I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 157

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 157

Enough to make Ye-chan cover his mouth right away.

Naturally, there was no need to mention what Hye-seong’s reaction was like at this moment.

“Oh my, this is crazy, crazy…!”

The sight of him grabbing both cheeks and stamping his feet.

In fact, Hye-seong hadn’t even expected a kiss scene. No, probably no one had anticipated a kiss between the two at this moment. …Well, of course it was more like a peck than a kiss, but anyway.

‘These guys, this is why they absolutely refused to come…!’

Hye-seong clenched both fists tightly.

If the two had been here, they might have felt a year’s worth of dopamine all at once, making it all the more regrettable.

Well, perhaps that was even more reason why they didn’t want to come here.

But still,

‘…Wow, but he really became a different person.’

Hye-seong’s eyes sparkled calmly, momentarily forgetting his fangirling.

As soon as their lips touched, Seon-woo showed quite a variety of reactions.

Dilating pupils. Wavering gaze. A frozen face and reflexively reaching hands… Along with countless other details melting into the scene.

It didn’t feel like a calculated performance. It felt like all those reactions came naturally because he was completely immersed in the role.

‘Amazing.’

This wasn’t simply about his skills improving.

The opponent was Seon-woo. Rather, it would have been more surprising if his skills hadn’t improved. He wasn’t someone you’d be amazed by just because his acting got a little better.

Nevertheless, what surprised Hye-seong was that the acting Seon-woo was showing had completely different texture from what he’d shown before.

‘It doesn’t seem like Seon-woo.’

What kind of actor is Seon-woo?

If someone had asked that question before [Red Zone], Hye-seong would have answered like this.

An actor who suits deficiency.

It might be a somewhat puzzling statement.

What would Seon-woo, who had good education and a harmonious family, living a life without major ups and downs, know about deficiency?

Actually, Hye-seong had thought that way too at times.

But from the first time they met, Hye-seong felt an unidentifiable deficiency dwelling in Seon-woo’s eyes.

Eyes that seemed empty somewhere, filled only with hunger and thirst.

And Hye-seong wasn’t the only one who thought that way.

Right away in [One Room], Ryu had assigned Seon-woo the role of someone trying to commit suicide. He too must have felt the deficiency dwelling in Seon-woo’s eyes.

Hye-seong thought that wasn’t bad at all.

As a person, living with that deficiency constantly might be somewhat painful, but as an actor, it could also become a weapon.

So when he saw Yoon-seo in [Red Zone], Hye-seong couldn’t help but be quite surprised.

He hadn’t thought Seon-woo could act such a bright-feeling character. Of course, there were times when he showed mentally unstable aspects like panicking in front of patients, but even that stemmed from good intentions of wanting to save people, so it didn’t feel particularly dark.

It was a moment when his image of Seon-woo shattered instantly.

And that would be the same for the countless industry insiders watching this.

‘He’ll become an even more wonderful actor than I thought…’

Hye-seong smiled.

A junior’s good performance usually made seniors feel anxious, but Hye-seong was exempt from that. He had already watched countless juniors surpass him.

Getting ahead and falling behind – if you start caring about such things, you can’t survive in this industry. Even if you do survive, acting wouldn’t be fun anymore.

This level was just right.

Just acting silently in his position and applauding others’ acting too.

Only that way,

“Wow…”

Could he enjoy scenes like this.

Hye-seong looked at the screen with clenched fists.

[Red Zone] was already entering the ending scene. A chain collision traffic accident occurred, and Hanul’s emergency room was moving busily.

And that scene struck Hye-seong as very impressive.

Until now, Hanul’s emergency room had always felt busy. Busy, hectic, with everyone in extreme tension, feeling like they’d explode at the slightest touch.

But the scene captured on screen now was somehow different.

Should he say everything felt somehow solidified? Like veteran soldiers before battle, somehow confident.

Especially Yoon-seo’s somewhat tense… but unlike before, eyes filled with determination to somehow pull through, making it clearly visible how much he had grown over the past 9 episodes.

So Hye-seong couldn’t help but smile again.

‘Beautiful.’

Yes.

It was truly a beautiful picture.

* * *

“Everyone, thank you for your hard work…!”

After watching the live broadcast, all the [Red Zone] family raised their glasses together.

Seon-woo downed the soju in one gulp and thought for a moment.

‘I think I’m going to get drunk.’

It was a feeling he had never experienced in his life.

It wasn’t that he had drunk more than usual. Everyone had been so focused on the drama that they hadn’t really touched the alcohol or snacks much.

But right now, in this moment, Seon-woo felt somewhat dazed.

…It probably wasn’t because of the alcohol.

