Summer Vacation.
I stuffed a mouthful of rice noodles in and chewed while looking around.
My gaze stopped on a price tag.
- Vietnamese rice noodles 8,000 won.
"This is 8,000 won?"
"Yes."
"Who set the price for you? The owner? Or Chef Baek Jun-won?"
"....."
"Since the chef's got the knack for business as much as cooking, I can't just come right out and say it, but can you handle it if prices go up?"
"I intend to work hard."
"Working hard comes after you see the numbers hit your bank account. Does the owner of this building own this place?"
"...No, I pay rent."
"Rent must be steep here. When you sell one bowl, do you get about 4,000 won back?"
"Yes... each bowl nets 3,920 won."
"Oh... so at 4,080 won, even if you sell a hundred bowls that only comes out to about 408,000 won?"
"....."
I left the speechless owner alone and glanced toward the kitchen.
"Assuming people line up to eat here, even if you crank them out nonstop, you'd hit maybe two hundred bowls."
"Sell hard for one week and you cover rent, work a few more days hard and you cover all the taxes and management fees, work about one more week and you cover ingredient costs. Work the whole month and you might pocket some labor costs."
"You'd have to grind the entire month just to keep the wolf from the door, huh?"
"....."
Looking at the owner's face, he actually seemed more disappointed that the price was too low, but with an expression like that, there's no way he's finding any motivation.
Every time he calculates the net profit, it has to be impossible not to think, 'Ah... I should have raised it just a few hundred won more.'
When that hundred-won difference adds up to over 6,000 bowls a month, the net profit climbs by 600,000 won.
And conversely, if ingredient costs rise by even 100 won and he still holds the price while watching a minus 600,000 won materialize in a bank account that had always shown a plus, I'd have to bow to him like he's the Buddha.
"Rice noodles hitting over 45 percent in food cost? Small profits, quick returns—sure, that's great. But the price will swing hard the moment ingredient costs go up, and from the cook's standpoint, it'd stir up a lot of thoughts."
"Especially when you're making a product that sells for under 10,000 won, twelve hours a day."
"They say when the prime cost passes 65 percent, it's a warning sign of financial trouble in management, so to keep it under 65 percent, you'd have to work harder than everyone else just to scrape by and survive, owner."
I chewed a little more noodles, watching the owner go quiet.
This rice noodle shop owner's physiognomy.
It's a face destined to succeed no matter what, but he isn't the type to swallow bitterness without a sweet reward.
He'd struggle alone, then, unable to bring himself to raise the price, he'd cut down the portion of meat.
It could even reach the point where he gives up entirely.
It looked like he was already agonizing over it because of what I'd said.
"Hm, personally I think 9,000 won is dirt cheap, but this isn't my area of expertise. Still, somehow I get the feeling you'd survive even without touching the price."
Da-yeon, chewing beside me, nodded.
Thinking I might be sticking my nose in too much into an owner who was already worrying enough, I pulled a business card from my wallet and handed it over.
It almost felt like handing him a golden buzzer.
"If you ever feel like you just can't do this anymore, give me a call. My dad owns buildings, and I can absolutely score you a sunny spot, rent-free."
"...Huh?"
"Honestly, owner, I hope you go under here. Come down under our building and make noodles for us. Ahaha."
Da-yeon nodded rapidly as though she thought it was a great idea.
The almighty power of gold.
I demonstrated exactly what it means when money lets you have anything you want.
In the end, even Chef Baek Jun-won must have decided 9,000 won was correct.
Honestly, for this level of quality, rice noodles easily go past 13,000 won. This is extremely cheap too.
And besides, he didn't just follow Chef Baek Jun-won's recipe blindly; he created his own recipe after staying up all night researching it.
It feels a bit off to cheapen the value of all that effort.
Shooting wrapped, and I was lounging peacefully at home when a text arrived.
-Boss! All done! Let's date!
A headache suddenly hit me, and I almost typed back that I was on my period, but since I had no idea what insane thing Cho-a might pull next, I grudgingly threw on some clothes.
