My Girlfriend's Fortune: 3,141,592,653,589-Chapter 89: I’ll Squeeze You to the Bone

TL: Aniea

"Ah right, I shouldn't call you Woo-ju ssi."

"......."

It seemed like she had immersed herself too much in acting as Kim Eun-ha, because Kang Han-na even copied the way she addressed me.

Watching her behavior, I was literally at a loss for words.

‘What kind of nonsense is this....’

Even seeing it with my own eyes, I couldn’t believe it.

To the point I doubted if she was the same person who was hesitating and avoiding eye contact just moments ago, now she was looking me straight in the eyes.

All I had told her was to simply put on a mask.

‘Could she really have pulled this off with just that?’

This went beyond what one would call mere talent. Of course, there must have been countless unseen efforts made beneath the surface.

- Both corners of the mouth, slightly raised more than usual. Maintain a relaxed expression while being careful not to look frivolous or like you're sneering.

Even from the line Kang Han-na was murmuring just before, it was clear. Although she didn’t state a subject, it was obvious who she was thinking of.

And during this whole process, she hadn’t even looked at Kim Eun-ha once. Most likely, Kang Han-na had been observing and mimicking Kim Eun-ha far longer and more intently than I had thought.

‘Admiration... no, is it jealousy?’

Admiration alone wouldn’t allow someone to imitate this thoroughly. Without the intense desire of ‘I want to be like her’, it would be impossible.

Though Kim Eun-ha isn’t a celebrity, considering that most of the people who claim to be her fans online are women, it wasn’t too surprising.

Kim Eun-ha’s confidence, grounded in her own abilities, possessed a power that transcended gender.

‘...If she were told to play someone else, she probably couldn’t have embodied it this well.’

Even considering all that, it was a fact that Kang Han-na’s talent was extraordinary. It was dazzling, like staring straight into the spotlight.

"Oppa. Are you okay?"

"Huh? What did you just say...."

"You've been spacing out for a while."

"No, before that."

"Hm? Oppa?"

"......."

Mmm-

I held my tongue.

Hearing the word ‘oppa’ from her, in a state where not only the voice but even the gaze and gestures had over 90 percent synchronicity with Kim Eun-ha, gave me a strange feeling.

"...Ack!"

Suddenly, I screamed from a sharp pain in my side.

When I quickly turned my head, the real Kim Eun-ha was glaring at me with half-lidded eyes.

"Get your head straight. Gawking at a high school student like that."

"......."

I felt wronged on so many levels, but opening my mouth now would only sound like a lame excuse, so I kept it shut.

Sigh-

With a heavy sigh, Kim Eun-ha walked forward. Blocking my view, she turned to Kang Han-na and quietly locked eyes with her.

As soon as she stepped forward, Kang Han-na began to shrink again. She started glancing around nervously, avoiding eye contact.

"...Uh, unnie?"

"Honestly. I don't feel good about this."

"Ah! I-I’m sorry! That wasn’t my intention!"

With just one sentence from Kim Eun-ha, Kang Han-na reverted to her usual self.

Tears welling up, she looked as though she was about to grab onto Kim Eun-ha’s pants.

Watching her, Kim Eun-ha lightly shook her head and slowly opened her mouth.

"It’s a compliment. I mean it was so identical it felt unpleasant. Does it make sense if I say it felt like my reflection in the mirror was moving on its own?"

"......."

Contrary to the word ‘compliment’, her expression was emotionless, and her voice carried no inflection.

To the point that the Kim Eun-ha Kang Han-na had acted out earlier seemed livelier, and the kids watching on started to shiver slightly in discomfort.

"Eun-ha ssi."

"Ah! Sorry. I was just really surprised."

This time, I lightly held her shoulder, and Kim Eun-ha relaxed her expression with a sheepish look. Seeing that, I couldn’t help but click my tongue inwardly.

‘...She’s incredible too.’

She probably really did mean it when she said she was upset. But everything that followed was clearly carried out with calculated precision. You could call it a kind of warning.

But to act so brazenly while pretending it was just a mistake... At this point, it was hard to tell who the real actor was.

Whether she knew how I felt or not, Kim Eun-ha smiled softly as usual.

“Our Han-na truly has incredible talent. I never imagined she’d have something like this. You could even become an actress later on, you know?”

“...I-it’s not that impressive.”

“When have I ever said something I didn’t mean? If you show potential in this play, I’d even be willing to invest in you personally.”

“I-Invest?! In me?!”

“Yeah.”

Seeing Kang Han-na so startled, she nodded calmly. And as if to prove that her words weren’t just for show, she immediately continued her explanation.

“I’m planning to acquire an entertainment company soon. At the early stage, the plan is to mainly focus on actors.”

“...A talent agency?”

This was news to me too. I stared at her blankly, and Kim Eun-ha, looking surprised as if she had just remembered, covered her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my, didn't I tell you?"

The way her eyes curved like crescent moons made it clear, she had left it out on purpose.

Of course, Kim Eun-ha had no obligation to report her business plans to me. But even so, it caught me off guard.

As if expecting my reaction, Kim Eun-ha explained further in a rather relaxed tone.

