Peninsula: My e-sports dream shattered, I chose to become an actor.

On an ordinary Sunday afternoon, middle school student Park Won-ha and her family were sitting in front of the TV, waiting for the broadcast of "Running Man".

This variety show reached its peak this year, with national viewership consistently above 20%, and in March it reached a record high of nearly or even exceeding 30%, practically dominating the highly competitive Sunday variety show slot.

In other words, at that time, about one in every three to four people watching TV in South Korea was watching "Running Man," and the Park Won-ha family were loyal fans of "Running Man."

Park Won-ha glanced at the clock on the wall—16:49, only one GG program left to start.

Although the other family members were still chatting, their eyes were also subtly drifting towards the television.

The first shot of GG is a pair of men's feet, walking barefoot on the wet sand. The sound of waves crashing against the shore can be clearly heard. The sound effects are very well done, making you feel as if you can smell the saltiness of the sea.

The camera then switches to a side-view, low-angle shot, focusing on an abandoned seashell. In the blurred background, a blurry male silhouette slowly walks by.

"What? This is just being deliberately mysterious." Park Won-ha expressed strong disdain for this overly artsy guy. "Is he selling cars or alcohol?"

In the next shot, the man walks into the sea.

The camera slowly zooms in from behind. He walks step by step into the depths of the sea, the water washing over his ankles, calves, and knees.

The man was soaked through; his seemingly ordinary white shirt clung tightly to his back, the seawater highlighting his shoulder blades and the defined muscles of his back. His dark gray trousers were also wet, the fabric deepening in color, perfectly accentuating his long legs and perfect proportions.

"This model's figure... is quite impressive."

Park Won-ha stopped herself from opening her phone. Although she still didn't know what this guy was trying to sell, she decided to trust her eyes and temporarily forgive his cryptic behavior.

The camera zooms in further, showing the man gradually walking into deeper water, the icy seawater about to engulf his lower body.

Just then, a very soft call seemed to be mixed into the background music, like the chant of a siren or the whisper of a lover.

The man stopped in his tracks.

Suddenly, he turned to the side and slowly turned his head to look at the camera.

In that instant, Park Won-ha felt his heart skip a beat, and he subconsciously held his breath.

On the television screen, the man's face occupied the majority of the image.

His nose was straight and prominent, as if carved by a knife and axe, and the curve of his jawline was sharp and perfect. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed, his lips were pale from the cold, and a few strands of damp hair clung messily to his forehead, adding to his sense of decadent melancholy.

Although everything about him was perfect, like a finely crafted CG model, Park Won-ha's gaze was instantly drawn to one thing—

His eyes.

Those blue eyes, with their eerie and captivating deep-sea blue hue, stared directly at the camera, as if piercing through the screen and engaging in a soul-to-soul gaze with the viewers in front of the television.

Those deep eyes seemed to hold a thousand unspoken words. They held both the timidity of a newborn fawn and the aggression of a predator; they were both a cry for help and a temptation.

Behind those blue eyes lay a hazy, shimmering sea. The horizon met the sea, creating an illusion—as if the entire ocean had melted into his eyes.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment.

Finally, his eyes flickered slightly, and his lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but he ultimately fell silent.

The scene abruptly ended.

On the black screen, a simple white logo appeared:

OLENS.

"Aaaaaaah!"

It took Park Won-ha a full three seconds to come to her senses. Unable to suppress her shock and excitement, she hugged her pillow and let out a scream like a groundhog.

After a while, the father, who had been silent all along, couldn't help but take off his glasses and asked in a puzzled tone:

"What does this OL (office lady) sell? Beer?"

My mother's face showed a hint of surprise and interest; she had clearly been struck by that look as well, and now she said thoughtfully:

"It looks like colored contact lenses? I've heard of this brand; they're contact lenses, right?"

"Colored contact lenses?" Grandpa leaned closer, rubbing his dim old eyes, and said uncertainly, "Is that model a foreigner? Why are her eyes blue? She's really pretty though."

"I don't think so. The child's mother said it was because they sell colored contact lenses."

"How come I've never seen such a handsome kid before? Is he some kind of celebrity?"

Her family members were buzzing with discussion, but Park Won-ha had already forgotten about watching TV. She forced down her heart, which was pounding with excitement, and with trembling hands, she took out her phone and skillfully opened the Naver search bar.

I don't care about Running Man anymore.

I need all of this man's information within three minutes!

……

At the same time, Li Mingye, who was at home watching his own GG on time, was completely dumbfounded.

no……

Didn't I take a ton of pictures?

What about the eye contact in the coffee shop and the smile as they looked back on the beach?

Why did the official version disappear after just one turn?

And if it's filmed like this, can the audience really know what's being sold?

A bunch of question marks popped up above Li Mingye's head.

But before he could even begin to wonder, his phone started vibrating incessantly—it was GG's female manager.

"Mingye! Did you watch it? What did you think? Were you blown away?"

The moment the call connected, the other party couldn't wait to ask questions, their tone as excited as if they had just won the lottery.

After thinking for a moment, Li Mingye decided to hold back a bit.

"Hmm...it's pretty good. The visuals are beautiful, the response should be good."

"Hahaha! I knew it! I'm telling you, I insisted on having it cut like this!"

"So it was you, kid!" Li Mingye thought to himself.

The person in charge clearly had no intention of giving him a chance to complain, and continued speaking rapidly:

"Only by shooting like this can the impact and surprise of your appearance and eyes reach its peak! All the buildup beforehand—the waves, the silhouette, the wetness—is all accumulating for that final look! Then, at the climax, it abruptly ends, leaving the audience with a lingering, unsatisfying feeling!"

Li Mingye was skeptical, after all, he had seen his own face too many times, and it was difficult to objectively assess its impact.

But he still voiced his doubts:

"However, there's absolutely no product information in Google Play, no specifications or close-ups. Is that okay?"

The person in charge seemed to have prepared this in advance, saying, "Don't worry, the brand name has been given out. With the internet so developed now, curious people will search for it themselves!"

What we're selling isn't specifications, but a sense of luxury and ambiance!

Li Mingye nodded, understanding her thoughts.

"Don't worry, I have complete trust in you and this guy!" the person in charge said confidently.

After watching the final cut, she immediately and strongly requested additional budget from her superiors, applying for prime-time GG slots before and after "Running Man." It's safe to say that if the show doesn't perform well this time, she'll likely be in serious trouble.

"I have a feeling that these new models will sell out completely within a week!"

Hearing the brimming confidence on the other end of the line, Li Mingye couldn't help but be infected by it and said with a smile:

"Then I wish your premonition comes true."

……

Things didn't go as the person in charge had anticipated.

At 6 p.m. that evening, "Li Mingye", "OLENS", and "OLENS Deep Sea Blue" ranked in the top three of NAVER's real-time search list, while "The man with the sea in his eyes" ranked seventh.

At 11:30 p.m., the "deep sea blue" colored contact lenses were sold out in all 100 OLENS offline stores and on the official website, and the restock time is unknown.

In an instant, it seemed as if everyone realized—

A monstrous newcomer has appeared.