I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 253

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 253
“Oh man, I’m nervous…….”
So-ra trembled visibly.
Watching her like that, Ye-chan tried to laugh with an air of composure.
“N-nervous? What’s there to be nervous about! Er, ahem, I mean, what’s so hard about this!”
“……Senior, stop shaking and just talk.”
“M-me? I’m not shaking!”
But composure, by its nature, cannot be feigned, and Ye-chan’s anxious state betrayed itself in a single sentence. So-ra gave a wry smile and opened her mouth.
“Which role are you going for, Senior?”
“Min-jae.”
“Oh, that does suit you.”
So-ra nodded in agreement.
[Can We Break Up?] features three couples.
Jun-seo and In-hee, who are contemplating a breakup.
Min-jae and Ga-hyun, who have been dating smoothly for years without incident.
Jong-seok and Se-mi, who have only recently started dating.
So there were six main characters, with one additional character who appeared throughout—Chang-seop, who had declared himself a bachelor.
Thus, seven in total were the main characters of [Can We Break Up?].
“Actually, I was thinking of doing Chang-seop, but…… there’s something too dry about it.”
“Well, you do have a rather soft impression, Senior.”
“……Soft? Is that a good thing?”
“Oh…… y-yes! Of course it is!”
She spoke her true feelings without overthinking it.
So-ra nodded hurriedly. Just as Ye-chan was watching her with a slightly suspicious gaze,
“Oh, Senior!”
So-ra waved her hand urgently.
Seon-woo was coming in at just that moment. But it wasn’t only Seon-woo. Jae-won, Min-hee, Jin-wook, Do-young, and Hye-seong as well—the Cheongseong performers were all streaming in.
Thanks to that, the theater, which had been lively just moments before, now held a subtle tension.
They all knew these were the most formidable opponents they’d face here.
And then it happened.
“Who’s this?”
There was a woman rising to her feet and approaching Do-young.
She had short hair. A face Seon-woo didn’t recognize. ‘Who is she?’ he wondered, watching her as she grinned and tapped Do-young’s shoulder.
“Cha Do-young, you’ve made it far.”
“Long time. I heard you came back. How was studying abroad?”
“Learned plenty. It was good. I was a little disappointed you weren’t around when I got back. Oh, Min-hee! What’s this. You’ve gotten even prettier?”
“You look even lovelier, Senior.”
“Prettier, my foot. I went overboard with tanning and ruined my skin.”
It seemed she was someone who had been at Cheongseong before Seon-woo’s time there.
Seon-woo observed her discreetly.
‘……Who is she?’
There was something unusual about her presence.
Not simply that she was pretty and striking to look at. More like a wolf…… or perhaps a tiger, as it were.
‘She reminds me a bit of Senior Jeong In-gi.’
It might be somewhat rude to think such a thing of a young woman.
But it was true. The aura she gave off—something that would overwhelm and consume anyone in her presence—made it unmistakably clear she was no ordinary person.
Even Do-young seemed momentarily crushed by her presence, which said everything.
The problem was,
“Oh, are you that famous one?”
She was looking at Seon-woo.
Seon-woo thought. The relationship between them was a bit ambiguous, but…… that was something he could settle right now if he wanted to.
“It’s an honor to meet you. I’m Kim Seon-woo, Senior.”
“Why am I your senior?”
“Weren’t you at Cheongseong before?”
“Well, yes, but I was away…… and you joined while I was gone. It’s a bit awkward to ask for seniority treatment.”
“I’m still part of Cheongseong now.”
That was why he had no hesitation in treating her as a senior.
She widened her eyes at him. She hadn’t expected Seon-woo to come at her so gently and deliberately. She scratched her head with an embarrassed expression, then smiled and nodded.
“Yes. I’m Yu-ran Choi. Pleased to work with you.”
“Yes, Senior.”
After all, relationships are never difficult as long as one side doesn’t push back.
Yu-ran’s mouth corners had already lifted quite a bit—Seon-woo had clearly made a good impression. Kim Seon-woo. While she was away, a star actor had emerged from Cheongseong, and frankly she’d been uncertain how to treat him…… but here he was, giving her senior treatment right from the start.
As Yu-ran’s eyes sparkled watching Seon-woo, Min-hee looked at Yu-ran and asked.
“By the way, Senior. When did you get back to Korea? I didn’t even hear you’d arrived.”
“I came back last week. Soon as I got in, the Director called me. Asked if I wanted to give this a shot. So I got ready right away and rushed over.”
“……Senior, did you prepare a role?”
“In-hee.”
“Thank goodness. I’m doing Ga-hyun.”
Min-hee let out a relieved sigh and placed a hand on her chest.
Watching Min-hee, Seon-woo felt his curiosity about Yu-ran growing. If Min-hee reacted like that, it meant she genuinely possessed acting ability that was out of the ordinary…….
‘……Now that I think about it, I feel like I’ve heard her name somewhere.’
There was supposedly a truly monstrous performer among the old seniors at Cheongseong.
