Chapter 166: Boundary
Chapter 166: Boundary
Checked against the pasted section and the project glossary/reference source, then corrected flow, formatting, and consistency accordingly.
At Singgeut headquarters, they were fully feeling the Ryu Sunho effect.
They uploaded the YouTube ad videos, and without even putting paid promotion behind them, the algorithm picked them up on its own and sent the view counts skyrocketing.
In no time, the combined views of the two videos surpassed 10 million, and the speed of comment growth easily blew past their internal benchmark as well.
It was not simply that the numbers were high that mattered. The fact that they were meaningful metrics was what mattered most.
People were searching for the ad videos themselves, finding them, sharing them voluntarily, debating in the comments, and building discourse around them.
That was clear proof that the public was recognizing and consuming these videos as a piece of content in their own right.
Thanks to that—
“We got a call from convenience store headquarters. They said the entire initial shipment has sold out. They’re hounding us about when the additional stock will be released.”
“The major supermarket chains are in an uproar too. They requested additional production of POP materials for the ad videos!”
“They keep asking whether we’re planning to make separate ad posters. What should we tell them?”
The calls full of inquiries and requests never stopped.
But Singgeut was an agile company.
“Run the factories at full capacity around the clock! As for the posters, print and distribute them in bulk centered on the Ryu Sunho version! Get them into every convenience store in the country!”
The executive director of Singgeut barked out orders.
The corners of his mouth refused to come down.
To think that he had promoted the merger and acquisition, his greatest achievement and long-cherished project, this beautifully and perfectly.
They had already gained sales that exceeded the model fees by far, as well as a huge boost in brand value that could not even be measured in money.
And on top of that—
“Executive Director Park, I’m very pleased with how you handled this. Let’s have dinner together one of these days soon.”
The chairman had personally called and suggested a meal together.
What else could that mean?
It means I’ve completely entered the chairman’s inner circle.
He had grabbed hold of the most secure lifeline in the world.
“Khuhuhu! Ryu Sunho, this guy’s a real lucky charm.”
At this point, from the executive director’s perspective, Ryu Sunho practically looked like a walking golden toad.
So—
“And increase the ad spending even more! Add more media buys! TV, YouTube, outdoor—blanket everything. Make it so there isn’t a single person in South Korea who hasn’t seen this ad!”
They poured on even more lavish support fire.
“Wow... seriously, the whole world is Ryu Sunho.”
“Exactly. No matter what bus you ride, whether you open YouTube, or go to a convenience store, it’s Ryu Sunho.”
“But it’s funny that only the Ryu Sunho version is showing up. You barely see Gong Hajin’s.”
“There’s a threefold gap in views. Honestly, I watched Gong Hajin’s version once and that was it, but I think I’ve watched Ryu Sunho’s version more than ten times. It feels new every time.”
“Is this where the generational shift finally happens? Then again, Gong Hajin really did dominate for too long. I was starting to get tired of him.”
“Now that we’re on the subject, want to grab dinner and go see a movie after? Tickets for Mueon:ga are starting to open up again.”
“I already saw it.”
“What? When?”
“Last week with my mom. But I do want to watch it one more time. Let’s book it.”
It was not only Singgeut that was grinning thanks to Ryu Sunho’s ad.
The film side was the same.
An unexpected spillover effect had unfolded.
As people marveled at Ryu Sunho’s acting in the ad, their attention naturally shifted to Mueon:ga, the film he starred in, and a fierce wave of repeat viewings began.
Just how intense was that frenzy?
In movie communities, viewing guides like this were even being passed around.
First viewing: Just follow the story and watch the film.
Second viewing: Focus closely on Ryu Sunho’s acting details.
Third viewing: Watch the real-time reactions of the audience around you.
Thanks to that, the audience count for Mueon:ga had now become—
[It got through without saying a word... Mueon:ga reaches 11 million moviegoers!]
[The film that silenced the theater is chosen by 11 million]
[Mueon:ga surpasses 11 million viewers... the record set by a “film without dialogue”]
It had surpassed 11 million.
There had been a great deal of concern because of the bold premise of having no dialogue and the dark genre tone.
But it overwhelmed all anxiety and concern with sheer acting power and became the year’s first film to surpass 10 million moviegoers.
Meanwhile, the situation for Gong Hajin’s starring film Boundary was disastrous.
This should have been the time for it to rebound on the strength of word of mouth.
Instead, the reservation-rate graph was breaking through rock bottom and descending underground.
[Box Office Ranking]
No. 1 Mueon:ga (68.2% share)
...
No. 4 Boundary (4.5% share)
That was only natural.
Film critics had been pumping up Gong Hajin’s one-man dual-role performance with praise, but once Ryu Sunho’s ad video was released and the two were compared, the public’s expectations only turned icy cold.
Because of that, Gong Hajin had canceled one schedule after another and had been holed up inside his home for days.
A dark living room with all the curtains drawn shut.
