There Are Four Top Idol Uncles - Chapter 215

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Part 2, Episode 41
* * *
In any case, now that the audition was over, she needed to leave.
Yewon offered Hyuk a small smile in place of a proper greeting, then turned her attention to the other judges, studying their expressions carefully.
She was anxious they might still reject her. The third-years had made their reluctance toward first-years abundantly clear.
And yet.
“All right. Mark exactly how much Sign Language you’ve learned and how much you can actually do—underline everything relevant in this script and hand it to me. How much time do you need? A week? Ten days?”
“Let’s see…. Do you have any external commitments scheduled? Write down all the dates and times you’re unavailable. Any films or dramas starting soon? There shouldn’t be any. Actually, even if there are, we’ll work around it as best we can.”
“Right. Look, her schedule isn’t the real issue here! That’s something we can easily adjust! The important thing is the Sign Language. We nearly died trying to find a Sign Language instructor, but if she already knows it, we won’t have to hunt one down! We’ll save a fortune on production costs! Honestly! Wait—can you teach the other actors too?”
Hm.
…It didn’t seem like she’d have anything to worry about after all….
The moment Yoo Eunoh left, the seniors practically pounced on Yewon, and she found herself taken aback.
This is completely different from the last audition…?!
“Oh, yes! I can teach them. I’ve had quite a bit of training, after all.”
Especially since there wasn’t a single gesture in this film’s dialogue she didn’t know.
Yewon kept that secret to herself.
“AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!! PRODUCTION COSTS SAVED!!!! INSTRUCTOR SCHEDULING SAVED!!!!!!!”
“…Try to understand. She’s handling the Sign Language, and we’ve had an incredibly hard time with that.”
The female senior who had seemed so exacting during the audition was now wildly waving her glasses around, leaving the vice president, Sung Jiwon, standing beside her with an embarrassed expression as she offered an explanation on her behalf.
“Ah, no—I understand the sentiment quite well, actually.”
In her previous life, Sign Language had been the aspect Director Yoo Jeongseok had devoted the most meticulous care to, so Yewon felt she understood the exacting senior’s perspective.
If Yoo Eunoh had inherited even half of Director Yoo’s perfectionism, this demanding senior must have gone through absolute hell.
“Um… but… did I actually get the role?”
“Huh?”
“Hm?”
“?”
All three of them stopped dead at her question, their faces screaming ‘What on earth are you talking about?’
Yewon’s confusion only deepened.
Wait—or not? Was I just getting ahead of myself?
“Oh… did I not?”
“No, of course you did. Why are you even asking that? I thought you’d know from the moment you walked through that door?”
Sung Jiwon asked back, sounding equally bewildered by the question.
“That’s pushing it. It was the moment you started acting.”
Chae Jeong shook her head beside her, offering her own correction.
“But… the president hasn’t said anything yet….”
Didn’t she need Yoo Eunoh’s approval? He seemed like the strictest of them all…!
No matter how much the role was his suggestion, Yewon harbored some lingering doubt.
During the performance itself, she’d been too focused to read Eunoh’s expression or gauge his reaction, and the moment she finished, he’d simply stood up and walked out.
The moment Yewon mentioned Eunoh, the three of them exchanged glances and let out a soft laugh.
“Ah~ I see. You don’t know Eunoh yet?”
“Not really. You’ve probably only seen him a few times.”
“Well then, I suppose you wouldn’t understand. Listen carefully, junior.”
Chae Jeong adjusted her glasses again, her expression turning serious.
“If Eunoh isn’t satisfied, he’ll reject you coldly with just a few words. He’s not the type to walk out himself.”
“?!”
“He doesn’t even need several words. One sentence is enough: ‘You may leave now.'”
“That’s true. That’s actually quite gracious of him, as far as rejections go.”
Even Hyuk nodded along beside them, and Yewon felt her confusion mounting.
So that was what it meant…?!
“If you ask me… Eunoh walked out because he’s so excited he’s trying not to punch a wall.”
“???”
Pardon?
“People who don’t know Eunoh well think he’s some strikingly handsome model student—squeeze him and not a drop of blood will come out, that’s how cold he is. But the real Yoo Eunoh we know….”
“Is a film lunatic.”
“Exactly. He’s just a complete maniac about movies.”
“?!”
All three third-years nodded simultaneously.
Hyuk nodded with particular conviction.
“Why do you think we all made him president and always put his opinions first?”
