Chapter 10: Ah, I’ll explain. (Urgently)

Tok. Tok. Tok.

Kim Sun-il unknowingly tapped his nails on the desk.

It was because of Lee Sua’s face. The sense of discomfort on her face transmitted an unknown feeling of unease to Kim Sun-il.

“…So, did you find something you like?”

Unable to bear the silence, he uttered a word.

Sua did not respond aloud.

Instead, she approached Kim Sun-il and neatly stacked the scripts on the desk. It seemed like she had already decided on an order.

“I think it’s this order. Is it correct?”

At first glance, her response seemed like an off-topic answer.

He told her to pick the best script, but she talks about the order. Wasn’t this absurd? But there was certainty in Sua’s expression.

“All five are scripts for the same drama.”

Kim Sun-il’s brow twitched.

The scripts were so different from each other in genre that they seemed like separate stories, and the character names were only labeled with alphabets. If Sua hadn’t had any special privileges, she would have been embarrassed.

It was clearly a trap designed to catch her.

However, there was a variable for Sua: the privilege.

“Now I’ve looked at one script. Please give me the next one.”

Sua spoke as politely as possible.

Naturally, the meaning of her words struck Kim Sun-il differently. The expression on his face, which had previously been amused, was now absent of any laughter.

‘…How?’

Kim Sun-il’s mind was filled with questions.

The scripts were edited in a very clever way. The genres, the characters, and even the backgrounds felt like entirely different dramas.

If Sua had only connected two of them, he would have praised her. If she had connected three, he would have been greatly impressed.

But the answer Sua presented was different.

Right in front of Kim Sun-il, she arranged all five scripts in the correct order. A genius-level brilliance that could not be described with simple words.

‘The script editing couldn’t have been wrong.’

That’s right, it couldn’t have been. When Kim Sun-il first looked at them, he thought they were scripts for different dramas.

This could only mean one thing.

‘Is she really that discerning? Someone with no experience, who claims acting is just a hobby?’

He had no choice but to acknowledge it.

Lee Sua’s judgment was on a completely different level.

“Your eye for detail is amazing. Saying it’s just top-tier doesn’t even do it justice.”

“That’s a relief.”

“This isn’t just relief…”

Kim Sun-il didn’t finish his sentence. He almost let slip the words “a once-in-a-lifetime talent,” but he barely managed to swallow them back.

“…Maybe, you might be better than me.”

“You said your eyesight wasn’t good. So, it makes sense.”

Sua simply gave a polite answer, hoping to end the conversation there. Of course, to Kim Sun-il, it came with a completely different meaning and struck him deeply.

“Haha!”

Suddenly, laughter erupted around.

“See? I told you Sua is different, right? Watching her get caught off guard like that makes me feel so much better.”

Sua barely held back a gasp. Surprisingly, the voice just now had come from Seo Yeonju.

As Sua made eye contact with her, Yeonju smiled brightly, and Sua thought, She looks like a lively rabbit turned into a human.

There was a brightness that wasn’t sharp, an innocence that hadn’t been tainted. Looking at Seo Yeonju, those were the feelings that emerged.

Meanwhile, the others couldn’t hide their surprise.

PD Choi Heewon and writer Lee Geumsook had been examining the arranged scripts for a while, but soon came over, carefully patting

Sua’s shoulder or arm, their faces filled with astonishment.

“Sua, you must be really surprised, right? We all disagreed, but Sun-il is just so picky. But this… I think I’m more surprised. How did you manage to get the order right?”

“We didn’t intervene, so we’re partly to blame. I apologize. I’ve been curious about Sua’s judgment, but I’m really amazed. You’re like a ghost, almost.”

Sua could only feel dazed.

What? Weren’t they all in on this?

The atmosphere was more concerned about Sua than Kim Sun-il. The efforts to reassure only her. It was quite different from what she had expected.

Did it show on her face? Seo Yeonju asked.

“Sua, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just…”

Sua fumbled with her lips before answering.

“…I just realized there isn’t a single person on Sun-il’s side.”

“What?”

At that, the judges exchanged glances.

“Ha ha ha!”

Soon, loud laughter broke out. Sua was only confused. Huh, I didn’t mean to be funny.

Seo Yeonju casually crossed her arms in front of Sua.

“Of course. Who would support that jerk? People call him a classy piece of trash, but honestly, ‘trash’ is the right word when it comes to him. He’s useless.”

Sua held her breath. Wow, Seo Yeonju crossed her arms.

The physical contact with a major actress brought an unexpected level of tension.

Unable to do anything, beads of cold sweat began dripping down her face as writer Lee Geumsook opened up other scripts.

“Sua, this is really just out of curiosity, but what do you think of these? Want to pick your favorite script?”

“Um…”

Sua carefully looked through the scripts one by one.

Of course, she didn’t forget to pretend to read by flipping through the pages at an appropriate pace. Just flipping through the pages and making a decision would make her seem like a fortune teller.

