“Wow, what the…?”
It was an unintentional remark let out by the cinematographer.
Of course, the shock wasn’t only his. The models too stood there with their mouths agape. The reason was none other than Sua, who had appeared in a swimsuit.
Sua made her entrance, her snow-white hair flowing in the breeze.
Her upper body was fully covered by a white bikini, but the lower part was replaced with extremely short hot pants.
…The bikinis’ issues couldn’t be helped; every single one had ended up wedged uncomfortably.
Although her skin was revealed, she still exuded an aura of a wolf. There was a raw wildness in her that couldn’t be concealed.
If anything, it was precisely because her skin was so exposed that this wildness stood out. It was teasing humanity’s primal desires.
Nevertheless, Sua herself wasn’t thinking much about it.
‘Is the Fox Technique fully activated? Still somewhat lacking… Is it because the camera hasn’t started rolling yet? Ugh, it’s embarrassing.’
If pushed, her expression was full of worry.
But it was all unwarranted concern. The thoughts everyone in the production team and models shared were the same.
‘Today’s shoot is going to be something else, isn’t it?’
For the summer special feature, everything seemed set to go smoothly.
Walking disputes? Who cares. Just the sight of her was enough to instinctively make one realize the success of the pictorial; when the subject is this stunning, does composition even matter?
The cinematographer called out loudly soon after.
“We’re starting the shoot!”
The enthusiasm was evident in his voice.
◈◈◈◈◈
The real shoot began.
‘Heehee, it feels nice being submerged in the pool. Heehee….’
That was Sua’s feeling.
Sua was currently submerged in the pool. Once the signal was given, she would emerge and showcase an elegant walk.
“Sua! Now’s the moment!”
And the signal finally came.
Swish—
Sua immediately activated her ‘Fox Technique.’
…
The crew gripped their cameras, swallowing dry as they watched. Frankly, they were just as tense.
After all, while Sua’s role was to pose in the outfit as the subject, it was their duty to capture the perfect shot for the pictorial. Coordination would be crucial from here.
The next moment—
Sua snapped her eyes open.
…
Something unusual had happened.
It was as if she had transformed completely.
Having stood quietly in the pool with water covering her navel, Sua slowly moved her arms. Everyone tensely watched as she quietly tied her hair into a ponytail.
She then began to walk out of the pool, her body still carrying the water’s dampness. Water lingered on her lower body, while sweat formed on her upper due to the warm weather.
The sunlight sparkled on her neck as if adorned with jewels, yet all that was there were mere droplets of sweat.
Splash— Splash—
Her wet feet touched the ground.
A captivating step that drew everyone’s attention.
A second step that evoked desire.
Splash—
By the third step, everyone was captivated. As Sua walked, her hips swayed slightly left and right, her balance surprisingly well-maintained as if a fox were flicking its tail.
At this moment, the cinematographer called out.
“Ah, wait! Hold on! Just a moment!”
Sua froze in mild panic. Thoughts raced through her mind. What’s wrong? Did I make a mistake?
…Or did something fall off? Suaaaa!
However…
“Sua, I sincerely apologize!”
“What?”
The cinematographer turned to the crew instead of answering. He unleashed a roar.
“You guys! Why aren’t you shooting!”
“Oh…”
Only then did everyone snap out of their trance. Sua found their expressions amusing. It wasn’t like they had woken up from a dream; why were they like that?
The production team leader scratched the back of his head.
“Sua, you were exceptionally magnificent, beyond what we expected. Everyone lost focus, even myself. I didn’t capture a single shot from the beginning. We’ll start over. My sincerest apologies.”
“Aaaaah.”
Sua finally sighed in relief.
Phew. I didn’t make any huge mistakes.
Hm, well, that’s a relief, but…
Shaking her head, Sua replied.
“Let’s take a break. I can’t do it right away.”
It was closer to a desperate plea than a statement. What she truly wanted to say was: Since I can’t activate the Fox Technique often, I need a moment to rest.
But everyone at the scene thought the same thing simultaneously.
‘Sua must be very upset.’
‘…There won’t be any more room for mistakes today.’
‘We absolutely cannot mess up. Absolutely not…’
The atmosphere rapidly turned cold. It might have been helpful to the male models, as the blood rushing below gradually subsided.
.
.
.
.
.
After an hour, the shoot resumed.
Once Sua activated her ‘Fox Technique,’ she lit up the entire set. She no longer felt nervous in front of the other models, perceiving everyone around her only as captivated spectators.
Unfiltered exclamations of admiration poured from the production crew.
