I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 93

Oh? You can get them today? Though his face remained indifferent, Kang Woo-jin inwardly gave a thumbs up.

‘He’s definitely got amazing skills. Our CEO.’

He had subtly urged him, but there were more than four works to acquire. Even though time was short, he thought it would be fine by tomorrow, but Choi Sung-geon’s answer was incredibly refreshing.

Kang Woo-jin sincerely bowed his head to Choi Sung-geon.

“Thank you.”

On the other hand, Choi Sung-geon waved his hands as if it was nothing.

“No, no, no. What are you thanking me for? If you ask me to get something, I’d even scrape up 100 works for you, you rascal.”

“Really?”

“······Yeah. No, I was joking, but you seem serious, so I’ll take that back.”

While briefing on his schedule for the day, Choi Sung-geon was busy making calls, and the van carrying Kang Woo-jin sped down the road towards his first appointment. His first schedule of the day was a meeting with an advertiser.

It was regarding an additional advertisement.

The meeting, which started around 1 PM, lasted about two hours. It was around 3 PM in the early afternoon when Woo-jin, having finished the meeting with the company, got back into the van. The meeting had taken longer than expected, and Woo-jin let out a small sigh.

‘An apparel ad—I’ve only ever bought them like crazy, who knew the day would come when I’d be filming one? Does this mean I’ll get sponsorships? Will I get those too? That’d be awesome.’

The deal was confirmed. With this, Woo-jin was already set to film his second advertisement, and there were many more ad meetings scheduled for the future.

‘Amazing, really.’

Kang Woo-jin’s stock was soaring in every sector of the entertainment industry. If he were to conquer the advertising world as well, it was hard to even guess how big he would be by the end of the year.

Around this time.

“Oppa.”

Han Ye-jeong, who was checking the styling book in the seat next to him, showed Woo-jin her phone.

“The media is already starting to hype things up.”

A news article was displayed on the phone screen.

『[Star Pick] Ultra-Rising ‘Kang Woo-jin,’ Poised to Sweep Rookie Awards This Year』

However, there was no change in Kang Woo-jin’s cynical expression. It was partly his persona, but he was genuinely not feeling it.

‘Rookie award? Me?’

It still didn’t feel real. It was a bit different from the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival.’ Back then, he had been flustered when he received the grand prize, and more importantly, it was a relatively non-mainstream awards ceremony.

But Kang Woo-jin’s team seemed almost certain.

“Isn’t it obvious??! If Woo-jin hyung doesn’t get it, who will! Isn’t that right, CEO?!”

“Soo-hwan. Watch the road.”

“Agreed. It’s still about half a year away, but honestly, oppa should get it. Otherwise, it’s a travesty.”

Was it thanks to them?

‘Me, giving an acceptance speech at such a huge awards ceremony—’

Woo-jin unknowingly began to fantasize. His heart was pounding excessively.

‘Wow—damn, so many reporters and that long red carpet? I’d be walking on that too.’

Though his expression was blank, his mood was quite elevated. It was at this moment that Choi Sung-geon chimed in.

“Is Woo-jin the type to be swayed by a rookie award? Look at his face, he’s already convinced he’ll get it.”

“Ah—that’s true.”

‘No, I’m not.’ Still, since he had built up a certain persona, Kang Woo-jin acted tough as usual.

“···I’ve prepared my acceptance speech.”

“Hehe, look at him. He’s already written his acceptance speech even though it’s half a year away.”

“Hyungnim! I envy your self-confidence!”

Choi Sung-geon, shaking his head, opened his diary and quickly changed the subject.

“Anyway, let me tell you about the fan signing event setup.”

Ah—right. The fan signing event. Kang Woo-jin, who had momentarily forgotten about it, was reminded. He had been too preoccupied with ‘Island of the Lost’ earlier to pay much attention to it. Regardless, Choi Sung-geon continued his briefing.

“It’ll be held two days later, on Friday the 26th. It’ll last about 3 hours. The location is the ‘Maxnals’ headquarters event hall. It’s in the morning. Since it’s sponsored by ‘Maxnals,’ we need to pay attention to the advertising. So, there will be about four or five reporters and our PR team will be filming as well.”

Han Ye-jeong, nodding slowly, added.

“We definitely have to film it, it’s oppa’s first fan signing event.”

“That’s right. Woo-jin, you’re holding a fan signing event much faster than Hye-yeon.”

Only now did Woo-jin start to feel a slight tremor. He recalled the short signing event he had held in front of a convenience store in the past. How many people would come? How many would there be? Would 100 people come? Choi Sung-geon answered this question at the perfect time.

“The signing event itself is unofficial, and about 300 fans will come in total. Even if it’s more, it won’t exceed 400. I wanted to make it bigger, but there are limitations. Your schedule doesn’t allow for more time either.”

