Kang Woojin, wrapped in a long padded coat, suddenly scratched at his ear. For a moment, he wondered if someone was talking about him, but he figured that was probably true.
'I did stir up quite a mess at the Blue Dragon Film Awards.'
It was not as though only one or two issues had come up. At this very moment, it felt obvious that countless people were talking about Kang Woojin, whether to praise him or tear him apart.
Just then—
Walking beside him while continuing a phone call, Choi Sunggeon zipped up his short padded jacket and asked Woojin a question.
"What's wrong? Did something get in your ear? Want me to take a look?"
Caught off guard by the excessive concern, Woojin answered with a cool, dry voice. His breath spilled into the cold air.
"No, it just itches a little."
"Huh? Bend your head down. I'll blow on it."
What is wrong with him?
Woojin shook his head and refused.
"I'm fine."
At that moment, Hanyejeong, whose short hair looked especially reddish today, quickly cut in from the right.
"Could a bug have gotten in there? Do you want me to check?"
"It's alright."
Then—
"Hyung-nim!!"
"Woojin oppa's here!"
The staff gathered in front of the van parked in the outdoor lot welcomed Kang Woojin. Jang Suhwan and the stylists were waving at him, and the moment Woojin got close, they all started showering him with congratulations.
"Filming for Island of the Missing is finally over! You worked so hard!"
"Congrats, seriously! Ah, but wait, are we the ones getting congratulated?"
"Of course we are! We just finished a major project!"
"Oppa, you must feel relieved, right?"
"Ah, but there's still a lot left to do."
Strangely enough, the staff looked happier than Kang Woojin, the actual actor. It made sense. Most of the filming for Island of the Missing had taken place in Buyeo, and constantly traveling back and forth between Seoul and Buyeo had been exhausting.
Woojin could come and go through the void with ease, but for the staff, it must have felt like hell.
'Think of it as an escape. They're probably dying to celebrate.'
Of course, inside, Kang Woojin was bouncing his shoulders and dancing too.
'Hehe, anyway, one thing's done. It feels like I just cleared a mission.'
But he could not suddenly start hugging the staff and throwing a party. Keeping a calm face, Woojin politely accepted all their greetings.
"You all worked hard too."
Then he turned and looked back at the massive Island of the Missing set behind him. Filming was still going on. He was the only one leaving.
"..."
Woojin realized he had changed more than he thought. A few months ago, he would have felt a little sentimental whenever a shoot wrapped up, but now his mind was already shifting toward whatever came next.
'Humans really are products of their environment.'
His acting career was only a little over a year old, and he was still relatively new, but he had undeniably settled into the entertainment industry. Of course, not a single person knew what Kang Woojin was really like underneath it all.
Even so—
Bang!
As soon as Jang Suhwan hit the accelerator, Kang Woojin, Choi Sunggeon, and the rest of the staff hurried into the van. Once it pulled away, Choi Sunggeon opened his diary and looked at Woojin through the rearview mirror.
"Woojin."
Woojin, who had been silently watching the scenery outside, met his gaze.
"Yes, CEO-nim."
"The production date for The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice has been finalized."
"Really?"
"Yes. The first day of filming is on the twenty-first, and the actors are supposed to gather on the twentieth."
Woojin had expected something like this, so he was not especially surprised.
"The twentieth. So there's only about ten days left."
"That's right. From then on, things will move back and forth between Japan and Korea. It's almost the same as Island of the Missing, except the setting shifts from Buyeo to Japan."
Damn, that sounds brutal.
Just from Choi Sunggeon's explanation, it was obvious. Filming for The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice would continue back to back, and Kang Woojin's Korean schedule would have to be crammed into one or two days at a time. Either way, it looked like there would be no time to rest.
The staff's faces darkened almost immediately.
Even so, Choi Sunggeon's briefing continued.
