After the final exams were over, time flew by in the blink of an eye.
Kaoru had already graduated from the mathematics department at [Chicago University] in his past life, and he was an elite even in this life, with exceptional intelligence. So he was able to finish studying by skimming through his books once the day before the exams.
The result: from 19th in the grade to 3rd.
Since the middle school first-year exam questions themselves were fairly easy, he could have answered everything correctly. But to avoid suspicion, Kaoru intentionally marked one or two questions wrong in a few subjects.
At most, people just said, "He must have studied hard." No one suspected anything more or found it strange.
And so, after somehow getting through the long first semester, came the sweltering July when filming for the drama was scheduled.
Just as Toshiro had promised, Kaoru’s filming schedule kept getting pushed back from early July to mid-July, and in the end it was postponed until July 29, after his birthday.
But Kaoru actually liked that.
The drama shoot was important, but he thought adapting to [Rararai Theater Troupe] came first. Fortunately, because the filming schedule was delayed, he was able to settle into the troupe’s atmosphere without much trouble.
More than anything, the troupe staff were extremely pleased to have added another beautiful boy actor whose looks, voice, and body size were all identical to Kamiki Hikaru’s.
Even though his acting experience was no greater than Hikaru’s, his natural talent was outstanding, and he quickly learned to catch important points. On top of that, he was handsome, so there was nothing lacking.
Besides, twin brothers being in the same troupe was said to be extremely rare in the industry, so the staff were more satisfied than ever.
They gathered in the rehearsal room to practice the play, interacted with the other senior actors, listened to their stories and advice, immersed themselves in their roles, and brought their emotions to the surface.
Kaoru felt satisfied that he had this kind of talent.
On July 27, the day Kaoru and Hikaru’s birthday arrived, the troupe staff and actors held a small welcome party for Kaoru, their newest member, along with a birthday celebration.
It was only a few people gathered around a table set up in the rehearsal room, with cake and a few snacks, but...
"Thank you."
Kaoru, who had not expected it at all, laughed in genuine surprise and clapped.
Of course Hikaru clapped and thanked them too, smiling beside him—but from Kaoru’s point of view, there wasn’t a trace of sincerity in his younger brother’s applause.
Still, what could he do? A celebration was a celebration. He could only enjoy the happiness for what it was.
Then his birthday passed, and July 29 arrived.
At a drama set on the outskirts of Tokyo, Kaoru stood in front of the camera for the first time in his life.
Filming that had started in the morning continued all the way into late lunchtime.
"Understood, boss."
"Okay, cut! Good!"
"Thank you."
Producer Matsushige Sojiro’s bright voice rang through the set.
The staff hurried about, preparing for the next scene.
Since his role was only a minor supporting part that appeared around episode 2 and didn’t have much weight to it, Kaoru’s lines were few.
Because it was a pre-produced drama, they filmed the necessary scenes and then, when editing the footage, cut them together as if the actors had been together on location even though they had never actually met face-to-face.
Which meant—
"How is it? Is it hard to focus on the camera by yourself without a scene partner? From a producer’s point of view, this kind of shoot is the best, haha."
"No, I’m fine. It’s a new experience, so it’s fun."
Producer Matsushige Sojiro walked up to Kaoru, who was drinking water and chewing quietly, and struck up a friendly conversation.
A producer who also handled drama production and directing stood like an emperor on set.
Seeing Sojiro himself approach a child actor in a mere minor supporting role and speak to him first, the staff and other directors watched their conversation with subtle interest.
In this business, where rumors spread fast and money with jaw-dropping zeros changed hands because of them, no one knew how far that child actor Sojiro had personally cast off the street would grow in the future.
But regardless, Kaoru watched the busy staff with his usual indifferent expression.
They really did look busy.
Even though they were that busy, the filming schedule had been delayed by three weeks, and despite arriving early that morning, he had waited for two hours.
Surely, drama filming had far too many variables on set, even to Kaoru, a complete beginner, compared with theater, where time and schedule flowed 90 percent as expected, if not 100 percent.
Kaoru let out a quiet sigh and finished his water.
About five minutes later, he entered the temporary prefab building and resumed filming.
"Ready, action!"
"……."
Kaoru stared at the heroine’s photo on the table with the eyes of a hawk eyeing prey.
It was a difficult performance that had to convey emotion with nothing but his eyes and expression, without a single line of dialogue. Yet the cinematographer, so overwhelmed by Kaoru’s aura that even the gum he had been chewing was forgotten, focused entirely on filming.
- Wow.
- Is this your first time?
There was an unspoken rule that no one should speak during filming, but Producer Matsushige Sojiro did not stop the whispering coming from behind him.
In an era where there were plenty of adult actors who showed no sign of nerves on set and still stumbled over or swallowed even short lines, Kaoru had continued filming without a single NG so far.
"Okay! Cut!"
"Thank you."
"Okay! Okay! Good work."
"Thank you."
