Chapter 48

Lim Hee-ju smiled warmly at such customers, signed autographs, and took photos with them.

So the atmosphere was actually quite good.

The coffee meet-up members and actors were leisurely chatting, sharing stories about their lives.

It was exactly the relaxed and comfortable mood I wanted.

'Good.'

A leisurely Saturday afternoon.

As I was searching through my playlist to see what song would fit, a face I had only seen on TV approached me.

"Boss."

It was the national actress, Lim Hee-ju.

"Yes, what can I help you with?"

"It's not that, but... how about I try to gather a few more customers?"

Oh, her love for her daughter was no small matter.

I waved my hands in refusal.

"No, that's fine. It's already an honor to have such distinguished guests here. Really."

"Hee, Boss."

"Yes?"

"Still, wouldn't it be more fun if we sold out? Selling everything on the first day."

"Ah, but don't you think that's a bit too much?"

Lim Hee-ju glanced at Lim Su-jeong, who was doing the dishes, and whispered softly.

"Let me give our daughter a boost. Okay? Can't I?"

...She looked so dignified, but her personality was surprisingly straightforward.

"How... are you going to do that?"

"Boss, come here."

I followed Lim Hee-ju to the table where the actors were, and she handed me her phone.

"Take a nice picture. Kids, come closer. We're taking a photo."

Click!

After showing me the photo, Lim Hee-ju took her phone and led me to the next table.

"Everyone here, gather around."

"Huh?"

"Let's take a group photo."

Click!

Lim Hee-ju took the phone and immediately started tapping the screen.

'Is she posting it on SNS?'

I went back to the kitchen and searched for Lim Hee-ju on Instagram.

[At the soft opening of the cafe]

[ #Sinchon #Amuse #Planning to return in an hour ]

...It felt like a huge wave, or rather, an army was approaching.

*

About 30 minutes later.

Some of the actors had already left, and only Lim Hee-ju and two supporting actors remained.

One by one, customers started to come in.

"Wow!"

"Really, she's here!"

"Oh, Miss Hee-ju..."

...Before I knew it, all the tables were full.

Some people just came in for a quick takeaway and a glimpse, but others waited outside, saying they would stay until a seat opened up.

'Ugh... .'

From then on, it was chaos.

Guiding people, taking orders, making coffee, packaging, and doing the dishes...

'I haven't even hired staff yet!'

I had planned to observe the flow after the soft opening and then hire staff, but I didn't expect this on the first day.

In the end, with just me and Pil-sujeong, we were short-handed and had to ask one of the members for help.

"Jae-ho, I'm sorry, but can you help guide the people waiting outside? Tell them it might take about 30 minutes for a seat to open up. Thank you."

"Sure, no problem!"

The other coffee meet-up members congratulated us, gave us encouragement, and left. I also messaged Min Chae-yeon that she probably wouldn't be able to see us today.

An unexpected emergency.

But Miss Lim Hee-ju's presence was extraordinary.

She stood up.

"Everyone."

A soft word that would normally be lost in such a noisy environment.

However, most of the customers were there to see Lim Hee-ju, and they all turned their attention to her.

Pil-sujeong and I did the same, curious about what she would say.

"Everyone, I'm sorry to interrupt your conversations. I'm the actress Lim Hee-ju."

Applause and cheers erupted immediately.

"I know!"

"You're so beautiful!"

"My mom is a big fan!"

A veteran is a veteran.

Lim Hee-ju smiled gracefully and enjoyed their cheers. Once it quieted down, she continued.

"The pastries here are really delicious. Just one bite and you feel so much better. So even though I won't be here for long, I'm going to ring the Golden Bell."

What? Golden Bell?

"Ding, ding, ding! Order anything and charge it to me, hehehe."

...That's how I witnessed my first Golden Bell at a cafe.

Immediately, a rush of orders followed.

"Pil-sujeong, let's keep going for a bit longer!"

"Sure!"

"Okay!"

How long had it been?

Choi Pil-soo called me.

