Chapter 4

Misunderstanding (4)

Just for fun? For fun? During the first round of the 'Super Actor' preliminary selection, the main PD, who was taking a break in the hallway, laughed absurdly. The reason was simple.

The short-haired woman had just heard a shocking statement from Kang Woojin on the other end of the phone.

'Acting like that... just for fun? How high is your self-esteem?'

Considering it was a few hours ago that Kang Woojin's acting was of a very high caliber, it was jaw-dropping. Woojin, who had delivered such an impressive performance nonchalantly, had coolly left for home and was now speaking in a rather indifferent tone, saying it was just for fun.

'...Indeed, this kid is not ordinary.'

In any case, the main PD responded into the phone, maintaining a faint smile.

"Haha, Mr. Woojin. Just for fun? You're so honest, aren't you?"

Soon, Kang Woojin's firm yet restrained voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Still, there's no choice. It's the truth. So, you can forget about it."

Forget? How can I forget that? At this point, the main PD was certain.

'Right. This kid really doesn't care much about today's events. It seems like acting is just a hobby for him, nothing more, nothing less.'

The next question that came to mind.

'But, if he has that level of skill, isn't it natural to want to become famous? He's tall and has a good face.'

Why is he wasting such incredible acting skills? Curiosity grew, but it seemed hard to understand with ordinary common sense. At least, from the main PD's perspective. Regardless, Kang Woojin had declined to appear on 'Super Actor.'

For the main PD, it was a rather regrettable conclusion.

Who knows, if he appeared on TV, people would probably take an interest in Kang Woojin. However, without his consent, they couldn't use any scenes.

Therefore, the main PD said,

"Ah-"

With a sigh of regret, she continued,

"For fun, huh? I understand. But, isn't it a bit of a waste?"

"Not at all."

Hearing that firm voice, it seemed unlikely that he would change his mind.

"Alright, I understand. I'll take care of removing Mr. Woojin's scenes."

After a short silence, about 5 seconds, Kang Woojin's low voice came from the other end of the phone again.

"But... ahem. Can I get a copy of that scene?"

"That scene? Ah- the acting? It might be difficult to get the main camera footage, but you can have the footage from the NTube Shorts. That was shot with a phone."

"Ah-"

"It will naturally be different in terms of angle, feel, and quality compared to the main camera, but it should be sufficient for a reference."

"Understood. Please send it to me."

"Keepsake?"

"Something like that."

The main PD, who heard the response, nodded and ran her hand through her short hair.

"Alright. Just send me your number, and I'll send it to you via text."

"Thank you."

"It should be over by tonight at the latest, or tomorrow."

"Understood. Goodbye."

"Alright, I'll hang up."

-Click.

As the main PD put down her phone after the call with Kang Woojin,

"Hey."

A male voice suddenly interrupted from behind her. Startled, the main PD, who had been leaning against the hallway wall, turned her head.

"Ah, senior! At least make some noise, you scared me! You're not a ninja or something!"

The male voice belonged to Song Man-woo, a judge. He stroked his beard and asked,

"Was that the call from this morning? The design student."

The main PD of 'Super Actor' smiled slightly.

"Yes."

"Is he coming for the second round?"

"No, he declined. He seems to have no interest at all."

"......So, he only came because of his friend? If that's the case, there was no need to show his acting, right?"

In response to the question, the main PD shrugged.

"I asked him too. He said it was just for fun."

"For fun? Just for fun, he turned everything upside down here?"

"Yes, that's what he said."

Song Man-woo, who had been staring at the main PD's face for a moment, suddenly burst out laughing.

"What a weird guy, that one."

"He's really serious. I haven't seen someone like him in a while."

"But I can understand. When someone reaches a certain level, they sometimes want to look back."

"I suddenly wonder... what is he really like?"

At this point, Song Man-woo's expression became serious, and he took out his phone.

"Did you get his number?"

It seemed he had made a decision.

About an hour later, in Kang Woojin's one-room apartment.

After the call with the 'Super Actor' PD, there were many questions from Kim Da-young, but Kang Woojin had deflected them. There was no need to bring up the shame from that morning; he planned to bury it as his own dark history.

In any case, upon arriving at his one-room apartment, Woojin immediately flopped down, still wearing his padded jacket. He threw the scripts and scenarios he had received. Feeling full and comfortable, drowsiness began to overtake him.

However,

"Ah- I need to finish what I was doing earlier."

