Ordinary people don't even know a fashion show was held.
It's just that since Korea is a country highly interested in luxury brands, there are relatively more people who know about it.
But even if they know the brand, how many people would actually care about the brand's events?
People who look up the show in real-time are rare.
People who attend the event are even rarer.
Normally, it would be a single line in internet news.
Or consumed as an internet reaction video by a K-pride YouTuber.
Roughly 'Foreign stars' reactions to seeing Korean stars.'
Or so-and-so's reaction to seeing Park Jung-woo, etc.
Since Korean culture has been gradually gaining traction in the West recently, they could make a bit of a fuss with exaggeration.
It would have been roughly something like that.
A video that only those who look for it watch.
That's how it should have ended.
- ??? Did Ju Seoyeon really link arms with a British princess?
- Should that even be called Ju Seoyeon?
- I'm a 10-year Seoyeon fan ㅠㅠ It's been so long, seeing the vibe from her child actor days makes me so happy
- Child actor days??? By any chance, are you a boomer..
- She's just hypocritical Ju Seoyeon;;
- My older sister acts like that when she meets her boyfriend...
The video first spread in Seoyeon's fan community.
Those who only saw the memes showed such reactions, and everyone who hadn't watched the video thought she just dressed up a bit to manage her image.
However, after travel YouTuber Kang Dong-cheol's summary video was uploaded once more, the reaction changed again.
- It doesn't just feel like she dressed up?
- It really feels like the Taesumdal era;
- Where did the sassy brat-like Ju Seoyeon from usual variety shows go
- No, even her walk is different
- Oh my? Oh my? Oh my? Oh my? Oh my? Oh my?
- What happened to her way of speaking lol
- But is this real? Standing next to a British princess, she really looks like a princess
- Princess Connect omg
Seoyeon's appearance captured in the video.
And her conversation with the princess.
On top of that, the sight of Seoyeon entering with her arm linked with the princess at the end capped off the video.
The YouTuber who filmed the video, Kang Dong-cheol, said in a tone full of excitement.
"This is seriously daebak, wow! Really, wow! I came on a trip and didn't expect to capture something like this. Actor Ju Seoyeon, what exactly is your relationship with the British princess? Did you become friends after saving a pickpocket? As far as I know, Princess Marie is known to have an extremely narrow circle of relationships. Real celebrities. They don't even talk to you unless they acknowledge you themselves."
Therefore, to the public, she was an arrogant princess.
A naive, self-centered girl who, in some ways, was truly princess-like—that was Marie Mountbatten-Windsor.
But that very girl linked arms and entered the venue where the show was being held, right in front of everyone.
Seoyeon, wearing an awkward smile at her sudden action, and Park Jung-woo beside her swinging his arms in the air for nothing, were the highlights.
- Park Jung-woo lol Entering without a partner lol
- Stealing a partner is a precious feat
- He still sat next to her though lol
- Honestly, it would've been super awkward
- But normally when Park Jung-woo is next to Ju Seoyeon he looks tired, but this time it's different
- When he's next to Ju Seoyeon right now, it's obvious he's restless lol
- Normally Ju Seoyeon is just an elementary school gorilla, so her pretty face doesn't stand out, but now it's different;;
- Ju Seoyeon is seriously a goddess, is she a high schooler?
- Originally, if you put on makeup, it's hard to tell
As Seoyeon's appearance at the Viol show spread on the internet and reporters who asked about it began to pour out articles, even people who weren't interested in the show gradually came to see it.
Even the Korean Viol branch posted the video on their homepage, gathering people's attention to that extent.
[Shocking Image Transformation! The Yeonhwa Princess Returned from Memories.]
[Yeonhwa High Students Leave Unforgettable Memories on Field Trip]
[Viol Official: 'The appearance of the two princesses gave me great inspiration.']
As if refusing to lose, reporters also began pouring out articles.
A luxury brand's fashion show that hadn't received much attention became the first hot topic of the year.
And such a new image of Seoyeon...
"You know
"The timing is really good. I never expected things to turn out like this."
NewLike Group.
Chairman Cho Seok-hwan nodded with a satisfied face at the recent issue.
Because even the directors were talking about Seoyeon.
