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Chapter 8
-Then I’ll see you in Seongnam on Friday evening~
Since I wasn’t even a professional photographer, I was worried that she might react coldly to my proposal. Surprisingly, however, the model was quite receptive.
After searching online about how this kind of work was usually done, I found that most models were apparently desperate for work. Well, I had heard several times that making a living in this industry wasn’t easy.
So, on Friday, we agreed to meet in the Seongnam area where the model lived. As it happened, she also knew of a cheap studio nearby, which was good news for me since I hadn’t even thought about renting a studio.
‘The photo book is taken care of for now.’
I still couldn’t think of a suitable program to make. The hardest part was having to distribute it and earn money through donations. If it were simply a programming commission, I could do jobs worth around 500,000 to 1 million won, which was much cheaper than the average market price. But getting people to voluntarily donate money was a completely different matter.
‘Let’s deal with the gardening first.’
I would keep thinking about what kind of program to make. For now, during lunch, I went to find Ms. Cha and asked if there were any other people looking for someone to take care of their plants.
“There haven’t been any more people asking me to introduce them to you or look after their plants… Are you trying to make some pocket money from this?”
“Yeah, something like that.”
Ms. Cha glanced at the lush vegetable garden and then spoke to me.
“You’re certainly very good at this, so I’m sure I could find people if I tried… But there are a few things that bother me.”
“Like what?”
“Money is changing hands, after all. That could lead to some unpleasant situations. The other person might not pay you in full, for example. And cash transactions like this aren’t allowed on the site.”
I hadn’t thought about that problem.
“Why don’t you grow plants yourself and sell them instead? I already promised to give you one leaf of my Monster Albera anyway, didn’t I?”
“Ah!”
Come to think of it, I had completely forgotten that I was supposed to receive one leaf of the Monster Albera. If you took good care of it, a single leaf could eventually become as many as eight or nine leaves.
“But don’t get your hopes up too much.”
“Why?”
Did she think I wouldn’t be able to grow enough leaves? But what Ms. Cha said was much more shocking.
“The reason Monster Albera is expensive is because imports are banned. But lately, there’s been talk that the government might allow imports again.”
Ms. Cha let out a deep sigh.
“I paid 1.2 million won for mine too. I know you shouldn’t think of plants as money… but if you do, the price will probably fall to one-tenth within a year. That’s what everyone is saying.”
“Ah…”
That was quite disappointing.
“Wouldn’t it be possible to sell it quickly, at least?”
“The price has probably already fallen quite a bit. People are very sensitive to rumors like this.”
Well, no one knew exactly when it would happen, but if the plant was supposedly going to become easily available soon, how many people would want to buy it at a high price right now?
“Still, I promised, so I’ll give you one leaf. Don’t worry about the money and just grow it. It’ll be good for you in many ways. They’re really pretty plants.”
It couldn’t be helped, even if it was disappointing. I decided to receive one Albera leaf the following week, and I also asked Ms. Cha to let me know if anyone else contacted her about a plant that needed to be cared for.
After work, while heading home, I searched on my phone for plants that could make me money.
-‘Earn 20 million won a month through plant investment…’
-‘Raise foliage plants well and earn an annual salary of 200 million won…’
-‘Young people are flocking to this new type of investment…’
Every headline was positive. But when I actually checked the articles, most of them were from four years ago, around the time plant investment had briefly become popular.
‘Recent articles…’
Recent posts about plant investment were almost impossible to find. Even the AI said:
‘The prices of rare plants that once skyrocketed have recently been declining, so approaching them as an investment requires caution.’
‘Is it already over?’
Of course, that didn’t mean there was absolutely no opportunity. Despite the rumors, Monster Albera was still fairly expensive. There were also plants that could be imported but were difficult to grow because they didn’t suit Korea’s climate, and those still commanded high prices.
‘Klee Nerut.’
The one that caught my attention was a strange cactus called Klee Nerut. It looked similar to a Christmas cactus, but apparently it was difficult to grow because it only bloomed in extremely dry environments.
A single segment of the plant cost around 150,000 won. Since people usually cut and sell two or three segments at a time, the expected profit would be around 400,000 to 500,000 won.
‘There are four stems growing in one pot. If I cut three segments from two of them…’
I’d make at least 600,000 won.
Not bad.
However, starting right away would be difficult. If the selling price was 600,000 won, that meant I’d have to spend around that much to buy one in the first place. On top of that, I could currently manage only two pots at a time. Once I received the Foxtail Orchid and the Monster Albera, both slots would be full.
‘Let’s take it step by step.’
I’d made up my mind.
First, I would successfully revive the Foxtail Orchid and return it next week, then collect the remaining 300,000 won.
Once I received the Albera leaf the following week, I’d grow it well and start selling it.
Returning the Foxtail Orchid would complete the quest, and I’d probably get another increase to my maximum number of pots as a reward.
Then, leaving one slot open, I’d buy a Klee Nerut.
‘Once the plants start growing new stems one by one…’
Those stems would become my source of income.
Friday arrived, and I still hadn’t found an answer for the programming quest.
Instead of going straight home after work, I took a bus to Seongnam.
The model I was supposed to meet went by the name ‘AIZA,’ which seemed to be pronounced Aiza in Korean.
‘Her followers call her Aijjang.’
That was way too embarrassing for me to say.
She mainly seemed to do game-related cosplay. She wasn’t particularly tall, and she didn’t have the enormous chest that female characters in games often had, but her figure was extremely graceful and had an alluring quality that drew you in.
