I Was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor

Chapter 132: Departure (6)

Translator: Dreamscribe

There are times when people reflect on themselves. They usually utter similar phrases like, ‘Wow- how did I do that?’ Kang Woojin had felt this many times throughout his life, especially during his days of working overtime at the design company.

And now, Woojin had just added another moment to that list.

‘Did I just use Japanese sign language? It must be right, right? He understood me, so it must be. But how?’

Indeed, it was Japanese sign language. Until a moment ago, he had been moving his body and expressions without much thought. But then, the question from that young boy, who seemed to be in his teens, ‘How do you know Japanese sign language?’ triggered a cascade of questions in Kang Woojin’s mind.

‘…Right. Why can I do it when I don’t even know myself? Do you know?’

It was impossible for the young boy who had prompted Woojin to use Japanese sign language to know the answer. In any case, numerous thoughts passed through Woojin’s mind in a very short time.

He knew that sign languages vary from country to country.

Well, he didn’t know at first, but he figured it out after learning sign language through the void space and doing some research. Having instantly mastered this strange and difficult language, he felt he needed to at least know the basics. That way, he could use it appropriately when necessary.

After confirming this information, Woojin nodded to himself.

Thinking about it, it didn’t make sense for the sign languages based on the different languages of numerous countries to be the same. Thus, Kang Woojin had concluded that what he had learned was Korean Sign Language. However, he unexpectedly used Japanese sign language in the studio of ‘Ame-talk Show!’.

Moreover, it was at a level that had been highly praised by an expert in Korean Sign Language. Therefore, Woojin’s confusion was a natural progression.

Then Kang Woojin thought,

‘Wait a minute. Let’s calm down and check if it works again. Was it a coincidence?’

Although it seemed unlikely to be a coincidence, he needed to be sure. Soon, Woojin fixed his gaze on the young boy in the audience,

whose eyes were wide open.

-Swish.

He raised his hand, trying to recall the sensation he had just experienced and attempted Japanese sign language again. But the term ‘attempt’ was an understatement. Kang Woojin effortlessly started using Japanese sign language, as if his body remembered the feeling.

[“Am I doing Japanese sign language correctly right now?”]

As Woojin gently signed, the young boy’s eyes widened further. He too raised his hand and replied,

[“Yes, it’s accurate. You seem to do it better than I do; I still make mistakes sometimes. Your signing skill is similar to my sign language teacher’s. No, actually, you’re better!”]

[“Thank you, I don’t even know why I can use Japanese sign language myself.”]

[“What??”]

[“No, just kidding.”]

Woojin’s fluency in Japanese sign language was undeniable. In fact, he was smoother than the young boy. At this point, Kang Woojin realized,

‘When I think in Japanese, my body automatically moves to remember the sign language. It feels like some kind of fusion.’

This was the process of producing Japanese sign language. Meanwhile, the wide studio where the two men were exchanging sign language was silent.

“······”

“······”

“······”

PD Shinjo, MC Soyo, Choi Sung-gun, and the 200 or so audience members on the set, along with dozens of staff members, were all speechless. They were shocked by the unexpected sight and captivated by something they had never seen before.

After all, it’s not often one sees sign language, especially during a talk show recording, and the one using high-level Japanese sign language was not a Japanese person but a rookie Korean actor. Why could this actor use Japanese sign language instead of Korean?

It was astonishing.

At this moment,

“······Ah, ah!”

The skinny PD Shinjo, who had been blankly watching their sign language exchange, suddenly snapped back to reality. He then asked one of the two interpreters standing next to him, specifically the sign language interpreter,

“The sign language that Woojin is using now, it’s Japanese sign language, right? Not Korean?”

“Yes… it’s Japanese sign language. But didn’t you say he’s a Korean actor? Honestly, I was surprised at how well he speaks Japanese, but I never imagined he’d know sign language too.”

“I feel the same way.”

With a somewhat serious look, PD Shinjo raised his hand and shouted.

“Let’s pause the recording for a moment!!”

He hurried onto the stage. MC Soyo, still holding the microphone, was staring blankly at Woojin, but Shinjo, unbothered by that, rushed to Kang Woojin and asked him directly, filled with excitement.

“Woojin! You know Japanese sign language too? Not just speaking Japanese?”

Yes, it seems so. Woojin answered inwardly but outwardly spoke in a composed voice.

“Yes, a little. I can also use Korean sign language.”

“Korean sign language too – did you perhaps prepare for a job related to sign language in the past?”

“No, not at all.”

“Wait a minute. So, you’re saying you can use both Korean and Japanese, including the sign languages of both languages. That’s a total of 4 languages.”

Technically, it included English as well, but Woojin didn’t mention that part.

