Chapter 210

Fingers biting or hearing comments about the acting being too provocative.

Seo-yeon recently experienced the greatest humiliation of her life during the filming of *Gyeongseong Yeong-nyeo*!

In truth, those aspects didn’t matter much.

Since Seo-yeon hardly ever called “NG” (No Good), from the crew’s perspective, it was simply a bit surprising. And from Director Baek Min’s point of view, it seemed like just part of the process of finding the right emotional tone.

Thus, the NG didn’t pose any real issue.

It was just a bit embarrassing, that was all.

Especially, the reactions from the people who had come from Japan were somewhat disconcerting.

“Wow! Did you see that acting, Mr. Tanaka? It’s clear that Korean acting is a little different from Japan’s.”

“And besides, the acting of Actress Joo Seo-yeon is really impressive. Even the NG parts felt authentic. Hmm…I would say it was kind of cute.”

“Oh, me too. I was watching with my mouth open, and I unintentionally ended up smiling at the end. Wasn’t that just shot?”

“Of course. It was shot. I was worried because I heard this actress never calls NG, but from the first day, it seems we’ve hit something good.”

Recently, after starting to interact with Sora, Seo-yeon had been learning some Japanese from her. Given that she had already been exposed to various forms of media such as anime and games, learning the language wasn’t too difficult for her.

It was mostly about correcting slightly wrong words. However, despite having watched so many Japanese shows, understanding spoken Japanese wasn’t as easy as expected. Now, though, she had managed to overcome that issue to a certain extent.

Thus, their conversation clearly reached Seo-yeon’s sensitive ears.

Of course, there were some unknown words here and there, but overall, she grasped the general nuance of what they were saying.

‘Are they planning to broadcast this in Japan?’

She couldn’t help but think that.

Did they just film that scene?

Surely, they filmed the part where I was biting my fingers and trembling?

Should I stop this?

As she thought this, she started to feel nervous.

“Eh, what is it? It’s cute.”

Next to her, this comment caught her attention. When she turned to look, she found Jo Seo-hui covering her mouth with both hands.

“……What?”

“Oh, no, it just slipped out. But, still, you’re unlike your usual self, so it’s only natural for me to think that way.”

Jo Seo-hui had unintentionally spoken aloud what she usually thought to herself. Initially, she was a little flustered but didn’t think she had said anything particularly bad.

After all, she had just thought Seo-yeon was especially adorable just now!

“Your comment just now, in the context of shooting a film about same-sex love, is rather significant.”

However, Yi-yeon, who had been listening silently, spoke that line.

“You’re twisting my honest words! Can it not just be interpreted as cute?”

“Still, this isn’t quite typical for Joo Seo-yeon, given her usual demeanor. You rarely show this kind of side these days.”

“Isn’t that right? Recently?”

Jo Seo-hui was intrigued by Yi-yeon’s words. Recently? Or did this happen earlier in her career?

‘From what I know, when she was a child actor, she didn’t give off this vibe, did she?’

At that time, Jo Seo-hui was quite hostile towards Seo-yeon, so she had the chance to hear stories from the production set of *The Moon That Hid the Sun*, thanks to actress Jeong Eun-seon, who was almost like a mentor to her.

And the most frequent story Jeong Eun-seon would share was:

“The child is not childlike.”

“There’s no emotional fluctuation, no fear.”

“What a dangerous kid.”

Of course, this “danger” wasn’t ideological but rather physical danger. After all, children often don’t know what is truly fearful, and because of that, they might carelessly do dangerous things.

Not just in the context of acting, but in everyday life as well. Since Seo-yeon was always composed and expressed little emotion, Jeong Eun-seon probably found it unsettling.

While this didn’t bother her much at the time,

‘Our teacher should really be more careful with her words.’

Jo Seo-hui honestly thought Jeong Eun-seon spoke poorly. She was the type to unintentionally make enemies.

Anyway, to Jo Seo-hui, who had heard Jeong Eun-seon’s accounts, Seo-yeon was the very picture of un-childlike behavior. She was literally a steel girl.

“Is this story from when she went undercover for a while?”

“Hmm? Oh, right. Seo-yeon in middle school was no joke.”

Jo Seo-hui became extremely curious upon hearing Yi-yeon’s words. Just what had happened during middle school?

“When emotions couldn’t be controlled back then… Eh!”

Before Yi-yeon could finish, her mouth was covered by a pair of white hands. It was Seo-yeon, who had been listening silently behind her, covering her mouth.

“…I haven’t changed the blankets for long. Besides, today’s events are one thing, but past events… Back then, I was young, right?”

Mid-adolescence brought unexpected emotions for Seo-yeon, as hormones and emotional control became an issue.

She was very emotional, whether good or bad. Also, it was a period when her physical abilities changed dramatically, almost akin to the storms of adolescence. It was truly a stormy period.

At that time, Yi-yeon was always trailing behind Seo-yeon, witnessing this transformation process completely. Of course, Yi-yeon herself had also encouraged things back then.

“Hmph, how can you feel embarrassed about something so trivial? That’s not typical of Seo-yeon.”

