In This Life, I Will Die As An Actress, Not As A Villainess [EN]: Chapter 49

“Drink up, drink up!”

“Bottoms up! Hey, no using a chaser!”

What is going on….

Bright lights were shining down on me.

Ugh, so bright.

“Ms. Saena, I said drink!”

“Huh?”

Before I knew it, I was holding a glass of soju [Korean distilled rice liquor] in my right hand, and soju bottles were scattered all over the floor under the table.

“Drink up! Drink up!”

“Make it refreshing!”

“What is this.”

In front of me, a PD [Production Director] was holding a camera and filming me with the glass.

“Ms. Saena, hurry!”

“O-okay….”

Before I could even figure out the situation, I downed the drink.

The people from the advertising production all started clapping at once.

Like that, I started drinking one glass after another, and one bottle was quickly emptied.

“Uh… I think I’m done…!”

Before I could finish my sentence, a somaek [soju and beer mixed drink] in a pitcher appeared from somewhere.

W-what is this.

No! If I drink this, I’ll die!

“No! I want to leave!”

As I shouted urgently, I heard a buzzing voice from somewhere.

“You cannot leave until you drink all this alcohol.”

What?

I turned my head towards the voice, and there were dozens of green soju bottles stacked up.

Before I could even scream, I reluctantly brought the soju glass to my lips again.

Like that, one glass, two glasses, three bottles, four bottles….

Ugh, I feel like I’m going to throw up.

Stop, stop!

“Ugh… stop, stop…”

“Saena!”

I felt someone shaking me awake.

“Wake up, Saena!”

I opened my eyes wide.

Min-young unnie [older sister or close female friend] was staring at me with a dumbfounded look.

“Huh! Where am I!”

I quickly sat up and looked around.

I was in a car that was moving.

Cold sweat was running down my back, and I was out of breath.

What a crazy dream.

Did I dream that I possessed that world because I filmed a soju commercial?

It seemed like the story about renewing the soju commercial contract was unconsciously lingering in my head.

“What an amazing world….”

“Did you drink in your dream?”

At those words, I felt like my stomach was churning.

“Ugh, my stomach hurts.”

“What?”

“I think I need a hangover cure.”

Unnie looked at me as if I were ridiculous and shook her head.

Then she put her hands back on the steering wheel.

I also sighed deeply and leaned back in my seat.

I’ve been so busy lately.

The Gyeolkkot filming, which is now about two-thirds done, is becoming more and more intense, with graduation speeches, advertising meetings, and filming.

For the past few days, I’ve been so busy with my schedule that I’ve been running around as if my feet weren’t even touching the ground at the filming site.

I looked out the window and then looked back at unnie.

“Unnie is busy too. Aren’t you tired from driving yourself?”

“It’s okay. I’m just impatient. I’m not satisfied with other drivers.”

Unnie stepped on the accelerator.

We were on our way to fit a dress for the awards ceremony in the morning.

“I heard from people around me that there are hardly any actors who prepare their dresses after being nominated for an award like us.”

“Right. Everyone expects it to some extent and prepares in advance. Ugh, now we even have to compete for dresses.”

We never imagined that we would be nominated, and our schedules were messed up, so we were going for our first fitting just a week before.

“Will there be anything good left?”

Unnie scoffed at my worried question.

“Just go in and see.”

A smile as if to say, I’m Kwon Min-young.

That’s how the car stopped in the parking lot.

After getting out of the car, I went up the stairs to the building with half-doubt, and a sparkling nameplate caught my eye.

What, it was an agency?!

I looked at unnie with surprised eyes, and unnie smiled.

I thought we would be selecting from a wedding shop, as other actresses usually do.

This wasn’t an ordinary shop.

When I opened the door and went inside, the team leader of the public relations agency and two brand representatives were there.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Stella Soo.”

As I bowed my head and received their greetings, the staff began to bring out the dresses hanging on the mobile racks one by one.

“These are new dresses that haven’t been shown to anyone else. They were prepared just for Ms. Saena.”

At those words, my mouth dropped open in surprise.

The time when I had to choose from the dresses that were already taken by top actors in my previous life flashed through my mind.

Actually, I couldn’t be the center of attention no matter what dress I wore back then.

I looked at Min-young unnie, who was already examining the dresses from every angle.

Suddenly, my nose tingled.

There were only two cases where a rookie could enjoy such luxury.

Either unnie had booked all the fitting dresses at the cost of bleeding, or the brand had asked for sponsorship in advance.

It couldn’t be the former.

No matter how popular I was with the flat shoes and Dawn Dew commercials, there was no way that a luxury dress brand would send a love call to a rookie first.

Maybe unnie didn’t want to send out the main face of her first company looking just any old way.

I poked unnie in the side.

“Aren’t you overdoing it?”

“Just hurry up and try them on. We don’t have time.”

In the meantime, the dresses that unnie had picked out in advance were elegant, sexy, and well-chosen by concept.

Then there was one dress that caught my eye.

“Then I’ll try that one on first.”

* * *

The Hanho Arts Awards.

From early evening, a large crowd gathered, and reporters were lined up in the front row.

“Jisua put a lot of effort into her dress this time. I heard she received the dress four months in advance.”

“Hwang Yerim spent a lot of money. A silver spoon is different after all [referring to being born into wealth].”

“But no one is stepping on a dress today. What a shame.”