“That’s the case, though it’s not something to brag about.”

PD Shinjo immediately responded in Japanese.

“What! You should brag! That’s more than enough to be proud of! Wow- Woojin, with all those languages and acting skills… Honestly, it would be tough without living a second life, wouldn’t it? Are you on your second life by any chance??”

“Of course not.”

PD Shinjo seemed to agree with Woojin’s joking dismissal and started to calm down from the initial shock, now focusing on the current situation.

“Woojin, are you planning to keep your knowledge of Korean and Japanese sign language a secret? I mean, is it okay to show this on the broadcast?”

“There’s no need to hide it. I don’t mind it being broadcasted.”

Immediately, PD Shinjo’s expression changed to that of a talk show director.

“Understood. I’ll just interpret it in my own way. Anyway, the scene looks great right now, you see? There’s a twist. It can provide enough interest to the viewers. Look at Soyo, his eyes are about to pop out.”

At his gesture, Kang Woojin turned his head to the right. MC Soyo, still in shock, silently gave a thumbs up. PD Shinjo stepped closer to Woojin and spoke again.

“The audience will probably feel the same. So, let’s add some direction to this.”

“Direction?”

“Yes.”

“What kind?”

“Well, I need to think about that. How to embellish the scene we just had to make it more impressive.”

“······”

Kang Woojin, who had been looking at PD Shinjo with an indifferent gaze, suddenly stood up.

“How about this?”

“Yes?”

“Actually, it was a bit hard to see from a distance.”

Then, Woojin calmly and confidently walked towards the audience of about 200 people. This caused the audience to jolt or gasp in surprise. Regardless, Woojin approached right in front of the young boy he had been signing with.

-Swish.

Standing in front of the young boy, Kang Woojin began to sign.

[“How about having a conversation here? Would that make you uncomfortable?”]

The young boy, though visibly flustered, nodded vigorously, seemingly grateful. Hearing his response, Woojin turned to PD Shinjo and spoke in a low tone in Japanese.

“He says it’s okay.”

PD Shinjo exclaimed.

“Ah! Stepping off the stage entirely?? Responding to the audience’s question by suddenly standing up and approaching them! Oh! That’s groundbreaking.”

His face lit up with a smile of approval.

Two hours later.

During the break in the recording of ‘Ame-talk Show!’, Kang Woojin provided fan service like autographs to the participating audience members and then,

-Click.

Entered the waiting room alone. It seemed that Choi Sung-gun and Woojin’s team were still at the recording set. Interestingly, as soon as Woojin entered the waiting room, he reached for the backpack he always carried. What Woojin took out from the backpack was a script, the type of which didn’t matter.

-Thump!

Woojin wasn’t looking at the script to read it; he was entering the void space. Instantly, his vision was engulfed in darkness. However, Kang Woojin didn’t move towards the usual floating white rectangle.

Instead,

“Man, recording is still tough even if it’s more mentally relaxing than physical. Anyway, let’s see -”

He stood in place, arms crossed, organizing his thoughts. Or more precisely, he recalled the words spoken by the robotic female voice when he had acquired ‘sign language’.

‘[“A new language besides the basic language has been detected. Acquiring ‘Sign Language’ first.”]’

That was indeed strange, now that he thought about it. Despite sign language not being a universal language, the robotic voice only mentioned ‘sign language’ without specifying which one.

“But she only said ‘sign language.'”

To be clear, it should have been specified as ‘Korean Sign Language’ or ‘Japanese Sign Language’. It was too vague to just lump it all under ‘sign language’, considering the variety. It was unlikely that the ultra-advanced void space would make such a mistake.

This meant,

“There was something I didn’t realize.”

In fact, during the recording, Woojin had somewhat figured out the answer. He had entered the void space now just to experiment. Both Korean and Japanese sign languages were smooth to use. The feeling was the same for both. He just needed to think of the respective language in his mind and command his body to express it in sign language.

However,

“It’s not the same for the rest of the world.”

It wasn’t universally applicable. Take French, for example. Even if he thought of French and tried to sign, his body did not respond. The reason was simple.

“Because I don’t know French.”

Then, Woojin exhaled softly and thought,

“So, this means…”

He recalled his fluently acquired English, sending a command through his entire body. He was going to use American Sign Language. Slowly raising his hands, and then.

-Swish.

American Sign Language flowed out effortlessly.

‘It works.’

A smile spread across Kang Woojin’s face.

“Okay, I get it now.”

He had figured out why he could use Japanese and American Sign Languages besides Korean.

“So, sign language is like a passive skill, something I can have from any country as long as I meet the condition.”

That condition was very simple.

‘The language of that country.’

