Top Star By Luck [EN]: Chapter 125

125

A schedule came up suddenly.

‘This weekend.’

The idea was to hold a fan meeting in Gwanghwamun in just four days.

But I felt it was the perfect timing because I already had things to handle at the same time.

“This is my first time coming here with my official account.”

Lee Minki, his eyes fixed on the monitor, chewed on chicken breast and tapped on the keyboard.

Tap tap, tap.

The refreshing sound of typing flowed out for a moment, and soon his real account appeared.

[protein140g]

Protein 140 grams.

It was an account Lee Minki used while hiding his identity.

He usually just browsed.

Other than that, he would write reviews of products he had promoted while working as an actor and model.

[Title: Real Protein New Product is Out~]

[Writer: protein140g]

[Content: I heard the actor promoted this, so I bought it right away.

It used to have a dry taste, but this time it tastes good even when mixed with water. lol [laughing out loud]

It tastes even better with milk]

[Comments (2)]

[Hello]

[Is this person on an actor community or a health community]

That was the extent of his activity.

He hid his identity. He hid it on purpose because he thought too much attention would be focused on him if he revealed his real name and became active.

He also enjoyed taking a step back and looking at posts uploaded by others.

[Spoiler! Was I the only one who cried watching Fashion & Passion?]

[Our Minki actor is so ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ He grew up so well ㅜㅜㅜㅠㅠㅠ [crying emojis]]

[They say they’re releasing clothes, when are they coming out??? Anyone who knows, please share]

I know everything.

I know your posts.

I’m even leaving comments!

[protein140g: I heard almost all the products are out, so they’re shooting a pictorial soon.]

[ㄴ Really? Official link please]

[ㄴ But who is this person]

[ㄴ ㅁㄹ There’s someone who only writes promotional posts all the time] [ㄴ ㅁㄹ is an abbreviation for “I don’t know” in Korean]

The reaction wasn’t always good.

Anyway, it’s over now, playing while hiding my strength.

The moment has come to reveal my identity and officially show the power of the fan club.

“Hoo.”

Lee Minki took a moment to catch his breath.

He quickly tapped on the keyboard and began to write down the post he had carefully prepared in his head over the past day.

Tap tap tap!

[Title: Hello. This is actor Lee Minki.]

[Writer: protein140g]

[Content:

(Attached photo)

Hello.

This is actor Lee Minki.

I am greeting the members of the official fan club, Minki Corps, for the first time.

Thank you for your support so far.

I gained a lot of energy from watching from behind.

To commemorate the release of Fashion & Passion, I’m going to hold a pledge event.

For example, how about a fan meeting in Gwanghwamun if we reach 1.5 million viewers in the first week?

I’m going to post an official announcement on SNS once it’s decided, but before that, I’d like to ask for your opinions!]

It may be crude.

But it was content that had even been reviewed by JC.

[Hmm, it’s a bit messy, but it’s better because it has the actor’s feel. If you write it too neatly, it’s too businesslike and not good.]

I even uploaded an authentication photo just in case, so I hope they don’t suspect anything.

Click.

That was the moment he uploaded the completed post.

He was trying hard to hold back the excitement in his heart, wondering what kind of comments would be posted.

“Minki, come and help with the cooking.”

Kim Tae-yang, who had been stirring something in a frying pan in the kitchen, suddenly called out.

“Oh, it smells good. What is it?”

“It’s a dish called Stir-fried Tomato and Egg.”

“Stir-fried Simmons?”

“No, Stir-fried Tomato and Egg. It’s a home-style dish that people eat a lot in China, and in Korean, it’s Stir-fried Tomato and Egg.”

“Ah, tomato and egg stir-fry.”

“While I’m frying, you can slice the tomatoes and mozzarella cheese, plate them, and sprinkle olive oil on top.”

“Caprese, right? It’s a tomato party today.”

It took exactly 30 minutes to cook and eat.

When he patted his stomach and returned to his seat and looked at the monitor again.

“Hmm?”

What was happening there was far beyond Lee Minki’s expectations.

[ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ] [laughing emojis]

[I was wondering when this attention seeker would reveal his true colors, and this is how he does it.]

* * *

“……?”

Lee Minki’s eyes twitched.

The atmosphere was completely different from the comments he had expected.

[Who do you think you are, Lee Minki]

[This person only writes promotional posts all the time ㅋㅋㅋㅋ [laughing emojis]]

[Impersonating an actor is crossing the line]

[Doesn’t the operator delete posts like this?]

