* * *

The headquarters of B-bly located in Seocho District, Seoul.

“Kyaaaaah!”

A scream burst through the glass windows.

“Kyaaaaaaah-!”

The employees in the nearby offices all covered their ears for a moment as if they were already used to it. This wasn’t something that had happened for just a day or two.

The source of the screams that had started last week was—

“Han Yeoreum-!”

Yes. It was Han Yeoreum. Han Yeoreum’s styling in 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉 was becoming explosively popular in a way no one had ever seen before.

Bzzzt, bzzzt, bzzzzzzzzzt-.

“The shipping labels just keep printing and printing!”

The employees at B-bly let out happy screams.

Right now, not only the “PinkJoo pajamas” from the drama, but every single outfit Han Yeoreum had worn was selling out in waves.

“When are the backorders coming in?”

“This Wednesday....”

From Episode 4 up until now, Han Yeoreum had shown off dozens of different styles, and every time one appeared on screen, viewers’ eyes lit up.

[HOT / Han Yeoreum’s styling in Dongdaemun Romance feels like watching a fashion show.jpg]

(Early Dongdaemun Romance spoiler photos.jpg)

At first she looked like this and shocked everyone with styling no one had ever seen before...

(Lee Saerok you bastard? comment screenshot.jpg)

There were truckloads of people saying they wanted to grab Lee Saerok by the collar T_T

(Self-styled Nam Pyeonghwa. Hopeless bangs curling iron screenshot.jpg)

The more you looked at it, the more there seemed to be no answer

(Styling after the department-store makeover.jpg)

But they pulled it off.

(High ponytail + neat cream-colored jacket + brown pleated skirt.jpg)

(Swept bangs + black hairband + black tweed dress.jpg)

(Braided hairstyle tied with organza ribbon + thin lace wrap knit + long skirt.jpg)

(Ballerina bun + pale pink long trench coat + ivory bag and heels.jpg)

All of these styling changes happened within just twenty minutes holy shit they totally could’ve done this all along T_T

(B-bly screenshot.jpg)

The prices aren’t even crazy either, so everyone’s doing Han Yeoreum Son Minsoo cosplay now lolol

(Lee Saerok.jpg)

Thumbs up, Saerok~~ Thanks!

-Anonymous 1: Seriously such an eye-candy drama.. TT_TT Han Yeoreum pulls off every single styling so damn well

-Anonymous 3: Isn’t Ryu Risa styling only Han Yeoreum now?

↳ Anonymous 5: YYY she said it on Intube

↳ Anonymous 9: Wait wasn’t she originally Do Gyeoul’s stylist..

↳ Anonymous 12: Nah the dedicated stylists rotate depending on schedules. She just couldn’t do Do Gyeoul this time. She’ll probably style her again later

-Anonymous 19: Baby Melon Bread’s forehead is so fucking cute, bangs or no bangs both suit her perfectly TT_TT

-Anonymous 25: They should’ve done this from the beginning ahhhhh this is so good

Everything Han Yeoreum wore, carried, or put on sold hundreds or thousands of units a day.

Since B-bly needed to attach a motor to the incoming tide, they had practically stationed a dedicated truck in front of Diot itself.

Motorcycles loaded with wholesale purchases rushed back and forth, piling huge bundles into the B-bly truck.

“B-bly!”

“Backordered items for B-bly are here!”

“Delivery for B-bly!”

The errand runners went from store to store shouting B-bly’s name.

The truck kept filling and filling with clothes, but by that same afternoon it would be completely empty again.

Not only were the previous day’s orders overwhelming, but same-day orders piled up nonstop from the morning onward.

And it wasn’t just the B-bly app enjoying the boom.

Youstagram

(The “Ga-eul dye” everyone’s obsessed with lately.jpg)

(Nam Pyeonghwa Brown.jpg)

12K likes, 9,872 comments

-@KimJeongyu lol this is the color you said you wanted

-Ahh the hair color is seriously so pretty T_T

-Is this really possible without bleaching?? Anyone tried it TT_TT

↳ At Roa Hair Cheongdam, we can create an even chestnut-brown color without bleaching :) Please DM us

Every time Han Yeoreum came out after changing clothes, her visuals caused waves not only among 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉 viewers, but among the general public as well.

Jeon Segye’s tension, so transparent it was practically exposing his inner thoughts, played a huge role too.

Music like stardust pouring down. A man whose heart dropped straight to the floor. And in front of him, Han Yeoreum smiling brightly after her transformation.

#NamPyeonghwaBrown 233 posts

#HanYeoreumHair 1,087 posts

#NamPyeonghwaHair 301 posts

#HanYeoreumBangs 562 posts

Just like Pi Chaewon’s sneakers from 〈ParCheHi〉, like Influencer No.1’s red hair dye from 〈Faster Than the Law〉, like Huijae’s knit sweater from 〈The Great Garland〉, like Na Yuna’s checkered shirt from 〈Youth Disqualified!〉.

