Free Web NovelMore than ten CF offers had already come in for Han Yeoreum. Jegal Rok decided to wait a little longer.
Once <Strange Tales> finished airing and the final numbers for <Law-Faster-than> were tallied, Han Yeoreum’s price tag was bound to soar even higher.
“How far will it go up.”
Jegal Rok tried to predict it for a moment. Strangely enough, no answer came easily.
Just how far Han Yeoreum would grow.
[<Law-Faster-than> draws 80,000 viewers on the first day of paid previews... Will it dominate theaters this summer?]
The audience pull had begun in earnest.
* * *
Momentum.
“...This is something else.”
Reporter Wi, known as Deduck.B, recalled a familiar word. It was so vivid that nothing else seemed appropriate.
“This is seriously no joke.”
Yeoreum’s momentum was on another level. <Law-Faster-than> surpassed three million viewers in just a few days.
[Refreshing action catharsis, the terrifying upward curve of <Law-Faster-than>...]
[The familiar taste is the scariest. Chungmuro’s civil-servant-perfect formula, <Law-Faster-than> takes No.1 at the box office]
[<Law-Faster-than> clears the break-even point with ease... Can it beat the audience numbers of <War with the Law>?]
As <Law-Faster-than> swept through theaters, attention wasn’t focused solely on the leads. Even the supporting cast drew interest. Influencer 1, the likable fool-type character, left a strong impression on audiences with her fresh presence.
Intube
[So who is that kid from Law-Faster-than anyway? Pi Chaewon, Seoryeong, and Influencer 1] 05:27
41,000 views
-Hello! Today’s “Who. Is. That?” protagonist is the hottest actress right now.
(Intercut edit: <ParCheHi> auditorium scene, <Strange Tales> Episode 2 ending, <Law-Faster-than> appearance scene)
-Every time she appears, her character is so distinct you might wonder, “Wait, is that the same person?” To give you the answer first—yep, that’s right!
(Intercut edit: smiling brightly when reunited with Jun, grinning slyly while pulling a con, smiling wistfully after causing a minor collision)
-Pi Chaewon from ParCheHi, Seoryeong from Strange Tales, and Influencer 1 from Law-Faster-than—she’s Han Yeoreum.
Movie Intubers, while introducing <Law-Faster-than>, naturally slipped in talk about Influencer 1, Han Yeoreum.
She was one of the most talked-about rookies right now, so including her in the thumbnail was only natural.
-Didn’t realize it when she was Seoryeong, but she fits ditzy characters WAY too well lololololol later in the theater, whenever the music plays, everyone just bursts out laughing
-Up until ParCheHi I didn’t think she was this good at acting, but wow... seriously unexpected. Guess there’s a reason it’s DaeYeJong TT_TT
The power of a charming character outweighed everything else. Han Yeoreum delivered properly in every role she was given.
Just one year.
A rookie who had only shown her face to the public for a single year was already making a name for herself.
“And that’s not all....”
But Yeoreum’s influence didn’t stop there.
As <Strange Tales> grew in popularity, the reaction video for <Strange Tales> uploaded earlier by Daily Media also saw its views and comments rise.
-Can’t you just do reaction vids for the entire Strange Tales run? Lololol I freak out every time a ghost shows up, it’s literally me, the secondhand embarrassment is real T_T
-I like how you do it drama by drama, but honestly my favorite video is still the Strange Tales one...lool I keep rewatching it for some reason
ㄴHighly recommend for anyone who keeps replaying it
Clips of <Strange Tales> uploaded by JC ENM started at a baseline of 200,000 views.
That was the minimum.
-It’s been a while since we’ve had a masterpiece... the story is insanely solid. Is it real how tightly the line from the virgin ghost to the child-ghost talisman to the drowning ghost is connected? TT_TT
-When’s the kiss scene coming? Damn f*ck.. I’m in a hurry
-I’m rooting so hard for Seoryeong and Myungdo to be happy... please, at the end, I really hope Seoryeong doesn’t give up her lifeㅎㅎ She’s been through so much, all that suffering. I just want her to meet good people and live a new life...
The most popular video had already surpassed one million views. After each episode of <Strange Tales> aired, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the entire internet was talking about it.
Seoryeong, who kept tugging at people’s hearts. Seoryeong, walking toward death. Seoryeong, who never promised a tomorrow.
Deduck fans gathered together and cried every single day.
[Strange Tales Minor Gallery]
Yup (211.168)
TT_TT please... I hope the last episode ends with her name finally being revealed. How does it make sense that nobody’s ever known the kid’s name until now
Yup (223.38)
Every time Seoryeong has that blank expression I feel like crying. Honestly, her smile feels fake, and that feels real...TT_TT
Yup (211.234)
Is it even necessary to act this well? My chest is literally getting ripped apart f*ck TT_TT
Han Yeoreum’s momentum didn’t stop within her works alone.
