The Genius Actor Who Brings Misfortune

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter: 53

A man with a relatively thin voice confirmed.

“Who? Lee Yeon-jae?”

“Who else? Damn, the kid joined Woo-yeon and now he’s all puffed up.”

“Honestly, do you think he acts well? I don’t see it.”

The conversation continued along with the sound of someone relieving themselves.

“No matter how well that kid acts, it’s just him reciting lines.”

“I dislike those Woo-yeon bastards more. Did they have nowhere else to send him, so they sent him here? What are we supposed to do?”

“What do they even think? Damn it. Whether it’s Woo-yeon or the kids who trust Woo-yeon, I hate them all the same.”

“Hey, hey. Quiet down.”

The thin-voiced man cut off the other rough-voiced man.

The annoyed voice asking why quickly fell silent.

The bathroom became quiet in an instant.

I couldn’t even hear footsteps outside, which meant they finally realized.

That the door to the last stall was locked.

It was surprising they noticed only now, given that the bathroom wasn’t that big.

I pondered what to do. The decision was quick.

As I reached out and flushed, I heard startled, hurried footsteps rushing out. They should at least wash their hands….

I didn’t know who the other man was, but I could guess the rough-voiced man.

He had a significant role as he was the first to approach the cast.

Simply put, he had the second most important role after me.

‘Seems like I’ve really earned his hatred.’

He was smiling gently at me just a while ago while practicing lines together. I understood.

From his perspective, he could dislike me.

It wasn’t a problem that could be solved with an apology, nor could I give up my role.

So there was nothing I could do.

He said I looked like I was just ‘reciting lines’….

I decided to practice more instead of eating lunch.

* * *

The plan to practice instead of having lunch failed miserably.

Manager An Jin-bae stood firm, as if daring me to try and avoid lunch.

“I’m done now….”

“Just one more bite.”

As I reluctantly alternated between taking a bite and looking at the script, lunch hour ended before I knew it.

“The cast’s car is arriving soon. Everyone, from now on, it’s the real deal! Please stand by at your places!”

At the booming voice of a staff member, the gathered actors and crew dispersed.

Manager An Jin-bae adjusted my outfit and whispered quietly.

“Show them what you’ve got, actor.”

He probably didn’t know about what happened in the bathroom.

But his words resonated with me, making me smile.

After greeting Manager An Jin-bae, I entered the building set up as ‘my home’ in the show.

Through the window, I saw the cast members cautiously getting out of the car with blindfolds on.

When the cast, guided by a villager, entered this house, it would truly begin.

I waited, staring at the hidden cameras around the room.

After what felt like minutes or hours, a knock finally came.

I simply tilted my head.

* * *

Lee Ho-seop, who had become one of Korea’s top entertainers, let out a shocked noise at the sight revealed when his blindfold was removed.

His scream startled the other members even more.

“You scared me, Ho-seop hyung! Ah, you surprised me.”

“Sorry, sorry. I was just tense.”

They were standing in a rather ordinary village.

There had been times when they opened their eyes to find themselves in a large supermarket or on top of a building.

Nothing was more bewildering than waking up in the middle of a mountain.

Compared to that, a small village seemed normal.

‘This is that place. XX Park.’

He immediately recognized it as a place he had visited a few months ago for another show.

But what came out of his mouth was entirely different.

“Where is this…? Is it a village?”

“I don’t know. That building behind you looks suspicious.”

Shin Woo-chul, who had five overlapping variety shows with Lee Ho-seop, also pretended to look around cluelessly.

Soon, an actor playing an NPC would arrive.

With nothing to do, all they could do was talk.

They chatted endlessly to keep the audio from going silent, joking that a scary episode might be coming since there hadn’t been one in a while.

“…Is there no explanation this time? Why isn’t anyone coming?”

No one approached the members.

Feeling strangely tense, they looked around with hunched shoulders. Suddenly, the youngest member swore.

“Hey! Watch your language!”

“Ah, sorry. I….”

“What’s wrong? Why did you swear?”

While the other members were puzzled, the youngest covered his face and struggled to speak.

“Maknae! What’s wrong?”

“…I made eye contact.”

“Huh?”

The youngest stammered and pointed to the top of a gray building.

All eyes followed his direction to see only an empty window.

“…? There’s nothing there?”

“It was there! Ugh, I hate this. It’s probably a scary one today….”

The youngest, on the verge of tears, mumbled that he saw a woman with long hair staring at them.

The professional entertainers didn’t miss the chance to act scared and scream.

When they felt they had enough footage, someone who had quietly approached the members from behind suddenly spoke.

“Hello?”

“Ahh!”

“Gah.”

