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After all the actors had gathered, the real filming began.

With so many actors present, we shot a scene from the complicated script, and during a brief break, I checked my phone.

“Oh…”

The number of followers had clearly changed since before.

I was only mutual-following Moon Chang-sik, yet I was amazed by the noticeable effect of it when Nam Han-kyung, who was next to me, asked,

“What’s wrong?”

“The follower count keeps increasing since we followed each other earlier.”

I found it fascinating that it was still going up even now. Nam Han-kyung laughed, clearly amused, and said,

“It’s at its peak right now.”

“Wow, you must have a lot of followers, huh?”

“Right?”

As he said this, Nam Han-kyung’s Instagram had indeed quite a few followers.

Well, I had expected that, so it wasn’t too surprising.

“…You have a fair amount.”

“Oh, a fair amount? Given my years since debut, this is actually a lot!”

…That would be true.

However, I had just seen Moon Chang-sik’s follower count.

No matter how impressive Nam Han-kyung was, everything in this world is relative, isn’t it?

“I’ll give you a compliment.”

But if I voiced those thoughts, it might hurt Nam Han-kyung’s pride, so I answered mildly.

“Come on.”

Nam Han-kyung turned his head away, as if he hadn’t expected it, and I also switched off my Instagram and returned to the script.

But the filming was dragging on.

It felt like we had spent quite a long time shooting the last scene, yet there were still many scenes left.

It seemed that with so many actors, the scenes were somewhat lengthy and detailed, resulting in a lot of splitting while shooting.

Consequently, I was struggling to maintain my expression in my seat.

“Soo-hyun.”

“Yes?”

While I was reading the script, Moon Chang-sik, who was resting opposite me, spoke up.

“Did you go to the salon this morning?”

“Oh, the salon? Yeah?”

How did he know? Oh, did I give it away?

I had made sure to look sharp for today’s scene.

“You went to the place the agency president introduced you to, right?”

“Uh? You know?”

“I go there sometimes too. The director is really good.”

“Oh, the director is indeed skilled.”

I replied, acknowledging that the director was quite talented, and Moon Chang-sik looked surprised.

“Do you get your hair done by the director?”

“Huh? Yeah, I do.”

“Ah. I see.”

He looked momentarily baffled but eventually understood.

“What’s that about? Why?”

His response gave me a strange feeling, so I answered, but Moon Chang-sik shook his head as if it were nothing serious.

“Oh, it’s just… because the agency president has been nice to you.”

“…That’s right, isn’t it?”

I secretly wondered if they treated all newbies like this, but surely that couldn’t be true.

It was evidently clear that I was receiving special treatment.

The car, Park Kang-seok, the salon…

And the work they were handing me.

Clearly, the agency was pushing for me.

“Oh, haha… Well, don’t feel too pressured.”

“Ah… Is it okay if I don’t feel that way?”

To be honest, I liked it.

It meant that the agency was recognizing my value, right?

But…

“I was planning to practice right after filming.”

From what I could tell, my scenes should conclude around the time the recently released ‘Chase’ finished airing.

Then I wanted to dive right into preparing for the concert…

Wasn’t that a bit inappropriate?

Of course, since they gave me a relaxed contract, it wouldn’t be a problem if I took my time and went off to prepare for the concert, but there’s a human element to consider.

“Um… If you’re that concerned…”

“If I’m concerned…?”

“Maybe you should do a variety show after the drama.”

“A variety show?”

At that, Moon Chang-sik tapped a few things on his phone and showed them to me.

“Do you know this variety show?”

“Ah… I’ve heard of it.”

What he showed was a trending observational variety show.

I recognized it because I had seen it a few times when it popped up on shorts.

“They reached out to cast you to coincide with the end of the drama.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, Soo-hyun, you too.”

“Me??”

I was bewildered since I hadn’t heard anything about it, and Moon Chang-sik shrugged.

“A PD I know mentioned it first. They’ll probably get in touch through your manager later this afternoon or tomorrow.”

“Ah…”

I figured that if it’s someone like Moon Chang-sik, they would contact him before the official casting.

More importantly, a variety show…

“Um… How’s the filming for a variety show?”

I had appeared briefly when Hyeon-su did a variety show, but this would be my first formal participation.

I assumed I would film once and then go to the studio again afterward?

Generally, it would take about two to three days, but I was honestly a bit worried.

“Well, it’s manageable.”

“What if I slip up and say something wrong?”

“Usually, they’ll edit it out.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“But you still have to be careful.”

“Um…”

While I had subtly anticipated doing some variety shows when I joined the agency, facing the situation now was quite daunting…

“I’m worried I might mess up…”

“Soo-hyun?”

No matter that I was supposedly working above board now, I had a background as an underground VTuber.

Not just casually dipping my toes in, but as an active frontline VTuber.

What if I said something weird when I went on?

What if I ended up cursing or saying something totally off?

“What are you worrying about? You seem like you’d speak well.”

At that moment, Nam Han-kyung, who had been listening to our conversation, chimed in.

“Really?”

“Yeah, I was nervous when I first went on a variety show too, but it turned out to be no big deal.”

