I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 50
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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 50
The first to react to Yu Mi-yeon’s sudden question was none other than Seong Jun-il.
He shot up from his seat and shook his head.
“Ugh, senior! No matter what, scouting here is going too far, isn’t it?”
“…Is, is that so?”
“But Seon-woo.”
Seong Jun-il turned to look at Seon-woo.
And gave him a sly smile.
“So, do you have an agency?”
“Uh, no I don’t.”
“Then want to come to our agency?”
“Th, that’s…”
“…Jun-il. Sit down, sit down.”
In the end, the untimely agency situation was settled like that.
And after the evaluation that followed, the score Seon-woo received was…
“9 points.”
Right. It was 9 points.
Seon-woo clenched his fist tightly.
In some ways, this score was even more meaningful than the 10 points he received for Mute last time. The Mute score was given for recognizing the specialness of the interpretation itself, while this time it felt like they evaluated purely his acting ability alone.
And Kwon So-ri was…
“Kwon So-ri receives 8 points.”
“…Th, thank you!”
She managed to receive a full 8 points.
From Kwon So-ri’s perspective, this was breaking her highest score record. The highest score she had received until now was only 7 points.
Kwon So-ri turned to look at Seon-woo with a dazed expression.
Actually, even when Seon-woo first said he would give her feedback, she had some doubts.
Being good at acting and being good at teaching acting were different things.
“Oppa.”
“…Yes?”
“Thank you.”
After coming down from the stage, Kwon So-ri expressed her gratitude with a sincere expression.
But Seon-woo just shrugged his shoulders with an indifferent expression.
“It’s nothing. You worked hard too, So-ri.”
He had no intention of taking credit for helping her.
After all, it wasn’t something he had done for her sake anyway.
And more than anything, right now Seon-woo found it difficult to focus on Kwon So-ri.
“Kim Ye-chan and Seo Shin-young, please come up to the stage.”
That was because Ye-chan was just climbing onto the stage.
Watching Ye-chan who had a somewhat resolute expression, Seon-woo’s gaze deepened.
‘…What kind of acting has he prepared?’
—This time I’m going to act the correct answer.
He recalled what Ye-chan had said with sparkling eyes.
What exactly was the correct answer that Ye-chan spoke of?
He would know the answer soon enough.
“No… please hang in there… the ambulance will be here soon. So, okay? Look at me, just a little… just hang in there a little longer…!”
[Whistle]
It was a drama that had once aired on broadcast networks. A drama about a serial killer who committed murders accompanied by whistle sounds.
And what Ye-chan was acting now was the role of a childhood friend who saved the female protagonist from almost falling victim to that serial killer, but got stabbed by a knife instead and was dying.
The notable point here was… this childhood friend couldn’t utter any lines while dying because his lung had been pierced by the knife.
He could only let out weak, deflating sounds and just stare.
That was all the acting Ye-chan had to do.
It was difficult acting.
He had to express all the emotions he was feeling in that moment using only his eyes, facial expressions, and irregular breathing sounds.
For choosing this in a competition like this… it was acting that had more disadvantages than advantages.
But Seon-woo thought he understood why Ye-chan had chosen this script.
In the last mission, Ye-chan had failed to properly act the Mute’s ‘silence.’
He probably wanted to wash away the regret from that time by acting this ‘silence.’
‘…You’re not exactly normal either.’
Seon-woo smiled bitterly.
He could have just let what was lacking last time remain as something that had passed.
But Ye-chan had deliberately decided to bring a silence similar to that time and act with it.
Was it to become confident in himself?
Did he feel like he couldn’t move on without properly addressing this?
That was probably it.
Seon-woo chuckled softly.
So rigid, foolish, and inflexible that it left him speechless.
But why was it?
“…Ugh———.”
“St, stop it! Don’t speak! Just stay still, please listen to me just once…!”
Why did this foolish appearance seem to shine?
Seon-woo focused his gaze on the colors that Ye-chan’s acting painted. The petals that seemed to show his pure love and affection… bloomed and withered repeatedly, hinting at his final moments.
How much effort had Ye-chan put in to paint such a picture with acting that had no lines?
And now that he was finally showing that picture, how thrilling must it be for him?
‘Impressive.’
His heart swelled with emotion for no reason.
It was because he could gauge it. How much Ye-chan must have blamed himself for not being able to act despite knowing the answer in the last mission. And how sincerely he must have thrown himself into this mission.
But at the same time, he was worried.
Having no lines meant it wouldn’t be easy to secure points.
Of course, Seon-woo had secured 10 points as the Mute, but that was a very exceptional case.
It would be difficult to expect the same result this time.
However, when Ye-chan’s acting ended and he saw the judges’ faces… Seon-woo felt hope for a moment.
It was because honey was dripping from their eyes as they looked at Ye-chan.
Eyes that showed they were so proud they didn’t know what to do with themselves.
It was the same look they often showed when looking at Seon-woo.
“Ye-chan, I didn’t see you that way, but you’re quite a stubborn person.”
It was Yu Mi-yeon who said those words.
She was biting back a playful smile as she looked at Ye-chan.
“Did the last mistake hurt that much?”
“…I think I felt somewhat embarrassed.”
And Ye-chan answered honestly.
Looking sheepish, barely able to lift his head, fidgeting nervously.
But why was it that this appearance only looked cool?
“Actually, back then, Seon-woo hyung had told me. How to act the mute role well. But… even knowing that, I couldn’t follow through.”
