God-Given Business Genius - Chapter 175

Haa.

A white breath rose in the air. Baek Jae-ha stared blankly at his breath dispersing in the void.

'The sun was shining brightly when I went in. It's so dark coming out.'

Winter was approaching, shortening the days, and taking the second foreign language test had made it take even longer.

'To think I'd be taking the college entrance exam, something I never did even as a high school senior.'

He found his changed circumstances in just a year amusing. He couldn't even dream of it before, when the exam fee, let alone college application fees, were considered too expensive to pay.

Baek Jae-ha was probably destined to wither away, being constantly exploited in that small island village.

'If it weren't for that person.'

Baek Jae-ha smiled faintly without realizing it.

"Mom!"

Just then, someone shouted loudly and ran forward. Baek Jae-ha's attention, which was about to sink into contemplation, was drawn there.

A middle-aged woman hugged the child and said:

"Oh, my daughter. You've worked hard!"

"Ah! I messed up the first session, Korean language! What should I do? I think I might have to retake the exam next year!"

The whining voice was full of affection and trust towards the other person.

Come to think of it, it wasn't just that child. One by one, weren't they finding their parents among the unfamiliar faces and running to them?

Parents were comforting their children who had worked hard, telling them they'd done well.

Students with young faces brushed past Baek Jae-ha, who was standing blankly. Some had gloomy expressions, perhaps having failed the exam, while others were smiling, perhaps feeling liberated now that it was finally over.

Once again, Baek Jae-ha felt a sense of floating in the air.

'Ah.'

A feeling of being a stranger. A dizzying sensation as if not properly standing on this land.

Deprivation had always made Baek Jae-ha lonely.

Wounds would unexpectedly flare up like this. Even in trivial conversations, the keyword 'family' always hurt Baek Jae-ha.

That's why he didn't have any close friends even in high school.

In that palm-sized small village, Baek Jae-ha's circumstances were all exposed, causing him to receive prejudiced looks, but Baek Jae-ha himself simply couldn't endure friendships.

Encountering even a fragment of a happy family would hurt as if touched by fire.

When the guys he occasionally mingled with talked about their monthly allowances or complained about their old-fashioned parents, Baek Jae-ha felt an acute emptiness in a corner of his heart.

'It's been a while. This feeling.'

Was it because he hadn't met peers since escaping that island and joining <The Song>?

Or was it because, unlike before, there was now at least one person who acted as his guardian?

There hadn't been such painful incidents like before.

But resignation was a sensation all too familiar to Baek Jae-ha. Just as he was suppressing the sadness that was about to well up,

"Jae-ha!"

Even amidst the murmuring crowd, his name was clearly audible. It wasn't even that loud a voice.

Baek Jae-ha turned around quickly.

He saw someone waving their hand vigorously, looking straight at him.

It happened again this time too. Among the countless people, only that person seemed to be bathed in bright light.

Despite wearing a hat and mask, Baek Jae-ha could instantly recognize who she was.

Song Woo-yeon.

It was the very person he hadn't even dared to hope would come to pick him up, knowing how busy she was.

"...Nuna!"

Baek Jae-ha immediately ran to Song Woo-yeon. Like a dog that had found its owner. If Baek Jae-ha had a tail, it would probably be spinning like a propeller by now.

Song Woo-yeon smiled and gently patted Baek Jae-ha's head.

"You're just calling me 'nuna' now? Well, I'll let it slide today. It's true I didn't come as your boss."

"H-how did you come?"

"I came straight after work. With your tutor."

Song Woo-yeon pointed behind her as she spoke. As the car window rolled down, Jung Da-on became visible.

"Hey. Did you do well on the exam?"

"So-so."

"That's how it should be. Who do you think your teacher is?"

Baek Jae-ha let out a small laugh at Jung Da-on's words.

"Get in. We should go eat dinner. You've worked hard, shall we have meat for dinner?"

"I'm sick of meat after developing new menus recently. I want to eat something different."

"Really? You probably had a light lunch, so I think it'd be good to eat something substantial. Shall we have Korean food?"

"...How did you know?"

"What?"

"About lunch."

Song Woo-yeon widened her eyes at Baek Jae-ha's question.

"...? I packed your lunch box, didn't I?"

"What?"

"What's this? Jung Da-on, didn't you tell him properly?"

"Ah. I did hand over the lunchbox properly! But I forgot to mention that you made it? Haha. I was too focused on reminding him to bring his exam ticket."

"Goodness."

Song Woo-yeon shook her head.

"I prepared that. I even asked around to make it, you know."

