The commercial shoot for Sears' new bed model was being held at a suburban studio.
With just 30 minutes left before filming began, conversations about Ha-eun were buzzing among the staff.
"Itâs been a while since I worked with a kid."
"Sheâs 18. Thatâs not a kid; sheâs practically an adult."
"Personality-wise, sheâs still a kid. Hopefully, she doesnât throw a tantrumâ¦"
This was the first time the team would meet Ha-eun in person.
Given her rising popularity, some assumed she might be difficult or arrogant.
While her public appearances painted a completely different picture, showing her as calm and polite, the staff remained skeptical.
"Itâs probably just for show. You know how it is with media-trained celebrities."
Having been burned by entitled models before, many were prepared for the worst. Young stars like Ha-eun, who achieved success at an early age, often carried undesirable attitudes.
Ten minutes later, Ha-eun appeared, fully prepared for the shoot.
"Hello, Iâm Lee Ha-eun."
Her graceful presence immediately silenced any lingering doubts.
Her autumn-themed casual outfit paired with her serene voice exuded a charm beyond her years.
"â¦Sheâs really 18?"
All assumptions about her immaturity were shattered.
It was as if a queen had stepped into the room, commanding the atmosphere effortlessly.
The air of caution surrounding her was palpable, and even as filming began, the studio was silent, almost reverent.
Throughout the shoot, Ha-eun gave her all.
Despite being in normal condition, she felt a heightened sense of responsibility for this particular commercial.
The ad contract included an extraordinary payment, and Sears had even gone as far as offering her and her parents their own beds.
"What size bed do you use, Ha-eun?"
"Pardon? My bed?"
"Youâll need to use one of our beds, of course. Who would believe a model endorsing a bed they donât use?"
"Oh⦠thank you very much."
This unexpected generosity made Ha-eun determined to excel.
During filming, Ha-eun channeled the regal aura sheâd been practicing for her role as Empress Aria in Shall We Fall Together.
Her ability to subtly "seduce" the camera, a tip from her friend Da-yeon, was on full display.
Director Bae Ho-yeon, who reviewed the footage, couldnât hide his amazement.
"Itâs rare to get such perfect takes every time. Would you mind doing just one more shot?"
"Not at all. Letâs do it."
For the next take, Ha-eun reclined on the bed, draped in a half-folded white blanket.
She gazed into the central camera with a languid smile before closing her eyes slowly, exuding elegance.
With a gentle motion, she turned onto her side, embodying a sense of pure comfort.
"Cut! That was excellent. Ha-eun, youâre fantastic!"
The tension from earlier in the day had completely vanished from the directorâs face.
The rest of the staff, equally impressed, showed similar expressions of satisfaction.
When the shoot wrapped up, Ha-eun went around the studio, bowing and thanking each staff member.
Her polite demeanor left everyone stunned.
"Wow⦠kids like this still exist?"
"Sheâs so well-mannered. Sheâs going places for a reason."
"Sheâs a natural. A true professional already."
Their initial skepticism transformed into admiration. Meeting a celebrity with such grace and humility was rare, and it left a lasting impression.
Even as Ha-eun left the studio, not a single negative glance followed her.
Finally alone in the van, she let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodnessâ¦"
It had been a long time since sheâd felt this nervous. Throughout the day, the countless zeros in the ad contract flashed in her mind, keeping her on edge until the very end.
Still, with the commercial completed successfully, she could relax knowing the worst-case scenarioâcancellation of the dealâhad been avoided.
That evening, Ha-eun returned home and was greeted by her mother, Na-yeon.
"The mattress is so soft! I feel like my back is healing just lying on it."
[ "Iâm so jealous! Youâve raised such a wonderful daughter." ]
"Right? Sheâs the perfect filial child."
Ha-eun smiled at the praise as Na-yeon talked about the new bed.
"How did you even think of gifting us a bed?"
"Well, I figured youâd need one."
"Youâre the best! My parenting really paid off."
With that, Na-yeon offered to slice some fruit as thanks for the thoughtful gift.
Later, Ha-eun took the neatly prepared plate of fruit to her room.
She turned on her setup, ready to stream earlier than scheduled.
Inside her pristine soundproof booth, the familiar game screen for Battle Island popped up.
[ "Bring it on~â (Battle Island)" ]
The chat exploded as her fans, the Noeulies, reacted to the streamâs start.
"Battle Island again? Are you sure about this?"
"Still havenât learned from getting sniped, have you?"