"But you'll need to leave on the eighteenth, not the nineteenth. There's a meeting related to the Kashihi Group, and there are also interviews and photo shoots scheduled with the Japanese press."
His Japan schedule was steadily growing.
Woojin already knew about the advertising contract with Kashihi Group, but he had just started wondering when exactly the Japanese interviews and photo shoots had been arranged when Choi Sunggeon spoke again.
"It might look a little packed, but we already filtered out most of the offers coming from Japan. Only a carefully selected few are left now."
He closed the diary and leaned back.
"Woojin, do you have any idea how many offers you've been getting lately to appear on Japanese variety shows?"
No. Not at all.
Choi Sunggeon handled the important matters himself and dealt with the small ones on his own, so Woojin genuinely had no idea.
"Quite a lot?"
"Haha, quite a lot? No, just counting from about a month ago, there are already more than ten. You know Hwarin's group Elani is practically top-tier in Japan, right? Right now, you're getting even more attention there than they are."
That meant there was no problem saying Kang Woojin was one of the hottest figures in Japan at the moment.
"But Woojin, you're not interested in Japanese variety shows, right? Unless you are? I can arrange it if you want."
At the repeated question, Woojin shook his head immediately.
"Our Dining Table is enough. Honestly, variety takes more energy out of me than acting does."
"No. Reject all of them."
His tone was colder than ever.
Meanwhile, the Korean internet was buzzing with articles coming out of Japan.
『[Star IS] "The heat around him is intense" — Has Kang Woojin conquered Japan's advertising industry too? Signs with Japanese conglomerate Kashihi Group』
『How much is Kang Woojin's contract fee after being selected as the model for Japan's giant agency Kashihi Group?』
Both Kashihi Group in Japan and bw Entertainment had already acknowledged the matter, which meant it was true that Kang Woojin had become an advertising model for the Japanese giant.
『"Another first" — Kang Woojin becomes the first Korean model in Kashihi Group history』
Naturally, something like that was rare, so both the press and the public paid a great deal of attention.
[Online reactions]
[User1: This is insaneㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Kang Woojin is seriously unrealㅋㅋㅋㅋ even a Japanese conglomerate model now???]
[User2: Again with Kang Woojin??? Ugh, I'm so sick of him… after Blue Dragon, something about him just feels off]
[User3: Wow… I don't think I've ever seen someone who isn't an idol land an ad like that in Japan…]
[User4: But it makes senseㅋㅋㅋㅋ Boy Friend blew up in Japanㅋㅋ it's still in Netflix Japan's Top 10]
[User5: He's insaneㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ seriouslyㅋㅋㅋ eight awards in Korea and now conquering Japan tooㅋㅋㅋ Kang Woojin's form is crazy]
[User6: ↑No, he already made it. Profiler Hanryang and Boy Friend were both hits, and he's even preparing The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice]
[User7: These comments are way too muchㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ it's all just hype, isn't itㅋㅋㅋㅋ?]
[User8: You think getting a fan club in Japan was luck?? There are idiots everywhere]
Still, as the year drew to a close, hostility toward Kang Woojin became more noticeable. His presence was undeniably growing.
Japan was not much different.
His fanbase there continued to grow steadily, but the more famous he became, the more skeptical comments started piling up on SNS and in comment sections. Japanese companies were also keeping a close eye on him, though more precisely, they were watching him as a way to target the Korean Wave market.
『Vice president of a mid-sized Japanese company mentions Kang Woojin in interview, says "We should focus more on domestic actors than Korean ones"』
This was not only about Kang Woojin.
Famous people always had to bear the weight of the crown. As a result, malicious comments started flooding places like Kang Woojin's Alter Ego and Kang Woojin's SNS. For an ordinary celebrity, that level of attention could easily lead to stress, and in severe cases, even panic attacks.
In truth, it was not unusual for celebrities at that level to end up on medication or seek psychiatric care.
But what about Kang Woojin?
"Woojin oppa, don't look at your SNS comments today. There are a lot of nasty ones."
