The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Translator: Marctempest
Editor:Rynfinity

Chapter 99

Team Leader Woo responded with a nonchalant expression.

“Yes. I think it’s about time we shoot something. The content isn’t bad either.”

He spoke as if he could have filmed plenty by now but simply hadn’t.

When I showed an incredulous expression, Team Leader Woo laughed lightly.

The face of the earnest-looking man relaxed.

“I told you before, didn’t I? We get a lot of advertising proposals.”

“I thought you were joking.”

“Why would I joke about something that doesn’t benefit me? It would be a waste of time.”

Despite the rather cold words, the smile on his lips was light.

It wasn’t until recently that I realized this was Team Leader Woo’s unique way of joking.

“So, what kind of advertisement is it?”

“Sports shoes. It’s a new sports brand launching this time, backed by a major foreign corporation. They’re establishing a new branch in Korea and seem to be planning quite a significant project for branding.”

Sometimes, Team Leader Woo seemed to forget that I was just a middle school student.

What if I didn’t understand? Although I did understand.

After slowly examining the documents Team Leader Woo handed over, I asked.

“What kind of advertisement proposals have you received so far?”

“Well, even I have my limits in memorizing. Should I print them out and show you? It would be about ten pages of A4 paper.”

Thinking he was joking again, I looked up, but surprisingly, he wasn’t joking.

When I hesitated, Team Leader Woo gave an incredulous look this time.

“You seem to be forgetting, but you’re a bona fide rising star. A precious star whose every work becomes a sensation. Naturally, you’ll receive a lot of advertisement proposals.”

“Then why haven’t you mentioned it until now?”

“Ads usually come to rising stars the most. It’s advantageous to catch them when their fees are the lowest. But you’re too valuable an actor to be treated like that, so I couldn’t mention it out of frustration.”

I swallowed a hollow laugh at the smile filled with trust.

“So, does this advertisement meet those criteria?”

“No corporate controversies, good contract terms, and the overall concept is good. There’s no reason not to do it. That’s what I think, but… if you don’t like it, we don’t have to do it.”

“…”

I quietly watched as he added these kind words.

Should I just let it go or not? While I was pondering, a silence followed.

In the continuing silence, one might have flinched, but the face before me bore a leisurely smile.

I thought of the remaining contract period and made a decision.

“Team Leader. I’d prefer if you just spoke honestly.”

“Huh?”

“You don’t have to speak in such a coaxing manner. I’m not particularly rebellious, am I?”

The corners of his mouth, which had been raised, slowly came down.

I sensed Manager An Jin-bae looking at me from the side.

“What I’m saying is, just tell me that this advertisement is a good opportunity for both the company and me, and that it would be best if I did it. At least that’s how I prefer it to be said.”

“…”

“No matter how gently you tell me I don’t have to do it if I don’t want to, after hearing all those previous words, how could I possibly refuse?”

I didn’t know what kind of life Team Leader Woo had led.

Nor did I know how much success his career had brought him through his peculiar pressure tactics.

Saying “We are not so stupid as to not know how to raise an actor’s value” sounds worse than saying “You are too precious an actor to be treated that way.”

And I understand it’s not a societal issue.

I also know that being honest isn’t always the best policy. But…

“If I didn’t know at all, I wouldn’t mind, but I can feel your intention, so I’m telling you. If I hear this kind of talk a few more times, I think it would make me uncomfortable.”

“…”

Team Leader Woo didn’t look flustered.

Quietly looking at me, I also calmly looked back at him.

Only Manager An Jin-bae beside me seemed to be sweating profusely.

“Got it. That’s reasonable. Do you have anything else you want to say?”

“No. And please let me know in advance if there are any advertisement proposals or anything else I need to know about. Even if there’s something I want to do, if the company says they don’t want me to, I won’t do it. You know that I would act accordingly, right?”

“…I know.”

His response came late.

Team Leader Woo hesitated for a long time before sighing.

“First, I apologize. It’s not because you’re young. This is my way of handling the entertainers I manage. I believe my job is to completely eliminate any potential problems. Even if you’re calm now, no one knows how you might change later. Not even you.”

“…”

“I know how arrogant entertainers can become. I’ve seen it with my own eyes, countless times.”

His voice, sounding somewhat forlorn, was unfamiliar.

“I thought saying ‘I can’t handle it anymore’ at that time would be an incompetent thing. So, I did it this way… But that’s my situation, and it’s certainly something that can upset you. Thank you for telling me. I’ll be more careful in the future.”

“Yes. I’m sorry for making you feel embarrassed too.”

When I glanced at Manager An Jin-bae, Team Leader Woo laughed lightly and shook his head.

It must have been embarrassing for him to hear such words with a subordinate present.

But I couldn’t ask Manager An Jin-bae to leave to spare his feelings.

The reason was simple. He was my manager.

“Then, to get to the main point, let’s go ahead with this advertisement if possible. I think it would be beneficial for you.”

“Yes. Let me know when the meeting is scheduled.”

When I answered obediently, Team Leader Woo smiled and leaned back in his chair.

The shoulders that were always stiff with tension relaxed.

“Yeon-jae, can I ask you one favor?”

“Yes.”

“I hope you won’t change.”

