Chapter 26

In the midst of cherry blossoms dancing in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of promise written there.

---

The basic rule is that you should search for commercial locations, especially cafes, in neighborhoods you know well.

I selected [Seoul] and [Mapo-gu] in the search conditions.

And the area.

[Can someone who can't make a profit from a 5~6 pyeong shop properly run a 20 pyeong or 30 pyeong shop?]

I chose the smallest filter, ‘33㎡/10 pyeong or less,’ and pressed the search button.

A list of currently available shops appeared.

“Hmm.”

When I clicked on one, detailed information such as the deposit, key money, monthly rent, management fees, area, current sales, and facility conditions was listed.

I clicked on other shops as well.

I compared prices and locations.

Especially, the shops around Shinchon Station, Hongdae Station, and Mangwon-dong were easy to visualize just by seeing their names.

I spent a few dozen minutes browsing the site and added the shops that looked good to my bookmarks.

“Done!”

My review was simple.

‘The site is well-designed for printing.’

Commercial area analysis. Location selection.

Of course, I had to do it myself, and I intended to.

‘Let’s print it quickly!’

I didn’t need to dig from the bottom up.

Since work-life balance is precious.

I turned on the printer.

I put all the bookmarked pages in the print queue and started a movie.

‘It’s hot today, let’s watch a horror movie.’

I took out the popcorn I bought from the convenience store and placed it beside me.

When Tam finishes the workbook, I’ll ask him to make freshly caramelized popcorn.

*

A few hours later.

A photo appeared in the coffee meet-up group chat.

[ Kang Tae-joon: (Photo) ]

[ Kang Tae-joon: New tables and chairs from the editing shop ]

[ Kang Tae-joon: Spent a bit of money ]

[ Kang Tae-joon: How does it look? ]

It seemed he wanted to replace the furniture in the Mangwon-dong cafe with these flashy new pieces.

“Hmm.”

Could he create a consistent atmosphere with those flashy pieces? It seemed difficult.

Still, I cheered him on, hoping he didn’t waste his money.

[ Shin Yu-won: (Thumbs up) ]

Then I went back to my work.

I placed the freshly made workbook by Tam on my desk and fed him the printed shop information.

‘What will come out?’

Tam, without any signs of fatigue, flapped his yellow and red light beams.

──The power of 「Quality Conversion」 is activated.

──The 「Preview」 skill is activated!

──Please select the result.

──A. List of potential names for the shops

──B. Report on the current status of mini shop key money in Mapo-gu

──C. Current target reach rate of banner ads on <Shop Department Store> based on cost

“Huh?”

They were quite useless results.

‘I don’t need any of these.’

But it would be a waste to use the only remaining 「Lucky Strike」 just for this.

‘Should I choose A just for fun?’

I was also thinking about the cafe name.

However, it would be a waste to throw away the data I spent so much time printing.

‘Is there a better way?’

I recalled the keywords.

Cafe.

Mini shop under 10 pyeong.

Mapo-gu commercial area.

……And what I wanted was the best location.

“Oh?”

A good idea came to me.

I searched for <Barbarian Coffee> on the internet and entered their homepage.

[ We grind beans daily, Barbarian Coffee ]

Barbarian Coffee was a franchise that aimed for high volume and low margin, focusing on ultra-small and mini shops.

They were famous for opening niche shops in various locations such as apartments, buildings, subway exits, and university areas, generating steady profits.

‘This might work!’

I scanned the homepage menu and entered the ‘Franchise Inquiry’ page.

Print.

Zzzzz─

Clunk.

And I printed all the related information, including costs, consulting, the startup process, and interviews with shop owners.

Zzzzz─

Clunk.

Zzzzz─

Clunk.

I fed the printed papers to Tam.

Yellow and red light beams started to swirl.

──The power of 「Quality Conversion」 is activated.

“Wait, hold on!”

I put the Mapo-gu shop listings that I had just printed back into the printer.

“Do this too!”

My idea was simple.

If I combine the Mapo-gu shop listings with the <Barbarian Coffee> franchise information, wouldn’t I get a report from Barbarian Coffee analyzing the Mapo-gu commercial area?

If <Barbarian Coffee> highly evaluates a location, wouldn’t it be perfect for me too?

……And the idea hit the mark.

──The 「Preview」 skill is activated!

──Please select the result.

──A. <Barbarian Coffee> Franchise Sales Status (Mapo-gu)

──B. <Barbarian Coffee> Mapo-gu Commercial Area and Franchise Location Analysis Report

──C. Sales Comparison Data between Individual Shops and Franchise Shops (Mapo-gu)

Option B was exactly what I wanted.

