“Seoyeon, Mom brought some fruit...”

Sua knocked on her daughter's door and cautiously opened it, only to trail off as she spoke. Seoyeon was slumped over her desk, her head buried on top of it.

‘Did she die?’

The scene was so unusual that Sua briefly wondered if something was wrong. However, the monitor displayed a YouTube video that had just finished playing, suggesting Seoyeon had been watching something before she collapsed.

‘She must be watching something strange again,’ Sua thought, placing the plate of fruit next to her slumped daughter before leaving the room. Seoyeon acting strangely was nothing new.

‘Who is she...’

Seoyeon slowly got up and started nibbling on an apple from the plate. The sweet taste of the fruit seemed to clear her head, although she still felt a simmering anger inside.

Jealousy!

Seoyeon hadn’t realized it yet, but the emotion burning inside her, the feeling that made her bite into the apple so fiercely without even thinking about it, was jealousy!

‘Someone who could have helped Lee Ji-yeon with modeling or equipment…’

Nothing specific came to mind. Among the people around Ji-yeon, who could have possibly done that?

‘Was there someone else besides me?’

When Ji-yeon had visited Seoyeon’s house before, she hadn’t seemed to know much about VTubers. Maybe she had asked someone else after that, leading to her newfound interest?

“Ugh.”

Seoyeon couldn’t bring herself to watch the video again. That magician... No, she should be able to find out who the magician is by searching, right?

Seoyeon knew quite a bit about the domestic VTuber scene, but not everything. There were things she didn’t know, and this blue-haired magician was one of those cases.

‘Around 30,000 subscribers with a typical view count of about 1,000.’

For an independent VTuber, those numbers were quite impressive. How had she not known about this person? But that wasn’t the important part right now. Wasn’t there any redpill information available?

‘Nothing…’

She could tell that this VTuber had been active for over a year, but beyond that, there wasn’t much information available. Judging by the voice, this person had clearly received some voice training.

‘Voice training?’

As she thought about that, Seoyeon began to connect the dots. If she considered someone who was good at voice training and was close to Lee Ji-yeon, the list became very narrow. Wasn’t there someone from the voice acting academy...?

Buzz!

At that moment, Seoyeon’s phone rang. She quickly grabbed it.

“Hey, Joo Seoyeon. Did you call?”

It was Lee Ji-yeon’s sharp voice on the other end. Seoyeon glanced at her monitor, imagining Ramiel and Ji-yeon overlapping in her mind.

‘Should I just ask her?’

Yes, why complicate things when she could just ask directly? Seoyeon thought about casually bringing it up, but then…

‘…’

Is it okay to ask something like this so bluntly? It was almost like asking about the red pill directly. Even if Ramiel and Ji-yeon were indeed the same person, hearing it directly from Ji-yeon was another matter.

“Ah, I was calling about the midterm... and the test material.”

“You don’t study.”

“…”

Seoyeon was at a loss for words at Ji-yeon’s blunt remark. She couldn’t argue with that.

The next day.

Seoyeon wanted to storm the voice acting academy right away, but unfortunately, she couldn’t. The movie filming schedule made it difficult to find time.

Today’s filming was in the morning, and she had taken the day off from school, so she couldn’t even ask Ji-yeon.

“Seoyeon, you look a bit tired?”

“I’m fine.”

“Really? Well, it’s an important role, so make sure to manage your condition. You know that, right?”

“Yes.”

Seoyeon nodded at actor Kim Daeheon’s advice. She couldn’t exactly tell him that she hadn’t slept well because she was upset after watching a VTuber stream the night before.

‘Condition management…’

He was right. Seoyeon’s role as Cha Seo-ah, the main villain of this movie, was crucial.

The character had significant screen time, and if Seoyeon missed filming, it would severely impact the production schedule. A few times might be manageable, but if it became frequent, it could even delay the movie’s release.

‘It’s different from my child actor days.’

The level of responsibility and the weight of her role were much greater now.

Seoyeon tried to pull herself together as filming began.

‘Playing Cha Seo-ah feels almost like playing myself.’

Director Bae Jin-hwan had felt something was slightly off during previous shoots. Seoyeon’s portrayal of Cha Seo-ah was almost flawless, but something was missing.

It was just a tiny bit—something that could make her performance even better.

The motive behind Cha Seo-ah’s murders and the emotions associated with them were somewhat ambiguous.

Ambiguity could add to the audience’s enjoyment as they tried to interpret her character. But Bae Jin-hwan thought it would be better if Seoyeon could convey those emotions more clearly.

‘Is it too much to ask of a teenager?’

He wondered if he was being greedy. Asking an actor who was already performing well to do even better could be risky. It could end up ruining what was already a good performance.

But still…

‘I’ll see how she does today and then decide.’

A director’s job is to guide the actors and help them deliver the desired scenes. If something feels off, it has to be addressed.

‘And I believe...’

Given Seoyeon’s potential, he was confident she could rise to the challenge.

“Today’s scene has been revised, right? You heard about the changes to Cha Seo-ah’s background?”

“Yes, the convenience store part-timer, right?”

The one speaking was actor Jung Si-hyun, who played the role of the victim, Han Yewha. Today was her first scene.

Originally, the two characters were supposed to meet on the street by chance, but the revised scene now had them meeting at a convenience store.

“Scene number 34.”

The timing was the day after the chase with the detective, following the fourth victim's death.

The scene would show police cars lining the streets and busy officers, contrasting with the happy demeanor of Han Yewha, foreshadowing the next victim.