Amidst the silly conversations….

“Oh, a van is coming in!”

At that moment, a van turned the corner and slid in with a reporter’s voice.

Someone recognized the car’s license plate.

“It’s Han Saena!”

The reporters all raised their cameras at once.

Then someone made a joke.

“Fall over.”

“Pfft, Reporter Park, aren’t you going too far?”

“I have to get something [a good photo or story].”

As some reporters chuckled, the van stopped and the door opened.

As Han Saena slowly revealed herself, flashes of light poured down on her like crazy.

And betraying the reporters’ bad wishes, Han Saena got out of the car in perfect form.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

Some reporters also stared at Han Saena as if possessed and exclaimed.

“Wow. She’s pretty.”

Han Saena was wearing a deep blue long dress, and the shirring on her shoulders and waist and the gold accessories exuded the elegance of a Greek goddess.

The laurel wreath-shaped brooch that decorated the one-shoulder design was reminiscent of Nike among the many goddesses.

Han Saena’s thin ankles in stiletto heels gracefully headed onto the red carpet.

“Ms. Han Saena, please look over here!”

“Please smile just once!”

The flash of light didn’t stop.

Han Saena gave the reporters a slight smile and headed to the photo wall.

“That brand isn’t very luxurious, is it?”

“Wow, but she stands out much more than Hwang Yerim, who has more than 100 million won [Korean currency, roughly equivalent to a large sum in any currency] on her body.”

“The actresses must be feeling a little jealous.”

The reporters were busy capturing Han Saena’s overwhelming presence in their cameras.

In their opinion, it seemed that it wasn’t just the styling that was eye-catching.

Han Saena’s pose on the photo wall was also very skillful.

There was no sign of a rookie who was struggling with her clothes.

While maintaining a polite gesture towards the public, she was making the most of the concept and points of the elegant outfit.

Constant cheers erupted from the audience.

When the reporters looked at the noisy side, they saw Han Saena’s fans holding mini placards all at once.

“Best Goddess Han Saena! Essential Class Han Saena!”

Then, a bright smile bloomed on Han Saena’s face, as if a flower bud had burst.

The cameras were once again busy capturing that smile.

From Han Saena’s gaze at the fans with honey dripping from her eyes, it was clear that she was just entering her honeymoon period with her fans.

“A rookie is a rookie.”

“Yes?”

The reporter who was flashing the light looked to the side at another reporter’s words.

“Han Saena likes it so much. Look at the fans holding it all at once. It’s like that reverse support or something that idols do these days [where fans support their idols in a very visible and enthusiastic way].”

The reporter who heard those words nodded.

“I have to write a good article. If she wins the Rookie Award, I may have to maintain a good relationship with her in the future.”

“That’s right.”

* * *

After being showered with flashes of light, my eyes became dizzy.

It was a scale I had never experienced before.

I tried to stay calm and left the photo wall and headed to the awards ceremony hall.

“Ms. Saena!”

Then, a welcome face waved at me.

“Ms. Yuri!”

Jung-hoon and Yuri, who had already arrived at the Flat Shoes table, were sitting there.

I hurried over, and there was an empty seat in the middle of the two.

“Sit here.”

I was embarrassed when Jung-hoon pulled out the chair for me.

It’s too much of a center.

As if reading my expression, Yuri joked.

“If Jung-hoon sits in the middle, he’ll look too much like a king on a throne. You have to sit there.”

It was a comment to hide that she was taking care of me and trying to be considerate.

“Oh, my, then I’ll take advantage of you two.”

The three of us sat down and started talking about how we were doing, but soon after, writer Lee Si-young and director Moon Won-hyung walked over together.

“Writer! Director!”

When I jumped up from my seat, the writer came over and put me back in my chair.

“Sit down. It’s so nice to see you all like this. I heard that Ms. Saena is very busy filming her next project. Are you doing well?”

“Yes, teacher. I really missed you.”

I felt a lump in my throat at the teacher’s touch.

“Saena will do well wherever she goes.”

“Our team must win an award today!”

Yuri clenched her fist.

“Of course.”

At those words, director Moon Won-hyung also sat down and nodded.

Yuri whispered in my ear.

“Ms. Saena! I hope you win the Rookie Award!”

I smiled awkwardly at those words.

Haha, I’m just grateful to be sitting in this seat.

And then the congratulatory performance began….

Ha Sung-joon, dressed in a dandy suit, walked out in front of the microphone.

Seon Yu-seok’s rival.

He was the winner of the Best New Actor award last year.

Ha Sung-joon proceeded with the opening of the awards ceremony with a slightly nervous face.

Looking at Ha Sung-joon, Yu-seok’s face flashed through my mind.

It would be nice if Yu-seok could be in that position too.

He has enough hope to do so.

The first part of the awards ceremony was immediately the Rookie Award category.

First, the male actor was announced.

“Choi Hyung-min from . Congratulations.”

A male actor went on stage amidst the applause.

Oh, he looks familiar….

No way.

Looking closely at the face holding the microphone, it was the male actor I slapped when I was filming a morning drama in the past.

What a connection, I clapped, feeling amazed.

As I listened to Choi Hyung-min’s trembling acceptance speech, I gradually relaxed.

After a while, Ha Sung-joon, who took the microphone again, took out another envelope.

“Now then, next is the Best New Actress Award.”