Translator: Elisia
Editor/Proofreader: Wojo
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There were only two days left until the birthday party.
Honestly, even if the kids tried to convince me to change my mind within that time, there wasn’t enough time left.
In that sense, it was fortunate that I received this invitation a little late.
If I had received it about a month ago and had been pestered by everyone around me the entire time, I would rather have received it at this tight timing, thinking that I would be pestered less.
Well, anyway, putting that aside.
There was no condition that required me to use all these invitations.
Thanks to that, there was no risk of running out.
I just needed to invite my friends and their families, and that should be enough.
In fact, what I was worried about at this point wasn’t about who to invite or not invite.
The real problem was whether my friends and their families would be ignored by Sara’s relatives at Sara’s birthday party—which, nominally, was also supposed to be my birthday party.
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
Upon hearing my concern, Soo-ah confidently spoke.
“Because in such settings, it’s actually embarrassing to openly show dislike for someone.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yeah. No matter how much you dislike someone, it’s improper to criticize them openly in a public setting. Usually, unless you really hate each other, people pretend to get along when they meet in places like this. If there’s something they really want to say, they would call you aside to talk. But since they don’t even know each other, there’s no reason for them to say anything.”
Maybe the kind of “party” I was imagining was the kind of thing I’d only seen in dramas or movies.
“More importantly, they don’t have any information about us, do they?”
“Oh…”
That was true as well.
Unless they knew who you were, they wouldn’t know whether to criticize or not, and if you were just a stranger, they’d probably only say a few greetings and that’s it.
“Soo-ah, you know a lot.”
Normally, Soo-ah didn’t seem very confident, but when it came to areas she was knowledgeable about, it was nice to see her speak so decisively.
Hearing my compliment, Soo-ah’s face finally turned red.
“A-and besides, we’ll be sticking right by your side anyway… You’re the main character of the birthday party, and no one’s going to openly criticize the future leader of a company.”
More importantly, there was Soo-ah.
While her family might not be at the same level as the Eugene Group, she was still the heir to one of the top ten companies in Korea.
No one would dare look down on someone in a group like that.
“Hmm…”
But even so, the anxiety didn’t completely disappear.
Just looking at what Choi Na-kyung had done, it was clear that if someone moved secretly behind others’ backs, they could definitely threaten my friends without me knowing.
Not only my friends but also their families would be coming, and naturally, one or two of them would be away from me at some point.
I wasn’t confident I could cover any trouble that might come their way.
“Hmm…”
As I continued to mull it over,
“Ah.”
An idea popped into my head.
“Since it’s come to this, should I just form a group?”
“A group?” Ha-neul, who had been listening to the conversation, asked.
“I mean a group of people who support me, people with similar interests. It’s not an official club or anything, but the more people there are to support each other during the party, the better, right?”
Of course, it wouldn’t be to the extent of making up the majority of the attendees, but having a ‘group’ always carried strength.
Even those who looked down on ordinary people and harassed those without money wouldn’t dare act that way on live news.
Usually, they did that kind of petty behavior where no one could see them.
The reason was simple.
An angry public was already a terrifying entity.
No matter how many rich people there were, they were still fewer in number than those without money.
Maybe in a company vote, the wealthy might win, but in elections, every person gets only one vote.
It’s not about saying the party supported by rich people always wins.
It’s about how politicians can’t completely ignore the voices of the common people.
It doesn’t take long for some unpleasant incident, once it’s made public, to become something legally punishable.
A company’s image could fall, and if consumers start a boycott, it could lead to serious damage.
Even if it doesn’t explode into a raging wildfire right away, it could simmer quietly for a long time, eventually burning the foundation of the company.
…Asking how often that kind of thing happens in reality is pointless.
Because this world is different from the reality I used to know.
In most melodramas, doesn’t the protagonist always win in the end?
Watching Ha-neul tilt her head in curiosity, I smiled slightly.
*
“Uh, so, this is for… me?”
The girl’s voice trembled so much that I could feel her shaking from where I stood. She was one of the kids who had received money from me during the disciplinary committee meeting.
“Yeah, that’s right. I was thankful for your help back then.”
