I'm an Unknown Actress, But Everyone Knows Me

* * *

I couldn’t think straight.

My mind was filled with only one thought.

If Myeong Jeha decided to obstruct me now, what could I do? With no knowledge of the future left, what leverage did I have? Who could I ask for help?

Who would believe I had regressed?

There was only one answer.

Myeong Jeha.

The only person who could help me — and the only person who could destroy me.

“...Mm.”

“It’ll be hard to believe, but it’s all true.”

So I had no choice but to tell him everything. From beginning to end.

The reason for my regression. My relationship with Do Gyeoul. The absurd status window. The missions.

“Kind of disappointing.”

When I finished, Myeong Jeha adjusted his grip on my wrist, gentler now.

“What is?”

“To think you hid something so trivial. Is that all we are to each other?”

He tugged my wrist lightly.

I lost my balance and fell onto the sofa. Only then were we eye level.

“It’s so exactly what I expected that I’m almost deflated.”

“...You expected it?”

“For me, it was a restart without reason. But for you, Yeoreum, it came with such favorable conditions. A little unfair, honestly... but good for you.”

What he gave in return for my confession was a short answer.

‘What is this.’

Does repeating regression N times alter a person’s cognition to something beyond normal human logic?

‘How is he accepting this so quickly?’

He suppressed all emotion and moved straight to the correct answer. Like a transcendent being.

Even sitting at the same height, it felt like he was standing somewhere impossibly above me.

I felt a distance that couldn’t be closed in a single leap.

“But there’s one thing wrong.”

“I told you everything truthfully.”

“You said you regressed once.”

“Yeah. Once.”

He pointed out the flaw immediately.

“That makes no sense. Every time I restarted, you would have gone back too.”

...What?

“To be precise, you only remember one iteration.”

Something I had believed as fact shifted. A crack appeared.

“This is just a hypothesis... but maybe the reason I keep restarting is you.”

He had not only observed me for years — he had analyzed his condition as a regressor without rest.

His conclusion came out like a clean formula.

“Do Gyeoul succeeds in the roles you were supposed to take. An error occurs. Restart. Repeat.”

I had never considered it that way.

“So no matter what I do, I can’t stop it. I’ve been swept into your life. Hah.”

He laughed coldly.

Silence fell.

He looked at me quietly. The emotion in his gaze was calm — and unreadable.

“...I’m sorry, sir....”

“Not something you need to apologize for.”

If his hypothesis was correct, then he had been caught in a natural disaster named Han Yeoreum.

‘An endless loop of unexplained misfortune....’

He didn’t resent me. Didn’t get angry.

He just looked at me.

Like tossing a pebble into a dark ocean whose depth you cannot measure.

No waves.

And somehow, I felt responsible for how worn down his emotions seemed.

I raised my hand solemnly.

“Still, I’ll take responsibility and end this properly. Trust me, sir.”

He dipped his head slightly. As if to say — go ahead.

“I’ll clear every mission. Before I drop out — do you remember what you said to me?”

“...Me?”

He looked at me like I was speaking nonsense.

“When I dropped out. Don’t you remember what you said?”

There are moments in life — brief, but so intense they become impossible to forget.

“Yeoreum, you’re dropping out?”

“...Yeah.”

“Why?”

“No particular reason.”

“You’re good. At acting.”

I remembered that clearly.

I had replayed it countless times while enduring my unknown years.

“...I don’t really remember.”

Was it nothing to him?

A crack ran through my pride.

“What did I say?”

“I’ll make you remember later. You won’t be able not to. Hah! Seriously.”

“Okay. I’ll look forward to it.”

Han Yeoreum being “good at acting” was supposed to be basic. And he forgot that?

I clenched my fist.

“Just a second ago you were trembling in fear. You’ve recovered fast.”

“Well... if your hypothesis is right, you can’t actually block my success...?”

He gave me a look.

“I thought you were slow, but your brain works decently.”

“Please keep those thoughts to yourself, sir.”

“You never even thought about this, did you? You were satisfied just acting.”

Accurate. I had nothing to say.

“You didn’t even think about regression. Never assumed you might fail mid-way. Never considered how to end the loop.”

He was right.

I had only thought about how to act better.

Never about ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) ending regression.

‘Because I never assumed there would be another one.’

My head had been filled only with acting.

“You like acting that much?”

It was such a simple question.

“...Yeah. I do.”

There was only one possible answer.

“I really love it.”