It didn’t take long to make a decision.

At this point, Sua even discovered a little trick.

Huh? I can try out an extra role with this?

Even choosing a role with just one line of dialogue, an extra part, would get the “Completed Experience” stamp. This was a clever move that allowed her to quickly assess the script’s quality.

[‘Special Forces 808’ script]
Sufficient elements
Experience Complete / Grade A

[‘Fist King’ script]

Sufficient elements
· Experience Complete / Grade 4

There were a total of 4, but she didn’t even look at 3 of them. The reason was obvious.

Grade A? Grade A, you say?

Grade A had a notification that was different from the rest. It seemed to shine with a flash of light. Without hesitation, Sua pointed to it.

“I like this one.”

Immediately, admiration burst from the opposite side.

“Huh? She picked the next work of this writer exactly!”

“Crazy. She’s crazy! It must be fate!”

“…This is really amazing. How could this be?”

However,

Contrary to the increasingly happy reactions from the others, Sua’s expression gradually became more complex. Honestly, she was a little disappointed.

“…Excuse me, but is this the end of the good opportunities?”

Sua asked purely out of curiosity. She had come because they promised to give her a good opportunity, but all she was being asked to do was look at scripts…

However, the reaction was bigger than expected. Everyone’s eyes widened, and their faces turned pale.

“Oh, Sua, that’s…”

“Sua, it’s not that…”

Sua calmly continued.

“It’s not that. I just thought that if it’s over, I can go home.”

There was a brief silence.

“Sua, wait a minute. Sua!”

Seo Yeonju suddenly hugged Sua around the waist.

“Of course, it’s not over! This is just the beginning. Come, sit down with me.”

“…Huh?”

“I won’t let you leave. I’ll hold on tight.”

Seo Yeonju slumped down onto the chair, and Sua naturally ended up sitting on Yeonju’s thighs.

For a moment, a thought crossed her mind: Is this really okay? But at the same time, the soft sensation and fresh fragrance tickled her nose.

“That’s right. Sua, until now, we’ve only satisfied our curiosity. From now on, we’ll give you a huge reward.”

“Sua, wait a moment.”

Not just Seo Yeonju, but all the judges held onto Sua. This was an experience Sua had never gone through before.

“Y-Yes?”

Her brain malfunctioned, and she stuttered for a while.

Writer Lee Geumsook spoke to Sua.

“Now that this is settled, let’s get to the main point. The script you just picked because you liked it, right?”

“Yes.”

“This is the masterpiece we’re making. Script, direction, casting—we’re putting all our efforts into it.”

“It seems like it.”

The notification was shining so brightly. It was even Grade A.

And a moment later,

Writer Lee Geumsook said something unbelievable.

“We want to cast you, Sua.”

“Cast me?”

“Yes. Cast. You will take one of the roles, stand in front of the camera, act, and the drama will be made and aired.”

“Huh.”

Without realizing it, Sua bit her tongue.

At the same time, all movement came to a halt. To those around, it looked incredibly cold, but in reality, it was just that everything had broken down.

“Cast me? Me? You want to cast me in a Grade A script?”

Only then did her hands start to tremble.

“So suddenly? This suddenly?”

Sua’s head jerked, and she turned to look at Writer Lee Geumsook. Thankfully, the other person didn’t seem to notice the awkwardness.

“The writer’s drama casting… Isn’t that a privilege that can only be earned by winning the audition?”

“Sua, you don’t need to worry about that. You proved yourself right in front of us. And in a way that was so obvious.”

“Uh….”

Sua lost her words.

She had given up a lot when she left the audition.

She had planned to build her filmography step by step from the ground up, but was this really happening? Seriously? For real?

Sua quietly stood up from her seat.

“…I’ll just go to the bathroom for a moment.”

For now, this was the best option.

She felt like she could jump around with excitement, but sitting on Seo Yeonju’s thighs felt strange. She needed to pull herself together.

Bathroom. Sua ran her hand through her hair several times.

“Ahhh… this is crazy. I’m shaking, I’m shaking.”

The idea of joining Writer Lee Geumsook’s next project felt like an extremely violent hope. She wanted to jump on the spot.

But then, Sua suddenly became curious.

“But, why is everyone treating me so unusually well?”

Looking back at her past memories, compliments had been rare.

─”Why not do a little more instead of wasting time with that expression?”

─”What’s the point of being pretty? You’re so cruel…”

─”Why are you so angry?”

─”I’m scared to death. Can you please smile?”

Yes, those were the kinds of things she had always heard.

But recently, everything had been completely different.

The PDs who used to cling to her, Seo Yeonju who treated her unusually kindly, and even the situation where she casually mentioned going home, only to be begged to stay…

“Yeah. It’s clear they think well of me.”

After contemplating the difference between the past and now.

After thinking over it again and again.

