Chapter 10
Netflix Original Miniseries.
The lead of a new series about an idol’s rise to fame—and the center of a five-member group—had finally been revealed.
The announcement came exactly two weeks after the live audition stage had ended.
And of course, that lead was none other than me, Han Seo-jun.
Thanks to the enormous platform that Netflix had brought to the project, Possessed by a Trash Idol Friend had drawn explosive public attention from the planning stage onward.
Not only teenage fans who lived and breathed idol music, but the general public as well—now that K-pop had become both a cultural and industrial phenomenon—were all watching the shape of the final casting, especially the ‘center’ who would carry the story.
Then word spread that the person standing at the heart of it all wasn’t an idol at all, but an actor, and the entire industry began to stir.
What made it worse was that the actor in question was currently mocked as the King of Terrible Acting.
The moment the announcement went out, the entertainment sections of every major portal site were plastered with the name Han Seo-jun.
There were even articles that had simply copied and pasted the press release distributed by the production company, Next Stage Media, to newspapers and entertainment reporters.
But who were reporters?
They were a species that could instinctively dig out the exact structure of a clickbait sentence and the point where a reader’s curiosity would snag, weren’t they?
Before long, articles with provocative headlines and thinly veiled interpretations started popping up all over the portal main pages.
The headlines that caught my eye were deliciously nasty.
I turned away from the computer screen.
The clock on the wall was pointing to 1:30 now.
No wonder I was hungry. Lunch time had already passed.
I headed to the kitchen and opened the freezer.
Inside were frozen meals stacked so neatly that all they needed was thawing before they could be eaten.
The first thing I saw was pepperoni pizza.
As soon as I took it out and slid it into the oven, setting the timer—
“Whirr...”
As though it had been working hard just for me, the oven let out a grumbling little sound.
It almost sounded like it was pouting, So I’m the only one you always overwork?
I returned to the sofa and sank into it with a lazy sigh.
The world inside the monitor was still in chaos, but for this one moment, I was perfectly at peace.
Of course, I was the only one.
By now, Hwang Dong-jun was probably running himself ragged.
He’d be on the phone with reporters, monitoring articles, and keeping an eye on community reactions....
Really, being a manager wasn’t a job just anyone could do.
Suddenly, I became curious about the community response.
I clicked the mouse and entered the main page of the country’s biggest entertainment forum.
Sure enough.
The top post was one that mocked me outright.
Is this seriously happening...? The "King of Terrible Acting" as the lead...? This is insane, lol
└ For real, lol. The title is Possessed by a Trash Idol Friend, so were they really planning to make an actual trash idol? lol
└└ lol The production team’s brains are flowers, they’re probably just running the test server right now.
└└└ At this point, they must’ve completely lost their minds while judging it lol
└└└└ Maybe they were so dazzled by his face they forgot to judge acting, dancing, and singing?
No, seriously... did the judges all get hypnotized together?
Someone who looks that good can create the illusion of being insanely skilled at acting lol
♪♬♩♬ ♪♬♩
The phone I’d set beside me rang.
Good. I didn’t want to read any more of that anyway.
I snapped the laptop shut and picked up my phone.
As expected, it was Hwang Dong-jun.
After I became Han Seo-jun, he was the only person who had ever called my phone.
He might even be the only person who knew my number.
No—
Han Seo-jun’s older sister, Han Ji-hye, would probably start contacting me from time to time too.
She’d said we should text once in a while when she wasn’t busy.
I brought the phone to my ear.
“Hello?”
- Where are you right now?
“At home. I was just about to eat lunch.”
- Good. I’m on my way there now, so that works out.
“Did you get the script?”
- Yeah. I just got it a little while ago, nice and warm. I’ll be there in five minutes.
At last, the complete script was coming into my hands.
When we signed the contract, Director Kang So-hee had said she’d deliver it soon.
And yet the two days it took to reach me had felt like two years.
“Hyung, what about lunch? I’m heating up pizza right now—want some?”
- No. I’m just dropping the script off to you and heading straight back to the office. The PR team’s in a frenzy wrapping up the press release they’re about to distribute, and I should at least go there and pretend to help with something.