Empty liquor bottles lay rolling across the table, and one YouTube video was playing on infinite repeat on the large TV.
“Because you can have both.”
It was Ryu Sunho’s Singgeut Ice Cream ad.
With bloodshot eyes, Gong Hajin glared at Ryu Sunho on the screen.
...This makes no sense.
Honestly, he had no choice but to admit it.
Back when Vacuum State happened, he had only thought Ryu Sunho had potential.
He had judged that Ryu Sunho was not at a level that could threaten him.
But in barely one or two years, Ryu Sunho had become a monster.
The Ryu Sunho on the screen changed the air with a single look, a single breath.
Purity and decadence.
Those images at two opposite extremes flowed from one person with total naturalness.
Does this really mean I’m worse than him...?
Self-loathing came crashing in.
And that self-loathing soon turned into warped rage.
Looking at Ryu Sunho and then looking at Gong Hajin, the difference is obvious lol
The times have changed now
Agreed, Gong Hajin’s era is over
“You sons of bitches! What do you know about acting?!”
Gong Hajin hurled the remote control.
Crash!
The remote smashed against the wall and shattered into pieces.
No, that can’t be right.
There had to be some other reason for a gap this big.
Once again, Gong Hajin began looking for the cause of his failure outside himself.
At that moment, the conversation the staff had exchanged on the ad set flashed across his mind.
...They definitely said Ryu Sunho personally planned this ad.
Gong Hajin’s pupils widened.
Was it the alcohol, or was it a delusion produced by inferiority?
The scattered puzzle pieces began fitting together in the worst possible shape.
Right. If that was the situation, then couldn’t Ryu Sunho have conspired with the ad director on purpose to screw me over? For example, giving intentionally different direction...
Gong Hajin’s expression slowly brightened.
He ought to have felt wronged, but instead he felt relieved.
No wonder that bastard director just kept standing by on set, telling me to act freely. He gave the okay sign way too easily too. He was deliberately trying to lower the quality!
What a filthy bastard.
If that was the case, then the story changed.
This had not been a fair match.
Gong Hajin immediately called his manager.
“Contact Singgeut and tell them to take the ad down right now. Tell them I know everything. Do those bastards think I’m some idiot?”
The manager tried to stop him awkwardly, but Gong Hajin refused to listen.
In the end, the manager cautiously sounded out Singgeut, but the answer that came back was exactly what one would expect.
“It’s a contract violation. If you unilaterally take the video down, you will have to pay triple the penalty fee. And it is true that Mr. Ryu Sunho participated in the planning, but the filming conditions were identical.”
Gong Hajin let out a hollow laugh.
The whole world was in on it together.
If they were going to come out that shamelessly, then he could not just sit there and take it.
He would have no choice but to exercise his own influence in his own way.
That night, Gong Hajin uploaded a long post to his social media along with a suggestive photo.
And the communities reacted immediately.
What is Gong Hajin even talking about on Instagram this time?
Who is he taking a shot at?
Isn’t he talking about the Singgeut ad that came out this time?
It sounds like something happened during the ad shoot.
But could that even happen? Isn’t an ad model in a stronger position than the ad director? Gong Hajin isn’t some nobody; he’s a top actor.
⌞They said Ryu Sunho planned this ad. If that’s true, then it could kind of make sense.
⌞Huh?
⌞Holy shit, then that’s creepy as hell. Did Ryu Sunho do it to keep Gong Hajin in check?
When a provocative issue came rolling in, there was no way people would stay still.
Though they were uncertain, more and more people began suspecting and cursing at both Ryu Sunho and the ad director together.
Public opinion seemed to be turning against Ryu Sunho.
As he watched the comments piling up, Gong Hajin smiled with a sour sort of satisfaction.
Stay strong, Oppa ㅠㅠㅠ
I knew that bastard was fake from the moment he started walking around wearing that “nice guy” mask lol
This absolutely has to be made public no matter what!!
But that pleasure did not last long.
Not much later, a rebuttal post went up.
The starting point was an anonymous office-worker community.
[I was a staff member on the Singgeut ad shoot, and after seeing Gong Hajin’s post, I was so dumbfounded I had to write this]
The poster, who identified themself as a staff member on site, uploaded photographs of part of the cue sheet and storyboard from the shoot and fact-checked what happened.
“The lighting, camera, and filming time were assigned equally to Mr. Gong Hajin and Mr. Ryu Sunho.
Different treatment? If anything, Mr. Gong Hajin was the one saying, ‘It breaks my emotions,’ and rushing us to shoot quickly without even giving time for the lighting setup.
And whenever the director tried to give direction, he was the one who brushed him off by saying, ‘I’ll handle it myself.’ And now he’s blaming someone else?”
Then the post went further and exposed Gong Hajin’s power-tripping instead.
“Using the excuse that he had to concentrate on acting, he made staff members who weren’t even employees of his agency run coffee errands for him...
I won’t write more than that, but you really did a lot of things that made people lose all affection for you.
