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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: A Change in Styling
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“See? She says we don’t look alike, either. I have a puppy-like face, and she has a cat-like face. How could we possibly look alike?”
“What part of you is puppy-like?”
“I do have a puppy-like face. You’re the one with cat-like eyes. I’m not.”
“By that logic, your eyes are more like a soulless office worker’s, not a puppy’s.”
“What… what did you say?”
“I don’t think you look like a puppy either. Isn’t Yeon-woo the puppy-faced one?”
Lee Ju-ha chimed in to support Han Young-won.
“Yeon-woo is a rabbit,”
Hye-sung stated matter-of-factly. Previously, the debate over Na Yeon-woo’s animal personification had been split between Team Puppy and Team Rabbit, and Hye-sung was a staunch member of Team Rabbit.
“Yeon-woo does kind of look like a rabbit. But you are definitely not a puppy.”
“Hey, why are you the one to…”
Just as Hye-sung was about to get a little sulky over the repeated disagreements, Na Yeon-woo spoke up.
“Hye-sung eonni looks like a seal.”
“A seal?”
“A harp seal… Don’t you think she looks like Beomi?”
Beomi was the lowest-ranking character in “Homebody Seals,” the mascot of the messaging app Nuts. He was a small, white-furred seal with a slightly arrogant personality.
He was also Na Yeon-woo’s favorite character, though the public generally knew him simply as the Nuts seal instead of by his name.
“Beomi?”
“Homebody Seals.”
“Ah, you mean that rude seal emoticon.”
Han Young-won pictured Beomi with wide eyes and a speech bubble that said, “So what?” The urge to give him a playful smack somehow matched Hye-sung’s particular brand of cuteness.
“Yeon-woo’s right. Seals’ faces are similar to puppies’, so I do have a puppy-like face.”
“I’m telling you, the corners of your eyes are upturned. That’s why people say you look like me.”
“I agree with Han Young-won eonni.”
“But Hye-sung eonni looks like a seal…”
The debate over what kind of “-like face” Yoon Hye-sung had showed no signs of ending, and other trainees who had been watching joined in, each throwing in their own opinion.
“If you ask me, she’s kudzu-like.”
“You must mean leopard cat, not kudzu. But I think arctic fox fits better.”
“Isn’t she a red panda?”
“I’m getting velociraptor vibes, too.”
“Based on her class evaluation, she’s a black flame dragon.”
“Wait, who just said velociraptor…”
*Knock, knock, knock.*
A knock on the door cut through the chaotic scene.
“Girls. The press conference starts in ten minutes, so get ready.”
“Yes!”
* * *
After the press conference, which was exclusively for media personnel, concluded without a hitch, they moved to Sangam-dong. This time, it was their turn to show themselves to the fans in front of the broadcast station for the first time.
Hye-sung gazed out the glass window from the lobby of the MvN Media Center.
She could see people crowded around the entrance and the fences.
*I thought no one would care, but quite a few people showed up.*
At the end of the red carpet, which was lined with fences on both sides, a low stage and a photo wall plastered with the program’s logo had been set up.
*Looks like a gust of wind could blow it all away.*
As she was personally experiencing the effects of budget cuts, a staff member gave an instruction.
“Alright, girls, let’s go. Hold up your slogans so they’re easy to see.”
Until last season, there had been gifts to hand out randomly to fans, but this time, likely to save money, all they had were mini paper slogans with their signatures and messages.
Holding about twenty slogans in her hand, Hye-sung walked out the entrance with a nervous expression.
As the trainees appeared, the waiting fans erupted in cheers.
*I was always on that side. It feels strange to have the roles reversed.*
Hye-sung lowered her eyes slightly and scanned her surroundings.
She spotted the cameras clicking away in front of the photo line.
*Not many white telephoto lenses, aside from the reporters.*
Excluding the reporters, few people had brought telephoto lenses; most were using their phones. Even then, it seemed most of them were here for their main bias groups and had just come to check out the rookies with a casual interest.
*Guess I should assume there are almost no proxy photographers because of the low hype. We need someone who can take high-quality pictures. Not of me, of course, but of Yeon-woo.*
The people who had brought expensive equipment were already taking pictures of the trainees who were already well-known.
As Hye-sung walked the red carpet, she scanned the camera lenses beyond the fence.