With a task at hand, he reluctantly got up and picked up two of the scripts he had thrown. The scripts were of different colors: light blue and dark purple. Naturally, the titles were printed on the covers.

-'Elegant Eldest Daughter' Part 1.

-'Rogue Prosecutor' Part 1.

Both scripts were Part 1. As Woojin looked down at them, he tilted his head slightly. The titles seemed familiar.

"Seems like I've heard of them before."

Soon, Woojin took out his phone from his jacket pocket and began searching. It turned out that both scripts had already been broadcast. 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' last year, and 'Rogue Prosecutor' two years ago. They seemed to be on different public channels.

Then,

-Swoosh.

After a quick search, Woojin picked up the 'Rogue Prosecutor' script. He had already updated the 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' script at Kim Da-young's house, so this time it was 'Rogue Prosecutor.'

"Feels a bit strange to go in again."

Woojin looked at the black square floating next to the script for a moment. It was still swirling. The atmosphere was unsettling, but he let out a small sigh and,

-Poke!

Stabbed the black square with his index finger. The familiar tingling sensation immediately followed. Having done this a few times, he was getting used to the feeling.

And,

"......"

With his mouth closed, Woojin was now staring at the endless darkness. He had entered the subspace. However, there was no need to make a fuss this time.

It was already his third entry.

Woojin turned his body to check behind him. A white square, about chest-high, was floating. As expected,

"Three."

The two white squares had increased to three. Woojin slowly approached the A4-sized white squares. Stopping about a step away, he said,

"Let's see-"

He checked the text on the newly added white square. Starting with the side script,

-[1/Side Script (Title: Unknown), F-Rank (Unjudgable)]

·

·

·

Having seen this in the morning, he quickly skipped it. Next was 'Elegant Eldest Daughter.'

-[2/Script (Title: Elegant Eldest Daughter Part 1), E-Rank]

-[*A highly completed drama script. 100% reading is possible.]

There was definitely a difference from the side script. Then, Woojin checked the third one.

-[3/Script (Title: Rogue Prosecutor Part 1), C-Rank]

-[*A highly completed drama script. 100% reading is possible.]

After confirming this, Woojin folded his arms.

"Side script is 10% readable, these are 100% readable-"

Then, Woojin tilted his head, noticing something in the text.

"But what do these ranks mean?"

Clearly, the three white squares were ranked. The side script was F-Rank, 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' was E-Rank, and 'Rogue Prosecutor' was C-Rank. Well, the side script was just a side script, so it could be considered F-Rank.

"But what criteria were used for the other two?"

It didn't seem to be based on completion, as both were highly completed. Moreover, both works were already completed and broadcast in the past.

At this point,

"Ah, maybe."

Something clicked in Woojin's mind, and he quickly said,

"Exit."

A large grayness enveloped him, and he found himself back in his one-room apartment.

Having adapted, he didn't even groan this time.

"Humans are creatures of adaptation."

With that, he picked up his phone again. He searched for 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' and 'Rogue Prosecutor' once more. The one thing Kang Woojin wanted to confirm from these works was the ratings.

The results were quickly visible to Woojin.

-'Elegant Eldest Daughter' / Final Rating 2.7%

-'Rogue Prosecutor' / Final Rating 7.1%

The ratings of the two works were quite different. From a few articles, 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' was often described as a failure, while 'Rogue Prosecutor' was considered average. As Woojin skimmed through these search results, he stroked his chin.

"'Elegant Eldest Daughter' is a failure, so it's E-Rank, and 'Rogue Prosecutor' is average, so it's C-Rank? Could these ranks be a measure of success?"

Or a gauge of the work's performance. It wasn't clear, but the nuance seemed to match. The ranks and ratings aligned.

However, a question arose.

'...Then, what about scripts or scenarios that haven't been released yet?'

These scripts had already been broadcast, so their results were known, but there were also scripts in preparation or that hadn't even started.

If Kang Woojin obtained those,

'Would they show up too?'

Verification was needed, but the only answer that came to mind was one.

"Can I see the... value of scripts or scenarios in advance?"

The ability to predict the performance of a work before it's even produced. Hmm? Really? If that's true, this is amazing, isn't it? Woojin's eyes changed as he muttered to himself.

-Swoosh.

He quickly moved his hand. This time, what Woojin picked up was not a script but a stack of paper. It was the movie script he had received from Kim Da-young. Since it was from a different industry, it could be compared to a drama script. The title on the cover was 'Private Eye.'

In any case, as Woojin was about to stab the black square floating next to the stack of paper, he stopped.

