EP.37
“Hey, what on earth are you doing?!!!?”
A sharp voice cut through the air.
At that moment, Manager Cha and the female assistant manager flinched and shrank down a bit.
It was Lee Sooah’s voice.
I had just barely calmed down after an intensely heart-pounding training session.
Clack, clack.
She strode toward us, clearly fuming.
“Manager Cha.”
“Yes, ma’am… Hunter Sooah.”
Just a moment ago, Manager Cha had been strutting with confidence, but now he looked like a mouse in front of a cat, completely diminished.
He seemed to shrink into himself.
“You brought Baek Jihoon to the training ground? And… you let him go in alone?”
She was checking various information on her tablet.
“And B-rank…???”
Lee Sooah’s expression contorted completely.
She looked absolutely furious.
“Manager Cha, have you lost your mind!!!!!!!”
Her voice boomed.
It was so thunderous that I wondered if the training ground would collapse.
The training ground that didn’t even flinch at the enormous stone golem was now shaking under the presence of just one Hunter, Lee Sooah.
“What were you thinking? Why would you put Baek Jihoon in such a test!!!”
Her voice was enough to make my eardrums ring.
I could clearly see why the team members had been so tense.
Manager Cha was quaking like a mouse in front of a lion.
“Uh… no, I mean… Hunter Sooah…”
He was trying to make excuses, but his attitude had completely shrunken, with little chance of success.
“What I thought was that Baek Jihoon could… I thought it was possible… you can see from the footage that…”
“No. Are you really saying that? Baek Jihoon is an E-rank Hunter, right? But you give him a B-rank simulation? What do you expect from that? Are you trying to make excuses?!!!”
She was practically shrieking.
“See, right? Manager, we told you not to do this.”
“What should you do now?”
The two assistants flanking Manager Cha were poking him while asking something.
With her hands placed firmly at her waist, Lee Sooah glared daggers at Manager Cha, looking thoroughly annoyed.
“Ugh. This won’t do, Manager Cha. Write a report. I can’t let this slide. Do you understand?”
“Y-yes?? Hah… understood…”
It seemed he tried to protest a bit but quickly turned glum and slumped away.
“And Baek Jihoon!”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Now it was my turn. The trouble was unavoidable.
It was only natural.
“Baek Jihoon, this isn’t going to work. I’m really worried about you. Come sit beside me.”
“Huh???”
“Do I need to repeat myself? I said come sit beside me!!!!”
She shouted before storming off.
‘Huh…? Beside you…?’
*
“Seriously, what is Manager Cha thinking? Does he even have a brain? How could he put an E-rank Hunter through that kind of training? I mean, even a D-rank alone would be dangerous, and he knows that. Is he messing around or what?”
Lee Sooah mumbled as she returned to her office, still frustrated.
She nervously chewed on her nails.
“Hmm… I think I need to keep Baek Jihoon close. Yeah, I can’t help it. Because Baek Jihoon is like the baby bird of our department, right? As a new employee, I shouldn’t just leave him alone. I have to take good care of him since I’m the team leader, so no one falls behind.”
Lee Sooah nodded her head, as if it was only natural.
“First, I’ll keep him by my side, and then I need to teach him about the guild, step by step. Yeah, that’s something I must do as a team leader.”
*
“Hey, Manager Cha, why do you look like you’re about to cry? What did you screw up this time?”
“What did you do wrong today, huh?”
The department members asked Manager Cha with pouty faces.
“Wah, I just played a little prank… now I have to write a report.”
He plopped down at his desk and began to write something with great diligence.
Given his posture, it was evident he’d done this many times before.
He started writing quickly and professionally, as if it were second nature.
“What kind of prank did you pull?”
“Well, I thought Baek Jihoon would do well… so I put him through B-rank dungeon training. But he managed to do it successfully.”
“Wait, seriously? A B-rank dungeon? How did that happen? He’s an E-rank, right?”
“I don’t know. I just thought he could do it, but the problem is that Hunter Sooah caught me.”
“Whoa.”
Everyone’s faces displayed horror.
They all had the attitude that Manager Cha’s life was over.
“So what now?”
“What do you think? I’m going to have to write a report. That’s the 14th time this month.”
“Sigh.”
The others shook their heads in disbelief.
This wasn’t his first rodeo.
