Suddenly, I Became Crazy Handsome, and the World Became Easy
Chapter 50.1: Surprise (2)

Among the actors in 'Rental Lover', about half had dumbfounded faces, while the other half looked like they’d lost their souls. Every single one of them was staring intently at Lover No. 4, Kang Rojun.

It was a situation far beyond anyone’s expectations or predictions.

They all assumed No. 1, Writer Kang Chul-soo’s acting skills, would only be used for attention-grabbing or as a hook...

'Damn it, why is he...good at acting??'

It was good enough to make even veteran actors jealous.

Though it had been a short scene with minimal expressions, everyone could immediately tell it wasn't ordinary. The actors, being professionals themselves, could certainly recognize the aura that even viewers would pick up within seconds.

'Such rich emotions that usually take at least five years of grinding in the acting field to develop. What the hell? Did he do theater in the past??'

'That intense gaze, controlled eye movements, flexible expressions, a tone without any stiffness in the lines... He wasn’t casted just for publicity, that’s for sure.'

'...This is ridiculous. With that face and all his other talents, he's good at acting too??'

The actors’ eyes widened as they screamed internally. It was the same for the key staff of 'Rental Lover'.

'Wasn't he just supposed to be a booster for publicity? He’s a legit actor.'

Each one of them was deeply shocked by Kang Rojun’s portrayal of Lover No. 4. It was a natural response. Rojun had already shown them so much: the writing that even PD Jung Soo-ryeong fell for, the status as the star of 'Produce That 100!', the visuals that mesmerized countless viewers, and more.

Now with acting skills that left mouths agape, it was inevitable to be left speechless.

He just had too many talents.

'No, this can't be right! He's an idol! A writer! To have acting skills that can devour professional actors is just too unfair!!'

His graphic-novel-like visuals alone had already made him an object of envy among the actors, but if his acting was also good enough to threaten them, this wasn't just jealousy- it was a crisis.

Soon, the actors' attitudes and expressions noticeably hardened.

On the other hand, PD Jung Soo-ryeong was thinking:

'Why did his English suddenly... go from Korean to American?? And that in just one week??'

Already knowing Kang Rojun’s insane acting ability, she was focused on something else. His insanely fluent English. At first, it had been awkward, like anyone just starting out, but in just a single week, he had become a complete master.

He could appear in a Hollywood film without any issue.

'Is... is that even possible?'

No, it was impossible. At least from PD Jung Soo-ryeong’s common sense, it was. The difference between before and now wasn’t slight, it was enough to convince anyone it was a different person.

Choi Rina, who was acting alongside Kang Rojun, felt it too.

'But No. 1- no, Writer-nim’s English is incredible??'

She had already seen Rojun’s acting in advance, so she was now focused on his English.

'He looks so good speaking English... No! No way! Get it together, Choi Rina! I almost lost myself again!'

Then, the assistant director sitting next to PD Jung Soo-ryeong whispered.

“Sunbae-nim. Writer Kang’s English is killer, isn’t it? I don’t get why you ever felt it was lacking.”

"...That's what I'm wondering. I feel like I’ve been played, but somehow it doesn’t feel bad.”

“With that level, there’s no reason to remove the English setting from ‘Lover No. 4', right?”

“Of course not. We’re definitely keeping it in.”

Whatever the situation, for a director like Jung Soo-ryeong, having a character’s charm explode like this was a welcome development. She stared intently at Kang Rojun’s face as he acted.

'He's not nervous at all.'

Because she caught another side of Rojun.

'Last time, it was just me and Choi, so he might have been less nervous, but this time he’s acting in front of everyone for the first time. And yet, his presence is no different from usual. In fact...'

PD Jung Soo-ryeong, rubbing her chin, assessed the tone of Kang Rojun’s acting.

'Despite that crazyvisual, his acting is surprisingly transparent. Flexible. Like soju... The taste is strong, but it blends into anything, a highly versatile kind of acting.'

Any actor, even a great one, would be criticized by the public for having obvious acting if their style was too distinctive. Even with outstanding skills. However, the acting PD Jung Soo-ryeong saw in Kang Rojun had a strong presence but a transparent quality.

