– Hello?
“Hello, Esteemed Client Yu Mia.
This is Meracle.” – Ah, yes.
Hello.
“I’m calling because you have one trial session for Meracle’s styling service, but you haven’t used it yet.
The deadline is today-.” – Until today?
Oh, then I’ll go!
Is it possible to come right now?
“Yes, it’s possible.
It usually takes about 30 minutes.” – I’ll be right there!
The call ended.
I finished a cigarette and returned to the office.
Kim Yang and Lenea were looking at pictures of men and talking.
“Hey, what about this one?” “He’s handsome, but he looks like a bit of a jerk.” “This one?” “Just big and he even has a tattoo?
Ugh, not my type.” “…Grandmother is picky.”
That startled me.
I was worried she might have shown her the client list.
Fortunately, it wasn’t that; it was Kim Yang’s SNS followers.
“Hey, Kim Yang, Ms.
Yu Mia is coming over right now.
Set her up with a style that matches Mr.
Kang-ho’s.” “Yes, yes.
Boss.”
Kim Yang began her preparations.
As I sat down, Lenea frowned.
“I’m a client too, you know?” “You haven’t paid yet.” “…” “Would you like to do it now?
Shall I introduce you to the membership system?”
Perfect.
If she pays right now, then I’ll acknowledge it.
“Ahem!” “…” “I need to be able to trust a company that tries to make me the 127th wife of some prince of a remote region.” “No, Esteemed Client.
You need to be good at self-objectification.
I’m telling you, I have a good eye for people in this line of work.”
An elf?
She’s pretty, that’s true.
Personality?
If you talk to her, it’s not like she’s that prickly either.
Profession?
If she was an Elf Queen, she could probably do anything.
But her age.
1,901 years old.
This is really not it.
“There’s a reason elves are poorly rated in the market, you know?
There are even people who say they’d rather have an orc than an elf.” “Ah, stop lying!
How dare you compare I to some simple, ignorant orc!” “Ha, this is ridiculous.”
She hasn’t seen what orcs are like these days, has she?
“Wait a moment.”
I immediately looked up our orc client’s SNS on my phone.
“Hah, honestly.
I’m (archaic female) the one who’s truly dumbfounded.
You’re spouting nonsense.” “I get it, just wait a second.” “An orc, I tell you, an orc!
How dare you compare a noble elf to an orc?
Since ancient times, the standard of beauty has been the elf!
The standard of ugliness, the orc!
You don’t know anything-.” “Don’t talk about 1,900 years ago.”
She had just uploaded a post saying she finished her workout for the day.
“This person is one of our clients.
She’s 26 years old.
Someone who received an A-Rank for her looks and figure.”
The moment I held out the phone to show her, Lenea’s eyes widened as if they would pop out.
“N-No way…
This is an orc?”
“See?
This is what the marriage market is like these days.
Do you think you can compete with and win against a 26-year-old orc like this?” “…”
Her lips were tightly sealed.
Seeing her tremble made me feel unnecessarily sorry.
“So get a grip-.” “Waaaaaah!” “W-Wait a minute?!”
Lenea ran outside crying.
“Ah, no.
I didn’t mean to hurt her like this.” “Boss, you’re trash.” “What could I do?
It’s reality.
To compete in the marriage market, the most important thing is self-objectification!”
Even as I say it, I do feel a little sorry.
Just then, Ms.
Yu Mia peeked through the door that Lenea had left open.
“Oh, President?
Is something wrong?” “No, no, it’s nothing at all.
Please come in and have a seat.”
I may feel sorry for the Elf Queen, but our paying client comes first.
…Since I feel bad, I should treat her a little better when she comes back next time.
*
A few days later.
Hunter Yi Kang-ho returned.
‘Why does he have that expression.’
An ominous feeling started to creep up.
“Ahem, Mr.
Kang-ho.
Is something wrong?
How are things with Ms.
Mia?
Is it going well?
The two of you seemed to really suit each other.”
As I tentatively probed, Hunter Yi Kang-ho covered his face and let out a troubled sigh.
“I think I got dumped.”
No, they broke up even after I gave him the full styling treatment?
“I can’t get in touch with Ms.
Mia.” “You can’t get in touch with her?” “Yes!
No, the atmosphere was great and we even planned for a second date!
But suddenly I can’t reach her!”
Yi Kang-ho shot up and grabbed my hand.
“President!
P-Please!
Can you contact Ms.
Mia for me?
Did I do something she didn’t like?!” “Of course.
I’ll try contacting her first.”
I stepped outside for a moment and called Yu Mia.
After a long ringtone, it went to voicemail.
“…She’s not picking up?”
I send a text.
She doesn’t read it.
‘This is strange.’
Yu Mia definitely had a good impression of Yi Kang-ho.
Just a few days ago, her voice was full of excitement.
A sudden loss of contact?
‘This atmosphere is getting chilly.’
It seems this isn’t a simple case of being dumped.