Chapter 75

All the food trucks looked similar, and the quality of coffee that could be brewed was just average.

But what about us?

We have delicious cold brew!

We have a fantastic German-made Goeing Amuse!

There’s almost no daily supply limit!

Moreover, this time it’s not free service; we’re even getting paid. There’s no reason to refuse.

Of course, it’s more for brand promotion than profit.

Mainly targeting fans of famous entertainers.

‘Good thing I wrote “legal replication,” hehe.’

And the next DM arrived in real-time.

The clearest sign of a big break.

[ Jin Ye-na: As expected... You kept your promise. ]

[ Jin Ye-na: I believed in you. ]

[ Jin Ye-na: I think you’ll hit 10,000 followers by tonight, and the product concept looks good too. ]

[ Jin Ye-na: How about we schedule a practical meeting soon and start specific negotiations? ]

A practical meeting?

Specific negotiations?

Hmm, why is she in such a hurry?

Who said we would supply to Market Killi?

I had just captured all the DMs.

From the beginning to the end, everything visible.

And I sent the screenshot to Jin Ye-na.

[ Shin Yu-won: A practical meeting sounds great. ]

[ Shin Yu-won: (Photo) ]

[ Shin Yu-won: But it seems like the meetings will be quite frequent (laugh) ]

Jin Ye-na didn’t reply.

But the message “typing...” kept appearing and disappearing.

She must have been quite conflicted.

But after enduring the silence, the result of her long deliberation finally came.

[ Jin Ye-na: I’ll talk to the responsible MD. You know our Market Killi commission is usually quite high, right? We’ll offer you a good deal on the commission too. ]

Hmm, good.

Good attitude.

But last time, she said our coffee was just average.

And that it wouldn’t create much buzz on SNS.

[ Shin Yu-won: Thank you very much. I’ll consider it positively. ]

I tried to maintain politeness while not giving Jin Ye-na the answer she wanted.

[ Shin Yu-won: I’m not the party to the sales contract, so please discuss with CEO Choi first. ]

Then the “typing...” message flickered like a broken light bulb.

[ Jin Ye-na: I’ve already contacted CEO Choi, of course. But he said to discuss this sales deal with you... ]

Ah, really?

This is good news.

As expected, our CEO Choi, the best!

[ Shin Yu-won: Then please set a date and let me know. I’m available most of the time. ]

[ Jin Ye-na: Got it! (Wink) ]

[ Shin Yu-won: Oh, by the way ]

[ Jin Ye-na: Yes? ]

[ Shin Yu-won: I’ve also received exclusive contract offers from other platforms. What do you think is better? (Wink) ]

The “typing...” light bulb broke again with the wink. And a little while later.

[ Jin Ye-na: We’ll discuss the details at the meeting. ]

[ Jin Ye-na: But one thing is certain. ]

[ Jin Ye-na: We’ll bring you the best offer we can. ]

A very humble message came back.

‘Hehe.’

It was so humble that I had to lift my phone to eye level to see Jin Ye-na’s face.

[ Shin Yu-won: Yes, I look forward to it. ]

In just one day.

The moment the tables turned.

*

Two days later.

In the main office of Ilpum Korea.

I handed two bottles of cold brew to Choi Jung-hyun.

“Haha, thank you. Seong-eun is really curious, so I couldn’t help but ask.”

“No problem, it’s only right to give it.”

“But really, Yu-won, sending the coffee truck was a stroke of genius. It’s already causing a stir, and when we really push it, it’s going to be huge.”

“Just lucky, I guess.”

“But does drinking this concentrate really kill you?”

“No, of course not, haha!”

“Haha.”

Choi Jung-hyun looked even happier today.

He had every reason to.

Knock knock—

Jin Ye-na, who had cornered us at the last meeting.

“Hello, CEO Choi.”

Today, she was dressed in a more formal suit.

“And CEO Shin of Cafe Amuse. How have you been?”

She entered with a polite greeting.

I stood up and extended my hand first.

“CEO Jin, it’s been a while. I’ve been well. I’ve been getting so many calls from everywhere, haha.”

“Yes, that’s to be expected. Your follower count is skyrocketing. By the way, this is our contract manager.”

The meeting began.

