Chapter 306 Fresh Face
Uno left the room, feeling more satisfied than ever. He merely wanted to shake the competition—that being June. However, it seemed like he failed to control his words and said something belittling.
Nonetheless, Uno felt like there was no use befriending an idol who would debut the same day as them.
As soon as he entered their lounge room, his rowdy teammates became quiet.
Out of the seven of them, only Dos and Tres have trained with him for a long time.
So, it couldn’t be denied that he still wasn’t close to his other teammates.
“Perfect timing,” Dos said, getting up from his seat. “Mr. Park just called for us. It’s time for the team rehearsals.”
Uno nodded, smoothing out his shirt. “Let’s go, then.”
Meanwhile, June was still in the comfort room, splashing his face with cold water to cool himself down.
He thought Uno would be a decent dude, especially since June had never done anything to him before! Heck, they haven’t even met once!
June closed his eyes and used his shirt to wipe his face clean.
Just then, someone entered the room.
“Oh, there he is! I told you he’d be in here,” Akira exclaimed, trudging to where June was and wrapping an arm around his shoulder.
“It’s time for the last song,” Akira said. “Let’s go together.”
June sighed and grabbed the pink notebook and pen he placed right on top of the counter.
Jaeyong also popped his head in, pausing to stare at June.
“What happened to you?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” June asked.
“Woah!” Akira exclaimed. “You look…fresh.”
June turned to the mirror and stared at his bare face, slightly wet hair, and crumpled t-shirt. The light make-up he wore was now non-existent, and with this type of look, June was sure he’d stand out in a group of made-up idols.
“It’s alright!” Akira assured him, showing a thumbs up. “You still look good!”
“Whatever,” June muttered under his breath. “Let’s just go.”
They arrived at the stage on the open field, where the artists were already waiting.
When June arrived, they couldn’t help but stare at his current state.
Seven, who saw this, felt his admiration for June increase.
‘He actually came here without being made up? That’s so cool!’
Amira, on the other hand, couldn’t help but steal glances at the rookie idol. Ever since she came to the conclusion (or delusion) that June liked her, she started binging all his content. She wasn’t interested in watching Rising Stars before, but now, she wanted to watch all the episodes!
Mr. Park stood at the center to give the artists the instructions for the last performance.
“I’m sure most of you are familiar with joint endings in concerts or music shows. However, for the rookie idols in the group, let me give you a brief explanation. We will be singing ‘Caterpillar’ by Woojin,” he said.
“It’s our mentor!” Jisung excitedly said by June’s side. “I love this song.”
“You have been given two mics each. It’s up to you who’ll sing in your groups. We have divided the song into two sections—the first part until the first chorus will be for the girls. While the second verse until the second chorus will be sung by the boys. The bridge and beyond that will be sung simultaneously.”
“Poison will take the lead during these group parts,” Mr. Park said, pertaining to the artist who made the iconic Gangnam Spice.
“Let’s end this quickly since the gates for the students are about to open! And music…cue!”
The hope-filled music resonated in the open field. With the sun rising to the horizon, it felt like a scene straight out of a movie.
Ren handed one of the microphones to June, but he shook his head. Ren shrugged and handed the mic to Akira instead. Uno and Dos, who were right beside them near the front, saw this.
Uno couldn’t help but shake his head.
“Don’t you want to sing?” Jisung whispered.
“I don’t know this song,” June truthfully answered.
“Oh,” Jisung chuckled. “Chul didn’t give us any details, so it makes sense. However, most people know this song. Are you a foreigner or something?” Jisung joked.
Jisung’s accusation was true to some extent.
But aside from not knowing the song, June still has to accomplish his last task.
[Time left for the side quest: 6 minutes, 12 seconds.]
lightsΝοvεl ƈοm Since that little shit Uno didn’t want to give June his autograph, June was now on the hunt to find another S-tier artist.
Fortunately, he didn’t need to look any further.
Poison, who was right in front of him, had an S-tier stat on an unexpected skill.
[Poison
Vocals: B+
Dance: A-
Rap: B-
Visuals: E-
Stage Presence: S]
It was the first time June saw the stat for ‘Stage Presence.’ It made June realize that there were plenty of skills out there…some he would never know of.
June stayed still the entire performance, ready to bolt to Poison as soon as they were done.
Every second felt like an eternity, and before June knew it, there were only two minutes left until the end of his side quest. There wasn’t any sanction for not being able to accomplish it, but June wanted that Breath of Eternity booster.
So, as soon as the song was done, he practically leaped to the front—where Poison was standing.
The middle-aged guy was stunned when a pink notebook was nearly shoved to his face, but when he saw an equally pink boy who looked as fresh as the morning sun respectfully looking at him, he quickly smiled.
“I’m assuming you want my signature?”
June enthusiastically nodded.
Only a minute left!
Poison chuckled and took the notebook and pen from June. He signed it quickly, causing June to sigh in relief.
“June, right?” Poison asked, handing him back the notebook.
“Yes, sir,” June politely responded.
“I’ve heard some things about you, but I’ve never seen you perform,” Poison said.
“You can look forward to my team’s performance, sir,” June confidently said.
“Hmm,” Poison hummed. “Will do. I’ll be watching your performance well.”
With that, June bowed his head and went back to his teammates, where he was teased for being such a shy fanboy.
However, June didn’t pay them any attention since he was waiting for Fu’s notification.
[Congratulations! You have completed the side quest: Unli-oxygen.]
[Breath of Eternity +1]