Translation: DREAMSCRIBE
The curse that the giant Joseph Felton spat out had nothing to do with the conversation between Kang Woojin and Director Ahn Gabok.
It was because of Kang Woojin's acting.
"Damn…"
Joseph muttered the curse under his breath as he watched Woojin from the filming area. His furrowed brows and wide eyes did not change. It was one of his habits. Whenever he witnessed something so shocking that it defied understanding, profanity slipped out before he could stop it.
It could be taken as an exclamation.
In Korean, it would roughly mean something like, "My God. That was incredible." Even for Joseph Felton, a veteran who had worked with countless actors in Hollywood, the shock had rattled him that deeply.
'What the hell did I just watch?'
It was an overwhelming shock.
What exactly had just unfolded in front of him?
Joseph had expected something to a degree, but this went far beyond anything he could understand. No—could something like that even be called acting?
'There's no preparation at all.'
Actors usually need some kind of warm-up before they can express deep emotion. But the moment the director called action, Kang Woojin poured out profound feeling without the slightest visible effort. And the time it took him to reach that emotional depth had been absurdly short.
'You could practically say there was none.'
On top of that, the instant Woojin began acting, he became someone else entirely.
At least, that was how it looked to Joseph.
Kang Woojin disappeared in an instant, and a completely different person appeared in his place. His gaze, his presence, his posture, his habits, his speech, even the rhythm of his breathing.
Everything changed.
'It's like he has multiple personalities.'
In Joseph's eyes, there was no point even mentioning the fundamentals of acting. There was no need. Perfection was already the baseline. What was unbelievable was how effortlessly all those extraordinary abilities were piled on top of that.
And that was what unsettled him the most.
'Ripley Syndrome?'
Joseph had not heard the full explanation of the scene in detail, but he understood exactly what Kang Woojin had been trying to express through that performance.
That was the ultimate goal every actor pursued.
To make the audience feel exactly what the actor intended to convey.
It looked easy.
Actors in both Hollywood and Korea still struggled to master that technique and spoke of their own shortcomings with humility. But Kang Woojin already wielded it perfectly. Was it a coincidence? There was no way. It was far too natural to dismiss as chance.
Joseph was confused.
'The energy and tension are completely different from when he showed martial arts. I never expected this kind of delicate and astonishing performance from him.'
Even when Joseph had seen Kang Woojin's martial arts skill in Hollywood, he had never imagined this side of him.
While watching Woojin speak with Director Ahn Gabok, Joseph covered his mouth with one hand. He already knew a lot about Woojin's abilities. Martial arts, singing, foreign languages, and more.
But were all of those things merely secondary?
"······What kind of monster is he?"
He was a monster that shattered common sense.
Joseph had already been interested in Kang Woojin because of his extraordinary martial arts skills and film background, but now that interest had gone far beyond simple curiosity. He could only observe him.
Because Kang Woojin was an existence he simply could not understand.
At that moment, the words Megan Stone had said on the CD sank deep into his mind.
"If Director George Mendes had seen his acting instead of his martial arts, he would have begged to work with him somehow."
Why were so many giants gathering around Kang Woojin?
The answer was clear.
It was not because of some grand mystery.
It was simply the natural result.
Joseph slowly turned his head.
To his right stood Kara, blonde-haired and completely still, staring at Kang Woojin as though she had frozen in place.
"······"
Had her soul been pulled out of her body?
Joseph glanced at the surrounding team members.
Every one of them wore the exact same expression as Kara.
Just then, Director Ahn Gabok appeared.
"Was that restrained enough?"
He asked the question to Woojin, who stood in front of him. Kang Woojin answered in an expressionless voice.
'What? Why? Don't take it so seriously. Did I say something wrong? But it's true, so what can I do?'
Then he gave a solemn nod.
"Yes. I held back."
"So you're saying you hesitated even when reading the audition lines?"
"Isn't that normal during an audition?"
"That's true. It should be."
Director Ahn Gabok gave a bitter smile.
Kang Woojin was right. There was no reason for an audition partner to go all out. But even the acting Woojin delivered while suppressing his emotions had surpassed common sense, and Director Ahn Gabok found himself bewildered.
'No, everyone in that small theater must have felt the same thing.'
His audition set had been filled with top actors and stars, and Kang Woojin had set the standard for acting there through Leech. Considering he was only in his second year since debut, his performance was at a level that anyone watching would consider the very best.
But they had been mistaken.
'Heh, this brat's idea of "restrained" goes beyond what we can even comprehend.'
There was nothing more and nothing less to it.
That was simply the truth.
An actor who made judgment meaningless, skipped over the process of understanding, and arrived directly at recognition. It almost felt as if a new species had appeared in this industry.
