Chapter 309
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 309
[Title: Did you guys see the last of Seo Ho-yun in Dead at Hope...?
I thought he’d be in it until the very end, but I guess he’s not appearing anymore.
Then again, it feels like they’re setting up for Season 2...
Why is this actor Seo Ho-yun’s face so precious?
I even saw an article saying he’s getting flooded with CF offers ㅠ but he’s nowhere to be seen...
I want to see an archery Kim Woo-ho CF too! ㅠㅠ
└ Seo Ho-yun is at his peak, his acting is seriously insane...
└└ He’s a completely different person compared to his last work...
└ His emotional range is so clean, I think that’s why people are getting so over-immersed lol]
[Title: Is Seo Ho-yun really popular these days?
Title says it all.
└ Do you live in a cave?
└└ Hey, why lol
└└ Go to a subway station right now. It’s not even his birthday, but the billboards are covered with his face. They say it’s to celebrate his debut anniversary.
└└ Among the rookie actors who’ve come out in the last few years, he’s practically one of a kind lol. Since he has the face for it.
└└ Yeah, the variety show casting rankings just changed. #1 is Min Ji-heon, #2 is Seo Ho-yun.
└└ lol Isn’t that a bit too much media play? lol Anyway, I guess he’s popular. Thanks.]
[Title: I saw a hilarious one among those billboards.
Express_Bus_Terminal_Billboard.JPEG
Ho-yun, pay me back.
And call me.
It’s so freaking weird lol. The subway station that approved this ad is funny too...
It’s not even "Happy Debut" or anything, it’s "Pay me back."
└ Is that even the same Seo Ho-yun??
└└ Who knows lol. If a Seo Ho-yun fan did that, they’re legendary.
It’s totally that vibe: "Nephew, it’s your aunt... call me..."
└ This is pure madness. It’s not just at the Express Bus Terminal; it’s at Gangnam Station too...
└└ I’ll raise you one, it’s at Hongdae Station too....
Whoever it is, he must have borrowed a massive amount of money.
└└ Ah, seriously hilarious lol. The fact that it’s Gulim font on a white background is pure insanity.]
[Title: I was a small-fry actor, but in another world, I’m a top singer??
Sorry for the clickbait title.
Seo Ho-yun is appearing as a top star mentor in Shining Star.
└ ???????
└ No, it would’ve been better to just use the actual news as the clickbait lol.
└ That’s what I’m saying lol. Whoa, so Seo Ho-yun is appearing in Shining Star...
└└ It’s still just a rumor.]
[It’s so ridiculous that everyone’s settled on "Kitten"..... The people pushing "Rabbit" are still alive and well here~ Seo Ho-yun is Seo-Rabbit.
└ Okay, sure. If you believe that, then I guess he is.
└└ Damn, the arrogance of the winners is so infuriating.]
* * *
“Oh!! Seo Ho-yun is here!”
“Hello.”
As I stepped onto the set of Shining Star, Director Ju approached me with a wide grin. The dark circles that had reached his chin during our meeting were gone, and for some reason, he looked positively radiant.
I made my rounds with my manager, greeting the staff.
“Ho-yun. Thanks to you, I’ve been walking with my chest puffed out lately!”
In an industry where treatment and perception shift as fast as popularity rises, my manager seemed completely thrilled.
“Oh, right! Did you see this? Billboards went up for your debut anniversary and everything.”
“…Uh, yeah.”
“Some fan even wrote, ‘Ho-yun, pay me back, and call me’!”
“Huh?”
Since I’d only caught glimpses of things through communities or SNS, that was the first I’d heard of that specific phrase. I thought to myself that the fans’ expressions of affection here were certainly… innovative.
“Our Seo Ho-yun, your popularity is soaring through the roof~. I don’t tell you everything because you’re so firm about it, but there are seriously so many people looking for you. Are you really not going to film any CFs?”
Of course not.
The system window had disappeared after promising to fix itself within two weeks; there was no reason to go looking for extra work.
I simply shrugged and walked toward the other cast members.
Because of the title Shining Star, I’d been a bit uneasy thinking about the "what ifs," but there was no one who particularly resembled the members of The Dawn.
“Oh, Seo Ho-yun! You dyed your hair?”
“You look so fresh! It suits you~.”
“I was always fresh.”
