Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 602

Seo-jun smirked at Jang Hyun Jun, who was staring at him blankly, as if he didn’t understand what he had said.

The [Fragment of (Pre)Record Stone], a top-tier ability that modified the world’s records with his own, had no problem.

He could tell by the fact that Jang Hyun Jun, who had transferred in April, hadn’t noticed his identity until now, at the end of May.

Then why did Jang Hyun Jun finally realize that the actor Lee Seo-jun and the soldier Lee Seo-jun were ‘the same person’?

‘It’s because I was going to deactivate it.’

Of course, it was because of Seo-jun’s intention, the owner of the ability.

Seo-jun’s ability, that is, the ability of the Library of Life, was activated by Seo-jun’s mana.

Exceptionally, the abilities recorded in the videos continued to work for decades without Seo-jun replenishing mana, but the rest were not.

The abilities engraved in the school and the house could not exert their full power unless he replenished mana when it ran out.

‘The hourglass I gave to Jio too…’

It had been a while since he met Park Jio, so the hourglass he had given him as a gift must have lost its power and turned into an ordinary hourglass.

Being top-tier was no exception.

The [Compass of (Pre)Parvita], a top-tier ability that he had given to An Da Ho, was the same. But he had no problem with that, as he checked the status and replenished mana every time he went on vacation.

In other words, Seo-jun’s mana was an essential energy like electricity used for electronic devices.

And another top-tier ability, the [Fragment of (Pre)Record Stone].

Unlike the [Creation Type] abilities that only needed mana replenishment, this ability was just an activation type, so it required a tremendous amount of mana at the first activation, and also a constant amount of mana afterwards.

‘Like an air conditioner.’

It consumes a lot of energy when you turn it on, but only a moderate amount when you maintain it.

Anyway, a certain amount of mana had been used continuously since he first activated the [Fragment of (Pre)Record Stone].

‘And I’ve been reducing mana for a few days.’

He had been sending only enough energy to lower the ability from top-tier to high-tier, and then to mid-high-tier. People like Jang Hyun Jun, who had a good sense of energy (though there wouldn’t be many), could notice it to some extent.

Because he was about to be discharged soon.

‘It’s two months left… no, a month and a half?’

He had to slowly reveal that he was in the army.

Of course, he had also considered keeping it a secret until he was discharged and then deactivating the ability. But then there might be people who would doubt him.

-Lee Seo-jun… was in the army?

-And he’s already discharged???

-There was not a single article about it???

-Even if he went secretly, this is too…??

Of course, there would be testimonies and photos of the soldiers who had served with Seo-jun, and Seo-jun’s military service record would be in the military database, but

-But it was too quiet, right?

-If I were 22, I would have told my family.

-How can you not say a word to hundreds of people until you’re discharged?

-Did he get some special treatment as a celebrity?

Keeping the secret too perfectly would only ignite the public’s suspicion. And the suspicion would become a controversy, and the controversy would become a problem. Especially if the center of the problem was a superstar who had never had any controversy before.

Even if he pushed all kinds of evidence, there would be people who wouldn’t believe him, and articles would pour out to get views. Every time he worked on a project, it was obvious that the story would be mentioned.

‘If I do it wrong, I might have to go to the army twice.’

Well, thanks to the ability of the Library of Life, his military life wasn’t that bad, but…

‘Going twice is a bit…’

So instead of keeping the secret with his ability until the day of discharge, he planned to deactivate the [Fragment of (Pre)Record Stone] a month or two before discharge and let the public know that ‘Crazy!! Lee Seo-jun is in the army right now!!’.

Then the reporters and broadcasters would let them know that Seo-jun had been doing well in the military, and the interviews of his seniors who had already been discharged, and his juniors who were about to go on vacation, would be the evidence of his military life.

The start was lowering the rank of the top-tier ability.

[The rank of [(Pre)Record Stone Fragment-Top-tier] is temporarily lowered.]

[(Pre)Record Stone Fragment (High-tier) is activated.]