“Ah, okay....”
Being a manager really was hard work.
There were plenty of people who rushed in thinking it would be easy, only to flee before they could last very long.
Hwang Dong-jun was a veteran who had weathered all of that and come out with his bones thickened by experience.
No wonder the agency’s most successful actors wanted him on their side.
That aside, no matter how sweetly packaged the press release was, it wasn’t going to be easy to erase the stain of King of Terrible Acting.
And on top of that, the staff from his previous project had been running their mouths in front of the reporters, saying that Han Seo-jun had been tone-deaf and had no rhythm to his body. There was no way reporters would let that kind of delicious meat slip through their fingers.
They’d chew it up, rip it to pieces, and later grind the bones down to dust and brew the whole thing into another article.
I’d known all along that reactions like this would explode.
That was why, when we were signing the contract, I carefully brought it up.
I told them the controversy over being bad at acting, tone-deaf, and clumsy with movement would spread rapidly.
So wouldn’t it be better to appear on some appropriate broadcast and show my acting and vocals directly?
If that was too difficult right away, then guesting on a popular YouTube channel would also be fine.
After all, I was the one who’d become the hottest topic around, so there was a good chance they’d reach out first anyway.
Of course, I’d exclude any channel that was clearly just fishing for buzz through cheap provocation.
But Director Kang So-hee and the people at Next Stage Media thought differently.
They shook their heads and said there was no need to worry.
A moderate amount of controversy and suspicion wouldn’t just help publicity;
it could even create a reversal effect later, once the truth came out.
They said they’d handle things when the time came, so I should just wait.
And, of course, they weren’t wrong.
But my position, as the one caught in the middle of it, was very different.
I pulled the pizza out of the oven.
After moving it to a wide plate, I carried it over to the table.
I took a can of cola from the refrigerator and grabbed a paper cup from the shelf, and just as I was turning around—
The doorbell rang.
“Take it, take it. It’s fresher than anything you’d compare to freshly baked bread.”
Still wearing his shoes at the front door, Hwang Dong-jun handed me the envelope containing the script and smirked.
“Let’s give it our best shot—memorize the script and then try again like your life depends on it.”
He turned to leave after I took the envelope from him.
“I’m heading out now. I’m busy.”
“Wait a second, hyung.”
I called him back quickly.
“...What?”
“Take the pizza with you while you go.”
I hurried inside, tore off three slices of pizza, and stood them upright in the paper cup.
Then I handed it to him with the cola can.
“I’ll eat well.”
The words had barely left his mouth before he was already opening the front door with one hand wrapped around the cola can, while the pizza in his other hand was already halfway to his mouth.
Right, he must’ve been starving.
“Hang in there, hyung~!”
I shouted at the already-closed door at the top of my lungs.
“You got it~!”
I let out a satisfied murmur to myself.
Because a hologram had risen magnificently above the opened script.
The article’s title and content hadn’t changed.
But at the very bottom—
You have succeeded in the audition challenge to select the main character.
You have earned 24 Achievement Points.
*When Achievement Points reach 30, you will be able to open the shop.
“......!”
That was a little disappointing.
I’d been expecting some special skill or another as a reward for this success, so the letdown was real.
Well, no one gets full on the first bite, right?
Just keep throwing challenges at me.
I’d clear every one of them and learn every useful skill there was to learn.
I took a big bite of pizza.
Then I turned on the laptop and connected to the FM broadcast.
Reading entertainment news or comments from the portal wouldn’t do a thing for my mental health.
From the speakers came the outro melody of a song.
A string trio of violin, viola, and cello, carrying the autumn-colored lyricism of a season’s memory.
It was a song I had sung.
Of course, it had been released under the name Shin Yeon-ho.
The wistful notes faded away, and before long the host’s voice flowed through the speakers.
Yes, you’ve just listened to “Autumn-Tinted Memories,” which has held the number one spot on various music charts for seven straight weeks. Right now, we’re joined in the studio by the man behind the song, singer Shin Yeon-ho...
“Ha...!!”
The calm I’d just been enjoying shattered.
The moment that name came out of the host’s mouth, irritation surged all the way up to my throat.
