I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 171

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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 171

PD Jeong Yu-jun is timid.

This doesn’t mean the typical level of timidity that comes to mind when you think of a “timid person.”

Jeong Yu-jun couldn’t bring himself to confront someone who cut in line in front of him, and it was commonplace for him to ride several extra stops on a packed commuter bus because he couldn’t bring himself to tell the driver he wanted to get off.

Considering that,

“…PD-nim, didn’t you sleep last night?”

“Well… yes…”

The fact that he couldn’t sleep tonight wasn’t particularly surprising.

Watching him, a young woman beside him sighed and adjusted her glasses. A woman with such a youthful appearance that one might wonder if she was a university student.

She was Seo Ji-hye, the writer of [My Jade].

“Don’t be like that. If PD-nim is that nervous, the actors might get more nervous too.”

“When you put it that way… it makes me even more nervous.”

Jeong Yu-jun’s face turned ashen.

As if he couldn’t stand it anymore, he even took out and swallowed some herbal medicine. I think he already took one earlier… is it okay to take that many?

Worrying about it would only make her suffer.

Seo Ji-hye turned her head. There was something else she needed to worry about right now.

“…Did you talk things through with Kim, the CEO?”

“That’s… difficult.”

“Is he still being stubborn?”

“There’s nothing we can do. He’s the biggest investor.”

“Ugh, that man is really a headache.”

Seo Ji-hye frowned.

Kim, the CEO. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he had made the greatest contribution to the drama adaptation of [My Jade], having promised an enormous amount of investment money.

The problem was the condition Kim, the CEO had set in exchange for his investment.

—The lead must absolutely be a top star!

That was it.

Actually, it wasn’t such an uncommon request. Who wouldn’t welcome a top star in a drama they invested in?

The problem was that [My Jade], as it stood, didn’t have the resources to secure a top star.

First of all, the genre of this work was problematic.

An Eastern fantasy drama. A genre that would inevitably require a certain amount of CG. And on top of that, they wanted him to secure a top star?

He could already hear the sound of the production budget melting away.

Anyway, for that reason, Jeong Yu-jun was in a situation where he had to somehow persuade Kim, the CEO.

And today’s audition was… one of the occasions prepared for that persuasion.

“Ah, Kim, Kim, the CEO is coming in!”

That was when it happened.

A middle-aged man in a suit with a stubborn expression entered the studio with confident steps. Then he looked at Jeong Yu-jun and grinned.

“Oh, PD Jeong!”

“…Ah, welcome. CEO-nim.”

“Right, the audition is starting soon, isn’t it? Where’s my seat?”

“Well…”

Jeong Yu-jun fidgeted nervously.

That was understandable, because the seat prepared for Kim, the CEO wasn’t at the judges’ seats. What was prepared for him was an observer’s seat.

But since he couldn’t bring himself to say that and was just moving his lips, Seo Ji-hye, who couldn’t stand watching anymore, finally spoke up.

“CEO-nim can sit over there in the observer’s seat.”

“Hmm. Over there?”

“Yes.”

Seo Ji-hye looked at Kim, the CEO with a calm expression.

An expression that seemed to ask if he had any complaints. But Kim, the CEO didn’t get angry as expected. Instead, he smiled and sat down in his seat nonchalantly.

“You prepared quite a nice chair. I like it.”

“Th, thank you…”

“But, PD Jeong. You remember what I said, right?”

Kim, the CEO looked at Jeong Yu-jun with tiger-like eyes.

“It has to be a top star. Top. If you work with mediocre guys, you’ll only get mediocre results in the end, you understand what I’m saying?”

“…”

Jeong Yu-jun couldn’t bring himself to answer.

Rather, it was Seo Ji-hye again who questioned Kim, the CEO.

“CEO-nim. I understand your feelings, but if you keep pressuring us like that, our judgment might get clouded, you know?”

“Oh my, looks like I’m going to get scolded by our writer again. I understand, I understand. Please take good care of things.”

Kim, the CEO showed a relatively gentle attitude toward Seo Ji-hye.

Kim, the CEO had decided to invest in this project because of Seo Ji-hye’s script. The difference in attitude was natural in a way, but… Jeong Yu-jun felt inexplicably sad.

‘…Will there be an actor who can satisfy Kim, the CEO?’

There are no top stars among the people auditioning today.

…Actually, they hadn’t even proposed auditions to top stars from the beginning. If they were to propose this project to them, they would have to cut the budget in many ways.