“Yeon-woo, come here.”
Hye-sung gently pulled the hand of Na Yeon-woo, who was walking behind her with an awkward smile.
“Look over there.”
Hye-sung pointed to a specific spot.
A woman, pushed back slightly from the front row of the fence, was looking back and forth between her viewfinder and the trainees waving elsewhere, a weary expression on her face.
*Looks like she lost the scuffle for a spot and is feeling dejected. She probably already decided who to shoot, but her mind will change if someone looks at her camera.*
“Yeon-woo, at that camera…”
Just then, as Hye-sung and Na Yeon-woo had stopped, someone from that side of the fence shouted.
“Yeon-woooooo!!!”
Startled, Na Yeon-woo turned her head toward the sound.
“Why are you so pretty!!! You’re insane!!!”
Covering her mouth in embarrassment, Na Yeon-woo bowed her head toward the source of the shout.
“See the camera behind the person who shouted? The white lens. Look there and smile, and don’t you dare cover your face, no matter how shy you are. Go give her a slogan, too.”
Hye-sung whispered in Na Yeon-woo’s ear. Na Yeon-woo was momentarily bewildered but approached the person who kept calling her name.
As Na Yeon-woo got closer to the fence, sounds of admiration rippled through the crowd like a round song.
*It’s over for them now that they’ve seen Yeon-woo’s face from that distance.*
Just as Hye-sung, who had ordered the facial assault, had predicted, Na Yeon-woo’s slogans were gone in a flash. Hye-sung, still holding her own slogans like dead weight without having given out a single one, searched for her next target.
“Eonni! They’re asking if they can have one of yours, too!”
“What? Who?”
Instead of answering, Na Yeon-woo turned her head.
The woman with the L-series lens Hye-sung had pointed out earlier shouted in a much brighter voice.
“Hye-sung! Look this way, too!”
The long telephoto lens was pointed right at Hye-sung.
* * *
Kim Gwang-in @michingirl
Recap of the Sangam event today
Saw the video yesterday and got obsessed with Namgung Seol
so I went to see her in person
But f*ck, these crazy bastards were pushing so much
and while my mental was breaking, some angel baby
looked right at my camera. She wasn't on my list
but she was next to Yeon-woo the whole time?
Anyway, thanks to her I got good shots of Yeon-woo too
but when I zoomed in to check the angel baby’s name
I almost fainted
｜
Her slogan said Yoon Hye-sung
She's the one who got all that hate from the teaser...
Honestly, I didn’t recognize her. I think her styling
changed, and it suits Hye-sung so f*ckkkkkkkking
well. And Yeon-woo looks so holy
all the women around me were just swooning.
She’s just beautiful 100 times a second, I’m already in heaven.
Hye-sung seemed nervous and didn’t smile much, but that just
｜
gave her this tragic beauty, like she has 2,736,489 backstories,
and their visual chemistry is amazing.
A total bombshell next to a cute little soda pop, I live for that sh*t.
So I was gonna stan Namgung Seol and Gil Ah-yeon,
but I think I have to stan these two now.
And get this, Hye-sung is the older one, f*ck.
Isn't that the most delicious combo? Seeing her take care of Yeon-woo
and telling her to look at the camera was so endearing and cute...
I'm tired as hell but I'm gonna edit these photos before I sleep.
And so, as the photos taken at the press conference began to circulate, Hye-sung’s fan share began to quietly rise.
-Looking at the heavily edited photos, some of them look like different people from the press photos.
└The press photos are the weird ones;
-Who’s the one with the full bangs and bob cut? There was no one who looked like that in the Chance video.
└That’s Yoon Hye-sung, the one who got the final ending shot.
-Wow, that pic is f*cking legendary. The photographer is amazing.
-Who’s the girl with Na Yeon-woo, under Han Young-won?
└That’s Yoon Hye-sung.
-Huh? The black-haired bob is Yoon Hye-sung? Her face looks different.
-She needs to keep the bob and bangs forever.
[Supernova Project Trainee Who Has People Wondering if a Stand-in is Performing for Her]
(Screenshot of Hye-sung’s ending shot)
(Screenshot of her lifting her head in the teaser)
Before the styling change
(Press photo with a stiff expression)
(Photo of her making eye contact with Kim Gwang-in’s camera)
(Several photos edited by Kim Gwang-in)
After the change
Independent Trainee Yoon Hye-sung (formerly of DNF)
People are saying she needs to keep the black bob and bangs forever.
