At the office during the broadcast of Young Quiz.
Laughter from the members didn’t stop.
“You came out so cute~”
“Stole the spotlight right from the start!”
“Going for the Dongmyo fashion was genius! Was that Director Bong’s idea?”
“It was Jiwoo’s decision.”
“Wow! As expected of our leader! Jiwoo is a genius!”
“Hehe…”
The Young Quiz episode featuring Kang Jiwoo was flawless.
Every scene was practically a highlight.
The quality was unbelievable considering it was put together in just a few days.
“The editing turned out really fun and well done.”
“It helps that our leader is so entertaining.”
“True. Even if they uploaded the unedited version, I would’ve watched it without noticing the time fly by.”
Suddenly, something came to mind.
The part of the shoot where I had the most fun talking – about my favorite Tanniping.
“But you know… Why didn’t the toy segment make it in?”
“Toy segment?”
“Yes… I talked about my favorite Tanniping… and even showed my Dolly, but it didn’t appear…”
Jiwoo seemed to have really been looking forward to that part.
Han Seoyoung probably requested for all the Tanniping content to be cut.
It wouldn’t look great for a presidential candidate to be seen promoting a particular animation.
“Haha. You must be pretty disappointed that the toy talk didn’t make it in.”
“Not that much… just a little…”
“You spoke so well that part probably got left out.”
Attorney Lee Soyeon comforted me.
I quickly felt better.
Once the broadcast ended, the office was filled with warmth.
Yoo Hangcheol played a small role in setting the atmosphere.
“CEO Yoo, did you get at least 10 minutes of screen time?”
“Felt like barely 5 minutes.”
“Hahaha. He came here so full of himself last time, and now his support ratings are caught up, and he got completely overshadowed on TV!”
Park Seokji laughed with satisfaction.
The other members reacted similarly.
Only Han Seoyoung looked worried.
“I’m glad our candidate got a lot of screen time, but I hope there won’t be any accusations of bias.”
“The broadcasting station will have to handle that.”
“We should be prepared, too, in case we get dragged into it.”
“How do you plan to handle it?”
“We’ll draft statements and distribute them to our spokespersons. We can’t embarrass ourselves by defending it poorly.”
This was Han Seoyoung’s strength.
She was preparing for things others didn’t think about.
“Well, let’s all head home and hit it hard again tomorrow.”
“Good work, everyone.”
The members began preparing to leave.
I stood by the office door, seeing everyone off.
“Goodbye~”
I bowed politely to each person leaving.
“Take care, Leader!”
The members smiled warmly and returned the greetings.
Some gave me high-fives or even hugs as they left.
There was one particularly expressive member.
“I love you, Leader!”
Wham!
Song Yeon, my administrative secretary, hugged me tightly.
“Umph…!”
Song Yeon was a young woman.
Even though I had become “Little Jiwoo,” deep physical contact with another woman was still a bit overwhelming.
“Kiss!”
Apparently, hugging wasn’t enough.
She tried to sneak in a kiss.
Swipe.
A hand slid between her lips and my cheek.
Looking up, I saw Han Seoyoung glaring coldly at Song Yeon.
“Over-the-top physical contact is forbidden. Don’t hug for so long, either.”
“But I live for moments like this! Hugging Jiwoo makes all my fatigue disappear, calms my mind, and floods me with happiness hormones!”
“You really are a dangerous person, Secretary Song. Now back off. Shooo…”
“Ugh…”
Reluctantly, Song Yeon let go and left, waving her hands energetically as she went.
“Bye-bye~”
I waved back until she disappeared.
Park Seokji then patted me on the head.
“Haha. Song’s got a point. These days, coming to the office and seeing you is what keeps us going. I never thought I’d be this happy after getting kicked out of the Republican Party.”
Ah, Representative Park.
I remember how persistent I had to be to bring him on board.
Back then, his face was always full of discontent.
Even I didn’t expect him to be this happy now.
“I’ll head out first. Don’t clean up too much. Get the staff to handle it tomorrow – you must be tired.”
