The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 293

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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293

I left home and headed toward WH Entertainment, still unfamiliar to me. The moment I stepped into the company, my phone rang with impeccable timing—it was the Manager calling.
Just like the beginning of Obscure Idol Tycoon.
I wondered if this too was an initial setup created for the start of Unknown Actor Tycoon.

“Goodness, our rising star! By the way, why haven’t you been answering calls~!”

When I told him I was in the lobby, the person who came rushing over was a familiar face. After all, he was the Manager who had been handling The Dun from the beginning.

“…Ah, I apologize. I was a bit busy.”
“Really?”

The Manager, eager to get moving, pushed my back and led me toward the underground parking lot the moment pleasantries were done.

“You remember meeting with the PD and staff for the new drama you’re joining today, right? We’re having lunch together. And then you need to get to practice.”
“Yes.”
“Please, please this time actually go to practice! If you keep skipping, things will really go south.”

Seo Ho-yoon skipping practice?
That’s quite a novel detail.

“Don’t worry. I’ll go.”

I was about to slip on the eye patch that always rested in its usual place out of habit, but suddenly it felt wasteful to lose time here, so I turned on my phone instead.
I’d skimmed through it at home, but aside from a handful of staff contacts, nothing else was saved.
Not Seo Ho-jin or The Dun, nor Lim Hyun-sung, Joo Woo-sung, or even Min Ji-heon.

“Manager.”
“Hmm?”
“Do you happen to manage any other celebrities or trainees?”

I thought that since the Manager consistently appeared entangled with me, perhaps he might be connected to the others in a different way.

“What? Why are you asking that out of the blue? I only manage you~.”

Yet all I received in return was confirmation that I was truly alone in this.

“…Kim Sung-hyun, Jung Da-jun, Sung Ji-won, Kang Yi-chae. You really don’t know any of them?”
“Huh? Who are they?”
“Then you know Joo Woo-sung?”
“Hey, who at our company doesn’t know Joo Woo-sung?”

I clicked my tongue inwardly and muttered, “Well, that’s true,” before refocusing on my phone.

“But… Ho-yoon. You know you have to work really, really hard this time, right?”
“Yes?”
“Look, honestly you know it and I know it… the company shoehorned you in as Min Ji-heon’s supporting cast. They were pushing you by saying you’d win the Best New Actor award at the film festival, but Director Jung is strict about these things, and forcing it through like this means you absolutely can’t mess up. Plus, during the script reading, you were so half-hearted that I thought my heart would stop.”

It was annoying, but at least the script reading was done.
I let the Manager’s continued nagging go in one ear and out the other, tapping my fingers against the armrest of the seat.

[Status Report Submitted.]

Seo Ho-yoon
A promising rookie actor at WH Entertainment despite having a terrible personality.
Singing: A+
Dancing: A-
Variety: S-
Acting: A-
Charm: S-
???: ???

Fortunately, my stat abilities remained unchanged from my idol days.
My acting skill at A- wasn’t bad for a rookie actor.
However, the Internet was rife with harsh criticism of me.

[Title: Did you see Seo Ho-yoon got cast in the drama??

His acting wasn’t that great…
I feel popular with the younger kids.
Am I the only one who doesn’t get it?

└Seo Ho-yoon’s dialogue delivery is so stiff. His emotional range is rough too^^;;
└Just another actor who gets by on his face.. There are plenty like this. I’m just going to watch for Min Ji-heon.]

[Title: Seo Ho-yoon is…]

He lacks presence and charm
I don’t think I can have a long run as an actor.

└His presence is strangely faint. His face has actor potential though..
└└Right? Is this what they call star quality? Anyway, what a shame~~]

In this world where everything related to idol Seo Ho-yoon had vanished, naturally the drama “Please Camera” had never aired. Instead, the recognition I’d accumulated back then seemed to have been converted into a newcomer award.
Seeing people’s reactions to actor Seo Ho-yoon, I could already predict how the Unknown Actor Tycoon would unfold going forward.
Prove your acting skills, gain fame. Well, quests like that would pile up endlessly.
Swallowing down my bitter feelings, I picked up the script for “Dead after Hope”.

[—While developing a new drug at a pharmaceutical biotech company, test subjects gradually begin to mutate one by one. The company quickly isolates the mutated subjects, but during the process, one escapes.
As the escaped subject heads toward the city and spreads the mutation to humans, Seoul transforms into hell in an instant….]

