

The giant Joseph shrugged.

“It does seem a bit like that to me too. But there probably isn’t a big reason. Maybe he’s just trying out some shooting for a gunfight scene in a project.”

“Ah, I see. It wouldn’t be easy in Korea, after all.”

While they were talking, Kang Woo-jin inside the range was seen moving to the shooting area. Joseph and Megan moved inside as discreetly as possible. Joseph Felton gestured to the chubby owner that Kang Woo-jin was with them. Then, he checked on Kang Woo-jin from outside the entrance of the shooting range.

The gun he chose was a Glock 17.

There was no awkwardness in Kang Woo-jin’s handling of the pistol. If anything, he seemed quite used to it.

‘As expected—’

The image in Joseph’s mind grew stronger. Around that time, the foreigners next to Woo-jin, who had finished preparing to shoot, sneered.

“Is he Chinese?”

Upon hearing their voices, Joseph immediately frowned.

‘Those morons.’

Just from their conversation, it was clear that those three foreigners were looking down on Kang Woo-jin. But what Woo-jin proposed to them was novel.

“Let’s have a game. You and me, let’s see who gets the higher score.”

A casual bet. Joseph was immediately intrigued. Of course, Megan was too.

And so.

“I’ll go first.”

Kang Woo-jin, wearing earmuffs, raised the Glock 17 first.

-Bang!

Following the first shot, four more gunshots rang out in quick succession.

-Bang, bang, bang, bang!

The faces of the three foreigners who had been ignoring Woo-jin, as well as Joseph and Megan, hardened. Their eyes widened considerably. It was only natural. The bullets that Kang Woo-jin fired all seemed to be sucked into the red dots on the chest of the human-shaped target. Without any practice, in one go? That was definitely not a beginner’s level.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

-Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!

Five more gunshots rang out. This time, the target Woo-jin hit was the red dot on the head. Again, the red dot was completely erased. Not a single shot missed.

At that moment, Joseph unconsciously murmured.

“Oh my gosh······”

Megan had the same dumbfounded look on her face. Around this time, the giant Joseph recalled the cafe he had met Megan at earlier that morning. Specifically, it was around the time the words ‘special forces’ related to Kang Woo-jin came up in their conversation.

It started with Megan.

“······Did you hear? That Kang Woo-jin is from the special forces.”

“Special forces? What are you talking about?”

“Gary told me.”

She was referring to Gary Peck, the stunt coordinator who had worked with them on ‘Last Kill 3’.

“Gary said that he now understands why Kang Woo-jin was so agile during the martial arts screen test for ‘Last Kill 3’.”

The giant Joseph’s eyes widened.

“That’s so sudden? Where did Gary hear that from?”

“Ethan is currently in charge of a drama stunt team in Korea, and of course, it’s the drama starring Kang Woo-jin. Gary said he got the information from Ethan.”

“······Ethan? Ethan Smith?”

Joseph knew Ethan’s face. He had also worked with Ethan Smith in the past.

“Ethan and Kang Woo-jin are working on the same project in Korea right now?”

“That’s right. It’s probably just a coincidence, but.”

“Kang Woo-jin is from the special forces?”

“He’s said to be incredibly good at ‘CQC’ [Close Quarters Combat].”

“······’CQC'”

The snowball of misconceptions and misunderstandings began to roll in Hollywood, and Joseph’s widened eyes showed no sign of shrinking. ‘CQC’ was considered top-tier even in Hollywood. It appeared in many Hollywood movies, and countless Hollywood actors trained hard to master ‘CQC’.

There were very few actors who could actually use ‘CQC’ freely.

But suddenly, a Korean actor was using ‘CQC’?

Joseph, who had been in Hollywood for a long time, couldn’t help but have his eyes sparkle. What form of ‘CQC’ would Kang Woo-jin use? Joseph, filled with illusions, made eye contact with Megan, who had brown bobbed hair, and murmured.

“I’m incredibly curious about Kang Woo-jin’s ‘CQC’.”

Up to this point.

Joseph, who was recalling a few hours ago, returned to reality. And he refocused his gaze on Kang Woo-jin, who had erased the red dots with 10 shots. He was nonchalantly lowering the Glock 17. Joseph wiped his mouth with one hand, which had slightly opened.

