I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 49

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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 49

 

And the appeal of suppressing emotion wasn’t limited to just that.

 

Imagine this.

 

A person is tied up, and above them hangs a rock suspended by a rope. A rock large enough to lead that person to death if it were to fall.

 

In this situation, which scene would make the audience more tense?

 

The scene where the rope slowly frays and breaks thread by thread,

 

or… the scene where the rock just falls?

 

Obviously it would be the former.

 

That precarious feeling that something could happen at any moment is what makes viewers break out in a cold sweat.

 

“What makes everything so easy for you? Huh? Why do you always… give up so easily like that.”

 

From that perspective, the fact that Kwon So-ri couldn’t withstand Seon-woo’s acting actually helped in some ways.

 

If that hadn’t happened, he wouldn’t have thought to act this way.

 

Seon-woo had hung a rock on a rope.

 

A rock that seemed ready to fall and crush Kwon So-ri at any moment.

 

And Kwon So-ri, placed beneath that rock…

 

‘…’

 

She was barely holding back the goosebumps rising all over her body.

 

Since Seon-woo was suppressing his emotions anyway, wasn’t he a bit more manageable to deal with?

 

No, that’s exactly why it was even more frightening.

 

It felt like facing a predator that had held its breath just before pouncing.

 

“Have you ever done anything properly? Have you ever seen anything through to the end?”

 

“…”

 

“Right. You haven’t. But what? It’s hard? Do you think you have the right to say something like that?”

 

“To the end?”

 

But she couldn’t just cower in fear.

 

Whether it turned out to be porridge or rice, she had to face him now.

 

Kwon So-ri desperately drew up her emotions.

 

“I… each day was the end.”

 

Kwon So-ri, delivering her final lines, felt her heart pounding inside.

 

It wasn’t because she had to show the acting of jumping soon.

 

It was because she knew what was waiting at that moment.

 

Changing his acting style, Seon-woo had asked Kwon So-ri.

 

—Once.

 

Yes, once.

 

—You just need to endure it once.

 

What did that mean?

 

She would find out now.

 

Kwon So-ri stepped backward.

 

The scene of jumping off the rooftop.

 

And that was the moment.

 

“Jun-hee… Park Jun-hee———!”

 

Seon-woo finally exploded all the emotions he had suppressed and suppressed again in one instant.

 

Crack!

 

Would it feel like this if you got electrocuted?

 

The feeling of all the blood vessels in her body contracting instantly. The feeling of rage, despair, and terror packed into Seon-woo’s voice devouring her.

 

The lightning that had been held back by Seon-woo flashed as if it had been waiting for this moment and rushed toward Kwon So-ri.

 

The reason Kwon So-ri could maintain her immersion even in that endless tsunami of emotion was thanks to practicing purely to endure this scene.

 

And when Seon-woo saw Kwon So-ri disappear beyond the railing…

 

“Ah, ahhh… No, no. Noooo…”

 

He was completely consumed by the accumulated emotions.

 

The appearance of someone who had completely collapsed.

 

His face was completely red and his eyes were bloodshot. Tears streamed down, but as if he wasn’t even conscious of it, he stared at the railing where Kwon So-ri had disappeared with unfocused eyes.

 

“Why, why… why-y-y-y-y-y-y-y———!”

 

Those with weak hearts squeezed their eyes shut at this moment.

 

Just watching felt like it would wound their hearts.

 

Even knowing it was acting, their hearts ached.

 

They couldn’t breathe.

 

So when the studio lights went out,

 

“…Haaah… haaaaah…”

 

“Ugh…”

 

“Whooooo…”

 

“Kuh, cough, cough!”

 

Instead of applause or cheers from the audience seats, only the sounds of gasping for air and coughing that had been held back for so long echoed through.

 

And that remained unchanged even when the lights came back on and Yu Mi-yeon picked up the microphone.

 

“…Whew.”

 

Yu Mi-yeon slowly exhaled.