Jin Ye-na’s opening statement was unexpected.

“I’ve been thinking a lot since I met CEO Shin last time.”

“Ah, yes.”

“But I feel I was rude to you on our first meeting. I wanted to apologize to CEO Shin first.”

It was a sincere and clean apology.

Despite her fox-like smile, it felt like she was gritting her teeth.

But still, it’s good to apologize first.

Just not what I wanted.

I slowly spoke.

“No, I’m not one to hold grudges.”

“Ah, yes...”

“I kept my promise, so I’m curious about what promise CEO Jin will keep.”

Jin Ye-na clenched her lips and exchanged glances with the manager.

“Haha.”

Choi Jung-hyun watched us with a proud father’s smile, as if I were his son.

We have prepared the best offer.

Jin Ye-na had a short conversation with the manager and finally spoke.

“We have prepared the best offer.”

“Oh...”

She glanced at Choi Jung-hyun, who was exclaiming in admiration, and then turned back to me.

Since the key to this contract lies with me, we all agreed on that.

“First, let me confirm one thing. I agree with CEO Shin’s statement.”

“What do you mean?”

When I asked, she pulled out a report from the file.

“This is our internal evaluation of Amuse Cold Brew. I prepared it hastily yesterday, knowing I might get criticized, by calling in the managers urgently.”

It was understandable given the rapidly growing interest in our coffee.

The interview clip from "Entertainment Insight," "Did they really give poison in the 'Return to Weihwado'?" had surpassed hundreds of thousands of views and was trending.

People who followed the link in the comments to our Kilbangwon Instagram were sharing our cafe information.

As a result, the cafe was in chaos.

In the past two days, I received multiple calls from employees at the Shinchon and Hapjeong stations, asking why we weren’t selling cold brew and if we should start taking reservations.

The more frightening fact:

It’s only been two days since the shoot.

If word of mouth spreads and the story reaches large communities, who knows how big this wave will get.

“While I can’t show you the detailed items as they are confidential, I can tell you...”

Jin Ye-na continued in a serious tone.

“Amuse Cold Brew scored almost a perfect score. It might be the highest among this year’s new products.”

Indeed.

I knew Amuse would come to this.

“So we’re offering the best deal. While I feel sorry for you emotionally and personally, this offer is separate from that.”

Jin Ye-na looked at me with a confident gaze, but not in the same way as before, where she was testing or ignoring me.

Instead, it felt like she wanted to negotiate with us properly.

“I’ll save the personal apology for after the meeting. For now, I want to focus on the business opportunity in front of us, company to company.”

I nodded in agreement.

I had no intention of discussing emotional matters here without separating business from personal.

“Agreed. I feel the same way.”

“Just as I thought, you’re a reasonable person.”

Jin Ye-na smiled and spoke in a softer tone.

“Just as I showed you the internal data, I’ll be transparent about our intentions. It will make the conversation easier.”

Oh, transparency is good.

“Amuse Cold Brew is... a product we absolutely don’t want to miss. It’s a perfect combination of buzz, product quality, and a flawless production and distribution channel. If we had produced it ourselves, it would have taken a year. Who first suggested selling it through Ilpum?”

Choi Jung-hyun just shrugged.

Jin Ye-na shook her head and continued.

“Indeed... Anyway, it’s a product we must secure. If we lose it to another platform, I won’t be able to sleep for days.”

Jin Ye-na looked at me directly, but the manager sitting next to her seemed even more nervous, fidgeting in his seat.

“So, this is a confident, bold, and honest offer. I hope you’ll consider it positively.”

“Sure, I will.”

“Great. Then, Manager Park, please go over the details.”

Jin Ye-na leaned back in her seat.

The manager took over.

“The most crucial point is the sales commission. Currently, Market Killi’s commission rate ranges from a minimum of 30% to a maximum of 48%. For Ilpum Korea products, the average is around 40%.”

Choi Jung-hyun nodded slightly.

“The reason our commission is higher than other platforms is that we can promise a significant increase in sales.”

I agreed.

Market Killi’s sales last year were 1.5 trillion won.

It’s already the best food-focused shopping mall in Korea.

Moreover, Market Killi’s strength is that it’s a very advantageous platform for brand promotion.

Unlike a