Chapter 87
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Let's Sign the Contract Right Now!
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After delivering the performance that Director Steven had requested...
I alternated glances between the two of them, waiting.
Jennifer Weisz's meaningful gaze and Director Steven Hojer's dazed expression.
And about three minutes later...
Director Steven, who had been blankly drooling, suddenly shot to his feet and shouted.
"Right now! Let's sign the contract right now!"
Thud-.
Director Steven Hojer hurriedly tried to rise from the table, banging his knee in the process, but still rushed over to me and extended his hand.
"No need to see more. Let's do this together!"
I shook hands with Steven on the spot.
Baek Hee-jin stepped forward and immediately began discussing the contract details.
And during that time...
Jennifer and Catherine approached me with a proposal. Of course, it was Jennifer who spoke.
"Now that we're family, want me to show you around the set?"
And for me...
There was no reason not to get close to the lead actors.
Jennifer Weisz's third condition was perfectly timed.
<Ride in a car driven by 'Jennifer Weisz' for over 1 hour.>
That gave me even less reason to refuse.
"That sounds perfect to me."
We rode in Jennifer's car on the way to the set.
We passed Burbank's Bob Hope Airport, which I'd seen when I first arrived, and the car kept speeding along.
About an hour later...
Hearing the message that I'd coveted Jennifer's first talent, I kept watching her from the back seat.
Her tough handling of the large SUV, contrary to her appearance, was so unexpected that the ride wasn't boring at all.
Vrooom-.
Then, I suddenly made eye contact with Catherine in the passenger seat through the rearview mirror.
Sharp eyes that gleamed in the darkness.
Her expressionless face, hard to read emotions from, remained the same, but I could clearly sense a warning in her gaze.
[Catherine Tramell]
- Currently covetable talent: Unshakable Composure (B)
⤷ 1st Condition: Make physical contact with 'Jennifer Weisz' while avoiding 'Catherine Tramell's' eyes.
⤷ 2nd Condition: Fulfill the 1st condition first.
The power to covet others' talents granted by Mammon.
It was so intuitive, but by now, I could roughly infer a person's personality just from looking at the conditions.
'Make physical contact with Jennifer while avoiding Catherine's eyes.'
I'd already made physical contact with Jennifer several times at the CMTV office.
When we shook hands at our first meeting, when her hand brushed my shoulder as she hovered around the break room, and when she approached after the audition, complimenting me, and firmly offered her hand.
The fact that the first condition wasn't complete meant...
'So she was sitting there pretending to be indifferent, watching all of it?'
Catherine Tramell always had such an aloof expression that she seemed uninterested in everyone, but she had never once taken her eyes off 'Jennifer'.
I didn't know the reason, but it was as if she were possessed by the spirit of a young lady's bodyguard knight.
So, lightly speculating, the biggest obstacle to absorbing Jennifer's talents would probably be Catherine.
Zing-.
I met Catherine's gaze, openly staring at me through the mirror, and gave an awkward smile.
Our awkward eye contact was interrupted by Jennifer's rhythmic, cheerful voice.
"Ta-da! This is our set!"
I finally turned my eyes and looked around.
"Oh..."
In Korea, historical drama sets were often large enough to be like entire villages, later repurposed as tourist spots after filming.
The <Paranormal> set was on another level, befitting Hollywood, far grander in scale than anything I'd seen back home.
In the center stood a church with a pointed steeple, surrounded by a quaint rural village setup.
With no filming underway, the village lacked even small lights.
The only illumination came from the car's headlights.
A gloomy, eerie atmosphere, as if something might jump out at any moment.
Amid it all, the excited Jennifer parked at the village entrance and said.
"If you'd come during the day, I could've given you a tour, but it's late, so they said no going inside!"
But contrary to her words, Jennifer hopped out of the car and said.
"But we came all this way, so let's get out and look around a bit before we go?"
