First of all, Cheon Yoonsung was a bad guy. A really bad guy, the worst of the worst.

Pretending to be the best person in the world while manipulating the media, he devised a massive scheme to entrap the protagonists chasing after him.

Cheon Yoonsung "Why do you look so surprised?"

Gong Jichan "....."

Cheon Yoonsung "It’s troubling if you think I’ve been caught. It makes me wonder if I’ve been underestimated that much."

Ham Yiseo "What....."

Cheon Yoonsung "Reporter. Do you still think this place is some kind of secret meeting of business elites you and Gong Jichan uncovered in secrecy?"

Thinking it was an opportunity to uncover Cheon Yoonsung’s hidden connections, Ham Yiseo and Gong Jichan infiltrated the meeting under disguise, only to be dragged in front of Cheon Yoonsung by suited bodyguards.

Cheon Yoonsung "Vice President Chu Gwiyeon, who made you convinced you had to come here, should definitely be in Japan if following the original schedule. You must’ve thought it was something big enough for him to cancel his plans and come, so you decided it was worth the gamble. But aren’t you taking the influence of Cheonju Group a little too lightly?"

Gong Jichan "...Don’t tell me?"

Cheon Yoonsung "As expected of a firefighter. You’re quick at grasping the scale of things. Though with this many clues, realizing what’s going on only now means you’re already out."

Cheon Yoonsung approaches the two.

Cheon Yoonsung "It’s all fabricated. The meeting, the information pointing here. Everything."

Ham Yiseo "That’s impossible. Then why did Chu Gwiyeon......"

Cheon Yoonsung "I asked you. Aren’t you taking Cheonju Group’s influence too lightly? (Whispers so only Ham Yiseo ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) can hear) Whether it’s the vice president of a subcontractor or executives of Cheonju Group...... if I say come, they come. Neither reason nor justification is needed. If I say, ‘I need to kill a few gnats, so come and spray some pesticide,’ then whoever it is must run over and do as told."

To the question "Why do such a thing?", the character Cheon Yoonsung counters, "Why question what I choose to do?"

For him, summoning top executives from major corporations to throw a fake banquet just to make people dig into his past hit a wall of reality doesn’t even count as waste.

Cheon Yoonsung shows the two protagonists the wall of reality and returns to his residence. It was the part where the scar, which had been much talked about, was revealed.

Looking up at a family photo, Cheon Yoonsung’s past flashback overlapped.

Chairman Cheon spoke to the young Cheon Yoonsung, who sat collapsed on the floor, bleeding.

Cheon Kanghyuk "Don’t forget, Yoonsung. You do as your father says. As long as you were born in Cheonju Group, that is your fate."

An elite created by domination through fear.

Even he, who seemed to be the main agent handling Cheonju Group’s dirty work to gain the Chairman’s favor, was revealed to be nothing more than a pawn.

"Is it a coincidence?"

It hadn’t been long since UA learned about my family’s affairs, so it was hard to say they wrote it knowing the circumstances. The character’s past wasn’t some entirely new, special setting either. They said the script and character concept had been decided long before I joined.

Still, it was uncanny. Enough to be understandable yet leave a bad taste. Something belatedly came to mind just then.

[SYSTEM] Some correction effects based on performance are removed.

▷ The ‘Negative Emotion Recognition Rate’ adjustment function due to achieving ‘Attendance Management’ excellence expires.

+

When I met my parents, the system had taken back the emotion recognition function. Judging by how my head had felt like it was going to explode, I figured I must have lashed out at them in some way.

But here, additional material reminding me of the past appeared. Could I really say the system had nothing to do with me getting this role? Was it a stretch to think that even getting cast in In My Office had been part of a process to lead me here?

The system making me feel negative emotions intact, not penalizing me for expressing them, and repeatedly exposing me to similar environments....

"......Does it want me to overcome it?"

Considering how the system had been strangely favorable to me in some ways, it wasn’t an entirely nonsensical assumption. I already knew its methods were inhuman, so that part wasn’t surprising. I just didn’t know what it gained from doing this.

Moreover, the method was too hard to understand. If I had known Cheon Yoonsung’s backstory without meeting my parents first, I might have just brushed it off with mild discomfort. Maybe as long as I reached the destination, it didn’t really matter to the system whether I understood the details or not.

The inexplicable sense of relief I felt after "Act on" ended was probably due to this influence. Back then, I felt like the wounds I received at the Hanpyeong Industry healed a little.

When this drama ended, would the emotions I had held toward my family fade away like that, too? Before that, shouldn’t I acknowledge how much I hated them, how much they made me suffer, instead of covering it up?

The counseling advice that forgetting wasn’t the solution kept hovering in my ears. Things I’d let drift away because they were too painful, not even knowing how much had been washed away, filled my head like fog.

