Chapter 213: Don’t you know Representative Moon’s style?

"Once I thought it through, I realized there wasn't really any downside."

"...Why not?"

"Audition shows are like that. No matter how much attention they get while they're airing, people lose interest just as quickly once they're over."

Yu Seok was explaining various things to Ho Cheol.

He intended to expand the American branch, perhaps until it was far larger than Good Enter in Korea.

Ho Cheol had now been working long enough that it was time for him to begin seeing the larger picture.

"Singing auditions have it a little better. They can use the songs released during the competition to sustain public interest, then rush out a single. But acting auditions don't have anything like that."

The moment an audition show ended, public interest plummeted.

Meanwhile, preparing a production required at least six months to a year. With so many programs competing for attention, how many viewers would wait months for the winner of a single show?

That was why they scattered carefully chosen bait in various places to keep the media interested.

One story that made people acknowledge Yu Myeong's acting ability.

Then another that made them question it.

"Then was the sponsorship article also your work, President...?"

"Are you insane? Do I look like that kind of person?"

Yes, you do...

Ho Cheol kept the retort to himself. Had it been any actor other than Yu Myeong, Yu Seok would have been perfectly capable of doing exactly that.

"This is also why TW is rushing production so much. They want to release the film before public interest fades as much as possible."

"...Couldn't the rumors end up hurting the film instead?"

"You have to add the firewood at exactly the right time, so the flame neither dies nor blazes out of control. Fortunately, we have some friends helping us."

The "friends" Yu Seok referred to were George Housley and the production company Pavle.

Seeing his devious smile, Ho Cheol appeared unable to contain his concern and offered a suggestion.

"If you want to maintain public interest, wouldn't interviews or commercials be better? Even accepting only a few of the interview and advertising requests piled up right now would keep his face in people's memories—"

"No. I won't make Yu Myeong do anything that interferes with his acting. And I have no intention of exhausting his image with things like that before his first film is even released."

Look at how precious he treats him.

Was this man the head of an agency, or Yu Myeong's fan?

"Besides, once he becomes truly unattainable, I have something else planned."

"...?"

"Do you remember Team Leader Park Jin Hee, who handled the advertising campaign for Crude?"

"Of course. She's also a member of the fan club. We attended several fan club committee meetings together in Korea."

"I'm recruiting her as publicity director for the American branch."

"Y...you are?!"

Ho Cheol stammered in disbelief.

"She's exactly the right person for the project I have in mind. She's also someone the American branch will need as it grows. And where else would we find anyone willing to work with that much passion?"

"That's true... If it's her, she'll probably grind her soul into dust working for us."

Ho Cheol remembered Bohyeongyangje, whose eyes always went unfocused as though she had lost her mind whenever she saw Yu Myeong.

She would come.

She would absolutely come.

"And I'm going back to Korea for a while."

"To recruit Team Leader Park Jin Hee?"

"That too. There's something else as well."

Yu Seok explained something to Ho Cheol.

After hearing the plan, Ho Cheol's mouth fell open.

?Hollywood Week. Exclusive Scoop!

Was Casting Boat Rigged?

Only two months ago, when TW Channel's flagship entertainment program Casting Boat was at the height of its popularity, viewers were stunned by the appearance of an "acting genius" in his late twenties who left every judge in awe.

He achieved near-syndrome levels of popularity through countless "heroic" moments, from expertly leading a team assembled in the middle of the broadcast to inspiring contestants who had shown little sincerity toward acting.

However, many have questioned the gap between "television" and "truth."

Even for a naturally gifted genius, his results bordered on the bizarre.

The first suspicion raised was whether the footage had been digitally enhanced to promote him. In response, members of the live studio audience unanimously claimed that his performances were even more extraordinary in person.

It would not be impossible to fabricate such an enormous number of reviews, but that remains no more than speculation, so we will set it aside for now.

This time, however, a new suspicion has arisen.

What if he received every assignment in advance?

What if the improvisational performances that shone so brilliantly on the program were not truly "improvised," but had been prepared long beforehand?

While investigating Yu Myeong's past, this reporter discovered that his whereabouts during the three months immediately before he came to Hollywood remain unclear.

Where was he, and what was he doing during those three months?

