“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that.”

It was an awkward situation. Out of nowhere, Lee Soo-ah had made an unexpected proposal.

‘What? Did she just ask me to date her?’

Despite the rumors that had been circulating since his first day at the guild, Ji-hoon never thought it would come to this.

Moreover, he had just recently started dating Isul.

"What...???"

Lee Soo-ah looked utterly shocked. It seemed as though she had never considered the possibility of being rejected.

"Why? Why not? It’s me, Lee Soo-ah! I’m an S-rank hunter. Aren’t I South Korea’s number one girlfriend material?"

Her words overflowed with confidence.

“I’m sorry, but I’m already dating Isul.”

"What...?"

Her confusion only deepened.

"Wait, you’re saying you’re dating Cha Isul...?"

"Yes."

"Since when?"

"Not long ago. I apologize."

Ji-hoon bowed slightly, feeling awkward. He hadn’t expected any of this. Lee Soo-ah, of all people, asking him to date her?

He couldn’t help but recall how Hyung-seok had joked about something similar, though he hadn’t taken it seriously at the time.

‘What is going on? Why am I suddenly so popular...?’

It was a bizarre situation.

Thud.

"Holy crap... Did Hunter Lee Soo-ah just confess to my brother...?"

A trembling voice came from nearby. Park Hyung-seok, who had apparently been eavesdropping, collapsed onto the floor, his legs giving out beneath him.

He must have overheard the entire conversation.

"Hey, why are you here?"

"Ah... I was just... passing by... sniff... Soo-ah..."

Hyung-seok’s voice quivered as he looked heartbroken.

"Wait, did Hunter Lee Soo-ah just get rejected?"

"Shut up!!!"

Lee Soo-ah snapped, her voice sharp and cutting. Her face, however, was full of despair.

"I’ll give you one more chance. Please reconsider, Hunter Baek Ji-hoon. I don’t usually do this, but I’m asking because it’s you. I’m giving you this opportunity, so think it over and say yes."

Her voice was desperate, almost pleading.

"I’m sorry, but as I mentioned, I’m already dating Isul... And besides, Hunter Lee Soo-ah..."

Ji-hoon narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at her.

"Why? Why? What’s wrong with me?!"

"You... cause a bit too much chaos."

"I-I can change! That’s not who I really am! I just wanted to catch your attention. Normally, I’m a quiet and composed person, right? Hyung-seok, isn’t that true?"

Lee Soo-ah gave Hyung-seok a deathly glare, clearly warning him to agree with her.

"Uh... y-yes...?"

Hyung-seok reluctantly nodded, looking terrified.

"See? I’m calm, quiet, and composed. I’ll do anything you want, please..."

"I’m sorry."

Ji-hoon bowed again, feeling the need to escape this uncomfortable situation as quickly as possible.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

A piercing scream echoed through the office, loud enough to almost break through the soundproof walls. It was Lee Soo-ah’s voice.

"What the hell?! Cha Isul got to him first!!!"

She couldn’t believe what had just happened.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

She started banging her head against the wall. Even though she was an S-rank hunter, it was clear that slamming her head into the wall would still hurt. But she didn’t care. The shock of the situation was too overwhelming.

"Why... why did this happen...?"

Just a short time ago, she had been living her life with absolute confidence. Her inflated ego had convinced her that she could charm anyone she wanted.

"But Ji-hoon... no... this can’t be happening..."

Knock, knock.

"Soo-ah...?"

"WHAT?!!!"

Her voice was laced with murderous intent as she looked at Cha Manager.

"Uh... is everything okay...?"

"NO! IT’S NOT! GO AWAY!"

Lee Soo-ah screamed, her voice full of fury.

"Eek... got it..."

"Wait... are you serious?! Did that really happen?"

The A-Team breakroom was packed with people, all huddled together.

"I swear! I heard it with my own two ears!"

Park Hyung-seok sounded both upset and disappointed.

"No way. The great Hunter Lee Soo-ah got rejected? That doesn’t make any sense. How?"

