"Killing time?"
Killing time?
The PD of Super Actor, who had been taking a break during the first preliminary filming, laughed in disbelief in the hallway.
The reason was simple.
The short-haired woman had just heard something shocking over the phone from Kang Woojin.
'He acted that well because he was bored? How high is his self-esteem?'
Considering he claimed he was only killing time, Kang Woojin's performance earlier that day had been astonishing.
It was the kind of acting that left people speechless.
Yet the man who had delivered that level of performance had calmly gone home—and was now saying it had just been something to pass the time.
'He really isn't an ordinary person.'
The head PD kept a faint smile on her face as she spoke into the phone.
"Haha, Mr. Woojin. You said it was just killing time. You're really honest, aren't you?"
Soon, Kang Woojin's restrained voice came from the other end.
"There's nothing I can do about it. That's the truth. So just forget it."
Forget it?
How could she possibly forget it?
At that moment, the head PD realized something.
That's right.
He genuinely didn't care about what had happened today.
To him, acting seemed to be nothing more than a hobby.
Nothing more, nothing less.
She asked another question.
"But someone with that level of skill would usually want to become famous. You're tall, and you've got the looks too."
Why would someone waste such incredible acting talent?
Her curiosity grew.
From a normal perspective, it made no sense.
At least, that was how the head PD saw it.
Either way, Kang Woojin had refused to appear on Super Actor.
For the PD, that was a huge loss.
She couldn't be certain, but she believed that once the broadcast aired, Kang Woojin would definitely attract attention.
However—
Without his consent, they couldn't use the footage.
The head PD sighed and spoke again.
"Killing time. Alright, I understand. But isn't that wasting an opportunity?"
"Not at all."
The firmness in Woojin's voice made it clear.
He had no intention of changing his mind.
"Understood. Then I'll delete the footage properly."
Silence followed.
About five seconds.
Then Woojin's low voice returned.
"But… could I at least have that one scene?"
"That scene? Ah, you mean your acting?"
She tilted her head slightly.
"It might be difficult to give you the main camera footage, but I can send you the version we edited for YouTube Shorts. It was filmed on a smartphone."
"Ah—"
"The angle and picture quality will be different from the main camera, but it should still work for checking."
"Alright. Please send it."
"For a keepsake?"
"Mm. Something like that."
The PD brushed back her short hair.
"Alright. Send me your number and I'll forward it."
"Thank you."
"You'll get it tonight. Tomorrow at the latest."
"Understood. Goodbye."
"Alright, I'm hanging up."
Click.
Just as the head PD lowered her phone—
"Hey."
A man's voice came from behind her.
Startled, she turned around.
"Ah! Sunbae! Couldn't you at least warn me? You scared me!"
The man was none other than Song Manwoo PD, one of the judges.
Stroking his beard, he asked,
"That call just now… was it the guy you talked to this morning? The one from the design department?"
The head PD forced a bitter smile.
"Yes."
"Did he say he'll participate in the second round?"
"No. He has absolutely no interest."
Song Manwoo PD raised his eyebrows.
"Really? He only came because of his friend?"
"Apparently."
"Then he didn't even need to act."
The PD shrugged.
"I asked him the same thing. But he said he was just killing time."
Song Manwoo PD frowned.
"Killing time?"
"Yes."
"He came here out of boredom and turned the entire place upside down?"
"That's what he said."
Song Manwoo PD stared at her for a moment.
Then suddenly—
He burst out laughing.
"That's ridiculous."
"Right? It's been a long time since I've seen a case like this."
"Still… I get it."
He crossed his arms.
"When people reach a certain level of success, they sometimes want to look back."
The PD tilted her head.
"And then someone like that suddenly shows up out of nowhere…"
She sighed.
"Who the hell is he?"
Song Manwoo PD didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he slowly pulled out his phone.
"Did you get his phone number?"
His expression had turned serious.
One hour later
Kang Woojin's one-room apartment.
After the call with the Super Actor PD, Kim Daeyoung bombarded Woojin with questions.