“······”

Woo-jin, with no change in his expression, shouted inwardly.

‘400 people??! 400 people??!’

That many? Choi Sung-geon, unaware of this, continued his explanation.

“About half of them will be from the fan club. Oh, did you hear that your fan club surpassed 10,000 members?”

“Ah—yes.”

“This time, the official fan cafe executives, or rather, the general manager and the staff, will all be coming. They’re people you’ll be seeing a lot of in the future, so it’d be good to get close to them at the signing event. You know how actors exchange DMs with their fan club members?”

“Was the general manager’s nickname ‘Blood-Related Woman’?”

“Yeah. You remember? Do you visit the fan cafe often?”

“Not often, but occasionally.”

Woo-jin replied and continued cynically.

“‘Blood-Related Woman,’ the nickname is unique, so I remember it.”

He laughed inwardly.

‘Even if her nickname sense is bad, I should treat her well, since she’s the fan club representative.’

Late afternoon. A famous hotel in Seoul.

Kang Woo-jin was in an interview with a major media outlet in the lounge. Around this time, Choi Sung-geon, Han Ye-jeong, and Jang Soo-hwan were having a late lunch at the hotel restaurant. Of course, the media outlet was paying. Jang Soo-hwan, with his large build, laughed heartily.

“Haha! This is great! Our actor is doing so well that we’re getting treated like this!”

Han Ye-jeong, twirling her spaghetti as if agreeing, replied coldly.

“That’s right. These days, everyone treats us so kindly wherever we go. They’re usually a bit careless with rookies.”

“That’s because Woo-jin hyung is going crazy right now!”

“Yeah, that’s right. It’s just like Hye-yeon unnie.”

While the two were busy praising Kang Woo-jin, Choi Sung-geon was constantly tapping on his phone for some reason. Of course, it was to acquire what Kang Woo-jin had requested.

“Yes, Manager.”

Choi Sung-geon, who was on a call with someone, suddenly got up from his seat.

“Oh, thank you so much. I’ll buy you dinner next time. Yes, sushi is definitely fine. Haha, yes, yes. That’s right, send it by quick to BW Entertainment. Okay. Thanks!”

Choi Sung-geon, having finished the call, gave instructions to the two who were looking up at him.

“I’ll go to the company for a bit, so eat and take good care of Woo-jin.”

“Okay! Then the car keys.”

“No, if I take them, the timing will be off if Woo-jin finishes first. I’ll just take a taxi. The next one is Bora [a visible radio show], right? If anything happens in between, call me right away.”

“Yes—”

“Got it!”

“It won’t take long. Let’s meet up again at the radio studio.”

Choi Sung-geon, who had hurriedly left the restaurant, hailed a taxi parked in front of the hotel. At the same time, he called the company. He immediately spoke, as if the other party had answered quickly.

“Yes, yes, did three quick deliveries arrive today? Yes, another one will come in a few tens of minutes? Collect all four and put them on my desk in my room.”

Choi Sung-geon, having said everything he needed to, hung up the phone and muttered to the taxi driver.

“Sir, please hurry.”

Several hours later.

Night had fallen. The location was a public broadcasting radio station. Kang Woo-jin, having finished his guest appearance on the four-part visible radio show, greeted the host and staff.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Yes! You worked hard too, Woo-jin-ssi!”

Woo-jin, having received the host’s greeting, came out of the booth. Writers immediately rushed towards him, holding paper and markers in their hands.

“Woo-jin-ssi, please sign this.”

“Yes, of course.”

Looking inside the booth, there were many signatures of celebrities who had participated as guests. He thought, ‘I guess that’s how it is,’ and scribbled his signature, which he was now somewhat used to. However, it wasn’t just one signature.

“Please sign mine too!”

“Me too, me too! I’m a fan, and my younger sibling is a huge fan.”

“Yes, yes, give them to me.”

“Thank you! Oh, by the way, did you see that the listeners were going crazy about your voice today?”

Woo-jin, trying to hide his embarrassment, silently finished signing five autographs. Only then was he able to leave the booth.

Choi Sung-geon, with his ponytail, was smiling in the hallway.

‘I thought he was gone for work, but he’s already back?’

For some reason, Choi Sung-geon urged Kang Woo-jin here.

“The others are in the car, the next schedule is canceled, so you can go home. Let’s go quickly.”

“Yes, CEO.”

Woo-jin replied quietly and wondered inwardly. ‘He’s not usually like this?’ Then he realized.

“Ah.”

The reason why this guy was so confident.

“Did you perhaps get them all?”

A question asking if he had gathered everything he had requested. Then, as if he was a bit deflated, a slight disappointment appeared on Choi Sung-geon’s face. No, a lot of disappointment.