"Boss."

While doing the dishes, I wiped the sweat from my forehead and looked at him.

"Yes, Mr. Pil-soo."

Choi Pil-soo also looked exhausted.

It was his first time back in the business, and to have such a crowd on the first day was inevitable.

"Mr. Pil-soo, are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. The problem is, all the desserts are gone."

"Really?"

"We still have some beans, but we're out of some of the drink ingredients. I think we should close soon."

Behind Choi Pil-soo, Lim Su-jeong was shaking empty ingredient containers.

Choi Pil-soo bowed his head.

"Boss, it's my fault. I failed to predict the demand."

Then Lim Su-jeong jumped in front of Choi Pil-soo and shook her head.

"No, it's not. My mom... ringing a Golden Bell at a cafe... really..."

These people are so kind, they get excited over the smallest things.

I said to them,

"What fault? You both did such a great job that everything sold out. That's a good thing!"

And I threw off my rubber gloves.

"Let's close up!"

It was 6 PM.

Only 4 hours since I arrived at the cafe.

*

After sending off the last customers.

After paying Jae-ho for his help and sending him off.

After washing all the remaining dishes and tidying up the store.

7:30 PM.

"Phew... ."

I felt like a zombie.

Pil-sujeong felt the same way.

Both of us were sitting in chairs, our shoulders slumped.

I mustered the last bit of my strength and approached them.

"You both worked so hard on the first day."

"Hehe, hard? We'll have to keep this up."

"Right, right. We'll have to keep this up."

They both tried to be considerate, but their voices were filled with exhaustion.

'I can't do this.'

I walked over to the POS machine.

After all, financial therapy is the best, isn't it?

I tapped the POS machine.

[Sales Status]

[Daily Sales Status]

...Thud.

I was so surprised that I covered the screen with my hand and called them over.

"Both of you, come here."

And when Choi Pil-soo and Lim Su-jeong were right next to the POS machine,

"Ta-da!"

I revealed today's sales.

"Wow, amazing... ."

"Really impressive."

Exactly 1,073,800 won.

We achieved a daily sales target of 100 on the first day of the soft opening.

And looking at the sales by time, 90% were from the afternoon.

We achieved this in just 4 hours.

"How do you both feel?"

They were too exhausted to react strongly, but they both smiled brightly.

"Really good."

"Great."

That's how I felt too.

"Thanks to both of you. Really. You did a great job. Today was a bit unusual, though."

...I couldn't help but think so.

There's no way we could achieve this level of sales every day unless someone rings the Golden Bell again.

"Still, it's a good start. Let's go home and try our best again tomorrow!"

"Sure!"

As everyone was getting ready to leave, Lim Su-jeong called me over while talking on the phone.

"Boss! Mom is waiting outside and wants to say hello."

"Me? Really?"

"Yes, she's in a car next to the park. Go see her. But why is she acting like this today?"

"Sure, just a moment."

I ran out and saw Lim Hee-ju standing in front of a black van.

"Oh! Boss!"

"Oh, hello!"

I really didn't know how to react to her.

She's a top actress I've never even had the chance to greet, but she suddenly put us in a difficult situation, and yet it led to a huge success.

Lim Hee-ju smiled gently and said,

"Boss, you must have been tired today."

"Oh, no. It was fun."

I tried to play it down, but Lim Hee-ju laughed playfully and said,

"Oh, come on. Everyone looked like they were about to die."

"Ha ha ha... I almost died from the fun."

Then Lim Hee-ju turned her gaze to the cafe and spoke calmly.

"But this kind of experience will help my daughter understand, won't it?"

"Huh?"

"That this is really hard work, that it's not easy, and that she needs to be mentally prepared."

Her lines, her delivery, and the emotion behind them.

I felt like I was in a scene from a drama.

But it was real, and she was sincere.

"Oh... you didn't just do this to boost sales?"

"Hehe, boosting sales is good too."

Lim Hee-ju laughed briefly and continued,

"If I caused you trouble today because of my selfishness, I'm sorry."

