In This Life, I Will Die As An Actress, Not As A Villainess [EN]: Chapter 76

The first thing that caught my eye was the dramatically increased number of fan cafe members.

I slowly read the number and was surprised.

“It’s almost more than doubled…?”

Even though there was some controversy, it seemed the simultaneous release of the movie and drama had significantly increased the number of fans.

I scrolled down to look at the uploaded posts.

‘Notice: Please be careful of spoilers, everyone. It’s our actress’s precious work.’

‘A Collection of Crazy Desert Island Reviews’

‘Real-time Reactions to Desert Island from Other Communities’

The fans were even more enthusiastic about promoting it than I was.

When I went into other online communities, fans and viewers of Desert Island were posting notices asking people to refrain from spoilers.

It was a problem I hadn’t considered.

Netmate was taking a very bold strategy, even bearing the burden of spoilers.

I closed my laptop and let out a deep breath.

The tension that had been building up in my head subsided.

Just then, the phone rang.

It was the Netmate employee in charge of the meeting.

‘Ms. Saena, Ms. Saena. I’m letting you know before the articles come out. We’ve surpassed 100,000 views!’

As soon as I answered the phone, I jumped up from my seat, listening to the employee’s rapid-fire words.

“Pardon?”

100,000…?

Sweat trickled down the back of my neck.

‘It’s mainly concentrated in the metropolitan area and among young people. The first month of free service and the full episode release worked quite well. The number of viewers will drop a lot when the popularity of Desert Island fades, but this is a much bigger profit than expected.’

“Yes, congratulations! Quickly grab the viewers with the other dramas you’re producing now.”

The employee on the other end of the phone laughed heartily.

‘Ms. Saena, you’ve got a nickname in the company now. Netmate’s daughter.’

“Excuse me?”

As soon as I heard those words, I burst out laughing too.

‘Ms. Saena, you’ve worked so hard. Shouldering all the burdens and even getting cursed at. We’ll upload a documentary at the right time soon. I’ll personally dispel any remaining doubts about Ms. Saena.’

It was a voice filled with a sense of firm determination.

That made me laugh again.

“Thank you.”

‘We’re more grateful. Have a good time at the Hanho Awards.’

With that, the call ended.

I sank back into my chair.

Now, the final highlight remained.

* * *

A week later, on the ever-unfamiliar red carpet.

The early evening air was chilly.

The reporters who had gathered like a swarm of clouds flashed their cameras.

I endured the blinding flashes and smiled.

As last year’s Best New Actress winner, I also had to participate as a presenter for this year’s Best Newcomer Award.

Me, giving an award to someone else.

It was something I had never experienced before.

It’s fun, but I’m nervous.

What if I make a mistake?

I used to find it hard to understand presenters who were more nervous than the award winners, but now I understood how they felt.

One disappointing thing was that Kkotbyeol wasn’t nominated for the Best New Actress award.

Even if she gets nominated, it’ll probably be next year.

I won’t be the presenter then, so I felt a little disappointed about that too.

After finishing the greetings and leaving the stage, I headed to the presenter’s waiting room…

Someone called out to me from behind in a sharp voice.

“Hey.”

Turning around, I saw Lee Nara standing with her hands on her hips, wearing a white dress adorned with dazzling crystal embellishments.

It was as if I’d been caught at the right moment.

“So, the great queen bee has arrived.”

I was speechless at the blatant attack.

Why are there so many rude people in this world?

“Hello, senior.”

“Do I look like I’m doing well?”

She was even using informal language.

I’ve lived dozens of years longer than Lee Nara.

I tried hard to suppress the rising anger.

“Do you think I’m fit for the queen’s seat, senior?”

“What?”

“You called me a queen bee.”

I answered nonchalantly.

Then, the skin below Lee Nara’s neck, where foundation wasn’t applied, turned slightly red.

Does she turn red when she gets angry?

“And queen bees, senior, do you know that when they’re attacked, hundreds of bees rush to defend them and attack the opponent?”

Lee Nara’s eyebrows furrowed at my absurd expression.

“What, now that you’ve gained some popularity, you’re acting up, trusting your fans or something?”

Trusting my fans or something.

“Rather than acting up because I trust them, I rely on them. Whenever something like this happens…”

In short, I meant that this kind of ridiculous thing was familiar to me.

Lee Nara couldn’t say anything more.

“Congratulations on your Best Actress nomination. I’ll see you later.”

As I passed by her…

Lee Nara finally crossed the line.

“Did you sleep with the directors?”

