Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 221

It had been three days since Evan Block and Rachel Hill joined the action training.

During that time, Evan Block, Rachel Hill, and Seo-jun had more opportunities to coordinate with each other.

The practice sequence was mostly similar.

They started with a slow speed to check each other’s timing and gradually moved faster. 

Then they practiced several times at normal speed and acted out their characters.

[(Evil) Death Knight’s Chivalry – Intermediate is activated.]

[The grade of [(Evil) Death Knight’s Chivalry – Intermediate] is temporarily lowered.]

[(Evil) Death Knight’s Chivalry (Low) is activated.]

The people who watched Seo-jun’s captivating performance and Evan Block’s matching performance were amazed.

Kim Jae Yeon was also amazed. 

And he examined Seo-jun closely. 

He had been thinking about it since that day, but it seemed that the best way to learn was to follow Seo-jun’s performance from head to toe.

‘I don’t know if I can do it by copying him, though.’

But as he continued to observe, he began to notice some points that he had not seen before.

Seo-jun’s movements when attacking Evan Block looked stiff as if he was wearing armor. 

His every movement seemed to be fixed in a mold.

Not only Seo-jun, but also Evan Block and Rachel Hill seemed to change when they acted and fought together.

‘But it’s not like their actions are different…?’

Kim Jae Yeon, who wrote down the details of Seo-jun’s performance on his script, wrote down his question and looked at Seo-jun again as if analyzing his performance.

***

A short break after practice.

Seo-jun, who was stretching lightly and drinking water, asked back Kim Jae Yeon’s question.

“Why are my movements stiff?”

“Yeah. You’re pretty smooth when you’re just practicing.”

Oh.

Seo-jun widened his eyes at Kim Jae Yeon’s words.

Stuntmen tended to focus more on action than acting. 

That made it hard to pay attention to the character’s acting as well.

‘I don’t need to do detailed acting for a character whose face doesn’t even show up.’

That was what he thought as a stuntman. But then he started to study the character.

Seo-jun liked Kim Jae Yeon, who was trying hard in his own way.

He had also found a suitable skill in the library last night, so he thought he should use it later.

“You mean the overall movement is similar, but the movement is a bit stiff. Like a soldier.”

Seo-jun said with a smile.

“Not a soldier, but a knight.”

“A knight?”

Kim Jae Yeon tilted his head at Seo-jun’s words. What knight?

Seo-jun explained with a smile.

“Jin Natra’s father is the king, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then what is Jin Natra, who is the son of the king?”

“Uh… a prince?”

Kim Jae Yeon blinked his eyes at the unexpected fact. 

It felt both fitting and unfitting to call Jin Natra a prince.

“What does that have to do with the movement?”

“Who do you think taught martial arts to the prince?”

“Well…”

Kim Jae Yeon widened his eyes at the answer that came to his mind in an instant.

Who would teach the prince?

Someone who could enter and leave the palace, who was close to the king’s bloodline, and who could be trusted enough to be in charge of security.

Someone who protected the palace, escorted the king’s bloodline, and carried out orders. A knight.

“So that’s why he’s a knight!”

Seo-jun nodded his head.

“Yes. He learned from the palace knights since he was young, so Jin Natra’s movements are bound to be stiff. Rather than stiff, that’s the ‘standard’ of a knight.”

Jin Natra, who learned from the knights’ teachings that had been passed down for generations.

Kim Jae Yeon suddenly remembered what the action director and Aiden had said.

With manners and dignity.

He didn’t understand what they meant then, but he understood after hearing Seo-jun’s explanation.

Kim Jae Yeon suddenly wondered.

“What about Bel Natra? He doesn’t seem very free in his movements either for someone who learned from a knight.”

Rachel Hill and Evan Block, who were listening next to him, made surprised expressions. Seo-jun smiled satisfiedly.

‘Jae Yeon hyung. You really looked closely.’

“Jin Natra is still inexperienced, so he follows the ‘standard’, but Bel Natra has a lot of combat experience, so he has more leeway.”

“What about Shadowman?”

“Shadowman didn’t have anyone to learn from, so he’s completely ‘practical’. He can be even more free than he is now.”