“Yes, goodnight, Representative Park.”
“Grandpa, bye-bye~”
“Hohoho, goodbye~”
Park Seokji also left the office.
Now, it’s just me, Han Seoyoung… or so I thought,
“Ah! You scared me…! Bong soohee? You haven’t left yet?”
From a sofa in the corner, Bong Soohee rose like a zombie.
“I dozed off… Missed the broadcast…”
“No wonder I couldn’t find you.”
Bong Soohee has always been a heavy sleeper.
Since our university days, I’ve seen her asleep everywhere: in the lab, on the school bus, on the stairs, on the lawn…
Basically, if there’s a place to lay her head, she’ll sleep.
Recently, she seemed so exhausted that she’d often just doze off at random.
“Since we’re still here, want to grab dinner together?”
“Let’s go.”
“But I kind of want a hotdog…”
“Hotdogs are snacks, I’ll buy you one next time.”
“Okay…”
And so, we set off for dinner.
The menu was sushi, at a budget-friendly conveyor belt sushi place near the office.
As I sat down, I focused on the plates spinning round and round.
To Jiwooping’s eyes, the sight of the revolving plates was fascinating.
“Jiwooping, can you get me some water?”
“If I bring water, I’m Royal Jiwooping.”
“I am Royal Jiwooping…!”
The word “royal” made me instinctively move.
I went to grab the water jug and cups.
On my way back, something distracted me again.
It was because of the conversation from another table.
“Guess who was on Young Quiz today…”
That was about all I caught — just the word Young Quiz.
But suddenly, my feet moved on their own.
‘What the heck? Where are you going?’
Thud, thud.
Jiuping simply ignored my inner voice.
My steps led me to a table where a couple was sitting.
Naturally, they were complete strangers.
“Did you watch Young Quiz today?”
“Uh… what?”
The couple was startled by the sudden intrusion.
But no one was more shocked than…
‘What the heck are you doing?!!!’
…me!!!
What are you doing, Jiwooping?!
Are you seriously bragging about Young Quiz to total strangers?!!
This is so embarrassing!!!!!
“Young Quiz was so fun today. I just wanted to let you know…”
“Huh? Wait, aren’t you Kang Jiwoo?”
“Oh my gosh, it really is!”
The couple seemed to recognize me belatedly.
Even if I have a somewhat distinctive appearance, seeing someone in real life after only seeing them on screen can feel unfamiliar.
Moreover—
“You’re so much cuter in person!”
“Wow, you’re so pretty, I didn’t recognize you!”
There’s quite a gap between how I look on video and in real life.
“Young Quiz was so fun today~”
“Who are you voting for as president…?”
“Haha, obviously number 5~”
“Th-thank you…!”
After taking a photo with the couple, I returned to the table.
“Jiwooping, you left the water jug and cups there.”
“Ah… I forgot…”
I went back to the couple’s table to retrieve the water jug and cups.
Just as I was about to finally dig into my sushi, Han Seoyoung sighed while looking at her phone.
“Ha. This person is seriously too much…”
“Kim Shinbae?”
“How did you know?”
“Because I’m a genius and I know everything.”
“Sure, of course. I’m going to step out and make a call. I can’t trust myself to speak calmly right now.”
Han Seoyoung briefly left the table.
We started eating first.
“Um… that one!”
“Okay.”
Since my arms were short and it was hard to grab plates, I’d just point, and Bong Soohee would bring them to me.
“This one’s tamago sushi.”
“Tamago sushi~”
Nom nom.
“This is crab meat sushi.”
“Crab meat sushi~”
Nom nom.
“This one is flying fish roe sushi.”
“Flying fish roe suushii~”
Nom nom nom
What they were eating was mostly cheap sushi.
Still, Jiwoo Ping was extremely happy.
“It’s delicious…!”
This childish taste…
Can’t you try something like tuna at least?
“JiuwooPing, what should I pick for you next?”
‘Tuna! Tuna! Tuna! Please, fatty tuna belly!!!’
