SOLIRF~15

Chapter 15

PT

The Sales Department was busier than ever, with the launch of their new product just around the corner.

The senior, who was used to the hectic atmosphere, knew it must be tough for the newcomers who had joined only a few months ago. To help them recharge a bit, he’d even bought some cookies to share.

But when he saw the state of one of the rookies, he realized cookies wouldn’t come close to solving this.

“Nicolas, what’s with your face? Are you okay?”

The young man’s eyes were bloodshot, his expression hollow—almost unsettling. The senior tilted his head, confused.

“Did you… not go home last night?”

Nicolas shook his head. Apparently, he had gone home briefly to wash up before coming back.

But what kind of rookie stayed up all night working?

“Did something happen while I was gone? Did someone make you do overtime? It’s okay, you can tell me.”

Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. But when he heard the full story, the senior couldn’t help swallowing hard.

This kid… did all that?

To follow upper management’s orders, Nicolas had spent the entire night brainstorming and preparing with friends from other departments. The problem was that the team leader’s demands had been unrelenting.

“It… it was hell…”

It was the first time the senior had ever seen cheerful, optimistic Nicolas say something like that.

Just how bad was it? And what are they even preparing?

Curiosity mixed with shame.

Even the rookie is putting in this much effort, yet I still have such a long way to go.

Determined, the senior resolved to learn from Nicolas’s dedication.

His new subordinate was truly admirable—and, honestly, kind of cute with his chubby cheeks and short hair. He couldn’t help but wonder what exactly Nicholas had been working on.



I visited the headquarters’ store for an on-site inspection, to confirm where the cosmetics would be displayed.

Everyone looked completely drained.

Turning a digital presentation into a physical one was no easy feat.

I had to sort and organize data by hand, draw graphs, and cut out or sketch images for clarity. Any mistake, even a typo, meant throwing away the page and starting over.

If a magical eraser ever goes on sale, I’ll buy it no matter how expensive it is.

That’s how exasperating the process was.

Even though I’d trimmed the contents as much as possible, making the presentation both neat and visually appealing was grueling. Near the end, I thought I heard Pinea call me a demon—but I was too tired to be sure.

Still, I’m glad it’s finally done.

When I carefully mentioned to Senior Yul that I had a proposal I’d like to share, he agreed to let me attend the afternoon meeting. It must’ve helped that the “mystery customer” plan had been well received earlier.

It’s been a while since I last did this. I’m a little nervous.

Back in my previous world, I used to make endless reports and proposals—most of which failed. But today’s presentation was one I couldn’t afford to mess up.



“Coco! We’re in trouble!”

When I returned to the management department after the inspection, Nicholas and Phinea were pale as ghosts.

“Our presentation materials are gone!”

“What?”

Pinea’s voice trembled, on the verge of tears.

“I placed the final version on my desk to double-check before the meeting, but it vanished while I went to call Nicolas! I searched everywhere—it’s completely gone!”

I immediately glanced at the wall clock. Only one hour left until the meeting.

Who the hell would do this…?

Gemini’s earlier warning echoed in my head—about a department that had been “wiped clean.” But there was no time to start over from scratch.

“Should we postpone the presentation?”

I shook my head at Pinea’s hesitant suggestion.

“That excuse won’t fly. It’s already generous that they even agreed to hear out newbies like us. If we don’t present today, they’ll probably just go with the old plan you mentioned before.”

And in times as tense as these, failing to present on schedule could easily mean packing our things and being sent home.

“Then what should we do?”

Nicolas fidgeted anxiously. I closed my eyes, took a slow breath, and calmed myself. Even thinking too long was a luxury.

“We’ll redo it.”

“Redo it?!”

Even if it was just a summarized version, we had to present something.

“You still remember the content, right? We worked on it all night. I’ll divide the sections. Let’s write just enough for the key points.”

My head throbbed, but I couldn’t show weakness—not after these two had helped so much. And after pouring days of effort into this, I wasn’t about to let it all go to waste.

“W-wait, guys!”

