Holy Night (1)
The second-floor balcony seating of the Haeundae Hotel banquet hall.
Following Baek Hye-rin up the spiral staircase, Kang Tae-san took in a scene quite different from the one below.
Unlike the lively buffet on the first floor, this VIP section served only the finest champagne and full-course meals.
Eight of South Korea’s top stars sat around a round table, each occupying what appeared to be an assigned seat.
“What’s this? Muhee’s actually escorting a man?”
Han Ji-hoon.
The first to notice Kang Tae-san was none other than “The Guru” Han Ji-hoon.
He had started as a member of an idol group, earned recognition for his acting, and only recently joined the ranks of top stars. Thanks to his massive, almost cult-like fandom—built through his unique ability to manage fans—he boasted the strongest ticket-selling power in the domestic market among the nine top stars.
Seated closest to where Kang Tae-san stood, Han Ji-hoon didn’t rise but greeted him first with a familiar tone.
“I enjoyed your work with Lee. Kang Tae-san, right?”
“Ah, yes. That’s me, senior Han Ji-hoon.”
“So you’re the guy everyone’s been calling the hottest rising star lately!”
On the other hand, someone else regarded Kang Tae-san with clear disdain, feet casually propped on the table.
“Kang Tae-san? Who’s that? This isn’t a place for some unknown nobody to just waltz in.”
Kwon Hwa-rang, the “Rockstar,” dressed in a black leather jacket and brown boots, delivered a cold, thinly veiled dismissal.
A former band vocalist whose albums always topped the charts and an actor whose performances were hailed as inspired, he was the only top star running his own one-man agency.
Unlike Kwon Hwa-rang or Han Ji-hoon, some showed no reaction to Kang Tae-san at all.
“The menu’s a bit lacking, but this is decent enough.”
“Hero” Joo Kang-min, the largest man at the table, was fully absorbed in slicing his tomahawk steak.
Lee An-na, the “Rom-Com Queen,” and Seo Jun-ha, the “Nobleman,” smiled faintly while gently scolding him.
“You’re still going on about protein even here?”
“Senior Kang-min, if your muscles get any bigger you’ll look too slow on screen.”
“Still better than your scrawny frame.”
Kim Seol-ah, known as the “Goddess,” sat silently in a wide-brimmed hat, quietly sipping her whiskey.
Eun Chae-won, whom Kang Tae-san already knew, was already seated among them, gazing down at the first floor with an icy expression.
Even if she was called the industry’s top “blue chip,” this place was clearly reserved for top stars alone.
Kang Tae-san was an uninvited guest.
Some openly reacted to his presence while others did not, yet all were subtly aware of him.
However—
‘Whoa… that’s not on the first-floor buffet.’
Kang Tae-san’s gaze wasn’t on the top stars at all.
His eyes were fixed on the mountain of caviar piled in the center of the table, the enormous king crab, and the Dom Pérignon chilling in the ice bucket.
“Have a seat here, Tae-san.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
When Baek Hye-rin gestured toward the empty seat with her chin, Kang Tae-san sat down without hesitation.
There was no reason to turn down such luxury, easily worth hundreds of thousands of won per person.
“You’re not even asking for our opinion?”
Kwon Hwa-rang and Lee An-na voiced their displeasure to Baek Hye-rin, clearly unhappy about Kang Tae-san joining them.
“He was invited just to say hello. There’s no reason he can’t sit.”
Eun Chae-won’s dry tone quietly defended him, and the others fell silent.
After all, Eun Chae-won was the most senior actress among them in terms of experience.
But whether they liked it or not, once seated, Kang Tae-san immediately reached for the nearest lobster claw without a second thought.
Han Ji-hoon, seated across from him, smiled softly and spoke up.
“I didn’t expect you to actually sit down just because Senior Baek Hye-rin and Senior Eun Chae-won offered. Either you’ve got guts, or…”
Even without finishing the sentence—“or you’re just clueless”—the implied jab made the air around the table turn icy.
Even Joo Kang-min paused mid-slice and looked at Kang Tae-san.
“Han Ji-hoon.”
It was Eun Chae-won and Baek Hye-rin who broke the silence.
“Don’t pick unnecessary fights.”
“Oh my, territorial much? I brought him here because I wanted to talk. Don’t mind him, Ji-hoon.”
“It’s not about territory or picking fights. I’m just curious about Tae-san.”
The atmosphere had turned tense with the subtle power struggle among the top stars.
‘Should I ask them to cook this more?’
Kang Tae-san simply stared at the premium tomahawk steak, its bright red juices glistening, looking puzzled.
The one who shattered the precarious tension was Baek Hye-rin.
She nodded her head to the music drifting up from the first floor and waved her hand dismissively, looking bored.
“Well, figure out your own curiosity.”
She set down her champagne glass.
Her attitude made it clear that Han Ji-hoon was beneath her notice.