Every time I listen, I’m amazed. He’s already known for his explosive vocal power, but in this song he really showed such delicate, deeply emotional vocals. I think that seasonal sensitivity is why it’s been loved for so long.
Thank you. When we were recording, I tried to bring the atmosphere up as much as possible so I could immerse myself in the lyrics. I remember struggling quite a bit afterward just to pull my emotions back together.
That bastard... always wrapping everything in pretty paper.
And he hadn’t even sung the song himself.
He really was nothing but a liar the second he opened his mouth.
Is that why your speaking voice and your singing voice are so completely different?
Yes. The moment I stand in front of a microphone, I’m no longer my everyday self—I become the artist Shin Yeon-ho. That’s how hard I work to pursue perfection.
You’re full of it.
Wow, it was honestly chilling.
Yes, and I think all that effort is what’s led to the love you’re receiving now.
Thank you. I’ll keep doing my best, just as I always have.
And what exactly are you going to keep doing?
The vocals are gone.
Hello, I’m your host, Ahn Eun-jeong. You’re listening to FM Afternoon Scene.
With a much calmer tone, she changed the topic of conversation.
The news about Netflix’s newly planned miniseries has been really hot lately, hasn’t it? And just two days ago, the lead of Possessed by a Trash Idol Friend was finally announced—but the result was unexpected. The person who landed the role wasn’t an idol at all, but actor Han Seo-jun.
Between the host’s lines, Shin Yeon-ho gave a faint murmur.
Of course, after the global success of the animated film K-Pop Demon Slayer, this is another major project, so it’s already drawing worldwide attention. That said, the casting of the lead has also brought some unexpected controversy. Even so, the production company said they selected the most suitable actor after a thorough screening process. Still, it’s true that some people are raising their eyebrows.
As expected.
I’d wondered why that kind of comment hadn’t come up yet.
How do you see that, Shin Yeon-ho?
Even so, the host let the word “controversy” slip by gently and moved the conversation along as if it were nothing major.
Yes, well... for a project that large, I suppose they must have gone through a meticulous screening process. But whether the actor playing such an important lead is really qualified for the role... honestly, I have my doubts.
He’d hidden the fact that he’d already been eliminated in the audition and was, as always, playing the media like a fiddle.
Still, it wasn’t surprising.
What exactly makes you doubtful?
The host’s tone changed ever so slightly.
Careful, but with the sound of curiosity hidden inside it.
I don’t think I need to spell everything out. Among the listeners tuned in to this broadcast, I’m sure there isn’t a single person who can’t agree with me.
I don’t agree with a damn word you’re saying, you bastard.
To be honest, in a work like Possessed by a Trash Idol Friend, the lead’s presence is enormous. It’s not just acting; he has to be perfect at dancing and singing too. But to speak frankly, Han Seo-jun’s face is flawless—so flawless it could be called celestial—but his acting ability is... well, he’s been nicknamed the King of Terrible Acting, hasn’t he?
The words were laced with a sneer.
What’s more, articles and community posts have already brought up claims that he’s clumsy with his body and tone-deaf, even in the form of staff testimonies.
“Hmm... well, even so, besides Director Kang So-hee, two of the judges reportedly praised it as ‘a performance so perfect it left them speechless,’ didn’t they?”
Well, I’m not sure what standards they were using to evaluate it. But you can even find short clips of his abilities on YouTube, right? If you watch those... you’ll see I’m not exaggerating.
Now that he’d reached the top thanks to a ghost singer, he must think everyone else is pulling the same trick.
Since it was a broadcast, he was only speaking around it like that.
If they’d been in private, he would’ve clearly said, “Han Seo-jun had someone else singing and dancing for him.”
But in the end, that bastard wouldn’t last long anyway.
He’d never find the real stand-in—me.
Oh, wait a second. The producer just brought over some material.
Hold on, listeners. This is actually a bit surprising—I just saw it myself.
The host’s tone changed abruptly. It was now edged with both surprise and confusion.
Oh my, the actor in this video looks like Han Seo-jun, doesn’t he? Wow... the acting is really good here. I’m honestly shocked.
Her repeated exclamations of disbelief spilled out one after another.