Han Yeoreum clones were appearing once again.

* * *

“Ah....”

Aetami shed tears of emotion.

No one understood Han Yeoreum’s current influence better than Aetami, who worked at an advertising agency.

Right now, Han Yeoreum’s market value was skyrocketing to absurd levels.

“Man... A-lab buying in at the absolute bottom was genius.”

“Seriously.”

“They were probably Han Yeoreum’s first ad too.”

The advertising effect from A-lab, which had been with Han Yeoreum since 〈ParCheHi〉, was unbelievable.

The impact of the scene where Nam Pyeonghwa’s permanently frizzy half-curly hair finally transformed was beyond imagination.

Olive0 Monthly Best Items

[A-lab Treatment]

[A-lab Hair Essence]

[A-lab Damage Hair Pack]

The top rankings were completely dominated by A-lab products.

“That scene really was insane.”

“What was?”

“That scene.”

“Ahhh—.”

The moment someone said “that scene,” everyone pictured the exact same one.

“The Devil Wears Prada?”

It was a masterpiece impossible to leave out whenever discussing fashion films.

And among its most iconic scenes, 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉 had cleverly created its own parody.

As Nam Pyeonghwa walked through the busy streets of Dongdaemun, her styling changed in rhythm with the beat.

After a car passed by. After turning a building corner. After brushing past people. After climbing subway stairs. While grabbing takeaway coffee.

The styling changed each time in sync with the sophisticated music, delivering the ultimate catharsis a fashion drama could offer.

It made your eyes happy while giving an inexplicable thrill.

Nam Pyeonghwa’s busy day, boldly moving forward through the crowded streets, felt vibrantly alive. She seemed like the most stylishly alive person in all of Dongdaemun.

And when they layered the same emotions audiences had felt while watching the original movie into 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉, the synergy doubled.

INTUBE

[The Devil Wears B-bly! Han Yeoreum’s Completely Transformed Daily Outfits >_< | Dongdaemun Romance]

Views: 1,087,776

-The director’s sense for directing is fucking incredible.. how did they even think of using this scene LOLOLOL

-It brings back memories of watching it in theaters~ hehe I remember thinking it was so stylish.. I love how the styling changes with the music

-The way the trench coat flares when she spins around is insanely satisfying

↳ 222 proving classics are always the best hehe

-Han Yeoreum’s proportions are crazy

-I’ve never even been to Dongdaemun but now I’m suddenly hyped for it LOLOLOL what the hell is this

↳ Same

↳ Right?? LMAO

And now, it was the era of DaeRolls.

Youstagram

(The Devil Wears B-bly! Han Yeoreum’s Completely Transformed Daily Outfits >_<.mp4)

Views: 82,552

MBS’s Yousta account hit the algorithm.

Views: 988,126

Not only in Korea, but overseas too.

Views: 2,132,885

-“The place called Dongdaemun.. I have been there before ヾ(´︶`*)ﾉ♬ Korean women truly are sophisticated-! Their proportions really are amazing ww”

-“All Korean unnies dress well and are wonderful.. I still cannot forget the unnie at the next table while eating dakhanmari. Let us hold the wedding immediately. Absolutely.”

-“This girl’s posture is extremely impressive.. If you witness the makeover beforehand, you can definitely tell she’s a professional. The moisture-glow makeup is amazing!!!”

Its influence had even reached Japanese fans, the eternal fixed audience of K-dramas.

Seo Eden’s promise before filming—“I’ll pull in Japanese fans”—was becoming reality.

* * *

Seo Eden’s Japanese fans are slowly starting to find my account.

“Whoa....”

My Yousta followers were increasing in real time.

The Nam Pyeonghwa runway scene from 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉 that exploded through Yousta Rolls was also gaining huge views and reposts on Tr*tter.

And since Japanese K-drama fans—especially Seo Eden’s fans—had a high percentage of Tr*tter users, they latched onto it hard.

Dongdaemun had always been a famous shopping course for Japanese tourists, but now the purpose itself was changing.

#DongdaemunRomance

A new tag began appearing.

The photo zone in front of the DDP where Seo Eden and I had stood together suddenly started blowing up. More people were taking photos in front of the PPL stores too.

The name Han Yeoreum, the face of Nam Pyeonghwa, was beginning to overlay itself onto the entire space known as Dongdaemun.

Japanese fans took clips uploaded by the MBS account and reuploaded them with subtitles.

Even before the official broadcast aired, videos of me and Seo Eden were spreading everywhere.

A pure-hearted male lead like Jeon Segye really was such an unbelievably rare specimen that even calling him “premium-tier” felt insufficient.

