Kang Woojin looked at the seasoned Director Ahn Gabok and spoke in an indifferent tone. His voice was extremely low, yet the intent behind it came through clearly to everyone in the theater.
A sudden silence fell over the place.
"······"
"······"
"······"
At the same time, every eye in the theater turned to Kang Woojin's expressionless face. More than twenty people were seated there, and all of them were staring straight at him.
Woojin, however, remained completely blank-faced throughout.
That strange atmosphere lasted only a moment.
"H-he's going to do the reading partner role?"
"Did Woojin-ssi really just say that? Did I hear wrong?"
"No. I heard it too."
The actor managers scattered around the fairly spacious seating area began murmuring among themselves. Their faces were filled with a jumble of emotions—bewilderment, disbelief, curiosity, confusion. What on earth was he suddenly talking about? He was going to do the reading partner role out of nowhere?
The timing was terrible, and with Kang Woojin's face so unreadable, no one could tell what he was actually thinking.
The managers all shared a similar image of Kang Woojin.
Cold, arrogant, eccentric, rude, and several other things besides. Most of them had never really seen him in person and knew him only through rumors. But seeing him today, he really did seem close to what they had heard.
'He looks like the kind of person who'd just sit there and pose.'
On top of that, his overwhelming popularity made it impossible for him to feel like a rookie. There was something unusual about his posture and attitude.
So what exactly was he thinking now?
Choi Sunggeon, frowning, was thinking the same thing. But unlike the other managers, he felt curiosity rather than surprise. Why would the usually indifferent Woojin suddenly do something that stood out this much?
'I thought he'd just stay quiet.'
Whatever the reason, the murmuring among the managers seated here and there began to grow louder, and Ahn Gabok, seated in the very front row, asked Kang Woojin, who was at the far end.
"······Woojin-gun, are you really going to do the reading partner role?"
Kang Woojin answered shortly, his expression firm.
"Yes, Director."
"Ah, really? That would certainly make the evaluation clearer, but are you really alright with that?"
"I'm fine."
"Hmm."
Interest flickered in the eyes of Director Ahn Gabok, his short white hair catching the light. Meanwhile, Shim Hanho, who had been carefully observing Woojin, showed no real change in expression. Then the representative from the film company and the casting team leader stepped in.
"If Woojin-ssi suddenly takes the reading partner role, the atmosphere will become a bit…·····"
"There's no need to go that far, is there? Why make that decision so suddenly?"
Why?
Woojin's indifferent thought process was very simple.
'I'm just bored. And a little nervous too.'
The situation was already awkward enough. He had been sitting there as a judge, and his heart had been faintly pounding for some time now, to the point that even sitting still felt prickly and uncomfortable.
'I don't even know how I'm supposed to judge them or what standard I'm supposed to use. If I were rating the taste of gukbap, that'd be one thing.'
And with that odd tension in the air, even breathing felt difficult. It did not help that the heater in the theater was blasting away noisily.
So he reached a conclusion.
'In a situation like this, it's better to do the reading partner role.'
The more he thought about it, the more it felt like a pretty decent conclusion. He could quietly dodge the burden of acting like a judge, get some acting practice in, test his own ability a little, and make time pass faster too.
Looking at it that way, Kang Woojin decided acting was the much better option.
'Alright, settled.'
Right then, Ahn Gabok's familiar voice sounded again, cutting in over the film company representative.
"Woojin-gun, is there a particular reason you want to do the reading partner role?"
Since he obviously could not say it was because he was bored, Woojin gave a suitably serious answer. Naturally, he lowered his voice as much as possible.
"I think I'll be able to see things more clearly than I would from that seat."
To be honest, he had simply said something that fit the moment.
But for some reason, Director Ahn Gabok's eyes widened slightly at that answer.
"!!"
Then a faint smile spread across his wrinkled face.
'To see more clearly, is it. I see.'
After slowly sweeping his gaze over the managers seated in the back rows, he leaned toward Shim Hanho, seated to his right, and whispered,
"He's showing those who are complaining exactly why he belongs here."
"I think he means he'll be able to see more clearly this way… Hmm, it almost sounds like he believes he can evaluate them more accurately while being in it himself."
