Rookie but One-in-a-Million Actor

Chapter 12

There’s No Such Thing as Free!

“Do you have any concerns?”

Mooyoung’s innocent question.

The stalker squinted their blurry eyes, which were between their hat and mask. They wondered why he was suddenly asking such an odd question.

“Are you treating me like a lunatic?”

She sneered as she scanned the screen displaying Enbin’s image. That kind of treatment wouldn’t work. She was far too accustomed to it by now.

“No, I’m genuinely curious.”

But Mooyoung didn’t back down.

Shouldn’t he know what this unfamiliar smog meant? What if the misfortune spread to him beyond the person involved?

“Why don’t you leave?”

“Hmm. Wait a minute. Let’s see…”

Mooyoung stared at the woman.

To be precise, he was staring at the smog entwined around her neck and back. With her back against the wall, its shape was distorted.

“Hmm.”

He carefully observed it. Although it wasn’t visible because of the mask, the stalker’s face had turned red.

‘What’s with this guy?’

It was the first time a man, especially a handsome man, looked at her so intently. Even Enbin, who she had followed for days, avoided looking at her in disgust.

“Why don’t you move away?”

“Why don’t you stay still?”

Mooyoung meticulously scanned her with his keen eyes. The stalker’s face became increasingly flushed. She felt oddly embarrassed. Fortunately, thanks to the mask, it didn’t show.

‘The shape is definitely…’

As Mooyoung scrutinized it more, he realized it resembled a human figure. His first impression when he saw it standing earlier was correct. It looked as if someone was piggybacking.

-Oh…

“Whoa.”

It was then. A sound came from the smog.

Mooyoung instinctively stepped back. Smog never spoke; it merely appeared.

‘Is it a wandering ghost?’

Wandering ghosts rarely made their presence known unless they had deep grudges or were unaware of their own death. In any case, they were always a nuisance.

“What’s wrong?”

The woman, also startled, stepped back slightly.

Was there something in her eye?

-Please… Eojin…

“Eojin?”

“…!”

Mooyoung unconsciously repeated the ghost’s words. Judging by her reaction, it must be the stalker’s name. The smog continued to choke her neck.

-Please, wake up and go home.

“He says you should go home and get a grip.”

“Who’s saying that?”

“The one hanging behind you.”

The woman froze. It seemed like a joke, but Mooyoung’s expression was too serious. The ghost’s voice was so faint that it felt like he might miss it if he didn’t concentrate.

-If not… everything will burn.

“He says everything will burn if you don’t. But what will?”

“You’re crazy too, aren’t you?”

When Mooyoung mumbled, the woman burst into laughter. She figured he might have picked up her name from her manager or Enbin.

-Your house… is on fire…

“Whoa. He says your house is on fire.”

The stalker frowned. What kind of nonsense was that? Deciding to ignore Mooyoung, she took out her earphones. Then.

“The 40 million won you put in the second drawer, and what else? The thing in the pink box? The video of that man? Ah. Those are on a USB.”

She halted. Looking at Mooyoung in shock, she was a credit defaulter who converted everything into cash. And above all, the existence of the USB!

“How… how do you know that…?”

“You’d better hurry before it all burns.”

Biting her lip, the woman called someone. It was the chicken restaurant near her house.

“Is this Sangdong Oh Chicken? Is there a fire near Sarang Villa-”

Listening in a daze, the woman suddenly stood up and screamed.

“Aaaaagh-!”

“Whoa. That scared me.”

She grabbed the camera hanging around her neck and dashed down the hallway. The black smog surrounding her began to dissipate.

“Oh. I see.”

The ghost and the smog were entwined together. A faint spirit bowed to Mooyoung as it floated away. Given the resemblance, it was probably her mother.

“The black smog is still there.”

Even if she ran, there was no way out. Whether everything burned down or she got injured in the fire, misfortune would still befall her.

‘But a video of that man. Judging by her reaction, it must be something important, right? Could it be Enbin?’

Ssss.

The ghost disappeared through the wall, seemingly to follow her daughter. Mooyoung, left alone, was about to stand up and button his coat.

Creak.

Enbin opened the door.

He looked at Mooyoung and the quiet hallway in disbelief.

“What did you do?”

Nothing much.

Compared to the bothersome ghosts.

He just relayed a message.

But…

“Do you want to know?”

Was there any reason to tell him?

* * *

Enbin was at a loss for words at Mooyoung’s nonchalant response.

Did he really ask that? Of course, he wanted to know!

“Tell me quickly.”

Not just the stalker.

Even though he had dealt with all sorts of messes in his career, nothing was as challenging as these obsessive fans. If there was a trick, he’d do anything to find out.

“I just told her to go home, and she listened.”

“You expect me to believe that?”

“Believe it or not. But speaking informally like this makes us seem really close. Don’t you think?”

Mooyoung adjusted his bag and waved at Enbin. With an innocent smile, he bid farewell.

“Well then. Goodbye.”

“This guy…”

Enbin blocked his way. Mooyoung crossed his arms and tilted his head.

“I don’t get why you’re doing this.”

“Explain properly. In detail, how you drove her away. She’s a notorious stalker that even industry veterans couldn’t handle.”