 

As if she too had been holding her breath.

 

And only after a long while did she open her mouth with an incredulous expression.

 

“Seon-woo, where did you learn to act like this?”

 

* * *

 

Will these two be okay?

 

When Yu Mi-yeon saw the combination of Seon-woo and Kwon So-ri, worry actually preceded expectation.

 

In fact, that was purely because of Kwon So-ri.

 

The way she had acted during the last mission was still vivid in her mind.

 

Someone completely incompatible with teamwork.

 

That was the image the judges had of Kwon So-ri.

 

Well, when they actually came out on stage, there didn’t seem to be any major friction between them… but Yu Mi-yeon was actually more worried because of that.

 

The fact that Kwon So-ri had such a satisfied expression… she wondered if perhaps Seon-woo had accommodated Kwon So-ri in every aspect.

 

And when she actually watched them start acting, Yu Mi-yeon thought for a moment that her worry had become reality.

 

Because Seon-woo’s acting was far too subdued than expected.

 

If it were a scene that warranted being subdued, she would understand.

 

But this was a scene where his younger sibling was causing a suicide commotion. And yet he was delivering such subdued acting?

 

The Seon-woo she originally knew wouldn’t have done this.

 

He would have already emitted such intense emotions that they would color not only himself but this entire stage.

 

But Seon-woo didn’t do that.

 

‘…Did he adjust to match?’

 

Did he lower his emotions to match what could be handled?

 

If so, it was disappointing. There are situations where you should apply the brakes, and situations where you shouldn’t.

 

At least now wasn’t a situation to apply the brakes.

 

No matter how much the other person couldn’t receive his emotions, he should have properly expressed them.

 

However, Yu Mi-yeon’s disappointment didn’t last very long.

 

She realized that Seon-woo’s acting was… somehow not ordinary.

 

Trembling fingertips and a gaze wandering aimlessly through the air…

 

This isn’t just reducing emotions.

 

Could it be…

 

“That guy… is really crazy.”

 

She could hear Seong Jun-il muttering from beside her.

 

And only then did Yu Mi-yeon realize that Seon-woo wasn’t just applying the brakes.

 

‘He’s also… pressing the accelerator?’

 

Right.

 

Seon-woo wasn’t just pressing the brakes.

 

More precisely, he was pressing the brakes all the way down while also flooring the accelerator.

 

Yes. Just like doing a zero-to-sixty test.

 

The emotions he had suppressed and suppressed could be seen surging as if they would burst out at any moment from his bowed profile.

 

And only then did Yu Mi-yeon realize what Seon-woo intended.

 

‘Could it be…’

 

Was he planning to keep building up emotions while continuously suppressing them?

 

If he did that, wouldn’t Kwon So-ri have to act against emotions that could explode at any moment?

 

But in some ways, this might actually be the right answer.

 

Rather than constantly facing that emotion, it would be easier to handle if you only faced it for brief moments.

 

Moreover, this actually made watching the acting even more enjoyable.

 

Because you kept waiting for that moment when the brakes would finally be released.

 

Every time Seon-woo delivered his lines, every time his body flinched, the judges clenched their fists tightly.

 

And then,

 

“Jun-hee… Park Jun-hee———!”

 

When Seon-woo finally took off with a thunderous roar, the judges… no, everyone present felt a tingling sensation as if their spines had been electrified.

 

An explosion of emotion that seemed like it would shatter the entire stage.

 

Just watching and listening, that emotion seemed to pierce through their brains with stimulation…

 

They could say with certainty.

 

This was the most explosive acting they had ever seen from Seon-woo.

 

They finally understood what Kwon So-ri had said.

 

Right. With this kind of energy, it would indeed be difficult to handle.

 

Even seasoned professional actors would find it difficult to deal with that kind of acting.

 

And Yu Mi-yeon was no exception.

