Chapter 1

1. Prologue – The Star

“Cut!”

The face of the renowned Hollywood action director, who had just given the cut signal, turned as red as if it might burst. His breathing grew rough, and his large frame trembled with excitement.

“Fantastic! Amazing!”

True to his reputation for expressing his emotions openly, the director clenched his fists, then clapped his hands, and finally spread his arms wide to the sky, like a soccer player performing a celebration.

Though not as dramatically, all the staff on set were also flushed with excitement.

However, the expression of the Korean actor Woo Jin-hyuk, who had just received the praise, remained calm.

He had only taken a couple of deep breaths after the intense long take action scene.

‘Unbelievable.’

The male actor, Ethan Smith, looked at Jin-hyuk with eyes that couldn't believe what he had just seen.

Ethan Smith, a former national karate champion and the universally recognized best action actor in the world, had been sitting arrogantly, casting a disinterested glance. But now, he had jumped to his feet.

Until he saw Jin-hyuk's action scene, Ethan had thought of him as just a pretty boy with average looks.

A marketing tool for Asian actors who had managed to enter Hollywood on the wave of the 'Korean Wave.'

Before seeing Jin-hyuk's action scene, Ethan had never expected this.

Shocked, Ethan found himself approaching Jin-hyuk without realizing it.

“Hey. Mr. Woo.”

Jin-hyuk, who had been drinking water, took the bottle from his mouth and turned his gaze to Ethan.

Ethan, struggling to contain his excitement, which was visibly rising in his face, asked:

“Amazing. Did you practice martial arts? Taekwondo?”

“No. KASLAP.”

Ethan tilted his head in confusion.

“KASLAP? What is that? A martial art name?”

Jin-hyuk nodded.

“KASLAP. It’s the first time I’ve heard of it. It doesn’t seem to be a Korean martial art. Where did you learn it?”

Jin-hyuk’s lips curled up in a bitter smile as he stared intently at Ethan.

It’s hard to say whether the word 'learned' would be appropriate to describe it.

If he had to specify a place:

The 1st Elite Training Camp of the 'Death Mercenary Unit.' Codename K101.