Ooh.

Before they knew it, the stuntmen and trainers were listening to Seo-jun’s story.

“A clash between a free mercenary and a formal knight, huh?”

“It’s like a novel. The story of a real prince who was a mercenary and a fake prince who was a knight.”

The stuntmen who were talking about Jin Natra and Shadowman looked at Rachel Hill, who opened her mouth.

“But Kim, you noticed well.”

“Right. I thought you might notice Jun’s acting because it’s eye-catching. But you even noticed our acting…”

Evan Block also nodded his head in admiration.

Seo-jun, who felt more pleased, smiled brightly and called Kim Jae Yeon, who was writing down Seo-jun’s story on his script.

“Jae Yeon hyung.”

“Hmm?”

“It looks like you have something stuck in your hair.”

“Really?”

Seo-jun reached out and pretended to peel off something that was stuck in Kim Jae Yeon’s hair, planting a seed.

[(Good) Spring Zelkova’s Mimicry – Intermediate]

You mimic the atmosphere of the target you want to imitate.

You need enough information about the target.

It takes a lot of time to mimic.

The tree-type monster, Spring Zelkova, mimics the trees around it.

From the sprout to the thick stem, the branches, the leaves, and even the atmosphere (personality).

It hides among the trees and sometimes preys on people, or becomes a copy of a rare plant and helps people. 

Of course, the effect of the copy is reduced.

[(Good) Spring Zelkova’s Mimicry – Intermediate is activated.]

[Target: Jin Natra / Synchronization: 15/100]

Thanks to the information he had collected in advance, a sprout had already grown on his head.

When this sprout grows into a complete spring zelkova, he will be able to mimic Jin Natra’s atmosphere.

Of course, he had to give it enough water and sunlight. The water and sunlight of the spring zelkova were observing, analyzing, and imitating the movements of the target.

If there was not enough information, it would wither.

“Seo-jun. Did you get it?”

“Yes!”

Seo-jun smiled brightly as he lowered his hand over Kim Jae Yeon’s head.

From now on, it all depended on Jae Yeon hyung’s efforts.

***

Time passed, and director Ryan Will, who had been busy preparing for the filming, showed up at the action training center for a mid-term check.

“Let’s see how much you’ve practiced.”

“Yes.”

Evan Block and Seo-jun stood in the middle of the training ground. 

The door was tightly closed, so there was no chance of people crowding in like last time.

Seo-jun and Evan Block, who had been smiling at each other, quickly hardened their faces.

[(Evil) Death Knight’s Chivalry – Intermediate is activated.]

[The grade of (Evil) Death Knight’s Chivalry – Intermediate is temporarily lowered.]

[(Evil) Death Knight’s Chivalry (Low) is activated.]

Clang!

Two spears collided.

Director Ryan watched the fight between Seo-jun and Evan Block. He felt the same thing that Evan Block had felt: ‘Jin Natra’s growth’.

Clack!

The stronger Jin Natra and Shadowman clashed again.

According to the script, Seo-jun’s Jin Natra had dignity in every step, and Evan Block’s Shadowman had a wild movement.

Clang!

The knight and the mercenary who collided with a loud noise retreated. 

The difference was clear from their steps, and director Ryan smiled with satisfaction.

He gave a brief comment to Seo-jun and Evan Block who finished acting, and Kim Jae Yeon approached him.

“Um… Director. Can you take a look at me too?”

He was worried if he could say such a thing, but he really wanted to get an evaluation from director Ryan. 

Kim Jae Yeon said with difficulty.

Director Ryan nodded willingly. He had often heard praises of Kim Jae Yeon from Seo-jun and the two actors.

“Should I be your partner? Kim?”

“Thank you!”

Kim Jae Yeon bowed his waist without knowing it. 

Evan Block, who was familiar with the Korean-style greeting, naturally accepted it.

Seo-jun looked at the tree that grew over Kim Jae Yeon’s head and headed to director Ryan’s side.

It was only a few branches with buds, but it would grow lush as the filming progressed.

[Target: Jin Natra / Synchronization Rate: 53 /100]

‘It’s over 50.’

