Chapter 11
Chapter 11
Translator: Penny
Chapter 11
"0 one, two, three, four, five, six..." Hmm….”
The number was far from small, and Lee Ha-eun's expression turned complicated as she counted the views on the music video she appeared in, using the computer in the living room.
Considering Deobeulli's status, the number of views wasn't that strange, but, well….
‘It hasn’t even been a month yet.’
The thought that over a million people had seen her in just two short weeks made something tickle inside her chest.
Perhaps it was because, unlike with the CF, she could see the exact numbers like views.
It was even more tangible than when Handong Pharmaceuticals' children's nutritional supplement sales skyrocketed a few months ago.
Or when she received several boxes of children's nutritional supplements as a gift from Handong Pharmaceuticals.
The kindergarten teachers' slightly different gazes than usual also made Ha-eun realize her fame.
The kids in her class weren't that interested in hip-hop artists like Deobeulli, so there wasn't much of a change.
'Ha-eun, I saw you on TV yesterday?'
A few times, kids who recognized Ha-eun in the Matchstick music video that occasionally aired on TV asked her questions.
But those were just innocent questions stemming from the curiosity of a classmate appearing on TV.
In any case, Lee Jun and Lee Gun-yeol had more than achieved their goal of casting Ha-eun.
Lee Jun and Lee Gun-yeol made it possible for Ha-eun to join their agency, Luna Entertainment.
They extended the favor of primarily shielding Ha-eun from the attention she would receive.
In addition, the previously promised singing lessons were adjusted from once a month to twice a week.
In fact, Lee Gun-yeol's firm voice, stating that meaningful skill improvement couldn't be achieved with just one lesson a month, had a significant impact.
Regardless of the lesson frequency, it was still singing lessons from people at the top of the music industry.
If she received guidance from people who knew better than anyone else what kind of voice could captivate people, Ha-eun's singing skills would improve by leaps and bounds.
It was like gaining a powerful weapon to use in the future when she became a Virtual Youtuber.
Not all Virtual Youtubers in Ha-eun's memory were good at singing, but most of the so-called 'big companies' also had excellent singing skills.
'It's strange to ask now, but is Ha-eun's dream to become a singer? Not an actress?'
On the first day of singing lessons, when Lee Jun asked about Ha-eun's future aspirations, she had to vaguely answer that she was considering various paths.
Lee Jun didn't ask further, as children of that age often changed their dreams.
In fact, Ha-eun had considered changing her dream.
The expressions, gestures, and voices that Ha-eun had intentionally created had never failed to do their job.
'That, there's a high possibility that it's ■■■■… Please prepare yourself mentally—'
However, the memory of things she had believed to be hers disappearing in an instant remained vivid.
She had already experienced the concept of a normal life, which was obvious to someone, turning into something not obvious to her.
Ha-eun didn't become arrogant or boastful, taking the attention and praise she received for granted.
After all, these events had only happened in the past year.
No one knew what would happen in the future.
Therefore, Ha-eun's belief that she should take the most certain and relatively low-risk path remained unchanged.
That wasn't the only reason Ha-eun insisted on becoming a Virtual Youtuber, but whatever.
Either way, it didn't matter if she acted or filmed a CF right now.
For Ha-eun, who hadn't experienced much of the 'world' yet, each experience was unique.
Ha-eun's parents also wanted their daughter to have more experiences, so in a way, she could consider it an act of filial piety.
The sight of Seong-yoon's eyes widening as he watched the Matchstick music video was also quite pleasing.
Strictly speaking, it was still more than 10 years before the concept of Virtual Youtuber would appear in the world.
Therefore, she would diligently prepare until the day she debuted as a Virtual Youtuber.
She would also experience moments she hadn't experienced, such as living a normal school life like others.
She tried to fill the 'life' she had unexpectedly gained once again with ordinary moments like others… but.
"Hey, Ha-eun. Can we talk for a moment before class starts?"
"?"
It seemed she had already said goodbye to the word 'normal'.
Even more so, considering the movie title written in large letters on the first page of the script Lee Jun handed her was ｢The Man From Nowhere｣.
"Ha-eun, you think the movie title is strange, right? But it's not a really strange movie, it's roughly about a super strong man trying to protect a girl your age—"
Lee Jun hurriedly continued to explain the movie, afraid that Ha-eun might misunderstand.
However, Lee Jun's efforts were in vain as his explanation didn't resonate much with Ha-eun.
Because she already knew the movie's content and its box office success.
The Man From Nowhere.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't a ten-million-viewer movie, but it was as famous as other ten-million-viewer movies.
Or perhaps even more famous than most ten-million-viewer movies.
The lead actor's incredible performance was a hot topic, but the child actor's performance was just as outstanding.
