The Haunted Monster Actor - Chapter 13



Only Krnovel

Episode 13

“The great actor is coming!”

The front door of an old, peeling apartment building opened to a loud welcome.

The person who greets Hyun-soo as he enters is… … .

“You’ve arrived, Master!”

“Why are you suddenly like this?”

The person bowing 90 degrees and politely greeting at the door was Hyun-soo’s younger sister, Yu-mi.

As he patted the head of his younger sister, who had grown up a lot in the time he hadn’t seen her, and entered the front door, a familiar and comfortable air greeted Hyun-soo.

“I’m here, Mom.”

“Are you here, son?”

Mrs. Im Jeong-sun, who was watching the stew bubbling in the kitchen, greeted her son as if she had seen him yesterday.

“Don’t you say hello to me, oppa?”

“ruler.”

Instead of greeting her, I handed her the shopping bag I was holding, and Yumi snatched it away with a cat-like movement.

“Brother, it is an honor and an honor for you to personally come to such a wretched place.”

At that moment, when I was frowning at my younger sister’s excessive aegyo, Mrs. Lim opened her mouth with a bright smile.

“Are you hungry? Just wait a moment, the meal will be ready soon.”

“This smell, it seems like it would be harder to wait than waiting to shoot?”

She burst out laughing at her son’s joke.

As I smelled my mother’s smile and the savory smell of soybean paste stew, it felt like all the hardships of the past six months melted away.

“Hey, I told you not to buy things like this.”

Yumi’s mouth fell open in surprise at the gift her brother brought home after a long time.

“You’re running low on money since the semester just started, right? I even put some pocket money in there.”

Yumi’s mouth opened wider.

“Wow, is this the life of a younger sister with a successful actor brother!”

“What about my successful actor brother? He’s not there yet.”

“Until a successful actor is humble!”

“Enough is enough.”

“yes.”

As we unwrapped the gifts we brought and chatted, before we knew it, a table was filled with delicious food.

“thank you for this food!”

After all, no matter what, home-cooked meals are the best.

I was so absorbed in the hot soybean paste stew that I ended up eating three bowls of rice before I knew it.

“Oh my, oppa. They don’t give you food on set?”

“I know. But the problem is that it doesn’t taste good. Mom, do you plan on having a food truck on set? It would be really great if you did it.”

Mrs. Lim raised the corners of her lips and took in the empty air, as if she didn’t mind her son’s compliments on the food that much.

“I made a lot of rice, so don’t worry and eat as much as you want.”

After dinner and clearing the table, the three families talked freely about the stories that had piled up during that time.

As we chatted without realizing how much time had passed, the clock soon reached 10 o’clock.

“Oh, isn’t it time to do it now?”

Normally, the mother and daughter would be slowly getting ready for bed, but today, they had no intention of going to bed on time.

The reason was simple.

Because today is the first episode of “When You’re Dyed in Darkness” airing.

Hyunsoo wanted to watch the first episode of his first drama with his family, not anyone else.

“My brother is appearing in a drama… Is this true?”

“Oh, yeah. Yumi, can you get me some water…?”

Hyunsoo smiled awkwardly and answered Yumi and Mrs. Im’s excited remarks.

“I still can’t believe it… … but it really happened.”

Mrs. Im Jeong-sun, sitting next to me, waited with trembling eyes for the commercial to end.

The drama begins with the first appearance of Detective Jin Young-mi, along with a gloomy opening.

The running time of episode 1 is approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes.

The episode ended with a close-up of Jin Young-mi’s wavering eyes as she first encountered the murder scene written in the black diary.

My younger sister Yumi, who watched the entire first episode, had these thoughts.

“It’s fun! It’s so much fun… … But why isn’t Oppa coming out?”

Hyunsoo smiled and answered Yumi’s slightly angry words.

“I heard that oppa will appear starting from episode 3.”

Yumi continued speaking with a bewildered expression on her face at Hyunsoo’s answer.

“… … No, then why did you come now when you can’t come next week? Just go back now and come back next week when Oppa comes out. Okay?”

At Yumi’s words, Mrs. Im continued speaking with an expression that said, “Look at this.”

“Do you think I don’t know that you’re telling me to buy you another gift when your brother comes home?”

Yumi protested with a look of injustice on her face at Ms. Im Jeong-sun’s words.

“Oh, no… …! That’s true! If we’re going to meet up after such a long time, it would be better if you came when your face appeared on TV!”

Although Yumi had a point, the reason Hyunsoo came home a week early was simple.

Because there was something I wanted to say as soon as possible.

