Chapter 297: Cottage Industry (1)
“Gyeoul. You are not selling stationery or supplies to your friends anymore right?”
Flinch.
Gyeoul hesitated for 2 seconds after hearing her homeroom teacher’s question.
She wasn’t leading the kindest of lives but she still needed some time to mentally prepare herself before lying.
“…I’m not.”
“Really? And you don’t get paid for doing others’ homework anymore?”
Flinch.
“…I’ve washed my hands, off it.”
“No more usury either right?”
Flinch.
“…What, is that?”
“You don’t know? Hmm~. By the way, did you want to volunteer for the election?”
“…No.”
She was quick at expressing her honest thoughts.
Election? Gyeoul knew how the class representatives always suffered from being pestered by the teachers everyday, so she immediately turned down the offer.
“Really? I was thinking Gyeoul would be a good candidate for the school captain election though.”
“…School, captain?”
“Nn nn. You are almost in Year 6 now, so that means you can be the school captain for 1 year soon.”
“…Ahh.”
“You know how much of an awesome thing that is right, Gyeoul? You will represent your friends and do many good things.”
“…Nnn.”
“That’s not the end you know? The school captain of a renowned school like ours would receive extra points when applying for a middle school…”
Gyeoul’s mind was somewhere else already, thinking about the losses she had suffered and such.
It was because the dried apples that she sold the day before yesterday were unexpectedly not very popular, so she had to throw some of it away. Sweet potatoes and bananas were popular so why didn’t apples work?
She was giving random responses while thinking about such things but that was when her ears picked up some promising words.
“There is a sponsoring scholarship for election runners as well, you see.”
Scholarship?
“Since Gyeoul, you look quite ambitious and greedy in a good sense, I thought you would be interested in something like that… After all, you are the best merchant in the world right, Gyeoul?”
Gyeoul frowned in response to those words and lowered her gaze.
“…Please, don’t call me that…”
“Nn? Ah, then the world’s best entrepreneur?”
“…”
The child locked her fingers and fidgeted, and her blue eyes appeared rather sad.
Oh no. Did that put her in a bad mood? Was she treating the child as if she was obsessed with money? Thinking that, the teacher apologised.
“Oh my, I’m sorry. Then what would you consider your pretty self to be, Gyeoul?”
Gyeoul replied.
“…Politician.”
Like that, she applied for the election.
In fact, the school captain position of a primary school was quite a meaningless job. Class representatives tended to be called around everywhere by the teachers but that wasn’t the case for school captains. She realised that it was more of an honorary position after applying for the election.
Gyeoul was already satisfied by the election fund.
It was a shocking amount of 50 dollars!
On the next day it was sent into Yu Jitae’s bank so she immediately asked him for the money.
After a few days, it was the day for the school captain candidates to announce what they would do upon a successful election and that was when Gyeoul heard something shocking.
It was that school captains would receive another scholarship.
“Oh didn’t I tell you? It’s a full scholarship for the whole semester.”
“…How, much is it?”
“A thousand dollars.”
Thousand dollars…?
It was on a whole different level. Fifty dollars was already such a delight to lay her hands on and multiplying that by 20 times would be…?
Her eyes rolled around.
Taking out a small coin purse from her pocket, Gyeoul looked at the five 10 dollar notes that she got from Yu Jitae a few days ago.
A hundred of these huh…?
It felt as if she could see bundles of cash flying in front of her with wings.
That was when the first candidate walked up to the mic and announced his promise. Cleaning the flowerbeds, and reducing the complementary lessons… he ceremonially blabbered about things that he would not even be able to achieve.
The kids seemed bored by it.
Gyeoul grinned, thinking that she would easily be able to win with all the credit she built with her friends.
But that was when the situation flipped.
The boy wearing tidy clothes fidgeted with his bowtie before giving a smile.
– And lastly if you choose me as your school captain, I will give out pizzas for every class!
“Ehng? Pizza?”
“But, didn’t the teacher say buying food and giving it out was not allowed…?”
“Yeah yeah, you’re right.”
The boy answered their doubts.
– I will be making it with my family! No problems there then, right?
The year advisor asked with surprise, ‘Can you? There are a thousand students in our school.’ In response, the boy smiled while showing off his white teeth.
– Of course! Please choose me, the number 1 candidate, Kim Taeho!
With wide smiles, the audience let out thunderous claps. Even though they were the sons and daughters of rich families, they were still elementary school children and because quite a few households prohibited their kids from eating junk food, they were sincerely happy.
“Wahh! Kim Taeho!”
““Kim Taeho! Kim Taeho!””
Listening to the cheering crowd, Gyeoul’s expression rapidly turned dark.
The flying bundles of cash were flying further and further away.
***
“Did you kill it?”
“No.”
“You let it go? Fuck, you should have just killed it.”
Yeorum frowned.
It was morning but the winter wind was still quite cold.
