Kang Woojin did not actually need to come to the children's center.
He had originally come to Jinju for a break, and once he started taking on unplanned engagements, things could get complicated in all sorts of ways. Whether it was the mayor of Jinju or anyone else, the moment he drew unnecessary attention, rumors could start spreading.
Even so, Woojin came to the children's center anyway.
'Wow, it's bigger than I expected.'
Part of it was because he wanted to do something good, but it was also because he was worried about his younger sister Kang Hyuna and the fan club Kang's Heart. Since it was the last day of his break, he had only planned to show up briefly and leave.
At first, he was not in a bad mood at all.
That was because he spotted his sister as soon as he arrived at the children's center.
'There she is. Ha, why does she look so awkward?'
He found Kang Hyuna in the hallway by the entrance to the hall. Watching her speak with a serious face to the members of Kang's Heart was honestly amusing.
Since Woojin already understood the whole situation perfectly, he nearly burst out laughing without meaning to.
Why was she making such a grave face?
As the older brother who knew everything there was to know about Kang Hyuna's life, Woojin found her current expression hilarious. For a moment, he was tempted to tease her, but he held himself back.
'Still, she is the president of Kang's Heart, after all.'
Did she not have her own social standing now? Was she not, in name and reality, the chairwoman of the fan club?
Besides, if Woojin had treated Kang Hyuna the way he usually did, she would never have been able to keep suppressing her feelings like she was doing now. So he stopped where he was and simply watched her from about ten steps away in the hallway.
He planned to enter after she left.
But that intention was ruined.
"This is really too much."
It was because of a middle-aged man who suddenly appeared in the hallway.
Was he drunk?
At least, that was how Woojin saw him.
A plump man who looked to be in his sixties, his face flushed, suddenly started picking a fight with Kang Hyuna. Watching from a distance, Woojin frowned.
It was not an act.
He was genuinely irritated.
Still, he decided to watch the situation for a moment.
There had been no need to.
That drunk man—no, the man claiming to be the CEO of one of the children's center's sponsor companies—kept crossing the line more and more as he spoke to Kang Hyuna.
'What the hell is this bastard doing?'
By then, Woojin's emotions were already close to anger.
He was furious.
'I'm the only one allowed to scold her.'
There was a saying about older brothers tormenting their younger sisters at home, yet never tolerating it when anyone else criticized them.
That was exactly the state Woojin was in.
His never back down nature had kicked in.
Even before obtaining the void space, Kang Woojin had never been someone easily pushed around. As long as no one bothered him, there was no problem, but the moment someone provoked him, he never backed down.
So he walked over immediately.
The timing was just when the sponsor company CEO was finishing his final remark.
"Make sure you tell Kang Woojin this. Next year, try earning enough to donate a lot more than a measly ten million."
"You can say it to me directly."
Woojin walked straight toward his sister and the sponsor company CEO. As soon as he reached them, he looked down at the drunken man.
Annoyance surged inside him, but he tried his best to keep it hidden.
Even so, his eyes were cold.
The sponsor company CEO was clearly flustered by Woojin's sudden appearance.
What did that have to do with him?
"One hundred million."
Kang Woojin calmly promised to donate the massive sum of one hundred million won.
And that was not all.
Right there on the spot, he even replaced the center's existing sponsor.
The situation had taken a completely unexpected turn.
Kang Hyuna had been angry, but even she had never imagined her brother would go this far. She looked back and forth between Woojin and the sponsor company CEO in confusion, and the members of Kang's Heart were no different.
The sponsor company CEO's face had turned red, and with his mouth slightly open, he could not say a word. He could only stare up at Kang Woojin's expressionless face.
Woojin, on the other hand—
"Yes, CEO. Thank you."
He thanked Choi Sunggeon over the phone.
He did not explain the current situation. Even so, Choi Sunggeon remained completely composed.
"That children's center? Yes, put me through to them."
"Understood."
"I'll take care of the rest. Will you have time to explain later?"
"I'll call you back."
"Alright. Finish things up well."
The phone call, which involved hundreds of millions of won, ended in just a few dozen seconds.
Even though such a large amount of money had been mentioned, Choi Sunggeon did not ask Woojin for any particular reason. He knew Kang Woojin well enough to believe there had to be a reason if Woojin had chosen to step in.
Anyway—
Woojin lowered his phone and looked at the sponsor company CEO, who still stood frozen in front of him.
Then he spoke in a low voice.
"The sponsor of this children's center has changed."
"…Hey."
"You're still speaking casually."
"That's not what I was trying to say."
"Apologize first."
Calmly, Woojin pointed to Kang Hyuna, who was standing to his left.
"Because of my work, I usually speak casually without thinking, but this person happens to be the president of my fan club."
"..."
"You do not get to speak casually to her."
