Chapter 457: Cho Hyejin’s Instruction Manual (2) |
I was sure that it wouldn’t be just Jo Hye-Jin. The others in Kim Hyun-Sung’s harem would also be taken aback by Park Deok-Gu’s bullshit.
I had no idea what exactly was going on with Kim Hyun-Sung, but I knew enough to say that the issue wasn’t simple.
Park Yeon-Joo of the Black Swan Guild and that brat, Kim Ye-Ri, were the most aggressive. Kim Ye-Ri, who was probably practicing her Dance of Enchantment in a corner somewhere was irrelevant since she was just a child.
However, Park Yeon-Joo was different. She was a beautiful woman, but the ice prince Kim Hyun-Sung was looking at her as if she were some kind of rock.
I had no idea whether he was dense or dumb, but it was undeniable that his walls were impregnable. He was treating Park Yeon-Joo as if she were a rock, so it was easy to deduce how he was treating the others.
Jo Hye-Jin was still a virgin, and she even got chosen by a unicorn. Kim Ye-Ri was engrossed in her Dance of Enchantment, so it was even a bit ridiculous to consider her a harem member.
As for Charlotte, I had no idea what she was up to right now, but I was sure that she was in a similar situation as Park Yeon-Joo. Anyway, there was a delicate balance between the four women, but something ruined that balance.
The one who destroyed the balance was the so-called girlfriend of Kim Hyun-Sung. It was then that I realized that the four harem members were also drunk on peace. They had long gotten used to the peace, so they got along, but the sudden invasion of an outsider rendered them confused. In other words, they had no idea what to do.
‘Tsk, they should have been prepared for something like this.’
Jo Hye-Jin was looking at me with a depressed look. Obviously, she had no idea how he should respond to Park Deok-Gu’s shocking words. Naturally, I started talking because I couldn’t let her keep waiting.
“What do you mean? It’s not a big deal, so let’s head inside. It’s not good for us to stay here. Deok-Gu’s words are usually not true, so don’t worry about it. Nothing has been confirmed yet, and to say that he has a girlfriend all this while is absurd,” I replied.
“But it’s true that he had a romantic date with an unknown woman.” Jo Hye-Jin pointed out.
“Rumors are often exaggerated. I’m sure it’s just hearsay that spread like wildfire because people often like controversial news. And what’s wrong with Mr. Hyun-Sung going on dates? It’s not like he has a girlfriend. I don’t really think you should worry about it, am I right?” I asked.
“...”
“I-I’m just worried. There’s no other reason…” she stuttered.
“What are you worried about?” I asked.
“She might be a bad person. I’m the guild master’s adjutant, so I think it’s only natural for me to get worried. It’s also dangerous to bring a mysterious woman over to the guild, and I’m worried that she might affect the guild itself,” she answered.
“I’m taking care of almost all the internal affairs, so you don’t have to worry so much, Miss Hye-Jin. We haven’t even confirmed that she’s going to join the guild in the first place, and even if she has other motives, I’ll take care of it,” I told her.
“But…”
“Don’t worry about what Deok-Gu said, and Deok-Gu, you should stop saying things that will cause unnecessary worries. You can’t just talk about something like that with a smile. The public has their eyes on him, so we have to stop bad rumors from spreading as much as possible,” I said.
“Ah…”
“The Blue Guild is basically a business, and the guild members are the faces of the company. The guild master’s role is huge, and I don’t think I have to explain why, do you understand what I’m saying?” I asked.
“Yeah… I understand. I-I completely understand. I only spoke with guild staff members. I haven’t told any outsider about it,” he replied.
“I’m just telling you to be extra careful,” I commented.
Park Deok-Gu looked sad.
‘This guy…’
He was feeling guilty, but when I patted his shoulders as if I was telling him not to worry about it, he started smiling once again.
“I had no idea, so thanks for telling me,” I told him.
“Ahem, it was nothing. Leave rumors like this to me. I can even extract information that doesn’t exist,” he said.
‘Please don’t do that…’
“All right, let’s not talk about this anymore. Make sure to keep the guild members quiet until we get confirmation. Tell Ye-Ri not to worry about it, too. Tell Miss Kim Mi-Young to make sure that the guild staff members won’t spread that rumor. I’ll take care of this incident,” I ordered.
“Leave it to me,” he said.
It was difficult to act like I wasn’t being affected. I wanted to act like a stoic, world-class authority, but I felt the same as Jo Hye-Jin.
‘Shit…’
An evil deed would eventually be discovered. Right now, I was sure that Kim Hyun-Sung was walking around the Rift Inn to deliver his apology letter and the mysterious woman’s shoe. I felt kind of nervous because one wrong move meant the end.
‘I should have dealt with it better.’
I was sure that Kim Hyun-Sung felt bad about himself. I started getting a headache at the thought of Kim Hyun-Sung being obsessed with this incident because he didn’t manage to apologize to her properly.
‘This is bad…’
I imagined him going all the way to the Union of Kingdoms just to return Bitcherella’s shoes. Goosebumps broke out all over me at the thought alone, and I felt like I had to ask Lee Ji-Hye to take care of it for me.
