The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 298

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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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298

“…What on earth is he talking about….”

Unlike the Obscure Idol Tycoon I’d first encountered at the audition, this felt like our first meeting here.
I offered a greeting with an even more awkward smile.

“Haha, my apologies. I see you so often on television that I ended up being overly familiar without realizing it. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lee Kang-seok. I’m Seo Ho-yoon.”
“Ah, yes.”

Lee Kang-seok’s rigid expression softened, and a smile spread across his face.

“That’s understandable. You seem like the type of person who’d feel familiar—like a devoted drama-watching mother you’d bump into on the street. So Seo Ho-yoon, huh.”

He waved his hand up and down in front of his face, his eyes narrowing with a hint of pity.

“Since you’re still not very well-known, there’s not much to be done about it. Right, Min Ji-heon?”

Min Ji-heon, whose name had been called, seemed unwilling to engage and simply stepped back further, offering only an awkward smile.

“Ah, it’s truly unfortunate that due to this unexpected circumstance, I won’t be working alongside you this time, Min Ji-heon.”

But Lee Kang-seok paid no mind and continued on with his own words.
That unexpected circumstance surely meant I’d taken the role he wanted.

“I should have transferred my agency to WH Entertainment instead, haha!”

And this was a jab at me, who had moved from Dae Pa-sung to WH Entertainment. Beneath it lay the implication that his acting was far superior, but because WH Entertainment was a larger agency, he couldn’t secure the role.
The intent was so transparent that I glanced toward Min Ji-heon, and he caught my eye as well.
Min Ji-heon seemed to find this situation quite entertaining,

‘This is amusing.’

I too felt the corners of my mouth wanting to rise despite my reluctance.

“Seo Ho-yoon’s acting is still a bit… inexperienced, isn’t it?”
“Well, yes, inexperienced.”
“He did go through an audition, right?”
“Did he?”

As I brushed everything aside with a carefree smile, Lee Kang-seok’s lips trembled visibly.

“Ha, well, that must be nice. Getting a role through connections rather than actual skill.”
“Of course it’s nice.”
“….”
“Who would turn down something given for free?”
“….”

I heard Min Ji-heon stifle a laugh beside me. I raised my voice a notch higher.

“Actually, Senior Min Ji-heon.”
“Yes, yes?”
“You didn’t go through an audition either, did you?”

I tilted my head slightly and asked the question with the most innocent expression I could muster.

“I thought you got the role of Kim Woo-ho because of your own charm, but hearing Senior Lee Kang-seok’s story makes me wonder if that’s not the case either…—.”

It’s not just a wonder—it’s the truth. According to the setting, I was slotted in perfectly.
And I’m making good use of it, thankfully.

“—By Senior Lee Kang-seok’s logic, if I’m a WH Entertainment actor and didn’t go through an audition—.”

Watching Lee Kang-seok’s expression gradually shift to contemplation, my eyes widened involuntarily.

“—Then Senior Min Ji-heon is also a parachute hire, isn’t that what you’re saying?”
“Wait, wait a second. Seo Ho-yoon. When did I ever say that?!”

The flustered man’s face flushed crimson as he waved his hands frantically left and right.

“Min Ji-heon was a direct casting!”
“Huh? Then what about me?”
“….”

Lee Kang-seok, who had nearly lashed out at Min Ji-heon in his blind rage, stood frozen with his mouth agape, unable to utter another word.

“Wow….”

A gasp of astonishment escaped Min Ji-heon, who had witnessed the entire exchange. Lee Kang-seok, exhaling sharply as if in disbelief, immediately turned his gaze toward Min Ji-heon.

“Ah, um, Min Ji-heon senior, that’s not what I meant.”

Just then,

“Excuse me, but this is a restricted area. Only authorized personnel are permitted.”

As the commotion escalated, the Assistant Director arrived to investigate.
Lee Kang-seok’s expression darkened instantly. An unmistakable aura of displeasure radiated from him.

“…What? I’m part of the filming crew. You don’t recognize my face?”
“Lee Kang-seok, are you currently cast in Dead after Hope?”
“Well, no, but….”
“I’d appreciate it if you’d leave.”
“…Wow, even the staff here are uptight.”

The atmosphere on set plummeted in an instant.

“What, is this a palace or something? I can’t visit for a moment? Don’t you know who I am?”

As Lee Kang-seok’s voice rose, every staff member’s attention snapped toward him. Their eyes gleamed with barely concealed irritation—’We’re already swamped, and now this guy!’—yet none dared openly confront him, unwilling to make an enemy of a rising star. Even the Assistant Director seemed at a loss, caught between frustration and helplessness at Lee Kang-seok’s relentless tirade. I stepped forward subtly, positioning myself between him and his line of sight, and spoke.
The Assistant Director was at a loss, bewildered by Lee Kang-seok’s endless nonsense. I quietly stepped forward, blocking Lee Kang-seok’s view, and spoke.

“Huh??”
“—I told you it makes me uncomfortable. If you keep doing this, it puts me in a difficult position, truly!”
“I told you it makes me uncomfortable. Please stop doing this—I’m serious!”

My acting skills have grown sharper lately—might as well put them to use here.
These days, with my acting skills at their peak, I should take advantage of every opportunity like this.

“What, what?”

Seizing the moment, I made a subtle gesture behind me, signaling the Assistant Director to slip away.
Taking that opportunity, I made a small gesture from behind, signaling the Assistant Director to step away.