The languages of each country. Korean, Japanese, English. These were the languages Kang Woojin currently knew, and he could smoothly use sign language from these three countries. But for languages he hadn’t learned, it was impossible.

In other words,

“As I learn more languages, I’ll automatically acquire their sign languages as a bonus? Wow, the capabilities of the void space are really something else.”

Kang Woojin had now mastered not just three languages but six, including their sign languages. That’s why the robotic voice had referred to it collectively as ‘sign language’.

“From now on, learning one language is basically a 1+1 deal, huh?”

The capabilities of the void space were truly extraordinary. After all, how likely is it for someone to master six languages in a single lifetime? Usually, it’s challenging enough to learn one additional language beyond the native tongue.

At this point,

“That’s enough, time to exit.”

Kang Woojin uttered ‘exit’ resolutely. His vision shifted from the void space back to the waiting room, and he, sitting on a nearby chair, curled the corners of his mouth upward.

“Six languages -”

The future seemed promising. Though he might not use sign language frequently, it would surely come in handy at some point. Luck is more tangible when you have the skills to grasp it.

‘Just like Korean Sign Language, Japanese or American Sign Language will surely be useful someday.’

Woojin was confident. Sign language, as unfamiliar as it was, held a unique value and would certainly help him seize opportunities lurking somewhere in the future.

At that moment,

-Thunk!

The door to the waiting room opened, and Kang Woojin quickly wiped the smile off his face, replacing it with an expression of indifference. The person who appeared was the ponytailed Choi Sung-gun. Woojin and he shared a moment of silent eye contact.

“······”

“······”

The one to break the silence with a slight chuckle was Choi Sung-gun.

“What are you looking at? Shocked by your Japanese sign language? It’s not like we’ve only been working together for a day or two. I’ve decided to just accept whatever comes.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. If I get surprised by everything, my heart might give out first. Of course, I can’t understand it. I’m like, ‘What is this?’ But let me ask you one thing.”

“Yes.”

“You are human, right?”

“······CEO~nim.”

“No, seriously, answer me. You are, right?”

“Of course, I am.”

Choi Sung-gun scratched his head as if embarrassed by his own question.

“That’s all I needed to know. There’s no point in forcing myself to digest something indigestible; it only leads to trouble. You have your past, and that’s what made you who you are today. Bring it on. Whatever it is, I’ll accept it.”

Woojin responded with a solemn joke to the thrown jest.

“Yes, I’ll do so without any burden.”

“Ahhh- But you gotta give me some time! Even in Tetris, huh? There’s time for the blocks to come down. No rapid-fire. Ah, I’ve already told Yoon Byung-seon and the team including Jang Su-hwan, just accept it as it is.”

“Ah- thank you.”

“Okay, let’s get going. The second part of the recording is about to start.”

As Woojin stepped out into the hallway, Choi Sung-gun reminisced about the recording session earlier.

“Well, most of the audience today was like that. But that kid, you know, the one you communicated with in sign language.”

“Yes.”

“He must be quite a fan of yours. It’s been a while since I’ve seen someone so happy getting an autograph. That expression was precious.”

Indeed, it was. The young boy had even seemed close to tears. But Woojin could understand. The young boy’s experience resonated with his own journey of struggling alone amidst misconceptions and pretense.

“What are the odds of having a conversation in sign language with an actor you like or are interested in?”

“······Indeed. And not just any actor, but a Korean actor, not Japanese. Apart from that, opportunities to have a conversation in sign language are rare in life, especially for someone so young.”

“Unintentional isolation can be tougher than one might think.”

Truly. Choi Sung-gun slowly nodded and then casually put his arm around the expressionless Woojin.

“Yeah, today must have been an unforgettable day for that kid.”

The next day, the 30th, in the morning, at Toega Film Company.

Toega Film Company, responsible for the production of ‘The Eerie Sacrifice of a Stranger,’ was hosting a meeting in their large conference room. Kang Woojin and Choi Sung-gun were there, seated at a U-shaped table.

On the opposite side of them.

“I’m sorry for the sudden change in schedule, an unexpected issue came up.”

Director Kyotaro, with his hair full of gray streaks, was present, along with several employees of the film company, around five or six. Meeting Kyotaro Tanoguchi was the last agenda of Woojin’s trip to Japan. There was a lot to discuss today: the preliminary schedule of the project, adjustments in the filming period, promotional matters, and so on.

Yet, for some reason, Director Kyotaro’s expression seemed somewhat somber. At least, that’s how Kang Woojin felt.

‘Is there some trouble? He seems a bit- dark.’

Director Kyotaro, forcing a smile, spoke in Japanese.

