9
Chapter 9
Kim Heeseon's studio was a detached house located inside Paju Book City.
High ceilings.
Bookshelves covering the walls.
And beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, a field of reeds swaying in the distance.
Rather than an artist's workspace, it felt more like the office of a highly successful businesswoman.
I followed Seo Eunbyeol inside.
The air felt heavy.
It wasn't simply because the interior was spacious.
The source of that pressure was Kim Heeseon herself. The sharp, sensitive aura she exuded filled the entire living room.
"You're here?"
The woman sitting on the sofa raised her head.
She was even thinner than she had appeared on screen.
Behind her thick-rimmed glasses, her eyes were sharp, and calluses lined her fingers from years of gripping a pen.
The master of Korean genre dramas.
A hitmaker whose every project became a phenomenon.
She slowly looked me up and down.
"Hello. I'm Kang Seojun."
I bowed politely.
"..."
Instead of responding, Kim Heeseon rested her chin on her hand and studied me.
Like a researcher observing a laboratory mouse.
The silence dragged on.
Beside me, Seo Eunbyeol awkwardly laughed and tried to lighten the atmosphere.
"Unni, this is the guy I told you about. What do you think now that you've seen him in person? He's different from the screen, right?"
Kim Heeseon set down her teacup.
Clink.
The sound seemed unusually loud.
"He is different."
She finally spoke.
"He's way too normal."
Her gaze drilled into my eyes.
"On screen, your eyes were completely empty. There was killing intent, madness, all of it. But right now..."
She tilted her head.
"You just look like a diligent young man. Like some model student who got good grades."
It was difficult to tell whether that was praise or criticism.
I accepted it calmly.
A natural reaction.
The Switch was off right now.
"Isn't it a virtue for an actor to be different on-screen and off-screen?"
At my answer, one of Kim Heeseon's eyebrows twitched.
"You talk well."
She tapped the script on the table.
"Sit."
I took a seat on the sofa opposite her.
It was soft, but not comfortable.
Kim Heeseon clearly intended to test me.
Even though she had called me here without an audition, she looked like the type of person who would immediately throw me out if I failed to meet her expectations.
"Did you read the script?"
"Yes. I carefully read the synopsis and the scripts for Episodes 1 and 2."
"What did you think?"
"It was interesting. I found Han Jaei's character especially fascinating."
A textbook answer.
Kim Heeseon snorted.
"Don't give me a rehearsed answer. I want your interpretation."
She leaned forward.
"Han Jaei is a thoracic surgeon. A genius with exceptional skills, but incapable of feeling emotions. He can't empathize with other people's suffering and sees even death as nothing more than data. He's strongly sociopathic."
Her explanation was precise and concise.
"But this industry is overflowing with genius doctor characters. Psychopaths are a dime a dozen too."
She crossed her arms.
"What I want is the subtle discomfort that comes from combining the two. And at the same time, an irresistible charm."
She was a demanding client.
Take common ingredients and create a flavor nobody had ever tasted.
"The look you showed in Pursuit. That's what Han Jaei needs."
Her eyes narrowed.
"But the person sitting in front of me right now is far too polite."
Kim Heeseon folded her arms.
"Prove it."
"..."
"Let's say this is a hospital, and I'm your patient. If you were Han Jaei, how would you treat me?"
The test had begun.
This wasn't script reading.
It was improvisation.
There were no lines.
No stage directions.
Only the essence of the character.
Seo Eunbyeol watched nervously.
I placed the script on the table.
There was no time to hesitate.
Clients didn't wait.
Once their needs were identified, a professional provided a solution immediately.
I steadied my breathing.
Only one image appeared in my mind.
Han Jaei.
My hand reached for the Switch.
Click.
[Switch: ON]
The world changed instantly.
The warm lighting.
The pleasant aroma of coffee.
The luxurious interior.
Every sensory detail lost its color and became monochrome data.
The woman in front of me was no longer Korea's greatest writer.
She was organic matter.
A life-form composed of proteins and water.
A malfunctioning machine.
I adjusted my glasses and looked at her.
Emotion disappeared.
So did courtesy.
Respect.
Tension.
Everything vanished.
"..."
The atmosphere changed.
Kim Heeseon's expression subtly stiffened.
The polite young man who had been smiling moments ago was gone.
In his place stood a man with cold, dry eyes staring directly through her.
I rose from my seat and walked toward her.
Slowly.
Silently.
Seo Eunbyeol opened her mouth in surprise, but I raised a hand to stop her.
An unnecessary noise.
I stopped right in front of Kim Heeseon and bent down slightly.
She flinched and instinctively tried to pull away.
"Stay still."
A low voice.
A command.
"If you move, I can't examine you."
She froze.
Not because of overwhelming pressure.
But because of the bizarre indifference in my eyes.
I wasn't looking at a person.
I was analyzing an object.
I examined her face.
The movement of her pupils.
The dryness in her eyes.