“Yes!”

It was even better than expected.

──Congratulations! You are truly remarkable!

──You have completed the hidden tutorial of 《Brilliant 30s》, 《Hidden: Basics of Combination》.

……I didn’t even realize I had completed a hidden tutorial!

‘Hidden tutorial? Combination?’

A string of text floated in the air, continuing the explanation.

What the hidden tutorial was about, what the 「Combination」 skill did, and what rewards were given for completing it.

“Wait! Hold on a moment!”

But my mind was filled with other thoughts.

If this is possible, why should I only get the <Barbarian Coffee> report?

Is <Barbarian Coffee> the only franchise targeting mini shops in Korea? No, it’s not.

I rushed to the PC.

And I searched for several other mini cafe franchises that were as successful as <Barbarian Coffee>.

<Seventeen & Talk Cafe>.

<Giga Coffee>.

<Immortal King Cafe>.

Today, they would all be my subcontractors.

Zzzzz─

Clunk.

Zzzzz─

Clunk.

I had a good feeling.

Just for fun, I decided to try it out.

The printer kept running without stopping.

Zzzzz─

Clunk.

While organizing the printouts, I couldn’t help but hum a tune.

A little later.

I spread out a total of 8 printouts on the floor.

Mapo-gu shop listings, 4 copies.

<Barbarian Coffee> franchise information, 1 copy.

<Seventeen & Talk Cafe> franchise information, 1 copy.

<Giga Coffee> franchise information, 1 copy.

<Immortal King Cafe> franchise information, 1 copy.

I looked at them with satisfaction and asked Tam to combine them.

──The power of 「Quality Conversion」 is activated.

The paired printouts disappeared into the tower and soon produced offspring.

Only the ones I selected with 「Preview」.

──「Quality Conversion」 is complete.

──Please consume the converted items.

That way, the commercial area and location analysis of four franchises were in my hands.

I glanced through them for 「Consumption」 and found them to be trustworthy reports.

[ GIGA COFFEE ]

[ University Area Franchise Location Evaluation (2): Hongdae, Yonsei, Ewha, Sogang ]

[ Lee Su-han, Franchise Planning Team Manager ]

[ Ver 6.7 ]

Not only the department and author but also the date and version were clearly marked.

‘Did you review and revise the 6th version 7 times? Oh, I’m sorry. I’ll treat you to a delicious coffee later!’

The work was simple.

It was like a ‘Find the Same Picture’ game.

I found the locations highly rated by all four reports.

“This is A, this is top priority, this is grade one…… Okay!”

I checked if the shop was currently listed for sale.

‘This is fun.’

It felt like I was the protagonist of a spy movie or a bank heist drama.

However, as expected, there were no listings for the locations highly rated by all four companies.

“Oh, they’re all in business……”

Well, if the location was that good, the business wouldn’t fail unless something really bad happened.

Still, it was fine.

The location didn’t have to be perfect.

I could lower my standards a bit.

‘Even second-best would be good enough to live well.’

I had confidence, having successfully managed a few Blue Place stores.

While checking the secondary locations.

“There it is!”

I finally found a place that matched all the conditions.

‘Hapjeong Station? Right in front of the subway exit.’

But the listing on <Shop Department Store> was only from yesterday.

Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine.

‘Everyone…… must be thinking about this place.’

I immediately opened the front door and rushed out.

*

My Panamera is three times faster than light.

To Hapjeong Station in just 10 minutes!

Vroom──

It’s a secret that it took me more than 10 minutes to get the car out of the neighborhood parking lot.

‘I should have taken a taxi!’

But the heart of a Porsche owner wants to drive personally even for the smallest errand.

Enjoying the cool touch of the leather seats and the powerful, detailed sound from the speakers, I arrived before I knew it!

“Here we go!”

I parked the car temporarily and walked to the target shop.

[ Seito Coffee ]

[ Americano 1,500 won ]

[ Cheese Cake 3,500 won ]

The shop was still in business, with its signboard up.

I opened the <Shop Department Store> listing page on my phone and compared it visually.

The size was 7 pyeong.

Key money 10 million won, deposit 40 million won, monthly rent 180,000 won.

Currently, it’s a take-out only shop.

No tables, but a spacious kitchen and storage area.

The shop owner is already making a steady profit but wants to sell the shop to expand elsewhere.

‘Just as described.’

I looked around.

First floor, adjacent to the main road.

20 steps from the subway exit.

10 steps from the bus stop.

Two office buildings on either side, filled with various clinics.

‘Looks good at first glance.’

There was one drawback, though.

A large supermarket right next to it.