Chapter 198: How About a Cameo? (2)
Chapter 198: How About a Cameo? (2)
'I want to go back to Korea.'
That was the only thing on Narumi Sora’s mind.
She wanted to return to Korea as soon as possible.
To be honest, she had enjoyed it when they first arrived in Japan. After all, it was her birthplace and the land where she had originally lived, so it was only natural for her to feel at ease.
But that was separate from the ordeal of having to follow Seo-yeon’s schedule.
During the first hidden camera prank, Sora had fainted and been carried off alone. After waking up, she had been treated like a frail, faint-hearted child.
'I mean, anyone would have fainted if they saw that!'
The other actors involved in the prank had fled the moment they caught a glimpse, but Sora had been chased by Seo-yeon the entire time.
When Sora complained about the unfairness of it all, Seo-yeon had pouted.
"I was reaching out my hand, begging for help, but you heartlessly rejected me. And you even tried to close the fake wall before I could get inside."
Seo-yeon’s cheeks had puffed up so much it was visible to the naked eye.
Of course, given her personality, the sulking lasted less than two hours, but it seemed Seo-yeon hadn't realized what she looked like at the time. From Seo-yeon’s perspective, she was desperately fleeing from a ghost, only for her companion to get scared and shut the door on her.
'Well, at least things got better after the broadcast aired.'
After watching the variety show yesterday, Seo-yeon had sheepishly avoided Sora’s gaze and scurried back into her bed. She had pulled the covers over her head, so Sora couldn't see her face, but she was clearly dying of embarrassment.
Still, Sora felt relieved that her own name had been cleared.
Regardless, the reason Sora wanted to go back to Korea wasn't specifically because of the hidden camera incident.
It was stamina.
She simply lacked the physical endurance.
For the record, Seo-yeon’s manager, Park Eun-ha, was already completely wiped out. Consequently, Sora, who had relatively better stamina, had no choice but to accompany Seo-yeon everywhere.
"It’s okay, it’s not really dangerous for me to go around alone," Seo-yeon had argued, trying to make her case, but Sora couldn't bring herself to nod in agreement.
Naturally, neither Park Eun-ha nor Sora thought Seo-yeon would be the one in danger.
The danger wasn't to Seo-yeon; it was to everyone else.
'I don't know what she'll do if I leave her alone.'
Sora had finally figured Seo-yeon out. To put it simply, Seo-yeon was a wild card. Usually, she was just a cool, ideal girl who matched her stunning looks, but if something triggered her, she had a personality that went from zero to sixty in an instant.
Furthermore, Sora needed to get closer to Seo-yeon.
There was the matter of Mine, and the people connected to Seo-yeon were all heavyweights among their peers.
'Jo Seo-hee, Park Jung-woo.'
They were considered the top male and female actors of their generation. Therefore, to learn as much as possible, it was beneficial in many ways to be on good terms with Seo-yeon.
So, it was right to follow her as much as possible, but…
"L-let’s rest for just a bit before we move again."
Sora had never once thought of herself as physically weak. Her stamina and physical abilities were second to none among girls her age, and she didn't even lose to the boys—but she couldn't even begin to compare herself to Seo-yeon.
At Sora’s plea, Seo-yeon offered some serious advice.
"You really need to work out more."
Seo-yeon genuinely felt that Sora’s stamina had weakened significantly since they filmed Mine. Sora, of course, was left speechless by the comment.
*
Since arriving in Japan, Seo-yeon had been exploring with pure excitement. She spent so little time in the expensive hotel room they’d booked that she was practically roaming in every direction.
Most of her movements were limited to Akihabara, but she didn't really care about that. However, after wandering around for about a week while waiting for the variety show to air, she felt like she’d seen everything.
'I bought so much stuff, I’ll have to ship it back as cargo.'
Actually, it wasn't just Seo-yeon’s stuff. A significant portion belonged to Sua. Sua, who had been a legendary otaku in her day, hadn't exactly stopped her hobbies just because she was a mother now. When Seo-yeon mentioned she was going to Japan, Sua had quietly requested a mountain of items.
Most of them weren't sold in Korea, so Seo-yeon had to sweep them up first. On top of that, she’d bought anime and VTuber merchandise and figures she’d taken a liking to, so her luggage was already full. She had stopped buying things for now, just in case she found something else later.
'And besides…'
Seo-yeon hadn't gone outside yet today. It was because she had watched the variety show she appeared in just last night.