“At the time, you even told my mom that.”

“…Well, yes, I did.”

The two were deep in conversation, and Jo Seo-hui, watching them with great interest, felt somewhat excluded. After all, it was a conversation that only she didn’t know about.

‘Hmm, it was like that at that time. You also got into quite a few troubles, didn’t you?’

‘Ah, you’re talking about that incident? That incident was really something, wasn’t it?’

As their conversation went back and forth with this tone, her curiosity only grew. She wished the two would enlighten her when they insisted on their own private conversation.

Just as Jo Seo-hui was tugging at Seo-yeon’s sleeve, trying to encourage her to share more,

“Alright, let’s move on to the next scene.”

Director Baek Min’s voice was heard. It was the scene that Seo-yeon and Yi-yeon had just acted out.

However, this scene wasn’t a continuation of the previous encounter between Yui-na and Yeon Seonye. This scene would actually come much later in the storyline, and the reason for filming it now was that it could be done in the current set location.

In other words, they intended to shoot all the events in Yui-na’s mansion.

“Director Baek has quite a unique style.”

Seo-yeon slightly tilted her head as she pondered Director Baek Min’s method. Directors naturally have different shooting styles.

Some directors shoot based on the story flow.

Others shoot based on set locations or shooting locations.

Director Baek Min fit into both categories. While he generally shot according to the story flow, he also preferred to shoot everything possible in one location based on circumstances.

Perhaps this was because he had a firm grasp of *Gyeongseong Yeong-nyeo* in his mind.

In such cases, it can be quite challenging for actors to fully grasp and portray the emotional line when filming scenes out of sequence.

This is particularly true for method actors who immerse themselves deeply in their characters. Since the emotional tone varies significantly across individual scenes, method actors must continuously recalibrate their feelings.

But thankfully, Seo-yeon no longer rigidly adhered to method acting, so this wasn’t much of a problem for her. Nowadays, she only used this technique when absolutely necessary, maintaining a surface-level performance of method acting otherwise.

Still, this affected her regular behavior to some degree as the roles and their psychology occasionally influenced her actions.

So far, however, the roles she had taken on didn’t impact her to a significant extent.

“The scene we’re about to shoot happens a bit later in the story. Specifically, after both Yeon Seonye and Michiko have become more aware of their own emotions. It might be a little challenging, but are you comfortable?”

Afterward, Director Baek Min began to provide guidance for the performance of this scene. Scene number: S#126.

The number indicates that this scene would come significantly past the halfway point of the story.

Thus, the performance guidance became more detailed, as skipping several scenes meant that more intensive communication between director and actors was required to create the desired scene.

“Alright, then.”

Director Baek Min’s announcement to start. Up to this point, Seo-yeon hadn’t been giving it much thought.

She’d been somewhat distracted by what had just transpired and kept feeling uneasy because of the attention from the Japanese broadcasting team.

Several distracting factors were present. And then, it happened.

“Seonye, ah.”

Michiko’s voice sounded more breathless than usual.

“Seonye, what exactly were you doing in this mansion?”

Apparently, Michiko wanted to maintain her usual demeanor, but her voice wavered despite her intentions. Her emotional connection to Yeon Seonye had changed.

Seo-yeon involuntarily admired Seo-hui’s performance.

In earlier scenes, Seo-hui’s Michiko had shown indifference toward Yeon Seonye, treating her merely as an intriguing Korean maid. But despite skipping numerous scenes, Seo-hui skillfully portrayed the transformation in Michiko’s emotional state.

“I am being misunderstood, my lady.”

I-yeon’s acting, on the other hand, was slightly nervous. Fortunately, since the scene reflected Yan Seon-ye’s inner turmoil, it wasn’t glaringly obvious. In fact, from a certain perspective, it appeared natural.

‘Would this be okay?’

Seo-yeon was impressed by Seo-hui’s performance but worried slightly about I-yeon’s.

After all, Director Baek Min was carefully observing closely.

The scene was at a point where it could be interrupted at any time without issue, which made Seo-yeon also feel tense while observing.

Until this point, everything had been fine.

“Ah, my lady, let me go.”

“I can’t. First, tell me what happened between you and Yuina.”

“But, it was really just a coincidence. How could they do something like that? I’m just a simple Korean maid.”

“Don’t lie, Yeon Seon-ye.”

Such verbal sparring. The scene was intense, filled with swirling emotions. Watching quietly, Seo-yeon began to feel a subtle change in the emotion building between the two—it wasn’t purely anger but something else entirely.

“Why do you want to go to Yuina now? I’m sorry, but I can’t let you. I’ve decided not to let you go.”

“Bu—but it’s not like that.”

“I knew about your connection with Yuina long ago, but I thought it didn’t matter. But now, it’s different. The moment I saw you here by chance, it evoked an entirely different feeling.”

Michiko was not a weak character. Even upon realizing betrayal, she chose not to push Yeon Seon-ye away.

“I thought, ‘Just letting you go will be fine.’ In the past, that is. Sorry, Seonye, but you’ve missed your chance.”