"Alright."
"You're okay, right?"
"About what?"
"No… it's just that the malicious comments have increased."
"I don't really care."
So what?
Why should I care?
That was all he thought.
Even inside the Korean acting world, opinions about Kang Woojin were not exactly favorable.
Plenty of actors had already envied his bold rise, but his daring remarks at the year-end award ceremonies, especially at the Blue Dragon Film Awards, only poured fuel on that envy. As a result, Kang Woojin became a frequent topic not only on set but also in private gatherings among actors.
"Kang Woojin? That kid has no restraint at all, his face never changes, and he comes off pretty rude."
"Honestly, what he's shown so far is impressive, but doesn't he seem like the type to collapse from one scandal?"
"The more I think about it, the more absurd it feels. There were so many seniors and veterans there. How could he say so casually that he'd win Best Actor?"
"Because he's young. Otherwise why would he do something like that at Blue Dragon, of all places, with so many established stars around?"
Of course, they had no idea how quickly Woojin was evolving.
"He's a perfect fit for Asia. Seriously, he's an actor optimized for Asia. Jumping into Japan off the back of Profiler Hanryang was perfect timing."
What Kang Woojin would show this year remained to be seen.
Ten days later, in the early morning at an officetel in Seoul.
The morning sun was rising outside, but unit 203 of the spacious officetel remained dim. The blackout curtains over every window blocked out the light completely. On top of that, the interior of unit 203 looked a little unusual for a normal living space.
There was almost no furniture.
In the living room, there was only a refrigerator, a small dining table, and a mattress on the floor. It looked almost barren, like an empty plain.
Then, a man who had been sleeping on the mattress stirred awake in a groggy haze. He looked to be in his thirties. The man, with closely cropped hair and narrow eyes, immediately searched for his glasses and put them on the moment he sat up.
"Ah—"
He stretched his back, then got up slowly. He was about average height. After that, he let out a huge yawn, opened the refrigerator, grabbed a bottle of water, and gulped it down.
Then he checked the time.
7:40 a.m.
Still in his winter pajamas, scratching his stomach, he headed toward a nearby room. The moment he opened the closed door, an entirely different scene spread out before him. Two computers and a laptop sat on a long desk.
That room had a professional feel to it.
The visible computer towers, the expensive-looking multifunction printer, the professional keyboard and mouse, and the large monitor—every piece of equipment concentrated in that room was clearly high-end.
Then the man turned on one of the computers that had been powered off. After that, he stepped out and opened another room.
That room was unusual too.
The desk and chair were ordinary, but the equipment set up in front of them was not. A high-end camera sat mounted on a tripod, and lighting equipment had been placed around it.
It was obviously a filming room.
The man looked over the various masks hanging on the wall and chose one shaped like a wolf.
Today was wolf day.
The reason was simple.
He was a YouTuber.
[Channel name: FactGuys]
[Subscribers: 1.88 million]
With 1.88 million subscribers, the YouTuber FactGuys covered anything that could draw public attention—news, incidents, exposés, and more. Because of that, his videos regularly hit between 500,000 and over a million views.
He did not upload often, though.
Maybe once a week?
He handled both filming and editing by himself. Part of it was to maintain anonymity, and part of it was because he personally found or received all the tips he used. Interestingly, FactGuys' videos were not limited to Korea. He covered other countries often as well.
Recently, he had been digging into a Hollywood scandal.
Anyway, yawning again, the man headed back to the computer room to prepare for filming. Soon, he sat down in front of the now-powered computer and checked his email, wondering if any new tips had come in.
"..."
Resting his chin on one hand, he clicked the mouse a few times. Countless tips had piled up overnight, and more than half of them were useless.
Then—
"What?"
The man frowned. One particular email immediately caught his attention. He read the subject line.
"Rumors are spreading that Kang Woojin secretly auditioned for the Hollywood film Last Kill 3?"
