"Hyung, would you maybe like to do a stage performance with me sometime?"
"A performance?"
Ryu Shin was puzzled by Yu Myeong's suggestion, but at the same time instantly intrigued.
He was about to ask what he meant when Yu Myeong, seemingly startled by the words that had slipped out of his own mouth, immediately tried to take them back.
"Ah, no... never mind. Sorry. You have an agency, and you'll need to start your next project. I said something pointless."
"What are you talking about? Aren't you doing your next project either?"
"Ah... I want to start something new as soon as possible, but my CEO keeps saying I work too much and ordered me to rest until at least the beginning of next year... So lately I've been renting a practice room and training with an aspiring actor."
Yu Myeong gave him a rough explanation of the situation.
The moment Ryu Shin heard it—
"Let's do it together."
"What?"
"No, seriously. You have to let me join. Even if it's just practice. And if we can actually put on a performance, even better."
He threw it out there bluntly.
After all, he had spent almost an entire year barely taking on projects because he wanted to catch up to Yu Myeong. Even the historical drama he had just finished filming today was something he challenged himself with because he refused to run away from Yu Myeong.
In that case, working together properly would be far better.
Come to think of it, compared to every mentor he'd studied under and every project he'd worked on, his acting had improved the most whenever he was with Yu Myeong.
This was an opportunity he should be asking for.
"Don't you need to discuss it with your agency? They probably won't like a stage performance. There's no money in it."
"It's a family-run agency. It's fine. When it comes to projects, I can make the final decision myself."
"Ah, really?"
Yu Myeong's expression visibly brightened.
"Let's practice together for a while starting tomorrow and discuss whether putting on a performance is actually possible. The agencies will have to coordinate too... Hmm. If we get a theater company involved, things will probably go much more smoothly..."
As Ryu Shin rapidly laid out plans one after another, Yu Myeong looked flustered and objected.
"You said your filming ended today..."
"It did. Why?"
"You should rest for a while."
"It's fine. Practicing is resting."
"No, it's not. You look exhausted right now. At least take a week off first."
"I said I'm fine."
'...Ah. So this is what it feels like.'
For the first time, Yu Myeong thought he understood how Yu Seok felt.
{You're gonna do a performance with that guy? Good job. Sounds fun. Kyahaha!}
'More importantly... we need to solve Su Yeon's problem. Do you have any ideas?'
{Hmm...}
Miho sucked noisily on the beer, foam clinging to her snout as she adopted a serious expression.
{I kinda get what the problem is. There is a method that's worth trying as a solution...}
'Really? Then what is it?'
{It needs a little more time to simmer. For now, that kid needs to open up to you more.}
'Hmm...'
Miho offered no further explanation.
After spending a long time thinking about how to help Su Yeon, Yu Myeong finally fell asleep late that night.
"Yeah."
"Hmm..."
A few days later, Yu Myeong and Ryu Shin stood together in Marronnier Park.
Even after agreeing to practice with Yu Myeong, Seol Su Yeon still came to the park whenever they were not training together and continued practicing acting on her own.
She said she wanted to fix her tendency to lose immersion whenever she felt other people's eyes on her.
Yu Myeong gave Ryu Shin a rough explanation of her situation and told him that she was someone he wanted to bring onto their team.
"I'd appreciate it if you could help too. I think she has real potential."
"Hmm... I'm technically the one who barged in, so I don't intend to interfere with your decisions. But I'm curious what kind of actor she is, and what exactly you saw in her."
That was why they had come to watch her practice.
"She has a lot of problems. First of all, her fundamentals are weak..."
"I doubt she's ever gone through a proper training curriculum."
"She's the type who draws attention, but as far as actual acting goes, she's not there at all. So what exactly did you see in her?"
Faced with such blunt criticism, Yu Myeong carefully considered how to explain it.
Her acting right now really was ambiguous.
If he hadn't known the Seol Su Yeon of the future, he probably wouldn't have been able to see her potential either.
But...
He couldn't exactly tell people he had seen her °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° future.
"When we were doing that Rococo photoshoot together, I happened to see her become truly immersed once. The trigger doesn't activate easily, but when she falls into that state, she's incredible."
