Scene number 17 was the first meeting between Lee Hyuk-soo’s hostess, who is also another protagonist of the work, ‘Gil Soo-jin’, and Lee Yoo-joo.
While the story had unfolded from their perspectives until now, from this point on, their stories would mesh together like cogs in a machine.
A successful academic achievement for a son.
A mother, Gil Soo-jin, who wanted her child to lead a successful life.
And, the one holding the answer sheet, Lee Yoo-joo.
In a way, it was no different from a chase.
The hunter and the hunted.
The only difference from a typical chase was.
That the hunted is in the superior position.
Seo-yeon and Lee Mi-ran, playing Gil Soo-jin, knew this well.
Gil Soo-jin needed the entrance exam plan that Lee Yoo-joo had, that portfolio.
To be precise, she needed the perfect portfolio that helped Lee Yoo-joo’s brother, Lee Seok-chan, achieve the top rank at Baekyeon University.
Gil Soo-jin wanted to be the first to seize Lee Yoo-joo, who has memorized and possessed that completely.
That was her objective.
“Maybe I’m being too ambitious from the very start.”
The middle-aged actors who had been acting for a long time thought so.
It wasn’t a particularly action-packed scene or one with strong emotions.
That’s why, it was even more difficult to act.
If there were exaggerated emotions, you could just dive in and spew out the lines.
But this scene was calm.
Endlessly silent but chilly, and in some ways, it had to reveal fiery emotions.
A very complex scene.
It was also the part that revealed the theme of the work and everything else.
The two protagonists driving the play.
It was fitting to start the script reading at the point where they could see their dialogue.
“Difficult.”
“Very difficult.”
At this gathering, there wasn’t a single actor who hadn’t seen [The Chaser].
From young actors who simply watched out of jealousy to those who watched with expectations for the rising stars.
They all watched the two’s performance in different ways.
And.
Lee Mi-ran, facing Seo-yeon, quietly smiled to herself.
“She’s got some spirit.”
Seo-yeon’s atmosphere changed.
There was no way to help but feel it chillingly.
Perhaps others might not clearly see the difference between Seo-yeon as she was and Seo-yeon now.
Lee Yoo-joo and Seo-yeon had many overlapping traits.
An emotionless expression, a calm tone.
Overall, the movements weren’t that big, making them similar.
However, there were definitely differences.
“Lee Yoo-joo is an extremely pessimistic character.”
She received near-abusive education from her parents since childhood.
Along with her brother, Lee Seok-chan.
The moment Lee Yoo-joo saw her younger brother, who was one year younger than her, unable to keep up with that education and receiving discrimination.
She lived thinking she simply had to succeed at all costs.
Years went by.
At the point of becoming a high school student, academic achievements were just something she had to achieve.
Future goals.
Things she wanted to do.
There were none.
She just had to restore her father’s glory as an ‘entrance exam coordinator.’
So, the adults who coveted her.
She was a female student who despised students who mechanically buried themselves in studying.
“That feeling of hatred.”
Lee Yoo-joo’s face was extremely expressionless, but in her eyes, a deep hatred was evident.
The intense loathing contained in those calm eyes was palpable.
It wasn’t just a feeling.
Subtle changes in her facial muscles naturally gave that impression.
The slightly furrowed brow.
The slightly narrowed eyes.
The gently twisted lips.
All of them made her seem like she was sneering.
Or, perhaps, there was a sense of self-deprecation in it.
The loathing Lee Yoo-joo harbored was directed not only at others but also at herself.
So.
“Nice to meet you, Lee Yoo-joo.”
Lee Mi-ran welcomed her as Gil Soo-jin, filled with expectations.
“Let’s be good friends with Min-seo. Since we’re both from the same high school, we’ll be seeing each other for life.”
Scene number 17.
By entering Taeyang High School, Lee Yoo-joo ends up partnered with Gil Soo-jin’s daughter, Lee Min-seo.
Because of the same surname, they would sit next to each other.
Gil Soo-jin thought it was fortunate.
Her desired objective happened to sit right next to her daughter.
So she asked her daughter to invite Lee Yoo-joo home.
To win Lee Yoo-joo’s favor and gauge her true intentions.
To somehow obtain the portfolio of her brother, Lee Seok-chan.
“Well.”
At Gil Soo-jin’s words, Lee Yoo-joo smiled brightly.
It was a smile like a perfectly drawn picture.
Not the expression of a human, but a smile drawn in a painting.
“I don’t know about forever.”
“That’s just words. But Min-seo told me various things about you.”
“Is that so? I haven’t really talked much with Min-seo.”
