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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: A Shocking Transformation
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She had seemed so grown up. Even more so than the 20-year-old version of her in the social media profile picture I'd seen before the world turned upside down.
Did I see the future? I'm living in a world where dreams and reality have been swapped, so maybe having a prophetic dream isn't out of the question. It didn't even feel that surprising.
‘Assuming that was the future, what did I do wrong?’
The image of Na Yeon-woo crying, as if she resented me, still flickered before Hye-sung's eyes.
‘Ha, damn it. This feels unsettling. And the status window isn't giving me a straight answer.’
No matter how many times she asked about the dream, the answer was always the same.
[It may or may not be a prophetic dream.]
There was no concrete information to be had, leaving her with a sense of unease.
* * *
By the time Hye-sung and the others returned to the dorms, it was just past 7 a.m. The dorm hallway was bustling with the sounds of trainees who had woken up and were getting ready to go downstairs.
“Hye-sung, do you think you can eat breakfast?”
“Yes. I'll die if I *don't* eat.”
“Alright, let's get ready quickly and go down.”
After getting some rest with an IV drip, Hye-sung's condition had improved significantly. Perhaps that was why she piled her tray high with food.
Just then, the F-class trainees spotted Hye-sung carrying her tray to a table and swarmed over.
“Hey! I heard you went to the hospital. Are you okay now?”
“We told you to go sooner! You didn't listen and went so late!”
“Hye-sung! Rurika was worried too.”
“I'm okay now, guys. Sorry for making you worry. But where's Yeon-woo?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Na Yeon-woo appeared, running from the cafeteria entrance.
“Hye-sung eonni!”
“Yeon-woo! Don't run, you'll get hurt!”
Ignoring the warning, Na Yeon-woo rushed over in a single bound and threw her arms around Hye-sung's shoulders.
“Eonni, are you feeling better? If I'd known you were going to the hospital, I would have gone with you.”
“No, it's fine. You must be tired too. Besides, my roommates went with me.”
“Young-won eonni had to drag her there while she was insisting she wouldn't go.”
Lee Ju-ha said, as if recounting a heroic tale.
“She was being stubborn, saying she'd be fine after sleeping it off, just like my grandma. So I had to drag her.”
“Haha, right? Grandmas can be surprisingly stubborn like that.”
Though the intention was different, being treated like a grandmother made Hye-sung flinch, subtly pricked by her real age.
‘A grandma… I'm not *that* old.’
After a noisy breakfast, Hye-sung returned to the practice room.
It was 8:30 a.m. The re-evaluation video shoot was less than two hours away.
She heard that even after she had left in the early morning, the rest of F-class had stayed and practiced until 5 a.m.
The exception was Rurika, who still hadn't recovered from her stomach flu. It was a shame, but Rurika, who'd only had rice porridge for breakfast, seemed to be sitting out the re-evaluation. Perhaps because of this, she looked more downcast than before.
‘It's not her fault she's sick...’
Feeling a pang of pity for Rurika, Hye-sung began her final practice before the re-evaluation.
Using in small increments yesterday, she had already achieved 100% proficiency in both the song and the choreography.
[Temporary Skill Application Target: Na Yeon-woo]
[Vocals: Chance! (Proficiency 74.8%)]
[Choreography: Chance! (Proficiency 89.9%)]
‘Yeon-woo's singing is a bit borderline.’
She needed an average of 80% to be considered for the Ace class. There was still some time left, so she considered using Rewind Timepiece more for Na Yeon-woo, but since her body hadn't fully recovered, she decided not to push it.
‘Still, with her choreography proficiency at almost 90%, she should be in the top five. I'm sure the trainers will judge accordingly.’
An hour before the re-evaluation video shoot, the practice room door burst open. A staff member with an urgent expression shouted to the trainees.
“Everyone! Sorry, but the re-evaluation method has changed. There won't be a video shoot. It's going to be a public evaluation for everyone, just like the first class evaluation.”
“What???”
“It changed so suddenly?”
“How can you do this!”
‘So, the situation has changed again.’
Hye-sung took it in stride, but the other trainees were deeply unsettled.
While it was likely the same for the other classes, F-class already wore the label of the lowest rank. The pressure of being judged in front of everyone again was bound to be greater for them.
‘The F class is afraid of getting harsh criticism again and not being able to escape F, while the Ace class is afraid of dropping down. These two classes must be feeling the most pressure.’
“But, we'll only watch up to the first verse! Just the first verse. Get ready and gather at Auditorium 2 by 10 o'clock.”
* * *
When they arrived at Auditorium 2, the staff were busy checking camera settings and preparing for the shoot.
‘It's smaller than I thought. We'll be able to see how everyone does from right up close.’
It was less of an auditorium and more of an audiovisual room.
Inside, there was a small, low stage, and in front of it, about 150 fixed seats on a sloped floor. The very front row was reserved for the trainers' evaluation.
“Everyone, please sit with your classes for now.”
Following the staff's instructions, all the trainees took their seats. A moment later, Seol Han-na and the trainers appeared.
“Everyone, you've heard that the evaluation method has changed, right? The trainers will now explain the reason.”
Seol Han-na said, looking at the nervous trainees.
“Hey, everyone. We're sorry for the sudden change. Um, we realized it would take way too long for the trainers to watch and evaluate all 100 videos. We need to hurry up and pick the center and start practicing for the first public performance, right?”
“Plus, the trainers have a general idea of your skills from the classes, and we thought it would be better to see you face-to-face for one verse each. Is that... okay?”
“Yes...”
They all answered weakly. It didn't seem very okay. Especially not for F-class.
“Let's get this re-evaluation over with quickly and start practicing for the stage, alright?”
