In This Life I Will Die as an Actress Not a Villainess Chapter 107

In an instant, the team atmosphere turned into a funeral home.

“How can this happen so suddenly!”

“We didn’t hear any explanation about this before the program… And of all people, Haneul unnie!”

“But why go this far?? That team’s doing well too.”

It was a bolt from the blue right in the middle of building such solid teamwork.

That’s when Min Sohyeon, who’d been keeping her mouth tightly shut with clear displeasure, spoke up.

“They want to take whoever looks like the biggest ace. Then we need to bring an ace too.”

“Ace exchange? Who? Wait, don’t tell me…”

After hearing those words, Lee Hyoseo wore an expression showing she’d figured out the answer mid-reply.

What, what is it?

Am I the only one who doesn’t know?

While my thought process froze, all four mentees had faces suggesting they’d all arrived at the same conclusion.

When I wore an expression showing I was the only one in the dark, Kim Yeongi spoke three clear syllables.

“Do Changhyeon.”

“Huh?”

When I asked back in a foolish voice, Yoon Haneul nodded with resignation.

“We need to bring Do Changhyeon for it to benefit our team at all. Though I’m not even on our team anymore…”

Having said that, Yoon Haneul looked tearful again.

I also wore a tearful expression the moment I heard Do Changhyeon’s name.

Do Changhyeon? Kids.

What are you even saying?

But then someone knocked on the practice room door.

When I turned my head that way, the door slowly opened.

Along with a creaking sound, Do Changhyeon appeared standing there with a tense expression.

“…?”

Everyone including me stared at Do Changhyeon with question marks floating above their heads.

Do Changhyeon clamped his mouth shut and looked at me briefly before bowing deeply at the waist.

“I requested the trade! Would you please accept me!”

“Excuse me…?”

* * *

A short while later, a small lounge.

I sat facing Do Changhyeon across a narrow table.

Cameras that had stubbornly followed us were filming our figures submerged in an awkward atmosphere.

I broke the silence and asked.

“You want to come to our team?”

At that, Do Changhyeon nodded.

“Mentor Yuseon’s teaching was really good, but I wanted to learn from Mentor Han Sena at least once. And actually, I wrote your name as my first choice from the beginning.”

“May I ask why?”

Do Changhyeon stared at me quietly with wavering eyes.

Then spoke in a small voice.

“Because it felt like I could lean on you…”

The moment I heard that weak answer, I wanted to grab my forehead.

I looked straight at Do Changhyeon.

“Changhyeon-ssi, what you can lean on a mentor for is skill-related matters—nothing more, nothing less.”

“Ah, yes…”

Do Changhyeon immediately made a deflated face.

Looking at that face, I asked.

“What do you think your strengths and weaknesses are, Changhyeon-ssi?”

“Strengths and weaknesses?”

“Yes, I need to know to decide whether to trade or not.”

Do Changhyeon hesitated.

“My strength is… when I act, I’m good at ‘pretending not to be me.’ I know how to become a bit shameless. My weakness is… normally I always lack confidence and I’m weak.”

Looking at Do Changhyeon like that, I answered bluntly.

“I don’t want to take on a mentee like that.”

* * *

“Mentor Park Eunki is releasing Gwak Seonghyeok mentee to the Heaven Earth Star Earth team.”

The ‘Be Audition’ studio building fell into chaos.

All four teams had been in the middle of gradually building teamwork in their own ways and at their own pace.

“Wow, did you hear? A release.”

“Isn’t Seonghyeok-ssi getting kicked out for ranking last in individual scores? Mentor Park Eunki really has no sympathy…”

The mentees gathered in the waiting room murmured among themselves.

“But I figured Mentor Hwang Yuseon would covet Haneul-ssi.”

“The Dolce Vita team had such a good atmosphere… I wonder what’ll happen.”

“It’s an ace exchange anyway. They’re bringing Changhyeon-ssi, aren’t they?”

As everyone chattered away like that, one mentee pointed with a finger beyond the window.

“Isn’t that Mentor Han and Changhyeon-ssi over there?”

“Where, where?”

The mentees crowded around the small window, peering at the lounge window across the way.

“They must be talking about the trade. Crazy.”

“But somehow the atmosphere looks kind of brutal?”

“Changhyeon-ssi’s face looks like death?”

“Oh oh, they’re getting up now. Hey, move, move.”

When Han Sena, having finished the meeting, opened the lounge door and emerged, the mentees scattered in a flash.

* * *

At that moment, Ha Seongjun’s team was also submerged in a dismal atmosphere.

With a face covered in tears, Yoo Hyejin stood up, dusting herself off.

“I’m okay. I was curious about Mentor Park Eunki too. Everyone better brace yourselves now that I’m your rival.”

No one could laugh at Yoo Hyejin’s joke after she’d been confirmed as the trade member.

Ha Seongjun recited curses inwardly.

‘What kind of system is this garbage?’

Not only sending away his own team member, but he was already worried about the mental state of the new team member coming in.

The mentee with the lowest individual score was scheduled to be released from Park Eunki’s team and come over.

His head throbbed.

On Ha Seongjun’s team, Yang Geon had been in last place in individual scores by a narrow margin, not Yoo Hyejin.

If they were weighing trade fairness, sending Yang Geon to Park Eunki would’ve been correct.

However, Yang Geon had such a timid personality that his mental state would clearly be shattered beyond recovery.

In the end, Yoo Hyejin, who’d quickly assessed the situation, raised her hand and volunteered for the trade.

“The score difference isn’t even that big anyway.”

Ha Seongjun spoke with a complicated heart.

“This is driving me crazy… I’ll take you there.”

