In This Life I Will Die as an Actress Not a Villainess Chapter 122

I panicked when I saw letters I’d never encountered before.

What are those numbers again?

Rumble—

That’s when the stopped elevator began moving again with a violent shake.

Bright lights snapped on above my head.

As the darkness cleared, my reflection appeared in the mirror across from me, pressed close against Kang Jio.

Embarrassment washed over me like receding tide.

Not knowing what to do, I turned my head to the side.

Then Kang Jio switched off his flashlight and stepped back.

‘Ding— First floor.’

The elevator doors opened.

Kang Jio headed out of the elevator without looking back.

My legs went weak and I collapsed into a sitting position.

What on earth is happening.

Did I really just enter the world of the <Say Your Name> script?

As Yu Dayang?

And with Kang Jio wearing the face of my co-star, no less.

“Dayang! Yu Dayang!”

Through the open elevator doors, a man wearing glasses pushed through the gathered crowd toward me.

“I’m the manager! Please move!!”

Manager?

The man approached and removed his coat to cover my face.

“Are you okay? Why were you in a place like this with Kang Jio?? Are you seriously trying to create a scandal?”

As I looked up at the man rattling off words rapid-fire, I quickly pieced together his character.

Manager Kang from the script, who cared for Yu Dayang devotedly around the clock.

* * *

“Alright everyone, let’s move quickly through the shoot!”

“They say not even the miracle healer could cure a celebrity’s attitude problem. How can she be two hours late.”

“Quiet, she’s coming!”

The manager dragged me straight to an advertising shoot location.

The staff who’d been waiting over two hours because of Yu Dayang all wore scowling expressions.

Ugh…. this is chilling.

Having lived as an actor myself, this situation felt like hell.

What must the staff think of me.

While I muttered to myself, a staff member approached and handed me several props for the shoot.

I jumped to my feet, desperately wanting to apologize to at least one person.

But suddenly my hand moved on its own accord.

My hand knocked aside one of the props and carelessly flung it away.

“?!?!”

I stared at my hand in shock.

But I wasn’t done being shocked yet.

“Isn’t this a budget brand product? Even if it’s just a prop, don’t you know giving me something like this lowers both the ad quality and my image?”

Words tumbled out of my mouth of their own volition.

Completely rude ones at that.

“Hup….”

I quickly clamped my hand over my mouth.

But contrary to my expectations, the staff member picked up the prop and bowed at the waist.

“I apologize. I’ll bring something else.”

No, no.

That’s not it!!

The staff member hurried back to the other staff members with an awkward expression.

Even worse, the manager oppa, the advertising PD, and the other staff who’d witnessed this situation didn’t bat an eye.

My legs went weak again.

This can’t be.

I collapsed into the chair as if falling and grabbed my head.

Come to think of it, Yu Dayang….

She was a top star with an attitude as bad as her perfectionism, second only to Kang Jio.

Manager oppa watched me slumped over and asked worriedly.

“Are you struggling? You must be tired from not sleeping.”

In the midst of all this, I looked up blankly at manager oppa who was looking after me like nothing was wrong.

Another staff member who’d overheard him quickly brought over coffee.

Words of thanks wouldn’t come out of my mouth.

It was the same sensation as in the elevator earlier.

Like someone was controlling my voice.

Then the staff member accidentally spilled a bit of coffee on my pants.

“Hup.”

In that instant, the staff member, the manager, and all the other staff froze solid as if nailed to the ground.

It’s okay….

The words wouldn’t come out this time either.

Why can’t I control my own body.

“I’m so sorry, truly sorry!!”

While the staff member bowed repeatedly as if about to prostrate themselves, I internally stomped my feet in frustration and wracked my brain.

Then suddenly.

I realized this must be another new system for this possession.

Wait, so then….

I opened my mouth again.

“Bring me different clothes.”

When I spoke words Yu Dayang would likely say in this situation, they flowed right out.

Ha, so that’s how it works.

I have to act according to the character.

That was the new rule added to this script world.

If I didn’t speak in character, not only would my voice fail me but my body would move on its own.

Don’t act on your own—move only within the given persona.

One more thing to adapt to in this new world.

* * *

However, some things never change.

The first day of possession was utterly brutal.

Between elegantly shooting the ad and playing the diva Yu Dayang when cameras weren’t rolling.

I had to endure a grueling fifteen-hour shooting marathon.

The moment I got home, I collapsed onto the bed.

In the living room of this house that looked easily over two hundred square meter, my photo hung massive as a door under a fancy chandelier.

What an incredible narcissist….

I stared at that photo.

Like Kang Jio who wore Lee Seonho’s face, the Yu Dayang I’d possessed also had my exact face.

This is a first.

Looking at myself posing dramatically made me feel strangely embarrassed.

I buried my face in the pillow.

I’m exhausted to death.

While trying to just close my eyes and fall asleep, I suddenly remembered Kang Jio from the elevator.

‘Are you going to pretend you don’t remember again this time? It’s not like you have dissociative identity disorder.’

Today, not everything I experienced matched what was written in the script.

But this one line was exactly the same as in the script.

The final scene of episode 2.

Kang Jio still didn’t seem to know Yu Dayang was suffering from multiple personalities.

Come to think of it, me too….

So I’m going to experience Yu Dayang’s other personalities in this place?

That means right now, inside this body, several other personalities are sleeping.

Goosebumps rose at the thought.

Then how do I meet these personalities?

My head felt stuffy like it was wrapped in fog.

I feel like I’m dying.

