"The finals. Only one last step remains until the final victor."
Announcer Yoon Kyung-deok stood on the stage, looking at the audience in the seats.
Actually, unlike other auditions, the finals would not take place on this stage.
This place was solely for the MC, Announcer Yoon Kyung-deok.
And the actors who had participated in
Finally, only the audience members who purchased tickets existed here.
The finals between the two would be broadcast live through the screen behind this stage.
"I will explain the rules."
The finals of
The final rule is.
"A comprehensive combination of everything you've done so far."
From the gunfight to the subsequent scramble.
Plus various stunts.
All of that can be utilized.
However, under a script.
"A script?"
A certain audience member muttered inadvertently.
They had called it 'acting' so far, but there had never really been a script.
Acting full of ad-libs.
Naturally, there were few who could act properly, and rather than an acting audition, it was more of a competition of skills among action actors.
They just thought of it as that kind of variety show.
"The script was given to them about two hours ago. Of course, this script is said to be like a preview for the scenario of
What was written in the script given to the two was, ultimately, the framework of the movie
The theme of the movie
And even the plot for the scene they would use this time.
"The two superhumans fight their final battle at the research institute where they participated in the experiments."
Research institute.
True to those words, the set looked just like a research institute.
Various facilities.
And equipment was strewn about in abundance.
"Because of the two, the research institute is already on the verge of closure. The one who drove the institute that created them to ruin is."
A face appeared on the screen.
Joo Seo-yeon.
"And, her name in the work is..."
Yeohwa.
The two-letter name appeared on the screen.
As the audience ruminated on those two letters, Announcer Yoon Kyung-deok continued.
"And, the last superhuman left in the research institute. Her name is."
Narumi Sora.
Her name in the work is Shin Ah-rin.
Her possessed superpower is Physical Enhancement.
That was the superpower Sora had been using during the audition.
It was also a superpower without any distinct characteristics, but ultimately, what made it to the finals were Regeneration and Physical Enhancement, which could be utilized without CG.
Therefore, the audience couldn't help but feel somewhat deflated.
They knew that superpower action was difficult, but it was inevitably going to be boring.
"The scenario is simple. The one who destroyed the research institute, Yeohwa. And Shin Ah-rin, the institute's last test subject, fights to defeat her."
Announcer Yoon Kyung-deok said so and checked the time.
Now, it was time.
A signal came that the two actors were ready.
"Then, let's begin the official finals of
The image on the huge screen behind him changes rapidly.
A set with smoke rising from all directions.
At the sight of the research institute, the audience was instantly stunned.
'Just how much money did they spend?'
It felt like a completed movie was already screening.
Realistically rising smoke and the debris of the ruined research institute set.
Everyone could predict that this set would become the filming location for
A trailer.
This meant the finals were essentially a trailer for the movie
Even if the content changes, they would be able to tell what the movie's concept would feel like.
'Of course, assuming the actors can pull it off.'
Director Han Ye-geon crossed his arms and quietly watched the screen.
The two actors shown on the screen.
Seeing the two facing each other in the research institute.
Han Ye-geon narrowed his eyes.
A victor who was as good as already decided.
Would it be an anticlimactic ending?
Or...
***
Narumi Sora.
An aspiring actress born in Japan.
Age, nineteen.
She has two younger siblings, and her parents are ordinary office workers.
Aside from her pretty looks, it was a profile with nothing particularly special.
She had never participated in a proper movie or drama.
Her only experience was standing as a supporting actress on a small stage for a children's play at an amusement park.
However, she didn't stop there; she studied Korean and flew all the way to Korea.
"Why did you appear on
An interview filmed before the finals of
It would likely be inserted during the broadcast.
"When I was young, my parents showed me old movies."
Action acting performed purely with people's bodies, without any special CG.
It was a Hong Kong movie, the kind you can no longer see.
"That was just so cool. So I made up my mind that I absolutely had to try that kind of action acting someday."
"But isn't that different from
"I just won't use them."
"Ah, so that's why you chose 'Physical Enhancement' as your superpower?"
"Yes. I'm confident in everything I do with my body."
Her acting might still be lacking.
But at least when it came to simple 'action,' she was confident she would never lose.
Yes, she was confident.
Until recently.
"……"
Exhaling, Sora looked straight ahead.
The research institute with smoke billowing.
A set so well-constructed that it didn't even seem like a set caught her eye.
Just from that, Sora thought coming to Korea was a good decision.
A place where she could properly perform action acting.
In Japan, the action acting Sora wanted to do was not permitted.
Some disparaged it, asking what kind of acting that was.
Many also said it was too excessive.
Well, the action she wanted to do was, in a way, behind the times.
It might be similar in Korea, for all she knew.
But at least for now, this was enough.
'Joo Seo-yeon.'
She saw Seo-yeon walking towards this place quietly.
No, once the scene started, she should be called 'Yeohwa'.
