I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 93

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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 93

Before filming episode 4, Seon-woo faced one problem.

‘Now Kim Seon-woo has found his answer.’

The problem Kim Seon-woo had been carrying was simple.

To the question of whether he really needed to live, Kim Seon-woo had been unable to find any real answer until now.

And exhausted by that, he had eventually thrown himself into the Han River, trying to end everything.

But what he experienced in [One Room] finally made Kim Seon-woo understand.

That life is dazzling, and already worth pursuing in itself.

That reasons like ‘why’ don’t matter there.

So how should he express such a Kim Seon-woo?

It was a problem that needed to be approached as delicately as possible. Just because he knew he should live didn’t mean Kim Seon-woo wanted to live – that was still ambiguous.

But this wasn’t a major concern.

‘I’ve definitely become close with Kim Seon-woo.’

He no longer needed to think deeply about what expression, what actions, what feelings Kim Seon-woo would have. Now all of that felt natural.

And it seemed others could see that too.

“…Your acting seems to be improving?”

Min-hee looked at Seon-woo with an incredulous expression.

Seon-woo answered with an embarrassed voice.

“I understand Kim Seon-woo a bit better these days.”

“Ha, I’m jealous. I want to know too. Na Min-hee, what kind of woman are you exactly? I should know before I die.”

“…Na Min-hee.”

“What do you think? What kind of woman is Na Min-hee in your eyes?”

At Min-hee’s words, Seon-woo thought for a moment.

Na Min-hee’s outward character is simple. A doctor full of justice. That would be the general image.

However,

“A weak person.”

“…A weak person? Well, Min-hee isn’t particularly strong or anything… but is being weak enough to be a core keyword?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Well… the most anticipated scene from Min-hee would ultimately be her breaking down, right?”

“…”

Min-hee looked at Seon-woo with a sour expression.

What kind of perverted statement was this? But Seon-woo had an expression as if he didn’t understand what the problem was.

“…You want to see Min-hee break down?”

“She’s desperately holding on.”

Seon-woo nodded.

Actually, this part didn’t even require consideration for Seon-woo.

“It’s a situation where she can’t be composed, but Min-hee always tries to be composed. So wouldn’t the moment that composure crumbles be when this character shines?”

“…Hmm.”

Instead of answering, Min-hee stroked her chin.

It made sense. But what she focused on wasn’t those words, but Seon-woo’s perspective.

“You think like a director?”

“A director?”

“Yeah. Actors usually focus more on the character’s emotions… but you’re talking about utility.”

Utility.

Seon-woo nodded. That tendency had definitely become stronger lately.

‘It’s been more like that since I started seeing the painting.’

The painting created by the colors that bloomed during acting.

Since he started seeing that painting, Seon-woo began examining more closely the structure of emotions flowing throughout the entire work, not just simple roles.

“Does it seem like a problem?”

“No, it would be a problem if you couldn’t immerse yourself in your own character because you were worrying about that… but that’s not the case, right?”

Min-hee chuckled and raised her finger.

“You just got first place this time too.”

“Ahem.”

Seon-woo smiled with an embarrassed expression.

It felt awkward to show happiness about getting first place in front of Min-hee, who had been eliminated this time.

Min-hee shrugged her shoulders while looking at such a Seon-woo.

“Anyway, you’re doing well so it should be fine. Honestly, acting while looking at things so broadly, I think I’d be too stressed out…”

“Why would you be stressed?”

“You end up having to worry about everyone else’s acting too. Isn’t that much more of a headache than just focusing on your own acting?”

“Well, it can be a headache sometimes… but it’s that much more fun.”

“That’s why you’re doing it that way. Anyway, both you and Hye-seong oppa are really unique.”

Min-hee shook her head, then soon frowned.

“Wait, seeing that you two who do that survived… should I actually be acting that way?”

“Hye-seong hyung said you don’t necessarily need to act this way.”

“Well, that’s actually the right thing to say. There’s no correct answer in acting.”

But seeing Seon-woo’s acting change was quite fascinating.

Originally Seon-woo felt like he only focused on how he could express his own emotions, but now it was more like… a feeling of being at the center of the scene without radiating emotion.

‘What’s the difference?’

Min-hee thought about it for a moment.

The ability to exude stage presence without overly expressing emotions was something any actor would covet.

The problem was how he had done it.

Just because you have a broad perspective doesn’t necessarily mean you can emit that kind of presence. That wasn’t the case.

‘He melted into the work.’

It was possible because he was looking at the entire work.

It wasn’t just a matter of briefly switching into character mode during acting moments. It felt like he was always breathing the air of [One Room] rather than reality, even in everyday life. It felt like the person’s frequency itself completely matched that work.

When it came to melting into the work, he didn’t fall behind Hye-seong at all.

The problem was that Seon-woo had only recently started acting.

‘In a few years… what kind of acting will he be doing?’

It was a tremendous upward trajectory.

