In This Life, I Will Die As An Actress, Not As A Villainess [EN]: Chapter 120

Fifteen minutes before Han Se-na’s surprise fan meeting.

Even after work hours, the subway was packed, people crammed together. Among them, high school girls in the same uniforms were anxiously stamping their feet.

“Ugh, we can’t be late!”

“No, we won’t be. But there won’t be any seats.”

“Why did they announce it the morning of?!”

“Ugh… did you see this post? It’s hilarious.”

Just then, one of the high school girls searched the internet and showed a post to her friend.

It was a popular post that had been trending in the online community since this morning.

[Han Se-na is having a fan meeting.]

??: Having a fan meeting.

Fan: Oh, finally! When is it?!

??: 3…

Fan: 3… weeks from now?

??: 3… 2… 1…

Fan: ??!?!?!

The high school girl who read the post burst into laughter.

“Ah, that’s so funny. It’s perfect.”

‘This stop is Hongik University, Hongik University Station.’

Just then, an announcement came on in the subway, informing them that they had arrived at Hongdae [short for Hongik University area, a popular district in Seoul known for its arts scene and nightlife].

“Ugh, let’s get off quickly!”

The high school girls made a fuss and rushed to the door.

However, people in the same situation as the high school girls swarmed to the door.

“Wow, what is this!”

“Are they all going to see Han Se-na?”

* * *

At the same time.

The roads around Hongdae were already paralyzed with traffic.

Inside a black van among the densely packed cars.

The man holding the steering wheel clicked his tongue, looking at the cars surrounding him on all sides.

“Are they crazy? Why is traffic so bad?”

The man sitting in the back seat, who was looking at a script, heard the manager’s words and raised his head to look at the situation outside the window.

The cover of the script the man was holding read .

“I heard they’re doing something nearby today?”

A striking face was reflected in the window.

White skin, slender and large eyes, a sharp nose, thin and red lips.

And slightly upturned corners of the mouth that created a mysterious atmosphere, and broad, firm shoulders that contrasted with the slender face…

It was Lee Sun-ho.

“Ah, that’s today. Han Se-na’s surprise fan meeting!”

The manager exclaimed as if he had just remembered after hearing Lee Sun-ho’s words.

“Han Se-na?”

Lee Sun-ho asked back, calling Han Se-na’s name in a soft, beautiful voice.

“Yeah, it’s for a new entertainment program that’s starting. The internet has been going crazy all day. Didn’t you see it?”

“Ah.”

Lee Sun-ho smiled slightly at those words.

“Han Se-na is amazing, as expected.”

“I heard a lot of people are trying to work with Han Se-na these days, right?”

“Like me?”

The manager laughed at Lee Sun-ho’s words.

“Yeah. Even though you kept refusing because the script was difficult, you jumped in right away just trusting Han Se-na’s casting.”

“It’s worth it, though. She’s so popular these days.”

“True. Even I think she’s the best actress in her 20s when it comes to acting.”

“I think so too. There’s something different about her, compared to other actors.”

The manager nodded.

Then Lee Sun-ho added a word.

“She’s also very pretty.”

Then the manager looked at Lee Sun-ho through the rearview mirror.

“Wow, Lee Sun-ho can say things like that too?”

“Huh??”

When Lee Sun-ho looked at the manager in embarrassment, the manager chuckled.

“So you’re a man too. I thought you weren’t interested in women, you.”

The manager started chattering like that for a while.

Then, when the car still didn’t move forward, he sighed again.

“Ah, really. I’m going to be stuck here all night.”

Lee Sun-ho replied as if he didn’t care.

“All my schedules are over anyway. It doesn’t matter, I guess.”

“But I want to go home from work!”

Then the traffic light turned green, and the car finally started to move.

“Ugh, I can’t do this. Let’s go another way.”

The manager turned the steering wheel and entered a small side street.

But then.

A crowd of people gathered in a large square far away outside the window.

“Oh, I guess that’s it.”

The manager stared intently at the square.

Lee Sun-ho also raised his head again and turned his gaze out the window.

Han Se-na’s face was playing on a large electronic display.

Han Se-na was shedding tears with a deeply moved expression.

In a very brief moment.

Lee Sun-ho stared intently at Han Se-na’s face, his eyes reddened.

Han Se-na wiped away the flowing tears while smiling brightly.

Lee Sun-ho smiled lightly as he watched that scene.

The road opened up, and the manager stepped on the accelerator again.

* * *

The fan meeting began in earnest.

“We skipped school today!”

“Unnie [term used by younger females to address older sisters or female friends], I love you!”

The high school girls who won the hug event shouted and jumped onto the stage.

Looking at that scene, I burst out laughing.

“What are you doing skipping school! This is going on TV!”

Bang Chae-hyuk also laughed, finding it funny, and teased the high school girls.

“Ah, no. Mom, Dad, I’m sorry!!”

“Teacher, I’m sorry!”

The audience burst into laughter at the lively high school girls.

Hugging each of the high school girls while smiling.

It reminded me of Flower Star for the first time in a while.

After the high school girls swept through the audience and went down, soldiers, grandmothers, and groups of male students also came up in turn.

After the hug time ended.

“Now, Se-na will read a letter she has prepared for the fans. Are you all excited?”

Bang Chae-hyuk smiled and encouraged the people to respond.

