I Don’t Want to Play Villains Anymore - Chapter 5

And now,

It has been a week since Haneul was banned from group eating, and finally the shooting day has arrived.

The glittering lights and the busy staff, as well as the faces of the actors waiting for their turn, with a mix of anxiety and excitement.

Haneul quietly gazed at the entire scene and took a small breath.

‘It’s familiar.’

The sound of the script rustling with excitement, the staff moving diligently while carrying heavy equipment.

Even the strange competitive spirit of the actors who try to look their best by observing each other’s eyes.

Everything was familiar and so deeply missed.

The script held in her small hand trembled slightly at the tips of her fingers.

“Haah…”

Haneul quietly sighed and spoke to herself.

‘Don’t be nervous. Right now, I am just the child actor, Baek Ha-neul.’

She steadied her heart and slowly took her steps. It might be thanks to her countless past experiences in various roles.

Her heart was beating fast, but the anticipation and excitement were stronger than the nerves.

As she approached the staff, some of them noticed the small, silver-haired child and turned their heads.

Haneul smiled slightly. Of course, the habitual actor’s smile from her past life came to mind, but now it transformed into a pure and innocent smile befitting a child.

“Hello. I am Baek Ha-neul, playing the role of ‘Yeomra’ today. I look forward to working with you.”

Haneul’s voice was high and clear, typical of a child, but her tone and demeanor carried a distinct elegance and calmness.

Some of the staff seemed slightly surprised by her voice and instinctively paused their movements.

“Oh my, so you are Haneul? You are really pretty. Let’s have a good day today.”

The makeup artist approached with a warm smile. Haneul lightly lowered her head.

“I look forward to working with you.”

It was a short and polite greeting, but there was a certain maturity reflected in Haneul’s attitude and demeanor.

The makeup artist looked on with wide eyes, as if fascinated, and then smiled while giving a gesture to the other staff.

The staff whispered.

“Hey, did you hear her talk? She sounds so mature.”

“Her vibe is different, isn’t it? She doesn’t feel like a child.”

‘If I felt like a child, I wouldn’t have acted like this…’

Haneul quietly smiled as she overheard their whispers. Perhaps she seemed a bit special.

It couldn’t be helped. The habits from a past life spent as an actor lingered on.

Haneul continued to walk slowly, bowing her head to the staff.

While trying to maintain her composure as much as possible, she was careful not to act too mature or childish.

“Hello. I am Baek Ha-neul. I look forward to working with you.”

While greeting her, Haneul lifted her head and briefly looked up at the ceiling of the filming set. Under the warm, glowing lights, the small silver-haired child smiled quietly.

Finally, it had come.

And now, it was a fresh start.

…

“… That child is going to play Yeomra?”

Jang Hyun-seong, the actor playing Nam Hae-jun, the protagonist of ‘Quiet Conversation,’ carefully asked Director Jung Hee-chang, his voice laced with disbelief.

His eyes reflected doubt, mixed with subtle unease.

It was uncommon for a seasoned actor like Jang Hyun-seong to question the director’s decisions so directly.

He was always polite and composed and was a true professional who never caused even the slightest conflict on set.

But the response he was displaying now was certainly different from usual.

Jang Hyun-seong had worked with Director Jung Hee-chang on several projects and knew the director’s style better than anyone.

Known for being meticulous and pushing the actors’ performances to their limits, he was baffled that such an important role would be assigned to a small child.

Moreover, Jang Hyun-seong had been subtly dissatisfied with the dynamic he had with child actor Seo Hyun-woo in the previous project.

Given that context, being cast opposite a cute young actor as the lead in the new project seemed odd.

Yeomra was an important character, yet here the director was choosing based solely on appearance.

Jang Hyun-seong couldn’t understand Hee-chang.

Jung Hee-chang looked briefly at Jang Hyun-seong with an enigmatic smile.

“Hyun-seong, just wait and see the child’s acting. You’ll understand.”

His answer was succinct. Although the director was not typically verbose, this confident reply only served to heighten Jang Hyun-seong’s anxiety.

Slowly, he turned his head back to look at Baek Ha-neul again.

