Cyborg-tl
"Who exactly is that guy?"
"Not sure. Can you even save up points like that? It seems suspicious."
"Well, who knows? Wasn't there someone who quietly saved up while they were A-rank and then jumped to S-rank all at once?"
"Yeah, but that person wasn’t avoiding investment; they were just staying low-key while they were A-rank because they didn’t like the attention."
The Hunters of the Zeus Guild were buzzing with chatter. As the fourth largest guild in the industry, Zeus Guild, along with every other guild, was completely stunned by the news about Baek Ji-hoon. It was unheard of for someone to jump from E-rank to S-rank in such a short time.
Curiosity was rampant. Adding to the intrigue was the fact that Yoo Hana had recently rejoined the Blue Guild. Most people were speculating that it had something to do with Baek Ji-hoon.
"That guy definitely has something to do with Yoo Hana."
"Right? Otherwise, why would Yoo Hana go back to a guild she left so adamantly? She swore she’d never be a Hunter again."
"And from what I hear, both Lee Soo-ah and Yoo Hana are clinging to that Baek Ji-hoon guy."
"What?"
Everyone was taken aback.
"No way, that’s too far-fetched."
"It’s true!"
"Those untouchable women? Come on, that sounds like a wild rumor."
"I’m serious. My friend is in the Blue Guild, and they said that Baek Ji-hoon and Lee Soo-ah were secretly dating the first week he joined. Can you believe that?"
"He doesn’t even look like someone who would be that popular..."
They all exchanged skeptical looks.
"Hey, what are you guys talking about?"
Cha I-seul, an S-rank Hunter, had just arrived at the guild after a late-night shift.
"Oh, Hunter I-seul, you haven’t heard about the big news yet?"
"Big news?"
"Take a look at this."
The Hunters pointed to the TV.
"A guy named Baek Ji-hoon jumped five ranks in just a week and became an S-rank Hunter. It’s causing a huge stir. The Guild Master is on edge, thinking that the Blue Guild might dominate all the other guilds."
"Baek... Ji-hoon... Baek Ji-hoon?"
Cha I-seul’s eyes widened in shock as she saw the screen.
"Why? Do you know him?"
The Hunters noticed her reaction immediately.
"Do you know that guy, Hunter I-seul?"
"Uh... yes... I know him..."
Cha I-seul’s eyes were filled with confusion.
‘What... Ji-hoon? How did this happen?’
Her reaction showed that Baek Ji-hoon was indeed a familiar face to her.
"Sigh... This is a serious problem."
The atmosphere at Baekho Guild was tense, almost suffocatingly so.
"Guild Master Jin-hyuk, should we consider throwing money at this problem?"
One of the high-ranking executives suggested in a sneaky tone.
"I don’t think this is about money."
Lee Jin-hyuk cut off the suggestion sharply.
"Sigh. This Baek Ji-hoon, we’re looking into him, and it doesn’t seem like he’s particularly wealthy. There’s talk that he lives in Sillim-dong... If we offer him money, he might be swayed."
‘Sillim-dong...?’
Lee Jin-hyuk’s expression hardened.
‘How does someone who became an S-rank Hunter in just a week live in Sillim-dong? What kind of mindset does this guy have? Is he crazy?’
He was baffled. The idea that someone could save up so many points while living in Sillim-dong was incomprehensible.
‘I don’t understand what he’s thinking. Could it be that the Blue Guild was hiding him on purpose? Or is it possible that Baek Ji-hoon himself is the Guild Master of Blue Guild?’
There had always been a lot of curiosity surrounding the Guild Master of Blue Guild, but very little information had been disclosed about them, other than that they were a man.
Lee Jin-hyuk couldn’t think of much else besides this line of speculation.
"If it were that easy, Blue Guild would have tried it already."
"That’s true... But what about offering him a position connected to Taeyang Group?"
"That’s unlikely. What use would a company be to someone like him?"
"Sigh..."
Baekho Guild was clearly in a state of panic. Just last week, they were celebrating the recruitment of Cha Soo-hyun, who had dethroned Lee Soo-ah to become the top S-rank Hunter.
They had plans to dominate the Korean Hunter industry and expand globally. But the sudden rise of Baek Ji-hoon had thrown everything into disarray.
"I’ll handle this personally."
"But, Guild Master, it’s just a regular employee. Isn’t this beneath you?"
"No, it’s necessary. If I don’t act now, we might lose the chance entirely."
