"Then, you get zero stars," Lee Sik concluded, making the room erupt into whispers.
"Why did they deliberate so long then?"
"Ah, I don't know. I'm just happy that she got what she deserves."
"Yeah, zero stars seems fitted for her."
Meanwhile, Mei remained unbothered on the stage.
"Thank you, mentors," she said, bowing her head in respect. "It's just what I wanted."
The mentors turned to each other in surprise before bursting into laughter once more.
Lee Sik held onto Gun for support as the two of them laughed like hyenas.
June looked at them strangely before shaking his head. Why was his sister making them crack up so much?
"Ah, she really reminds me of you, June," Gun suddenly said, making June raise his eyebrows.
Well, he was the one who practically raised Mei Ling. It would be strange if they didn't act remotely similar to each other. Mei Ling was more outspoken and was definitely more blunt ever since they were younger (which was honestly hard to believe since June was very blunt already), and it seemed to have been retained until now.
Even then, people would be surprised how such a pretty girl would be capable of saying such harsh words.
But then again, Mei Ling always acted like she didn't care. All she worried about was those K-Pop idols she liked so much.
June glanced at Mei Ling and recognized the look on her face. To the average eye, it might seem like she was just casually listening to the conversation. However, being her brother, June recognized her expression right away.
She wasn't fond of the topic of the conversation.
"Yeah, she is like June when he first auditioned on the show."
"They're different, though. June wore a mask and was a decent singer."
"You're right, but I think their personalities are quite similar."
"Somehow, that makes her even scarier."
"Are you sure you don't have a brother?" Lee Sik suddenly asked, making the trainees and the mentors turn silent.
The trainees were intrigued since they wanted to know whether this very pretty girl had a brother—a single one, perhaps?
On the other hand, June listened intently because he was curious about her answer.
He knew that Mei Ling supposedly lost her memory, according to Fu, but he also didn't know to what extent she lost it.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Did she lose all of it?
Or was she aware that she had a brother but didn't know his real identity?
Mei brought the microphone to her lips before shaking her head.
"I don't have a brother," she confirmed, making the trainees sigh in disappointment.
Meanwhile, June also couldn't hide his disappointment. He was in a different body, and it would have been impossible for Mei Ling to acknowledge him as a brother in their current situation. However, it would have felt nice if he had acknowledged him in his past body instead.
"That's alright," Lee Sik chimed, suddenly patting June's shoulder.
"June can pass as your brother instead!" he excitedly said.
June's eyebrows raised in surprise. Meanwhile, Mei's face twisted into hostility once more, making June frown.
"It's alright, mentor," Mei said. "I actually like being an only child."
'Lies,' June thought. She clearly stated that she wanted a sibling in her profile! Why did she suddenly hate the idea when Lee Sik suggested that June become her brother?
June subtly shook his head.
There was definitely something weird going on.
Mei Ling seemed to despise his existence!
"Well, thank you for your time," Gun said, finally ending her long audition process. "We're looking forward to seeing more of you in the upcoming missions."
Mei bowed with a curt smile. "Thank you for watching my performance."
With that, she finally left the stage.
However, she didn't leave June's mind.
[Congratulations for boasting! You showed the girls that you have the best vocal skills in the idol industry!]
[What does the host want to upgrade today?]
June pursed his lips and focused on Fu while a decent trainee was auditioning. She didn't really stand out, so June's mind wandered to his system instead.
"Dance," he muttered.
Up to this day, he was curious as to what the 'X' meant in his vocal skill. He didn't feel a shift in his skills, so it was weird seeing such a unique rank.
June wondered if it was just a glitch or if it was deliberate. So, he chose his only SSS skill, which was dance.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})[Congratulations! You have successfully upgraded your dance aspect!]
[Dance: +1]
[Current rank: X]
June's eyebrows furrowed.
So, it wasn't a glitch of some sort.
The X rank actually did exist right after the SSS rank.
'Hey, Fu. Can you tell me what does this mean now?'
As expected, Fu didn't respond, causing June to sigh.
'Then, answer this question. You're a useless system if you don't answer it.'
[Oof.]
'How much does my sister know?'
[...do I have to answer it?]
'Come on. You're the only one who knows the answer.'
[I'm not a deity. I don't know how other people's minds work. I'm YOUR system, so it's only YOU that I can read.]
June's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
'But you told me back then that she lost her memories. You already knew, to begin with!'
[Any human being can discover that.]
'But you're not human.'
[How do you know?]
'Stop playing with me now, Fu. I can't play this game with you.'
'You know everything that's going on! You even threatened to kill her if I didn't become an idol!'
[Oh, you believed that?]
[It was just a joke.]
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})June's movements halted after Fu revealed those last words.
It was just a joke...
Just a joke...
A joke...
A joke?
Everything was just a fucking joke?
'Are you kidding me?'
Just then, June heard a voice inside his head, making him even more confused.
There was no doubt—someone sighed inside his mind.
"I'm going crazy," he whispered, looking around to see if he was still in the same reality.
Then, Fu appeared before him once again.
[Not everything is a joke.]
[The universe is a strange place.]
[It's a single reality, but each of us has our own truth, our own dreams buried deep within our unconscious. Systems like mine operate from that unconscious realm, tapping into the potential of the human mind.]
[You were chosen because you possess a unique combination of qualities that make you receptive to my guidance. Your journey to becoming a top idol and the missions you've been given were all part of a larger plan to awaken something within you.]
'This still doesn't make any sense. Why can't you just give me a straight answer?'
[I cannot give you a direct answer, June. But I can leave you with this: People are simple.]
[They see what they want to see; they live life the way they choose. But when they become aware, the game of life becomes more fun.]
[Always remember the origin.]
[Life has three strikes.]
June frowned since his last two statements seemed out of place.
'What are you even talking about?'
[It's the answer to your question.]
