Chapter 95

Villain Only Acting 095

Uncle's Affection (4)

After changing into a new costume, Yun Jin-won raised his hand in greeting from the hallway.

“Oh, I just came out too. We changed into similar outfits, didn’t we?”

He’s lying.

He had changed early and was pacing the hallway, waiting, but now he’s pretending he just came out.

Jeong Seo-hoon hesitated for a moment about whether to pretend he didn’t notice.

“Why do you call me senior? I’ve only been in the industry for less than a year.”

“Ah.”

His flustered reaction suggested he had never seriously considered the hierarchy.

Perhaps he had mistakenly assumed Jeong Seo-hoon was a senior due to his recent success, consecutive blockbuster performances, and age.

“Oh, you’ve been in the industry for less than a year?”

“What? You didn’t know?”

“Ah! I, I think I heard it!”

Suddenly, he remembered a senior graduate student who had been scolded by Professor Lee Sejong for his inadequate research before enlisting.

At that time, Lee Sejong’s calm parting words had further pushed the senior into a mental breakdown.

‘You don’t seem interested in obtaining a Ph.D.’

“Actor Yun Jin-won, you don’t seem interested in me.”

“No! Absolutely not! I’m sorry, junior!”

“Junior? Can an actor use the junior title with the production staff just because they’ve been in the industry for a while? Wow, the world of child actors is really something.”

“I, I made a mistake! I didn’t mean to!”

His visibly flustered attitude was oddly amusing.

The fact that it wasn’t a pretense made it even more interesting.

“Nephew, if you’re this flustered, how will you handle Uncle’s real affection in front of the camera?”

“Ah...”

Only then did Yun Jin-won realize that Jeong Seo-hoon had been teasing him, feeling a sense of relief.

He had never thought it was a joke because of Jeong Seo-hoon’s unusually serious and heavy demeanor.

“Can I call you brother?”

“If it’s more comfortable for you.”

“Can you also speak more casually, brother?”

“I find this more comfortable. We’ll sort it out as we get closer.”

“Ah, yes.”

Indeed, Yun Jin-won muttered to himself and then continued.

“Brother, how do you act so well?”

“Actor Yun Jin-won, you’re doing a great job too.”

“But I keep losing confidence when I compare myself to you.”

“Maybe you’re only feeling this way about this particular scene. You’re just scared. It’s also because of your trauma. I, too, have a different kind of trauma, even though I’m different from you.”

“Even someone like you has trauma? Can I ask what it is?”

At that, Jeong Seo-hoon paused and turned to look at him.

Yun Jin-won, whose eye level was nearly 23 cm lower, slightly shrank back but managed to meet his gaze.

“Don’t be in a hurry. I’ll show you now.”

***

Yun Jin-won wore a red dragon robe, while Jeong Seo-hoon wore the ordinary official attire of a prince.

The deposed nephew and the current king uncle were intentionally dressed in each other’s attire, not by mistake.

Jang Seung-won quietly observed the approaching Jeong Seo-hoon, admiring him silently.

“Wow. You look great. Your posture is perfect. You embody the image of a rebel king, perfectly.”

The prince’s attire from his rebellious days emphasized his traitor image.

Yun Jin-won’s slightly withdrawn expression matched the image of a deposed king who was always filled with sorrow.

“You did well changing into the costume. The image is even stronger. I think we’ll get a great scene this time. But, Actor Yun Jin-won, don’t feel too pressured.”

Other historical drama directors would have spoken down to Yun Jin-won, a minor, and treated him like a child.

But Jang Seung-won always showed respect with formal language.

This respect was a burden to Yun Jin-won.

It also conveyed a business-like coldness, indicating a focus solely on work.

“Alright, please take your positions. We’ll start the practice without a rehearsal.”

Jang Seung-won felt a thrilling excitement.

He expected something with a strong impact to happen.

Jeong Seo-hoon intently watched Yun Jin-won, who was still tense.

The invisible air seemed to ripple, and the giant lens seemed to tremble with anticipation.

Until now, Yun Jin-won had not shown any special feedback to the lens’s power.

Would there be something different this time?

“Standby, cue!”