“But Baek Jihoon, how did you do it? That’s weird. Wasn’t it really dangerous?”
“No, he even did it alone!”
“Huh? Alone? You didn’t help him at all? That was really risky, Manager Cha. You need to get in even more trouble.”
EP.37
“See, we were right.”
Everyone murmured in agreement.
“Haha… I was just lucky,” I said, scratching my head before returning to my seat.
‘Phew. Wait, did she say to come close…?’
Hunter Sooah had told me to pack my things first. She said she would make space for me.
‘What is this about?’
I began to pack my things, grumbling to myself.
“Hey? Baek Jihoon, what are you doing? Are you quitting?”
“Huh? Where are you going? No way!!!”
“Ugh, our project. Is it a four-day cut or what?”
Things started to get a bit chaotic.
“What? No, I’m not quitting. I’m just packing my things to move.”
“Move? Where to?”
“To near Hunter Sooah.”
“Whaaaaaat?”
Everyone looked confused.
“What’s going on? Why? What’s happening?”
“I don’t know. I’m just doing what I was told,” I said, helplessly packing my things.
I finished packing quickly and set off.
“Ow? What’s this all about?”
Everyone was puzzled, but I had no answers to give. I was just as confused.
*
Knock, knock, knock.
“Is this Hunter Sooah?”
“Yes, come in.”
“I’ve finished packing but where am I moving to?”
“Right here.”
She pointed to the seat right beside her.
“Excuse me???”
It was an utterly bewildering situation. I thought I might get placed near her office, but instead, I was being assigned to a desk directly inside, right next to Hunter Sooah.
‘What? Why? How?’
“Baek Jihoon, you’re the weakest in our department. I think I should take special care of you. You can stay here. From now on, you will work here.”
“Um… yes, ma’am.”
It was a strange, no, a very strange situation, but I had no choice but to comply.
I could sense my colleagues outside whispering. They must have been having strange conversations while looking at me.
*
“Alright. From today onward, Hunter Baek Jihoon will be working beside me.”
“U-uh, Hunter Sooah?”
“Yes. What is it?”
A brave Hunter raised his hand and asked.
“Why though?”
“Why? Because he’s a fresh recruit. It seems very dangerous to me. As the team leader, I think I need to protect him well. Thinking back, I feel like I’ve neglected him since the War Memorial Dungeon.”
“Eh?”
Everyone murmured slightly.
“But there’s never been a case like this before, right?”
“Traditions don’t matter. What matters is now.”
“Umm… I’m not sure about this…”
Someone tentatively raised their hand, appearing quite flustered.
“It’s only been two months since I joined…”
It was Hunter Kim Seungsoo, who joined right before me.
“Hunter Kim Seungsoo can handle himself well. You’ll be fine.”
“Hiiiing.”
He suddenly looked dejected.
‘Eh? No, I can handle it too.’
Hunter Sooah seemed to suddenly change her attitude.
Or did she always act this way?
In any case, she appeared very determined.
Of course, Manager Cha made a significant mistake, but to this extent…
Am I actually going to work in Hunter Sooah’s office?
This was an unprecedented situation, enough to make me feel a little sorry for my fellow department members.
“From now on, we’ll be doing it this way, so just be aware. And Hunter Baek Jihoon, please follow me.”
Humming a little tune, she returned to her office, swaying her hips a bit.
‘What the heck is going on?’
I suddenly found myself working in Sooah’s office. It felt like a lightning strike.
*
“Um, Baek Jihoon, why did you go to the training ground earlier? Newbies don’t usually do that.”
She rested her chin on her hands, looking at me.
It was so intimidating.
To be honest, I couldn’t fully grasp the situation.
Getting close to Hunter Sooah like this…
My heart couldn’t help but race.
“Ah. I thought I could qualify for hunter rank assessment, so I was going for a promotion to D-rank.”
I spoke honestly.
“Eh? Already? Oh, you don’t have to rush. Why are you pushing to rank up? You can just stay E-rank. Hmph~”
She sang a little tune again.
‘No way. Staying E-rank is not an option. Besides, I already have enough points, and getting promoted would be beneficial. Plus, I need to give Chae Suhyeon a bit of a shock.’
“But Baek Jihoon, I want to ask you something.”
“Yes, ma’am?”
“You mentioned you lived in Sillim, right?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Are you considering moving?”
She stared straight at me.
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