I Don’t Want to Play Villains Anymore - Chapter 31

“Shut your mouth.”

“Sparkle Pang… Phew. Hic… Pang! Haneul’s sparkling today! Gineul, let’s sparkle!”

“Seo Hyun-woo. Shut your mouth.”

“Today too! Eating the Sparkle Pangs that Haneul gives! Hic. Gineul, up!”

I’m going to d*e. It’s like this all day.

Even Shin Sound resembles it. No, it’s worse as if they are intentionally resembling it.

The annoying tone at the end that slightly goes up with ‘Pang↗’.

Ral captures the point that he must have rehearsed and practiced hundreds of times with incredible accuracy.

‘Is he really not a child actor for nothing?’

Looking back on my memories, the ‘Sparkle Pang Pang’ commercial that Ral put his all into created more buzz than ‘Sungba’.

…But that wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

The majority assessment was ‘cute’, but I can’t accept such compliments.

I learned and acted, I didn’t just stroll around being cute.

The fact that it went viral due to ‘cuteness’ instead of ‘acting talent’…

It’s an insult to my entire life and talent.

But reality is harsh.

No matter how much Ral feels that way, the bystanders say,

“Wow, so cute hahahaha!”

“Is that really Yeomra as a child???”

“Sparkle Pang Pang, Gineul up! Sparkle Pang Pang, Gineul up!”

…

And in front of Ral right now, there exists Seo Hyun-woo, a real person who is embodying that adorableness.

He doesn’t feel fear even after watching me act as Yeomra, calling me a ‘Sparkle fairy’ just from that one commercial, he’s a rude and persistent guy.

I gathered all my courage and said just one word.

“…Seo Hyun-woo. Shut your mouth.”

But Seo Hyun-woo immediately turned that statement into a line from the script.

“Sparkle Pang. Today too—”

That’s enough.

I stood up from the lightweight chair.

Without any warnings or notifications.

I simply got up quietly.

Then, I took a step closer—

Front kick.

Precisely striking towards his abdomen, a ‘harmless acting kick’.

It doesn’t hurt, but the pride is shattered with that speed and hit.

The stance – a classic villain pose honed thousands of times on stage.

“Uwaah!!!”

Hyun-woo didn’t even touch the ground and flew by himself.

Overly exaggerated, stepping back about three steps.

He spun about halfway in the air, and in the end, rolled away dramatically.

Too much.

But it has to roll like this for the staging effect of Ral’s kick to work.

“Ugh… my stomach… it was hit by Sparkle Pang Pang…”

Even in the midst of this, a fixation on C-Sheet humor that he won’t let go.

I looked at him with helplessness.

Really, is this the tenacity particular to actors? Or foolish tenacity?

The latter possibility is very high.

“So I told you to shut your mouth.”

I dropped the colored pencil I was holding onto the desk.

Seo Hyun-woo cleverly rolled and half sat up.

His clothes were stained, and a hairpin was dangling in his hair.

“Ouh… if I get hit by Haneul, the Sparkle will really explode… Pang Pang!”

At that, Su-a, who was sitting in a corner, giggled.

“Seo Hyun-woo, did Haneul tease you again~?”

“I just was amazed. Really! This little one is on TV, her face is as big as a slushie, saying ‘Aah~ Sparkle Pang Pang~’ right?”

Hyun-woo jumped up from his seat and recreated Ral’s C-Sheet scene with his whole body.

Waving his arms, his legs bouncing, as if he was that little one.

This kid, really.

“That… that was seriously crazy.”

“Ha…”

I pressed my forehead.

In this playful group, are there really so many who can’t be hated?

Ah, there were a few like this in my previous life too.

Loud and chaotic, but if absent, it’s void.

Ah, it’s the same type as Seo Hyun-woo.

“But still, Haneul, you were really cool.”

This time, cautiously from the other side, Su-a began to speak.

Unlike me, she always mixed a timid smile into Shin Sound.

“I was surprised when I saw you on TV. You looked just like an idol…”

“I’m an actor.”

In this industry, people are sensitive about these things.

When Ral spoke haughtily, Su-a nodded her hands together.

“Yeah. That’s right. But… you looked so cool that it didn’t feel like a friend.”

“Of course we’re friends. Don’t worry. That commercial is a bleh comedy for me.”

“Eh? What… comedy?”

“Nothing, I’ll explain later.”

I smiled slightly and turned my head.

In the middle of the classroom.

Sitting among the children who are laughing innocently, right now I’m just Baek Haneul, not ‘Yeomra’ or ‘Sparkle Pang Pang fairy’.

…Is it because of that?

For a moment, this peaceful state didn’t feel so bad.

Just for a brief moment.

And soon, Hyun-woo shouted again from the corner.

“Hey! They are playing Sparkle Pang Pang again!! Haneul is on TV right now!!!”

Ral’s eyebrow raised slightly.

“Seo Hyun-woo. Front kick round two.”

“Uwaah!! It’s coming again!! Teacher! Baek Haneul is hitting again!!”

“You teased me first!!”

The whole classroom began to shake with Sparkle excitement.

Certainly Gineul wasn’t up, but it definitely went Pang Pang.

Really, being an actor is hard in life.

Even at five years old.

“Phew…”

Yoo Eun-ha has been feeling good lately.

Honestly, has there ever been a time when the world felt as refreshing as it does now?

Yeomra in ‘Sunny Day’ was cool.

Narae in ‘Shining’ was beautiful.

Of course, that was all possible because of Haneul’s acting talent.

An undeniable talent, an aura that no one can mimic.

But.

