Chapter 97: Villain Only Acting

An Offer You Can't Refuse (2)

"Is it possible?"

At the sound of the cultured and gentle voice, Jang Seung-won quickly focused.

"You mean, sir—"

"Just call me Professor. 'Investor' sounds too awkward."

"Understood. Anyway, you're saying that you'd like the background to be a university research lab, and you'd like Seohoon to play the role of a professor, and you want the viewers to have a sense of romance and longing for the engineering campus, and that the planning can be done autonomously beyond that, right?"

"Yes, that's it. I'm fine with that."

"You don't care if it's a romance, a social issue drama, a thriller, or a sitcom?"

"No."

"About the production budget—"

"That's something the management should handle. I've done my part by providing the capital. Surely, they won't squander it, right?"

With an extremely gentle expression, Lee Se-jong added,

"Once you've invested, you have to trust and wait. Persistently, until the results come."

"Ah..."

Beside him, Kim Sang-hee was typing something quickly on her phone, seemingly struck by inspiration again.

Jang Seung-won quickly calculated in his head.

'The concept itself isn't bad? If the script is good, it could be a hit.'

It's not about satisfying personal tastes by creating a minor's extreme work.

If the concept is maintained and well-executed, it could be a great project.

'Jung Seohoon as a professor?'

Jang Seung-won quietly imagined it.

A young, model-like professor with a brilliant mind, wearing a splendid lab coat.

If we set his age to be around late 20s, it should be just right.

The actor is 22, but he can easily capture a serious atmosphere, so there shouldn't be any sense of dissonance.

'This will blow the audience away.'

The actor himself is a legend, having entered the engineering department of Korea University as the top student at 17.

Given that he will likely become a professor in a few years, could there be a more suitable role?

The audience will be able to fully immerse themselves in the protagonist.

'And if we add a few more handsome and beautiful university professors...'

What if we bring in Cha Do-jin as a rival and competing professor?

And place Lee Se-hyun between them as a professor.

How about adding Han Se-hee, who played a noblewoman, as a college student who has a crush on Jung Seohoon?

All kinds of inspiration were bursting in his mind like fireworks on a summer night at the Han River.

Jang Seung-won unconsciously clenched his fist.

'Suddenly, I want to direct this.'

It had been over ten years since he directed anything other than historical dramas.

He imagined he would continue to direct only historical dramas in the future.

But the images flooding his mind were demanding to be brought to life.

At that moment, Kim Sang-hee stopped typing on her phone and spoke.

"Professor, actually, I have a project that fits your description. It needs some revision, though."

"Oh, really?"

"But the production cost per episode will be quite high. I plan to fill the lab with glamorous actors to create a bustling research atmosphere."

"Labs are naturally bustling."

"The more high-priced actors you cast, the higher the production costs will soar. I think the appearance fees alone will be around 20 billion per episode. If we add high-quality props, casting, and sets, it could exceed 40 billion per episode."

This extremely realistic calculation poured cold water on Jang Seung-won's enthusiasm.

A sense of loss, like fireworks suddenly fizzling out, overwhelmed him.

'Right. A youth drama with a large cast of high-priced actors is far from the current production trends...'

"If the money is needed, it should be spent. That's how we get good results, right?"

The fireworks in Jang Seung-won's mind started to burst again.

"Could you provide technical consultation later? To properly recreate the atmosphere of an engineering department or a research lab, we need advice from a current expert."

"Consultation?"

Lee Se-jong suddenly let out a deflated laugh, and Jang Seung-won looked at him slightly worried.

"I mentioned that the KAIST consultation was a mess, right?"

"Yes. So we—"

"But if the consultation was done properly, it might have been boring. It would have turned into a documentary. The robotics competition might have been hard to stage during the broadcast."

"Ah..."

"Of course, I can provide consultation, but I won't do anything that ruins the romantic atmosphere of the lab. This is a drama, after all."