“Ahem—I was going to give it to you as a surprise in the car. You’re a quick one. Yes, I got them all.”

‘You were too obvious for that, though?’ Whatever the case, Choi Sung-geon’s ability was real. To gather all four works in one day. Kang Woo-jin inwardly shouted ‘Nice.’ But he couldn’t show it.

“Thank you, CEO.”

Instead, he bowed his head in thanks. Of course, Choi Sung-geon refused the thanks.

“Don’t, don’t, I told you this morning. It’s not like I did anything big. This is nothing compared to what you’ve done, so feel free to ask me for anything, okay?”

Woo-jin felt incredibly reassured.

A few minutes later, Woo-jin got into the van parked in the broadcasting station’s parking lot. Next to his usual seat, four scripts and screenplays were piled up. Kang Woo-jin immediately picked up one of them. Choi Sung-geon, glancing at Woo-jin in the rearview mirror, asked with a satisfied expression.

“Oh my, are you going to read it right away? You’re really something.”

He gestured to Jang Soo-hwan to start the car.

“Let’s go, we just need to take Woo-jin home.”

“Yes!”

The van started smoothly. Similarly, Woo-jin, glancing at Han Ye-jeong on his right, raised his index finger.

-Poke!

He poked the black square attached to the script. He entered the subspace as it was. He immediately called for an exit. He repeated this about four times. Quite a few changes were happening, but of course, no one noticed.

‘It’s all done, next.’

Kang Woo-jin, having listed all the works, threw himself into the subspace again. He took a small breath, as if he was a bit tired, and turned around. The white squares that were floating around instantly increased.

“Let’s see—what are the results?”

The original ones were unnecessary. What Kang Woo-jin needed were the ones he had just listed.

-[8/Screenplay (Title: Spontaneous Meeting), F Grade]

-[9/Screenplay (Title: How to Use a Prosecutor), F Grade]

-[10/Script (Title: Royal Company Episode 1), C+ Grade]

-[11/Screenplay (Title: Again Man), C Grade]

The results were immediately confirmed. Only two works were exactly F grade. The rest were average. And those two works were.

“Both of them are Seo Chae-eun’s?”

They were Seo Chae-eun’s movies. A smile quickly spread across Kang Woo-jin’s face.

“My hunch was right.”

It was just a hunch, but whether it was a coincidence or not, it was exactly right. In other words, the suspect was highly likely to be Seo Chae-eun. The reason was simple. No matter how badly they flopped, it didn’t make sense for two movies to both get an F grade.

Seo Chae-eun was a top actress.

And other top actors and character actors also appeared in those two works besides her. But to start with an F grade? This was a slightly questionable figure. More than anything, he had figured out what an F grade meant through Director Woo Hyun-gu’s case.

‘When the production itself goes wrong or completely fails.’

An F grade was literally rock bottom. In other words, Seo Chae-eun’s two movies meant that they would have less than 100,000 viewers or would collapse. But coincidentally, both of the movies that Seo Chae-eun appeared in were all F grade?

“Seo Chae-eun confirmed.”

The suspect was almost certainly her. Because of Seo Chae-eun, the grades of two works, no, a total of three works including ‘Island of the Lost,’ had gone to hell.

“Is ‘Island of the Lost’ only a D because Seo Chae-eun joined late?”

The other two works had already finished filming or were close to being wrapped up. So, the damage would have been immense. Anyway, the suspect was narrowed down to Seo Chae-eun. Of course, he still didn’t know what she had done. Furthermore, there wasn’t enough time to find that out.

Here, Kang Woo-jin.

“What am I going to do? I should pass it on.”

He had to pass on the conclusion of the matter. How? By relying on delusion and his persona. Soon, Kang Woo-jin came out of the subspace and returned to the van.

It took another hour to reach the parking lot of Woo-jin’s officetel [a studio apartment building].

-Screech!

“Thank you for your hard work, hyungnim!”

“Oppa, you worked hard—”

“Woo-jin, get some rest!”

Greetings were immediately thrown at him. However, Kang Woo-jin called out to Choi Sung-geon with an indifferent expression.

“CEO, a moment.”

“Huh? Yes, yes. Speak. Why? Do you need more scripts?”

“No. I have something to tell you, outside.”

“Outside?”

Choi Sung-geon’s expression changed to one of bewilderment, but he got out of the car. Kang Woo-jin did the same. Then, a few steps away from the van, Woo-jin was the first to speak.

“CEO, Seo Chae-eun sunbaenim [a senior colleague], she’s a bit off. I have a bad feeling about her.”

“What?? What are you talking about.”

Kang Woo-jin used delusion. And he put on a poker face that was thicker than ever. To amplify the seriousness.

“It’s just like with Director Woo Hyun-gu.”

Was it because of that?

“······Huh?”

Choi Sung-geon’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out.

End