Recalling Shin Hee-chan, I could feel a similar vibe in each role.
However, there was one person of interest.
The actress playing the role of Seo Ui-yeong.
“Ah!”
When she saw me, she looked slightly surprised for a moment before quickly smiling and extending her hand for a handshake.
“Hello, it’s our first time meeting today, right? I’m Ha Seo-yeon.”
It was indeed Ha Seo-yeon.
The actress who had risen to top-star status through a youth drama a few years ago and had served as the MC for Shining Star Season 2.
“I’m Seo Ho-yun.”
And Ju Woo-seong’s other ex-girlfriend.
As I found myself aboard this Hollywood-level train wreck of a situation, I marveled at my spectacular life internally while maintaining a bright smile externally.
“I really enjoyed Dead at Hope. Your acting was on par with Ji-heon’s. I was seriously over-immersed.”
“Thank you.”
“I heard from your manager that you wanted to play the lead in Shining Star.”
“…You heard that too?”
“Ahaha. I’m sorry for being so tactless and stealing the role.”
Damn it.
Ha Seo-yeon let out a playful laugh.
“How did you hear about that?”
“Oh, come on~, this industry is small. Rumors spread fast.”
She seemed friendly and easygoing.
Did Ha Seo-yeon know that ‘Kang Ji-sung’ was modeled after Ju Woo-seong?
Did she have a history of dating Ju Woo-seong in this world too?
While my skull throbbed with various thoughts, Ha Seo-yeon brushed back her long hair and spoke.
“I’m really looking forward to the role of Kang Ji-sung. It’s a surprisingly complex character.”
“A complex character?”
“Hmm. He’s fundamentally a good person, but… there are many times when you just can’t pin down what he’s thinking.”
“Haha.”
They dated. They definitely dated.
Moreover, she seemed to know that Ju Woo-seong was the motif for Kang Ji-sung.
“Anyway, it’s a short shoot, but let’s work well together!”
Having nothing more to add, she left after that clean closing remark.
Ding!
As I stared blankly at her retreating back, the system window’s notification rang out.
[What’s wrong?]
‘Kids these days really have strong nerves...’
To appear in a show so nonchalantly when a person presumed to be her ex-boyfriend is involved...
‘...No, wait.’
This applies to me too, fuck.
The blowback hit me squarely—I was the one who had brazenly shown my face in a drama where my ex-girlfriend was the protagonist.
Clicking my tongue inwardly, I shifted my gaze and finally spotted the person I was looking for.
“Writer!”
“Oh, oh, oh!”
I immediately called out to Writer Lee and approached her quickly.
“My goodness! Isn’t this Seo Ho-yun?!”
It was rare for a writer to visit the set, but it seemed she had come because all the major cast members were gathering for the first time.
Perhaps because she was in the middle of active scriptwriting, she looked haggard from successive all-nighters, but her eyes were shining brightly.
“Wow, I finally get to see you in person! You’re much more handsome than you are on screen~?!”
“Writer. I enjoyed reading the script for Shining Star.”
“How is it? Do you like the role you’ve been given?”
“It’s difficult.”
“Hahaha, it is, isn’t it? The role of Kang Ji-sung itself isn’t that large, but I have high expectations for you as a scene-stealer.”
Writer Lee, who had been laughing as if amused, soon let out a hum and looked me over.
“But it’s really strange. Even when you’re just standing there, you have an idol vibe.”
I am an idol.
“To be honest, I whined like a nuisance to get them to offer you the role of Kang Ji-sung... but actually, it doesn’t perfectly align.”
“Pardon?”
“The Kang Ji-sung I envisioned is, how should I put it... he has a setting of being indifferent to everything, which might seem contradictory, but he has a strong, warm energy. In contrast, you have a calm and static feel, Ho-yun.”
Well, I didn’t think I could perfectly mimic Ju Woo-seong in the first place.
However, in this place, in this world, there would be no one who knew him better than I did.
“But strangely, I’m excited and fluttering to see the Kang Ji-sung you’ll portray. I think it’ll be interesting.”
Of course, those things weren’t what was important to me right now.
“Um, Writer, this is just out of pure curiosity.”
“Oh, feel free to ask anything.”
After my casting was confirmed, I had received and read all the completed scripts. The entire time, it felt like I was crossing the uncanny valley.
