Chapter 317: The Festival is Grand! Fun! And Decadent! (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 317: The Festival is Grand! Fun! And Decadent! (1)
Finally, the first day of the most boisterous academy festival in the history of Leilan Academy arrived.
Was it just recorded as boisterous? No, in reality, there had likely never been a festival as loud as this one.
“Hahahaha! Hello, everyone!”
One foolish beast, blinded by the desire for victory, had poured far too much money into a losing streak and ended up provoking an even larger beast.
“As many of you well know, I am Cheon Mu-jin, the representative of the Cheonhwa Group!”
The hero-turned-businessman, spreading pure white wings, soared into the sky.
“Leading up to this festival, I had many concerns. As an adult! And as a senior! I wondered if there was something I could do for all of you, who represent the future of superhuman society!”
Meanwhile, Cheon Yu-hak had finally realized his mistake; he stood with his head bowed in reflection.
Yu-hak, take a good look. This is what a man looks like when he’s consumed by flashiness and a concept.
You looked just like that not too long ago because of your competitive streak.
“However, we decided that providing unconditional support would stifle the independence of our juniors. Therefore, we have decided to provide a very simple form of support.”
…But the Chairperson must have permitted all of this, right? He wouldn’t just be doing this on his own.
“That’s right! For the class that achieves the highest sales in this festival, the Cheonhwa Group and the Yuseong Group will present prizes for each year level!”
…Huh? Wait, what?
Then, a man with a very familiar, cold face—my father—walked out from behind the tent.
“Yes, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am not as famous as my flighty friend over there, so some of you might not know me, but I am the representative of the Yuseong Group.”
This has to be a hallucination, right…? Come on, why would my father even come here?
The way the surrounding gazes shifted from Cheon Yu-hak to me must have been a total misunderstanding as well.
“Well, it wouldn’t be very fun for an old man like me to talk for too long, so shall we move straight to the prize introduction?”
In an instant, various cries of protest erupted from the female cadets, such as “No! Keep talking!” and “Stay and play with us!” Fortunately, my father seemed to take it as a positive reaction from the students and immediately moved on to explaining the prizes.
But the problem was…
“…He brought something a bit too excessive for an academy festival prize.”
For each year level, the class with the highest sales would receive ‘Special Weaponry Production Rights.’
Furthermore, they promised to custom-make and optimize the gear for every single cadet in that class.
“That means they’re planning to make gear for about a hundred people up to the fourth year.”
Well, thanks to that, even the kids who seemed to lack motivation started to fire up. However, considering the materials and costs involved, it was hard to just laugh it off.
“If I had known this, I would have prepared more thoroughly…!”
Naturally, complaints like that were already surfacing.
“This is a headache.”
And Cheon Mu-jin’s son, who had undoubtedly blown more money than my father given his personality, was already clutching his head.
“Well, thanks to those two, the atmosphere is great right from the start, isn’t it?”
Lilac came over to poke at us with his shield, but unfortunately, it didn’t seem to offer much comfort.
* * *
Anyway, amidst the unexpectedly heated competition, the Holy Fire Class’s cosplay cafe, ‘Open a New Door,’ and the Holy Sword Class’s restaurant, ‘You Are Already Eating,’ were both able to open to great success.
Who came up with the names? The friend who insisted our class had to do a maid cafe chose ours, and it seems Ga-eul chose the other one.
The names feel like a bit of a disaster, but I suppose they’re better than the Swordsmanship Club’s ‘Slicing Sashimi with Explosive Sword Techniques’ or the Cooking Club’s ‘You Can Eat This Even If I Put This In.’
In fact, customers were coming in quite steadily.
Personally, I wanted to serve tables, but at the strong request of my classmates, I was tasked with receiving customers at the door.
To be honest, I was worried at first.
It seemed they wanted to use a cross-dressing man to get a laugh, but since the cafe was technically selling food, I wondered if a cross-dressing man selling things would actually go over well.
However, rendering my worries useless, it seemed today’s kids possessed the sensibility to coolly laugh off something like a cross-dressing man.
