Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: Undercover with the President
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"Look at this. The color is so unique, right? The visuals are one-of-a-kind too, and I bet it'd taste amazing with ice cream! Strong rec for all you Oreo lovers out there too......"
Gulp.
Hyun Ye-won swallowed without realizing it. The screen was filled with mouthwatering Oreo churros.
Ah, that looks delicious!
Churros were churros, sure, but how good would these be? Not just regular Oreo flavor, but Oreo reimagined as churros. It sparked her imagination, making her mouth water.
"Ah, I really just want one bite...."
"Ye-won."
"Yes, yep?!"
Hyun Ye-won shot to her feet, yelling before she could stop herself. Realizing she'd squeaked embarrassingly loud, a wave of shame hit her late.
"S-Sorry."
She bowed her head to everyone staring at her.
When she turned around, there stood her direct supervisor—the owner of the voice that had called her—a man with a slightly prickly vibe.
He was pushing up his thin-rimmed glasses. Jo Yi-ruk.
Jo Yi-ruk glanced at Hyun Ye-won's phone, where the screen hadn't fully dimmed yet.
Oh no.
She hurriedly hid it behind her back, but it was too late. The screen, packed with Song Woo-yeon and Shim Chae-yoon, had been in plain view for ages.
"Ah, looks like you were watching that."
"Yes, yep. For monitoring purposes."
Hyun Ye-won spat out a lame excuse.
'Ah, I'm done for. Not even a week on the job, and now I'm marked as the slacker screwing around during work hours?'
She hung her head, hands clasped and fidgeting. She looked every bit the guilty criminal, and Jo Yi-ruk couldn't help but chuckle despite himself.
"I heard it's racking up views. I don't watch YouTube much myself. But young folks your age watch a ton, right?"
"Y-Yeah. Everyone I know watches it. The reactions are through the roof!"
Hyun Ye-won found herself chattering away.
"Not just churros from an amusement park, but in other flavors too. Everyone's dying to try them."
Me too, if possible. She barely swallowed the rest.
"Hmm."
Jo Yi-ruk seemed thoughtful at her words, arms crossed, tapping his elbow with his fingertips.
Then he chuckled.
"You nailed it again."
"Pardon?"
"Never mind. You finished compiling what I asked for?"
"Yes! Here."
Hyun Ye-won handed over the materials she'd prepared ahead of time.
"As you said, I compared sales figures with the cost of ingredients we supplied. Most are similar, but a few places had numbers that stuck out."
"Right."
Rustle, rustle.
Jo Yi-ruk flipped through the report she'd given him. The graphs made the outlier stores even more obvious.
"As I mentioned... you'll be handling a lot of the existing franchise management, Ye-won."
"Yes!"
"The actual undercover checks will be done by short-term part-timers or folks dispatched from agencies, but you still need to know the job inside out. You'll head out for on-site investigations sometimes too."
"Yes. I understand."
Hyun Ye-won had already been briefed when she joined.
"So, we're going on one together..."
"?
Jo Yi-ruk hesitated slightly, trailing off. When Hyun Ye-won tilted her head, he cleared his throat awkwardly before continuing.
"This undercover was supposed to be me showing you the ropes, but someone else got added unexpectedly."
"Oh, really? Someone from another department?"
"Hmm. Sort of."
Jo Yi-ruk averted his gaze and added in a low voice.
"President Song Woo-yeon will be joining us."
"......Pardon?"
Hyun Ye-won doubted her ears. Her body must be off today—hearing all sorts of nonsense.
"S-Sorry, I think I misheard. Could you say that again?"
"I said President Song Woo-yeon will be coming along."
"...."
But repeating it didn't change what she'd heard.
President Song Woo-yeon.
There couldn't be another one by that name. Did that mean the owner of The Song himself...?
"P-P-President Song Woo-yeoooon?!"
"That's how it is."
'That's how it is? That's not something you just wrap up like that, Team Leader Jo!'
Hyun Ye-won clamped her mouth shut to swallow her outburst. Jo Yi-ruk looked a bit sheepish too.
Well, pairing a newbie of barely a week's experience with the president out of nowhere. He had no defense against the resentful glares.
"Wh-Wh-Why?!"
"This report was made on the president's orders. We used to undercover every branch, but as we grew, we switched to random selections every three months. Then the president went through the sales reports and suddenly asked for this one."
Jo Yi-ruk looked down at the report Hyun Ye-won had made.