They would have to drastically reduce the frequency of CG itself.

It’s not that Jeong Yu-jun considers CG more important than actors.

However, in [My I-mu-gi], CG was one of the elements that could never be given up. For this work to become real fantasy rather than a drama wearing the mask of fantasy, for properly utilizing the material of I-mu-gi, proper CG was absolutely essential.

Of course, it’s not that he hadn’t appealed this to Kim, the CEO.

But Kim, the CEO’s reaction to that was…

‘Then you get more investment!’ was what he said.

I’ve already done enough. Don’t ask for more.

If you put a top star as the lead, I’ll invest.

Kim, the CEO’s words had been consistent from beginning to end.

That’s why he had invited Kim, the CEO to today’s audition venue. Perhaps he thought he might be able to persuade him through this audition.

‘CEO, wouldn’t this be good enough even without a top star?’ he thought.

There was a reason Jeong Yu-jun couldn’t sleep without cause.

‘Please…!’

Jeong Yu-jun prayed desperately inside.

Anyone would be fine. He hoped there would be an actor who could show good enough acting to captivate Jeong Yu-jun… and furthermore, Kim, the CEO.

The actors Jeong Yu-jun had called today weren’t all S-grade, but most of them had at least one foot in A-grade.

Actors who didn’t have any clear hit works yet, but were steadily playing lead roles and quietly building their fanbase.

Of course, there were exceptions among them.

‘Kim Seon-woo.’

In fact, Seon-woo was still an actor who could hardly be called lead material.

A newcomer who had just started building his acting career in supporting roles.

Despite that, the reason he had offered him an audition was simple.

He felt something.

He wasn’t sure exactly what to call it. Radiance? Charm? Star quality? These things could be labeled anything depending on how you looked at it.

He just felt drawn to him. He was curious.

If he called this person, what kind of acting would he show?

He wasn’t having great expectations of him.

In fact, he had somewhat given up hope. Kim, the CEO’s stubbornness was extraordinary. No matter how proper the acting was, it probably wouldn’t satisfy him.

‘No, let’s not be like that.’

Jeong Yu-jun tried to comfort himself.

Still, these were carefully selected actors. Even if not all of them, someone would surely show a brilliant performance that could move Kim, the CEO… everyone here.

And Jeong Yu-jun’s thoughts became even more solid as soon as he met the first actor.

“Didn’t you say with your own mouth that your life was worthless anyway? Then sell that life to me.”

The first actor to portray I-mu-gi was Yun I-geon.

An actor recently famous among people for his distinctive decadent beauty.

And indeed, his fame wasn’t for nothing. His skin that was pale beyond white, his transparent eyes, and that chilling voice that seemed to whisper in your ear… it was eerie enough to make you think a snake had become human.

Good.

It was definitely an eeriness befitting I-mu-gi.

Meanwhile, when he had to show romance, the way his sharp gaze melted softly was charming in its own way.

If it was this good, surely Kim, the CEO would be satisfied too, so he turned his head…

‘That’s not a pleased expression.’

Kim, the CEO had an indifferent expression.

An expression as if he hadn’t received any special impression at all. Still, that level seemed to have its own charm.

But it was still okay.

There were as many as seven actors who came for today’s audition.

There were still chances left to win Kim, the CEO’s heart!

‘…But what is this?’

Jeong Yu-jun sighed inwardly.

When he should be focusing only on the acting, he had to keep thinking about Kim, the CEO’s mood too.

But it couldn’t be helped. Without production costs, there would be no drama. Reality didn’t flow on romance alone.

Meanwhile, Seo Ji-hye’s situation was a bit different.

“Yun I-geon is a bit disappointing.”

“…Was he?”

“Yes. It felt more like a villain than a lead. Should I say he was more like a snake than I-mu-gi?”

In fact, Seo Ji-hye was the one who could practically exercise the strongest personnel authority in this place.

When she originally entered to produce the drama, she had promised the right to refuse actors she didn’t like. In some ways, she was more important than Kim, the CEO.

Jeong Yu-jun actually felt relieved when Seo Ji-hye showed a negative attitude toward Yun I-geon. This way, there was no reason to feel regretful in the first place.

The problem was,

“Seo Dong-woo’s I-mu-gi has too much liveliness.”

“Ha Ji-min is… hmm, somehow too human. I don’t get the feeling of I-mu-gi, a monster.”

