Chapter 231
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 231
Chapter Title: The Grand Finale
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Even with the new year, the filming of *Shadowman 3* continued.
One would think the cast and crew would be exhausted by the relentless schedule, but thankfully, as the end of filming drew near, everyone seemed to find a new surge of energy.
“It’s strange, isn’t it? No one’s gotten hurt even once during this shoot.”
“There hasn’t been a single accident, either.”
“Sure, there were some minor mistakes, but definitely fewer than on other sets.”
The staff and stuntmen chattered in amazement as they prepared for the shoot. It had been exceptionally smooth.
“You think it’s because of that?”
“‘That’?”
“The… gosa… on the first day of filming?”
“You went to see it?”
“Yeah. I was curious.”
As the staff member who had attended the ritual chattered on, the stuntmen standing a little ways off nodded in agreement.
“Now that you mention it. Jaeyeon, do you really think that’s why?”
“Hmm.”
At the question from Kevin, Evan Block’s stunt double, Kim Jaeyeon, who had been reviewing footage of that day’s action scene, scratched his cheek.
“Isn’t it probably just a coincidence? In Korea, accidents often happen even after holding a gosa.”
“Really? If it was related, I was going to suggest we do it before our next project too. Ah, Jun. You’re here?”
“Hello, everyone!”
Seojun, who was greeting the staff and stuntmen, smiled faintly at Kim Jaeyeon’s words. The `(Good) Orc Shaman's Prayer` was certainly having its effect.
“Jaeyeon-hyung. Hello.”
“Hey, Seojun. You’re here?”
“What are you up to?”
“Just reviewing today’s scene.”
Seojun sat down next to Kim Jaeyeon. Jaeyeon showed him his phone. On the screen, footage of Jaeyeon and Evan Block practicing was playing.
“Jaeyeon-hyung. Are you nervous?”
“...Yeah. I messed up six times during the Gyeongbok Palace scene.”
After finishing the shoot in Korea, the Shadowman team had been filming action scenes to their hearts’ content on the Gyeongbok Palace set built by Marine Company.
The scenes Kim Jaeyeon had been responsible for then were one where he, attached to a wire, leaped over the wormhole generator to strike down at Shadowman with a spear, and another where he was attacked by Shadowman’s shadow and slammed into a wall.
He had six NGs there. Since one of them was due to a tangled wire, it wasn't entirely his fault. They weren't major mistakes, so Director Ryan had simply reshot the scenes without much comment.
But each of those NGs had chipped away at Kim Jaeyeon’s confidence.
Seojun’s gaze drifted to the top of Jaeyeon’s head, who was anxiously shaking his leg. The Spring Zelkova Tree planted there was lush with leaves, a stark contrast to Jaeyeon’s state of mind.
[Target: Jin Natra / Assimilation Rate: 89%]
‘It’s gone up quite a bit.’
Perhaps today’s shoot would push it past 90%. The 90% realm was something else entirely. Seojun smiled in satisfaction.
“You’ll do great.”
“...Thanks.”
Jaeyeon was grateful, even if it was just empty encouragement.
After chatting with Jaeyeon for a bit, Seojun spotted Swalin Anum, who had just arrived. Seojun broke into a wide grin. A smile that seemed to radiate light, making Jaeyeon and the stuntmen squint as if dazzled.
‘A true superstar.’
Seojun quickly ran over to Swalin Anum.
“Hello!”
“Hello, Jun. We’re filming together starting today, right?”
“Yes!”
Seojun beamed at Swalin Anum’s words.
Starting today, the scenes with Swalin Anum that Seojun had been so eagerly awaiting would continue. The only sad part was that it wouldn't last for very long.
“I’m so excited! I’ll work really, really hard!”
Swalin Anum couldn’t help but laugh at Seojun’s sparkling demeanor.
“Alright. Let’s do our best.”
“Yes!”
***
“Ready,”
[(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.]
[(Evil) Mashed's Shadow Arts - Mid-Low is activated.]
[The grade of [(Evil) Mashed's Shadow Arts - Mid-Low] is temporarily lowered.]
[(Evil) Mashed's Shadow Arts (Low) is activated.]
Standing on the green chromakey set, Seojun’s presence was extraordinary. No, the person standing there was no longer Seojun Lee, but Jin Natra.
At Seojun’s unexpectedly rapid immersion, Evan Block, Richel Hill, and Swalin Anum, who stood before him, unknowingly tensed up.