Hyunsoo’s gaze turned to Mrs. Im.

“mother.”

“huh?”

“I became an actor.”

Lim Jeong-sun nodded as if to say something so obvious.

“Weren’t you originally an actor? Mom always thought our son was an actor. And your dad was the same.”

“… … .”

“If your father saw you like this right now… … he would be really happy, right?”

As she spoke, her mother’s eyes looked as if they would burst into tears at any moment.

Looking at that sight, Hyunsoo felt something welling up inside him.

She is a strong person who never shed a tear to her children, even while caring for her sick father and raising her two children alone.

If that kind of person can tear up like that just because their child appeared in a drama, how many tears must they have shed behind the scenes…

“So, what about the allowance?”

“… … I sent it to you last week.”

“Yeah. It’s pretty thick. Work harder and become a better actor, son.”

“Yes, Mother.”

I will definitely do that.

* * *

After finishing watching the drama, I was cleaning up the table in the living room when my smartphone on the sofa vibrated.

It was a call from producer Yoo Jong-seok.

-Actor Kim, what are you doing now? I’m watching episode 1 while having a drink with writer Ko and Director Joo.

-Hello, Actor Kim!

-Why are you calling me at this late hour? Don’t actors have private lives?

The drunken voices of Writer Ko and Director Joo flowed out from the other end of the phone.

“Hello everyone!”

-Huh? Of course we should say hello. The drama is so good, so why don’t you say hello and leave? Of course, Actor Kim was watching too, right?

“Yes, I was watching it with my family.”

– Really? Is everyone having fun?

“It’s total chaos.”

-Yeah, it’s the same here.

“… … ?”

-Have you checked the viewer ratings for episode 1?

“No, I haven’t seen it yet.”

―I contacted you because I thought so. Don’t be surprised. I just got a call from the broadcasting station… … It’s 11.8%, 11.8%! Hahahaha! Does that make sense?

-Wow!

-pop!

On the other end of the phone, the writer Ko’s cheers can be heard, along with the sound of something exploding.

A look of surprise appeared in Hyun-soo’s eyes as he heard PD Yoo Jong-seok’s words.

11.8%

1%… … No, in a world where there are dramas that start and end with decimal point ratings, a double-digit start was truly a huge hit.

―The articles are already pouring in even before the advertisements are out!

[Near Darkness, the prelude to a blockbuster drama in the first half of 2023.]

[TVM’s weekend night viewership ratings are led by ‘Near Darkness’!]

Thanks to the solid narrative and great acting from the actors, the drama is already receiving favorable reviews from the media and social media compared to other dramas in the same time slot.

‘There are still better actors out there… … .’

I think I ended up participating in a good drama.

And that’s it.

―Even before actor Kim appears, it’s already like this. If things continue like this… … If I just sit still, I might get buried in the script?

It seemed likely that it would remain the same going forward.

* * *

A few days later.

Hyunsoo entered a quiet pub in Chungmuro, where the sounds of chatter and popular 90s songs were flowing out.

This place is like a hideout where Hyun-soo often gathers with his acquaintances.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been here.”

There are people I’ll meet here today.

“Actor Kim Hyun-soo has arrived!”

Hyunsoo thought he had entered a filming set for a moment when he heard a powerful voice coming from the corner.

The owner of the voice was none other than Heo Young-jin, one of the filming staff of ‘Near Darkness’ and Hyun-soo’s senior.

Hyunsoo came here today to keep his promise to treat him to a meal.

“I told you I would get it right this time, didn’t I? Be prepared today, Actor Kim.”

As Heo Young-jin said, it was clear that this was a situation that required determination.

That would be the case, since there were quite a few people sitting at the table that Yeongjin pointed to.

All of these people sitting there are faces that Hyunsoo knows.

“Hey, hey, our school’s pride, actor Kim Hyun-soo, is here! Hurry up and set up the cups and glasses!”

Most of the alumni gathered here today are from the Department of Theater and Film and are working in the film and drama industry like Hyunsoo and Youngjin.

Although they were usually busy with their own work and had a hard time gathering in one place, they gathered today to congratulate Hyunsoo.

“Hyunsoo, let’s not be so nervous. If it was a supporting role, the guarantee would have been high, right?”

One of the juniors laughed and agreed with Youngjin’s joke.

“As Hyunsoo gets busier in the future, it’ll become harder and harder to get something to eat, so don’t you think you’ll have to eat a lot on days like today?”

“Haha, that’s what I’m saying.”