“Wow, Sua, that’s perfect!”
“Sua, stay in that position for 3 seconds!”
This was possible because it was a photography instead of video session. Since sounds aren’t recorded in photographs, the crew could express their real-time appreciation freely.
“…Someone might think you’re playing a specific role in a story. You look like you have a backstory. What could it be?”
Backstory? There’s one alright. A tragic backstory of being beaten with a stick by a roadside stall owner after being born as a fox…
Click! Click! Click!
The endless shutter sounds continued.
It was at this point that Sua realized the differences between variety show, drama, and short film shoots, and advertising photo shoots.
‘How long is this going to go on? The duration’s starting to get….’
Click! Click! Click!
In her past experiences, one sequence completion marked the end, leaving the rest to the editing team. But this was different.
Since the concept was to take thousands of photos and choose the best ones, Sua had to keep performing various scenarios until they reached their quota.
“Sua, please slightly lift your chin!”
“Yes.”
“Sua, let’s try draping your arm over the model’s shoulder next to you—use them as a human armrest! Truly queen-like!”
“Yes-eh.”
“Great! Let’s turn and emphasize the backside! Highlight the curves too!”
“Nngh…”
Thanks to the effectiveness of the ‘Fox Technique,’ posing for cute shots wasn’t difficult. It was just extremely tedious, and physically draining.
Thinking about it, Mystic had mentioned earlier that Yeon-joo and Kim Sun-il had run a lot of ads to contract with me. Were they going through this daily? Ugh…
Mystic… I finally understand now.
At that moment,
“Oh? The moisture’s already gone?”
The team leader murmured this before shouting,
“Sua, close your eyes for a moment!”
“Huh?”
Before she could question why, there was no verbal reply.
Click! Click! Click!
Instead, the staff rushed in with spray bottles and sprayed water on her. Sua thought to herself, Hmm, looks like we’ve got a long way to go.
.
.
.
.
.
The shoot finally wrapped up when the moon hung high in the sky, and the afterparty began at the mansion. It would have been a waste to rent such a great place just for work.
“Ugh, I don’t do well with this kind of atmosphere.”
Sua thought as she shrank into herself.
The invited DJ had started playing music, and the models were swimming around freely in the pool. Some were shooting water guns, others drinking canned beer here and there.
However, Sua remained unaware.
Everyone was pretending to party hard while sneakily eyeing her. Naturally, they wanted to get friendly but were disappointed she wasn’t joining.
Eventually, one female model mustered the courage.
“Sua, do you know what this canned beer is?”
“Yes, I do.”
“…”
The female model soon embarrassingly retreated.
“Yes, sorry for interrupting while you’re resting…”
What? Why are you giving up already? Don’t go! Please keep inviting me to join! Let’s have some fun!
‘…Don’t you realize your social skills are shot? Just saying that you know is useless.’
Ultimately, Sua was left out.
A while later, the Jo G Korea team leader approached her.
“Not hiring Sua would’ve been a big regret. I saw some of today’s shots and they’re amazing.”
“I agree.”
A rare moment of approval from Sua.
Sua nodded. The ‘Fox Technique’ truly is an excellent skill. Perhaps one of Sua’s signature moves?
The team leader burst out laughing.
“Let’s hope Jo G Korea and Sua both make a big splash when this pictorial is released. Soaring high, indeed.”
“I agree.”
Around that time, a group of models approached Sua. It seemed one person alone didn’t have enough courage.
“Sua, come play!”
“She’s been wanting to get closer to you, you know? She wants to play, but finds it too difficult to approach you.”
“That’s you too, right? You said the same thing!”
“In short, Sua, please come play with us!”
Sua happily ran towards them.
“…I agree!”
Soon after, she got completely soaked by water guns and pouted.
◈◈◈◈◈
The next day.
In a high-end bar’s grand private room, a group of men had gathered. Seated in the prestigious seat was none other than Ko Tae-min.
They appeared to have been drinking for a while; quite a few empty bottles were visible, and many faces were flushed.
“It tastes better without Kim Jun-ki around, doesn’t it?”
“That’s true. This is the first time we’ve all gathered since then.”
Every single voice speaking now belonged to directors. They were the kind who wouldn’t back down in matters of direction, people with deep pride and considerable skills.
This was what the group ‘Barungil’ was all about.
“Everyone seems to be in a good mood. Let’s focus now.”
Finally, their leader, Director Ko Tae-min, spoke.
“I’ve got a winning lottery ticket. Any takers?”