Seo-yeon groaned, buried under her blankets. She was being careful not to reflexively kick the covers, as she had no desire to pay for a ruined duvet.
'What if I get a weird image?'
Apparently, she had trended at #1 on Japanese Twitter. If she went out now and someone recognized her…
'People often ask actors to show them famous scenes they’ve performed.'
It was a common occurrence. Fans who came for autographs would often say, "I really enjoyed [Movie Name]! Please show me [Scene Name] from that movie!" Usually, it was just a simple line of dialogue. Seo-yeon had done it a few times for fans in Korea, mostly requests for Cha Seo-ah’s famous lines.
But what was she supposed to show them in Japan? The Chaser hadn't even been released here yet.
'Do I have to crawl for them?'
No, surely no one would ask her to crawl. But since she had hit #1 on the trends, people were bound to recognize her. In fact, her appearance on yesterday’s broadcast was intense even by her own standards. On her Korean fan cafe, people were already making all sorts of composite memes.
Just as Seo-yeon was about to deploy her alt-account to manage her image, a comment caught her eye.
Yeonhwa High? Did someone actually see that?
Seo-yeon held her breath and kept reading.
Seo-yeon swallowed hard as she watched the thread unfold. Was there really someone with a video? She had been a bit over-excited about scaring people back then and had gone overboard. Although Ji-yeon had caught her and made her stop, plenty of people had witnessed her at that point.
Fortunately, as she kept watching, no video was uploaded, which allowed her to breathe a sigh of relief.
'Now that I think about it.'
Seo-yeon realized something. She was currently a high school student. It was only natural that some students at Yeonhwa High would be members of her fan cafe. In fact, it would be weirder if there weren't any.
What did she look like to her fans at school? Thinking about it made her feel self-conscious.
'……I should attend school diligently.'
She had always been careful about her image, but she decided she needed to be even more cautious from now on. Seo-yeon peeked her head out from under the covers.
'They’re still asleep.'
She shifted her eyes to scan the room and saw two people lying in their beds. Sora and Park Eun-ha were completely out, seemingly unable to wake up. They appeared to be exhausted from the week-long trip, even though they still had another week to go.
'I should go out alone today.'
She hadn't really used a disguise to hide her face in Japan yet. But today, just in case, she thought it would be better to wear one. After all, it was the day after that variety show had aired.
*
Immediately after the variety show aired, the mainstream broadcasting stations were in an uproar. It was because Seo-yeon had reached #1 on Japan’s real-time trends with just one variety appearance.
It wasn't just on 2channel; it was on Futaba, personal blogs, and various internet communities covering the entertainment industry. Articles were even featured on the main page of Yahoo Japan. Even now, a day later, a quick search on Twitter showed a constant stream of posts.
==
@naer3234
I started watching thinking, "Eh~~ another Korean actor?" but I was totally mesmerized www
At first, I thought she was just an actor with a pretty face, but she’s incredible~~
@tqerk_noya
When they called her a genius actor, I thought it was just another fancy title, but her performance was amazing. I burst out laughing seeing the actors playing the ghosts running away in a panic!!!
@kakeba_hiro
Ju Seo-yeon-yang. I looked at her through a biased lens because she’s a young Korean actor, but I’ve changed my mind. Her performance on the variety show was impressive. I’d love to work with her if the opportunity arises.
@fuzio_rei
How did she break that mannequin wwww and that crawling speed was seriously terrifying wwww
I want to see her on other variety shows.
Most of all, she’s so pretty wwww This is a face that only comes around once in a millennium wwww I really want to see her in person.
==
The majority of the feedback was positive, and even industry insiders were chiming in. Notably, the person who expressed a desire to work with her was Kakeba Hiro, a rising young director. He was known for focusing on creative cinematography with the motto of targeting international audiences rather than just domestic ones.
Industry professionals were baffled by the reaction, which honestly felt a bit excessive for a single variety show appearance. The reporters were the most confused of all. Since they dealt with gossip for a living, they knew exactly how unprecedented this atmosphere was.
"Wow, it’s honestly fascinating that an actor who hasn't even started activities here yet is getting this much attention. This is a first, right?"
"Yes, yes. That’s why the people who brought over The Chaser are apparently trying to move up the release date. They want to capitalize on this buzz."
"But why a Korean actor, of all people…?"
