Is This Really a Five-Year-Old's Acting?

The camera was still focused on him, while the snarling "Dire Wolf" continued slowly advancing toward him.

Seeing Director Okawa and the others giving him a thumbs-up from afar, Seiya naturally understood that this was an opportunity to add more scenes for himself.

But had these adults really considered that he was only a five-year-old boy when they gave him extra scenes without explaining anything beforehand and just told him to improvise?

He had been a little too hasty in saying he did not need payment. After putting on such a strenuous performance, it would really be unreasonable if they did not pay him a little extra afterward.

As he watched "Dire Wolf" slowly approach, Seiya could only brace himself with the Bamboo Sword before "struggling" back to his feet.

Very soon, Director Okawa and the crew present witnessed what a true young kendo prodigy looked like.

A five-year-old child was actually wielding a Bamboo Sword and circling around a police dog made up to look like Dire Wolf.

Whether it was his evasive movements or his sword swings, everything looked utterly natural. In particular, the scene where Seiya used the Bamboo Sword to hold back Dire Wolf's fangs had everyone present watching in breathless suspense.

They were clearly the ones filming the movie, yet for one fleeting moment, they even had the illusion that what they were seeing was completely real.

Seiya's original screen time in the film was supposed to be only around a minute, but this subsequent fight scene was extended to more than five minutes.

According to the director, this fight scene alone was enough to elevate the entire movie.

As for the movie's runtime, there was no need to worry about that at all. They could simply cut some insignificant plotlines from elsewhere in the film.

"Kid, my name is Soichiro Okawa. I apologize for underestimating you before. Here is my business card.

"Your talent and potential far exceeded my initial expectations. If it is you, perhaps you really might become the brightest child star."

After filming ended, Director Okawa not only sought out Seiya himself, but also paid him thirty thousand yen for the shoot.

Although Seiya had indeed said at the beginning that he did not need payment, his performance this time had been exceptionally good, and he had received far more screen time than originally planned. In the end, he was still paid.

Looking at the ten-thousand-yen bills inside the envelope and the business card in his hand, Seiya was stunned for a while before a faint smile finally appeared on his face.

Being an entertainer really was profitable. He was just an unknown extra, and after only a few minutes of basically playing himself, he had earned thirty thousand yen.

Yuko worked day and night drawing manga at home, yet her monthly income was probably only a few hundred thousand yen.

Even with that income, she was already considered upper-middle income among people her age.

"Hmph, you never told Kana that you knew kendo like that!

"Damn it, everyone in the crew is praising you now. No one is even talking about Kana's acting anymore. You are obviously just a newcomer, and an outsider to acting at that. Why did Kana lose...?"

For his first attempt at acting, Seiya was quite satisfied with his performance today.

It did not count as a debut, but he had at least entered the industry. Moreover, he had been paid for his very first job, so Seiya was quite happy with the outcome.

But while he was happy, a certain loli beside him was unhappy because of it.

As a genius child star, Arima Kana might not compare herself with adult actors, but among child stars, she was clearly the big name.

She could not accept that, as the senior, she had actually been overshadowed this time by Seiya, a newcomer and complete amateur.

This was already the second time Kana had tasted defeat at the hands of someone her own age.

The last time had been some guy named Hoshino Aqua, and this time it was Seiya.

Whether it was that Aqua or Seiya, they were obviously around her age, yet she, a genius child star, had been defeated by them. It made her extremely unwilling to accept it.

"Relax, Kana-chan. The only reason I managed to outshine a genius child star like you was because this role suited me so well.

"An actor is someone who can handle all kinds of roles. Compared to you, Kana, who is called a genius child star, I am still far behind.

"And I think you acted brilliantly too. Just watching from the side, I felt like I could learn a lot."

It could not be helped. The reason Seiya had gotten this opportunity in the first place was ultimately because Arima Kana had fought for it on his behalf, and Seiya was very grateful to her for that.

So now that the tsundere loli was unhappy, Seiya naturally had to cheer her up.

"Hmph... It is good that you know how amazing Kana is. Becoming an actor is very difficult, you know.

"But... your... performance just now was not bad either. Of course, compared to genius child star Kana, you are still far, far behind."

No matter how tsundere she was, Kana was still only a loli. Hearing someone praise and acknowledge her still made her secretly pleased.

Seiya's praise as a "sensible junior" quickly made her forget her earlier unhappiness, and she trotted back to her mother's side.

When Seiya returned home with the thirty thousand yen he had earned, Yuko was clearly quite surprised as well.

She had originally thought Seiya had merely gone sightseeing with the crew, but she had not expected him to actually receive "payment" in the end.

Especially after Yuko heard from Arima Kana's mother that Director Okawa thought highly of Seiya, she repeatedly marveled at his young face.

Yuko did not take the thirty thousand yen Seiya had earned. On one hand, the money was only a drop in the bucket for their current circumstances.

On the other hand, Yuko felt that if they truly had to rely on a child only a few years old to earn money and support the household, then she, as an adult, would be far too ashamed.

So at Yuko's suggestion, Seiya's thirty-thousand-yen payment was ultimately used for her to take him out for a full day of fun. On the day of the movie's premiere, they also made a special trip to the cinema to watch it.

After all, it was Seiya's first movie. Though he had only been an extra, Yuko felt it held extraordinary meaning, so they had to go support it.

Moreover, because she had been busy with work that day and had been unable to accompany him to the filming location, Yuko had always felt rather regretful about it.

Even if she had missed the filming, she could not miss the premiere as well.

At the same time, she was very curious about just how outstanding Seiya's performance in the movie had been for him to earn the director's appreciation.

The movie I'll Protect You From This Moment On was adapted from an anime. Because its budget was not large, there were not many people who had come to watch it.

When Yuko brought Seiya into the theater, she could only see a few scattered couples and one hardcore fan of the original anime.

There was practically no one else like her who had brought a child, because this was a romance film and simply was not suitable for children to watch.