He must be intoxicated by the finale of [Red Zone].

“My kids worked hard~.”

And this person was drunk.

Seo Ryeong put her arms around Seon-woo and Min-hee’s shoulders. As soon as she approached, the smell of alcohol wafted over.

She had the most cheerful expression he’d ever seen on her face.

“Ah, thinking that I won’t see everyone anymore makes me so sad.”

“…That’s right.”

“But I’ll be free for a while now, so keep in touch! Let’s go eat delicious food!”

Throughout this production, Seo Ryeong had been checking out restaurants, planning what to eat after filming ended.

She said if she didn’t eat as much as possible during breaks, she couldn’t survive during filming. Seeing how she usually managed herself, that made sense.

Thanks to that, even today she had devoured more meat than most men.

“Sister. We really need to see each other often…”

And watching Seo Ryeong, Min-hee sniffled and hugged her.

She was equally drunk. As the touched Seo Ryeong hugged Min-hee tightly and declared she would take her to all kinds of restaurants,

“…Kim Seon-woo.”

“Yes.”

“Do you have any thoughts about your next project?”

Seong Do-won started talking to him.

Next project. Seon-woo shook his head.

“I haven’t received any offers yet… I haven’t thought about it. During [Red Zone], I wanted to focus only on [Red Zone]. What about you, senior?”

“I’m thinking of filming a movie.”

“Oh, have you decided on a project?”

“No.”

Do-won chuckled and shook his head.

“Drama actors don’t usually get movie offers. They think the actor’s image won’t fit.”

“…I’ve heard that.”

He’d also heard that drama actors having more face exposure was another reason the film industry avoided them.

While movies show your face for at most 2 hours, dramas typically show your face for an average of 10 to 20 hours.

It meant the image was too consumed.

“So you should think carefully too. Which direction would be better – dramas or movies. Once you get labeled as a drama actor like me, it becomes hard to do what you want even if you want to.”

“…But I think you’d look great in any movie, senior.”

“It’s not about whether you act well or not. What matters is what kind of image you have. That’s why your timing right now is important.”

Do-won glanced toward a corner.

In the corner of the company dinner, a group of people had gathered. LK, KS, Life, Wilde… People from various agencies waiting in line to have a conversation with Seon-woo.

“Think carefully about who you’ll go with. This choice might be more important than what kind of acting you show.”

“…Yes. Thank you.”

“But well… you’ve already made up your mind, haven’t you?”

“Huh? No, that’s… not yet.”

“I see. Look carefully at contract conditions and such things too. Don’t have useless thoughts like ‘isn’t paying proper attention to these things unbecoming of an actor’ or ‘isn’t it too merchant-like.’ Those thoughts aren’t actor-like – they’re actor’s disease. Do you understand what I mean?”

“…Yes.”

Do-won was particularly nagging today.

It couldn’t be helped since who knew when they’d have time together like this again. Well, he wouldn’t nag just any junior this much… Seon-woo was an exception. Because he was so well-behaved?

No. Rather than that…

Do-won downed his soju and said.

“I can see it. That you could become any kind of actor.”

“…”

“That means you could rise to the top, or surprisingly end up groveling at the bottom. So don’t let your guard down. Don’t have the stupid thought that everything will work out if you just act well. Always stay tense. There aren’t only talented and wonderful people here. Rather, there are more disgusting and nasty bastards.”

Hearing those words, Seon-woo momentarily thought.

Do-won was probably speaking from direct experience of all this. So Seon-woo could only nod with a more determined expression.

“Yes. Senior. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Seon-woo filled Do-won’s glass.

And in the midst of that…

“Why did the CEO come here?”

“Is there somewhere I can’t go?”

“No, it’s not that you can’t come… I was wondering if you had the leisure to come out here when the company must be noisy these days.”

In a corner of the company dinner, an intense war of nerves was taking place among four men who had quietly taken seats.

LK’s Director Oh Myeong-ho.

KS’s Director Kim Ji-hun.

Life’s CEO Kim Do-hyeong.

And Wilde’s CEO Park Du-ho.

Oh Myeong-ho looked at Kim Do-hyeong with a subtle smile.

“That friend Jeong Ji-myeong, didn’t I tell you that you should manage his private life? Drugs in this day and age, how tacky.”

“…Why are you bringing up Ji-myeong now?”

“I’m telling you not to covet our Seon-woo for no reason. Seon-woo is talent who will become a global star. He doesn’t have a life to waste wiping Life’s ass.”

“Ass… Director Oh, your words are getting harsh?”

“Words should be truthful. Is there any other reason Life is trying to take Seon-woo? You’re just trying to boost sales somehow by getting a next-generation rising star while he’s undervalued.”

