"Looks like you're out of options if you've come to me. There’s no one else left to recruit, right? And what about Chae Soo-hyun? Is she useless or just refusing to cooperate?"

Seo Ji-soo’s sharp intuition was as impressive as ever. She always had a talent for gathering information and turning it to her advantage, making her a natural opportunist.

Lee Jin-hyuk couldn’t respond immediately. He knew exactly what kind of person Seo Ji-soo was, and he’d expected her to have already pieced things together by the time they met.

“Hmph. So you thought recruiting Chae Soo-hyun, the S-rank number one, would secure Baekho Guild’s top spot, but things didn’t go as planned, huh? And now, with Blue Guild rising so fast, it must be killing you with jealousy. Am I right? You know I’ve always been good at reading you.” She smirked, her eyes glinting with amusement.

“Enough. Just tell me if you’re joining the guild or not.”

Jin-hyuk was feeling the full weight of humiliation. He cursed inwardly.

‘Damn it... If only it weren’t for Chae Soo-hyun...’

Everything felt like it had fallen apart because of her, and now he was reduced to groveling for help from his ex-girlfriend.

“That’s not how you ask for a favor, Jin-hyuk. Do you expect me to consider joining with an attitude like that?”

Seo Ji-soo wasn’t backing down. She knew she held the upper hand and was enjoying every moment of it. She swayed her leg lazily as she continued to toy with him.

“This is boring. I’m leaving. Call me again when you’re desperate enough.”

Seo Ji-soo abruptly stood, preparing to walk out.

"Seo Ji-soo!" Jin-hyuk called after her.

“Call me Ji-soo,” she responded coolly.

“Ji-soo...”

“What?” She tilted her head, feigning innocence. “If you want something from me, you’ll have to ask properly.”

Jin-hyuk gritted his teeth.

"Alright, fine. You were right. I recruited Chae Soo-hyun hoping she’d bring us to the top, but for some reason, she’s not doing anything. It’s suspicious, and I don’t have time to wait around. That’s why I need you."

Chae Soo-hyun was now a lost cause in his mind.

“Oh? So Chae Soo-hyun is just sitting idle? Interesting. Why do you think that is?”

“If I knew, I wouldn’t be here, would I?”

Seo Ji-soo chuckled softly, enjoying how much control she had over him.

“Well, well... I could check it out myself, but anyway, what do you want from me?”

"Join Baekho Guild. Become our lead S-rank hunter."

“And what’s in it for me?”

Seo Ji-soo locked her eyes on him, as if she already knew the answer.

Jin-hyuk sighed, knowing full well what she wanted.

“Fine. I’ll marry you. Is that what you want?”

His tone was resigned, as though he was giving up.

“Kneel.”

“What?”

Jin-hyuk’s face contorted in frustration.

“Kneel for me. Just like when you dumped me back then, right? Fair’s fair. You want me to consider your offer? Then kneel, and maybe I’ll think about it.”

Jin-hyuk’s blood boiled, anger rising within him.

‘Damn it! Because of Chae Soo-hyun, I have to deal with this crap...’

He hesitated for a moment, but the reality was clear. After weeks of trying to get Chae Soo-hyun to move, nothing had worked. Meanwhile, Blue Guild and Lee Soo-ah were climbing rapidly.

He had to accept the truth: Chae Soo-hyun was a dead end. She wasn’t going to help Baekho Guild succeed.

‘It’s better to cut my losses and move on with Seo Ji-soo...’

After a quick internal debate, he made his decision. Kneeling, he swallowed his pride.

“There, happy now?”

“Haha, that’s more like it,” Seo Ji-soo laughed gleefully. “Alright then... I’ll think about it.”

She got up, brushing off her clothes.

“What do you mean, ‘think about it’? Wasn’t this settled?”

“I still need to check things out, don’t I? I’ll have to investigate how weak Baekho Guild really is and whether it’s worth my time.”

“What?” Jin-hyuk’s face darkened with frustration.

“Don’t get upset. It’s a business deal, after all. I’m not about to jump aboard a sinking ship without doing my homework.” With a mischievous wink, she walked out, leaving Jin-hyuk fuming.

‘Damn it...’