The dark pigmentation beneath them.
"Sleep deprivation."
I stated it flatly.
Then my gaze moved downward.
Her hands.
The fingertips holding the teacup trembled slightly.
Without hesitation, I grabbed her wrist.
"Ah—!"
Kim Heeseon let out a startled sound.
Ignoring her reaction, I pressed against the inside of her wrist.
Her pulse was irregular.
"Caffeine addiction. Early symptoms of arrhythmia."
My voice remained completely level.
"How many cups of coffee do you drink a day?"
"...What does that have to do with—"
"More than five."
I cut her off.
"I don't even need to ask. You're forcing yourself to stay awake by pumping your body full of caffeine."
I released her wrist.
As casually as putting down a used tool.
"Carpal tunnel syndrome too."
I nodded toward the supplement bottles scattered across the desk.
"Those won't help."
My tone remained indifferent.
"You're just pouring water into a leaking bucket."
Kim Heeseon stared at me blankly.
Under normal circumstances, she should have been offended.
A complete stranger had touched her and lectured her about her health.
Yet she couldn't get angry.
Because my behavior felt too much like that of a doctor.
Not a doctor concerned about his patient.
A mechanic giving a dry assessment of broken parts.
"Your blood vessels are screaming."
I looked directly into her eyes.
"It wouldn't be strange if something ruptured at any moment."
A merciless diagnosis.
"At this rate, you'll end up in the emergency room before you finish your next masterpiece."
Silence.
"If you want to die, keep living like this."
My voice remained emotionless.
"You're not my patient anyway."
Then I stepped back.
"But if you want to live, go to sleep."
That was the conclusion.
I brushed off my shirt sleeves and returned to my seat.
Crossing my legs, I folded my hands together.
"That's all."
Silence filled the studio.
Only the ticking of a clock could be heard.
Seo Eunbyeol sat there with her mouth hanging open, staring back and forth between me and Kim Heeseon.
Kim Heeseon rubbed her wrist where I had grabbed it.
As if recalling the strange chill that had lingered there.
Her eyes trembled.
Not from displeasure.
From shock.
The shock of seeing the Han Jaei she had imagined materialize before her.
A character who was more accurate because he lacked emotion.
More trustworthy because he lacked courtesy.
An absurd contradiction.
Slowly, she raised her head.
"...Wow."
A breathless exclamation escaped her lips.
[Situation Ended.]
[Turning the Switch Off.]
Click.
I adjusted my glasses again.
Han Jaei's cold rationality disappeared.
I became Kang Seojun once more.
Smiling pleasantly, I asked,
"Was my interpretation correct?"
Kim Heeseon let out a hollow laugh.
"Interpretation?"
She shook her head.
"You practically stripped me naked."
She removed her glasses and tossed them onto the table.
Then she rubbed her face.
"Annoyingly accurate."
It was the highest praise possible.
"You're hired."
She declared it immediately.
"I don't need to see any other actors."
Her eyes locked onto mine.
"Han Jaei... should just be you."
There was no hesitation.
Kim Heeseon wasn't an impulsive person.
But once she became convinced of something, she never looked back.
"Thank you."
I bowed my head.
"But that diagnosis earlier."
She narrowed her eyes.
"Was it real?"
"Yes."
I nodded.
"Your complexion genuinely doesn't look good. You should visit a hospital."
"...You're annoying."
She clicked her tongue.
"Even more annoying because you really do feel like Han Jaei."
Yet a faint smile lingered on her lips.
"Seo Eunbyeol."
She turned toward the other writer.
"You really found a treasure."
"See? What did I tell you? I knew you'd love him."
Seo Eunbyeol puffed out her chest proudly.
"Good."
Kim Heeseon nodded decisively.
"Let's move straight to contracts."
She reached for her phone before suddenly pausing.
"Ah. You said you don't have an agency?"
"That's right. I work independently."
"Doesn't matter."
She waved it off.
"I'll talk to the broadcasting station and production company myself."
Then she grinned.
"And don't worry about the pay. I'll make sure you're properly compensated."
She extended her hand.
"Then let's work well together, Doctor Han Jaei."
I took her hand.
"Likewise, Writer."
The handshake was brief but firm.
On the way out of the studio, my steps felt light enough to walk on clouds.
"So I'm finally a lead actor."
My acting career had begun almost by accident.
Most people spent years—
No, decades—
Trying and failing to land a lead role.
Yet after only a few months, I had already become the lead in a drama written by one of the industry's top writers.
#
After returning home, Seo Eunbyeol called.
"Seojun, do you need an agency by any chance? I can introduce you to a pretty good one."
Come to think of it, he did need one.
Memories of constantly traveling between filming locations during Pursuit floated through his mind.
Until now, part of him still wondered whether he was really an actor.
An agency had felt like an unnecessary luxury.
Not anymore.
'I do need one.'
An agency.
He answered immediately.
"Yes. Please introduce me."