Superstar From Age 0

The next day.

Song Yu-jung prepared for war.

She gathered her lucky items: scissors and yellow things.

She sat in front of her computer with a devout heart.

She didn't know what shade of yellow was lucky, so she collected everything from light yellow to dark yellow to mustard yellow.

She had cups, clothes, tape, and highlighters.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

Lim Ye-na also sat in front of her computer with the same devout heart.

She had her lucky items: a handkerchief and pink things next to her.

Like Song Yu-jung, she had all kinds of pink things, from pink to hot pink to light pink. Among them, the rubber gloves stood out.

They both knew that these superstitions wouldn't help them at all, but they wanted to cling to something.

Lim Ye-na said solemnly on the phone.

“Let's just pick any date that works. We don't have to watch it together.”

The play [MOEB-436] had two rounds of ticketing scheduled.

Today was the ticketing for the 8 shows in January, and in a month, at the end of January, there would be ticketing for the 8 shows in February.

-It's 8 shows, so the tickets should be distributed well… I hope.

She sounded like she didn't believe it at all, so Song Yu-jung laughed.

Just by looking at the SNS or the posts on [Sprouts], they knew that a bloody war was coming.

“Ye-na, do you think people will flock to the first show? Or the last show?”

“I don't know. If I were them, I would aim for the first show because of spoilers… But there might be a lot of people who think the same way and rush to it. Or maybe they’ll anticipate that and there won't be many people at the first show… I have no idea.”

“It's like deciding whether to go to an amusement park on Children's Day or not.”

“Ahaha. True.”

From 1 to 8.

It was like a guessing game where they had to predict who would pick which number first.

They needed luck and speed.

“We have no choice but to rely on luck.”

Song Yu-jung, Lim Ye-na, and the sprouts and fans of Seo-jun's work were all quietly sitting in front of their computers, waiting for the time.

No. It wasn't quiet on the internet at all.

-Pleeeeeease…! I even took a bath with salt…

=I put some purification water and prayed too!

=Please don't let me see ‘this seat’!!

-It's his last work as a child actor and his first work as an adult… I have to see this!

=I'm seriously willing to quit my job.

=I'm coming up from Busan.

=22 Me Gwangju. Going Seoul.

-Will the Milky Way Galaxy Center site crash?

=I know. How many people are waiting right now?

-Ahhh. Why am I so nervous?

-Oooooh 5 minutes left.

-I hope the site crashes now if it's going to crash.

-Do we have to sync with the portal clock?

-4 minutes.

-It seems like everyone is doing this only?? No new posts on the board.

-3 minutes.

-2 minutes.

-1 minute.

The person who was counting down the time also fell silent.

The portal site's clock quickly ran towards 8 o’clock sharp. As each second passed, their hearts pounded harder.

And at 8 o’clock sharp.

The Milky Way Galaxy Center ticketing page opened.

The people who had logged in (and verified) in advance all chose their shows and seats at once. The seats around them that were purple quickly turned white, making them more anxious.

As they tried to connect to pay,

[This seat has already been selected.]

A notification popped up in front of some people. Aaah! They didn't have time to scream and quickly moved to another seat, another show.

They found an empty seat and paid and met ‘this seat’.

At first they wanted good seats, but soon they gave up and just wanted any seat at the end.

That's how a very short but very long time passed.

-Yeeeeeesss!!

-4th show! I got the 4th show!

-The first showww!! And my seat is good!!

The first ones to react were the ones who succeeded.

Seeing their posts filled with joy, many more people left comments of regret.

-How many times did I see ‘this seat’ today…?

=22 No, how can you choose the same seat as me? The one next to it was empty. (Unfair)

-The site didn't even crash… It worked well?

=But the competition rate is so high. Even if it works well, there's no seat for me???

-Is this your first time here? Is it always this stable?

=It looks like the Milky Way Galaxy Center prepared in advance.

=I wish the Milky Way Galaxy Center would handle the ticketing for other shows too.

=?? I don't want to see 133766th in line.

=22 You have to be able to connect first to see ‘this seat’ or not.

-But I'm so sad??? I couldn't get it.

=I’ll have to try for the second round of ticketing.

=Should I save money and buy a new computer?

Song Yu-jung, who was looking at the computer screen with the Milky Way Galaxy Center ticketing page open, clasped her hands and closed her eyes.

“Yu-jung. How did it go?”

“…What about you, Ye-na?”

There was a moment of silence, and then,

Aaaaaah!!

A cheer erupted.

***

The tickets for the first round of the play [MOEB-436] sold out in the blink of an eye.

Related articles also popped up as soon as the ticketing was over. Most of them were comments of sadness from people who failed to get tickets, but there were also some comments of happiness.

