Why is it always so fun when Usami Chisako’s involved?

‘Donghu-senpai is the best!’

Every day had been a joy recently for Chisako.
After all, she could spend time—albeit virtually—with the senior she admired so much.

It wasn’t a physical closeness.

‘Though I really wish it were.’

Still, being in the same space, exchanging messages, and working together in some capacity felt like a huge step forward.
Before, they had simply been celebrity and fan.
Now, it was closer to celebrity and the colleague’s daughter.
Their “eye level” had definitely shifted, if only slightly.

‘I need to become a voice actor quickly so I can do all sorts of things with Donghu-senpai.’

She imagined scenarios—working on dubbing projects like her father,
or even getting invited to one of his future concerts.
To make that a reality, though, she needed professional accomplishments of her own.

‘Donghu-senpai is someone who keeps work and personal life completely separate.’

Frankly, Chisako had never met anyone so strict about compartmentalizing their private and professional worlds.
Most people would at least acknowledge her as part of the Usami family.
But Donghu didn’t care about such things.

Personal messages from him were exceedingly rare,
and even when they did come, she had to initiate them first.

This was a first for Chisako.

‘I mean… I’m cute and pretty, aren’t I?’

This wasn’t just her opinion—it was an objective fact.

Her makeup emphasized natural charm and cuteness,
with see-through bangs for added sweetness, and long, silky black hair.

‘It’s even more attractive because it’s black.’

Back in middle school, this exact style had won her countless love letters.
Not that any of them mattered.
Most confessions felt like attacks, and she’d turned them all down.

The important part was that her look worked. It captivated people 100% of the time.
And yet… the one person she wanted to captivate showed no reaction at all.

‘Why? How come?’

After a brief moment of thought, the answer became clear.

‘There are too many beautiful women around him!’

Simply dazzling someone with her looks wasn’t enough.
Kim Donghu was surrounded by stunning women—all the time.

The biggest competition at the moment? Kim Sujin.

‘Sujin-senpai… She works with him on projects, goes on variety shows with him…’

And her signature tsundere twin-tails? Unreal.
It was like Sujin had stepped right out of a romance anime heroine role.

‘And that’s just the start of the problem.’

Then there were Ryu Jaerin and Shin Yerin—Donghu’s peers and fellow rising stars.
Chisako considered all of them rivals.

But—

‘I want to get close to him too!’

She couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.
Chisako decided to actively seize the opportunity she’d been given.

She had a plan.

Operation: “Heartbeat Maid”

 

 

The Day of the “Date.”

I stood waiting in a hoodie, cap, sunglasses, and a mask.

‘People are starting to recognize me here in Japan too.’

Whether it was thanks to Twitter or The Noble Gourmet,
my popularity had skyrocketed, and disguises had become mandatory.

‘Sure, most people still don’t know me, but once one person notices, everyone crowds around.’

Having dealt with that in Korea plenty of times, I was already used to it.

‘Anyway, the meetup time is almost here. What are we doing today?’

I’d asked Chisako what we were going to do, but her reply was—

Secret! It wouldn’t be fun if you knew ahead of time!

Clearly, she had something special planned.
But what, exactly? I had no clue.

Then—

Tap.

“Come to the maid café.”

I heard a familiar voice and a strange sentence from behind me.

“...Chisako?”
“Yes, it’s Usami Chisako!”

Her outfit, though, was… unique.

No, “unique” wasn’t the word.
It was perfectly tailored to fit Japanese subculture.

She was wearing a maid outfit.

When people think of Japan, they think of subculture, and when they think of subculture, they think of maids.
By that logic, it seemed Chisako had dressed up to match the theme.

‘Yeah, okay. This makes sense as a secret plan.’

I muttered lightly and replied,
“How far is it? If it’s too far, I’m not so sure…”
“Eh? A-ah… W-we have to walk a little… Do you not want to go?”
“I’m joking. I’m joking. Lead the way, please.”
“Y-yes! Right this way!”

What was it in my words that made her panic just now?
I set the thought aside as Chisako started walking ahead, leading me to our destination.

Eventually, we arrived at a small café tucked away in an alley.

“Ta-da!”

Chisako struck a pose with a playful “sound effect.”
And then, simultaneously—

“Welcome home, Master!”

I froze.

‘Am I… actually hearing this?’

Honestly, maid cafés had always piqued my curiosity.
But at the same time, the indescribable embarrassment of visiting one had always held me back.

‘And it’s not like I’d come here personally anyway.’

Now that I was actually here, though, my emotions were a mix of joy and awkwardness.
Happiness and embarrassment swirled together.

