<Episode 33>
Behind the massive Hunter Management Bureau building. In the inconspicuous Building E, the office of Team G-Alpha was located.
Sitting loosely on a luxurious leather sofa, Park Jaemin casually turned a small cube with a clacking sound. Unlike usual, a faint smile lingered around his lips, causing Alpha Team’s tanker, Hyun Jungwoo, to stop in place in surprise.
“Did something good happen?”
“Something good? Why do you ask?”
“Well… you were smiling….”
At his words, Park Jaemin touched the corners of his own lips and let out a hollow laugh. Just as Hyun Jungwoo had said, the corners of his mouth had unconsciously lifted.
“Rather than something good… I found something interesting.”
“A rare item?”
“Well, close enough.”
He was thinking about the tiny woman who had fiercely cornered him not long ago, Jung Haneul. She had glared at him with all her might, but instead of being scary, she only looked as harmless as a squeaking hamster.
‘Still, I got to see something entertaining thanks to her.’
Not long ago, Manager Shin had contacted him, saying the investment proposal had failed and that additional measures would be necessary.
Sure enough, during the official interview, a familiar reporter suddenly raised his hand and asked a question about Jung Haneul. It was about her entering the gates, information obtained through someone planted on the Director’s side.
Normally, he would have moved according to his father’s grand design, but for some reason, he hadn’t wanted to.
Those clear, round eyes. He thought it would feel quite thrilling if those eyes were filled with him instead of Lee Hyunwoo. If he successfully got closer to her, his father would probably be pleased too.
‘Though I didn’t expect her to hate it that much. That’s unfortunate.’
Honestly, Park Jaemin was confident in his appearance. A neat face that easily earned favor regardless of age or gender. Soft brown hair. Eyes that curved gently with relaxed charm whenever he smiled.
There were hundreds of women lingering around him just for the chance to have a private conversation. So when he visited her shop after that interview, implying he was interested in her, he had secretly expected her to be flustered and excited.
His intentions had missed completely, but that didn’t make him lose interest. If anything, the way she pointed fingers at him and snapped angrily was a little cute.
“Ahaha, calling her cute. I really am….”
He covered his eyes with one hand and tilted his head back. Then, through the gaps between his fingers, he noticed Hyun Jungwoo still staring down at him and frowned.
“Do you have something you want to say?”
“Ah, yes. Vice Director Park Seongcheol was looking for you.”
At those words, the faint smile lingering around Park Jaemin’s lips slowly disappeared. After leaning against the sofa with his eyes closed for a moment, he stood up.
“If he called for me, I should go.”
Patting Hyun Jungwoo lightly on the shoulder, he strode away. His father was not a patient man. Better to hurry a little than be late by hesitating for no reason.
When he arrived at the vice director’s office, the secretary recognized him and greeted him. As he gave a small nod in return, the transparent glass door slid open soundlessly.
“Father. I’m here.”
Vice Director Park Seongcheol, who had been silently looking out the window, gestured without even turning around. Though he was actually close to sixty, the awakened’s youthful appearance made him look no older than his mid-forties.
Park Jaemin carefully stepped behind him. Park Seongcheol asked in a low voice,
“So, you acted on your own because you had another plan, I assume?”
As expected, he had been called in to discuss the fact that he had acted independently. Sensing the displeasure in his tone, Park Jaemin bit his lip.
“…I’m sorry. I thought it would be more important to build a relationship with her rather than make her an enemy, since she’s such an important figure.”
“But you failed in the end. You almost ruined everything.”
In the end, Park Seongcheol clicked his tongue in irritation.
“Manager Shin contacted me. He said if we keep pushing any further, there’s a high chance we’ll expose ourselves.”
Now that things had already escalated, forcing the issue further could bring backlash. Park Seongcheol sighed in disappointment.
Just recently, he had dismissed the items made by some mere F-rank as insignificant. But before he knew it, her influence had steadily grown larger and larger.
Not only famous hunters like Kang Min and Ria Minogue, but even the Director himself had recently started taking an interest in her.
‘We needed to persuade her somehow.’
A one-of-a-kind ability unlike anything in the world. If he could make that power his own, controlling the world would be easy.
That was why he had secretly moved a company he backed to propose an investment deal, and when that failed, he had tried to subtly threaten her by pointing out that she had entered the gates. Yet his foolish son had ruined everything.
“I’m sorry. I acted rashly.”
Sensing his displeasure, Park Jaemin quickly lowered his head. But it didn’t work on Park Seongcheol, whose mood was already soured.
“You useless idiot. How long are you going to act like a stupid brat? If you can’t accomplish anything yourself, then at least don’t drag others down.”
At those sharp words, Park Jaemin inhaled deeply. As he clenched his fists tightly, his nails dug into his soft flesh.