“Ah?”

Something clicked.

“Now that I think about it, I’ve never really done anything well before.”

Wherever she went, her pretty appearance earned her admiration, but that popularity always lasted only a short time. In the end, everyone either feared or avoided her.

“But, don’t I act pretty well now?”

PD Choi Heewon, PD Son Jiwoong, Writer Lee Geumsook, Seo Yeonju… even the gruff Kim Sunil had started to recognize her, right?

“Wait, could this be…!”

Sua’s eyes widened.

The current version of herself wasn’t just about her appearance—she had distinct advantages now. It could be that her strong facial expression was now working in her favor.

The three benefits had harmonized together perfectly.

So, does that mean I can just go wild from now on? Ask for what I want right away, act tough, and do it that way?

Doesn’t that actually become an advantage?

Sua rested her chin on the sink and placed both hands on it.

“What if I just go for it, pushing forward with this kind of vibe?”

This script is Grade A. Grade A.

If I pull it off, it’s a life-changing opportunity.

Sua then gently tapped her cheek.

“…Yeah, let’s really push for it. I’ll act well, but also not come across as too easy.”

In her mind, she visualized herself succeeding.

…Wow, just thinking about it feels so good.

Sua suddenly remembered the boxing film from the script she had just experienced. She stood in front of the mirror, throwing punches wildly.

Swish. Swish.

Is this script affecting me a little? I think I’m pretty good at this. Sua expressed her excitement by throwing punches into the air.

“Am I really going to succeed like this? One day, I’ll be standing shoulder to shoulder with top actors, winning awards…?”

Swish! Swish!

Bang! Bang! Imagining herself happy caused fireworks to explode in her mind.

“I’ll have my own fan club, hold press conferences…”

Swish, swish! Uppercut!

That’s when it happened.

She suddenly felt a strange presence and turned her head to the side.

There was another customer in the café.

And they made eye contact.

Sua quickly hid her hands behind her back.

“Ah, let me explain.”

There was a brief silence. It felt like someone was choking her.

“I’m an aspiring actress. This, the boxing movie…”

“Ah, no, no! I’m sorry…!”

Without giving her a chance to explain, the person fled.

Left alone, Sua stood still.

Very still. Not a single movement.

Only her face, bowed down, was so red it looked like it would burst.

Meanwhile, the others were busy discussing Sua.

“I expected this, but she’s quite difficult. I didn’t think she’d refuse my next project outright.”

Writer Lee Geumsook’s words were met with a nod from Seo Yeonju.

“She has great insight, acts well, and her will is incredibly strong. You saw, right? She wasn’t intimidated by Kim Sunil.”

“Haha, I never thought we’d be the ones feeling like rookies…”

Their admiration for the monstrous newcomer was clear, but the real discussion was about Sua’s role.

Everyone had a lot to say.

“Doesn’t this role suit her? The personality and everything?”

“Then it would be too obvious. This one seems better.”

“Among the female roles, this is probably the best…”

The differences in opinion were hard to reconcile. However, despite that, there was no anger—only smiles.

“I’m excited for whatever happens. It’s been a while since I’ve been this excited.”

“My point exactly.”

That was when Sua made her entrance.

Was it hot? Her face was quite red.

Director Choi Heewon parted her lips.

“Sua, we’ve discussed the role we’d like to offer you. First, can you act out any scene for the role of ‘Kim Hyojin’?”

“Oh, yes.”

Without much thought, Sua nodded as she took the script.

“Eh.”

But a moment later, she couldn’t help but quietly bite her tongue.

[Drama ‘Special Task Force 808’]
Implementation Elements
Complete
Experience Completed/Grade A

Kim Yuhan (Lead) — 001 |
Lee Kangcheol (Lead) 002
Ha Yunjin (Lead) 003
There was no scene for the role of Kim Hyojin.

Sagraak— Sagraak—

Sua pretended to keep looking at the script, but in reality, she was sweating bullets.

This was a test with a Grade A script. She had to pass, but no role seemed to fit.

Seo Yeonju smiled brightly and said,

“Sua, you can take it easy. Just keep it light!”

Sagraak— Sagraak—

But Sua could only feel frustrated.

Why, out of so many roles, did it have to be this one?

It seemed they had given her a relatively small role, perhaps to be considerate of the newcomer. But for Sua, that felt like a disadvantage.

Should she give up?

No, no way.

She had just made up her mind to live like a crazy person!

After a while, Sua stopped pretending to read the script. At the same time, she dropped it to the floor.

She had no choice.

This was the only way…

“I’m not planning to do it lightly.”

“…?”

As expected, everyone looked surprised. It was understandable. After all, a newcomer had just thrown the script. Sua herself wasn’t sure if this was the right move, but…

Feeling all eyes on her, Sua calmly continued. She tried her best to hide the trembling of her body.

“At the very least, give me a lead role.”