Brother, Am I Cute? [EN]: Chapter 47

Nicole passed the PPT presentation materials around.

「Leading fashion trends is a challenge for any company. I won’t bore you with the same old stories you’ve always heard.」

The screen changed to display clothes made with Siha’s drawing patterns and Alisa’s designs.

「But there’s a saying that class is eternal. That’s us, Habinis. We can reinterpret that sensibility in a modern way as much as we want. Just like this!」

Photos of stylish clothes appeared. Front, back, and side views showcased the clothes the model was wearing.

Focusing on the eye-catching design, she began to introduce the innovative textile technologies incorporated within.

I watched the presentation and nodded.

‘It’s visually captivating.’

First, they showcased the aesthetic appeal and then explained the practical benefits.

If you can’t capture people’s attention first, even the best clothes won’t sell well.

For most people here, sales figures are paramount.

I overheard whispers around me.

“Not bad, actually.”

“The Habinis sensibility is definitely present in the design.”

“I buy Habinis because I’m drawn to this unique sensibility.”

“They’ve prepared well this time, it seems.”

“But won’t the unit price be a bit high?”

“People will buy it even if it’s expensive. And that textile technology is definitely useful, not just for fashion.”

“Hmm. That’s true.”

The technology aspect is well-presented too.

The reaction seemed positive overall.

Of course, you never know for sure until you actually start selling the items.

At that moment, a Habinis official next to me called me over.

「Excuse me. Could you come to the front for a moment? With Siha.」

「Pardon?」

「It would be great if you could come out as models during the presentation.」

「Well, I don’t mind.」

「Thank you.」

Nicole, who was at the front, announced.

「Now, shall we see someone wearing the actual clothes? The fabric we made is definitely safe for babies with sensitive skin. As you know if you raise children, some infants have such sensitive skin that they can only use cloth diapers. It’s that effective.」

At Nicole’s gesture, I held Siha in my arms and walked onto the platform.

“Siha, let’s go show off your clothes.”

“Ah ah.”

Once on the platform, Nicole asked.

「How do you like the clothes?」

「They’re very good.」

「Can I ask the baby too?」

「Yes.」

I looked at Siha.

“Siha, how are the clothes? Comfortable? Not scratchy?”

“Soft~”

Siha held up the clothes and rubbed them against his face.

His belly was exposed, but he seemed comfortable.

He’s really cute. But that’s not the point.

I quickly covered Siha’s belly.

“I apologize for the unintentional exposure.”

Everyone burst into laughter at the sight.

Some people were clearly charmed by Siha’s cuteness.

I came down from the platform, hearing Nicole’s thanks.

“Brother~”

“Siha, good job. Good job.”

I rubbed my cheek against Siha’s.

The presentation was nearing its end.

The PPT screen changed, and the last slide displayed the picture Siha drew and the poem I wrote.

There was a yellow moon on a black background.

Stars, densely packed, shone brightly, and a red cloth flowed beneath them.

And red azaleas bloomed where the cloth folded.

The simplified patterns on the clothes were one thing, but the high-quality image created with Photoshop immediately caught people’s eyes.

“Wow. The picture is so pretty.”

“A picture that embodies a flower by folding a red cloth – clever!”

“It showcases both the fabric and the pattern at once.”

Not really.

I just combined the legend of the azalea with the drawing. It might look like cloth to them, but Siha probably didn’t intend to draw it that way.

“And is that a poem?”

[Moon embroidered in gold and stars dyed in silver.

The mournful lights cannot harmonize.

As red light flows across the same sky.

The achromatic flower, feeling pity, gathers the light together.

Carefully folding it, placing it within the petals.

Weaving knots that cannot be untied.

Blooming a flower.]

[Azalea – Siha Pepe]

I felt awkward putting my name on it, so I used Siha Pepe for now, but it still feels a bit strange.

Still, the reaction wasn’t bad.

I overheard the two people in front of me talking.

“Hmm? What does it mean?”

“Haha. Don’t just work, read some poetry. Isn’t it personification?”

“I know that.”

“I think it’s a love story. The moon and stars are in love.”