And the scene that became especially popular in Japan was the one where he still adored Nam Pyeonghwa even in her “dried pollack eyes” state.

“Ah-choo!”

Working overtime in the dry office, Nam Pyeonghwa sneezed repeatedly.

Glancing sideways at her, Jeon Segye purchased humidifiers faster than anyone else. One for each employee so it wouldn’t look obvious.

As he opened and cleaned the humidifiers delivered to the office, Little Nam Pyeonghwa appeared before his eyes once again.

“Kyaaah! A humidifier!”

“Soooo moisturizinggg-.”

“As expected of the CEO... he’s amazing.”

Jeon Segye’s brain-generated delusions continued. In his imagination, Nam Pyeonghwa wasn’t dressed up prettily.

Her hair was roughly tied back from overtime work, and she’d taken out her lenses and put on compressed glasses again.

As though he truly meant it when he said any version of her was fine.

“Aaachoo~.”

Even Little Nam Pyeonghwa’s sneezing sound had been converted into something cute.

The speed at which trends spread through SNS was completely different from traditional media. Just a few days were enough for them to burn intensely into place.

The Japanese K-drama fans who saw the clips went wild.

↳ “A man who continues loving a woman even in dried-pollack mode... this is truly precious... I can’t stop crying ( ´•̥̥̥ω•̥̥̥` )”

↳ “Before I realized it, I was smiling with the exact same terrifying expression... complete synchronization. This is dangerous, dangerous.”

↳ “If this airs officially, I feel like I’ll abandon my entire life and rewatch it over and over-!!! My heart is in absolute overdrive-!!!”

While monitoring the reactions, Manager Choi grabbed my hand.

“Unnie, what?”

“Yeoreum....”

“What is it?”

“You know the lounge café at L Department Store?”

She meant the place where Nam Pyeonghwa and Jeon Segye had gone on their first date, and Choi Seonhye looked dazed.

“What about it?”

“They contacted us again.”

Joy slowly spread through Choi Seonhye’s blinking eyes.

“They want us to film there again!”

“What?”

“The department store reached out first.”

“What?”

“They said the café’s reservations are fully booked for the next month!”

“What?!”

“From morning to night! Not a single empty slot!”

The influence of the “telephone couple” was steadily growing larger and larger.

* * *

Hong Suryeon wasn’t someone unaware of the current buzz surrounding 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉.

“How strange....”

〈There Is Only One Culprit〉 Episode 5 Ratings: 14.1%

〈Tamhok〉 Episode 5 Ratings: 4.1%

〈Dear Judge〉 Episode 5 Ratings: 13.2%

〈Dongdaemun Romance〉 Episode 7 Ratings: 12.9%

Among the three major broadcast stations, 〈Dongdaemun Romance〉 currently had the lowest ratings.

But its buzz volume was on par with—no, even slightly stronger than—the first-place 〈There Is Only One Culprit〉.

News had already spread rapidly that not only the brands currently running PPLs, but even more brands were lining up begging to be included.

Up until now, the person who always attracted the most attention through styling after a drama aired had been Hong Suryeon.

Everything she wore, carried, stepped into, or held caused instant sellouts.

That had felt like an undeniable law of nature.

“Ha....”

Hong Suryeon sighed.

“So everyone’s figured it out now....”

There was really nothing that could be done about it.

“No matter how hard they try to imitate me, the goddess of beauty, Hong Suryeon, can never truly be copied....”

Staring into her hand mirror, Hong Suryeon blinked her eyes deeply.

“So they’re trying to replace me with a little babieee instead. I’m truly such a sinful actress.... This is like replacing a pheasant with... no wait. Unnie, what’s even better than a pheasant?”

“A phoenix?”

“No. That’s not enough.”

“An Argentinosaurus?”

“Exactly. An Argentinosaurus and a chick.... Since another goddess of beauty like me will never appear again, I might as well already be extinct....”

But understanding something and winning were two entirely different matters.

In the first place, if this had been the original Hong Suryeon, the ratings would’ve easily smashed past 20%, yet now they were hovering around 14%, making her heart burn.

The set that had once always been fun.

Inside it, Hong Suryeon’s gaze was slowly beginning to change.

“Suryeon, we’re going into standby—!”

“Okaaayyy-.”

Hong Suryeon had to remain overwhelming. To sit forever upon the eternal throne, she had to prove she possessed that kind of value.

Right now, they were filming Episode 8 of 〈There Is Only One Culprit〉.

The scene where Yoo Jiuk and his brother propose living together with Hong Suryeon after she becomes the target of the criminal.

It was exactly the kind of scene that perfectly showcased Hong Suryeon’s signature “protective-instinct-triggering” charm. She was truly confident.

The promised Episode 8. With this one moment, she would widen the gap completely and solidify first place.

“Ready—.”

The director gave the signal.

“Action!”