“Chuseok is the bestttt…”
I was rolling around in bed as usual. Holidays were always a good thing to welcome. Maybe because of Chuseok, the company was unusually quiet. It was nice to hold the Chuseok ancestral rites, but it felt like everyone took a vacation right after.
Even Bora, Haru, and Maru, who usually hung out with me, didn’t come to the company to celebrate Chuseok. Bored out of my mind, I had no choice but to blankly stare at the TV. Everyone on our floor had left to celebrate Chuseok, except for the unlucky ones on duty.
These days, Chuseok has changed compared to the past. Instead of going to a big family house, it’s more common for families to go on vacation together. I don’t really know, but on TV, I saw all the relatives gathering and having fun during Chuseok like it was a festival.
And the banners hanging on the streets were filled with messages wishing people a happy Chuseok. Apartments and other crowded places were buzzing with Chuseok stories.
I fiddled with my phone. Did Jiyu and Yumi also go to celebrate Chuseok? These days, the younger generation prefers staying home rather than celebrating Chuseok…
And today wasn’t Chuseok day but the next day, a holiday. So it was likely that Jiyu and Yumi had already celebrated and come back home. I sent a message in the group chat with Jiyu and Yumi.
[What’s everyone up to???]
Not long after I sent the message, replies came in.
[Just at home!]
[We did the ancestral rites yesterday!]
Oh ho. So it seemed like today was free to hang out. I messaged Jiyu and Yumi to hang out. Luckily, they agreed. I got ready to go out. Living in the city now, all I had to do was say the word before heading out.
After all, I was still in school, so there was no reason to restrict going out and coming back. This wasn’t the 80s, and curfews didn’t exist! I changed my clothes. Despite it being Chuseok, the weather was still scorching hot.
Normally, by September, the heat should’ve subsided, right? But this year’s Chuseok was different. It was unbearably hot, as if the Earth was angry. Even though it was Chuseok, the temperature outside was over 30 degrees. It felt like the peak of summer.
I put on a T-shirt and shorts. The heat was intense, but the more sunlight, the better. Normally, strong sunlight would make your skin sting and burn. But after this transformation, I needed consistent sunlight.
Like a plant that thrives on sunlight, I, as the World Tree, needed a good dose of it to survive. Just like humans need sunlight to produce vitamin D or something, I was the same.
——————————————————
“Jiyu! Yumi!”
“Hana!”
I waved my hand, calling out to Jiyu and Yumi approaching from a distance.
“Did you have a good Chuseok?”
Yumi asked, looking at me.
“Yeah! We set up the ancestral table and even bowed!”
I begged to bow too, and they allowed it. I got to bow at the spot the employees prepared. I wanted to bow to the other employees too, but since it wasn’t New Year’s yet, I couldn’t.
If it were Lunar New Year, I could’ve bowed to the company employees and squeezed some money out of them…
And if I bowed twice, could I get double the New Year’s money? I thought I should try that next Lunar New Year. Even though I had plenty of money, there was something special about receiving cash.
“Where are we going, Hana?”
Jiyu and Yumi were looking at me. Normally, we’d go to a PC bang or a bowling alley—places guys hang out—but unfortunately, Jiyu and Yumi weren’t into that. So I suggested a safe option.
“Let’s go watch a movie today! There are a lot of fun movies showing!”
Finally, Jiyu and Yumi gave me a meaningful look.
“Hana, don’t tell me…?”
I slightly avoided their gaze. Truthfully, the new movie of the Little Magician Lumi had just come out, and I absolutely couldn’t watch it alone. That’s why I called Jiyu and Yumi.
I had the guts to watch a movie alone. If it came to it, I could drag Bora, Haru, or Maru along. I awkwardly smiled under Jiyu and Yumi’s gaze.
The destination was already decided.
————————————————————-
[On the influence of Starlight Food in the domestic food market]
In Korean agriculture…
There’s a group you can’t ignore: the Agricultural Cooperatives, known as Nonghyup.
Of course, Nonghyup Bank was getting roasted by the public for its wild customer service compared to other banks. The security issues and other messes made it a hot topic. But let’s be real, Nonghyup plays a crucial role for farmers who grow our food.
Whether it actually lives up to its mission of improving farmers’ status and boosting agricultural productivity is debatable, but hey, it’s still one of the state-recognized cooperatives. I mean, they even have a commercial bank that big-name corporations can’t easily get their hands on.
The agricultural chairman received a report. The title sounded fancy: *Starlight Food*, something that’s been buzzing among farmers lately. The chairman flipped through the report.
It was packed with tiny, dense text. The chairman frowned and searched for his glasses. His aging eyes couldn’t handle small print without them. Once he found his glasses, he started reading again.
[*Starlight Rice not only has an insane yield but also exceptional taste. Some consumers are even willing to pay tariffs just to buy it.*]
“Starlight Rice… that was some delicious rice.”
He had even visited the farm where it was grown. The area wasn’t huge, but the growth speed—harvesting every few weeks—was mind-blowing. Normally, rice is harvested once a year, right?
But Starlight Farm was different. Countless farming machines worked like ants, farming in perfect harmony. Even if the area wasn’t massive, the scale was impressive. At least in Korea, its farmland size was probably unmatched.
Globally, it might be small, but for Korea, it was a big deal.
After tasting Starlight Rice, the chairman secretly wished all rice sold in Korea could be replaced with it. If it weren’t for the rice variety, Starlight Food could’ve dominated the market with its taste. It’s even famous in Japan, so why not Korea?
In fact, if it weren’t for Korean rice regulations, it would’ve crushed the market.
[*Starlight Grapes already hold over half the market share… Soon, finding non-Starlight grapes in Korea will be tough.*]
[*Starlight Coffee Beans already make up over 60% of domestic coffee bean usage. Except for Starbucks, every coffee franchise uses Starlight Coffee Beans.*]
“How does Starlight Coffee even grow?”
The chairman was curious. Coffee trees usually grow near the equator, requiring high temperatures and consistent sunlight. But Starlight Coffee Beans laughed at that formula, thriving in Korea. The chairman had visited a coffee farm once, and the sight of abundant coffee beans was unforgettable.
[*Starlight Cherry Tomatoes are already highly preferred in the instant food industry.*]
[*Considering the number of cows Starlight Food raises, a drop in domestic Hanwoo beef prices is expected…*]
Every crop Starlight Food grew was dominating the market like royalty. Not a single one fell behind.
Honestly, with great taste and reasonable prices, there was no reason they wouldn’t sell. Even the chairman, after tasting them, predicted the downfall of other crops.
And just like that, Starlight Food was rapidly expanding its presence in the domestic food market.
The only saving grace was that they weren’t obsessed with the domestic market. Unlike that yellow mascot-famous conglomerate, they didn’t spread like an octopus.
They were already planning to distribute products like Tangle and even their premium beef to the U.S., according to insiders.
The chairman felt a chill at Starlight Food’s unstoppable dominance. Other things could disappear, but food? That’s non-negotiable. Humans can live without electricity, cars, or computers, but not without food.
