New member

"It’s called rock music. We’re about to take the world with it, are you in?"

Gregory seemed interested.

"Tell me more about it."

Natsuo sniggered.

"I want to take the world with my rock music: we’ll go down in history as the first band of Roselond and everyone will know our names. We’ll perform in front of millions of people that adore us and scream for us. We’ll be rich, famous and happy, but that’s not the only thing." He lowered his gaze and caressed his guitar’s strings. "I want to make music that can reach people’s souls. I want to express myself in a way that I can’t do through words, express my entire being and show it to the world, so that I can feel heard. I want to connect with fans and make them feel better with my music. This is what a true rockstar does."

Hearing those words, Olive’s cheeks tingled. She could understand what he was talking about: his songs reached her heart deeply and made her feel good. When he played his guitar, she felt a sentimental attachment to him, something that connected the two of them. In that moment, she realised how extraordinary Natsuo was: his music was pure art.

Natsuo looked up straight into Gregory’s eyes.

"So, do you want to join Rockstar Isekai and take the world with us?"

Gregory didn’t know what to say. He didn’t really understand what this music Natsuo was talking about was, but he felt the passion flowing from his words. Natsuo wanted to express himself at the fullest and entrust his feelings to the whole world: he was so cool for that.

Gregory smiled admiringly.

"Yes, I’ll join you. Show me how to become a true rockstar."

Natsuo ran a hand through his hair.

"Sure."

He opened the Rockstar System menu and added Gregory as a band member. Now, he had to think of what instrument could fit him the best.

The drums, maybe… He thought.

He could already imagine Gregory taking off his shirt on stage and pouring water on himself, then do his drum solo.

Yeah, that’s definitely it. Fangirls will go crazy.

Natsuo read Gregory’s general info that showed up on his interface:

NAME: Gregory

GENDER: Male

AGE: 23

HEIGHT: 190 cm

SYSTEM: Metal System

Natsuo’s eyes widened. 190 cm? He was a giant.

Regarding his system, Natsuo had no idea of what it could be. Surely it wasn’t referring to the musical genre, though.

"How does your system work? If I can ask you that" Natsuo asked.

"Oh, it’s cool, right? I developed the Metal System: I can manipulate molten metal and make it assume the shape that I want" Gregory replied.

As demonstration, strings of molten metal twirled around his hand and took the shape of a club.

"It’s pretty cool, not gonna lie" commented Natsuo.

The club vanished and Gregory crossed his arms proudly.

"By the way, where are we headed?" he asked.

"The capital. The Anti-Silence Unit summoned me to their headquarters" replied Natsuo.

Gregory’s expression twisted in surprise.

"Why did they summon you?"

"For a talk, they said. Probably because word has spread that I can heal Silence."

Gregory glanced at him, flabbergasted.

"Wait, I know you. Everyone around here knows you. You’re the recently appeared guy that heals Silence with the help of a strange tool!"

At first, Natsuo was surprised that Gregory had heard about him, but then he smirked proudly.

"My reputation precedes me" he commented smugly.

Gregory nodded frantically.

"So the “strange tool” must be the thing you’re holding in your hands."

"Yeah, it’s called guitar."

Gregory’s eyes sparkled.

"This guitar is really cool! It can transform into a scythe, heal Silence… What else can it do? Will you teach me how to use it?"

Natsuo sniggered. He felt like he was talking to a fan. He shook his head.

"No, you’ll play another instrument. Bands are usually composed of four or five members: one is the singer, in our case Olive, and each of the others play a different instrument" he explained. "If everyone did the same thing, it would be boring, don’t you think?"

Gregory thought about it. "You’re right. So, what am I gonna play?"

Natsuo slightly bowed his head forward with a cunning expression.

"The drums. I’ll show you when we stop."

Gregory nodded excitedly. It was already amazing that Natsuo was actually the famous guy capable of doing miracles, but knowing his goal and being part of his project was even more thrilling. He couldn’t wait to experiment what being a rockstar meant.

***

Two days later, the group arrived at the capital Blossomhyl. During pauses to let the horse rest, Natsuo showed Gregory how to play the drums and he seemed to enjoy it. He had to practice before he could perform, but he was seriously working on it. Natsuo was satisfied with the current Rockstar Isekai’s members: they needed to find their bassist and they were full. After that, he could start composing original songs and they could perform with their own produced tracks.

Natsuo stopped the cart at Blossomhyl’s entrance. The city was protected by a gated wall and sentries were guarding the gates. There was a queue of carts that was waiting for the checks.

When their cart was about to cross the gates, the guards blocked them.

"We need to check your wagon" one of them said.

"Sure" replied Natsuo.

They glanced at him suspiciously. They probably thought he was a punk because of his piercings and tattoos. They looked inside the cart and gasped when they glimpsed Gregory.

"That guy has a dragon tattoo…" said one of the guards.

"He’s surely a member of the Children of Dragon gang, we can’t let them pass" replied the other one.

"The one who’s leading doesn’t seem a good guy either, he could be hiding the tattoo."

The sentries shared a knowing glance and crossed their lances in front of Natsuo’s cart.

"Your entry is not authorized."