In This Life I Will Die as an Actress Not a Villainess Chapter 132

As ShowMedia representatives gathered in clusters of three or four and started chattering away in English, staff members walking by frowned.

Lee Seonho sighed quietly watching their retreating figures.

Sensing the mood turning sour, he quickly changed the subject.

“By the way, Seonho-ssi, I didn’t know you were such a passionate guy. Your competitive spirit is incredible.”

At that, Lee Seonho chuckled.

“Yeah. Still, occasions like this never quite feel comfortable.”

“Really?”

Lee Seonho let out an honest complaint.

“For me, the days when buyers come to watch filming are the most uncomfortable.”

“Really? I had no idea you were bothered by it.”

“It’s not about how much I’ll be loved or how interesting our work will be. It feels like they’re only seeing me in terms of money—how much I’m worth.”

Hearing those words, I wrinkled my nose and smiled knowingly.

Well, that’s how our work goes.

It was a gesture of empathy.

For Lee Seonho, who spent twenty-four hours consumed by thoughts of acting, it probably felt like this.

Maybe similar to how I felt back at AK when they treated the past version of me like a cash cow—a place I’d never return to.

Especially for Lee Seonho, who seemed somewhat similar to me, those people must not have looked pleasant at all right now.

Since they showed zero etiquette or manners.

I quickly shook my head to clear my thoughts.

I couldn’t afford to get caught up in negative thinking.

I still had plenty of work left to do.

‘Thank you too. I don’t know who you are, but you’re one of us, right? Please take care of us.’

‘Farewell, outsider. Make the people of your world love us.’

‘If you act worse than me, you’re dead. Bye.’

The greetings and requests the personalities had left behind as they disappeared from the script echoed in my ears.

I wasn’t sure when it started, but these personalities had definitely sensed my presence.

Their first and final farewells had been filled with warmth.

Maybe that’s why.

A sense of responsibility to fulfill their requests had settled deep in my heart.

* * *

The next scene was Jung Sewoon’s first appearance.

It was a scene where Yu Dayang and Kang Jio were putting their heads together to clean up an accident Baek Jangmi had caused.

At that moment, Kang Jio receives a call from the company reporting a problem with an important advertising contract.

Jung Sewoon was supposed to seize this opportunity to appear suddenly and confidently offer to help.

But the director and I had been stuck agonizing over this entrance scene for a good ten minutes.

More precisely, the director was agonizing over me as I agonized.

“Sena-ssi, what’s bothering you?”

“Well, it’s just…”

As pre-arranged, Jung Sewoon was supposed to pop out wearing horn-rimmed glasses.

But now that we were actually about to film it, I’d started hating that concept.

That’s when an idea suddenly flashed through my mind.

* * *

“Is your dream to be a rich sucker?”

I clicked the pen twice while looking at Kang Jio.

My voice came out calm, contrasting with the blunt content.

At that, Kang Jio raised one eyebrow while looking at me.

“I run an entire company, you know. First time hearing words like that.”

“Everyone around you must be pretty spineless, huh?”

Click-click with the pen again.

I swept my hair back and sat with one arm draped casually over the back of the sofa.

At that, Kang Jio’s lips curved up slightly as if finding me interesting.

“Well, at least I’m grateful there’s no one as cocky as you around.”

Hearing that, I smirked too.

And clicked the pen once more.

This time I pressed it more slowly, with pauses between clicks.

The silence inside the office filled with the sound of the pen clicking twice.

As if using that sound to express sparks flying between us.

Click—

Kang Jio’s gaze dropped to my fingertips pressing the pen.

Then slowly traced up my arm before returning to my face.

We locked eyes like that without a word for a long moment.

“Cut. Okay!”

The moment the director’s okay signal dropped, staff members let out sounds of “Whew” and “Phew.”

“Thought I’d suffocate to death.”

“Wow, the atmosphere was so…”

“Sexy.”

Lee Seonho also loosened his tie slightly as if he’d been holding his breath.

When I looked at the director, he gave me a thumbs up.

“A hundred times better than trying to solve it with just glasses, Sena-ssi.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Would’ve been a disaster if you’d just worn glasses. This was so much more captivating.”

Hearing that, I grinned.

Then turned my head and sat quietly, recalling Jung Sewoon.

Jung Sewoon hadn’t had habits like this.

I could only vaguely sense things like her completely different gaze, speech patterns, and attitude from the other personalities.

She’d been the most prideful, intelligent, and hot-tempered personality Yu Hayeong possessed.

But it had been really difficult to express that with just facial expressions and tone.

I’d worried her charm might not come through properly, overshadowed by Baek Jangmi who’d always been causing trouble while radiating energy.

Jung Sewoon definitely had just as much chemistry with Kang Jio as the other personalities, but I’d been internally agonizing over how to express that on set.

So I’d thought about creating detailed characteristics.

Since acting isn’t simple reproduction.

Since ‘my Jung Sewoon’ isn’t the real Jung Sewoon.

I needed a way to easily convey Jung Sewoon to people.

That’s why I’d come up with the voice tone and small habits.

I wanted to create big differences from the other personalities through very subtle, minor details.

It would need to be well-expressed within the camera.

That’s when Lee Seonho, as if reading my mind, stood up with his hands in his pockets and smiled slightly.

“The Jung Sewoon character is fun, isn’t it?”

“You think so?”

“The characters are coming out two or three times more interesting than the script. If you keep building up each character like this, we could easily beat <Powerful Woman>.”

Lee Seonho left the rest unsaid and grinned wickedly.

Can’t be stopped.

Seeing that face made me laugh.

Where does this guy’s competitive spirit even come from?