“If you haven’t talked much, then that’s fine. You can get to know each other in the future.”
“That’s a valid point.”
Calm conversation.
Both sides exchanged dialogues with smiling faces.
“So if you need anything, just say it. I’ll help as much as I can, as a friend’s mother.”
“Thank you. But it’s okay.”
“No, you must have plenty of things you need or want. There’s definitely something you want? I can help you achieve that.”
Having said that, Gil Soo-jin confidently looked at Lee Yoo-joo.
She was a famous entrance exam coordinator, but a failed father.
What could her father gain by putting Lee Yoo-joo into Taeyang High School?
It was clear.
As her daughter, the perfect entrance exam plan and curriculum he possessed.
She wanted to present that, to showcase it.
So Gil Soo-jin was confident.
She was merely reaching out for a product.
No, in fact, she was helping the other side.
To come into this [Sky Garden], she was extending a generous hand to those less fortunate.
“I appreciate that.”
Lee Yoo-joo responded, merely smiling at Gil Soo-jin’s pressure.
As if she was completely uninterested.
A strange tension was felt between the two.
“Eyes.”
The young actors participating in [Sky Garden] swallowed hard, focusing on the eyes.
They hadn’t exchanged many words yet, but the thick acting made it impossible not to feel the tension.
“Neither set of eyes is smiling.”
Gil Soo-jin’s eyes were sharp, as if trying to see through Lee Yoo-joo’s innermost thoughts.
In contrast, Lee Yoo-joo simply ignored her with eyes filled with contempt.
A sword and shield.
It was as if there was a battle between them.
“Ah, right.”
It was Gil Soo-jin who turned the conversation in that quiet exchange of gazes.
“I heard your brother was the top student at Baekyeon University. Medical school, too.”
“Yes.”
“You must be proud. That’s truly impressive.”
At Gil Soo-jin’s smiling words, for the first time, emotions filled Lee Yoo-joo’s eyes.
Beyond simple hatred lay a clear sense of displeasure.
That was vividly evident.
But just for a moment.
“Indeed.”
Lee Yoo-joo replied with a smile.
“Really.”
There was something in her voice that felt different from before.
A strange anger was clearly present.
The slight tremor in her voice seemed to reveal Lee Yoo-joo’s emotions.
It was as if tension was ignited at the fuse of a bomb.
It felt like there was imminent danger that Lee Yoo-joo might do something to Gil Soo-jin at any moment.
A climax.
That was the scene it suited the most.
“Min-seo.”
Lee Yoo-joo looked at Gil Soo-jin, who was looking at her, and wiped the smile off her face.
“I’ll make sure to get along.”
She replied dryly.
Yet, there was definitely an emotion that couldn’t be hidden.
But even facing that, Gil Soo-jin simply smiled in satisfaction.
“Yes, I look forward to it. Lee Yoo-joo.”
With that, their conversation came to a halt.
“……”
Until the moment they put down the script and sat down.
A strange stillness flowed.
“Wow.”
The one who finally exclaimed was director Kim Il-soo.
He looked at the two actresses, who had just given a passionate performance, with a very excited expression.
“This is great. Wow, honestly, I thought I might need to recalibrate the acting tone or bring in new emotions… but… no.”
Everyone inwardly agreed with his sentiments.
It was true to his words.
There were no flaws in the scene just now.
It had a neatness reminiscent of a smoothly edited drama scene itself.
Plus, since Seo-yeon’s outfit was a school uniform, it fit contextually so well.
It felt like this was a filming set.
“Thank you.”
At such praise, Seo-yeon nodded slightly.
But she didn’t show a big reaction.
As if gathering her emotions, she simply fiddled with the corners of her eyes with her fingers.
That scene.
“How’s it going?”
Han Sung-jin looked at his friend Kim Hyun-seok sitting next to him.
“Pretty crazy, right?”
“…….”
At that remark, Kim Hyun-seok looked at Han Sung-jin with sharp eyes.
Isn’t that a bit much?
He looked like he might curse harshly.
He didn’t want to acknowledge it. He really didn’t want to, but instinctively, he couldn’t ignore the sense of crisis.
The role Kim Hyun-seok played was Lee Min-seo’s twin brother, partnered with Seo-yeon.
Unlike the considerably lacking Min-seo, he was superior in many ways, so he had many tangled scenes with Lee Yoo-joo.
“Do you think you can come off well when you’re on screen together?”
Well, probably.
He had never even considered that.
He had always been proud of his acting skills.
The surrounding actors and the agency had always lifted him up.
But after seeing that performance just now, those praises felt like empty words.
Surely, he wasn’t the only one feeling like this.
