In response to Seo Eun-hye's words, Nara entered the tent and replied,
"Probably. From what I saw in the script, it must be scary for the kids."
"Will Seo Jun be okay?"
"Yeah!"
He'll be completely fine. In fact, he's excited about the upcoming shoot.
Seo Jun answered and sat down on the small chair set up for the child actors.
The tent, which served as a waiting room for the child actors who were going to audition, contained two cots, a large table, a small table, a mirror, several adult chairs, and several children's chairs.
There were also snacks, sandwiches, and juice.
Seo Eun-hye also looked around the tent. It was amazing to be on an American film set. She had never even been to a Korean film set.
Nara handed Seo Eun-hye a cup of coffee and spoke.
"Is it intimidating to be on a Marinsa film?"
"I thought I was going to die for three days."
Seo Eun-hye sighed in response. Her hands had even trembled when she signed the audition and filming consent form sent by mail.
Marinsa!
If you were to name the top 3 most famous film production companies in the world right now, Marinsa would definitely be among them.
Marinsa became famous by creating live-action versions of their animated superhero characters.
The most popular movie is Redbone.
Redbone 1, which no one cared about, turned the world upside down after its release. Redbone fans sprang up all over the world. Now, Redbone 2 is in production, and the public's interest is enormous.
"Aunt Nara, is Redbone in it?"
"No, it's a Marinsa film, not a Redbone film."
"Aw!"
Seo Jun, who enjoyed watching Redbone, pouted. Even if it were a Redbone film, the scene Seo Jun would be in would be very short. A scene that moviegoers would forget in a second.
Nara smiled as she watched Seo Eun-hye drink her coffee and calm down.
"This is a secret, but the filming of Redbone 2 was delayed due to an accident, so Marinsa decided to produce and release two other films beforehand. That's why the filming schedule is urgent."
"Two films?"
Just as Seo Jun asked, a coughing sound and a woman's voice came from outside the tent.
"Excuse me, may we come in?"
"Yes, please come in."
Two people, a man and a woman, entered the tent. The woman was forcing a smile, and the man was wearing a thick outer coat.
"Hello, I'm Melissa, playing the role of William's mother."
"Hello, I'm Barron, here to assist with the filming."
Seo Jun got up from his chair and greeted them.
"Hello, I'm child actor Seo Jun Lee."
The two people's eyes widened, and they smiled. They had heard that the youngest child actor was 4 years and 10 months old, but he seemed quite smart and articulate. Melissa smiled and said,
"I thought it would be better to get to know each other before filming, so I came with Barron."
This was the fifth time she had come to the child actors' waiting room. Melissa's forced smile felt like a spasm.
"Because it might be scary if I suddenly pick you up from behind."
Barron felt the same way.
"Ah, please sit down. I'm Seo Jun's mother, Eun-hye Seo."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Nara Kim."
After exchanging greetings, the atmosphere in the waiting room became quiet but soon relaxed. This was because the sociable Nara Kim actively asked about the film set.
"Repeating the same lines must be tiring."
Melissa shook her head.
"I can act as much as I want, but the problem is that the kids cry too much."
"From the front, a woman they've never seen before screams, and from the back, a stranger picks them up."
Barron smiled bitterly.
"The kids are young and get scared easily."
"We just act, but the staff members work hard."
Melissa and Barron thought of Jonathan Will, the only young and small staff member with a fierce appearance, who was in charge of taking care of the children.
Jonathan Will had been running around all day, calming and taking care of the crying children.
Melissa and Barron decided to achieve their purpose for coming to the tent.
Melissa, Barron, and Seo Jun, the three actors, sat in chairs and started talking. They talked about everything from playing with their neighbor's friend Jack to the other films currently being shot.
Seo Eun-hye and Nara smiled proudly at Seo Jun's happy conversation.
Melissa asked,
"Jun, have you read the script?"
"My mom read it to me."
"How was it? What do you think William felt?"
"He must have been really happy."
Melissa and Barron, who had already seen the scene several times, widened their eyes. Happy? That's impossible!
"Why?"
"Because his mom called his name."
Seo Jun recalled the script his mother had read to him.
Seo Jun's scene was short. The invaders had created wormholes all over the Earth. Seo Jun's scene was one of the scenes showing the aftermath.
A baby playing alone in the yard looks at his mother, who has run out of the house after seeing the emergency news.
"William!"
When the mother calls the baby's name like a scream, the baby, holding a teddy bear, smiles brightly.
At that moment, a terrifyingly black wormhole appears behind the baby. The desperate mother calls out again.
"William!!"
But the baby smiles even more brightly at his mother's scream and is instantly sucked into the wormhole, leaving only one shoe behind.
"William didn't know anything. He was just happy because his mom called him."
"That's a good interpretation."
A familiar voice was heard. Or rather, it sounded similar to the one they had heard earlier.
Seo Jun looked up to see a man entering the tent. Seo Jun, who had been sitting in a chair, lifted his head so high it almost hurt to look at the man.
He was huge.