“Because… he’s a good leader…?”
“What? No, Sung Jiwon’s a natural leader. Yoo Eunoh doesn’t have even an ounce of the ‘leader’ in him. He’s just a dictator. And dictators aren’t leaders.”
“G-good point…?”
Chae Jeong’s words left Jiwon flustered as she replied.
“It’s because none of us loves film more than Yoo Eunoh does.”
“!”
“He’ll marry film and live his whole life with it, then grow old and die. Probably. There’s nothing else in that head of his but film.”
“Ah… yes, I see.”
She’d thought him just another temperamental popular kid.
But the Film Production Club seemed to have a completely different take.
Still, to Yewon, it sounded rather wonderful.
‘Working on a project with someone who genuinely loves film—it’s taxing, honestly, but it’s truly exhilarating.’
Yewon thought back to working with Director Yoo Jeongseok.
Even then, his obsessive perfectionism had put her through her paces, but she’d never grown as an actress the way she had with him.
Eunoh resembled his father more than she’d realized.
“So, junior.”
“Yes?”
“How many days do you think it’ll take to teach the sign language kids? Just tell us your schedule. We’re middle schoolers without money but plenty of time, and we can’t do this without you now.”
“Welcome to dedicating your soul to the Film Production Club, Yewon.”
Chae Jeong and Jiwon grinned widely, handing her a schedule.
Yewon recognized that look in their eyes.
It was the look of someone who’d found fresh talent—a slave, rather. How many times had she seen that glint in the film industry?
And these were just middle schoolers, yet they already had it…!
These people… frightened her.
* * *
Once the audition ended and she stepped outside, the third-year students regarded Yewon with divided opinions.
About half looked at her like they’d discovered a prized slave.
The other half looked distinctly displeased.
In particular, one senior surrounded by her friends and being comforted seemed especially so.
‘Her name was… Baek Yuyoung, I think.’
The originally designated female lead, Baek Yuyoung.
She was glaring at Yewon with eyes full of resentment.
But Yewon remained unmoved.
‘It’s not like I haven’t seen looks like that before….’
Then.
“You.”
“!”
Seo Ah suddenly cut in between the seniors and Yewon.
“What are you.”
“Huh?”
What am I? Did I need to introduce myself again…?
Yewon looked at Seo Ah, bewildered.
“How are you that good at sign language? Have you played a role with sign language before? No, you haven’t. I’ve seen all your work and I don’t remember you doing that.”
“Oh, right. I haven’t taken on a role like that before. But you… know my filmography?”
“How else would I beat you if I hadn’t watched all of it? Of course I did. Just answer my question already. How’d you get so good?”
“I practiced a little in case it ever came up in acting. Ha….”
She’d practiced relentlessly in her previous life, so it wasn’t a lie, technically.
“……….”
Seo Ah frowned deeply, clearly dissatisfied with Yewon’s answer.
But then.
“Oh, so that’s how it is. Then you deserving the role makes sense.”
“!”
Seo Ah’s expression cleared, as if all her doubts had been solved.
“Next time I’ll have to practice everything like you do beforehand. I’d appreciate it if you told me about every field you’ve trained in or practiced—sign language and anything else.”
“U-um…?”
“Have you studied horseback riding? You seemed unusually skilled riding in that historical drama, and that wasn’t a stunt double, was it? You don’t happen to own a ranch or something, right?”
…She was surprisingly accurate.
She absolutely couldn’t mention the hundred-thousand-pyeong ranch on Jeju Island that her grandmother owned….
“The action director taught me well….”
“Really? What about English? Early study abroad perhaps? You spoke it annoyingly well in that film. Do you also speak Japanese or Chinese?”
“Oh, that’s… my uncles helped me a little….”
“There’s going to be a lot to do from now on.”
Seo Ah furrowed her brow sharply and began typing something into her phone.
From what I could glimpse, it looked like a to-do list app. Better not ask what she was up to….
After scribbling away intently, Seo Ah tucked her phone into her pocket and fixed her gaze directly on Yewon.
Then she said:
“You’re not actually worried about those idiots, are you?”
Seo Ah gestured toward the third-year students with a subtle nod, her voice barely audible.
“!”
“Don’t play dumb. I watched the entire audition from start to finish today, and that role is yours. Period.”
Yewon turned to look at Seo Ah, her eyes wide with surprise.
She hadn’t expected her to say something like that…!

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————