“…Why are you doing this in broad daylight?!”

While the professional entertainers reacted suitably, the youngest, who was still new to broadcasting, genuinely snapped after holding his breath in shock.

Which made it even funnier.

Lee Ho-seop thought to himself how envious he was.

“You must be the tourists visiting today. Nice to meet you. I’m the guide for Yeongmyo Village.”

A man who looked friendly spoke as if he had memorized his lines.

It was clear he was trying to act natural, but his tense expression and slight sweat betrayed him.

But with editing, it would look much better.

Knowing this well, Lee Ho-seop responded casually.

“Nice to meet you, sir. So, we’re here to tour the village…?”

“Yes. There’s a village festival with a 30-year tradition tonight. You’ve come at the perfect time. You’re very lucky.”

He added that normally they didn’t allow outsiders during this period, but since it was a special day, they should enjoy their visit.

Before the members could question his words, the man offered to guide them around the village.

People were preparing for the festival everywhere.

Some were gathered, making pinwheels, while others were setting up lights on the street trees.

Everyone had smiles on their faces, and cheerful laughter seemed to echo from all directions like it was playing from a radio.

It should have been a warm scene, but it felt strangely unsettling to the members.

While Shin Woo-chul, who played the role of the brain among the members, focused on the guide’s words for clues, the youngest, who had been clinging to Lee Ho-seop’s back with a tense face, whispered.

“Hyung…, doesn’t this feel weird?”

“What does?”

“…There are no kids here.”

Lee Ho-seop stopped in his tracks for a moment.

True, despite the large number of villagers, all of them were adults.

They whispered among themselves about the absence of children.

“Even though we don’t know the mission yet, something feels off, right?”

“It smells fishy.”

“Could it be something like the Pied Piper? A bad guy took all the kids, and we have to save them.”

Everyone threw out their own guesses.

Ignoring their chatter, the guide continued explaining about Yeongmyo Village and the festival.

Shin Woo-chul, abandoning the unhelpful members, asked.

“Sir, the ritual you mentioned earlier, is it a real ritual?”

“Haha, is there such a thing as a fake ritual? It’s the core of our Yeongmyo Village festival. The festival concludes with everyone gathering to perform the ritual.”

“A ritual? That smells fishy.”

Hwang Min-seok muttered.

Lee Ho-seop didn’t like how Hwang Min-seok kept pushing his catchphrase without context but didn’t show it.

He just grumbled inwardly while taking care of the youngest who kept clinging to him.

‘Oh, they need to stop with the religious stuff.’

It was a perfect topic for controversy.

Though he understood why the broadcast team would choose it. It was a well-selling topic.

Having quickly figured out three possible storylines, Lee Ho-seop sighed, pretending to be clueless.

“But aren’t we going to eat…?”

At Ahn Ji-chul’s tactless comment, the guide smiled kindly.

“Of course you’ll eat. But before that, there’s someone you need to meet. A guardian who protects our village.”

Guardian! The word made the members’ eyes light up.

Finally, the main story was beginning.

Whoever it was, they would likely reveal the mission.

With a strange excitement, the members followed the guide to the gray building they had seen earlier.

The youngest had claimed to see a woman with long hair on the top floor of this building.

Patting the youngest who clung even closer, Lee Ho-seop was the first to enter.

The interior looked like a regular house.

As all the members stepped inside, the guide silently closed the door and knelt.

“…??”

“We offer our respects to the guardian.”

The members were unsure whether to kneel or not.

Feeling a presence, Lee Ho-seop looked up and let out an “Oh?” sound involuntarily.

Someone was standing before the members.

“That drama…”

Shin Woo-chul, apparently thinking the same thing, stopped mid-whisper.

A boy, or perhaps a young man, stood expressionlessly.

The longer the silence stretched, the more tense the atmosphere became.

The members exchanged glances, unsure of what to do, until the youngest quietly knelt.

As if in a trance, Ahn Ji-chul followed suit, and soon the remaining members, including Lee Ho-seop, awkwardly bowed.

With everyone’s gaze on the floor, the small feet finally moved.

A deep, unsettling voice emerged that was hard to believe came from a child.

“You’ve brought strangers.”

“Yes, Guardian. They wish to see the festival.”

The guide responded smoothly.

The small feet moved, making a pattering sound.

It stopped in front of Lee Ho-seop.

After a long wait with no further words, Lee Ho-seop cautiously raised his head.

“You should be careful.”

“…Pardon?”

The boy, expressionless, threw out the words with an intense aura.

Stunned, Lee Ho-seop replied, and the boy slowly crouched in front of him.

A grin split his face as he leaned closer.

“You’ll be the first to die today.”