They were people who couldn't help but be sensitive to luxury brands, anyway.
Both as a company and as individuals.
So they had no choice but to pay more attention to the image Ju Seoyeon held.
The immediately planned project was, at the earliest, mid-this year.
At the latest, a cable drama scheduled to be released by the end of next year,
It was scheduled to be released on YTBC, but Cho Seok-hwan grew greedy.
"I heard
"Yes, that's what I heard."
"What do you think about considering
At those words, the directors also put on serious faces.
Unlike when they exchanged light conversation before the meeting, their faces became those weighing various possibilities.
The faces of businessmen.
"...Honestly, there are many variables."
"Variables, you say?"
"First, whether actor Ju Seoyeon's image will be maintained until then. Whether Korean content will end as a simple buzz."
It certainly proved that content made in Korea could work globally.
However.
"To put it another way, out of all those many works, only two."
It might have just been simple luck.
He was saying as much.
"If we release it on YTBC as originally planned, I believe we can expect stable results."
"Because there are original fans, too."
"Yes. But if we aim for overseas and collaborate with Netflix..."
"I'm not sure if we can reduce the production cost, but the stable supply of domestic fans will inevitably decrease somewhat."
Unlike simply turning on the TV or watching through YouTube, if it's released on Netflix, the viewers are limited to Netflix subscribers.
"I think the gap between them and TV viewers has decreased these days, though."
"It's still small. First of all, the main viewership of Netflix is still young."
To put it another way, it means the older generation is still unfamiliar with OTT.
The absolute majority of drama viewers are the older generation.
Then domestic performance would inevitably be somewhat sluggish.
At least for now.
This problem would be solved later as Netflix grows larger, but it wasn't the time yet.
"How well a drama based on a domestic web novel will work globally..."
"First of all, it's quite an encouraging achievement that actor Ju Seoyeon has gained significant global recognition. By the way, regarding the advertisement..."
"We are currently in talks on our end."
"Through actor Cho Seo-hee?"
"Yes. Of course, she's a bit... refusing it, though."
At the words of the Food Business Division director, Cho Seok-hwan cleared his throat.
It was hard to say this, but his daughter was not someone he could control.
Still.
"I will try talking to her."
"Yes, Chairman. Please take care of it. If possible, have Seo-hee join as well..."
That probably won't happen.
Still, Cho Seok-hwan nodded.
'A Netflix drama.'
A drama based on a web novel.
Releasing it on YTBC is right.
'Or...'
There's no need to rush; they could release it first on YTBC, then move it to Netflix.
However, in such cases, they could be held back by the exclusivity period.
"First of all, the mid-year release doesn't change. Let's set the advertising schedule to match that."
Seo-hee refused, but Seoyeon nodded.
Very excitedly, at that.
"I-Is it really okay to give me this much?"
"Since you're my daughter's friend, adding a little extra isn't difficult."
Cho Seok-hwan said so, but.
'Actually, I consider this cheap.'
The performance Seoyeon achieved last year was at an absurd level.
Considering that potential, it wouldn't be strange to give her top-star level, industry-leading level pay right now.
Of course, he had roughly matched it even now, but he thought.
Even celebrities have a prime, don't they?
The most shining moment.
If they secured that time, pay simply fitting an S-class star wouldn't be important.
Because at that time, it would be possible to achieve results of SS-class or higher, not just S-class.
Of course, there were talks among the directors that the unit price was too high, but.
"You really didn't do it for cheap, did you."
"...."
At Cho Seok-hwan's words with a bright smile, the directors nodded wordlessly.
Who would have thought Seoyeon would attend a luxury brand's fashion show arm-in-arm with a British princess.
If anything, this was quiet for Korea.
Because the UK was in an absolute uproar.
To exaggerate a bit, it produced the result of "Britain shocked, all of Europe in an uproar," a phrase commonly used by K-pride YouTubers in their titles.
"GH is really aiming for her. There's word that their official is deeply connected to actor Ju Seoyeon's family."
"Ahem, I heard so."
"If we let our guard down, they'll snatch her away. They're not to be underestimated either."
GH Group is a competitor of NewLike.
For a normal actor, they usually choose only one of the two.
Bats going back and forth—from a conglomerate's perspective, it's bound to hurt their feelings.
