Top Star by Luck

Chapter 6

‘Why are these people here?’

Lee Min Ki’s mind spun in confusion.

It made sense that Trainer Kim Ah Sung had come to the practice room.

After all, he had promised to watch over his morning practice.

However.

However, the problem was…

‘Why are Kim Tak and Yoo Seon Ah here too?’

Weren’t these people the ones who usually arrived later than him?

Why were they suddenly at the academy early, waiting for him?

His thoughts froze like a stone, leaving him unable to do anything.

“What’s going on? This place is packed with people in the morning?”

Kim Ah Sung yawned as he mumbled.

Kim Tak, looking puzzled, asked him.

“Who are you?”

“Me? I’m the one who’ll be teaching Min Ki for the time being. Every morning.”

At that moment, Kim Tak glanced at Min Ki with an expression of realization.

So, he had been hiding this secret all along, that sneaky guy! I knew something was up. The case is solved.

…That’s what his face seemed to be saying.

Of course, from Min Ki’s perspective, it was just the usual annoying look on Kim Tak’s face.

‘Why is he grinning like that?’

But Yoo Seon Ah’s expression was strange.

She covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide, as she spoke.

“Trainer Kim Ah Sung?”

“Oh? You know me?”

“How could I not! You’re the exclusive trainer for JC!”

“Really?”

Kim Tak’s eyes grew large in surprise.

“Yeah? That’s great.”

Kim Ah Sung sat down casually on the floor and spoke.

“Let’s hear what’s going on.”

* * *

A few minutes later.

They had just finished a rough explanation.

“So, let me get this straight.”

Trainer Kim Ah Sung pointed to each person with his fingers as he spoke.

“Min Ki here just came for his usual morning practice. And you guys.”

“Yes!”

Kim Tak eagerly raised his hand like a tattling high schooler.

“We promised to study together.”

“Study?”

“Acting is hard to self-evaluate when done alone. So, we thought it would be better to watch each other and improve.”

“Is that right, Yoo Seon Ah?”

“Yes.”

Yoo Seon Ah nodded slowly and glanced at Kim Ah Sung as she spoke.

“We made plans after class yesterday. We agreed to come early every morning to practice together. And the last one to arrive has to bring water as a penalty.”

“Is that so? Then I guess Min Ki brought the water today.”

“I didn’t hear anything about this.”

Min Ki, confused and indignant, responded in a grumbling tone.

He remembered they had mentioned practicing early in the morning. At first, it didn’t come to mind, but after thinking hard, he finally recalled it.

But the part about penalties?

‘That part I definitely don’t remember.’

What kind of conversations had they been having behind his back?

“Do you really not remember? Did Tak not tell you?”

“That’s odd. I’m sure I mentioned it.”

As Yoo Seon Ah and Kim Tak continued talking, the confusion only grew in Min Ki’s mind.

“Alright, this is getting noisy. So, to summarize.”

Trainer Kim Ah Sung clapped the floor and spoke.

“I’ll be teaching Min Ki, and the three of you are doing your study group. Got it?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s settled. It’s not like anyone owns this practice room. Everyone can practice however they want. I’ll teach Min Ki my way, and you can chop onions or cook ramen or do whatever you like. Does that sound good?”

It was a simple conclusion.

But it was sound logic.

Everyone should just do their own thing.

With that settled, they were about to start their morning practice.

But suddenly, someone raised their hand.

“Then, can you teach me too?”

It was, once again, Kim Tak.

With eyes burning with determination, he said:

“I’m Min Ki’s rival in the acting class. If he gets special lessons and moves ahead, that’s not fair, is it?”

A rival?

What was he talking about?

“And that would be cheating how?”

“Well, you’ve got a point.”

But Trainer Kim Ah Sung seemed to be seriously considering it, as he spoke after a brief pause.

“It’s true, teaching a group looks better than just teaching one person.”

“Exactly! You get it, teacher!”

Kim Tak crossed his arms, nodding in agreement.

But a moment later, Trainer Kim Ah Sung casually said:

“But I’m only supposed to teach Min Ki.”

“Huh?”

“And honestly, teaching more people is kind of a hassle.”

