No one wants to live anymore. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeJ7Ah9QOLJ
Only the client still thinks this can be finished. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZbHHthFoUT
Casting hasn’t even started, and we’ve already sold our souls.74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj9BmgdwykE
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqmoYpyui8X
Dragging their heavy feet into the meeting room, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp2cpMFisdE
no one said a word.
Not because they didn’t want to—— 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLK6Y24aXFs
but because they simply couldn’t.
Current time: 5:00 a.m. sharp.
With each person who entered, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQgXV9YUYZN
the room grew colder.
Not because the AC was too strong—— 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EyCgdxOKj
but because everyone was radiating cold from within, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpxsUr1L0rx
thanks to the full-body trauma of:
writing 8,000 words in three hours, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkSrDISDfQ9
dreaming only of wrap scenes and car crashes, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIYTdvHI8Mt
and waking up just in time to prep for the next shoot.
The result? A literal physiological shadow.
The screenwriter came in first, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8fcqiHZ2Q
his face was grayer than drywall, and the circles under his eyes deep enough to drown in.
“I mean… just because I went to bed late doesn’t mean I’m immune to sleep.”
He slumped into the chair with a sound like a bellows giving up its last breath.
Next came the art lead, carrying an empty egg tart box of unknown origin.
“So… food really can taste like nothing…”
She stared blankly at the box.
“I did add Thai basil…”
No one asked why there was Thai basil in an egg tart.
When the director walked in, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh2Van1ldIs
this was the scene he saw:
The manager sitting upright, still looking somewhat operational.
But their tie was off by thirty degrees, one sleeve rolled up, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ83t5fRTzv5
and three cups of coffee sat by their side. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3JratLQCiF
Their schedule had been scribbled into a summoning circle.
The director scanned the room, made sure everyone was still breathing, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9bbGMTDMjC
then finally set down his laptop.
“We need to finalize the main character’s name this morning,” 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamuv6Df13q
“and finish casting by this afternoon.”
He tried to speak in a tone that said: 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOF4QONHmC4
“I'm staying rational, but just barely holding on.”
“Heh.”74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCqBX8qrqAZ
The screenwriter let out a cold laugh.
“So we’re wrapping up a nearly 80,000-word script on the last day? Seriously?”
“And me…”
“I still have to get a bar, a warehouse, props, costumes, blood packs, a flying lighter, and the key to a pair of handcuffs… all in 24 hours.”
The art lead chanted the list like a curse.
“At this point, I’m not even sure if that handcuff belongs to our prop box or the boss’s personal collection…”
The manager didn’t join in the sarcasm. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYo5taPMUsn
Instead, he calmly opened his notebook.
“We need to cast two male actors this afternoon. The kind who are comfortable with explicit scenes.”
“Requirements: not shy, okay with blood, able to handle brutal filming hours, and with good chemistry…”
He glanced up mid-sentence.
“Because the director says there’s no time for rehearsal.”
The director looked up.
“I never said no rehearsals!”74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGCgIbZ44OK
“I said… maybe we’ll have to act with our eyes.”
The room went quiet for a beat.
Then, the art lead pulled out another egg tart, plucked the Thai basil out, and dropped it into her coffee cup.
“Mmmh…”
“This is straight-up impossible.”
“Everyone knows it—except our beloved client.”
“At this point, I kinda feel like we’re being hunted.”
“We basically exorcised our own damn spirits——only to find out the script is called _Guiltbound_?”
“The next one should be called Deliverance. So we can deliver ourselves.”
The director looked around the table. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWnYfARngY
Everyone had dead eyes, cold coffee, and the collective thought of never wanting to wake up again.
“The name?” he asked.
“Main character’s name.”
This time, all three fell silent.
Three seconds later, the art lead bit into her tart and said:
“Just call him ‘Tragic.’ Then we’ll have a couple: Tragic × More Tragic.”
The manager flipped through the notes.
“Or maybe Shen… something Shen… you know, like ‘sink-to-the-bottom’ Shen.”
The director didn’t answer. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2KeRDiXfvU
He quietly wrote down a few names, thinking he’d fix them later.
He didn’t want to disturb the fragile balance in the room—— 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGdLsRO2J0m
because when everyone’s about to explode, 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcblkXP5Ngp
even one extra sentence could be the trigger.
The sky was starting to brighten. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvzON3Pvnk
Birds chirped faintly outside the meeting room.
The day had barely begun. 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkqDmRheuif
But these people… 74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCAE0Y5WaMV
were already done with it.
and then Add to home screen.