How am I supposed to overcome this obstacle.

I sighed and rolled over to stare at the ceiling.

In the midst of it all, drowsiness poured over me.

“Win Kang Jio’s heart… what does that even mean.”

Aren’t they going to fall in love anyway?

“Haaam, I’m so sleepy….”

And just like that, I mistakenly thought I’d received a fairly easy mission this time.

I fell fast asleep.

* * *

How long had I been sleeping.

Something warm, soft, and smooth touched my fingertips.

Mmm, am I still dreaming?

My mind felt hazy.

I sank deeper into the sensation at my fingertips, burrowing in.

It’s warm.

What is this.

What kind of dream is this…

But then a familiar soap scent pricked my nose.

“Mmm?”

My eyes snapped open.

But the bed I’d been lying in was nowhere to be found, and instead I saw the exposed chest of some man with several shirt buttons undone.

Lipstick stains were smeared all over his shirt.

Wh-what on earth.

I hurriedly lifted my head to check the man’s face.

It was Kang Jio.

Kang Jio was pinned beneath me, gripping my wrist and struggling desperately to push me away.

Damn.

I stared at Kang Jio with terrified eyes.

Once again my body was moving on its own like yesterday, clinging stubbornly to Kang Jio.

Please just don’t drag me to the police station.

No, wait.

Actually, please do take me and lock me up.

While I cried internally, Kang Jio finally managed to push me away and fled to a corner after scrambling off the sofa.

“How did you even get in here? Are you insane?”

Looking around, it was a different setting from my home.

A living room decorated neatly in black and white tones.

But oddly, the house structure resembled Yu Dayang’s place.

I recalled from the script that Yu Dayang and Kang Jio lived in the same apartment complex.

So this must be…

Kang Jio’s house?

My mouth moved on its own again.

“I saw your passcode. The day you drunkenly brought me here.”

Kang Jio let out a hollow laugh.

Watching his face, I felt dizzy inside.

It felt like Seonho-ssi, whom I’d just met, was looking at me with contempt.

Kang Jio lowered his voice and asked.

“What exactly are you.”

“Me? Are you asking my name?”

“I know your name.”

“Really?”

I smiled thinly and took a step toward Kang Jio.

Kang Jio took a step back.

Kang Jio furrowed his brow as if he couldn’t understand.

“You’re Yu Dayang.”

“No.”

“…??”

I was just as shocked as Kang Jio, listening to the words flowing from my mouth.

“My name is Baek Jangmi.”

“What?”

Kang Jio froze for a moment.

I was equally stunned hearing the expected words.

Kang Jio asked.

“Is that your real name? Was Yu Dayang a stage name?”

Then I—no, Baek Jangmi—laughed as if that was quite amusing.

“Yu Dayang is someone else. Don’t tell me you hooked up with her too?”

Hearing Baek Jangmi’s line, which was way more explicit than in the script, I gaped internally.

Kang Jio looked at me with a confused expression.

“What exactly are you….”

“I told you, Baek Jangmi. Yu Dayang is someone else, okay? She’s not me.”

A brief silence fell.

Kang Jio asked haltingly.

“……You’re not seriously telling me it’s dissociative identity disorder or something?”

Then my side answered clearly.

“It’s not ‘or something’—it’s exactly that.”

Kang Jio stood frozen in shock.

Soon his face showed he finally understood everything that had happened.

Another brief silence passed.

“Then you’re… not Yu Dayang?”

I nodded.

Kang Jio let out a hollow laugh and leaned against the wall.

It took me just as long as Kang Jio to process this situation.

Even though the detailed dialogue was slightly different from the script, the shock wouldn’t fade despite the similarity to what was written.

What does it feel like to become a different personality?

No, when personalities change, there’s probably no time to feel anything.

Only later when you return.

When you have to deal with the aftermath of what another personality did, that’s when the shock hits.

It was horrifying.

So do I have to imitate Baek Jangmi now, just like I imitated Yu Dayang at the shoot?

Will I be able to control the situation that way?

That’s when Baek Jangmi spoke again.

“You like me.”

It wasn’t in the script.

But Kang Jio showed a flash of flustered confusion.

Then asked.

“What about you then.”

“Me? Well—”

When I didn’t answer easily, as if testing the waters, Kang Jio looked down at his shirt.

Then said in a slightly angry voice.

“Is this the kind of person you are? You do things like this without any feelings, Baek Jangmi?”

“Oh my, getting so angry. I guess you meant it after all that pretending?”

Please.

I desperately wanted to shut my mouth.

But then Baek Jangmi said something meaningful.

“If you like me, don’t hang around with other women.”

“What?”

“There are four more personalities in this body, including Yu Dayang.”

“….”

“Only look for me. Only be with me. It’ll be easy to tell us apart.”

“…….”

“The others are pretty boring.”

That’s when it felt like I’d been hit in the back of the head.

I finally understood what this possession mission was about.

Win Kang Jio’s heart.

In the script, Kang Jio thought he didn’t care whether Asia’s star was suffering from multiple personalities or the common cold…

But that was just an illusion.

Without Yu Dayang or Kang Jio realizing it, all the personalities had fallen for Kang Jio.

That’s why in the script, every time each personality met Kang Jio, they fought to claim him.

To sum it up, this possession world’s concept was a romance war itself.

And I was currently deployed on that battlefield as Yu Dayang.

I had to defeat the four personalities and win Kang Jio’s heart.

From inside Baek Jangmi, I looked at Kang Jio with confused eyes.