“...Did something happen?”
Swalin Anum answered Evan Block’s question.
“He said he was going to work really hard.”
“...That’s terrifying.”
It was clear how much he had been looking forward to filming with Swalin Anum. Seojun Lee’s version of ‘working hard’ was on another level.
Seeing the usually frigid atmosphere but knowing how thrilled Seojun must be on the inside, Evan Block and Richel Hill couldn't help but smile. They took a deep breath and focused on Jin Natra.
“But we can’t let him show us up.”
Seeing the three actors, who had been momentarily taken aback by Seojun’s immersion, now get into character, Director Ryan shouted without a moment’s delay.
“Action!”
“I told you, didn’t I?”
Standing atop the wormhole generator in New York’s Central Park, Jin Natra smiled. Half of his face was covered in black, branch-like patterns. A crack in the branches near his jaw emitted a pure white light.
“That I would take away ‘everything’ precious to you.”
At Jin Natra’s words, Tul Natra’s eyes slowly widened. His heart pounded painfully with anxiety. His entire body trembled.
Ah…!
Why did he only realize it now?
Tul Natra finally understood that the ‘precious thing’ Jin Natra spoke of included the boy standing before him. Tul Natra’s pupils quaked as he stared at Jin Natra.
The child Tul Natra had cherished and raised all this time opened his mouth.
“And you can’t leave out ‘Jin Natra’ in that.”
Who, who would have ever imagined?
Tul Natra, who had felt a sense of relief in one corner of his heart, imagining a future where Jin Natra would live well after his revenge was complete, felt his breath catch in his throat at the words of his precious son, who was now using his own life as a tool for vengeance.
He never thought… that Jin Natra would go so far as to destroy himself.
“Father.”
Hearing himself called father for the first time in a long while, Tul Natra couldn’t stop the tears from flowing.
“Bell.”
A pale Bell Natra let out a silent scream.
“Shadowman.”
Shadowman stared at Jin Natra with trembling eyes.
“Choose.”
Jin Natra smiled brightly.
“Is it me? Or is it Earth and Natra?”
This was Jin Natra’s revenge.
If they didn't kill Jin Natra, Earth and Natra would be caught in the wormhole and collide.
To save Earth and Natra, they had to stop the wormhole by killing its power source, Jin Natra.
The answer was already decided.
And that’s what made the choice all the more cruel.
“Jin Natra!”
Bell Natra cried out, her voice choked with tears.
“The fact that Father, who was forcibly succeeded, is still alive.”
She had thought that Tul Natra, who should have died from the forced succession, was able to recover enough to fight now because of Jin Natra’s lingering attachment, not taking all of his power.
“The fact that you stopped chasing me when I was saving Father.”
She had thought that when he had them cornered but then withdrew his soldiers, it meant his thirst for revenge wasn't strong enough to kill his own father.
“The fact that you didn’t immediately attack us in New York.”
She had thought his hesitation to attack New York, where Tul Natra and Shadowman—the ones he resented most—were, was a sign of reluctance.
“The fact that you lured us all the way here!”
She thought he still considered them family.
But she was wrong.
Finally understanding Jin Natra’s actions, Bell Natra burst into tears.
“Was it all for this? Jin?”
“...Jin.”
Staggering from the shock, Tul Natra leaned on Shadowman for support and managed to utter a single word.
Jin Natra spread his arms wide.
He smiled brightly and purely, just like the innocent Jin Natra from his childhood, who knew nothing of the world.
“Father. Are you going to make me unhappy again this time?”
“Shadowman. Are you not going to save me again this time?”
“Bell. Are you going to abandon me again this time?”
Each of Jin Natra’s words pierced the hearts of the three. A heavy guilt washed over them.
“Now. Choose.”
*Vwooom!*
Smiling radiantly, Jin Natra placed both hands on the wormhole generator. Behind him, a black shadow danced and swayed.
The wormhole generator, fueled by Jin Natra’s energy, shot a blue flame into the air. And the final wormhole opened.
It was the Natra Royal Palace, a place of mixed precious memories and wounds they wished to erase.
“Cut, OK!”
***
The next scene was a fight between the berserk Jin Natra and the other three.
As there were many scenes of Jin Natra rampaging, the role of the stuntman, Kim Jaeyeon, was crucial.
