WeTried Translations
Translator: uglyidol
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became a Top Star by Only Playing Villains ◈
Chapter 18: The Greatest Hyde in History
──────
In the silent atmosphere, I was the first to reach out a hand to Actor Gwak Seong-ho.
“Are you all right, Senior?”
“Ugh...! I-I’m... fine...”
Actor Gwak recoiled in horror.
Before we started acting, they’d spoken casually to me. Now, they were using formal speech.
‘This is the person who was badmouthing me in the bathroom earlier, right?’
Tremble.
Actor Gwak stared at me, their body trembling as though they were facing a monster.
Judging by the look of them, they probably wouldn’t badmouth people behind their backs, pick pointless fights, or act like some kind of hierarchy enforcer ever again.
I smiled.
Satisfied, I helped them to their feet.
“I’m sorry if my acting was too intense. I’ll be more careful next time.”
“Y-Yes...!”
Even Shin Ah-gyeong, the national actress, had struggled when I put one hundred percent into a villain role.
Actor Gwak must have been even more shocked because they’d underestimated me and hadn’t mentally prepared themself.
And Actor Gwak wasn’t the only one in shock.
“...”
“...”
The other <Hyde> actors and production staff were still staring at me, completely frozen.
It truly looked as though time had stopped.
No one could so much as move from where they stood.
‘Did I go too hard from the start?’
It had been a while since I’d played a villain role, so I might have gotten a little carried away.
As I awkwardly scratched the back of my head...
Clap clap clap clap clap!
Loud applause rang out from somewhere.
When I turned around, Min Jae-yeong, <Hyde>’s overall director, was clapping with a pleased expression.
“That was incredible, Hansol! It’s only the first day, but that was truly excellent acting!”
As Director Min cheered loudly, the other actors and staff began applauding as well.
Clap clap clap clap clap clap!
Awestruck murmurs followed.
“Wow...”
“What kind of acting was that...?”
Until moments ago, I’d been a somewhat unreliable lead in their eyes.
Young, inexperienced, and ordinary-looking...
A lead who didn’t suit the popular play <Hyde>.
But...
“I’ve got goosebumps...”
“That was completely Hyde just now, wasn’t it? Maybe even more than the previous headliners...”
Now, there wasn’t a single person here who didn’t acknowledge me.
With a single performance, I’d won everyone over.
But it seemed Director Min still didn’t think that was enough.
“Hansol. You seem to be in the right emotional state right now. Could we see just one more scene?”
“What? Another scene?”
“Yes. Pick whichever scene you want.”
He wanted me to perform another scene in this atmosphere?
I tilted my head and looked at Director Min.
Nod.
He nodded with a meaningful expression.
The moment I saw that, I understood his intention.
‘Director Min is setting the stage for me.’
Having me perform another scene while everyone’s attention was on me meant he intended to give me a push.
Push me toward what?
‘<Hyde>’s headliner.’
It seemed Director Min wanted me to become <Hyde>’s headliner.
I turned to look at <Hyde>’s other two leads.
The two still looked dazed, as though they hadn’t recovered from the shock.
‘Sorry, but I want to become the headliner too.’
Becoming the headliner meant becoming the very face of the play <Hyde>.
No actor could help coveting such an honorable position.
I gave Director Min a small smile and nodded.
“Yes. If that’s what you want, Director, I’ll do one more scene. Hmm... How about the Act One finale?”
“The Act One finale... Excellent!”
When I said I’d perform the Act One finale right away, the other actors nearby began murmuring.
“Hansol’s going to do another scene?”
“The Act One finale... that scene? It’ll be difficult...”
The Act One finale was one of Act One’s highlights, as well as a notoriously difficult scene.
If I pulled off difficult, famous scenes one after another on the first day of rehearsal, no one would be able to object to me becoming <Hyde>’s headliner.
“Whew...”
The Act One finale consisted solely of Han Siwoo’s monologue, so I didn’t need a scene partner.
As Actor Gwak trembled their way off the stage, I settled into the emotion of the scene.
Then...
“I’ll begin now.”
With every <Hyde> actor and staff member watching intently, I began to act.
* * *
<Hyde>’s other two leads.
Kim Sang-hyeon and Hwang Yu-seung.
Naturally, both wanted to become <Hyde>’s next headliner.
And both genuinely believed they had a good chance.
The previous headliners, who had enjoyed overwhelming popularity, had retired.
And honestly, the newly cast leads were all about the same.
One of them was even an unknown rookie actor.
‘If Yu-seung weren’t around, I could become <Hyde>’s next headliner.’
‘If I can just get past Senior Kim...’
Setting rookie actor Lee Hansol aside for the moment, Kim Sang-hyeon and Hwang Yu-seung were certain that they only needed to surpass each other to become <Hyde>’s headliner.
But...
“No... What is this all of a sudden...?”
“Just who is that guy...?”
The unknown rookie actor Lee Hansol, whom they’d set aside, turned out to be a dark horse.
How could someone radiate such overwhelming presence and acting skill on the very first day of rehearsal?
As the two stood speechless in the face of this utterly unexpected situation, Lee Hansol began the Act One finale.
‘...Get a grip. There’s still hope.’
No matter how good his acting was, they’d only seen one scene so far.
There were still twelve weeks until <Hyde> opened.
Maybe Lee Hansol wasn’t as good in other scenes.
The two leads watched Lee Hansol’s performance, tense with anticipation.