Apparently, she knew that about herself, because she mainly chose cosplays that showed a lot of her sides or legs. She generally kept the exposure fairly restrained. When she did reveal some skin, rather than making an obvious sexual appeal by emphasizing her breasts or buttocks, she focused more on the natural lines of her body.
‘Not bad.’
That was the biggest reason I had contacted her.
I didn’t want to photograph a model who blatantly exposed an enormous chest while only covering the most important parts. I was a man, so of course I liked that kind of thing, but as a subject for my photo book, it wasn’t really my thing.
Vroooom-
I stood in front of the building where we had agreed to meet and waited for her. Then my phone rang.
‘Come to think of it, we don’t even know each other’s phone numbers.’
We had only been communicating through social media messages, so there had never been a reason to exchange them.
-Where are you? I’m here.
-I’m also in front of the building you mentioned.
-Ah~ I’m on the first floor, so I’ll come out now. Which exit are you at?
-The exit near the coffee shop.
Since we’d be working together, I figured we’d exchange phone numbers today.
“Hello…?”
Just as I was thinking that, I heard a familiar woman’s voice behind me.
“Huh…?”
“What!?”
The moment I turned around, our eyes met.
Two pairs of eyes widened in shock.
The so-called ‘Aijjang,’ the cosplay model I had arranged to meet, was…
“Yoo Ji-a!?”
“Why are you here!?”
Yoo Ji-a.
“This makes no sense… Why are you…?”
“I can’t believe it either. Wait, Yoo Ji-a does cosplay?”
It was still hard to believe, but it was reality.
The cosplay model I had contacted was my high school classmate, Yoo Ji-a, the person I’d been getting tangled up with quite often lately.
“I seriously never imagined this.”
“Why did it have to be you? Of all people…”
It felt awkward just standing there in shock, so we went into the coffee shop right next to us.
Ji-a sat across from me, looking completely dazed as she slowly sipped through her straw.
“You have a hobby like that? Do you participate in cosplay competitions or something?”
“I-I haven’t gone as far as competitions! I kept it completely hidden from everyone else… How did you find out…?”
“No, there’s a misunderstanding. I didn’t approach you because I knew you were the model.”
“Really…?”
Ji-a still looked suspiciously at me.
I understood why she couldn’t easily believe me. What were the chances of such a ridiculous coincidence happening?
“Whew… You really contacted me without knowing?”
“I seriously had no idea.”
“So this is all just a complete coincidence?”
Ji-a let out a deep sigh.
“What kind of ridiculous coincidence is this…? Should I buy a lottery ticket or something?”
Apparently, she wasn’t happy about the situation at all.
Well, who would have expected someone with her personality to have cosplay as a hobby?
It would probably be better to give up on this project.
“You want to make a photo book of me?”
“Huh? Well… I did.”
“Why are you speaking in the past tense?”
“If you’re that uncomfortable with it, how could I take your pictures?”
Ji-a looked slightly surprised, as if she hadn’t expected that answer. Then she narrowed her eyes and looked at me.
“Do you… want to photograph me?”
“I do, but you don’t want to.”
“I-I didn’t exactly say I didn’t want to…”
Then what had that attitude been about until now?
“Why did you choose me?”
“Because I just liked the feeling you gave off.”
“Don’t dodge the question. Give me a proper answer. It’s… important to me.”
She seemed to want an honest answer.
I thought for a moment before replying seriously.
“I’m not a professional photographer, but from the perspective of someone taking photographs, you had everything I was looking for in a model.”
“O-Oh… I see…”
Ji-a’s face turned slightly red.
Well, that was a pretty direct compliment.
“First of all, your body lines are very graceful as a model. I looked at several of your photos, and every single one had an elegant flow to it.”
“My… body lines…”
“Your face was hard to recognize because of the makeup, but you looked pretty in the photos. If the goal is to sell the photo book, that’s a huge advantage.”
I had to admit it.
Ji-a had a pretty aggressive personality, but she was extremely beautiful.
“More importantly, your photos seemed to keep the exposure restrained as much as possible while still staying within a reasonable limit.”
“Well, I’m not planning to strip down and take pictures.”
“I actually think covering things up appropriately is more attractive. Your photos matched my values in that regard, and that’s why I wanted to photograph you.”
When people heard that I had been part of the school sports team, they were usually a little surprised. They probably assumed athletes weren’t good with words.
But look at Ji-a.
Her face was bright red, she was embarrassed, and yet she looked happy.
‘This might actually work.’
“Hm… Fine! You’re approved!”
“I’m the one doing the hiring, though.”
“Hmm, that’s true. Then I’ll just say I passed!”
With that, Ji-a gave me a bright grin.
“Let’s go, Photographer! I’ll show you the studio!”
The studio in Seongnam that Ji-a usually used was quite simple.
It was a small space with only a few props, but perhaps because of that, the price was only 30,000 won per hour.
After looking around the studio together, we headed home.
Ji-a seemed slightly excited on the way back. As someone who did cosplay, she seemed quite happy that someone actually wanted to photograph her.
“Come to think of it, you live in my neighborhood. Why did you say you lived in Seongnam?”
“There are quite a few guys who approach me like this to find out my address. Some send weird photos, and there are even crazy guys who offer to pay me if I let them touch me somewhere.”
“Ah~ I guess that makes sense. There are a lot of weirdos on the internet.”
While we were chatting, we eventually arrived in front of her home.
In the slightly awkward atmosphere, Ji-a lightly clenched her fist and tapped me on the chest.
“Since things have turned out this way, I hope we get along.”
“Likewise.”
“Take pretty pictures of me. If I come out ugly, I won’t forgive you.”
Leaving me with that warning, she quickly slipped inside the apartment entrance.