Lee Ki-Yeon should have gone somewhere further than the Union of Kingdoms.
I just had to make sure that Ahn Ki-Mo and Park Deok-Gu would keep their mouths shut. As for Kim Ye-Ri, I could just use her Dance of Enchantment against her.
Things should go back to the way they used to be once the lovely regressor started losing interest in Bitcherella. I could only say that the incident was finally over once Kim Hyun-Sung lost all interest in Lee Ki-Yeon.
The issue was Kim Hyun-Sung’s one-track mind. This would be a bit easier if I had something I could use to distract him.
‘That’s not going to be easy…’
Honestly, I started wondering if it was even fine for Kim Hyun-Sung to remain relaxed in our current situation. He had a mission to save the world, so why was he so relaxed? I started lampooning him inwardly, but then I recalled his current condition.
‘No, this isn’t it. It’ll be dangerous if I think that way.’
I wasn’t very happy about the current situation, but I shook my head when I recalled his schedule. He had been doing nothing but training. My typical day at work involved receiving reports of his training every day.
He also had been taking care of many tasks on his own in addition to going outside for weeks on end to prepare for the upcoming threat.
I was actually a bit worried about how he was always swinging his sword as if he had gone crazy. Right now, Kim Hyun-Sung didn’t need desperation. He needed a break.
I couldn’t criticize Kim Hyun-Sung. For an entire decade in his past life, and even in his current life, he had always been driving himself to his limits. This Bitcherella incident could have sprouted from his subconscious desire to take a break.
I was sure he wanted to be in a romantic relationship as well, and he also probably wanted to have fun, rest, and enjoy what life had to offer.
In his past life, he got dragged here as a young man in his 20s, and he had to suffer a lot in the next ten years after that. Upon regressing, he found himself in a seat where he had to take care of many things.
At this point, I was sure that he was already at his limits, both physically and mentally.
I started feeling bad for him when I thought about how much fun he had last night.
‘A break. He needs a break.’
There was evidence that he was mentally exhausted, and I was sure that he was even more exhausted because he couldn’t stop suspecting his brother.
I wasn’t sure if he was aware, but the appearance of a demon in his head was proof that he was tired.
If I were the lovely regressor’s psychiatrist, I would have suggested that he should take a break. The thought suddenly popped into my head, but I started nodding because it made sense.
If Kim Hyun-Sung were more relaxed, he would have viewed the current situation with a wider view, and the demon in his head would have disappeared before I had to get involved.
“Miss Hye-Jin,” I called out.
“Yes?” she answered.
“Has there been a change in the guild master’s schedule recently?” I asked.
“No, his schedule hasn’t really changed. He still trains and takes care of tasks simultaneously,” she answered.
‘Yeah… I’m sure that’s the case.’
It was exactly as I expected. To him, last night’s incident could be like an escape for him. I took a long break this time, and there wasn’t a law saying that he couldn’t take a break as well. Actually, he needed to take a break, but the problem was his way of taking a break.
At this point, I wanted to tell him to enjoy a date with Bitcherella, but he couldn’t enjoy a date with someone who didn’t even exist in the first place. Unfortunately, I felt like I had to find a replacement for Bitcherella.
Of course, I was sure that there were other options besides dating.
‘The simplest and most effective method is to replace Bitcherella with another woman.’
The woman had to exist, unlike Bitcherella. Otherwise, he would end up driving himself crazy by training and working without taking a break.
I quietly looked to the right and saw Jo Hye-Jin walking inside.
“Miss Hye-Jin,” I called out.
“Yes?”
“Please untie your hair,” I requested.
“What are you saying all of a sudden…” she asked.
“There’s something I need to check. Please untie your hair,” I repeated.
“Since you said so…” Jo Hye-Jin frowned slightly at my sudden request, but she started untying her hair without any complaint.
When she untied her ponytail, her long hair flowed down her neck and shoulders.
Now that I thought about it, I had walked around the black market with her before.
‘I remember her looking good in a dress as well…’
Jo Hye-Jin was beautiful. However, she often dressed like a tomboy, so people were blind to her beauty.
“You look pretty,” I complimented.
“You’re making me uncomfortable, Sub Guild Master,” Jo Hye-Jin said.
“Ah…” Jung Ha-Yan gasped.
“I don’t have other intentions, Ha-Yan. Of course, my Ha-Yan is prettier,” I told her.
‘Shit. I almost died.’
“Are you making fun of me?” asked Jo Hye-Jin.
“I’m not, Miss Hye-Jin. It’s not like that,” I replied.
‘Damn it.’
I shook my head after miraculously surviving the sudden peril. I managed to fix the situation before it got worse, but Jo Hye-Jin’s expression had turned ugly, as if she had stepped on some poop.
Jung Ha-Yan was naturally all smiles.
Jo Hye-Jin’s sour mood was understandable. After all, I had just basically told her that she was uglier than my girlfriend. Jo Hye-Jin wasn’t interested in me, but any woman’s mood would turn foul if they were in Jo Hye-Jin’s shoes.
However, Jo Hye-Jin’s ugly expression soon disappeared.
“Miss Hye-Jin,” I called out.
“Yes?”
“What do you think of Hyun-Sung?”