Yeongjin nodded with a satisfied expression along with laughter from the audience.

Hyunsoo was also happy.

All of those present here now are friends who, like Heo Young-jin, have helped me in big and small ways.

No need to elaborate.

“I’ll shoot the second and third rounds today!”

At Hyunsoo’s one word, the quiet pub quickly became noisy.

“Kim Hyun-soo! Let’s go for the Rookie of the Year award!”

Everyone raised their glasses to someone’s enthusiastic toast.

braided!

Everyone who toasted sincerely congratulated and rejoiced at Hyunsoo’s first creative activity.

They are all people who live like Hyun-soo, looking only at one dream.

Because I know the hardships Hyun-soo must have gone through and have experienced them myself, I can be happy about it as if it were my own.

“So, what’s next?”

Hyunsoo answered Youngjin’s question, which had suddenly become cheerful, with an embarrassed smile.

“It’s only been a week since it aired, but I still don’t know.”

Hyunsoo still doesn’t have an agency, and therefore his profile is unknown.

Maybe that’s why there hasn’t been any contact related to the work yet.

Yeong-jin shook his head after hearing Hyun-soo’s words.

“That’s what I’m saying.”

“yes?”

“It’s only the first week, but the response is already extraordinary. If Lee Ji-woon appears this weekend… … I guarantee it will blow up once more.”

“Is that really true?”

“My intuition, having been in the field for a long time, tells me so. So prepare to have your phone blown up.”

It wasn’t Hyunsoo who answered Youngjin’s words.

Woof―!

As soon as Youngjin finished speaking, the smartphone on the table rang.

“Senior, do you have any special skills?”

“Hurry up and pick up the phone. It might actually be a contact call.”

“What the heck is that… … .”

I checked the caller ID and it was from the owner.

“Yeah, why is Ina here at this hour?”

The senior female student sitting next to me, who was listening to Hyunsoo and Youngjin’s conversation, muttered with a look of dismay on her face.

“Sister Ina? That bastard Hyunsoo, you’re already like sister and brother to the actress?”

Then he suddenly stood up from his seat.

“Okay, everyone be quiet! Our actor Kim Hyun-soo is on the phone with actor Joo-in!”

At the senior’s loud voice, not only Hyunsoo’s table but also the other tables became quiet.

“ah.”

Coincidentally, a rerun of ‘Near Darkness’ was airing on the TV hanging on one wall of the Hope House.

When the name of the lead actress of a currently airing drama was mentioned, it was inevitable that all eyes in the room would turn to her.

Hyunsoo coughed a few times and answered the phone with an embarrassed face.

“hello?”

-Hyunsoo, where are you now?

“Oh, yes. That’s Daehakro.”

―Daehakro? Oh my! I’m in that area right now! My agency’s office is over here!

“Oh, really?”

―What is that unwelcome reaction? Anyway, where are you at Daehangno? What are you doing?

“I’m having a drink with senior Youngjin and my college classmates.”

―If it’s Youngjin… …the AD of the filming team? Oh right, you said senior Hyunsoo. Um, then… … .

“… … ?”

-If it doesn’t bother you, can I go over there for a moment?

After finishing the call with the owner, the bright eyes of the classmates around him turned to Hyun-soo.

“Hyunsoo, this kid really made it! He even had a phone conversation with the lead actor of a drama! So, what did our master actor say?”

Hyunsoo answered the senior’s question.

“You said you were coming here?”

“what?”

“The owner is coming here?”

Soon everyone’s blank stares turned to the TV on the wall. There, a scene of detective Jin Yeong-mi interrogating criminals was being shown.

“So… … that person is coming here?”

Hyunsoo nodded and said.

“Yes, that’s why I said no.”

“… … Huh? Why?”

“So, since today is a gathering of my seniors and juniors to congratulate me, it would be better to make a separate appointment for later… … .”

The senior female student who was listening to Hyun-soo spoke to Hyun-soo with sincerity.

“Hyunsoo, I’ve finished congratulating you, so you can go now.”

“… … .”

A while later.

“Hello, I’m actor Joo In-ah! I wonder if I’m joining the group without notice.”

Indeed, an actress is an actress.

Even in her simple attire without any makeup, she has a charm that attracts the attention of many people.

Until recently, I had bumped into her every day on set, but seeing her in private gave me a different feeling.

Hyunsoo asked the owner with a bewildered face.

“… … Sister, but why did you come here?”

“I’m also a lead actor in a drama, so I should promote myself at times like this.”

There was something else hidden in the owner’s face as he spoke like that.

Continued in the next episode