Passing by him, Park Seongcheol picked up the whiskey glass resting on the table. The orange liquid sloshed gently inside the crystal glass. After sinking into thought for a moment, he looked out at the nightscape beyond the window and muttered,
“I tried to take the easy route, but she insists on choosing the hard one. Fine. I expected this might happen, so I prepared a little surprise.”
“A surprise…?”
“She’ll soon start whining that she’s too scared to continue. Then we’ll approach her and persuade her.”
One corner of his lips curled upward. It was a vile smile foreshadowing the coming storm.
***
“Whew! The bed really is the best.”
The moment I got home, I flopped onto the bed and rolled around before grabbing my phone to call Shinhye. Not long after, her booming voice rang out.
—Hey! Jung Haneul! Why have you been so impossible to reach?
“Sorry. Things have seriously been crazy lately.”
—You’re really not dating Hunter Park Jaemin, right?
She had been calling so much these past few days that it felt like my phone would catch fire. Even though I kept saying no, Shinhye clearly didn’t believe me. Thankfully, thanks to Park Jaemin’s clarification, the misunderstanding seemed to be dying down.
—I seriously got so shocked. I thought this time you were finally escaping your forever-single status.
“Wait. Forever single? That’s harsh!”
—Did I say anything wrong?
Ugh. Unable to find a rebuttal, I pressed my lips into a straight line.
Ever since I was little, I’d been helping at my parents’ shop, and after growing up, I’d been busy running a shop on my own, so it was true I never really had time to date.
But it wasn’t that I couldn’t date because there was something wrong with me. I just didn’t have time.
—Honestly, I was rooting for it. Your dead romance cells need to start working already.
“What do you mean by dead romance cells? They’re still alive and well.”
I may never have dated, but I’d liked someone before. Unfortunately, it had ended as an unrequited crush.
Rolling over onto my stomach, I heard Shinhye’s exasperated voice through the receiver.
—You’re still talking about that childhood crush? That’s seriously obsessive.
“I’m telling you, he was genuinely kind and handsome. Even you’d admit it if you saw him!”
—You don’t even know his name. And he’s probably already married. You said it’s been over ten years!
You could still like someone without knowing their name. And besides, it wasn’t like I intended to do anything with him after ten years. He was just my first love.
When I grumbled, Shinhye changed the subject as though she was sick of hearing it. Clearly, imaginary crushes held no interest for her.
—Ugh, whatever. Instead, while you’re working at the shop, just snag yourself a handsome hunter already! And if you meet a good one, introduce him to me too.
“Wait. What about Hunter Kang Min?”
Shinhye firmly stated that fangirling and dating were completely different things. Her ideal type was actually the total opposite of Kang Min Hunter… a huge, bear-like man with a massive build. I snorted and shook my head.
If Kang Min Hunter heard this, he’d probably pretend to cry and say he needed to protect his fans.
“I’m already overwhelmed just running the shop, okay? Maybe later, if I meet someone decent, I’ll think about it then.”
After chatting about all sorts of things we’d missed, we ended the call. Hanyang had already started nodding off beside me.
As I gently stroked Hanyang’s round head, some black figure flickered outside the window.
‘…What?’
It was hard to see in the darkness, but it was definitely a person. And it didn’t look like someone simply passing by.
‘Could it be Hunter Lee Hyunwoo?’
Come to think of it, he had suddenly shown up before too. Maybe he’d come again because he had something to say. Seriously, he should at least contact me first.
“Where are you going, nya?”
As the hand petting him disappeared, Hanyang sleepily asked. Pulling on my outerwear, I patted him lightly.
“I’ll just be right outside for a second. I’ll be back soon.”
The moment I stepped outside, the cold winter wind brushed against my cheeks. Pulling my padded coat tighter around myself, I looked around.
“…Did I imagine it?”
I was sure someone resembling Lee Hyunwoo Hunter had been here. But after stepping outside, the area in front of the house was completely empty.
Feeling awkward for no reason, I scratched my head.
Maybe because I thought I’d grown somewhat close to Lee Hyunwoo Hunter lately, I had started seeing things.
“Looks like that streetlight’s broken too.”
Though technically located in Seoul, this villa neighborhood, still lacking proper development, had terrible conditions. Now that one of the few streetlights had broken, the atmosphere felt especially eerie.
‘I really should move.’
Rubbing the goosebumps rising along my arms, I turned around. Just as I started walking back toward home, thinking I should hurry and get back into bed…
“Jung Haneul?”
“Huh? Who…? Mmgh!!!!”
The moment I heard someone call my name, a rough hand clamped over my mouth. Dragging me into a narrow alleyway, someone spoke in a chilling voice.
“If you don’t want to get hurt, stay quiet. Got it?”
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