Chapter 212: Butterfly Lady (4) (Revised)
Chapter 212: Butterfly Lady (4) (Revised)
In her past life, Seo-yeon had consumed all kinds of media, regardless of genre.
It was to stimulate her own emotions.
To understand what emotions were.
She didn't know which work, which genre, or which medium would help her grasp the concept of feeling.
Among them, the work Yeo-hee mentioned was one that had briefly passed through her life.
The reason it was only a passing memory was that it was one of the few works that Seo-yeon, who usually watched everything, simply "couldn't watch."
"I was so excited because a web novel I enjoyed was being adapted into a drama, but..."
Those were her mother's words.
Of course, her mother hadn't been speaking to the Seo-yeon of that time, who couldn't understand the fun or the sentiment of the work. Seo-yeon lacked the capacity to empathize with such statements in the first place.
She could only mimic empathy.
Naturally, her mother knew this, so they never had such conversations. Seo-yeon's mother wasn't the type to enjoy TV or movies anyway. She was a busy woman who always had to work to raise Seo-yeon alone.
Since she didn't have time for long dramas or movies, her main hobby was reading web novels that she could consume lightly.
Thus, web novels were essentially her only hobby.
The fact that the drama adaptation of her favorite novel turned out to be a disaster seemed to have been quite a shock. Seo-yeon remembered her mother venting to a friend who had visited their house.
"They completely changed the protagonist's personality!"
"She’s absolutely not the kind of character who forces her will on others!"
"And why a love triangle? What were they thinking, throwing in another female character just to create unnecessary conflict?"
"Is that all? They even erased the childhood friend setting!"
The drama's genre was modern romance, blended with elements of a fusion historical piece. The original web novel was a popular work that had held a top spot in the romance category for a long time.
The plot went like this:
A modernized Korea where the Joseon monarchy still existed. In this world, there was a Prime Minister instead of a President, and the royal family remained as symbolic figures maintaining their status.
The protagonist, Princess Hwayeon, was the eldest daughter among the royal family's three sons and one daughter. As the first princess, she faced marriage talks with a famous chaebol family. The goal was for the family to gain the symbolic power of the royalty to enter the political sphere.
Separately, the man she was supposed to marry was quite a decent person. Thus, the King seemed inclined to grant his permission after much deliberation.
Sensing this, Princess Hwayeon ran away from home for the first time in her life. She had no intention of getting married that way.
While on the run, Princess Hwayeon almost got into an accident but was saved by a passing college student, Choi Yeon-woo.
Wait, isn't she the princess I saw on TV?
Choi Yeon-woo was momentarily flustered when he realized the truth, but he safely returned Princess Hwayeon to the palace without any further trouble.
Thus, Princess Hwayeon's short-lived rebellion came to an end, and it seemed the matter was settled. However...
"Would you like to date me with the intention of marriage?"
"...?"
Princess Hwayeon suddenly showed up at Choi Yeon-woo's university lecture hall and made that declaration. Right in front of everyone.
Just like that, Choi Yeon-woo became the most famous college student in South Korea.
After that, Princess Hwayeon transfers to the university Choi Yeon-woo attends, and the story begins in earnest.
This was the story of the popular web novel, Flower of the Imperial Palace.
A romance involving a significant status gap. Usually, the male lead is of higher status, but in this case, it was the female lead. Combined with a unique world-building and a refreshing pace, it was a huge topic of conversation in the beginning.
Yes, the atmosphere was great up to that point.
But.
The problem was the adaptation.
Originally, it was a purely sweet romance novel. If she had to describe it, it felt similar to a high-teen romance. However, when it was adapted into a drama, not only was a love triangle added, but forced melodrama was injected as well.
They even deleted the childhood friend setting.
To be honest, Seo-yeon had wondered if the childhood friend trope was really necessary, but it actually played a crucial role in the novel. It provided the "reason" why the clever Princess Hwayeon asked an ordinary college student like Choi Yeon-woo to date her, regardless of how dramatic his help had been.
And the actress cast as the sub-lead had disastrous acting skills.
If they were going to force in a rival female character, she should have at least been a good actress, but she wasn't even that.
This is awkward.
In truth, Seo-yeon hadn't felt much about it back then. It was just the feeling that a work with an original source had been ruined. She didn't know how her mother felt, or how the author felt when their original work was desecrated.
"...So, you're saying the person who wrote that web novel is a friend of my dad's?"
"Huh? Oh, y-yes, that's right."
Yeo-hee was flustered by Seo-yeon's strangely heavy reaction.
No, thinking about it, wasn't it a natural reaction? If Seo-yeon had heard from Sua about what their relationship was like in high school, it would be a total mess.
S-she doesn't know how I feel, does she?