Could he already have been training for the Casting Boat "assignments"?

Furthermore, according to materials obtained exclusively by this publication, he was by no means a genius as recently as two and a half years ago.

During the filming of a historical drama in Korea, Yu Myeong's home country, his acting was extremely crude—so crude that it was obvious even in a completely incomprehensible language. His projection and line delivery also lacked clarity and strength, revealing considerable shortcomings as an actor.

How could his acting have improved so dramatically in the brief span of two and a half years?

More importantly, are we certain it truly improved at all?

A television show and a film are not the same thing.

Will the "true acting ability" of the television star everyone is anticipating live up to the public's expectations?

We can only hope that Casting Boat, the program that electrified America for the first time in years, was not a manipulated "semi-reality show."

A video has been uploaded to the Hollywood Week website.

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With that article and its supposed evidence video,

the theory that Yu Myeong was nothing but hype flared up once again, as though fresh wood had been thrown onto a dying fire.

?"Director, how did that video make it all the way to Hollywood...?"

"I know."

"Should I give an interview explaining that it wasn't really like that? Manager Moon—no, President Moon's American contact information is—"

"Seung Hyo, calm down."

After working together on Entertainment Studies, Baek Seung Hyo had joined Producer Bang's new production.

He had been in the middle of another overnight shoot when the phrase "Yu Myeong's terrible acting" suddenly appeared among the most searched terms.

He clicked it, was horrified by the video, and immediately went to find the producer.

"He was deliberately acting that way because of the character in the play within the drama. Why is footage that should already have been discarded..."

"Why do you think?"

"Don't tell me you..."

"That's right. I leaked it."

Baek Seung Hyo's expression twisted in confusion.

"Why on earth...?"

"President Moon contacted me not long ago. I suppose I should call him President now. Anyway, he asked me to find some footage from back then."

"He did? Why would he... Yu Myeong is supposed to be the core and future of Good Enter's American branch, so why...?"

"Hmm...don't you know President Moon's style?"

Producer Bang grinned.

"Don't ruin it by interfering. Just stay still."

"...?"

"When you look closely, Good Enter's actors are unusually innocent. I suppose that's because 'someone' built such a nice fence around them that they never had to see how filthy the world can be."

"......"

"Well, I would have been nervous too if I hadn't known what that video really was. But once you know the truth, the general shape of the plan is obvious. Can't you see it, Seung Hyo? I suppose we should warn the staff who were there that day to keep quiet."

Ding—

At that moment, Producer Bang's phone rang.

It was an international text message.

After reading it, Producer Bang laughed cheerfully and winked at Baek Seung Hyo.

"Perfect timing. The order to remain silent just arrived. Pretend you don't know anything too."

?There really is nothing worth writing about.

Outside of filming, Yu Myeong's daily life was simplicity itself.

It was enough to make Phoebe Taylor want to ask the journalist who started the sponsorship rumor what kind of nonsense they had been spewing.

Yet even as she complained inwardly that there was no story to uncover, her steps toward the set felt strangely light.

There was something oddly satisfying about a paparazzo who had always stalked stars from the shadows openly entering and leaving a film set for the first time.

And the set itself was remarkably entertaining.

"Don't you think this movie is really going to be huge?"

"Right...? As long as it doesn't fall apart at the end, I think we might have something special."

Phoebe subtly nodded at the passing crew members' conversation.

The actor she had been following was the real thing.

She pouted and complained that he was not worth the time she was investing, yet her eyes pursued him with something close to hunger.

At times, she would remember the video President Yu had supplied and she had leaked, then giggle like a lunatic.

She could barely endure the anticipation of the moment when its true nature was revealed.

"Hey, Phoebe."

Derek McCurdy approached her again today as she idly watched the filming, which had somehow become her job.

These days, they were practically on the verge of becoming close friends.

Anyone else would have been beside themselves with envy to hear that she spoke with the Derek McCurdy nearly every day, but Phoebe was not especially pleased to see him.

He possessed an exceptional talent for getting under her skin, and it was painfully obvious that he found her entertaining because her emotions showed so clearly on her face.

"Would you like the honor of having lunch with me?"

"No, thank you. Why are you here every day when you don't even have any scenes to shoot? You're supposed to be a top star. Don't you have a schedule?"