 

She wasn’t even playing the opposite role, just watching the performance from afar… yet Yu Mi-yeon had to take a moment to breathe deeply before picking up the microphone.

 

It meant the lingering impact of Seon-woo’s acting was that profound.

 

“Seon-woo, where did you learn to act like this?”

 

“…Uh, I didn’t really learn it anywhere.”

 

“Ah, never mind. I wasn’t really asking to get an answer anyway.”

 

Yu Mi-yeon chuckled and waved her hand dismissively.

 

Then she soon settled her gaze seriously.

 

“Seon-woo, your emotions have grown, haven’t they?”

 

Your emotions have grown.

 

It might be a somewhat difficult expression to understand. But Seon-woo immediately understood what she was saying.

 

She was saying that the magnitude of emotions he could utilize had grown larger.

 

“Yes. I think so.”

 

“…It’s truly fascinating. I’ve never heard of or seen an actor who grows this quickly. Have you ever seen one, Jun-il?”

 

“I don’t have that either. Most people probably don’t, right?”

 

“But what I want to focus on more than that is… the way Seon-woo plays with emotions.”

 

Yu Mi-yeon shook her head in disbelief as she thought about it again.

 

“Exploding emotions isn’t actually that difficult. But creating tension by holding onto emotions that seem like they could burst at any moment… that’s a different story. Seon-woo, how did you even think to act like that?”

 

“Hmm…”

 

Seon-woo hesitated for a moment.

 

The real reason was ‘because Kwon So-ri couldn’t handle his acting.’ If it weren’t for that, he wouldn’t have acted this way—he would have expressed his emotions as they were from the beginning.

 

But saying this might sound like he was putting down Kwon So-ri.

 

Public opinion was already noisy about him being a genius or lying about his experience—he couldn’t show such arrogant behavior on top of that.

 

“I just thought it would be interesting to do it this way.”

 

In the end, Seon-woo gave such a simple answer.

 

But Yu Mi-yeon was rather dumbfounded by that response.

 

‘Just?’

 

Since long ago, Seon-woo had this habit of making everything sound easy.

 

Even when he caught points that others couldn’t grasp despite endless deliberation, whenever asked about it, Seon-woo’s reaction was always like this.

 

Just.

 

I did what felt right.

 

It just turned out that way while acting.

 

The funny thing was that it didn’t feel like he was showing off.

 

Yu Mi-yeon let out a hollow laugh.

 

“…Seon-woo, have you seen the internet reactions?”

 

“About my experience, you mean?”

 

“Yes. People are all saying that 6 months of experience doesn’t make sense for you. What do you think about that?”

 

“I’m grateful for it.”

 

“Grateful?”

 

“It means they’re viewing my acting favorably.”

 

“…”

 

Should she say he had good mental fortitude, or that he was slightly off the mark?

 

Yu Mi-yeon let out a sigh.

 

“To be honest, I understand how those people feel. Even from my perspective, this isn’t the level of skill that could come from just 6 months of experience. But what makes me not doubt it is… I’ve seen Seon-woo’s real-time growth speed right beside him.”

 

Through the preliminaries and during the three rounds of the main competition, Seon-woo had steadily grown.

 

If at first he was just someone whose acting caught your eye, now he had become… someone whose acting you absolutely couldn’t look away from.

 

The important thing was that the time that had passed during all this was barely even 2 months.

 

He was someone who recorded this level of growth in such a short time.

 

In 1 year, 2 years, 10 years from now… what kind of actor would Seon-woo become?

 

‘Soon… Chungmuro will be completely turned upside down.’

 

Yu Mi-yeon felt like she could already see that future.

 

She could already picture all sorts of directors scrambling around everywhere just to get Seon-woo’s contact information.

 

That’s why.

 

“I know I shouldn’t say things like this carelessly… but my mouth is itching and I can’t hold back.”

 

Yu Mi-yeon’s eyes sparkled.

 

“Seon-woo, you don’t have an agency yet, right?”

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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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