"And he ordered undercover checks on places where sales are high but ingredient supply costs are suspiciously low... Then today, out of nowhere, he said he'd go himself."
"Ah......! Right. High sales mean lots of food sold, so low ingredient intake screams something's wrong."
"Exactly. Could be sourcing ingredients elsewhere in breach of contract, or inflating sales figures."
Impressive. Hyun Ye-won nodded.
"Wow, how does the president spot all this? I never would've dreamed of it."
"Better not be surprised yet."
Jo Yi-ruk chuckled.
"You'll see even more shocking stuff ahead."
"R-Really?! Actually, I've been a fan of the president since the early Cool Head days......!"
Hyun Ye-won shyly confessed her fandom.
"That's a big reason I decided to join The Song! The amazing skills and bubbly ideas from Cool Head—they inspired me so much! I never missed an episode with the president."
"Ah-ha. That's why you were watching YouTube earlier?"
"Th-That was......!"
As Hyun Ye-won floundered, Jo Yi-ruk let out a low laugh.
"Not scolding you. It's not unrelated to the company anyway. Right, that Oreo churros debut."
"Yes! Such a brilliant idea! The president seems capable of anything—how is he so sharp and talented across so many fields? I can't stop admiring... Gasp, sorry! Habit."
She'd gotten carried away, talking like she would to friends. Hyun Ye-won slapped her hands over her mouth, eyes darting wildly.
'Argh. Ruined! My friends always cringe when I do this. What if he thinks I'm weird?'
Peeking cautiously, Jo Yi-ruk didn't scold her—instead, he smiled warmly.
"No, that's understandable."
"......?"
Huh.
Hyun Ye-won looked up slowly. Jo Yi-ruk seemed quietly proud.
'What to say... Like a kid bragging about a toy their parents bought... Eek. What am I thinking?'
Nonsense. He was just pleased a newbie showed company spirit.
As if he'd think, 'Your company doesn't have a Song Woo-yeon, huh.' Right. Hyun Ye-won dismissed it all as her imagination.
"The president's achievements aren't just one or two. Take that Oreo churros. One day he shows up with some kid, and I was like, what's this about?"
"Eek."
A kid? Not child labor exploitation, right? No way... hiring scandal?!
Hyun Ye-won's face stiffened.
'I hate stuff like this. I picked this company thinking it was clean.'
Just then, a shadow fell over Jo Yi-ruk from behind. Before she could react, someone rested their chin on his shoulder.
"Mister, aren't you going too far? What kid?"
Hyun Ye-won blushed slightly at the grinning face. Was he a celebrity? His looks were that striking.
Blond-dyed hair, quirky college-town fashion sense—it suited him perfectly, like a model.
'This guy's the "kid" Team Leader Jo meant?'
Not kid-like at all!
Sure, he had a youthful air, but "young" fit better than "kid."
Jo Yi-ruk grimaced and stepped aside, away from the young man.
"He looked like a kid when I first brought him in. Then he shot up like bean sprouts."
Now taller than Jo Yi-ruk somehow. Men grew in the military, sure, but who knew a twenty-year-old would spurt that late?
Baek Jae-ha had grown like he was catching up for lost time—enough to suffer growing pains at that age.
"Nice to meet you. Baek Jae-ha, from the new menu development team."
"Ah! H-Hi. Hyun Ye-won here!"
Hyun Ye-won bowed first. Jo Yi-ruk shook his head, muttering.
"Who'd have thought this guy would create such a hit."
"Ah! You made it?"
The mastermind behind the Oreo churros idea! Hyun Ye-won's eyes sparkled.
"Yeah. Though the president handled all the recipe tweaks, picking the good ideas from the junk, that stuff."
"That's why I got nothing to say. I look like the fool who doubted."
"......Really?"
Hyun Ye-won tilted her head.
'He sounds grumpy, but why's he smiling?'
Jo Yi-ruk looked like he'd been waiting for this—like he wanted to be wrong and the president right.
Right then.
Baek Jae-ha's eyes widened, and he grinned wider than ever.
"President!"
"!"
Only one person Baek Jae-ha would call "President." Hyun Ye-won clenched her fists with trembling hands, barely managing a deep breath.
'Finally, finally, meeting the real deal!'
Hyun Ye-won fought off her dizziness and turned slowly.
"Huh? You guys all gathered here?"
A young woman in a crisp white shirt and slacks walked over briskly.
Song Woo-yeon.
Owner of The Song, protagonist of every legend.
She stood right there before her eyes.