Investment Advisor

The next morning.

"Kyaa!"

"Shut up."

"Why are you here?!"

Before his eyes even opened, the sound hit his eardrums first. Sora was screaming out of nowhere.

Well, that woke me up completely.

She was the high-energy type first thing in the morning. Too lazy to deal with it, he just pulled her into a tight embrace. Soft, warm skin pressed against him. He was starting to understand exactly why residual morning lust built up the way it did.

"Sunbae."

"Hmm?"

"Did we… do it?"

"No."

They hadn't gone all the way. He'd brought her home, cracked open a can of beer, and she'd gone completely limp and fallen asleep.

I was sleepy too.

Calling another designated driver at that point felt like too much hassle. So he'd just held onto Sora and drifted off.

"Then why did you strip me?"

"Because I wanted to."

"You psycho."

Her body heat was deliciously warm. Her skin was smooth, her fine hairs soft and downy — the feeling of contact was excellent.

Truth is, I did fire off a few rounds.

It would have been a waste not to use a body like that. Since he'd already stripped her, he'd toyed with her to his heart's content.

"You really didn't do it, right?"

"What are you, Schrödinger's virgin?"

"This is a serious issue. Extremely serious."

While she'd been snoring away, no less. Now that she was awake, Sora seemed thoroughly unsettled, patting herself down here and there with her hands. He gave her more definitive proof.

"If I'd gone in, it wouldn't have stopped at just hurting."

"…Yeah, I guess so."

"Your pelvis would've split right open."

His morning erection was fully operational. Whispering it against her ear made her heartbeat climb.

She's imagining it.

Her body was pure sex, yet she kept reacting like some pure, innocent virgin.

"I get that we didn't do it, but—"

"Mm."

"Stripping me while I was asleep is a contract violation."

This, from a girl who'd slept naked next to a man. Sora puffed out her cheeks and lodged her complaint.

Phew. At least she didn't catch the oral.

That seemed to be the full extent of her grievance. She clearly didn't hold equity over that particular territory.

"Fine. Oppa will take responsibility."

"Really?"

"Let's sign an MOU. Here — promise."

"…That sounds shady somehow. Whatever, fine."

MOU. The kind of thing that showed up in corporate disclosures all the time. Our company has signed a one-trillion-won MOU!

In reality, it means almost nothing.

No legal force whatsoever. Just a document recording what the parties agreed on before a formal contract. The kind of thing illicit stock manipulators used for their games — pump up expectations, then dump the shares on someone else.

Smooch!

Sora was full of anticipation. The moment they sealed their verbal contract, she nestled against him adorably.

"Sunbae."

"Hmm?"

"You smell."

"…"

"Want to shower together?"

She was making bold demands now. He decided to accept the full VIP treatment from this room-service ace.

Shhhhhhh—!

The shower spray poured down, tracing the curves of Sora's sleek skin as it ran off her body.

"Not even covering up."

"It's not a body I'd be embarrassed to show."

"…Yeah. Fair point."

She was beautiful. There was a reason the sculptures of ancient Greece and Rome were carved nude.

If you built someone this stacked, you'd probably get charged with blasphemy.

Twenty-one years old. Talent plus effort had left her without a single flaw — even her bare, makeup-free face. This was what "young and MZ" actually looked like.

"Your stomach's gone completely flat."

"Hehe."

"Looks delicious~ I want to dig in~"

"Absolutely not."

Under the shower spray, he stroked the narrow curve of Sora's waist. An extremely delicious body.

Raising her up to eat later isn't half bad either.

Looking at the sexier version of Sora filled him with deep satisfaction. If he'd taken a bite back when she was still soft from cup ramen, he would have regretted it. She'd even developed a faint set of abs. When he pressed firmly into her lower belly, a lewd little moan slipped out of her.

"Feels good?"

"I don't like being the only one getting worked over."

"Then you do something."

"Should I?"

He rubbed his hard length into the cleft of Sora's ass. It slid naturally between her thighs. Smooth skin and firm muscle — with just sumata alone, she was reproducing the sensation of a top-tier body.

"How is it?"

"Good."

"What about like this?"

"You're a pro."

Her hand found the protruding head and stroked it, rubbing and kneading. Combined with that excellent squeeze, blood flooded into his lower body. He came with enough force to punch through her palm. Sora, her own sensitive spots ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stimulated, clamped her thighs even tighter.

"Already?"

"You came too."

"Coming together feels even better, I think."

A body that had learned how to feel pleasure. They shared a pleasant languor as residual lust continued to build.

Does this count as having done it or not?

She looked up at him with affectionate eyes. They shared a soft kiss and washed each other's bodies.

"Want Oppa to put lotion on you?"

"I don't want that."

"Why not?"

"…Just the vibe of it."

They stepped out of the bathroom. In a cramped studio apartment, the shower was attached right inside. The cold air hit, and Sora's head cooled off along with it. She clearly still knew how to feel embarrassed.