Kim Sang-hee looked at Lee Se-jong with an enchanted gaze, like a girl in love.

"Professor, why did you appear now? I've been waiting for someone like you for so long."

Kim Sang-hee and Lee Se-jong began to converse smoothly, as if they were on the same wavelength.

Mostly, Kim Sang-hee asked questions, and when Lee Se-jong gave practical answers, Kim Sang-hee adapted them to fit the "romantic engineering" atmosphere.

"Young, promising, handsome genius professor Jung Seohoon! A handsome colleague professor who envies and restrains him but has his own story! And a beautiful female professor from a wealthy family caught between them! How does that sound?"

"Wow, Kim Writer? You and I had the exact same idea?"

"That's the basic formula for a drama. And we'll fill the lab with young, beautiful, and talented stars. Even if we add a few B-list actors, it won't stand out. It's a garden of flowers, a garden of flowers."

"Right. A garden of flowers."

"What do you think, Professor?"

Excited, Kim Sang-hee asked, and Lee Se-jong, with a slightly flushed face from the alcohol, quietly finished his drink.

With a smooth and gentle voice, he replied,

"Actually, Jung isn't particularly handsome among our lab members."

"Oh."

"They just don't usually wash or groom themselves. If they did, they'd all look great. You should visit our lab sometime. There are plenty of people like Jung."

"Indeed, the best of Korea's engineering department!"

"Seohoon, is what the professor said true?"

Even in his drunken state, Jang Seung-won couldn't believe it.

And a seasoned war veteran like him knows what stance to take in such situations.

"I started hearing that I was handsome a lot after I appeared in a commercial."

"Oh, of course!"

"Surrounded by swans like himself, he didn't realize his own value! Oh, poor swans."

Jang Seung-won clapped his hands and laughed.

"Good genes tend to accumulate over generations. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer, even in genes. Look at how many entertainers have good looks and good backgrounds."

"Still, I'm worried that if we put too many handsome and beautiful people from the engineering department, it might sound too realistic and turn into a documentary."

"Oh, Professor. The consultation that enhances the drama is the setting of the Earth Writer. It's fine, it's fine."

Feeling a pleasant buzz, Jung Seohoon quietly stepped away from the three and sipped his drink alone.

* * *

After finishing the daytime drinking, Professor Lee Se-jong returned to the university.

The PD and the writer were surprised when he said he was going back to school instead of home.

"Shouldn't you go home and rest?"

"Anyway, I have to start the project as soon as I wake up. It's more convenient to eat and sleep at the university."

"Wow... It's not just anyone who can be a professor."

"These days, it seems like anyone can be a professor. Full professors know less than new Ph.D.s."

"Then, Professor, I'll see you when we set up the next production company."

"I won't change my mind, so take your time. We need to focus on 'Hageukjang' now, right?"

"Thank you for your consideration."

A disheveled graduate student appeared to drive the car, and Lee Se-jong got into the back seat.

Watching the car drive away, Kim Sang-hee, with a tipsy look, exclaimed in admiration.

"By the way, our professor has a Rolls-Royce Phantom."

"He's a multi-billionaire, so the Phantom is his daily car. He is a multi-billionaire, right?"

"Looking at Professor Lee Se-jong, he seems to embody the ideal professor. But why is a graduate student driving him?"

"Maybe it's part of the professor's identity that he can't give up, even for one thing?"

Since it was a day off for the entire 'Hageukjang' production team, Jang Seung-won, having enjoyed a lunch with drinks, made a big decision.

"Let's go for a second round. I'll treat you."

"How about my bar?"

"Sure! Let's go there!"

"I need to call and have them open now."

Although it was still early, not even close to quitting time, the group went to Kim Sang-hee's cocktail bar for the second round.

"PD, why were you so strict all this time, even though you drink so well?"

"I don't dislike drinking. I just don't like it affecting my work. If everyone is late because of drinking, the overall pace slows down."

