Chapter 38

EP.38

“Wait, moving?”

“Yes, yes. As the team leader of Team A, I think it might be a bit risky for Baek Jihoon, so I feel like I should help and watch over him.”

“Uh? No, that’s not necessary. I’m satisfied with my current place. And it doesn’t seem that dangerous to me.”

Inside, I was extremely flustered.

It felt as if Lee Sooah was trying to pull me closer to her.

‘No way that’s possible. She’s S-Rank Hunter Lee Sooah, after all.’

Of course, it’s true that I can see her up close now.

She is undoubtedly Lee Sooah.

The very person who has maintained a top position in our country for years and has gained considerable fame.

And now she was saying strange things to me.

“Oh, is that so? Then maybe we can revisit this later…”

‘Revisit later? What do you mean…’

Lee Sooah’s sudden kindness took me by surprise.

I couldn’t help but feel bewildered.

‘What’s going on? Is she interested in me? Something’s…’

‘Did the Team A members do something sly? They seemed very eager for me to get closer to her.’

Various thoughts raced through my mind.

It was definitely a strange situation.

“Anyway, Baek Jihoon, if you ever face difficulties or challenges, please let me know. I’ll take care of everything for you. Got it?”

Lee Sooah’s expression turned sharp once again.

*

“What’s going on here? What’s happening?”

“Wait, did Baek Jihoon just move next to Hunter Sooah?”

“But he’s still part of our department, right?”

“So how are we supposed to work?”

The Hunter Team 6 from which Baek Jihoon had just vacated was in total chaos.

“I didn’t mean for it to turn out like this…”

“Why do I suddenly feel jealous?”

“We didn’t push anything, right? Did something happen behind my back?”

“No? Not at all? I just stood by while Hunter Sooah whisked him away…?”

Everyone wore puzzled expressions, unable to accept the current situation.

“If only I had arrived a few months later… This is the treatment given to new employees, right? Sigh. Should I quit and rejoin? Then I’d be considered a rookie again?”

“Seems unlikely. It’s not about being a new employee; it’s likely because it’s Baek Jihoon.”

“Sigh… Baek Jihoon, you’re doing too well. It’s too good, and it’s not going to work.”

The atmosphere was gradually becoming awkward.

*

At quitting time.

“Jihoon, shall we head out?”

It seemed like everyone had been waiting for quitting time.

‘What? Is there really nothing to do?’

They had been staring at me blankly all day.

‘What is going on here?’

“Let’s go together today! You don’t have any prior engagements, right?”

“Sure!”

“Yay! Let’s go together then!”

Though I had a little work left, I had no choice but to leave due to Sooah’s insistence.

“Hmm~ If it’s Sillim, we’re headed in that direction! Let’s go.”

After reaching the first floor, I tried to say goodbye to Sooah.

Naturally, I was headed in the opposite direction.

“Wait? Where are you going?”

“To Sillim. You said you’re going to Sillim, right?”

“That’s correct, but what about Hunter Sooah?”

“I’m also going to Sillim.”

“Why? Do you have something to do there?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, I see.”

I almost mistakenly gulped down the kimchi soup.

Of all times, of course, I had something to do in Sillim today.

I thought…

That she was accompanying me for no reason.

Clang, clang, clang.

We boarded the subway together.

“Wow. Wait, what? Isn’t that Lee Sooah?”

“Whoa, awesome. Why is Hunter Sooah riding the subway?”

“Don’t you know?”

“Is today some special occasion?”

Of course, it was inevitable to gossip in such a situation.

It was a rare chance to see Sooah in public, and now she was riding a packed subway train while returning home.

“Um, Baek Jihoon.”

“Yes?”

“Is it usual for you to be this cramped on the subway?”

We were in quite a close position.

There was no escaping this.

The trip toward Sindorim was absolutely hellish during the commute.

And this wasn’t the end.

More people were set to spill out from everywhere.

*‘Sigh… this feels a bit risky.’*

Unintentionally, I’d ended up in a very tight situation with Hunter Sooah.

‘If that’s the case, I should’ve just taken a taxi instead.’

I found myself in a very awkward predicament.

We weren’t that close yet, and here I was, practically glued to her.

“Hunter Sooah, I’m sorry for taking the subway. We probably should’ve just taken a taxi.”

“It’s okay. I actually think it’s nice.”

“?”

I had no idea how to respond to that.

What was I supposed to say?

*‘I think so too. Hehe.’*

*‘No, that’s not how you should respond!’*

*‘Let’s ride together again next time!’*

Hmm. Everything felt odd.

I suddenly grew embarrassed and my face turned red.