His voice was cold.
Kang Woojin's aura was overwhelming.
Kang Hyuna felt dazed, as if she had just swallowed a gulp of ice-cold soda, but at the same time she was confused. This was nothing like the brother she usually knew.
Had she not thought something similar before?
Still, the situation was what it was, so for now she kept her mouth shut.
Woojin's firm voice rang out again.
"Apologize."
The sponsor company CEO's face, already red from drink, grew even redder as he tried to read the situation.
'Damn it.'
He had only meant to throw around a little swagger at some fan club girls before leaving. Who could have expected Kang Woojin to suddenly appear like that?
But the situation had already grown too large.
And on top of that, his pride as a sponsor company CEO would not let him apologize.
So—
"Hm!"
Unlike Woojin, he tried to act tough.
"It's not like I said anything wrong, is it?"
At that exact moment—
"What is going on here?"
An older man's voice came from inside the hall.
When they turned, the mayor of Jinju was standing there. Around him were several local dignitaries and children's center staff members.
The sponsor company CEO visibly panicked.
"…Ah, it's nothing! We were just talking for a moment. Right! Kang Woojin came, after all!"
The sponsor company CEO's pride crumbled instantly in front of the mayor of Jinju.
As for the mayor—
"Hm."
He glanced at Woojin, who stood there with unmistakable presence, and quickly sized up the situation. Then his gaze shifted to the sponsor company CEO with the flushed, drunken face.
'What trouble has he caused this time?'
The man seemed to be someone who caused problems often enough.
In any case, the mayor turned to the children's center staff.
"Close the door."
"Yes? Ah, yes!"
At the mayor's instruction, the entrance door to the hall was shut, blocking the view of the onlookers.
The mayor then walked straight toward where Woojin and Kang Hyuna were standing.
The sponsor company CEO tried to cut in.
"Excuse me, Mr. Mayor!"
The mayor lifted a hand to stop him, then addressed Woojin and Kang Hyuna instead.
"Mr. Kang Woojin, it's good to see you. Before anything else, could you tell me what happened here?"
Woojin said nothing.
Kang Hyuna began explaining first.
She told him everything that had happened to her, and as the mayor listened, he let out several sighs.
Finally—
"Haah…"
After hearing the whole story, the mayor ran a hand over his bald head and looked at the sponsor company CEO standing beside him.
"President Park."
"…Y-Yes, Mr. Mayor."
The mayor's tone was gentle, but firm.
"I've told you several times before, haven't I? Stop causing pointless trouble. I really don't understand why you keep doing this."
"..."
"It's getting harder and harder to tolerate. First, apologize to the members of Kang's Heart."
The sponsor company CEO cleared his throat, gauged the situation, and slightly bowed his head.
"Mm… I'm sorry."
"You're still speaking casually."
"Ah! No, Mr. Mayor. I apologize."
"Whew. As of today, your company is no longer a sponsor."
"Yes, Mr. Mayor. Ah! What?"
"How can a company whose CEO causes this many problems remain a sponsor of a children's center?"
"…N-No, but—"
"Don't make this any bigger. Just do as I say."
"..."
The CEO of the sponsor company—or rather, the company that had just become a former sponsor—went pale, completely at a loss for words.
The mayor, however, looked back at Woojin, who remained as calm as ever, and spoke again.
"I'm sorry that your visit home for some rest ended up becoming uncomfortable. As the mayor, I apologize."
Woojin answered in the same unchanged tone.
"It's fine."
"Even so, there's no need for you to take over as this children's center's sponsor. I can resolve this issue myself. The members of Kang's Heart have already delivered their donation."
"No. My offer to donate and sponsor was sincere."
Woojin answered matter-of-factly.
"From now on, I'll take responsibility."
Later—
Thanks to the mayor's intervention, peace returned to the children's center.
Before leaving, the drunken former sponsor CEO apologized several times to both the mayor and Kang Woojin. All of his bluster had vanished, and he looked like a defeated soldier trudging away.
He must have realized that falling out of favor with the mayor would not end well for him.
After that, the mayor went back into the hall, and Kang Woojin exchanged a few brief words with the members of Kang's Heart.
"You all worked hard today. I should have come a little earlier."
"…Ah, no! More importantly, oppa! No, Woojin! Could we get a handshake with you?!"
"Me too!"
Even though they had been active in the fan club and had seen Woojin in person before, this was their first time seeing him from such close range.
Woojin thought to himself, now slightly calmer—
'Haah… calm down first.'
Keeping up his persona, he softened his voice just a little.
"Of course."
He did not stop at handshakes.
He gave them hugs, signed phone cases and documents, and by the time the fan club members finally left the children's center, they were practically hopping with joy.
Meanwhile, Kang Hyuna had been quietly staring at her brother's face the whole time.