[HOT / The celebrity everyone’s been saying “smells really good” these days.jpg]
(Yeoreum selfie at a no-stage greeting.jpg)
(Capture of an older Yeoreum Olive0 sighting post.jpg)
Even before, every time there was a sighting, Han Yeoreum always hugged women tight and took photos with them.
Recently, at every Law-Faster-than no-stage greeting, she’s been sticking her cheek to unnie fans like she’s running a “make-my-girls” project, and everyone keeps saying the scent was so good their faces turned red. That’s literally all anyone says.
Now everyone’s curious about what perfume Han Yeoreum uses.
-LOOOOLLL at that point you’d think she was your friend, seriously. Her fan service is insane TT_TT
-It smells fresh even through the photo꒰՞˶ˊᵕˋ˶՞꒱
-So what is Han Yeoreum’s perfume? T_T Does anyone know..
ㄴThere’s a theory it’s the ALAB hair ampoule lolololol her hair’s long too, and up close you probably smell the essence more than perfume
Before long, the phrase “Han Yeoreum scent” was going viral naturally. ALAB’s new product, the Cheongdam Dok Gogyeol ampoule, confidently took first place even at a low discount price.
Sales for the fashion brand N, which had cast Han Yeoreum as a model, and for Creamy Soda also began to rise in tandem.
[Which brand swept department stores this summer season? ‘Pi Chaewon sneakers’ strike again with mesh material ‘mega hit’]
[The era of sweet solo drinking arrives, the runaway popularity of the new-concept white makgeolli Creamy Soda...]
Having transcended her works to imprint her personal image, Han Yeoreum was, no matter what anyone said, the rising blue chip of the advertising world.
“Hey, Reporter Wi. You heard?”
It was such a joyful situation that anyone cheering for Han Yeoreum couldn’t help but smile. Reporter Wi was the same. As always, he was searching reactions about Yeoreum when a colleague beside him spoke quietly.
“This is legit official.”
“What is?”
“Jegal Rok....”
Gulp. Just hearing the name Jegal Rok made anticipation swell.
Reporter Wi swallowed as he stared at his colleague’s slowly opening mouth.
For some reason, he had a gut feeling. Whatever came out of that mouth wouldn’t be ordinary.
“They’re airing <Strange Tales> overseas immediately after it finishes.”
“What?”
Reporter Wi shouted, his voice rising with excitement.
“You’re supposed to renegotiate overseas rights after a series ends! Does that make any sense?”
“It doesn’t. But Jegal Rok bundled it with a show program JC ENM made and closed the deal. He put a lot of effort into Taiwan, especially.”
“Taiwan, huh....”
The two naturally thought of the Japanese market. Works that performed well in /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Taiwan tended to draw attention in Japan as well.
If <Strange Tales> succeeded decisively in Taiwan, the chances of success in Japan would rise sharply.
‘Usually when Korean dramas enter Japan, they check reactions in Taiwan, Thailand, Hong Kong, and then renegotiate prices....’
On top of that, <Beyond the Closed Door> was currently enjoying near-syndrome-level popularity in Japan. If it was a Korean drama, even a different genre could draw interest.
“There was a reason he didn’t take Chinese investment money. He was planning to secure Taiwan properly first, that guy. Damn... isn’t that insane?”
All the pieces clicked into place. Reporter Wi was dumbfounded as well. He couldn’t even begin to tell how many moves ahead Jegal Rok was thinking.
* * *
Success in Canada.
Expansion into Central and South America and the Caribbean. Services launched in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, and more.
Entry into the European market. Services begin in the UK, Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.
The following year, expansion into a content platform competing with existing broadcasters through original dramas.
Further expansion into Western Europe. France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg.
Without stopping, this brand chose Japan as its first Asian expansion market.
“Which countries haven’t we expanded into yet?”
An OTT platform that didn’t just chew up global broadcasters, but outright dominated them. Netholics.
“The Middle East, Singapore, India, among others.”
“Hmm....”
As she looked at the globe on the desk, a woman’s hand reached out. With a playful tap, the globe spun around.
“Oh, looks like we left this one out.”
Her fingertip landed on a very small country.
“Should we? Or shouldn’t we?” freewebnσvel.cøm
One of the countries with the highest per-capita movie attendance in the world, over 200 million annual moviegoers, a country that commanded high selling prices in both the Chinese and Japanese markets, a country equipped with world-class ultra-high-speed internet penetration.
“Korea.”
And so, Netholics—destined to change the paradigm of global video content—began moving toward Korea.