"Really? It's hard to imagine from what I'm seeing now."
"I think something is interfering with her immersion. We've been practicing together for about two weeks, and I still haven't figured it out. Maybe it'll come out if she opens up more."
He mixed his experience at the Rococo shoot with Miho's opinion and explained as vaguely as possible.
"But even if she has talent, is there any reason you need to help her personally?"
"Hmm... There was a time when I felt completely lost too. A talented actor who worked hard but couldn't make things happen. If I can help someone like that, I want to."
Yu Myeong briefly told him about the last two years of Su Yeon's life.
After expectations for her skyrocketed because of Rococo, she had spent two and a half years failing to meet them, becoming the unwanted burden of her agency—yet she had never given up acting.
Even now, she was still struggling desperately to overcome it on her own.
"...Was that so?"
Ryu Shin found it strange.
As far as he knew, Yu Myeong had never experienced an unknown, struggling period.
Since he regarded Yu Myeong as a once-in-a-generation genius, it was difficult for him to understand what Yu Myeong meant by saying he had once felt lost.
'Still, she seems persistent.'
Even while her confidence was being relentlessly crushed, she was out here alone in a public park trying to learn how to act properly.
He liked that kind of determination.
"If you see something in her, then there must be a reason. But I don't see it yet. Until you figure out what's blocking her, the most I can do is help build her physical foundation."
At Ryu Shin's acceptance, Yu Myeong's face lit up.
"Thank you, hyung!"
"Her voice projection, breathing, stamina, and fundamentals are all severely lacking. I'm not the type to coax people along. Hopefully she doesn't run away."
"If she's the kind of actor who'd quit because training gets hard, then I have no intention of holding on to her either. But she won't."
"Then that's fine. Let's work hard together."
Yu Myeong had never experienced a performance where Ryu Shin served on the directing staff, but he had heard plenty of stories from his friends at Audius.
"He's practically a demon."
"He spots your limits with terrifying accuracy and pushes you right past them. Not right up to them—past them."
"But his own practice volume is even worse. You start wanting to curse him out, then you see how hard he trains and suddenly can't."
Was he even more extreme than Sa Jun Han, the assistant director of Blue Sky?
Yu Myeong silently offered a moment of sympathy for Su Yeon.
Of course, if she truly wanted to improve, she had undoubtedly just found the best coach possible.
"Hey, Su Yeon. This is the senior actor I mentioned before—the one who's going to practice with us."
"Yes~ Hello—"
Her jaw nearly hit the ground.
'It's Ryu Shin!'
Much of her childhood had been spent in front of the television.
She had absolutely adored the actor who displayed extraordinary talent even as a child actor.
When he temporarily retired at fifteen, eleven-year-old Su Yeon had been devastated.
Face flushed with excitement, she spoke first—something she almost never did.
"Y-You're actor Ryu Shin, right?"
"Yes."
"Wow... It's an honor. I was a huge fan."
"Thank you."
After seeing Su Yeon's face without her mask, Ryu Shin was momentarily surprised.
She was beautiful.
Not merely pretty—strikingly beautiful.
For a brief moment, he even wondered whether Yu Myeong wanted to help her because of personal feelings.
But no.
The way Yu Myeong spoke about wanting to help a hardworking actor had been far too straightforward.
"We'll be practicing together, so speak comfortably. And... would it be okay if I called you oppa too?"
"No. I'm not used to being called that. Since I'm still your senior when it comes to acting, it's probably best if you call me 'senior.' We can drop formalities later if we become more comfortable."
"Ah... okay."
Ryu Shin had spent his entire life in the entertainment industry.
A beautiful face no longer made much impression on him.
The objective thought, She's pretty, passed through his mind for only an instant before he organized the forms of address with efficiency.
Someone he was going to train shouldn't become too comfortable too quickly.
After mustering all her courage only to have her friendly gesture rejected, Su Yeon shrank in on herself like a hermit crab retreating into its shell.
"Su Yeon. Senior Ryu Shin has a lot of experience teaching younger actors. If you learn well, it'll help you tremendously."