“Welcome~ This is the cafe ‘Open a New Door.’ Please come in and rest while looking at our silly and cute cosplays~”
Actually, I’ve worked many part-time jobs, and I did plenty of customer service back when I worked at cafes or the PC bang counter.
The moment I put on my capitalist smile and beamed, the people walking by stopped in their tracks and began to approach.
The first to arrive was a man and woman who looked like a couple. The man approached with a dazed expression and asked me:
“Uh…? That voice? A man? A woman?”
“I am a man. There are many friends inside who are more entertaining than me, so please be sure to check it out.”
“Seriously!?”
What’s with him? There are plenty of things funnier than cross-dressing. Why is this guy so shocked?
“Uh, well. Yes. We have things prepared to suit various tastes…?”
I felt like I could hear the voices of Ha-ni and Cheon Yu-hak from behind the door.
[Hey! That’s cheating! How can he do that at the entrance!]
[Hah, the pathetic barking of a loser. I do not play around with testing the waters. I always use my strongest card at the optimal timing. I never had any intention of giving you lot a chance at victory…!]
[Ga-eul! You put on a maid outfit and go out there too!]
[What!? Me!? What if I lose to So-hyun in a charm battle…?]
[No matter how you look at it, against So-hyun…! Would she lose…? Is it possible to lose?]
[The problem with that guy isn’t just his face; it’s his smile, his scent, and his atmosphere. It’ll be hard to beat him. His black hair catches the eye immediately, too.]
…Should I just pretend I didn’t hear that?
“It sounds a bit noisy inside…?”
“It’s nothing serious. Because of the unique nature of the shop, two classes are sharing the space. We’ve secured enough room through special devices, so you won’t feel cramped at all.”
“Oh, that sounds interesting. We haven’t had a meal yet and we’re hungry. Since it’s a cafe, do you have food too?”
This time, the woman asked.
“Yes, of course we have food available, but if you’d like a more professional taste, it’s also a good choice to eat at ‘You Are Already Eating,’ which is sharing the booth with us.”
[What…!? A betrayal!?]
[Oh!? As expected of So-hyun! I knew I could trust him!]
What do they mean, betrayal? I said from the start that I would advertise both fairly.
Following Cheon Yu-hak’s despairing cry and Ga-eul’s cheer, I heard the voices of Ha-ni and Lilac.
[Look, Lilac! So-hyun likes us more…! You’re just a friend! We’re besties!]
[That can’t be…! Let me be a bestie too…!]
…In the end, those guys really do get along well.
I opened the door and let the couple in.
“Two guests entering. Please guide them to a table.”
Just as I had successfully hooked two people, for some reason, the man looked back at me and spoke.
“Um, excuse me. If it’s a cafe, is it possible to request a specific person?”
…Uh, well. It’s not impossible.
The woman was glaring sharply at both me and the man at the same time.
Well, this kind of situation happened often. Back then, it was usually the man glaring at me or trying to pick a fight.
“Mmm, unfortunately, since you are with such a charming lady, I don’t think our shop can provide a service that would satisfy you in that regard~”
With a smile, I handed a flower folded from a napkin to each of them, and the woman’s expression immediately softened.
There are people who get even more persistently annoyed, but thankfully, that worked.
“Excuse me…”
Hmm?
“So, requesting someone is possible, right…?”
The problem now was that the woman seemed to want to call for me too.
“As long as I’m not backed up with requests, I will respond with the best service possible.”
Well, that’s if they even have the leeway to request me once they get inside.
Once they enter, that man will likely run into the walls known as Lilac and Cheon Yu-hak, but that’s not my jurisdiction as the one in charge of the entrance, is it?
As I continued to fairly invite the passing guests, I encountered a rather unusual pair.
It was Cathy Noona, who was walking arm-in-arm with someone. She approached, looking like she didn’t know what to do with herself, glancing back and forth between me and the person she was holding onto.
Yes, she looked so happy she didn’t know what to do.
After all, the person she was currently on a date with was undoubtedly ‘me.’
Hmm, so this is what it looks like from a third-party perspective when Cathy Noona and I are on a date.
