“Hmm… could it be…?”

“Hah. Hyung, has something happened to your brain? Think about it. The great Hunter Lee Soo-ah asked you to invite her to dinner. That’s a huge deal! No one in Blue Guild has ever gotten that kind of offer in years!”

“Uh… maybe…”

Hyung-seok kept grinning, clearly enjoying the situation and trying to egg me on.

“Has anything else happened recently? Like subtle skinship or anything?”

“Hmm… not subtle, but pretty direct.”

“Direct?”

“Yeah… yesterday, she just hugged me out of nowhere and left.”

“WHAT?!”

Bang!

Park Hyung-seok slammed his hand on the table and jumped to his feet, completely shocked by what I’d just said.

“Y-you’re telling me… Lee Soo-ah hugged you?!”

“Yeah, I don’t know why. She said it was a mistake and then left.”

“Wh… what?!”

His face twisted into a look of frustration as he glared at me.

'What’s this guy’s problem?'

“Hah… I’ll hold back. Fine. I’ll step aside and let you have her, Hyung. It looks like Lee Soo-ah has already fallen for you.”

“Step aside? She was never yours to begin with, idiot.”

“Don’t be so quick to dismiss me.”

“You really think it’s gonna happen?”

“Well… there’s always the saying… ‘if you chop at a tree enough times…’”

“You’d need to chop it a hundred thousand times…”

“Then I’ll do it ten thousand more…”

“Ugh…”

I glared at him sharply, and he seemed to come back to his senses.

“Hyung! Are you insane?! Lee Soo-ah hugged you, and you just stood there like it was nothing? You should’ve taken her to a motel immediately!”

“You idiot! Who jumps to conclusions like that?”

“Fine, if not that, at least a kiss! You should’ve kissed her!”

“Do you want me to get sued for sexual harassment? She’s an S-rank Hunter, and she said it was a mistake. She even came the next day and apologized repeatedly.”

“That’s no mistake! A mistake is bumping into someone on the street, not hugging them.”

He rubbed his forehead as if utterly exasperated.

“Anyway, I think my theory is spot on. It’s even more certain now. Lee Soo-ah is crazy in love with you, Hyung. So in love that she’s become obsessed. The moment she heard about Cha Soo-hyun, her jealousy went wild.”

“Jealousy…?”

“Think about it. Lee Soo-ah lost her number one spot to Cha Soo-hyun, and she’s been frustrated and angry ever since. Then she finds out you used to date Cha Soo-hyun, and it sent her over the edge. That’s why she told you to leave—to express her frustration and her feelings.”

“Hmm…”

There was some truth to what he was saying. Over the past two weeks, Lee Soo-ah had been acting incredibly strange, and her recent behavior was even more suspicious.

“Man, you’re lucky… Lee Soo-ah is so head-over-heels for you that she’s losing her mind. How did you pull that off?”

“I didn’t do anything…”

If anything, it was probably due to the Incubus trait. There’s no way someone as strong-willed as Lee Soo-ah would fall for me just because of my own charm. She’s not that easily swayed.

“Hyung, could you teach me your secret? I’d love to experience that.”

“Sigh… that’s not the issue here. But did you tell her about Cha Soo-hyun?”

“Huh? No, I swear I didn’t.”

“Then who the hell told her?”

I was at a loss.

It felt like I’d been hit out of nowhere, blindsided.

“Anyway, I’m sure of it. Lee Soo-ah is crazy in love with you. You know how people sometimes love so much it drives them insane, and they end up hurting or abandoning the person they love?”

He was spewing nonsense.

“Are you saying she’s going to lock me up or something?”

“Let’s not get too crazy.”

“Hyung, why don’t you confirm it yourself?”

“Confirm it?”

“Yeah, if you don’t believe me, why not test her? Try playing hard to get or pulling away a bit. Make her confess on her own.”

His plan was to get Lee Soo-ah to confess her feelings by playing hard to get, pushing her away, and putting pressure on her until she revealed her true emotions.

‘What a ridiculous situation this is turning into…’

This whole thing was getting stranger by the minute.

“Hunter Lee Soo-ah.”

I dropped a massive stack of paperwork on the desk with a loud thud. I’d called her into the office and assigned her a mountain of work.

The stack was at least as tall as six college textbooks piled on top of each other.

“What’s this?”

