Even Today, the Ranker Dreams of Retirement

Chae Jise swiftly had her license verified—Kim Woojin had to step in to check her credentials, as Cheon Sara was frozen in shock—and hurried over to Habin.

“Habin-ah!”

“Unni! What brings you here?”

“Just dropped by while passing! I’m also looking around to see which brands to invest in these days.”

The two had agreed to speak informally after exchanging phone numbers last time. Naturally, there was no awkwardness between them. They appeared as if they had known each other for at least a decade.

Chae Jise glanced around and asked, “You’ve been shopping? How was it? Did you find anything you like?”

“Yeah. The personal shopper here was really helpful.”

Habin introduced Yoo Jihee. Finding herself the center of attention from two high-profile hunters, Yoo Jihee smiled brightly.

“Not at all. Hyun Habin Hunter-nim has such good taste that guiding her was easy.”

“Haha, isn’t that right? I knew you had an eye for people.”

The atmosphere was warm and friendly. Meanwhile, Cheon Sara stood awkwardly to the side, watching them.

She desperately wanted to approach but couldn’t bring herself to do so, merely observing the situation nervously.

‘To think that customer happened to be Chae Jise’s acquaintance!’

She wanted to join in but didn’t dare. Belatedly remembering her rude behavior towards Hyun Habin, Cheon Sara could only seethe internally.

Throughout this, Jise seemed interested only in Habin.

“Really? What did you buy?”

“I wanted clothes made from Cloud Bird Wool material……”

Habin looked at Cheon Sara. As their eyes met, Sara flinched and stepped back as if stung.

“At first, I was told there weren’t any, so I thought I’d come for nothing.”

“……They said there weren’t any?”

Chae Jise’s expression hardened. Habin shrugged, gesturing towards Cheon Sara.

“I guess that person didn’t know.”

Habin turned her gaze from Cheon Sara.

“Fortunately, Yoo Jihee shopper-nim here said they had some. She seems to know the most around here. Right?”

“You’re too kind.”

“Ah, I see. I should ask this person when I shop too. Time just evaporates whenever I go shopping.”

Listening to their conversation, Cheon Sara was fuming.

‘It’s not that I didn’t know! I knew they had it, but I just didn’t want to tell her. And now I can’t even say that!’

Her dismissive response of claiming they had none, intended to brush off Habin, had backfired, instead proving Cheon Sara’s own incompetence.

‘I guess that person didn’t know.’

She couldn’t even defend herself. After all, Cheon Sara had said it herself.

‘Oh, we have the ‘Cloud Bird Wool’ line? I wasn’t aware of that. It seems Yoo Jihee-ssi knows more about it, so please leave it to her.’

‘What am I supposed to do now?!’

As Cheon Sara was stewing in her own misery,

“Habin-ah.”

“Yes?”

Jise’s voice subtly lowered.

If Habin were to name someone with impeccable social awareness, she would immediately pick Chae Jiseok as her top choice.

And his sister, Chae Jise, was equally perceptive when it came to reading situations.

Jise noticed Habin’s worn cap and stained canvas bag. Her clothes and shoes were clearly new, just purchased and worn out of the store.

“May I take a look at your shopping bags for a moment?”

With Habin’s permission, Jise briefly examined the shopping bags. While some contained new items, others held old shoes and a sweatshirt.

Hyun Habin must have worn these when she came in here.

A worn sweatshirt, cap, scuffed sneakers, and a stained canvas bag.

And because of this, she didn’t receive proper assistance.

‘……I see how it is.’

As this realization dawned on her, Chae Jise looked up. She turned towards Cheon Sara.

“Shopper-nim, what’s your name?”

“Ch-Cheon Sara.”

“Did Cheon Sara-nim tell Habin that there were no clothes made from Cloud Bird Wool material?”

“Uh, um…… Yes.”

“Why? Surely you couldn’t have actually been unaware.”

Chae Jise smiled. Unlike her usual gentle eye-smile, this was a cold gaze that anyone could recognize.

“Cloud Bird Wool material is a high-end fabric specifically managed by any luxury section, isn’t it? If you didn’t know that, wouldn’t that be grounds for revoking your shopper qualification? Did you really not know?”

