It's been over two weeks since getting out of the hospital, and there are a lot of things to cover. For one, Ren moved out of the orphanage and went with his adoptive mother, Asuna Saito—the woman who adopted him. They moved to Seoul. He was in the orphanage only because she went to her family in Japan, and he didn't want to go with her, so he stayed in Korea.
When he woke up, he found that he was called to the new survival show IDOLS CROWN, where they take over 100 contestants from around the world—50 boys and 50 girls. But the thing is, K-pop was not that popular this year; it was just starting to get attention outside of Asia. (AN: Before I forget, this all takes place in mid-2017.)
And the last reward he got—well, let's take a look.
___
Two weeks ago, after being discharged from the hospital
Ren just looked at his status screen. "So you really want me to be that?"
|Yes, host, it is recommended that the host let this be his public persona.|
In the hospital, he got to choose which persona to use in public, and guess what—this system made it into a gacha game. And the personas were...
|Congratulations, host, you have been given a rare opportunity to not show your fans this stupid personality of yours.|
★Options★
1.The Charismatic Leader
Traits: Confident, eloquent, inspiring, passionate, decisive
2.The Mysterious Intellectual
Traits: Calm, composed, enigmatic, introspective, a bit aloof
3.The Flamboyant Celebrity
Traits: Outgoing, dramatic, over-the-top, glamorous, and always at the center of attention
4.The Self-Aware Narcissist
Traits: Charming, humorous, slightly arrogant, self-deprecating
More+
|Congratulations, host, you have been given the Self-Aware Narcissist.|
Image: On the outside, they exude confidence and charisma, but it's all wrapped up in a carefully curated self-awareness. They know they're not perfect, but they still revel in the attention and make sure others do too. They crack jokes about themselves and their "flaws" but never stop fishing for compliments.
And that was the second special reward from the system.
He looked at the calendar—the date was July 23, 2017.★
So, in two weeks, it was going to be a special day—they would start recording the first episode: the auditions.
"Ren, come down here, boy," Nana—or Asuna—called him.
As he went out of his room, the smell of food hit him. He saw a woman singing while preparing food on the table.
"Sit down, my Kin no tamago o umu gachō," she said, then blinked.
"You know I can speak Japanese, right? sigh I'll be leaving in two weeks for the show, but I'll be visiting, and that's a good thing because they are coming, and I want to be out of here by morning." Silence followed.
Nana just stared at the handsome boy in front of her. "You know you are my child too, right? So I don't get why they don't like you, but please don't hate them. Let's forget about that—I got something from that family yesterday by mail."
As soon as he heard that, he clenched his jaw.
"I know what they did, but I got this from their youngest daughter, saying it was something that was found with you at that station." As she said that, she got something from her pocket and handed it to him.
There were two coins, and they landed in his hand.
|Host, those are South African coins—the R2 and R1.|
|Searching for the host's genetic ancestry...|
|Wow, host, now I know why you spoke those languages in your sleep these past few days.|
"Out with it—what did you find?" he thought.
|Host, it's been found that you're 75% Black South African (roughly 40% Xhosa and 35% Sotho), 15% Western European (England, France, and Germany ancestry), and 10% other.|
"Wow. Now explain this—if I'm Black, why don't I look Black or half Black, but like a Western-looking dude? Or am I al—"
|No, host, you are Black genetically, but the unknown gene dominates most of your appearance. But you know you're Black from the waist down.|
As they were talking—
"So now, where are the coins from? Because I don't know them," Nana asked.
"Well, Nana, I think I'm Black... no, I think I'm from Africa because these are South African coins."
_________
After two weeks
In the morning, they were in a car going to where the auditions would be held for the Idol Crown survival show.
"So, you have your toothbrush? You did take all your toiletries, right? Right?" She had been asking the same question since they left the house and now on the road.
"Yes, I packed everything, and if I left anything, you live just 15 minutes away by car, so I can come back home. So don't stress this handsome man." When he said that, Asuna looked at him with wide eyes.
"What the heck was that? That's not the son I know." Well, she knew that Ren didn't like to talk too much; he was introverted.
He didn't answer and stared out the window of the car.
The black sedan rolled slowly down the busy street, its tires humming on the asphalt as Ren and his mother, Nana, sat in silence. The afternoon sun was already beginning to dip behind the towering buildings of Seoul, casting a golden hue across the city.
But what held their attention now was the massive poster plastered across the side of a gleaming building ahead. Bright neon lights flashed across the advertisement, catching their eyes. The words "IDOL CROWN SURVIVAL SHOW" loomed large in bold letters. The poster seemed to glow, taking up almost the entire side of the building. School kids were passing by since schools were closed for summer break, and there were a lot of kids in the streets.
Ren put on his fox mask, and gone was his pretty face—back was the ordinary-looking one. When Nana turned, she was scared for a bit, but she knew who he was.
"So that's why you said they will love you for your voice but not your face. And I will say, you look ordinary—so go on, star, and show them you mean business." As he was getting his bags from the trunk—
In Japanese, someone spoke behind him, "He must be going in the building too, huh?" As he turned, he saw a boy in faded jeans and an oversized hoodie. So he answered in Japanese, "So, my subject, are you going to look at your handsome king and not help him with his bags?" As soon as he said that, he felt corny.
The boy in front of him answered in native Korean, "Wow, now we got a corny one, huh?" (He chuckled.) "Let me help you with that. My name is Akashi Takahashi, #76, from Japan. Position: dancer."
As he held out his hand, Ren smiled. "My name is Riiiza, and my position—well, I'm an all-rounder."
"So now I must look out for you, huh? But things are about to get interesting, 'cause everyone in there is a monster in their positions." As he helped him, Ren said goodbye to Nana and got inside the building. They went to the reception.
"Hello, my name is Riiiza, and I was told to come today for the show." When the woman looked at the boy in a fox mask, she said, "So you're gonna hide your face for how long? Why do I care? Since you're here, the young man behind you will show you your room. And you have to tell me where you're from—which country."
"Well, I'm from South Africa." When he said that, the woman had a suspicious look, but he said, "I know what you're thinking—yes, I'm African, and I have this condition where I am genetically Black but came out looking 60% Western and 40% Black, so that's the only way to explain it." After that, she smiled. "Well then, this show is about to get a lot of viewership."
After that, she gave him a box with things they would wear inside the building to show they were contestants, along with a black envelope labeled #100 Room No. 8. He was the last contestant.
"We will print your shirt with your name, number, and country. Good luck, contestant."
Then Akashi spoke behind him. "So you're in that room then? Well, things are going to get a lot more interesting."
He didn't know why he said that, but the way he said it... He looked inside the envelope and saw a card.
_______
Hello your author here so now we go to the main thing of the story.I know it will be confusing on how the MC looks that way but I wanted him to be different from other people but if you don't understand anything in my novel please comment and don't forget the review and Powerstones
Thank you