His height and build were so large that Seo Jun's mouth dropped open. Seo Eun-hye and Nara's eyes also widened. If he hadn't become a film director, he might have become an athlete.
"Director!"
Melissa and Barron, who had been sitting next to Seo Jun, jumped up.
It was Ryan Will, the director of this film.
Ryan Will entered the tent. Next to the director stood a makeup artist holding a cosmetics box and a stylist holding the clothes Seo Jun would wear.
Ryan Will sat in front of Seo Jun. Their eyes met.
Ryan's blue eyes moved up and down, examining Seo Jun. The child was larger in person than in the video.
Black hair. Black eyes. His features were distinct and would look good on screen. His height seemed appropriate. Even when he made a fierce expression, he didn't look scared.
Moreover, despite being just an extra, he had interpreted the script on his own, unlike other child actors who only followed their guardians' instructions.
Ryan Will smiled fiercely and extended his hand, which was as big as Seo Jun's face.
"Since you're not scared of me, you seem to have good courage. Nice to meet you, I'm Ryan Will."
"Hello, I'm child actor Seo Jun Lee. You can call me Jun."
Ryan Will's large hand and Seo Jun's small hand touched.
"Right. No matter how sad and serious the situation around William is, he doesn't know anything. So, he needs to smile happily. Jun."
"Okay!"
Seo Jun smiled brightly at Ryan's words. I'm ready with my secret weapon!
After greeting Seo Eun-hye and Nara Kim, Ryan Will left the tent to prepare for the next shoot.
"Shall we change your clothes first?"
The stylist, who had been checking the time, said. Seo Jun changed his clothes. Fortunately, the season in the film was autumn, so Seo Jun was dressed warmly.
"It's a bit chilly, but the fabric is thick, and I've attached a warm hand warmer inside, so it should be fine."
"You don't need much makeup."
After finishing their tasks, the two quickly left the tent to find other things to do.
"Let's go, too. Jun, good luck!"
Melissa, who played William's mother, and Barron, who would help lift Seo Jun and make him disappear into the chroma key, known as the wormhole, left to prepare for the shoot.
Nara also went outside the tent to make a phone call. Everyone seemed to have left by some unspoken agreement, leaving only Seo Eun-hye and Seo Jun in the tent.
"What do you want to do, Seo Jun?"
"Meditation!"
Seo Jun took out a flat slime pillow from his zombie bag. It was a pillow made by Kim Hee-sang, Seo Jun's favorite item that he always carried.
"Aren't you going to sleep?"
"No, it's meditation."
Seo Eun-hye laughed. Where did he hear the word 'meditation'? She was tired of being surprised by her son's advanced language development, which was far beyond his peers.
"Okay, I'll read a book here."
"Okay!"
Seo Jun climbed onto the cot in the corner of the tent and lay down, using the slime pillow as a headrest. Seo Eun-hye covered him with a blanket from the side.
"I'll wake you up when it's time to shoot."
"It's meditation."
Seo Jun, pouting, closed his eyes.
The [Summer Bear's Winter Sleep - Lowest Tier] engraved on the back of Seo Jun's head was working excellently. As soon as his head touched the pillow, he fell asleep.
[Summer Bear's Winter Sleep - Lowest Tier]
Summer bears, which are only active in the summer, find autumn, winter, and spring too cold, so they just sleep.
For 30 minutes, they fall asleep as soon as they touch anything, anywhere.
It slightly increases recovery during sleep.
* * *
The Library of Life was in front of him. The blue door, which was the only one that had been open, now had another door open. It was a yellow door.
Seo Jun quickly brought the ability-imbued bead he had found in the yellow door library three days ago close to his face.
The bead glowed, and smile patterns appeared on both of Seo Jun's cheeks.
[Smiling Face Mushroom's Illusion - Low Tier]
When the user smiles, an illusion spell is cast on the target, making them feel sympathy for the user for a certain period.
The effect and duration vary depending on the target.
"This was a big problem because it automatically activates when you smile."
Seo Jun rubbed his slightly warm cheeks and recalled a week ago.
It was the ability he had found after listening to the script his mother read to him and searching all night. He was so happy to find the perfect ability that he registered it immediately.
The next morning, when he saw his parents and smiled as usual,
[Smiling Face Mushroom's Illusion has been activated.]
What?
Suddenly, his parents hugged him tightly. More tightly than usual! They seemed to be overwhelmed by a surge of emotion, and with tearful voices, they called out,
"Our Seo Jun!"
"Our cute Seo Jun!"
The effect varies depending on the target. It seemed to have caused more intense emotions because they were his parents.
Fortunately, their emotions soon subsided. However, due to the skill's influence, Seo Jun had to stay within his parents' sight for half a day. By the evening, all the effects had disappeared.
Seo Jun, surprised by the unexpectedly good ability, laughed and then stiffened his face and quickly went to sleep. He couldn't use it in daily life. He had to cancel this skill today.
Because of this skill, Seo Jun had no choice but to sleep at the filming site.
"It's going to be a problem from now on."
He mustn't smile. Seo Jun tapped his cheeks and opened his eyes.