Hell's Trailer

The Ferris wheel was the only ride that Averie calmly enjoyed.

The dark sky dotted with glittering stars was a sight to see. In that space, so removed from the rest of the world, it felt magical.

To Hyerin, who had completely erased the memory of her friend bullying a literal child, it was a very special experience.

For dinner, they visited a beautiful outdoor café by the ocean.

"The sea breeze is so nice," Hyerin whispered. "I love the smell."

Averie nodded. "But is this fine with you? We could have visited a nice restaurant."

"No, I prefer this. It's cheaper and feels special."

"Cheap, huh." He stared at her. "Once we make some money, you won't have to worry about that."

She smiled a pretty smile. And for the first time since they met, Averie thought she looked beautiful.

They ordered sandwiches, salads, fries, and much more. Surprisingly, Hyerin didn't drink alcohol. Instead, she had soft drinks.

"Not drinking?" Averie asked.

"I only drink when stressed," she answered.

But Averie treated it as absolute nonsense. While stress from work did make her drink excessively, there were times when she drank while celebrating. He didn't understand her entirely, but being sober was a good decision.

At the nearby table, where a group of university students had gathered, a minor commotion broke.

"Wow," one of them exclaimed.

"This is sick, man," another uttered. "Who is that? Who is that at the end?"

"What's the name of the show?" someone asked.

"Binsfeld's Seven Princes of Hell."

Suddenly, Averie's phone rang.

"The trailer is out," he said, reading the messages.

Hyerin dragged her chair next to him. "Show me, show me!"

Averie opened the link sent to him by Do-Yun Park. A two-minute-long video began playing.

It showed a brief conversation between Lucifer and the captain of the Altobelli family. The screen flickered, and the scene changed. In his office, Lucifer sat watching the news about a dead body found in the sea.

The picture of the victim they showed confirmed that it was his guest from a few days ago. But it didn't bother Lucifer one bit. Even though he had ordered the hit, there was not a shred of emotion on his face. He was neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.

The music picked up as the scenes changed rapidly.

A manic Satan hit someone repeatedly with a bloodied crowbar. A delighted Mammon laughed uncontrollably while throwing stuff around in a basement. Belphegor lay on his side, salivating while murmuring a nursery rhyme. Binoculars in hand, Leviathan spied on someone, cursing under his breath. Chewing on a slice of pizza, Beelzebub observed seven paintings depicting the seven princes of hell.

"Here it comes," Hyerin whispered.

As the music reached its climax, a glowing pair of intense amber eyes appeared on the screen.

It was Asmodeus. A third of his face was hidden as he licked the side of a woman's neck. Just as he pulled her head back and bit into her flesh, the music stopped.

The screen turned black.

The tittle of the show, Binsfeld's Seven Princes of Hell, appeared on the screen.

The video ended.

"That was good," Hyerin exclaimed. "They captured you so well."

Averie nodded.

"I wondered what scene of yours they would use," she murmured.

She looked around. At least, two other tables watched the trailer. She unlocked her phone and looked up the video.

"It's gaining popularity rapidly. It already has a hundred thousand views. That's very fast."

She studied the reactions and showed the comments to Averie.

- My god, I got goosebumps.

- Su-Jin James and In-Su Kim together in a drama? Am I seeing this right?

- Is this going to be on TVN?

- Does anyone know who the last actor was? Asking for educational purposes, of course.

- Since when did Director Dae-Jung Lee start making dramas?

"There are plenty of comments asking about you."

She looked around apprehensively.

"Your schedule will be tighter. Currently, your only concern is filming the drama, but that will change once it airs. It won't be long before people start recognizing you. Are you prepared?"

'Of course,' Averie thought. 'I created a new autograph specifically for the new me.'

He had ended up doing it while he was trying to learn the original Averie's signature. Thankfully, he did all his banking online, so there hadn't been a need for it yet.

"I also think we should hire a personal stylist," Hyerin continued, typing on her phone. "If you are going to be an actor, you will need to look the part."

"I can't afford one right now," Averie replied.

"Once the drama airs, we will be able to. We can hire one then. I know plenty of them who are both talented and young. Some of them are tired of being treated like garbage by the actors they are in charge of."

She raised her head to look at him. "We may also need a bodyguard."