* * *
Wow, so this is what I look like from a third-party perspective when I’m doing customer service.
I knew that several clones were currently roaming different locations, but seeing it with my own eyes felt a bit surreal.
“…Welcome. Shall I guide the two of you inside?”
Ah, well. And thinking that the other ‘me’ was probably feeling the same way made me feel a bit strange.
“Wow, there are two So-hyuns…”
Hmm, since one is cross-dressing and the other is wearing slightly cute clothes at the Professor’s request, it feels like looking at a pair of identical siblings… no, brothers.
Actually, I didn’t really want to come here, but Cathy Noona insisted we visit my class first out of loyalty.
How could I stop her?
When we opened the door and went inside, everyone actually looked a bit startled and flinched at the sight of the double Kang So-hyun.
“What.”
That reaction was a bit annoying, so when I frowned honestly, I got a rather intense response.
“…Whoa, you’re telling me that’s the same person as the one smiling so sweetly at the door…?”
“I wouldn’t blame the customers if they reported this as fraud.”
Ha-ni and Ga-eul tried to tease me aggressively, but it was no use.
“What are you going to eat?”
“Hmm, I’m going to have pizza. What about you, So-hyun?”
“Ah, I’ll have the omurice. One ‘Doki-Doki Omurice’ and one medium pepperoni pizza, please.”
For the record, the ‘Doki-Doki Omurice’ belonged to the Holy Fire Class, and the pepperoni pizza belonged to the Holy Sword Class, but that wasn’t my concern. In fact, most other customers were enjoying a mix of food from both sides.
“Uh, So-hyun, you’re ordering food from over there?”
“Yeah, I’m damn fair.”
…I’ll probably be coming here more than once anyway, so I might as well try everything.
Of course, Ha-ni must have taken it as a joke too, as she immediately started cooking.
While we chatted for a bit, the food arrived.
“Wow, it looks delicious. Both sides are better at cooking than I thought.”
“Did you think Ha-ni would be much better?”
“Honestly, yeah.”
After wiping her hands clean, Cathy Noona carefully sliced a piece of the still-hot pizza and slowly held it out toward me.
“Here, So-hyun. Say ‘ah.’ You have to try it while it’s hot.”
“Don’t people usually take a bite themselves first before sharing?”
“Hurry~ If the cheese melts, it’ll be too hot for Noona.”
It was a truly ridiculous excuse for a superhuman, but since I had no intention of refusing, I obediently accepted the pizza.
As I chewed and swallowed, I didn’t know what was so fun about watching me eat, but Cathy Noona kept smiling. She looked so cute that after I finished the pizza, I licked her retreating finger with my tongue at an angle no one else could see. She, caught off guard, shuddered violently.
“So, So-hyun!?”
“There was sauce and cheese on it.”
“Ah, right. Uh. Y-yeah, I guess?”
Her charm lies in how she’s so aggressive in her attacks yet has zero defensive power, doesn’t it?
Afterward, she fidgeted and stared at her finger before sneakily trying to pick up another slice of pizza with that same hand, but I wasn’t done yet.
I slowly scooped up a spoonful of omurice, blew on it, and held it out. Cathy, who was about to pick up the pizza, flinched again and lowered her gaze.
“Why? It’s my turn to feed you now. Say ‘ah.’ Come on. ‘Ah.’”
“Well, honestly, it was nice when I was doing it, but it’s a bit embarrassing to do this in a place where so many people are watching…?”
“Say ‘ah.’”
“So-hyun…? Did you hear me?”
“Say ‘ah.’”
“Ugh, So-hyun, are you really going to be like this…?”
No way. I have no intention of backing down. No compromise!
When I gave her a bright smile, the Professor finally gave up and opened her mouth. I put the omurice in, and she began to chew diligently.
Then, I naturally used the same spoon to scoop up some omurice for myself and swallowed. Seeing her face turn red was so cute I wanted to give her a little bite.
“…Wow.”
“…They’re doing this so openly?”
Well, I’m a bit concerned about other people’s gazes, but I decided not to care about things like that today.
Won’t the future me handle the consequences?