That’s when staff members moving equipment nearby perked up their ears and chimed in.

“Whoa, we’re allowed to mention the <Powerful Woman> team now?”

“I thought it was taboo.”

Oh? I laughed hearing that.

But then the surrounding staff members started voicing things they’d been holding back.

“Let’s take first place, everyone.”

“Honestly, I think it’s possible.”

“My friend’s working lighting on that team, and they’re grinding their teeth too.”

“Really? Damn, we can’t lose either. Everyone, let’s live at the studio.”

“What are you saying? You do it alone.”

The staff burst out laughing in unison.

I awkwardly laughed along, blending into the group.

Seeing the team members who’d been conscious of the <Powerful Woman> team all along, an uncomfortable feeling kept creeping into a corner of my heart.

Because it reminded me of Seo Jaeyeon.

Had I been too complacent all this time?

Actually, this kind of atmosphere is natural when a rivalry forms.

Ugh, when did things get so tangled up with Seo Jaeyeon?

Not just Seo Jaeyeon, but Minhui-ssi too.

I shook my head vigorously.

I didn’t want to waste energy on those thoughts right now.

I quickly dusted myself off and stood up.

* * *

Meanwhile, at that same time, on the <Powerful Woman> team’s set.

In a corner of the police station set, Seo Jaeyeon and Sung Minhui were exchanging lines.

Between them lay a case file on a criminal.

“The shaman was right. She said you and I would have a love triangle over a man.”

“And that turned out to be fighting over a criminal. Either way, this case is ours to handle.”

“Yeah, get lost. This man is mine.”

“Don’t come crying later asking to cooperate on the investigation.”

In the drama, the two detective characters had been best friends since childhood and now worked in the same precinct, getting entangled as bitter rivals whenever cases arose.

The staff couldn’t help but admire the two veteran actresses’ skilled back-and-forth.

“Cut, okay!! Wow, we’re going to be huge, right?”

The director didn’t hide his excitement and poured out praise.

Then the staff got fired up too and added their comments.

“Let’s take first place!!”

“This is a hundred times fresher than those tired romcoms, seriously.”

“How far along is <Say Your Name> in filming right now?”

This team was also extremely conscious of their rival team.

Sung Minhui beamed with excitement at the staff’s reaction.

“Of course we’re taking first place! Who’s filming this?”

The staff cheered.

Watching those staff members and Sung Minhui, Seo Jaeyeon half-heartedly smiled.

An expression similar to Han Sena’s.

Sung Minhui asked the quietly standing Seo Jaeyeon with a smile.

“Jaeyeon, you also think we’ll obviously win, right?”

At that, Seo Jaeyeon dropped her smile and spoke.

“What’s obvious in this business? If you want to hurt less when we fall behind later, save your words too.”

With that, Seo Jaeyeon left with her usual aloof attitude.

Sung Minhui rolled her eyes watching Seo Jaeyeon walk away.

“Seriously, I must be a saint for getting attached to that brat.”

Seo Jaeyeon left the bustling center of the <Say Your Name> set and picked up her script in a corner.

Then sat down calmly by herself and started going over her next filming lines.

* * *

A month later.

“Yu Dayang’s ending? Is there anything I can help with, Writer…”

Writer Gu Semin’s workspace, where I’d been called unexpectedly.

With only the final two episodes remaining, Writer Gu Semin had been fighting a solitary war and sent me an SOS.

“I want to discuss Yu Dayang and Yu Hayeong’s choices in the ending with you, Sena-ssi.”

It was a bewildering request.

“The director’s here too, so why me…”

Somehow it reminded me like déjà vu of visiting Writer Nam Jihye’s workspace during Palace Flower.

But Writer Gu Semin’s eyes flashed briefly.

“Sena-ssi, you know everything, don’t you?”

“What?!”

I was so startled my voice cracked.

The writer continued without wavering.

“I’ve been hearing stories from the set. Even though I deliberately didn’t tell you what comes later, you always act like you know everything.”

“…!”

I put all my strength into hiding my internal shock.

Had I been showing it too much?

Lee Seonho too, and now the writer.

Everyone’s looking at me like I’m not ordinary.

Should I deliberately pretend not to know from now on?

But how do I even do that?

My mind started spinning and getting tangled up.

“I was mistaken. I’d been convinced the person who knows the characters best in the world is the writer. But maybe it could be the actor.”

At that, words got stuck in my throat like I couldn’t respond.

“Writing drama instead of novels, I’m learning all sorts of things.”

“Haha. You’re being too kind.”

“Anyway, that’s why. I have a top-secret plot twist to reveal first only to you, Sena-ssi.”

Hearing that, I swallowed hard.

Because I had a feeling I knew what would come next.

She’s probably going to say Yu Dayang isn’t the main personality.

So I had to show a shocked reaction.

I started preparing myself mentally.

Sure enough.

The writer lowered her voice as if someone might overhear.

“Actually, Yu Dayang isn’t the main personality.”

Hearing that, I covered my mouth with both hands.

And opened my eyes as wide as they’d go.

You’re disgusting, Han Sena.

This is painful…!

The writer smiled with satisfaction seeing my reaction.

“You didn’t know this, did you?”

“Writer… are you a genius? How did you… But then Yu Dayang is… I’m so sad.”

At my words, the writer removed her headband and swept her hair back before putting it on again.

“Now that I’m actually writing it, my heart hurts too. I don’t want to let Yu Dayang go.”

Hearing that, I kept nodding as if still in shock.

But truthfully, the emotional shock I’d experienced back then had been quite significant too.

The writer asked me a question.

“So Yu Dayang has to leave like the other personalities. But Yu Dayang is a more special personality than the others, you know? What choice will those two make?”