Meanwhile, Mr. Ryu Sunho even memorized the names of the youngest staff members and looked after them.
I get that you were compared because of the video and your pride got hurt, but let’s not blame other people. It’s ugly.”
That post quickly gathered recommendations and climbed to the top posts, and public opinion turned cold in an instant.
No.
Since he had taken a false shot, an even bigger backlash hit Gong Hajin in return.
Wow lol, Gong Hajin is seriously pathetic
He got crushed on skill, so he tried to play politics and got caught red-handed
And he was the one power-tripping lol
And beyond that, people seized the chance to dig up old videos and interviews and exhume the past.
Screenshots of old posts exposing Gong Hajin’s attitude problems, which had once been uploaded to film communities and then swiftly deleted, resurfaced and were brought back into the spotlight.
Tsk, I knew something felt off about him; physiognomy really is a science
Lately I saw his expression looking bad and thought maybe he was just tired, but it turns out it was just pure jealousy
Good riddance, Gong Hajin lol. We won’t see you out
How did he hide this side of himself for so long? I guess his acting really was good lol. It must’ve been exhausting pretending to be a national actor
What “national actor”? That was ages ago lol. He was just a rotten boomer with a terrible personality
With every refresh, hundreds more insults piled up.
Gong Hajin stared blankly at the screen.
Each line of text turned into a sharp arrow and lodged itself in his chest.
Brrr—
Only then did he realize what he had done.
He clutched his head and collapsed onto the floor.
His breathing grew ragged.
The castle he had painstakingly built for so many years was collapsing in an instant.
All because of one mistake.
And his inner self started to collapse too.
A sense of emptiness and terror surged up as though a black hole had opened deep inside his chest.
He might have been able to endure mere criticism or insults.
But what made him feel the most miserable right now was something else.
Comparison.
Now people were endlessly comparing him with Ryu Sunho not only in acting ability, but even in character.
That mockery hurt as though it were stripping his flesh from his bones.
It’s all over.
From now on, whenever people look at me, they’ll remember this disgrace.
And next to it, Ryu Sunho will always be standing there as the comparison.
“Ha, haha... hahaha...”
Gong Hajin burst into laughter like a madman.
He wanted to escape this hellish reality.
The murmuring voices of people seemed to ring in his ears and tighten around him.
Staggering, he headed for the kitchen.
He took out the remaining whiskey from the cabinet and drank straight from the bottle.
And then Gong Hajin made the worst possible choice.
The next day, articles like these filled the front pages of the news.
[Actor Gong Hajin causes drunk-driving accident in Gangnam... crashes into guardrail]
[No casualties... blood alcohol level high enough for license revocation]
[Agency: “We are checking the facts... There is no excuse”]
[The fall of a top star people trusted to deliver... fans shocked by Gong Hajin’s drunk-driving accident]
In the end, Gong Hajin’s ad video was taken down and set to private because of the drunk-driving controversy.
Singgeut moved quickly, terminated its contract with Gong Hajin, and began preparing a lawsuit to claim penalty fees.
At least the fortunate part was that my ad video, shot with the same concept, survived.
I heard the Singgeut side had also heaved a huge sigh of relief while clutching their chests.
Click—
I ended the call with the Singgeut representative and looked down at my phone screen.
The screen was filled with articles about Gong Hajin.
“......”
I thought I would feel exhilarated.
After all, the one who had looked down on me, talked behind my back, and even tried to stir up a forced controversy had self-destructed.
Wasn’t this exactly the kind of situation described by “what goes around comes around” and “in the end, things return to their proper course”?
But what I felt in one corner of my chest was bitterness rather than relief.
How empty.
Gong Hajin.
For the past five years, he had reigned over South Korea’s acting scene as both an actor and a top star.
At the same time, he had been the idol of countless aspiring actors.
And yet he had burned away this futilely in a single instant.
...Would I be safe?
I might be flying high right now, but I too was standing on a sheet of thin ice that I could slip from at any time.
Gong Hajin’s downfall felt less like a victory report to me and more like a cold warning.
I should always stay on guard.
Using Gong Hajin as a cautionary example, I steeled my resolve.
The higher you climb, the lower you must bow and the stronger you must become.
That was when—
Ding—!
A system window appeared before my eyes.
【The percentage of people in the country who currently consider you the best actor is ‘51%.’】
51%.
A figure that had surpassed the halfway mark.
【Goal: Become the Best Actor in the Country (Achieved)】
Bang! Bang-bang!
Intense fireworks effects exploded in front of my eyes.
The system window flashed brilliantly.
【Congratulations! You have achieved the first objective.】
【Would you like to claim the reward? (Y/N)】
Now then... what kind of reward will it give me?
This was the moment when all the hardship so far would be rewarded.
Expectation naturally swelled inside me.
Just as I was brimming with anticipation and about to press the [Y] button—
Bzzzt—
Suddenly, my vision was dyed red.
【※Warning※】
【Beneficial Spoiler (A+) has detected a threat!】
...What?