Of course, just because his growth rate was fast didn’t necessarily mean his peak would be high, but somehow she had a feeling. It was probably a feeling that everyone who had been watching Seon-woo would have experienced.

That Seon-woo would definitely become a great actor someday.

‘My dignity as a senior is in shambles.’

Min-hee let out a sigh.

Getting eliminated first was understandable. But being a senior should mean having something worth emulating… she wasn’t confident that she had shown such acting in front of Seon-woo.

And not being confident meant she wasn’t doing it properly.

‘I should at least die properly.’

Min-hee steeled her resolve.

This was actually a determination she held as an actor, not as a senior.

And part of what led her to make up her mind was a comment she had accidentally seen this time.

eyesonyou: Why did Minhee unnie get eliminated ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ She acted so well

└Nice Comment Fairy: But honestly, she’s also overrated because of her looks. If she didn’t have that face, it wouldn’t be surprising if she had been eliminated already

└eyesonyou: Do you think people with that face who can act like that are common?

└Nice Comment Fairy: It’s not that common. But either way, you’re also not evaluating based purely on acting right now—you’re factoring in looks too.

The comment that Min-hee had survived this long was just thanks to her looks.

In fact, it was something that had followed Min-hee throughout the filming of 【I Am an Actor】. Of course, most of it ended at the level of just complimenting Min-hee’s appearance, but some people used it as a basis to constantly talk about the ‘Na Min-hee bubble theory.’

‘…It’s not something that only happened here.’

Min-hee is pretty.

She had known this since she was young. She was too pretty not to know it. Of course, how many actresses lack confidence in their appearance, but Min-hee stood out even among such actresses.

But that beauty hadn’t always been a blessing for her.

That appearance often caused misunderstandings.

—Lucky you. You’re pretty.

When she first got a leading role at Cheongseong, she still couldn’t forget the look in the eyes of the senior who was pushed aside by Min-hee.

That look that seemed to think she absolutely wouldn’t have lost if it had been a competition based purely on acting ability.

—Everything must be easy for you.

That was the most insulting thing Min-hee had ever heard in her life.

Easy. Easy how? Does acting happen automatically if you have a pretty face?

‘…It was never easy, not even once.’

She knows.

That her appearance is definitely a weapon that helps her fly higher.

But that didn’t mean she had ever neglected acting, not even once. She had never treated acting lightly or carelessly.

Because she loved acting.

So much that she thought she could dedicate her entire life to it.

That’s why she deliberately didn’t dress up more when going around.

Because she wanted recognition.

Not as a pretty actor, but as a good actor. That she really acts well.

Because she wanted to hear those words.

That feeling remains unchanged even now.

So,

“The script is out!”

When she finally received the next script, Min-hee read through it with blazing eyes.

‘I’m going to devour it!’

It didn’t matter what content came out.

After reading the script for a while with the determination to pull off whatever difficult acting was required, Min-hee tilted her head to the side with a puzzled expression.

It wasn’t just Min-hee.

Hyeong-bin, who was beside her, also spoke up with a slightly surprised voice.

“…A new face is appearing?”

A new character was appearing in the script.

That meant a new actor would appear besides them.

Since episode 1, since entering this one room, no one had appeared except the ten participants, so they had thought there would be no occasion to work with other actors going forward.

It would be a lie to say this situation wasn’t confusing.

The new character’s name was… GM.

Short for Game Manager. Meaning the administrator who runs this [One Room].

“Who will play the actor?”

“I don’t know. It’s like a special appearance, right? Maybe someone who was eliminated before could come.”

“No, I don’t think there’s really a reason for that. Wouldn’t it be from among active actors?”

“…What if it’s a bigger name than we think? Like Senior Seong Do-won.”

“That’s a bit… Even if it’s a special appearance, I don’t think we could meet his asking price.”

Everyone was curious about who would play the GM role.

Seon-woo was also a little excited about this unexpected situation.

‘This should be interesting.’

Seon-woo’s eyes sparkled.

He had wanted to see it at least once.

What kind of acting would an actor who was active as a professional in this entertainment industry and received recognition show?

Would Seon-woo’s acting be able to truly shine even in front of him?

Honestly, he wasn’t too worried about it.

Seon-woo was someone who had acted alongside Do-young. Do-young was such a special person that Director Yu Chan-woo had cast him as the lead without even an audition. If he could handle Do-young, he could probably handle anyone else.

The key question was who would come.

‘Surely someone fairly famous will come.’

Even when filming episode 1 with minor actors, Seon-woo had felt like he was in a new world. He had felt firsthand what professional acting was like.

But this time, an actor who was at least supporting role level or higher would be coming.

The GM role was definitely not something that could be treated lightly. Just imagining it was already thrilling.

‘Who will come?’

That question could be resolved that very day.

When he went to the film set, a familiar face that he hadn’t expected to see here was smiling at them.

An elderly gentleman in a pure white suit.

“Hello.”

Lee Mu-beom was there.

“I’m Lee Mu-beom, who will be playing the GM role. Please take good care of me from now on.”

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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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