Reborn With a Money-Making System: Ruined Actress to Nation's Treasure-Chapter 84: My Husband Has A Celebrity Crush

Not long after, he finally cleared his throat, looking as if he had just woken up from a long dream.

"I ... I’m not sure I can help much," he said quietly. Then he added, "It’s been a long time since I kissed someone."

Well, that made sense. After all, he probably chose to focus on recovering his legs rather than getting involved with women.

But—wait. Did he just say it’s been a long time since he kissed someone?

So ... he had kissed someone before?! Maybe more than one?!

Who were they?!

I quickly caught myself before my thoughts spiraled further. God, I was starting to sound like a jealous wife.

Of course, he must have kissed someone before. He was thirty-five, for god’s sake!

"Ah ... but it would be such a waste to let my co-star take my first kiss," I muttered, scratching my cheek and avoiding his gaze. "It feels kind of unfair, you know? Giving something like that away just for a scene."

"No—I-I mean the practice," Lando stammered, his voice suddenly unsteady. "But ... but I can still take your first kiss. If you want."

Both of us froze.

My brain completely short-circuited for a second, and his expression mirrored mine. We both froze; eyes wide, bodies stiff, and absolutely clueless about what we were even talking about anymore.

This was so awkward.

Why did I even bring up the topic of a kiss scene? It wasn’t like I was auditioning for a lead role. I was just going for a supporting one, so chances were I wouldn’t even have that many romantic scenes to begin with.

But still ... why did he have to answer like that?!

Then again ... I didn’t really mind if he took my first kiss. Maybe ... his favorability points would skyrocket if that happened.

Now that I thought about it, his favorability hadn’t gone up in a while. Was it because I hadn’t made any physical moves lately?

[Correct, Host.]

[You’ve raised 63% of his favorability through emotional connection and light touches, like holding hands.]

[However, if you want to reach 100% favorability, you’ll also need to take things to a more physical level, like hugging, kissing, and the main course is, of course ... dun dun dun, SEX!]

I nearly choked on air.

What the hell was that tone supposed to be?!

[Don’t act so surprised, Host,] Penny teased. [It’s basic human logic. Emotional intimacy builds trust, but physical intimacy seals the bond.]

I clenched my fists on my lap, my face heating up as I tried to keep a straight expression in front of Lando, who still looked like he was trying to recover from the whole kiss conversation.

Could the ground please open up and swallow me right now?

Just thinking about having sex with Lando made my whole body heat up in secondhand embarrassment. Besides, could he even ... do that?

[You’ve questioned that multiple times already, Host,] Penny chimed in with its annoyingly calm tone. [Perhaps it’s time you ask him directly.]

Like hell I would do that!

I almost yelled the words out loud. There was absolutely no universe where I’d look Lando in the eyes and ask something like that. I’d rather dig my own grave and live there forever than say those words.

[Or maybe you can just touch it and see if it still works,] Penny suggested innocently.

’Penny, that’s called sexual harassment!’ I screamed in my head, nearly choking on my own breath.

Alright, that was it. Penny was getting more ridiculous by the minute, and I had officially reached my limit. I wasn’t going to listen to another word of her nonsense.

"M-Maybe we can talk about this later," I said, clearing my throat, desperately trying to ease the tension hanging between us. "I should just focus on studying for the audition first."

"Y-Yes," Lando stammered, his voice unusually awkward. "You’re right."

After letting the silence linger for a while, I finally gathered enough courage to bring up a topic I had wanted to bury forever. My fingers fidgeted on my lap as I spoke softly, "Husband, have you ... ever heard of an actress named Helena Moore?"

The moment I mentioned my real name, Lando’s expression stiffened almost immediately. "Yes, I knew her," he said quietly. "I used to watch her movies back then, but alas ... her fate wasn’t that great."

Why did he look so surprised, and so sad?

I was sure I’d never met him back then. There was no way our paths had crossed. I was just another forgotten name in a long list of fallen actresses, someone whose fame had burned out too quickly.

I had even been on hiatus for about a year, and during that time, I never met anyone from the industry, or even fans.

Actually, scratch that. If anyone had recognized me, I probably would’ve been fired from my part-time job on the spot. That’s why I always made sure to hide my face behind a mask wherever I went.

And just when I finally decided to return to the entertainment world ... I ended up running into a bunch of jerks instead.

"Did you know her personally?" I asked carefully.

"No," Lando replied. "I saw a clip of one of her movies once, and ... well, I ended up watching all of her movies and dramas after that."

My eyes widened. "E-everything? Even her old movies?"

He looked away, his ears turning a little red, clearly embarrassed that he’d been caught binge-watching all my old work, most of which were cheesy romance dramas.

"Yes," he said finally. "Her acting was good, and the stories weren’t bad either."

I bit the inside of my lip, unable to stop myself from asking, "So ... was she your celebrity crush?"

Lando let out a soft chuckle, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "Maybe. She had this way of making every scene feel real. You could tell she poured her whole heart into it."

My chest tightened a little, hearing him say that about me, even though he had no idea he was literally talking to the person he was praising.

Still, I couldn’t resist teasing him. I tilted my head and asked playfully, "Then tell me, who do you think is prettier, Helena Moore or ... me?"