Chapter 472: Past, Present, and Future Monsters

- Has anyone seen CHAOS perform something like this before? I know I haven't!

- Holy Moly! They're delving into this kind of concept for the finale?

- King behavior only. I can't believe they pulled this kind of concept with all-black outfits.

- I could hear Haruki's voice so well. He sings and raps like a beast!

- We can definitely end the show right now. CHAOS has already taken the throne.

EVE watched as CHAOS took over the genre they excelled in the most—an emotional stage.

June's eyebrows furrowed as the camera focused on Haruki's eyes, filled with unspoken emotion.

Their latest title track, 'Day by Day by Day,' was about a post-apocalyptic relationship where the guy seeks out his long, lost love. The music video had a dark, zombie theme, which many fans and even non-fans liked.

It has an intense EDM sound with an underlying R&B influence, which added a sexy flare to the song. June never expected it to be performed this way. However, listening to the lyrics, he realized it was very possible.

June shook his head before crossing his arms in front of his chest.

He had to admit—he didn't see it coming.

Despite it being a trick he had done plenty of times, he still didn't expect another group to do something so similar.

As the camera panned to the audience, revealing their captivated expressions, June felt first-hand how other participants felt during Rising Stars when he pulled the same stunt.

"So this is how it feels, huh?" he whispered, a small smile emerging from his lips.

EVE continued intently watching the performance, nodding in acknowledgment during the highlights of the song. CHAOS' talent couldn't be denied, and EVE had to admit that the group had something they didn't—seasoned experience.

They had been a team for much longer, had performed on bigger stages, and had way more experience handling the crowd, and June felt a slight difference in their performance with EVEs.

As their performance ended, two of the judges stood in excitement.

The audience, too, burst into deafening cheers. Meanwhile, EVE was stunned into silence, not knowing how to feel about their performance.

Jisung bit his lip as he looked at his fellow members.

"What are we going to do now?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" June said, already standing from his seat to do a quick stretch.

"They didn't utilize the dark concept that we predicted," Akira sighed, also feeling nervous.

"Does that matter?" June nonchalantly asked.

His members turned to June, confused by his calm demeanor.

"Did you watch their performance just now?" Jaeyong asked. "Do you think we can beat that?"

"Well, we wouldn't know if we tried, won't we?" June asked.

The members looked at each other before standing from their seats as well.

June sighed as he looked at their nervous expressions.

"This is a big stage for us," June started off, cracking his knuckles.

"I know that we're battling with giant monsters, but it was also yesterday when I was battling with monsters like you," June chuckled, pointing at all of them.

At one point, all of them seemed like skyscrapers to June. During Rising Stars, he didn't even think of beating the present members of EVE with his skill, yet now, he was performing on the same stage as them.

The other members visibly loosened with June's statement. Somehow, it gave them confidence that a monster like June also considered themselves to be monsters.

"If I could topple such monsters down," June continued. "Then, I'm sure we'll be able to do so too—especially now that we're already joining hands," he smiled.

Jaeyong pursed his lips before nodding.

"June's right," he agreed. "This is our last stage—something we worked very hard on despite our busy schedule. Let's go out on that stage with the aim of showing our talent and hard work to the viewers."

"Yeah!" Akira exclaimed loudly, shaking his hands to get rid of the nervousness.

"Let's bring it in," Jaeyong said, trying to get the team spirit up.

He stretched his arm out and placed his hand in the middle while his members looked at him with confusion.

"What are you doing?" Sehun asked.

Jaeyong clicked his tongue and coaxed for them to come closer.

"Let's do a group cheer," he said.

Akira and Ren groaned simultaneously.

"That's such a millennial thing to do," Ren pointed out.

Jaeyong narrowed his eyes. "I'll pretend you didn't just say that. Just bring your hand in. It's the leader's order," he smirked.

June placed his hand over Jaeyong to get it over with.

Despite their initial hesitation, the other members enthusiastically joined in on the circle when June initiated it. Casper clicked his tongue in annoyance when Akira overtook him and placed his hand over June's.

Jaeyong sighed as he watched his eager members. "You guys have such double standards," he muttered.

Seven hands were joined together, waiting for the last member to join in on the circle.

They all turned to Jisung, who was nervously fiddling with his fingers.

"What are you waiting for?" Akira asked. "Come here."

Jisung, however, continued looking nervous. Their youngest member was truly the youngest in heart. June shook his head and felt quite bad for him.

"Come on," June softly said. "What are you so afraid of?"

Jisung pursed his lips before responding.

"CHAOS has more experience than us," he muttered. "I'm afraid we won't be able to beat that."

June sighed and raked his free hand over his hair. However, he grimaced when he felt the hair gel on his fingers.

"June!" Akira exclaimed. "You just ruined your hair."

The other members, too, fussed about the unexpected disaster. However, as they looked at their blonde member, they stopped, tilting their heads to the side in confusion.

"Wait, you actually look pretty good like this," Ren said.

"Yeah...In fact, I think you suit this better," Akira remarked.

June smirked, trusting their judgment. Then, he turned back to Jisung, whose nervousness only seemed to heighten because of the mishap with June's hair.

"They might have something we don't have," June started, looking straight into Jisung's eyes so he could feel his sincerity.

"But that's just the rule of life. Someone will always be better. Once we learn to accept that, we'll be able to progress even further."

"However, life is fair. It gives, and it takes. So, even though someone might be better in one aspect, they will never be the best in others," June continued.

Akira shook his head as he listened to June's speech. For him, it seemed as though June's statement was incorrect.

Because one could truly be the best in everything.

June was the living proof of it.

He wasn't there yet.

But in his mind, June will get there soon.