NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor - Chapter 94

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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 94. How to Handle Dating Rumors

Yeon-woo said he would check and call back, then hung up the phone.

 

He went to a portal site and clicked on the entertainment section news, where an article was at the very top.

 

‘3 minutes ago?’

 

It was an article that had just been posted.

 

– [Exclusive] Ryu Yeon-woo and Seo Ji-eun caught dating late at night?

 

Clicking on the article with its provocative headline, he saw a photo of two people wearing hats and masks coming out of a convenience store.

 

His own appearance was somewhat unclear, but Seo Ji-eun following behind was fairly clearly identifiable as the convenience store lights illuminated her face.

 

Chrissy, who had cleverly followed behind them, wasn’t in the photo.

 

As Yeon-woo hung up and looked at his smartphone, Chrissy, who was beside him, peered over his shoulder.

 

“Oh? Isn’t this from when we just went out front?”

“That’s right. It looks like paparazzi took the photo.”

“Wow, Jay and Nari. Were you superstars?”

 

When the casting offer came in, Chrissy had been excited because the pay was decent and she’d heard it was with a fairly famous director and famous actor in Korea, but upon arrival, she had tilted her head at the smaller filming scale than expected.

 

While Yeon-woo and Director Park had matched industry standards for outsourcing fees, the actual filming proceeded in an independent film format, so as a foreigner with little prior information about the two, she had been inwardly puzzled.

 

But to have paparazzi following them and articles going up immediately after just briefly going out, Chrissy felt their popularity was no less than any Hollywood movie star.

 

Just then, Seo Ji-eun entered with a somewhat serious expression, having heard something from her talent agency.

 

“Yeon-woo.”

“Yeah, I heard too.”

 

Yeon-woo scratched his head and pondered for a moment before speaking again.

 

“But isn’t this not as big a deal as we think?”

 

Yeon-woo’s smartphone was ringing non-stop.

Yeon-woo declined the incoming call from an unknown number and immediately called CEO Kim Ju-seong.

 

– Yeon-woo. I just received the report.

“Yes, CEO. I was aware that paparazzi had been following us since morning, but they must have taken photos when we briefly went out front because we were hungry while practicing for ‘Sketch’.”

– I see.

 

Yeon-woo continued speaking as if it wasn’t a big deal.

 

“So what I’m thinking is, right now I should directly…”

 

After hearing Yeon-woo’s explanation, CEO Kim Ju-seong seemed to think for a moment before his voice came through.

 

– Hmm… Certainly, that approach might be cleaner than the company simply making an official response. But we’d need to get prior understanding from Seo Ji-eun’s agency too.

“Since we’re together because practice isn’t finished, I’ll handle it.”

 

The call ended with CEO Kim Ju-seong asking him to call back if things went in an unexpected direction.

 

“Sister. You heard the conversation just now, right? What do you think?”

“Hmm… I’m fine with anything.”

“Then could you connect me with your agency CEO? I’ll explain.”

 

Seo Ji-eun called her agency CEO, and when the call connected, she handed it to Yeon-woo.

 

“Hello. This is Ryu Yeon-woo.”

– Yes? Ryu Yeon-woo? Ah, yes yes. Hello. I’m Yoo Byeong-su, CEO of New Planning.

 

CEO Yoo Byeong-su was a bit flustered when the phone was suddenly passed to Ryu Yeon-woo.

Yeon-woo briefly explained to the confused CEO Yoo, who thought for a moment before expressing his agreement.

 

– It sounds like a good idea. As you know, Ji-eun can be quite scatterbrained, so please make sure she doesn’t misspeak.

“Yes. I understand.”

 

After hanging up, Yeon-woo looked at Seo Ji-eun.

 

“Shall we start?”

“Yeah!”

 

Yeon-woo immediately posted on his fan cafe that he would be doing a live broadcast and turned on Byeol Star Live.

 

This was the second time since he had turned it on when camping with Ma Seok-do during the filming of “Master Plan”.

Actually, that time he had appeared on Ma Seok-do’s live, so this was essentially his first time hosting one himself.

 

Sitting in a corner of the recording studio and starting the live broadcast, viewers began flooding in instantly.