“Because of the score?”
“Yes. I wasn’t confident I could get a good score with that kind of acting.”
“And now you were confident?”
“…Actually, I’m still not that confident even now.”
Ye-chan hung his head.
As if confessing his most shameful weakness, he continued speaking haltingly with reddened earlobes.
“But I still had to do it. I have a lot of life left ahead of me… and I want to be proud of myself in every moment.”
And right now, Ye-chan was proud.
As if that was enough, Ye-chan finally looked at the judges with firm eyes.
“Thank you for everything.”
Ye-chan spoke as if saying farewell.
There was a reason for this. After this mission ended, everyone except the top 10 with the highest scores would be eliminated.
In the last mission… Ye-chan had only received 3 points for his team score.
Even if he got 10 points this time, his chances of survival were practically nonexistent.
And to such a Ye-chan,
“Ye-chan’s score is 7 points.”
The judges gave him such a realistic score.
But Ye-chan didn’t mind. From the moment he took on this role without lines, Ye-chan’s goal wasn’t the score.
Of course, Seon-woo had played the same mute role and received 10 points, but that was Seon-woo.
‘It means this is all I amount to right now.’
Just as he was thinking that,
“But… I hope you don’t think this score evaluates you as an actor.”
Lee Mu-beom opened his mouth.
He looked at Ye-chan with calm eyes. As if he could see right through him.
“As a senior who walked this path before you, and as an actor, the score I wanted to give you today at least… was a perfect hundred.”
“….”
“You worked hard, Ye-chan.”
The fact that Ye-chan ended up showing tears at that moment would be better left unmentioned for his sake.
* * *
【 Now, we will tally the scores. 】
Everyone’s performances had ended.
And the judges immediately moved on to the next phase without a moment to breathe.
The TOP 10 selection.
There wasn’t really anything to be nervous about. Most people remembered each other’s scores. They had already calculated whether they were in what place, whether they survived or not.
So,
【 Then we will… reveal those who made it to the TOP 10! 】
When they saw the names that appeared on the screen, people only let out sighs without surprise.
Seon-woo’s eyes darkened.
The list of those who passed was as follows.
Kim Seon-woo. Jeong Hye-seong. Na Min-hee. Lee Yeon-woo. Song Jae-won.
Bang Hyeong-bin. Seo Jin-wook. Park Moon-hyeon. Yoo Ji-eun. Justin Oh.
Right.
Ye-chan’s name wasn’t there.
With a worried heart, Seon-woo unconsciously turned to look beside him.
Ye-chan was clapping with a deliberately calm expression.
‘…He can’t be feeling completely at ease inside.’
While he was just watching the situation, finding it difficult to offer any words of comfort, Seong Jun-il opened his mouth without giving time to sort out feelings.
【 Congratulations to everyone who made it to the TOP 10. 】
【 And to those who didn’t make it… I want to say thank you for your hard work. 】
【 I’d like to hold a farewell ceremony for them if I could, but I don’t think we’ll have the luxury for that. 】
【 I will now announce the next mission. 】
【 More precisely, it’s about how you TOP 10 participants will compete from now on. 】
The proceedings rushed forward in an instant.
But the nuance was strange.
It sounded like the competition would be in a completely different format from what they had been doing so far.
But everyone would soon understand the reason.
【 Previously, we told you that we would give all participants who made it to the TOP 10 a chance to appear in a drama. 】
【 But we never told you how, or which drama you would appear in. 】
【 You probably all thought you’d be cast in a drama that would be scheduled after the broadcast ended, right? 】
【 Wrong. 】
【 The mission itself that the TOP 10 will carry out will be filming a drama. 】
“…What?”
“We’re filming a drama?”
“Th-that’s impossible. Now? Already?”
It was something they never expected to hear.
Naturally, the participants couldn’t help but be shaken.
Even Seon-woo was no exception. He stared blankly at Seong Jun-il’s mouth.
Drama filming?
Right now? So suddenly like this?
It didn’t feel real.
He had only vaguely thought that someday he would appear in a drama, and that he would be really happy when that time came… but he never imagined that day would come this quickly.
But there were still many parts he couldn’t understand.
He didn’t know exactly how the drama filming would proceed, but could it be resolved in such a short time? Moreover, there would be eliminations among them as they progressed, so would those people leave the drama?
He couldn’t easily imagine how they would solve this.
And as if reading Seon-woo’s mind, Seong Jun-il showed a sinister smile.
【 I know what you’re all thinking. 】
【 You can’t even begin to grasp how we’ll connect and proceed with the program audition and drama filming. 】
【 To help you understand, let me first tell you the genre of the drama you’ll be filming. 】
【 ‘Survival.’ 】
Survival.
With question marks filling everyone’s eyes at that unfamiliar topic, Seong Jun-il continued his explanation in a voice that seemed even more excited than before.
【 From now on, you will be acting as participants in a game where you must kill each other until only one person remains. 】
【 And each round, you will be evaluated by our judges, and based on those evaluations, it will be decided who dies at the end of each round. 】
【 Think of it simply. You will now become real actors and perform, and the better your acting compared to others, the longer you will survive. 】
【 On the other hand, if your acting falls behind others… you’ll be assigned the role of dying and being eliminated from the game. 】
【 Naturally, along with dying, you’ll also be eliminated from this program. 】
【 In the end, just do what you’ve been doing all along. 】
【 Act! 】
Seong Jun-il smiled.
【 And, survive. 】
A bomb had dropped.
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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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