I'm an Unknown Actress, But Everyone Knows Me

Magazine preorders are different from concert tickets.

No matter how popular the celebrity is, it’s almost unheard of for them to sell out in mere seconds.

[〈The Great Garland〉 burns hot in Taiwan, pictorial news has everyone lining up with cries of “Preorder!”]

[K-dramas break through the Korean content ban into a new market... will they spark “national popularity” in Taiwan too?]

“But now it is different!”

Watching the prepared articles pour out in waves, the Taiwan Ruel editor-in-chief beamed.

Not only locally in Taiwan, but even in Korea, attention was now fixed on the unprecedented popularity of 〈The Great Garland〉.

“Then... naturally, next comes the on-site sale.”

If the preorder was this popular, the perfect conditions had now been created for even people who had never cared about magazines—

true “ordinary people”—

to grow curious enough to try buying one.

“We’ll have them lining up in front of bookstores.”

Impact.

The Taiwan Ruel editor-in-chief had always said that no matter how much the era allowed everything to happen online, when it came to felt impact, offline still held an overwhelming advantage.

Rapidly refreshing to buy something online,

versus standing in a long, endless line to buy it in person.

There was no need to compare which image hit harder.

“But who was the first to sell out?”

* * *

Jegal Rok stared at the screen.

[“As expected of Ji Haebeom”... Asia’s top star! Global popularity proven again in Taiwan Ruel preorders]

[Ji Haebeom dominates Taiwan with 〈The Great Garland〉 trailer buzz alone, Ruel pictorial resold at inflated prices in bittersweet chaos]

Just as expected.

Beating the male actor with the most followers in Korea right now was close to impossible.

‘The resellers swarm too.’

Even if it was just a 10,000-won magazine, once Ji Haebeom’s face was on it—and supply was scarce—the price instantly multiplied.

There was no realistic way for Han Yeoreum, whose strength was broad public appeal, to beat the macros and resellers targeting Ji Haebeom.

‘I knew it would be like this.’

And it wasn’t just Ji Haebeom.

The rapidly rising Shin Seojin, and of course Myeong Jeha, were also commanding high resale prices.

The fact that Han Yeoreum, competing on pure public appeal while resellers swept away inventory, sold out only moments behind them was already an outstanding result.

‘But....’

Jegal Rok looked at Han Yeoreum’s cover with the same unwavering gaze as always.

Because—

‘The final winner is this side.’

JC ENM was an indomitable company that had never once lost when it came to generating buzz.

Han Yeoreum had enough pull to shove even Ji Haebeom out of the headlines.

Jegal Rok had faith in that.

* * *

‘Ah. Are these lunatics messing with me?!’

Aetami grabbed her head with both hands and let out a deep sigh over her desk.

“Summer, what’s wrong?”

“Is waiting for lunch that hard? I’ll give you a chocolate bar.”

As always, her coworkers assumed this was just one of her weird late-morning performances before lunch.

But inwardly, Aetami was swallowing tears.

‘How did I fail this...?’

In all her years as a drama fangirl, this was her first time getting utterly obliterated in a preorder.

The speed had been so absurd it belonged more in a top-tier idol concert ticket war.

‘Yeoreum!’

She wanted to cry.

Especially now, when anticipation for Yeoreum’s solo cover had already reached the heavens.

‘Like that means I can’t get it...?’

Aetami exhaled an angry sigh inwardly.

‘Yeah right. I’ll just hire an on-site proxy buyer.’

The range of actor merch was usually incredibly limited.

At best, a magazine with a pictorial.

If luck struck, maybe an agency photobook or a calendar.

A Blu-ray if the drama did well enough.

Or unofficial fan group orders.

‘There’s barely anything to begin with!’

Remembering the tearful poverty of her past fangirl life, Aetami thought of Yeoreum again.

‘But my dutiful daughter gave us merch from the very start.’

Thinking of the 〈ParCheHi〉 Blu-ray and all its special inclusions warmed one side of her heart.

The 〈The Great Garland〉 pop-up had been the same.

Grip toks, postcards, paperweights, bookmarks—

a flood of merch unlike anything she had ever known before.

‘Back then, even this would’ve been enough.’

But not anymore.

Now it felt like she wouldn’t calm down unless she collected every single piece of Yeoreum-related merch.

Aetami checked the Taiwan Ruel on-site sales schedule once again.

‘If they checked the preorder numbers, they’ll definitely release even more stock on-site....’

She thought it wouldn’t be difficult.

Until then.

