Chapter 668: Elimination, Realization

It's been a whole week since June's conversation with Pablo, and he has been trying to find his origin ever since.

However, no matter how hard he tried, he never seemed to get close to the answer.

What was his origin?

If he took up the literal and anatomical meaning, then his origin would be the time his parents decided to have sex without protection.

But June doubted that was the answer.

If it was the origin of his dream, then it would stem from the moment when he first realized that he actually enjoyed singing and making other people happy.

However, then again, June didn't know how exactly the answer would lead him to the success of his mission.

So, here he was, still searching his mind for an answer as his deadline continued to tick away.

[Deadline: 51 days, 17 hours]

At one point, June even thought that he could just forget about his origin—to let his mission flow with the wind and to take a new system without any sentience.

After all, Fu was an annoying motherfucker.

However, his pride wouldn't let him. He couldn't stand still and watch his system fade away like it wasn't the one who brought him here in the first place.

So, he must know his origin. He still didn't know how—but someway, somehow, he'd be able to find it.

Before all of that, though, June still had to host the very first elimination of the fifth season of Rising Stars.

He waited as the girls finished with their self-intros before he entered the stage, dressed in an all-white suit that made the girls and the audience imagine that he was their husband.

- This is a proposal for me.

- I'm waiting for him to come home.

- June, please go home soon. Our babies are waiting for you.

"Good evening to everyone," June said in a serious tone. "Time has flown by quite fast. One day, you were all singing your audition piece, and now, here we are—at your very first elimination."

June looked around and saw the nervous faces of the girls. He caught a glimpse of Mei, which wasn't very hard to do since she stood out from the rest of the girls, before subtly sighing.

He wanted her to be eliminated so she could save herself from the idol industry, but he knew that it was nearly impossible for that to happen.

In a span of a week, Mei skyrocketed in popularity. However, that also meant that she was currently the biggest punching bag in the show. She received hate left and right despite it not being her fault.

This was what June was trying to protect her from.

However, he felt that she was already in too deep.

"We have a special mentor here tonight to accompany me for the announcements tonight," June said.

Then, the doors opened, revealing a tall and handsome figure. June couldn't help but shake his head as the guy walked over to where he was.

It was times like this that June thought he was actually quite cool and handsome.

The girls immediately squealed as the guy took his place next to June.

"Good evening to everyone," Casper said. "I'm here to support June today. Thank you all for inviting me to the show."

- OMG! Juneper is sailing.

- I knew it. They love each other so much.

- Did you see the way their hands brushed against each other? Oh, and they made eye contact, too.

- Girl, of course, they need to make eye contact. They're hosting a show together!

- People just can't accept that Juneper is real and they're in love.

- I feel like this weird shipping agenda only applies to K-pop artists. What would happen if you suddenly ship Western artists?

- I'll try doing that now. I'll start with Drake and Kanye.

"We won't make you wait any longer. We will now announce the trainees who made it from the 41st to the 49th spot!" June professionally said despite the shipping agenda that was happening in the comments.

However, aside from that, another topic arose from the stream.

- Wait, does June have a pimple?

- Oh my gosh. You're right! It's very subtle, but there's a small bump of redness on the tip of his nose.

- Ew. He has a pimple? Wasn't he known as the poreless idol?

- He should take better care of himself.

- Yeah, he looks like a hobo next to Casper with his pimple.

- Dang, people are really brutal.

- Pimples are normal. I hope everybody understands that.

Fortunately, June wasn't able to read the comments at that moment.

With that, Casper and June announced the surviving trainees back and forth, incorporating Minho's strategies of making the participants and the audience wait in utter nervousness.

Before they knew it, they were now down to the top 25 ranks.

June pursed his lips as he looked at the unopened envelope—

one that contained those at the higher ranks. He knew that Mei's rank would be high since she placed within the top ten during the preliminary voting.

However, June didn't want her to get past that. In his mind, she didn't deserve to get such a rank. Moreover, it was going to be another avenue of hate if she was to be placed on the debut team.

"Before we get into the top 25 ranks," Casper started off. "Let's first watch this clip! It was a challenge for the girls to raise funds for children who are starving in war areas. People can donate as much as they can to the livestreams, then, the person with the highest profit will be granted a special advantage on the next mission!"

"Please watch the clips they have posted on YouWatch, as the profit will all go to this cause," Casper said.

June raised his eyebrows, unaware that something as such had happened.

However, he wasn't really surprised. They, too, had the livestreaming mission during their season.

The video clip played, so Casper and June sat for a moment to watch with the rest of the girls.

Contrary to the past season, the girls settled with an intimate livestream that didn't require them to scavenge for any items. Instead, they were going to talk about their lives while the staff randomly handed them some stuff that they had to incorporate in their stories.

Heemin, ever as poised, was handed some rat poison. With that, she proceeded to share the value of each life on Earth.

"Think twice before you place this in your homes," she seriously said.

"Then, ask yourself—what if the little rat was a father and had a family to go home to?"

- Aww, Heemin is such a sweetheart.

- I knew I picked right when I chose her as my favorite!

Meanwhile, June shook his head in amusement. It was obvious that the girl was only saying those words to elevate her reputation further. However, he couldn't really blame her.

She was a smart trainee, and she knew how to use it to her advantage.

Then, June paid more attention when Mei was shown on the screen. Out of a hundred trainees, she was given a cut, which once again spoke of her popularity.

"I guess I'm here because I want to make a lot of people happy," she said, starting off with why she wanted to join Rising Stars in the first place.

"...and I just feel close to this place—like it is the gateway to completing myself...and finding something that is lost within me,," she continued.

Just then, she was handed a single umbrella, so she scrutinized it with a small frown.

June smirked as he leaned back against his seat.

'I bet she's going to say that she loves the rain,' he thought.

However, with her next utterance, June was left speechless.

"I really, really hate the rain."