The [436] team members were also watching the situation with their hearts pounding.

-Kim Joo-kyung: Wow… It seems like it sold out in minutes?

-Han Jinho: I tried to get tickets too but I couldn't???

-Kang Jae-han: Why did you do that??

-Lee Sol: This makes me want to prepare harder!

-Kim Chae-yeon: Yeah. Didn't you say some of the set pieces got damaged while dismantling?

-Lee Sol: Don't worry. It's not that bad, so I can fix it in a day.

The conversation that started with ticketing moved on to preparing for the play.

As soon as the official performance was confirmed, the set of the play [MOEB-436] was moved to the Milky Way Galaxy Center.

The costumes and props that they made by hand were also moved.

And yesterday, the [436] team went to the Milky Way Galaxy Center and checked out the theater and the moved sets.

‘There were some damaged parts.’

It wasn't because of the people who moved them, since they were professionals.

It was just because of the mistakes that the art team made while installing and dismantling the set pieces on stage, since they weren't used to it.

‘I’ll have to fix that first tomorrow.’

Seo-jun typed a message on his phone while tapping it.

[We also have to adjust the size of the screen video so that it can be played at the Milky Way Galaxy Center.

[We also have to adjust the volume to a suitable level.

-Kim Joo-kyung: Don't we have to check the movements too?

[Yeah. The Milky Way Galaxy Center is bigger than Mirinae Hall.

They had to check both the movements on stage and the movements from the audience seats to the stage when they appeared.

There were also other things to do.

They had to turn some of the lights towards the audience seats and check out the better theater facilities than Mirinae Hall.

The lights and speakers were probably better than Mirinae Hall, but they were unfamiliar to Park Min-hyung and Kim Chae-yeon, who were in charge of lighting and sound.

‘And I have to engrave my ability on the audience seats too.’

Seo-jun looked at the mark on his palm and sent a message to the [436] team.

[The Milky Way Galaxy Center said they would help us, so let me know if you need anything.

Since it was a paid performance, the Milky Way Galaxy Center also agreed to provide them with the necessary staff and materials.

The quality of the play was good enough for an official performance, but since it was a work made by high school students, there were bound to be some shortcomings in the details.

-Lee Sol: The set pieces and costumes are fine because we made them well…

-Lee Sol: But wouldn't it be better if we had a professional for makeup?

The acting team agreed with what the art team leader said.

It wasn't that the art team did a bad job, but it was definitely lower quality than the set pieces or costumes.

[Then let's ask the Milky Way Galaxy Center for the makeup.

Various opinions came out after the art team leader's suggestion. Seo-jun took notes of everything on his memo app.

The meeting continued and they talked about the schedule.

Today was Wednesday, the 28th.

Thursday, the 29th, was a school day, and Friday, the 30th, was the winter break ceremony, but the members of Team [436] who had to prepare for the play decided to skip both days.

-Kim Young-chan: So we practice on Saturday and rest on Sunday, right, senior?

Saturday, the 31st, sunday, the 1st, Monday, the 2nd.

The first performance of the play [MOEB-436] was on Tuesday, January 3rd.

[Yeah. Sunday is the first day of the new year, so I think it would be nice to rest and have a final rehearsal on Monday.

[What do you guys think?

-Kim Chae-yeon: Yeah, sounds good.

-Kim Joo-kyung: A team leader who gives us a day off??

-Han Jinho: ??But he’ll make us work hard on the other days.

Team [436] laughed with a series of ???s and Seo-jun smiled along with them. Then he received a message from his childhood friends.

-Mina: I tried to get tickets but failed.

-Ji-yoon: Me too?? Seo-jun, you seem to have a lot of fans?

Seo-jun smiled and replied to his friends’ messages.

[If you’re a team member, you get an invitation. I’ll give you that.

[When do you want to come see it?

-Ji-yoon: Can all four of us see it together?

[It's okay. I have plenty of invitations.

Seo-jun discussed with his childhood friends when they would see the play. Park Ji-ho was leaving for Spain at the end of January, so they decided to see it before then.

[Then we can watch the third show.

-Ji-woo: ???

-Ji-ho: ??Good.

[I might not be able to give you the invitations on the day because of the play preparations.

[Do you want to meet up before then?

-Mina: Yeah. Let's do that.

-Ji-yoon: When are you free, seo-jun?

He thought it would be nice to meet them on Sunday since he had decided to take a break that day.

Seo-jun, who had agreed to meet his childhood friends on Sunday, talked with Team [436] again about what they would do tomorrow.

****

The next day.

Milky Way Galaxy Center, second Theater.

Seo-jun stood in the audience seats and looked around.

The theater was a bit bigger than Mirinae hall, but not too big that the audience sitting at the end would miss anything.