* * *

At the same time, IP 85.152 was sitting in front of her monitor in exactly the same posture as Aetami.

“...”

She said nothing.

A cultured woman who had devoured every catalog and art book imaginable, she had recently decided to broaden her horizons by reading something more mainstream—popular magazines from Taiwan, where the market was vibrant and fast-moving.

Because art could only be deeply understood when appreciated from multiple angles, and because it was closely tied to life—

“Whew....”

Anyway, it wasn’t because she was a fan.

This was purely an intellectual exercise to improve her refinement.

And it had ended in catastrophic failure.

But °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° IP 85.152 did not crumble easily.

“On-site sales... proxy buying is always possible. This is nothing.”

Losing her composure over the failed purchase of such a trivial mainstream magazine—

that was the sort of thing Han Yeoreum’s fans would experience.

Therefore, IP 85.152 remained calm.

There were many books in the world beyond this simple popular magazine.

“But when is the 〈Youth Disqualified!〉 script book coming out?”

Her right leg trembled violently as she waited for the script book of a drama that hadn’t even finished airing yet.

First, she marked the Taiwan Ruel in-person sale date on her calendar, estimated overseas shipping time, and starred the week she thought it might arrive.

And that day never came.

Even proxy buying failed.

Even paying extra was impossible.

“You fucking—!”

On the day of the Taiwan Ruel on-site sale, an elegant curse burst from the lips of the refined IP 85.152.

—This is Eslite Spectrum Ximen. Since early this morning, a long line has already formed outside the store.

The day of the Ruel on-site sale was—

—The popularity of the Korean drama 〈The Great Garland〉 is truly intense. Even before the department store opened, the waiting line was already remarkably long.

—right after Episode 4 of 〈The Great Garland〉 had aired.

* * *

On the first broadcast day of 〈The Great Garland〉 in Taiwan, the internet erupted.

—This is the worst and most shocking first meeting between leads I’ve ever seen in my life

—I’m curious how Koreans reacted XDDD

—I already got spoiled and know everything, but even knowing it, my heart still drops... and by the way, the most beautiful short-haired actor is definitely Yeoreum. Please know that Taiwan will support you forever! Thank you for loving this place, Yeoreum <3

The shock of the legendary “Joseon scum” ending that had once turned Korea upside down felt fresh and electrifying to Taiwanese audiences too. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Thanks to that, the very next day, ratings jumped close to 10%.

Second day of 〈The Great Garland〉.

—I cried without even realizing it QAQ I hope the two of them marry in Episode 3

—I don’t know Korean dramas well, but I definitely understand why this became so huge... honestly anyone would be satisfied just looking at Korea’s beautiful scenery

—If I had a daughter like that, I could never treat her that way!

After just one week of airing, 〈The Great Garland〉 had already entered the ranks of hit dramas.

The response speed was faster than any drama K-TV had ever imported.

And then Episode 3 aired the following week.

—I would give my life if it meant making Heejae happy. This is completely different from any drama I’ve ever watched!

—It’s so tragic yet so beautiful... when Taeseok cried alone in the forest calling her name, I burst into tears too

—Jeha and Yeoreum need to get married, the Korean government should pass a law if it has to!

That was enough to completely flood Taiwan with 〈The Great Garland〉 fever.

Once Episode 4 ended, the one where the child actors arc concluded, K-TV viewers started tearing through Intube and every SNS platform—

—and also:

—So when exactly are they selling the 〈The Great Garland〉 Ruel pictorial?

Even ordinary people who had never once bought celebrity merch began focusing on the Taiwan Ruel sale date.

Even under the blazing sun, the line never broke.

The department store was packed with people.

It was the kind of spectacle usually reserved for news of upcoming luxury-brand price hikes.

Rattle—

As the metal shutters rolled up to signal opening, people immediately started running.

“Don’t push!”

“Stay in line!”

Their destination was the giant bookstore inside the department store.

Countless hands shot over the neatly stacked Ruel covers.

“I grabbed that first!”

Even though the covers were wrapped in transparent plastic, hands kept yanking them back and forth until some corners even tore.

Jegal Rok’s prediction had been correct.

The first one to hit the bottom of the stack—

the unforgettable first love of them all—

[leel June issue]

Heejae SOLD OUT

was Han Yeoreum.