“…”

I stopped still at those words.

I turned around and looked at Lee Nara’s face.

Lee Nara continued to rant.

“I didn’t know Kang Junghwan and Hwang Bojaejun were weak to young girls. You’re quite something. Who are you going to sleep with next?”

Hold on, Han Saena.

If I grab this mutt by the hair now, everything will be ruined.

“That’s the first time I’ve heard of that audition method. I’m still good enough that I don’t have to use such methods. On the contrary, senior…”

I trailed off.

“What, you crazy bitch?!”

Lee Nara shouted, making the hallway echo.

I exaggeratedly looked around and gestured for her to be quiet.

Lee Nara clenched her fists and trembled, keeping her mouth shut.

People with a lot to lose tend to be more afraid.

Why aren’t these kinds of people afraid?

Is it because they’re brainless?

“Since we’re talking about queen bees, maintain some dignity, senior. You’re the queen bee of a much larger group than I am, aren’t you?”

I smiled brightly and opened the door to the waiting room, slamming it shut.

Beyond the door, the sound of Lee Nara’s angry heels grew fainter.

But from inside the waiting room, I heard someone stifling a laugh.

Startled, I looked over.

It was Seo Jaeyeon.

“Are you really crazy?”

Seo Jaeyeon’s face looked amused as she said that.

“Ah… I’m sorry.”

Seo Jaeyeon’s eyes widened at my answer.

“Sorry? What for?”

“She’s your friend, senior.”

Then Seo Jaeyeon laughed again.

“Can’t you distinguish between friends and colleagues?”

Wasn’t she a friend…?!

They were negotiating over guarantees at the same time, so I naturally assumed they were close.

Come to think of it, Lee Nara wasn’t at the gathering where Lee Seokhyun and Seo Jaeyeon met.

I remembered briefly wondering about it.

Seo Jaeyeon spoke as if she had read my mind.

“She’s not a friend, and she can’t come to our gatherings. She’s the one who broke Minhee’s dating scandal two years ago.”

“…?”

She was even crazier than I thought.

“Minhee has quite the temper too. She probably doesn’t want to get her hair pulled in front of the camera, either.”

Seo Jaeyeon’s makeup team, who were tidying up her things in the back, didn’t even pretend to listen, as if they were used to it.

“Still, be careful. Lee Nara has a crazy side too. You haven’t been doing well lately. Of course, you suppressed the controversy with your skills, but she’s a toxic woman.”

Seo Jaeyeon smiled slightly.

“No matter what, if you get caught in another scandal, you’ll be completely branded as a weirdo.”

I nodded at those words.

I couldn’t understand Seo Jaeyeon’s true intentions at all.

She was definitely a sly one, but why had she been helping me since last time?

“Thank you. But why have you been helping me since last time…?”

In response to my question, Seo Jaeyeon stood up and answered.

“I have a disease where I can’t hang out with stupid people. If I spend time with them, I want to curse them, and thorns grow in my mouth.”

“…”

Roughly, it meant that I didn’t seem stupid.

“Smart people are rare in this industry. Smart people who are good at acting and have good looks are even rarer. And people that precious deserve to be treated well.”

I was shocked inside.

Was this a compliment?

It was a way of speaking I had never heard of in my forty-odd years of life.

“So, you should know that you’re precious too. Behave yourself well.”

After saying that, Seo Jaeyeon opened the door and left.

I slowly sat down in the chair, looked in the mirror, and thought.

The real queen bee was Seo Jaeyeon.

* * *

Behind the stage.

After presenting the Best Newcomer Awards, Choi Hyungmin spoke to me in a friendly manner.

“The dress must be cold, right?”

As last year’s Best New Actor winner, he was the actor who had slapped me several times in a morning drama in my past life.

Wow, he’s gentle after all this time.

Just as I was trying to overcome the misanthropy I had lost because of Lee Nara.

“Keep holding my arm. I tend to be warm.”

“Ah, it’s okay. Thank you, senior.”

“Hey, ‘senior’ is too stiff. Call me ‘oppa’ [older brother – term of endearment used by women]. And give me your number later, okay?”

Ha….

A curse almost came out of my mouth.

I’m tired, so tired.

I forced a smile, ignored him, and headed to the fitting room with quick steps.

Shortly after, I changed from the awards ceremony dress into a hanbok [traditional Korean dress] dress and sat down in my seat.

“Now, finally, the Best Actress Award. Lee Nara from , Han Saena from , Song Yeoseon from , Woo Junghee from , and Yoo Hyun from .”