The “Grand Duke of the North” From Korean Web Novels Is Now a Boy From Namhae: ATEEZ’s San

San of ATEEZ at the 33rd Hanteo Music Awards, February 2026

“Grand Duke of the North” is a stock hero of Korean romance-fantasy web novels. Now it’s ATEEZ San’s nickname, spread by a few seconds of “BAD” choreography, Ma Dong-seok’s parody and headline after headline. And the duke of the north comes from Namhae, Korea’s far south.