I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 431

July 2nd, morning.

A downtown street, slightly dirty, with many homeless people scattered around. Tall buildings and various shops are densely packed side by side, and people are moving busily on the sidewalks.

What about the road?

-Honk! Honk! Honk!!!

As soon as the traffic jam started, ear-splitting horns blared from everywhere. The driver of a yellow taxi lowered his window and cursed at the car in front.

“Damn it!! Just go already!!”

The pickup truck in front also lowered its window and responded with curses.

“Can’t you shut up?! Do you think I don’t want to go?! Hey! You wanna die?!!”

Shouts and screams echoed, filling the road. The city was filled with countless noises, enough to make one’s mind dizzy, but the people living there seemed used to it and went about their day. Among them, the taxi driver who had been cursing with his window down suddenly widened his eyes.

“Wh-what is that??!”

A bizarre figure on the sidewalk ahead. No, was that even human? The taxi driver was confused because he saw a gruesome clown. Looking at the sidewalk, there was definitely a ‘clown’ walking. His wet red hair was swaying, and his face was pale. His eyes, nose, and lips were painted black or red.

His attire also tried to appear solemn, but the colors were flamboyant.

A red jacket and pants, a blue shirt, a yellow vest, worn-out brown shoes, and mismatched red and blue socks.

The funny thing was.

-Thump, thump, thump.

His demeanor was extremely dignified. The energy he exuded was enough to make you think he would push you out of the way if you blocked his path. It even felt beastly.

-Thump, thump, thump.

The ‘clown’. No, the ‘Joker’ put a cigarette in his mouth. He exhaled a long stream of smoke and swept his red hair back with one hand. He didn’t stop walking. People passing by or in cars on the road stared at him intently. It was as if they were looking at a beast that had escaped from the zoo.

Or perhaps like a rampant epidemic.

Whatever it was, the ‘Joker’ was not ‘ordinary’ to people. He was noticeable and threatening enough to make them feel danger and intimidation. Some people even reported him to the police. Some pointed fingers at the ‘Joker’. Some giggled while looking at the ‘Joker’. Some were startled and ran away.

So what? What are you gonna do about it?

Kang Woo-jin’s relentless advance, no different from the ‘Joker’, did not stop. Two people carrying a camera on their shoulders took turns filming Woo-jin from the front and sides.

“Hoo-”

Kang Woo-jin exhaled a long stream of cigarette smoke and then suddenly.

-♬♪

He let his body move to the rhythm of the music heard on the street. He started dancing. The expressions of the people who were watching him with curiosity became even more bizarre at his dance moves. What the hell is that crazy guy doing? The more they did, the more intense Woo-jin’s dance became with a cigarette in his mouth.

At that moment, he spun around in place.

“I’m going crazy with joy.”

He muttered in a low and calm voice. Soon, the camera that was filming him quickly moved away. And another camera filmed Kang Woo-jin head-on from about ten steps away.

-Swish.

Kang Woo-jin, who took out a new cigarette, exhaled smoke into the sky and then walked again. One step, two steps, three steps. He was still relentless. Such a ‘Joker’s’ unstoppable advance was.

‘That’s a killer shot.’

It was being vividly displayed on the monitors watched by hundreds of foreigners and Director Ahn Ga-bok. The directing that Director Ahn Ga-bok wanted was slowly starting to emerge. The foreign staff members were internally evaluating it.

‘There’s a saying, life is a comedy in the distance, but a tragedy up close. He’s captured that in the ‘Joker’s’ walk right now.’

‘When I heard the storyboard explanation, I thought it was a good scene, but seeing it in person is even better?’

‘Because of the ‘Joker’s’ thick, smiling, torn lip makeup, it looks like he’s smiling from a distance, but as the camera gets closer, you realize. The ‘Joker’ is expressionless right now.’

There was a twist in Kang Woo-jin’s face that was actually displayed on the monitor. From a distance, it looked like his mouth was stretched into a wide smile, but as his figure gradually got closer, the real expression within the drawn lips was expressionless. It was stiff and indifferent. This was Director Ahn Ga-bok’s aim.

A scene where ‘comedy’ and ‘tragedy’ coexist. And the ‘Joker’, whose true form is a clown, is satirizing the people of the world. I know you live with such smiling masks, but I am liberated.

It was then.

“Hey!!”

A man’s shout was heard from behind Kang Woo-jin. Woo-jin, who had paused, swept his red hair and turned his head back. Two large police officers were gesturing from quite a distance.

“What are you! Come over here!!”

They were police officers who had come out after receiving a report. The camera filmed the police officers, then turned the angle to Woo-jin’s face. In the past, he would have trembled with tension and frozen, but now he was an awakened ‘Joker’. He took a long drag of his cigarette and, as if giving a curtain call, raised one hand to his chest and bowed slightly to the police officers.

