Kang Woojin's discovery of the knife-wielding heavyset woman had, in truth, been almost accidental.
He stood near the entrance of the massive studio dome, dressed neatly in a tuxedo, surrounded by his stylist team and foreign staff. They had gathered to fix his hair and makeup.
Up until that moment, Woojin had not been thinking about anything in particular. Outwardly calm, he was quietly impressed on the inside.
'Wow, this many people gathered just to do my makeup? Anyone watching would think I'm a Hollywood star.'
There were five members in his own stylist team alone, and seven from the foreign team. Just as his makeup was finishing and they were adjusting his tuxedo, Kara—who had been practicing choreography with the backup dancers—stepped out into the center of the dome. The foreign makeup team surrounding Woojin rushed toward her.
And in that moment, Kang Woojin noticed something.
'What?'
One of the heavyset women in the foreign makeup team was holding something strange. He had only caught a glimpse of it by chance while watching them hurry off.
It was silver.
It was a knife.
He did not know when she had pulled it out, but the heavyset woman was clearly holding a knife. Woojin frowned slightly as he watched them move away.
'Wait… was she holding that earlier?'
She had been standing right next to him just minutes ago. She had not left a strong impression, but she definitely had not been holding a knife back then. What was going on? Did makeup require knives here? Woojin was confused. His own team had never used anything like that before.
'It looks about the size of a small kitchen knife.'
Staring at the woman about five steps away, Woojin wore an expression of disbelief. Maybe Hollywood used equipment he did not know about. Maybe he had seen it wrong.
But what completely overturned that faint sense of reassurance was—
"!!"
The smile spreading across the heavyset woman's face as she ran.
At that point, Kang Woojin did not hesitate for even a second.
Wham!
He burst into a full sprint.
Whether it was martial arts or close-quarters combat activating did not matter. What mattered was that in Woojin's field of vision, there was only one thing—the heavyset woman rushing toward Miley Kara.
Behind him, his team shouted.
"Huh?! Oppa! Where are you going?!"
"Woojin oppa!!"
Soon, the screams of the foreign staff chasing after the woman mixed into the chaos.
"Kyaak!!"
They had clearly realized the knife in her hand.
'Damn it! I'm late!'
Dressed in a tuxedo, Kang Woojin ran like a runaway train, focused on a single objective. The entire studio dome plunged into chaos.
'There's no point telling anyone. I have to get there first!'
Even if he told someone, they might not believe him. Right now, the best option was for him to reach her first and handle it himself.
This was a matter of life and death.
Seven steps. Five steps. Three steps.
By the time the heavyset woman reached the blonde Kara, the knife was already raised, and Miley Kara had just barely opened her eyes. To Woojin, sprinting at full speed, the scene felt like slow motion.
'Because of CQC… I can see it.'
He calculated instantly. He needed not only to subdue the woman, but to separate her from Kara.
He was almost there.
Close enough now that he could hear the woman whisper in English.
"Goodbye, Miley Kara."
What nonsense.
In an instant, Kang Woojin lunged forward. His leg came up, targeting her side. He adjusted his strength. If he hit too hard, she might collide with someone nearby. There were staff all around. He needed the right distance to pull her away and subdue her immediately.
He lowered his leg halfway—
Whoosh!!
Just as the knife came down toward Kara, the heavyset woman staggered forward with a choked sound. Woojin's long leg swept past in front of Kara.
Her blue eyes widened as they followed his movement.
"…What?"
There was something both indifferent and aggressive in his expression.
But Kang Woojin did not spare her even a glance.
Thud!
He moved immediately.
As he passed by Kara, he muttered a short, firm command.
"Call security."
Then he rushed toward the heavyset woman, who had fallen a few steps ahead. Her face twisted in pain as she let out a short cry.
"Kyaak!"
Grinding her teeth, she jerked her head up. She could not understand what had just happened.
'Why… why did I suddenly get thrown?!'
That confusion was written all over her face.
At that moment, Kara's sharp voice rang out.
"Here!! Over here!!!"