"Song PD is too generous, and Jang PD is too strict. If we mix them and split them again, it would be perfect."

The PD and the writer were completely in sync, drinking heartily.

Jung Seohoon had never seen Jang Seung-won drink so freely.

He seemed to be in the best mood after getting a clear answer about the production company investment.

"Even with Professor Lee Se-jong and Professor Jung Tae-hyun, the professor character should be easy to create. As for Seohoon, he can just show his real self."

"Showing my real self would turn this into a war drama."

Naturally, both thought it was a meaningless joke and moved on.

"But even in a youth romantic engineering drama, there should be a villain. Who should be the villain?"

"Of course, Seohoon should be the villain."

"Really? Are you serious, Writer?"

"Who else but Seohoon? A villain professor in a romantic engineering drama, how does that sound?"

"Hmm, now that I think about it, it might not be bad..."

"A handsome, young, brilliant, and well-liked professor, but it turns out he has a dark backstory unknown to others, and he walks the path of a mad scientist to resolve it."

"Ah, it's starting to make sense."

"The narrative structure will be about the seeds planted by the mad scientist gradually blooming in the romantic campus, among the beautiful graduate students who admire the villain professor and his colleagues."

"From the way you're spouting ideas, it seems you've been thinking about this for a while?"

Jang Seung-won mulled over Kim Sang-hee's plan, repeating it to himself.

She immediately opened her laptop, started a Word document, and turned it toward Jang Seung-won.

"Here, take a look. Imagine casting handsome and beautiful actors, and assume the early part of the story is set in a romantic engineering campus. Think of A Professor as Seohoon, in his late 20s, and in the main role."

"Yes, I'll read it with those modifications in mind."

Jang Seung-won read the script, keeping in mind the adjustments he needed to make.

For almost an hour, he read silently without saying a word.

Kim Sang-hee sipped her drink with a content smile, and Jung Seohoon spent the time chatting with the actresses for nearly an hour.

[Why are you playing with me for so long today?]

[I was bored waiting for a commercial shoot, but thanks to Seohoon, it wasn't dull!]

[Bro, how's the chemistry with Se-hyun?]

[Be honest. Are you trying to get in line somewhere?]

Click. Click.

The sound of the touchpad clicking eventually stopped.

Jang Seung-won, slightly flushed, turned to Kim Sang-hee.

"I imagined Seohoon as A Professor, and I could clearly picture what you're planning."

"Not bad, right?"

"It's good. The initial atmosphere is a youth sitcom, but then it turns into a spicy Kim Sang-hee-style drama."

"A bit more revision is needed. Since 'Hageukjang' is almost done, we can take our time with this."

"Are you going to do this with me or with Song PD?"

"What do you mean? You'll be the production manager. The company will produce it."

"So, you're giving the director's role to Song PD?"

As the CEO of the production company, Jang Seung-won would be responsible for the production management, essentially taking on the role of a drama department head and production director.

"Why? Are you interested? But you're a historical drama specialist. You said modern settings aren't interesting."

"True, but I really want to direct this. I was planning to take a few months off after 'Hageukjang,' but now I don't want to."

"You have to run the production company, so you won't get much rest anyway."

Under the laughter of the PD and the writer, a subtle tug-of-war was taking place.

Jung Seohoon observed the tension without shifting his gaze, typing casually on his phone.

Song Jeong-woo

PD, if you don't come to the bar in Cheongdam-dong now, there will be trouble.

What's going on?

PD Jang is planning to start a new project right after 'Hageukjang.'

Got it. Thanks. I'll go there right away.

The typos in the message conveyed Song Jeong-woo's urgency.

Jung Seohoon thought about Jang Seung-won and the approaching Song Jeong-woo with the cold, calculating eyes of a production company 'director.'

Who among them is truly qualified to bear the weight of the director's role?

'This is an experiment, no, a work funded by the professor. I need to be cautious.'