It wasn't as if a few extra hours of practice before the M Space stage filming would drastically change their skills, but Hye-sung figured that getting things moving faster couldn't be a bad thing anyway.
“We'll start with F-class. Five of you, come up and get ready.”
It seemed like a consideration to spare them the pressure of watching the higher classes perform first, but the F-class trainees looked as if they'd been struck by lightning.
The evaluation proceeded uneventfully. Of the first five called, three moved up one rank. The other two couldn't escape F.
Im Ye-in, who hadn't overcome her vocal issues, received a Beginner rank, one step up. After her, two trainees moved up three ranks to the Middle class.
Just as Hye-sung had predicted, about a third of them failed to escape F. Now, only the last six remained.
“Next, trainee Na Yeon-woo, please come forward.”
“Yes.”
‘Go get 'em, my kid!’
Waiting in the corner of the stage, Hye-sung silently cheered for Na Yeon-woo's back.
“...Thank you.”
Na Yeon-woo drew on all her potential and finished her performance without a single mistake. Her dancing, in particular, was more powerful and clean than it had been in practice.
‘Our Yeon-woo did so, so well. At this rate, she's a shoo-in for the Ace class.’
Hye-sung finally felt a sense of relief.
“Ah, good work, Yeon-woo. Just a moment.”
The trainers began to talk amongst themselves in low voices.
“Her dancing is nearly perfect, isn't it? Looking at her now, I'm starting to think sending her to F was a bit too harsh.”
“Well, she didn't sing at all back then... We had no choice but to put her in F. Today, she showed her true skill, so it's only right that she moves up.”
“Yeon-woo definitely has beautiful lines. Her arms and legs are long, so even the same moves look better when she does them.”
“And she dances so lightly, doesn't she? Her visuals are great, too. She has exactly that idol feel we're looking for.”
The dance trainers and Minty seemed dead set on sending Yeon-woo up to the Ace class.
“But it's a shame her voice is a bit quiet. Her singing has improved a lot, but it would be better if she had a little more confidence.”
“Still, with this level of skill, she has to go to Ace.”
“Wouldn't Middle be a good fit? Her singing lacks a lot of power.”
said S-One, the R&B singer and vocal trainer. But Yoo Jung-ah immediately countered.
“No, it's Ace. Her position is dance, and for her to have improved her vocals this much, can you imagine how much she must have practiced?”
“Well, that's true, but.”
“No, teacher, listen to me. I saw her yesterday morning, she couldn't even make a proper sound. You have to send her to Ace for this. Honestly.”
“Aish, alright. Let's send her to Ace, then.”
And so, Na Yeon-woo's final rank was decided: Ace.
The room buzzed at the first high rank to come out of F-class. The faces of the existing Ace-class trainees hardened with tension.
‘Hoh? This should get some screen time. You worked hard, my princess! If Kim Young-min doesn't package this well and just glosses over it, I'll kill him.’
Muttering death threats against the main PD, Kim Young-min, under her breath, Hye-sung forgot her own turn was next and patted Na Yeon-woo's butt as she returned to her seat, congratulating her.
“Hye-sung. It's nice that you're congratulating her, but you should worry about yourself right now.”
Jade said, glancing at Hye-sung, who was making a fuss in her seat.
“Hye-sung, come forward.”
“Yes.”
“Yeon-woo was the one who moved up to Ace, but anyone watching would think it was you.”
Hye-sung gave an awkward laugh and stood on the tape marking the position on the floor.
“Let's see what you've got.”
Hye-sung fell into the starting pose she had already repeated over 4,000 times.
‘No need to mess up on purpose anymore. Just try not to fall over in shock, you old geezers.’
Bam—ba-bam. Ba-ba-ba-bam.
The intro she'd heard until it was etched into her ears began to play.
Hye-sung lifted her head to the beat. Her gaze had already transformed. This was not the old Hye-sung, who had creaked and groaned like a cursed wooden doll.
Jade's eyebrow rose, his expression clearly saying, 'What's with that confident look in her eyes?'
Hye-sung continued with the choreography. Not a single flaw could be found. Every angle of every joint was as precise as if measured with a protractor. It was as if she had perfectly copied the choreographer's demonstration video.
[I'll take all of your heart
I've decided I'm the one who'll shine the brightest]
A perfectly steady pitch while singing live during intense choreography. A stability that gave the listener not even a gram of anxiety.
It was as if an AR track, pre-recorded, had been played by mistake instead of the MR.
“...!”
Not just the dance trainers, who had only ever scolded Hye-sung, but everyone present was utterly shocked.
The camera director directly in front of Hye-sung even rubbed his eyes, thinking he'd seen wrong.
‘Maybe I should have danced a little less perfectly. I won't be able to do this well during the first competition.’
[...Tonight, I'm going to seize this chance]
Hye-sung finished with a clean final move.
“Yoon Hye-sung!”
Kang Min-guk shot up from his seat.
“Did you sell your soul to the devil or something?”
“This isn't just 'much improved'... you're a completely different person. Hye-sung, what happened? Were you intentionally dancing poorly in front of us this whole time?”
“...No, I just practiced like my life depended on it, and at some point, it just clicked. And the class president... Yeon-woo...”
Too much attention on her was not good. It could overshadow Na Yeon-woo's promotion to Ace.
Afraid she might accidentally steal all of Na Yeon-woo's screen time, Hye-sung quickly added.
“Yeon-woo stayed by my side from the very first day, sacrificing sleep to help me.”
‘You'd better edit this as a package deal, Young-min. Frame it as Na Yeon-woo turning a hopeless klutz into a person. If you don't, I'll kill Kim Young-min.’
From where the trainees were sitting, murmurs could be heard, “What on earth did Yeon-woo do to remodel Yoon Hye-sung like that?”