"Are you sure you’re not making this up? That’s a shocker."

"Didn’t people say they were dating already?"

"No, I think it was more like people said she had a crush on him."

"Ah, that makes sense..."

"Yeah, that’s what I thought."

The group was divided in their opinions, struggling to wrap their heads around the situation.

"What are you all talking about?"

Yoo Hana popped her head into the breakroom. The sheer number of people gathered there immediately made her suspicious.

"Uh... we were just..."

Hyung-seok looked embarrassed.

"What is it? What’s so funny? Tell me!"

"Um... well, Hunter Lee Soo-ah confessed to Ji-hoon hyung and got rejected."

"Pffffthahaha!"

Yoo Hana burst into laughter the moment she heard.

"Seriously? Hahaha, that’s the best thing I’ve heard all day! Soo-ah, always acting so high and mighty, and she got rejected just like that? Oh, that’s priceless!"

Yoo Hana seemed to be in a great mood. The last few days had been stressful, but this news wiped all that away.

"Haha, well, that means Ji-hoon is all mine, then."

"That’s not gonna happen."

"What? Why?"

Yoo Hana stopped laughing abruptly, her expression suddenly serious.

"Because Ji-hoon is dating Cha Isul."

"What???"

Her face froze in disbelief. It was clear that she had never expected such news.

"Hold on... Ji-hoon is dating Cha Isul? Hunter Baek Ji-hoon?"

"Yes... that’s what I heard."

Yoo Hana’s energy shifted immediately, and the breakroom felt like it was shaking under the intensity of her aura.

"Calm down, Yoo Hana..."

"Hyung-seok! Why would you tell me that!!! Have some tact!"

The members of A-Team looked on in fear.

"So you’re telling me... Ji-hoon already has a girlfriend...?"

Yoo Hana looked furious, her temper barely restrained. The rest of the team was visibly nervous.

"What’s going on here?"

Cha Manager suddenly appeared, startling everyone.

"Manager... Ji-hoon is dating Cha Isul..."

Yoo Hana gritted her teeth as she spoke.

"Oh, really? So why are you so upset, Yoo Hana?"

"Why?! Do you even know why I came back to Blue Guild?!?"

"No, why?"

"To get closer to Ji-hoon!!! And now he’s with Cha Isul?!"

Her voice echoed loudly through the breakroom.

"All that effort, and for what?! He’s with Isul!"

Yoo Hana’s voice boomed with frustration.

"Ah... I see. Hunter Lee Soo-ah is upset, and now you are too..."

"Isn’t this too much?! I worked so hard!"

"Yoo Hana."

"Yes..."

"Just because you work hard doesn’t mean someone’s going to fall for you."

Cha Manager’s tone turned sharp, an unusual sight.

"Ji-hoon pressured us, right? He wanted us to work hard! Wasn’t that supposed to make him like us?"

"Come on, that was just him being your team leader. Nobody starts dating someone just because they work hard."

Cha Manager tried to calm her down.

"I thought being a great hunter would..."

"You’re a terrible romantic, Yoo Hana. People date because they’re attracted to each other, not because of work performance."

"Oh... I didn’t think of that..."

Yoo Hana looked as if she had just made a major realization.

"Hmm..."

She fell deep into thought.

"If I were you, I’d be figuring out how to appeal to him as a woman, not a hunter."

"Oh..."

Yoo Hana was speechless.

"Okay... I... I’ll be going now!!!"

She quickly scurried off to her office.

"Wow... did you see that? Unbelievable. Both Lee Soo-ah and Yoo Hana are after Baek Ji-hoon? Our team leader is something else..."

The team members couldn’t believe what they had just witnessed.

"We were joking, but this really happened?"

"Ji-hoon is so lucky. How does he do it...?"

"Still... what’s Lee Soo-ah going to do now after being rejected? How embarrassing..."

"We should probably pretend we didn’t see anything... If we bring it up, we might not survive."

"Yikes... good point..."

The A-Team debated how they should handle the situation moving forward.