The Vice President's Desperate Performance
The second day of the university festival arrived, and the first day's net profit tally sheet was released. The result was a victory for the Business Administration Department. But even in victory, Choi Seungah's face was filled with dissatisfaction.
"We won, so what's with all the sulking?"
"We could've widened the gap so much more, but because of that damn president oppa, the difference didn't grow at all. It actually narrowed!"
Up until the daytime shift that Vice President Choi Seungah had managed, the Business Administration Department had been dominating. But once they added in the nighttime shift handled by the president, the gap had shrunk considerably. At festivals like this, alcohol sales made up the majority of revenue. That's why they'd decided that the vice president would take full command of the daytime shift—where sales were expected to be lower—while the president would oversee the nighttime shift.
The president, having heard that the tanghulu sales had gone well during the day, had half-assed the stall setup and operated it casually. Meanwhile, the International Trade Department, upon learning that their daytime sales had tanked, had gritted their teeth, poured everything into promotion, and run their stall with fierce determination. As a result, the nighttime sales showed a stark difference, narrowing the overall gap between the two departments.
They say selling booze is the real money-maker, huh.
Even though we'd sold tanghulu like crazy, the gap hadn't widened much. Of course, that was partly because the net profit margin on tanghulu was quite low, but it was clear that alcohol was the true star of the festival. Thanks to the festive atmosphere, people threw caution and money to the wind, drinking like maniacs, which naturally boosted sales tremendously.
I've only promised to help until today. After tomorrow, we won't be able to sell tanghulu anymore.
I'd only agreed to help Choi Seungah for two days. At this rate, while we'd win the battle between vice presidents, we'd lose the overall competition. It would end up as nothing more than a "we fought well even though we lost" kind of story.
"That damn president oppa from the start. It doesn't seem like he ever planned to take the festival seriously. Tch, he's already become president, so why should he care?"
Unlike Choi Seungah, who was pouring her heart and soul into the festival to build her reputation for next year's presidential election, the already-elected president didn't seem to value the event all that much. Since he was already in office, he didn't need to worry about his image. A little criticism wouldn't hurt him. Instead, he seemed more focused on preparing for certifications and job hunting.
It was no wonder Choi Seungah was so irritated.
"In the end, I've decided to take full command of both day and night shifts starting today."
"You've really got it rough."
I comforted her, knowing she'd be working day and night throughout the festival without a chance to enjoy it herself. After finishing our conversation, I helped with opening preparations while waiting for the fruit truck.
The truck was crossing the athletic field toward us when some kind of commotion broke out. It headed to the International Trade Department's stall first, where they started arguing loudly with the fruit vendor, demanding to know if these were even proper strawberries. It seemed they'd decided the reason their tanghulu tasted bad wasn't their own fault, but the ingredients.
"Haven't those guys learned their lesson yet?"
We managed to get the strawberries originally meant for us, but they were the exact same strawberries. Switching them wasn't going to magically make bad tanghulu taste good. Eventually, by the afternoon, they finally came to their senses and removed strawberry tanghulu from their menu. The remaining strawberries were being sold as fresh strawberry skewers at cost price. The sound of their vice president's hysterical ranting could be heard all the way over here.
"Don't you ever pull that kind of stupid stunt. If you do something like that, I won't help you unless you get on your knees and beg while crying."
"Come on, I'm not an idiot. Why would I do something that dumb? It won't ever happen, so don't worry."
Choi Seungah answered with full confidence.
Word had spread far and wide about how delicious the Business Administration Department's tanghulu was. Not only university students but even middle and high schoolers from nearby came to try one before leaving. Thanks to that, we'd ordered more strawberries than yesterday, but they sold out just as quickly.
By the time the daytime shift ended, our sales had increased by about thirty percent compared to yesterday. Yesterday's sales had already been impressive, yet we'd surpassed even that. Choi Seungah broke into a huge smile when she saw the sales report, but then she remembered that these numbers wouldn't come again once I was gone, and her face quickly fell.
She approached me with desperate, pleading eyes.
"S-senpai~"
Then she did something completely out of character—she started acting cute with a nasal, whiny voice. Since she normally never acted this way, it came across as more funny than adorable.
"No."
"...I haven't even said anything yet?"
"You were about to ask me to help you for the rest of the festival, weren't you?"
"Wow, how did you know? Senpai, aren't you too smart? Since you're so smart, please help me out a bit."
"Ever heard of 'the smarter you are, the faster you escape'?"
Since I was smart, I chose to make my getaway.
"Don't be like that, please help me. This is a matter of pride for our Business Administration Department!"
"Why should I care about a department's pride when even the department president doesn't give a damn about it?"
"Kgh! T-that's..."
Hit right in the sore spot, Choi Seungah flinched for a moment. At this point she should've given up, but she still hadn't, clinging to me desperately.
"Senpai, please! Just help me out!"
"No can do. I have class tomorrow."
"What class? I'll talk to the professor nicely for you."
Most major professors wouldn't mark you absent if you were participating in the department festival. She was clearly aiming for that, but unfortunately, the class I had tomorrow wasn't a major course—it was a liberal arts elective.
"One o'clock, Understanding Korean History. It's a liberal arts class that I take alone, so I absolutely have to attend."
"Then help me after it ends!"
"I'm busy tomorrow. I have plans."
Tomorrow was the day I'd promised to do maid play with Lee Yujin in my room. That was far more important than some university festival that offered me zero benefits.
In the end, Choi Seungah let out a deep sigh and gave up.
"Haa, I understand. It's already amazing that a senior who's not even part of the student council helped us this much. Thank you for your hard work, senpai."
I'd expected her to cling even harder and start whining, but she gave up surprisingly quickly. I had no idea what kind of plan she'd come up with, but since it was no longer my business, I decided not to worry about it.
The third day of the festival. Instead of participating, I headed to the university to attend my liberal arts class.
I wonder if that Choi Seungah is doing okay?
I'd said all that, but since we'd built up quite a bit of affection over time—both the good and bad kind—I couldn't help but worry about her.
> If you're that worried, why didn't you just help her?
If I keep helping her, she'll start asking for help with everything like some damn Doraemon. That'll just spoil her. I'll only help if she's desperate enough to get on her knees and beg. Otherwise, I'm not going to keep bailing her out so easily.
If there had been some kind of naughty reward every time I helped, I would've gladly done it. But despite how often she made dirty jokes, her defenses were surprisingly solid.
After what happened at Saeteo last time, she stayed on guard around me for quite a while.
If she'd at least let me touch her breasts, I would've helped without hesitation. But while the festival seemed somewhat important to her, I doubted helping with it would be enough to earn me the right to grope her chest.
I did want to make a move on Choi Seungah, but no clear strategy came to mind. If her favorability had been high, it might've been different, but the feelings she had toward me were closer to familiarity than romantic interest. More like a friend, or a good senior.
Besides, she already knows that Yujin likes me.
There didn't seem to be any easy way to win her over. I decided to think about how to approach Choi Seungah later and entered the lecture hall.
Everyone here is a stranger.
This was the only class I took completely alone, so I didn't recognize a single person. In other classes, even if I skipped, someone would contact me if there was an important assignment. But since I was the only one taking this one, it was hard to miss. It would've been nice to have at least one acquaintance in case I needed to skip suddenly or get help with assignments, but making new friends wasn't easy.
"Hello?"
"Ah, yes. Hello."
I greeted the male student sitting next to me, but after glancing at my face for a second, he turned his attention back to his phone. He didn't seem particularly welcoming to a stranger.
It'd be nice to know at least one person here.
It would be great to know everyone in the lecture hall, but I wasn't asking for that much. Just one person would do. But it still wasn't easy. Even though class hadn't started yet, the professor was already at the front preparing.
I was casually playing with my phone, waiting for class to begin, when someone violently flung the lecture hall door open.
BANG—!
What the hell? Who’s the crazy bastard?
Not just the students, but even the professor—every eye in the room turned toward the entrance. And the person causing the commotion was anything but ordinary. A beautiful girl wearing a maid outfit entered the lecture hall with tears in her eyes.
Why the hell is Choi Seungah coming out of there?
Choi Seungah, having caused all the noise, looked around for a moment before spotting me. She immediately ran over, then dropped to her knees, sobbing as she grabbed onto my pants.
"Senpai, I was wrong! I'll do better from now on! So please don't abandon me! I'll get on my knees and beg just like you told me to, so please come back!"
"What? Hey, what the hell are you suddenly talking about?!"
Choi Seungah was crying and clinging to me like a woman who'd been dumped by her boyfriend. Her acting was Oscar-worthy. Even I, who knew she was putting on a show, felt sorry for her. I could only imagine what the other people watching must be thinking.
"......"
I wanted to make some kind of excuse, but the atmosphere wasn't one where anyone would listen. Even the professor who had been watching stepped in.
"Young man, how could you make a girl cry like that? What's your name?"
"...Kim Hyunjin."
"I'll mark you present, so take your lover's quarrel outside."
"I'm sorry!"
I grabbed my bag to leave, but Seria decided to tease me from the side.
> Congratulations. Now there isn't a single person in this lecture hall who doesn't know you!
Shut up! This isn't how I wanted to become known!
I shot back at Seria's comment as I hurriedly grabbed Choi Seungah and fled the lecture hall.