Her gaze was fixed solely on one person—Kang Tae-san, who was skillfully extracting meat from the lobster and tomahawk steak that hadn’t been on the first-floor buffet.
“Kang Tae-san.”
“Yes, senior.”
Kang Tae-san answered while chewing lobster meat.
Baek Hye-rin leaned slightly across the table. Her velvet dress shimmered in the candlelight.
“Have you read the script?”
“Hmm, I have.”
At that moment, Seo Jun-ha, who had been silent until now, set down his knife and reacted.
“The script was really well written. I read it at my company and enjoyed it.”
Lee An-na, sitting beside him, twirled her whiskey glass and added quietly,
“It had the highest quality among all the scripts that came into our agency this year. It’s a tempting one.”
In an instant, the entire table’s conversation focused on Flames of Gyeongseong.
Kang Tae-san swallowed his lobster and blinked.
Even without knowing the details, he could tell it was a major production if all the top stars here were familiar with it.
But Baek Hye-rin’s gaze remained fixed only on Kang Tae-san.
“Audition for it.”
Han Ji-hoon couldn’t hold back and cut in.
“Wait a second, Senior Hye-rin. You’re telling him to audition for the male lead role of ‘Lee Gyeol’?”
“So it looks like Senior Hye-rin is playing the female lead, ‘Mu-young’.”
Through Han Ji-hoon and Seo Jun-ha’s reactions, Kang Tae-san finally understood why Baek Hye-rin had brought him here.
“Mu-young” was a character who hid her identity as a gisaeng at a pleasure house by day, but by night moved like a shadow to assassinate high-ranking Japanese officers.
It was a role that required both dance and action—perfectly suited for “Muhee” Baek Hye-rin—so everyone reacted as if it were only natural.
The fact that she was recommending Kang Tae-san for an audition meant only one thing.
She wanted him as her male co-star, bypassing the other top stars.
“Why would I… audition for that…”
At Kang Tae-san’s question, Baek Hye-rin smiled brightly.
It was a dazzling, confident smile that seemed to gather every light in the room.
Raising her wine glass toward him, she declared to all the top stars at the table,
“Because that’s the only way you’ll get to act with me, Tae-san.”
All eight top stars turned their gazes toward Kang Tae-san at once.
“Muhee” Baek Hye-rin, standing at the very peak among them, had just extended a public invitation to a rising blue chip in front of everyone.
She was essentially offering the male lead role in one of this year’s most anticipated projects, as if it were already his if he simply showed up for the audition.
Han Ji-hoon and Seo Jun-ha, who had both been eyeing the role of “Lee Gyeol,” stiffened instantly.
They all knew that no actress among the top stars could surpass “Muhee” Baek Hye-rin for the role of Mu-young.
The industry, the writer, and the production team knew it too.
So even if Kang Tae-san wasn’t a top star, with her recommendation the male lead role would be his for the taking.
Having received such an unexpected privilege, the natural reaction would be to fall to his knees in gratitude.
But Kang Tae-san simply finished chewing his lobster and wiped his mouth with a napkin.
‘Lee Gyeol…’
He knew it was a good script.
When he had absorbed the script analysis ability at the Kidari Entertainment library not long ago, this had been one of the scripts that left the strongest impression.
He had already analyzed that Baek Hye-rin, a descendant of independence activists, was the perfect fit for the female lead “Mu-young.”
But—
Kang Tae-san slowly rose from his seat.
“Tae-san?”
Baek Hye-rin’s eyes widened slightly.
“Thank you for the offer, Senior Baek Hye-rin.”
He gave a light bow to the eight top stars.
“But I’ll have to think about it.”
“……What?”
This time, not only Baek Hye-rin but every top star at the table doubted their ears.
A mere blue chip was responding to Muhee’s public invitation with “I’ll think about it”?
Han Ji-hoon let out a disbelieving scoff.
Kang Tae-san pushed his chair in with no trace of regret.
“If you’ll excuse me. My companions are waiting downstairs.”
Leaving the top stars’ shock and disbelief behind, Kang Tae-san calmly walked away from the second-floor balcony.
His retreating figure carried not a single trace of attachment.
The plate where he had been sitting held nothing but cleanly picked lobster shells and steak bones.
For a while, silence hung over the balcony.
“Puhahaha! What the hell was that kid? Did he just turn down Baek Hye-rin?”
“Whoa, he’s insane! Look at that nerve! Turning down Flames of Gyeongseong?”
Even Joo Kang-min and Kwon Hwa-rang burst into laughter, clutching their stomachs.
It was the most entertaining sight they’d seen since the top stars had gathered.
Han Ji-hoon’s face flushed red and blue as he fumed.
That wasn’t courage—it was madness.
Eun Chae-won leaned back, shoulders relaxing, and quietly took a sip of wine when no one was looking.
A faint, relieved smile played at the corner of her lips.
‘Yeah. That’s Kang Tae-san.’