Chapter 612

Yun Hyeonjo's fan had had a satisfying day.

'This was incredible again.'

They had successfully booked tickets for the stage greeting and even gotten Yun Hyeonjo's autograph. Unless he had a project coming out, Yun Hyeonjo practically disappeared from the public eye. He wasn't active on social media, so every single project of his was precious.

0percent. @0percentttt

(<Faster Than the Law 3> stage greeting—Yun Hyeonjo candid.jpg)

Please arrest me, for fuck's sake. I'll smash this whole place to pieces, so just arrest me already.

Reposts 3,445 Likes 6,778

ㄴ Better off locking you in a hospital.

ㄴ I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY I'M LIKE THIS????? Just arrest me while I'm still asking nicely.

They had already been nervous because of all the pre-release reactions surrounding <Faster Than the Law 3>.

But thanks to Yun Hyeonjo delivering a film that was even better than the previous installments, they finally felt at ease.

"I have to go to the second-week stage greetings too. Seriously..."

The Lunar New Year holiday ticket sales had been so fiercely competitive that failing to get seats had been inevitable. It was disappointing, but they could only comfort themselves with the flood of stage greeting photos.

"Our fandom's about to get flooded with newcomers. One hundred percent."

For some reason, Yun Hyeonjo had never managed to gather an especially strong core fandom. There had been a brief boom after <Letter Oppa>, but it hadn't lasted long. This time, however, his fan was certain.

"This one's his best work yet."

Detective Yoon's appeal had always been so rational that it bordered on mechanical.

In <Faster Than the Law 3>, that cool detachment had reached its sexiest peak.

Yun Hyeonjo's fan hadn't lost focus for even a second throughout the entire runtime.

On top of that, his chemistry with Jun Cedric Valentian had been excellent. Easily the best villain pairing of the entire series.

While scrolling through Tr*tter, Yun Hyeonjo's fan found themselves staring at Han Yeoreum, who happened to be standing beside him in one of the photos.

"...She is kind of cute."

They had always, without exception, only liked male celebrities. Never once had they fangirled over a female celebrity.

Sure, they had thought actresses were pretty, cute, talented singers, or skilled performers—but they had never once wanted to know more about one.

So why was this happening?

Search:

Han Yeoreum

After finishing every single Yun Hyeonjo-related post, Yun Hyeonjo's fan unconsciously searched for Han Yeoreum.

She just kept popping into their mind.

Youstagram

@mailEyeoleum

(Han Yeoreum stage greeting reels.mp4)

780,000 views

10,000 likes 7,765 comments

-Wait, what the fuck, MY FAULT????? I've never heard anyone answer like that before. Yeoreum, are you crazy...

-Guess I'm going to the stage greetings. Found my woman.

-@Kim Harin AHHHH SHE'S SO CUTE.

-Wait... what...? Have I actually liked girls this whole time...?

Watching Han Yeoreum shyly chatting while looking down at a sketchbook, Yun Hyeonjo's fan instinctively tapped the heart.

"...Wait. Why am I acting like this?"

Startled by a side of themselves they had never known existed, they suddenly remembered <Two O'Clock Nap>.

The segment where Yun Hyeonjo and Han Yeoreum had read listeners' stories together.

The one about a senior and junior from the same school.

Back then, they had thought they could die happy if Yun Hyeonjo would just film one project like that.

"Come to think of it..."

Something suddenly clicked.

"...No way... she's really become one of those actors you can trust."

Back then, they had thought Han Yeoreum might someday become an actor audiences trusted without question.

A title reserved only for actors whose acting ability and script selection had both been thoroughly proven.

And now...

She had completely earned it.

Realizing that they had unconsciously become completely captivated by Han Yeoreum, Yun Hyeonjo's fan was genuinely shocked.

Before they knew it, Han Yeoreum's stage greeting videos had completely taken over their recommendation algorithm.

The following day—the film's second day in theaters—

<Faster Than the Law 3> reached a cumulative audience of 780,000.

The theaters were packed once again.

Both the exterior and interior electronic billboards at KOEX displayed Han Yeoreum's face.

On one side was On Jihwa from <Seoul Metropolitan City>, whose popularity had yet to cool.

On the other was Influ 1 from <Faster Than the Law 3>, whose fire had only just begun.

It was as though both of them were saying the same thing.

That she would climb even higher from here.

* * *

It was the second day after <Faster Than the Law 3>'s release and the Friday right before the Lunar New Year holiday—the perfect timing for internet news traffic to explode.

Everyone was already excited for the holiday, and website traffic was surging more wildly than usual.

People spent exponentially more time absentmindedly refreshing the entertainment section of the portal sites displayed in the corner of their office monitors.

At this point, it wouldn't have been an exaggeration to say the portal site's front page had been completely plastered with <Faster Than the Law 3>.

