I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 460

Kang Woo-jin internally let out a bizarre scream, almost shrieking aloud. If his stylist and team members had been in the same car, it would have been utter chaos. Fortunately, they were in the car behind. He barely managed to suppress his reaction, maintaining a poker face.

‘Crazy?!’

He turned to look out the window. The weather was pleasant. Woo-jin briefly escaped reality, then slowly turned back to look at Choi Sung-gun’s phone. Surely, he must have misread it.

But.

『CNM/Miley Cara Spotted Leaving Kang Woo-jin’s Home, Sparks Dating Rumors/Photo』

The article was still prominently displayed. Seriously, what the hell was this? Kang Woo-jin’s inner scream intensified.

“Hmm.”

He feigned nonchalance and snatched Choi Sung-gun’s phone, not violently, but very calmly. Then, he silently scanned the content, past the shocking headline.

“······”

The article wasn’t very long. In short, it claimed that Kang Woo-jin and Miley Cara were in a relationship. It even included photos—two of them. One showed Miley Cara leaving Kang Woo-jin’s LA home late at night, and the other showed Woo-jin and Cara facing each other closely, talking in front of the house.

The photos were clearly taken in secret.

They were realistic, unedited photos. Kang Woo-jin, seeing the content and photos, maintained his composure thanks to his stoic persona.

‘What is this!!!’

His inner self was in complete turmoil.

‘In love??! It’s not even a question, it’s stated as a fact??’

Usually, it’s ‘seems to be falling in love’ or ‘hinting at a romance,’ right? Woo-jin recalled the celebrity dating rumors he had often seen in Korea before becoming an actor. But why was his own starting with a confirmation? Was it because it was Hollywood? As Kang Woo-jin thought, Hollywood headlines seemed to use more exclamation marks than question marks.

Like Kang Woo-jin, Hollywood was ‘all in.’

It was his first time experiencing it, but in Hollywood, dating rumors were often spread definitively without regard for the truth. Sometimes, they would follow for days to gather evidence, but those were rare. It was more common to just shoot based on circumstances, like in Kang Woo-jin’s case.

Of course, it was less forgiving than in Korea.

‘Which bastard is this reporter!’

Kang Woo-jin’s feelings gradually shifted from chaos to excitement. Whatever it was, it was a huge scoop. Wasn’t it? A dating rumor between Kang Woo-jin, who had been shaking up Hollywood and the world since his debut, and Miley Cara, a world-class actress and singer. Moreover, Woo-jin’s popularity had been skyrocketing recently.

Given this, Kang Woo-jin’s bewilderment was understandable.

‘What should I do? What kind of image should I project in this situation?’

He had been the most recognized actor in both Korea and Hollywood since his debut, but he was also an actor with very few scandals. It was natural. In his four years since his debut, he had been too busy for anything else. And now, Kang Woo-jin had a dating rumor in Hollywood, not even in Korea.

Soon.

-Swish.

Woo-jin slowly handed the phone back to Choi Sung-gun. Choi Sung-gun looked at him strangely as he took the phone, and Kang Woo-jin recalled the events related to the photos in the article.

‘Wait, were there reporters around then?? Or was it a paparazzi?!’

In Hollywood, reporters sometimes run around, but it’s also common for paparazzi to take photos and sell them to media companies. Either way, the photos of Kang Woo-jin and Cara in the dating rumor article were real and recent. The story was this: Woo-jin and Cara had a dinner appointment, and since he was grateful for some things, Kang Woo-jin invited her to his house.

But it wasn’t just the two of them.

On the day of the photo, there were four people: Kang Woo-jin, Choi Sung-gun, Miley Cara, and her main manager. But the article made it seem like they had spent intimate time alone. Love was a bonus. Anyway, it was a clearly speculative article from the media.

At that moment.

“Woo-jin.”

Choi Sung-gun, who had been watching Kang Woo-jin’s expression, spoke.

“The photos in this article, that was when you had dinner with Miley Cara, right?”

Woo-jin, who flinched internally, nodded calmly.

“…Yes, that’s right.”

“Hah, I knew paparazzi followed us around, but I didn’t expect them to be at your house—Aish! I was careless because it was late at night. It’s my fault for not managing things properly.”

“No, I should have been more careful too.”

