Revenge Begins: Reincarnated as a Hated Idol!-Chapter 50: Shooting the Scenes

After To Your Heart’s successful finale, Aren began to receive numerous offers, some from agencies wanting to sign him, whereas some were from productions offering him a role.

Livia dealt with most of the useless offers, allowing only serious and beneficial ones to reach Aren.

Next, Aren either rejected them or left the interesting ones for a later date. Right now, he solely focused on the shooting of Symphony of Shadows.

Currently, he was about to shoot the introduction scene of Liam, the mercenary twin.

Liam in the story had a composed and confident personality. He was shrewd and very good at his job as a mercenary, landing him the title ’Night Wolf.’

Not every mercenary received a title; only the best of the best had one.

"Aren, ready?" The director, Fin Jacobs, asked from behind the camera, a bit nervous about the upcoming scene.

He hadn’t seen Aren for two weeks, and even though Kendrick assured him that Aren was ready, he was still doubtful.

This scene was crucial and, upon Aren’s recommendation, was supposed to be shot in a single take.

In the story, Liam, after earning enough money for a lifetime, decided to retire.

He planned to leave the city, returning to his hometown tomorrow morning, but on this night, four mercenaries sneaked into his house to kill him.

They strike his bedroom first, thinking he was asleep, but to their surprise, they find him waiting for them with a knowing smile.

This scene was to continue from this point, a fighting sequence that Aren had to perform himself.

The room was dark, only moonlight coming in through the open windows.

Aren stood beside the door, waiting for it to open with a prop dagger in hand.

The equipment and the cameras were all set, ready to capture their performances.

To add realism, Kendrick and Corbin played two of the four mercenaries, ready to trade blows with Aren. Since they had rehearsed the fight sequence twice already, there were few chances of error.

"Lights!"

Tints of blue light illuminated the room, blending with the moonlight coming in through the window.

"Camera!"

The lens focused, cameras ready to capture.

"Action!"

Clap—!

The clap echoed once—

And silence swallowed the room.

For a fraction of a second, Aren did not move.

Liam was already there.

Still.

Composed.

Waiting.

The door handle turned slowly.

A soft metallic click.

Then—

Creeeak—

The door opened inward.

A shadow slipped through first.

Then another.

Four figures entered in near-perfect synchronization, blades glinting faintly in the cold wash of moonlight.

They moved like professionals.

Quiet.

Efficient.

Certain.

One of them stepped toward the bed.

The sheets were shaped to mimic a sleeping body.

The mercenary raised his blade—

And stabbed down.

Thud.

No resistance.

No blood.

The room remained silent.

Too silent.

A faint exhale sounded from the corner near the door.

"Looking for me?"

The voice was low.

Calm.

Almost amused.

All four heads snapped toward the sound.

Moonlight caught Liam’s face as he stepped slightly forward from the wall beside the door.

One hand rested casually at his side.

The other held a dagger, angled downward.

His posture was relaxed.

No tension in his shoulders.

No rush in his breathing.

Only control.

A small smile curved at the edge of his lips.

Not wide.

Not arrogant.

Just knowing.

One of the mercenaries lunged first.

Fast.

Precise.

Aren didn’t rush.

He pivoted.

Smooth.

Minimal movement.

The attacking blade sliced through empty air as Liam sidestepped with a fluid shift of weight.

His dagger flashed.

A quick upward slice—

Clean.

The attacker froze for half a second before collapsing silently.

No wasted motion.

No dramatic flourish.

Efficient.

The second mercenary attacked from behind.

Kendrick’s blade came down toward Liam’s shoulder—

Liam ducked.

Twisted.

Elbow struck backward into Kendrick’s ribs.

With controlled precision.

Before Kendrick could react—

Aren grabbed Kendrick’s wrist mid-swing, rotated sharply—

Crack.

The disarm was seamless.

The blade clattered to the floor.

Before Kendrick could recover, Liam drove a knee into his abdomen and pushed him into the wall.

Not brutal.

Precise.

Controlled force.

Kendrick was unconscious.

The third and fourth attacked together.

Corbin rushed low.

The other aimed high.

Liam stepped backward toward the open window.

Moonlight framed him.

He lifted his dagger defensively.

Corbin’s strike came first—

Clank!

Liam parried, steel meeting steel with a sharp ring.

The second blade slashed across his chest—

Too slow.

Liam leaned back just enough for it to miss by inches.

His free hand caught the attacker’s collar.

A quick jerk forward—

Forehead collided with nose.

A dull crack.

The attacker staggered.

