It was official.

Bad luck definitely ran in their family.

June definitely shouldn't have promised to scold the trainees after the next bad trainee. He was convinced that Yena and Yejin wouldn't cluster too many untalented trainees in one segment.

However, they did, and now, he was going to pay the consequences.

Not only that, but he was going to scold none other than his sister.

If she just auditioned a little later or a little bit earlier, then this wouldn't have happened!

Wait...

If she didn't audition at all, then this wouldn't have happened!

The mentors looked at June with raised eyebrows, waiting for him to speak.

June already knew that the hate against Mei Ling would increase once he spoke about her performance. However, he also knew that it was needed—not only for her but for the other trainees.

June sighed and took the microphone. The others turned silent, not knowing what to expect from June.

"Mei Li—," he began but quickly corrected himself.

"Mei," he said, his voice firm.

"You have a gift for expressing emotions through your singing, and that's something to be commended. However, emotions alone aren't enough. As idols, we need to be well-rounded performers, capable of delivering both emotion and technical skill."

Mei Ling glanced at him with nonchalant eyes, but even then, June couldn't look at her without feeling a pang of guilt.

He pursed his lips and looked away from her eyes.

Why did this little monster have such an effect on him?

Turning to the rest of the trainees, June decided to offer some advice as a whole.

"I want to talk to all of you about the importance of vocals in the K-pop industry," he said.

"You can be a great dancer, but I think dancing isn't the most important aspect. At the end of the day, you are a singer. No matter how hard you work and how skilled you are at dancing, if you can't sing, you'll be deemed as untalented."

Other trainees looked down at their laps and started fiddling with their fingers, guilty of June's accusations.

He paused, letting his words sink in before continuing. "In K-pop, vocals are everything. They're what sets you apart from the rest. So, don't neglect your vocal training. Practice every day, hone your skills, and strive for excellence in everything you do."

"And I know that you might say that there's auto-tune and voice effects for a reason, but it's very much different. You have to be able to sing live before the public starts acknowledging you as real idols."

"I know that he's giving great advice right now, but I can't focus. He's too beautiful."

"Girl, you got 0 stars. Listen to him."

"But his lips are all I could focus on!"

Meanwhile, June felt like a hypocrite as he said those words.

He definitely wasn't passionate when he first started in Rising Stars. In fact, he just wanted to make it into the team so that Mei Ling wouldn't die. Then, he grew to love performing when he realized it was what he always wanted since he was younger.

To lessen his guilt, he continued to speak.

"So, be passionate in what you're doing," he said. "The only excuse where you can't be passionate is when your life is on the line...or when your loved ones are threatened to die," he quickly added.

The trainees frowned in confusion after he said his last statement. However, those words were coming from such a handsome person. Why would they dare question it?

Gun enthusiastically nodded.

"That's also what I felt after watching your performances," he said. "Somehow, I want to give a vocal lesson to all of you right now. However, I'm definitely a worse singer than most of you."

The trainees chuckled, the atmosphere lightening after Gun's words.

Just then, Lee Sik's eyes brightened.

"Well, we have June over here," he quickly said. "Why don't you back up your words and sing for these girls, won't you?"

The girls started squealing, in disbelief that June would be singing before them for free!

June's eyes widened.

"What? No!" he exclaimed, causing the trainees to exclaim in disappointment.

"Come on," Ji-hyun said. "The trainees want a concrete example of your advice, right?" she asked, turning to the girls.

A resounding 'yes' was heard in the studio.

The staff members began chuckling as they focused on June's flustered expression. All of them were enjoying teasing the idol!

Meanwhile, Mei pursed her lips to hold back her words.

'Gosh. Why do I have to stay here while he's being gushed about?' she thought.

Meanwhile, June didn't know what to do.

He was being placed under the spotlight once again, with no way out.

[Come on. Boast! Boast!]

[I didn't help you upgrade your skills for nothing!]

June sighed and realized that he still had a mission with Fu.

"We're not going to stop pestering you," Amira said, chuckling along with the other mentors.

June closed his eyes before shaking his head.

'Alright, let's just get this over with.'

"Fine," June said, making all of them cheer, except for Mei, of course.

June paused for a moment and thought of what song to sing.

Then, the perfect song came to mind.

He realized that maybe Mei Ling being untalented was actually a good thing. Now that he had experienced being an idol, he didn't know if it was a life that he wanted for his sister.

He worked so hard trying to protect her back then.

He also wanted to protect her now...even though it seemed she wasn't aware of his presence.

It was a job that entailed having such great self-esteem. One wrong move, one hate comment, or one scandal could make or break a person. Moreover, the schedule was almost inhumane.

As much as he loved performing, he also didn't like some of the conditions that came with it.

It was similar to being part of a gang, somehow.

So, maybe, if she doesn't debut through this show, she would be happier.

With that, he took the microphone and placed it on his lips, determined to dampen her dreams. Then, he started singing without any accompaniment.

"In the quiet of the night,

I still hear your voice,

Echoing through the empty space."

The others gasped in surprise. He was singing the same song that Mei just sang!

From the first note, the difference between June's singing and Mei's was immediately apparent.

His voice was like velvet, smooth and rich as it soared effortlessly through the air. Every note was perfectly pitched, every phrase perfectly timed.

As June continued to sing, Mei Ling's face twisted into a frown.

"This guy's really annoying," she muttered.