Only then did the people inside the studio dome begin turning their attention toward her. Dozens of backup dancers, staff members, even large-bodied guards—all focused on Kara.
"Kara? What's going on over there?"
"Hey! Move aside!"
"Miley!!!!"
More than a dozen guards began rushing over. Despite their size, they moved quickly. Screams and shouts erupted from all directions, and in an instant, the dome filled with fear.
Chaos spread like wildfire.
But only one person—
—remained still.
Kang Woojin stood in front of the fallen woman without moving.
"..."
He was calm. Cold.
There was not even a hint of tension in his eyes as he looked down at her.
The woman trembled slightly before suddenly jumping to her feet. Her eyes were filled with rage and madness. She knew she had failed.
'Damn it!! I couldn't stab Miley Kara!!!'
Her gaze darted wildly around. If she could not reach Kara, then she would stab someone else.
Anyone.
Otherwise, she felt like she would go insane.
There was no time left. Once the guards reached her, she would not be able to do anything.
The problem was the Asian man standing right in front of her.
Because of him, she could not move freely. The distance was too close.
Her thoughts began to twist.
"Fine, then I'll stab you!!!"
With a scream, the heavyset woman lunged at Kang Woojin.
At the unmoving, silent man in front of her.
When he had kicked her earlier, she had assumed he had stiffened from shock and that she had simply been unlucky.
She had chosen the wrong target.
Completely the wrong target.
If possible, Woojin did not want to touch her. This woman—no, this criminal—was unpredictable. No one could know what a provoked criminal might do.
But subduing someone charging at him like that—
—was nothing.
Whoosh.
Woojin lowered his gaze.
She did not even know how to properly hold a knife. If she stabbed like that, she would injure her own hand worse than her target.
But it did not matter.
The woman thrust the knife toward him.
Woojin sidestepped in an instant, grabbing her wrist. Then he pulled her forward and hooked her leg, sending her crashing down.
She fell helplessly.
But—
Whoosh.
Woojin did not let go of her wrist.
Her arm remained caught as she dangled awkwardly. She let out a strange scream and tried to stand, but Woojin pulled her arm forward.
Her face and stomach dragged across the floor.
Without hesitation, Woojin slammed her wrist down and pressed her hand with his foot.
"Grrrk!!"
The knife slipped from her hand as she struggled.
Woojin kicked it away without hesitation.
Subdued.
No—could this even be called subduing?
It was as if the woman was moving exactly as Woojin intended, while he simply stood there, expressionless, looking down at her trembling body with cold composure.
In that brief moment, Kara, who had witnessed everything, covered her mouth with both hands.
'...My God.'
Strangely, her gaze was fixed only on Kang Woojin, and her heart was pounding wildly. The recent incident was certainly part of the reason—but somehow, half of it seemed to be because of him.
The once noisy studio dome grew slightly quieter.
And then—
Bang!!
Twelve guards rushed in and quickly restrained the woman on the ground.
──────────
Later.
After the woman who had attacked Kara was subdued, the massive studio dome descended into complete chaos. Of the roughly hundred staff members present, half were screaming or shouting, while the other half crowded around Miley Kara, checking her condition. Kara's team was no different.
All of them were focused on making sure she was okay.
Her manager, Jonathan, checked her physical and mental state while shouting at those around him.
"Did someone call the police?! When are they getting here?!"
As expected, most people were shaken in the chaos. The dome was filled with shouting voices.
Amid that, Jonathan and several staff members searched for Kang Woojin.
He stood beside the restrained woman, expressionless. Choi Sunggeon and Woojin's team were already surrounding him, bombarding him with worried questions, while Jonathan and dozens of staff members expressed their gratitude to him.
Even so, the atmosphere remained chaotic.
Some staff looked as though their souls had been drained from them. If not for Kang Woojin, Kara would have been in serious danger, so their reaction was only natural.
Meanwhile, Woojin maintained his composure.
Or rather, he maintained the appearance of it.
Inside, he felt an overwhelming sense of relief.
'That was seriously close… damn, that was insane.'