"Ah... I didn't know. I thought Da-on-hyung's parents had prepared it."

"I did ask Owner Han for advice. She's a senior when it comes to college entrance exam lunchboxes. I put so much effort into choosing a menu that's easy to digest yet filling."

Baek Jae-ha recalled the lunchbox he had eaten. Looking back, he could see the thoughtful consideration.

"...Thank you."

"You're welcome. I woke up at dawn to make that, ...are you crying?"

Song Woo-yeon asked, unable to hide her bewildered expression.

"I'm not crying."

"You are! Your eyes are red."

"Was the exam very difficult? The news did mention that the Korean language section was unusually hard. But don't worry. If it was difficult for everyone, the grade cut-off will be lower. No need to cry!"

Song Woo-yeon and Jung Da-on hastily offered words of comfort. Baek Jae-ha replied with a slightly choked voice.

"I'm not crying because of the exam. It's just. I just..."

His voice caught, and words failed him. Baek Jae-ha bit his lip hard.

It felt like he finally had a place in this world.

Baek Jae-ha silently shed tears of sorrow. Song Woo-yeon watched quietly for a moment, then simply patted his shoulder.

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"...He's still a child after all."

Jo I-ruk immediately reacted to my words that had slipped out unintentionally.

"Pardon?"

"No, I was just lost in thought for a moment."

Yesterday, Baek Jae-ha cried like a broken faucet, and I was so flustered. Da-on and I had to scramble to comfort Baek Jae-ha.

Thinking that eating something delicious might improve his mood, we headed to the company kitchen at that late hour to cook and feed him.

Baek Jae-ha didn't say much, but I felt I could understand his feelings without him saying them. Da-on seemed quite shocked though.

'...What's ordinary and natural for others might not be so for someone else.'

For Baek Jae-ha, taking the college entrance exam was such a part of life. The idea of taking the exam and going to college must have been a future hard to imagine.

Seeing my past self overlapped, I secretly shed a tear inside.

"Could you please focus?"

Jo I-ruk looked at me as if he couldn't believe it. Even though it was just a report between the two of us, I must have been too brazen in admitting that I wasn't properly focused.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

I adjusted my posture.

"But I heard everything. You were saying that we'll test run the popular Oreo churros at a directly managed store first, right?"

"Yes, that's correct."

Although it was postponed a bit while preparing for 'Salad Time', if you asked what the most hit menu item at Song Kitchen was, nine out of ten would pick these Oreo churros.

The new menu items that came out afterwards weren't badly received either. But maybe because it was revealed through Sim Chae-yoon, or because of its unique visuals and sweet taste. The response was overwhelming in many ways.

But we still needed to test if it was suitable as a franchise model, so we were planning to start cautiously with a directly managed store before recruiting franchisees...

"The problem is, as always, where to do it."

"That's right."

Taking the first step is always difficult. The direction of the brand can be determined by where we start.

"Until now, we've usually opened the first store for each brand around here, but the target audience for Oreo churros is much younger. It would be good to have a place where a much more diverse age group comes and goes."

Churros are more of a light snack than a meal. The biggest advantage is that you can satisfy slight hunger relatively cheaply.

"A place where people can buy food while walking. Usually, places where outdoor events are held, or environments like amusement parks, shopping malls are advantageous."

"I think we could also consider busy areas with high foot traffic."

"The rent shouldn't be expensive. If it is, the price of churros will inevitably be high, and while it might sell okay to tourists, ultimately customer satisfaction will drop."

A place that's cheap, has high foot traffic, and where people would feel like buying light food.

Is there anywhere that meets these perfect conditions?

"...It's difficult."

Jo I-ruk's face darkened. He must feel like he's met a client making impossible demands.

Simple yet fancy, modern yet classic!

It wasn't much different from such nonsensical requests. A place with high foot traffic but low rent.

Even I think it's too unreasonable.

There's no way such a place exists that can catch two rabbits at once...

"...!"

There is!

I stood up abruptly.

Bang! There was a loud commotion as the chair was pushed back.

"W-what's wrong?"

Jo I-ruk asked, seemingly perplexed. But all my nerves were focused elsewhere, so I didn't have time to explain kindly.

"I don't have any afternoon schedule, right?"

"Pardon? Ah, yes. We were planning to personally visit the location once a candidate was decided."

"That's perfect. I'll go out on some field work."

"Pardon? Now?"

"Yes. Now."

I replied in a resolute voice.

'If my memory serves me right, it might be possible.'

I clenched my fist and muttered inwardly.

It wasn't just a dream to secure a cheap location with high foot traffic.