The small child had just finished greeting the staff with a beaming smile.

With her tiny hand waving as she greeted them, she resembled an adorable fairy tale character.

It didn’t match the overwhelming dignity and presence of the character ‘Yeomra’ at all.

However, the director appeared to have some kind of conviction. Jung Hee-chang had never been wrong about his casting choices until now.

Nevertheless, Jang Hyun-seong still felt uneasy. He quietly added to the director’s statement.

“Director, as you know… Yeomra isn’t just a child role. There are deep philosophical discussions and profound themes that a five-year-old child couldn’t possibly convey…”

Jung Hee-chang listened to Jang Hyun-seong’s words until the end and merely smiled a brief smile. After checking the time for a moment, he opened his mouth.

“I had the same worries, you know. Before the auditions, that is.”

Jung Hee-chang’s eyes grew deep and serious. Jang Hyun-seong fell silent, waiting for the director’s words.

“But Hyun-seong, when that child recited the lines, the atmosphere shifted. Even I, who was sitting in the director’s chair, held my breath.”

The director pointed lightly toward Haneul.

“When that child opens her small mouth, an overwhelming sense of presence emerges that is entirely unexpected. Just a few short lines.”

It was only then that Jang Hyun-seong began to grasp what the director was saying. Jung Hee-chang was certainly not someone who would boast.

Rather, he was known for his serious and discerning evaluations.

If he spoke so strongly, it meant that the small child was truly exceptional in some way.

Jang Hyun-seong’s gaze returned to Baek Ha-neul. She still appeared small and fragile.

With that lovely, innocent smile. Yet now, he was feeling a curious dissonance in her expression.

Perhaps… that small child might actually possess a terrifying talent, as the director had said.

Jang Hyun-seong took a deep breath.

“Then I look forward to it, Director.”

Jung Hee-chang smiled with satisfaction and gently patted his shoulder.

“You’ll soon see how special that child is.”

Jang Hyun-seong nodded and calmed his heart.

However, even now, a mixture of anticipation and anxiety swirled unsettlingly in the corner of his chest.

That feeling of expectation and anxiety would soon morph into sheer shock, just ten minutes later.

***

“Alright! Stand by… Action!”

Oh! With Jung Hee-chang’s voice, filming began.

Jang Hyun-seong slowly sank back into the character of Nam Hae-jun. The heart of a man who has lost his master to the ‘Goblin’. He resurrects feelings of hatred.

The actor who had been skeptical of a child just moments ago was transformed.

“Coming soon…”

Jang Hyun-seong slowly spoke in a deep, trembling voice.

He sank to his knees, crouched on the damp and chilly floor in a cold corner.

His hands trembled, and anguish and despair crossed his face.

“You are going to take it from me soon, aren’t you?”

His voice was riddled with pain and confusion, along with resentment towards the incomprehensible.

Jang Hyun-seong’s eyes were hollow. Like the faint blue sky far above, they contained nothing.

The lights flickered subtly, casting a pale shadow on his face.

He covered his face with his hands. As his cold fingertips swept over his forehead and cheeks, his rough breaths became even more ragged.

“If there is a god…”

He paused for a moment, then slowly lifted his head. There was no hope in the glance that tossed into the empty void.

Even the confusion had long since turned cold. Only a profound emptiness remained.

“Answer me, am I not supposed to be alive soon? I should be living soon, should I not?”

Jang Hyun-seong’s voice echoed, fractured. Silence filled the studio, so quiet that even breathing seemed inaudible.

Everyone present in the filming location was spellbound, drawn in by his emotions.

In that moment.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

From within, a very faint sound of footsteps was heard.

The sound was neither heavy nor threatening.

In fact, it was so light and quiet that the crew initially thought it was just someone on set moving by mistake.

But the sound slowly approached with a steady rhythm, full of certainty.

Jang Hyun-seong did not turn his head. According to the script, it was the moment that the existence of ‘Yeomra’ would approach from behind him.

He simply remained expressionless, listening intently to the small footsteps through his pain.

Tap.

The sound suddenly stopped just behind him.

Silence.