In other words, he wasn’t interested.

Kim Tak’s brow furrowed, but Kim Ah Sung casually added:

“And besides, shouldn’t Min Ki’s opinion matter most here?”

He was handing the decision over to Min Ki.

More accurately, it was closer to saying, “I don’t care, you guys figure it out.”

At that moment.

“Min Ki!”

Kim Tak, with wild eyes, stared at him and said:

“You’re not going to take the lesson alone, are you?”

“What do you mean, ‘take it alone’? I haven’t even had my first lesson yet.”

“We’re classmates, right? We’re comrades, aspiring to be actors!”

Faced with Kim Tak’s desperate plea, Min Ki responded without a moment’s hesitation.

“No.”

Comrades? With him?

He’d never even considered Kim Tak as an acquaintance.

“Agh…”

Kim Tak seemed to lose all his spirit at Min Ki’s firm reply.

At that moment, Yoo Seon Ah spoke up.

“How about we just watch from the side?”

Was this her attempt to negotiate?

They wouldn’t participate directly but would watch from the sidelines.

Min Ki pondered for a moment.

Then he opened his mouth.

“Fine.”

Yoo Seon Ah was someone who would likely succeed as an actress.

There was no need to make enemies of her, and it would be better to build a closer relationship.

‘Let’s just leave it at this.’

After all, this practice room wasn’t his private property, and the teacher wasn’t someone he had personally hired.

If they wanted to do something, there was no reason to stop them.

If he really thought about it, the fact that they were asking for his permission in the first place was absurd.

‘As long as they don’t interfere, that’s enough.’

That was Min Ki’s thought.

“And me too!”

“Yes, yes, Kim Tak, do whatever you want.”

“Alright! From now on, I’ll treat you like my older brother, Min Ki!”

“Sure, sure.”

That part was a bit annoying.

But as Kim Ah Sung observed the scene, he thought something different.

‘Did he choose group lessons over private ones?’

He felt Min Ki had made a smart decision.

‘Most people assume one-on-one lessons are better, but that’s not always the case for acting.’

Acting was a little different.

No matter how perfect an image one had in their head, the result that comes out is often completely different.

For that reason, the most important thing for beginner actors was awareness and observation.

How did they appear in the eyes of others?

What kind of impression were they giving?

How did others handle the same material? Why did they express it that way?

Every minute, every second, every moment had to be spent intensely aware and observant.

‘There’s a huge difference between someone who has acted with others and someone who hasn’t when they’re on stage.’

Kim Ah Sung knew this well, as he was often in the position of selecting actors.

Actors grow when they have a partner and an audience.

So, even though Min Ki didn’t know it, the situation was working in his favor.

Instinctively, he had made a good choice.

‘If he had wanted to practice alone, he would’ve gotten a private practice room. Even if they squabble a bit, he’s still being considerate.’

Had Min Ki stubbornly insisted on private lessons, it would’ve been off-putting.

Aspiring actors who were obsessed with the idea that group lessons somehow took away from them were exhausting to deal with.

But the truth of the matter was.

That wasn’t the case at all.

Min Ki simply couldn’t afford to pay for private lessons.

His reality was that even paying for the academy fees was a struggle, so he used the academy’s practice room from the early morning.

But Kim Ah Sung had no idea about this.

And it didn’t matter anyway.

“Alright, let’s end the chit-chat here.”

Kim Ah Sung clapped his hands and stood up.

“From now on, I’ll talk informally as I’m the teacher. Today, we’ll start by setting goals and tasks. Sounds fun, right?”

* * *

The chaotic morning schedule had finally ended.

‘Wow, that was exhausting.’

Kim Ah Sung’s first lesson had been more of an orientation than a proper class.

Starting with what their goals were and then setting tasks to achieve those goals.

Of course, Min Ki’s goal was Daon.

Once the goal was set, he continued with advice tailored to the company.

[That acting piece the academy prepared for you?]

[Yes, it’s a recent one from a movie.]

[Forget about it.]

[What?]

