The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter: 26

“Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Seok-jun. I thought it was an honor to appear on this show since I’m a fan of both Writer Han and Producer Kim, but now that I’m here, I regret it.”

Kim Seok-jun, the actor playing the adult version of my character, Yu-hyeon, spoke with a sorrowful voice.

At the script reading session, the word ‘regret,’ which rarely came up, made everyone pause.

“They didn’t tell me the child actors would be this handsome and pretty… We don’t look alike at all… I’m afraid we might face controversy over miscasting… I feel like crying…”

Kim Seok-jun covered his mouth as if he couldn’t hold back his overwhelming emotions.

People burst into laughter at his exaggerated action, and the tense atmosphere gradually relaxed.

Lee Seong-hye and Jang In-ho, the actors next to Kim Seok-jun, laughed the loudest.

They were the actors playing Na-bi and Hyo-won.

Seeing them hug and call each other brother and sister before the reading started, they seemed very close.

The child actors’ reactions to the joke that broke the tense atmosphere were varied.

Sung Lee-jun, who played the young Hyo-won, bowed his head shyly, while Han Se-young, who played the young Na-bi, smiled as if he had drawn it.

I just… laughed. A light, unobtrusive laugh that didn’t ruin the mood.

Manager An Jin-bae had repeatedly told me not to show a blank face since everything was being filmed by the camera, so I had no choice.

After the adult actors introduced themselves, it was the child actors’ turn.

“Hello, I’m Sung Lee-jun, playing the young Hyo-won. I’m also a fan of Writer Han and Producer Kim, so it’s truly an honor. I’ll do my best…!”

As Sung Lee-jun shyly sat down, Han Se-young stood up immediately and greeted with a straight smile.

“I’m Han Se-young, playing the young Na-bi. Personally, I’m a fan of everyone here, so I’m thrilled to be in this position. I’ll repay you with good acting.”

She spoke softly while looking around, and I could barely hear her properly because I was holding my breath to avoid the scent that spread with every movement of her body.

“Hello. I’m Lee Yeon-jae. I’ll be playing the young Yu-hyeon. I’ll do my best not to cause any trouble. Thank you.”

I stood up in my turn and spoke the words I had prepared in advance. It was a sincere statement with not a hint of a lie.

After the writer and producer shared their thoughts, the reading of episode 1 finally began.

The air quickly became chaotic, filled with the sounds of coughing, throat clearing, and pages turning.

Then, at some point, the breathing stopped, and in the silence, the staff began to read the stage directions.

“Filled with chaos, Joseon started seeing nobles without money and commoners owning slaves. Order collapsed, and the streets were filled with the homeless. As the fate of the king and the commoners reversed, Na-bi was at the center.”

Since my first scene didn’t appear until the middle, I turned the pages of the script with a relatively light heart.

As I flipped through a few pages, I glanced up to look around.

The cameras filming the reading site had their red lights on as usual.

Almost two months had passed since I started practicing in front of the camera following Lee Jung-hyun’s advice, but there was still something I hadn’t gotten used to. That red light.

For some reason, the red light bothered me more than the opaque lens.

Like the deep-sea fish that lures its prey with light before swallowing them in one bite.

When I saw that red light, it felt as if I were looking at a part of a deep-sea fish’s body, sending a chill down my spine.

I felt the illusion of hearing the breathing of a massive creature that was incomparable to me.

Feeling my pulse naturally quicken due to my survival instinct, I slowly clenched my fist.

—

“It’s strange. Mother is very late. It’s almost midnight…”

This was the line of Han Se-young, who played the young Na-bi.

Although the voice came from right next to me, it sounded distant.

The intense floral scent I had been holding my breath against was no longer noticeable since the moment I clenched my fist.

“Na-bi, come out here.”

“Mother, why so late… Who is this?”

Na-bi appeared, coming out to the yard in a hurry, casting a wary glance at the unfamiliar face.

It was strange. I only saw the white paper in front of me, but the expression that appeared in my mind was vivid.

“…Greet her.”

Mrs. Lee urged me hesitantly.

No, though it was urging, the strength in her voice was too weak.

Of course, it would be. She wasn’t someone who could dare to speak to me so rudely.

It had only been five days since I saw her trembling like an aspen tree at the foot of my mother.

But everything had changed in those five days. I had to get used to this disrespect.

Suddenly, my face felt prickly.

It was an unfamiliar sensation I had never experienced before, probably from being scratched by branches while coming through the mountains.

So this situation felt even more dreamlike. I just wanted to run away.

But I had already run away.

“L-Lord. I…greet you. I am called… Yu-hyeon…”

I barely managed to speak with a choked voice.

The awkward words dispersed in the air as soon as they left my mouth, not even finishing properly.

“Mother…, did you buy a slave? Where did you get the money…?”

“He is not a slave. He has a situation and will stay in the annex for a while, so don’t worry about him.”

“Suddenly? For how long―”

“Na-bi, I’ll explain later.”

I quietly listened to the conversation with my head bowed.

The muscles in the back of my neck, which had never bowed before, were aching in the unfamiliar posture. It was humiliating.

My breathing naturally began to quicken.

My eyes grew hot with anxiety, unreality, and fear.

‘I must not show tears. If Mother finds out…’

I clenched my fist as if I would break my fingers, but my disrupted breathing didn’t easily return to normal.

“Mother. He’s breathing strangely… Hey, are you okay? Breathe…”

My body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Trying to supplement my insufficient breath, an unintentional gasping sound escaped my mouth.

The woman watching me started babbling unnecessary words and touched my body. Where does a commoner get off—.

“How dare you!”