“Look at what these bastards wrote, they’re just making up their own story.”

Choi Sung-gun clicked his tongue and briefly looked at Kang Woo-jin’s face, trying to gauge his feelings. But it was futile. It was impossible to read his inner thoughts from that icy expression. Choi Sung-gun scratched his chin and muttered to himself.

‘Hmm—but looking at their relationship so far, this article doesn’t seem entirely wrong. There’s been a subtle and ambiguous vibe between them from time to time.’

Choi Sung-gun was the CEO of BW Entertainment. He needed to understand the feelings of Woo-jin, who was the heart of the company, to respond appropriately.

“So—Woo-jin. Just in case, what is the relationship between you and Miley Cara… how are you two?”

He added that it wasn’t suspicion, but to understand the situation. At that moment, Kang Woo-jin felt a pang of guilt, without even realizing it. The word ‘love’ was absurd, but Woo-jin had been openly ‘confessed’ to by Cara. Kang Woo-jin and Cara were both incredibly busy, so things were a bit slow, but if he had to describe it, it was a ‘some’ [a Korean term for the ambiguous stage before a relationship] or something similar?

What was certain was that they were no longer just colleagues.

Then, Choi Sung-gun sighed softly and changed the subject.

“Hmm—well, that’s secondary. Let’s deal with this dating rumor article first. We need to explain the situation and get a correction right away.”

“…No.”

But Kang Woo-jin silently shook his head.

“Let’s just leave the article as it is.”

Choi Sung-gun blinked.

“You, you want to just leave it?”

“Yes.”

“But why?”

Why? Because he didn’t particularly want to deny it. If they issued a correction saying that the article was wrong, a misunderstanding, and that they weren’t like that, it would be spread, but for some reason, Kang Woo-jin didn’t want that.

“Let’s just stay silent without responding for now.”

“Hey, are you sure? If we leave this as it is in Hollywood or Korea, it’ll be a storm. And if we don’t take any action, it’ll be like admitting the article.”

Woo-jin knew that well. Still, he didn’t want to deny it right away. Even if it wasn’t love, the vibe wasn’t bad.

‘No, if I deny it and issue a correction here, it feels like—I’m rejecting Cara?’

The idea of rejecting her didn’t sit well. Realistically, it was right to deny it immediately and contact Cara, but Kang Woo-jin seemed to have chosen romance over reality. Additionally, he seemed to have something else in mind.

“I don’t want to give the media or the public any bait. Let’s stay silent without any response for now.”

“…Okay, I understand.”

Choi Sung-gun, who answered with narrowed eyes, chuckled inwardly.

‘There’s definitely something between them. This article might be true.’

At the same time.

It was a reading room inside the vast ‘Universal Movies’ studio. The room was large, and the size of the ㅁ-shaped [a square shape] table in the middle was also enormous. Dozens of foreigners were gathered in the reading room. Among them, a noticeable black giant.

“Haha.”

He was Joseph Felton, the producer of the movie ‘John Persona,’ looking at the article on his phone. This was where the script reading for ‘John Persona’ was to be held. Therefore, the director and key staff of ‘John Persona,’ the production team, officials from ‘Universal Movies,’ and Hollywood actors were present.

Already dozens of people were seated.

The interesting thing was.

“Is this real??”

“Looking at the photos, it seems certain.”

“Huh—Miley was at Kang Woo-jin’s house… when did they get like this?”

“No, but it’s too early to judge based on just these two photos. You know how the media and paparazzi overreact.”

“I agree. Don’t you know how media companies just jump to conclusions?”

“But the two of them look so good together in these photos? And she came out of his house late at night.”

The key staff, including the actors of ‘John Persona,’ were buzzing about Kang Woo-jin and Cara. Why? Because of the dating rumor article that had just been released. Although he hadn’t arrived yet, the male lead of the movie ‘John Persona’ was Kang Woo-jin. So, everyone’s interest was bound to explode.

The commotion was amplified by the uncertainty of whether it was true or not.

Around this time, Joseph Felton, who was also looking at the article on his phone, had a faint smile that grew deeper.

‘It’s a bit late to be revealed.’