…No big deal, huh?

While I appreciated the reassurance, coming from Nam Han-kyung it provided little comfort.

After all, he seems like he would excel at anything from the get-go.

…Am I similar?

Now that I think about it, I haven’t really failed at anything I touched.

“…I understand for now.”

With that thought, I felt my confidence surge back, nodding in agreement.

“Are you going to do it?”

“Well, what’s the big deal?”

Yeah, how could a variety show be tougher than live streaming?

Considering my average viewer count, on second thought, with the chaotic broadcast chat room filled with them from my time as Lady Soo-yeon, maybe a variety show would be a breeze by comparison.

“Oh, and I’ll post a photo on Instagram.”

“A photo?”

“Yeah, I think it’ll get a great reaction if I post it now that Episode 3 has ended.”

“Yeah, go ahead. I’ll post something too.”

From the moment we followed each other, sharing photos was a given, so I readily agreed.

Should I try to leech a bit from Moon Chang-sik here?

Since I’m already activating my Instagram, wouldn’t it be great if I could gain more followers?

“What are you going to post, Soo-hyun?”

“Me? Hmm…”

To be honest, I had plenty of photos to share.

Did we take this many? My gallery is full of shooting location photos.

Well, if there’s one that I really should share…

It would definitely be this.

It was taken right after finishing filming the earlier Lady Soo-yeon scenes.

I had asked actor Lee Won-ho, who played Lady Soo-yeon’s father, for a photo with him and Moon Chang-sik.

I had always wanted to share this photo, and perhaps now was the time.

“Can I post this?”

I asked Moon Chang-sik first before sharing.

I wanted to clarify which photos were okay to post at this time, so I showed it to him, and he nodded.

“Yeah, it’s not a spoiler, and the vibe is nice.”

“Understood.”

Since I agreed the photo looked good to me, I posted it casually.

“Looks good.”

It was definitely way better than the selfies I had previously shared.

Feeling a subtle sense of satisfaction, I closed my phone.

“Have you posted everything?”

“Yes, now I should check after filming wraps up.”

Lately, comments and interactions had been increasing, so this time I thought they’d be even better than usual.

Anyway, after briefly reviewing the script, we resumed filming.

***

The filming finally wrapped up late in the evening.

Thinking back to this morning, the schedule was truly disastrous.

“Ugh…”

By the time the middle point arrived, I hadn’t gotten much rest, leading me to collapse in the car on the way home.

“Get some sleep.”

“Understood…”

Since we still had a distance to go home, I put on my eye mask, and closed my eyes.

Just for a moment…

“Soo-hyun, wake up.”

“Huh?”

I awoke to Park Kang-seok’s voice.

“…Have we arrived?”

“Yes, we’ve just now arrived.”

When I removed the eye mask and looked outside, we were right in front of our house’s main gate.

“Ah… Thank you.”

“Yes, go in and rest well.”

Still feeling rather groggy from sleep, I walked into the house.

“Home?”

Upon entering, Mrs. Jang greeted me from the living room where she was watching TV.

“Yeah… Yawn.”

I couldn’t help but yawn and decided to quickly take a shower.

Afterward, stepping outside…

Hmm…

Just a while ago, I felt like I could drop dead from exhaustion, but now after some sleep in the car and a refreshing shower, I felt rather clear-headed.

Did I just waste my time sleeping in the car?

I had planned to collapse directly on the bed right after filming, but it seems I’m in a bit of trouble.

Should I do a live broadcast?

With no other thoughts in mind, I stepped into the soundproof booth.

It was a bit late, but perhaps they’d enjoy this kind of thing even more?

Man, looks like I’m the only one thinking about the viewers here.

Having just applied some lotion and feeling fresh, I sat at the computer and turned on the broadcast as usual.

And then—

– So, you came today…

– I loved you, you bastard..!

– Are you the one who betrayed me???

– Lady Soo-yeon, show yourself, lol

– I thought you wouldn’t come today, I’m so glad you did.

– Damn, I was the only one serious… Damn, I was the only one serious…

“Uh.”

As soon as I started, I was momentarily taken aback by the spaghetti-like chat room.

What happened… Oh.

I suddenly recalled the things I had done earlier.

…Come to think of it, I had originally planned to take today off.

I lost track after filming for so long and coming home only to fall asleep.

Ding.

I turned off the broadcast.

– ??????

– ???

– ??

– What?

I could clearly see the viewers panicking in the chat after shutting off the broadcast.

Ah, ending it right away probably wasn’t the way to go, huh?

But the chat seemed to give off a vibe that wanted me to turn the broadcast off, so I couldn’t resist.

After mulling it over for a moment, I turned the broadcast back on.

“Ta-da!”

– ????

– Hey, damn.. Sorry..

– Don’t say that..

– Thank you.. Thank you..

– Everyone stop shooting!!

– Gosh, so you’re broadcasting this late…

When I resumed the broadcast, the viewers had inexplicably softened their demeanor towards me.

Hmm, it’s calming down now.

This is the kind of environment that’s fun to broadcast in.

 

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