AFJE 01

Chapter 01

 

Yuil Planning Headquarters, 24th Floor.

“Impossible.”

The head of the Sales Division finally broke the heavy silence.

Fifteen people were seated around a large table, including twelve executives and a representative from the client.

Scattered across the table were reports showing miserable sales figures and the current inventory levels.

“Three months. You expect us to sell all 200,000 sets within that time?”

Despair was evident in the Sales Division head’s voice.

“Even now, it would be better to pay the penalty to our partners and delay the schedule……”

“No. It’s possible.”

Everyone in the meeting room immediately turned toward the voice.

A woman in her mid-twenties was sitting there with a confident expression.

“Team Leader Im……!”

Im Ha-yoon, Creative Director of Yuil Planning.

She was the youngest winner of the Grand Prize at the Korean Advertising Awards and a legendary figure who had risen to the top of the industry at the age of twenty-five.

Not a single project she had touched had ever failed.

Her appearance alone changed the atmosphere in the meeting room.

“Six weeks will be enough.”

“……What?”

The Sales Division head asked again with a bewildered expression.

“Team Leader Im! Even you can’t do that. They’re saying three months is impossible, so what exactly are you planning to do by cutting that time in half?”

Ha-yoon’s bold response made the twenty-year veteran’s face turn red.

“Heh.”

But Ha-yoon did not even blink.

Instead, she calmly pushed her tablet forward with a relaxed smile.

A moment later, with a buzzing sound, a presentation screen unfolded in the air like a hologram.

“The reason you failed is simple. You were only trying to sell a product.”

Ha-yoon rose from her seat and slowly walked toward the holographic screen. The sound of her high heels echoed through the meeting room.

“Then what is a cosmetics company supposed to sell if not cosmetics?”

“Desire.”

Ha-yoon moved her finger, and the presentation advanced to the next slide.

“Niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, improved skin elasticity…… Do you really think consumers are going to read things like this? No. They probably don’t even care.”

She snapped her finger, and the screen changed again.

“What they want to know is how special this product is.”

“Special…….”

The head of the Marketing Division muttered under his breath. His eyes showed growing interest.

“Will I become more beautiful if I use this cosmetic? That’s not the point. The real question is, how special am I because I own this cosmetic? That’s the key.”

Confidence filled Ha-yoon’s voice.

“You have to make them want it, want to show it off, and feel like they can’t resist taking pictures and posting them. You make the consumers advertise our product for us.”

Nearly twenty people were staring intently at her, but Ha-yoon did not even blink.

She spoke firmly.

“Recall every product currently on the market.”

“What? What did you say? Recall the products? We’re already short on sales, and you want us to take them back?”

The Sales Division head jumped to his feet and shouted. His face had turned bright red.

“Director, calm down and hear me out.”

Ha-yoon had faced this kind of opposition countless times.

At first, everyone always called her crazy. But the results had always been successful.

She calmly continued explaining.

“First, put every product in the warehouse. Then, one month later, make an announcement. Tell people that due to problems securing raw materials, the product will only be available for six weeks.”

“But……”

“At the same time, begin viral marketing. Give influencers only a small number of products, and absolutely do not provide them with purchase links.”

Ha-yoon snapped her finger, and the screen changed.

One by one, specific marketing strategies appeared.

“And one week later, put a timer on the official website.”

[Current remaining quantity: 200,000]

“Display the number of products available for purchase like this, and show the number decreasing in real time.”

“What……?”

The meeting room began to buzz at Ha-yoon’s strategy.

The despair in their eyes was gradually replaced by anticipation.

“People don’t even look at things that are everywhere. No matter how good a product is, they just walk past it. But what happens when you tell them they can’t have it?”

“That’s when they start getting desperate.”

Ha-yoon spoke with absolute confidence.

“Make them feel rushed. Give them the fear that if they don’t get it now, they’ll never get it again. That is the strongest purchasing motivation of modern consumers.”

“Will that really sell 200,000 sets?”

“It’ll sell more than that. No, to be exact, there won’t be enough.”

Ha-yoon answered confidently.

“I guarantee it with my name.”

Her career itself was a guarantee.

Three years ago, she had been the one who took an outdoor brand that was on the verge of bankruptcy and turned it into the number one brand in the industry.

At the time, everyone had said the project was impossible. Yet she had succeeded in just four months, and that brand had since grown into a massive company with annual sales of 300 billion won.

Before that, she had rebranded an old local soju brand and raised its market share to second place.

Every project she touched succeeded without fail.

And her legend was still being written.

“Hmm…… If Team Leader Im is that confident.”

The advertiser slowly nodded after listening to the presentation.

“All right. Let’s trust you this once. But I want a progress report once a week.”

“Of course.”

Once the advertiser gave his approval, Ha-yoon stood up, picked up her jacket, and immediately left the meeting room.

Click. Click.

The sound of her high heels echoed like a victorious march.

“Phew.”

After confidently leaving the meeting room, Ha-yoon let out a small sigh.

