Chapter 194

Shin Jiyoon.

Three months in — an eager rookie of a probationary reporter.

Her workplace, "Hunter N Issue," a name that might have indicated content with substance — a third-rate internet outlet that scraped hunter forums and social media to churn out sensational trash.

Even so, a soaring dream lived and breathed in her — that one day, she'd break the kind of scoop that shook the whole country.

Today too, in service of that dream, she'd been hunched over her monitor, digging up every rumor she could find.

"Hey, new blood! What the hell are you doing here?!"

A thunderous shout dropped behind her.

Startled, Jiyoon hunched her shoulders and stammered.

"Y — yes? The team lead told me to write this up by afternoon…"

"Who cares about a piece of trash like that?! It's Cheonun Group's New Year's event today! Grab your camera and let's move!"

"Y — yes!"

She hurriedly slung on a camera bag nearly her own size and chased after him.

"Senior. Why is a tabloid like ours going to a corporate New Year's event?"

Inside the rattling company car, Jiyoon's head filled with images of dull, middle-aged executives clinking champagne glasses.

Wasn't that a business-paper assignment?

At the naive question, the senior in the passenger seat gripped the back of his neck.

"You call yourself a reporter — how are you this behind on the news? You don't know who's showing up today?"

"Who?"

"Han Jewoon, Julia Morgan! And Chae Junhyeok! Cheonun announced it themselves."

"Whoa."

"On top of that, full media coverage — press wall and all."

Jiyoon's eyes went round.

"What — this isn't even an awards show. Why go that far?"

"Some Cheonun brat's idea, apparently — but for us it's a total gift! Let's milk today's photos for some sweet traffic."

Her senior smacked his lips like a man who'd just scored a scoop.

Watching him, Jiyoon's grip on the wheel tightened.

"I'll shoot until my lens cracks! Who do I focus on? Han Jewoon, the view-count king? Or Julia Morgan for the international pickups?"

"Ugh! Rookies. Still got so much to learn."

"Why?"

"Chae Junhyeok, obviously!!"

"Huh? Chae Junhyeok? I know he's the hottest name right now, but…"

The world's Rank One and Three were right there — why him?

Puzzled, she waited, and the senior launched into full lecture mode.

"A real reporter doesn't chase surface buzz — they read the current and see the future!"

"T — the future?"

"Yes! The momentum! Right now every scrap of momentum in the universe is converging on Chae Junhyeok!"

The senior's eyes were gleaming.

"Think about it. It's been barely over a year since he shook the delinquent tag. In that time — the courthouse hearing, a guild member's second awakening, the trafficking sweep, and now Julia calling him out by name! You think that many huge stories break around one man by chance?"

Now that he said it… he had a point.

"The public's obsession with Chae Junhyeok right now is off the charts. Slap his name in a headline and the views go feral. Positive, hateful — doesn't matter, we suck that obsession dry."^※TL this guy's good

Voice dropping, the senior added, low and conspiratorial —

"Plus, there's one more critical piece. Every top-tier ranker out there is orbiting the guy."

At that, something clicked in Jiyoon's head too.

True… even at the hearing, Han Jewoon went out of his way to testify. And this time it's Julia Morgan herself picking him out to meet.

"Because he's the Bureau Chief's son? Please. Rankers who play on the world stage aren't going to bow to petty political favor. No way."

The senior drove the nail home with certainty.

"Which is another way of saying: Chae Junhyeok himself is the real deal — enough to have those monsters bending over backward for him."

"Ohhhh…!"

A veteran's read really was on another level.

"Got it! I'll lock onto Chae Junhyeok, absolutely!"

"Yeah! I'll back up the other two — you stay glued to Chae Junhyeok. We're not going home empty-handed today!"

"Yes, sir! Understood!"

As the two of them burned for the scoop —

Screeeech—

The company car pulled up in front of the massive Cheonun Group HQ parking lot.

"Whoa…!"

Three hours before the event's start.

