EPISODE 11

Just in case, let's use four draws.'

As a precaution against the possibility of the system playing a prank and suddenly grabbing Baek-Ya by the back of his neck, he decided to save two points.

Baek-Ya called out his status window.

Lv. 7 Baek-Ya (Synchronizing)

Appearance: B

Vocals: A

Dance: C

Talent: D

Stress: 9%

Title: Genius Idol (Inactive)

Passive: R

Talent aside, that passive really made him tear up every time he saw it.

"I'm definitely becoming a genius idol no matter what."

Baek-Ya gritted his teeth as he made up his mind.

"What are you muttering to yourself like that? Are you sleep-talking again?"

Yu-Yeon leaned close to Baek-Ya who was on his stomach. Baek-Ya, who had been focusing on his calculations, flipped his body in surprise at the voice coming right next to his face.

"Uagh!"

The sound effect was loud.

"Puhahaha! Why is this hyung so surprised? This is super funny."

Yu-Yeon, who had been sitting calmly, rolled on the floor holding his stomach. Baek-Ya's face flushed with embarrassment.

He sat up from his position, slapped Yu-Yeon on the shoulder, and huffed.

"You gave me the creeps! Give me some kind of sign!"

"Wow… that cut deep. How could you call such a cute dongsaeng creepy?"

Yu-Yeon put on a sullen expression pretending to be hurt. Of course, he was joking around, but because Baek-Ya was easily fooled, Yu-Yeon didn't stop acting.

His new roommate of one month was extremely fun to tease.

* * *

It was the day Baek-Ya first entered the dorm.

In fact, Baek-Ya did not have the option of choosing a roommate. It was because he had to use the same spot the previous member had used. Of course, he didn't have any complaints. He just had one question.

"Ji-Han-ah, do you have a standard for dividing rooms?"

"Why? Do you not like this room?"

"It's not like that. There just seems to be a strange difference in atmosphere."

The members of Room 1 were Ji-Han, Yu-Yeon, and Baek-Ya. The members of Room 2 were Min-Sung, Yul-Mu, and Chung.

The stark temperature difference was like seeing heaven and hell. Of course, heaven was here, and hell was there. Because in Room 2, there were two inexhaustible runaway locomotives.

In the form of Na Yul-Mu and Chungchung.

"We just drew lots. Isn't that right, hyung?"

"Yeah. If you want to go to that room, then I can talk to Min-Sung hyung…"

"No?! I like this room very much."

Baek-Ya quickly put his belongings on the empty bed.

Ji-Han looked at Baek-Ya's sparse belongings and pondered.

From the first time they met, Ji-Han sensed that Baek-Ya was the type to feel burdened under attention and preferred to be quiet. He didn't know why such a person made the determination to become an idol, but his new roommate didn't seem too bad.

'Though, he seems kind of clumsy and awkward.'

Of course, Ji-Han's instincts were not wrong. For example:

"Huck…!"

He had dozed off while walking and almost tripped over his own feet.

"Stress is fatal and… it's steadily rising."

Whether he was stressed by the murderous schedule, Baek-Ya seemed to stare into space and mutter to himself a lot.

"I can't believe how hard it is to raise a sunfish!"

What the hell was he even dreaming about? Sometimes when he talked in his sleep, he even gave a solid answer when he was asked a question.

"…What are you raising? Where?"

"Hu-huh? What are you saying? I'm the sunfish…"

"Pfft. You're the sunfish, hyung? Why?"

"If you find out, keep it to yourself. Or you'll be in reeeal trouble."

At first, Ji-Han and Yu-Yeon didn't realize that he was talking in his sleep. However, the conversation seemed oddly abnormal. That was when they found out Baek-Ya's sleeping habits.

However, the funniest point was when they woke up again the next morning and remembered everything.

"Did the sunfish wake up?"

Baek-Ya (A real sunfish/18) stopped breathing at Ji-Han's nonchalant morning greeting.

A face that turned ghastly pale. Chung, passing by, fussed that Baek-Ya had stopped breathing, and when Yul-Mu ran over and hit him on the back, telling him to breathe, Baek-Ya finally gasped for air.

"Wh-, wh-, why am I a sunfish!"

Whenever he was embarrassed or surprised, Baek-Ya severely stuttered.

When Yu-Yeon, who belatedly came out to the living room, asked if he didn't remember his sleep talking, Baek-Ya, who finally figured out the situation, replied as he pretended to remember the dream. Very awkwardly.