They were talking about the highly controversial matter of Kang Woojin serving as a judge. In reality, many actors had declared they would not attend as soon as they heard that a top star like Kang Woojin would not only be present, but serve as a judge as well.
That controversy still lingered among the actors, and both the participating actors and their managers were visibly uncomfortable.
Ahn Gabok concluded that Kang Woojin was trying to show a kind of dignity in response to the situation. It was the sharp eye of a veteran.
"He's telling them, 'This is why I'm seated in the judge's chair.'"
No, it was a complete misunderstanding. A flat-out wrong assumption.
And that misunderstanding spread—from Shim Hanho to the representative from the film company to the casting director. They all stared at Woojin with widened eyes.
Kang Woojin, without changing expression, sank inward into his thoughts.
'What is this?? Did I go too far? Should I back out?'
Even though everyone was looking at something different, the situation moved forward with strange smoothness. Ahn Gabok showed Woojin a wrinkled smile, then gestured toward the stage.
"Then shall we try it?"
A reading partner role carried by someone who could stand shoulder to shoulder with an actor like Shim Hanho? As a director, there was no reason to refuse. He even joked with Shim Hanho.
"Haha, Woojin-gun has taken the reading partner role. The actors auditioning today will have to work even harder now."
Soon after, Kang Woojin stood up from his seat without causing much of a stir. Rolling up the sleeves of his gray knitwear, he slowly made his way toward the stage.
That intense concept of his gave him a considerable sense of weight.
Right at that moment—
"······Woojin-ssi."
Shim Hanho called out to Kang Woojin, who was walking onto the small theater stage with no expression at all.
"The script."
Ah.
Only then did Woojin realize he had left the script at his seat. With the faint feeling that he had made a mistake, he answered in a low voice.
"It's fine."
"You can do it without looking?"
"That'll be better."
"······"
Better?
Shim Hanho's brow twitched. Kang Woojin's casualness seemed like something rather serious to the veteran actor, and the film company representative also awkwardly called up to Woojin from the stage while glancing back at the managers behind him.
"Woojin-ssi, don't overdo it. Just keep it moderate, moderate."
"No."
But Ahn Gabok abruptly cut him off.
"Woojin-gun, do it however you want. Whether you follow the analyzed script or make changes, it doesn't matter."
It was practically the same as telling him to show everything he had.
──────────
A little later.
By the time Kang Woojin stepped onto the small theater stage, the news had already spread to the well-known actors waiting in each dressing room. Thanks to the staff moving quickly, everything progressed fast, and the managers seated themselves so they could directly watch what was happening.
Around ten actors were participating in today's audition.
Every one of them widened their eyes.
That included Jin Jaejun from Drug Dealer, who was the first participant.
"Woojin-ssi is… going to do the reading partner role? All of a sudden?"
"Yes, yes. I believe Kang Woojin-ssi is already on stage, so you can go in right away."
"Ah, wait a moment, please."
"Pardon?"
"I need a second to calm myself down."
Top actress Hong Hyeyeon was no different.
"Really? Woojin-ssi said that himself?"
"Well, I'm not completely sure about that…"
"Haha, well, whatever. If I can't do this, I'm in real trouble."
"Pardon?"
"No, alright. I get it."
And Hwarin too.
"······Woojin-ssi is doing it personally?"
Naturally, the rest of the male and female actors all reacted with agitation as well.
"W-what did you say? I was told Kang Woojin-ssi would only be judging."
"Um, it was decided on the spot."
"This is a little confusing. I prepared thinking it would be a solo reading, but if there's a partner, I need to change things."
"Should I inform the director?"
"Uh… no, that's not it. Understood."
The reactions varied, but the shared emotion was the same.
"Ah, this is seriously driving me crazy."
The pressure multiplied several times over. The rumor that Kang Woojin, an actor with only one year of experience, would be doing the reading partner role had spread everywhere.
"Why does it suddenly feel like I've stepped onto thin ice? I never imagined I'd end up acting in front of Kang Woojin-ssi!"
But for the star actors, it was like having fire set under their feet. All of them had a vague grasp of the situation.
"Kang Woojin… as the reading partner? My god, this is really difficult. I have no idea what kind of acting he's going to bring out."