"Not at all."

"I appreciate that. My daughter... she seems bright, but she's had a tough few years."

It didn't feel like she had been overworked.

More like she had been struggling mentally.

"I see. I didn't know that."

"But since she started this job, she's been smiling a lot more... I tried to discourage her several times, but she wouldn't listen."

"..."

"I plan to support her. If she makes a mistake because of lack of experience, please be lenient."

The million-dollar smile of the national actress.

"Thank you, Boss."

I smiled brightly in response.

"Su-jeong is doing great. I don't think you need to worry so much."

"Hehe, thank you. Please let her go home now. I'll take her with me."

"Sure!"

I quickly returned to the cafe and sent Choi Pil-soo and Lim Su-jeong home.

"Ughhhhhh!"

Alone in the cafe, I let out a loud sigh.

Then I closed the shop.

The first day of the cafe's soft opening.

The first day off.

*

Leaving home early in the morning to attend a wedding in Namyangju, then facing the Madness storm in the afternoon.

It was a long day.

On my way home, I checked with the Hapjeong station branch, and they reported a daily sales of 105.

Sinchon branch had 107.

Combined, 212.

It was a huge success for the first day.

'...It was worth the effort.'

As soon as I opened the front door, I wanted to collapse on the bed, but I dragged my exhausted body to a chair.

I turned on my PC.

I accessed the online Korean dictionary.

'I have to finish this!'

I intended to unlock all the tutorial completion conditions.

...And then I collapsed and fell asleep.

It was a deep, restful sleep.

I really liked it here.

I don't know when I moved to the bed.

I kicked the fluffy blanket with my foot.

"Ughhh..."

Stretching felt so refreshing.

It was really a deep, restful sleep.

Shower time.

As I showered, the events of yesterday ran through my mind.

There was a slightly awkward moment at the wedding, but Jeong-hyun and So-jeong were a really good couple.

Thinking about the cafe in the afternoon made me smile.

"Really... hahaha."

It was absurd.

What was a Golden Bell doing in a cafe?

The wave was already coming, and there was no stopping it, so I decided to go with the flow.

...But I didn't expect the wave to be so big.

'It's like Interstellar.'

Still, I had to greet the customers, make sure the national actress was comfortable, and check on Pil-sujeong.

I was extremely sensitive yesterday, trying to manage everything. It had been a long time since I felt that way.

So it was natural that the tension snapped as soon as I got home.

'What should I eat for breakfast?'

But Lim Hee-ju was right.

After such a hectic first day, everyone would have a better sense of what to expect.

They would know what to prepare for busy times and what to do during slow times, and how much they could handle.

It felt like a tutorial for Amuse's bright future.

'Oh, tutorial!'

I dried my hair roughly and opened the fridge.

I took out two salad pasta meal kits I bought at a discount online and fed them to Tam.

"Tam!"

──「Quantity→Quality Conversion」is complete.

──Please 「consume」the converted items.

Fresh salad pasta appeared!

I transferred it to a plate, twirled the pasta with a fork, and put it in my mouth.

"Mmm!"

The fresh and savory dressing and the chewy pasta strands swirled in my mouth. The ricotta cheese was also soft.

I took the plate to the computer and sat cross-legged in the chair.

Currently, the remaining items are 《2.■■-ness》, 《3.Yu■》.

...Finding a word that ends with 'ness' will be really hard. I decided to start with the third one.

"List of two-letter words starting with 'Yu'... Oh, there it is!"

I opened a webpage and started recalling the words one by one.

Yuga, Yugak, Yugan, Yugam, Yugang, Yugae, Yugak, Yugye...

'There are so many. How can I read them all?'

Wait.

I needed to rethink this.

《Brilliant 30s》 was a phrase I originally said. In a dream, talking to my grandmother.

I had said I wanted to have a lot of money.

《Wealth》 appeared.

I had said I wanted to give gifts to people I like and take good care of them.

《Relationships》 appeared.