The moment Kang Woojin saw the photo on the tablet in Choi Seonggeon's hand—a mansion with a swimming pool, sent by Miley Cara—he almost let out a gasp. The shock nearly shattered his usual composure, and he had to force himself to hold it together. If he hadn't spent so long training to maintain his persona, it would have slipped instantly.
'Wow… damn, that really surprised me.'
In truth, the house on the tablet wasn't all that different from other houses in LA. But to Woojin, who had never seen something that large in person, it felt like a full-blown estate. A house with its own pool? That wasn't something you casually saw back in Korea.
That only made it worse.
'The house itself is insanely big.'
Behind the pool stood a massive two-story structure. "Grand" was the only word that fit. It looked like something straight out of a movie. Woojin calmed his startled thoughts and kept staring at the house on the tablet.
"..."
He stared at it for quite a while.
Beside him, Choi Seonggeon—his hair tied back in a ponytail—finally spoke.
"Have you seen enough? Should we move on?"
Move on? Move on to what? Ah, right. Only then did Woojin remember that this wasn't the only house Seonggeon had prepared to show him.
'That list… right. He said it was a list of houses in LA.'
Woojin forced himself to stay calm and lowered his voice.
"Yes, CEO. I've seen it."
The moment he answered, Seonggeon moved his finger. The image on the tablet changed, and a new house appeared. This one also had a pool, though it wasn't two stories. Still, it looked just as wide as the previous one.
One thing was certain.
'Damn… this one's insane too.'
It was just as impressive. Seonggeon swiped again. Once. Twice. Three times. In total, he showed five houses. Every single one looked like something you'd only ever see in a film.
Each time a new house appeared, Woojin felt a quiet sense of awe rising inside him. But on the outside, he tried his best to maintain a detached expression.
Even so, he couldn't shake the shock.
'What? She's really giving me something like this? Is she crazy?'
Yes, it was true that Woojin had saved Miley Cara's life. But even then, was this really appropriate? Honestly, how many people ever experienced something like this? The officetel he had received near Samseong Station before had felt like the result of his own effort.
But this was different.
"...CEO."
Woojin suppressed his excitement and spoke quietly.
"You're saying she wants to give me one of these houses as a gift? That's correct?"
Seonggeon set the tablet down for a moment and let out a small laugh, as if even he found it a little ridiculous.
"Yes. That's what they said. It was clearly written in the email sent to the company. I was surprised too."
"I see."
Seonggeon picked the tablet back up.
"Look at the scale of these houses. Sure, there are plenty of large homes in LA, but places like these go for at least a billion won each. Many are far more expensive."
"..."
A billion? Even a few hundred million was already a huge amount. A billion was something else entirely. Woojin was momentarily speechless.
'Is this… what a global superstar's world looks like?'
It was hard to even imagine.
Inside the hotel elevator, Woojin and Seonggeon fell into silence. There were several other passengers inside, but neither of them spoke.
A few minutes later.
After entering Woojin's suite, Seonggeon spoke again.
"Well, considering how much money Miley Cara saved thanks to you, even ten billion wouldn't be a big deal to her. If she had been seriously injured, it would've cost far more. Either way, she's a very straightforward person."
Woojin inwardly agreed without hesitation.
Seonggeon lightly waved the tablet in his hand.
"You didn't hear anything about this at all?"
At that moment, some of the things Miley Cara had said flashed through Woojin's mind.
'I owe you a great debt.'
And another.
'I'll repay you somehow later. That's separate. Woojin, do you need anything right now?'
What Woojin had wanted had already been fulfilled when he joined Beneficial Evil. Then did that mean this "separate repayment" was the house? Not just any house—but a massive mansion in LA?
Woojin, who had remained silent, met Seonggeon's eyes and spoke in a low voice.
"She mentioned compensation when I was in LA."
"Aside from appearing in Beneficial Evil*?"*
"Yes."
"Is this the additional compensation?"
"That seems likely."
Seonggeon nodded slightly.
"From what I can tell, it looks like she wants to provide you with a place to stay when you debut in Hollywood. That explains why she kept asking so many questions at the after-party."
"What did she ask?"
"Things like where your overseas base is and when you plan to start working in Hollywood. I gave her general answers, and then this came afterward."
In other words, there was some background to all of this.
By now, Woojin had calmed down. Seonggeon handed the tablet back to him and asked casually.
"We've been preparing a lot for your overseas debut. But what about you? If Miley Cara gives you a house, will you accept it?"
Why would he refuse? The scale had been unexpected, but there was no real reason to reject it. Woojin hadn't taken extreme measures to save her, but the fact remained—she owed him a great debt.
'It's better to accept it. It'll make things easier when we meet again later.'
The more he thought about it, the clearer it became. There was no reason to refuse.
So—
Swish.
Among the five houses displayed on the tablet, Woojin pointed to the two-story one with the largest pool and muttered,
"I'll take this one."
Seonggeon broke into a wide grin and nodded.
"Hehe, got it. I'll let Miley Cara's side know."
At that moment, Kang Woojin obtained a house in LA.
No—
a mansion.
──────────
The next day, the 21st.
From early morning, the Japanese entertainment industry was in an uproar. Reporters from various media outlets moved busily.
"Did you pack everything?"
"Yes!"
"Then let's head out right away!"
"But… we weren't even invited. Should we really go?"
"It's a shame, but we might be able to get some shots around the hotel. There'll be plenty of celebrities, right?"
"That's true."
"If we're lucky, we might see Director Tanoguchi Kyotaro, Writer Takikawa Akari, or even Chairman Yoshimura Hideki. And among the actors—forget the other top stars—we absolutely need Kang Woojin! Even a shot from behind will sell."
Every organization and broadcaster was caught up in the same frenzy.