Yeo-hee swallowed hard. No, it's not like I've done anything or am going to do anything, so this is too much. I'm allowed to keep my feelings to myself.
"If filming starts, it'll probably be next year—specifically the latter half of next year... in terms of timing..."
It would be right after Director Jo Bang-woo's Seoul Escape. Since it was at least a year away, it wasn't something to worry about immediately.
...Is this also just a lingering attachment to my past life?
Seo-yeon shook her head vigorously at the thought. Hey, I can be a little concerned. After all, it involves a friend of her parents. She couldn't just ignore it and leave it be.
It's not like I'm going to do anything right now anyway.
More importantly, there wasn't much she could do at the moment.
But a year from now...
Things might be a little different then.
Why is she so quiet?
Yeo-hee looked at Seo-yeon with a tense face. Having a girl with such a cold impression sitting in front of her with her red eyes sparkling naturally made her nervous. On top of that, she had that unique aura of an actress.
Yeo-hee had seen countless celebrities in her time. Among them, Seo-yeon was definitely special.
Sua seemed pretty normal, though.
Sure, her chest was large and pretty. Young-bin had charisma, but it was a different kind of feeling from this aura.
"By the way, can I ask... exactly what brought you here today?"
She had heard the gist of it, but Seo-yeon felt different today compared to when they had met before. At those words, Seo-yeon stopped her train of thought and nodded. It wasn't something to think about when it was still a long way off.
"I wanted to hear a bit about the past."
"The past?"
"I felt a bit awkward asking my parents."
Most importantly, their perspectives wouldn't serve as a good reference.
"Ah, of course, if you don't want to, you don't have to tell me."
Seo-yeon needed Yeo-hee's story. She needed the emotions that had been woven into her song back then.
"...But somehow, after hearing that song, I've been thinking a lot."
That complex emotion that Seo-yeon couldn't understand. Yeo-hee had been conveying something to someone through that song. It certainly wasn't meant for her. However, it was clear that the song had given her great strength.
"Would that be okay?"
At Seo-yeon's request, Yeo-hee scratched her head. Yeo-hee wasn't a complicated person by nature. She was just a woman with a few lingering regrets.
However, she could tell that Seo-yeon wasn't asking about the past out of simple, rude curiosity. There was clearly something she needed. She felt a weight of sincerity that was far from light.
It was a look that reminded her of him from the past—the one who had stopped her when she was about to give up on everything.
Ju Young-bin, you really owe me one.
Yeo-hee let out a sigh. Well, she had always been weak when it came to him. It couldn't be helped that she was becoming weak for his daughter too.
*
"We've received a request from Japan."
Park Hoon, a director at Best One, was a bit flustered by the sudden news. He knew Japan had been interested and had been meddling in various aspects of the Gyeongseong Lady shoot for a while. But this was unexpected.
"A showcase in Japan before the movie's release?"
"Yes. They specifically seem to want actress Ju Seo-yeon to attend."
Hwang Tae-sang, the head of the Cultural Industry Department, recalled the words the Japanese side had used.
"They called her the 'Butterfly Lady'."
"Pardon?"
"It seems she left a very strong impression on set."
The outfit Seo-yeon had worn at the time must have been very striking. In fact, it wasn't just Japan; a large number of 'butterfly' motifs had been added to Yuina's character design afterward. Butterflies were engraved on her clothes, accessories, and various other items. So, it wasn't strange for the Japanese side to call her the 'Butterfly Lady.'
"That's not a bad thing. I take it Director Baek Min has given the okay?"
"Yes. He's thinking positively about it and seems to want the message conveyed well to the investors."
"Hmm."
Japan was making a fairly aggressive push.
Is a simultaneous release in Korea and Japan really possible?
If so, it would be truly unprecedented. And considering this ripple effect was brought about by a single actress, it was almost hard to believe. Even if this fact were made public, probably no one would believe it.
No, even she might not believe it.
Park Hoon nodded.
"First, let's try it. The simultaneous release."
There was nothing wrong with being proactive. Especially if it was something the other party desperately wanted. If they held the upper hand, they had to be aggressive to reap the benefits. He was a businessman, after all.
Maybe it's better to target overseas markets rather than domestic ones from the start, he thought.
Gyeongseong Lady was definitely going to be profitable.
*
Yeonhwa High School in Seoul.
It was a school that already had some recognition in the arts and physical education fields. Of course, "recognition" didn't mean it was at an incredible level. It was just decent. If anything, its claim to fame was that the uniforms were pretty.
That was the extent of Yeonhwa High School's pride, but recently, the vibe had changed.
"I heard the theater club at Yeonhwa High is really good."
"Ju Seo-yeon goes to that school, right?"
"Ju Seo-yeon? The one from Sky Garden?"
"Yeah."