Seojun would act right up to the start of an action sequence, and Kim Jaeyeon would seamlessly continue the action in his place.
Once Kim Jaeyeon’s action was done, Seojun would immediately follow up with his acting.
[Target: Jin Natra / Assimilation Rate: 90%]
Having achieved 90% assimilation, a deep, fake demonic energy flowed from Kim Jaeyeon’s Jin Natra.
While not on Seojun’s level, it was enough to impress Evan Block, Richel Hill, and Director Ryan, who had been watching Seojun’s Jin Natra for a long time.
The other staff members also took notice of Seojun’s stunt double, Kim Jaeyeon. They knew he’d be good at action, being a stuntman, but they hadn't expected him to capture the character's atmosphere as well.
As the gazes of the surprised crew fell upon him, Kim Jaeyeon’s tense body and mind slowly began to relax. Once the tension eased, his action sequences became even more dynamic.
“Cut, OK!”
At Director Ryan’s satisfied call, Seojun, who was watching the filming, also smiled with a proud expression.
***
“Ready, action!”
Jin Natra’s shadow swelled in size. A mere intangible illusion, the shadow only revealed its presence in the hands of a Natra.
A tangible, wave-like shadow swept over Central Park. The three of them dodged the shadow as it rushed towards them like a tsunami, overturning trees and earth.
And the battle began.
With Tul Natra’s appearance, the ministers who had been forced to bow to Jin Natra began to waver.
A third of the spaceships had already been destroyed in Korea, and half of the remainder had defected to Bell Natra. With Tul Natra’s arrival, even more ships switched sides. Only a handful of spaceships remained with Jin Natra.
Despite the clear disparity in forces, Jin Natra’s shadow was superior.
The shadow that stained the ground black shot up like spikes, piercing the spaceships. The ships flying in the air were frozen in place. Some of them, their engines impaled, exploded.
Shadowman, Bell Natra, and Tul Natra leaped across the spaceships and overturned trees, desperately trying to stop Jin Natra, but the difference in power was starkly evident.
*Kwoong!*
A massive tremor shook the ground.
A scientist remaining on a spaceship shouted.
-It is a precursor to the collision!
There wasn't much time left.
Watching the still-hesitant Shadowman and Bell Natra, Tul Natra was the first to move. He had tried to reason with him until now, but he had only learned that it was futile.
If so, he wanted to end it with his own sinful hands. So that Bell and Shadowman wouldn't feel the guilt.
Biting his lip, Tul Natra’s attack, for the first time, struck Jin Natra’s body, which was already cracking from his inability to control the power of the absorbed Time Stone.
***
Bell Natra’s spear pierced Jin Natra’s right shoulder—
Shadowman’s shadow pierced Jin Natra’s right thigh—
And, Tul Natra’s sword pierced Jin Natra’s left chest—
It passed through.
Bell Natra’s hand, holding the spear, trembled violently. She couldn't bring herself to look at Jin Natra before her. Her clenched jaw quivered. Tears blurred her vision.
Shadowman, who had been holding Jin Natra to aid Tul Natra’s attack, supported the weakening boy as he began to collapse. The lightness of Jin Natra’s body made his throat sting.
Tul Natra, who had closed in on his son and aimed for his heart for the sake of the greater good, was already weeping, his face a mess of tears.
He cried out loud.
Like a child who had lost his mother, like William had cried for his mother long ago in the ice desert, like the child who had cried in fear of the Natra people's cold stares, he cried out loud.
He cried as if he were vomiting everything up from within him.
The wormholes that filled the sky began to shrink. The noisy wormhole generator also ceased its movement. Its power source was gone.
Only after all the wormholes had vanished did the three people’s weapons revert to shadows.
With the weapons supporting him gone, Jin Natra’s body collapsed toward Shadowman and Tul Natra.
“William!”
“Bring the healing capsule!”
“Jin! Stay with me! You can’t lose consciousness!”
Shadowman caught the falling Jin Natra in his arms and gently laid him on the ground. While Tul Natra gave orders to the Natra people, Bell Natra quickly administered first aid.
Jin Natra, who had been watching them with a dazed expression, their anxious faces before him, slowly closed his eyes.
His face was peaceful, as if he had drifted off to sleep, as if he were nestled in his mother’s arms.
***
Early February.
Filming for the final installment of the Shadowman series, *Shadowman 3*, had wrapped.
#