Just as I was assigning tasks, Gemini burst into the room, holding a bundle of papers.

“T-this…”

Half-burned, but unmistakable—it was our handmade presentation.

“I-I found it in the incinerator!” he gasped between breaths.

“Senior, how—?”

I stared at him, suspicious. He flinched but explained carefully.

“B-Bator was carrying something suspicious, so I followed him. He’s been too quiet lately—it made me uneasy. Then I saw him toss this into the incinerator. It looked like your report, so I pulled it out right away…”

There really is justice in the world.

“Thank you, Senior. I’ll repay this debt someday.”

“Pinea, the top section isn’t burned. Copy it onto a new sheet. Nicolas, cut out and reattach any images that are still usable. I’ll rewrite the bottom section.”

“I-I’ll help too!” Gemini offered.

Even a cat’s paw would be useful right now.

“Thank you, Senior. Please!”

“Mm!”

At this point, I was determined to get that bonus—no matter what.



“All set?”

Senior Yul patted my shoulder encouragingly. “Relax. You’ll do great.”

“Coco, good luck!”

“Coco, you’ve got this! We’ll be waiting!”

Pinea and Nicolas, who couldn’t enter the meeting room, waved from behind. I nodded silently.

I won’t let your hard work go to waste.

With resolve, I opened the meeting room door—and froze.

What… is this?

Every major figure was present—the Deputy Chairman, the department heads, even the senior executives.

I quickly turned to Yul.

“Senior, wasn’t I supposed to present just to our department?” I whispered.

But the reply came from elsewhere.

“I called them.”

It was the Deputy Chairman. He rubbed his thick beard and said, “I heard something interesting. That three rookies pulled an all-nighter preparing this presentation—and that one of them was behind the ‘Mystery Customer’ idea.”

Wait—wasn’t this supposed to be under our manager’s name? Why are they mentioning me?

“Don’t scare the poor girl, Deputy,” the Chairman chuckled. “We’ve heard plenty of proposals before, but we’re curious to see what the newcomers think. Don’t be nervous—just speak comfortably.”

Comfortably? When the Chairman himself is here?

Still, this might actually work to my advantage. If I could win him over, everything else would follow smoothly.

I took a deep breath and began.

“Then, I’ll present our new cosmetic brand launch plan.”

I placed the large presentation board beside me and started turning the pages one by one.

“This isn’t Daijo’s first attempt at cosmetics. Four years ago, we tried—but due to poor sales, the project was discontinued.”

The executives’ faces immediately hardened at the unpleasant reminder.

“I analyzed the reasons through market research. The issue was Daijo’s strong image as a household goods company—it couldn’t convey the allure or fantasy that cosmetics require.”

In this world, cosmetics were considered luxuries, purchased mainly by noble or wealthy women.

I showed graphs and data illustrating unclear target demographics and designs that didn’t appeal to female consumers, listing each flaw in detail. The executives’ expressions soured even more.

“There’s no need to publicly criticize a failed project,” one of them grumbled.

I smiled softly.

“I didn’t bring it up to criticize. I just wanted to show that even though we failed, the past effort wasn’t wasted.”

A few chuckles escaped around the table, and the tension eased.

“By improving on what we learned, I believe we have a real chance this time. I propose creating a separate cosmetics brand targeting women in their teens and twenties, with designs tailored specifically to that market.”

But I wasn’t done yet. The Chairman’s sharp gaze urged me to continue.

If I hesitate, he’ll cut me off immediately.

“However, no matter how good a product is, if its value isn’t communicated, it can’t succeed. I personally tested Daijo’s cosmetics, and their quality was excellent—fine texture, beautiful color payoff, minimal powder scatter.”

“Then what’s the solution?” someone asked.

“As mentioned earlier, the key is to let consumers see the fantasy through our products.”

“And how exactly do you plan to do that?”

Ignoring the skeptical tone, I calmly flipped to the next board—revealing an illustration of a shop in elegant black and pink hues.

“A pop-up store.”

The room fell silent.

It was something that had never been done before in this world.

A pop-up store.