‘That posture and shooting skills. More than anything, he’s not hesitant to shoot a gun. Yes, it’s brief, but it’s clear that he’s mastered ‘CQC’. Special forces······To be honest, when I first heard it, I was half-doubtful, but – it seems certain.’

Megan’s widened eyes also held a similar meaning. Around this time, Kang Woo-jin, who had finished shooting, turned his head. He was looking at the three foreigners who were out of it.

“It’s your turn.”

The three foreigners, who were spacing out.

“······”

“······”

Faced with the unexpected situation, they just looked at each other, unable to speak. Among them, the man wearing sunglasses barely moved.

-Swish.

With a slightly trembling hand, he raised the pistol he had received earlier. His face was stiff. It was because he was quite tense.

-Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Soon, the sound of gunshots spread widely. He also fired a total of 10 shots. But the human-shaped target that automatically came closer only had about 5 holes. In other words, half of the 10 shots had pierced the air.

It was a clear victory for Kang Woo-jin.

But the foreigner who had just shot the gun acted out of bravado.

“Le, let’s do it again!!”

Kang Woo-jin nodded calmly.

“Sure, this time you go first.”

The foreigner, slightly gritting his teeth, took off the sunglasses he was wearing and placed them on his head. And then.

“······”

A moment of silence. About 10 seconds. Then, he fired the gun.

-Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Another 10 shots. However, looking at the target that came closer, he had a better score than before. 8 holes were pierced, and 6 of them had penetrated the red dots. Next was Kang Woo-jin’s turn.

-Swish.

This time as well, Woo-jin shot the Glock 17 smoothly without any hesitation. What was unusual was.

-Bang!

His first shot pierced the number 7 drawn on the side of the target, not the chest or head. This obviously seemed like a mistake. As proof, a faint smile spread across the face of the foreigner with sunglasses.

‘Got it! As expected, he was just lucky the first time!’

But his smile didn’t last long.

-Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Woo-jin’s bullets, fired in succession, were erasing the number 7 on the target. In other words, the 7 points that Kang Woo-jin shot were not a mistake.

-Bang, bang, bang, bang!

All of his 9 bullets had penetrated the same spot. The number 7 on the target had disappeared. Finally, one last shot.

-Bang!

It pierced the red dot on the head. The target automatically came closer. There were only two holes in Woo-jin’s target. One in the head and one thick one in the side. Woo-jin, who had lowered his gun, spoke softly to the foreigners.

“500 dollars.”

After that.

The three foreigners, without any protest, gathered the money and handed 500 dollars to Kang Woo-jin. It was clear to anyone that the winner was the Korean. His skills were enough to earn applause from the shooting range staff, and Woo-jin, who had received the 500 dollars, handed the money back to the three foreigners.

“Buy some beer with this money, it’s on me.”

Their expressions became even more distorted. Their pride had hit rock bottom. On the other hand, the indifferent Woo-jin turned his body without any emotion. Choi Sung-gun and the BW Entertainment staff, who were standing there with their mouths open, came into view. Woo-jin, who had put on a strong poker face, slightly regretted it internally.

‘Aish, those bastards made me get pissed off and overdo it. I was just going to hit the target moderately and leave.’

He decided to put on a show of bravado and strength. Then, Choi Sung-gun, with his ponytail, approached Woo-jin, who had come up to him indifferently, and asked with difficulty.

“Hey, hey, Woo-jin. You shoot a gun like a pro? Is what I saw real??”

It was naturally the power of the ‘CQC’ he had pulled up, but Woo-jin answered as nonchalantly as possible.

“I’ve shot a few times before.”

“······”

Choi Sung-gun closed his mouth at the endlessly low tone of the answer. But the staff were not like that. They exclaimed things like ‘Amazing!’ and ‘Incredible!’.

It was at this moment.

“Kang Woo-jin-ssi.”

A giant black man approached Woo-jin, who was facing Choi Sung-gun. It was Joseph Felton, and Megan Stone was standing next to him. Woo-jin had already heard about their visit through Choi Sung-gun, so he was calm.

“Hello, it’s been a while.”