“O-oh, n-no…”
Stammering as if she were broken, I handed two more invitations to the bespectacled, plain-looking girl.
“It might be awkward to come alone, so you can bring some close friends. But you have to decide and let me know by today. Tomorrow’s my birthday.”
“Y-yeah! I’ll definitely let you know!”
“Ah, wait.”
As soon as I said that, her face fell.
She must’ve thought I was going to take back the invitations after hearing me say “wait.”
“No, let’s meet up. It’d be better to finalize the guest list. I need to confirm the participants. Will you be free after school?”
“Yeah! I’m free! I don’t have anything to do after school anyway!”
That’s a lie.
It wasn’t that I had some special ability to see through people or possessed keen insight.
It’s just that hardly any student at this school manages to maintain top grades without going to extra classes or tutoring.
Especially for a student like her, who was attending on a scholarship, she would need to study even harder to keep her grades up.
Unless they were someone like Ha-neul, who had completely checked out from school, it was obvious they would be studying hard after class.
Whether they were going to an academy, receiving private tutoring, or self-studying didn’t matter.
…It’s Ha-neul, who maintains top grades while doing the bare minimum, that’s really the strange one.
…Come to think of it, it’s so unfair.
Is it because she’s the main character?
Well, if we’re talking about unfairness, I could say the same about myself, at least when it comes to wealth.
I glanced around.
Everyone was looking at the two of us with greedy eyes.
The invitations in her hand.
To someone, those invitations might look like a ticket to freedom, or to others, a shortcut to success.
Well, I didn’t care how they saw it.
The fact remained it was bait.
Me suggesting we meet was a calculated move from the start.
Who knew if someone might try to steal that invitation and attend in their place?
Not that it mattered if they did.
But they certainly wouldn’t be treated as my “inner circle.”
It might seem like I was distributing these invitations carelessly, but…
Well, I’m not handing them out without any plan.
*
“Wow…”
Just as I expected, the invitations mostly circulated among the scholarship students at the same school.
There weren’t many kids from well-known families, or the truly wealthy.
Interestingly enough, there were even a few male students.
I assumed someone brought their boyfriend.
Based on the nametags, there were students from other grades as well, probably invited by their younger or older siblings.
…Hmm, I hadn’t expected that, but it didn’t matter.
Money could solve most things, and as long as they had close ties rather than just calculative relationships, it was better for me.
Besides, with money, you could manage both material and time constraints.
Most of the kids were busy looking around the lobby, raising their heads to take in the sight.
Of course, they were amazed.
This was what I called my “home,” and what stood before them looked like a department store.
And it wasn’t just that.
This place actually had been considered for use as a department store once, or at least something along those lines.
Surrounding me now were a great number of tailors.
These kids wouldn’t even imagine that those people were tailors.
Indeed, Yang Hye-in’s skills were impressive.
Even with a lot of money, gathering capable tailors and designers in Seoul in just a day was no easy feat.
…Well, now there were only a few hours left.
There were many tailors, but there were also a lot of clothes to fit.
Starting from scratch would be impossible, and even just altering existing outfits might be tight.
…But, as I mentioned earlier, money could solve many things.
“Now, everyone who’s attending.”
When I spoke, the gazes of the roughly twenty students turned toward me.
These kids hadn’t been able to invite their families.
There hadn’t been many invitations to begin with, and there had also been the condition that they had to gather here.
Because of that, it was actually better.
They were all students from the same school.
“There’s no dress code, but to distinguish the people I’ve invited, we’ll all be wearing the same color outfit. I know it’s a bit inconvenient, but I’d appreciate your cooperation. Of course, you don’t need to worry about the cost.”
That’s right.
A wealthy party without a dress code.
At such a party, only ‘my side’ would be wearing matching outfits in one color.
And this, in itself, would become an unspoken declaration.
I’m someone who clearly distinguishes between those on my side and those who are not.
If anyone wanted to disregard us, they could try.
I would deal with it immediately.
Because, in case you forgot, I’m one of the wealthiest people in this country.
‘Well, technically, I’m the one with all the money.’
Did you really need to say it like that at that moment?
I felt my shoulders relax slightly.