This audition had suddenly become something like a battlefield. If the notorious eccentric Kang Woojin was going to step in as the reading partner, what would that even look like?
In other words, Woojin was now placing tension and psychological pressure on a number of famous actors.
Of course, not intentionally.
Whatever the case, a major obstacle had suddenly appeared in the path of passing the audition.
Meanwhile, the top-ranked actor among the participants entered the theater.
Swish.
It was Jin Jaejun, with his strong features. He was wearing a white shirt that suited the role he had prepared. Slowly, he surveyed the heavy atmosphere of the small theater. After first greeting the judges, including Director Ahn Gabok and Shim Hanho, he turned his head toward the stage.
A monster was standing there indifferently.
'······This is ridiculous.'
No, it was Kang Woojin. His face was calm, but under the stage lights, his eyes seemed to gleam. It felt like encountering the final boss in the starter village of a game.
At least, that was how Jin Jaejun felt.
"Woojin-ssi."
He quietly addressed Kang Woojin as he stepped onto the stage.
"Please take care of me."
"Sunbae-nim, I'll be in your care."
Quite some time had passed since Drug Dealer, but the exchange between them was brief. Their positions now were clearly very different.
'I'm the challenger, and Woojin-ssi is the one ahead. One blink, and it's over.'
In less than half a year, the lead actor and cameo actor from Drug Dealer had traded places. What kind of insane speed was that? But Jin Jaejun had no room to dwell on it.
"Jaejun-ssi, which scene did you prepare?"
Ahn Gabok's question cut in.
For reference, the scripts handed out to the auditioning actors did not contain just one scene. There were three versions in total, and the actors could choose one of them. Jin Jaejun stated which scene he had chosen, and Ahn Gabok slowly nodded before speaking in a low voice.
"Good. Let me know when you're ready."
Jin Jaejun nodded and steadied himself. He exhaled quietly, set the script he had been holding on the floor, and looked straight ahead.
Kang Woojin's cynical face came into view.
There was no script in Woojin's hands, nor anywhere around him.
'…He really isn't looking at the script?'
Jin Jaejun knew very well how absurd Woojin's comprehension was. During the filming of Drug Dealer, Woojin had perfectly memorized a revised script in just ten minutes. He assumed this time would be no different.
But the situation between Kang Woojin and Jin Jaejun was not the same.
Jin Jaejun only had to practice one scene from the script given to him. Kang Woojin, on the other hand, would have to perform different scenes on the spot with each actor. On top of that, the role of the reading partner would be different every time.
At that very moment—
'Huh? Wait a second.'
Jin Jaejun realized something.
'If he's going to be the reading partner for all the actors… that means not just Park Haseong, but Chairman Yoon Jungbae and the other roles too. Is Woojin-ssi really saying he can handle every one of them? Is that even possible?'
It was hard to believe.
But Jin Jaejun soon gave a slight shake of his head. No matter how much of a monster Kang Woojin was, he thought even that would be too much.
'Woojin-ssi suits Park Haseong well enough, but for Chairman Yoon Jungbae and the other roles, he'll probably just deliver the lines competently.'
It was a thought shared by everyone in the small theater—the staff, the production company, Shim Hanho, and especially Ahn Gabok.
'There's no way he can do every role perfectly.'
'With a schedule this packed, there's no way every role he takes on will turn him into some alien-level monster. He'll just read the lines naturally.'
'Unbelievable… leaving the script behind really was just a show.'
Regardless of all those thoughts—
"I'm ready, Director."
Jin Jaejun spoke with a resolved look on his face. Ahn Gabok raised his thumb slightly and gave the small signal.
"Hi, action."
The role Jin Jaejun had chosen was Yoon Jaho, the eldest son of the chaebol family in the drama Leech. He was the most power-hungry of the three siblings. Jin Jaejun completely embodied Yoon Jaho, even changing the look in his eyes.
They were filled with irritation and cunning.
"······"
Even his posture changed. He stood straight and neat, but with one hand tucked into his pocket in a way that displayed arrogance.
His counterpart this time was Park Haseong.
The moment Kang Woojin heard which scene Jin Jaejun had chosen, he had already brought Park Haseong with him.
