NOVEL WEB Chapter 3
‘Wow… damn…’
I could only stare blankly at the sky with a completely bewildered expression.
I had never once thought that something like this would happen to me in my life.
It felt as if I were a victim of a voice phishing or a lease scam.
All I could do was let my soul drift away.
‘How meticulously did Chae Suhyeon prepare for this?’
Usually, offers to scout come from well-known guilds as soon as you reach B-Rank.
They’re so competitive when it comes to talent acquisition.
Chae Suhyeon was not only growing rapidly but also quite young, making her very popular in the hunter industry.
Moreover, she was a woman.
From a marketability standpoint, she was absolutely perfect.
Yet, she held her ground until the end.
‘Oh, oppa. Let’s just not join a guild… for now, let’s just focus on leveling up. Why do you keep worrying about other things?’
‘If we receive guild support, we can grow more comfortably, right?’
‘Oh, I don’t like that. I don’t want to be exposed to others. I also don’t want to share anything with them. Why should we bother joining a guild? When we become in a position of power later, then we can think about it. It’s too early for that now.’
She was stubbornly sticking to her point.
“Oh, speaking of which…”
Suddenly, another thought crossed my mind.
‘Oppa, I don’t want us to be well-known publicly. You know what I mean? I don’t want to build a reputation as a frivolous woman who casually dates. I hope our relationship isn’t made public. It would only tire us out if reporters got involved.’
That was definitely true.
She was making a careful effort to maintain a clean image.
Except for her close friends, she wanted to keep everything secret.
‘Wow. She’s really well-prepared.’
I couldn’t help but grit my teeth.
From my perspective, it felt like I had been set up.
‘What the hell… damn…’
It’s amusing how difficult it is to notice things when you’re right in the middle of them.
Everyone calls those who fall for scams foolish, but when you actually experience it, you understand why it happens.
Looking back now, I can clearly see that my past actions were incredibly foolish, but back then, I had no idea.
Of course, I thought it was something we had to endure for our future.
We firmly believed that we were looking towards the same place and moving in the same direction.
“It shatters my heart completely.”
Maybe I should be thankful instead.
I’ve completely put my heart to rest.
Not a single emotion remains.
“I’m going to completely crush you.”
“Are you stupid? You had so much to lose and yet you acted like that?”
“Did you really gamble, believing that you couldn’t recover your points?”
I let out a hollow laugh.
“I wonder how happy you were every time you scammed points from me, thinking of backstabbing me.”
“Or did you not care about me at all? Were you just focused on your own future?”
But it doesn’t matter.
I can take it step by step.
“Senior? Senior?”
I heard a voice through the phone.
Maybe I was so lost in thought that I didn’t notice.
“Brother, I’m sorry. I have some things to think about. By the way, is there any room available?”
“I can make room one way or another. You’re my senior, after all. I’m starting to gain some influence now.”
Fortunately, I got a good response.
With a tone that hinted at confusion over the current situation.
“Oh, great. Can you make one spot for me?”
My mind was quite complicated, but I decided to take things one step at a time.
“Yes, Senior. Um, can you come to our guild office? Whenever you have time.”
“I have plenty of time now. I’m good to go even now.”
After that, I got a reaction that suggested he had an idea of what was going on.
*
“It’s been a while.”
“Wow… You look just the same.”
Seeing Hyungseok after a long time gave me a rather mixed feeling.
I had to make a slightly humiliating request, so I felt embarrassed and miserable, but at the same time, I was looking forward to this situation.
“I probably have the highest accumulated points among all hunters in the world…”
“And it’s overwhelmingly high…”
Thinking about telling my friends and seniors that I got dumped by Chae Suhyeon made me feel a bit gloomy, but at the same time, I felt good. The future ahead was bright. It was clear.
“Senior. But what position are you looking for? Is something wrong?”
This guy, since he takes on quite important tasks in the guild, is quite perceptive. He seemed to have already caught on to what had happened to me.
“Well, I have nothing to hide anyway. This will be common knowledge soon.”
I loosened my body slightly.
“I got dumped by Soo-hyun.”
“Huh…”
Well, naturally, there wasn’t much of a reaction. It’s certainly a difficult topic to comment on.
“Isn’t today the day she achieves S-Rank 1st place…?”
He asked cautiously, as if testing the waters.
