EP.56
“Ah, my head.”
Last night, I had a casual beer with Lee Sooah.
There wasn’t anything particularly special about it.
I just listened to her ramble on about various things for an hour.
She mostly rambled about her past experiences.
‘It seems like I don’t really match beer well.’
I had a slight headache.
‘Today is Saturday. I’ll take the Hunter classification test…’
Finally, a break had arrived after a busy week.
*
Creeeak.
I stepped out of my house to take the Hunter classification test.
I was set to promote from E-Rank to D-Rank.
Since I had already invested all the necessary stats in advance, I had no worries at all.
“Ah, damn. You scared me.”
I opened my front door and was shocked.
“What are you doing here, Ms. Sooah?”
Lee Sooah was standing in front of my door.
It was quite a bewildering situation.
“Uh, well…”
“Sooah, why are you at my house?”
I felt a slight chill crawl up my spine.
“Well… I somehow thought that Yoo Hana might come by today… and I was a little worried about Jihoon.”
“No way. Why would Yoo Hana come here out of the blue?”
That didn’t make any sense.
Of course, Sooah being here was also nonsensical.
“But, um!! Where are you going?”
“Yeah. I’m going to take the Hunter classification test. I was planning to promote to D-Rank today.”
“Ah? Really? Then let’s go together!!!”
“Excuse me?”
“Hey, I’m the S-Rank Hunter, Sooah. I know the place well. Isn’t this your first time, Mr. Baek Jihoon?”
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t my first time.
Naturally, I had gone frequently with Chae Suhyeon.
“Yeah… well…”
I played along, pretending not to know.
I didn’t want to bring up Chae Suhyeon unnecessarily.
“Hehe. Then let’s go together!! I’ll guide you.”
“Alright then.”
*
“Eh??? Ms. Sooah???”
A commotion erupted at the Hunter Grade Assessment Center.
Because S-Rank Sooah had arrived.
“Why are you here…?”
“Wow… Ms. Sooah! It’s an honor to meet you in person.”
“Wow… Ms. Sooah, you’re even more beautiful in person.”
People started flocking around us in excitement.
‘What the? Sooah really has a lot of fans.’
It wasn’t that I didn’t know that Sooah was popular.
But today, since I was proudly walking beside her, people surrounded us wherever we went.
‘Of course, being close makes it hard to perceive that aspect.’
After spending a week hanging out with Sooah, I had gotten somewhat used to her.
Clearly, judging by people’s reactions, Sooah was a major star.
“Hehe… We’re here for our Team A member’s rank promotion.”
“But you’ve never come here before, right? What’s the occasion?”
“Haha… please don’t say that… Haha… I’ve been here… a lot… right? This isn’t the first time, is it?”
She spoke clearly and with emphasis.
The staff at the Hunter Grade Assessment Center sensed the atmosphere and awkwardly laughed, agreeing with Sooah.
“Haha… yes… that’s right… Ms. Sooah… you have come here often… Haha.”
“Uh… Mr. Baek Jihoon? You’re E-Rank?”
“Yes.”
After looking over the documents I filled out, the staff raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Oh. Is it possible for an E-Rank to enter Team A? I didn’t know that. I thought only C-Rank or above could join the Blue Guild.”
“Come on~ Does rank really matter now? What’s important is future potential. Our Baek Jihoon Hunter will become an S-Rank Hunter. I’ll make sure of it.”
She had a slightly intimidating expression.
‘Why does she say she will make me? I could do it by myself anyway.’
“Are you all set? I think we can start the procedure right away.”
“Yes.”
I had already prepared the appropriate stats to promote to D-Rank.
Unfortunately, no matter how many points I had, I couldn’t promote directly to S-Rank all at once.
There was a huge scandal that had caused an uproar across the country once, which is why.
Moreover, if there was too much of a difference between actual rank and ability, it would draw government scrutiny.
I didn’t want to deal with that hassle.
“Uh… it is confirmed. There doesn’t seem to be any issues. You will be recognized as D-Rank from now on. Here’s your registration certificate.”
After various tests and checks, everything went smoothly.
It seemed that because it was a low rank, there were no additional procedures to go through.
“Wow! Now you’re D-Rank, Jihoon! That’s great!”
Sooah loudly congratulated me from the side.
‘What’s the big deal about being D-Rank… you’re S-Rank, after all.’
Four more times like this and I’d be an S-Rank Hunter in no time.
