"Oh my goodness!" Grandma jumped excitedly as June entered their apartment. "He's here. He's really here!"

June looked at Grandma with wide eyes, and then he glanced at Minjun, asking what was wrong with the old lady.

Minjun sighed and gently pushed Grandma away. "You're acting like he's a celebrity. You see him almost every day."

However, that didn't stop Grandma from looking at June with wide, googly eyes.

"What happened?" June warily asked, feeling apprehensive because of Grandma's attention.

Minjun sighed and retrieved his phone from his pocket. "You're really so clueless about everything. Here," he said, showing him the screen. "Someone posted your solo part on FaceLook, and now it has more than two million likes."

"What?" June asked, skeptical of the number of likes. "What page is this?"

"It's Hwan's fan page, one that has over a million members. Grandma's a part of that page."

June paused. So, that explains the sudden shift in her attitude. She was looking at June like he was god's incarnate.

Minjun clicked his tongue. "You've once again earned another fanbase, bro. First, it was children, then with young adults...and now you have fans like my Grandma over here."

June frowned as he clicked on the post, scrolling through the comments.

- June is my son's age... but it's okay...I don't believe in age gaps as long as he is of legal age, hehe...

- How do you buy stars on the Azure app? My grandson does not want to teach me.

- I like Hwan; my granddaughter likes June. Now, we're fighting for June.

- My vision is blurry, but I can still see that June is handsome.

- This kind of talent is hard to come by. We, grandmother stans, support June!

- I will ask my son to send more allowance this month so I can send stars to June.

- June, I am 69, but I am still young at heart. Please message me when you see this.

June scrolled with mixed feelings. Minjun was reading with him from behind his back, cracking up with every comment.

The young kid patted his back and gave him a thumbs up.

"I hope you don't mind a 50-year age gap!"

***

June has been having a hard time after the video was posted. Back then, he could walk around their neighborhood without getting recognized.

However, now, he was being stopped by people even when he just wanted to go to Seven Star Convenience Store! And all of them were of the older generation! How could they recognize him so quickly when they had blurred vision?

He even had to run away from a group of protesting old ladies. In the end, they were still able to catch up to him, even with their arthritis.

As expected, old people were scary, too.

Moreover, Grandma hadn't stopped pestering him to join her morning zumba classes at the park. She wanted to boast to her fellow old friends that she knew June from 'Rising Stars,' and since June felt like he owed Grandma a lot, he decided to appease her requests.

He just didn't know his cheeks would be sore after every two-hour session because of the continuous cheek-pinching from the old ladies.

So, despite being a homebody, June was kind of thankful that he was now back in the Azure dorms.

"It's starting again," Akira groaned. "Why do I feel like the break was so short?"

"I know," Jangmoon agreed. "We're down to the third mission already. I feel like time is moving too quickly."

All 75 trainees were gathered in the training center. They were dressed in casual clothes, some catching up after the one-week long break.

A lot of them glanced at June, who had been the center of gossip for the past week.

As June looked around, he realized that Alex and Hyunwoo were out for good. A knowing smirk appeared on his face as a pop-up emerged.

[Congratulations, host! You have completed the mission: Kick Someone Out Of the Competition. Please pick an aspect an aspect to improve.]

June thought hard about this one.

His vocals were already on the A-tier, which was the highest among the trainees. His dance and visuals were at a tie on the B-tier, which was already above average among all the trainees. Of course, he still lags behind the top ten trainees, but he could already be considered talented.

As for the rap, he probably wouldn't even rap for the duration of the competition. He's been singing until now, and he'll be singing until the end.

So, for now, he decided to upgrade his visuals just in time for the second elimination.

'Visual.'

[Wise choice! Visual +1. Current grade: B+]

C-Jay was staring at June when the upgrade happened, and he was taken aback by the aura he emanated in a split second. He scrubbed his eyes and took a double look at June.

What the hell? Did he just get more handsome?

His thoughts were interrupted when Hyerin and Minho entered the training center. The trainees erupted into applause as the pretty and handsome celebrities made their way to the front. It has been more than a week since they last saw each other, so seeing them today felt brand new.

Hyerin immediately looked for someone among the sea of trainees, and then she saw him—June. She couldn't help but smile as she watched his nonchalant clapping. In reality, her mom had become a fan of June ever since his video went viral on FaceLook, and she's been pestering Hyerin for a photo with him ever since. It was amazing how big June's reach had become. Her aunts and uncles were even asking for an autograph! It's definitely the first time she has seen an individual trainee be this popular on the show.

"It's been a while, trainees," Minho started off. "I watched the previous episodes, and I must say that all of you have improved so much since the first mission."

The trainees clapped, feeling proud of themselves.

"However, in Rising Stars, trainees have no time to relax," Hyerin continued. "We shall now move onto our third mission—a staple for Rising Stars."

Excited exclamations filled the room, while others dreaded the pressure and hardships that came along the new mission.

June pursed his lips and thought hard about what the third mission could be. If it's a staple of Rising Stars, then that means they're going with the same third mission from the other seasons.

"Concept Mission," June and Hyerin said at the same time.

Hyerin's eyes sparkled as she elaborated, "In the Concept Mission, each team will be assigned a song from a renowned producer from all across the borders."

Minho's grin was infectious as he continued, "That's right! We're talking about original musical masterpieces created by famous producers – a true test of your skills and talent."