'If he continues acting, and grows just like this, people will say it often, I can’t even remember what role he played before.'

Whether they cared or not, the script reading, full of silent confusion and chaos, continued, and the scene between the female lead Lee Da-eun and Lover No. 4 progressed rapidly into the latter half.

After a while, the actors and key staff seemed to calm down a bit.

-Swish.

Kang Rojun dropped another bomb in his final scene. This time, it was his turn for Japanese lines.

“I care about you. Even though we don’t understand each other. From the moment you called me, I was sincere. Though we couldn’t communicate. I was silent because I believed…”

This wasn’t just a bomb, it was a nuclear bomb.

Later on.

After numerous directions from PD Jung Soo-ryeong, countless cue signs, the actors' performances, and Kang Rojun's extraordinary skills, the script reading for 'Rental Lover', which had started early in the morning, finally ended after half a day.

As soon as the script reading concluded, many people swarmed around Rojun.

“I’m sorry, I have to leave right away.”

Kang Rojun was pressed for time. He had to head directly to the 'Produce That 100!' campus. Currently, Team 1, except for Rojun, was rehearsing like crazy on campus. Because tomorrow was the day of the 3rd evaluation and surprise performance on 'Produce'.

Thanks to that, Kang Rojun gave a polite bow to many people including Choi Rina, then

-Swish

He left the reading room in a rush with PD Jung Soo-ryeong. As they watched Rojun’s retreating figure, the key staff murmured with sincerity.

“‘Rising star’ doesn’t even cut it. He's a cosmic-level super rookie. He’s just a monster.”

“Exactly. His foreign language skills alone were something, but honestly, I didn’t expect him to be good at acting too. Is there seriously anything he can’t do??”

“How shocked will the viewers of 'Rental Lover' be?”

“If it were me, I’d be foaming at the mouth.”

Meanwhile, Kang Rojun boarded PD Jung Soo-ryeong's car just like in the morning. As they departed, Jung Soo-ryeong looked at Rojun in the passenger seat and laughed incredulously.

“What did you say? Better than last time? No, Writer-nim. You didn’t just improve, you basically turned into an American. What kind of magic did you pull?”

It would’ve been simple to say he trained through 'AI Automation', but Rojun chose a different answer.

"I guess I had a linguistic talent I wasn't aware of."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

“I practiced a lot, too. I’ll skip the detailed explanation.”

PD Jung Soo-ryeong squinted her eyes and gave a sly smile.

“Well, okay. I’m not the type to press people. I welcome anything that boosts character quality. But Writer-nim, if you debut in any field, you’ll draw a lot of jealousy.”

"You think so?"

“Of course. Didn’t you see the actors earlier? They were burning with envy. If that jealousy turns into drive, they’ll grow. If not, they’ll get left behind. Anyway, you better train your mental fortitude too, the entertainment industry is more of a garbage dump than you’d think.”

No matter how much he tried to imagine it, the current Kang Rojun couldn't really understand. So the answer was already determined.

'What can I do but just dive in and see?'

Then, while pretending to check his phone.

-Swish.

He discreetly opened the 'AI Simulation' while hiding it from PD Jung Soo-ryeong. He had been too busy since early morning to touch it until now.

-[Title: Side Job Tycoon+3 / Recognition Monster+2 / Global Genius+2]

-[User: Kang Rojun / Age: 24 / Height: 182.8 cm / Desired Occupation: Idol / Coins Owned: 601]

-[Side Job: [1] Screenwriter, [2] Actor, [3] Lyricist]

-[Global Languages: [1] Japanese, [2] English]

He smiled faintly at how far he had evolved, and without drawing attention, he proceeded to enhance his stats. Today, he invested 20 coins again. As always, the target was dance. The result?

-[Dance (20.5/100)]

At last, dance surpassed 20 points. At the same time, a slight tingling sensation ran through his wrist. It was brief, of course.

‘When I get the chance, I’ll experiment with dance. Next up, I’m aiming for 20 points in singing ability.’

With a firm decision made, Kang Rojun was on his way to the 'Produce That 100!' campus when, elsewhere, PD Woo Han-suk arrived at a recording studio.