In fact, she even metaphorically handed over the leash. Michiko’s actions after awakening to her feelings for Yeon Seon-ye were remarkably straightforward, showing no hesitation or wavering. A fierce and fearless lady.

“Isn’t this something Yuina could have given you? I apologize, but I am not kind.”

Therefore, the scene ahead would certainly be quite intense in nature.

“Huh?”

Seo-yeon unconsciously opened her mouth as she watched. *Gyeongseong Yeong-nyeo* is a movie with a 15+ age rating. Despite this, the scenes depicted were surprisingly quite intense.

Of course, there was no nudity. Yet, how else to describe it…

“This, this is, uh, a bit…”

Yeon Seon-ye’s performance was based on Ramiel’s character. The voice was similar from the start.

Just toned down a bit.

So now, the scene Seo-yeon watched felt as if Ramiel was being subjected to a certain treatment! Not that it was true, but still!

“What? Up to this point? To this extent?”

Seohui’s performance had no hesitation. Watching Michiko’s intense emotional portrayal, Seo-yeon’s pupils fluctuated.

The love she portrayed was intense.

Moreover, with I-yeon’s somewhat clumsy performance, the clumsy girl was being overwhelmed by intense emotions.

Some indescribable emotion enveloped Seo-yeon.

Could she express such levels of emotion herself?

No, more importantly… Ramiel.

Her Ramiel.

Watching such emotions caused her to almost faint.

Jealousy?

Not entirely, but a complex mixture of feelings.

The sentiment of Yui-na observing Michiko and Yeon Seon-ye was somewhat like this.

Anyway.

“Uh, a little… it seems insufficient.”

Seo-yeon had generally understood Yui-na’s feelings. But after seeing today’s performance, she felt her interpretation of Yui-na’s emotions might be slightly inadequate.

At least, to match Michiko’s level, Yui-na would have to show up stronger, or they wouldn’t be worthy opponents.

If Michiko was a raging fire, Yui-na as currently envisioned would just be a small spark.

“The emotion of liking someone.”

“Love.”

It was, indeed, more intense than Seo-yeon had thought.

“But why is Jo Seo-hui so good?”

Her curiosity was piqued, so Seo-yeon fixed her gaze on Seo-hui.

“Why do you keep glaring at me?”

Seo-hui felt unfairly targeted and hid behind I-yeon.

Naturally, Seo-yeon’s glare intensified.

What? Was she showing off to her?

The relationship between Seon-ye and Michiko, right?

Still, the fact that Seo-hui could express what she couldn’t was annoying.

Seo-yeon’s pride as an actress had become significantly stronger compared to the past.

Hence, she had somewhat hurried a scheduled meeting with Yeo-hee.

To perfectly portray Yui-na, who was in an unrequited love with Seon-ye.

***

“Why has it come to this?”

Yeo-hee was wondering as she looked at the girl sitting before her.

Although an agreement had been made to meet later, it was supposed to be in someone else’s company—Jo Seo-hui, or perhaps someone else—not just the two of them.

Weird, right? Why did she come alone?

She must have heard some vague info from So-a regarding what happened in the past.

But Seo-yeon’s expressionless face, which only listened silently, made Yeo-hee nervous.

Though So-a’s daughter, why was she so unemotional?

She had been entirely different during her drama works or when they met under the “Masked Singer” guise—they felt she was an emotional child back then.

Thus, Seo-yeon’s silence pressured Yeo-hee, who herself wasn’t far from feeling similar.

“What should I start with?”

Seo-yeon had no idea how to begin the conversation. It wasn’t something you could straightforwardly blurt out like, “Hey, let’s talk about your first love experience!” Even someone as clueless as Seo-yeon would know that’s impolite.

“What to start with…”

“What something needs to be said…”

In the middle of this eye exchange, Yeo-hee broke the silence with awkward small talk.

“Ah, well, uh, recently a close friend of mine… well, actually, a very close friend who’s a web novel writer had her work adapted into a drama.”

“Is the friend from your high school days?”

“Ah, well…”

That’s true.

Ah, I might have said something wrong.

“By any chance, do you know the title of the drama?”

“Mm? That would probably be the title of the web novel, wouldn’t it?”

Is it okay to share this?

It felt like a misstep after uttering anything random.

‘Is the friend from the high school days, maybe from one of the clubs with mom?’

It must be certain.

And that made her even more curious.

“The title was definitely…”

Yeo-hee mentioned the title of her friend’s web novel. Thinking Seo-yeon wouldn’t know it.

And in that moment.

“Huh?”

Seo-yeon couldn’t help but doubt her hearing.

She could vividly recall any movies or dramas she had encountered in her previous life when she wanted to.

Among those, she distinctly remembered the drama Yeo-hee had just referenced.

What startled Seo-yeon were the memories stirred up by hearing the title.

First, this drama had created notable waves due to its striking plot.

And…

“This one failed, didn’t it?”

The adaptation of the web novel into a drama by a scriptwriter entirely dismantled the original content, resulting in a colossal failure.

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