Chapter 19 – Time Has Passed – Part 2

Chapter 19 – Time Has Passed – Part 2

* * *

Woojin was among the new students sitting in the large Auditorium.

Of course, there were also many parents of new students.

They were looking at their children with pride.

Putting aside the competition rate, their child had been admitted to a renowned University in the Republic of Korea, so they couldn’t help but be happy.

It was also a place where talented students from all over the country, who excelled in their studies, gathered.

The new students’ eyes were sparkling, and their faces clearly showed their anticipation and excitement for the future.

Woojin looked at the new students and slowly nodded his head.

Indeed, ordinariness was a good thing.

The Entrance Ceremony ended, and Woojin stood between his Mom and Dad, holding flowers.

As the fresh scent of the flowers tickled Woojin’s nose,

“Alright, I’m taking the picture. One~ Two~.”

The photographer, who had been counting, spoke again.

It was because of Woojin’s blunt expression.

“Student, you should smile on such a nice day! Come on, try to follow me. Smile~.”

Woojin’s lips curved gently upward.

“One, Two~ Three!”

Click!

The photo of Woojin and his parents spun clockwise, as if looking at a screen.

And it was hung in a frame in Woojin’s house.

Time had flown by, and the new semester had begun.

Woojin, who woke up early in the morning, nodded as he looked at his attire in the mirror.

“Ordinary.”

He wore ripped jeans, a red top, and a varsity jacket over it.

Woojin put his book in his bag and came out to the living room.

“I’m leaving.”

His mother adjusted Woojin’s clothes and smiled.

“My brilliant son! Make lots of friends and have a good day.”

Woojin said the words he always said habitually when leaving the house.

Though it was nothing special to others.

“Yes. I’ll be back.”

Woojin immediately boarded the bus at the bus stop near his house. And then he had to take the school shuttle bus once more.

The bus was already packed with people like Manseok.

There were many office workers and students, and they kept glancing at Woojin’s varsity jacket and face.

Woojin, who already felt people’s gazes a bit more, received even more attention because of the S University varsity jacket.

Woojin quickly took off his varsity jacket and crumpled it into his bag.

‘The varsity jacket must be strange.’

After driving for 20 minutes, I was able to transfer to a shuttle bus and arrive at the University.

I walked around and looked at my surroundings.

There were many people, and I occasionally saw foreigners.

Woojin, who was walking, stopped and looked at the bulletin board.

There were various announcements and……

[Mock Stock Investment Competition! Anyone who is a university student can participate……]

The first-place prize money was 3 million won, and it also stated that scholarships would be provided.

Woojin, who was used to always looking at everything in a non-one-dimensional way, slowly nodded his head.

The purpose of hosting such a competition was clear.

When I need to concentrate, I will be disturbed.

Indeed, there is no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

Woojin, who had been looking at the bulletin board, soon went to the lecture hall.

Even though he arrived early, the front seats were all taken, and those who couldn’t get a front seat looked disappointed.

Conversely, Woojin was satisfied.

‘It’s normal to sit in the middle.’

Just as Woojin was about to sit down, a freshman approached him.

“You’re Woojin, right? I’m Park Jongwook, nice to meet you.”

There was a group chat room.

Woojin was also in it, but he only introduced himself and didn’t talk much.

Park Jongwook was 20 years old and had an intelligent aura that suited his black-rimmed glasses well.

Woojin opened his mouth.

“Nice to meet you, let’s get along well.”

As a sentence that seemed to come straight out of a Korean textbook flowed from Woojin’s mouth, Park Jongwook instinctively let out a hollow laugh.

“Alright. You know there’s a gathering after class today, right? Oh, Songhee? You came early?”

Park Jongwook approached someone else, and Woojin exchanged greetings with the person approaching him.

All the freshmen who had spoken to Woojin felt the same way.

He was handsome, but somehow, he was like Youngsoo or Cheolsoo torn from a Korean textbook.

It wasn’t his accent, but the sentences he spoke that made it so.

Gradually, the freshmen started to gather and talk, and then it was time for the lecture.

The first class was Introduction to Business Administration.

When the professor entered, the lecture hall instantly fell silent.

“Nice to meet you all…”

Before the class, the professor introduced himself and explained the direction of the class progress.

“Introduction to Business Administration, management. What do you all think management is?”

No one answered the professor’s question.

So the professor looked at a student and asked.

“What do you think it is?

“Uh… isn’t it the way to lead a company?”

As the student spoke shyly, the professor smiled and nodded.

“That’s a good point.”

The professor pointed to another person.

“What do you think?”

“I think it’s managing and operating a business.”

“That’s also a good point. So, what should a manager be good at?”

“I think they should be good at personnel management.”

The professor nodded and asked another student.

The woman who was pointed at replied, her face as red as a beet.

“I think they should be good at planning and giving instructions.”

This time, the professor looked at Woojin. His smile was deeper than before.

“So, what does our Perfect CSAT Scorer think?”

The students’ eyes widened.

The CSAT, which had the worst difficulty level ever.

Only three perfect scores came out, and one of them is sitting here.

Their eyes, looking at Woojin, were asking.

Why he hadn’t said anything.

Woojin, with a calm expression contrary to their surprised faces, replied to the Professor’s words.

“I think one must be good at temptation.”

The students blinked.

They were talking about a business executive, and suddenly temptation?

The Professor crossed his arms and asked back.

“Temptation?”

“Yes.”

“What do you mean?”

In Woojin’s mind, the content of the Mock Stock Investment Competition he had seen on the Bulletin Board flashed by in an instant.

It seemed appropriate to use that as an example.

“I saw that a Securities Company is holding a Mock Stock Investment Competition. People imagine the prize money and are driven by a desire for a challenge, but conversely, it can also be said that it’s a kind of temptation designed by the Securities Company. It’s a method to find someone who is proficient in stocks from the very beginning. If you get first or second place, the Securities Company creates a connection with the first and second place winners of the mock investment, in the form of support and scholarships, so that they can later be enticed to join their company…”

The students’ mouths gradually fell open, and a pleasant sound flowed from the smiling Professor’s mouth.

“Wow…”

“When we watch advertisements, our brains enter a state of semi-hypnosis. Business executives utilize this very well. I want to buy, I want to go, I want to have. I want to give it as a gift. Or make people want to eat it, and this is called marketing…”

The Professor, listening to Woojin, rubbed his forearm. He looked quite pleased.

On the other hand, the students felt like their heads were spinning.

It was like being an actor…

“From a macroeconomic perspective, I believe this vast society that has achieved civilization is fundamentally composed of temptation.”

Silence was the perfect word for the current situation.

Not a single breath could be heard.

But Woojin broke that quiet silence.

“Professor, when will you be holding class?”

He wanted to take the Ordinarily lecture soon.