Joseph and Megan responded with similar greetings. Soon, the giant Joseph looked at Woo-jin and then moved his gaze. It was the lane behind him, where Kang Woo-jin had been shooting the Glock 17 until just now. The thrill from earlier still seemed to be lingering.

“······”

He had a lot of questions he wanted to ask, but Joseph held back for now. There were too many eyes watching, and it wasn’t a good place to talk.

“Woo-jin-ssi, if you have time, would you like to have a meal with us?”

At the question, Kang Woo-jin made eye contact with Choi Sung-gun. When he nodded, Woo-jin answered simply.

“Sure.”

After a few tens of minutes.

Kang Woo-jin could be found at a diner near the shooting range. A diner was similar to a highway rest stop in Korea. It was a store that handled many foods and was distributed throughout LA.

The seats were by the window. Joseph and Megan sat across from him.

Choi Sung-gun was outside the store, seemingly on a call, and the BW Entertainment staff were seated at the table next to Kang Woo-jin. A server approached and placed coffee cups in front of Kang Woo-jin, Joseph, and Megan. After roughly ordering, Joseph Felton took a sip of his coffee and then opened the conversation with Kang Woo-jin, who had an indifferent expression across from him.

“······I saw the shooting, it was amazing.”

Megan agreed enthusiastically.

“That’s right. I was surprised, really.”

Woo-jin, without any change in expression, answered in a low voice.

“It wasn’t that amazing.”

Joseph, who had been staring at Kang Woo-jin’s indifferent face for a moment, managed to smile and ran his hand through his hair.

“As I see more of you, Kang Woo-jin-ssi, you seem like an alien. If I may say so, I can confidently say that I haven’t seen anyone like you among all the Hollywood actors I’ve seen.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, 100%.”

Joseph, who had murmured, raised his coffee cup and spoke again.

“How much time do we have to talk?”

“Not long. About an hour or so.”

“Hmm, I see.”

Joseph brought up a topic other than the details of the project he was currently preparing.

“I heard that you’re working with Ethan Smith on your current project.”

At this, Woo-jin was slightly surprised. No, he flinched quite a bit.

‘Damn, the news travels fast.’

He didn’t expect to hear Ethan’s name as soon as he arrived in LA.

‘As expected, that big-nosed guy was quite famous in Hollywood, huh?’

Woo-jin, who was feeling a new sense of wonder, poured cold water on his chest. He had to make his poker face thicker.

“That’s right.”

“He’s a talented stunt coordinator even in Hollywood. He’s also close with Gary. There will be good synergy.”

“I think so too.”

“I heard that ‘CQC’ will be included in the project?”

While it was right to keep the detailed direction and storyboards of ‘The Beneficial Evil’ a secret, the fact that ‘CQC’ was included was not a secret. The domestic media knew about Ethan’s visit, even if they didn’t use the term ‘CQC’, and many people had already seen Kang Woo-jin’s ‘CQC’, so it was impossible to stop the talk from the beginning.

Therefore, Kang Woo-jin answered casually.

“That’s right. Not the whole thing, but a part of it.”

“Ethan is also skilled in ‘CQC’ design here. Hmm – I’m looking forward to it.”

At that moment, Joseph, who was imagining the ‘CQC’ shooting he had seen countless times in Hollywood, mixed with Kang Woo-jin’s shooting skills from earlier, swallowed slightly and opened his mouth.

“After checking a bit, I found out that the project you’re currently working on has overseas location filming. Is that overseas location schedule for ‘CQC’?”

“Something like that.”

“Can you tell me where it is?”

The location was also not a secret. It had already been revealed to the media.

“It’s in Bangkok, Thailand.”

“······Bangkok.”

At this moment.

-Swish.

Choi Sung-gun, who had finished his call, approached Woo-jin and said.

“Woo-jin, just a moment.”

He seemed to have something to say separately, and Kang Woo-jin, who had asked for understanding from Joseph and Megan, got up from his seat. Soon, in a situation where only the two of them were left, a moment of silence flowed.

“······”

“······”

About 15 seconds. The one who broke this silence first was.

“Bangkok. It’s worth going.”

It was the giant Joseph Felton.

“It’s Kang Woo-jin’s ‘CQC’, right?”

It meant he couldn’t hold back.