["'Not even one second of the ticket price feels wasted'... <Faster Than the Law 3> Overwhelming Audience Ratings Silence Complaints Over Higher Ticket Prices"]

["The Relief Pitcher Saving Korean Cinema Arrives... <Faster Than the Law 3>'s Opening Numbers Bring Hope Back to Theaters"]

["Lunar New Year Family Audience Reservation War Begins... Major Multiplexes Add Emergency Screenings for <Faster Than the Law 3>"]

Positive articles.

["Will <Faster Than the Law 3>'s Box Office Success Justify Major Multiplexes' Sneaky Ticket Price Hikes?"]

["'So Predictable I Nearly Yawned' vs. 'Perfect Entertainment Film'... <Faster Than the Law 3> Divides Audiences?"]

Negative articles.

["Have They Forgotten the Hallyu Ban?... Is <Faster Than the Law 3> Going Too Far Promoting Tourism in China?"]

And even clickbait articles whose only goal was to farm page views.

Practically every outlet was putting <Faster Than the Law 3> into its headline.

At a time when even ordinary news articles were pulling in twice the usual traffic,

there was no way anyone could ignore writing about the hottest actress on social media.

[[Roundup] <Faster Than the Law 3>'s Influ 1 Han Yeoreum's Legendary Stage Greeting Fan Service Takes the Internet by Storm... "As Expected of Baby Melon Bread"]

["Even Stronger Than Kwak Cheolsik's Punch"... <Faster Than the Law 3> Scene-Stealer Han Yeoreum Wins Audiences Over Through Stage Greeting Fancams]

["Went to Watch the Movie, Left as a Fan"... <Faster Than the Law 3> Viewers Falling for Han Yeoreum]

On the very first night after release, Han Yeoreum's stage greeting clips had already caught the algorithm and generated enormous buzz.

It wasn't just Aetami's fancam.

Countless Tr*tter videos were captured and redistributed through news articles.

"Did you see that?"

"She could've been an idol."

"I've never been to a stage greeting before... but... damn... now I kinda want to."

The hottest movie of the moment.

And the actress riding its momentum.

There could hardly have been better small-talk material for the day before the holiday.

Around the restaurants near JC ENM's new headquarters during lunchtime, conversations about <Faster Than the Law 3> and Han Yeoreum could be heard everywhere.

"But can this movie's villain really top the last one? The previous film had Han Yohan."

"Han Yohan... and who's the other one? The one doing that new drama with Huijae. When does that start again?"

The JC ENM PR team quietly ate their lunch while listening to the conversation.

Every one of them scrolled through their phones with one hand.

To anyone else, they would've looked hopelessly addicted to their phones.

In reality, every one of them was working harder than anyone else.

Each screen displayed a different monitoring page.

"How's it looking?"

"What do you mean, how?"

Assistant Manager Shin already knew what his teammate was about to say.

"It's always good."

[HOT/ (Image-heavy) Idol Lunar New Year Greetings in Hanbok] [324]

[HOT/ The Percentage of Overseas Travelers Everyone's Talking About.jpg] [827]

[HOT/ Nate Repost | Husband Says They Absolutely Have to Visit His Family First on Lunar New Year.jpg] [566]

The usual seasonal community topics—

idols wearing hanbok,

overseas travel,

family conflicts—

all lost out to one thing.

[HOT/ The Fan Service at <Faster Than the Law 3>'s Stage Greetings Is Famous for a Reason.jpg] [1121]

Nothing could compete with <Faster Than the Law 3>.

-Anonymous 322: Han Yeoreum is seriously the talent the idol industry lost...

ㄴ Anonymous 381: Seriously. If someone like her had existed, getting into fan signings would've been absolute hell.

ㄴ Anonymous 419: If she looked at me like that, I'd sell my house just to go.

-Anonymous 456: I liked Han Yeoreum so much after this that I was gonna binge all her works over the holiday, but fuck, I'd already seen everything LOL.

ㄴ Anonymous 477: SAME. Turns out I'd already watched everything except one TV special.

Normally, stage greetings were little more than opportunities to see actors up close, take photos, and maybe get lucky enough to receive an autograph.

Han Yeoreum had turned them into content.

It was only natural that public favorability skyrocketed thanks to something so refreshingly new.

-Anonymous 518: I've said it before, but I seriously think Han Yeoreum's going to lead the generational shift.

ㄴ Anonymous 530: The generation above her still has too much of a grip on the industry though; for there to be a real generational shift, actresses her age would all have to break out together. Instead, Han Yeoreum's floating way above everyone else.

ㄴ Anonymous 549: ?? What about Do Gyeoul?