Subduing the woman had not been difficult, but witnessing such an absurd situation unfold right in front of him was still unsettling.
At the same time, he felt a faint sense of disdain toward Hollywood.
'Is this kind of terror just normal here?'
Just imagining what might have happened if he had not noticed in time sent a chill down his spine.
He looked down at the heavyset woman now restrained by the large guards. She struggled, letting out strange groans, foam gathering at her mouth.
What sent a shiver through Woojin was the way she stared at Miley Kara with eyes full of madness.
'Is she seriously insane?'
At that moment, the guards restraining her kept glancing at Woojin.
'What was that movement just now? It was fast… precise. No wasted motion at all.'
'That didn't look like luck. He's definitely trained in something.'
'No hesitation at all… even though he could have been in danger himself.'
Of course, Miley Kara, surrounded by countless staff, was also staring intently at Kang Woojin.
"..."
'Why is my heart still beating this fast?'
A strange expression crossed her face.
Right then—
Waaang!!
LA police cars arrived in an imposing line in front of the studio dome.
Watching them, Woojin found himself thinking inwardly.
'Wow… this really feels like a movie.'
About two hours later.
Inside a large van.
Among the many vehicles parked in the outdoor lot in front of the studio dome, Miley Kara sat alone inside a particularly tall and spacious van.
"..."
Her makeup had been removed, and her blonde hair was no longer tied. Her expression was dark.
No—she looked shaken.
She had always carried a somewhat cold aura, but now that coldness felt even sharper. She seemed lost in deep thought.
As she sat there blankly, the moment when she had nearly been attacked replayed in her mind.
The woman's chilling smile. Her voice. The knife that had almost pierced into her body. The way she had frozen, unable to do anything.
The more she replayed it, the more horrifying it became.
Feeling nauseous, Kara closed her eyes.
"Ah…"
It would not have been surprising if she developed psychological issues after experiencing something like that. No matter how often such incidents occurred in Hollywood, seeing them in the news and experiencing them firsthand were entirely different things.
Even if she had stopped working for months, no one would have blamed her.
But Kara was a professional.
'Get a grip. If you break here, you'll be trapped by this forever.'
For over a decade, Miley Kara had remained at the top of Hollywood as both a singer and an actress. This was her first time experiencing something like this, but she had endured countless hardships to get where she was.
If she broke down now, everything would have been for nothing.
'It's terrifying, but I have to endure it. I have to overcome it.'
She had dealt with paparazzi, accidents during filming, stalking, even absurd rumors. Yet she had always kept her composure and continued forward.
This incident would pass as well.
It would become just another terrible event in her life.
Slowly, Kara opened her eyes. Her deep blue irises were still tinged with unease, but she looked calmer than before. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
At that moment—
Knock, click.
The back door of the van opened, and her shaved-headed manager Jonathan appeared, his face filled with concern.
"Kara, are you okay?"
Much calmer now, Kara brushed back her blonde hair with her fingers and nodded.
"Yeah."
"Like we discussed, I scheduled an appointment with a psychiatrist for tomorrow morning."
"Thank you."
"…I'm sorry. This is mostly my fault. I should have prevented it. I should have checked more thoroughly beforehand."
Jonathan blamed himself.
But Kara did not.
"It's okay. Don't do that. It's no one's fault. Everything doesn't have to fall apart because of one person. What happened happened. We just need to be more careful from now on."
Standing outside the van, Jonathan looked at Kara for a moment before suddenly turning his head.
Someone was approaching.
From the right, a black-haired man walked toward them.
Kang Woojin.
Since Kara had said she wanted to speak with him, Jonathan quietly stepped aside.
Of course—
"Mr. Kang Woojin."
As Woojin passed, Jonathan extended his hand.
"Thank you very much."
"..."
Woojin silently shook his hand before stepping into the van where Kara was sitting.
Click.
As soon as the door closed, a brief silence settled inside.
"..."
"..."
It was Miley Kara who broke it first.
Meeting Kang Woojin's eyes, she spoke with a serious expression.
"I owe you a debt, and quite a large one at that."