"Oppa."
Woojin glanced around and lowered his voice.
"Hey, go home now."
"But oppa—"
"I said go. I'll finish things here. Listen to me. If you don't, I'm cutting off your allowance."
At once, Kang Hyuna bent at the waist in a perfect ninety-degree bow.
"Oppa, you worked hard!"
Watching her run off, Woojin let out a small sigh and headed into the hall, where many people were waiting.
Just as expected—
"Oh my! Mr. Kang Woojin, it's so nice to meet you."
"Haha, you're so handsome in person! I heard you'll be taking on the role of sponsor for the children's center starting today?"
"And you're making an additional donation too!"
The local dignitaries, the children's center staff, and everyone who had participated in the event gathered around Woojin.
The mayor of Jinju was there as well, looking thoroughly proud.
From that point on, Woojin found himself swept up in all kinds of obligations.
"Mr. Woojin, could you take a photo with us? Ah, it's completely fine if you'd rather not."
"A photo is fine."
Because of the one hundred million won donation and his new position as the official sponsor of the children's center, Woojin had to go through the expected motions.
He took several group photos with the mayor and the local officials. The Jinju City YouTube team requested an interview, but Woojin declined.
In the end, he stayed there for about an hour.
The last person Woojin spoke with was the mayor of Jinju.
Compared to before, the mayor's expression looked much brighter now.
"Hahaha, Mr. Kang Woojin. Thank you very much for today. A lot of unexpected things happened."
"It was nothing."
"Ah, and about the ambassador role—"
"I don't think my schedule will allow it."
"I see. Understood. Then, would it be alright if news of today's visit is reported?"
"Yes."
After finishing his conversation with the mayor, Woojin spoke briefly with the children's center staff.
"I'll connect you with the staff member from my company."
It was part of the procedure for changing the sponsorship.
After a simple farewell, Kang Woojin left the hall.
What was notable, though, was—
For a moment, silence fell over the hall.
Then a few seconds later, loud cheers exploded all at once.
"Wow!! Kang Woojin looks incredible in person!!"
"At first he looked kind of cold, but he's so polite?!"
"That presence was seriously… unbelievable."
"An actor really is an actor. That atmosphere was anything but ordinary, right?!"
By then, Kang Woojin was already sitting inside his beloved car, parked outside.
"Ha, things got a little bigger than I expected."
Clicking his tongue lightly, he started the engine.
His destination, of course, was home.
As soon as he got there, Kang Hyuna rushed at him, but Kang Woojin subdued her easily. That night, Kang Woojin, Kang Hyuna, and their parents ate dinner together.
In any case, that day was the last day of Kang Woojin's break.
"Woojin, you're going to get busy again, aren't you?"
"Oppa! Tell me something about Beneficial Evil! I'm going to post it in the fan cafe!"
The dinner table was lively, but Kang Woojin felt surprisingly at ease.
'It's been a really long time since I had something like this. How long has it been?'
It had been a long time since the whole family had been gathered in one place.
Spending time like this together was not bad at all.
Still—
'I'm starting to feel restless again.'
He felt comfortable, but at the same time he also felt a strong urge to return to being actor Kang Woojin.
Had he already become a workaholic?
He could not say for sure, but after dinner, Kang Woojin said goodnight to Kang Woochul and Seo Hyunmi and went to bed.
Then—
He tapped the black square attached to the script he had brought with him.
In an instant, his vision was filled with the dark void.
"Let's see—"
He began putting actor Kang Woojin back on stage.
──────────
Monday the 28th, around noon.
Kang Woojin left Jinju and arrived at his officetel in Samseong-dong at around 12:10.
In the parking lot, a familiar van was already waiting right on time.
Naturally, it had come to pick him up.
"Hyung!!"
The first person to greet him was the solidly built Jang Suhwan.
He was far livelier than usual.
Since Woojin had been on break, the rest of the team had effectively been on break as well.
Soon, Kang Woojin climbed into the van and headed to BW Entertainment.
BW Entertainment looked like a battlefield.
There was hardly any trace left of its startup days. The staff, once only a few dozen strong, had grown to hundreds, and countless top actors had joined the company.
In any case, Woojin stepped into the greatly expanded CEO office.
Buried in work, Choi Sunggeon approached him with a sly smile beneath his ponytail.
"Did you get some good rest?"
For the first time in a while, Kang Woojin fully switched back into perfect concept mode.
"Yes, sir."
"There's a lot to talk about—what happened in Jinju, the related articles, and a bunch of other things. But first, let's start with this."
Choi Sunggeon picked up a transparent file folder from his desk and handed it to Woojin.
"They said there will be additional scenes in episodes 1 and 2 of Beneficial Evil. In other words, the runtime is increasing."
In other words, there had been changes to the script.