First Movie Press Conference

Yeo Ri's days went on smoothly, and before she realised it, July had come around.

It was high time for summer break, but for Yeo Ri, it was her busiest period. Her days were stacked with one filming after another.

There had been no actions from Ji Yeong Gi's men. Her other stalker was also quiet, though from Secretary Kwon's observation, he seemed to be at the end of his patience.

The man had also made some significant progress in infiltrating the building, going so far as to actually join a popular delivery service company. He had already managed to enter the building twice, but was unable to find out which house was his target's.

Of course, Secretary Kwon had monitored his behaviour so strictly that there was no way the stalker could slip out of his grasp.

Back when Yeo Ri had asked for his helping hand, she laid out a simple plan to catch the man; she had asked him to quietly take care of the stalker and hold him captive for some time so they could deal with him personally. She had even told him to take his time with it, for some odd reason. He was puzzled as to why she didn't want to simply hand the stalker over to the authorities and be done with it, but still he ended up complying with her wishes.

Thanks to his employer's resources, he had everything prepared to trap the man, as per the young lady's request. It was only a matter of time before the stalker received his just desserts.

Finally, after weeks of waiting, the two masterminds finally allowed a window of opportunity to open.

After weeks of filming for [Miss Goldfish and the Mutt], the production team had enough footage to compile the trailer, and it was finally time for the movie's press conference.

The producers took into account the young demographic of the original work, and chose to rent a space for the event at a mall, during the weekend. It was an open event that anyone could join, and it also served as publicity since the mall visitors could easily see it. It worked in her favour that the production company chose such an extremely public and highly accessible place that any Tom, Dick, or Harry could enter without looking suspect. With this, they could easily lure the stalker b*stard into taking action against his 'defenceless' target while she was 'alone' and 'away' from her guardians.

As usual, Secretary Kwon stood by Yeo Ri's side, barring anyone and everyone from easily approaching the lovely and precious young girl. In addition to the fierce-looking man, Gun was also in attendance, flanking her other side.

"Are you nervous?" Gun asked his sister as they watched the seats fill up from backstage. It was her first public appearance, and Gun could not help but be worried for her; the girl wasn't fond of standing in front of a crowd, and was simply too shy for her own good.

"A little," she admitted. Her face was flushed, her hands trembling restlessly. Yeo Ri smoothed out the nonexistent wrinkles on her dress, looking as if she was about to cry.

Gun pulled her into a tight hug in an effort to placate the young girl, and she immediately latched onto her brother.

"—Get ready to go on stage, everyone. We'll be live in ten minutes," said the event coordinator.

Yeo Ri flinched at the reminder. She inhaled sharply, tightening her grip around her brother one last time before letting go.

"Good luck, Yeo Ri-ah. You can do this!"

"Mm. Thank you, Oppa." Yeo Ri offered him a smile.

Yeo Ri took a few minutes to control her breathing and regain her composure.

"Standby!"

Finally, the emcee appeared on stage, and the event opened with her greeting.

"Welcome everyone to the press conference of the movie adaptation of [Miss Goldfish and the Mutt]—" The emcee gave an introduction to the original artist and her work before inviting her to the stage.

"Thank you for the wonderful words—"

Yeo Ri watched dazedly as the creator talked about the project. Afterwards, the important people from the production crew was invited on stage one by one. Then, the trailer was showcased.

As the casts' turn to appear on stage neared, Yeo Ri's nerves were beginning to unravel. Aware of her unexpected weakness, Secretary Kwon offered her some medicine to help with her nervousness.

"One, two, three..." Yeo Ri quickly practiced the breathing technique that Dr. Hong had taught her in an attempt to quell her agitation.

"And finally, I would like to welcome the main cast to the stage! Please welcome the actors, Lee Yeo Ri, Seo Sun Kwang, Han Jae Min, Joo Ha In, and Kim Chan Hee!" The emcee called out the actors' name in order of relevance, from the main leads to the main supporting actors.

Yeo Ri and her co-stars walked onto the stage upon the emcee's cue, smiling and waving their hands at the crowd. Yeo Ri, who was playing the ever-important main character, was forced to be the first to show up.

Her legs shook slightly as the cameras flashed, but she reminded herself to toughen up and smile.

Hiding her nervousness, she first bowed in greeting to the host of the event, then to the producers and director, then to the audience before taking her seat. The group of actors were supplied with a few microphones, and Yeo Ri was given priority to hold one of them.

"Hello, how are you all today?"

Yeo Ri smiled shyly as she replied, "Fine, thank you."

"First, we have here the actress playing the role of 'Chacha', Lee Yeo Ri. Everyone give her a round of applause—"

The emcee gave a simple introduction for all the actors sitting on-stage.

"Miss Yeo Ri, you look nervous. Are you alright?"

Yeo Ri laughed stiffly. "Haha, yes... I'm feeling a bit nervous..."

"Speaking of which, this is your first time as the main character, right?"

"Yes. Although I am new and inexperienced, I gave my best in delivering the role. I hope I was able to satisfy the viewers with my performance." Yeo Ri bowed her head humbly. Her voice was soft and slightly shaky, and her demure but charming appearance garnered the audience's appreciation.

"You're very down-to-earth, Miss Yeo Ri," the emcee remarked with a smile.

"As everyone can see, Miss Lee is very different than her character. I was very amazed during filming whenever I saw her transformation," the original creator, the writer, Lalabell, noted. "Miss Lee is a very good actress despite her lack of experience. Everyone, please look forward to her performance in the movie which will surely bring 'Chacha' to life!" she expounded, her eyes shining.

Her words were followed by some applause, and Yeo Ri responded with a bashful word of gratitude, her already reddened face turning into a deeper shade of red. The girl lowered her head, passing her mic to her male co-star in hopes of moving the attention away from her.

"Oh, how cute~" somebody remarked.

The emcee smiled at the girl's obvious nervousness, and decisively changed the subject instead of pushing the young girl deeper into the spotlight; she clearly didn't want it!

The cast members on stage took turns explaining their roles and how they approached them while bantering with the emcee and the producers.

Yeo Ri, too, tried her best to take part in the discussions, though she was the quietest on stage. Yeo Ri acted as if she was every bit the timid, naive rookie people thought her to be.

After another forty-some minutes, the event finally reached its conclusion.