Han Yewha, who was both a victim and almost the heroine of the movie, was making her first appearance.

“This scene is all about contrast. Si-hyun and Seoyeon, your characters need to have contrasting moods.”

Before filming began, Director Bae gave some brief instructions on the acting. He explained the camera’s movements and the emotions he wanted to capture.

For Jung Si-hyun, the acting wasn’t particularly difficult. Han Yewha was an ordinary person who couldn’t imagine that the ongoing murders might affect her. She just had to portray a happy woman excited about her date with her boyfriend.

The important one was Seoyeon.

Cha Seo-ah had to interact with Han Yewha with a smile, while also creating a sense of tension. Her dark emotions had to contrast with Han Yewha’s happiness. The emotions needed to be strong and clear.

“Okay, let’s give it a try.”

With a clap, everyone moved to their designated spots. The cameras and sound equipment were checked, and the actors moved into position.

Jung Si-hyun took her place on the street, while Seoyeon stood at the convenience store counter.

‘I never imagined I’d end up playing a convenience store clerk.’

Seoyeon thought as she fiddled with the uniform she was wearing. It was surprising to find herself in the uniform of the convenience store she frequently visited.

‘Cha Seo-ah’s emotions…’

Honestly, a customer service role didn’t suit Cha Seo-ah. With her condition preventing her from properly expressing emotions, it didn’t make sense for her to interact with customers.

But then, this could be seen as sacrificing some realism for the sake of the story’s entertainment value.

‘Or maybe it’s like how I pretend to be normal.’

Pretending to have overcome her condition while hiding it deep inside. In reality, nothing had changed.

Cha Seo-ah’s acting was clumsier and more awkward than Seoyeon’s past self, which was why Cha Seo-ah rarely showed any expression.

She didn’t think deeply about her emotions. No matter how she expressed them, they only made others uncomfortable.

So…

The convenience store door opened. It was an ordinary day.

At least, it was for Cha Seo-ah.

Her body felt a bit stiff after what had happened the previous night, but it wasn’t a big deal. She could just consider it as having worked out a bit too hard.

As she thought this, she looked at the customer who had just entered.

“Yeah, oppa. I’m doing fine. Okay, talk to you later.”

A woman with a bright face was talking on her phone with one hand. She had brown hair and an overall cute appearance, like someone who was born to be loved by others.

“...”

There were other customers in the store, but Cha Seo-ah’s gaze followed this woman. The woman with the bright face. Han Yewha, who was smiling happily.

Cha Seo-ah’s eyelids began to tremble slightly. Her lips twitched as if convulsing, unable to find the right emotion.

She couldn’t comprehend what she was feeling. Even with other customers around, Cha Seo-ah’s pupils moved slowly, as if under a spell.

The camera zoomed in, capturing her gaze precisely.

‘What is this?’

Director Bae Jin-hwan watched the scene unfold with his mouth slightly agape. He could clearly see the emotion reflected in Seoyeon’s eyes.

Jealousy.

That intense flame was vividly apparent. And it wasn’t just Bae Jin-hwan who noticed; the other staff members felt it too.

The tension between Han Yewha’s joyful phone call and Cha Seo-ah’s brooding presence was palpable. The camera director, who was zoomed in on Seoyeon’s expression, felt it even more intensely.

Seoyeon had already shown a high level of synchronization with Cha Seo-ah. Now, with the added motive of jealousy, the tension in the scene was more potent than anything seen before.

It felt real.

Maybe that was why Jung Si-hyun, playing Han Yewha, flinched as she turned to approach the counter. The intensity of Seoyeon’s acting had caused her to instinctively react.

‘This is just natural.’

Any human would have reacted like that if they weren’t prepared. The tension radiating from Cha Seo-ah, coupled with the unsettling feeling that she was not entirely human, would naturally provoke a reaction.

This wasn’t a mistake. It was natural.

But even though the scene technically had an error, Director Bae was about to call “cut” when…

“Isn’t the weather nice today?”

Han Yewha spoke up, smiling at Cha Seo-ah.

“Sorry?”

“You seem a bit tired. Working on a day like this would make anyone feel that way.”

Especially on a lovely spring day like today.

Han Yewha handed a bottle to Cha Seo-ah, something she had just bought—a vitamin drink.

“Drink this and cheer up.”

Han Yewha said with a warm smile. Cha Seo-ah accepted the drink absentmindedly, watching Han Yewha as she left the store. She kept staring until another customer called her attention.

Endlessly.

“Cut!”

The scene wrapped up as Director Bae shouted. He had expected an error, but Jung Si-hyun had unexpectedly improvised.

‘That wasn’t in the script, was it?’

‘No, it wasn’t.’

‘Jung Si-hyun really brought her A-game today.’

It was a natural performance. The brief moment of hesitation actually helped to highlight Han Yewha’s character.

“Seoyeon.”

“Yes?”

Before praising Jung Si-hyun’s improvisation, Director Bae called out to Seoyeon first.

“Have you been secretly training?”

“What?”

“I thought I’d have to talk to you about something today, but it seems I don’t need to anymore. You perfectly captured Cha Seo-ah’s emotions.”

Seoyeon responded to his words with a puzzled expression.

“...?”

Was it really that good? She thought she had just acted as usual.

But suddenly…

“Oh.”

Seoyeon realized what had happened.

She had unconsciously channeled a particular feeling during that performance.

Jealousy.

That feeling she hadn’t quite identified until now.

“Ah, yes. I… I did some training.”

She couldn’t bring herself to explain what had triggered it. Even Seoyeon knew better than to mention that.