"Time for a little lesson in humility!"
"Nope~â Todayâs goal is to win, no matter what!"
Moments later, the screen went black, prompting a flood of question marks in the chat.
-Dun-dun-dun!
The matching sound from Battle Island confirmed the game had started.
"Did she just block the screen to queue secretly?"
"Diahâs getting smarter now, huh."
"Honestly, last timeâs sniping was too much."
Snipingâa practice of targeting streamers in multiplayer gamesâwas notoriously common in Battle Island.
While it could be funny a few times, repeated sniping disrupted the gameplay, frustrating both the streamer and viewers.
To counter this, Diah had hidden her screen and queued without letting fans see.
This simple tactic made sniping significantly harder.
Of course, some determined Noeulies had already joined the queue.
But Ha-eun had prepared an additional strategy.
[ å¾é«å ´è§å°ä½ ~ ]
"Huh? Why the Chinese?"
"Wait, is this the Asia server?"
Switching to a different server from her last stream, Ha-eun grinned.
"Go ahead and try sniping~â Changing servers is all it takes~â"
Her fans, whoâd eagerly queued to snipe her reactions, were left dumbfounded.
"Sheâs resorting to tricks now?"
"Who taught her this!?"
"Sorry, but weâve been sniping for years. See you soon~"
As the chat filled with playful banter, the sound of rapid mouse clicks echoed.
"ALL OF YOUâOUT!"
Diah wasnât one to let declarations of blatant stream-sniping slide.
Her blacklist of users grew rapidly as she methodically banned anyone brazen enough to announce their intentions in the chat.
The result? A sudden and dramatic shift in the chatâs atmosphere.
âAaaaaahhh!â
âPlease spare me! Please spare me! Please spare me!â
âSomebodyâs dead!!!â
âDiah, I didnât say anything! Have mercy!â
âDomhwaaaangcha!!â
âWhere did you learn those knife tricks?!â
The chaos unfolding in the chat was unlike anything seen before.
For now, the bold and daring Noeulies who openly declared their intent to snipe Diah were nowhere to be found.
Having reclaimed control of her stream, Diah returned to looting as if nothing had happened.
Seconds later, the kill feed lit up:@@novelbin@@
[Diah>>>â ililllllilllil]
"Bye-bye~â"
Compared to her first Battle Island stream days ago, the game had become significantly more enjoyable.
With less interference, Diahâs impressive FPS skills began to shine.
The chat quickly filled with admiration.
âWow!â
âI noticed last time tooâwere you a pro before?â
âHer reflexes are insane!â
âSo smooth!â
âDiah, have you considered joining tournaments?â
âWait, the M249 is that strong?â
Her precision aim and calm responses to sudden ambushes wowed her viewers as she repeatedly landed clean headshots.
The result of the first match?
Victory.
While it was a casual match rather than ranked, winning wasnât something just anyone could easily achieve.
-Ding!
[RubikCube has donated 100,000 KRW!]
**Message: Grand Empress Diah, King God Ultra Super General Diah! **
[Sapenku has donated 50,000 KRW!]
**Message: Congrats! Congrats! Congrats! **
Donations poured in from the Noeulies congratulating Diah on her victory.
"Thank you~â"
For the next ten minutes, Diah read and responded to every single donation message, her cheerful voice delighting the chat.
Once sheâd finished, she blacked out the screen again to start another matchmaking queue.
The Noeulies who had been lurking in wait for an opportunity to snipe her groaned in frustration.
âSniping her is basically gacha now?â
âWhich server is it this time?â
âDonât tell me itâs the South American serverâ¦â
âIâm bringing my laptop. Time to multi-queue.â
Determined to snipe her, they resorted to every trick they could think of.
Thus began a psychological battle between Diah and her Noeulies.
Still, the server split left many Noeulies struggling to even match with her.
And for the few persistent snipers who did manage to queue into her game, Diahâs skill proved insurmountable.
Instead of the frustrated, defeated reactions the snipers hoped for, Diah smiled brightly as she effortlessly eliminated them.
-Bang! Bang!
[Diah>>>â ëìëíì¸ì íí¼ìê°ì«ì´]
"Wow, Noeulies are so bad at games~â"
The chat erupted again:
âExcuse me?!â
âHey, create a private lobby if youâre so confident!â
âT-bagging GOAT.â
âSomebody call a pro to take her down, please!â
Diahâs laugh rang out brightly, her cheerful energy infectious as the stream carried on in its unique chaos.