“The Korean Wave is trending worldwide, right? It feels like the overseas market is more or less open now, so I figured this is the perfect timing to jump in.”

“Hmm. I see.”

“Yes. The acquisition process will probably be completed by the time this play ends, at the latest. And Woo-ju ssi, you’ll probably need a manager soon too.”

“...Me?”

Swoosh-

In that moment, Kim Eun-ha’s eyes turned icy cold. Her gaze was far more serious than when she had confronted Kang Han-na earlier.

“You haven’t signed a contract with another company behind my back, have you? Or maybe you’ve already got another company in mind? It’s okay, you don’t have to worry about me. You can be honest.”

“No. Of course not. I wouldn’t dream of it.”

I answered immediately without a moment’s hesitation. In situations like this, speed was everything.

Only then did Kim Eun-ha’s expression soften slightly. Seeing that, I let out a quiet sigh of relief inwardly.

‘...I did start to feel like I needed a manager soon.’

Ever since <Peaceful Chaebol Life> ended in success, my phone had practically shut down from the flood of work calls.

It had gotten so bad that Kim Eun-ha took the initiative and set up a separate work phone for me.

‘It’s actually a great deal for me.’

It’s not like I was in a position to go off and sign with some other company without Kim Eun-ha’s involvement anyway.

From my standpoint, there was absolutely nothing to lose. In fact, it almost seemed too good to be true.

Of course, I doubted Kim Eun-ha was buying an entire entertainment company just for me.

“...Anyway. So you mean you’re considering casting Han-na into the company you’ll be running?”

“It’s not confirmed yet. Like I said before, only if Han-na proves her potential through this play.”

“You must really think highly of Han-na’s talent. For someone like you to bring up a hypothetical and stake an early claim like this.”

“When you see something like that up close, you can’t help it.”

Swoosh-

As we exchanged words, we naturally turned our gazes toward Kang Han-na. Feeling our eyes on her, she visibly flinched.

“M-Me? An actress...? How could someone like me ever...”

“Well, it does look like there are plenty of things to fix. But confidence builds naturally as you rack up more success.”

Hmm-hmm-

Kim Eun-ha nodded as she looked the other person up and down like she was evaluating them. Despite how she spoke, it was clear she held a high opinion of Kang Han-na’s talent.

On that point, I had no disagreements either. Still, as a beginner, there were a few visible shortcomings. For example...

“Han-na, your performance just now was chillingly good. But unfortunately, I think we’ll need a different image for this play.”

“Did I do something wrong...!?”

“It’s not that. It’s simply a matter of the character. The Eun-ha ssi you just portrayed... no, the Queen, how should I put it, had too strong of a presence.”

“Presence?”

“Yes.”

Kang Han-na’s acting leaned more toward a “Queen” than a “Queen Consort”. Understandable, since she had essentially taken on Kim Eun-ha’s personality as is.

“If you perform like that, there’s a high chance the other kids, including Cheol-su, will get completely overshadowed.”

Just like when I first shot <Peaceful Chaebol Life>, there was a strong chance that the supporting cast would completely fade into the background.

‘Actually, this might be even worse than back then.’

On that set, Kim Young-ho, a veteran actor, supported my acting, and the others were all real actors selected through auditions.

But now, Kang Han-na had to work with kids from the orphanage who had never acted even once in their lives.

Forget matching her performance, the best we could hope for was that they wouldn’t break the audience’s immersion.

“Besides, Eun-ha ssi is also participating in this play. Having overlapping characters on the same stage would naturally cause confusion.”

Whether it was fortunate or not, the script didn’t include a scene where the adult Princess and the Queen meet.

But for the audience, who’d be seeing both for the first time on stage, it could easily seem like one actress playing two roles.

In the worst-case scenario, the netizens who love to nitpick might ignore all context and accuse Kang Han-na of copying Kim Eun-ha, and start throwing stones her way.

Over the past few months working with me, Kim Eun-ha had gained recognition to a level where she could be considered a celebrity.

“Ah....”

Han-na let out a soft exclamation as if she understood, but her hands fidgeting with no clue what to do next reminded me that she really was still a kid.

“Th-then what should I do...?”

“The ideal would be for everyone else’s acting skills to improve, but realistically that’s tough. In this case, you should actually go the opposite way.”

“...Opposite?”

“Han-na, you adjust to the others.”

Acting that might lower your individual peak, but in turn raises the overall quality of the media.

I had seen that kind of acting only once before.

“Hahaha! The main character is here... huh?”

Speak of the devil and he appears.

At just that moment, a loud voice came from the entrance.

Turning my head, I saw Seo Jun-woo standing still, both hands full of snacks, having seemingly sensed the odd mood in the auditorium.

Grin-

Seeing Seo Jun-woo, the corners of my mouth lifted involuntarily. The solution had walked in on its own.

‘Only a genius can teach another genius.’

Seo Jun-woo looked visibly flustered by all the attention on him. Taking a slight step back, he opened his mouth.

“...Should I come back later?”

“No, your timing’s perfect.”

Where do you think you’re going?

I’ll squeeze you to the bone.

*****

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