Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 226

“Ready, action!”

As Jin Natra said, the unstable Time Stone brought changes to the planet Natra.

The bright sunlight woke him up, but soon the sunset was falling, and when he tried to sleep in the dark night, the scorching sun was above his head.

Not only the Natrans, but also the livestock and plants they raised could not adapt to the whimsical time.

Every day was anxious.

Everyone looked at the sky with worried faces, wondering how long this phenomenon would last.

Those who knew the cause could only follow Jin Natra, who was holding on to his lifeline. The only thing that could solve this natural disaster was the pieces of Time Stone that Jin Natra had.

For that reason, there were those who bowed their heads reluctantly, and those who tried to please the current ruler. 

The Natra palace, where they were mixed, was precarious like a thin ice.

Jin Natra, who seemed to do anything right away, was surprisingly living a quiet life. He handled his work skillfully, thanks to the successor classes he had taken.

The madman who even shattered the Time Stone was quiet… The knights and ministers around Jin Natra were more anxious about that.

It was like the calm before the storm.

Jin Natra, who took over the king’s office, was also dealing with incidents and accidents caused by the unstable time cycle as usual.

“Your Majesty. Bel… Natra’s spaceship is coming.”

Now that the king was decided, Bel Natra, who was nothing more than a successor candidate, was no longer called ‘Lord Bel’. 

The knight stuttered a little at the unfamiliar title.

Jin Natra looked up from his paperwork. 

A light flickered in his dead black eyes, which made him wonder if he was alive.

The knights and ministers bowed their heads unknowingly at that look.

The madman seemed to be moving.

“Do you want me to catch him?”

The other successor candidates were all forcibly stripped of their shadows, and those shadows became the energy of the Time Stone. 

They were candidates who barely kept their thin lives, like the former king who was imprisoned in the king’s bedroom.

“No.”

Jin Natra smiled leisurely.

“Pull out all the guards in the palace.”

“Ah, no. Then…”

“Pull them out.”

“…Yes.”

The knights bowed their heads at Jin Natra’s firm words.

And soon after, a knight ran in.

“Your Majesty! Tul Natra is gone!”

One of the few loyal knights of Jin Natra knelt down in front of him and reported.

Even though he heard that Tul Natra, who had been imprisoned in the king’s bedroom with a thin lifeline, had disappeared, Jin Natra showed no sign of surprise. 

Jin Natra put down his pen comfortably and got up from his chair and walked toward the window.

Beyond the large window, a spaceship flying at high speed was visible. 

It was a familiar spaceship after his own. 

The knights behind Jin Natra also knew whose spaceship it was.

‘That’s why I opposed the order to pull out the guards…!’

Would he blame them for not guarding properly? 

The knights remembered Jin Natra’s tremendous power and became thoughtful. They clenched their sweaty hands and waited for Jin Natra’s order.

Jin Natra looked at Bel Natra’s spaceship being attacked by dozens of spaceships in the blue sky where the sun was high. 

He smiled and said as he still looked out the window.

“If you can’t catch him in two hours, come back.”

“Yes!”

Only the knights who would escort him remained and everyone else ran outside.

A moment later, dozens of spaceships flew up into the sky where the sunset was falling.

Dozens of spaceships attacked Bel Natra’s spaceship flying away. 

Bel Natra’s spaceship dodged the attacks like dancing.

Jin Natra watched Bel Natra’s spaceship being attacked and his spaceships attacking the daughter of the former king with a smile.

“Cut! OK!”

***

Early morning.

Seo-jun woke up from his sleep. 

He opened his eyes with still blurry eyes and looked at the clock on the wall. 

It was 6:40 am, 20 minutes earlier than 7 o’clock when his alarm went off.

‘Should I wake up later?’

It wasn’t time to get up yet.

He blinked his eyes a few times and buried himself deep in his warm blanket.

Needless to say, Shadowman 3 had more weight on hero Shadowman than villain Jin Natra. 

