Strategic Mating Partner Chapter 29

What was the reason this kid had fallen under his purview in the first place? Although somewhat unfair, it was due to insubordination towards a senior. In the strictly hierarchical world of sports, insubordination towards a senior was strictly prohibited. Of course, there were some differences depending on the sport, but the more established the factions and cliques within a sport, the stronger this tendency became. He knew fencing wasn’t much different.

To begin with, there weren’t many fencing clubs in Korea that fostered national-level athletes. It was safe to say that almost everyone knew each other, at least indirectly. In the sports world, where interpersonal relationships like who was whose junior, who was whose student, and who belonged to which faction were tightly intertwined, insubordination was akin to rebelling against the system itself.

He didn’t know the circumstances of the conflict, but many conflicts in the sports world ended with the juniors unilaterally swallowing their grievances. Underlying this was the belief that someday, they would become seniors and occupy those positions of power.

Taehyun couldn’t understand why they were so obsessed with hierarchy, like some kind of animal kingdom. As someone who preferred to avoid conflict and acted as a buffer even at his own expense, the current situation wasn’t very pleasant for Taehyun. There must have been others who tried to mediate, like him, before the kid resorted to a physical altercation with his senior. The fact that it had escalated to a suspension from training meant that this kid wasn’t easily controlled with words.

“What can I do….”

Taehyun sighed again, standing in front of the private training room assigned to the kid. With his foot like this, he hardly looked like a reliable figure. Still, he had to at least meet him and greet him. After taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door with his knuckles. He heard a sound from inside.

“…….”

But there was no response, no “come in” or any indication that someone was there. Taehyun wondered if he had come to the wrong room and peeked up to check the nameplate on the door. Room 415. It was the room number he had received via messenger.

‘I heard a sound, so he must be inside….’

Did he not hear the knock? Taehyun knocked again, carefully. But still, there was no response.

‘Is he ignoring me on purpose?’

Knock, knock. He knocked persistently and calmly, then called out towards the door,

“Hello? Is anyone there?”

He knocked once more, and finally, the door flew open irritably, revealing the infamous problem child.

“Qui est-ce?”

What is he saying? The kid, who greeted Taehyun with those incomprehensible words that definitely weren’t Korean, had strikingly pale skin, jet-black hair, and unusually red lips, a combination that left Taehyun speechless.

‘Wow, he’s incredibly beautiful.’

Even with his cat-like, upturned eyes narrowed in a frown, Taehyun was struck by a foolish admiration. Looking at the kid’s tall stature and broad shoulders, he momentarily forgot the voice he had just heard and wondered if he had entered the wrong room, a girl’s room perhaps. And while Taehyun was momentarily stunned, the owner of that striking appearance asked again,

“Qui est-ce?”

He still couldn’t understand what it meant, but he could tell it wasn’t a friendly greeting. Didn’t they say he spoke Korean well? Confused, Taehyun said,

“Sorry, I don’t understand. Don’t you speak Korean?”

Resolving the language barrier was more important than introductions. Taehyun asked urgently. The kid replied in an irritated tone,

“C’est énervant.”

Then he turned and walked back to the machine, leaving Taehyun standing at the door. Taehyun, dumbfounded, having been abruptly met with what was clearly a complaint in a language he didn’t understand, could only stare blankly. What is going on? Was it a lie that he spoke Korean? Taehyun closed the training room door, approached the kid again, and said with a smile,

“You’re Joo Sejin, right? I heard from Hoyong-hyung. Something happened, and you’re being excluded from group training….”

But the kid, as if he had no intention of listening to Taehyun, abruptly got up from the machine he had just sat down at, opened the training room door, and walked out.

“….?”

What the… Taehyun, left alone, stared at the door in disbelief. Did he go to the bathroom? Or was he just completely ignored? Even if they were from different sports, he was six years older and a senior athlete with an established presence in the sports industry. He couldn’t be treated like this. Even if he weren’t a senior, it was rude to treat someone like air and walk out on them. Whether he had been raised abroad or was a native Korean, Taehyun had never seen such impudence.

“Ha….”

And 10 minutes later, when it became almost certain that Sejin had completely left the training room, Taehyun’s lips twitched. He was starting to get angry. He heard the kid had hit a senior, he must be out of his mind. And at the same time, he felt a surge of defiance. He was determined to hear a proper “Hello” from that kid.

Just then, his phone rang. It was Hoyong. Taehyun forced a benevolent smile and answered the call.

Hey, Taehyun. Did you meet him? I was a little worried because he’s not the type to stay put… You didn’t fight or anything, did you?

At the anxious question, Taehyun let out a hollow laugh.

“Fight? He left as soon as I came in.”

Oh, for crying out loud. Hold on, I’ll call him right now.

Taehyun stopped Hoyong’s hasty response.

“No, it’s okay. Just tell him to leave for today. He’s still coming here tomorrow, right?”

Hoyong sighed and replied,

Yeah, for the time being, he has nowhere else to go besides the training room and his accommodations. He’s banned from the group training facilities for now.

Is that so? He wasn’t sure if the kid really couldn’t speak Korean, but with no acquaintances and unfamiliar with Korean geography and environment, there weren’t many places he could wander off to. If his entire world consisted of the training room and accommodations provided to him, it would be easy to corner him.

“Okay, then I’m good. Can you give me his address? I’ll see if he comes to the training room tomorrow, and if he doesn’t, I’ll go find him myself.”

What was he going to do when he found him? He had a plan. Taehyun knew better than anyone how to tame this kind of person. It was based on personal experience.

🤺

“You, I’m going to tell our coach!”

“Our coach is super strong!”

“He’s this tall!”

Someone scoffed at the cries of five or six young children, tears welling up in their eyes. He was much taller than the other kids, his clothes too big for his frame. He looked like he was wearing his older brother’s clothes, the loose fit making him look even smaller. The boy mocked the children as they ran away.

“You all got your asses kicked by me, and all you can do is talk?”

It wasn’t something you’d expect to hear from a child who looked barely old enough for elementary school, but his nonchalant tone and arrogant attitude seemed perfectly natural. His tanned skin, a testament to spending all day outdoors, his haphazardly cut hair, and his eyes filled with confidence and arrogance clearly showed that he wasn’t someone to be trifled with.

“Next time, I’m coming with the coach!”

The boy scoffed at the words of the last child to flee.

“Yeah, real impressive, an adult fighting elementary school kids.”

The boy’s arrogance was off the charts for his age. And for good reason. Dozens of kids had challenged him, bringing expensive pencil cases, stationery, rare collectible cards, and other prized possessions, all hoping to defeat him, but no one had succeeded. His winning streak continued.