EP.45
“Ugh… ugh…”
Chae Suhyeon barely regained consciousness.
“Ah. Patient, are you aware? Do you know what day it is today?”
Fortunately, the nurse who had come into the VIP room where Chae Suhyeon was noticed that she was awake.
“Ugh… ugh…”
Chae Suhyeon attempted to say something to the nurse.
However, no words came out of her mouth.
‘Huh…? What… what’s happening…? Why…? I can’t speak?’
Her expression was one of complete panic.
Startled, she fumbled and moved her body around.
Then she began fiddling with her mouth and throat.
But there was no change.
Chae Suhyeon still couldn’t speak.
“Ugh… ugh…”
She reached out her hand toward the nurse, trying to gesture something to say.
Her expression was quite frantic.
“Ah. Is there something you need, patient?”
The nurse approached with a gentle smile.
“Uh… uh…”
Chae Suhyeon wanted to say something earnestly, but nothing was coming out.
After some back-and-forth between Chae Suhyeon and the nurse, the nurse quickly went outside to call for a doctor, apparently realizing the issue.
*
“Uh… so…? Is it aphasia?”
“Yes. It can be classified as such symptoms or something similar.”
The atmosphere was very heavy.
The doctor and Lee Jinhyeok were engaged in a serious discussion.
“What in the world happened…?”
“It seems that something has occurred that gave the patient a tremendous shock. Unless it’s something significant, it’s unlikely to cause this…”
‘No. What suddenly happened? What the heck? An S-rank and still recovering so slowly?’
Lee Jinhyeok’s mind was swirling with various thoughts.
It felt like something was tripping him up all of a sudden in the midst of a busy day.
“Will natural recovery happen?”
“That’s something we can’t say for certain either. Sometimes it happens… sometimes the state lasts forever.”
“Ha… this is maddening.”
Just when he had just barely secured the top spot as an S-rank, suddenly aphasia struck.
If she couldn’t speak, her value would inevitably drop significantly.
‘Damn it. Should I have bet on Lee Sooah instead?’
Of course, Lee Jinhyeok had made countless advances toward Lee Sooah over the years.
But it was a complete wall.
There was not even the tiniest gap.
In the midst of all that, he had discovered the rapidly growing Chae Suhyeon.
‘Fine, I’ll just nurture Chae Suhyeon instead if Lee Sooah, Yoo Hana, and Cha Ahyeon refuse.’
Lee Suhyeon caught his eye when she reached B-rank.
From that point on, he showered her with various gifts and immense funding.
But just when he was about to officially announce that she was finally his, this happened.
‘Ha… How much have I poured into Chae Suhyeon until now?’
He couldn’t hide his anxiety.
Just when it seemed that the funds invested would finally show effects, suddenly there was nothing he could do.
He cast a quick glance toward the hospital room where Chae Suhyeon was.
*
“Hey Suhyeon. Are you somewhat back to your senses?”
“…”
Chae Suhyeon was staring blankly into space, almost like someone whose soul had left their body.
And she slowly nodded.
She seemed entirely dazed.
Entering the hospital room, Lee Jinhyeok didn’t seem to register in her mind.
All that filled her head was Baek Jihoon.
‘Why…? Why has it come to this?’
‘Baek Jihoon… has brought me to ruin…’
‘Could it be that I’ve made a terrible mistake?’
‘Should I have just lived well with Jihoon oppa?’
She continued to gaze into space.
Her eyes began to feel slightly moist.
As if she couldn’t accept the shock she was experiencing.
She activated her status window and slowly looked at her stats.
Even after fainting and regaining consciousness, it remained unchanged.
The status window was completely empty.
She had thought that even if Baek Jihoon took it all, she would still be at least C-rank.
But that wasn’t the case.
It was completely E-rank.
She had plummeted to the bottom.
‘All the benefits I gained from my Succubus traits… I’ve lost them all…’
‘I’m finished…’
She had been so happy for the past few years.
She had grown at an insane pace.
She could surpass all the hunters she laid eyes on.
‘Did I… get too greedy?’
Chae Suhyeon’s heart was gravely shaken.
To fall from the top to the depths in just a few days was a shock beyond measure.
“Suhyeon, are you okay? It can recover naturally, you know? Let’s wait a bit. Since you’re S-rank, you should recover quickly.”
Lee Jinhyeok wore a face of slight skepticism.
*
“Stop all the news. There’s no reason for useless information to leak out.”
“Understood. I’ve already dealt with it to some extent. I also spread some false information about coming to the hospital for a health check.”
Lee Jinhyeok was moving very busily.
He also needed to keep an eye on the competition with the Blue Guild.
It had been very hectic days.
“Ha. I just needed to recruit Chae Suhyeon to surpass the Blue Guild in one fell swoop. It’s so frustrating.”
While he was burning with rage inside, he couldn’t let it show outwardly.
He maintained an effort to stay calm, thinking it would likely be nothing significant.