So Seo-jun had a lot of free time during his shooting period of over three months.

‘But it’s not enough to go back and forth to Korea.’

Seo-jun had no shooting today and rolled around on his bed.

‘I don’t have any shooting today so I’ll rest a bit and do my homework… If I have time left, should I go to the set? Or should I go to Jack’s school? It would be nice to go for a walk in a nearby park or watch a new movie…’

He spent 20 minutes in a daze and soon it was 7 o’clock. 

He got up quickly before the alarm went off and turned off the alarm. He yawned loudly and headed to the bathroom.

He went downstairs after washing up and Seo Eun Hye, who was preparing breakfast, greeted him with a bright smile. 

She quickly wiped her wet hands and pushed her phone to Seo-jun.

“Seo-jun, look at this.”

“Huh? What is it?”

There was an article on the phone that Seo Eun Hye handed him.

“Wow.”

Seo-jun’s eyes widened. 

There were many other articles as well. 

Seo Eun Hye also laughed out loud at the sight of Seo-jun smiling happily at the good news.

“Eun Chan asked me to shoot some comments and send them to him.”

Seo-jun burst into laughter at the sight of his mother, who looked happier than himself.

“Okay. I’ll send it now.”

“Fix your hair a little!”

“Okay.”

He put down his phone and headed for the mirror to fix his roughly dried hair. 

The phone screen on the table flashed.

[Escape Seo-jun, Blue Dragon Film Awards Best Actor Award!]

***

“I won the award!”

As soon as he saw the article, Seo-jun, who had scheduled his day today, was at the Shadowman 3 set. 

The scene to be shot today was a scene where Shadowman Mac and Bel Natra and Tul Natra, who escaped to Earth, appeared, so all three actors were there.

“Congratulations, Jun.”

“Thank you.”

“Jun, congrats.”

“Let’s have a party!”

Seo-jun giggled at Swallen Anem’s compliment. 

Evan Block and Rachel Hill also congratulated him with a smile. 

Seo-jun quickly showed them his phone.

“There’s one for Evan and Rachel too.”

“Huh?”

“Look at this.”

[Blue Dragon Film Awards, Special Cameo Award! Evan Block and Rachel Hill win!]

Evan Block and Rachel Hill were surprised to see the phone screen. 

Swallen Anem tilted his head at the Korean he didn’t understand. 

Seo-jun translated for him and said with a smile.

“They said there are trophies too. I know your addresses, so I’ll send them to you when the trophies come to Cocoa Entertainment.”

“Um, do we really need to do this?”

“I guess not.”

Rachel Hill was about to continue, when Jonathan, the assistant director, shouted.

“Let’s start shooting!”

Swalin Anem, Evan Block, and Rachel Hill got up from their seats and Seo-jun waved his hand.

“Good luck with the shooting!”

***

“Ready, action!”

Tul Natra and Bel Natra escaped from the pursuing Natra army and hid on Earth. 

The only person they could rely on was a shadowman named Mac, who lived in a small apartment.

While Tul Natra, who was forced to inherit the throne, was adjusting to his new body, Bel Natra pushed the two awkward people out.

“Don’t you have anything you want to do with your father? Do it now!”

Mac pushed the wheelchair where Tul Natra was sitting and headed to a nearby park.

Mac, who didn’t know why Bel Natra and Tul Natra came here, couldn’t take his eyes off Tul Natra, who claimed to be his biological father. 

Tul Natra also couldn’t look at Mac properly, who was his son. In the awkward atmosphere, Mac opened his mouth first.

“So…”

He couldn’t say the word ‘father’. 

Since he left the house, Tul Natra had been pouring all his nerves behind him. 

Mac barely spat out a word and closed his mouth again.

The park was full of people’s laughter.

Mac, who was quietly pushing the wheelchair, licked his lips and said with difficulty.

“…Do you want to play catch?”

Catch ball was something that every American kid would try with their family at least once.