 

– What? Suddenly going live?!

– Live broadcasts melt my heart with aegyo.

– Amazing. Oppa, what happened? Did you see the internet right now?

– Are you really dating Seo Ji-eun unnie?

– Are you the man in the photo?

– Huh? Such an article came out?

 

Countless questions poured in.

 

The viewers entering the live broadcast were diverse – some who had seen the article and came in, others who saw the announcement on the fan cafe, and even those who entered by chance without knowing about the article.

 

Watching the rapidly scrolling chat window while just smiling, Yeon-woo opened his mouth once a decent number of viewers had gathered.

 

At that moment, Lee Cheol-ju was on NeTube making money from views by spreading rumors about celebrities.

 

Cheol-ju, known as a ‘wrecker’, had seen the big scoop that broke this evening and was collecting materials while preparing to upload a video.

After entering Ryu Yeon-woo’s fan cafe and seeing the announcement, Cheol-ju was now watching the live broadcast.

 

– Hello. I’m actor Ryu Yeon-woo. It’s nice to greet you through Byeol Star Live after such a long time.

 

As soon as Yeon-woo opened his mouth, the chat window became completely unreadable due to the rapidly rising hearts and messages.

 

– I was also surprised to see the dating rumors about me in the news just now. First of all, the man in the photo in the article is indeed me.

 

“Huh? He’s admitting that the man is him? He’s acknowledging it so easily. Is he going for a public relationship?”

 

Lee Cheol-ju tilted his head in confusion.

 

On the live screen, Yeon-woo smiled as he spoke, and the chat window, which was already unreadably fast, became even faster with messages flooding in.

 

Then Yeon-woo opened his mouth with an unexpected story.

 

– However, unfortunately, unlike your expectations, the connection from “Stars Beyond the Stream” didn’t carry over into reality. Seo Ji-eun?

 

As Yeon-woo looked at Seo Ji-eun who was outside the camera frame, Ji-eun jumped slightly and entered the frame cheerfully.

 

– Hello! I’m Seo Ji-eun.

 

Ji-eun naturally joined in, and Yeon-woo smiled as he continued speaking.

 

– We’ve been cast in a new movie and are currently practicing ensemble practice hard. This movie incorporates music. Are you looking forward to it?

 

“What, well of course.”

 

Lee Cheol-ju was disappointed because he thought it would be a major scoop, but their quick response with the live broadcast meant there wasn’t much angle for provocative videos to upload on YouTube for views.

 

Still, even though it wasn’t a dating rumor, the situation itself was interesting, so he focused on the screen while planning how to edit and upload it to YouTube.

 

Yeon-woo on screen used skillful speaking technique to naturally redirect the attention focused on him and Ji-eun toward anticipation for the movie.

 

But looking at the chat window, his audience management skills were extraordinary.

 

Then Yeon-woo said something in English toward off-camera.

Soon, a middle-aged white woman with blonde hair entered the smartphone screen.

 

– This is Chrissy Monroe, who’s serving as the music director for this movie.

– Hello, Everyone.

– The photo in the article that briefly heated up the internet seems to have been taken when we just stopped by a convenience store because Director Chrissy said she wanted to try Korean triangle kimbap and cup noodles.

 

Then Yeon-woo turned the camera to show the table with the triangle kimbap and cup noodles they had been eating just moments before.

 

– We showed her the combination of bibimbap-flavored triangle kimbap and spicy ramen. What Korean food should we introduce next?

 

At Yeon-woo’s question, the chat reactions naturally shifted from the dating rumor topic to the new movie, and then to Korean food.

 

When he asked about Korean food to introduce to a foreigner, the chat window was quickly filled with various food suggestions.

 

– Pork belly sounds good. Oh, zee32’s suggestion of budae jjigae that just came up is also good?

 

Yeon-woo began communicating with viewers by appropriately reading comments.

 

“Wow, his skill at handling the chat window puts internet broadcasters to shame?”

 

Although the live broadcast started as an explanation for the dating rumors, that quickly ended as just a misunderstanding.

 

– Since we turned on the live stream due to this unexpected opportunity, shall we take some time to communicate with viewers who loved “Stars Beyond the Stream”?