“…”

I looked at him quietly.

I am a product of the company he works for.

I asked to be treated as a person, and he accepted.

So I must do my part too.

“No one stays the same, Team Leader.”

“…That’s true.”

“I will change too. But I’ll try to change for the better. Since you’re also making an effort.”

Then I added that if I ever acted like a jerk later, he could just hit me hard.

Team Leader Woo was silent for a moment before asking in a very small voice, “And what if you sue?”

It was ridiculous, but not entirely unreasonable, so I assured him he didn’t need to worry.

The expression Team Leader Woo wore, which had been strange the whole time, finally revealed itself as he burst out laughing as soon as I promised not to sue by hooking our fingers.

I realized too late that the strange expression was him holding back laughter.

For a moment, I clenched my fist.

“…Team Leader. Haven’t you laughed enough now?”

“Sorry, ah… Ah, this is driving me crazy. Haha—!”

The annoying laughter, which made me want to sue him right away despite our promise, showed no sign of stopping.

At one point, a team member from Team 1 even knocked on the door, asking if something was wrong.

When they were told it was just Team Leader Woo laughing, she responded with a horrified expression, saying it couldn’t be true.

After a good laugh that even brought tears, Team Leader Woo saw us off to the lobby on the first floor.

His face looked relaxed as he told us to go safely.

On the way home, Manager An Jin-bae quietly whispered that I did well.

* * *

“You’re going to shoot an advertisement?”

Freeze—.

The hand flipping through the script stopped.

Even if I tried to deny it, my reaction had already given it away.

Sighing inwardly, I looked at Singer Kang Se-hyun.

“How did you know? It’s a secret.”

“This industry is small. You must be really excited for your first advertisement shoot. I shot my first individual ad just a few months ago too.”

“You’ve been active for a long time, but you only just shot one?”

“I only did group ads before. After renewing my contract, I was able to do individual ads.”

Interesting. I wonder if Noh Bi-hyuk knows about this too.

While I was nodding quietly, Singer Kang Se-hyun excitedly came closer.

“What kind of ad is it? Clothes? Food?”

“Hyung. Did you finish all your lines for today?”

“I did, man. I’m practicing more than ever because I’m scared of you.”

Despite grumbling and saying he was done, he pulled out a chair next to me and sat down. I suppressed a laugh.

“An ad…”

I was going to shoot an ad. I was really becoming a celebrity.

Although I didn’t watch TV often when I was in the orphanage, now I made a point to watch it for reference, so ads were not an unfamiliar realm.

It was just different because I would be appearing in one.

“Good job today. See you at the next shoot.”

“Get home safely.”

After the shoot, I bowed to Singer Kang Se-hyun, who was waving.

As soon as I got in the car, Manager An Jin-bae turned around.

“Did you fasten your seatbelt?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s go. It will take about 30 minutes to get to the meeting place.”

He also mentioned that I could sleep, but I said I was fine.

Then, I took out my phone and replayed the ads I had seen yesterday.

As soon as I heard about the ad from Team Leader Woo, I looked up all the sports shoe ads as soon as I got home.

Of course, even the same sports shoe ad varied greatly depending on who shot it and how.

The design of the shoes, the actor’s face, and the inserted song all gave different vibes.

There was no need to worry about what to reference among the many ads.

Even if I didn’t know the detailed content, the keywords in the proposal were quite clear.

Refreshing, cool, lively. And youth.

‘They said they were impressed by ‘Goodbye, My Summer.’ Since this season targets teenage students, they might want to associate it with the character Kim Ho-yoon.’

Recalling what Team Leader Woo had told me, I replayed the ads.

On the screen, models were energetically running around against a refreshing backdrop.

‘So, should I act as the energetic Kim Ho-yoon?’

Since Kim Ho-yoon was the type to run around the playground whenever he had free time, it wasn’t hard to immerse myself in the role.

While roughly thinking of a few possible scenarios, we arrived at the meeting place before I knew it.

We had arrived comfortably 30 minutes before the appointment, but the other party was already waiting.

The person in a neat suit stood up first and introduced himself politely.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Team Leader Choi Eun-seok, in charge of AE (*Advertising Executive) for this Look brand.”

I thought they would be a staff member from the sports brand, but it turned out they were from an advertising agency.

I learned that large corporations usually entrusted the entire planning phase to specialized advertising companies.

It was quite an interesting fact that I hadn’t known.

“So, was it Team Leader Choi who decided to use me as the model?”

“No, the client always makes the final decision. We only make suggestions. Among the models we proposed, Actor Lee Yeon-jae matched the image the Look brand was pursuing the most, so we contacted you. Of course, we actively recommended you.”

“I see. Then—”

Although it wasn’t the time to ask various questions, I couldn’t help but ask out of curiosity.

I belatedly realized and apologized for being overly inquisitive, but everyone just laughed.

It felt a bit awkward.

“It’s fine. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.”

“No, thank you for explaining.”

“It was nothing. This might be a bit forward, but you seem like you would adapt well to a corporate job in the future.”

His tone was polite, even while joking about scouting me later.

With that, the meeting started in a relaxed atmosphere and proceeded peacefully.

At least until I asked this.

“…Do I have to dance?”