It was quite spacious, with various musical instruments attached to the walls as part of the interior decor.

The unusual thing was.

‘...Wow-’

No. 58, who was looking around the studio with wide eyes, was also present. With a backpack still on, No. 58 kept his eyes mainly on the recording booth, typically used by singers, while PD Woo Han-suk faced a chubby man seated in front of the recording equipment.

"Are you really sure you have time?"

The chubby man- no, Song Min-geun, a composer and broadcaster and one of the judges for 'Produce That 100!', nodded with a smile. He was the creator of countless hit songs.

“Yes. It’s fine. If it’s work for 'Produce That 100!', I have to make time, even if I don’t have any. I’m a judge, after all.”

“Haha. Thank you.”

“So then.”

Shifting his gaze to No. 58, Song Min-geun changed the subject.

“You say you compose music?”

Startled and nervous, No. 58 shouted.

“Yes!”

“You passed the 1st round with rap, right? And the 2nd round was vocals. But neither of those had original compositions, did they?”

“No, I didn’t use original songs.”

“I don’t think composing was in your profile either. Or was it?”

PD Woo Han-suk interjected.

“It was there. A note about composing as a hobby.”

“Ah- hobby. And is that hobby something worth showing me? Outside of the broadcast?”

At the thrown question, PD Woo Han-suk signaled to No. 58 with his eyes, and No. 58 pulled out all his composition notebooks from the backpack. Seeing more than a dozen notebooks, Song Min-geun smiled.

“That’s more than a hobby. How many are there?”

The notebooks were handed over to Song Min-geun, who opened the most worn out one first. As he flipped through slowly, the smile on his face began to fade.

Then.

-Flip.

He turned to the next page. Then the next.

-Flip, flip.

For nearly five minutes, without a word, Song Min-geun continued reviewing the composition notebooks.

“…This is way too good to be just a hobby.”

His expression had grown quite serious.

“Instinct- no, you’re overflowing with talent. In what world is this a hobby? How many years have you been composing?”

No. 58 answered in a small voice.

“For quite a long time. Over five years.”

“Alone?”

“Yes.”

PD Woo Han-suk, arms crossed, added.

"He says this is the first time he's shown them to anyone."

“Huh-”

Letting out something like a gasp, Song Min-geun thought to himself:

'He moves freely between genres, and even his older compositions don't sound outdated. They're good enough to release now. The fact that he's reached this quality level alone is in the realm of pure talent.'

He tapped a finger on the composition notebooks.

“How many of these do you have?”

“A little over 30.”

He came to a conclusion.

"This is both a fortune and a treasure."

A slightly surprised PD Woo Han-suk interrupted.

"Fortune? Treasure? Is it that good?"

"To be frank, I'm already interested in several songs I've seen. And you say there are over 30 notebooks? That means there are countless songs recorded, so yes, it's a fortune and a treasure."

“……”

“Once you go through production, mixing, and so on, the tension and energy will shoot up dramatically. Honestly, if the song’s solid, it comes out well no matter what- even with shit thrown on it."

Song Min-geun made eye contact with the stunned No. 58.

“Doing it alone might’ve been a good thing. If you’d carelessly shown this to someone in the industry, they might have stolen your songs. But why don’t any of these have lyrics?”

“Ah.”

At that moment, PD Woo Han-suk picked up one of the notebooks and answered instead.

“There’s one here.”

What he showed was the rap titled 'Witch'. The only song with lyrics. Song Min-geun glanced at the 'Witch' sheet music for a few seconds, then nodded slightly. Just by looking, he could feel the beat and flow.

Soon, a smile of satisfaction returned to Song Min-geun’s face.

“These lyrics are killer. The rhyme, tone, and groove are sharp and punchy. What's this? You write lyrics well too. If you release ‘Witch’ right now, rappers would be all over it. But why did you only write lyrics for this one?”

“……”

After a brief silence, PD Woo Han-suk provided the answer.

“Actually, those lyrics weren’t written by No. 58. They were written by No. 1.”

Song Min-geun blinked, and a question mark formed in his eyes.

“…No. 1? Why is No. 1 suddenly coming up here?”