Her outfit was an entirely pitch-black dress.
It wasn't the school uniform she always wore.
Something must have gotten into her, a pitch-black dress with black stockings.
Dressed completely in black.
But because it was so excessively alien, it suited her to a strange degree.
Long pitch-black hair, and eyes with a red glow that quietly stared at her.
Both hands were bare.
Unlike herself, she didn't seem to have brought anything.
'Is she underestimating me?'
She didn't know.
But she thought that could be the case.
The performance Seo-yeon had shown so far wasn't just in terms of acting, but also in terms of 'action,' having far surpassed the ordinary.
She was confident in using her body.
But looking at Seo-yeon, her confidence inevitably died down.
'Still.'
She couldn't lose.
And it wasn't like there was no way to counter her.
Because Seo-yeon was an actress, she tended to strictly follow the content of the 'play'.
In other words, as long as she had Regeneration abilities, there inevitably had to be a weakness.
Regeneration was ultimately only possible by getting hit.
Inevitably, Seo-yeon had no choice but to allow Sora's attacks.
She didn't know what that would be.
'With action, I'll win.'
A quiet silence.
She could hear cameras moving from all directions.
And.
Piiiiii!!
A sound signaling the start of the act rang out.
The moment this simple set transformed into a sealed research institute.
"Why did you do that?"
The first to take the initiative was Narumi Sora.
No, Shin Ah-rin, the sole survivor of the research institute and a Class 1 Physical Enhancement superhuman.
"You didn't have to kill everyone!"
At those words, Seo-yeon opened her eyes narrowly.
The script didn't specify 'lines'.
It was closer to 'settings' where the in-story situation was described, and the circumstances of the two were roughly laid out.
The character 'Yeohwa' was a Class 1 Regeneration superhuman who had endured horrific experiments at the research institute in the past.
After barely escaping, she built up her power, found their locations, and killed the superhumans one by one.
For revenge.
The final destination of that revenge was this research institute.
'In Shin Ah-rin's case, it was the opposite.'
She received experiments at the institute, but she escaped with the help of a kind researcher.
She lived a normal life until she heard the news and came to save the researcher who had helped her.
Then, who is good, and who is evil?
It was a truly ambiguous situation.
From Yeohwa's perspective, revenge was only natural.
Because they had committed countless horrific experiments using the fact that she was a Regeneration superhuman.
The reason numerous existing superhumans could exist was all because Yeohwa endured those experiments.
On the other hand, Shin Ah-rin escaped that nightmare thanks to the researcher who treasured her.
She surely had terrible memories too, but as a result, she met a good person and became happy.
Rather, from her perspective, Yeohwa was nothing more than a murderer who killed the researcher who saved her.
'Got it.'
Sensing Seo-yeon's slight hesitation, Sora smiled with satisfaction.
It was a line she had thought of in advance and practiced countless times.
Because her Korean was still unfamiliar, her pronunciation could have come out awkwardly.
'My hard work in planning this paid off.'
The script had no lines, but the situation and narrative were there.
Everything that came out from now on would be lines based on that.
'But.'
The audience didn't know these detailed circumstances and narrative.
Even if explained, they would only know the situation of the two superhumans clashing.
Detailed explanations would become spoilers.
So, Sora took the initiative.
With those lines just now, the existence called 'Yeohwa' was established as a villain.
There is a common thing called the imprinting effect.
It means learning that occurs at a specific time affects one for a lifetime.
Like an animal recognizing the first creature it sees as its parent.
This was similar to that.
After all, people have no choice but to think based on the very first words they hear.
Preconception.
First impression.
Changing that requires a lot of effort.
Actually, 'Shin Ah-rin's' words were all sound arguments.
There was no need to kill everyone in the research institute.
They just needed to distinguish the good people and spare them.
"Researcher Park saved me. She saved and helped the children who participated in the experiments!! Why, why on earth did you kill such a kind person!!"
A sharp shout tore through the sealed research institute.
Only the sound of sparks flying from somewhere was heard in the silence.
"Because I don't know."
Seo-yeon, no, 'Yeohwa' said in a low voice.
"In the end, they all played with lives, right? Why should I distinguish that?"
Slowly.
Yeohwa's foot stepped forward.
One step.
Another step.
"Saving only some and killing others isn't fair, is it? How unfair would it be for the dead people if you let them live. That guy also played with lives in the same research institute as me, in the end."
Watching Yeohwa approach, 'Sora' realized.
'She's keeping the image of a villain as it is?'
But that also suited her terrifyingly well.
The image of a villain.
Shouldering the image of a villain, Yeohwa spoke to Shin Ah-rin.
"If you want revenge, you can just do it too, right?"
Then.
Boom boom!!! Footsteps rang out.
Before she could even think, 'What?'
"If you can."
Red glowing pupils were right in front of Shin Ah-rin's nose.