Ha Seongjun, who’d been keeping silent, left the practice room with Yoo Hyejin.

The empty hallway echoed with murmuring sounds leaking from each waiting room fallen into chaos.

Ha Seongjun sighed quietly and spoke.

“Hyejin, even though you’re going to another team, contact me anytime. I’ll help you.”

“Yes, don’t worry too much. I’m the one going.”

“If you stay looking all sweet and nice like that even after going to Team 300, you won’t survive.”

Hearing Ha Seongjun’s words, Yoo Hyejin laughed lightly.

That’s when someone walked toward them from the end of the hallway.

“Oh? Changhyeon-ssi.”

Do Changhyeon, with a sunken expression, walked over and looked back and forth between Ha Seongjun and Yoo Hyejin with a surprised face.

“Ah, Changhyeon-ssi decided to trade too… How did it go?”

When Yoo Hyejin asked Do Changhyeon the question, Ha Seongjun showed a moment of curiosity.

“That is…”

Do Changhyeon couldn’t answer easily and drew out his words.

* * *

One hour after the filming break.

“Trade complete. Trade complete. Each team please gather in the practice rooms with your new members.”

The final announcement echoed through the hallway.

Hearing that sound, I stood in front of the mentor’s practice room door again.

In my hand was a paper the mentor had ordered me to bring.

‘Changhyeon-ssi, there’s a condition for the trade. Write a killer self-introduction.’

‘Excuse me?’

‘Write a self-introduction to read in front of our team members. I’ll decide after hearing it. But honestly.’

Black letters densely filled more than two pages of paper.

Sweat from my hands had darkened the paper’s edges.

“I wrote too much.”

A sigh escaped involuntarily.

If I fail the trade here, what happens to me?

Mentor Han Sena’s resolute expression wouldn’t leave my mind.

I’d been intimidated the whole time in front of that expression.

Not only that, but I kept getting caught up in the feeling that she was seeing right through me.

From the preliminary audition onward, Han Sena mentor’s gaze had been, how to put it…

It felt like she was digging up the weakest parts of my inner self that even I didn’t know.

I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what, or what the mentor was thinking…

At least I was certain that in that gaze, I was realizing my own weakness more desperately than ever before.

Especially when watching the mentor act.

Watching the mentor from a distance like that, I’d instinctively sensed it.

That I absolutely had to learn from Mentor Han Sena.

That I needed this person to overcome myself.

But I never expected to receive this kind of initiation-like special assignment.

I took a deep breath and brought my hand to the doorknob.

I squeezed my eyes shut and opened the door.

Click—

“You’re here, Changhyeon-ssi?”

Han Sena mentor and the team members stood up from their seats, greeting me warmly.

“Did you prepare your self-introduction?”

“Yes.”

“Then shall we hear it?”

The mentor took a seat right in front of me.

This immediately…

The fingertips holding the paper trembled.

I’d rather do improvised acting a hundred times over.

Because I can just put on a poker face and be done with it.

Of all things, a self-introduction.

I looked at the team members with sparkling eyes and the countless cameras, then just blurted out the first sentence.

“I’m a liar.”

The mentor and team members widened their eyes and stared at me.

To avoid being swayed by those reactions, I immediately read the next sentence.

“The day I first started acting was… when I was 11 years old. I grew up with a mother who ran a side dish shop and a father who worked at construction sites. I told my classmates that my mother was a teacher and my father was a cool diplomat. That lie continued for over five years.”

I didn’t have the courage to look at people’s faces, so I fixed my gaze on the paper.

And I continued reciting my history that made the atmosphere heavy.

A self-introduction no one would be curious about.

I couldn’t even gauge how many minutes it took to read through every sentence.

“…Living my whole life not exposing my shame, I got good at ‘pretending not to be me’ and pretending to act. The problem is I always hate myself and lack confidence. That’s all… Do Changhyeon’s stupid self-introduction.”

“…”

A terrible silence flowed through the practice room.

No one would be able to speak easily.

If it were me, I’d be like that too, if it were me…

“Changhyeon-ssi, take your eyes off the paper.”

Hearing the mentor’s voice, I looked up in surprise.

“I told you to straighten your shoulders. That was an excellent self-introduction. I listened well. Thank you.”

At that, the team members smiled slightly, following the mentor’s lead.

“…”

The mentor spoke with eyes whose depths I still couldn’t read.

“Welcome to our team, Changhyeon-ssi.”

“Th-thank you.”

Do Changhyeon bowed deeply at the waist again.

* * *

It had been a completely unexpected self-introduction.

I’d thought he’d hesitate and bring some model answer he’d seen somewhere.

It was a fairly admirable challenge.

Now what should I do…

I looked at Do Changhyeon, who’d ultimately become my mentee.

His face had turned deathly pale.

How on earth am I supposed to change this kid?

After hearing the honest self-introduction, I didn’t want to pretend not to know anymore.

This thought entered my mind.

If someone helped him, could Do Changhyeon live a life different from what I remember in his past life?

I’m living like this after getting a second chance—why couldn’t others do the same?

Especially such a young talent…

I couldn’t agonize any longer.

Alright, let’s somehow make it work.

Having decided to commit, I took a deep breath.

The mentees spoke warmly to Do Changhyeon, who was still trembling.

“Changhyeon-ssi, what are we supposed to do when you’re this good even at self-introductions?”

“Changhyeon-ssi’s fans are going to cry watching the broadcast.”

“Come to think of it, Changhyeon-ssi is the lone male now. Let’s work well together!”

Watching that scene, I added my words too.

“Let’s all join forces. Happily, with smiles.”

“Yes!”

The mentees answered in unison.

Do Changhyeon also nodded.