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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: Average Height 176.4cm?! The Appearance of Models!
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[Average Height 176.4cm?! The Appearance of Models!]
-Holy crap, they're so cool ㅠㅠㅠ I'm literally drooling;;
-Wish they'd give me 5cm.
-They're so tall, they probably can't dance... lol
-Is the one with gray hair even human? Isn't she straight out of Greek mythology?
└Artemis is real.
-Look at that silver hair. The quintessential Northern Grand Duke.
└So damn handsome, holy shit. My eyes have been blessed for the first time.
-I don't care how old she is, she's my eonni. Unconditionally.
For trainees with no recognition, the reactions were unusually mild.
“Hmm... Yeon-woo has a handsome face too, but I guess it doesn't work because she's still young.”
While I was pondering why Seong-bin was getting a better reaction than my kid, the class evaluation began.
After a few ambiguous teams in the earlier slots passed, Han Young-won, who gave a performance on a different level—as if she had already debuted—became the first to receive an Ace grade.
-It's a waste for her to be here. She should just debut solo.
└I know, right... She should have been on Season 3 instead ㅜㅜ
-Honestly, she's too old to debut now...
└How old is she?
└└24.
-She has that trendy kind of beauty that's in high demand, and she's super talented... If she were just two years younger, she'd be cemented in first place.
While everyone agreed with the evaluation, the conversation began to shift toward the discord rumors of Black Rose, the group Han Young-won almost joined.
-If she couldn't get into Black Rose, she should've just debuted with Quintet. What a waste.
└Quintet flopped, didn't they? It's a good thing she didn't join them lol
└└They didn't flop that hard. They're popular overseas. And it's way better to debut even as a third-tier group than not debuting at all.
-If Han Young-won had been in Quintet, they would've secured some domestic popularity. She's the ideal type for female fans for a millennium.
-Her image doesn't fit Quintet at all. Black Rose suited her much better.
└True, but Black Rose completely fell apart.
-Honestly, if Black Rose hadn't gotten into that mudslinging match trying to expose whatever, they'd be living well and respected as seniors by now.
└It wasn't a mudslinging match. Black Rose were the victims. That crazy bitch threw a fit all by herself.
└└^^^ They overlooked her half-assing performances and hating on fans, but they never thought she'd backstab them like that.
└└└I know, right? A legendary nuisance;; If you want to leave, just do it gracefully lol. If it weren't for her, Young-won would've debuted back then too.
-Black Rose were the victims? Nothing was ever confirmed, though? (article link) No matter what, it was one against many. How can the majority be the victims?
└^^^ Wow, public opinion has shifted. Black Rose fans are still at it. It's really pathetic lol.
“In a little while, a bunch of posts bashing Black Rose will probably get bumped to the top again.”
As a few more teams' performances went by, the atmosphere remained contentious, with people arguing over whether 'Black Rose was at fault' or 'the former member was at fault.'
A moment later, the atmosphere changed with the sound of grand BGM and a close-up on someone's footsteps.
-Who?
-Must be someone famous.
-Who is it??
-Who's coming on now?
-What's everyone watching? Who's on?
└Supernova Project.
“I was actually supposed to go first, but they're coming out before me.”
[A Soul for Intense Performance! 2M Entertainment]
The faces of a brightly smiling Gil Ah-yeon and a completely expressionless Namgung Seol appeared on screen.
-Oh? Pretty.
-The one with black hair on the right is gorgeous.
-I thought they got rid of all their female trainees to focus on their next boy group and Lupia. I guess some were still left?
└Seems like they put these two on Supernova Project to get rid of them too.
-What's with her expression? The one next to her is smiling.
└She's probably nervous. Let's not make assumptions about stuff like this, heh. You'll get screencapped and flamed.
[Kang Min-guk: Hmm~ 2M Entertainment. It's been a while since they've been on.]
[Jade: They weren't on Seasons 3 and 4, right?]
Since it was an agency that had debuted two contestants each in Seasons 1 and 2, even the trainers were quite focused as the evaluation began.
-Anyone see that video from about two years ago of the yeoseong gukgeuk performance at the National High School of Traditional Arts? It was a hot topic for a bit. These two were the leads. I heard they switched paths to become idols and was waiting to see when they'd show up, but to see them here...