But Woojin brushed them off.
There was no need to talk about the embarrassing incident earlier.
He decided to bury it as a dark memory known only to himself.
As soon as he got home, Woojin collapsed onto the bed.
He didn't even bother taking off the pad he was wearing.
The scripts and scenarios he brought with him were tossed aside carelessly.
Now that he was full and comfortable, sleepiness quickly crept in.
But—
Woojin exhaled slowly.
"Hoo… I should finish what I started earlier."
Since he still had something to do, he forced himself to get up.
Then he picked up two script books from the pile beside him.
They were different colors.
One light blue.
One dark purple.
The titles were printed clearly on the covers.
"Elegant Daughter" Episode 1
"Gangster Prosecutor" Episode 1
Both were episode-one scripts.
Woojin tilted his head.
"I feel like I've heard these somewhere…"
Soon he took out his phone and searched.
The results appeared immediately.
Both dramas had already finished airing.
Elegant Daughter aired last year.
Gangster Prosecutor aired two years ago.
Different networks—but both had broadcast on terrestrial channels.
Tap.
After finishing his search, Woojin picked up the Gangster Prosecutor script.
He had already revised Elegant Daughter earlier at Kim Daeyoung's place.
Now it was this one's turn.
Woojin looked at the black square floating beside the script.
It was still spinning slowly.
Its presence felt oppressive.
Still—
He sighed.
Thunk.
He poked it with his index finger.
The familiar chill ran through his body.
He had already experienced it a few times.
He was used to it.
Then—
Darkness spread before him.
Kang Woojin silently stared at the endless black void.
He had entered the void space again.
But this time—
He didn't panic.
After all, it was already his third visit.
Woojin turned around.
A white rectangle floated at chest height.
Just like before.
"Three."
The number had increased.
From two…
to three.
Woojin slowly approached the white square.
It was about the size of an A4 sheet.
He stopped one step away.
"Let's see."
Inside the new white square, text appeared.
[1 / Page Script (Title: Unknown), Grade F]
[Readable: 10%]
Woojin skimmed past it.
He had already seen that one earlier.
Next.
[2 / Script (Title: Elegant Daughter Episode 1), Grade E]
This is a highly complete drama script. 100% readable.
Clearly different from the page script.
Then the third.
[3 / Script (Title: Gangster Prosecutor Episode 1), Grade C]
This is a highly complete drama script. 100% readable.
Woojin crossed his arms.
"The page script only has 10% readability… but these both have 100%."
Then something caught his attention.
Woojin tilted his head.
"But what do these grades mean?"
Each script had a different rank.
F.
E.
C.
The page script being F made sense.
It was just an unfinished manuscript.
But the other two?
"How are they evaluating these?"
Both were completed works.
Both had already aired.
Then suddenly—
Woojin's eyes widened slightly.
"Ah… maybe that's it."
He quickly spoke.
"Exit."
Gray haze swallowed him.
And—
Woojin opened his eyes again inside his apartment.
He had gotten used to it now.
This time he didn't even complain.
"Humans really adapt fast."
He grabbed his phone again.
Then searched the two dramas once more.
There was one thing they had in common.
Ratings.
The results appeared immediately.
Elegant Daughter — 2.7% final ratings
Gangster Prosecutor — 7.1% final ratings
The difference was obvious.
Elegant Daughter had been criticized as a flop.
Gangster Prosecutor had average ratings.
Woojin stroked his chin.
"Elegant Daughter flopped, so it's grade E… and Gangster Prosecutor was average, so it's grade C."
He murmured slowly.
"Are the grades based on popularity?"
Or perhaps the work's success.
He couldn't be certain.
But the pattern matched.
Then another thought surfaced.
'What about scripts that haven't been released yet?'
These scripts had already aired.
But countless scripts existed that were never produced.
If he obtained one of those—
'Would it appear here too?'
If that happened…
Woojin muttered slowly.
"Would I be able to judge a script's value beforehand?"
To see its success potential…
before it even released?