[The rank of [(Pre)Record Stone Fragment-High-tier] is temporarily lowered.]

[(Pre)Record Stone Fragment (Mid-high-tier) is activated.]

And Jang Hyun Jun noticed the gap in the mid-high-tier ability.

“Huh…”

Jang Hyun Jun still seemed to not understand, as he opened his mouth wide. No, it was more like his brain refused to move, as he looked so dumbfounded.

Seo-jun hardened his expression as he rolled his eyes.

And he released his magic without Jang Hyun Jun noticing. Jang Hyun Jun shuddered as he felt a cold chill creeping up on him.

“That’s why…”

A cold hand touched Jang Hyun Jun’s shoulder. His eyes felt like they would be cut by the icy gaze.

Jang Hyun Jun couldn’t swallow his saliva at the completely changed atmosphere of this sergeant. He just looked at him with trembling eyes.

Isolated from the surroundings, there was no sound.

The only thing he heard was a faint voice, and Jang Hyun Jun’s eyes lit up. At the same time, his heart sank.

I knew this day would come someday.

He had thought about it since he was young. Why did he have this power?

During his adolescence, when his hormones were raging.

Jang Hyun Jun often… no, frequently imagined that there was a terrible hidden world, and that the hidden world might invade the real world, and that he, who had a special power, might have to solve it.

“Now that you’ve figured out my identity,”

A voice as cold as a snake made him snap out of it. At the same time, Jang Hyun Jun’s imagination deepened.

What if the enemy invades?

Should I tell others and ask for help?

He had various imaginations, but he never thought that the ‘enemy’ would be this sergeant who had helped him!

He vividly remembered the black and white energy that surrounded the base. It was an ability that he couldn’t imitate.

And that this sergeant was the superstar Lee Seo-jun!!

‘How can I win!?’

No one would believe him and help him, just by looking at his popularity.

The real world was doomed. They didn’t even know they were invaded.

“I’ll have to silence you, right?”

It was just a word, but it felt like a sharp knife was pushed under his neck. He felt cold on his back, as if he would be cut at any moment.

Jang Hyun Jun’s eyes twitched. He didn’t even have time to swallow his dry saliva. The best he could do was look down so that his eyes wouldn’t meet.

Then,

“-That was a joke.”

He heard a light voice, as if there was a star next to the word ‘joke’.

Jang Hyun Jun, who had been trembling and looking at the floor, looked at the sergeant with a bewildered face.

Seo-jun was twitching his lips, as if he was holding back his laughter. He looked like he was trying not to laugh.

…Laugh? Hold back?

Jang Hyun-jun blinked slowly, trying to understand, when Seo-jun burst into laughter, unable to hold it back.

“Hyun-jun, LOL, you… really… HAHAHA!!”

Seo-jun patted Jang Hyun-jun’s shoulder and laughed heartily, while Jang Hyun-jun felt a pang of regret. His skin turned red from his neck to his face.

“Aaah!! Sergeant!!”

“HAHAHA!!”

He forgot.

That teasing people was Seo-jun’s hobby and specialty!

***

“…You’re kidding, right?”

“I’m not.”

Seo-jun smiled and said that as he bought ice cream from the PX as an apology. Jang Hyun-jun grumbled as he ate the cold ice cream.

“But why did you tease me so seriously? I really believed you.”

He still felt a chill down his spine.

He thought it was amazing when he watched the movie, but it was more impactful when he saw it in person. He realized why people went to see plays.

…I have to go see his play next time.

If he could get a ticket, that is.

“What a waste of talent. That. Why do you use your amazing acting skills to tease people?”

“Well, you see…”

Seo-jun looked at the air with a wistful expression.

It sounded like he was about to tell a tragic and sad story from his past, with a voice that could make anyone cry, but Seo-jun was eating ice cream right now.

Jang Hyun-jun almost fell for it again, hearing only his voice, and looked at him with a sour expression. It was a waste of acting skills indeed.