“What nonsense are you spouting? We’ve only just met today!”
“Next time, if you really want to see me, give me a heads-up beforehand. Got it?”
“…!!”

I bent my waist slightly to meet Lee Kang-seok’s eye level as his blood pressure spiked and he clutched the back of his neck.

“Shall we head out, Kang-seok?”

It was a deliberately provocative remark.
As Lee Kang-seok’s complexion flushed red and pale in turns, sputtering objections, I hooked my arm around his neck and dragged him straight out of the set.

“You, you just spoke to me informally….”
“Oh, right! I’m in Dead after Hope tonight, so you should watch the broadcast.”
“Are you insane? Why would I watch that!”

Why indeed.
I brushed off my arm where it had touched his and answered his question kindly.

“Well, don’t you think you’d feel less bitter if you understood why I landed the role?”
“…Why?”
“Simple.”

Lee Kang-seok’s eyes narrowed as he rubbed the back of his neck.
I shrugged my shoulders and added casually.

“Because I act better than you.”

If my opponent possessed innate talent like Min Ji-heon, that would be another story.
But at the very least, I understood and could portray a character desperately clinging to life while caring for a younger brother far better than Lee Kang-seok ever could.
Just like the role of Lee Jung-hoon in “Please Camera.”

“…You, you bastard! Do you really want to die? Stop right there!”
“Nope, not stopping~.”

I ignored Lee Kang-seok’s shouts from behind and kept walking.

Ding!

[…You look good.]
[Like a fish in water.]

Right. It felt refreshing to act freely without worrying about appearances for once.
As I stepped through the set entrance, I spotted Min Ji-heon leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, apparently having followed me.

“…After all, no one can beat a madman. You’re in a completely different league.”
“That’s why I play with you.”

I waved my hand toward a staff member bowing from a distance, responding with a bright smile and a melodic lilt to my voice.
After that, I needed to return to the waiting room to change costumes and touch up my makeup for filming, but Min Ji-heon continued to glance sideways and hover around me.

“Hey.”

Finding his behavior rather pathetic, I decided to extend some senior courtesy and broach the conversation myself.

“If you have something to say, say it. Don’t beat around the bush.”
“…No, it’s just unexpected. You being kind to the staff… people are saying good things about you.”

So what about it.
Min Ji-heon watched my eyes narrow with displeasure.

“…But looking at how you treated Lee Kang-seok just now and the way you’ve shown yourself to me, it doesn’t seem like you simply have a good personality.”
“Why? I can’t be nice to the staff?”
“I’m just saying it’s unexpected, that’s all. Seo Ho-yoon should be more suspicious.”
“Formal speech.”
“…Yes.”

Min Ji-heon, who had been pouting his lips slightly, turned his gaze back to the bustling set and spoke.

“I’m someone who pursues peace, so I find Seo Ho-yoon a bit unsettling with that ominous aura you give off.”
“Ominous?”

He pointed his finger at the empty space around me.

“That dark, murky mass clinging to you doesn’t look like anything good.”

Of course. It must be accumulated infamy points.

“You’re not wrong.”

After letting him circle around me for a while, I decided it was petty of him to show displeasure now, so I made up my mind to personally deliver a fact he still didn’t know.

“Ah, Min Ji-heon, you have an interview lined up soon, don’t you?”
“…So I heard. With someone or other…. Is it the Director?”
“Want to guess? The Director pushed for it. Said it would become a hot issue.”

I smiled brightly, and Min Ji-heon’s expression stiffened.

“…Do I really… have to go out with Seo Ho-yoon? Do I absolutely have to?”
“If you hate that, then go film a mukbang on YouTube or wherever and create some buzz yourself.”
“…Should I?”

Why are you like this, you pig.

***

Meanwhile, Lee Kang-seok paced around his entire home, gnawing at his fingernails.

“That bastard really….”

He had been a fan of Min Ji-heon since the days when he was still making the rounds in theater before establishing himself as an actor. He’d been thrilled at the prospect of filming a drama together this time, but somehow that worthless punk had snatched the opportunity right out from under him.

“Anyway, he’s just some ‘Seo Ho-yoon’.”

Consumed by anger at losing the role, he’d watched the web dramas and independent films this nobody had crawled out of to see where he came from.
Sure enough, his delivery was like reading from a script, his eye contact was awkward, and his emotional expression was lacking.
Lee Kang-seok was convinced the public would naturally drop Seo Ho-yoon without him lifting a finger.
Even that handsome face of his would be reduced to insults—he doesn’t know how to use his expressions, what is he, some idol?—and circulate that way. He’d made his judgment carelessly and moved on.

“…Damn it.”

But after the third episode of Dead after Hope aired,

《Dead after Hope’s Brilliant Performance… The Miraculous Appearance of Kim Woo-ho》
《Kim Woo-ho’s Highlight Scene That Saved Min Han-jun!》
《Seo Ho-yoon and Min Ji-heon’s ‘Extreme Chemistry’ Resonates with Viewers Too.》

A barrage of scathing articles about Seo Ho-yoon flooded the internet—far too excessive to be dismissed as mere paid publicity.

[Wow, what the hell]

The reactions from viewers who hurried to check were equally extraordinary.

[Seo Ho-yoon’s acting is absolutely incredible;;;;]

Lee Kang-seok felt a nervousness he could scarcely contain.

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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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