"Ah, but can I not bring my phone in?"

It would be more convenient to enter the subspace with his phone. So, Woojin held his phone in his left hand and stabbed the black square with his index finger.

-Poke!

Thus, Woojin re-entered the completely dark subspace. The problem was,

"Tsk, it doesn't work."

The phone in his left hand was left behind. Now, Kang Woojin was empty-handed. This meant that items could not be brought into the subspace. Reluctantly giving up, Woojin turned to check the white squares.

Indeed, they had increased to four.

Soon, Woojin, who had moved closer, read the text on the fourth white square.

-[4/Script (Title: Private Eye), B-Rank]

-[*A highly completed movie script. 100% reading is possible.]

This movie script was B-Rank. Woojin was slightly surprised for a moment.

"B? B-Rank is the highest among the ones I've seen."

Does that mean it will have a significant performance? In terms of audience numbers or something?

However, Kang Woojin knew nothing about the entertainment industry. So, the suddenly serious Woojin quickly said, "Exit," and as soon as he returned to his one-room apartment, he called his friend Kim Da-young to ask about the movie 'Private Eye.'

"Ah- why."

Kim Da-young's voice was hoarse, as if he had been sleeping. Regardless, Woojin immediately got to the point.

"Hey, among the things you gave me, there's a movie script, right? Is this a good movie?"

"Ah, 'Private Eye'? It hasn't even started production yet."

"It hasn't started production?"

"Yeah. I don't know the exact details. I got it from a theater club member last week."

"Then, will this be released in theaters after production?"

"No? It won't be released in theaters. It's not a commercial film but a short film, a short one. You know, like independent or art films. The director is unknown, I think."

The key point that Kang Woojin focused on was:

"Short film? It hasn't even started production?"

A short film and pre-production. At this point, Kim Da-young added an explanation from the other end of the phone.

"But, 'Private Eye' probably won't be produced. Many commercial films are shelved even after the script is written, so the chances for a short film are even lower."

"......It can't be released in theaters? Then, if this short film succeeds, what happens?"

"Hey, you suddenly have a lot of interest? Well, if a short film does well, that's one thing. It can't be released in theaters, so it might win awards at film festivals or competitions. If it gains momentum, it might even get remade."

"Ah, like the Blue Dragon Film Awards or something?"

"Right. Or there are specialized short film festivals and international ones. But international ones are almost unprecedented."

Upon hearing the answer, Kang Woojin replied,

"Got it, I'll hang up for now."

He immediately hung up. He didn't fully understand everything Kim Da-young said, but one thing was clear.

"A B-Rank for a film that hasn't even started production."

He didn't know what a B-Rank meant in terms of performance, but the possibility of predicting a work's performance in advance became very high.

"......"

After thinking for a moment, Woojin moved his hand after about 3 minutes. He picked up the 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' script.

"I don't know, I'll check it out later."

Then, Woojin started reading the 'Elegant Eldest Daughter' script.

-Flip.

The reason was simple. He needed to clearly understand the content of the scripts or scenarios to choose a role with peace of mind.

-Flip, flip.

Moreover,

"I don't want to die blindly anymore."

He wanted to avoid sudden deaths.

On the same night, late at night, at the SBC building in Mok-dong.

The first round of 'Super Actor' filming ended after 10 PM. The participants who had filled the venue were all gone, and now only dozens of staff were left to clean up.

Everyone was exhausted from the tight schedule of the day.

Of course, the three judges who had evaluated hundreds of participants were no different. Among them, Song Man-woo, the bearded PD, was the first to move. He abruptly stood up from the judge's desk, his expression quite urgent.

"Everyone, thank you for your hard work."

Just as he was about to move, a voice came from his side.

"Hey? PD! Are you leaving already?"

It was Hong Hye-yeon, the top actress, who had been lying down, enjoying a moment of rest. As she lifted her head, her long hair swayed.

"Aren't you going to the after-party? They said they're having beef."

Song Man-woo, who couldn't resist beef, waved his hand, indicating he had no time.

"No, I'm done. I have to see Park Writer right away."

"......Park Writer? At this hour?"

At this moment, Hong Hye-yeon's expression showed that she had realized something. She then caught up to Song Man-woo, who was walking away, and grabbed his arm.

"I want to go too."

"......What? Aren't you busy?"

"I am. But I'm free today."

"Ah- you're going for work. Not for drinking. It's related to our project."

'Our project' naturally included top actress Hong Hye-yeon.

-Swoosh.

Hong Hye-yeon, who had quickly