“Oh. Is that so? Then does that mean they couldn’t be together?”

“That’s right. That red light is talking about blood, representing tragedy.”

I nodded, listening to the sounds around me.

That’s right.

That’s how the actual legend goes.

It was properly conveyed!

“Then what is that achromatic flower?”

“That’s where the thoughts of today’s kids come in!”

“Really?”

“It’s what you call a love triangle.”

“Huh? Why does it become that?”

“The achromatic flower is what prevented them from harmonizing. It must have thought, ‘If I can’t have them, I’ll kill them to have them.’ That’s what it must have been thinking.”

No. That’s definitely not what it means.

What kind of interpretation is this person making!

The person in front didn’t stop interpreting.

“So, it ties up the coffin that can never be untied and takes it for itself. That’s how it blooms a flower with love at the end.”

“Such a scary meaning……”

I wanted to shout that it wasn’t that kind of interpretation at all, but since it was during the seminar, I could only move my lips silently.

Then the person who had been asking questions raised another point.

“But that’s strange. Isn’t the red light the light created by the stars and the moon? If so, it should take the light of one of the two. I think your interpretation is wrong.”

I nodded.

Of course, it’s a wrong interpretation, so errors are bound to occur.

The person in front seems to know something.

“Hehe.”

“Why is that?”

The man in front swept back his hair.

It was a very confident action.

“I didn’t say he only loved one person.”

“!!!”

“He must have wanted both.”

“!!!”

My mind went blank at that interpretation.

Is this person even capable of functioning in daily life?

At that moment, Nicole’s presentation, which was wrapping up the seminar, reached my ears.

「You need this level of sensibility to lead fashion. If you have any questions, please visit the Habinis booth.」

The presentation was over.

“Brother. Let’s go.”

“Yeah. Okay. Let’s go.”

But what kind of fashion would that sensibility even create?

At least it wouldn’t be a leading sensibility.

I got up from my seat, thinking that.

***

The interpreter’s work began in earnest.

The participating countries were diverse, including Korea, Japan, China, and India.

I don’t know how many deals will be made at this event.

Still, I hoped that a Korean would come.

Because my role is to translate between Korean and English and convey information accurately.

“Siha, play well with Alisa. Okay?”

“Ah ah.”

“Alisa, please take care of Siha.”

“Yes. Trust me.”

Alisa seemed eager to get moving quickly.

I guess there are many places to see here and there.

“Siha, I’ll be back soon after work.”

“Ah ah.”

I sent Siha away.

Does an interpreter’s job often involve waiting?

I thought I would be talking to buyers a lot.

Then a request for interpretation came in.

It was definitely a moment when the seminar shone.

“Hello.”

“Yes. Hello.”

“How did you come to be here?”

“Haha. I came to make a deal. Can we talk for a bit?”

“Of course. Come this way.”

Nicole, who had been waiting, came forward.

From now on, the negotiation began.

The kindly looking man asked a question.

“I really like the pattern. But our company focuses on custom orders. You know that the difficult thing for designers when making samples is fitting, right?”

“Of course.”

“We have created a muslin [a plain-woven cotton fabric] fitting clothing pattern reduced to 1cm through customer data in Korea.”

Muslin is the fabric, and fitting is to check if it fits the body well by sewing it in advance before sewing the final garment.

“I see. So what do you want from us?”

“We are proposing to create a small-scale custom-made version of this Habinis company’s design after patterning this to fit our Korean customers.”

It was a very interesting proposal.

A proposal to collaborate with their pattern technology.

I thought I would just be interpreting about selling fabric and entering the clothing market, but this collaboration was unexpected.

When I relayed the proposal to Nicole, she looked very intrigued.

Nicole and I exchanged detailed transaction details.

“It seems like a good idea to offer custom orders for higher quality.”

“Yes. Mass production is also possible, but custom production is ideal for fashion enthusiasts who value a perfect fit.”

Nicole and the buyer reached an agreement and made a contract.

I felt good because both parties had a satisfactory deal.

Did I contribute to that success?

