The Genius Actor Who Lives Twice - Chapter 13

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

Episode 13

“Get inside now and save those people!”

A brief pause in character.

“Okay, cut.”

Kim Hyun-deok spoke.

“How was that?”
“Good again. Compared to when you first got the lines, you’ve definitely made them your own—I can see your skill growing.”

I had decided to rehearse with the lines Kim Hyun-deok chose for me, not the ones I’d practiced in the past, and to showcase them at the audition.
If I kept repeating the same lines, my acting would calcify into one fixed form, and that wasn’t good for an actor.
Besides, I needed to leave my past life behind and move forward now.
With Kim Hyun-deok.

“Was the emotion too much?”
“No, that’s just right. Want to watch it together?”

Kim Hyun-deok connected the camera to the computer with a cable and played back the footage.
It was the performance I’d just given.

“I don’t see any obvious shortcomings. What do you think?”
“The character still doesn’t feel natural to me. Could we shoot it a few more times?”
“We’ve got less than twelve hours until the audition?”
“I still want to do my best with whatever time we have.”

Kim Hyun-deok looked worried.

“It’s already one in the morning. You should go inside and get some sleep—you’ve got the audition tomorrow. There probably aren’t any cabs running at this hour anyway.”

Kim Hyun-deok picked up the car keys.
He meant to drive me home—time to stop and go.
But I had no intention of leaving.

“I already told my father I’d be staying here tonight.”
“You’re planning to go all night?”
“Yes. This is a chance I don’t know if I’ll ever get again—I have to prepare with everything I’ve got.”
“You’re going to hurt yourself doing this.”
“I’m managing my health carefully so it won’t be too much. Physical conditioning is part of an actor’s skill.”
“Listening to you talk, I’d think you’d been acting professionally for over fifteen years.”

I’d felt it from the moment we met—this person had excellent instincts.

“All right, let’s go again. Are you ready?”
“Yes.”

Kim Hyun-deok positioned his finger on the camera shutter.

“Starting then. Ready…….”

I closed my eyes and steadied my breathing, giving myself a moment to sink into the role.
I followed the situation the character was in, the environment around them, the psychology of the person itself.

“Action.”

* * *

Lee Hyun-seok, the head of Baekya Film, leaned against the rooftop railing of the production company building and lit a cigarette.
He watched the smoke curl upward before speaking.

“How many projects is this for you?”
“…This is the third one.”

Director Choi Il-hyung, standing before the president, answered in a voice barely above a whisper.
Choi Il-hyung didn’t smoke—he was a non-smoker.
Lee Hyun-seok had only asked him to come up to the rooftop for a moment, but something about it felt ominous.
For a long while, the director stared at the ground in silence.

“Hmm… The third one.”

Lee Hyun-seok exhaled the smoke slowly.

“You’ve certainly had your share of good fortune, Director Choi.”

To have been entrusted with two films already.
Lee Hyun-seok studied the director’s face.
When he’d first decided to invest in him, his hopes had been high.
Choi Il-hyung was a talented director, after all—someone worth betting on with a film.
The problem was that his talent hadn’t translated into commercial success.
The two films he’d directed for Baekya Film had become two failures in quick succession.

“I had the crew assembled exactly as you requested. We supported everything you said you needed.”

Director Choi Il-hyung had nothing to say.
He couldn’t have answered if his life depended on it.

“But if there are no results, what are we supposed to do?”

A production company doesn’t run on dreams alone.
Talk of a good film, praise for brilliant direction—none of it means anything until it reaches the audience.

“…I’m sorry.”
“I don’t want to hear apologies. Can things be different this time?”

Director Choi Il-hyung hesitated a moment, then finally spoke.

“They will be different this time.”
“On what grounds?”
“The screenplay is excellent. As you know, writer Kim Sook-hyun herself took on this script, didn’t she?”

That much was true.
Kim Sook-hyun, called the queen of the drama world, had agreed to write it.

“And I’ll find good actors soon enough.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve called in a bunch of rookies again?”

Lee Hyun-seok visibly bristled.
Scouting newcomer actors is essentially gambling.
Yes, when the jackpot hits, you make money—but isn’t it common wisdom that gambling is the fastest path to ruin?
In the end, more people lose than win.
The same goes for newcomer actors.
They’re naturally less skilled than veterans or established performers most of the time.
A hidden gem of an actor might exist somewhere, but gems are precious precisely because they’re so rare.
Famous film series and well-known directors attract countless applicants, and yes, they do sometimes manage to cast such gem-like newcomers.
But Director Choi Il-hyung had already failed twice—this wasn’t that kind of situation.

“As you mentioned, this time we consulted with the casting director and invited several established actors to the audition as well.”