"Yes! Please teach me a lot. You can push me as hard as you want."
Sensing her embarrassment, Yu Myeong subtly changed how he referred to Ryu Shin.
Su Yeon quickly shook off the awkwardness and energetically asked to be trained.
"Let's just loosen up today and try an etude."
And so they began practicing together.
Yu Myeong was amazed by how much denser and more refined Ryu Shin's acting had become.
'How did he change this much in two years? Every time I think I've caught up, he goes and does this...!'
Ryu Shin gritted his teeth at the overwhelming presence radiating from Yu Myeong, who seemed to have undergone a complete transformation.
And Su Yeon...
'...'
She couldn't take her eyes off them.
Until now, their acting practice sessions had mostly consisted of Yu Myeong watching her perform.
She had never really had the chance to watch him act properly.
But the acting unfolding before her now—
The way the two men burned against each other like rivals—
It was so extraordinary that it made her think:
This is what an actor is.
So extraordinary that she would have believed she was watching an actual performance rather than a rehearsal.
So extraordinary that it made her wonder whether what she had been doing until now could even be called acting.
But Su Yeon forcefully steadied herself before she could sink into weakness.
For a beginner like her, this was a miraculous opportunity she never could have expected.
Two people who could legitimately be called among the finest actors were guiding her.
'Even if it feels like I'm dying from exhaustion.'
'Even if my inferiority complex makes me want to throw up.'
She would never give up.
Once more, Su Yeon etched their acting—the acting she wanted to emulate—into her eyes.
Advertisements go through multiple preview screenings during production.
At each screening, the client meticulously points out everything they dislike, sends it back for revisions, and the agency and production company continue refining the advertisement before returning with a second, third, and fourth version.
Today was the first VIP preview screening for Crude.
"Hopefully it's at least at a level where we can make adjustments."
"Exactly. The launch schedule is tight, so we don't have much room for multiple revisions. Even if this is only the first screening, the overall feel needs to be right so the revision schedule stays on track."
The executives entered while exchanging quiet remarks.
Park Jin Hee greeted them with a crisp bow.
Ordinarily, the agency's account executive would handle the presentation, but since the concept itself had originated from Park Jin Hee—and her presentation skills were well known—she was leading it personally.
The agency's account executive and creative director, seated nearby, awkwardly rose and bowed as well.
Only after all the executives had taken their seats did Executive Director Min enter with the company president.
"What do you think, Director Min? Does it look good?"
"The production schedule was so tight that this is actually my first time seeing the completed version too, haha. But from what I saw during the interim reviews, the results weren't bad."
Director Min, who had nearly drooled while staring at the raw footage with his mouth hanging open, modestly described it as "not bad" in front of the president.
Seeing that, Park Jin Hee smiled.
'Director Min really knows how to manage expectations.'
An essential skill for office workers.
When results are bad, redirect attention elsewhere to soften the impact.
When results are good, lower expectations so the satisfaction becomes even greater.
Director Min was the type of superior who understood that principle, making him easy to work under.
Once both the president and executive director were seated, Park Jin Hee began her presentation.
"Hello. I'm Park Jin Hee, head of Marketing Team 2 and the person responsible for the marketing campaign for Crude."
She bowed.
Then she straightened, sharp eyes gleaming.
Click.
The pointer in her hand advanced the presentation.
As the PowerPoint changed slides, the first page revealed the origin of the name.
[Crude | kruːd ]
1. Rough, unfinished
2. Crude, vulgar
3. Raw, unrefined
"Project Crude was created to reshape the image of Hyunseong Motors.
As you're aware, this name also carries negative connotations, which led to considerable opposition when it was first proposed.
However, the reason the name Crude was ultimately chosen was because it perfectly captured a kind of appeal that draws the eye precisely because it is raw and rough."
She carefully placed each chosen word exactly where it would earn the executives' support.
"Accordingly, the concept of the Crude campaign focuses on contrast—the gap between something exquisitely refined and something raw and untamed.
The concept of this advertisement is..."
This was office worker Park Jin Hee's battlefield.
"Unmask."
Click.
On the projector screen, the advertisement for the new Crude vehicle began to play.