Clearly several meters.
She was at a distance where she could fully react.
"As if I can't!!"
Shin Ah-rin shouted sharply and moved her hand.
Normally, she would have proceeded with close-quarters action acting, but close-quarters action originally requires a lot of practice.
They had to coordinate with each other to exchange attacks cleanly.
Before filming began, the two were given 2 hours.
At that time, when she approached to try and coordinate even a little, Seo-yeon said this.
"It's okay."
"Huh? No, what?"
"I'll try to match your coordination."
For a moment, Sora didn't understand what Seo-yeon meant.
'Surely not.'
Was she saying she would match her coordination by watching her actions on the spot?
She thought it was absurd, but at the same time, she thought it wasn't impossible.
Sora had often performed action acting on stage.
Naturally, mistakes were bound to happen in live acting.
Especially if they didn't use proper actors.
At those times, Sora had reacted with quick reflexes.
'Is it an extension of that?'
Sora slowly nodded at Seo-yeon's calm response.
Yes, if she said she'd match it, then so be it.
Whether that would become acting.
Or just a clumsy farce, she didn't know.
The viewers would judge anyway.
"Yeohwa!!"
Sora, that is.
Shin Ah-rin's choice was to use a gun first.
Basically, the finals included the rules of all the missions conducted so far.
Like the preliminaries, they just needed to shoot at each other and land a fatal wound.
Yeohwa had both hands down and hadn't even drawn the pistol strapped to her thigh yet.
So shooting first would end it.
Clack.
At the same time the muzzle pointed.
And the very moment the index finger pulled the trigger.
Yeohwa's right hand struck Shin Ah-rin's hand away.
The gun fell away very simply.
The moment Shin Ah-rin's pupils moved at that.
"Looks like you're empty-handed, using a gun?"
What.
Before she could even spit out a line.
At the same time, she felt that Seo-yeon's actions had stopped there.
The red pupils stared straight at her.
Reflexively, Shin Ah-rin raised her leg.
Then.
Bang!!
Yeohwa slipped her right arm between them and lightly blocked the knee.
Then, Shin Ah-rin struck away Yeohwa's moving left hand this time.
'Intentionally within my field of vision.'
It was bewildering.
The series of movements just now certainly didn't have much force put into them.
Since it was acting, they couldn't strike with full force.
But she blocked it too easily.
Conversely, it was possible for her because the opponent moved clearly within her sight.
'I'll try to match your coordination.'
What she thought was absurd approached realistically.
"I don't know what that is, but..."
Yeohwa's voice was heard.
Opening her eyes narrowly, a bizarrely smiling smile.
"Looks like you have the leisure to think of other things?"
At that moment, she realized her hand had touched her chest.
'Huh?'
And, the surrounding scenery changed in an instant.
The props decorating the surrounding set were basically soft sponges.
Or composed of soft things like styrofoam.
But even so, if she fell as if being pushed back several meters at once, it was a different story.
To the viewers, it probably looked like she was blown away by a superpower.
'Does she have a superpower or something?'
Honestly, from the position of receiving it, that was the only way it felt.
Moreover, the opponent was just quietly watching her without pursuing.
Anyone could see it felt like a final boss.
She had seen
If Cha Seo-ah was a terrifying murderer.
This was like a monster.
A feeling of having a predator right in front of her.
Even knowing it was acting, Sora felt a chill run down her spine.
'Right.'
Sora exhaled and gathered her resolve.
She didn't know anymore.
'She said she'd match the coordination herself.'
She took out the object she had prepared from the waist pack at her hip.
An object already confirmed by the staff.
Made of a slightly hard sponge, it was a very unfamiliar weapon.
"Uh, that..."
"Why that of all things?"
The audience who saw it over the screen made a big commotion.
It wasn't just the audience.
Jo Seo-hee, who was watching the finals, also furrowed her eyes slightly.
'Nunchaku?'
Along with a clack- sound, the sound of a chain came through the speakers.
Come to think of it, she said she liked Hong Kong movies.
Did she bring it to keep that concept?
'If it's clumsy, it'll only be a deduction.'
While thinking that, recalling their early exchange, she thought maybe it was possible.
The first exchange.
It was true that Seo-yeon matched the coordination, but Sora's reaction speed was also extremely fast.
It was a scene where her words about being confident in using her body definitely resonated.
At the same time, it made sense that she dropped Han So-yoo in the round of 16.
While the audience was buzzing at the sudden appearance of the nunchaku.
"……"
Seo-yeon gazed at Sora with a calm face.
Of course, her inner thoughts were in a state of great confusion right now.
It wasn't a reaction like the others, 'Nunchaku here of all places?'
'She's Japanese, so why isn't she using a Japanese sword?'
If she's Japanese, shouldn't she naturally come at me with a Japanese sword?
I wanted to try catching the blade.
Seo-yeon was a little disappointed.