[Just forget it. Honestly, all the stuff taught at these academies is the same, and from the judges’ perspective, it’s all boring. You’ll get it once you’re in the position of selecting people. You’ll even know which academy taught you. Instead, I’m going to help you prepare something a little different… Hmm, alright. Pick a piece you like. It can be from a movie or a drama.]

And so, the first lesson ended after they spent a while choosing a role model.

Afterward, it was back to their usual individual practice.

But somehow, everyone was watching each other, making the practice feel more exhausting than usual.

‘Why do they keep glancing at me?’

Kim Tak and Yoo Seon Ah kept staring at him.

As if they were inspecting him, like he was coated in honey, watching his every move. It was draining.

By the time they finished the morning practice, Min Ki was utterly exhausted.

‘Phew, at least today is over.’

There were no afternoon classes.

After all, today was a day off from lessons.

That’s why Min Ki had already decided what he was going to do.

And that was…

‘Go to the gym.’

It was time to hit the gym.

Even with the same body, a person who exercises actively looks different from someone who doesn’t.

Think being skinny or overweight is all the same?

Wrong.

There’s a big difference between muscle covered by fat and just having a lot of fat.

And there’s also a huge difference between being simply skinny and being lean and toned!

The silhouette is completely different!

Although Korean cinema is currently centered around dramas to save on production costs, in the future, with the rise of blockbuster films, action acting will become almost essential.

‘Investing at least an hour a day in exercise is a must.’

But despite knowing this, in his previous life, Min Ki had been quite thin.

Was it because he was lazy?

No.

It was simply because every time he tried to exercise seriously, he kept getting injured.

For him, the only possible exercise was light jogging.

Even jogging came with its own battles with injury.

One wrong step and his ankle would twist, leading to constant sprains. It wasn’t just bad luck—he had a weak constitution.

Not to mention weight training, where he was even more prone to injury.

To Min Ki, who was practically fragile like a sunfish, weight machines seemed like devices designed to crush a person like sesame oil.

‘But not anymore.’

Now, with his normal level of luck restored, he could finally exercise properly.

However, the gym wasn’t something one could tackle alone.

Even people with normal luck who rushed in without learning the proper techniques were at risk of injury.

But it wasn’t like he could afford a personal trainer either.

So, he had come up with his own solution.

‘I’ll go to a gym where the owner personally trains people.’

An owner-run gym.

Unlike the typical gym where personal training is the focus, this was a gym where the owner walked around giving instructions.

‘Luckily, I heard there’s a gym nearby that only costs 30,000 won a month.’

He had heard about it in passing.

Apparently, it had good facilities, but for some reason, it went out of business quickly.

First, he would check that place out.

As he walked around, glancing at his surroundings for quite some time.

“I think it was around here…”

He soon arrived at his target location.

[Gym Near Home]

The sign read, “Gym Near Home.”

It didn’t mean it was near his house, but rather, the name of the gym was literally [Gym Near Home].

The six characters written in Gothic font on the sign wobbled precariously.

Actually.

[Gym Near He ― me]

One character was missing.

“…Hell gym?”

Min Ki rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

But the sign stood firmly in place, like a pine tree in the spring breeze.

‘Is this some kind of hellish place?’

Was this really okay?

‘It looks really old and shabby from the outside.’

It was like looking at the Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong.

There was probably a reason it only cost 30,000 won a month.

But in this area, the next cheapest gym was 50,000 won.

He couldn’t complain given his financial situation.

‘Anyway, for a beginner, any place should be fine.’

This was another misconception.

In any case, as Min Ki descended the stairs to the basement, he felt his heart pounding, as if entering a dungeon.

And a few seconds later.

“Oh?”

He couldn’t help but let out a sound of amazement.

‘The facilities are nice.’

Despite the shabby exterior, the interior was unexpectedly clean and comfortable.

And.

Creak, creak.

There were people in the corner, working out alone, with monstrous weights on their bars.

Thighs as thick as a woman’s waist.

Lat muscles so large they resembled manta rays.

But more than anything.

‘Why are there so many old people?’

Most of the people there had white hair.

It was strangely full of white-haired individuals.

As he took in the scene with wide eyes, Min Ki thought.

‘…Am I in the right place?’