Director Ahn Gabok kept smiling as he placed a hand on Woojin's shoulder.
"Make sure you go far. Go all the way to the top. Don't stop at impressing someone like me—aim for the respect of people far greater than that. I think, at my age, just getting to witness that would be enough."
Kang Woojin answered in a low but firm voice.
"I can do it."
A little later—
Director Ahn Gabok, who had briefly paused filming, sat back down and resumed the shoot.
"Action."
The same scene was repeated.
But Kang Woojin's tension did not weaken in the slightest. If anything, it became even sharper and more delicate. The more the scene was repeated, the more vivid and intense his acting became. On the monitor, Park Haseong—the character Woojin played—already looked complete, but as the scene continued, even that sense of completion stopped mattering.
"Cut, good. Let's go back to an upper-body shot instead of the tracking shot from behind the camera."
That was because Kang Woojin showed a new level of completion in every cut.
His acting kept evolving.
The reason Director Ahn Gabok had chosen this scene as the starting point for the first shoot was simple. He wanted to plant the essence of Ripley Syndrome into the other actors as well.
If they understood the emotion and sensation in advance, the scenes they performed and edited later would become much smoother.
Of course, it was natural for those emotions to appear in the middle of Leech, but he had made that choice because he trusted Kang Woojin would be capable of expressing them fully.
What he had not expected was that the emotion would hit far harder than he had intended, leaving a deep impression on the actors.
Shim Hanho.
Oh Heeryeong.
Jin Jaejun.
Han Sojin.
And many other supporting actors.
"······I don't even know how to describe it."
"Now that I think about it, when we filmed the audition scene together, didn't it feel like he wasn't even trying? Or was that just me?"
"Ripley Syndrome… I didn't really get it when I read the script, but after watching Woojin's acting, I understood."
"Ah, what kind of wall is this right from the start…"
What it planted in them was not just caution, but desperation.
This is what you will have to face.
This is what you will have to endure.
It felt like a message delivered straight into them through acting itself.
And then there was Miley Kara.
'Oh my God.'
She was no longer focused on Kang Woojin the singer, martial artist, or pianist.
She was wholly focused on Kang Woojin the actor.
She could not help it.
His command over the scene was overwhelming. He truly deserved to be called a master of acting.
At the same time, Kara found herself imagining something without meaning to.
'What if that actor appeared in Hollywood?'
The domain of the monster that had been hidden away in Korea would expand outward into the world, and it would trigger a tremendous shift.
About two hours later—
A short break was given on the Leech set, where filming was in full swing. But the hundred or so staff members had no time to rest as they busied themselves organizing props and setting up equipment for the next scene.
It was the same for the director and actors.
Director Ahn Gabok was occupied with the key staff, checking storyboards and movements. Shim Hanho, Oh Heeryeong, and the others seemed to be deeply reflecting on their own acting and characters, perhaps because of the bizarre performance they had just witnessed.
"······"
"······"
Inside the tent, each of them was lost in thoughts of their role.
But strangely enough, cynical Kang Woojin was nowhere to be seen.
So where was he?
The Kang Woojin who had vanished from the set was inside a van parked in the outdoor lot.
And in front of him—
"You must have been surprised that I came so suddenly."
Miley Kara, completely covered in a hat and mask, sat down and removed them. Inside the van, only Woojin and the global superstar Kara remained, speaking in English. After taking off her hat, Kara swept her long blonde hair back.
Woojin could catch a faint, pleasant scent from her, but—
'Oh—my God, I can't believe Kara is sitting right in front of me. This feels like a dream. It feels completely different from that YouTube shoot before. Is this real?? This is seriously insane—no! Kang Woojin, calm down!'
He forced himself to ignore it.
He had a firmly established concept he had to maintain.
"No, it's fine."
"More than that, watching your acting was a pleasure."
"Was it really?"
"Yes."
Kara, her blue eyes fixed on Woojin, let out a small sigh.
"I'm glad I came. I would have regretted it if I hadn't. Now I understand why you treat singing and cooking like hobbies. Acting is… well, I think I'm a decent actress too, but I don't really know how to put this into words."
"You can skip that part."
Miley Kara pressed her lips together slightly, then gave a smile so faint it was almost invisible.
"There was another reason I came to Korea, but the biggest reason was to meet you, Mr. Woojin."
"Yes, I heard."
"I'm preparing a new album. I'd like you to participate in working on one of the songs included in it, and I'd also like you to appear in the music video."
"······"
When Kang Woojin said nothing, Kara leaned a little closer to him.
"Of course, I'm thinking of the title track. Honestly, it's my first time asking someone like this. What do you think?"
What?
What was he supposed to think?
He genuinely could not think of anything.