“Well…… It’s just that Cloud Bird Wool is so expensive……”

“So, did you know or not?”

Backed into a corner, Cheon Sara had no choice but to tell the truth.

“I… I knew.”

“Then why did you lie?”

‘I’m done for…….’

Squeezing her eyes shut, Cheon Sara quickly bowed her head towards Hyun Habin. She looked like someone desperately trying to put out a fire that had just landed on her foot.

‘There’s no other option but to apologize profusely! I need to survive this!’

While it had been difficult to bow her head when she thought Habin was penniless, now that she knew Habin was a VIP, it wasn’t hard at all. Cheon Sara bowed repeatedly.

“Hunter Hyun Habin-nim, I sincerely apologize for my late realization. I truly didn’t know. I mistook you for a porter and misunderstood…… I failed to recognize you…… I’m truly sorry.”

‘I failed to recognize such an important person.’

‘I’m truly sorry.’

In Cheon Sara’s experience, this repertoire usually worked. Even with difficult customers, referring to them as ‘important people’ and treating them with extra respect often helped soothe their mood to some extent.

However, Habin’s response completely shattered her expectations.

“But I actually was a porter, you know?”

“……Pardon?”

“You didn’t misunderstand. You saw me correctly.”

“Ah…….”

Cheon Sara had been arguing all along that she had made a mistake by misunderstanding Habin as a porter.

Hyun Habin tilted her head.

“Wait a minute. So, what you’re saying is, if I were a porter, it would be okay to disrespect me?”

“What? N-no, that’s not what I meant……”

“Hmm, why are you looking down on my previous job?”

Habin looked down at the polished marble floor. At a glance, it was luxurious and elegant, but also hard and cold.

During her part-time job days, Habin had once nearly slipped here while rushing.

She didn’t even have time to think about how she could have been hurt or how dangerous it was; she just had to keep running frantically as a porter and delivery part-timer.

Those were days of fierce struggle to properly live the life she had been given.

To protect the home where the last memories of her family remained from foreclosure, in case they ever returned, and to put food on her own table each day.

While she couldn’t flex extravagantly like today or show off her hunter license, those moments were just as intense, proud, and brilliant as any.

“I’ve never thought of that as something to be ashamed of or looked down upon. Did Cheon Sara-nim find it insignificant?”

“N-no, no, not at all! I’m sorry!”

Cheon Sara, now pale as a sheet, shook her head desperately.

It seemed she had belatedly realized what crucial mistake she had made, but it was already too late.

◆◇◆◇◆

“……So what happened after that?”

At the Chae siblings’ home.

Chae Jiseok, who had been listening intently to Jise’s story, asked curiously.

Jise tilted her head.

“Of course, I received a proper apology, and as you know, I’m acquainted with that department store’s CEO. I casually mentioned it, and they assured me they would reorganize things appropriately.”

She turned on her phone with a satisfied expression.

“And thanks to Habin, I got to know a great personal shopper! Yoo Jihee-nim. She’s efficient, capable, and kind. The more I see her, the more I want her. I’ve offered her a position at our luxury section several times.”

“And?”

“At first, she seemed to decline out of pressure, but lately, I think she’s starting to come around. Wish me luck with the headhunting. I’m determined to bring her on board!”

As Chae Jise was enthusiastically discussing Yoo Jihee’s recruitment, Jiseok glanced over at Habin, who was casually watching TV in the living room.

He noticed the sky-blue hoodie she was wearing.

That clothes, didn’t she say she bought it from Ajuel?

“By the way, Hyun Habin, did you buy all your clothes from Ajuel? What a coincidence. Wasn’t Ajuel the brand you were keeping an eye on, nuna?”

“That’s right.”

“Why Ajuel specifically? There are plenty of other brands.”

Chae Jise narrowed her eyes.

“I’ve been watching this unusual investor for a while, and it turns out they recently invested in Ajuel.”

“……An unusual investor?”

It was rare for Chae Jise to take interest in someone. Jiseok asked, surprised.

“What kind of person are they to catch your attention?”

“They’re an anonymous investor, so I don’t know the details, but……”

Chae Jise added with a serious expression.