‘Chae Suhyeon. This can’t be some sort of trick, right?’
There was a sense of unease in her heart.
‘Should I have someone keep an eye on things?’
*
“Ugh… Baek Jihoon oppa…”
Chae Suhyeon seemed to be spiraling into a state of despair.
In the empty hospital room, she was just fiddling with her smartphone.
‘Can I… start over?’
Her mind was in total disarray.
On the surface, she was ranked first among S-ranks, but in reality, she was an E-rank with her points stripped away.
She felt like there was nothing she could do.
‘Ugh…’
‘Huh?’
As she gazed blankly at her status window, her expression brightened slightly.
[Baek Jihoon: Enchantment Status 95/100]
‘Did I have this?’
It was something she had never seen before.
In fact, except for Baek Jihoon, the rest of the men were almost one-night-stand levels, and Baek Jihoon had been the one who stuck around.
‘Then…’
It became clear to her.
She felt that the enchantment status was gradually decreasing.
‘It’s only decreased by 5% so far? Then there’s some hope, isn’t there? Ugh…’
Chae Suhyeon quickly began brainstorming.
The problem was no longer Lee Jinhyeok or the Taeyang Group.
What mattered most was to regain her previous status, no matter what.
‘If I can somehow entice Jihoon oppa back to me…’
‘Or maybe I’ll have to cling to him.’
Chae Suhyeon was being quite cautious.
She was feeling a bit of reflection and regret about herself.
Still, she had not yet been completely abandoned by Lee Jinhyeok.
It felt like a fifty-fifty situation.
‘Somehow, I need to seduce Baek Jihoon oppa again without being caught by Lee Jinhyeok.’
‘If I’m given another chance… perhaps I can recover…’
‘Baek Jihoon oppa…’
She fell into deep thought.
*
“Ugh… Manager, isn’t today’s dungeon a bit underprepared?”
“Eh? Why? We’re doing the same as usual. It seems like Lee Sooah has returned to her usual self, too.”
Manager Cha glanced toward Lee Sooah.
Team A’s Hunters were currently out at the National Museum dungeon.
“No. Isn’t Lee Sooah Hunter acting rather scatterbrained lately?”
“Wasn’t she like that anyway?”
“Still, she didn’t seem this dazed before…?”
“That’s true…”
“Something feels off.”
“I thought about it, and it’s probably because of Baek Jihoon.”
“Hmmm.”
The department members showed an attitude that they couldn’t quite accept Manager Cha’s words.
“Ha. Manager, that’s just something we joked about, right? You don’t actually think Lee Sooah Hunter is really interested in Baek Jihoon, do you?”
“Based on the circumstances, it seems so. Have you seen how things went after Baek Jihoon went to the dispatch? Lee Sooah has completely lost her mind, you know?”
Lee Sooah was staring blankly into the void.
She seemed to be alternating her gaze at the clock, as if waiting for something.
“Lee Sooah, have you ever acted like that? Have you ever been lost in thought like that? No, right? A workaholic like her has gone completely off the rails.”
“Hmm. I don’t really think Baek Jihoon is that charming…”
“Eh~ Love isn’t determined just like that~ Maybe all the guys she’s seen until now haven’t been attractive to Lee Sooah Hunter at all~”
Manager Cha wore a confident expression.
“Well, anyway, everyone be careful today~ Don’t get hurt unnecessarily~”
“Yes!”
Manager Cha approached Lee Sooah Hunter.
“Lee Sooah Hunter, shall we head in right away?”
“Yes…”
Lee Sooah appeared to be dazed.
“Oh? There’s Baek Jihoon Hunter.”
“Eh? Where?”
Lee Sooah suddenly jumped in surprise and started looking around.
“I think he just went into the dungeon?”
“Oh, Manager Cha, stop lying.”
“No, it’s true~”
Manager Cha smiled like a sly fox.
“Baek Jihoon is right next to Yoo Hana. Ha…”
Suddenly, she took on an angry expression.
“Oh no~ So have you been overshadowed by Yoo Hana?”
Manager Cha deliberately made a comment to provoke Lee Sooah.
“Manager Cha.”
“Yes?”
“Are you going to write another report?”
“Haha, no?”
Lee Sooah’s warm words enveloped Manager Cha.
“Hmm~ But did you know?”
“What about?”
“I heard about Baek Jihoon Hunter’s ideal type…”
“Yes? What is it?”
Suddenly, Lee Sooah’s eyes seemed to be lighting up.
“You can’t just say it outright~”
“What is it!!”
Lee Sooah burst out in anger.
It seemed like she might twist his neck if he didn’t answer.
“Didn’t they say he’s the best in the S-rank Hunter ranks~?”
Manager Cha was spinning a tall tale.
“Really? Is that what they said?”
“Yes~ I think I heard that at a dinner gathering.”
“Manager Cha?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s hurry up and start the ambush. We’re in a hurry.”
Lee Sooah stepped ahead before Manager Cha could respond.
To be continued in the next episode.
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