In an instant, a wave of nausea surged from my toes to my head.

I opened my eyes wide and glared straight ahead.

Just as I was about to shout for someone to drag this rude commoner away, I locked eyes with the man standing in front of me.

“Wow, damn.”

The man blurted out almost as if he was about to vomit the words.

His eyes grew wide in an instant, and he quickly bowed his head.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I was just really surprised.”

“Oh, come on. Kim Seok-jun, you ruined the moment.”

“I’m really sorry. Everyone was focused… Ah, I’m so sorry.”

The man, at a loss, bowed his head repeatedly in different directions before finally looking straight at me.

I blinked in confusion, wondering, ‘Where am I?’ Then, realizing that actor Kim Seok-jun was apologizing, I shook my head immediately.

“No, it’s okay.”

“Hmm, we’re about halfway through, so let’s take a break. Everyone, let’s take a five-minute break.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the director calmly brought the chaotic atmosphere under control.

At those words, everyone jumped up, and the sound of chair legs scraping against the floor echoed around.

Still feeling slightly unreal, I blinked slowly when I sensed a gaze from the seat right next to me. It was Han Se-young.

Judging by the way she was staring openly, she seemed to want to talk.

I hesitated, unsure whether to look at her or not, especially since the scent that filled the air as soon as I focused made it difficult to decide.

“Wow, you’re really good at acting!”

A large figure suddenly approached me from the front with a loud, hearty voice.

“Thank you.”

“Wow, I was really surprised. Why are you so good at acting? I got goosebumps.”

Kim Seok-jun pretended to shiver, wrapping his arms around himself.

He didn’t seem to have any intention of controlling the volume of his voice, which was embarrassing.

The gaze I felt from the side grew even more intense.

“Kim Seok-jun. Lower your voice, man. Do you think you’re the only one here? You still haven’t gotten over your top star syndrome, huh?”

“Oh, noona! Stop bringing that up. That was years ago.”

“What do you mean years ago? Did you time warp by yourself? Do you not remember asking me how much I got paid for an ad three months ago?”

“You said you’d keep that a secret!”

Actress Lee Seong-hye, who played Na-bi, approached and mischievously teased Kim Seok-jun.

Actor Jang In-ho, who played Hyo-won, also sauntered over. Why were they all gathering in front of me?

Feeling embarrassed, I fiddled with the script in front of me and watched them chat, when Lee Seong-hye smiled and spoke to me.

“But seriously, I was surprised too. Is this really your first time acting? You’re really good. Right, Se-young?”

Lee Seong-hye’s gaze naturally turned to my left.

Having no other choice, I held my breath and turned my head.

“Yes, you were really good. I was surprised too.”

Han Se-young smiled at me.

Her cheekbones rose as her eyes softened into a natural smile.

I lifted the corners of my mouth and thanked her.

Lee Seong-hye, who was watching us, spoke in a slightly disapproving tone.

“Why are kids already speaking formally to each other? Didn’t you get close earlier?”

Since I had nothing to say, I closed my mouth, and an awkward atmosphere settled between Han Se-young and me.

Lee Seong-hye clicked her tongue, then pulled Sung Lee-jun, who had been rolling his eyes next to Han Se-young, over and gathered us together.

“Since In-ho, Kim Seok-jun, and I are all close, you guys need to get close quickly too. That way, the group will fit well.”

“Wow, noona. Why is Jang In-ho called In-ho, and I’m Kim Seok-jun?”

“Then why don’t we start with Se-young introducing himself?”

“What kind of character…”

Despite feeling shy, Han Se-young immediately introduced herself.

She was 15 years old, two years older than me. This was her eighth drama appearance.

She had previously played the young version of Lee Seong-hye’s character in her last work.

Since it was her first historical drama, Han Se-young said she would work hard, her smile brimming with confidence.

Sung Lee-jun, who took the baton, responded in a timid voice.

Sung Lee-jun was also 15 years old. He had mainly done commercial modeling when he was younger and had only done movies for a few years, so this was his first drama.

“Then Yeon-jae is the youngest! You can call us noona and hyung. Everyone should start speaking informally now. It feels weird hearing the kids speaking formally.”

“That’s because you’re getting old, noona.”

As Lee Seong-hye finally slapped Kim Seok-jun’s back hard, the break ended.

With the director’s words urging us to hurry and finish the remaining parts, the scattered groups quickly returned to their seats.

After making brief eye contact with Manager An Jin-bae, who had been watching me, I returned to the script reading.

Since the child actors mainly appeared in the early episodes, we had to stay focused without a break while reading up to episode 3.

“Great job, everyone~! Now let’s go to the wrap party.”

“Wrap party! Let’s have meat!”

Finally, it was over.

Although everyone clapped to show their appreciation, I had no energy left to clap after pouring all my energy into the reading for hours.

I wanted to lie down on the desk and rest, but there were too many eyes on me.

Most importantly, I felt an intense gaze from my left.

“You’re really good at acting.”

Forced to turn my head at the almost piercing gaze, Han Se-young spoke to me.

“Thank you. You were good too, noona.”

“Really?”

Han Se-young smiled at my words, her smile clean and pure.

It was like a drawing, perfectly outlined without any sketch lines.

Seeing she had no more to say, she turned away without hesitation, so I quietly packed my script.

As I stood up… well, if I left it like this, it would keep bothering me, so I sat back down.

Yeah, it’s better to be sure.

“Noona, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah?”

Still smiling neatly, Han Se-young looked at me, and I awkwardly smiled back.

Even I thought that my question was too sudden.

“Could you tell me what perfume you’re wearing?”