I could vividly picture Cheon Yoonsung from the script, staring out at the night view.

A person who thought the place they stood was barren land hidden in shadow, only to realize it was actually the far side of the moon. Someone who, during the time they stayed in their own space, had never once seen a bright sky.

And......

Ham Yiseo "It’s strange."

Gong Jichan "What is?"

Ham Yiseo "Cheon Yoonseong. If he really had that much power, it would’ve been faster to destroy us instead of warning us. Just like how we were fooled by him. Cutting off our livelihoods would’ve been the easiest way to remove an obstacle."

Gong Jichan "You mean Cheon Yoonsung revealed his existence on purpose?"

Ham Yiseo "I don’t know why... but it feels like he wants us to back off, yet he doesn’t intend to bury this case either."

Gong Jichan "You mean he has an agenda."

...A voluntarily isolated existence, someone who didn’t stand with anyone, no matter what they plot.

If Cheon Yoonsung really resembled me, this bastard wasn’t a completely bad character. He would have at least a handful of morality.

Then I might really feel sympathy for Cheon Yoonsung. Just like how I pitied myself on the day I breathed my last in the rented room.

"If they say Cheon Yoonsung also has a hidden sister after all this, I swear."

I vented my temper on the innocent script under the pretext of being distressed. Since I couldn’t crumple the precious script, all I could do was glare at the cover.

Because the lines increased, this filming took longer than before. It was a stroke of luck that I wasn’t a character who had to be included in the background every time the office appeared, like in "In My Office".

"Mr. Iwol, do you really not know how the story unfolds in the later part?"

"I’m dying to know too......!"

To prevent leaks and spoilers and preserve pure performances, all the actors were given only parts of the script. I, too, received each episode while nervously wondering when Cheon Yoonsung might exit the story.

Thanks to that, the break time on the set of "Exclusive Report" almost turned into a deduction game time. I, whose position changed from a good role to a villain, had to be thoroughly interrogated by seniors in turn.

"I’m telling you, there’s something up with Cheon Yoonseong and Mr. Iwol is definitely not telling us."

"I’m innocent. Please give me a chance to prove it."

However, no one gave me the right to speak. Unable to endure the interest, I ran away outside the set.

"Mr. Iwol? Why are you out here?"

The PD, who was smoking next to the truck, hurriedly put out his cigarette. I came out thinking I’d carry something if there was anything to move, worried that idling in the car would look rude. With seniors there and the boss camped here, it wasn’t a place for a rookie to survive.

"I had a call to make, so I stepped out for a moment! Sorry for interrupting your break."

"No, I should head in soon anyway."

Checking that the cigarette fire was completely out, the PD called me.

"How’s the script? I thought it turned out pretty well."

"I enjoyed reading it. It’s a bit of a burden, though!"

"You did well today too, burden and all."

He asked if filming was manageable, if I’d gotten closer to the other actors, things like that. I answered as best I could so I wouldn’t look socially inept.

"Up to which episode did you receive the script, Mr. Iwol?"

"I received up to episode 10!"

"You have a good memory. The script work is finished, but the writer asked me to ask you something."

"What would that be?"

"You know, the assignment."

Again, the assignment was mentioned. What on earth did I write there? Had my discipline become lax already just because I hadn’t gone to the company for a while?

"The writer asked if they could use it as dialogue."

"My answer?"

"Yes. They said you interpreted it so well even though you only saw the early manuscripts."

Just how much did the writer like it?

And really, what did I write......

"I don’t think it can compare to what the writer writes!"

"Sometimes sincerity matters more!"

I indirectly pleaded, "Please forget my writing practice notebook," but it didn’t work. I was even more anxious because I couldn’t remember what I’d written.

When you submit documents to a department that doesn’t return originals, it’s common sense to keep a copy. I really had gotten sloppy.

"Mr. Iwol."

As I tried to leave quickly, the PD continued.

"I think you analyze characters really well."

"Thank you for the compliment. It’s an honor."

"Not empty words, really. There are things you can study your way into, and things you can’t."

Maybe it was just because I regressed. Since I met enough people to last a lifetime.

As if reading my mind, the PD looked into my eyes and said.

"It’s easy to define what kind of person someone is, but understanding others is difficult. Mr. Iwol seems to be the type who understands people deeply. Whether that subject is a role or a person you work with."

"Ah......"

"Knowing how to love humanity is a talent for an actor. Even after this project ends, I hope Mr. Iwol continues acting."

At the PD’s words suggesting we should head back in, I followed awkwardly.

Not a habit formed from becoming adept at reading the room, nor a habit inevitably acquired while working, but a talent.

It was a striking way to put it. A way of describing me that made me feel a little less unhappy.

I thought it was a wonderful compliment.