Lee Soo-ah’s voice was icy, and her gaze was sharp, full of annoyance as she glared at me like she couldn’t stand the sight of me.

'What’s with her? Why is she acting like this?'

“Finish this. Hunter Department 1. I expect it completed by tomorrow.”

“All… of this… by tomorrow?”

Her eyes twitched slightly.

“Yes. Can you handle it?”

“Hah… unbelievable…”

She seemed to be trying to make sense of the situation.

“I’ll do it.”

She grabbed the stack of papers and stormed out.

Bang.

She slammed the door shut behind her, clearly pissed off.

'What’s her problem? Is she really jealous? Is this some sort of intense love thing?'

I decided to follow Hyung-seok’s advice and try a bit of push-and-pull. I’d apply pressure until she cracked.

“Seriously, is this who Ji-hoon is?”

Lee Soo-ah, holding the pile of papers, dropped them on the table in front of the Hunter Department 1 team.

“Huh… Chief Lee Soo-ah, what is all this? Is this for the next quarter?”

“By tomorrow.”

“Whaaat????”

The team leader of Hunter Department 1 looked like he was about to faint.

“All of it? By tomorrow? Why so suddenly?”

“Hah. Baek Ji-hoon said to get it done. Can you believe it?”

Lee Soo-ah was clearly frustrated, her expression filled with anger toward Baek Ji-hoon.

'So, he’s doing this because I told him to leave Blue Guild, huh? Now he’s trying to retaliate by giving me extra work? Hah, ridiculous.'

She squinted her eyes, deep in thought.

‘This is just a power move. He knows the Guild Master didn’t listen to me, and since I don’t have any evidence, he’s just going to act out like this, isn’t he? This is his way of making me miserable.’

Her hatred for Baek Ji-hoon was growing stronger by the second. She also began regretting how she’d let herself fall for him, feeling foolish for her actions.

'You idiot, Lee Soo-ah. This is who Baek Ji-hoon really is. And you fell for him? Look at how he’s treating you now, after taking your position. How does he expect anyone to finish all this in one day? Is that even possible? Ugh…'

She clenched her fists, trembling with anger.

“Uh… Hunter Lee Soo-ah… how are we supposed to finish this in one day? We’d have to work ourselves to death…”

“We’ll get it done.”

“What????”

“We’ll do it. Even if it drives me crazy, I’ll make sure it gets done. Let’s see who wins.”

Lee Soo-ah’s eyes gleamed with a wild determination.

Knock knock.

“Yoo Hana.”

Lee Soo-ah’s voice sounded urgent as she called for Yoo Hana.

“What’s wrong?”

“Listen.”

“Yes?”

“We’re allies, right?”

“Of course.”

“Can you help me out?”

Lee Soo-ah showed her the stack of papers Baek Ji-hoon had just given her.

“Whaaaat??? This… in one day?”

“He called me in and told me to finish all this by tomorrow.”

“Oh my God…”

Yoo Hana was stunned. She hadn’t expected Baek Ji-hoon to pull a move like this.

“Wow… Ji-hoon is playing some serious mind games here. He’s testing us, isn’t he? He’s not the clueless guy we thought. He’s really pushing us now. You were right, Soo-ah. This is giving me chills.”

Yoo Hana shivered.

“I can’t do this alone… Can you help me?”

“Hmmm… fine. You’re right. Baek Ji-hoon has been toying with us all along. I feel so stupid for even liking him for a second.”

“Me too.”

“Let’s take him down. Let’s show him what the power of S-rank Hunters looks like.”

“Agreed.”

Lee Soo-ah and Yoo Hana clasped hands, their rivalry momentarily forgotten as they united against a common enemy.

“Hey, is this really the right way to handle this?”

“Hah, of course it is. This is how you fight for love. It’s all about dominance.”

“Dominance?”

“Yup. In love, you’ve got to establish dominance early on. Luckily, you’re in a higher position than her, so you’ve got the upper hand. Crush her with work, and she’ll be crawling back to you in no time, begging for mercy!”

'I don’t know what kind of fantasy this guy is living in, but I don’t have a better plan, so I guess I’ll go with it.'

“Alright, I’ll try what you suggested. But I’m not sure it’ll work.”

“Just keep pushing until she surrenders and comes running to you like, ‘Oppaaaaa~!’”

Hyung-seok was practically bouncing with excitement.

'Why is he so excited? I’m the one who’s dealing with all this.'