For a moment, he looked away.

He lowered his head slightly, then turned it to the side and exhaled deeply.

After steadying his breath, he spoke.

“Unexpected variables. Deviations. Accidents.”

His expression was indifferent — the look of someone who had handled everything alone for years.

“When those stack up, the worst-case scenario happens.”

“What kind of—”

“What if you restart without remembering this iteration. And restart again. And again.”

That was the worst possible outcome.

Goosebumps covered my body.

He saw my reaction and smiled faintly. That was enough.

“So don’t keep secrets from me anymore. Understood?”

“...”

“I’m asking.”

“...Yes.”

He leaned back against the sofa, posture firm. There was fatigue in the way he brushed back his hair.

“Ah... I get thirsty when I try this hard to threaten someone.”

“Here, sir, your water—”

“Make tea.”

“...Yes.”

Isn’t this his house? Shouldn’t he make tea for me?

I protested internally.

But I didn’t have the courage to challenge an N-times regressor.

‘To be honest, that wasn’t acting earlier.’

He had only softened it afterward.

If I hadn’t answered properly, this atmosphere wouldn’t exist.

For him, only results mattered.

‘As expected of someone with N regressions....’

He controlled emotions effortlessly.

I finally understood why his Analysis had upgraded beyond limits.

“All right. Let’s summarize cleanly.”

He took a sip of the tea I made.

“Share exactly what needs to be completed. No hiding.”

“Yes....”

“Promise.”

“...Yes.”

Satisfied, he picked up a shopping bag at his feet.

“Then I’ll bring you projects that fit you as much as possible. Like now.”

Two scripts were already placed before him.

“Everything earlier was a joke. This is the real gift.”

I picked up the first one.

“〈Unfair Trade〉....”

It resembled 〈Faster Than the Law〉 in structure — but its tone was completely different.

A crime investigation drama.

Two detectives — one physical, one intellectual — working together.

It had earned critical acclaim from seasoned drama viewers for its originality.

Because the intellectual detective was a sociopath.

“This was definitely....”

But something was different.

I looked at him.

“Yeah. Originally a dual male lead.”

He smirked.

“Not anymore.”

If he wanted to, he could change even the protagonist’s gender.

“From now on, it’s yours.”

I flipped to the synopsis.

〈Unfair Trade〉

Even if you live, you must live properly.

Detective Gam Seonghwan hated that phrase.

Because those who lived lives that didn’t feel like living always carried death somewhere inside them.

In 1996, a horrific murder occurred in a residential district of Seoul.

The victims were a housewife and her four-year-old daughter.

Gam Seonghwan’s mother and sister.

The case shocked the nation — but the media soon shifted attention to new celebrity news.

The investigation failed to identify a suspect.

Twenty years later, the case remained unsolved.

At a new crime scene, Detective Gam Seonghwan smells something familiar.

Just like that day.

It’s him.

He’s still alive.

Lee Seohae

“Is it because criminals are smarter than detectives? No. It’s because there are too many bastards in this world.”

IQ 160.

Emotionally deficient.

Zero empathy.

But unparalleled in understanding criminal psychology.

A genius forensic analyst.

Her arrogance — believing only her judgment is justice — defines her.

A genius who never fit in with ordinary people.

Now she lives to catch criminals.

If no one understands her, it’s not because she’s wrong — it’s because the world is.

That belief made her legendary.

But at some point, she clashes with Gam Seonghwan — the one person she is least compatible with.

Ironically, the rational Lee Seohae is understood best by the emotional Gam Seonghwan.

It was a script any actress would covet.

Action.

Investigation.

Dual leads.

A strong, unforgettable character.

“And one more.”

He gestured to the second script.

“...Hey, this is....”

The title printed on it was unbelievable.

“Yeah. It’s entering production.”

The series credited with opening the gates for NetHolics Korea.

A zombie drama set in Seoul.

〈Seoul Metropolitan City〉

“Are you insane?!”

I’m in this? On NetHolics?

In one of the biggest hits?

“Sir... this is the best birthday gift ever....”

As I clutched the script, he added calmly:

“For reference — when NetHolics produces an original, they won’t exclude Do Gyeoul.”

The woman of NetHolics.

It meant I would have to face her properly.

* * *

At that same time, Director So moved his fingers as if possessed.

Whenever he pictured the three leads, a campus seemed to appear beyond them.

The final lead of 〈Youth Disqualified!〉 had been decided just days ago.