└Whoa!! I remember that video. Was the tall one with black hair the one playing the male role?
└└The one with brown hair played the male role.
-If they're from the National High School of Traditional Arts and their agency is 2M Entertainment, their skills must be guaranteed.
└You never know. Idol vocalization is completely different from traditional Korean music lol.
Shattering the viewers' expectations of an East Asian-style performance based on this prior information, a high-level acrobatic performance unfolded.
-Holy crap, is this a circus or something?;;
-No, their level is just too high. They shouldn't be on the failing Supernova Project, they should be on something like America's Got Talent.
-As someone who majored in the field, I can say that not only is their technique good, but their dancing is also solid. Their singing seems to be at least average.
-Can a body even bend like that? Is that normal?
-I just had it on because there was nothing else to watch, but it suddenly got interesting;;
“Koreans really do care a lot about skill.”
Hye-sung, admitting she was the same way, muttered to herself that she couldn't stan someone who couldn't perform, no matter how pretty they were, and that her kid was a heavenly visual, kind, and great on stage, causing her to miss a few teams' performances.
[Shwing—]
The sound effect of a sharpening blade snapped Hye-sung back to her senses, and she focused her attention on the monitor again.
[Before going on stage, two trainees are waiting]
On the screen, Lee Ju-ha was checking her mic pack, with Hye-sung watching her from behind.
“Hm?”
Hye-sung's face was shown in a close-up, accompanied by ominous BGM.
A serious expression, her brow deeply furrowed.
It was edited to look like she was glaring at Lee Ju-ha.
“What the?”
-A power struggle already?
-Lee Ju-ha isn't even looking at her, but she's glaring all by herself lol
-I had a feeling she had an attitude lol
[Two people who missed their chance to debut around the same time]
Fabricated scenes framed as if they were constantly conscious of each other continued to air, followed by Lee Ju-ha's pre-show interview.
[Q. What did you think while watching your friends promote?]
[Lee Ju-ha (Cue Media): I just… I was envious, and I hoped that one day I could be like that too…….]
[Overcome with emotion, trainee Lee Ju-ha is unable to continue]
-Isn't this a bit cruel?
-Seems like they're trying too hard to connect her with Snowy.
-It feels like they're painting her as a loser just because she was eliminated once... I feel bad for her.
-What's there to feel bad about? They're already giving her a narrative; She's a PD pick. One of the trainers is a senior from her company, too. It's suspicious.
[Q. How did you feel watching Strawberry Killer win first place?]
[Yoon Hye-sung (Individual Trainee): What? I told you, it has nothing to do with me. (Flustered)]
[Yoon Hye-sung (Individual Trainee): As I've said repeatedly, I really……. (Presses her lips shut)]
[Trainee Yoon Hye-sung appears displeased by the production team's questions]
-What the hell.
-???
-Legendary bitch.
-But it's not like she'd see them winning first place after she got eliminated and be all, "Wow~ I'm so proud and happy~" unless her head is in the clouds.
-????? What a stark contrast to the girl before her??
-The production team was wrong for asking that, though.
“Hey, you motherf♡ckers!!!”
Just as Hye-sung, having been subjected to evil editing again, roared, a warning notification popped up in her status window.
[Vulgar language used. 1 warning. A penalty will be imposed upon 3 cumulative warnings.]
“I mean... how could anyone see that and not swear...?”
['Crazy' and 'fucking' were not counted. You should be grateful.]
“I get it. I just have to not swear, right? Hah, more importantly, I'm sure videos comparing us are going to start circulating...”
The questions she had actually been asked were about her relationship with Strawberry Killer, who she was close with, and whether she still kept in touch with them.
“I'm going to kill Kim Young-min.”
On screen, shots of the tearful Lee Ju-ha and the displeased-looking Hye-sung were intercut.
[Overcoming pain for a second chance]
A scene of Snowy and Strawberry Killer competing for first place on a music show flashed by.
[A head-to-head battle to carry on the will of the nation's top girl groups!]
[Cue Media's Lee Ju-ha VS Former D&F's Yoon Hye-sung]
“Are they insane?”
Along with the crazy caption that provoked both fandoms, Lee Ju-ha appeared on stage.
-Huh? This is going a bit too far.