Lee Jin-hyuk was quick to grasp the situation. He knew that if he didn’t approach Baek Ji-hoon now, the opportunity might slip away entirely.
"Oppa, where are you going?"
Cha Soo-hyun, who had been wandering around anxiously, spotted Lee Jin-hyuk.
"You saw the news, right? About Baek Ji-hoon."
Cha Soo-hyun visibly flinched at the mention of Baek Ji-hoon’s name, almost as if she were having a seizure.
"Y-yes..."
"I’m going to meet him."
"What???"
Cha Soo-hyun’s eyes widened in panic. She rushed over to Lee Jin-hyuk.
"Oppa... don’t go. There’s no need to meet him. He’s just an S-rank Hunter, right? And isn’t he just a low-ranking member at Blue Guild? Why should the Guild Master of Baekho Guild go meet him? Don’t go..."
Her voice trembled with anxiety and fear.
‘Why is she reacting like this? Does she know something about my relationship with Baek Ji-hoon? No, that can’t be...’
Her pupils were shaking violently. The thought of Lee Jin-hyuk meeting Baek Ji-hoon and possibly uncovering her connection to him terrified her. Cha Soo-hyun was losing her confidence by the second.
"Soo-hyun."
"Yes..."
"Have you recovered at all?"
"N-no..."
"Do you know what our plan was?"
"Yes..."
"We were going to use the number one S-rank Hunter to dominate the other guilds completely. But look at you now, doing nothing, while Baek Ji-hoon has rapidly risen. At this rate, he’ll surpass you in no time. Every guild, not just ours, is focused solely on him. And you’re telling me not to go?"
He spoke coldly, then walked away to handle his business.
"No... don’t..."
Cha Soo-hyun was frantically fiddling with her smartphone, sending text after text, but Baek Ji-hoon remained silent.
‘Ji-hoon oppa... I’m so... so sorry... What do I do...’
Her once confident demeanor was fading. Her status window was still empty, and she felt that even if she started building it up now, it would take over ten years to reach S-rank again.
‘How did it come to this...’
She bit her lip in frustration.
"Hyung, Ji-hoon."
"What is it?"
Hyung-seok, who had just started as my secretary, looked slightly surprised as he spoke.
"The Guild Master of Baekho Guild is here... He wants to meet with you."
Hyung-seok’s expression was a mix of confusion and concern.
"Is it Lee Jin-hyuk?"
"Yes... that’s right..."
It was no wonder Hyung-seok looked that way; he was aware of the situation with Cha Soo-hyun.
"What should we do?"
"I’ll meet him. Let’s see what he has to say."
"Yes, sir!"
"Good day. I’m Lee Jin-hyuk."
His tone was formal and slightly intimidating.
"Hello. I’m Baek Ji-hoon, the newly appointed leader of Blue Guild’s A-Team."
"A-Team leader? What about Hunter Lee Soo-ah...?"
"The reorganization took place today."
"What?"
Lee Jin-hyuk’s face showed clear confusion. He hadn’t expected this at all.
It was obvious from his reaction that he hadn’t anticipated such a sudden shift.
"So, what happened to Hunter Lee Soo-ah? Did she resign?"
"No, she’s been reassigned as the Deputy Manager of Hunter Team 1."
"Deputy Manager? You demoted Lee Soo-ah?"
His expression became even more bewildered. For someone familiar with Lee Soo-ah’s reputation, this was utterly incomprehensible.
He was visibly rattled. When he first came to meet me, he had been confident and imposing, but now he was clearly shaken by the information he had just learned.
"What brings you to see me?"
"I had some personal questions."
"Go ahead."
"Why didn’t you invest your points until now?"
"I’m not sure why that would concern you, and I don’t feel like discussing it."
‘Of course, it’s because of Cha Soo-hyun, that damn woman.’
I couldn’t tell if Lee Jin-hyuk knew this and was just pretending to be ignorant or if he was genuinely clueless. His expression didn’t give anything away.
"My apologies. I was just very curious. It’s almost impossible to understand how someone could become an S-rank Hunter in just a week."
"Yes."
"Then, may I ask more seriously, what are your plans moving forward?"
I could tell what he was getting at. His demeanor, his posture, and the way he asked the question—it all pointed to one thing: he wanted to join forces.
Whether it was recruiting me or forming an alliance, he was trying to get closer.
"I plan to gather all the S-rank Hunters."
Lee Jin-hyuk’s expression hardened at my words.
‘Yes, everyone except for you two.’