“What’s going on at XN Entertainment?”
Hwang Min-hwa wasn’t feeling great lately.
Well, can you blame him? His ambitious project, Utopia, got no significant response.
Of course, the numbers weren’t terrible.
4 million.
At the very least, it felt like he might break even.
Yeah, break even.
Just enough to get his money back.
Yet, today his manager said he got a call from XN Entertainment.
So, what did they say?
“They mentioned that Hwang Min-ha was previously at Nova Entertainment and was wondering if you could talk to Joo Seo-yeon…”
Those words shot Hwang Min-hwa’s anger straight to the top of his head.
“Are you kidding me? I ended up like this because of that girl!”
“Min-ha, it’s not bad numbers, is it? Sometimes this happens.”
Jang Cheol-ho from Horizon Company wiped the sweat on his forehead and tried to calm Hwang Min-hwa down.
‘Wow, this guy’s pride is something else.’
In fact, it’s good for an actor to have a strong sense of pride.
In a way, it reflects a desire to improve.
But Hwang Min-hwa’s was notably intense.
His desire for success far surpassed that of others.
‘The Chaser is a natural disaster. Just getting 4 million with that is impressive.’
Jang Cheol-ho sincerely thought that.
Seo-yeon did grab attention, but frankly, those numbers wouldn’t happen just because of her.
Directors, scripts, and other actors.
Each one was formidable.
While it is true that Joo Seo-yeon maximized their talents as a villain,
the ones who really carried the film were the two leads.
‘Director Bae Jin-hwan is definitely someone. With proper investment, his direction is unbelievable.’
He brought out not 100% but 120% of Joo Seo-yeon’s performance.
That’s a solid amount of faith in an actor.
And that faith turned into success.
“Ha! This is ridiculous. So, XN asked me to connect with Joo Seo-yeon?”
“There’s no need to take it too seriously. So don’t react too strongly…”
Jang Cheol-ho was trying hard to soothe Hwang Min-hwa.
Otherwise, he’d definitely go back and grab the manager by the collar.
‘How could someone say that without thinking?’
The request from XN Entertainment.
The manager casually passed that on to Hwang Min-hwa, and thus the trouble started.
‘Didn’t expect him to have this kind of personality.’
He already went through two managers.
Hwang Min-hwa was known for throwing hissy fits around people.
To be precise, only those who wouldn’t easily leak Hwang Min-hwa’s flaws into the outside world.
That would be the staff working at his agency.
Actors survive on their image.
So, it’s crucial to manage their product without any blemishes, and the agency staff had no choice but to keep their mouths shut.
Because he was the one earning their salary.
“I’ll handle it well with XN.”
“…You’re not trying to set me up as the bad guy, right?”
“Come on, no way.”
Even while secretly cursing, Jang Cheol-ho earnestly calmed Hwang Min-hwa.
After all, if rumors got out, it wouldn’t look good.
XN Entertainment probably asked because they thought Hwang Min-hwa had a decent image management.
‘Can’t tell them to take her.’
Even though Utopia had ambiguous results, Hwang Min-hwa’s name still held weight.
That 4 million was thanks to his acting skills and ticket power.
But if he keeps sulking like this, he’d change managers again…
“Oh.”
“?”
“There’s something new I heard recently.”
Jang Cheol-ho said he got information about a variety show currently in preparation by GH Group.
An action movie.
And, auditions related to that.
“…Is that girl going to be in it?”
“Pretty much confirmed.”
“Hmm, sounds good.”
When an action movie audition comes mixed with a variety show, it’s obvious where it’s going.
‘They’re likely checking how well she can pull off action.’
Maybe they’re going to pick the cast through a survival format?
Then, it’s not likely to be for public broadcasting.
Probably just some web variety, but…
‘If GH Group invests that much, there must be more to it.’
Hwang Min-hwa thought as he recalled Joo Seo-yeon.