-I'm a Snowy fan and this is pissing me off;; How is an eliminated company colleague carrying on their will... Snowy is still actively promoting;
-And that Yoon Hye-sung girl isn't even with D&F anymore. They're crossing the line.
-SKiller fans must be pissed.
-What's with Yoon Hye-sung's attitude... She's just an eliminated trainee, what does she think she is?
-Please stop associating her with that vermin;;
└? Lee Ju-ha doesn't deserve to be called vermin.
└└They're probably talking about Yoon.
-Our girls debuted just a few months ago, and seeing them already getting dragged into things left and right, I guess they really are superstars.
“I-I never mentioned Strawberry Killer. I didn't say anything. It's all Young-min's fault, I'm innocent.”
Faced with the sharp reactions that looked ready to beat her to a pulp, Hye-sung trembled and made excuses to herself.
-Lee Ju-ha would fit right into Snowy with zero awkwardness, but that Yoon girl could never get into SKiller with that face.
└It's hilarious how people just call those they dislike by their last name lol
-They're just dragging a hot girl group into this because they lack buzz. It's only creating backlash.
-That Yoon-something's eyes are kind of like a dead fish's. There's no spark.
└Right, she looks gloomy.
-Aigoo, Young-min, you have to bait people skillfully. What is this?
└I know, has he lost his touch? What's wrong with him?
-If Yoon keeps that up, she'll probably get tossed aside soon.
-Let's see how well Gyong does on her evaluation stage.
“Call me by my proper name, too! Stop calling me weird things...!”
[Lee Ju-ha (Cue Media): I'm Lee Ju-ha from Cue Media.]
[Ssanmai: You're from the same agency as Minty? If you go easy on her because she's your company junior……. (Joking, joking)]
[Minty: I'll probably be even stricter, right? Since she's here representing our company. (Chilling)]
[Minty is smiling, but her eyes have sharpened]
Lee Ju-ha's choice to perform a Snowy song made the comment section even more active.
-Did she get permission from Snowy?
└Why would she need permission?
-She's getting a whole narrative just from her song choice. Smart move lol
-She's just a budget version of Kang Na-yoo.
└Okay, next Snowy stan.
-Isn't Lee Ju-ha's face better? They kept Kang Na-yoo because she's the main vocal. Lee Ju-ha is the traditional leader type for Cue Media.
└What nonsense. How are Minty and Lee Ju-ha similar at all?
└└(Original commenter) Ah, Minty's the leader? I thought it was Hailey;
“Hye-jun eonni is the oldest, and the second oldest, Ha-hyun eonni, is the leader, but actually, the third oldest, Hee-won eonni, is the real leader.”
An otaku trait: answering a question no one asked.
Hye-sung scrolled down, rattling off information about Lunesta.
-She's good, but you can also feel her desperation, so it makes me want to root for her.
-At 21, she's just old enough to catch the last train. She has to be desperate.
-Any chance of her joining Snowy?
└I think she'll just debut from this show.
└If they were going to add her, they should have done it before Snowy debuted. Adding her now would throw the fandom into chaos; As it is, the existing fans are already stressed out because of international fans organizing to demand Lee Ju-ha be added.
“Right, it would be chaos.”
The fandom was already established. Only a fool would think the existing fans would unconditionally welcome a trainee, even one who had been a candidate for the group.
“But Cue Media actually goes and does it.”
Despite being large enough to be called a top-tier small-to-mid-sized agency, Cue Media, which habitually ran things like a corner store, announced after Supernova Project Season 5 that they planned to add the finally-eliminated Lee Ju-ha to Snowy.
It was an announcement with no business ethics, released of all days on Snowy's first debut anniversary.
“The fandom was turned upside down then, and though I don't know the details of what happened after...”
The Snowy fandom, split into a three-way battle between supporters of the original six, supporters of the seven, and Lee Ju-ha's solo fans, could not repair the rift.
Many fans left, and new ones didn't come in, so their rankings steadily plummeted.
In the end, the gap between them and their early-debut rivals, Strawberry Killer, widened to an insurmountable degree, and they were pushed down to a position where they weren't even considered a second-tier group.
That was the Snowy that Hye-sung remembered.
“Her future is unfortunate, but worrying about her when Yeon-woo's own spot is uncertain... that's just being too nosy.”
