After fleeing the café, Nanaya grabbed a quick lunch at a roadside ramen shop and then rushed back to the film set before the crew's lunch break ended.
His teacher was currently shooting a school-themed youth drama. To save costs, the crew had rented a high school for the spring break period.
Hopefully no one notices me…
As Nanaya slipped through the school gates, he peeked toward the playground. Only a few crew vans were parked, and there wasn't a single person in sight.
Looks like they're filming indoor scenes today. Should I wait in my teacher's office?
He was still pondering when a sharp, almost duck-like voice cut through his thoughts.
"Ah, I wondered who it was. Turns out it's you, country bumpkin."
The voice was harsh, caustic and Nanaya's mood immediately soured.
Great. Just when I thought today would go smoothly, I run into this annoying guy as soon as I enter the set.
He looked up. There it was: a face he hated more than anyone else's on the crew.
Pale as a vampire, a shock of silver hair sticking up like an explosion, and a face so effeminate it made Nanaya's stomach churn. Every time he saw this guy, he couldn't help but think of a meme from his past life he had no idea how someone could cosplay a character with that much uncanny resemblance.
This person was the male lead of the current youth idol drama and one of J Entertainment's newest "fresh idols" Momokusa Toshinobu.
Nanaya always thought only parents with their brains clamped in doors could give their kid such a ridiculous name. Of course, maybe his bias was partly because he already had a personal grudge against this guy.
Regardless, from Nanaya's perspective, Momokusa from his absurd name to his effeminate face was someone he despised completely.
He didn't actually dislike pretty-boy actors in general. There's always a market for them, after all. Even in ancient times, white-faced young men were idolized. But over time, celebrity culture became increasingly fast-food-like. Once, stars needed talent, style, and personality; now, a pretty face alone suffices. And if that face faded, they'd just replace it with the next one.
In the past few years, debuting stars have become more and more "flow-driven," a phenomenon Nanaya's friends jokingly call monkeyfication.
"Nowadays, even if it's a monkey on stage, as long as it's a pretty boy, it counts as a star."
Nanaya had nearly laughed out loud when he first heard this, but he had to admit, there was some truth to it. These flow-driven idols often had nothing besides their looks, wasted resources, and showed no real effort sitting on a gold mine without earning it.
Back in school, Nanaya had never understood why investors favored these pretty-faced, talentless, inexperienced, and sometimes even rotten personalities. But after joining the industry, he saw firsthand the massive profits they could generate. One example: a famous idol uploaded a one-hour, no-makeup video out of spite for fans. That single video sold more of a certain lipstick in one day than the brand's physical store would sell in an entire year.
Investors cared about profits. Acting skills? Secondary. The industry's culture? Irrelevant. Money was what mattered.
After witnessing all this, Nanaya became indifferent to pretty-boy idols. If they wanted to make money this way, fine he wouldn't bother them, and he'd simply avoid collaborating with them in the future. Different philosophies don't need socializing.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans. A small incident had put him at odds with this very guy. Nanaya never sought conflict, but he wouldn't back down either. He decided to make his point clear: simply turn and ignore him.
"You little country bumpkin! How dare you look down on me?!"
Unlike Momokusa's face, his temper was explosive. He pointed at Nanaya, shouting insults.
Nanaya rolled his eyes internally.
I'm not looking down… I'm just ignoring you.
From Momokusa's rant, it was clear he had been waiting at the gate just to vent his anger. Their conflict itself was minor Nanaya had only intervened once when Momokusa was bullying a junior actor. Nanaya felt Momokusa should be grateful instead of being hostile, but the silver-haired idiot clearly didn't think so.
Momokusa's fans would have been heartbroken if they had seen this. Nanaya even considered secretly recording the scene but remembered the non-disclosure agreement he had signed before filming. So he gave up.
As Momokusa got more and more worked up, other crew members slowly gathered around the commotion.
Nanaya's patience started to wear thin. He knew if he didn't strike back verbally, he'd lose face on set.
"Whoa, so worked up? Did you take too many diet pills?" Nanaya squinted mockingly. "I heard one of your team members got castrated from diet pills. You wouldn't be the same, right? That's why you're so angry all the time."
The surrounding crew burst into laughter. Although the story was kept secret outside the industry, it was well-known within. Momokusa had debuted as part of a five-member group. One member had a weight-prone body, took diet pills recklessly, and ended up in the hospital. That incident led to the group's breakup two months ago.
This movie, Nanaya's teacher's latest project, was Momokusa's first solo work hence its importance to him. Yet the idiot clearly didn't realize this, his constant antagonism. The laughter around him made that clear.
"Damn you!"
Momokusa's face, already red from makeup, turned purple with rage as he hurled more insults.
This guy is hopeless…
Before Nanaya could respond further, a serious voice cut through:
"What's all this? Lunch break, and you're so energized? Why don't we just start filming now?"
It was Nanaya's teacher, director Hanai Ryuichi, mid-forties, looking every bit the stern authority figure.
Seeing the serious expression of his teacher, Nanaya thought: Maybe that's why he knows Chairman Ryutani both have clearly mastered the art of stern faces.
The crowd dispersed immediately, leaving only Momokusa, Nanaya, and Ryuichi.
Ryuichi scowled at the sulking actor:
"Look at yourself! Your makeup's a mess. Go fix it!"
Even as a popular idol, Momokusa dared not defy the director. He reluctantly headed to the mobile makeup room, cursing Nanaya all the way.
"Lucky you, country bumpkin. You don't belong in the city go back to the countryside. You're destined to be a failure!"
Nanaya smirked internally. This guy could become a comedy host someday. Listening to the rhythm of Momokusa's insults, he pinched his ear, half expecting the idiot to say something like 'chicken thighs are beautiful.'
"Stop staring and get back to work," Ryuichi kicked Nanaya's rear lightly.
"Y-yeah, teacher, I'll get to work…" Nanaya said, trying to leave but Ryuichi stopped him.
"Relax. Come to my office first. We need to talk about preparations for your movie." Ryuichi glanced at Momokusa and deliberately raised his voice so everyone could hear.
Nanaya was grateful his teacher was quietly backing him up.
"Listen, even though this is a TV movie, if it meets the standard, it could even get a theatrical release. So you…"
Momokusa, watching the two leave, wanted to run and confirm the truth with the director, but his legs wouldn't move.
So there he stood, squinting at the blazing sun overhead, frowning.
No way… You're joking, right… That country bumpkin?