“It’s more comfortable and friendly because the interpreter is Korean.”

“Haha. Thank you.”

Maybe being Korean worked to my advantage unexpectedly.

Well, because I’m Korean, the words and meanings are properly conveyed, without cultural misunderstandings.

Even after he left, many buyers came.

I think the seminar presentation was very effective.

Then a buyer from India pointed at me and greeted me.

“Hello.”

「Yes. Hello.」

「It was really good in the auditorium. It looked really warm and touching to see you holding the child.」

「Yes. Thank you. That baby is my younger brother.」

「Oh! Quite a young brother. I thought it was a father and son.」

「Haha. Everyone says that. How did you come to be here?」

「I came to see how good the clothes are at the Habinis booth. I want to hear about them from you.」

「Ah! Is that so? Then an interpreter who knows Indian…….」

「No. I like the interpreter in front of me. You can do it in English.」

「Are you really okay with that?」

「Of course. It’s okay.」

I thought he was a very unique buyer.

Then Nicole next to me exclaimed.

「Oh?! Isn’t that Ujwal, Chairman of the Indian Textile Export Promotion Council?!」

Ujwal nodded slightly.

I opened my mouth in surprise.

I never imagined he would be casually walking around the booth like this.

He is probably the most influential person among the Indian delegation here.

I know that he came to sign an MOU [Memorandum of Understanding – a nonbinding agreement] with the Korea Textile Industry Federation this time…….

‘Could it be?’

I glanced at the Koreans who were laughing and talking behind me.

There was the chairman of the Korea Textile Industry Federation that I saw at the opening.

Did he bring them all along?

I felt my heart pounding for no reason.

Ujwal said.

「Aren’t you going to introduce me?」

「Haha. I’m sorry. Then I’ll introduce the booth.」

Actually, introducing the booth wasn’t strictly the role of a business interpreter, but it didn’t matter now.

「First, the theme consists of four categories: Eco-friendly materials, IT and technology-driven materials, pattern and color-based materials inspired by local culture, and trendy materials.」

「Then the clothes you wore or the flower pattern on the screen must be trendy materials?」

「That’s right. In fact, everything I explained at the seminar is showcased here.」

I rolled my head quickly, thinking fast.

You shouldn’t assume there’s a lot of time just by looking at his leisurely demeanor.

Because that’s a common cultural characteristic.

In India, the concept of time is often more flexible.

For example, if you say ‘within a week’, you have to interpret it as within about 2 months.

‘But where did this knowledge come from again? Is it the inherent knowledge of an interpreter?’

The knowledge that surfaced so naturally felt familiar, so I wasn’t flustered.

‘What Ujwal is most interested in right now…….’

It’s not fashion, it’s textile technology.

In the first place, the reason for coming to Korea to sign an MOU is to share technical information for textile development.

If so.

「I’ll introduce this in detail first.」

Technology-driven materials.

Looking at the surrounding movements, it seems that there isn’t much time.

「It is a textile material technology with an ultra-thin coating that can be widely used in the medical field.」

That’s how my explanation continued.

And then.

“Brother~”

Siha, who had returned before I knew it, clung to my leg.

Then the cocoa in his hand spilled slightly.

I took out the wet wipes from my back pocket.

「Chairman, I think it would be beneficial to make patient gowns or uniforms for medical technicians with this kind of fabric. My younger brother is also sensitive to skin problems, but he’s perfectly fine wearing this.」

Swipe.

I wiped off the stain at once with a wet wipe.

Thanks to the quality of the fabric, there were no lingering stains on the clothes.

「These pollutants are easily washed away.」

「Oh!」

「I hope this technology will improve hygiene standards in the medical field.」

The chairman’s eyes twinkled with interest.

I might actually secure a contract.

Nicole behind me gave me a thumbs up.

I picked up Siha, completing the perfect sales pitch.

Then Siha looked at Nicole and twisted his index finger and thumb in a circular motion.

‘Oh…. That’s the signal I taught him to ask Nicole for more money…….’

Nicole, who saw it, smiled helplessly and said under her breath.

「As expected, they are brothers.」