It seems that the action scenes she showcased in The Chaser left quite an impression.
‘Pfft, she probably had stuntmen doing most of the work anyway.’
Of course, Hwang Min-hwa watched The Chaser.
He didn’t want to, but it’s all about knowing your enemy, right?
So, The Chaser was undeniably a well-made film.
Seo-yeon’s action scenes were excellent, but it didn’t quite feel like she did them herself.
‘If it’s action acting, I might actually have the upper hand.’
Hwang Min-hwa had plenty of experience in action.
So, he felt confident that he could win if they had to perform action acting against Joo Seo-yeon during auditions.
‘She’s not going to do much with that fragile body of hers.’
Seo-yeon wasn’t that tall.
She barely reached Hwang Min-hwa’s eye level.
Plus, Hwang Min-hwa was meticulous about his own self-care.
He regularly practiced yoga and had great stamina.
‘But….’
Still, anything could happen.
“I can’t just be sure I’ll pass the audition, can I?”
He wasn’t lacking in physical ability, but he wasn’t sure how much action was required.
To put it bluntly, if he interacted directly with Joo Seo-yeon, the tasks could end up favoring her.
So, Hwang Min-hwa subtly asked,
“Then, let’s find one more project. Like, something that fits perfectly with when that action movie is released.”
In other words, he was suggesting having another shot at competition.
Honestly, he believed that he lost to Joo Seo-yeon this time because of GH Group’s investment and the strong crew involved.
‘I get she’s impressive for her age…’
But she still wasn’t at the level of Hwang Min-hwa.
She had pretty much reached a status comparable to that of top actors.
No, she was effectively an S-class actor.
Undeniably, Hwang Min-hwa was meant to be called a top actor.
“…That sounds good.”
Finally, Hwang Min-hwa smiled contentedly.
He initially thought about moving to Horizon Company as a temporary stop, but surprisingly, their handling was not that bad.
‘Joo Seo-yeon.’
Hwang Min-hwa recalled Seo-yeon’s face one last time.
A face so beautiful it could send chills down your spine.
And that overwhelming presence.
‘Next time, I’ll make sure to crush her.’
Coincidentally, Joo Seo-yeon’s image had a lot in common with Hwang Min-hwa’s.
Beautiful appearance, a cool aura.
An impression that suits a villain.
So, he absolutely didn’t want to lose.
Never.
*
“…What are you doing?”
Lee Ji-yeon was deep in thought about how to excel in the audition for Gyeongseong Young Lady.
There was still plenty of time left.
Frankly, considering the planned shooting date, it was fast-paced.
“For variety show preparations.”
Seo-yeon menacingly swung a long stick around.
The breaking moves seemed intense.
Is the variety show something like Gladiators?
“There’s a fishing variety show coming up.”
“…Oh, is it Star Fisher?”
“Yep.”
“But that’s a cable variety show.”
Of course, Star Fisher was quite a popular show.
It had a solid fanbase, and it was great for celebrities to showcase new images.
Most importantly, the cast was filled with prominent actors.
It was definitely worth the participation in terms of building connections.
“Didn’t anything come up in public broadcasting?”
“Nothing suitable came up.”
Seo-yeon checked the variety shows and ads that came her way.
While some caught her interest, most were interview-type shows.
‘Wanted to do Running People.’
A must-do variety for popular stars.
It features various missions, where participants try to detach their name tags.
Seo-yeon was a fan of Running People, and she definitely wanted to participate, but…
‘Looks like I’m just not there yet.’
She thought The Chaser would be the perfect fit for Running People, but it seemed she was still in the waiting phase.
Perhaps they want to keep an eye on her a little longer.
‘With my connections at KMB, the chances are low that they’d call me.’
She could guess the reasons.
So far, Seo-yeon had been involved with projects related to KMB, be it dramas or variety shows.
Running People was an MDC show.
So, there might have been some awkwardness.
‘I’ll definitely want to do it later.’