Corbin swung again—

Liam spun.

The motion was tight.

Economical.

His dagger traced across Corbin’s forearm, forcing him to drop his weapon.

Then—

A kick.

Sharp.

Direct.

Corbin hit the floor, passing out.

Now only one remained standing.

Breathing heavy.

Hesitating.

Liam didn’t.

He walked forward.

Not rushed.

Not cautious.

Confident.

Each step deliberate.

The final mercenary backed away instinctively.

"You should’ve fled the moment you saw me," Liam said softly.

Then he lunged.

One swift exchange—

Block.

Counter.

Disarm.

And the blade flashed, slicing the mercenary’s throat.

The room fell silent again.

Four bodies on the floor.

Liam stood in the center.

Unscathed.

Breathing steady.

The moonlight outlined his silhouette, dagger angled downward, expression unreadable now.

No smile.

No pride.

Just a quiet inevitability.

As if this outcome had never been in doubt.

He wiped the blade once against his sleeve.

Turned toward the window.

His gaze lingered on the city beyond.

Tomorrow morning, he was supposed to leave.

Retire.

But his eyes hardened slightly.

Someone had sent those men.

And that meant—

He wasn’t done yet.

"Cut!"

Fin Jacobs’ voice broke through the darkness.

But Aren remained still for one second longer.

Liam’s cold gaze still fixed on the night outside.

Only when the lights brightened did he relax his grip on the dagger.

The room erupted in low murmurs.

Kendrick, still on the floor, muttered breathlessly—

"He should become a mercenary at this point."

Fin slowly lowered his headset.

The nervousness from before had vanished.

In its place—

Satisfaction.

The take had been clean.

Fluid.

Controlled.

And terrifyingly believable.

...

While Symphony of Shadows proceeded without a hitch, New Dawn had also begun shooting.

Blackshore Management was the major investor of the project, joined by another agency with a lesser investment.

This agency, named NovaBeat, was a rising agency in the industry.

It primarily managed social media influencers and idols, but with their top star, Asher Vale, transitioning to acting from modeling and influencing, they were determined to go all in.

Being the investors of the project, they managed to get Asher the role of second male lead in the drama.

If it weren’t for Blackshore Management investing the largest share, they would have liked for Asher to have the lead role instead.

However, getting the role was the easy part; giving an impactful performance was the difficult one.

"Cut!" Venste Morel’s annoyed voice resounded on the set once again.

He was on the verge of getting a headache.

Asher and Theon were a pair he came to dread in the last few days.

"Asher, you need to put some soul into your lines. You are a patriot for God’s sake. At least look frustrated at the governor when you speak your dialogues." Venste Morel instructed with a tired sigh.

His patience was already running dry, and if he didn’t pay attention, he might lose his temper.

Being a veteran director for years, he knew that yelling at an actor didn’t solve things; instead, it only undermined the actor’s confidence.

He was trying to be the wise man here, keeping his calm despite the horrible performances.

However, when the next shot didn’t improve either, he decided to take a break.

"Asher, do one thing. Go and prepare for the scene again. We will resume half an hour later."

If it was any other set, Venste would have already replaced the actor, but here he was powerless.

"Theon, let’s shoot your scenes." He called for the tall, handsome man with silver hair and blue eyes.

Theon rose from his chair and walked up to his mark confidently.

Today’s scene was an intense one, and he had prepared for it diligently.

However, when he performed the scene, Venste was disappointed.

It wasn’t that Theon’s acting was bad; instead, it was even better than it had been in The Insiders, displaying the efforts Theon was putting in.

It was just that there was no spark in his performance.

Venste had read the script and had fallen in love with it. He had an image of the lead in his mind, and to be honest, only Aren had been able to come close to that image with his performance in the auditions.

Venste had felt something indescribable at that time; however, Theon’s performance downgraded the impact of this scene.

Still, Venste was aware that this was the best he could get from Theon.

"Hehehe." At this moment, he heard giggling from a certain direction, and when he turned, his pupils enlarged in anger.

Asher was scrolling on his phone instead of revising the scene.

Venste immediately went and gave him a good scolding.

If it weren’t for Seth Nava, his friend and the writer of the drama, he would’ve certainly quit this project by now.

For Venste, Asher was unbearable. And because of Asher’s bad performances, Theon was thinking of himself as a great actor, as if he had suddenly improved by a mile.

But for Venste, they both weren’t up to the mark.

Currently, he was regretting his decision to stay as the director of the project more than anything.

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(A/N - Thanks for reading. ^..^)