“It’s been over a year and six months since I last acted. There’s a limit to how much I can endure with reading scripts and watching movies.”

It was a story that Seo-jun couldn’t tell without tears.

Oh, my.

He hadn’t acted for a year and six months already! And he still had two months left!

Seo-jun groaned as if he was in pain.

“My hands and feet are all twitchy. I have to vent it somehow. It’s the small joy of my military life.”

But he didn’t tease anyone to the point of causing trouble.

“You’re a special case, so I added some fantasy, but I didn’t expect you to fall for it… Did you imagine that a lot in the past?”

“…Yes. A lot.”

Jang Hyun-jun reluctantly answered Seo-jun, who brought up his dark history. Seo-jun chuckled. He looked happy, and Jang Hyun-jun smiled too.

‘So that’s why he teased me so seriously.’

Jang Hyun-jun had only been with him for a couple of months, but the soldiers who had been with this sergeant for a long time had been fooled by his pranks more than once. It wasn’t just a random comment that he should be an entertainer.

‘Now that I think about it, it’s only natural that I was fooled by his acting, since he’s the famous Seo-jun… Even if I was doubtful, I couldn’t help but fall for it several times.’

“I’ll say it again, it’s a waste of talent, sergeant.”

Jang Hyun-jun said sincerely, and Seo-jun laughed with his ice cream in his hand.

He looked at this sergeant, and his mind was calm but also a mess.

He wondered why he didn’t notice it before, but this sergeant Seo-jun was just actor Seo-jun. His handsome face, his voice, everything. He was as athletic and nice as the rumors said.

Yeah.

He accepted that this sergeant Seo-jun was actor Seo-jun.

But he also felt strange.

His senior in the army was a superstar.

It was as unbelievable as finding out that a friend he met and got close to on a trip abroad was a Hollywood star.

The person sitting next to him, eating ice cream, didn’t seem like such a great person… No, he was a great person after all!

He was confused in many ways.

“Just relax.”

At Seo-jun’s words, Jang Hyun-jun flinched.

Could he… read his mind?

“I can’t.”

“You’re reading it right now!”

Seo-jun smiled and said to Jang Hyun-jun, who was startled.

“It’s all over your face.”

Jang Hyun-jun quickly covered his face. Hmm. That seemed true. Seo-jun laughed again at his naive appearance.

“Just relax. I’m just a soldier right now.”

“Is that supposed to make me relax? A resting actor is in the army… And he’s my senior!”

“How did you know I was resting?”

“Well… I’m a fan of yours, and so are my friends.”

Jang Hyun-jun said shyly, admitting that he was a fan in front of the actor.

He recalled how he became a fan of Seo-jun. It was because of [The Evil Spirit].

There was a time when he wished that the baby shaman would exorcise the ghosts that were attached to him. Of course, he knew it was a movie, so he gave up quickly.

‘But I never thought I’d get real help.’

He thought of the 6-year-old child actor and this sergeant Seo-jun, and soon smiled.

Now that he thought about it, there was nothing more surprising. This actor Seo-jun had a mysterious power as well. Jang Hyun-jun, who was half-enlightened, opened his mouth.

“By the way, sergeant.”

“Hmm?”

“It seems like you’ve been hiding your identity until now… Is it okay for me to know? Or is there a problem with your ability?”

“No. I was thinking of revealing it soon.”

Seo-jun smiled at Jang Hyun-jun, who was worried.

He was relieved by that answer. He was afraid that something might have gone wrong with Seo-jun’s ability when he exorcised the random ghosts that were attached to him.

“It’ll be a big deal, inside and out. Oh, sergeant. Can you give me your autograph? Just for my friends and my grandparents… The doctor at the clinic still likes you a lot.”

“Sure.”

The sergeant and the private got up from their seats. They saw their squad members.

“White Tiger!”

“White Tiger.”

The squad members exclaimed in admiration at Seo-jun’s natural and cool salute, as usual.