This looked extremely bizarre to the police officers.

Because a guy with creepy ‘clown’ makeup suddenly showed courtesy.

“Wh-what is that crazy guy.”

But there was no courtesy in the shout that came from Kang Woo-jin’s mouth.

“Hello, fatties!”

The police officers’ eyes widened.

“!!!”

“Catch that guy!!”

The two fat police officers started waddling. Kang Woo-jin, or the ‘Joker’, laughed loudly.

“Hehehe!”

He also started running. Unlike the police officers, his face was frantically excited. Whether it was drawn or real. The camera behind him clearly captured the mismatched red and blue socks under his fluttering pants.

In the world of ‘Clown: The Birth of a Villain’.

“Hehehe! Hahahaha!”

The ‘Joker’, who had revealed himself, began to rampage.

It was truly a gruesome clown enjoying himself with all his might. The camera, from the front of the ‘Joker’ who had started running, zoomed in on his face. His pale face, two eyes with sharp squares drawn on them, red dots on his eyebrows and the tip of his nose, and his lips, which seemed several times thicker and were stretched into a wide smile, were those of a wildly crazy person.

Hundreds of foreign staff members were watching it, and among them was Choi Sung-gun with his arms crossed. He was feeling a mix of goosebumps and regret.

‘Haha, it’s a shame that I can’t have the ‘Joker’ face makeup at the ‘Emmys’.’

He imagined Kang Woo-jin in his current appearance walking the red carpet at the ‘Emmys’ [Primetime Emmy Awards]. A strange thrill exploded.

After that.

“Cut. OK.”

Director Ahn Ga-bok’s signal was given. Soon, Kang Woo-jin with his grotesque face approached. He had a brief conversation with Director Ahn Ga-bok. Around this time, Choi Sung-gun’s phone, who was watching Woo-jin, vibrated with a long buzz.

-Swish.

Choi Sung-gun quietly slipped away from the group to take the call. A few tens of minutes later, Choi Sung-gun approached Kang Woo-jin, who had finished talking with Director Ahn Ga-bok.

“Woo-jin.”

He was smiling and shaking his phone.

“We got the script reading date for ‘Beauty and the Beast’, it’s July 18th, about 2 weeks left.”

A few days later, on the 6th.

The time was late morning. The place was the huge ‘Walt Disney Pictures’, reminiscent of an amusement park. The main building within ‘Walt Disney Pictures’, where tourists still come and go. In one of the large conference rooms, the production staff of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ gathered. Key staff members, as well as director Bill Lautner and producers, etc.

In the hallway of that conference room.

-Swish.

Kang Woo-jin, wearing a black short-sleeved shirt and jeans, appeared. Today, his poker face was as strong as ever.

The reason he came to ‘Walt Disney Pictures’ was simple. There was a pre-meeting regarding the ‘Beast’ and ‘Beauty Bella’ before the script reading. Unlike other movies, ‘Beauty and the Beast’ was a work with an original source, and it was necessary to familiarize themselves with the things to be checked in advance for a smooth script reading.

Anyway, Kang Woo-jin, equipped with his concept, entered the large conference room.

‘Ugh- there are so many people.’

Soon, starting with director Bill Lautner, several foreigners greeted him. They chatted about greetings and recent issues for about 10 minutes. Woo-jin sat in the first seat by the window among the 11 seats set up in a row. Looking at the left wall, there was a screen, probably for a PPT [PowerPoint] presentation.

At that time.

“Oh- Miley!”

Miley Cara with blonde hair entered from the back door. Both of the main characters of this meeting had gathered. Soon, director Bill Lautner, who was carefully looking at Cara’s face, asked her.

“Miley, do you have anything else scheduled after this today? You seem to have put a lot of effort into your makeup and style?”

Indeed, she did. Cara’s appearance was full makeup, and her hair was also different from usual. Her straight blonde hair was flowing. It was 100% a very carefully styled look, but Cara shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.

“No, not at all. It’s the same as usual.”

“······Ah- is that so? Hmm-”

Then, Miley Cara turned her gaze over Bill Lautner’s shoulder. She saw Kang Woo-jin, who was looking at the distributed materials indifferently while receiving the light from the window. Cara calmed herself down internally.

‘It’s okay, just act normal. Just like usual.’

She also moved to the seat she was guided to. It was on the opposite side of Kang Woo-jin. As soon as Cara sat down on the chair, Woo-jin, who was looking at his tablet, raised his head. Their eyes met. Kang Woo-jin was the first to speak.

“Miley, hello.”

Cara also greeted him.

“Yes. Hello.”

Then, for some reason, Cara, who had been making eye contact with Kang Woo-jin, quickly looked away. Huh? Her reaction is a bit strange? Although there was no change in his stoic expression, Woo-jin tilted his head internally.

