In This Life, I Will Die As An Actress, Not As A Villainess [EN]: Chapter 47

The next day.

The manager’s car pulled into the filming set.

My manager opened the trunk and started handing out cakes and rice cakes to the staff.

“Surprise! Happy New Year, everyone!”

It was rice cake and glutinous rice cake that Min-young and I had prepared to celebrate the new year [a traditional Korean dish eaten during the New Year celebrations].

I started handing out rice cakes to the staff one by one.

“Wow, New Year’s on set.”

“I’m used to it. It’s my third year already.”

“Time flies so fast….”

The staff members each threw out a word or two, lost in their New Year’s sentiments.

I handed a rice cake to Heo So-jin, who was busy setting up.

“Here, two for So-jin.”

“What is this?”

Heo So-jin pushed the rice cake away, flustered.

Ignoring her, I slipped two rice cakes into Heo So-jin’s sleeve and whispered.

“Because I hate you!”

With that, I left Heo So-jin behind and approached my seniors to hand out rice cakes.

Won Hye-rim, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, gave me words of blessing.

“Doing things like this. You’re doing great. Soar even higher next year! And make lots of money.”

“Thank you, Senior!”

Just then, I saw Director Kang passing by.

Director Kang waved his hand as if to say he was okay.

I couldn’t let that slide.

I approached him and handed him the beautifully colored rice cake and cake.

“I don’t eat rice cakes. Thank you.”

I forced a smile at those words.

He really is a hard person to get close to.

“It’s the thought that counts! Just accept it.”

Then the director nodded perfunctorily.

At that moment, Yoon Young-jae’s car and a coffee truck followed behind from afar.

“Huh? Teacher brought a coffee truck?”

Along with me, all the staff members stared at the teacher’s car with surprised eyes.

Soon, the teacher got out, and the staff flocked to the coffee truck.

Approaching with a surprised face, the teacher handed me a warm coffee with a hearty laugh.

“If our boss is eating rice cakes, it wouldn’t do if there’s nothing to drink.”

“Oh, Teacher. Boss, please.”

“You’re the one who gives me a living, so you’re my boss.”

I gave a sheepish smile.

“But Teacher, did you prepare the coffee truck with Min-young?”

The teacher shook his head at my question.

“No, I did it alone.”

“Wow, how did you find out about this?”

“150 cups of Americano for 450,000 won [approximately $350 USD].”

I almost spat out my coffee at those words.

“Pardon?”

“Don’t underestimate an old man. I know more than you think.”

The staff members who heard the teacher’s words next to me burst into laughter.

“Teacher! When did you even find out about that?”

Then the teacher also chuckled.

“Well, it’s always good to be thorough.”

While the atmosphere was warm,

Someone shouted.

“Oh my. Sae-na is nominated for the Best New Actress award!”

My mind went blank in an instant.

What is this?

“It’s on the news! Hanho Arts Awards! Best New Actress! Nominated!”

“Yoo Ji-an from Flat Shoes? Congratulations, Sae-na!”

Hanho Arts Awards?

Best New Actress?

Best New Actress….

It was such an unfamiliar word.

I quickly took out my phone and connected to the internet.

It was also trending in real-time searches.

With trembling hands, I clicked on the articles.

「Yoo Ji-an from Flat Shoes, a strong candidate for the Best New Actress award!」

Seeing the article title, reality hit me hard.

Teacher Yoon Young-jae smiled and patted me on the shoulder.

“Congratulations, Sae-na.”

Me, a Best New Actress?

It was an award I couldn’t even dream of in my past life.

Besides, even though I’m still being called a rookie, I already felt like my rookie days were a million years ago.

Even putting that aside, the year-end awards ceremony was over, and Flat Shoes was a cable channel production.

Then another staff member shouted once again.

“Wow, Flat Shoes is also nominated for Best Screenplay. Writing the history of cable channels.”