[Not fun, no emotion]

[Do you feel recognized in society when you do this on the internet?]

[Don’t believe it]

The comments under the post were strangely aggressive.

Moreover, the recommendation/dislike ratio of the post was as high as.

[Recommendation: 2 / Dislike: 121]

It exceeded 60 times.

What is it.

Lee Minki felt a slight dizziness as the staggering number made his head spin.

‘Could it be that they don’t believe I’m Lee Minki?’

I definitely posted the post properly, so why are they saying that.

I even attached a photo.

What’s the problem.

At that moment, there were words spreading under the comment section.

[If you’re going to impersonate someone, at least upload an authentication photo ㅋㅋㅋㅋ [laughing emojis]]

[I’m really upset.]

[Looking at the posts you’ve written, it seems like you’re just a fan who likes the actor?]

[Looks like he turned dark because he didn’t get attention]

[ㄹㅇ You should at least show the effort of finding a photo and uploading it] [ㄹㅇ is an abbreviation for “real” in Korean, used to express agreement or confirmation]

Wait.

Did I not upload a photo?

The moment he went into image editing just in case, Lee Minki was finally able to realize.

‘The photo wasn’t uploaded properly.’

Oops.

When I uploaded the photo, I uploaded it as a WEBP file, but it seems that this fan meeting community does not support WEBP.

To be exact, it was only uploaded. It just wasn’t visible on the screen.

When I went in with my phone, the evidence was that no photos were visible.

Lee Minki muttered blankly with his fingers on the keyboard.

“……This is messed up.”

Was it bad luck?

No, it wouldn’t be.

Strictly speaking, it was my carelessness.

Should I rewrite the post from the beginning?

There are already over 100 comments.

There are even people cursing.

[ㅋㅋ Did you need attention?] [laughing emojis]

[Attention seekers like this ruin the atmosphere]

[What is the operator doing? Not managing?]

It hurts my heart.

It feels like being poked with an awl.

I never thought this day would come when I would write a post in my fan club.

‘Oh well.’

Still, it wasn’t all bad.

It was all due to a misunderstanding, and in the end, aren’t my fans protecting me?

The fact that they are reacting sharply to an impersonator means that they care about him that much.

‘Hoo, let’s rewrite the post.’

Lee Minki took a sigh and decided to upload a selfie as a jpeg file this time.

Comment section.

A series of comments in the middle of it caught his eye.

[If the writer is Lee Minki, I’ll go to Gwanghwamun and show off my taekwondo form]

[ㄴ If the writer is Lee Minki, I’ll do a b-boy dance next to him]

[ㄴㄴ If the writer is Lee Minki, I’ll grill pork belly next to him]

[ㄴㄴㄴ If the writer is really Lee Minki, I’ll sing in Gwanghwamun]

[ㄴㄴㄴㄴ Is the writer Lee Minki? Then I’m Choi Yoo-chang] [Choi Yoo-chang is a common Korean name, implying disbelief]

An unusually long comment continued.

Roughly, comments about what they would do if he was really Lee Minki.

There were over 20 of them.

“…….”

Lee Minki sat in his chair in the room where only the sound of the computer cooler could be heard, staring at the screen for a while.

He rewrote the post a little while uploading a new one.

[Title: Re-upload) This is actor Lee Minki.]

[Content:

(Attached photo)

I’m really Lee Minki ㅠㅠ [crying emojis]

There was an error in the photo upload, so the attached data wasn’t uploaded.

You’ll believe me now, right?

And I saw the comment section earlier…….]

Tap tap, tap!

Just a few tens of seconds after uploading the new post like that.

A nuclear bomb exploded in the comment section.

[ㄴㅇㄱ] [This is an abbreviation for “real/for real” in Korean]

[Sakura?] [Sakura is a Japanese term used in online communities to refer to fake or planted commenters]

[Sakura]

* * *

A few days later.

[Fashion & Passion] achieved an unprecedented number for director Hwang Eui-sung’s film.

Initial (first week) audience of 1.7 million people.

Following exceeding 400,000 viewers on the first day of release, the trend was maintained for a week.

1. 7 million.

It may seem like a small number in some ways.

But this was a special number in that it was director Hwang Eui-sung’s film.

Commonly referred to as ten million-viewer blockbusters, they often surpass 3 million to as many as 5 million in the first week.

But this was director Hwang Eui-sung’s work.

