Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 46

Ryan Will, the director, and Jonathan returned to the US a week later. Until then, the monologue that Ryan Will had written was still stuck at the first line.

Ryan Will and Seo-jun agreed to have a video call once a week and share their thoughts on the best recorded videos they had made.

Meanwhile, the grandparents who had gone on a trip to Europe came back safely.

The three of them handed Seo-jun pieces of paper with fireflies drawn on them, torn apart, as he came to pick them up at the airport.

What am I supposed to do with this? The talisman you gave me is torn.

Grandpas too. Can you draw it again later?

Yes!

The delicately drawn fireflies were ripped in different directions. They wouldnt have torn the gift they received from their grandson.

It worked!

Seo-jun was startled and looked around his grandparents, checking if they were hurt anywhere. The adults, who thought he was happy to see them, smiled.

The grandparents who came to Seo-juns house talked happily about their trip to Europe, and also mentioned the traffic accident.

The grandmother realized that she had left something at the hotel and went back with the guide.

Because of that, the package tour bus left about 10 minutes late.

I dont know how shocked I was when I saw the collision of 10 cars.

Everyone was blaming grandma for being late. But when the driver and the guide saw the accident and said, We would have been there if we had left on time, everyone shut their mouths!

Fortunately, there were no fatalities, but it could have been a big accident if the tourist bus had been involved in the collision. The couple and Seo-jun sighed with relief.

After the new year and the Lunar New Year, Seo-jun, who received a lot of birthday gifts, turned one year older.

He was now six years old. Seven years old in Korean age!

And.

A new door opened.

Ive been waiting!

Seo-jun, who had read all the books in the two open libraries three times, grabbed a thin straw and knocked on this door every night in front of the library.

He had been waiting for it to open, and it finally did.

Seo-jun opened the door of the newly opened library with all his strength, his eyes sparkling.

Why are you so low on energy today?

Hes been like that since this morning.

Seo-eun-chan, who had visited Seo-eun-hyes house for the first time in a long time, asked Ee-min-joon.

Seo-eun-chan had been busy taking over and sorting out Cocoa Entertainment, replacing the president who had been arrested for embezzlement and other crimes.

He came to tell Seo-jun, his sister, and his brother-in-law about the progress of the takeover of Cocoa Entertainment, but his nephew, who was always lively, was strange.

Seo-jun was lying on the living room sofa like a slime that had lost all its strength.

Whats wrong?

Nothing.

Nothing? What do you mean?

Theres nothing bad.

Seo-eun-chan rolled his eyes at Seo-juns incomprehensible words and looked at Ee-min-joon. Ee-min-joon smiled bitterly and pointed his finger at the kitchen.

Ryan Will, the director, came at the end of December.

Ee-min-joon continued his story slowly. Seo-eun-chan looked at the five-year-old kid, who was slumped on the sofa, with a bored expression, as he heard that he was still practicing the monologue and having a video call with Ryan Will every week.

He loved acting, but at that age, wasnt he supposed to lose interest as soon as he turned away?

Is it July already?

It was early July, when the summer sun was scorching and the typhoons were coming.

For seven months, Seo-jun had been practicing his one-man play diligently every day.

In the first month, he practiced morning, noon, and night. Whether at home or at kindergarten, he never took a break. But when he realized that it was not a short-term battle, but a long-term one, he started to practice only at a fixed time after coming back from kindergarten.

And he had dozens of video calls with Ryan Will. All of them ended in rejection.

Aaaah!

Seo-jun screamed and flapped on the sofa.

He couldnt find it in the newly opened library. He had read all the books, but it was not there.

He used his most promising ability, but he failed in one shot. He even heard that he looked kinder.

I havent done [Elfs Basic Breathing] since the day Ryan came!

He was so used to it that it became like breathing, but he tried hard not to do it unconsciously.

Oops. I just did it!

Seo-jun stopped the [Elfs Basic Breathing] that he was quietly doing with his whole body.

As Seo-jun lay down on the sofa, Seo Eun-chan smiled without knowing. It was a new side of Seo-jun, who had always been relaxed.

So these days, you see a lot of things you didnt know about Seo-jun.

His mother scolded him as he got up from eating and headed to his room. His father scolded him as he took out the script without washing after coming back from kindergarten. Lee Min-joon also laughed as he recalled the life of the past few months.

Maybe it was because they believed that Lee Seo-jun would make it through.

Unlike the adults faith, Seo-jun was getting more and more exhausted.

It had been seven months already. He had the confidence to do it for a year, five years, or even ten years. No, Seo-jun shook his head. Even I would have a hard time doing it for ten years.

Seo-jun sighed as he looked at the sky outside the window.

At first, he thought he could do it without using his ability, but Ryan Wills evaluation was not. He still said he looked kind.

