After a grape grew, Kim Sehee immediately started planting grape seeds and growing grapes by finding suitable farmland. She already had a piece of land she had bought beforehand. Ever since coffee came out, Kim Sehee had developed a habit of buying land early, anticipating that another plant would emerge in the future.
She focused on purchasing farmland between Seoul and Gangwon-do, where land prices weren’t too high. It was also easy to manage since it was close to Seoul. This was partly because she believed in the power of one plant. Even when planted in barren soil, it grew much faster and better than plants in fertile soil.
Without this growth rate, growing plants would have been a huge hassle. The farmland in South Korea wasn’t particularly fertile. In fact, it was more on the poor side, nowhere near the fertile lands of the U.S. or the endless plains of China.
Anyway, since Kim Sehee had already prepared everything in advance to save time, the speed at which she cultivated grapes was incredibly fast. To put it bluntly, she was already planting grape seeds in the farmland within a few days. Even Kim Sehee, who rarely got surprised, couldn’t help but be amazed.
After the Gate appeared and hunters with supernatural abilities became common, the growth rate of one plant still exceeded all imagination. In just over a week, a grapevine had already grown into a tree and was bearing grapes.
“Is this even possible…?”
A normal grapevine would’ve been offended by such a remark, but Kim Sehee and her team, who came to inspect the grapes, couldn’t hide their astonishment. At this rate, supplying grapes worldwide wouldn’t even be a challenge. In fact, it might be better to expand sales overseas rather than staying domestic.
The domestic market was small, and the government was taking measures to prevent monopolies. So, they were able to taste-test the grapes from the vine.
“The flavor and sweetness seem to be the best among grapes grown worldwide.”
“We’ve been researching the first grapes that grew on the tree, and it turns out they can also be made into wine.”
“It’s edible, can be made into wine, and is of excellent quality.”
Grapes are usually divided into table grapes and wine grapes.
Table grapes have larger berries and thinner skins but are less sweet compared to wine grapes. Wine grapes, on the other hand, have smaller, denser berries with thicker skins and larger seeds. The sugar content in the pulp is also very high.
For grape juice to ferment into wine with the right alcohol content, a high level of sugar is needed. If the sugar content is low, the fermentation process won’t produce enough alcohol, and it’ll just end up as grape juice.
But this grape was different. It was a monster that combined the best of both table and wine grapes. The berries were large, the skins were decently thick, and the sugar content was extremely high—so high that you’d worry about your teeth rotting if you ate too much.
You could confidently say that no grape in the world had this level of sweetness.
“With the taste and quality already far surpassing other grapes, all we need to do is sell them.”
And Starlight Food had already established many sales routes over the past period. When it came to food distribution, they were on another level. Like any major food corporation, Starlight Food had many employees, so once orders came from above, they quickly opened up all routes. At least in South Korea, unless it was a remote rural area, delivery was possible anywhere.
In fact, the domestic sales routes were already so well-established that the only thing left was overseas sales. This was because Starlight Food’s quality and taste were so highly regarded that their products sold out instantly. There was no need to worry about excess inventory—once the products hit the shelves, they flew off.
The size of the warehouse storing Starlight Food’s supplies was even small. There was no time to store anything because as soon as the trucks loaded with Starlight Food’s crops arrived at dawn, they had to be sold immediately.
—
That day had come. Of course, it wasn’t Judgment Day or the day the Earth would be destroyed, as seen in movies. Today was the day the movie “Little Magician Lumi” premiered. I set my alarm and woke up at 6 a.m. The last time I woke up this early was back in my military days, so it felt like the first time in a long while. I opened the window…
I opened the window and was greeted by the fragrant summer breeze.
But even though it was still early morning and the sun wasn’t high yet, a hot gust of wind blew in, making me scream and quickly close the window. As someone who’s always lived under the blessed protection of air conditioning, facing the merciless summer wind left me no choice but to curl up in defeat.
Truly, the person who invented air conditioning deserves to be hailed as a great hero. They created something so revolutionary, after all. Of course, in a country like ours with winters, things are different. As time passes and cold winds blow, they might not be seen as a hero but rather as a contributor to environmental pollution.
“Whew!”
I decided to take a walk around the building in my dinosaur pajamas and grab some breakfast while I was at it. The person on duty wasn’t someone I was particularly close to, so eating together would’ve been awkward. It had to be someone like Bora, Haru, or Maru to share a meal with.
Tiptoeing silently, I walked toward the elevator and pressed the button. It arrived quickly since it was early morning and not many people were using it. The restaurant opened at 6 a.m., so I had plenty of time to eat. Back in the day, it opened a bit later, so I’d have to wait, but now it’s practically a 24-hour operation.
Well, not exactly 24 hours. The restaurant staff are human too, so they leave in the evening. And they don’t work on Sundays. So on Sundays, I usually eat the simple meals prepared in the fridge or go out to eat with a coworker.
After pressing the button for the 1st floor, I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart. I had to be extra careful not to get hurt or have anything strange happen before going to the movies. It was the kind of time where even falling leaves could be dangerous. When I reached the lobby, I exchanged greetings with the staff at the desk.
I always wondered when the desk staff actually came to work. Unless it was the crack of dawn, there always seemed to be someone at the desk. Security guards are stationed 24/7 to protect the building, but the desk staff only work during their shifts, right?
Anyway, after exchanging greetings, I dashed to the restaurant. I planned to eat a hearty breakfast. It’s common sense to fill your stomach before going to the movies.
—————————–
“Rawr!”
I let out a loud roar as soon as the elevator doors opened. Anyone coming up to the 10th floor would’ve trembled at my roar. But the reaction I expected didn’t come.
“Hana, you’re already up?”
“Hi, Hana~”
Everyone just smiled and greeted me as if nothing was out of the ordinary. In my dinosaur pajamas, I looked like a wild beast. Anyone else seeing me should’ve been terrified, but no one seemed scared or even slightly shaken.
But I’m the type to keep going until I get what I want.
“Rawr!”
“Ahh!”
Maru almost dropped her phone in surprise at my shout. I ran over to her.
“Maru!”
“Hana, you scared me!”
Maru, as if used to this, hugged me. Today, the other employees didn’t react much, which was almost boring, but Maru gave me the reaction I wanted, so I was very satisfied. I expressed my satisfaction physically as I walked into the office. The office was now full of people preparing for work, but Bora still hadn’t arrived.
Like a retriever waiting for its owner, I sat in the office chair, waiting for Bora to show up. It felt like an eternity, even though we were just going to watch a movie. What if the movie turns out to be boring? Of course, there’s no way the Little Magician Lumi movie would be boring, but I couldn’t help worrying.