Maybe, when she lands one or two more successful projects, she could shoot her shot?
Even just for promotional reasons.
“Other than that, it seems there’s nothing that fits me.”
“There’ve been many offers, but nothing substantial.”
“Exactly.”
To clarify, Star Fisher wasn’t exactly her go-to show.
It was mainly for middle-aged men.
If her father Young-bin watched it, she’d probably catch it too, but… Young-bin was never one for that kind of show.
He’d rather watch the League of Legends World Cup highlights or YouTube shorts.
Then, suddenly an idea struck her.
“By the way, Lee Ji-yeon.”
“What?”
“I want to be in a club.”
“…? ”
Lee Ji-yeon was left puzzled by Seo-yeon’s quite abrupt declaration.
It seriously felt like a ‘Wait, what?’ moment.
‘Does she have an interest in the drama club?’
Thinking back, after Past, Looking Back, it seemed even the drama club hoped Seo-yeon would join them.
But no matter how much she thought, it didn’t seem likely that this girl was thinking about joining because of that.
“…Which club?”
“E-sports club.”
Seo-yeon wanted to get better at games.
She was serious about it.
*
“Is the guest this time an actress?”
“Hmm.”
In the conference room of Star Fisher, the two fixed cast members, Song Kwang-min and Lee Sang-soo, wore ambiguous expressions.
“Have you… ever fished?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Hmmm.”
Well, older guys going out fishing with a young girl has its charms.
But they couldn’t quite grasp how that would go over on-air.
“She’s the actress heating up recently with The Chaser and Dream Future, right?”
“Oh, did you not see this teacher?”
“I haven’t seen it. Lately, I’ve been struggling to focus on acting, and both seem tough.”
In his mid-fifties, Lee Sang-soo was questionable in thrillers.
And Dream Future was a youth drama.
He attempted to watch, but he gave up because the vibe was too off for him.
‘Heard he’s been in a slump lately.’
Director Jeong Seung-hyun from Star Fisher internally sighed in disappointment.
Lee Sang-soo.
An esteemed actor who had been active for a long time.
He had countless hit works and starred in three Ten Million Movies.
He even took leading roles in two of them.
‘He lost his motivation after getting out of Hollywood with a shiner.’
Five years ago, when he was riding high, he thought it was his last chance and attempted overseas expansion but faced enormous hardships.
The acting didn’t fit him, and Hollywood didn’t give him any proper roles.
He played a supporting character that barely got five minutes of screen time.
That marked the point he decided to give up on overseas ventures and return to Korea.
After that, he managed to come back through dramas, but… it got critically panned.
Lee Sang-soo took a break afterward, but the desperate Jeong Seung-hyun called him back into Star Fisher.
Using his only hobby—fishing.
“If only I were a bit younger, I could click with her as a granddaughter.”
“On the other hand, since we have a guy, it should be okay…”
The middle-aged man whose support coincided was actually five years younger than Lee Sang-soo was actor Song Kwang-min.
He was genuinely into fishing.
He seemed somewhat displeased with the idea of having a female actress as a guest who probably knew nothing about fishing.
“What if she starts whining about getting on a boat? Can she even balance herself properly?”
“Oh, you don’t need to worry. We handled everything.”
“…Ahem. Well, I know Director Jeong is meticulous.”
Feeling a bit awkward, Song Kwang-min coughed lightly.
But he still couldn’t shake off his displeasure.
‘But if the PD Shin says it, it must be solid.’
PD Shin Young-woo from Survival Without Borders.
He was actually a senior to Jeong Seung-hyun from the same high school.
Through their connection, he heard about Joo Seo-yeon and, after some research,
he ended up extending a direct invitation.
‘As long as half of what I heard is true, it should be fine.’
That much would suffice.
After all, the remaining part would be covered by her looks and recognition, surely raking in the ratings.
That was precisely what Jeong Seung-hyun had in mind.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.