But it was only something he’d heard in passing, so he didn’t remember the details well.
‘Well, I’ll find out soon enough.’
He was curious, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on others.
Seon-woo kept glancing at Do-young. After hearing that Do-young was preparing for Jun-seo, he’d spent a long time considering it, but ultimately his conclusion was simple.
‘Jun-seo…… is hard to give up.’
Jun-seo was the role Seon-woo needed most to find the weapon to persuade Seon-jun. He had a feeling that by acting as Jun-seo, he might naturally discover the image of a husband suited to [How to Kill Your Wife].
He did want to act with Do-young.
But there was something that took priority. Acting with Do-young would come again another day, but [How to Kill Your Wife]—missing this chance meant there might never be a second one.
‘And I might never get another chance to compete with Senior Do-young like this.’
Of course, if he lost to Do-young this way and lost the role…… he wouldn’t get the performance, and he’d lose the chance to act with Do-young as well.
But Seon-woo had decided to accept that gracefully.
No one could achieve everything they wanted in life.
Seon-woo went to the audience seats and sat with the others.
The open audition was about to begin.
‘Still…….’
Seon-woo quietly scanned the faces of the other troupe members.
Determination went without saying—they all radiated sharp intensity. The fact that the members grew sharp at every audition wasn’t exactly surprising in itself…….
‘But this time the energy really is exceptional.’
The way all their eyes burned right now made him understand what resolve had brought them to this place.
Ji-hwan’s words came back to him. Something about preparing properly or else he might embarrass himself.
‘……I’ve prepared as much as I could.’
At least he’d done his absolute best.
That didn’t necessarily mean he’d definitely win…… but at least he was confident he wouldn’t lose shamefully.
Seon-woo touched the Color Orb that rested in his palm.
For someone facing a breakup, the Color Orb wasn’t soaked in melancholy emotion. With ash gray as its base color, laced with pale pink and yellow…… like flower petals from spring ground into powder and scattered.
It was because [Can We Break Up?] took the form of comedy.
As a genre that made even separation a subject of laughter rather than sorrow, the characters themselves didn’t seem immersed in emotions like sadness or rage.
For Seon-woo, it was an unfamiliar character type.
Having always taken on serious or dramatic roles, he’d never dealt with a character bearing the sensibility of black comedy.
But that couldn’t be an excuse.
Then it happened.
“Well, everyone’s here?”
Ji-hwan appeared and smiled broadly.
He looked around at them and spoke slowly.
“You all have quite frightening expressions. Good. I like it. Let’s not waste time and go straight into the auditions. And this audition will be conducted in couple pairs.”
“……Couple pairs? What do you mean?”
“Just what it sounds like. Jun-seo with In-hee. Min-jae with Ga-hyun. We’ll pair each role accordingly. That way I can see more clearly how the stage breathing works. Let’s start with Jun-seo and In-hee. Let me see…… the applicants are…….”
Ji-hwan looked down at the documents and then broke into a grin.
He looked toward Seon-woo.
“Seon-woo and Yu-ran. Can you two show us some acting? Scene 27.”
“Yes.”
“All right, let’s go!”
Seon-woo nodded simply, while Yu-ran leaped from the audience seats as if she’d been waiting for this. Just watching that moment revealed the difference in their temperaments.
Yu-ran stood on stage and looked down at Seon-woo.
‘So this is the one they say is so good?’
Even from abroad, Yu-ran had heard news of Seon-woo from time to time.
Some incredible newcomer had joined Cheongseong, and then at some point…… he’d become a successful star actor.
She hadn’t had time to look up the full works, but she’d seen some clips.
Without knowing the full context, deep immersion was difficult, but at least she could tell he was an actor with an extremely delicate emotional line.
But theater and broadcast are different things.
The most essential skill for a stage actor is mastering the fourth wall. Could Seon-woo really command it well? Probably not very expertly. It was a sensibility difficult to develop in broadcast acting.
Well, she’d have the answer soon enough.
Yu-ran’s demeanor shifted entirely.
She didn’t need time to draw on emotional memories or anything of that sort. Her acting philosophy was that the moment you focused on action, emotion would follow naturally.
“You’re not thrilled to look at me anymore, are you? I’m not thrilled either. So shouldn’t we break up? Marriage, lovers, whatever—in the end, when a man and a woman meet and look at each other and their hearts don’t skip a beat…… it’s over, isn’t it?”
Yu-ran often received this assessment from people.
Your acting seems alive. And it was true.
When she performed, it wasn’t just her voice and expression that came alive—even the fidgeting of her fingers seemed to breathe with vitality.
A liveliness that transcended individuality and touched the realm of talent.
Before that liveliness, most other actors would gasp and marvel. After all, to not be eclipsed by Yu-ran, they had to somehow draw out their own vitality.
Yu-ran watched Seon-woo and inwardly anticipated what he would show.
What kind of acting would this famous junior perform?
And,
“If we only met because of this thrill……”
Seon-woo’s performance finally began.
“Yeah, then we should break up.”

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