"That wraps episode 6 for now, and we’ll contact you again soon about the episode 7 schedule, since there’s a lot of location shooting in downtown Tokyo."
"Yes, understood."
As a production staff member quickly came over to explain the schedule, Kaoru nodded and answered.
While the staff prepared for the next scene, Kaoru, now finished with his work, went to the costume room set up in one corner of the set, changed out of his clothes, and then clocked out.
Clocked out.
The feeling of going home after finishing everything was always refreshing.
Time passed again, and in mid-November, Kaoru tapped the table while watching the drama [Chaser: Graphite of Bullets], which had finally begun airing, on the TV in the office.
Tap tap
"Oh. You’re here."
"I’m in from episode 6."
"Mm. Is that so?"
Toshiro responded indifferently and turned off the TV.
Kaoru realized that Toshiro had simply been "observing" the newly airing drama to gauge its quality, and he sat down without saying what had just occurred to him: This is the kind of person who can run a troupe and still make a living.
"Hmm... Have you eaten?"
"Yes. Senior Tatsuya bought me donburi."
"With the corporate card?"
"...Probably?"
"...I see. You’re still growing, so you need to eat well. The reason I called you here is this."
Toshiro tapped the promotional pamphlet for the play currently being performed on the table and looked at Kaoru.
"Now that you’ve settled in, it’s time to start in earnest."
"Yes. Thank you for giving me the opportunity."
"Hmm... Your role has been decided as [Matsuo]."
"What? Isn’t [Matsuo] the role Hikaru and Senior Daichi rotate through? If I’m added too, that makes three people for one role."
"That’s right. So I’m going to remove one of you."
"Senior Daichi?"
"No. Hikaru."
"……."
What was he talking about?
Kaoru stared at him, and Toshiro, instead of calling him rude, folded his arms and took a breath before speaking.
"Hikaru is a talented actor. From the moment he first joined the troupe, he was, quite literally, a promising young shoot. He grew up surrounded by expectations and displayed his talent through a variety of roles."
"...I know."
"You, his twin brother, are the same. You caught the eye of Producer Matsushige Sojiro, who’s famous for being a complete oddball, and were cast on the spot, then successfully finished filming. You may not know it, but your name is already making the rounds in the industry. In fact, Hikaru’s light has become relatively dim. His talent, too... well, that’s the situation."
"……."
"You need to prove yourself. So that it becomes motivation for Hikaru too, and a stage where you can prove yourself. Two birds with one stone. One shot, two hits. As both a director and the troupe’s head, it’s a chance I don’t want to miss."
"I understand what you’re trying to say."
"Good. I’ll give the order to the script and directing teams, so make sure you know the script well. Ah, you’ve probably already memorized it anyway. Hmm. You may go."
Knowing Kaoru’s genius-level memory, Toshiro simply reached his own conclusion, nodded, and dismissed him.
Just four months after joining the troupe, he would officially stand on the stage for his first play in Hikaru’s place. There was no denying how fast that was. Kaoru wasn’t sure whether he should be happy or not at Toshiro’s obvious push to have him collide head-on with the position Hikaru held within the troupe.
Leaving the office and heading toward the rehearsal room, Kaoru happened to spot Hikaru drinking water at the dispenser in front of it.
"...Huh? Big brother?"
"You’re done with practice?"
"Ah, not yet. I just got thirsty while I was at it."
"I see."
Kaoru answered casually and took out a paper cup, then filled it with water.
Even after finishing his water, Hikaru stood quietly beside him and watched him drink.
Kaoru filled the paper cup again, drank, then crushed it and tossed it into the trash.
"Got something to say?"
"No."
Hikaru smiled gently at Kaoru, as if showing only his older brother a sweet, obedient expression.
Kaoru smiled back in return.
"I’m really glad to see you settling in so well at [Rararai Theater Troupe]."
"...Is that so?"
"Yeah. As expected of Kaoru, big brother. You seem even more impressive than me."
"Thanks for saying that."
Without letting that smile fade, Hikaru spoke to his twin brother with apparent sincerity.
"I’ll always be rooting for you. For your [acting]."
"Yeah."
Kaoru nodded at his twin brother’s support, then patted his shoulder twice and went into the rehearsal room.
Even after the door closed, Hikaru kept staring at it for a long time.
"……."
The eyes that had been looking at his twin brother’s back no longer held even a trace of brotherly affection, only black starlight glittering cruelly.
Time passed quickly, and now, a year and a half later, nearly two years had gone by.
After [Chaser: Graphite of Bullets], which had averaged a 12 percent viewership rating, ended, Kaoru’s life changed a little.
Just a little.
That was how Kaoru evaluated it.
He never really wanted to become too famous in the first place.
Even the commercials he took were ones that drew as little attention as possible, like drinks or child-model ads for study materials.
He also received offers for other dramas. His role was a little bigger than the one he had played in [Chaser: Graphite of Bullets], but it was still not even on the level of a minor supporting part.
Still, Kaoru had no complaints. If anything, he was happy to be paid to have such interesting experiences.