Specifically, even though the stories of Seong Ji-won, Kim Seong-hyeon, and Jeong Da-jun were described in detail, the bastards who had tormented them in Unknown Actor Tycoon were actually living peaceful, active lives.
But the part that really bothered me was...
“How on earth did you create such charming characters?”
The fact that Kang Yi-chae was missing.
“Especially the cast. Is there a real-life model?”
“Huh? For the cast? Not at all.”
My jaw tightened involuntarily.
I calmed my mind once more and asked the writer.
“Then... have you ever considered a character for a rapper role? Hip-hop is the trend these days.”
“A rapper? I hadn’t even thought of that.”
“...Not even a little?”
“It’s interesting, but I don’t really have a feel for it. It doesn’t pull at me.”
I felt a bit hollow, but I couldn’t let it show.
Writer Lee, scratching her head awkwardly, spoke.
“It might be different for every writer, but for me, I have to feel a 'spark' to write. One day, characters just fly into my head like a bolt of lightning. I’m just translating that into lines of text.”
I suppose so.
Since the existence of the fragments would have flown in.
“At the root of that feeling is a belief that such a person really exists somewhere. If I don’t feel that, I can’t write it.”
I had heard something similar before.
From Writer Kim Suk-hee of Please Take Care of the Camera.
She said she thought of the character Lee Jeong-hun while watching Shining Star, and the scenario was created in an instant.
“Ah! But, if the characters were an idol group instead of solo singers, I might have calculated that balance a bit more when writing.”
“……Ahaha, an idol group?”
I had a strong hunch that the next sentence out of Writer Lee’s mouth would be very important.
“The missing piece in the current cast’s positions is exactly a rapper. It would allow for more diversity visually, too.”
“…….”
“They’re talents that PD Seo Ui-yeong gathered through blood and sweat anyway. If that missing piece were perfectly fitted, wouldn’t that be a combination that could never fail?”
…A combination that could never fail.
Writer Lee was certain that if such a group existed, they would surely become a massive success, but the reality was that they had gathered at Daepasung and were doing things like "Like a Pineapple, Pop-Pop-Pop."
Come to think of it, the members’ stats were so high it had been puzzling.
They would have failed if left alone, but looking at them one by one, they were guys who wouldn’t be out of place even if they were signed to a major entertainment agency.
‘Wait a minute…….’
It’s not like I’m some kind of good-deed vending machine, but the fact that only the guys I’ve meddled with are gathered here is somehow…….
“Ah!”
As I was organizing the situation, I heard a small exclamation from Writer Lee beside me.
“Right, right. And there’s some news the director told me earlier—it’s huge.”
“Yes?”
“He said there’s a special guest today.”
No sooner had Writer Lee finished speaking than a commotion broke out near the filming site.
With the experience I’d gained from rolling around broadcasting stations, I could tell.
This level of fuss only happened when a top star appeared.
“He’s coming right over there.”
“Who?”
“You know, there used to be things like that. Where a singer from the agency supporting the drama production would give direct feedback. So, to increase the quality of our drama, we decided to seek advice directly from active professionals. Since WH Entertainment is supporting the production, it’s easy to get resources.”
“…….”
“……Though it’s mostly for media play purposes. Hahaha!”
An active professional from WH Entertainment?
Someone who could generate media play just by appearing?
I couldn’t even see his face properly, hidden by the crowd of staff and equipment, but I could tell who it was just by scanning his silhouette.
“Seo Ho-yun, didn’t you ask the director if there was a reference person for Kang Ji-sung?”
“……Yes.”
“That’s right. Only Kang Ji-sung has a motif. We took the personalities, appearances, and popularity of several celebrities into account... but the main pillar is that person over there.”
The writer pointed with her eyes.
The guy was greeting people with a relaxed expression even as several cameras followed him. I couldn’t feel any of the lethargy he’d shown when we briefly crossed paths before.
His characteristic, naturally light brown hair shimmered under the bright lights of the set.
“It’s Ju Woo-seong.”
Writer Lee gave a satisfied smile, saying he was shining brilliantly today as well.
As Ju Woo-seong turned his head, our eyes met directly.
For the first time since entering the set, I failed to control my expression.
Hey.
This...
“Ask him a lot about the role!”
Is a total mess.