* * *

[HOT / The current Taiwan situation is making me patriotic.jpg]

Wi-rland export success

(Taiwan Wi-rland comments.jpg)

The psychopath-level notoriety has spread all the way to Taiwan lmfao

(Taiwan Wi-rland magazine line.jpg)

Everyone’s literally gone insane T_T

(Interview with crying high school girl who failed to buy the magazine.jpg)

Everyone’s just crying “Heejae... Heejae...” this is nuts

—Anon 1: Yo Sokhwan’s finally showing them what’s up lmfao

—Anon 2: Right, we can’t be the only ones who suffered T_T LOLL the people who watched this live rode an emotional rollercoaster every week

—Anon 14: fr I was at the level of being committed because of this drama, but sometimes I miss it... those nights fighting trolls till dawn....

—Anon 26: It wasn’t even fighting trolls, the director himself was leading the trolling charge lmfao

—Anon 50: What about Meiling girl, she’s crying so sadly T_T LOLOL so cute

—Anon 68: Han Yeoreum is insane, sold out before Ji Haebeom;

—Anon 112: fr seems like she’s super popular in Taiwan

In Taiwan, another Han Yeoreum fever began.

This wasn’t the same pace as 〈Strange Tales〉.

It couldn’t even be compared.

[SOLD OUT]

[SOLD OUT]

[SOLD OUT]

On the glass wall of Burger Queen, an A4 paper notice was taped over Han Yeoreum’s poster in bold letters.

[Burger Queen’s new menu sees astonishing sales... surging upward on the wings of Korean content]

The recent Korean-content boom sweeping Taiwan is stimulating consumer wallets. Burger Queen recently selected popular Korean actor Han Yeoreum as the face of its new menu item, the “Shrimp Beachibi Burger.” On its launch day, the burger recorded the highest sales figures of the last three years. In-store sales as well as delivery orders nearly doubled, but because the explosive popularity had not been anticipated, ingredient supply issues led to early sellouts at some locations.

A Taiwanese high school girl waiting in line at the Ximending branch said, “Every brand Yeoreum models for becomes the most popular among girls my age,” adding, “Even if it’s sold out, I’m absolutely going to eat it no matter what”... (excerpt)

“Ha....”

Meiling held a french fry in her mouth like a cigarette and draped an arm over the shoulder of the male student sitting beside her.

“This... is your apology?”

There wasn’t a single burger on their table.

Only a mountain of fries.

The boy, sweating buckets, lowered his head.

“Uh... next time... again...”

“Next time?”

Across from him, Jiarong, Xinlei, and Weixin all narrowed their eyes.

They had just heard the third sold-out notice at Burger Queen after coming here specifically to eat the Shrimp Beachibi Burger, and their rage was already at the top of their heads.

“S-sorry....”

The boy who had broken the classroom window with the soccer ball had now become the underling of Meiling and her friends after making them miss the on-site sale too.

‘I knew she was popular, but....’

A boy who usually had zero interest in either Korean content or celebrity culture cautiously asked, trying not to provoke Meiling as she viciously chewed fries.

“By next month the hype should cool down, so—ugh! Ughhh!”

Before he could even finish, a fistful of fries was stuffed into his mouth.

Meiling shoved them in and said menacingly,

“Cool down? What cools down?”

“Mmph!”

“Wang Haoyu. You need education....”

She grabbed his jaw and turned his head toward the store monitor.

“Watch carefully.”

There, Han Yeoreum appeared in a school uniform, nodding sleepily as if dozing off.

The moment the bell rang, she grabbed her bag in one hand and sped off on a bicycle.

Her destination was this very Burger Queen.

Standing at the counter, she said exactly one line.

—Shrimp Beachibi!

A solo glamour shot of the burger followed against a rich brown background, with thick patties and fresh vegetables beneath fluffy buns.

Then Han Yeoreum took a huge bite.

As she smiled brightly, mayonnaise sauce stuck to the tip of her nose.

“Will it cool down?”

Han Yeoreum wiped the corner of her mouth with one hand.

The Burger Queen logo floated up.

The commercial looped back to the beginning, yet even on the second watch it still wasn’t boring.

Come to think of it, everyone in the store had turned their heads toward the screen too, just like Wang Haoyu.

Only after finally chewing and swallowing the salty fries packed into his mouth did Wang Haoyu answer.

“...No....”

And as if to prove it, another insane line formed once again because of Han Yeoreum.

Thanks to the 〈The Great Garland〉 magazine frenzy, people started lining up once more outside the very same department store that had made the news.

Chairwoman Han Myeongsuk asked again in disbelief,

“What? For our Haebo Brewery pop-up... that many?”

It was the 〈The Great Garland〉 x Haebo Brewery collaboration pop-up.