“Yeah. So we gathered to celebrate that, and then I got dumped.”
As I spoke, I couldn’t help but find it quite absurd. It was like someone who had to support their girlfriend through two years in the military, only to get dumped by her on discharge day.
“Wow… How could that happen…”
“Hey, you can curse as much as you want. Don’t worry about my feelings. That b*tch is frustrating me too. Again, feel free to say whatever you want.”
“Wow… I have no words. Just how could a person…”
“Let’s talk about this later over drinks. So, what about the guild position?”
“Oh! Right. There are a few positions available…”
He started pulling out some materials he had prepared.
“These positions probably won’t suit you well. Hmm… How about going this way…?”
He pointed out a specific position.
It was a junior position in Lee Sooah’s S-Rank hunter team.
“Uh? Sooah?”
“Yeah. Well, you’re about the same age, and considering… Soo-hyun…”
He continued speaking while keeping an eye on my reaction. I knew exactly why Hyungseok was acting that way.
There are several S-Rank Hunters around the same age as Chae Suhyeon.
It’s obvious that their relationship with Chae Suhyeon isn’t good.
One of them was Lee Sooah.
“How do you… feel…? I thought this place might be the best.”
There was quite a bit of meaning hidden in his words.
“Damn it. You already figured it out when I called. Given that you prepared this data.”
It was certainly not something I could brush off as a quick reaction.
“Did it look like I was going to break up…?”
“Well, that’s not important right now.”
“Anyway, are you saying this is better than the other places?”
“It might be a bit tough, but I think this is the best option compared to the others. The other spots are just trash… Haha… Anyway, you’re still E-Rank…”
Once again, he was checking my reaction.
“Come on. I know that. If I’m E-Rank at this age, I wouldn’t have gotten a good position from the start.”
In fact, my current rank was useless.
Getting a rank like that was just about pouring points into it and getting government certification—that’s all there was to it.
What really mattered to me wasn’t that.
Chae Suhyeon.
What could I do to make Chae Suhyeon angry?
“To cook up something delicious…”
Some might see my actions now and wonder why a man is being petty, worrying about his ex-girlfriend.
But for me, it was a significantly important issue.
It could have nearly cost me half my life.
I had dedicated almost everything for Chae Suhyeon, and I almost lost it all.
This wasn’t just a simple breakup or a mild annoyance.
A person’s life was on the verge of being ruined.
Ding ding ding.
While I was lost in thought, an alarm rang.
“Ah, just a moment.”
Hyungseok took out what looked like a work phone from his pocket.
“Ah. Senior… right now…”
He had a rather awkward expression, hesitating to say something.
“What’s up? What’s going on?”
I couldn’t help but think about the possibility of being rejected when joining a guild.
Of course, I could go to another guild, but Hyungseok’s guild was one of the top five in South Korea.
It would be best to seize a good opportunity.
“Um… Chae Suhyeon Hunter is holding a press conference…”
“What? A press conference?”
I couldn’t help but frown.
“How far along are they prepared? Without me knowing?”
I had no prior knowledge.
Not about breaking up, not about joining Baekho Guild, not about holding a press conference.
She had clearly said she disliked press conferences and interviews while we were dating.
She expressed her desire to minimize exposure and hated the idea of bad rumors spreading.
‘Oh, oppa. What good is a press conference? The reporters are just going to tear me apart. Ah, since you’re E-Rank, nobody cares about you. But I’m now S-Rank, so everyone is going to go crazy. I don’t want that.’
It seemed she had been quietly hiding her tiger’s claws.
I couldn’t believe how meticulously she had acted.
“I’m sorry, but can we continue the conversation after just watching this? I have some work to do.”
Hyungseok was asking for understanding.
“Ah, of course, that’s fine. It’s you who was called out in the middle anyway. Moreover, I’m really curious about this press conference too! Let’s watch together.”
In the video, Chae Suhyeon was smiling brightly.
There was a banner announcing that she would declare her achievement as the number one S-Rank Hunter and her intention to join Baekho Guild.
“Ha. F*ck… Is she really saying she’ll join Baekho Guild?”
“She never mentioned it to me!”
I started to get quite furious.
“Alright then. F*ck it. Let’s hear what she has to say.”
“That’ll help me decide how to act.”
Hyungseok and I became engrossed in the screen.