There was a sense of regret in all of that.

‘Cuteness’ was not the main character.

Of course, anyone could see that Haneul was cute. Just existing was charming, clear, bright.

But Haneul as Yeomra had too much charisma, and Haneul as Narae… honestly felt a bit detached.

That Haneul.

In the Sparkle Pang Pang advertisement, created a 30-second angel filled with cuteness from start to finish.

“Wow~ so refreshing~!”

Pretending to gulp down soda, eyes wide open.

Arms raised triumphantly, bouncing lively.

Saying “Sparkle Pang Pang~!” with a cheerful tone.

Each frame, each moment had no waste in cuteness.

Yoo Eun-ha’s day became checking the YouTube views of Haneul.

The advertisement video had already exceeded millions of views, and the short edited ‘Sparkle Pang Pang’ transformed into dozens of variations taking the charts by storm.

[Starting with Sparkle Pang Pang to get through the day]

[Failed the exam and came back to watch Haneul’s C-Sheet for healing;;]

[I was trembling watching Yeomra, and now it’s Sparkle Pang Pang… Kuncha was crazy.]

“Phew. It’s Haneul’s era…”

Yoo Eun-ha lightly rolled her fingers over her smartphone while holding a coffee cup.

Haneul’s lovely pictures were increasing, and advertisement sponsorship inquiries were flooding in.

For children’s cosmetics, toys, learning materials, cute cafes, and children’s magazines’ posters.

Haneul’s image was too good!

Please be as fresh as an idol!

A model who can give children a positive impression is just perfect!

Of course, Haneul is still five years old, and Yoo Eun-ha would never allow excessive exposure.

But while politely rejecting all those offers, she couldn’t help but smile inwardly.

‘This must be a parent’s pride.’

No matter what anyone says, this child is Yoo Eun-ha’s daughter, the most wonderful and cutest actor in the world.

At that moment— the sound of the door opening at the entrance was heard.

“I’m home…”

A low and exhausted Shin Sound.

Yoo Eun-ha lifted her body from the sofa and headed toward the entrance.

“Did Haneul come~?”

“Hic…”

Just peeking around the corner, the child’s face.

Puffed cheeks, drooping shoulders, eyes that seemed tired from something.

“…Sparkle Pang Pang didn’t catch me.”

“Phew—!”

Yoo Eun-ha covered her mouth, suppressing laughter.

“Hyun-woo teased you again?”

“That kid is some persistently annoying pest…”

Haneul took off her shoes and trudged over, then flopped onto the sofa.

“Everyone follows me around all day… saying ‘Haneul gives you Sparkle Pang Pang~!’ like that…”

“Still, everyone says that because it’s cute.”

“If cuteness was a weapon, I would have wielded it directly…”

Haneul candidly leaned her arms against the backrest of the sofa, trailing off her words.

Yoo Eun-ha smiled slightly.

Even that appearance was cute, and then again, cute.

At that moment, Haneul suddenly asked.

“…But mom.”

“Yes?”

“Can we not do something cute in the next advertisement?”

“Soon?”

“…I’m tired of cuteness now.”

Yoo Eun-ha held back laughter as she replied.

“Then, I’ll choose something cool for you.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. Let’s do something like Yeomra again next time. Dark concepts, cold gazes, wearing thick makeup—”

“Wow! The best!!”

Haneul cheered genuinely.

Small, chubby hands shot up over her head, and that tiny body moved around the room as if bouncing.

The silver hair flowed like waves, and her sparkling blue eyes gleamed like a gemstone.

Yeomra.

Just that name made Haneul excited.

Piercing through the sins of the bystanders with her innocent eyes, the energy that floated amidst the riches.

The existence that silently commanded those around her from the center of the stage.

The heaviest tribute she had sent out to the world under the name of acting.

That was her.

And she wanted to grasp that feeling again.

However.

[Sparkle~ Pang Pang! Gineul also Pang Pang~!]

“Uwaaaah!!!!!!”

A scream close to a shriek exploded from that small mouth.

Haneul screamed, curling up on the sofa.

Her little white arms wrapped around her head, and her chin landed against the fluffy sofa.

No matter how much she covered her ears, that advertisement did not stop.

A five-year-old girl was sitting on a slush and pretending to drink soda while grinning brightly.

The Haneul on the screen waved her hands saying ‘Haneul gives you Sparkle Pang Pang!’.

Of course, it was cute.

Too cute… it was a problem.

“This world… is too generous to cuteness…”

Haneul muttered, crawling deeper into the cushions.

The sound effect of Pang Pang still seemed to echo in her ears.

Yoo Eun-ha sat beside the sofa, placed the coffee cup down, and quietly watched her.

The child, buried in innocence.

One arm was hanging over the back of the sofa, and half-bent knees were frozen in a shape of despair saying ‘I don’t want to compromise with this world’.

Even so.

That sight was also incredibly cute.

Yoo Eun-ha slowly lifted the corners of her mouth.

Seeing that silver-haired cutie sprawled on the ruined sofa, she swallowed a silent laugh instead of a sigh.

This child was now trembling in a scene of her career. She could feel that heart so well.

But still, what can be done?

The world has succumbed to this child’s cuteness.

That was the first tragedy of the actor Baek Haneul.

But at the same time, it was also the first legend.

Becoming popular through one commercial, parodies streaming out, and her C-Sheet humor becoming a catchphrase in the class.

Proving that even with just 30 seconds, one can flip the world upside down.

And that highlight reel collecting all those moments still rushed toward millions of views.

Eun-ha quietly murmured.

“Hang in there. The future’s great actor.”