Chapter 186: Live On-Air.
Not a single mistake could be tolerated.
"Hello, everyone~~~!"
One slip...
...and it would become a live broadcasting disaster.
"Welcome to the one and only acting survival show, Casting~~Boat!"
Up in the control room, Dennis Milton anxiously stroked his chin as his eyes darted across the feeds from dozens of cameras.
Below, Susan and Emil coordinated every movement on the studio floor.
Every member of the staff was wound as tight as a spring.
"I'm America's hottest host—Jerry High!"
"Woooooo!!"
The loudest cheers yet shook the studio.
"Tonight, not only do we have our lucky ticket winners, but quite a {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} few celebrities have joined us as well. Let's say hello to a few of them. Josh?"
"Screeeeam!"
Several fans immediately shrieked.
A famous singer had appeared before the show had even properly begun.
Josh smiled warmly and waved toward the camera, generously indulging his fans.
"Good evening, Jerry."
"So what brings you to tonight's live show?"
"Uh... I won the lottery?"
"...What? Seriously?!"
He fluttered the ticket in his hand.
The camera zoomed in.
It wasn't a VIP invitation.
It was an ordinary audience ticket.
"Haha! That's fantastic. You actually entered the public lottery under your own name?"
"I did. I tried getting an invitation, but the competition was impossible. Maybe next time you should let people apply for both. Then I'd have two chances."
"Oh? So you're trying to hedge your bets?"
Jerry continued interviewing several celebrities.
There was one who had genuinely won through the general ticket lottery.
There were internationally famous supermodels.
Top actors who had repeatedly mentioned Casting Boat on social media.
And then there was one invitation holder who looked completely ordinary.
A middle aged man wearing a polo shirt, wrinkled cotton trousers, and gold rimmed glasses watched the stage with unusually bright eyes.
Hmm... If his actual acting really is on the level of Arizade or Pandora...
...then my next target is that actor.
He was Nicholas Pandas.
One of America's most successful television producers and the creator of multiple hit series at CRD, the country's largest television drama production company.
The live broadcast was divided into two parts.
A short first half.
And a much longer second half.
The first half would consist of improvised acting.
The second would feature the prepared assignment.
Scoring would be determined by weighted totals.
The judges' combined scores across both rounds would account for fifty percent.
Audience votes submitted through the electronic voting devices distributed in the theater would count for twenty percent.
Text message voting would make up the remaining thirty percent.
Together, they would determine who advanced.
"So listen carefully, everyone.
"Each audience member can vote for only two contestants.
"And to everyone watching at home—if you send multiple text messages from the same phone number, only your first vote counts. If you keep texting just because you love your favorite actor, all you're doing is making the television station richer, okay?"
Jerry finished his explanation with his usual teasing grin.
The judges were introduced one after another.
The ever charismatic pair of legendary actors.
George, wearing his familiar easygoing smile.
And Eva...
Or rather—
An exhausted Eva whose dark circles nearly reached her chin.
"Eva... is that makeup?
"You practically look like a zombie."
"Ugh... Zombie?!
"I've been wrestling with a script lately."
"Ah...
"That script.
"Everyone—Eva is currently writing the script for the third competition challenge. Looking at how exhausted she is, it must be something incredible."
"Stop saying that!!"
After a few lighthearted jokes to ease the tension...
The contestants finally appeared.
The stage itself maintained an elegant, restrained atmosphere.
But as six spotlights descended onto the contestants standing atop their individual platforms...
The moment felt spectacular.
"Woooooo!!"
Every introduction drew screams from the audience.
When Yu Myeong's name was announced...
The loudest ovation of the evening erupted.
The first live challenge began.
"Our first assignment...
"...is improvisational acting.
"But if it were just ordinary improvisation, it wouldn't live up to Casting Boat's reputation."
"...?"
"This challenge..."
"...will be a two person improvisation!"
Every contestant inhaled sharply.
A solo improvisation depended only on oneself.
A duet depended on chemistry.