The prince, filled with murderous intent, took a step toward his young nephew.

-Nephew.

Yun Jin-won suddenly felt his vision darken.

A sticky sense of isolation enveloped him unpleasantly.

He tried to turn to look at the director, but his body wouldn’t respond.

It was a distant sensation his body remembered.

How terrifying it was to wake up in a tomb in the mountains as a child.

He had run straight to the countryside house, only looking forward, terrified that a ghost might appear if he looked back or to the side.

That memory resurfaced now.

-How... could you... be so... cruel?

The sudden isolation replaced the darkened vision, pulling out the fear from that time.

An indistinct, unrecognizable voice, human or ghost, continued to mumble.

The nerve reactions from his body became sluggish, and the strength in his limbs drained away.

[Pull yourself together! Get up quickly!]

Forgotten memories kept surfacing.

Now he remembered that he had woken up in the tomb not because of the cold, but because of the old man’s voice shouting in his ear.

[Hey! Get up quickly!]

The light pressure on his neck felt strangely pleasant.

The cozy warmth that wanted to let him sleep peacefully was pierced by the old man’s voice shouting again.

Where had he heard that voice before?

‘Teacher Lee Dogeun! The grandfather of the young king!’

The voice shouting now was different, belonging to the veteran actor Lee Dogeun, who played the young king’s grandfather.

Realizing this, Yun Jin-won broke free from the young king’s shell and regained his senses.

The director’s face, sighing in relief, was the first thing he saw as his vision suddenly brightened.

“Did... I keep doing that? Is this a NG?”

Yun Jin-won, realizing he had fallen to the ground, asked blankly.

“This isn’t a NG. It’s a scene where you struggle and then die from being strangled.”

“Ah...”

“You did it very realistically. If someone didn’t know, they would think it was a real murder scene. Seo-hoon, you didn’t really strangle him, did you?”

“Of course, I only pretended to.”

“Wow, our actor Yun Jin-won. Your choking scene was amazing.”

“...”

Yun Jin-won blinked and looked around.

The moment of death was faintly remembered.

“Um, Director. Something feels strange. It’s like I just woke up from a deep sleep. I can’t remember much.”

“Ah, um. Is it possible to wake up?”

“Yes.”

Yun Jin-won immediately got up.

There was no wobbling or stumbling.

Jang Seung-won then had him perform various simple actions, asked questions, and checked his responses.

“Everything seems fine for now. Do you feel short of breath or have a fever?”

“No. My head feels very clear.”

“That’s a relief.”

It seemed there were no psychological issues.

Jang Seung-won looked at the manager and mother with relief.

“Madam, it might be good to see a counselor just in case. He’s at a very sensitive age.”

“Yes, I understand, Director.”

“Shall we review the footage?”

The two actors sat in front of the monitor with the director and watched the scene.

-This uncle heard that you refused the medicine I prescribed.

-Don’t worry. It won’t be too painful.

-I will send my nephew to join his brother so you won’t be lonely.

-This uncle will personally see you off, nephew.

-Go well, Your Majesty.

“...”

Yun Jin-won involuntarily glanced at Jeong Seo-hoon.

The same face and attire as the prince in the scene, deeply focused on the monitor, seemed out of place.

Their eyes met, and Jeong Seo-hoon smiled strangely and spoke.

“Nephew, how was it working with this uncle? Did you like it?”

“I think I’ll never forget it, Uncle.”

Yun Jin-won answered as if entranced, and Jang Seung-won clapped in satisfaction.

“See? You can do it well, Actor Yun Jin-won.”

“Director, can we stop the after-school tutoring now?”

“Yes, the tutoring is over.”

Saying it was over made Yun Jin-won feel a deep sense of loss.

The darkened vision and the feeling of all senses closing off were still vivid.

Is this the end for today?

‘They say that when you get too immersed in a role, you might feel like you’re not yourself. Did I experience that?’

Will I never feel that again?

Until we reshoot that scene with Jeong Seo-hoon?

Unable to suppress his regret, Yun Jin-won kept glancing at him, and Jang Seung-won laughed silently to himself.

***

Manager Ha Tae-soo glanced at Je