‘Why is that woman acting like that? Didn’t she just avoid my eyes?’

Normally, Cara would have led the conversation with a relaxed smile. But now, she was showing different behavior than usual. Kang Woo-jin had no idea why. There was nothing particularly problematic between him and Cara? Of course, it was natural that he didn’t know. Thanks to the information that Maria Armas had told Cara.

‘Ah- damn it, I was supposed to act normal! Why did I avoid his eyes?’

It meant that she was very conscious of Kang Woo-jin right now. In fact, from the day she met Maria until now, Cara had never stopped thinking about Woo-jin.

‘Hoo, there’s no way that indifferent man would have said that. Maria must have misheard. So, act like the old me.’

After becoming a top Hollywood actress, Miley Cara was experiencing an emotional whirlwind for the first time in her life. But she tried hard to deny it. The fact that she got angry when Maria said she was trying to seduce Kang Woo-jin, and the fact that she can’t even look Woo-jin in the eye properly now, were the same.

It was unprecedented for Cara to be like this, when men had always been the ones chasing after her.

‘It’s just because Kang Woo-jin is a character I’ve never seen before, that’s why I’m confused.’

Around that time, director Bill Lautner and several other production staff members also took their seats at the table. A beam projector was projected onto the screen in front, and the contents displayed were materials for ‘Beauty and the Beast’. From the design of the ‘Beast’s’ appearance and costumes to his personality and the appearance of the surrounding characters. It was the finalized design. Director Bill Lautner began the explanation.

Meanwhile, Kang Woo-jin was engrossed in the design of the ‘Beast’ on the screen.

‘Wow- this is amazing, I had a rough idea, but this is seriously intense? Wouldn’t that makeup take several hours??’

Kang Woo-jin imagined himself as the ‘Beast’ with thick brown fur, sharp claws, and teeth. He felt a bit excited and also a bit scared. Coming this far, he also realized that the filming of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ was just around the corner. The explanation about the ‘Beast’ was roughly finished in about 30 minutes, and the next screen displayed the design of ‘Beauty Bella’.

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

‘Ooooh- she’s pretty?? It’s just like the animation, ah, it brings back memories.’

And his anticipation grew. Because the synchronization rate between ‘Beauty Bella’ and Miley Cara was quite high. He could see that from the front as her co-star. Soon, director Bill Lautner asked Kang Woo-jin.

“As the ‘Beast’, what do you think of ‘Beauty Bella’s’ appearance?”

Unlike his excited inner thoughts, Kang Woo-jin spoke in a cold tone, his gaze fixed on Cara across from him.

“I think she suits Miley well.”

“······”

Cara, who had briefly made eye contact with Woo-jin, avoided his blue eyes again this time. What is it? What’s going on? Woo-jin’s curiosity grew. Director Bill Lautner, who didn’t know this, said to Cara.

“Oh, Miley’s feeling right now is good. Like the contempt that ‘Beauty Bella’ feels for the ‘Beast’ in the beginning. How is it? Do you like the design of ‘Beauty Bella’?”

“······Yes, very much.”

“That’s a relief.”

Director Bill Lautner, with a satisfied smile, began the briefing about ‘Beauty Bella’. This entire meeting ended after about an hour. Since it was lunchtime, everyone agreed to have a meal together, so Kang Woo-jin, Cara, and the rest of the foreigners left the conference room.

Soon, Woo-jin and Miley Cara got closer to the back door of the conference room.

Then.

-Swish.

Among the foreigners leaving the conference room, Kang Woo-jin and Cara’s hands slightly brushed against each other. Woo-jin didn’t think much of it, but for some reason, the blonde Cara flinched.

“······!”

She stopped walking and noticeably raised her hand. Kang Woo-jin, who noticed this, also stopped walking. The production staff members thought the two actors had something to say and went their separate ways. Soon, only Kang Woo-jin and Cara were left near the back door of the conference room, and Woo-jin, with his deep indifference, raised one hand to his chest and asked Cara, who was holding her hand, in a low voice.

“Why are you doing this?”

But Cara didn’t answer. She just felt her heart pounding as if it would burst. She seemed a bit out of it. Around this time, Cara was certain. She whispered it as if murmuring to herself.

“I like… I think I like him.”

But Kang Woo-jin didn’t hear it properly.

‘Huh? Didn’t she just say something? But this woman’s condition isn’t good today?’

So he asked again.

“Miley, what did you say? But are you feeling unwell somewhere?”

Cara, who hadn’t answered right away, held the hand that had brushed against Woo-jin with her other hand, and then slowly met Kang Woo-jin’s blue eyes and murmured without realizing it.

“I think I like you.”

“······”

Kang Woo-jin, who was staring blankly at the blonde Miley Cara’s face, replied.

“Huh?”

He glitched out a little.