Of course, to preemptively block any weird moves from Cho-a, I didn't forget to pull on a sports bra underneath.
"Si-yoon, where are you going?"
"Hm, a friend wants to meet."
"Aren't you running around too much and leaving your dad behind lately?"
"You have tons of friends, Dad. I can count mine on two hands."
"I don't have friends either...?"
Dad and I were basically in the same boat when it came to having no friends.
Realizing the conversation was only making us both more miserable, I waved at Dad and headed outside.
I pulled my hat low, put on a mask, and slipped on round fashion glasses.
I sat on a bench by the Han River with an iced coffee I'd bought at the convenience store, and the sky began to cloud over heavily, as if expressing exactly how I felt.
"Haaaaah...."
Just then, a familiar Bugata pulled to a stop in the distance, and Su-ho got out.
Su-ho walked over, carrying three boxes in his arms.
His face really did look like a young noble, catching the eyes of women passing by.
"Boss~"
I stared at Su-ho's face, meeting him for the first time in fifteen days.
"When do I get a hug?"
He set the stuff down and a hand naturally slipped toward my side...
"Wanna go somewhere nice with me? I've got a place full of toys I bought for us to play with~"
"...You're insane."
"The world's gotten so much better these days, you know? If I were a woman... I think I'd be totally head over heels."
As long as this girl is next to me, I can't let my guard down.
I was suddenly terrified that if we ever drank together, I'd get my asshole pierced.
I grabbed Cho-a's fingers as they crept slowly up my side and gave them a slight twist.
"I've always... hated skinship."
"Tch, liar. Back in the day you barely reacted even when I touched your body all over..."
Su-ho draped my pink hair over his own hand, buried his nose in it, and inhaled...
I don't know why every single thing he does gives me the creeps.
As if he'd gotten drunk on my scent, Su-ho muttered.
"Hah... this is fate. Boss as a woman... and me as a man..."
A tranquilizer gun was itching badly in my right hand, but...
The image of Cho-a, always alone in the past, came to mind.
Of course, the memory of her doing needlework with a bloody smile isn't what matters here.
"Hey, if you pull this crap in front of my dad, you know you and I are going to be separated for life, right?"
"Huh!?"
"So you come into HSW too and be my manager."
"Then can I be by your side every day?"
"No, but you could be by my side often, I suppose."
"Oh..."
Su-ho suddenly showed me the boxes he'd brought.
Given the conversation we just had, I had a pretty good idea what was inside, so I absolutely did not want to open them.
"These are presents! Check them out when you get home."
"No thanks..."
"Whyyy!"
"I don't even want to imagine what's in them."
Su-ho leaned in close to my ear and whispered.
"Are you worried they might be that kind of thing?"
I seriously contemplated dumping the coffee I was holding all over Cho-a's face, but held back.
Since I absolutely couldn't trust Cho-a, I took a box cutter from my bag and opened the boxes right there.
Among the clothes packed to the brim, I spotted a small box.
Every piece looked expensive and trendy, like they'd suit me well.
And when I opened the box with a famous watch brand written on it, a small watch in Everose gold appeared.
"This isn't even released in Korea yet, you know."
Well, I thought they were surprisingly normal gifts... but.
Underneath the outerwear, a vast collection of underwear was nestled.
How the hell does this crazy bitch know my size...
She'd bought them with shockingly precise accuracy.
Still, thinking they were more normal than expected, I opened another box.
Inside, it was packed full of moderately suggestive swimsuits that would probably look good on me.
"This is more normal than I thought?"
"Of course~"
Just when I'd decided I didn't need to open any more boxes, I caught the look on Cho-a's face.
I immediately flipped open the lid of a box, and...
Slammed the lid shut again, just like that.
"Look at our Boss's face turning red, so cute~ hoo-hoo."
Right. To hell with dating or whatever. I'm just going home.
Forget any touching reunion after a long time. We're strangers now.
I faced Su-ho and spoke seriously.
"I don't have the faintest desire to date anyone."
"I'm okay with whatever Boss wants, you know? I can even give you my asshole."
