Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: The Outsider Heads to Daegwallyeong
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◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Boss, I'm taking just one week off. I've been working my butt off lately, haven't I?"
"No way!!! If you take time off, I'll have to hire another part-timer! You think I want to hire someone, work them for a week, and then let them go? Do you have any idea how much of a hassle that is?!"
"You know full well I don't have friends to cover for me anyway. Just tough it out for that one week while I'm gone."
"Hah! Jeong Yi-an, if you just up and leave, you'll be fired, you hear me!"
"Haha. Go ahead and try firing me. You know you can't find part-time help as cheap and reliable as me. I even posted the last hiring notice for the cleanup shift, remember?"
"Grrrrr...!!!"
Right now, I'm in the middle of negotiating my day off with my part-time boss.
Because next week, I'm scheduled to attend the gifted education program with Han Si-a for a full week.
Normally, you'd ask a friend or acquaintance to fill in as a temp.
Unfortunately, my only acquaintances are Yoo So-mi and Han Si-a.
Han Si-a is going with me to Daegwallyeong, and Yoo So-mi is already working the same shift as me at the shop.
In short, finding a replacement is impossible for me.
So what can he do?
He can hire someone to replace me,
or handle the work himself.
I'm not about to give up a huge prize for the Sandwich Shop Owner.
So, he's threatening to fire me?
I don't care. Summer vacation starts soon anyway, so even if it's not this sandwich shop, part-time gigs are everywhere.
Of course, finding a place to stick around long-term is tough, but short-term jobs have their own perks.
But that's not the case for you, boss.
I've taken on so much work here that firing me now would be a mistake.
Honestly, the shop could run fine without you for the most part.
If you suddenly cut me loose now?
I bet even if you doubled the part-timers, you'd still bend over backward like a bow trying to keep up with my workload.
Might as well tough it out yourself for a week.
Just as I was on the verge of winning this stare-down with the Sandwich Shop Owner,
Yoo So-mi, who worked the same shift as me, walked into the staff room with a smile.
"Yi-an! I found a temp for you! A kid from my class says she'll come in for the week?"
Hearing that, the boss broke into a huge grin.
"Alriiiight!!!!! Yes! Jeong Yi-an, go have fun without a worry. And you, make some more friends like So-mi here."
"Ugh. Do I really need to make friends just to get temp coverage?"
I did try making friends at the start of the semester, but I failed, and that's why I'm like this now.
As I shot back at the boss's nagging like I was fed up, So-mi, watching from the side, backed me up as if she thought the same.
"He's right, boss. I'll handle finding temps, so Yi-an doesn't need more friends. If you keep pushing him to make friends, I won't find one this time."
"..."
So-mi, you totally think the same as me, right?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The evening of the last day of school, when summer vacation began.
Students attending the gifted education program and their families had to gather at the Daegwallyeong lodgings the day before the event, so I climbed into Han Si-a's family's large sedan.
The program starts tomorrow, but considering the travel time to the lodgings in Daegwallyeong and time to unpack, we decided to arrive a day early.
Inside the car, though, it was just Han Si-a and the driver.
According to her, her parents had other schedules and would join us on-site.
I'd braced myself for two and a half hours of awkward silence with her family, so learning I wouldn't have to deal with that eased my mind.
By the way, this driver was different from the one who came with Han Si-a's stepmother last time.
I wonder how many drivers the Han family employs.
.
.
.
"The gifted education program is divided into early childhood, elementary, and middle/high school tracks. I've been attending every year since entering middle school."
With a chance to chat comfortably with Han Si-a, our conversation naturally turned to the gifted program.
She's a three-year veteran of the program, and I'm a hotshot rookie gunning for first place on my debut.
So I decided to ask everything I'd been wondering about.
"If it's an annual program, doesn't the content overlap? Knowing what to prepare could give me a shot at winning."
"I've attended three times so far, but the program has never been the same. Even the lead instructors and guest speakers are always new faces."
From what she said, this didn't seem like your typical for-profit program marketed to parents and schools.
More like something upper-class parents meticulously prepared for their kids, sweat and all?
The speakers included professors from top universities, famous entrepreneurs who appear on TV all the time, major corporate execs—big shots who wouldn't budge even for money. And the overall program screamed money poured in without restraint.