It was a post-apocalyptic SF drama.
In other words, it was just another zombie story—common, widespread, nothing special.

As we drew closer to the promised restaurant, the Manager grew increasingly anxious, glancing at me through the rearview mirror more and more frequently.

“Min Ji-heon will take good care of you. You two eat from the same pot anyway~.”

That bastard avoided me when I was coughing up blood.
He appeared simple on the surface, but in reality, he was quite cold-blooded. I found it amusing that he’d say such things.

“I don’t think it’ll be quite like that.”
“Ahem.”

The Manager cleared his throat. It seemed even he didn’t truly believe what he’d just said.

Min Ji-heon was also the protagonist in Dead after Hope. Moreover, he was humane and righteous.
On the surface, the actor lineup looked so glamorous that numerous articles had been written about it being a super-luxury casting.

“And the role of ‘Kim Woo-ho’ that you’re playing is a supporting role, but it has plenty of screen time and is a key character, right?”

In Dead after Hope, ‘Kim Woo-ho’ was a former national archery champion who played a role assisting the protagonist.
Just looking at the given abilities and occupation, it was indeed an extremely, extremely common setting in post-apocalyptic stories.
Well… though some aspects were somewhat unique.

“What’s more, you’re coming out as a genius who won back-to-back gold medals. Do you know how rare that is in archery? And yet you don’t even think about practicing archery, which is why I’m worried….”
“Manager, so you’re saying that until now, I haven’t gone to archery practice and I’ve been doing script readings like garbage?”
“Ah, no! No, it’s not that bad!!! It might look that way~, that’s all.”

The Manager broke out in a cold sweat.
By this point, I had a rough sense of just how miserably the actor Seo Ho-yoon had been living.

The Manager repeated various reminders all the way until we arrived at the Chinese Restaurant that had been rented out entirely. As I stepped inside, massaging my ears that had been ringing with his whining, I found Director Jung, the staff, and several actors already present.

‘Min Ji-heon isn’t here.’

“Huh?! Seo Ho-yoon is here?”
“Hello.”
“…Oh, Ho-yoon’s here.”
“Yes.”

I could feel the murmuring around me clearly.
The word “nepotism” seemed to have spread openly among the Dead after Hope staff. The actors either snickered outright or cast disapproving glances.
I pretended to know nothing, put on an innocent face, and smiled gently as I took my seat.

“Ah, you’re sitting here?”
“Haha, yes, I wanted to get closer with my seniors.”
“I didn’t expect Seo Ho-yoon to come.”

Hostility, wariness. And a hint of pity.
I observed these humans wasting themselves on pointless emotions with calm deliberation.

“Come on, what are you saying.”

There was nothing easier than winning shallow favor from people.
Reversing this kind of situation was nothing to me.

“Of course I had to come when called.”

One meal would be enough.

.
.
.

“Hahaha! How do you know all these things, Seo Ho-yoon?”
“Oh, you’re giving me too much credit.”
“Why is this table the only one filled with so much laughter?”
“No, no, listen. Seo Ho-yoon just said~.”

With just a smile on my lips and a modest nod of agreement, the atmosphere shifted in an instant.

Spotting Director Jung, who had been quietly eating in the corner the entire time, leaving the restaurant, I set down my chopsticks and rose from my seat.

“I’ll step out for a moment.”
“Sure! Be right back.”

Director Jung was smoking with the Camera Director beside an electric pole near the restaurant. As I approached with a greeting, the Camera Director, who had been passionately discussing drinks just moments before, welcomed me warmly.

“Seo Ho-yoon! Did you come out to smoke?”
“Haha, no. I don’t smoke.”
“Really?”

I’d have to be insane to start now.
Besides, I’d be leaving soon anyway.
Ignoring the seductive scent of nicotine brushing against my nostrils, I turned to Director Jung with a gentle tone.

“By the way, I regretted not getting to talk much with you, PD.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes, there were several things I wanted to ask. About the drama as well.”
“…Ah.”
“I’d also like to hear your thoughts on the image of Kim Woo-ho.”
“…Yes….”

Director Jung, drawing deeply on his cigarette filter, tilted his head back and exhaled smoke as he spoke.

“That’s strange. Seo Ho-yoon, you don’t seem like someone without tact.”
“Pardon?”
“You want to hear about Kim Woo-ho’s image? I hate beating around the bush, so I’ll be honest with you. You don’t need to try so hard.”
“PD!”