He had arranged for plenty of newcomers to audition too, though he conveniently omitted that detail.
Director Choi Il-hyung left that fact entirely out of his report.
Lee Hyun-seok sat in silence for a moment, then exhaled deeply.

“Phew. Unbelievable.”

Lee Hyun-seok had sworn off cigarettes, yet here he was smoking again—and he had Director Choi Il-hyung to thank for that.
Looking at this man’s track record was stress enough to break anyone’s resolve.
Lee Hyun-seok stubbed out his finished cigarette in the ashtray.

“By the way, you said there’s an audition today?”
“Yes, it’s scheduled for this afternoon.”
“I’ll sit in on it myself.”
“It’s only a supporting role audition, not a lead. There’s really no need for you to make the trip…”
“It’s our company’s production. This time, I need to see it for myself.”

It was rare for a production company’s president to personally attend an audition.
Typically, company executives focused on investor negotiations, budget management, and distribution.
Actor casting fell squarely in the domain of the director, writer, and casting director.
For him to set aside time for a supporting role audition meant only one thing.

‘He wants to verify whether hiring this director was the right call.’

Director Choi Il-hyung understood the implication, and a chill ran down his spine.
Directors didn’t typically get replaced over a supporting actor’s weak performance.
But for Director Choi Il-hyung, who had just sabotaged two films in succession, the rules were different.
Trust had already bottomed out.
Like a full cup of water that overflows at the slightest additional drop.
If he disappointed Lee Hyun-seok this time, there would be no second chances.
Lee Hyun-seok crumpled the cigarette pack and hurled it into the trash.

“What are you doing? Let’s go.”

Lee Hyun-seok frowned and opened the door.

‘If they’ve just wasted my time with useless people, I’m tearing up every contract and payment clause. Everything.’

* * *

The audition took place in the conference room at Baekya Film.
As a result, every other space in the company—save the break room—had become a rehearsal area for the actors.
The staff naturally split into two groups.
Those helping run the audition.
And those handling their regular work.
Every employee in the latter category wore small earplugs.

“A! B! C! D!”
“Hello there! Ahhh!”

Voices echoing from every corner pierced right through the earplugs.
The actors were desperate, each one scrambling to showcase their best qualities in the limited time.

“I came down eleven flights of stairs holding this fountain pen!”

Someone was shouting loudly as they performed—

“And there’s that train coming again!”
“Right! You wouldn’t want to listen to what I have to say anyway!”
“Shut up!”

The other participants raised their voices as well.
To keep from being overshadowed by their rivals’ performances.
And at the same time, to etch their own presence into the minds of everyone watching.
The actors glanced at one another and silently sized each other up.

‘My vocal control is the most stable here.’
‘That actor has good emotional range, but their diction keeps breaking down.’
‘Looking purely at the craft, I’ve got more than enough potential for this.’

Rookies and established actors with years of experience alike.
A diverse mix of performers had gathered in the audition hall.
They deliberately rehearsed their lines at an even louder volume, angling for the attention of the company staff.
If someone remembered them, even by chance, it could lead to an opportunity down the line.
But to the employees processing their work, all that fervor was barely more than noise.

‘Wish they’d hurry up and get this over with.’

“Right, would numbers 110 through 115 please come in.”

Those who’d already auditioned filed out one by one.
Their dejected faces said everything about how it had gone.
And so time pressed on….

“Next, numbers 120 through 129, if you would please come in…….”

The staff member managing the flow of auditioners trailed off mid-sentence.
Because of the person who’d just walked in.

“……?”

Matted hair, threadbare clothes worn through at the seams, dirt smudged across the fabric.
Even grime staining the face.

‘A vagrant?’

With autumn settling in, anyone without an outer layer risked catching cold.
Assuming this was a homeless person who’d drifted in from the cooling weather, the employee approached.
It was unfortunate, but with the audition already so chaotic, there was no patience for a vagrant in the mix.

‘Hmm? But there’s no smell…’

The staff member tilted their head uncertainly.
Still new to the company, they hadn’t yet recognized that this person was an audition candidate, not a homeless person at all.

“Excuse me. Only authorized personnel can enter here. If you’re cold, it would be better to head to a shelter…….”
“Sorry?”

The voice that answered was unexpectedly clear and bright.
He turned slowly around.
The face concealed beneath those shabby clothes was now visible.
A youthful face, still showing traces of innocence.
Striking, sharply defined features.
The staff member was momentarily speechless.

“Ah, I’m here for the audition.”

Only then did the employee realize their mistake and hastily checked the audition roster.

“Your name is…?”
“Yeon Gi-jun.”

The clear voice lingered once more in the staff member’s ears.

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