Then the staff members were busy looking at the articles, buzzing among themselves.

I felt dazed, and suddenly emotions welled up.

I tried to calm myself.

I’ve been nominated, but winning will be difficult.

That’s how the industry works.

The Hanho Awards are in March, and Flat Shoes aired from February to April last year.

Other works that aired closer to the awards ceremony would obviously be more competitive in terms of timeliness.

So, realistically, it wouldn’t be me.

‘Still.’

I smiled pleasantly.

I hadn’t even been nominated before, so this is much more successful.

Thanks to this, the talk about actors’ levels will decrease a bit.

I wouldn’t be obviously happy, nor would I be disappointed if I didn’t receive the award.

I just need to do my job.

Like now.

Humbly, steadily.

At that moment, I felt a fierce gaze staring at me, not mixing with the others.

It was obviously Heo So-jin.

I tried to ignore her gaze and continued reading the articles.

I slowly closed the articles and headed back to the filming set.

* * *

I continued to act, monitor, and prepare for the next scene.

And in the afternoon, when my quota was over.

I quickly took off my costume and wig and hurried to the next set.

Today was finally the day of Yoon Young-jae’s filming scene.

I was determined to watch and learn.

I hadn’t had a chance to see it because the schedules didn’t match.

What I was especially looking forward to was that the scenes we were filming today were almost entirely the teacher’s solo performances.

Until now, the teacher was a Sangseon [a high-ranking eunuch], but because of his special position as a ‘eunuch,’ he mostly appeared with other actors, especially Lee Seok-hyun.

As I sneaked into the set….

A troublemaker followed me.

“Where are you going in such a hurry?”

Surprised, I turned around and saw Lee Seok-hyun standing there, smiling playfully.

“Shhh!”

When I waved my hand to tell him to go away, Lee Seok-hyun approached with an even more curious face.

“Watching the filming? Ah, it’s Teacher Yoon Young-jae’s filming today.”

I quietly dragged Lee Seok-hyun, who was sticking to me, to the corner.

After finishing the filming preparations, I saw the teacher’s appearance entering the frame.

Although the appearance was different from the one in the script, the atmosphere it exuded was Sangseon itself.

“Sae-na, aren’t you tired?”

Director Kang looked at me and asked.

“It’s a class I can’t hear even if I pay for it.”

When I shrugged my shoulders, Director Kang nodded and drank his coffee.

Lee Seok-hyun also began to lose himself, focusing on the teacher’s appearance in the monitor.

At that time, just before the director’s ready sign fell.

The teacher looked around.

Once, no, as if looking for something, once more.

I became impatient at the sight.

What is he looking for?

Should I find it and bring it to him?

Then the teacher stopped looking around and closed his eyes.

Ready, the teacher, who opened his eyes with the sound, naturally moved his body even before the sound of action was heard.

‘As expected.’

The teacher was that kind of actor.

An actor who doesn’t use the cue sign as a switch but is already living as a character from before.

“Action!”

Someone stepped in front of the teacher who was walking down the dark corridor.

It was an eunuch from Daebijeon [the Queen Dowager’s residence].

“How about it, have you thought about it?”

Then the teacher tried to pass by without answering.

The eunuch was currently asking Sangseon to assassinate someone.

It was the last resort to get into Daebi’s eyes.

The eunuch grabbed the teacher.

“It would be a good opportunity to show your loyalty.”

Then the teacher stopped walking and answered in a low voice.

“Don’t confuse loyalty with rebellion.”

Hearing that voice, my heart turned cold.

The teacher’s voice was small, but it was clearly transmitted to my ears through the air.

It was a voice with a different density.

I could feel the skill of the theater stage…

What should I say, it felt like it was tightly compressed to fit the TV size.

In short, I felt a huge level difference from me.

Lee Seok-hyun’s expression, who was directly watching the teacher’s acting, also became serious.