And already the press wall was packed shoulder to shoulder with reporters from other outlets.

"Damn, all the good spots are gone. Hey, rookie! Grab a spot around here somewhere! I'm going to scout the angles over there."

Leaving that behind, her senior vanished mercilessly into the crowd.

Alone, Jiyoon fought her way through elbows and knees and finally crouched into a corner of the front row.

New Year's just around the corner — December 31st.

Deep-winter cold, a wind sharp enough to peel skin off.

Ugh — thank god I brought a stack of heat packs.

Three excruciating hours passed.

At last, the guests began stepping out of cars and heading in.

—Ka-chak!

Shutters exploded in unison — followed immediately by a heavy collective sigh.

The arrivals were mostly middle-aged executives running to paunch, or politicians.

The reporters fired off polite flashes and then mercilessly deleted the shots.

"Damn it, my hands are freezing off. Somebody from 'Han-Ju-Chae,' show up already."

"Same. One of them, and we've got the main shot of the day."

Han-Ju-Chae?

Ah — [Han] Jewoon, [Ju] lia Morgan, [Chae] Junhyeok!

I'd love a Han-Ju-Chae photo myself.

That was when—

Off in the distance, a Rolls-Royce limo of ridiculous length glided in.

Sensing the shift in the air, the reporters hoisted their cannon-length lenses in unison.

Please! Han-Ju-Chae! Han-Ju-Chae!

The limo pulled to a stop. The back door slid open.

The next instant—

"KYAAAAAAAAH! It's Han Jewoon!!!!"

Along with an eardrum-splitting scream, a red-haired stunner stepped languidly out.

A tall, easy 190-plus centimeters.

Red hair swept cleanly back.

Beige suit perfectly cut to a flawless build.

Insane… absolutely insane…!

She was used to seeing him drenched in monster blood at a gate entrance — coming face to face with Korea's Rank One in fully put-together mode was blinding to the point of pain.

—Ka-cha-cha-cha-cha-chak!!!

The reporters were hammering the shutters like they'd lost their minds, when—

Behind Han Jewoon, someone else stepped out.

"…Huh?! What — that's Chae Junhyeok!!!"

"Why the hell is he coming out of there?! Don't tell me they rode together?!"

Under the flood of flashes, Chae Junhyeok's figure emerging from the car sent a strange ripple through the crowd.

A deep-navy slim-fit suit falling in perfect lines.

Blond hair swept neatly up off a clean brow, gold eyes set cool beneath.

Wait — was he always this handsome?

He'd always struck her as more of a slick, punkish delinquent — but faced with him now, put together and overwhelming, Jiyoon lost her hold on the shutter and just stood there, dazed.

Before the shock had time to settle, another figure stepped out — a woman with dazzling blond hair, suit tails flaring behind her.

"My god, Julia Morgan too!! The three of them rode over together?!"

"Aren't Han Jewoon and Julia sworn enemies?! What kind of picture is this?!"

Even as the reporters' shock burst out, Han Jewoon and Julia hooked Chae Junhyeok by an arm each, easy as breathing.

Guiding him toward the press wall like a proper escort, one on each side.

Jackpot! Senior was right! There really is something about Chae Junhyeok!

The site was a full-on frenzy.

Toward the three of them lined up — or, more accurately, toward Chae Junhyeok — a fierce barrage of questions came raining down.

Only natural.

The world's Rank One and Rank Three.

He was the one and only man with those two monsters throwing their full weight behind him.

"What's the secret behind having Hunter Han Jewoon and Hunter Julia as your escorts?!"

"Is the rumor that the two mega-guilds are moving with Nest at the center of it true?!"

Questions pouring in.

Chae Junhyeok looked a touch thrown at first, but he pulled his signature languid gaze back together and answered, composed.

Through the viewfinder, Jiyoon swallowed a quiet gasp.

Where the hell is the "delinquent" supposed to fit in an air like that…?

He carried himself with such grace and ease that his past scandals felt impossible to picture.