Furihata Yuito, a Japanese entertainment reporter, tapped his pen against his lips while talking to a colleague. The name written most frequently in his notebook lately was Ju Seo-yeon.
It wasn't just because she had come to Japan this time. Yuito had already seen The Chaser in Korea and had predicted that Seo-yeon would definitely be a hit in Japan. Yuito gave a smirk to his colleague, who was looking at him with a puzzled expression.
"She’s pretty."
"……Heh, just because of that?"
"And she’s young."
"I can agree with that."
"Actually, she feels like a girl who jumped straight out of an anime, doesn't she?"
"Definitely!"
Black hair. And the thing most talked about on the threads lately was Seo-yeon’s eyes. Some said it was just the camera lights, others said she was a psychic. Various stories were circulating, even bringing up her red eyes.
It had been addressed once on a Korean broadcast, and apparently, her eyes were perfectly normal when examined. The reason they glowed red remained a mystery. Was there really something fantastical about her? It was the kind of information that made one wonder.
"Black hair, red eyes, pale skin. On top of that, a genius child actor... and a current high school student with incredible physical abilities."
"Wait, wait. That setting is too much. You’ve packed in too many tropes. Pfft."
"But it’s all true."
It was a combination of all those reasons. Although she had shown a fairly shocking side on the variety show yesterday, the Japanese public, already wearing rose-colored glasses, seemed to have accepted it as the passionate performance of a genius actress. Rather, the consensus was that she had cleverly noticed the dokkiri and handled it with her acting skills.
Most importantly, it was fun. It was a reaction the Japanese public had never seen before in a genre that had recently become filled with cookie-cutter reactions.
"It seems everyone is looking for Ju Seo-yeon right now."
"I bet. But since no one cared when she first arrived... it seems nobody knows where she’s staying."
Yuito spoke as if it were someone else's business. At his nonchalant reaction, his colleague, Muroga Ouki, narrowed his eyes.
"You know, don't you?"
"Pardon?"
"You’ve been interested in Ju Seo-yeon since before she even came to Japan."
At his colleague’s words, Yuito grinned.
He did know. He had visited the filming site once after the shoot had ended. Of course, he hadn't met Seo-yeon. Knowing she wouldn't meet him anyway, he had asked the actors who filmed the variety show with her and managed to get a general idea of her itinerary.
"I heard she was going to go sightseeing in Akihabara while in Tokyo. She’s probably at a hotel near there."
"Heh, Akihabara?"
"Yes. Maybe she’s interested in cameras or electronics?"
Since that kind of commercial district was formed around there, the thought that an actress would go to Akihabara for otaku sightseeing didn't even cross his mind. Anyway, Yuito, recalling the events of that time, spoke to Ouki.
"If we ask around at the hotels near Akihabara, we’ll find her in no time. There aren't that many decent hotels in that area."
"Ah~, right."
"We’re in Shibuya now, so if we start moving soon, the timing should be perfect."
Shibuya isn't far from Akihabara. Just as he was about to get up from the cafe where they were sitting, Ouki pointed somewhere with a flustered face.
"Yu-Yuito-san!!"
He was pointing at a crosswalk. There was a figure there who stood out in a strange way. A woman who was acting oddly hesitant, occasionally checking her reflection in her phone. However, her outfit was a bit peculiar. It was a rather flashy Gothic-style dress.
"Wow, her face is covered, but she definitely feels like a pretty girl. But so what?"
"It’s Ju Seo-yeon."
"What?"
"Just now, she stood in front of the glass of this cafe and took off her mask for a second. I think she was checking her reflection."
"Whaaaat???"
Ouki, who happened to be standing up, had caught a glimpse by chance.
"Are you sure?"
"I swear. How could I mistake a face like that?"
"Why is she in Shibuya? Was Narumi Sora with her?"
"As you can see, she’s not. She’s alone!"
Why would someone who was supposed to be in Akihabara be in Shibuya? And what was with that outfit??? But if that really was Ju Seo-yeon…
'We have to catch her, no matter what.'
If such a hot topic was wandering the streets like that? No, in a place like this, they might even be able to land an interview.
"Ah, the light changed!"
"What are you doing? Follow her!"
"Of course, let’s go!"
The two of them hurriedly began to tail Seo-yeon. Meanwhile, Seo-yeon, blending into the crowd, was walking with a much more hesitant gait than usual.
'I... I shouldn't have worn this.'
She was filled with deep, profound regret.