A perfect presentation.

A perfect conclusion.

But beneath it all, an unbearable pressure was crushing her.

‘I have to succeed no matter what. There’s no room for failure in my career.’

An endless race toward success.

That was the life of Im Ha-yoon, the woman known as an advertising genius.

---

“Ha-yoon, are you working late again?”

Su-jin, a fellow employee and classmate whom she happened to meet in front of the elevator, asked with concern.

It was 11 p.m.

The empty lobby was filled with nothing but the sound of the cleaning lady mopping the floor.

“Yeah. The launch is next week, so I don’t have any time to rest. You go ahead.”

Ha-yoon lifted the briefcase in her hand and forced herself to smile brightly.

But the smile looked painfully sad.

“Hey, you’re seriously going to collapse at this rate. Work is important, but you need to rest when you can.”

“I’ll rest after I finish this one. I really will.”

It was a lie.

Ha-yoon knew it.

There was no such thing as “this one.”

Once this project ended, another project would be waiting for her.

To maintain her title as an advertising genius, she had to constantly prove that she could succeed.

Not a single failure could be tolerated.

No.

She could not tolerate one herself.

That was how Ha-yoon always pushed herself.

“You haven’t forgotten about next Friday, have you?”

“Next Friday?”

Su-jin’s words reminded Ha-yoon of a schedule she had completely forgotten about.

“Oh, right! The class reunion.”

“See? You were about to forget again. Are you going to skip it again?”

Since graduating, Ha-yoon had never once shown up at a class reunion.

Ha-yoon clasped her hands together apologetically.

“……Sorry. I’ll definitely go this time.”

“For real this time?”

“Yeah. I promise I’ll go.”

Another lie.

She had an important meeting scheduled for next Friday.

But she did not want to disappoint Su-jin, her only friend and fellow classmate.

Ding!

The elevator arrived just then, and Ha-yoon hurried inside as if escaping.

“I’ll somehow make time, even if it’s only for a little while. See you then!”

“You better come!”

With those words, the elevator doors closed.

Only then did Ha-yoon let out the long breath she had been holding.

“Haa…… I’m really going to collapse at this rate.”

2 a.m.

After finishing her overtime work and going down to the underground parking lot, Ha-yoon sat in the driver’s seat and lowered her head blankly.

‘I’m exhausted…… So exhausted.’

When had it started?

When had this work stopped being fun?

When she first entered the industry, everything had been exciting and fascinating.

Coming up with new ideas and watching them become reality.

She had enjoyed every part of it.

But now?

She felt nothing.

It was nothing more than a struggle to keep herself from falling apart.

Click.

Out of habit, Ha-yoon opened the console box on the passenger side.

Inside was a strange pair of gogok pieces that fit tightly together as if they were one.

It was the only keepsake her father, an avid antique collector, had left behind.

[Ha-yoon, do you know what this is?]

[No. What is it?]

[It’s a rare treasure, the only one of its kind in the world.]

“But it’s two pieces, not one.”

[Haha. It may look like two pieces, but it’s actually one. The two pieces fit together to form a single whole.]

Just as her father had said, the two gogok pieces were joined together with the precision of interlocking gears, and no amount of force could separate them.

As if they had been one from the very beginning.

Ha-yoon treasured the gogok, the only keepsake her father had left her.

“Dad…….”

The smooth surface of the gogok touched her fingertips, and strangely enough, her mind became calm.

“Phew. I’ll go home, take a shower, and think about it……”

After playing with the gogok for several minutes, Ha-yoon finally started the car.

Another long day was waiting for her tomorrow.

Vroom.

Ha-yoon drove out of the underground parking lot.

Seoul was quiet in the early hours of the morning.

Only the streetlights illuminated the empty roads.

“…….”

Ha-yoon drove while staring blankly straight ahead.

Then it happened.

Screech―!

Suddenly, the ear-piercing sound of tires scraping against the road rang out.

“Huh……?”

By the time she heard it, it was already too late.

A large truck suddenly crossed the center line from the opposite lane and came straight at her.

Its headlights grew closer and closer.

Crash―!

An enormous impact followed.

The airbags exploded, and shattered glass flew in every direction.

The seat belt dug painfully into her body, as if it were about to tear her apart.

‘What……?’

As her consciousness began to fade, Ha-yoon saw an intense light pouring out of the gogok.

Then the light began to surround her.

‘Am I going to die……?’

Along with the light, everything around her began to move in slow motion.

Shards of broken glass floated in midair.

Even the rain that had been pouring down seemed to stop completely.

It was a strange sight, as if time itself had stopped.

‘No. I still have so much work left to do…….’

Even at that moment, Ha-yoon could think of nothing but work.

Whoosh―!

A moment later, the gogok gave off a brilliant light and completely enveloped Ha-yoon.

And when the light disappeared, Ha-yoon was nowhere to be seen.

---

“Hey! Wake up! You’ll be in trouble if you sleep here!”