"It's complete chaos. Articles are already pouring in."
"About the press conference for The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice*?"*
"Exactly. Look—most of the entertainment news is about it."
"Makes sense. It's a live-action adaptation of Akari's original work. Things started going wrong when Kang Woojin got involved, and then the Kashiwa Group stepped in."
"…A Korean actor taking the male lead in Akari's signature work—it's only natural it caused this much controversy."
"With all this noise and debate, it's no surprise things have escalated this far. I heard nearly 200 reporters will attend."
"There's even going to be a live stream."
"Why make it this big? If they'd handled it quietly, the backlash wouldn't have been this intense."
Naturally, the main topic of the day was the production press conference for The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice, scheduled for noon. The film had already stirred up countless controversies from the moment its production was announced, so it was only natural that the press conference itself became a hot issue.
The news spread rapidly.
『Kang Woojin finally steps before the public! Large-scale press conference for "The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice" begins soon!』
『Netizens are flooding in! Interest in the live-streamed press conference for "The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice" is exploding across SNS and online communities!』
Not only industry insiders, but even ordinary citizens couldn't stop talking about it. Online spaces were no different. Communities and social media were filled with discussion about the upcoming press conference, and anticipation for the live broadcast pushed the excitement even higher.
About two hours passed like that.
Around thirty minutes before noon, the Kashiwa Tokyo Hotel in Tokyo was packed with people. It was already busy with guests, but today, more than a hundred people had gathered for entirely different reasons. The hotel surroundings and lobby were filled with people holding cameras.
They were reporters invited to the press conference.
"Are those people outside the ones who weren't invited?"
"Yes. They're desperately trying to get any footage they can."
"Haha, then we're lucky, aren't we?"
Including those outside, the number of reporters easily exceeded several hundred. They began gathering in the hotel's largest hall. The wide space featured wooden decor and a high ceiling, with desks filling the interior.
From the entrance to the stage, it was packed.
More than eighty reporters took their seats, setting up laptops and cameras. Once the event began, even more would enter. The total would approach two hundred.
"There are way more cameras than usual."
"They're live streaming, and the production team will probably upload footage to YouTube as well."
More than ten cameras were installed throughout the hall. At the back, the live broadcast team busily finalized their preparations.
About twenty minutes later.
"We're going live now!"
Ten minutes before the press conference, the live stream began. As if they had been waiting, Japanese netizens flooded in.
[The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice press conference LIVE!]
[LIVE]
[3,854 watching]
Nearly four thousand viewers joined instantly. The chat window moved so fast it felt like it was buzzing.
[Whoa, there are so many reporters!!]
[Eerie Sacrifice is doomed!!]
[I came to see Kang Woojin!]
[Get a grip, everyone!! There are too many people!!]
[If it's already this crazy, it's going to explode when it starts lol]
[I'm here to complain.]
Excitement, criticism, anticipation, nonsense—everything poured in. The chat moved too quickly to follow. Even so, the number of viewers kept rising every second, and as the press conference approached, the hall filled completely.
Finally.
Swish.
When nearly two hundred reporters had taken their seats, a woman in a neat beige jacket entered from the side door near the stage. She was a famous Japanese comedian serving as the MC for the event. She gestured toward the large title behind the podium.
"The press conference will begin shortly. Reporters outside, please come inside."
After a brief final coordination with the staff, she raised her cue card.
"We will now begin the press conference for the highly anticipated film, The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice!"
Applause erupted as cameras were raised all at once, and flashes burst like lightning across the hall. At the same time, the number of viewers in the live broadcast surged past thirty thousand.
"First, please welcome the main cast!"
As soon as the host finished speaking, the door opened and the key figures began entering one by one. At the same time, a storm of flashes exploded throughout the hall.
The first to enter was director Tanoguchi Kyotaro, followed closely by writer Takikawa Akari. Then, as the third figure stepped in, the atmosphere shifted instantly.
"Kang Woojin! Kang Woojin!!"
"He's entering third?!"
Dressed in an all-black suit, Kang Woojin walked forward under the blinding flashes. Despite the overwhelming attention, his expression remained cold and unchanged.
"..."
At that same moment, the live viewership surged rapidly, climbing toward forty thousand the instant he appeared.
'I can't see… I seriously can't see anything.'
The flashes came without pause, disorienting him.
'Ugh… I feel like I'm going to throw up.'
Even so, he held himself together, maintaining his composure with everything he had.
Soon, more cast members and production staff entered and lined up across the stage, and before long, it became time for the photo session. By then, the live viewership had already surpassed forty thousand.
Right then, the closed back door of the hall quietly opened, and an elderly man in a suit entered with several aides.
It was Chairman Hideki.
He moved so quietly that no one noticed his arrival amid the heated atmosphere.
"Hm—"
With his arms crossed, he fixed his gaze beyond the crowd of reporters and toward the front of the stage. More precisely, his eyes were locked onto Kang Woojin.
'A declaration of war… no, how could I possibly miss a moment like this?'
He sank into his own thoughts.
The press conference continued as introductions of the cast and production team proceeded.
But then—
"Kang Woojin!!!"
A sharp shout rang out, almost like a scream. It came from a reporter seated near the front, who had suddenly raised his voice.
"You've achieved massive success in Korea recently, and Boy Friend: Remake was also a huge hit!"
His voice trembled slightly with excitement, but his tone was unmistakably confrontational.
"You've even earned the nickname 'Midas' Hand'! Do you personally believe The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice will succeed despite the controversy?!"
The host and staff immediately tried to restrain him.
But—
"Yes."
Kang Woojin answered calmly, cutting cleanly through the commotion.
"It will easily surpass twenty million."
The first bomb had been dropped.