“This person really…!”

While Oh Myeong-ho and Kim Do-hyeong raised their voices, Park Du-ho and Kim Ji-hun were silently filling each other’s glasses.

Of course, that didn’t mean the two were just drinking.

Kim Ji-hun was pretending to drink while secretly observing Park Du-ho out of the corner of his eye.

‘…He’s said to be a famous eccentric in this industry.’

This was the first time seeing Park Du-ho in person.

After all, Kim Ji-hun had never been in charge of the actor division before. What he knew was that Park Du-ho was a very unique person, and also…

‘He’s said to be competent.’

Wild had only appeared in the industry less than 10 years ago.

Unless it was established directly by an established actor, it would normally be difficult to wield significant influence in the industry with such experience.

Nevertheless, Wild had now become one of the places that absolutely could not be left out when discussing actor entertainment companies.

While the actor roster itself was quite solid… it was because Wild’s ability to manage and promote actors was exceptionally competent.

‘What’s the secret?’

He didn’t know.

From the outside, his appearance was so rough that you’d honestly think he might be a thug, which had led to such misunderstandings. Whether he had connections with that side, and so on.

But at least KS’s information network hadn’t heard any such rumors.

Considering their information capabilities, it probably meant there was no connection to anything illegal.

Kim Ji-hun slowly opened his mouth.

“I didn’t expect Wild to covet Seon-woo as well.”

“Of course we’d covet him. That guy’s a complete gem. No, wait. A growing gem? A gem whose size keeps getting bigger? Isn’t that why KS came too?”

“Yes, that’s right. We also think Seon-woo has already surpassed the rough stone stage. Though his potential is still enormous… he’s already proven himself completely. That’s why.”

Kim Ji-hun grinned.

Here, he needed to crush their spirit once.

“We’re thinking of giving Seon-woo 1 billion just as a signing bonus.”

This was information he would normally never disclose.

If such information was revealed, it could give the other party room to strategize.

Nevertheless, he revealed this card because he was confident that Wild wouldn’t have any cards to counter this.

No matter how certain Seon-woo’s growth trajectory was, 1 billion was definitely expensive considering his current value.

Without the capital that KS possessed, no, even if they had it… it was an amount that couldn’t be easily proposed unless they were planning to newly branch into the actor side.

Indeed, at the mention of 1 billion, Park Du-ho’s eyebrows couldn’t help but twitch momentarily.

Kim Ji-hun leisurely lifted his drink and watched Park Du-ho’s reaction.

What would this bear-like man answer?

Would he meekly admit that he was outmatched?

Or would he desperately try to bluff?

It was neither.

…Park Du-ho showed a reaction that Kim Ji-hun had never expected.

“Only 1 billion?”

“Pardon?”

“KS is smaller-minded than I thought. For a contract of how many years are you only offering 1 billion? One year?”

“Well, we’re thinking about 5 years or so…”

“Tsk.”

Park Du-ho clicked his tongue.

At his expression that seemed genuinely disappointed, Kim Ji-hun felt his known common sense crumbling anew.

No, it’s 1 billion.

No matter how much the won’s value had fallen these days, it was still an enormous amount of money.

Since when could people click their tongues at 1 billion like that? Kim Ji-hun momentarily flared up and opened his mouth.

“Then how much is Wild thinking of offering?”

“More.”

“…You’re saying you’ll give more than 1 billion?”

Kim Ji-hun’s expression twisted.

That couldn’t be possible. He didn’t know what Wild’s financial capacity was, but he was certain they didn’t have the resources to pay a signing bonus exceeding 1 billion to a newcomer like Seon-woo.

Kim Ji-hun’s eyes narrowed.

“That doesn’t make sense. Are you really thinking of giving over 1 billion?”

“You keep saying 1 billion, 1 billion. Do you really think that amount properly reflects Seon-woo’s value?”

“…”

No, of course it reflects it.

If anything, it’s a high reflection.

But what was this.

Why was this man still talking as if he didn’t understand Seon-woo’s value?

“What exactly… are you planning to propose?”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t carelessly reveal that to outsiders.”

Park Du-ho answered leisurely while lifting his drink.

And for a moment, the glass almost slipped due to the sweat covering his hands, which he barely managed to grip tightly.

It was fortunate he had come wearing sunglasses.

His pupils were currently shaking very anxiously at this moment.

‘…1 billion?’

Though he was desperately trying not to show it, in fact, from the moment he heard those words, Park Du-ho’s sweat gland control tower was completely collapsing.

‘That’s too big?’

Right.

In truth, Park Du-ho was scared.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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