He blinked.
Then—
His eyes sharpened.
Tap.
Woojin quickly grabbed a stack of papers.
This time it wasn't a drama script.
It was a movie scenario.
The title read—
The Private Investigator
Woojin was about to poke the black square beside it.
Then he paused.
"Wait… can I bring my phone?"
If he could bring items into the void space, things would be much easier.
So he held his phone in his left hand.
And—
poked the black square.
Pop!
He entered the void again.
But—
"Damn… it doesn't work."
His phone had been left behind.
He was empty-handed again.
In other words—
Objects couldn't enter this space.
Sighing, Woojin turned around.
Now there were four white rectangles.
He approached the fourth one.
[4 / Scenario (Title: The Private Investigator), Grade B]
This is a very excellent film scenario. 100% readable.
Woojin blinked.
"B?"
That was the highest grade he had seen.
Did that mean the movie would be a huge success?
Audience numbers?
Awards?
He had no idea.
Woojin knew almost nothing about the entertainment industry.
So he immediately said,
"Exit."
Back in his apartment—
he quickly called Kim Daeyoung.
"Hey."
Daeyoung answered groggily.
"What?"
"The movie script you gave me earlier… was it successful?"
"Which one?"
"The Private Investigator."
"Ah, that one?"
Daeyoung yawned.
"It hasn't even been made yet."
Woojin froze.
"Not produced?"
"No. I got the scenario from someone in the theater club last week."
"Then it'll release in theaters later?"
"No way."
Daeyoung chuckled.
"It's a short film. Like an indie project. The Director's basically a nobody."
Woojin focused on two things.
Short film.
Not produced yet.
Daeyoung kept talking.
"Honestly, it might never get made. Even commercial movies get cancelled after scripts come out."
"Then if a short film succeeds… what happens?"
"Why are you suddenly interested?"
Woojin hummed vaguely.
"Just curious."
Daeyoung continued.
"If it does well, it might win awards at film festivals."
"Like the Blue Dragon Awards?"
"Similar idea. But there are festivals specifically for short films too. Even international ones."
"International?"
"Yeah. But going overseas is rare."
The moment Woojin heard that—
he hung up.
One thing was now clear.
'A movie that hasn't even been produced yet… is grade B.'
He still didn't fully understand.
But the possibility was obvious.
He might be able to judge a project's value…
before it even existed.
Woojin fell silent.
Three minutes passed.
Then he picked up the Elegant Daughter script again.
"Well… I'll figure it out slowly."
Flip.
Woojin began reading.
He needed to understand scripts properly.
Only then could he choose roles that suited him.
Flip. Flip.
And—
Woojin muttered quietly.
"I'm tired of getting stabbed and dying without even knowing what's going on."
He wanted to avoid sudden deaths.
Late that night
SBC Building Art Center, Mok-dong.
The first preliminary filming of Super Actor ended after 10 PM.
The contestants were gone.
Only staff remained, cleaning up.
Everyone looked exhausted.
The day had been packed.
The judges were no exception.
Among them—
Song Manwoo PD suddenly stood up.
"Everyone worked hard today."
After greeting the staff, he was about to leave—
"Huh?? Detective! Leaving already?"
Hong Hyeyeon raised her head.
Her long hair swayed.
"You're not coming to the after-party? I heard there's going to be a drinking battle."
Song Manwoo PD waved dismissively.
"No time. I'm meeting Writer Park."
Hong Hyeyeon blinked.
"Writer Park? At this hour?"
Then she suddenly realized something.
She hurried over and grabbed his arm.
"I'm coming too."
"What? Aren't you busy?"
"Normally, yes. But today I'm free."
"I'm going for work. Not drinks."
"That's fine."
Hong Hyeyeon smiled with her eyes.
Then said calmly—
"I saw you get that person's video from the Super Actor PD earlier."
The man.
No—
the monster.
The one occupying both her thoughts and Song Manwoo PD's mind.
She tilted her head slightly.
"You're planning to show it to the writer, right?"