Mac, an orphan who could only envy his school friends who hated playing catch ball with their dad, had always wished for it.

“…Catch ball?”

Tul Natra asked in a puzzled voice and Mac shivered. His hands holding the wheelchair were sweaty.

‘No, is catch ball too lame? Well, it is kind of lame for this age…’

When Tul Natra didn’t answer, Mac said hastily.

“You don’t have to do it if you don’t like it!”

Tul Natra hesitated a little and opened his mouth.

“…What is catch ball?”

Tul Natra didn’t know what catch ball was, so Mac explained it with his whole body and quickly bought a ball. 

Since Tul Natra’s body was still weak and he couldn’t throw hard, he didn’t need a glove.

He was excited and smiling brightly. Mac’s face made even Tul Natra, who didn’t know the meaning behind the action of catch ball, feel a pang in his chest. 

Mac’s face under the sparkling sun was indescribably touching when he saw it properly for the first time.

The colorful ball flew in a round arc from Mac to Tul Natra, from Tul Natra to Mac. The people walking in the park smiled at the sight of the affectionate father and son.

“Mac!”

A man who seemed to know Mac appeared and Tul Natra stopped his hand that was about to throw the ball.

“Who are you? Are you volunteering?”

The man who knew that Mac volunteered at a nursing home asked in a low voice.

But Tul Natra’s hearing was still sharp. 

Tul Natra, who wanted to accept whatever Mac introduced him as without burdening him, turned his gaze away.

By chance or not, there was a family playing catch ball like Tul Natra and Mac. Mac followed Tul Natra’s gaze and looked at them and pursed his lips.

“No.”

“Huh?”

“He’s my father.”

Mac, no, Muel Natra said.

The father could only bury his face in his wrinkled palm at the words of his son whom he finally found after more than 100 years.

“Cut, OK!”

***

“It’s cliché, but it’s catch ball.”

Evan Block said as he threw the ball to Rachel Hill and everyone laughed.

There was no better cliché than catch ball to show the love of family in everyday life. 

It was cliché but very effective.

“Yeah. It appears in many other movies too.”

Rachel Hill caught the ball from Evan Block and threw it to Swalin Anem as she spoke.

“How was the shooting, Jun?”

Swalin Anem caught the ball and threw it to Seo-jun. 

Seo-jun smiled at the feeling of the ball in his hand.

“It was fun. Chroma key was a bit unfamiliar though.”

Seo-jun threw the ball to Evan Block.

“I felt that way when I filmed Shadowman 1.”

“I still feel a bit awkward.”

Evan Block caught the ball and threw it to Rachel Hill. 

Rachel Hill threw it to Swalin Anem. Swalin Anem threw it to Seo-jun.

“But thanks to CG, we can express more scenes in movies. It’s a good thing.”

“It’s harder for actors to immerse themselves though.”

“You’re just being modest while doing well.”

The actors laughed at Evan Block’s modesty and Swalin Anem’s words.

The proposer of this square catch ball was Swalin Anem.

“I was feeling a bit sore from sitting and lying down all the time.”

Ryan, the director, nodded his head with a smile at Swalin Anem’s words, who jokingly rubbed his back.

They chatted and played catch ball, and time flew by.

“It seems like the shooting preparation is almost done.”

“Shall we stop here then?”

At Seo-jun’s words, Swalin Anem stopped his hand that was about to throw the ball.

The three actors handed the ball, which was a prop, to the staff and moved to fix their makeup. 

Seo-jun, who didn’t appear in the scene, followed them.

“By the way, when will the article come out?”

“They said they would release it when everything was confirmed.”

Evan Block answered Rachel Hill’s question.

“It’s going to be a big deal.”

“I think so too.”

Swalin Anem nodded his head at Rachel Hill’s words and thought of what would happen soon. He laughed like a villain.

***

Two weeks later, an article that turned Korea upside down came out.

[(Exclusive) Shadowman 3, confirmed to shoot in Seoul, Korea!]