From the top of his head to the blood running through his body, he was Park Haseong.
And yet—
'Just from the way he's standing, it's obvious he came here looking for a fight.'
The current Park Haseong was nothing like the Park Haseong from Leech. He had rotted and changed. The soul wrapped around Woojin's body had become tainted. He was Park Haseong, but at the same time he was not.
The defeatism that once filled his eyes was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, his eyes were overflowing with ambition.
That was natural, because the current scene took place after that point in the story.
In the world reflected in Kang Woojin's eyes, brimming with boiling ambition, this was no longer a stage. The spotlight disappeared. The background screen vanished. The platform itself blurred like smoke. Spread before Woojin now was the garden of a vast mansion. Perfectly maintained grass covered the ground, with trees planted here and there.
And in the middle of it stood Park Haseong and Yoon Jaho, facing one another.
Yoon Jaho, the eldest son of the chaebol family, curled his lips into a grin and spoke first.
"How has Mother been lately?"
"······"
But Yoon Jaho—or rather, Kang Woojin—simply stared straight through him without any visible reaction. If anything, he looked comfortable.
At least, for that moment.
Swish.
He turned, dragged a white chair over from nearby, and pulled it out. The sound of the chair scraping over the grass spread outward. To Ahn Gabok, Shim Hanho, and everyone else in the small theater, of course, it only sounded like something scraping, because Kang Woojin was dragging a metal chair across one side of the stage.
Kang Woojin sat down, crossed one leg over the other, and answered Yoon Jaho lightly.
"Madam—no, Mother is doing very well."
"What? Mother?"
"She told me to call her that."
It was a lie.
But there was no way to verify it.
"Ha—this is driving me insane. Hey, servant. Watch your mouth."
"I'm simply saying things as they are. Ah, then should I call you older brother instead?"
With a cold face, Jin Jaejun placed a hand on Woojin's shoulder.
"I said watch your mouth."
"If it's hard for you to get used to it, I can do it later. Mother said to take it slowly too."
"Don't call her Mother."
Jin Jaejun grabbed Woojin by the collar. But Woojin merely accepted it with a faint smile and said,
"Mother would be sad."
"······"
After glaring at him, Jin Jaejun roughly let go of his collar. Then he jabbed Woojin's face with his index finger.
"Hey. If you're a servant, act like one. Just keep sucking blood like a leech. Don't try to step into another world when you don't even know your place."
Woojin leaned back into the chair. The difference in height between Jin Jaejun and Woojin stood out once more. Then Woojin looked up and answered calmly.
"Are we in different worlds right now? We're standing in the same place."
Yoon Jaho clenched his teeth. Kang Woojin slowly turned his face to the right. He saw himself reflected in the living room window of the grand mansion on the first floor, seated there in the chair.
Of course, Yoon Jaho was there as well.
Anyone looking at it would think he belonged in that house. As Kang Woojin stared at his reflection in the window, the corner of his lips lifted slightly.
"We're together, aren't we?"
Yoon Jaho—no, Jin Jaejun—knitted his brows. At some point, he too was no longer seeing a stage, but the garden of the mansion. The Kang Woojin effect.
Goosebumps rose along his arms.
'Just as I expected, Woojin will never half-ass it. I didn't realize he could pull out Park Haseong's hidden appeal like this.'
And great actor Shim Hanho, who had been watching Kang Woojin on stage with unwavering focus, murmured in a low voice,
"······Ripley syndrome."
──────────
At the same time, there was also DM Productions.
Inside the largest meeting room of DM Productions, the new production company that was hard at work preparing the drama Beneficial Evil, Song Manwoo PD could be seen with his beard neatly trimmed. He sat at the center of a rectangular table with his back to the window, while the key staff of Beneficial Evil were seated on either side of him.
What was interesting was—
"PD-nim."
Among the guests seated across from Song Manwoo PD was a familiar face. It was Kim Sohyang, Executive Director of Netflix. Leaning forward slightly in her comfortable smile and slightly plump frame, she spoke firmly to Song Manwoo PD.
"What do you think about releasing the project you're preparing through Netflix instead of through a broadcasting station?"
Then she added,
"Of course, it would be released globally."