In This World That Favors Men, I... ~Starting a Sweet School Life in a World With a 1:8 Gender Ratio~ - 119

Chapter 119: Sweets Satellite at FF21 Part 1

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The day of the event. The large exhibition hall had an extremely high ceiling and was spacious both vertically and horizontally, yet the sweet aroma was already wafting throughout the venue. Yesterday, we had done a rehearsal-like run-through based on the schedule at the completed stage and the Pudding Satellite booth. Now, we were doing final checks with the staff before the venue opened.

“Everything will proceed as discussed. We’ll call for you when it’s your turn, so please wait here until then.”

“Understood. Thank you for your support today.”

Along the hallway adjacent to the large exhibition hall, there were numerous rooms lined up.

This time, they had been designated as waiting rooms for the staff and associates of each satellite. Judging by the businesslike and surprisingly spacious interior, these rooms were probably used for small meetings on regular days. A monitor installed along the wall showed the current state of the venue. The steady stream of product deliveries that had been ongoing until just a while ago seemed to be finally wrapping up.

“Yuusei-kun, your father is coming around soon to make his rounds of greetings, right?”

Jun-san had kindly come today as a chaperone from the agency, and Yoriko-san, a representative from the company side, was also with us. It was reassuring to have acquaintances present at a large event like this. My father was both the representative of the sponsor organization of the Pudding Satellite and one of the main organizers of the event itself. For that reason, he had to make appearances in various places today and was apparently quite busy today.

“He’s visiting each satellite’s waiting room in order, and I heard he’ll be coming here last. I think I’m getting nervous now.”

“Then we’ll have to wait a bit more. I’m going to make some tea. Would you like a cup too, Yuusei-kun?”

“Yes, I’d love some. My father is a friendly person, so please. There’s no need to be so tense, feel free to relax.”

After living together with him for a while, I came to understand that my father was quite a friendly person. It was hard to believe he once suffered from a distrust of people.

He once told me, “I’m just not very good at gauging the appropriate distance with people, but once I open up, I tend to get too close too fast”—but the personal space he allowed after opening up was so narrow that even as a guy, I’d occasionally get flustered by how close he was being. 

If he’s doing that to women as well… Yeah, my dad might actually be a surprisingly sinful type.

＊

Creative banners and signs filled the area and most importantly, the energy of the participants was palpable. As soon as the venue opened, the aisles filled with people, and the vendors were busily moving about.

“Good morning, everyone! Today’s ‘Fresh Information Bureau Live’ is broadcasting live in a relay format from the sweets satellite of this spectacular food event at FF21!”

The voice of a host from a TV infotainment program echoed from the nearby stage. Several cameras had been set up, and they were now going around to introduce each satellite.

“Let’s start here. Just look at this chocolate fountain! The air is thick with the heady scent of cocoa.”

The relay broadcast began at the Chocolate Satellite on the opposite side of the wide central aisle, then continued in a U-shape around the venue, with the Pudding Satellite being the final stop. The Pudding Satellite had made full use of its spacious area to set up a sales and sampling corner, a display corner, and the photo booth area where I now stood.

The display corner featured photo panels and a quiz-style exhibit explaining the history of pudding. I had read through it when I visited yesterday and learned a lot I hadn’t known. Pudding originated in England. Supposedly, sailors used egg mixtures to steam leftovers in order to avoid wasting food—that was the beginning of pudding. Eventually, the idea spread to households, where people began making desserts by adding milk and sugar to eggs. That became what we now call custard pudding. But in England, even if you asked for “pudding” or “custard pudding,” they wouldn’t understand. “Purin”(pudding) was a Japanese-made word. What we call custard pudding in Japan was referred to as “caramel custard” or “crème caramel” overseas, and only a handful of people knew about “custard pudding.”

“Broadcast crew is on the way. Please check your lapel mic and move to your position.”

A staff member called out, prompting me to move to the designated spot.

〈Kyaaaa! He’s hereee!〉

〈He’s moving! Oh no, he’s SO cool!〉

〈Yuusei-kun! Kyaa!~♡ He looked this way!〉

“And here we have our final highlight, the Pudding Satellite! Do you hear that crowd? A huge number of fans have gathered here. And why is that?”

I flashed a big smile at the designated camera. Time to give everyone at home a full serving of my best smile.

〈Kyaaaa!〉

〈He smiled! Kyaaaa! So dreamy!〉

“That’s right. Affectionately known as the ‘Pudding Prince,’ the immensely popular Yuusei Takeda is here today as our special guest. Good morning, Takeda-san! The excitement here is amazing!”

“Good morning. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude to see so many people here so early in the day.”

“Takeda-san rose to fame in the EXA commercial, and I believe you’re here again to promote their product line, but you’re also the special guest for this event, correct?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’ll be doing a talk show on stage later, so if you have time, please come watch.”

“That sounds wonderful! Now, there’s something that has been catching my eye in this setup next to us—what exactly is it?”

“This is a life-size model of the hexagonal pudding container that was actually used in the commercial. It’s available as a photo spot during the event, so visitors can go inside and take pictures freely.”

“That sounds fun! Well then, let’s step inside for a look.”

According to the script, I was supposed to follow the reporter into the setup. But… huh?

“Wait—what?! Why are you coming in too, Takeda-san?!”

For some reason, the reporter looked flustered. I glanced at the staff, who nodded at me. So I wasn’t doing anything wrong. That meant everything was going as planned.

I approached the retreating reporter and, just like in rehearsal, placed my hand against the wall of the container in a slow, deliberate motion. Held between my arms, the reporter was clutching the mic and trembling under me.

Is this a surprise kabedon? 

Trapped by the arms of a bigger guy, she looked completely stunned, but I had a line to say here. 

Sorry, just bear with it a little longer.

“We’ve got brand-new pudding caramels and event-exclusive pudding soft-serve ice cream, so please come try them!”

While keeping in mind the camera filming through the transparent wall, I delivered my kabedon line to the reporter.

“Nobody told me about thisss!”

Another camera was filming from the side too, so they were probably getting a great shot of the reporter’s natural scream.

“I-I’ll definitely try some!”

Despite fumbling a little, the reporter still came through like a true professional.

“This venue also has a stamp rally, and if you collect all the stamps, you’ll receive an original mug cup. There are still a few same-day tickets available, so we hope you’ll come visit. That’s it from us! Back to the studio!”

With that closing remark, the live broadcast ended just as planned. Since EXA was one of the show’s sponsors, their products were scheduled to be introduced next in the studio segment.

“Great job, everyone.”

Now I could take a break until my next appearance.

“Ugh, I was the only one who didn’t know? That was way too hard on my heart even as a surprise stunt.”

I heard the reporter muttering a little bitterly.

“But that’s one of the perks of the job, right?”

“Besides, you really got to show how well you handle unexpected situations.”

The director and cameraman were saying things like that one after another.

A surprise during a live broadcast? 

I kind of felt sorry for her, but maybe that just meant she was someone they had high expectations for.

“Oh, absolutely. It was a truly wonderful experience. I think I’ll be able to have some sweet dreams tonight.”

“Right? I’ll have to settle for the recording later. So jealous~ ‘The Kabedon of Dreams’! It’s like a dream come true for real.”

Laughter broke out among the filming crew, marking the end of the live segment.

Come to think of it, that means my kabedon just got broadcast to households all across the country. That’s… Kind of embarrassing. Will this really help sell pudding? Really?

《Affinity toward pudding has surged. Current Protagonist Index Number: 30,739,055pt. Unique Index Number: 1,800,861 people.》

…Somehow, I just heard an incredible amount of numbers from the Diary…

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