A faint voice reached her through the darkness of unconsciousness.

Someone was shaking her shoulders hard.

‘An emergency room? Am I alive?’

Her mouth was parched, and her head felt as if it were splitting apart.

Enduring the pain, Ha-yoon slowly opened her eyes.

“Ugh…… huh?”

When she opened her eyes, Ha-yoon stared blankly at the person in front of her.

For some reason, a man with his hair tied in a traditional topknot was looking down at her.

“Phew, you’re awake. I thought you were dead. What a relief.”

Seeing the man’s clothes, Ha-yoon was struck by an even greater shock than the car accident.

‘Who is he? No, more importantly, why is he dressed like that……?’

The man was wearing clothes that looked like something straight out of a museum.

He even had a jige strapped to his back.

Ha-yoon asked in a hoarse voice with difficulty.

“Where…… am I?”

“Where else? Mungyeong Saejae.”

Mungyeong Saejae?

How could that be?

Ha-yoon naturally assumed the man was joking.

It was physically impossible for her to be in Mungyeong Saejae when she had been in the middle of Seoul just moments ago.

But when she looked around, she saw scenery that really did resemble Mungyeong Saejae.

Ha-yoon narrowed her eyes.

‘Is this really Mungyeong Saejae?’

But soon, Ha-yoon shook her head.

‘No. The Mungyeong Saejae I know doesn’t look like this.’

There were houses clustered together in the distance, suggesting that people actually lived here.

The problem was that every single house had a thatched roof.

And there was no sign of civilization anywhere around them.

No power poles.

No roads.

Nothing.

‘Where on earth am I?’

Sensing that something was terribly wrong, Ha-yoon tried to get up.

“Ugh……!”

The aftereffects of the accident hit her all at once.

Every muscle in her body screamed in pain.

Desperate to call for help, Ha-yoon frantically searched through her pockets.

‘It’s gone? Where is it?’

But there was nothing.

Her bag, wallet, identification, and phone were all gone.

Even the gogok, her father’s keepsake, had disappeared without a trace.

‘Calm down. Just calm down and figure out what’s happening.’

Ha-yoon took a deep breath.

Then she calmly looked at the man in front of her.

“Excuse me, but could I borrow your phone?”

“Phone? What’s that?”

The man clearly had no idea what a phone was.

Ha-yoon gave a helpless laugh.

“Come on, don’t joke around. Please lend it to me. I lost my phone.”

“How can I lend you something I don’t have?”

“You really don’t have one? A phone?”

“Good grief. I’m telling you, I really don’t have one.”

Judging by his reaction, he clearly was not lying.

She was startled for a moment, but she thought that perhaps this could happen in a place this remote.

Ha-yoon managed to remain calm.

For now.

“Then you must have a telephone, right? Please let me make just one call. I’m begging you.”

“A telephone? What’s that supposed to be?”

“You don’t know what a telephone is either?”

Anxiety slowly began to creep in.

Ha-yoon’s voice was trembling now.

“Then what about 119? Please call 119 for me. I’ll pay you generously.”

“Miss, did you hurt your head? You keep saying things I’ve never heard in my entire life.”

“What? You’ve never heard of anything I’m talking about?”

A phone.

A telephone.

The man knew none of them.

And the strange surroundings showed absolutely no trace of modern civilization.

‘No way……?’

A terrible suspicion flashed through Ha-yoon’s mind.

“Excuse me…… what year is it right now?”

“Let’s see…… It’s the thirteenth year since the new king ascended the throne, so it’s the year Jeongmi.”

“The king?”

At the word “king,” Ha-yoon felt her heart drop.

And what did he mean by the year Jeongmi?

By this point, Ha-yoon was beginning to realize that something was terribly wrong.

“The year Jeongmi? What year is that exactly?”

“Good grief, you don’t even know that? What a strange young lady.”

There was no way a modern woman like Ha-yoon would know the traditional sixty-year cycle of the sexagenary calendar.

Clinging to the last bit of hope she had, Ha-yoon asked,

“Then could you at least tell me the name of the king—or rather, the name of the monarch currently on the throne?”

“How could people like us dare to speak His Majesty’s name so carelessly? We’d be dragged away for disrespecting the king.”

The man quickly lowered his voice.

Instead, he spoke indirectly for Ha-yoon’s sake.

“All I know is that the current king is the grandson of the late King Sunjo.”

“Sunjo!”

Ha-yoon’s face turned deathly pale.

She did not know much about history, but fortunately, she had memorized the entire Joseon royal succession starting with the famous “Tae-jeong-tae-se-mun-dan-se……,” so she knew which king came after Sunjo.

‘Heonjong……!’

The thirteenth year of King Heonjong’s reign.

In the Gregorian calendar, it was 1847.

Roughly 200 years in the past.

‘That’s impossible! I’ve fallen into the Joseon Dynasty?’

Ha-yoon had been thrown into the very heart of Joseon Korea, during the reign of King Heonjong.