If today's photos ran, his approval rating with the general public was going to punch straight through the stratosphere.

The brief Q&A wound down and the three began to turn toward the venue.

"J — just a moment! O — one last question, please!!"

Before she knew it, Jiyoon had shot up on her toes and blurted it out.

A thin, feeble cry she was sure would be buried in the noise.

Pause. Chae Junhyeok's step halted.

Slowly, he turned his head — and pointed straight at her.

"I'll take one more, from her. Go ahead."

The cold gold eyes locked on hers, and her heart stopped for a beat.

Her hand shook on the camera.

Hundreds of gazes swung around to her.

"U — um… uh…"

Nerves locked her lips; the words wouldn't come out right.

"What the hell. Why call out if you had nothing to say?"

"Stop wasting time and pass the mic on!"

Her fellow reporters snapped at her, irritated.

But Chae Junhyeok waited on her, quiet, not a flicker.

Buoyed by his patience, Jiyoon squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.

"Y — you're right at the center of everyone's attention lately — how does that feel?! Just a year ago you were famous as the delinquent Director, and now you're standing shoulder to shoulder with world-class figures — a full 180 on your image! I'd love to hear your honest thoughts!!"

The moment the question landed, a chilly silence spread over the press wall.

"Insane. What outlet is she from?"

"She's asking him that to his face?! Where the hell are her manners?!"

Under the pouring scorn, Jiyoon's face went dead white.

I'm done for! I've lost my mind! What if I've offended him—!

She was ashen and trembling when—

The blank expression on Chae Junhyeok's face broke into a soft phhh of a smile.

A strangely mesmerizing, languid smile.

"A 180 on the image, huh… First — thank you for the kind view."

At the low, calm voice, the whole area went dead-silent in an instant.

"Delinquent Director. Honestly, that's not wrong. And I don't feel the need to make excuses for it. The me of the past really was a punk rolling in the gutter, wasting time."

An admission delivered without a step back, calm and plain.

At the unexpected straightforwardness of it, the reporters' breathing quieted further.

"But somewhere along the way, people I had to take responsibility for came to stand at my back."

For a flicker, the cold gold eyes took on a warm, deep light.

"When you have someone to protect, you can't keep crawling in the gutter, can you? I can't undo the path I've walked, but for the people who are mine, I'll keep changing however much it takes. I trust that's answer enough."

Clean, and unshakable.

A light nod, and he turned and walked back down the red carpet.

A retreating figure that had completely overwhelmed hundreds of reporters.

For a while, the press wall was left in an admiring silence so thick that nobody could bring themselves to hit the shutter.

Ugh, insane. Between all those flashes I honestly thought I was going to lose my sight.

The heavy door closed behind me, cutting the noise and lightbursts off cleanly.

Only then did I let out the breath I'd been holding, pressing at the corners of my stinging eyes.

Between the barrage of questions and the flood of white light, my brain had gone offline — I'd been running my mouth on pure survival instinct.

My mouth had moved on its own — I couldn't remember a single thing I'd just said.

Haah — please don't let tomorrow's articles carry a bunch of nonsense.

"Whew…"

Tension finally loosening, I was breathing out in relief when—

Prickled by stares, I turned around — Han Jewoon and Julia were staring me down with strange looks.

Han Jewoon's expression was a mix of interest and admiration; even Julia — usually all machine — had her eyes wide.

"…? What is it?"

Feeling faintly off, I scratched my cheek, and the two of them shook their heads as if by prior agreement.

"It's nothing. Just marveling — I hadn't known you spoke that well."

"…Sorry? Well-spoken? Me?"

My head had gone completely blank and I'd just spewed whatever came out — a full-blown word-vomit fest.

Letting out a sheepish laugh, I was trying to brush it off when—

"Grrraaargh…! Chae Junhyeok!!!"

A shrill, hysterical shout ripped down the corridor.

When I turned my head, there stood Cheon Sangcheol.