 

Yeon-woo increased credibility by introducing the movie staff, then naturally shifted the topic to “Stars Beyond the Stream,” which had aired a special episode last weekend.

 

***

 

Oh Ju-gwan felt like he was flying high today after landing a major scoop.

 

“Those T-News bastards. They suddenly showed up in the afternoon and kept lurking around nearby. Hehe. Scoops fall from heaven. I already marked Ryu Yeon-woo as mine.”

 

Oh Ju-gwan, a reporter from Star Enter News, had been persistently waiting at Ryu Yeon-woo’s locations for several days already.

He quickly transmitted the exclusive photos of Ryu Yeon-woo and Seo Ji-eun he shot today, and the article was already published.

 

Elated by his achievement of instantly reaching number one on the portal site’s entertainment section, he walked into headquarters with triumphant steps.

 

The elevator opened and as he entered the office, despite the late hour, several staff members were already gathered around a monitor.

 

‘Hehe, what are they all gathered to watch? The article hit number one within 5 minutes of being posted, so I guess they’re envious.’

 

Oh Ju-gwan approached with a grin stretching from ear to ear.

 

“Hey, what’s everyone doing gathered here instead of going home?”

 

At his words, a colleague reporter who was usually in a subtle competitive relationship with him looked back and chuckled.

 

“With news stories pouring out, how can we go home?”

“Haha. What do you mean pouring out? Dating rumor news like this is usually a market where the first report takes it all.”

“Hm? The dating rumor flew away ages ago, friend.”

 

Oh Ju-gwan frowned as he looked at the colleague who had been getting on his nerves lately.

 

‘Still, it’s a jackpot I hit after a long time, but saying it flew away ages ago – even if you’re jealous, that’s just ugly.’

 

Frowning, Oh Ju-gwan approached the other colleagues gathered around, and then the reporters looking at the monitor began taking notes.

 

“Ooh, so Son Jin-wook’s cameo appearance was because he happened to visit with a coffee truck to show support that day? This is huge.”

 

Wondering what they were watching so intently, Oh Ju-gwan peered at the monitor and his eyes widened when he saw Ryu Yeon-woo and Seo Ji-eun live broadcasting.

 

“What, did they admit it while I was driving back?”

“Huh? Oh, Team Leader. That issue was already buried 30 minutes ago. They said they’re just practicing ensemble practice for movie filming.”

 

His colleagues didn’t even spare a glance at Oh Ju-gwan, busy writing articles about the behind-the-scenes stories pouring out like a fountain from Ryu Yeon-woo’s live broadcast.

 

He hurriedly took out his smartphone and clicked on the entertainment section articles on Portal, but the article he had rushed out as breaking news had already disappeared from the rankings long ago, buried under other articles.

 

***

 

The dating rumors were quickly settled like that, and since he had turned on the live broadcast anyway, he communicated with fans for about an hour before ending the stream.

 

“So which one did you find most interesting?”

“Hmm. Maybe 「Your name」?”

 

While Seo Ji-eun was chatting with Chrissy, asking her various questions, the conversation turned to Korean movies and dramas.

Hearing Chrissy’s words, Yeon-woo’s eyes lit up with interest.

 

“「Your Name」 is Jin-wook hyung’s work.”

“Oh? Right. That’s true, isn’t it?”

 

Seo Ji-eun agreed and then said to Chrissy.

 

“Chrissy. Did you know that Jay is really close with the main character of 「Your Name」? They’re like brothers.”

“Really? Oh my gosh.”

 

Seo Ji-eun took out her smartphone and searched on the internet, starting to show photos from the legendary three-shot of Yeon-woo, Son Jin-wook, and Jin Yu-han from 「Stars Beyond Garam」 to their debut work 「Summer’s Closet」.

 

“Jay. You look different. Of course, your looks were amazing from when I first saw you, but now there’s like a halo behind you…”

“Haha. Jin-wook hyung’s power is incredible.”

 

Yeon-woo scratched his head, then grinned as if he had an interesting idea.

 

“Chrissy. Do you happen to know what bunsik is? It’s Korean food like tteokbokki or oden.”

“Tteokbokki?”

 

Chrissy tilted her head at the sudden question.

 

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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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