“I heard about ‘Male Friend’ and your success on YouTube. Congratulations. I’m happy to see that after a long period of obscurity, you’re finally getting the recognition you deserve.”

Woojin replied nonchalantly, accustomed to such misconceptions.

“Thank you, Director~nim. But is there something bothering you?”

In response to Woojin’s question, Kyotaro sighed softly and began to speak again.

“······Originally, we planned to have the script reading by October at the latest, but there have been some complications.”

“Complications?”

“Um, the reading might even be pushed back to early next year, about half a year’s delay.”

Early next year? Suddenly? That’s much later than expected, especially considering it was just for a script reading, not even the shooting. Is there a reason? As Woojin looked intently at Director Kyotaro, who was scratching his gray hair, Kyotaro spoke softly.

“About half of the total investors are showing signs of pulling out. We’ve already lost about 30%.”

Investors pulling out? ‘The Eerie Sacrifice of a Stranger’ was a major film, so the investment must have been substantial. Does this mean the film could be canceled? Although Woojin didn’t know all the details, drawing conclusions in this situation wasn’t too difficult for him.

Kang Woojin voiced his conclusion in a low tone.

“Does this, by any chance, have something to do with me?”

The smile disappeared from Director Kyotaro’s face.

“No, it’s not about you. It’s because of those rotten, stupid people who are afraid of change.”

Meanwhile, in a luxurious house in Tokyo.

It was a huge mansion that would make anyone gasp at first sight. A vast yard was a given, and the scale of the house itself was substantial. It seemed like a place where a hundred people could live without any problems.

The interior of the house was even more impressive.

The ceiling was endlessly high, and the furniture on display was all exorbitantly expensive. There were more than five staff members working in the house. One of the male staff members, who was cleaning the house, knocked on a closed door.

-Knock knock.

A hoarse voice in Japanese came from inside. An old man’s voice.

“Come in.”

Hearing the response, the staff member opened the door. It was a study, filled with books in a large space. In the center of it all sat an old man, his eyebrows sprinkled with white hairs, resembling a lion with white fur.

Then, the staff member bowed to him.

“How would you like me to clean the study, Chairman?”

The old man, referred to as the Chairman, closed the book he was reading and shook his head.

“Leave it for now, start with the other places.”

“Understood.”

Just then,

-Thud!

Someone burst into the room behind the staff member. It was a young boy, seemingly about 14 years old. The boy immediately rushed to the old man in the study, referred to as the Chairman.

-Swish.

Suddenly, he raised both hands. It was Japanese sign language.

[“Grandpa, something amazing happened yesterday!”]

The Chairman was visibly surprised and moved by the boy’s expression.

‘He’s smiling? The always emotionless, somber-faced kid?’

What on earth was happening? The Chairman quickly masked his surprise with a bright smile, a laugh filled with extreme delight. He then gently stroked the boy’s head and raised his hands too, using sign language.

[“Really? Let’s hear it, what happened?”]

[“I told you I got selected as an audience member for the ‘Ame-talk Show’, right? I went there! And an actor there was incredibly good at Japanese sign language!”]

[“That actor is Korean, right? But he knows Japanese Sign Language? What was his name again – sorry, what did you say his name was?”]

The boy was the young audience member who had communicated with Kang Woojin in Japanese Sign Language on the ‘Ame-talk Show!’

[“Kang Woojin! It was so amazing to see such a sparkling actor who also knows sign language, and I was so, so happy to talk with him in sign language!”]

The boy was the only grandson of the old man, referred to as the Chairman. The Chairman stared at his grandson’s beaming face, which he hadn’t seen in almost ten years, yet,

‘He knows sign language? Yes, I see. That Korean actor must be in the same situation as me. Otherwise, there would be no reason to learn sign language.’

For some reason, he jumped to his own conclusion, starting another misconception.

*****

Translator’s Logs

Jan 28: After translating and posting 5 chapters at gunpoint, I was able to escape from the crazy fans. I have been hiding ever since, hoping other crazy fans don’t find me anytime soon for more chapters.

Jan 29: Another peaceful day. I almost got caught by another fan, but luckily, I was able to escape in the nick of time.

Jan 30: Thankfully, I have found a hiding spot and am currently safe. However, there are still problems, as water and food supplies are running out.

Jan 31: I am out of water, and only a last piece of bread remains. I will have to leave my hiding spot to find more supplies to survive.

Feb 1: As I was searching for more food, I was spotted by several crazy fans and was captured soon after. I am currently being held captive and have been asked to translate new chapters non-stop. I have already translated 2 chapters, and while they are busy reading them, I am looking for an opportunity to escape. All my previous attempts to find help or any survivors have been unsuccessful so far.

*****