The younger actors participating in the drama, who had passed the audition this time, must be thinking similarly.
Previously, there were gazes of jealousy toward Seo-yeon mixed with suspicion and disdain.
When only seen on screen or TV, it was easy to think, “I could also do that.” But facing it directly, the pressure felt completely different.
In the first place, the actress who played Gil Soo-jin, Lee Mi-ran, was acting sincerely.
As if ready to devour the presence of others if one were careless.
However, Seo-yeon accepted that intensity far too calmly.
As if it were only natural.
That difference made the young actors feel a sense of defeat.
“Even more, it seems she doesn’t care at all.”
As if she didn’t care at all about how other actors thought of her.
Seo-yeon leisurely perused the script.
Even without directly competing against anyone, Kim Hyun-seok bit his lower lip at the intense feeling of defeat he could sense.
Then.
“?”
Feeling a gaze, Seo-yeon turned her eyes toward Kim Hyun-seok.
Upon meeting her gaze, Kim Hyun-seok hurriedly looked down.
“Why? She’s looking at you.”
“……No.”
Anyway, jealousy mixed with frustration.
His feelings were quite complex, but it was difficult to express vague hostility like before.
“……That coin.”
That coin was still in his pocket.
Perhaps because of it, he couldn’t bear to cast hostile glances at Seo-yeon like before.
He didn’t know what that coin meant, but.
Kim Hyun-seok’s instincts naturally led him to avoid confrontation.
It was best to stay away.
Han Sung-jin tilted his head at Kim Hyun-seok’s strange response.
But soon nodded.
Ah, it seems you are worried about performing with Joo Seo-yeon.
“Are you already worried about the shoot?”
“…….”
Kim Hyun-seok slowly nodded at Han Sung-jin’s words.
Of course, the meaning was completely different.
*
“Definitely hard.”
After finishing today’s script reading and returning, Seo-yeon exhaled a sigh.
She wasn’t sure how others felt, but it had been a very challenging script reading for her.
Criticism of her acting was not particularly given, nor were there any significant revisions to the script.
From an outward perspective, Seo-yeon had performed her role in the most relaxed manner today.
But.
“I feel queasy.”
It’s hard to act that which one hates.
In her previous life, that had been an emotion she simply didn’t know, and in the life of ‘Joo Seo-yeon’, there was little room for hatred.
Good parents.
Good friends.
Those were probably the greatest fortunes she thought she had been given.
Thus, it was even tougher dealing with the emotion of hatred.
What if.
If she had not chased after Jo Seo-hee and attended a high-society party.
And if she hadn’t met ‘Ro’ there, it would have likely been an abstract feeling.
The emotions Seo-yeon felt back then were much more intense than now.
She could feel something far more ferocious than simple anger.
Something she couldn’t accept.
The feelings that arose when seeing fundamentally different beings.
She wanted to express that through her acting, but it didn’t translate well.
Everyone praised her, but she was personally dissatisfied.
She felt she could have done better.
That was the feeling she had.
“Huff.”
Sighing, Seo-yeon turned on her computer.
She could see the new graphics card she had recently purchased shining and operating.
“I didn’t originally intend to replace it.”
Her father, Young-bin, had been urging her to buy one since graphic cards were inexpensive these days, so they ended up getting it together.
In fact, this was quite a rare act, so she willingly took it as a gift.
Seo-yeon’s parents didn’t want her to do anything with the money she earned.
All the money Seo-yeon earned was hers.
If she wanted to do what she desired, they always supported her.
And if she faced hard times, they would lend her an ear.
……Of course, at times, her dad felt like wanting to hit her.
It was roughly that kind of feeling.
So perhaps it was harder to immerse herself in the role of Lee Yoo-joo.
If she identified too closely, it would be too painful.
Even more than the murderer Cha Seo-ah, which reminded her of her previous life.
“Probably because it feels oddly realistic.”
It might be that what was hitting her more intensely than murder couldn’t end with mere imagination.
“Alright.”
Seo-yeon finally steadied her mind.
She thought she would heal her gloomy feelings by watching Ramiel’s stream.
As she thought this, she entered the channel.
“I think I’ll soon be able to introduce a new friend to you all! Ta-da~!”
“?”
Suddenly, a black silhouette appeared on Ramiel’s channel.
Introducing a new Vtuber on personal streaming channel Ramiel???
What on earth was this?
Who are you?
“I can’t wait to introduce you to my new friend!”
As Ramiel spoke kindly with a smile, Seo-yeon felt the terrible emotions that had been swirling inside her heart just moments ago ignite into different feelings.
Like everything was blazing.
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