The opposing actor was also a supporting actor who was rumored to have solid acting skills as Daebi’s henchman.

Even though the lines were strong, Sangseon clearly took the lead as the writer intended.

“How can there be that pressure at that decibel?”

Lee Seok-hyun opened his mouth.

I also smiled and nodded.

The lines continued.

“I’m saying we should find things that will please you and do them in advance.”

Then the teacher stared at the opposing eunuch and started walking again.

It was a gesture as if he was not worth dealing with anymore.

Then, as the eunuch smiled bitterly from behind, the teacher quickly pushed the eunuch against the wall and choked his neck.

It was a lightning-like movement.

The monitor showed the two actors’ waists.

Usually, actors only care about the parts that are captured by the camera.

However, the teacher’s movements were very cool overall.

Director Kang also smiled as if he was impressed.

If an actor who mainly works in theater tries to block (movement) in that way, it would be awkwardly captured on the screen.

But the teacher’s skills were different.

He naturally led the viewer’s gaze to the eunuch’s nape.

“What are you loyal to?”

The eunuch looked at Sangseon, who was choking his neck, with fearful eyes.

“Is it the royal family of this country? Or Daebijeon?”

“There’s no need to think about it separately….”

“Or is it yourself?”

At those words, the eunuch closed his eyes tightly without saying anything as if he had been caught.

A moment of silence followed.

Then the teacher released the opposing actor and dusted off the staggering actor’s clothes and straightened them.

“Cut! Okay! Teacher, you are so wonderful.”

Director Kang got up and applauded.

“Wow.”

Lee Seok-hyun looked at me as if he was dumbfounded.

“Just now, was that an ad-lib?”

I also nodded with a slightly dazed face.

The script did not have any actions to straighten the clothes.

It was just that the unfriendly, slow hand movements had a dignity that the opposing actor could not shake off, and it contained a nuance that warned him to behave properly.

“A blocking master, an ad-lib master….”

Suddenly, my heart was full just by watching the teacher’s acting.

As soon as the director’s satisfactory okay sign fell, the staff members all moved to the opposite side with their equipment.

In the same scene, a bust shot was taken with only the direction changed.

As soon as that filming was over, I ran to the teacher.

“Teacher!”

Lee Seok-hyun also followed and bowed.

“Oh my, Seok-hyun came with you today?”

“Yes, Teacher. I followed Sae-na.”

“Oh my, I’m so nervous because of Sae-na. I’m afraid I won’t be able to do it!”

“Teacher, what are you saying.”

The three of us laughed amicably at the teacher’s joke.

“Teacher, aren’t you really amazing?”

The teacher shook his hand at my words.

“Amazing, what!”

“After seeing the teacher’s acting today, I feel like I’m going home with a lot of homework?”

The teacher smiled at my words.

“What homework?”

“Well! There is such a thing. You know everything.”

Then the teacher shook his head as if he couldn’t stop it.

“Teacher.”

“Yes, Boss.”

“Can I do it like the teacher if I do theater? But I was worried about jumping into other genres with this kind of heart….”

At that time, Lee Seok-hyun, who was excluded from the conversation, slipped away.

The teacher stared at me without answering, who kept chattering.

“Uh… why are you doing that? Did I do something wrong?”

“No.”

“Yes?”

“I’m just glad you don’t have any vain dreams.”

“Vain dreams?”

I laughed at those words.

How much did you see me as a child?

But I didn’t feel bad.

As I always feel after being reborn, it was always fun to be treated like a baby.

Besides, it’s really grateful to have someone watching over me so that I don’t go down the wrong path.

“If I want to become a great actor like the teacher, I don’t have time to indulge in vain dreams!”

Then the teacher shook his head firmly.

“What are you talking about? You will become greater than me.”

I felt good at those words and put my arm around the teacher.

“It’s disgusting, get off.”

“No, Teacher! I’m cold.”

“I’m hot!”

I Will Die as an Actress in This Life