In the Pitch-Black Darkness
In the pitch-black darkness, a groan escaped the lips of Lee Tae-gyu, who lay buried under the covers on his bed.
"Hngh...·"
It was a strange feeling. His mind brimmed with thoughts of 'I should've done it differently,' while a stifling frustration lingered even after sighing it away. A faint ache tugged at one side of his chest, as if past events were yanking at the back of his head.
This was... an emotion he'd forgotten for quite some time.
Regret━━the reason Lee Tae-gyu felt this faint sentiment even without using dokkaebi fire was simple.
'To fall short...'
He'd failed the audition.
O Director's text, stating they couldn't entrust him with any role, including the lead, had left him with a profound sense of loss.
Sai-bi Church Maknae Son
In truth, that wasn't the only audition. Since then, Lee Tae-gyu had already gone through three more.
'...I wanted to do it.'
Compared to this chance to harness the thrilling emotion of the cult elder, the others felt slightly lacking.
The pang of not getting what he desired━━that regret was weighing on him.
Why...?
The day before, Jang Team Leader from DK Entertainment had called too. Asking if he really wanted it. If he truly desired that role.
Perhaps O Director had said something negative? Hard to say.
'Can't just lie here forever.'
With a sigh, Lee Tae-gyu rose from the bed. Whether to use Do Yoon-seop's dokkaebi fire for renegotiation or whatever, he needed to wash up and get moving first.
'Gotta stock up on happy emotions from now on...'
Come to think of it, lately he'd been collecting only intense dokkaebi fire for all those heavy auditions. For times like this, he should gather some lighter ones that could brighten his mood, even if they weren't as powerful.
Stagger... stagger...
Lee Tae-gyu shuffled listlessly toward the bathroom.
Click.
The moment he opened the door and faced the sink mirror.
Crumple.
In an attempt to shift his mood even slightly, as he made that face, a faint dokkaebi fire flickered above Lee Tae-gyu's expression.
Whoosh!
Something was off. He still couldn't identify it, but it was a shade denser than the one he'd seen before—his own dokkaebi fire.
But unlike last time, when it vanished almost instantly upon sight.
'...!'
As he instinctively reached toward the dokkaebi fire in the mirror, his cupped hand felt a faint touch.
Fsssh— It scattered the moment he tried to copy it, but still.
'...What is this?'
He could clearly sense it was different from before.
'Because of the regret I just felt? Or from collecting so much dokkaebi fire? Or maybe over time—'
Just as a flurry of thoughts flooded Lee Tae-gyu's mind.
Suddenly, the bell rang.
♬♪♬
A monumental piece of news that blew away all his recent thoughts.
"Hello, Actor Lee Tae-gyu. This is Jang Team Leader."
······?
"You've got the lead role in Sai-bi Church Maknae Son. No need to worry—just prepare for filming."
······???
The lead goes to Lee Tae-gyu.
This was a fact both Han Joo-hyuk and Cheon Yoo-seong, who had agreed to join Sai-bi Church Maknae Son, accepted...
But there was one minor issue.
Click.
Han Joo-hyuk lit a cigarette on the rooftop of the film company's building.
Bang.
As the rooftop door slammed shut behind him amid the puff of smoke, a voice rang out, giving form to that 'minor issue.'
"Well, if it isn't."
Cheon Yoo-seong stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Han Joo-hyuk. He popped a cigarette in his mouth, glanced around habitually, smirked, lit it, and continued.
"Senior Han Joo-hyuk."
"Cheon Yoo-seong."
"We meet like this again."
"What brings you here?"
"What do you mean? Does an actor need a reason to show up for acting?"
Confirming no fans or cameras were watching, Cheon Yoo-seong flashed a sly grin at Han Joo-hyuk.
"...Acting, huh. You're just playing around."
Han Joo-hyuk was one of the few actors who openly revealed his true nature, thanks to their unique rivalry in the industry.
[ Han Joo-hyuk, Ji Kyung-ho, Cheon Yoo-seong ]
Known in the industry as the 'Hanjicheon' trio, they were the top three male actors of their age group.
So, naturally, with the media constantly pitting them together without a clear number one, it was hard not to be aware of each other.
Han Joo-hyuk, more focused on acting itself, was less affected, but even he couldn't ignore public perception entirely.
"...Acting. What a joke."
He'd never liked Cheon Yoo-seong anyway.
"You're just here to cozy up to Actor Lee Tae-gyu."
"That's a bit presumptuous."
Cheon Yoo-seong grinned cheekily in response.
"But I get it. You're on edge right before getting crushed in Italian Romance."
"Hmph."
"Han Joo-hyuk of Monster City versus Ji Kyung-ho of Italian Romance. Articles are popping up already—must be tense, huh?"
"Sorry, but."
Han Joo-hyuk, the master actor himself. Despite scandals like assaults, gambling, and profanity, most tied to his method acting, he could brush off petty jabs with a laugh.
"It doesn't faze me when a bad actor says it."
"Haha—"
"That's why you're always last in the 'Hanjicheon' trio."
"...That's just for pronunciation ease, not skill!"
Cheon Yoo-seong bristled.
"And I'm not bad at acting—"
"Oh, you're good enough. Gotta be, to leech off bigger stars like a remora."
