Just as expected.
Yesterday, Lee Sooah’s status window.
Today, the red tag “Hangover” was flashing brightly.
“Sigh… Why did she come to work so early while having a hangover?”
I could roughly guess the reason.
She is quite famous for being professional.
They said she never shows a gap.
Not even for tardiness.
No matter how out of her mind she may feel, she seems like the kind of woman who would still come to work.
“Then, hangover relief.”
I lightly tapped on the status window.
Then, Lee Sooah’s status window cleared up.
“Ugh… Huh…?”
Lee Sooah, who seemed to be sprawled over the conference table, suddenly began looking around.
As if she had just woken up.
“Huh…? Huh? Huh??? What’s going on?”
Lee Sooah continued to turn her head, looking around.
As if something was strange.
Just a moment ago, she had a face that looked like she was suffering from a hangover, but now, her expression had completely returned.
To the pure and beautiful appearance of her past self.
“Uh…? Huh….?? Uh… Um… what… is…? What is this?”
“Oh… huh…?”
Seeing her looking bewildered, I almost burst out laughing without realizing it.
Scenes from early yesterday morning started to come back to me, overlapping with Lee Sooah’s image.
“Let’s party hard!!!”
“Woohoo~~!!!”
“Let’s make some noise, oppas~~!!”
“Ah say hun! You say ter! Hun! Ter! Hun! Ter!”
Sooah, who had been drinking, was an entirely different person.
Now, she was sitting elegantly like a completely professional woman.
But yesterday, for sure…
“Ha. It’s a bit hot, so I should loosen a button. Otherwise, I feel like I might burst while singing.”
“Joo-nin-han~~Hoo!! As a woman~ Hoo!! Don’t touch me~”
At the office dinner yesterday, she was dressed in appropriate office attire: high heels, a neat skirt, and a blouse.
By the time we were about to go to karaoke, she was practically disheveled.
I distinctly remember her hair, which had been neatly tied up, was now down.
“Wow~~ Lee Sooah! Lee Sooah!! Show us how you look with your hair down!!”
“Wow!!!! Hunter Lee Sooah let her hair down!!!!”
I don’t remember exactly, but it felt like Lee Sooah, the Hunter, letting her hair down was a signal that she was going to have a wild time.
She was twirling her hair while wearing a short skirt and high heels.
She looked like a wild young colt.
Now, she was completely composed.
Her office attire matched perfectly with her straight black hair.
“Wow… somehow, it feels sexy…”
“A perfectly fitted office outfit. Prim during the day, but a free spirit at night.”
“I’m getting turned on…”
No, damn it. Get a hold of yourself, Baek Jihoon.
What am I even saying?
We’re colleagues, after all.
Feeling turned on by someone I just met.
How rude.
Without realizing it, I started to think strangely while recalling Lee Sooah’s appearance from yesterday.
Instincts can’t be helped.
“Um…? Jihoon-ssi..? What are you thinking over there…?”
Since I was laughing and making a fuss by myself, it must have seemed odd, causing Hunter Sooah to speak up.
“Oh. Nothing.”
I can’t say, ‘I’m turned on by seeing Hunter Sooah.’
“Are you okay?”
“Um… uh… I’m fine…? Hmm…? Why? Why am I okay…?”
Sooah seemed to be talking to herself.
“Thank goodness. The status window is working very well, huh? This is totally amazing!”
I couldn’t help but marvel at how hard life must have been until now…
Oh, of course, it was probably because I had struggled so much that I had an overflow of points.
“Well, with this much, I could live quite comfortably without holding back on spending points.”
I couldn’t help but admire my status window.
“Um. Jihoon-ssi, are you okay…?”
Seeming puzzled by her own body, she began to show interest in me now.
“Haha. Yes. I think I’m fine.”
“How… how is that? We went up to the 11th round yesterday…”
“Haha. I suppose I handle my alcohol well.”
Without even realizing it, a lie slipped out naturally.
I hadn’t planned or prepared for this. I don’t know why I said that.
It’s generally expected for a man to boast about handling alcohol, while a woman pretends to be weak with it.
“I’m glad to hear that. It seems like the other team members are all out of it.”
Looking at the empty office, I spoke.
“Phew… I guess I should get familiar with the office today.”
Suddenly, I became aware of the spacious office.
Team A occupies an entire floor.
There must be at least 50 members in the team.
Despite reaching up to the 11th floor yesterday, I hadn’t properly introduced myself to anyone.
Of course, Lee Sooah could be said to be the leader who guides the whole team.
“Well, seeing the leader of the team come to the office early despite her hangover is quite nice.”
I felt a strange emotion unconsciously.
Maybe it was because I had been cooped up with Chae Suhyeon every day, but everything seemed to look good.
“If you need anything, please let me know. I’ll help with everything.”
Lee Sooah smiled brightly.