"Ah. That's. Right. I had a dream. A silly- a silly dream."

To take a step further, all day long Baek-Ya flinched at every word that resembled the word 'dream'. Ji-Han and Yu-Yeon's eyes sparkled with interest as they observed Baek-Ya.

With the combination of the 'scammer' known as Yu-Yeon and the 'quiet nutcase' known as Ji-Han, Baek-Ya had truly won the jackpot of hell without even realizing it as everyone else was aware of it but him.

* * *

Early in the morning, in front of DASE's accommodation.

A white Carnival van pulled up and a familiar face soon followed. It was Nam-Kyung, the manager who had come to pick up DASE.

"Am I here too early?"

Today was the day of an important music video shoot. They were in a bit of a rush, so he had arrived earlier than expected.

Beep beep beep beep-

The front door opened with the sound of the door lock code being released.

Checking the time, Nam-Kyung decided that he could let them sleep a little longer and headed to the living room. It was still dark in the early morning. However, there was a dim light leaking from the living room, showing that there were members who had already woken up.

"Who's there?"

There was a vague view of someone's back as he entered the living room. Given the relatively small figure, the main character seemed to be Baek-Ya.

"Why didn't you sleep more and already woke up? You're the most sleep-deprived fellow, too."

Nam-Kyung approached the slightly surprised face.

"Ah, Nam-Kyung hyung? You're here early."

"It just so happened. Are you nervous because it's your first shoot?"

Baek-Ya smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of his neck. He looked slightly flustered, but the darkness prevented Nam-Kyung from seeing it. Taking it as an affirmation, he patted Baek-Ya on the shoulder.

"Just do what you've practiced. You're doing well enough."

Baek-Ya's conscience was stabbed by unexpected encouragement. Although it wasn't what he intended, he felt like a swindler.

'I just got up early to do a skill draw…'

Of course, he was nervous about the shooting too, but not as much as when he spun the lottery draw. He was up early in the morning only because he aimed for the time when everyone was asleep.

If he was going to do the draw anyway, he wanted to use the opportunity before the day was over.

And the results.

[Skill Acquired!]

[, , , ]

While he didn't accomplish what he set out to do, he did manage to have his own harvest.

Lv.7 Baek-Ya (Synchronizing)

Appearance: B

Vocals: A

Dance: C

Talent: B

Stress: 10%

Title: Genius Idol (Inactive)

Passive: R

His talent had gone up two levels.

Baek-Ya smiled slightly as he looked at his newly changed status window. and were now replaced by new abilities and .

The result of the draw was this:

: Make the audience's heart go 'Thump!'

: The appearance of 100 fluorescent lights.

: Bewitching dance moves that enchant people.

: The fatal charm makes the other person lose their mind.

In truth, upon initially reading the detailed explanation, he had presumed that the two B-grade skills were related to matters of appearance. Being of the same grade and still content with his current state, he was not inclined to change them unless there were superior skills. Hence, it left him with a sense of disappointment.

However, as he progressed to the stage of equipping them, he couldn't help but notice that the was hovering under the 'Talent' category. Naturally, Baek-Ya's eyes widened in response.

It was an essential trait that any idol should possess! A genuine charisma that surpassed the mere boost of confidence upon gazing into a mirror—nothing could compare to it.

'Causing heart-flutters just from looking…!'

It was a talent that could sufficiently compensate for his lacking dance skills.

'As for the rest…'

The skill might literally make his face glow 100 times brighter as soon as he selected it and had a somewhat ominously significant nuance.

If there was one thing he had realized through his experiences, it was that the quests, along with the skills, remained true to the titles that defined them. So, with just a little reflection, you could figure out that there were many ways to make a person lose their mind.

'Either it's making someone insane from overwhelming delight or the complete opposite.'

He couldn't rule out the possibility of disorientation due to shock. Moreover, it was only a C-grade skill. There was no need to contemplate when there was a skill that was one level higher.

With that in mind, there was only one thing left: a dance-related skill.

'Bewitching dance moves that enchant people…'

It was daunting. Utterly daunting.

However, Baek-Ya had no other options. Wouldn't it be better to have a skill that can bewitch people rather than barely rushing along the current path?

After some contemplation, Baek-Ya decided to change his skill, hoping it was the right decision.