ㄴ Anonymous 572: Do Gyeoul's a good actress, but not impactful enough to lead a generational shift... ((((Just my opinion))))

ㄴ Anonymous 585: LOL that's way too harsh on Do Gyeoul. What do you mean she has no impact? Her middle-school monologue performance shook the entire country.

Triple ten-million.

To people inside the industry—and to the general public—that title meant far more than anyone could imagine.

That very morning, <Faster Than the Law 3> surpassed one million cumulative admissions.

In only three days.

People who had insisted before release that a triple ten-million record was impossible were slowly beginning to change their minds.

-Anonymous 733: Damn, it'll probably hit two million tomorrow LOL. They already uploaded the one-million promise video.

ㄴ Anonymous 775: Yep LOL. At this rate we'll probably get the five-million video next week too.

-Anonymous 871: I'm going tomorrow. I'm so excited LOL. Glad I got stage greeting tickets...

-Anonymous 904: Wait, how do people even get into stage greetings? I've never liked an actor before, so I have no idea.

ㄴ Anonymous 942: Either spam refresh endlessly or pay resale prices. Word's gotten around that this fan service is insanely worth it, so aisle seats in the front rows are ridiculously expensive now.

Triple ten-million.

Maybe...

Maybe it really could happen.

"Then all that's left is..."

Assistant Manager Shin smiled as he watched the public's reaction.

She had already dominated television.

If she earned the title of a triple ten-million actress—even as a supporting actress—in the notoriously difficult film industry...

"She'll break through for good."

In her twenties.

Not a single failed project.

Successful overseas expansion.

Boundless popularity.

Unmatched talent.

Once all of that came together, Han Yeoreum's era of dominance would begin.

She had already challenged the seemingly unbreakable wall of the Three Great Actresses.

She had defeated two of them once each.

The only one left guarding the film industry was Dong Baekyeong.

"If she can beat Dong Baekyeong with her next project..."

Han Yeoreum would become the top.

Everyone would have no choice but to acknowledge it.

"Of course, holding onto that position will be the hard part."

One victory alone wouldn't be enough to erase the reputation those three had built over so many years.

But one thing was certain.

Han Yeoreum would stand among them.

She would stand shoulder to shoulder with them.

And the title of "top actress" would finally be placed before her name.

Assistant Manager Shin knew exactly where all the baseless negativity toward Han Yeoreum came from.

Ignorance.

She was unprecedented.

An actress unlike any before her—and unlike any who would come after.

This was an era of rapid change.

People no longer needed legacy media to debut.

Digital platforms and social media spread recognition faster than ever before.

Overseas expansion had become easier than at any other point in history.

And standing at the very front of that change...

was Han Yeoreum.

A different kind of debut.

A different kind of filmography.

Popularity expanding at an absurd pace.

An actress carving out a path no one had ever walked before.

Soon enough...

The road Han Yeoreum had walked would become the road everyone else followed.

"It's only natural people have trouble understanding something that's never existed before."

Assistant Manager Shin had begun to feel, through Han Yeoreum alone, what it meant to change the world.

INTUBE

[First Train Live | What's the Perfect Drink to Pair with Somaek? <Faster Than the Law 3>'s Mala-Tang-Like Charm // Yun Hyeonjo ・ Kwak Cheolsik ・ Jun Cedric Valentian ・ Han Yeoreum] 45:29

This episode of <First Train Live> wasn't simply meant to promote <Faster Than the Law 3>.

Its real purpose was to introduce Han Yeoreum to those proud, stubborn film directors.

To make them reconsider.

She was far too valuable to keep casting only as the unforgettable supporting role.

* * *

The people paying the closest attention to <Faster Than the Law 3>'s box office success were, unsurprisingly, those inside the film industry itself.

"I... Did I just hear that wrong...?"

Ji Haebeom stared at Eom Gyun, who still had a cigarette dangling between his fingers.

Eom Gyun wore the expression of a webpage whose code had completely broken.

His eyes, nose, and mouth all seemed incapable of doing their jobs.

He absentmindedly blinked, completely unaware that his cigarette was burning away.

The white smoke almost looked like it was coming straight out of his head.

Only after finally processing Ji Haebeom's words did his face turn bright red.

"What the hell did you just tell me to think about? Huh? Huhhhh?"

"..."

Having no intention of repeating himself a second or third time, Ji Haebeom gestured toward the cigarette with his chin.

"It's burning."

"The cigarette's not the fucking problem! My insides! My fucking insides are burning up! You little— Ah, hot, hot, hot!"

He had been frozen for so long that the cigarette had burned all the way down to the filter.

Eom Gyun irritably crushed it into the ashtray.

Inside his head, the ridiculous words Ji Haebeom had casually spoken replayed once again.

"How about Han Yeoreum?"

That single calm sentence Ji Haebeom had tossed out created an enormous shockwave.