EP.40
Thump.
“What the hell… this f*cking bastard.”
Chae Suhyeon threw her smartphone to the ground. She had managed to hold back until now, but today it seemed like she just couldn’t take it anymore. She must have been shocked that despite all her efforts to win over Baek Jihoon, it hadn’t worked at all.
“Am I not lowering myself enough for you to understand? You can’t even meet me? Huh? Why not?”
Her expression reflected deep offense.
“Fine! Whatever, Baek Jihoon. Live your life well. It’s just dirty and pathetic. This is it! There’s not much left, but I can still raise my rank with this. I’ve got 46% left, after all.”
Chae Suhyeon forced herself to think positively. Despite the significant drop, she still considered her abilities to be quite high. Based on that, she thought that she could quickly recover on her own.
She resolved not to cling to Baek Jihoon anymore.
“Hmph. How hard can it be to earn points? Acting all high and mighty for something trivial… Ugh.”
She opened her status window, only to be left aghast, her mouth agape as if her jaw had dropped off.
This time, it seemed she couldn’t even muster the energy to scream.
[ Recovery Progress: 100% ]
And just like that, she collapsed.
*
“Hey, Suhyeon. Suhyeon, can you hear me?”
Chae Suhyeon woke up in the VIP room, and Lee Jinhyeok was there in front of her.
“Uh… uh…”
She struggled to articulate her thoughts.
“It seems the patient has received quite a shock.”
“Did she hit her head when she fell?”
“That’s not the case. It’s unrelated to the fall; she needs to rest a bit, and then we’ll see how it goes.”
With that, the doctor bowed and left.
“What happened? You just suddenly collapsed!”
Lee Jinhyeok looked slightly concerned and suspicious at the same time.
“Uh… uh…”
Chae Suhyeon appeared to be too shaken to speak properly.
“Ha… I’m swamped with work here. Why are you doing this? Just take a break; that’s the best thing for you. I’ll come back later.”
Chae Suhyeon could only watch blankly as Lee Jinhyeok walked away. Slowly, she began to regain her composure.
‘P-Progess… why is it 100%? No way… did Baek Jihoon raise it all? Right? He must have accelerated something?’
She couldn’t believe it. Up until now, she thought he had just been sending warnings. But today, he had completely filled it to 100%.
‘Wait… what’s my status window like now?’
She hurriedly started to check her status window. Her pupils began to shake wildly.
‘Uh… gone… gone!?!? Points… I have no points??!?!?’
Her expression teetered on the brink of madness.
In a seriously contorted way, she expressed disbelief.
‘This can’t be! Am I completely broke?’
Her status window was close to the newbie state she had at the very beginning.
She couldn’t fathom the situation. It felt as though someone had come to her status window while she was unconscious and stolen everything.
‘Why? Why is this happening? Why?’
‘Surely, even if everything was taken, I should still be at a C-rank. I’ve calculated it all! Why did it suddenly drop to the bottom? It’s completely empty!’
She couldn’t accept the situation.
‘Ah…’
Realization struck her.
[ Points earned from others will all be erased. ]
In other words, everything she had obtained through her succubus activities had vanished completely.
‘W-What kind of rule is this?’
‘I was never informed about this!!!’
‘My… the points I gained through succubus activities… it’s all gone?’
She wore an incredibly unfair expression.
But right now, she couldn’t act on any of it.
Perhaps she was so shocked that she fainted again.
*
“Uh, Professor?”
“Yes?”
“She should recover soon, right?”
Lee Jinhyeok peeked into the room and asked.
“Of course. After all, she’s an S-rank Hunter. Based on previous cases, I think she’ll probably recover in a few hours.”
“Right? Thanks for keeping an eye on her.”
He lightly nodded.
‘Hmm.’
He fell into a slight deep thought.
He had some suspicions about Chae Suhyeon.
‘Doesn’t that guy seem a bit strange? Achieving S-rank so quickly and even surging to first place like a storm…’
‘Maybe I should investigate a bit… if I’m to bring him into the family…’
‘I did an extensive search, but there’s nothing coming up. Either they’re incredibly thorough or just clean.’
‘Let’s just observe for now. Keep her in the Guild.’
He felt that Chae Suhyeon was necessary.
And he quite liked her too.
However, those around him seemed to feel some vigilance.
‘Well, nothing should happen. It’s just a minor health issue.’
He tried to brush it off as nothing serious.
*
“Hm. What’s with her? She’s not saying anything at all.”
I had been waiting for quite a while. Given that she hit 100% recovery, I expected her to come to my house right away.
EP.41
‘It’s not like she doesn’t know where I live, right? Or did she not know at all?’