“Ahhhhh!”

Suddenly, Hunter Sooah screamed.

“This pervert!!!”

Someone appeared to have touched Hunter Sooah.

The presumed culprit looked extremely flustered.

“Uh, uh! H-Hunter Sooah! I… it was an accident! I really didn’t mean to. There was no avoiding it; it was too crowded…”
He was stuck in the crowded subway, desperately trying to explain himself.

[The next station is Admission Gate Station. Those getting off…]

As soon as the doors opened, Lee Sooah swung her fist at the person who had accidentally touched her. The man was inevitably sent flying out of the subway with an incredible crash.

“Whoa.”

Seeing someone fly before my eyes was quite shocking.

“I should definitely be careful not to touch Hunter Sooah.”

Despite my efforts to hold on, more people continued to push into the already cramped space. However, it seemed like our area was becoming slightly less crowded.

It looked like others were trying to avoid getting close after witnessing the man who had just been blasted away.

“Hmm~ It feels a bit more spacious now. I didn’t really need that, though.”

Her voice sounded slightly regretful.

‘What could she be regretting?’

I wished I had a skill that could read her thoughts. If I had that, I would have immediately invested points to use it.

“Looks like we’ve arrived at our destination!”

Finally, we had reached Sindorim.

It wasn’t a long journey, but it had felt suffocating.

I worried about potentially getting pushed into Hunter Sooah again.

“Phew. Nothing major happened.”

Fortunately, people in South Korea are quite orderly. They didn’t cause much of a fuss even when they saw Hunter Sooah on the subway.

“Bowing.”

“We’ve arrived. Where are you heading now?”

I was preparing to part ways. Since we’d just arrived at Sindorim Station, it was natural to say goodbye.

“To where Baek Jihoon is going.”

“Uh?”

Her face flushed slightly.

“Are you coming to my place?”

“Yes!”

“Why?”

“What do you mean, why? As Team Leader, it’s my role to check on the new team member and manage things.”

‘Wait, is this what she meant by having business to attend to?’

I was taken aback.

Suddenly, Hunter Sooah was planning a home visit?

“Um? Is this something you usually do? Visiting team members’ homes? Or are you just seeing me off?”

“I already mentioned, it doesn’t matter if I usually do this. If it’s needed, I’ll do it~”

“Well, that is true.”

“Now, let’s go! We’ll talk on the way.”

She had a slightly intimidating look as she grabbed my forearm.

And I felt as if I were being dragged off to an interrogation.

“Is it this way? Or that way? Which direction?”

“This way.”

I had no idea what was actually happening.

I had just been promoted to D-rank, and all of a sudden, I found myself sitting next to Hunter Sooah and now being taken to her home.

‘Is she really planning to enter my house?’

In an instant, my house came to mind.

My face turned hot.

Since I lived alone, it was easy to imagine how it might look.

Lee Sooah never came to Sillim since she thought it was too run-down of a neighborhood.

I had been too busy to tidy up.

Underwear and toilet paper scattered everywhere,

the interiors barely cleaned,

foul smells lingering.

There was absolutely no way I could let her see that.

I had to prevent it at all costs.

“Still, it’s quick to get home on the subway. I was worried a long commute would be tough for our team member.”

“Oh, right. Luckily, Line 2 connects well, so the office location seems quite good.”

“But doesn’t it get tiring taking the subway every day?”

“It can be, but what can you do?”

I had no luxury to indulge in my circumstances.

Of course, if I quickly raised my Hunter rank, it might not be bad.

Now that I think about it, I realized I hadn’t taken care of my life at all.

Even after parting with Chae Suhyeon, I hadn’t been greedy at all.

If I wanted to be rich, I could easily do so. I just had to pour in points.

‘Hmm, I guess I should start fixing things up one by one.’

I found it silly that I hadn’t thought about this sooner.

“Wow. This path is a bit narrow and complicated. I feel like I’d get lost if I don’t pay attention.”

As she spoke, she subtly inched closer to me.

‘It seems like this isn’t special to just this place.’

Lee Sooah…

Does she really have an interest in me?

Of course, that would be completely absurd.

If it were true, it would be earth-shattering news.

Anyone who knew the past Lee Sooah would think there was no way that could be the case.

“She’s probably just worried about her team member, right…?”

I glanced over at Sooah.

I felt my heart racing.

Living with the nation’s goddess?

This didn’t even make sense from the start.

Thump, thump.

“I’ve arrived. You’ve seen everything, so shall we head back? I can take you to the subway station…”

“It’s not finished yet!”

Lee Sooah tilted her head, looking puzzled.

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