So he waited for the next library to open, but all the lives inside were the same. Heres a nice kid. Theres a nice kid.

Sigh.

Seo-jun sighed again, feeling like he was carrying all the worries of the world.

Wouldnt it get better if he did a little more? Seo-jun got up from the sofa and headed to his room. Practice. Practice was the only way to survive.

As he repeated his practice and library visits, Seo-jun received unexpected news.

Ryan Will came back to Korea. Jonathan was with him. The couple and Seo-jun tensed up at the sudden appearance of the director. They had a feeling that something big was going to happen today.

Today, he performed in front of Ryan Will. He memorized all the lines and his movements were perfect. But he was rejected again. Ryan Will, who was watching Seo-jun sigh, suddenly opened his mouth.

Were going to start shooting Shadowman 2 in September.

At that voice, the couple and Seo-jun froze. Ryan Will unknowingly wiped his face as he saw Seo-juns eyes flicker. He wanted to wait a little longer, but

Shooting?

Yeah. I cant help it.

The schedules of the other actors in Shadowman 2 were set, as well as the release dates of the new Marine movies.

Director Ryan Will had postponed the deadline as much as he could with his discretion. But that was impossible now.

Seo-jun opened his mouth hesitantly. He had always enjoyed acting, but shooting. It was a desperate word that he wished would not come today.

So, what about the acting?

Lets just film it with the same acting you did at the audition.

Seo-jun was speechless. He had practiced for seven months, and they were telling him to do it the way he did it the first time. He changed the subject as he fidgeted with his mouth.

Are my pictures still circulating?

Thats something even the FBI cant get rid of.

They could try to erase the pictures that were floating on the internet, but they couldnt get rid of the ones that people had collected. Especially if they were printed out.

Ryan Will and Seo-jun shook their heads in resignation.

There were pictures of Seo-jun that Ryans mother had printed out and displayed at his home, and there were pictures that Kim Hee-sang had framed and put up at Seo-juns house.

The couple hung them in their room, ignoring Seo-juns displeased expression.

By the way, Jonathan said that some countries are making souvenirs like cups or fans with your pictures and selling them. Are they supposed to be lucky charms? He said they were very popular.

Ryan!

Seo-jun snapped at Ryans casual remark. The two had become close enough to exchange sarcastic jokes after dozens of video calls.

Thats because you looked so good. You were so into your angel act on Christmas Eve, werent you?

How was I supposed to know this would happen?

Seo-jun pouted. He was so happy to be on live TV on Christmas Eve, he used his power to bless the whole world. He couldnt deny Ryans words.

The sarcastic joke passed, and silence remained. After a long pause, Ryan Will spoke first.

How do you feel? Can you prepare for it?

Yes.

Seo-jun nodded. This time, he would get through [The Goblins Kim Seobang Prank], and next time, he would practice harder.

Ill try.

***

Jonathan watched Ryan and Seo-jun talk.

Ryan, who had told them the filming date, got up from his seat. The couple and Seo-jun said goodbye.

Should he stay at Seo-juns house and coach him on acting? Jonathan thought as he followed Ryan out of the door.

Where are you going?

Im going to revise the script.

He wondered how many times he had revised it. Jonathan looked at Ryans back as he pressed the elevator button.

He was his uncle who was really happy to find the perfect actor, even though he didnt show it. He felt sorry for his dejected appearance.

Are you going to revise it more?

The actor is working hard, so I have to do my best too.

He felt like he could change the actor at this point. Jonathan closed his mouth. Ryan, who had been making movies for years, knew that fact.

Seo-jun Lee must have known it too. But the two never gave up.

Jonathan and Ryan got on the elevator. A heavy silence enveloped them.

***

Seo-jun stood in front of the library. Ryan Will, the director, had come to tell him about the filming of Shadowman 2.

Sigh.

It was August now. Seo-jun turned around and walked away. The brightly shining Sun Seong-hyangs library gradually disappeared behind his back, and darkness came.

He hadnt walked far when he saw several doors. Unlike the colorful doors of Sun Seong-hyangs library, they were all black.

The library door was covered with thick black chains.

Seo-jun approached the door and touched it. Neither the door nor the chains reacted.

This monstrous library was filled with various evil reincarnations.

An evil-aligned library.

There was only one way to unlock the chains and open the door. He had to possess evil-aligned mana (magi).

If Seo-jun had used [Basic Breathing of Mine] to create a source, the evil-aligned library would have opened wide, and thick white chains would have tightly wrapped around the good-aligned library.

It was his daily routine for eight months, but he still felt nervous.

Seo-jun exhaled and relaxed his tense body. The good-aligned mana (seongi) inside his body squirmed as if it was affected by the evil-aligned library.

Seo-jun sat down in front of the evil-aligned library. 

He closed his eyes.