If one actor failed to respond...
The entire performance collapsed.
The production staff, however, had one more cruel surprise waiting.
"Your pairings are:
Yu Myeong Shin and Selina Benson.
Antoine Monie and Marta Garcia.
Priya Rockheart and Kai Nunen."
The audience had no idea what those pairings meant.
The contestants did.
Each pair had been assigned the same main role for the second challenge.
The message couldn't have been clearer.
We're going to compare you directly.
Yu Myeong glanced toward his assigned partner.
Selina Benson.
A veteran actress in her late forties.
She had spent decades playing supporting and minor roles across countless films and television dramas.
She was the kind of actress everyone recognized.
"I've definitely seen her somewhere..."
Yet almost no one could remember her name.
Despite that, she had entered Casting Boat with astonishing determination.
Her steady, polished acting had carried her all the way into the Top Six.
"There's no assigned story for your improvisation.
"However, your relationships are already decided.
"Group One will play mother and son.
"Group Two will play lovers.
"Group Three will play the son and daughter of two feuding families.
"You'll have three minutes while the audience watches this video package to discuss your performance with your partner.
"As soon as the video ends, the challenge begins."
One more condition added.
With Selina's dependable acting...
An idea flashed through Yu Myeong's mind.
"Selina."
"Yu Myeong."
He walked over.
She was already nearing fifty.
Not conventionally glamorous.
Yet the wrinkles etched into her face and the vitality still burning in her eyes made her unmistakably the face of a true actress.
"In the main assignment later...
"Your story is the one where you're being consumed, right?"
"That's right.
"But why are you bringing up the main assignment?"
"My story is about protecting."
"...?"
"If we're going to do this...
"Wouldn't it be interesting if we made this a prequel to the main performance?"
Goosebumps instantly spread across Selina's arms.
The moment she'd heard they would perform a mother and son improvisation, she'd focused entirely on how to create an emotionally compelling relationship.
Judging by everyone else...
So had they.
But...
A prequel to the main assignment?
From a viewer's perspective...
It was unquestionably the better approach.
The audience still had no idea what the second challenge would be.
When they eventually realized this story connected directly to it...
The payoff would be enormous.
But...
They hadn't been given any preparation time.
Could they really improvise something like that?
"It's a wonderful idea...
"But can we really pull that off in an Etude (improvisational acting exercise)?"
"With your acting?
"Absolutely.
"I've done a lot of Etude practice.
"If you're willing...
"Would you mind following the direction I throw out?"
Selina looked at him quietly.
Despite receiving more attention than anyone else in the competition...
He remained humble.
Even now, after proposing such an inspired idea, he was asking cautiously, worried about hurting her feelings.
"All right."
"Just two things.
"First...
"Please think of me as your real son."
"Okay.
"I'm the mother of three sons.
"That part's easy."
"And second...
"No matter what happens...
"Don't impose anything on me."
"...Impose?"
Before she could ask what he meant...
Their preparation time expired.
"Group One is up first!
"Please welcome Yu Myeong and Selina!"
As they walked toward center stage...
The remaining contestants hurried backstage.
The lights slowly faded to black.
Then—
When they rose again...
The two of them stood facing each other.
Desperately.
Watching the darkened stage...
Derek found himself wondering—
What will he do?
Although the assignment had simply been "improvisation," Derek himself had quietly shaped its true purpose.
Without informing the production staff...
He had intentionally chosen duets.
He had intentionally paired contestants assigned to the same main challenge.
There had been a reason for all of it.
He already acknowledged Yu Myeong's ability.
His passion.
His devotion to acting.
But if Yu Myeong truly resembled him...
A story connected to the main assignment.
By sheer coincidence...
The paired contestants had all been assigned the same main challenge afterward.
If Derek himself had been a contestant...
He probably would have created a prequel.
Or perhaps an episode leading directly into it.
That wasn't necessarily the correct answer.
Live television.
Improvisation.
A duet.
To consider a later assignment while creating an earlier one under those circumstances...