Although it was never freezing for the hatchlings, they still felt chilly at times. Sitting down on the sofa, Kaeul was hugging the baby chicken like a hand warmer while Yeorum was hugging Kaeul from behind as a heater.
“Black dragons should all be killed.”
“Why,” Yu Jitae asked.
“Why? Of course they have to die. Don’t you think the same?”
“Uun. Yeah…”
Kaeul nodded with a similarly serious look on her face.
“What’s with that slow answer. Don’t you think so?”
“Uuum, no. You’re right, you’re right…”
“Those bitches. I heard they ravage things everywhere even after being chased out of Askalifa.”
Kaeul carefully returned a nod.
“Actually, you see? I heard the black race can transmit their emotions and memories,” said Kaeul.
“…”
“We can only receive them right? And, their heads are always filled with very bad thoughts, and apparently they transmit them everywhere they go.”
It was something he already knew so Yu Jitae gave a nod.
“They should all just be killed. Fucking trashes.”
“Uum… but, killing all of them is still…”
“Oi. Are you being soft on them just because it’s not your business?”
“Uum, uum, uhh…”
But for some reason, there was a peculiar atmosphere surrounding the kids. Yu Jitae turned towards Bom who was still staying silent and she shrugged her shoulders in response.
“Ah, this is freaking annoying. Why are both of you so apathetic about it? It’s a black dragon. A black dragon! Oi, Yu Kaeul.”
“Uun?”
“Yu Bom I can understand, but you can’t be like that can you. You’re the one that told me about it in the first place.”
“Nn? Ah, ahhh…! Wait, unni unni…!”
Kaeul flapped her arms around and tried to block Yeorum who was behind her.
“What? Is this something I can’t say? Why can’t I say some stuff about the blue race?”
“Unniiiii, stop stopp…!”
Kaeul suddenly began trying to pacify Yeorum while throwing glances at Yu Jitae. He turned towards Bom, who now had a slightly gloomy look on her face after seemingly realising what was going on.
“What is it,” he asked.
“No, it’s nothing ahjussi…! You don’t have to know about it!”
“So what is it.”
“What! It’s about time to say it after living together for so long, no?” Yeorum exclaimed out loud.
“Unni, don’t…! We can’t talk about Askalifa. It’s a taboo…!”
“Taboo my ass. I already talked about my past and Yu Jitae saw my true body a few months ago as well so what? That’s not the end. Yu Bom that lass really crossed the line you know? She told me that everytime she sees Dick Jitae she gets horny and…”
“Uaaaahhh…! What are you talking about! Stop!”
“When did I say that?” Bom interjected from the side.
Yu Jitae slowly turned towards her. It was by coincidence that he looked her way and yet she shook her head as if she was being falsely accused.
“I never said that.”
It was then.
Yeorum got annoyed by Kaeul’s constant interference and shouted out loud.
“Ah, why can’t we just say it! Who the fuck cares about a taboo?”
“Unni…!”
“Two blue dragons died to a black dragon – that’s why Yu Gyeoul has no parents! Shouldn’t Yu Jitae know about it at the very least–!?”
It was like a bomb being dropped.
Yu Jitae frowned.
Yu Gyeoul’s parents were killed by a black dragon? None of the kids refuted; the living room suddenly turned quiet with Yeorum’s rough breath being the only source of sound.
Not knowing what to do, Kaeul raised her hands and covered her face while Bom stared at Yeorum with a frown before heaving out a sigh.
The living room was filled with silence.
Chirp…
As soon as the baby chicken broke the silence while rolling its eyes, Bom criticised Yeorum.
“Yu Yeorum. You…”
But soon swallowed her words.
“What about me? It’s even more ridiculous that none of you told him this until now.”
“It’s the business of another race. Why would you say it.”
“And what if I don’t say it? When would that little idiot ever say it to him?”
“If Gyeoul doesn’t want to talk about it, then she doesn’t have to. Who are you to say it without even getting her permission?”
“Haigo. Do I have to get the permission of a little kid that doesn’t even know left and right yet? She won’t say it. And Dick Jitae will never get to know something so important until the day we go back home. Do you think that’s okay?”
“If that’s what Gyeoul wants, then that’s how it should be.”
“Do you really think that? That’s so freaking distant. Like really? I don’t understand how you guys can deceive Dick Jitae and pretend like you don’t know anything!” Yeorum continued shouting. “What kind of fucking nonsense is that?”
Although he was momentarily surprised by it, he had to stop them from fighting too much.
“Guys. Calm down first. Don’t raise your voices.”
“Yu Yeorum, you–”
“Me what? And what about you, you freaking shithead?”
“Oi. Oi.”
Yu Jitae’s words made them quiet. They silently glared at each other while Kaeul buried her face into the baby chicken’s back with a complicated look on her face.
Gyeoul had been implanted into Kaeul’s necklace and came out on her Amusement as an egg.
He did find it odd and had asked a few times about the reason but the kids had never directly answered the question. The answer to that question was finally unveiled.
I see.
