thenovelthief Chapter 242 - Tidal Wave (9)
Chapter 242 - Tidal Wave (9)
Chapter 242: Tidal Wave (9)
Translator: Dreamscribe
Kang Woojin established the acting standard for the entire cast of ‘Leech’. That too, at this audition with the core actors of ‘Leech’, where several top actors participated. Even though the place was full of big shots, in the eyes of everyone, in the minds of everyone, the first-year actor Kang Woojin firmly planted his flag.
This performance would become the benchmark for ‘Leech’.
A solid performance.
It wasn’t even a bluff. Woojin merely played the supporting role and pierced everyone’s core. He made the top actors present silent with his performace. Director Ahn Ga-bok, watching Woojin, made that judgment.
Naturally, a keen miscalculation.
However.
‘Haha, that justified confidence is astounding.’
Regardless of the situation, it was also a moment when a new path was being paved for the voyage of ‘Leech’.
‘I can sufficiently pull this off even by myself.’
If the great actors awaken because of this, the quality of ‘Leech’ would soar several times.
‘So, analyze thoroughly and strive even harder.’
At this moment, Director Ahn Ga-bok, along with great actor Sim Han-ho and other judges sitting in the same row as Woojin, were all watching Kang Woojin. It was as if the words were stamped above his head.
‘I am the average.’
That’s how indifferent Kang Woojin’s face was as he returned to his seat. Despite dropping a nuclear bomb in this small theater, he remained unfazed. He just silently looked down at the script.
“······”
The film company CEO and the casting director exchanged glances.
‘He’s handled so many roles without a single mistake?’
‘He’s gone through countless emotions and returned as if nothing happened, it’s unbelievable.’
Nevertheless, the silence in the entire theater remained unbroken for some reason. Even though it had been several seconds since Woojin returned to his seat, no one spoke.
“······”
“······”
The common factor was that everyone was watching Kang Woojin. What is this? What’s going on? Naturally, Woojin also felt the piercing stares. That’s why he pretended to be looking down at the script to buy some time. At the same time, Kang Woojin slowly recalled the auditions where he had watched the opposing actors.
‘Was there any problem? There wasn’t.’
It was certainly not bad. The power of the void space couldn’t be wrong in the first place. To avoid any potential noise, he didn’t even put all his effort into the roles he would take on, like Park Ha-sung. Especially for the other roles, he withheld more than 30% of his strength.
‘Is it a bit odd that I acted in other roles?’
But even that wasn’t 100%. He definitely didn’t go overbaord. Still, since it was a audition, he didn’t do it roughly. Since it was a place full of great and top actors, performing too weakly would be rather unnecessary, right?
‘Everyone can do this much at least.’
But no one in the theater knew Woojin’s true intentions. So, they thought what Woojin showed was his maximum. Despite holding back, he had far exceeded everyone’s common sense.
The conclusion of Kang Woojin and the others clashed with each other due to misunderstanding.
However, there was no problem. There was no need for Woojin to correct it.
Although the situation was filled with errors, it wasn’t bad in the long run.
The power reserves Woojin lightly considered would have a stronger impact when revealed later. Of course, Kang Woojin wasn’t calculating that. He had a truly pure mindset.
At that moment.
-Swish.
There was a change in the quiet small theater. Director Ahn Ga-bok stood up. He approached Kang Woojin at the end of the row. Then he murmured to Woojin.
“While solidifying your authority as a ‘judge’ for everyone, you’ve set the benchmark for ‘Leech’ on the side.”
Sim Han-ho’s eyes widened slightly. The film company CEO and the casting director were even more surprised. The previously silent staff started to murmur. The managers visibly shocked.
The atmosphere in the previously quite small theater quickly became lively.
On the contrary, Kang Woojin was the epitome of cynicism.
“······”
Of course, only in appearance.
‘Benchmark? What benchmark? Benchmark! That thing? Why is that coming up here?’
Without a change in expression, Woojin silently looked up at Director Ahn Ga-bok, but internally, he sensed that something had gone awry. No, more precisely, he detected the familiar and fragrant scent of a misunderstanding.
‘Authority as a judge? Benchmark for Leech? What nonsense is this old man talking about?? I just performed as the supporting actor.’
In fact, his actions were slightly intended to take it easy. But the insightful Director Ahn Ga-bok brought out something unexpectedly profound.
“Yes, all of them are veterans in acting theory, so they must have understood your true intentions.”
What is this? The sweet scent of misunderstanding is overwhelming. Upon closer inspection, the surrounding people seemed to be in agreement, as they remained silent. Woojin realized that this had already spread. However, having endured countless misunderstandings and misconceptions, Kang Woojin wasn’t flustered.
In times like this, maintaining a composed and nonchalant concept is crucial.
Clearing his throat lightly, Kang Woojin took the action suitable for the current situation. What could that be? He kept his voice as calm as possible.
“I just did what I could.”
Director Ahn Ga-bok smiled, his face wrinkling. The managers of the actors whispered conspicuously. There were various words, but they all converged into one conclusion.