Most actors would call that insanity.
But Derek knew himself.
Even if it failed...
He would have tried.
Because nothing would create a greater payoff for the audience.
Wouldn't he think the same way...?
The lights settled over the stage.
Perhaps because the floor director had repeatedly asked everyone to remain silent during performances...
The audience became deathly quiet.
Or perhaps...
It was because of the painful way the two actors looked at one another.
Yu Myeong smiled tiredly.
Then spoke first.
"Mom.
"We're the last ones."
A chill ran through Derek.
That single line...
Filled him with certainty.
"There...
"There might still be someone left."
"No.
"At least not anywhere close enough for us to reach before starving.
"We've checked over and over."
"...You're right.
"You've worked so hard."
"This...
"...is the last of our food."
Just as I thought.
"Eat."
"No...
"If we open this now..."
"Even if we don't become one of them...
"We'll starve to death anyway.
"So...
"Let's eat it.
"And become one of them together."
Exactly as he'd expected.
A prequel.
Derek instantly understood what one of them meant.
His body shivered.
The audience still had no idea.
What are they talking about?
Then...
When that finally appeared during the main performance...
Their minds would explode.
To turn an impromptu assignment into a prequel for the prepared performance...
Would anyone watching believe this was improvised?
Selina was matching him perfectly.
He had clearly judged exactly how much she was capable of handling.
"No...
"No, we can't.
"We've spent months fighting with everything we had just to avoid becoming one of them.
"We should simply die together.
"That would be better."
"Mom...
"I don't want to die in agony..."
Derek froze.
Yu Myeong's expression twisted...
Then steadied.
Both fists clenched so tightly that veins bulged beneath his skin.
He was holding something back.
Desperately.
What?
Tears?
"'Becoming one of them' is horrible...
"But they say it doesn't hurt.
"Right, Mom?"
No.
Not tears.
Something deeper.
A far more primitive impulse.
Selina seemed to feel it too.
Without missing a beat, she picked up the invisible cue in his expression and continued so naturally that no one would believe they were improvising.
"You...
"Could it be..."
"No.
"No...
"Really.
"I'm already starving.
"I don't want it to hurt too."
"...All right.
"Let's do that."
Yu Myeong looked relieved.
He reached into his pocket and manipulated something with practiced precision.
His hand movements alone made it obvious—
A syringe.
He placed it gently into Selina's hand.
The audience understood absolutely nothing.
Yet no one could look away.
"I collected fluid...
"...from where those things passed through the village.
"They say if it mixes with blood...
"It lets you go without pain.
"When I count to three...
"We inject together."
"...Okay."
"One...
"Two...
"Three."
Yu Myeong drove the imaginary syringe into himself.
Selina...
Threw hers aside.
"...Mom?
"What...
"...are you doing?"
His eyes trembled violently.
Shock.
Despair.
Hunger.
Restraint.
Every emotion collided inside them.
"You...
"You've already become one of them...
"...haven't you?"
"..."
"If you're going to become one of them anyway...
"I'd rather it be you.
"You've suffered from hunger for months."
A mother's love.
Her son had already become a monster.
Suppressing what little humanity he had left, he'd begged them to become monsters together.
Instead...
She silently offered herself to him.
Tear into me.
Yu Myeong couldn't help admiring Selina.
She had understood his intention completely.
Then...
As she slowly approached him with both arms spread wide...
Her face overflowing with maternal love...
He genuinely recoiled.
Step by step.
Retreating in fear.
And then—
The thing he had already become...
The thing he had suppressed with every ounce of will he possessed...
Peeked through for just an instant.
He turned...
And fled.
"Mom...
"Why...?
"How could you...
"...to me?!"
The cry that tore from his throat sounded like the howl of a beast.
The audience stared, completely spellbound.
His face looked almost demonic.
Yet his scream carried unbearable anguish.
Even without understanding what had happened...
Even without knowing this was merely the prologue to the main assignment...
They were utterly swept away.