"...R-remora?"
"Yeah."
Han Joo-hyuk pressed on, seeing the guy scratched.
"You've got nothing on your own merits. Now you're clinging to Actor Lee Tae-gyu? Your SNS lately makes it look like you owe him shares."
Thinking of Lee Tae-gyu sobered Han Joo-hyuk's expression. He spoke earnestly.
"If that's your mindset, turn back now. Actor Lee Tae-gyu risks his life researching roles for acting. I'm here to seriously act with him."
"...That mindset."
Cheon Yoo-seong mulled it over, then smirked and pulled out his phone.
"...Senior, you know this?"
He tapped away and shoved the screen in Han Joo-hyuk's face.
"Who even gets to talk about acting right now."
"What—"
"See for yourself."
"What the hell...?!"
Han Joo-hyuk's eyes widened in shock.
There was the shocking text Lee Tae-gyu had once sent Cheon Yoo-seong.
Cheon Yoo-seong slyly showed Han Joo-hyuk a montage of Lee Tae-gyu's past pranks asking him to teach acting.
He could soon witness Han Joo-hyuk's stunned reaction.
"Looks like 'that one' thinks my acting is more worth learning than yours."
Shocked to the point where.
Plop.
Even his cigarette fell.
"...How?"
"Better practice your acting, Senior. Unless you wanna lag behind Seol A-yoon and the junior."
"Ha, haha—"
"Don't force the laugh. It's obvious."
Cheon Yoo-seong beamed triumphantly.
Hahaha!━━His booming diaphragmatic laugh, meant to be heard loud and clear, left Han Joo-hyuk dazed.
Click!
Then, the rooftop door swung open from behind, and Park CEO appeared, face flushed with excitement.
"Actors!"
Park CEO, who had thoroughly convinced O Director, bloomed with smiles.
"Time to run with it!"
A hopeful grin from the indie film rep, determined to flip the year with this extravagantly cast short film.
Korea has plenty of short film festivals: Jeonju International Short Film Festival, Seoul Yeongdeungpo International Micro Short Film Festival, Cheongju International Short Film Festival, Busan International Short Film Festival, and more.
But one stood out.
Until recently, when asked for the most prestigious, topical, and authoritative short film festival, industry folks pointed to the Mizansen Short Film Festival.
Mizansen Short Film Festival.
From a flood of nearly 1,000 shorts, winners judged by directors like Choi Dong-hoon or Bong Joon-ho often got backing to become successful features.
Black Priest, The Chaser, and others hailed from there.
Not just that—winning directors got flooded with CFs, dramas, and film gigs that year.
The industry's true festival. A gateway for directors, revealing the hottest rising stars.
That was Mizansen Short Film Festival.
Until May 6, 2022, when it was permanently discontinued.
But afterward, one festival inherited—and surpassed—its prestige and authority.
Founded by a chaebol chairman passionate about film and veteran directors, it absorbed Mizansen's committee and system, then ballooned with astronomical investments.
In short: Now the hottest short film fest influencing not just Korea but Asia.
Unlike Mizansen's auteur focus, Arena Short Film Festival leaned toward genre-friendly, commercially viable shorts—and rumors swirled pre-event as always.
"...For real?"
Even among staff reviewing poster drafts.
"Two from [Hanjicheon] in the same short?"
"Yeah."
"You sure?"
"Heard it from agency folks at my old film club. They're shooting with O Director."
"Insane... what kinda combo is that?"
One staffer gaped, then tilted their head.
"Wait. But I don't see either in the submissions."
"Obviously. They're filming now."
Arena Short Film Festival is in May. Deadline: end of February.
"Heard they'll barely make it."
"Whoa."
"Crazy."
Their eyes widened at the details. Film fest staff love movies more than anyone.
Han Joo-hyuk, the acting powerhouse, and the nation's little brother in a short? Irresistible.
"So, who's the lead?"
"Duh, Han Joo-hyuk. [Hanjicheon]'s basically ranked by skill."
"Could be Cheon Yoo-seong. He does experimental shorts between features."
"Nah, against Han Joo-hyuk, Cheon can't match the acting chops."
"What? Cheon Yoo-seong's emotional arcs are solid."
"Why so defensive? You a fan or—"
"No? I'm not into O-something, or Cheon Yoo-seong."
As debate heated over the lead, the original leaker intervened.
"...Neither."
Heads snapped around.
"What?!"
"Then who?"
"Do Kwang-seon or something?"
"Pfft, why would he do a short?"
"Gotta be someone big to sideline two from [Hanjicheon]. And why not? It's Arena."
"True."
"Fair. Could work for overseas push..."
Spot on. Arena Short Film Festival draws Asian heavyweights from China and Japan. Winning means fame across Asia, not just Korea.
"So, really Do Kwang-seon as lead—"
"Nope, none of that."
The leaker milked their reactions before dropping it.
"Lead's a rookie."
"Rookie? Snubbing those two for a newbie? What the—"
"Rookie, but you've heard the name."
The name lodged in the Arena Short Film Festival team's ears.
"...Lee Tae-gyu."
The star of that viral unofficial teaser that rocked online world recently.
"He snagged the lead, beating out Han Joo-hyuk and Cheon Yoo-seong."