Jang Hyun-seong inhaled deeply and slowly turned around. The heart of this scene lay in the subtle emotional shift of Nam Hae-jun as he faced this strange entity called ‘Yeomra’ for the first time.

And Jang Hyun-seong slowly raised his face to meet the being before him.

A tiny figure. Delicate arms and legs. Pale skin and faintly shimmering silver hair like moonlight. And eyes so deep and quiet they were unreadable.

It was Baek Ha-neul.

The expression on that child’s face carried an aura of ‘cuteness’ that could not be described with any ordinary word.

A perfect combination of absolute authority and presence layered within innocence.

Jang Hyun-seong instinctively felt a catch in his breath.

“I am not the one who gives you the answer. Beings of the world.”

The soft yet compelling voice that flowed from Baek Ha-neul’s small mouth was gentle but had a strange power that overwhelmed the ears.

The small and fragile appearance was entirely at odds with the overwhelming presence of an absolute being.

Jang Hyun-seong found himself holding his breath without realizing it. He had read the script and memorized the lines.

But he had never imagined he would feel such overwhelming energy.

In that moment, Haneul opened her mouth again.

“I pose you a question about life. The answer will not be given by God, but it will be created by the humanity.”

It was a resolute and cold tone. The uniqueness of a child’s playful voice was nowhere to be found.

Only the overwhelming aura that dominated the space existed, engulfing the filming set.

Jang Hyun-seong momentarily lost awareness that he was acting.

‘This is… not acting.’

That thought sliced through his mind. Jang Hyun-seong had performed alongside countless actors and faced a variety of characters, but…

He had never encountered an actor who blurred the lines between reality and performance like this.

And in that moment, Jang Hyun-seong realized.

What Director Jung Hee-chang had said was correct.

That child was already the embodiment of ‘Yeomra.’

In that moment, Jang Hyun-seong’s body instinctively reacted.

He immersed himself back into the character of Nam Hae-jun. He gathered his trembling fingertips and carefully opened his mouth again.

“Then… am I to live soon? My master has gone back to being a goblin, and I have lost my power!”

His voice now sounded weaker, his eyes filled with an even greater confusion and wavering than before.

Jang Hyun-seong had genuinely become a person seeking answers from the divine entity that was Yeomra.

Haneul’s perfect acting had drawn out Hyun-seong’s portrayal.

Their two performances harmoniously generated a perfect synergy.

Baek Ha-neul paused for a brief moment in silence.

That short silence created a suffocating sense of tension. Baek Ha-neul tilted her head slightly, gazing at Jang Hyun-seong.

“That is the answer you must seek. O living being.”

It was a quiet yet profound reply.

Jang Hyun-seong could no longer utter any lines.

‘There was supposed to be… the next line…’

Realizing the camera was rolling, it felt meaningless amidst the overwhelming emotions that pressed down on him.

Jang Hyun-seong remained stupefied, kneeling and frozen in place.

And not just Jang Hyun-seong; the entire filming location was shrouded in silence.

Everyone’s attention was fixated on Baek Ha-neul, standing small and fragile and commanding the space, paralyzing any will to move.

In the silence, Jung Hee-chang slowly released his breath.

And murmured in a very small voice.

“Wow… Hyun-seong, you should have spoken your lines…”

Jung Hee-chang’s short, thin voice reverberated through the studio, but no one moved.

No one commented on the mistake Hyun-seong had made.

In fact, even the crew members who were not directly involved felt the overwhelming presence that Hyun-seong had emanated, and they simply felt that forgetting a line amid that was acceptable.

“Um… Deumbae-nim! Are you okay…?”

The only one in the studio who appeared perfectly fine was Haneul.

The adorable yet perplexed expression on her face, wondering what strange performance Hyun-seong had delivered, inadvertently elicited giggles.

Hajun-woo, the cinematographer who had been behind the camera for 23 years, looked at Haneul through the lens and said.

It was as if Haneul knew exactly how she wanted to appear in various settings, capturing the most desired version of herself.

“Ah… Truly, a genius.”

Everyone realized in that moment the tangible existence created by acting, overwhelming and impressive.