-Whoa, it suits her so well...?
-She went from a default character to a player who decked out their avatar with cash shop items.
-The one where she’s making eye contact with the camera looks like a movie still. The vibe is insane.
-It seriously suits her so well. She should have come out like this from the start.
-Her features really pop. Ah, I’m getting the urge to get a bob cut lol.
-She doesn’t even have an agency, how did she manage to change to a style that suits her so perfectly? lol
Posts about Hye-sung’s new styling were spreading across various online communities.
Unlike yesterday, the reactions were overwhelmingly positive.
Hye-sung, who had entered the training camp immediately and surrendered her phone, was unable to see the public opinion about her, once critical, now completely flipped.
If she had seen these reactions, she would have thrown a fit, shouting, “Filthy lookism, ptooey!” but oblivious to it all, Hye-sung could only puzzle over the status window notification that had appeared before her eyes.
[More than 1,000 people are paying attention to you. Star Quality has increased by ☆! Current Star Quality ★☆]
*I didn’t do anything today, so why did my Star Quality go up? Did they stir up more drama while we’re locked up in here?*
But this time, it was “paying attention,” not “watching.” The thought that it might be favorable attention crossed her mind.
[Correct! You have received favorable attention for the first time! Special Reward GET!]
[Special Reward Item: Heart Scouter (Rare)]
[Description: Make a vertical V sign and hold it up to your eye! You can get a peek at the other person's favorability!]
*…Another useless thing popped up.*
“This isn’t a dating show, and it’s not like I’ve fallen into a dating sim,” Hye-sung grumbled, but accepted the item anyway and closed the window.
*More importantly, I have to sneak out early in the morning without these guys noticing.*
The second round of training had begun, and after new room assignments, she was now sharing a room with three other Ace-grade trainees.
*That one’s a bit dense, so I probably don’t need to worry about her.*
Hye-sung subtly rolled her eyes. A trainee was rummaging through her suitcase, which was spread open on the floor.
“Huh? I’m sure I packed them, why aren’t they here?”
“Ami eonni, what’s wrong?”
“De-puffing patches. I brought them to put on my legs.”
“Ah… I was going to lend you some if I had any, but I don’t have any either.”
The one searching the suitcase was Kaneshiro Ami, and the one who had approached her was Kang Hae-in. Both had good personalities, so Hye-sung had no complaints about sharing a room with them.
Kaneshiro Ami, in particular, was so perfectly assimilated into Korean culture that she was nicknamed Kim Ami, and she had gotten quite close with Hye-sung, who found it difficult to interact with foreign trainees.
“Young-won eonni probably has some. I’ll go borrow them.”
“Oh, really? Thank you!”
As Hye-sung got up from the bed she was perched on to go to the next room, she heard the rustle of someone on the top bunk of the bunk bed irritably pulling their blanket over them.
*She’s the problem.*
It was Kim Yoon-ji, who had already left a bad impression on Hye-sung with her greed for screen time.
“Eonnis, it’s almost lights-out, so shouldn’t we be getting ready for bed? I’m tired and I want to sleep soon.”
Kim Yoon-ji said while lying down, her face hidden.
“Oh. Sorry, we’ll be quiet. You can go to sleep first.”
Ami, who was still going through her suitcase, quickly closed it. The clattering sound had been quite loud, so she seemed to feel bad.
“Yoon-ji, should I turn off the lights for you?”
Kang Hae-in asked, placing her hand on the light switch.
“Why turn them off already? Ami isn’t done unpacking. Let’s turn them off at lights-out. That’s okay, right, Yoon-ji?”
Hye-sung gently placed her hand over Kang Hae-in’s and shook her head slightly. Kim Yoon-ji didn’t answer.
“I’m just going to pop over to the next room.”
She supposed she had to be understanding of a kid who couldn’t hide her feelings, but there was a limit. Hye-sung let out a small sigh as she headed to the next room.
*Knock, knock.*
“Young-won eonni. It’s Hye-sung.”
“Eonni!”
The moment Hye-sung spoke to the door, it swung open.
But the person who popped out wasn’t Han Young-won, but Na Yeon-woo, her eyes crinkling into a happy smile.