We’re here to eat sushi, so let’s at least have some tuna!
Preferably the fatty, oily one!
“Inari sushi!”
“Okay.”
Yeah, no chance~
But Jiwoo Ping still ate happily.
With a child’s body, even inari sushi felt like a special treat…
Well, anyway, as long as she enjoyed eating, that’s all that mattered.
“JiwooPing, but why aren’t you eating this?”
Bong Soohee pointed at something with her chopsticks.
It was a small dish with wasabi squeezed into it.
“I… don’t know what that is…”
“This? It’s really delicious.”
“Delicious…?”
“Yeah. It’s melon ice cream.”
Is this person…
Suddenly crazy?
Why are you doing this to me…?
What’s gotten into you?!
Without changing her characteristic blank expression, Bong Soohee picked up the wasabi with her chopsticks and ate it.
“It’s expensive and tasty, so you only get a little. I’m full anyway, so I’m giving it to you, JiwooPing…”
“Gasp… Thank you very much…!”
JiwooPing even bowed politely.
Then she scooped up the wasabi with her spoon and, without a hint of doubt, put it in her mouth.
“……”
“Melon ice cream? Is it good?”
“This… isn’t ice cream…”
“Hehe, sorry. Spit it out quickly.”
“Hng… Hooah… Kkeuaaaahhhng….”
In the end, tears burst out.
Honestly, the amount of wasabi squeezed wasn’t much, so it wasn’t too spicy.
The problem was the emotional damage.
“This… Director Ping…”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I said it was ice cream…”
“I trusted youuuu………….”
“Director Ping went too far.”
“Director Ping is meeaaan…”
“Khekhekhekhe”
Bong Soohee was holding back laughter.
And she was filming me getting tricked from the very beginning.
So this was a hidden camera prank!
Jiwwoo Ping’s sobs became even sadder at the realization.
Luckily, the commotion didn’t escalate.
“Since Director Ping was mean, I’ll buy you a hot dog.”
“Hot dog…?”
“Yeah, hot dog.”
At the mention of “hot dog,” the tears immediately stopped.
Hot dogs, scarier than a tiger!
Her mouth even twitched into a tiny smile.
Jiwooping!
How much do you love hot dogs, exactly?!
Just then, Han Seoyoung, who had returned, was startled.
“Candidate? Why were you crying?”
“Director Ping said this was ice cream, so I ate it…”
Understanding the situation, Han Seoyoung smacked Bong Soohee on the back.
“I can’t believe this! Sometimes it feels like I’m raising two kids!”
“It was funny though.”
“It’s not funny!”
“But we made up, Ping.”
Bong Soohee fiddled with her smartphone.
It seemed like she was about to upload the video to her SNS account.
This guy…
Did you seriously think about content even while eating?
‘As expected of a content monster…’
It was a moment that made me inwardly impressed.
Han Seoyoung, eating her meal late, said,
“I can’t wait for tomorrow.”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean, why? By tomorrow, our candidate will have climbed up to second place.”
That was exactly it.
My approval rating was skyrocketing.
If I could win over the middle-aged and elderly through the Young Quiz, I wouldn’t just surpass Yoo Hangcheol but also widen the gap further.
“If the approval rating flips, should we pay a visit to Yoo Hangcheol’s camp? Calling us ridiculous, amateurs, and out of touch with reality…”
“If he’s pushed down to third place, his expression will be priceless.”
“Right? Do you remember how arrogant he was in front of me before? Saying I was just dreaming about getting elected…”
“I can’t wait to flatten that ugly nose of his.”
I was curious too.
Yoo Hangcheol dropped to third place.
What kind of expression would he have when he looked at me?
The face of a political veteran who lost second place to a rookie—I couldn’t wait to see it.
However, Jiwooping seemed a little worried about something.
“But… if you flatten Candidate Ping’s nose, won’t it hurt?”
“I didn’t mean literally pressing it flat…”
Though pressing it for real would hurt, losing his approval rating would hurt him much more, don’t you think?