He was also cast in a low-budget independent film.
A low-budget indie film about runaway teenagers who fled home because of child abuse.
Kaoru played the protagonist’s friend number one, the boy who ultimately gave up on his dream and was taken back home by his parents.
It was undeniably a fun and fresh experience.
Kaoru judged it to be an important growth experience that broadened the emotional source material based on his past-life memories and helped him learn new things.
Toshiro had already tried to stop him, saying he shouldn’t be influenced by "indie films" so early, but Kaoru wasn’t particularly interested.
Life was supposed to be lived by doing what you wanted. Rather than living a pointless life where you spent your whole existence running and being chased until you got hit by a truck and died, it was a thousand times happier and more peaceful to live however you wanted.
In the end, the film even won an excellence award at a ceremony where critics gathered to judge movies.
Kaoru also gave a strong performance and received the honor of winning the [Best New Actor Award].
It wasn’t a prestigious ceremony like the [Japan Academy Film Prize] or the [Elan d’Or Award], of course.
Still, it made him quite happy to know that his acting had been recognized by critics who liked to puff up their noses and brag about how much cinema they knew.
Anyway, while he continued working from time to time as long as it didn’t interfere with troupe activities, he was focusing on the troupe when an unexpected guest arrived.
It was the first day of the Rararai Theater Troupe workshop.
Normally, a theater troupe workshop would just be about eating, drinking, and having fun, but under Toshiro’s iron rule, the Rararai workshop had a clear purpose: "Let’s get something out of this."
The actors were divided into groups, and each group had to write their own script and perform a play of up to thirty minutes in front of the others, who would then evaluate the performance.
That was the Rararai Theater Troupe workshop.
And on the day of the workshop, a middle-aged man and a girl wearing a hat appeared with Toshiro.
"!"
Hikaru, who had been practicing while looking over a script, spotted the starlight shining brilliantly in the eyes of the girl in the hat and drew in a sharp breath.
Black starlight flickered in Hikaru’s eyes in resonance with the girl’s own starlight.
Talent shining brilliantly like the brightest morning star in the night sky.
Even through a wounded heart and a twisted life, that beautiful talent survived stubbornly, on the verge of blooming into an enchanting bud.
He would save that girl’s heart, which no one else cared about, and whisper sweet [illusion].
He would make that [star talent] explode like a flower in full bloom—
And only when it stood at the very top—
"Hikaru."
"...Huh? Did you call me, big brother?"
"Aya is looking for you. She said she needs to coordinate the performance schedule with Tamiki."
At Kaoru’s words, Hikaru, who had been smiling warmly, showed the faintest crack at the corner of his mouth.
"I’m busy right now—"
"Ah! Kaoru-kun! Can you come here for a second!"
"...Yes. Go see Aya first."
Hearing Toshiro call out from afar after spotting him, Kaoru patted Hikaru’s shoulder twice and passed by him indifferently.
As a boy in his growth period who never neglected exercise, Kaoru had already grown taller than Hikaru.
He was still under 170 cm, but thanks to his small head, long limbs, and slender proportions, he looked much taller than he really was.
The man in his mid-to-late thirties standing beside Toshiro widened his eyes in surprise when he saw Kaoru and carefully examined his face and entire body from top to bottom.
"...You called for me?"
Ignoring the man’s rudeness as he openly sized him up like merchandise, Kaoru spoke to Toshiro.
"Ah, first, say hello. This is Mr. Kaburagi Masaya, who used to belong to our Rararai Theater Troupe and is now a producer at [Dotto TV]."
"Ah, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Kamiki Kaoru."
"Oh! Nice to meet you. I’m Kaburagi Masaya. Haha. Seeing you in person, your visuals are even more striking than on screen. To think the Rararai Theater Troupe has twins this handsome. You’ve got a record there."
"Haha. Is that so?"
"Thank you for the compliment."
Kaoru played along, offering Kaburagi Masaya a fake smile in return for the face-painting praise he gave him the moment he saw him.
He was probably here for the workshop to scout actors the station could use, Kaoru thought, and let out a quiet sigh that no one could hear.
Then—
"……."
A small girl wearing a hat suddenly came into Kaoru’s view.
Her face looked vaguely familiar, with a careless fashion sense that seemed to show no effort at all, and a beautiful appearance that the hat couldn’t hide.
Unlike other kids her age, she had an expressionless face that suggested she had a lot of baggage, and she kept fidgeting with her fingers as if she were sensitive to unfamiliar surroundings.
Kaoru stared at the familiar-looking girl and searched through his memories.
The girl’s beautiful violet eyes, with brilliant starlight rippling within them, swept across the troupe stage before locking onto Kaoru, who was staring straight at her.
"...Ah."
"……."
Once their eyes met, the girl filled her gaze with [love] as if nothing had happened and fixed her eyes on Kaoru.
Seeing that, Kaburagi Masaya smiled and pointed at the girl as he said,
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