“Ha- now I understand why Director Ahn Ga-bok cast Kang Woojin as the lead first.”
At this point, great actor Sim Han-ho, whose face had stiffened, asked Kang Woojin, who was sitting next to him. His tone was unusual.
“Woojin-ssi. How much time did you spend interpreting Chairman Yoon Jung-bae?”
Time. Honestly, he hadn’t spent much time, but Woojin chose his words carefully. Adding a bit of toughness while maintaining politeness.
“I just did it from time to time.”
“...... From time to time. While interpreting both Park Ha-sung and other roles?”
“Just enough not to be lacking as the audition partner.”
“To be honest, it was the first time I froze because of a co-actor’s acting.”
“······Are you okay?”
“I think it’s fortunate.”
“Fortunate?”
A smile spread across Han So-jin’s face as she suddenly stood up. Her fierce determination had once again increased her fighting spirit.
“It’s absurd, but he has to be at that level for me to want to struggle and win against him.”
Meanwhile, the other actors who had experienced Kang Woojin today were groaning.
“Wasn’t he just supposed to play as supporting actor??”
In fact, more than half of the actors who participated in the ‘Leech’ audition today couldn’t fully demonstrate their skills. They were overwhelmed by Kang Woojin’s presence.
“I was so flustered that I stumbled over my lines midway······Ha- No, it’s because Kang Woojin suddenly started acting as Yoon Ja-ho!”
Except for Han So-jin, most of them were top-tier or A-list actors.
“Kang Woojin is really crazy??!”
Nonetheless, they couldn’t handle it calmly. So what could they do? The actors had to blame themselves. Even while Kang Woojin was doing something crazy, there were actors who managed to keep their composure. For instance, Jin Jae-jun, Hong Hye-yeon, and Hwalin did.
Jin Jae-jun, from ‘Drug Dealer’, said,
“Wow- Woojin-ssi seemed like he had grown again in that short time.”
“That’s not the point. Are you satisfied with your performance today?”
“I don’t know, honestly, I don’t even remember it well. I think I managed to keep the character.”
Hong Hye-yeon, who had also watched Kang Woojin, said,
“It was different from ‘Island of the Missing.’ No, more than that, is it really possible to handle other roles in between all that? Even in such a busy schedule??”
Hwalin was the same. But Hwalin was in a slightly strange state.
“Hey, hey, Hwalin. Hwalin??”
“...... Uh- huh? Oh. What.”
“Why are you zoning out like that?”
“No. No, just.”
She kept staring into space. More precisely, she was recalling the face of her absolute favorite.
‘What I saw was Han In-ho from ‘Male Friend.’ When he plays different roles, Woojin-nim exudes that kind of energy...’
Having witnessed the explosiveness of her fangirling target up close, Hwalin seemed to be quietly satisfied.
‘Ha, I thought my heart was going to burst when he grabbed my shoulder in the middle.’
Meanwhile, in Kang Woojin’s van.
Woojin’s van had already left the parking lot of the theater building and was driving down the road. Time had long since passed into the afternoon. However, Kang Woojin’s schedule was not yet over. Woojin, with a stern face, was looking out the window.
A cynical atmosphere.
Of course, his inner thoughts were entirely different.
‘Well, it’s ended one way or another. This much is pretty smooth, right?’
Though misconceptions and misunderstandings had invaded, Kang Woojin casually ignored them. There was no major issue, after all. Just then.
“Oppa.”
Han Ye-jung, who had changed to a short black bob, called out to Woojin.
“Look at this. Japanese SNS is exploding with talk about you right now. And do you know this person? If you search for oppa’s name on Twitter, this post comes up a lot.”
Han Ye-jung handed her phone to Kang Woojin. Her phone displayed the main page of the Japanese SNS filled with Japanese text. Unable to translate it all, Han Ye-jung had passed it to Woojin. He then scrolled through the SNS posts that appeared in the search results.
One post was being explosively shared.
Soon, following the source of the shared post, Kang Woojin reached the original.
[_dadaco8]
[Hello, this is Asami Sayaka. Today, I want to talk about something unrelated to my work....]
It led to the Instagram of a famous Japanese voice actress named ‘Asami Sayaka.’ It was a long post she had written herself. As he read it, Kang Woojin realized.
‘Ah.’
The girl in a wheelchair and her mother. This post was from that mother. The details of their situation were laid out in the post, making Woojin feel slightly embarrassed as he muttered to himself.
‘So she was a famous voice actress- that’s why that girl said she dreamed of being a voice actress?’
Woojin slowly nodded as he reached the end of the post. He almost said ‘Wow’ out loud without realizing it. The number of comments and likes was enormous. Even the shares were increasing rapidly.
Han Ye-jung chimed in at just the right moment.
“What’s it about? Anyway, it’s gone completely viral.”
At this moment.
-♬♪
Someone’s phone rang. It was Choi Sung-gun’s, who was in the passenger seat.
-Swish.
Checking the phone screen, he muttered.
“Woojin, it’s a call from PD Song.”
*****
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