This person who recently invested in Ajuel. The anonymous investor who likes Cloud Bird Wool and even ordered to add stain-resistant properties.

“That person, they’re incredibly good at investing. Almost to the point of catching up with me.”

“What……?”

Chae Jiseok was shocked by her words.

“Catching up to you, nuna? That should be impossible for an ordinary person, right? We use precognition skills.”

“Exactly. That’s why I wonder if they might have precognition skills like us? Or maybe they’re a regressor, like something out of a novel?”

“Come on, regressors don’t exist in real life.”

“……Right? I was just joking.”

As they shared a light laugh, Habin’s voice came from the living room.

“……Huh? That masked magician!”

Her voice was slightly raised, as if she had discovered something. Curious, Jiseok looked at the TV in the living room.

“Masked magician……?”

Habin was watching a news channel. On the screen, Fides, wearing a mask, was being interviewed. Jiseok spoke in a pleased voice.

“It’s Fides-nim? This must be footage from today. I haven’t seen this interview before.”

“That’s not the issue.”

“Then what?”

“That masked magician is wearing the exact same clothes as me!”

At that moment, Fides on the screen was answering a question.

-Ah, this outfit? It’s from a brand I’ve been interested in lately because they seem to produce a lot of clothes that suit my taste…….

Jiseok inadvertently looked at Fides’ clothes. Though he didn’t mention the brand name, it was clearly Ajuel’s Cloud Bird Wool line sky-blue hoodie.

And what Habin was wearing was also…

……Ajuel’s Cloud Bird Wool line sky-blue hoodie.

Jiseok blurted out without thinking.

“It’s a couple look.”

“Ugh!”

As Habin recoiled at those words, Jiseok asked with a puzzled expression.

“What’s wrong? What’s the problem with having a couple look with Fides-nim?”

“I hate it!”

“?”

Fides.

World Rank 1. The hero who saved the world. The righteous magician.

With such impressive titles, Fides undoubtedly enjoys worldwide popularity.

He was a global celebrity with a level of fame and recognition that was hard to believe for a single hunter. His influence transcended national borders, and he had a powerful fandom to boot.

As a result, whenever he wore something, that product would sell out in every online and offline store worldwide. The secondhand market prices would skyrocket, which said it all.

“Isn’t that a good thing? Now that it’s been on TV, it’ll be hard to get even if you have money. You’ve scored a hot item in advance, that’s great.”

Habin shook her head.

“Mmm, no. It makes me feel strangely uncomfortable. Unsettling.”

That masked magician, why did he have to wear the exact same color too?

“That mask-wearer…… There’s just something off about him.”

Habin muttered menacingly, narrowing her eyes.

“One day, I’m going to rip that mask right off his face!”

Jiseok interjected, startled.

“Hey now, why are you like that towards Fides hyung-nim? He’s a good person!”

“What’s this, Chae-ssi? You know that masked magician?”

As Habin turned to look at him, Jiseok shrugged.

“Of course I’ve met him in person a few times. I may not look like it, but I am the Vice Guild Master of Solaris, you know.”

He cleared his throat awkwardly. Right, I’d almost forgotten because I see him so often, but Chae Jiseok is quite a famous hunter too. Somehow, his boasting makes him seem more like an ordinary person.

Anyway.

“Where did you see him?”

“You can meet him at international hunter conferences and such. He’s really a great person. I actually respect him quite a bit.”

“What……? Respect?!”

Habin’s face contorted in shock at those words. Jiseok added, as if defending himself.

“Oh come on, you’re a fan of my nuna too! It’s normal for people to have role models. He’s World Rank 1, his achievements are countless, he has many famous quotes, and he helped me a lot when I was a beginner……. He’s truly amazing once you get to know him. It’s rare to find someone who dislikes him. But why are you so wary of him?”

Habin let out a deep sigh. Then she folded her arms resolutely.

“What’s the matter?”

“Just because.”

“Just because?”

Glaring at Fides on the TV, Habin clenched her jaw.

“Every time I see that mask, I feel a strange sense of familiarity and betrayal. You ask why I’m so wary? You should be the one not trusting anyone so easily, Chae-ssi. In this harsh world, you need to stay cautious until the very end.”