Director Hwang Eui-sung, who, despite his recognition, is not easy to surpass 2 million due to the issue of likes and dislikes [referring to audience preferences].

If it’s 1.7 million in the first week, it will pass 3 million, and if it goes really well, it could aim for over 5 million.

And.

[This is actor Lee Minki.

I would like to express my gratitude to all the audience members who loved Fashion & Passion.

It’s not that, but I came to declare a pledge!! One!!!

I want to achieve 1.5 million in the first week!]

The 1.5 million audience pledge that I had posted on SNS was also easily achieved.

‘I did it…….’

Thanks to this, Lee Minki was barely able to let out a sigh of relief.

‘I was worried that I had ruined it.’

There is a concern that I have every time I appear in a work.

Isn’t the performance of this work going to plummet because of my participation?

Aren’t I going to ruin the works that excellent actors were planning to complete by joining in?

I couldn’t avoid these worries.

I wouldn’t even worry if I had the mentality to just eat and run [take the money and not care about the quality].

Lee Minki is an actor, but at the same time, he is a cinephile [a lover of cinema].

If he ruins a work with his own hands, he couldn’t dare to raise his head in front of the sacred film history.

However, as a result, his involvement grew into the cornerstone of the box office success, so pride and confidence came at the same time.

‘Wow, there are so many people.’

Gwanghwamun Square, which I visited for an event.

“Perhaps, it seems that it will mobilize the most audiences among the works I have produced so far.”

Director Hwang Eui-sung, who faced him for the first time after filming, muttered with a blunt expression.

“I have received proposals from several domestic awards ceremonies, but I don’t like that side. Anyway, it doesn’t mean much.”

“……Is that so?”

“Money, school ties, and regional ties are needed. There are values that the judges value, and they have to match within that to give out awards as if they are doing a favor. It’s an award that’s not worth receiving. It’s better to see it as a dog leash.”

Unlike him, who rarely expresses his emotions, it is a tone mixed with appropriate malice.

A dog leash.

Lee Minki smiled bitterly.

‘Is it because he’s in a class where he’s not happy even if he receives a decent award in Korea?’

Well, he said his goal was overseas.

He hates catering to other people’s tastes.

As Lee Minki was smiling silently, Director Hwang Eui-sung suddenly continued.

“Minki will have the same thoughts. Awards are.”

“Come to think of it.”

Lee Minki opened his mouth as if he had remembered something.

“Come to think of it, I think a harness looks better than a leash.”

“Harness?”

“Yes, it’s like a leash that you put on like clothes. Cats can easily escape from leashes, but harnesses are safe.”

“Hmm, I see. The actions of the judges don’t seem to be much different from that. They try to tie them up and evaluate them.”

“Speaking of tying them up and evaluating them, do you like baeksuk [Korean boiled chicken soup]?”

Lee Minki smiled casually.

I’m sorry, but I won’t agree with anything you’re saying right now.

Because there are eyes watching around.

You may not know it, but I like domestic awards so much.

‘Minki, you’re changing the subject now.’

‘Poor thing.’

‘He’s been caught by the director every day and suffered.’

‘It’s uncomfortable to talk to someone with such strong opinions.’

In fact, his predictions were almost accurate.

“That’s enough of that story.”

Director Hwang Eui-sung said, waving his hand.

“I have also submitted it to overseas awards ceremonies. I don’t think the reaction will be bad, but we’ll have to wait and see. I’m telling you this because I think it’s good to know.”

Overseas awards ceremony.

I don’t know what will happen.

Lee Minki smiled slightly at his familiar tone.

“It’s good to receive an award if you can. 1 is better than 0.”

“That’s not wrong either. An award is an award. Even if it’s a cheap award, it’s better than not receiving it.”

Oh.

Director Hwang Eui-sung affirmed his words.

After all, even he is not someone who only contradicts.

Everyone in the world, no matter how stubborn they are, can understand it in their own way.

Lee Minki also smiled and replied.

“Come to think of it, I heard that Korean culture of holding ceremonies for awards feels quite occult overseas.”

“Hmm.”

“Putting up a pig’s head and a shaman dancing with a knife, it’s very scary, right? It’s also about enshrining ancestors on the altar. And making the daughter-in-law who came to marry perform ancestral rites.”

A few minutes later.

While they were chatting, a strange sight appeared in the middle of Gwanghwamun.

“Hmm?”

“What is that.”

A man.

A man wearing a mask and covering his face began to dance in the middle of Gwanghwamun.