I have no use for the filthy asshole of a guy that's probably covered in hair.
I realized that talking to her any further would only make my head hurt worse.
"You know if you keep acting like this, it'll be hard for us to be together, right?"
"Then satisfy me yourself! Do you know how lonely I've been alone for twenty years?"
I put the acting skills I'd been honing to maximum use and put on an apologetic expression.
"You know me. I still can't forget Amy."
I'm really sorry, but... to protect my asshole, I sold out Amy.
It was still pretty effective, though; Su-ho wore a dissatisfied look, but he didn't say anything more.
I only moved the box of clothes into my car.
To be honest, aside from that last box, they were gifts I rather liked, more than I expected.
We switched over to Su-ho's car.
When I put a vape in my mouth inside Su-ho's car, Su-ho's eyes sparkled.
"What? Wanna try?"
I wiped my mouth area and handed it over to Su-ho.
In the past, Cho-a didn't smoke, but after getting a taste of it, her eyes lit up.
"Pretty nice, right?"
"Oh... I want to buy one too."
"Let's go. I'll buy you one."
I took Su-ho to the vape shop run by the female owner that I'd visited last time.
We sat in the parking lot for a while, and Su-ho rummaged through the box full of bizarre items.
"Boss! Look at this."
"..... Put it away. Seriously, unless you want to get your ass beat to death."
Bzzzzzzzz.
"Wow, things like this should've come out back when I was a woman. I would've gone wild."
I snatched the embarrassing object Su-ho was holding.
I shoved it into Su-ho's mouth, gave him a little lesson with my hands, then got out of the car.
Su-ho bought the same vape as mine, in purple, at the vape shop.
"Oh right, Boss, you're going to the chaebol party this time, yeah?"
"How the hell do you know that?"
"Maybe because I'm the eldest son, or maybe because I'm alone in Korea. I get a ton of invites, but I've never gone once."
"Really?"
"Yeah, yeah. They said they couldn't hold the party in January this year because the government switched over."
The second party, the one you can attend as an adult.
It's a party with quite a deep tradition, where the sons and daughters of people who hold enough power to shake the Republic of Korea gather in one place to build connections.
What the news about it being postponed because the government switched over actually meant was this.
Some absurd, rootless nobody ran in the presidential election this time and won; he'd been the former president's closest aide.
The government-hosted party for the Republic of Korea's chaebols, which I first learned about through an advisor, had nearly been abolished entirely.
Unlike previous presidents, this president does seem to dream of justice, I suppose...
But it looked like he found it too inconvenient to abandon this party, where you could easily read the future moves of the third-to-fifth-generation chaebol heirs.
"What business do you have going to that party?"
"Just curious. I want to see how clean the Boss's homeland is."
I understood Su-ho's curiosity a hundred times over.
Korea maintains a completely different type of food chain from the Russia we used to inhabit.
The greatest power in the present Republic of Korea, racing toward the end-stage of capitalism, is money.
I'm sure it was the same in the past, but now money is prioritized to the extent that even the President has to tread carefully around Lee Jin-seok, who handles money from all over the world.
You could tell just by looking at the seating arrangement at the party; it split into two branches, anchored by Da-yeon and Joo Do-hyeon.
The so-called real party. The second party, where Jeong-yeon would be.
I was curious about how things flowed there, since I didn't know much about it.
When I got back to the car, the toy still buzzing away in the back seat caught my eye.
Maybe from being shoved deep down Su-ho's throat and pulled back out, the shiny surface looked seriously gross.
Su-ho smiled at me, fishy and bloody.
"Hey, do you want to get beat like last time?"
"... Hmph."
"Put it away."
"Yep."
I got in the car and was fastening my seatbelt when Su-ho looked at me.
"My dad's in Korea right now. Wanna meet him?"
"Me? Why?"
"Well, I am the eldest son in name, but I've never introduced anyone besides Seong-min."
"... Fine. Let's go."
"It's okay if you meet Ji-hyo and Seong-min first, right, rather than my dad? They've all been curious about you."
I let myself be led along by Su-ho.