The fact that Ju Seo-yeon, who had risen to stardom this year, was a student at Yeonhwa High was a big deal. Since she was only a freshman, students entering next year could essentially spend two years of high school life with her. Furthermore, because her friend was in the theater club, rumors spread that Seo-yeon visited the club often.
Is the Yeonhwa High theater club that good?
Come to think of it, there was another actress besides Ju Seo-yeon.
Since Ji-yeon, who had appeared on general programming channels, was also there, it was bound to be a hot topic. Above all...
"Did you know? They say Jo Seo-hee is spotted at Yeonhwa High quite often."
"Pfft! 'Spotted'? What is she, a wild animal?"
"But my friend said so. She suddenly appears pedaling a bicycle."
"No way, that's impossible."
Not only Ju Seo-yeon but even Jo Seo-hee was reportedly seen frequently. Whether it was true or not, it was certain that the most popular young actresses were concentrated around Yeonhwa High.
"Come to think of it, wasn't that the school from Looking at the Past and Memories?"
"That's right."
Looking at the Past and Memories, which became a huge hit after Park Jung-woo appeared on it. The reunion of Princess Yeonhwa and Seo-il there was said to be a massive topic. The chemistry they showed back then was so impressive that clips of the scene were still circulating on the internet.
"Isn't that Ju Seo-yeon?"
A group of male students from Yeonhwa High pointed somewhere and spoke. From a distance, she looked like a painting. A slender figure. Jet-black hair contrasting with her pale skin. Her eyes were a brownish color with a hint of red, but rumors said they turned bright red when she acted.
No one knew if it was true, but she felt like she lived in a different world. It felt as if there was a great wall between them and Seo-yeon.
"But I heard Ju Seo-yeon plays games in the E-sports club during lunch?"
"Ugh, there you go with the nonsense again."
"You think everyone lives like you do."
"No, I'm serious!"
"Just shut up."
Of course, such slanderous(?) rumors circulated, but they were mostly shut down by the students themselves. Even if it happened to be the truth.
I'm late because of the game. Lee Ji-yeon is going to scold me.
The person in question had no idea about her mysterious image.
"Seo-yeon!!"
Seo-yeon arrived at the theater club at Ji-yeon's call just as lunch was ending. Judging by Teacher Song Da-yeon's reaction, it seemed Ji-yeon had called her because of something the teacher had said.
"It's good to see you after a while. Everything's been okay?"
"Yes."
Teacher Song Da-yeon flinched at Seo-yeon's calm reply. Whether it was her actress's aura or something else, Seo-yeon was difficult to approach in many ways.
"Uh, well, the thing is... the theater club is planning a small event for the end of the year."
"An event in the theater club?"
"Yeah, yeah. Our club's recognition has gone up recently, so I was thinking of doing a small play or a year-end performance to promote the club to the incoming freshmen."
Of course, it wasn't just for promotion. It was likely to provide the theater club students with an opportunity to perform directly for an audience. A single small experience like this could be a chance to learn so much.
Ji-yeon narrowed her eyes at those words. She had heard the gist of it, but she thought it might be a bit difficult.
I don't have a problem, but...
Honestly, she was fine. She only had one project, Gyeongseong Lady, to film. However, Seo-yeon was different. She had a lot of schedules and things to do. Could she handle theater club work in such a situation? After all, if they did a play, she would have to participate in rehearsals from time to time.
Ji-yeon, who looked back at Seo-yeon with those thoughts, let out a sigh. Looking at her expression...
She looks like she wants to do it.
She even had that face she made when she was thinking about something strange. And just as Ji-yeon expected...
The theater club!!
Seo-yeon felt very interested in this. Lately, Seo-yeon had a tendency to neglect her high school life. It couldn't be helped. With movies, dramas, and even variety shows, she was so busy that she often missed school.
Consequently, she had little time to make friends. She hadn't thought deeply about it because she had made many actress friends, but...
After hearing what Yeo-hee unnie said.
The "Aunt" had been promoted to "Unnie." It wasn't actually Seo-yeon's intention, but rather because Yeo-hee persistently told her to call her "Unnie." She said "Aunt" made her sound too old. Of course, Seo-yeon didn't complain since she had received help from Yeo-hee in various ways. She just thought it was a bit much for her age.
I learned how precious high school years are.
Of course, Yeo-hee hadn't told Seo-yeon to work hard at her high school life. But after hearing her stories, Seo-yeon felt it would be a waste to spend those years only working. That was how much she could tell that Yeo-hee's stories were precious memories to her... setting aside the failed love story.
I want to have memories like that too.
Her first year was already over, but didn't she still have her second and third years left? Thus, she was filled with motivation.
...I'm getting a bad feeling about this.
Naturally, seeing Seo-yeon like that made Lee Ji-yeon feel uneasy. A fully motivated Seo-yeon tended to show an incredible level of drive, after all.