He checked the sender.
"Who sent this?"
It was anonymous.
At that same moment, at Kang Woojin's place—
Kang Woojin had left for work and arrived at the underground parking garage. As usual, he was wearing a hat, and he quickly spotted the van that had come to pick him up.
But then—
'What?'
Woojin sensed that something was different. The van had been replaced with a larger foreign model, both wider and taller than before. It was black.
Slightly surprised, though doing his best not to show it, Woojin walked toward it. Choi Sunggeon, wearing a long padded coat, stepped out from the passenger seat.
"You're here?"
He had a dignified look on his face. Meanwhile, Kang Woojin, whose concept was already deeply rooted, simply greeted him lightly.
"Good morning, CEO-nim."
"Yeah, yeah."
Choi Sunggeon nodded toward the large van behind him, signaling for a reaction.
Woojin murmured quietly.
"It's big."
"Is that all you have to say?"
"You changed it?"
"The team got bigger, and your presence got bigger too. The old vehicle was fine, but appearances matter in this industry."
The moment he finished explaining, Choi Sunggeon abruptly changed the subject.
"There's something you need to decide before we leave."
"What is it?"
"Yesterday, an animation studio in Japan contacted you."
Animation?
What was this all of a sudden?
Inside, Kang Woojin was startled, but he answered calmly.
"You mean an animated project?"
"Yes. The studio is A10 Studio, one of the three biggest animation studios in Japan. They want you to do voice acting for one of the characters in their new project."
Voice acting.
At first, Woojin found the idea interesting. As an actor, he was getting access to all kinds of new opportunities, and he had watched a few Japanese anime before.
'Ah, that actually sounds fun.'
Then he suddenly paused.
'Wait a second. Animation has scripts too, doesn't it?'
His curiosity flared instantly.
'Would animation trigger the void too?'
If it did—
'Then what would the reading experience be like?'
A genre beyond films and dramas.
His curiosity only grew stronger.
Woojin answered in a steady voice.
"I'll need to see the script before I decide."
Choi Sunggeon smiled and pulled something out from the passenger seat. It was a fairly thick stack of documents.
"I figured you'd say that, so I brought it. A10 Studio also sent over a draft of the first episode script. It's still rough, before revisions. More like a sketch, really."
"..."
Without a word, Kang Woojin accepted the stack. On the cover, instead of an animation title, only the production company name, A10 Studio, was written there.
And then—
It appeared.
Beside the papers, a black-and-gray swirling pattern had formed.
In other words, a portal to the void was attached to it.
While Choi Sunggeon kept talking, Woojin instinctively placed his hand on the black square.
Soon—
His world instantly shifted from the parking garage to the pitch-black void.
The moment he arrived there, Woojin moved quickly. Stopping in front of a newly added white rectangle, he checked what had appeared.
-[10/Script (Title: Unknown), Grade D]
-[*This is an animation script with average completeness. You may read up to approximately 50% of it.]
Woojin read the text for a moment, then casually selected the white rectangle. The message immediately changed.
-[You have selected Script 10 / Title: Unknown.]
-[List of readable characters (experience).]
-[A: 1, B: 2, C: 3······]
The character names were replaced by numbers.
Maybe because it was still just a draft?
Muttering under his breath, Woojin picked one at random.
["Preparing to read 'A: 1'······"]
["······Ready. The script shows average completeness. Implementation level is 50%. Beginning reading."]
A massive gray cloud immediately rushed down over Kang Woojin.
Up to this point, everything was familiar.
But the world that unfolded in front of him was anything but ordinary. It was completely different from every reading experience he had ever had before.
Vroom—!
The roar of cars, towering buildings packed into the city, people walking along the sidewalks or brushing past each other, the blue sky, the drifting clouds.
Kang Woojin recognized all of it.
And yet, somehow, it all felt unfamiliar.
"..."
Because the entire world in front of his eyes was alive.