One year themed around stocks and management had us actually investing real money and visiting our picks to check out the company structure. Another environment-themed year flew us to the poles to witness global warming firsthand. Stuff only possible if rich folks threw cash around.
However, the theme for each year's program is kept secret until it starts, so no way to know ahead.
"From what I'm hearing, it doesn't sound super helpful for college admissions. I thought it was for building an admissions portfolio, but the content feels a bit random for that."
Of course, it could help with special admissions like the officer evaluation system.
But getting into a top university that way is realistically tough.
The kids here are elite offspring from across the country, so I doubt they'd settle for just any Seoul university.
Plus, if it was just for networking among rich kids, they wouldn't go to all this trouble.
Just book a big cafe for a day—that's networking.
So maybe the program has some other purpose?
I couldn't pinpoint it, but while listening to Han Si-a, I felt a subtle sense of dissonance.
"Like you said, Jeong Yi-an, this program isn't really tied to college admissions. The kids here come from families where they can handle that on their own without relying on anyone."
"So everyone's aiming for Seoul National University or KAIST or something?"
"If they're interested in politics, they go to SNU; otherwise, overseas top schools. I hear kids who cause trouble in school and tarnish the family name get shipped off abroad and settled there forcibly."
I was inwardly impressed by the caliber of students gathering here.
People who can choose between domestic or overseas elite universities.
No matter how much money their parents have, without the student's own talent and effort, that's an unattainable level, right?
We passed the time in the moving car chatting about this and that.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ We arrived at Daegwallyeong after about two hours and forty minutes, and it was refreshingly cool.
It's smack in the middle of summer, yet standing in the shade brought a slightly chilly breeze.
I checked the weather on my smartphone—3 PM, when it should be hottest, and it was only 25°C.
Magic courtesy of Daegwallyeong's high elevation.
Good thing I packed thick clothes and a jacket in case it got cold at night. Smart move.
The venue for our gifted program was an entire pension originally for tourists.
True to a tourist spot lodging, it wasn't a boring boxy building but gave off the vibe of a mansion from foreign movies.
It even had a large lawn garden outside, and inside, besides guest rooms, there was a decent-sized auditorium and banquet hall.
This is a 'pension' in name only—considering the amenities, it'd pass as a four-star hotel no problem.
And most importantly, the room assignments.
Given the event's family-unit setup with parents, rooms were one per family.
I was the only one attending solo without family, so I got a whole four-person room to myself!!!
Jackpot.
I'd been worried about bunking with strangers like at a retreat or school trip, but guaranteeing personal space like this?
Money really does make a difference.
I'm definitely cashing that prize to buy Bitcoin.
The room was luxurious too—loft structure with four beds, two rooms, two bathrooms.
Way too big for one person, but I've always romanticized lounging in a spacious lodging alone, sipping coffee from a chair.
Screw that—time to brew some coffee right now!
The program starts tomorrow anyway, so today I can just relax.
Still, around dinner time, I should head out and exchange greetings with the other participants.
.
.
.
*Ding-dong~* ♩
Just as I finished brewing the coffee, someone rang the doorbell.
I opened the door, and there was Han Si-a.
"My parents are running late today. Feels kinda lonely in this big room alone, so mind if I hang out in yours for a bit?"
"No. A lodging is private space, and with your parents absent, a guy and girl spending time in a closed room out of adult sight is inappropriate."
"..."
Han Si-a's lips stiffened visibly, like she never expected rejection.
But I'm serious.
This is a tourist spot, and the fancy pension has amenities beyond rooms, so if we're hanging out, the garden or lounge on the first floor makes sense. Why insist on my room?
So I was about to continue logically explaining why I refused her entry.
"Hello?"
"Yeah, So-mi? It's Han Si-a. Calling to confirm before using command rights."
But before I could, Han Si-a called Yoo So-mi...
"Yep! Between friends, that's no issue at all! I approve Han Si-a's command rights!"
"She says that's fine?"
"..."
"Move. Let me in."
"Si-a, listen. Yoo So-mi's idea of 'friends' is a bit... broken..."
"Oh, you brewed coffee? Mind if I have some? Or should I call So-mi about this too?"
Damn. My dream of sipping coffee in solitude in this needlessly spacious, quiet room...