But Seoyeon was special.
Given her position, ironically, even if their feelings were hurt, there was nothing they could do.
Then they had no choice but to at least reap as much benefit as possible.
'How much will she surprise me again this year.'
Seok-hwan was already looking forward to it.
His daughter's friend.
To our star, like starlight.
***
Honestly, Seoyeon felt a bit sorry to her school friends.
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Because she thought she had caused a nuisance to her school friends due to her event.
Thanks to that, the Ready-to-Wear show was a success.
Seoyeon received so much attention that she didn't seem like an unfamiliar Korean actress.
For reference, she only did one interview.
It was with the journalist Marius, who first approached her and showed interest.
"I thought you would become my exclusive scoop."
He spoke in French and smiled brightly at Seoyeon.
"All the journalists are envious of me. Who would have known that the protagonist of this show would be you."
He excitedly conducted the interview.
And the article he wrote went up that very evening.
The French publication Demirun.
It wasn't a very well-known publication, but his article recorded an astonishingly high number of views.
"Come to England sometime."
Marie said that when the show was ending.
"It's a field trip, it's a shame."
If it weren't a field trip, she would have boarded a flight to England right away.
It was truly a relief for Seoyeon.
Because she already had a mountain of things to do upon returning to Korea.
Anyway, they parted ways with Marie looking very disappointed.
She was planning to stay in France a bit longer, but Seoyeon had to return because the field trip dates were over.
On the flight back together.
"Why are you glancing at me like that?"
"...Ahem, it's nothing."
Park Jung-woo kept glancing back and forth, observing her.
As if trying to figure out whether she was Ju Seoyeon? Or the Yeonhwa Princess.
'No, I'm the same person.'
Seoyeon thought that as she looked at Park Jung-woo.
Should I just hit him once?
But it felt a bit much to hit him without an excuse.
With that thought, after watching him for a moment, Seoyeon came up with a good idea.
Something she had coincidentally mentioned once before.
"Come to think of it, I found a place in the neighborhood where I can learn martial arts, you know? Want to sign up together?"
"I'm sorry, but thinking about it, if we learn something like that together, it seems like a scandal could easily break out."
Park Jung-woo made his excuse very calmly.
It sounded like an excuse he had prepared in case Seoyeon brought it up.
A scandal, what a truly exquisite shield.
"And, I said this before too... don't exercise. You'll get hurt."
"I'm sturdy."
"Not you, other people."
"...."
At those words, Seoyeon eventually poked Park Jung-woo hard with her elbow.
At that action, Park Jung-woo grabbed his side and groaned in the plane, but Seoyeon didn't care.
Hmph, serves him right.
Anyway, when they returned to their home country on the plane.
Seoyeon didn't think much of it.
Just a feeling of returning from a field trip.
She only thought about how to repay the kids when she went to school.
'It would have been nice if we could have taken the same flight at least.'
She thought so, but Park Jung-woo shook his head, saying absolutely not.
Saying Seoyeon absolutely had to return first, they departed on a morning flight.
For reference, the other students were on an afternoon flight.
Because of that, Seoyeon couldn't even say a proper goodbye to the sleeping students before leaving.
"I think it would have been better if I stayed a few more days and returned when my schedule wasn't exposed."
"Why?"
"You'll know when you get there."
Seoyeon tilted her head at Park Jung-woo's words.
What could be the problem?
Seeing Seoyeon like that, Park Jung-woo sighed and said.
"Don't say anything, and stand behind me. I'll handle it."
Seoyeon didn't know what his words meant.
The fact that Seoyeon was on a field trip had already been revealed in the news.
Which meant it was practically the same as Seoyeon's return schedule being known.
The meaning of that.
Seoyeon, who had expected a quiet return like usual.
"Actor Ju Seoyeon!! What exactly is your relationship with the British princess this time?!"
"There are rumors you saved a pickpocket, please tell us exactly what happened!!"
"No, she didn't save a pickpocket, she must have saved the princess!"
"Is the look shown at the show a temporary image change, or is there another reason? Please say a few words!"
Along with the reporters' shouts and the deluge of flashes.
Seoyeon couldn't help but lose her wits.
Because she wondered what on earth this commotion was.