Seo-jun smiled at the letters that only he could see. Jae Yeon hyung worked really hard. It seemed like only a week had passed, but he already exceeded the mid-point of 50%.

‘He didn’t show much until now…’

But he would definitely show a difference after 50%.

Seo-jun’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Kim Jae Yeon and Evan Block faced each other. 

Kim Jae Yeon swallowed his saliva and thought of Seo-jun’s Jin Natra.

[(Good) Spring Zelkova Tree Mimicry is activated.]

A faint magic that had no effect on his body, but looked real, flowed out of Kim Jae Yeon.

To be precise, it was from the spring zelkova tree above Kim Jae Yeon’s head. 

It was a replica, so the effect was weak, but the weak black magic became a clear mark on a blank paper.

Evan Block’s eyes widened at the changed atmosphere of Kim Jae Yeon. This stuntman was following Seo-jun, no, Jin Natra amazingly well.

‘Well. He can’t beat the real one.’

Evan Block smirked. This level of Jin Natra couldn’t stop Shadowman.

Clang!

Kim Jae Yeon moved as he recalled Jin Natra’s movements that he had studied.

The spring zelkova tree that only mimicked the target’s atmosphere couldn’t affect him. The knight-like posture and the standard movement were all the results of Kim Jae Yeon’s efforts.

Clang!

The sound of two spears colliding echoed in the training ground.

“Good.”

Director Ryan, who had been closely watching Kim Jae Yeon and Evan Block’s fight, exclaimed.

He was a stuntman who gave him three out of five points at the audition, but now he deserved five points. He was enough with just action, but he understood the character and followed the actor’s acting as well.

Director Ryan’s eyes shone.

“He may lack as an actor, but he is the best as a stuntman.”

“Jae Yeon hyung really worked hard.”

He asked Seo-jun about character interpretation and asked Ahn Da Ho for help to film his own scenes. He watched them every day. 

There were some stuntmen who wondered if he needed to do that much, but Kim Jae Yeon didn’t stop.

“He will do better when filming.”

Seo-jun looked at Kim Jae Yeon’s head. He looked forward to seeing the spring zelkova tree grow lush.

***

That evening.

Director Ryan and the Shadowman team decided to have dinner together.

“Please give me this.”

“Yes. I got it!”

The staff who took the order left the private room with a bright face.

“What were you thinking, director?”

Seo-jun and Evan Block’s eyes turned to director Ryan at Rachel Hill’s question. Director Ryan recalled what he had thought.

“I was going to show Jun’s face between the scenes where Kim acts instead. Whether it’s a bust shot or a close-up shot. Jun’s acting was so impressive that it would last for a while.”

He thought he could mix Seo-jun and Kim Jae Yeon’s scenes. He had made the script and the storyboard with that in mind. He was director Ryan Will.

“I never thought it would turn out like this.”

It sounded like a complaint, but director Ryan was smiling.

He didn’t know if he had to change all the scenes he had prepared for a long time, but he was satisfied. 

The skills of the actor and the stuntman had improved, and that would have a good effect on the work.

‘Maybe there will be better scenes…’

He thought there would be no changes for Shadowman 3, which he had prepared for a long time, but it seemed that things didn’t go as planned.

“But Jun.”

Rachel Hill called Seo-jun.

“Yes?”

“Did you grow again in a month?”

“Yes.”

Seo-jun smiled proudly. He was in his growth spurt.

“I’m glad I picked a stuntman who matched your height to grow.”

Director Ryan sighed with relief.

The stuntman audition a few months ago.

He calculated Seo-jun’s growth rate and picked Kim Jae Yeon, who had a similar silhouette to Seo-jun at that time, but was a few centimeters taller.

“If I had picked someone who fit Jun’s height at that time, the stuntman would have been smaller than the actor.”

By the way, if he kept growing at this rate, he wondered if he had to prepare more costumes for filming. Seo-jun laughed at director Ryan’s worried look.

“But I think I’ll grow slower now.”

“Can you control that?”

“I have a feeling.”

Seo-jun laughed as he thought of [(Good) Slime’s Digestion Ability], which would be quietly placed in the Library of Life.