Jisung shook his hands in nervousness as he changed into Rising Stars' signature school uniform.
"Can't you believe the first eliminations are already starting, brother?" Jisung asked, going out of the dressing room.
He was surprised to see June already sitting, fully dressed, paired with his iconic bright pink cat mask.
"Woah, you dress up really fast."
"It's my talent," June said.
"I'm nervous," Akira said, joining them. "I don't feel safe with my ranking."
"Me too," Jisung muttered.
Jangmoon and C-Jay simultaneously went out of their dressing rooms, a look of disbelief on their faces.
"The two of you are nervous?" Jangmoon asked. "Then, I'm dying of anxiousness," he said, pointing to his current ranking, which was 73rd.
"Eli is practically creaming his pants," C-Jay pointed to the last-ranked trainee.
"That's right," June said. "There's nothing to be nervous about. You're both safe."
"I think you'll be safe, too," Akira said. "You trended once more after the third episode. Your topic even surpassed Casper's and Zeth's."
June shrugged. While it was true that he garnered the most attention from casual watchers, Zeth, Casper, and the other popular trainees still had the most "stans."
Just then, Yena's voice was heard over the intercom.
"Trainees, we shall be starting the live broadcast in fifteen minutes. I repeat, the live eliminations shall start in fifteen minutes."
"How long will this last?"June suddenly asked.
"I'm not sure," Akira said. "But probably around 3-4 hours? You know Azure likes to build the tension. The MC always takes so long to say the trainees' names."
C-Jay groaned. "I'm reminded of the past seasons again. With all the editing, it already feels so long. What more if it's a live broadcast?"
June stood up. "I'm gonna go to the restroom then," he said, feeling the call of nature.
June went to the restroom and found that it was empty. He quickly went to one of the urinals to do his business. He sighed in relief when he felt his bladder emptying.
Afterward, he went to the sink to wash his hands and fix his mask. He made sure that not even a single whisker was out of place.
"There," he muttered. He was about to leave when he heard a familiar voice cursing inside one of the cubicles.
June frowned and looked at the only closed cubicle.
It seemed like June wasn't alone after all.
"Shit, shit," the man cursed. "I can't believe this is really happening right now."
June walked closer to the cubicle but took a step back when the nasty scent of shit wafted through his nostrils. He was already wearing a mask, yet the odor was still intense!
He was about to leave the restroom when the door suddenly opened, and he was met face-to-face with mentor Gun.
The two of them froze for a second. Mentor Gun looked at June with wide eyes and quickly closed the door.
"What are you doing here?" Gun asked with a frown on his face.
"I pissed," June nonchalantly answered. "What else would I be doing here?"
Gun awkwardly cleared his throat. "Are you sure you should speak to me in that tone?"
June crossed his arms in front of his chest. "The show is about to start in less than 15 minutes. Are you sure you should be picking a fight with me when your poop still hasn't been flushed?"
Gun's face turned red, and he clenched his fists together.
"You're such a little shit," he spat.
"Well, your shit's definitely not little," June retorted. He chuckled in the back of his mind.
That was a good one.
Gun sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.
"If you're not going to help, then I suggest you leave. I'll handle this on my own."
June raised one eyebrow. "Are you sure? It looks like you're struggling right now, though."
"I've got this," Gun insisted.
"Do you even have a plunger?" June asked.
Gun sighed in frustration. "I got it, okay?"
June pointed to the supplies room at the side. "The plunger is inside that room."
Gun weirdly looked at him. "How do you even know that? Wait, don't answer that. Just go."
Gun walked to the supplies room and took the plunger. He looked at it, not having a clue what to do with it. In reality, Gun was born with a golden spoon. Growing up, he had always been called a "Nepotism Baby" possessing zero talent.
That's how he grew to dislike people in the industry who don't really have talent.
And that's why he built a reputation that was built around talented people.
However, his "golden spoon" past couldn't really be hidden this time.
He had never used a plunger before!
Heck, the toilets in their house never got clogged at all!
As Gun skeptically placed the plunger inside the toilet, he started weakly pumping it in and out.
"You're doing it wrong."
Gun jumped in surprise when he saw that June was still there.
"What the heck are you still doing here? I told you that I got it, didn't I?"
"At this point, your shit will melt before you actually fix the problem."
"Scoot over!" June said.
Gun finally moved over, looking at June as he worked some magic.
June inspected the scene and held his breath when he found the water level dangerously high and the toilet brimming with, well, not-so-pleasant contents.
He looked around the restroom, spotting toilet covers next to the tissue papers. With careful consideration, he used them as makeshift gloves, wrapping them around his hands.
He had done this plenty of times, but damn, does Gun have one intense stink bomb.
Then, he started to pump the plunger with intense strength and speed. Despite the unpleasant nature of the task, he remained focused. His efforts gradually paid off as the water level in the toilet started to decrease, and the flow began to improve.
Gun could only watch in amazement as June skillfully finished the task as if he had done this a million times.
"There," June said, placing the plunger at the side and removing his makeshift gloves.
He then went to the sink and washed his hands thoroughly before spraying his pocket-sized cologne all over his body.
Gun could only stand motionless. "That was...amazing," he absentmindedly said.
June paused when he heard Gun's statement. He swiftly turned around.
"What was that?" June asked.
Gun, who was still slightly out of it, repeated his compliment.
"You're really talented with toilet stuff."
A smile slowly made its way to June's face.
"Thanks for the compliment, mentor," he said. "See you inside."
"Wait! I wasn't complimenting you!"
[Congratulations, host! You have succeeded in the mission: Get a compliment from Mentor Gun. Please choose an aspect to improve.]
"Da—"
June was about to pick dance once more, but he decided to go a different route.
"Rap."
[Wise choice! Rap +1. Current grade: E]
Might as well upgrade the other skills since he never expected to accomplish this mission that quickly.
Meanwhile, the janitor, who was about to clean the restroom, couldn't find his beloved plunger.
"Where is it?" he muttered. "My lucky plunger, where are you?"
He started going through the cubicles one by one and sighed in relief when he finally saw the red plunger.
He was about to get it when he noticed something different.
Why is his lucky plunger covered in shit?