It seemed like a good place to watch.

“Team leader! Is this direction okay?”

He turned his head at the sound of someone calling him.

The lighting team, who spoke politely to Seo-jun and his high school teammates, was installing lights on the audience side.

“Ah, yes! Please turn that one a little to the left!”

He answered the lighting team staff and saw people moving around him busily.

Team [436]'s art team was fixing the set behind the stage and Park Min-hyung and Kim Chae-yeon were listening to an explanation in the lighting & sound room.

The acting team was checking their movements on stage in a place where they wouldn't interfere.

They also answered questions from Milky Way Galaxy Center's stage installation team who asked if they were installing things correctly.

“Why are you installing this?”

At the end of the stairway between the audience seats.

A small space was created with a blackout curtain that matched the color of the wallpaper.

The stage installation team staff who asked Kim Joo-kyung and the kids stopped for a moment.

“Ah… this is a spoiler…”

“It's okay. I failed to get tickets.” 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

The staff smiled and said as if he was sad.

“There's no hope for second round tickets either… But I can still watch the rehearsal since I work at Milky Way Galaxy Center! And I think I can install it better if I know why.”

Kim Joo-kyung nodded and answered him. He would find out anyway if he watched them practice.

“Seo-jun appears from the audience seats during the show.”

“…Oh!”

Not only that staff member but also other staff members listened attentively.

It would be surprising even if an ordinary actor appeared from the audience seats, but if it was Lee Seo-jun, it would be really shocking.

It would be lucky if they didn't scream or shout.

“He needs a place to change clothes. We’re planning to install a mirror and a dim light later.”

“I see. You need to block the light from leaking out when you change clothes, so you use blackout curtains.”

He thought it was to block the light from outside, but it was to block the light from inside. Then he had to be more careful with the installation.

The staff's hands became more delicate than before.

“But why do you install it in three places?”

■ ■ ■

1[M]2[B]3[S]4[A]5

1[G]2[N]3[D]4[R]5

[Stage]

The shape of the audience seats was like this, and there were such places at the end of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th passages.

Kim Joo-kyung smiled and said.

“We’re going to randomly decide where he’ll come out on the day.”

“Ah…! That sounds really fun. I want to see it too…!”

It sounded like this play would be as fun as [Mirror].

But the staff who remembered that he failed to get tickets again teared up and continued his work of installing blackout curtains.

The others also smiled quietly at his sight.

It would be fun, but… it would be lucky if their hearts didn't drop.

A little later.

It was lunchtime.

He sent his friends first and stayed until the end.

Seo-jun looked around the empty audience seats and stage and put his hand on the floor.

The ability he had engraved in Mirinae hall sparkled at his fingertips.

[(Line/Production) Ice Desert Slime's Quicksand (Intermediate) is activated.]

[[(Line/Production) Ice Desert Slime's Quicksand]'s grade is temporarily lowered.]

[(Line/Production) Ice Desert Slime's Quicksand (Lowest) is activated.]

[(Line/Production) Ice Desert Slime's Quicksand-Lowest]

At night, it limits its activity to a minimum to keep its body temperature.

If you touch the slime, you will be sucked in all the way inside.

The inside of the slime is cozy.

It was the ability of a slime that lived in an ice desert full of cold sand that looked like ice grains.

If you stepped on it wrong, you would be dragged into the sand like quicksand, but if you stepped on an ice desert slime, you would be sucked into ‘the inside of the slime’.

But since it was a line ability, it wasn't dangerous.

The place where they arrived after being sucked into the quicksand was like an empty cave, and it was so cozy that travelers and merchants in the ice desert would look for it on purpose to spend the night in the ice desert.

Not only humans but also creatures living in the ice desert used slimes in this way.

When the sun rose and morning came, the slime that woke up spat them out with a ‘pew-’, and humans felt a little bad about it.

‘No. How would you feel if someone came into your mouth while you were sleeping?’

Seo-jun, who had been a slime in an ice desert in some previous life, was on the side of the slime rather than humans.

He grumbled inwardly for a moment and got up from his crouching position. He looked around the audience seats.

The pattern of slime made of sand grains was engraved on the floor and shone.

Depending on whether it was lowest, low, lower intermediate, or intermediate grade, the range that quicksand (slime) touched varied, so he engraved it in three places without any gaps.

Seo-jun slowly blew his line ability into it.

[(Line/Production) Ice Desert Slime's Quicksand (Lowest) is activated.]

Transparent sand grains that came out of the pattern swayed like waves and met with sand grains that came out of other patterns where he had engraved them.

The second theater was filled with transparent ice sand from stage to audience seats. But there was no cold feeling. Rather, it felt cozy.

‘The size is right.’

Seo-jun smiled satisfied after finishing his work.