「Hngh... hngh...」
In Act One, Han Siwoo continued seeking out criminals and personally punishing them even after the first murder.
...No, it hadn’t been Han Siwoo.
The one who sought out criminals and personally punished them was Hyde’s persona.
But Hyde was also one of Han Siwoo’s hidden natures.
Han Siwoo was wracked with self-loathing over the fact that they, a police officer, had killed several people.
「I... killed people. Several of them...」
「I didn’t become a police officer for this...」
「I wanted to create a just world...」
「I’m a criminal... a murderer.」
“...Wow.”
People marveled at Lee Hansol’s sobbing performance.
Though it was hardly surprising, Lee Hansol was terrifyingly good at playing not only Hyde, but Han Siwoo as well.
In truth, that was only natural.
Even before remembering the past lives in which he’d been evil, Lee Hansol had been an exceptionally talented actor. He’d merely lacked presence.
「Do I really deserve to exist in this world...?」
「Maybe an evil person like me should disappear from this world...」
「I... I...」
「What are you talking about, friend?」
“...!”
The voice of a righteous young person instantly became the gruff voice of a villain.
Han Siwoo’s persona had changed into Hyde in an instant.
‘There isn’t some kind of switch in his back, is there...?’
As Han Siwoo, Lee Hansol was utterly desperate. As Hyde, he was utterly vicious.
Everyone stared blankly at that insane level of acting.
「We did the right thing.」
「The criminals we killed.」
「They were trash who should never have been allowed to roam this world.」
Han Siwoo had used internal police information to select people with a high likelihood of reoffending.
Trash who feared no law and thought only of committing crimes again.
Beasts who showed no remorse and instead mocked the bereaved families of their victims.
「If we hadn’t stepped in, that trash would’ve committed more crimes. Isn’t that right?」
「...」
「What were the families’ expressions like when we brutally killed those bastards?」
「...」
「True revenge is seeing your enemy utterly destroyed with your own two eyes.」
Hyde continued tempting Han Siwoo.
Hyde broke down Han Siwoo’s sense of justice and relentlessly instilled those beliefs.
「Friend. Evil is bad.」
「But if you want a just world, you need evil to catch evil.」
Han Siwoo gradually became tainted by Hyde’s beliefs.
At Hyde’s whispers... they began to waver and be swayed.
「Get up, friend. We have to go kill the next target.」
「...No.」
「Don’t worry. I’ll help you. Because I’m you.」
「...No.」
「I’ll be inside you forever. The world needs us. We...!」
「No...!!!!」
Han Siwoo’s righteous persona tried desperately to cast Hyde away, but...
「I... I...!」
At that moment, a memory flashed through their mind.
The enemy who had killed their parents.
The memory of beating to death the hit-and-run driver with seven prior convictions.
「I...」
The exhilaration and thrill they had felt then.
And beyond that...
The sincere smiles that had bloomed on bereaved families’ faces when violent criminals were punished.
Was personally punishing vicious criminals truly an act of justice?
Han Siwoo’s persona and Hyde’s persona fought fiercely.
And as that struggle unfolded...
“...”
“...”
Everyone watched with bated breath.
Who would win, Han Siwoo or Hyde?
「I...」
“...!”
Instead of Hyde’s gruff voice, Han Siwoo’s righteous voice came out.
But the next moment...
「...I am a necessary evil.」
Han Siwoo’s eyes gleamed with deep murderous intent.
Necessary evil.
The theme that succinctly represented the popular play <Hyde>.
「...Evil must be caught with evil.」
In the end, Han Siwoo’s persona merged with Hyde’s persona.
No, perhaps “merged” wasn’t the right word.
They had been one from the beginning.
「You insect-like criminal scum.」
Accepting their true nature, evil, Han Siwoo radiated an overwhelming charisma that made everyone’s legs tremble.
「You have no value in this world.」
「I will...」
「Exterminate every last one of you from this world.」
Thus, Act One of <Hyde> ended, announcing the birth of a great villain.
A mad performance that would have been remembered as legendary even in the actual production had appeared at the very first rehearsal.
Lee Hansol’s performance ended, and <Hyde>’s other two leads, Kim Sang-hyeon and Hwang Yu-seung, turned to face each other.
“...Hahaha.”
“...Hahaha.”
They were both thinking the same thing.
‘We’re fucked.’
How were they supposed to act on the same level as that insane genius actor?
Competition only made sense when people were at remotely comparable levels.
The two felt like running away immediately.
And everyone else...
“...Ah.”
They were deeply moved by Lee Hansol’s performance.
Every actor and staff member here loved the play <Hyde>.
At a time when the play had been in crisis after its former headliners retired, Lee Hansol had appeared like a comet.
To them, he was practically a savior.
“Thank you for watching. I’m Lee Hansol.”
“W-Wowwwww!!!”
When Lee Hansol gave a small bow, thunderous cheers erupted from the crowd.
“Waaaaaah!!!!”
“What did I just watch?!!!!”
“That was incredible!!! That was the greatest Hyde ever!!!!”
Their new headliner.
They went wild for Lee Hansol, who might even become the greatest Hyde in history.
“Director Min really brought an actual Hyde in as the lead?!”
“Holy shit! That gave me chills! I’ve never gotten chills like this while doing <Hyde>!!”
It was only the first day of rehearsal, without even a stage set.
What kind of performance would Lee Hansol deliver when the play opened twelve weeks later?
Just imagining it sent a thrill through every <Hyde> actor and staff member.
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