Utterly wild and free-spirited. She really reminded me of some big-headed, bushy-eyebrowed kid from a famous Japanese animation.
It was hard to imagine how she'd managed to keep that personality all these years.
The saying that no one at the top is truly normal rang true.
I slowly opened the back door and followed her out of the car.
The weather was refreshingly cool, unlike the daytime. The temperature difference was significant.
Creeee-.
As I buttoned up my collar, the sound of crickets reached my ears.
And with the crickets came Jennifer's voice.
"What do you think! Isn't it cooler in the dark? Hey, don't just stand there! Come here quick. Hurry! Yeah, stand right here!"
Jennifer grabbed my hand as if positioning me for a photo spot and dragged me somewhere.
She placed me where the church loomed in the background, then started directing my pose.
"An actor like you with such stiff poses! Lean on that wall and tilt your head diagonally!"
Experiencing it firsthand, she was an exhausting personality, but...
Considering what I'd gain from her in the future, there was nothing I wouldn't do.
I leaned on the stone wall and slightly tilted my head as she wanted.
But I lifted my chin a bit, as if looking down at Jennifer.
"Perfect! You look just like Brian!"
Jennifer crouched awkwardly, shifted to the side, and eventually squatted down fully, snapping away.
Click! Click! Click!
And amid it, the stinging gaze I felt...
"......"
Belonged to Catherine Tramell.
From the dark village entrance, next to the dark SUV's headlights, her glare at me was even fiercer than before.
Having played numerous female spy roles, her sharp eyes were chilling enough to send shivers down my spine.
Whether she knew it or not...
Jennifer finished shooting and bounced around excitedly.
"Wow! This season's gonna be so exciting! Doesn't it seem like it'll be super fun?!"
That was when it happened.
From behind—from the direction I was facing—someone was approaching us.
The elderly man in a blue uniform looked like a set security guard.
He shone his flashlight on us with a weary sigh in his gravelly voice.
"Aigoo! I said just look with your eyes, what if you get hurt out here in the dark?"
At his words, Jennifer and Catherine, who had been looking my way, naturally turned their heads back.
"Huh?!"
Of all times, Jennifer, who was mid-bounce, tripped on a stone and began to topple.
Her falling posture looked quite dangerous.
And I...
Instinctively lowered my body and lunged toward her.
Wind whistled fiercely past my ears—I couldn't recall ever running this fast—and Jennifer's startled, tilting face rapidly drew closer.
Thud-!
Fortunately, I managed to grab her collapsing waist and twisted my body with all my strength.
Thump-!
"Guh-?!"
A dizzying shock hit my back.
"S-Sorry! Wh-What do we do?!"
Jennifer, who had fallen into my arms, flailed and yelled as she scrambled up, and her frantic movements sent another jolt of pain through my back.
"Agh..."
The uneven ground had torn up my back pretty badly.
As I awkwardly straightened up, the guard with the flashlight and Catherine hurried over to where Jennifer and I were.
"I'm fine."
I waved off the guard trying to help and slowly stood up.
"Jennifer! You okay?!"
"Y-Yeah..."
Catherine, also startled, came over, checked Jennifer first, then approached me and asked.
"Um... are you... okay?"
Her demeanor was like a Doberman with its guard down, drawing a slight chuckle from me.
I dusted off my dirty clothes and replied.
"I'm good. Really, I'm fine. I've got a sturdy build."
Moreover...
[Catherine Tramell]
- Currently covetable talent: Unshakable Composure (B)
⤷ 1st Condition: Make physical contact with 'Jennifer Weisz' while avoiding 'Catherine Tramell's' eyes. (Complete)
⤷ 2nd Condition: Elicit a thank-you from 'Catherine Tramell'.
Since Catherine had turned her head, I smoothly satisfied the first condition while catching Jennifer—talk about luck.
Catherine scratched the back of her head right in front of me, then muttered in a tiny ant-like voice.
"Thank you..."