That's why it wasn't a movie that Ha-eun, who hadn't even had a proper acting lesson yet, should be in.
It was true that the ｢Matchstick｣ music video received attention for Ha-eun's excellent immersion, but the movie's runtime was incomparable to the music video.
No matter what, Ha-eun's cold assessment of herself was that it wasn't that level.
"Um, Ha-eun. Don't feel too pressured, just think of it as experiencing a movie audition. It's an audition that everyone else has already failed…."
“…Yes.”
Nevertheless, she finally accepted the audition offer because Lee Jun had asked so earnestly.
Lee Jun seemed to be assuming that Ha-eun would fail the audition like the other child actors at Luna Entertainment, and something like stubbornness surged from deep within Ha-eun's heart.
So, it was decided that she would audition for The Man From Nowhere.
She read and reread the script, which was much thicker than the music video storyboard, until the day of the audition finally arrived.
"Oh, our Lee actress has arrived."
‘…Why is the CEO here?’
The CEO of Luna Entertainment appeared before Ha-eun and took her directly to the audition site.
He said he would definitely flatten that stubborn director's nose this time.
Ha-eun, who wasn't that desperate for this audition, was troubled.
\\
"Haa…."
Jeong Do-cheol, the general director of The Man From Nowhere, let out a deep sigh as he replayed the audition recording from a few days ago.
Judging by the uninspiring feeling, it seemed like a waste of time.
He had been happy when he suddenly received a phone call one day and hurriedly took a taxi to meet Kang Seon-woo, an actor whose stock was rising these days.
It was nothing short of a miracle that a big-name actor like Kang Seon-woo had reached out to his movie, which hadn't even found an investor yet.
However, they hadn't found a child actor for the role of 'Kim Jia', who would play another leading role alongside that big-name actor.
Thanks to the rumor that Kang Seon-woo would appear, there were plenty of child actors who applied for the role of Kim Jia.
‘…I wish they would think about improving their skills before thinking about making a name for themselves.’
Unfortunately, most of them were mediocre child actors.
Of course, there were some who stood out, but he hadn't met anyone who could be immediately chosen for the role of Kim Jia.
A child actor from Luna Entertainment was scheduled to audition in a few minutes, but he didn't get much of a feeling from the profile he had seen before, except for her relatively good looks.
The children's nutritional supplement CF and the Matchstick music video listed in the profile's experience section weren't the kind of acting that Kwon Jong-hyuk wanted.
In other words, this would be nothing more than a waste of time.
He was just going to check if the sobbing of the match girl in the Matchstick music video, which he was personally curious about, was CG or if the child actor had actually acted it out, and then go out for a smoke.
However….
-Creak.
"I'm here, Director Kwon."
He had to quickly put the lighter he was holding into his pocket when the CEO of Luna Entertainment suddenly appeared before him.
"Ah, no…. What brings CEO Jeong here?"
"I came to see the face of the guy who made the outrageous statement that there are no talented people in my Luna."
The bigger problem was that the person in question knew about the not-so-subtle criticism of the agency from that big old man through some route.
However, it was just a complaint during a drinking session with an acquaintance.
Kwon Jong-hyuk felt a bit wronged because he had criticized other famous agencies as well.
"Of course, let's watch our Lee actress's audition first. Let's share our hurt feelings later."
‘…Is he pressuring me or what.’
Either way, it wasn't CEO Jeong Do-cheol who had an appointment with Kwon Jong-hyuk, but the child actor Lee Ha-eun.
He met Ha-eun for the first time, who had been hidden behind Jeong Do-cheol's large frame.
"Ah… hello. I'm Lee Ha-eun."
A voice full of awkwardness.
Kwon Jong-hyuk's interest waned from the start, as she was no different from the other child actors he had seen.
Anyway, he couldn't just slack off during the audition in front of CEO Jeong Do-cheol.
After finishing the camera setup for the audition recording, he spoke to Ha-eun again.
"You can start whenever you're comfortable."
"Ah, yes…."
Then, a shallow breath, a somewhat uneasy gaze straight ahead.
The elegant voice that flowed from her small, slowly opened lips.
｢…Pfft.｣
Took the form of a self-deprecating laugh that Kwon Jong-hyuk hadn't expected.
He turned his gaze to Ha-eun with momentarily stiffened eyes.
｢No, it's just funny. I knew you wouldn't pretend to know someone like me… but I foolishly had expectations.｣**
A bitter smile and reddened eyes, with none of the previous anxiety, greeted Kwon Jong-hyuk.
At the same time, he saw CEO Jeong Do-cheol smiling at him from afar.
‘…That sly old fox.’
He had no choice but to admit that he had been neatly tricked.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny