The Subtle Joys of a Chaebol Heiress in the Department Store
"It’s an honor to see you again, young lady."
Nervous in a strange, fluttery way, I’d called for Master Driver Jung, and he was waiting for me in the underground parking garage.
No, seriously—the underground parking garage attached to this apartment is completely ridiculous.
Honestly, it was more stylish and tastefully done up than a supermarket. Why on earth would anyone decorate an underground parking garage this lavishly?
Even the basement level had a fitness center and a screen golf range.
The last time I’d considered trying out golf here, I’d backed out because I could feel people’s eyes on me.
"I hope you’ve been well too, Master Driver Jung?"
"Hoho, of course."
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, you could move around the underground garage by elevator.
Master Driver Jung had been waiting for me right at the elevator entrance.
After a quick greeting, we walked maybe ten steps? And there it was: not just a black luxury sedan that had already been started, but something even longer, even more obnoxiously opulent—a limousine waiting for me.
"Ah..."
Master Driver Jung strode to the back seat as though nothing could be more ordinary, opened the door for me, and stood aside.
Wow. This is... really insanely overwhelming. It keeps reminding me, all over again, that I’d become the youngest daughter of a chaebol family.
...But why are there no other cars around here? Is there a reason the spaces to the left and right are empty?
And if you look at the other rows, there are little gaps here and there too. Is there some unspoken rule I don’t know about? No clue.
"Where would you like me to take you?"
"Please take me to Gangnam Hanseong Department Store."
The back seat of the limousine was so plush and comfortable it was almost alarming.
It was so cozy I honestly felt like I could just drift off and sleep soundly right here.
"Understood. Would you like me to put out word in advance?"
Word? What kind of word was he talking about?
...Right, in moments like this, I should say the magic sentence.
"Please keep it as usual."
"Hoho, understood. So you’re in the mood for a little shopping to change things up."
"Yes, let’s say that."
Master Driver Jung didn’t keep stealing glances at me through the rearview mirror.
...But then again, maybe he was looking at me? Just in case, I held my smartphone upright and launched Star Rail.
Thanks to Heretic’s idea, I needed materials for skill-building if I was going to use Eines to spam my ultimate from turn zero.
Heh. And in a situation where it’s just the two of us, I’d even remembered to switch on proper silent mode so no embarrassing game sounds would leak out.
"Young lady Seah. May I... dare ask you a question?"
Driving with practiced ease, Master Driver Jung spoke.
"Yes, of course. Go ahead."
"How are you feeling?"
It was exactly the kind of question you’d expect from someone who’d known Kwon Seah for a long time.
So then, what should the twenty-six-year-old youngest daughter of a chaebol family answer here?
Should I talk like some rotten, venomous villainess from a soap opera?
...At least, no. The Kwon Seah I’d found in the dozen-plus interview videos wasn’t that kind of woman.
"I’m okay. I still feel regret and sadness that I couldn’t attend my parents’ funeral... but I can’t stay sad forever, can I?"
"I’m relieved. I was worried young lady might never rise from this."
"There’s no way I’d be that weak, is there? Please don’t worry about me anymore!"
After answering that way, I silently stared at my smartphone as though I were an elegant woman handling business.
...I really shouldn’t have done that!
* * *
"Welcome, Kwon Seah young lady. We’ve been expecting you."
Once I got out of the limousine with Master Driver Jung’s help, a female employee gave a neat bow.
A tidy uniform, a ponytail tied back simply. She looked professional, but with a polished sort of elegance too.
Honestly, she was very attractive. The kind of pretty even another woman would admit to? ...No, I’m a man, damn it!
"Today, I, Kim Ha-yoon, will be helping with your shopping. If there’s anything lacking, please let me know at any time."
...What is this?
Helping me shop? Why? Wait, don’t tell me—was that what Master Driver Jung meant when he said he’d put out word?
Ah, aaah! Ack! Aaaagh!
I only came here casually, planning to make pasta!
I came to pick up groceries for a few days of meals!
"Yes... well, I look forward to working with you. I’m just planning to buy a few necessities and head back, so please don’t worry too much."
"Yes, young lady. I’ll help make sure you have a pleasant shopping experience."
Uh, hello? Just your existence is making me sad, okay?
...But if I said I didn’t need help now, wouldn’t that put this woman in a terrible spot?
Someone even higher up might come scrambling over asking what the problem was.
Haa...
"I’ll do some shopping in the food hall on the basement level."
Without waiting for Kim Ha-yoon’s reply, I started walking quickly.
Ah... if I’d known this would happen, I should’ve dressed properly.
Right now I’m just wearing jeans and a black windbreaker thrown on without much thought!
And this woman trailing after me is in full makeup and a perfectly tailored black suit, which makes the whole thing, well, a little... a lot.
"Is there anything you’re looking for?"
"I already looked over things last time, so I’ll just head straight there."
Smiling, I answered and then grabbed the small black shopping cart—one that looked weirdly premium—with both hands.
There was a small reason I’d chosen this department store in the first place.
When I’d come for the pop-up store last time, I’d gotten a little look inside.
I’d figured a department store couldn’t really be that different, but even the shopping cart felt unlike one from a regular supermarket, which was kind of ridiculous.
"I-I’ll push it for you, young lady."
"Uh... yes, go ahead."
If I did it myself here, I had a feeling it might somehow hurt this woman’s performance review, so I let her push it.
Ah, but the visual is really strange.
I’m just walking along, having even tossed my handbag into the cart, while this woman in a black suit follows beside me pushing the cart?
...Is this the power of money? Terrifying. Absolutely terrifying.
"Where would the basil be? The kind packaged with just the fresh leaves."
"If it’s that product... it’s this way, young lady."
Kim Ha-yoon guided me skillfully.
So this is a department store after all? It really does look incredibly fresh.
I picked up a packet of basil in a plastic container.
"This should have a decent aroma... ...huh?"
What the hell, it doesn’t smell like anything. At this point it’s practically nonexistent.
"Ms. Ha-yoon?"
"Yes, young lady. Is there a problem?"
"This basil—let me assume I bought it and check its condition."
I’m rich anyway.
I didn’t want to increase my food waste any further, so I opened the plastic packaging and sniffed the basil’s aroma directly.
"I knew it... my nose isn’t wrong. Ms. Ha-yoon, please smell it too."
Basil should have a cool, refreshing scent with a subtle sweetness, but what I was holding in my hand was nothing like that.
I’m not a cooking expert or anything, but after living on my own, I’d learned enough to make something of myself when I stubbornly threw this expensive stuff into a dish just to feel fancy.
Honestly, when you’re living alone, the temptation is always there to skip the whole “nice feeling” of buying basil and just save the money for a cup of instant noodles and call it a meal.
"I-I’m sorry, young lady. There seems to be a problem with the product. I’ll prepare another one right away."
"No, it’s fine. It’s not like basil is absolutely necessary."
"N-no, if that’s what you want, I can quickly contact the logistics side and—"
"It’s okay."
Kim Ha-yoon looked oddly shaken, so I made my position clear, sharp as a blade.
"Tomatoes are more important than basil. Let’s look at the tomatoes."
"Ah, yes...! Yes! I’m sure the tomatoes will be to your liking!"
Kim Ha-yoon smiled brightly and guided me to where the tomatoes were.
Let’s see. The tomatoes should be fine, right?
Meat already feels different when it’s Hanwoo or 1++ grade, so tomatoes sold in a department store should definitely be premium too.
"Hmm..."
"I-is there something you don’t like, young lady?"
"No. I mean... there isn’t anything I especially dislike. It’s just a little different from what I expected."
Kim Ha-yoon’s face went pale again.
"It said premium organic tomatoes, so..."
I lifted a plump tomato and rubbed its skin with my thumb.
The color wasn’t as perfectly red as I’d imagined, either.
There were faint bruised marks, or maybe it just had the feel of something that had been handled a little roughly.
...No, wait. It’s organic, so maybe that can’t be helped? I can’t go to a supermarket anyway, and I’d honestly never even seen tomatoes like this while living alone, so I might as well buy them.
"It’s not bad. Don’t worry about it."
I was planning to make tomato pasta anyway, so bruises weren’t something I needed to care about.
"Young lady. If there’s anything you don’t like, you can tell me as much as you’d like."
"No, really. The tomatoes just look more ordinary than I expected, so I unfairly got disappointed—"
"I-I’ll bring you better tomatoes than these right now! I’ll also get basil immediately and bring it here!!!"
Kim Ha-yoon screamed as she hugged three packs of tomatoes to her chest, lifted them up, and ran off somewhere in a panic.
"Uh... why is she doing that?"
Did I say something bad?
No, right? I just honestly said the tomatoes were more disappointing than I’d expected...?
...I didn’t accidentally go full abuse-of-power mode on her, did I?!
* * *
The shopping trip at the department store stayed a little chaotic after that, too.
When I asked what cuts of meat they had, some unbelievably fresh-looking cut that had clearly just been sliced somewhere magically appeared and was packed into my cart.
Even when I couldn’t find the wine I was looking for and asked whether they were out of stock, some absurd answer about going to the warehouse came flying back at me.
Anyway, after stocking up on enough food to last about two weeks, I was treated like a young lady right up until the end.
"There’s no need for Master Driver Jung to carry all this for me..."
"It’s something I should naturally help with. Don’t worry. In fact, I’m just happy to see young lady looking so energetic."
Was it really okay for me to receive help from Master Driver Jung, who looked old enough to be Kwon Seah’s father?
Still, it was a relief not to have to haul those heavy bags around three separate times.
"Though... it seems Lady Elodie came by while I wasn’t aware."
Elodie? Who was that? A celebrity? An idol?
"Hmm... I’m not sure why you’d think that, Master Driver Jung, but the only people I’ve contacted recently are you and Chief of Staff Lee Eunbyul."
Master Driver Jung’s eyes widened a little in surprise.
"So that means... did young lady arrange for the house to be so neatly cleaned up yourself?"
"Of course."
"Ho, ho... you really have gotten better. I’m relieved. Truly relieved. Before, up until Lady Elodie arrived, it was really... haha."
Master Driver Jung smiled brightly, but perhaps he felt awkward saying more, so he let the words trail off.
No, but who the hell was this Elodie person for him to be saying things like that?
"Master Driver Jung. I... as I mentioned before, I’m a bit all over the place mentally and suffering from some memory loss, so I wanted to ask you something."
"Yes, yes. Please speak comfortably."
"Who is Elodie? What is she to me? I don’t remember anything at all."
"Ah... so you truly don’t remember."
Master Driver Jung didn’t look at me strangely.
"Lady Elodie, hmm... I suppose she’d be your housekeeper? A domestic helper? When she introduced herself to me, she called herself a housekeeper."
"I-I had someone like that?"
...No, wait, if I think about it, isn’t that obvious?
Right, hadn’t I been excited at first, wondering whether some cleaning lady would be coming?
Wasn’t it stranger that there wasn’t someone devoted entirely to cleaning the house, doing laundry, and cooking for me under me?
There was no way I’d been living alone and managing just fine forever in this filthy, absurdly huge house!
"I see. Thanks to you telling me, I think my memory’s coming back a little."
On my smartphone, which I’d hurriedly pulled out, there was—of course—Elodie’s phone number saved.
Then I wouldn’t have to struggle making food myself.
Having someone who actually knows how to cook prepare meals for me? What could taste better than that?
"Though... that name is really weird..."
Logically, that was not what I should have been thinking.
Instead, I should have been seriously thinking about what kind of person would have a name like that!