‘Chae Suhyeon. Yeah. Just you wait. I’ll be an S-Rank soon. Then, you’ll get on your knees and cry!’
“Scenes that Yoo Hana played came to mind.”
“Jihoon?”
“Yes?”
“Shall we go out to celebrate this meal?”
“Ah, yes.”
It definitely felt like she was making an effort to stay by my side no matter what.
‘Well, I can’t refuse. There’s really no reason to say no.’
*
“How about this place?”
Sooah asked while eating her steak.
“Haha… it’s tasty and all but…”
I looked up and glanced around.
Everyone in the restaurant was whispering and looking at us.
“Isn’t this a bit too conspicuous? Everyone’s staring at us.”
“Oh, what does it matter? We can just say we came to celebrate our team member’s promotion.”
“But if that’s the case, all the team members should be here too. And this is usually a restaurant for couples, right?”
“Eh~ I told the other team members to take a break since it’s the weekend. Plus, we can just say we’re a couple.”
Cough, cough.
I nearly choked on my food without thinking.
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean~ if anyone says something, just say that.”
“Sooah, do you like me?”
“No!!!!!!”
She reacted strongly again.
It was clear that it was due to her enchantment resistance.
“Ha. Baek Jihoon. Just to clarify, this is definitely not what you think. I will draw a line here. This is all for our team.”
‘What’s going on? She’s acting like a robot, repeating the same thing.’
“Then we can’t even say we’re a couple. People might misunderstand, right?”
“Ah~ I just mean it like that.”
‘What is this? She doesn’t like me, yet she follows me around…’
Her behavior was too obvious, but she was absolutely refusing to admit it.
‘Hmm. I wonder how I can get her to acknowledge it.’
‘Of course, it’s not a significant matter. But still.’
“By the way, Jihoon.”
“Yes?”
“I have a question. What are you going to do in the future?”
“Um…”
I pondered for a moment.
How should I say it?
“There’s someone I want to make regret their actions. I’m going to focus on that.”
I spoke in a slightly stiff and firm tone.
‘No matter what, just seeing Chae Suhyeon cry would be satisfying.’
“Regret? Why?”
“Ah, someone did something very unforgivable to me.”
“Um… what do you think would make that person regret their actions?”
“Well, first, I think I’ll need to become an S-Rank Hunter and succeed.”
“Oh?”
Sooah had a look of genuine interest.
“Great! It seems our goals are somewhat aligned!”
Her voice sounded cheerfully motivated.
“Then let’s work hard together! You’ll become an S-Rank Hunter, and I’ll reclaim my spot as the number one S-Rank Hunter. You know Chae Suhyeon, right?”
I couldn’t help but flinch.
“Yes, I know her very well.”
“Ugh… Chae Suhyeon took my spot this time. Because of that…”
Sooah had an expression as if she could hardly contain herself.
“I have several Hunters I dislike, including Yoo Hana. But now Chae Suhyeon has been added to that list.”
“Haha… I see.”
I had no idea what to say in response.
‘Well, that’s actually because I heavily invested in Chae Suhyeon.’
It was clear that Sooah was not pleased with Chae Suhyeon being first.
If she found out that I contributed to that result, my life in the guild would surely become complicated.
“Ugh… She’s really amazing, isn’t she? How did she rise so quickly in such a short time? Someone must have helped her, right?”
“Haha… indeed…”
Once again, I found myself at a loss for words.
Because it was the truth.
I helped her.
‘She keeps making subtle jabs…’
“Hmph. It doesn’t matter. If yesterday’s words from Baek Jihoon Hunter are true, I can become number one again. Since I can manage all the status ailments!”
Sooah was beaming with a bright smile.
‘Thank goodness. She seems to be in a good mood.’
“So, you see—”
Her expression turned slightly dark.
“Baek Jihoon Hunter, don’t even think about going elsewhere. You must stay near me. Got it? No matter if it’s Yoo Hana or Chae Suhyeon, don’t be swayed by any S-Rank Hunter. You understand?”
Sooah was slicing her meat with an intense, fierce expression.
“Uh…”
“Why are you so quiet?”
Suddenly, she stabbed her fork into the meat with a rather aggressive gesture.
“Hahaha… Yes… for now… I understand…”
‘No way… she isn’t going to become overly clingy, is she…?’
I chose to believe that the aloof Sooah wouldn’t be like that.
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