Jin-hyuk was left feeling utterly humiliated.

 

“What did you just say?”

Chae Soo-hyun sat in stunned disbelief after hearing about Jin-hyuk’s meeting with Seo Ji-soo.

‘He’s moving that fast?’

Typically, recruiting an S-rank hunter took a lot of negotiation, but Jin-hyuk was moving at lightning speed.

‘After just a month? He’s ditching me after I’ve barely been here? This is ridiculous...’

The betrayal stung deep. She didn’t think she’d done anything wrong, but it was clear that Jin-hyuk wasn’t willing to wait any longer.

‘Ugh, why did I ever join this stupid guild? What an idiot I was.’

The more she thought about it, the more she resented Jin-hyuk. In contrast, her thoughts began drifting to Baek Ji-hoon.

To her, Baek Ji-hoon was the rising star, while Jin-hyuk was the one on the decline.

Just a month ago, she had been convinced that Jin-hyuk, with the backing of the mighty Taeyang Group, would guarantee her continued success as the top S-rank hunter. But now, things had flipped completely.

Jin-hyuk was groveling before his ex-girlfriend for help, while Baek Ji-hoon was flourishing, having become an S-rank hunter himself and recruited seven more S-ranks into Blue Guild.

‘I can’t believe how quickly things changed...’

This sudden reversal of fortune was something she had never expected.

‘It’s fine... I can just go back to Ji-hoon oppa. He hasn’t forgotten about me, I’m sure of it.’

Her mind was filled with wishful thinking.

‘Alright, I’ll just move to Blue Guild...’

Chae Soo-hyun made up her mind.

 

“Hunter Park Jin-soo, how have you been?”

“Good, thank you.”

“Nothing new with Blue Guild?”

Chae Soo-hyun was surprisingly polite and soft-spoken compared to her usual self, catching Park Jin-soo off guard.

‘What’s going on here…? This is weird…’

S-rank hunters didn’t typically act this friendly.

“Well, Blue Guild has been quite busy lately, especially with all the recent changes and restructuring.”

“Hah…”

She sighed softly, before cutting to the point.

“I was wondering, is Blue Guild planning to recruit any more S-rank hunters? I’m curious about the direction it’s headed.”

“Uh… are you asking about our guild?”

“Yes, exactly.”

“Why…? Did you come across an S-rank hunter who’s interested?”

“Well... actually, yes. Me.”

“What?”

Park Jin-soo was visibly shocked.

“You’re saying you want to transfer to Blue Guild?”

“That’s right.”

Her determination was clear, and Park Jin-soo could see the resolve in her eyes.

He struggled to process what was happening.

“But… why would you transfer? Didn’t you just join Baekho Guild last month?”

Naturally, he was puzzled. After all, Baekho Guild, backed by Taeyang Group, had made a huge deal of Chae Soo-hyun’s recruitment. There had even been media coverage about it.

It was strange enough that so many S-rank hunters had suddenly flocked to Blue Guild, but now, Chae Soo-hyun wanting to leave Baekho Guild was even more baffling.

“Does it matter why? I’d rather not discuss the details.”

She brushed off his question coldly. She had no intention of revealing that Jin-hyuk was planning to replace her with Seo Ji-soo.

Park Jin-soo nodded, still reeling from the surprise.

“Alright… But could I at least get credit for the transfer? It’d be great if it looked like I was the one who helped bring you to Blue Guild.”

“Fine. It’s better that way. It’ll look less like I’m begging to join and more like you requested me.”

“Haha… Alright then.”

Chae Soo-hyun preferred this approach. She didn’t want to seem like she was desperately clinging to Blue Guild. She also wanted to show Jin-hyuk that she was still in control.

‘You think you can stab me in the back? I’ll find my own way out before you get the chance.’

Chae Soo-hyun wasn’t about to go down without a fight.

“And one more thing.”

“Yes? What is it?”

Her tone grew serious, and her expression was resolute.

“When you bring this to Blue Guild, make sure to tell A-Team leader Baek Ji-hoon directly.”

“To the team leader? Why?”

“He’ll definitely be thrilled to hear about it. Trust me. Once you tell him, this will all be sorted out in no time.”

Her eyes gleamed with confidence.