This is usually the kind of thing you do after you've progressed a lot further.

The order of operations had gotten seriously ahead of schedule. She went into the bathroom alone, finished changing, and came back out.

"You have to take responsibility."

"I didn't even put it in."

"Just the vibe of it."

Whether it was some kind of rebound effect, she was sniping at him now. A woman's heart ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was like a reed — he wanted to snap it clean in half.

Anyway.

Market research. That was why he'd stopped by the cocktail bar. An izakaya was, fundamentally, a drinking establishment.

Japanese food was thoroughly mainstream. What neighborhood didn't have a sushi place or a tonkatsu shop?

These days ramen shops and tempura places are everywhere too.

Completely ordinary. So if there was still a reason people specifically sought out izakayas, it was the alcohol. Highballs and sake. In a Korea where soju and beer were the default, you rarely got the chance to drink them.

"Okay, I get that, but…"

He and Sora stepped outside. They were in the car, en route, when she tossed out a belated question.

"Where are we going right now?"

"An izakaya."

"In the morning?!"

"We're not going to drink."

It's not even ten hours later.

Most izakayas only opened in the evening. Going in the morning, there wouldn't be anyone around.

"We've been waiting for you!"

There was someone. The acting manager of Kotolizake's Gangnam branch — a man named Lee Kang-su — was standing by exactly as instructed.

"I was only told one person would be coming. If I may ask, what is your relationship with the young woman accompanying you…?"

"She's my dick's house."

"Hey."

"I'm so jealous!"

The CEO had given him the basic briefing. But the people on the ground always knew the ground best.

He looks way too young.

The moment he saw Sora, the man couldn't keep his mouth shut. Even if he was older than he looked, he couldn't have been past his late twenties. Sure ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠enough — not the manager, the acting manager. The original manager had quit for personal reasons, apparently.

"Of all times, right at this critical moment."

"There were reasons for that, sir."

"Hmm?"

"Please, come with me first!"

It was possible. Even people at big corporations switched jobs — in the food service industry, it was even more common.

If he ran away, though, that's a different story.

Responsibility was heavy. Being human. Sometimes you just wanted to throw it all off. Especially when the store under your charge was in a management crisis.

There was a competitor. And not just any competitor — a shop in the exact same business, sitting directly across the road.

"Food must not be as good, then."

"That's not it!"

"An employee defending himself doesn't exactly carry weight~"

"I'm serious. You're welcome to taste-test — we're clearly superior!"

Izakayas were places people came to eat on-site, not order delivery. From the consumer's perspective, they had a choice.

If it's not the food, is it value for money?

Kotolizake positioned itself as a premium izakaya. Which meant food prices were inevitably high. Tokyo Pocha, on the other hand — true to the "pocha" in its name — ran on cheap, high-value menu items.

"Until early this year, we were doing better."

"Mm."

"But starting a few months ago, it turned into this. Same head chef, ingredients and recipes barely changed, and yet…"

And right now was a recession. A period when consumers' wallets were getting lighter.

Premium menus are going to feel burdensome no matter what.

Fewer people had money to spare. Customers flocked to the relatively cheaper shop. And an izakaya, of all things — people didn't come here primarily to enjoy Japanese cuisine in the first place.

This kind of serious Japanese cuisine. If you really wanted it, you'd go to a raw fish restaurant — not an izakaya.

"We make it well too… sob, sob."

"Sunbae, do you even have a concept of manners?"

"In my dictionary, there is no such word as manners."

"Napoleon says shut up."

Beating around the bush was not his hobby. It only made already complicated conversations more complicated.

You only come to a place like this when money is rotting in your pocket.

As a substitute for an actual trip to Japan. But right now — and it couldn't be stressed enough — was a recession. People didn't spend money they didn't have to spend. This was not an environment suited to running a premium izakaya.

"Eh, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I figure it'll work out somehow."

"Somehow?"

"It's not that hard a problem."

An extremely common case. A shop whose sales had dried up because of a competitor.

Working private equity, you run into this a dozen times a month.

The shop's concept. Its existing competitive edge. And the state of the economy. You used all of it. Situations only needed the slightest twist to become your ally.

"I can tell what kind of work you came here to do, but…"

Sora, who'd been watching, finally spoke up. She'd clearly figured out both why he'd taken her to the bar yesterday and why they'd come here today.

"No matter how you look at it, this isn't an easy situation."

"Why?"

"If you lower prices, operating profit shrinks… and you already say the food is good enough."

Create a low-price menu? That would destroy the shop's concept. The workload would balloon too.

Labor costs wouldn't cover it.

High-end talent. A man called a legend in private equity wasting days on end in a place like this would be beneath his dignity. And it genuinely wasn't a difficult problem. Shift your perspective just a little, and the solution was simple.

"Don't overthink it. You only need to do one thing."

"What?"

"What kind of secret plan do you have, sir?!"

"We bankrupt the competition."

"……"

You just needed to destroy the other side.