"This is my schedule. My practice schedule."

"What practice? All you do is prowl around the set every day."

"I need to watch As and engrave him into my eyes."

The teasing faded from his voice.

Phoebe glanced up at him.

His gaze never left Yu Myeong, who was listening to the director's instructions.

"What kind of role are you playing that requires all this?"

She casually slipped in the question she had desperately wanted to ask.

She was dying to know when Derek would appear and what role he was playing.

"Are you asking as a journalist, or as a fan?"

"You know I'm not enough of a piece of trash to spoil an unreleased movie. I also have no desire to be sued by Work Brothers and handed an astronomical claim for damages."

"True. If you were stupid enough not to understand that, you wouldn't have been allowed in here. Then you're asking as my passionate 'fan' after all?"

Round and round he went.

Phoebe's face turned bright red, and she shouted,

"I'm not! Not a fan—an audience member! I'm asking from the perspective of the general public!"

Derek chuckled.

"An alien. One who stands at the opposite extreme from As."

"An alien? This was science fiction? I thought it was a psychological suspense film."

"Yeah. We're reaching the middle now, so that should start becoming clear soon. My scenes will begin filming shortly too."

"But what do you mean when you say you have to watch As and engrave him into your eyes?"

Derek's manner remained light,

but every trace of laughter vanished from his voice as he answered.

"If As's 'true form' is that powerful, then I need to be at least that powerful too."

?Even after As's "problem" was discovered, his relationship with Hetty continued.

As obtained certificates of treatment from Olivia, who had become a psychiatrist. Naturally, he did not truly receive treatment. He only did it to reassure Hetty.

Seeing this, Olivia grew jealous of Hetty, and As turned even that jealousy into another subject for observation.

Boom—

With each passing year, indiscriminate bombings grew more severe.

As attended Hetty's competition.

When her performance ended, everyone responded with bland indifference, but As applauded loudly.

Just before the results were announced, a voice sounded beside his ear.

This place will explode within three minutes.

What?

He swept his gaze around, but everyone remained calm.

Apparently, he was the only one who had heard the voice.

He questioned his own ears, but the message repeated itself.

As grabbed Hetty, who was waiting for the competition results, and hurried her out of the building.

Then—

Kaboom—

Immediately after they escaped, the building truly exploded.

A terrorism investigator arrived.

As instinctively lied.

He claimed Hetty had looked so beautiful while playing the piano that he had taken her outside to propose, and that it had been a stroke of incredible luck.

No one would believe him if he claimed to have heard a "terror warning." Worse, he might be mistaken for someone connected to the attack.

But after the investigation concluded and the authorities officially announced that it had been an "indiscriminate terrorist attack," the hallucinated voice returned.

On May 17, Lloyd College of Music will explode.

I don't care if anyone else dies, but not Hetty.

That was what As thought.

Even after spending so many years together, she still displayed patterns he could not analyze.

She had to remain safe until his curiosity was satisfied.

At the same time, he found the voice only he could hear suspicious.

He sensed that it would be dangerous if the "voice" discovered he could hear it.

How can I keep Hetty from going to school that day without giving myself away?

After thinking it through, he decided to "imitate" a patient.

Until then, he had imitated human expressions, movements, and speech patterns. Yet he wondered whether he might also be capable of imitating a physical condition.

Amazingly, he could.

Acute pneumonia.

He succeeded in producing a high fever, chills, and even difficulty breathing.

Alarmed by his illness, Hetty did not go to school.

That day, the music college exploded.

?Watching Yu Myeong perform the physical condition of someone who had developed pneumonia in an instant, Derek slowly shook his head.

Yu Myeong looked so genuinely ill that Derek nearly wondered whether he truly possessed the power to "imitate" things.

Does he really have no weaknesses? Where did a ridiculous monster like him come from?

Even so, Derek did not despair.

He had spent years complaining that no one else was as obsessed with acting as he was.

Yu Myeong's appearance was both an enormous stimulus and a source of joy.

With him...

Perhaps they could achieve acting so intensely realistic that anyone watching would believe it was reality.

Finally, tomorrow...

Only one day remained before the moment Derek had been eagerly awaiting.

He drew a deep breath.

Tomorrow was Terca's first day of filming.