The Camera Director’s startled voice echoed in all directions.
But Director Jung remained utterly unbothered.

“Whether the image fits or not doesn’t matter. It’s nepotism anyway, so I have no expectations. I’ll just wing it. I’ll make the acting look decent enough in post-production.”

Even though he was clearly tearing me down, I struggled to suppress my laughter.

‘The image doesn’t fit, he says.’

After reading the script, I realized that the character Kim Woo-ho seemed almost tailor-made for me.
Much like the role of Lee Jung-hoon in Please Camera from Obscure Idol Tycoon, the character shared uncomfortably similar traits with me.
In other words, it meant the role would be easy to portray.

“Isn’t it fortunate that the nepotism hire is me?”

Besides, there was no reason to hold my tongue.

“There’s probably no one who could do this better than me.”
“….”
“….”

Director Jung, who had been silent for a while, stubbed out his cigarette in a portable ashtray and muttered.

“…You’ve got confidence, I’ll give you that.”

Then he waved his hand dismissively and stood to leave.

“I’ll head out first. See you at the filming set.”

Quest Complete!
‘Begin preparing as an actor for the drama!’
You met with the staff of ‘Dead after Hope’, including the PD, and discussed your assigned role.

[2,000 Points Awarded.]

‘This actually counts.’

The quest was completed even though I didn’t properly hear the explanation of my assigned role.
The points were generous too.
The first points I received as an idol were only 300.

“…You really are impressive with your confidence, Ho-yoon. It’s quite charming for someone of your generation, haha, hahaha.”

The Camera Director and I, awkwardly left alone, fumbled through an attempt to clear the air.

“Thank you for saying so.”
“I was surprised—it’s completely different from what I expected.”
“Pardon?”
“No, no. It’s not a bad thing.”

I tilted my head slightly and waited quietly for an explanation. The Camera Director let out a small sigh, as if at a loss for words, then continued.

“When I saw you on television before, you seemed kind of… blurry, not particularly striking in impression.”

Now that I thought about it, there had been posts on the Community Website mentioning that actor Seo Ho-yoon lacked presence.

“Did you become a different person after recovering from your illness?”
“Me?”
“Yeah, you used to seem kind of faint back then. Well, never mind.”

And when I became an Idol and met the Dae Pa-sung CEO for the first time, I’d heard something similar.
I raised my eyebrows.

‘This is actually fascinating.’

It was something I’d dismissed as trivial before, but if the same thing kept happening, I couldn’t just overlook it.
And conveniently, this world was perfect for verifying various things.

“Anyway, meeting you in person is even better!”

The Camera Director, scratching the back of his head sheepishly, gave my back a firm pat.

“Since we’re working together anyway, let’s do it with joy and dedication. Director Jung isn’t a bad person either, so if you show passion, his mind will change soon.”
“Yes, of course. Thank you for the advice.”
“Seo Ho-yoon really is refreshingly pleasant to see.”

The Camera Director, whose lips curled into a grin, pulled out another cigarette and asked.

“Oh, we’re thinking of going for a second round. Are you interested in joining?”
“A second round starting from lunch?”
“In our line of work, what’s the difference between day and night? We pulled an all-nighter yesterday preparing for the drama production.”

The Camera Director formed a gesture with his thumb and index finger mimicking a drinking glass, then twisted his wrist in a motion—and behind that, I caught sight of the Manager slipping out of the store.
I spoke with an expression of genuine regret.

“I’m sorry, but I think I’ll have to participate next time.”
“Why? Is something wrong?”

I answered with a laugh instead.

***

As I released the taut bowstring, the arrow traced a parabola through the air toward the target.

Thwack!

“…What, what is this?”

The arrow barely grazed the edge of the ten-point zone, and the screen displaying the score showed a nine.
At the Manager’s earnest request, I’d come to the Archery Range. I tensed my grip on the bowstring again.

Whoosh, thwack!

“What… what is this?”

This time, the arrow embedded itself precisely in the center of the target.
The Manager’s jaw dropped.

“What on earth…?”

I hadn’t picked up a bow even once since filming Victory is Mine, yet my instincts hadn’t dulled.

“Ho, Ho-yoon, why are you so good at this? Did you practice in secret?”

I nocked another arrow on the string as I spoke.

“Now you understand why I skipped practice, don’t you?”

I’d told him as much.
That this role was tailored perfectly for me.

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