Keeping his face calm, he answered,
"···I think I need to discuss it with my company first."
Inside, Woojin had fallen into complete chaos.
'Are you insane?! What on earth is this woman talking about??'
After finishing the conversation with Kara, Kang Woojin returned to the Leech set.
Meanwhile, Kara and Joseph did not return.
They had already seen enough of Woojin's acting and achieved what they came for. On top of that, the staff's sharp stares were starting to feel burdensome.
"Kara, did you finish what you came for?"
"Yeah. What about you, Joseph? You didn't even get to talk to Woojin."
"My being here was greeting enough. There was no real need for conversation. I came to confirm my conviction."
"And did you?"
"Of course. Enough that I'll have to completely revise the plan. What about you, Kara?"
"Then all that's left is to wait for his reply."
Meanwhile, the internet was buzzing with discussion about the Our Table episode that aired on the 7th. The second shoot that had recently taken place became a hot topic, and as the show continued maintaining 20 percent ratings, articles poured out one after another.
But this episode of Our Table featured a rather unusual advertisement.
『"Gimjaban Makguksu," introduced at the end of drama "Our Table," set to hit the market soon, raising viewer anticipation』
『PPL before launch? Commercialization of Kang Woojin's "Gimjaban Makguksu," the best menu from "Our Table"… is the public ready for full-scale PPL?』
That was because Nongshin's commercialization of Kang Woojin's Gimjaban Makguksu was approaching fast.
But Kang Woojin had no time to care about any of that because he was busy filming Leech.
『Massive influence, preview of Kang Woojin's "Kang Woojin's Alter Ego" channel… next guest is Ryu Jungmin』
Thanks to his YouTube channel and advertisements, his days passed in the blink of an eye. As a result, he barely even noticed time moving.
『[MovieIS] Full-scale filming begins for "Leech," reporters crowd Jeonju set』
Around that time—
『Baeksang Arts Awards officially confirmed for Thursday, March 18』
The official promotional push for the Baeksang Arts Awards, which crowned the end of festival and awards season, had begun. The date, location, invited actors, and featured works were all announced, and countless articles followed in response.
Among them, the most clicked articles were, of course, the ones about Kang Woojin.
『Kang Woojin invited to this year's Baeksang Arts Awards—after winning eight trophies last year, can he add another this year?』
『Kang Woojin continues expanding his reach across broadcasting and film—what kind of shocking statement will he make this time? Netizens are paying close attention』
For the first time in a while, media outlets were packed with awards-season stories.
Everywhere was full of energy.
The Baeksang live broadcast team preparing for the event.
The Leech filming team pushing through shoots day and night.
Kang Woojin, whose visits to the void space had noticeably increased.
All of it was the same.
And for an entire week, no one realized what they had done.
The second week of March ended, and the third began.
It was March 17, the day before the Baeksang Arts Awards.
As usual, Kang Woojin was on his way to Jeonju. Normally, he would have stayed at the lodging there, but because he had an additional schedule in Seoul the day before, he had spent the night at his officetel instead.
"······"
With his hat pulled low, he stared out the window.
Then suddenly, he turned his head.
──────────
His gaze shifted to the pile of items stacked beside him.
There were about three cup noodles there.
They were an unfamiliar kind he had never seen before. Printed on the lid was the title:
—Gimjaban Makguksu Cup Noodles
At that moment, Choi Seonggeon, sitting in the passenger seat, asked Jang Suhwan, who was at the wheel,
"Suhwan, did you load all the cup noodles?"
"Yes! All 30 of them are fully loaded!"
"Good. Even if we can't give them to everyone on set, at least let them have a taste."
He nodded, then turned his gaze toward Han Yejung, who was looking at her phone. In truth, he was addressing everyone, since all the stylists were also glued to their screens.
"How are the media and the public reacting? Has anything new blown up?"
Without taking her eyes off her phone, Han Yejung answered calmly.
"No posts have gone up yet, but a lot of them should start appearing in the communities soon."
She held her phone out to Choi Seonggeon. On the screen were posts uploaded to online communities.
[No way!!!!!!! I came to the convenience store in front of my house to buy Kang Woojin cup noodles on release day and people are actually lining up???!!!]
[Real-time situation of people trying to buy Kang Woojin Gimjaban Makguksu cup noodles.JPG]
At that moment, Kang Woojin paid no attention to any of it.
He was only blankly staring at his own face reflected on the cup noodle lid.
Of course he was.
Because that was what had been printed there.
'Ah…'
Kang Woojin silently raised both thumbs.
Meanwhile, breaking news had just come in.
『Superstar Miley Kara, currently preparing a new album, to collaborate with a Korean actor on this release』
It was not Korean media reporting it.
It came from overseas.