The people all shouted and took out their cell phone cameras.

The time had come to read the letter I had prepared.

With a trembling heart, I took out the paper from my back pocket.

I had received countless letters from fans, but I had never written one myself.

I grabbed the microphone Lee Yul handed me and cleared my throat.

“Hello, everyone. This is Han Se-na.”

“Waaaaa-!!”

I smiled brightly, listening to the voices of the people.

“Standing on this stage like this, I feel like your smiles and cheers are enveloping me. Thank you to everyone who came so far despite the sudden fan meeting.”

After giving a short greeting, I began to read the handwritten letter I had written.

“Today, I prepared a letter to express my gratitude to you in this special place. As you may know, you fans are the most precious beings in my acting life. I’m just doing my job, but it always feels like a dream and magic to me that someone passionately likes and supports me.”

These were words I had prepared with sincerity.

“You celebrate with me when good things happen, and you hurt with me when difficult things happen. Now I feel like you are my companions. I always longed to have such companions whenever I was lonely and exhausted. The heavens have granted my wish.”

My heart was overwhelmed.

Who would have known that I would get a chance to live again and enjoy so much.

“I want to repay you. I will go further and higher so that the hearts that like me will not be ashamed. I will use your gazes that watch over me as a compass.”

Finally, I took my eyes off the letter and looked at the fans sitting in front of the stage.

“Let’s see each other for a long, long time. From Han Se-na.”

I saw some familiar faces among the audience.

They were friends who often came to cheer me on during fan meetings and filming.

All of those fans were shedding tears.

When I made eye contact with those friends, I ended up tearing up too.

“Oh, I’m crying!!”

I made a fuss and hurriedly wiped away my tears.

Bang Chae-hyuk grabbed the microphone again from the side.

And he skillfully changed the topic and changed the atmosphere.

“Now that we’ve shed tears like this, what should we do now?!”

Lee Yul answered energetically from the side.

“Dance time!! Give us the music!”

Ugh, these people!

Music that sounded like it would blow my ears off came out onto the stage.

In the end, I squeezed my eyes shut and started waving my arms and legs.

* * *

[Han Se-na’s surprise fan meeting records a peak viewership rating of 4.7%]

[Han Se-na’s surprise fan meeting paralyzes Hongdae! Explosive reaction]

[Tearful fan meeting, the full text of the letter prepared by Han Se-na]

Immediately after the fan meeting broadcast aired.

The reactions were much hotter than I expected.

From fan cafes to community posts, they continued to be created every minute.

[A story about getting a date proposal from my actress on the subway]

[Han Se-na’s real-life review]

[Welcome to Han Se-na World]

[There’s really no such filial daughter. Everyone, stan Han Se-na [term for supporting or being a fan of someone].]

[Is she an actress or a comedian?]

[So when is the next project coming out?]

But as soon as I checked the last post, news articles about the confirmation of ‘s programming began to appear at a miraculous timing.

I had received the programming story in advance from the production company last night.

The broadcast would be on SCBS [fictional broadcasting station].

Following , I was once again connected and involved.

But the articles came out so quickly….

I felt like I could sense the production company’s indomitable will to quickly release articles and promote them to preemptively secure viewership ratings.

As I was skimming through the articles lightly…

[Public terrestrial Wednesday-Thursday miniseries foreshadows fierce competition. Han Se-na, Lee Sun-ho vs Seo Jae-yeon, Sung Min-hee!!]

“…?”

[‘UBN [fictional broadcasting station] vs SCBS’ A battle of long-time rivals! Who will be the winner?]

[Seo Jae-yeon vs Han Se-na! A new and old showdown between romantic comedy queens]

[Han Se-na, who defeated Lee Na-ra, now even Seo Jae-yeon?]

“What is this.”

News that the drama Seo Jae-yeon would participate in was scheduled for the same time slot as was spreading everywhere.

My thought process stopped momentarily.

Then my phone vibrated.

It was Seo Jae-yeon.

I stared at the screen for a moment and then pressed the call button.

“….”

-Did you see the article?

“Yes.”

-I told you to be friends. You keep using honorifics.

“When did you hear this news?”

-It hasn’t been long for me either.

After saying that, Seo Jae-yeon also fell silent for a moment.

An awkward silence flowed between them.

Seo Jae-yeon spoke again first.

-Well, a situation that might be a bit uncomfortable has occurred. It’s not what I intended at all.

“Of course. I know.”

-And Min-hee wasn’t brought in by me either. The director cast her himself.

Seo Jae-yeon explained the whole story to me as if she was very concerned.

But when I heard Seo Jae-yeon’s voice speaking quickly for the first time, I suddenly laughed.

“Chuck.”

-…?

“Thank you for calling me like this. No, thank you.”

-….

Then, I heard Seo Jae-yeon chuckle on the other end of the phone.

Hearing that laughter made me feel a little relieved for some reason.

It was an uncomfortable situation where we would now be competing in earnest for viewership ratings, but I was grateful that she had called me without hesitation.

When I see her like this, she’s more considerate than usual.

However, I was only moved for a moment.

-Anyway, we’re going to take the viewership ratings. Be prepared.

“….”

-It’s time for Lee Sun-ho and you to taste bitterness. Then, goodbye.

Seo Jae-yeon hung up the phone.