“So, I did what veterans couldn’t?”

“Yes. So-”

“But you want me to tell you for free?”

Mooyoung widened his eyes and made a somewhat comical expression, implying that he wanted compensation. Enbin smirked and gestured to his manager.

“Hyung!”

“Huh?”

“Bring my wallet.”

Money. He could give as much as necessary.

He earned tens of billions a year. Money flowed into his account with every breath. If it was for a comfortable future, he was willing to pay a substantial amount.

“Hey. I never asked for money.”

As the manager hurriedly brought the entire bag, Mooyoung leaned against the wall, mumbling.

“Well, money is nice, but-”

What did he want?

Countless possibilities ran through Enbin’s mind. Did he want an introduction to an agency? A connection to another project? If not, maybe…

“Cancel my firing.”

“Firing? From this web drama?”

Enbin asked incredulously.

Compared to the plan he had in mind, this was a modest request. Why did they call it agency power? Plenty of actors got cast in lead roles thanks to it.

‘Is he an idiot?’

Or maybe he didn’t know much about this market yet.

Well, either way, it was a good opportunity for Enbin.

“Fine.”

“And apologize to me and the staff.”

“Apologize?”

“You fired me on a whim. The agency made the casting decision. Isn’t that overstepping your bounds?”

The door was open.

Moreover, the manager and other staff were all watching them. It was such a rare sight that everyone was intently focused.

‘This is crazy. What’s going on?’

‘Is there a method to getting rid of stalkers?’

‘Enbin apologizing…? Amazing!’

Everyone was shocked at different points, holding their breath.

In particular, Jo Miyoung was incredibly intrigued, finding the passing time frustrating.

‘Bold. His name is Ha Mooyoung, right?’

Enbin laughed wryly and ran a hand through his hair.

Objectively, he admitted that he had acted wrongly. The stalker had made him so sensitive that he had gone overboard.

“Fine. I’m sorry. I was short-sighted.”

“It’s okay. I apologize for mocking your acting.”

Like two elementary school kids, they mechanically exchanged apologies and forgiveness.

Enbin turned and bowed to the staff.

“I’m sorry. I went too far today.”

“Oh, no. It can happen.”

“Haha. It’s alright.”

The staff laughed awkwardly.

Their conversation was like a textbook example of moral behavior.

Enbin spun around and gave Mooyoung a silent look, as if asking if it was enough.

“And one more thing.”

“Too many demands?”

“Practice the script properly.”

“…!”

Jo Miyoung gasped in surprise.

Unbelievable. A ray of hope appeared in the collapsing sky. It was Ha Mooyoung!

“This is my first project, and it’s very important to me. So, I hope you’ll cooperate. If you need help, I can assist.”

“What help?”

“Breathing techniques for lines, a practice partner, anything needed for acting.”

“Ha! This is your first project. It’s my third.”

“Really? That’s great. You’ll be even better! Once we finish filming, I’ll tell you what I talked about with the stalker.”

“Are you joking? What if she shows up again?”

“Hmm. I think it’ll be quiet for a while.”

“You guarantee it?”

There was a brief silence, Enbin’s eyebrow furrowing, as if warning him not to joke around.

“Yes. I guarantee it.”

But Mooyoung was just happy to be part of the project. Enbin’s harsh tone didn’t bother him. Just then, two police officers came up the hallway.

“We received a report-!”

“Oh, yes! Here.”

The manager and staff waved at them. Mooyoung subtly pushed Enbin into the meeting room.

“Shall we go in?”

“Continue the reading? In this atmosphere?”

“A professional should fill the time. Let’s do what we can, and if it doesn’t work out, let me know. I’m a student, so I have plenty of time. We can do it separately if needed.”

‘Does he not realize I’m a celebrity?’

Enbin burst into an incredulous laugh.

The way he spoke sounded like a university drama club. The director and writer closed the door and spoke.

“Alright, let’s quickly continue from where we left off.”

“How much time do we have left?”

“About an hour.”

“Shall we just do the guest parts for episodes 2 and 3? It seems Mooyoung will be meeting with Enbin separately.”

“Why would I meet him-”

Enbin started to object, but Mooyoung held out his phone.

“Number.”

To find out about getting rid of stalkers, they’d need to meet again. Whether it was after the project or not. Enbin briefly considered giving his manager’s number…

“If you leak this, you’re dead.”

“Whoa. A celebrity’s number.”

He gave him his personal phone number.

What a crazy guy. He had never met such a character before. Annoying but strangely not detestable. Mooyoung texted Enbin from his phone.

Ding.

[Ha Mooyoung. Nice to work with you. By the way, did the stalker take any videos of you?]

“Videos? I don’t know. She always has a camera, so probably.”

“Hmm. Got it.”

“Shall we start? Enbin.”

“Yes. I’m ready. Don’t talk to me now.”

Enbin gave Mooyoung a look and turned his attention to the script. His pronunciation was much better than before. Mooyoung quietly observed the reading session. Meanwhile, outside.

‘Ah, damn! I also want to see Ha Mooyoung’s acting.’

Jo Miyoung, whose next schedule was approaching, reluctantly turned away. Ha Mooyoung. She kept repeating the name in her mind.