As I tried to compose myself—

“Don’t worry! I rented out the entire café today!”

Those words brought me back to reality.

“Wait… you rented it out?”

Even for a small café, renting out an entire space couldn’t have been cheap.

‘Come to think of it, there really isn’t anyone else here.’

The blend of fantasy and realism in this moment was striking.
So this is what it meant to be part of the Usami family.

“Please, take a seat, Master.”
“...Do you really have to call me that?”
“Yes! This is a maid café, after all!”
“Ah, well… that’s true.”

This was bizarre.

‘Why do things like this always happen when I come to Japan?’

Is it because Japan is the land of light novels? The heart of subculture?
The rom-com scenario unfolding in front of me left me stunned.

“Still, I’m glad you’re enjoying it, Senpai!”
“Huh? What? Uh… yeah?”
“Don’t pretend otherwise! You’re smiling so much right now, Senpai.”

Was I?

Was I really smiling?

‘But how could I not?’

Maid cafés are secretly a dream for a lot of people.
You act embarrassed, but once you’re there, you actually enjoy yourself.

I couldn’t help but want to defend myself.

“Would you like to try some omurice?”
“Oh? Uh… sure.”
“How should I draw the ketchup design?”
“Uhh… a rabbit?”
“Usami, then?”
“Yeah, uh—wait, no… Um, yeah. A rabbit, please…”

Even as she carefully drew the design with ketchup—

“Do you know the magic spell?”
“Magic spell?”
“Yes!”
“‘Become delicious, become delicious, moe-moe-kyun?’”
“You have to say it too!”
“...I do?”
“Yes!”

And even when she tried to feed me the first bite—

“Normally, I’m supposed to feed you the first bite. Is that okay?”
“Huh? Wha—uh, huh?”
“Senpai—no, Master, say ahh~.”
“Ah…?”

Even as the neatly shaped omurice entered my mouth,
I desperately defended myself internally.

This was strictly a “bonding moment with a junior.”
Time spent with a colleague’s daughter in a casual setting.
I had to think of it that way to maintain my sanity.

“Finally, let’s take a cheki! A photo! Any poses you want?”
“Uh… I don’t know. What’s the most standard one?”
“What about matching hand-hearts?”
“Oh… sure. That works.”

Did it, though?
Honestly, I was enjoying myself far too much to care.

How else could three hours pass so quickly?
Chisako’s meticulous preparation ensured everything went perfectly.
The camera clicked, spitting out four Polaroid photos.

We split them, taking two each.

‘Yeah, no one can ever see this.’

That instinct was undeniable.
It wasn’t a matter of not wanting people to see it—

‘This just cannot get out.’

Looking at the happy person in the photo, grinning and holding up hand-hearts?
No way.

‘I’m taking this to the grave.’

Still, I’d probably look at it regularly.
Today had been that happy.

For the first time in a long while, I felt truly healed.
Even the “Moe Soda” tasted better just because of its silly name.

‘And the omurice—no, moe-rice—was great too.’

Just as this dreamlike day was winding down—

“Oh, come to think of it, should I cook for you sometime?”
“R-really?!”

Feeling a bit guilty for only receiving, I offered to cook for her.

“Yeah, the dishes from my family’s restaurant are trending on Twitter right now.”
“They are! The Noble Gourmet feels like a restaurant showcase. People are lining up like crazy to eat there!”
“I heard. Korean diners overseas are seeing a huge boost right now.”

Following the broadcast of The Noble Gourmet,
“Our Home” had been enjoying unexpected success.

Word was, people were waiting up to four hours for a seat.
Some even camped out overnight.

‘The menu was basically the same, after all.’

Anyway—

“I’ll cook for you. You worked hard to prepare all this, so it’s the least I can do.”
“Will you feed me too?”
“Uh… what? Oh, uh…”
“Feed me, please!”
“....”

And so ended a fulfilling holiday.

Time flew quickly, and before I knew it, it was early September.

 

“Donghu, isn’t rest great sometimes?”
“Yeah, it really is.”

After a long vacation, I finally returned to Korea.

“By the way, did you think about it?”
“Oh, Ilyang Foods? I’m absolutely doing it.”
“Really? Absolutely? Got a good feeling about this one too?”
“Haha, it’s not a hunch. I just feel good about it.”
“That’s the same thing.”

The Ilyang Foods advertisement was just icing on the cake.

 

****

No matter how great it was to be away,
there was no place like home.

I was lying comfortably on my bed when—

Can I come over?

Like she’d been waiting, Sujin sent me a message.

And, as expected—

“What’s this photo?”
“Huh? What photo?”
“...You went to a maid café? With Chisako?”

I got caught.