She looked very happy.
Just yesterday, before removing her status ailment from the status window, she always wore a frown.
But today was definitely different.
It felt like there was a brightness radiating from her.
“Yes, thank you.”
Having completed a casual greeting, I returned to my seat.
“Phew. Well then… should I start looking into the guild…”
*
Lunchtime.
“Senior. How was your day? Was it quiet in the morning? Did no one come to work?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
I accepted the coffee cup Hyungseok offered and sipped it as I answered.
“Wow. It must have been nice for you to be alone with Ms. Sooah in the empty office today…”
“Huh? What’s nice about it?”
“Come on~ don’t play dumb. Sooah Hunter is totally pretty. Who wouldn’t have a crush on her?”
He lightly shoved my shoulder.
“Eh, what? I just got dumped yesterday. Plus, I’m only seeing her for the second time today.”
“Well, you never know. Anything could happen between you two.”
Hyungseok had a smirk on his face.
“Wow… just the two of you, a man and a woman, in that large empty office… Hah… just thinking about it makes me excited…”
He mumbled to himself while staring into space.
This crazy guy sometimes says weird things. It seems like this is one of those moments.
“Anyway, Senior. About Hunter Lee Sooah. Doesn’t she seem a bit off today? No, to be precise, I think it started from last night at the drinking party…”
He suddenly changed the topic.
“Hmm? What’s that?”
I feigned ignorance and asked. It seemed related to the status window, but…
I hesitated to bring it up…
“No. I’m a huge fan of Hunter Lee Sooah. I can tell just by her expression. She’s completely different now.”
“Really?”
“It’s like someone who was sick is suddenly better…”
He was pondering something deeply.
“The reason I joined this Blue Guild was because of Hunter Lee Sooah. She’s beautiful, kind, and really diligent in everything she does. The perfect image of a hunter in my eyes. Wow!”
He was gesturing to the air, as if giving a kind of speech.
“I’ve been watching her closely for so long! But it definitely feels like something has changed. I heard from my teammates that she was already like that since the company dinner. Of course, I need to meet her to get the details, but…”
He continued speaking with a somewhat gleeful expression.
“I think it’s probably because of you, Senior.”
He suddenly looked at me intensely and casually threw out that statement.
“Phew.”
I almost spilled my coffee.
It was completely unexpected.
‘What? Wait, does he know about my status window…? Has he sensed it? Or… what is it? Has it been discovered?’
He was very knowledgeable about hunters. A thought crossed my mind.
“I think Hunter Lee Sooah would suit you well. She probably has a crush on you~”
“No, what nonsense are you talking about? We met yesterday, and she hasn’t said a word about that.”
That was the truth. We had only exchanged cautious words, checked if we were okay, and a few greetings.
“Hmm… No, I think she likes you. Otherwise, a person’s expression wouldn’t suddenly change like that. Hmm…”
He quietly took another sip of coffee, wearing a mysterious expression.
“Hey, don’t say such ridiculous things, and stop spreading rumors unnecessarily.”
“Hehe. I’ll definitely gather evidence later and let you know. I have a good intuition, you know.”
It was a sarcastic smile.
“What is it with this guy? At least he’s quick on the uptake. Of course, he didn’t get the answer right.”
I thought there was nothing to actually like about him yet. We hadn’t done anything together.
And of course, the reason Lee Sooah looked good to me was because of the status window.
It was indeed a strange conversation, and then we parted ways to our respective offices.
*
“Ah, what the hell!!!”
Crack.
She seemed annoyed as she broke her mouse with her hand.
It was Chae Suhyeon.
“Ah. Baek Jihoon. Why isn’t this guy replying to my messages?”
She frowned on one side of her face, clearly showing her displeasure.
“Oppa, whenever I contact you, always reply within 10 minutes. If you’re even a little late, I get annoyed, got it?”
“Unless you’re hiding something, it doesn’t make sense not to respond to a message, right? You’re not with another woman or something?”
“It’s absolutely 10 minutes. You must respond within 10 minutes!”
“Ugh. Aren’t you supposed to reply right away after a breakup?”
“This is Baek Jihoon, right? Baek Jihoon. What on earth is going on?”
She seemed unable to hide her displeasure.
The highlight of the 9 o’clock news yesterday should have been about her.
[ Chae Suhyeon Hunter finally achieves 1st place ]
The headline she had imagined.
But unexpectedly, another news story caught more attention.
[ Blue Guild Team A makes a dramatic escape from a life-or-death situation ]
“What the heck is this? This is my oppa, right? Isn’t it? What’s going on? What the hell is happening?”
She threw away the broken mouse and came back with a new one, rummaging through various materials.
“Every way I look at it, it’s my oppa. Hah… for real… he’s ruining my mood from the first day.”
She was furious, feeling like she had missed out on getting a chance in the spotlight.
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