He recalled the past. When Miley Cara first went to Korea, when she only appeared on Kang Woo-jin’s YouTube channel, then Miley Cara’s sudden participation in Kang Woo-jin’s new album, the Cannes Film Festival, ‘The Benevolent Evil,’ and now ‘The Beast and the Beauty.’ These were the big ones, but there were many small episodes in between.

Was this a story that could come out of just colleagues or friends? No, it wasn’t. In fact, Joseph, a famous Hollywood producer, had somewhat predicted the relationship between Woo-jin and Cara.

‘Whether the article is true or not, there was a strange vibe between them. They look good together, I should bless them.’

Around this time, an old man with round glasses on the tip of his nose approached Joseph. It was Danny Landis, a Hollywood mogul and the director of ‘John Persona.’

“What do you think of this article?”

Joseph Felton smiled and shrugged.

“Well, they look good together in the photos.”

“Is that so? Hmm-”

Director Danny Landis, who had been humming, also smiled.

“Kang Woo-jin already has several issues attached to him, and this scoop-level dating rumor will make things even more turbulent. It’s the first time I’ve seen an actor with such endless issues.”

He scanned the entire noisy reading room and asked Joseph.

“Everyone seems excited, we need to calm them down a bit.”

As if agreeing, the giant Joseph stood up and said to everyone who was buzzing.

“I know you’ve found something interesting, but I think we need to calm down a bit. And when Mr. Kang Woo-jin arrives, I’d like you not to mention anything about that matter.”

He was telling them not to talk about the dating rumor.

“Because it will interfere with the script reading of ‘John Persona.’”

Joseph Felton, who finished speaking, sat back in his chair.

‘How did we get Kang Woo-jin? I can’t let him get upset because of something like this. Absolutely not.’

Fortunately, the atmosphere in the reading room became more subdued.

About 20 minutes later.

-Swish.

Kang Woo-jin, wearing a brown padded jacket, entered the ‘John Persona’ reading room. Many greetings were directed at him, and Woo-jin responded indifferently. However, inside, Kang Woo-jin was looking at the faces of everyone in ‘John Persona.’

‘Sigh—these people seem to be wearing masks? They must have seen the article, yeah, 100% they saw it. Are they holding it in?’

Everyone from the actors to the production team had expressions that said they were dying to talk about it.

In this strange situation, with a word from director Danny Landis.

“Shall we start? Let’s begin with the actor introductions. First, Mr. Kang Woo-jin.”

“Hello. I’m Kang Woo-jin, playing the role of ‘John Owen.’”

The script reading for ‘John Persona’ began.

Meanwhile.

A loud voice erupted in a meeting room of a large agency in LA.

“What is this!!”

Looking inside the rather large room, there were about six foreigners and a blonde woman sitting in a chair. It was Miley Cara, leisurely crossing her legs. She was looking at a tablet, and the dating rumor article was displayed on the screen. Then, her main manager with a buzz cut shouted.

“Issue a correction right away saying it’s nonsense! Miley! You contact Kang Woo-jin!!”

The other foreigners were also angry. Then, Cara, who had been smiling faintly, gave an answer.

“Jonathan, don’t do that.”

“What?? What are you talking about??”

“Just don’t do anything.”

“That doesn’t make any sense!”

“It’s true that I like him.”

“Yeah, you like Kang Woo-jin… huh? What?”

It was very shocking.

“I’ve already confessed to him.”

Hours later, in Japan.

It was afternoon in LA, but it was early morning in Japan. In a large concert hall in Tokyo, Japan, a concert by a Korean girl group was scheduled for today.

Therefore, the girl group members were gathered in the largest waiting room of the concert hall.

They had to rehearse from the morning.

The unusual thing was that one of the girl group members, a woman wearing a loose black hoodie.

“…Ah.”

While looking at her phone, she suddenly dropped the iced Americano she was drinking on the floor. As a result, the contents spilled, and the surrounding team members were surprised and rushed to the woman. The woman’s eyes were wide open as if they would burst. The team members, surprised, shouted.

“Hwa-rin, what’s wrong?! Are you sick?!”

The woman was Hwa-rin, who was a huge fan of Kang Woo-jin, and she had lost her mind looking at the dating rumor article on her phone.

“Dream-”

The dating rumor article about Kang Woo-jin was already all over Korea and Japan like a nuclear bomb.

“Yeah. This is a d-dream.”

It was not a dream.