'Well, fan culture in the East is far more fanatical than the West,' Averie thought.

He had seen videos of fans forcibly trying to enter events held by their favorite celebrity, and he had seen online toxicity between two groups of fans. It reminded him of ultras in European football culture.

'Scary animals.'

Even Hell didn't seem fitting for such overzealous fans.

"And if possible, having a website wouldn't hurt," Hyerin continued. "Talent agencies usually display the associated artists on their home website. But—"

"But I am planning to blaze my own path," interjected Averie.

She gave two thumbs up for who knows why. "If we want to present a professional image, we should get a website designed professionally. But hosting can be costly, so we should wait and observe for a while."

Averie thought that was for the best. Wasting money wasn't ideal since he was planning to be selective with future projects.

Hyerin untied her high ponytail. "I know you don't like to be on social media."

'It seems the previous Averie and I have very much in common. But then again, I never killed myself.'

"But I believe we should have an account for you on Delfa."

"I don't care for it."

Hyerin sighed. "It could be good for your career, you know. Let's say a director is looking into actors for a particular role. Your name comes up, but they have no material on you other than what you have filmed for the drama. Do you think they will be impressed by that?"

"It shows a lack of professionalism," Averie muttered thoughtfully.

"Exactly," Hyerin exclaimed. "Look, I will handle the account; you only need to agree."

Reluctantly, Averie nodded.

'If she is handling it, it shouldn't matter.'

"Okay," he said.

And his friend rejoiced.

***

On the balcony of a spacious penthouse overlooking the neon-lit Seoul, two ladies had gathered. The cold breeze played with their hair as they sat drinking red wine and scotch.

"You look tired, Ha-Yun," one of them commented.

Ha-Yun sighed.

Usually, she didn't mind small talk. But somehow, she wasn't in the mood for it today. She felt so utterly exhausted that she didn't even care to properly dress tonight. She was wearing a simple, oversized white T-shirt. But even then, she looked just as attractive as she did on stage.

"I am tired," Ha-Yun replied. "Our popularity is sky-high, but I'm not enjoying myself."

"Happens pretty often in this industry," commented her friend. "What else is bothering you?"

Ha-Yun looked at her. "It's Hee-Young. She is acting in this mediocre drama series, and we are forced to watch it every Friday and Saturday."

"It's that bad, huh?"

"Oh, you have no idea, Su-Bin. It's practically torture, and we can't even refuse to watch. That poor girl always looks so excited."

Su-Bin drunkenly giggled. "So, she can't act well?"

"If only that was all. The storyline is boring, and I can guess from a mile away what is about to happen. It's so predictable."

Ha-Yun massaged her temples. "The casting was done based on popularity and not acting skills. Most of them are either one-trick ponies or pretty idols. They are so bad that no amount of editing could salvage them."

Su-Bin laughed bitterly. "This industry is funny. It gives opportunities to those who are undeserving of it. And even when they do bad, we can't voice it."

"Why are you so bitter?" Ha-Yun grumbled. "Aren't you doing well, Actress Su-Bin Kang?"

"Why, thank you, Leader Ha-Yun Jung of NeRen," Su-Bin retorted.

The two were known to be really good friends in the entertainment industry. One was the leader of NeRen, an internationally successful, seven-member girl group. And the other was a multiple award-winning actress who worked exclusively in the film industry.

While enjoying the wine and the breeze, Su-Bin's phone rang. She unlocked it to see a notification she had been expecting.

"It's here," she mumbled.

"What is?" Ha-Yun asked, sipping her scotch.

"Trailer for a drama series I am curious about."

"Drama?" Ha-Yun's brows furrowed. "Since when were you interested in dramas?"

Su-Bin grinned. "Since a number of perfectionists chose to star in the same project. I didn't get to read the script, so I can't tell what's attracting them."

"And these perfectionists are?"

"In-Su Kim, Su-Jin James, Raymond Lee—that's just a few. The director is Dae-Jung Lee, which is even more surprising than the roster of actors."

"What's the name of the series?" Ha-Yun asked.

Holding her phone in a way both could see, Su-Bin played the trailer.

Her eyes were sparkling with anticipation and curiosity.

"Binsfeld's Seven Princes of Hell."