Gyeoul’s parents were already dead…
“Uum… my mommy…”
Kaeul hesitantly opened her mouth.
“Was close to the blue race… so she asked me to take the egg along with me for the Amusement. It had been a long time since a fissure opened in Askalifa and, there was no dragon born after me in any of the races… or any dragon estimated to be born in a hundred years. I was essentially the youngest excluding Gyeoul so…”
Since there were set opportunities to leave Askalifa, it seemed that Gyeoul had to go on her Amusement while still inside an egg.
“But, I don’t really agree with Yeorum-unni…”
“What did you say?”
Yeorum wrapped her arms around Kaeul’s neck. It was half a prank, but on the other hand, she did seem quite disappointed by her words.
“But, but… that was a different black dragon… and our Dragon Lord captured and killed it…”
“They are the same bunch! Don’t you know Australia got smashed this time?”
“Uum… but saying that every black dragon must die because of that is a bit… and if you think about it like that, then red dragons as well…”
“What d’you say?”
Kaeul stopped babbling and closed her mouth, seemingly deciding to not aggravate Yeorum. In any case, Unit 301 was being unnecessarily heated up so Yu Jitae had to calm the kids down.
“Yu Yeorum.”
“What.”
“Put your hands in the air and keep them up. That’s your punishment.”
“Why me?”
It was Bom who instead raised both of her arms in the air without saying a word. Seeing that, Yeorum lifted her arms up as well with a big pout on her lips.
Meanwhile, he suddenly thought of how the first thing Gyeoul took interest in after turning older was ‘money’. To be precise, it wasn’t money and was instead ‘how to earn money’, evident by how she always refused any allowance from him.
Unlike the other three, Gyeoul always enjoyed the process of selling goods to others and earning money. Out of curiosity, he had asked in the past why she was so interested in earning money.
– …A secret.
He didn’t think much of it in the past, but maybe that’s what the secret was? Maybe she was laying the foundations now so that she could live by herself after returning to Askalifa. Perhaps she understood her own position and was instinctively trying her best to survive.
It might be him overthinking it, but that’s what suddenly struck his mind.
Earning money at school was making Gyeoul more mature.
To sell, one had to be fluent with words and had to read other’s minds to set the best prices. Since she also had to avoid the teachers during her negotiations, she also had to be skilled at reading the mood.
And the most important of all was the process of preparing the goods. ‘Preparation’ was something new that was introduced to her life, which had been nothing but a constant flow of time. At times, she also made a loss which allowed her to self-introspect and consider the flaws.
All that was slowly making Gyeoul into an adult.
“…Uhh, umm.”
That was when Kaeul softly murmured.
“Ahjussi.”
“Yeah.”
“Can you pretend like you never heard it?”
“Don’t worry. I won’t make it obvious.”
“Okay okay. Phew…”
It was when Kaeul was heaving out constant sighs. Yu Jitae’s watch rang.
[Yu Gyeoul: T.T]
[Yu Gyeoul: T.T]
[Yu Gyeoul: T.T…]
He received various messages from Gyeoul, but all of them were crying faces.
She should be at school right now, so what would it be about? He then remembered that today was the day of the school captain election and replied to the message wondering if something happened.
[Me: What’s wrong]
[Yu Gyeoul: Can I call?]
[Me: Yea]
His watch rang again.
When he picked it up, Gyeoul began to explain the situation with a stammer. First candidate was pizza, the second was chicken, and it was soon time for her to go up to the stage as the third candidate.
– …He said, he will fry 500 chickens.
– …Crazy, for power.
She sounded extremely depressed. Inwardly, he was quite surprised because he never knew Gyeoul wanted to become a school captain so badly.
– …What should I do.
– …I can’t, cook.
Right, what should they do?
A primary school kid wouldn’t be frying 500 chickens by themselves so they would either be helped by their family, or housekeepers and private chefs if they were from rich families.
He was the type of person to make judgments based on prior experience. Unfortunately in the previous iterations, he had never tried to make an elementary school child into a school captain.
In other words, Yu Jitae wasn’t really sure of what to do either.
– …Nnn… it’s, my turn soon.
“Hmm… then let’s say we will give them a burger.”
– …A burger?
“Yeah. We can learn how to make it and make them together.”
He could hear Gyeoul going ‘Oohhh’ from the other side of the watch.
Is that the end? Yu Jitae thought. Would simply making a burger be enough to hold its place against pizza and fried chicken?
That was when a sudden trail of thought flashed past his head.
“By the way, Gyeoul.”
– …Yes.
“The kids that promised to give out pizza and chicken all said they’ll give it out after they’re elected right?
– …Sorry? …Ah, yes.
When are the actual politicians nicest to voters? It was right before the election. Don’t they bend their backs towards merchants and businessmen whom they usually ignore and stray away from just to join hands for a bit?
In any case for kids, something closer and realistic might work better than a future promise.
“That burger, tell them you’ll hand it out on the day before the election.”