"It's way too out of the blue."
That was my immediate reaction upon reading the future message from SIMS.
To begin with—
‘Kamen Rider wouldn’t be able to afford my rate.’
The franchise usually cast newcomers, and now they wanted me as a villain? It was hard to believe.
For a moment, I wondered if SIMS was malfunctioning.
‘Besides, I know about the 10th anniversary myself.’
Was this message suggesting that I’d step in, film the 10th anniversary, and make it a success?
It was still strange.
‘Of course, I did have that dream once.’
The dream of starring in a tokusatsu show,
transforming and heroically defeating villains—
a boyish fantasy every guy has at some point.
But now, out of nowhere, Kamen Rider?
And not just any role—the final villain.
‘This is a bit much...’
Moreover, the timing wasn’t immediate.
It was a story set about three years into the future.
‘But have all the future messages from SIMS really come true?’
I couldn’t help but wonder.
Could it be that the messages were only showing potential outcomes?
‘No matter how I think about it, I have no connection to that world.’
Would I somehow cross paths with Director Kiryu Sota?
No matter how I imagined it, I couldn’t see the pieces fitting together.
‘Well, I’ll figure it out when the time comes.’
Honestly, the message wouldn’t make sense until the situation actually unfolded.
And even then, the articles weren’t confirmed.
It felt more like a test of the waters—
an indication that I might appear in a tokusatsu or sci-fi project.
‘Sci-fi, huh...’
Nothing specific came to mind.
The only thing remotely close was Parallel World.
‘I watched that one a lot.’
Especially the scenes involving gunfights and close-quarters combat;
I remember rewatching those countless times.
Anyway, the conclusion was simple: the message was absurd.
After briefly mulling over it, I headed home and checked my upcoming schedule.
"If Shall We Get Married? filming stays like this, my schedule won’t be too demanding."
The script only provided scenarios,
and those scenarios were flexible with input from the PD.
That meant my future schedule would remain manageable.
‘That leaves Fake Wedding and...’
Fake Wedding.
The fan-given nickname for Our Fake Wedding.
It had such a catchy ring to it that even I’d started using it naturally.
‘...And True Hero.’
After finishing filming for those two projects, I was scheduled to enlist for training.
‘Then I’ll win a gold medal at the Asian Games to solidify my career as an athlete.’
The requirements for an arts and sports personnel exemption mandated active dedication to the field during the service period.
If I only pursued acting, questions would inevitably arise.
‘That’s why competing in the Asian Games is a must.’
The Korean Boxing Association had been adamant about this point as well.
A medal at an international competition would automatically validate my commitment.
The plan was to focus on acting during the first half of the year
and return to intense training in the second half.
‘I’ll need to go through the trials again, too.’
After wrapping up my schedule review,
I stretched out on my bed for the first time in what felt like ages.
Finally, a chance to get some proper rest.
++++
While Kim Donghu slept peacefully—
"The Legendary Daejong High Graduation: A Joint Performance by Kim Donghu and Ryu Jaerin!"
This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.
"The Reincarnation of Paganini and Liszt? A Transcendent Performance by Kim Donghu."
"What Can’t He Do? Acting, Music, Boxing, and Looks—Finding Flaws in the Perfect Man."
"Celebrity Ego? No! The Genuine Humanity of a Student Who Respects His Teacher."
"Edward Park: ‘The Greatest Gift Ever’—Tearing Up Mid-Interview."
The internet exploded with articles.
On top of that—
[Daejong High Graduation Ceremony]
[Legendary Appearance of Kim Donghu!]
Graduates who had attended the ceremony uploaded clips of Kim Donghu’s performance to YouTube,
and every upload effortlessly surpassed a million views.
Naturally, this led to—
Publicity for every project I was involved in skyrocketed without any effort on my part.
The public’s reaction was overwhelmingly positive.
And with good reason.
An actor of his caliber performing a free concert on graduation day—
and at his alma mater, no less.
It was a sea of praise.
No one dared rain on this parade.
And in such an atmosphere, romantic speculation was bound to emerge.
[One of the most legendary Shall We Get Married? couples ever... Their visuals are unbeatable.]
The community was buzzing with discussions about Kim Donghu and Ryu Jaerin.
[To be honest, they do look good together... They could actually get married.]
"!!!!!!!"
Ryu Jaerin froze.
She had only planned to lightly dip her fingers into the heated conversation for a moment—
"How did they know it was me?!"
Certain she’d been found out, Ryu Jaerin hastily deleted her comment.
‘No, no, it must’ve just been a joke. They can’t actually know it’s me, right?’
Thankfully, there were no posts guessing her identity.
‘But seriously... we do look good together.’
Ryu Jaerin glanced at herself in the mirror.
Her reflection stared back from the full-length glass.
The epitome of "innocent glamour."
A textbook example of a bagel girl—baby-faced with a glamorous figure.
No matter how she thought about it, she belonged by Donghu’s side.
Sure, people might talk about Kim Sujin or Shin Yerim, but—
‘Come on, I’m the one who did Shall We Get Married? with him.’
With that thought, she sat back down at her desk and began organizing her plans.
Filming for Shall We Get Married? was already wrapped up, so everything was on track.
Now, the next step was to start making real progress.
And the most important thing to do was—
‘Expressing my feelings.’
Even if it wasn’t a direct confession,
she needed to strongly convey her interest.
But—
"How am I supposed to do that?"
Just thinking about it made her face flush and her body squirm.
How could she possibly say something like that out loud?
‘Still, I have to say it eventually.’
Clearing her throat, Ryu Jaerin calmed her nerves and came up with a plan.
For starters—
"Donghu, want to come over and see my cat?"
She could invite him to the house she’d soon be moving into.
Then—
"Meow, meow..."
Supposedly, guys loved this kind of thing.
"...Absolutely not."
Even practicing left Ryu Jaerin’s face burning red.
She decided she’d need to find a more subtle way to express her feelings.
++++
Early March.
It was time to ramp up the pace of filming.
Our Fake Wedding was gearing up to dive into its next big step.
"Alright, everyone! Let’s give it our all! Today’s a highlight day!"
Kim Youngmo, the bucket-hat-wearing PD, rallied the crew with his booming voice.
And indeed, today was the highlight of all highlights.
"Filming a first kiss scene is always exciting!"
Especially when it was the first-ever kiss scene for the actors involved.
And one actor, in particular, was seriously preoccupied with the scene.
‘Tongue... Just a little bit of tongue... Would that be okay?’
That actor, ever honest about her desires, was none other than Kim Sujin.