She Outshines Them All

She Outshines 390

‘Chasing the Horizon finished filming two years ago,

However, due to extensive post–production effects and scheduling issues, it was only now being released.

Athena knew that in this movie. Joy took on the role of a complex, morally ambiguous refugee.

Her appearance was transformed–gaunt, with darkened skin. She often hid behind a veil and dressed in exotic attire. It was a stark contrast from her usual appearance.

If Athena had not already known that Joy was the female lead, she might not have recognized her at all.

Furthermore, the director was known for maintaining an air of mystery around his films.

During production, all details–including the plot, stills, and character makeup–were strictly confidential. Every crew member had to sign a non–disclosure agreement before joining the project.

Joy was no exception.

Since the director began casting for the film until its release, the public had no idea who the lead actress was–only that her stage name was “Naire“.

Naire never participated in any promotions, public appearances, endorsements, or media invitations.

At the premiere, the director stated, “Naire has an extraordinary gift for acting and is a natural talent, but she has no intentions to join the industry. Acting is merely her hobby.

“She wishes for privacy in her daily life, so neither I nor the crew will disclose her identity. Just know that in real life, she is simply an ordinary person

Because of all these factors, Athena did not stop Alaric and the others from watching “Chasing the Horizon.

Throughout the two–hour screening. Joy’s character was almost always veiled. On the rare occasions when her face was visible, irappeared as if covered by a thick layer of dust.

Her eyes, however, stood out–bright and profound, revealing nothing yet leaving a deep impression, impossible to decipher.

Even Athena could not help but admire how Joy brought this character to life with just her eyes.

Being able to convey emotion through just the eyes was surely a sign of pure talent.

After the movie ended, the credits began to roll.

The ending song was beautiful, but with a six–minute–long credits roll, some audience members began to leave once the theater lights came on.

However, quite a few young viewers stayed seated–some to finish listening to the song, others in hopes of a post–credits

scene.

Alaric and Arthur were among those who waited.

“The actress playing the lead did an incredible job–especially in those scenes where she was mistreated or when she was exacting revenge. Her eyes were so intense, I actually felt a littleText property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

scared to look right at them,” Arthur said, clearly impresse “With her performance, she’s bound to win a newcomer award, or maybe even Best Actress

GUN.

“Even with all that diit on her face, you can tell she has really steiking features, Alaric added with admiration. “I bet she’d look stunning if her face was clean‘

Alaric sighed. “Too bad I waited till the very end and still didn’t to see her real face without all that makeup and grime

Arthur nudged him with a grin.

“If you’re that interested, you could always ask Zayn for help. He probably has a way to track her down, and who knows, maybe he could even arrange a dinner. Then you’d get to see the woman up close, Arthur said.

Zayn, already standing and ready to leave, replied, “I’m not going to seek her out without a good reason. Besides, she has no plans to stay in the industry, and it wouldn’t be right to intrude on her

Alaric scratched his head. “I was just joking. I’m busy with training and don’t have time to meet girls”

Jaden, Brandon, Maria, and Josie also went out.

However, Athena felt that the ending song was very nice. She was not in a hurry to go out, so she continued sitting and listening.

She only stood up when the ending song ended.

At this moment, Alaric suddenly pointed at the movie screen and shouted, “That girl seems to be Zilvia!”

Athena quickly looked up at the screen.

photo of the crew and the words “Thank you to all members of the crew” appeared on the screen.

The photo was probably a group shot of the lead creators, and there were around 40 to 50 people. If shown on a television screen, the people in the photo would likely be too small for the viewers to see clearly.

But here in the IMAX theater, 40 to 50 people on a screen that exceeded 70 feet in length and over 70 feet in height would be easily visible to everyone in the audience.

Joy, dressed simply and without makeup, stood off to the right in the third row, an unassuming spot.

Yet, her striking features and undeniable presence made her shine unmistakably. Even among award–winning actors, top stars, and seasoned veterans, she was the most eye–catching one there.

With a single glance, Joy stood out above all the rest.

Therefore, even if this still photo only appeared for a few seconds, anyone who looked at the photo seriously would definitely notice her.

“She looks so similar to Zilvia!” Arthur was also stunned. “She also looks like Athena…”

He and Alaric looked at Athena in unison.

Athena smiled. “Really? I don’t think so at all.”

Arthur and Alaric looked at the screen again.

However, the screen had already turned black.

The entire movie was over.

Arthur and Alaric tried hard to recall the fleeting glimpse they had of the girl, but the few seconds they saw her were too brief for them to remember clearly. All they had left was a vague impression of her.

Athena smiled. “You guys must be hungry too, right? Let’s go eat

Then, she continued to change the topic. There are a few movie with good reviews for this Christmas Which movie are we going to watch tomorrow?”

Alaric immediately said, Tm determined not to watch comedy movies. It’s too stupid. Why don’t we watch sci–fi movies?

Arthur raised his hand. A sci–fi movie sounds good. Let’s watch together tomorrow”

As they spoke, they walked out of the theater and met up with Jalen and the others. They went to the private room.

downstairs to eat.

However. Athena did not know one thing.

That night, Alaric and Arthur were playing games in the same bed.

After losing several rounds in the game, Alaric tossed his phone onto the bed and sat cross– legged. “Hey moron, I can’t stop thinking about that photo at the very end of the movie. How about we go see it again tomorrow and get a better look at that girl?”

Arthur was about to scold him but realized Alaric was talking about something serious. He quickly sat up and said, “I’m also curious about it. Tomorrow, when we go, we’ve got to get a good picture of that shot. We have to make sure it’s clear.”

“Of course,” Alaric said, grabbing Arthur’s phone and slapping him on the back. “Use your phone to take the photo! My phone’s only worth over 1 thousand dollars but yours costs over 200 thousand dollars! If the photo’s bad, you’d better apologize with your life!”

Arthur shuddered a little, then asked cautiously, “Do you think I’ll get bad karma if I play mobile games every day with a phone that costs over 200 thousand dollars?”

After realizing the phone was worth over 200 thousand dollars, Arthur held it as if it were a family heirloom, staring at it for a long time before finally deciding to continue using it for gaming.

‘It can’t be helped. My gaming skills aren’t as good as others, so I have to rely on the hardware to win, Arthur thought.

Alaric stared at Arthur speechlessly.

our wealth He then hit Arthur even harder. “Take that, you show–off! I’ll beat you to death! Let’s see how you can flaunt your after this!”