“Ah, that just now was somehow disappointing. I don’t know why, but I don’t feel it.”

Seo Ji-hye was also an incredibly picky person.

In some ways, she might be pickier than Kim, the CEO. Since Kim, the CEO’s stance was simply ‘I don’t like anyone who isn’t a top star!’, it seemed like he would just accept any reasonably famous actor… but who on earth would they have to show Seo Ji-hye to satisfy her?

‘…Does the writer actually want a top star too?’

As such thoughts began to creep in, Jeong Yu-jun’s already anxious mental state began to shake even more.

‘Cheong, Cheongsimhwan. Cheongsimhwan…’

It was the moment when Jeong Yu-jun was searching for Cheongsimhwan in his inner pocket.

“Hello, I’m Kim Seon-woo.”

Seon-woo finally entered the studio.

And at that moment, Jeong Yu-jun’s hand searching for Cheongsimhwan suddenly stopped.

Why? He didn’t know the reason.

His eyes just went there. The other actors who had been here just moments ago were equally impressive people, but the moment he saw Seon-woo, he somehow couldn’t take his eyes off him.

And Jeong Yu-jun was soon able to get his answer.

‘…It’s I-mu-gi.’

It’s I-mu-gi.

Naturally, as soon as he saw Seon-woo, that thought came to mind.

It felt like the I-mu-gi he had vaguely imagined while reading the script was standing right in front of him now.

The problem was that the acting hadn’t even started yet.

Jeong Yu-jun swallowed.

This would make him have expectations again, wouldn’t it.

But it seemed like he wasn’t the only one feeling this emotion right now. As soon as Seon-woo entered, Seo Ji-hye’s eyes were sparkling more than usual.

“Nice to meet you. Seon-woo, could you show us the free acting you prepared first?”

“Yes.”

And she immediately requested acting from Seon-woo.

As if she didn’t want to wait any longer.

Seon-woo immediately dove into his acting. There was no mention of what scene he would perform.

But it was a miraculous thing.

Even before any lines came out, Seo Ji-hye could immediately tell what scene Seon-woo was acting out.

‘The mirror scene.’

More precisely, it was the scene where the dokkaebi appears to I-mu-gi, who was staring intently at himself in the mirror.

The scene where he growls at the dokkaebi who asks if he can take Yeo-ui-ju if I-mu-gi doesn’t claim her right away.

Seo Ji-hye’s eyes deepened.

So far, Seo Ji-hye had requested free acting from all the actors. It was because she could tell from watching that acting. How exactly this actor had analyzed and understood their role.

And Seon-woo chose this scene.

Why?

“She is my Yeo-ui-ju.”

The moment Seon-woo delivered his line, Seo Ji-hye could immediately understand the answer.

Obsession to a chilling degree. But still, his gaze was directed at himself in the mirror.

Three-dimensional acting that made it seem like you could see a mirror that didn’t exist in reality.

But what was even more impressive than that was Seon-woo’s gaze as he looked at himself in the mirror.

As if the very act of looking at himself was so painful he couldn’t bear it, those eyes filled only with contempt.

At that moment when goosebumps rose from those cruel eyes that seemed like they would wound you just by meeting them, Seon-woo slowly opened his mouth.

“She exists for me, she is mine. And yet you dare… something like you dares to say you’ll take her?”

Seon-woo’s head slowly turned to the side.

Was he looking at the dokkaebi who wasn’t there? Those eyes that seemed filled with anger, yet also desperate… and at the same time pitiful, the moment she met that gaze.

“How dare you… something like you?”

With a chill, Seo Ji-hye felt goosebumps rise all over her body.

And it wasn’t just Seo Ji-hye. Even Jeong Yu-jun, who had been constantly watching Kim, the CEO’s reactions, could only stare at Seon-woo in a daze at this moment.

In some ways, he was the newcomer they had the least expectations for.

But the acting he just showed was completely unexpected.

Beyond just being good… it was acting that captivated people’s hearts in an instant.

Right. In some ways, it was exactly the kind of acting that a ‘top star’ as Kim, the CEO had mentioned, would showcase.

‘Right, Kim, the CEO is…’

Jeong Yu-jun hurriedly turned his head at the belated thought of Kim, the CEO. Worried about what would happen if he was wearing that indifferent expression again this time too.

But it seemed like that was an unnecessary worry.

Kim, the CEO was clapping.

“Bravo!”

And very enthusiastically at that.

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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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