It’s true that she had shown little interest in me.
‘Or maybe she fainted from the shock of hitting 100% recovery?’
Considering Chae Suhyeon’s personality, that was quite likely.
‘Well, it doesn’t matter. I’m relieved now.’
He had managed to shake off the various thoughts lingering in his mind all at once.
He wasn’t sure why this was happening.
‘Could it be because Hunter Lee Sooah got a bit closer?’
For now, he decided to prepare for work tomorrow.
*
“Hmm~”
Lee Sooah was swaying her hips slightly, looking in good spirits as she headed to work.
“Hunter Lee Sooah, you seem to be in a good mood today. Can I get your approval on this?”
A hunter swiftly shoved a document for approval in front of her.
“Mr. Lee Soo Jong, didn’t we agree that approvals are to be done in my office? And it’s still not working hours yet.”
Her expression turned frigid.
“Ah… yes…”
The employee began sweating profusely as he took the document back, scratching the back of his head.
‘Ah, I thought she was in a good mood, but I guess not.’
“Hmm~ I wonder if Baek Jihoon arrived first~”
She hummed again as she continued on her way to work.
Bang.
“Ah, he’s not here yet. That’s fine. He’ll come when he’s ready~”
*
Tap, tap, tap…
“Phew. I almost ended up being late.”
Was it because she had felt so good about shaking everything off yesterday that she had almost been late?
He had barely avoided it.
“Hey, Baek Jihoon.”
“Oh yes, Manager Cha.”
“Hey, can you tell me in secret? Are you dating anyone? What happened? Why did you suddenly sneak into the office together?”
“What? That’s…”
“Besides, I heard you both clocked out together yesterday?”
He was grinning like a snake.
“We all know. There are countless eyes in this guild… a million eyes are watching.”
“Haha…”
He felt an inexplicable pressure. It was as if the entire guild was monitoring him, and it seemed like Lee Sooah was continuously pulling him toward her.
“Does Lee Sooah usually take good care of her team members?”
“Well, that can be said to be true, but it can also be said to be false.”
It was a rather unexpected response.
“In the dungeon, she doesn’t hold back at all. She’s concerned that someone might get hurt. But in the office, it’s not like that. In fact, it feels like our necks might be on the line.”
“Then, you’ve never shared an office with someone like her…?”
“True, right? Ah~ no, that hasn’t happened. I’ve been in this guild for years. Not once! I haven’t even paid attention to a new employee. Lee Sooah is an S-rank, you know? Do you have any idea how busy she is? She has more than 50 documents to handle every day!”
He shook his head in amazement.
“Haha… But why was she so focused on me yesterday…”
He distinctly remembered her staring at him absentmindedly all day long. Her desk had been piled high with work.
‘Hmm… Could it be that she really has feelings for me?’
That thought sent a slight shiver down his spine.
But he couldn’t confirm it.
There was no way he could just go up and ask, “Do you like me, Lee Sooah?”
‘For now, I’ll keep observing the situation.’
Ding!
The elevator arrived.
He lightly greeted the colleagues who were giggling while looking at him and headed straight for Lee Sooah’s office.
Bang.
“Hello.”
“Oh my, Hunter Baek Jihoon! You’re here. I was waiting for you.”
She offered him a coffee.
“Here, drink this. It’s really good. I sometimes treat my team members with it.”
That sounded like a big fat lie…
“Don’t feel burdened; go ahead. I find that coffee in the morning makes work go well. I have a lot to do today as well. Hehe.”
‘What on earth is Lee Sooah’s true self?’
At times, she seemed ferocious like a beast, and at others, she appeared as gentle as a lamb.
Moreover, she acted like she was extremely caring toward him.
Of course, she had been this way during their first meeting too.
‘Hmm. Do I look that weak?’
He recalled what Manager Cha had mentioned in passing earlier.
‘Hmm~ Maybe it’s because Baek Jihoon is E-rank? Until now, we’ve never had an E-rank in Team A. It’s the first time ever. So maybe I just seem a bit weak?’
There was some truth to that.
Team A of the Blue Guild was a top-tier group. It wouldn’t be easy for an E-rank to join.
‘Then it could be that she’s not in love with me but just feels pity for me.’
Isn’t there a maternal instinct in women?
Seeing outstanding hunters might make an E-rank hunter seem adorable.
‘Regardless, I need to focus on my own work.’
He sat down at his desk.
Lee Sooah also took her seat beside him.
And then she started staring at him intently.
‘C’mon. Didn’t you say you had a lot of work to do?’
It was a bit awkward and embarrassing to point that out.
To be continued…
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