“……Thank you.”

“You don’t look very happy though.”

“Given the situation. I’m feeling a bit dazed too……”

“I understand.”

The team leader’s smile was filled with exhaustion. This situation where we couldn’t honestly be happy felt bitter.

“Come on, let’s get to work! A big incident happened, but let’s do our best today too! Fighting!”

“Yes……”

The team leader spoke energetically in the subdued atmosphere. The team members responded weakly.

The sound of someone choking back tears could be heard from somewhere. The reality of replacing someone who had died hit home again.

The commotion caused by the appearance of Irregulars died down quickly, and as time passed, society became quiet as if nothing had happened. People had become accustomed to deaths occurring.

Endless doomsday theories emerged from somewhere, but people treated them like urban legends, jokes, and conspiracy theories, similar to Nostradamus’ prophecies of doom.

A month passed. I still hadn’t contacted Cheon Shin Woo.

Another week went by. Being caught up in the Gate now felt like a distant dream.

Cheon Shin Woo was always busy. He continued his hectic life of conquering Gates, giving interviews after conquests, appearing on TV, and being called here and there.

The goodwill he had shown me was now fading. As time passed, I grew more uncertain about whether I should contact him. But I couldn’t throw away his business card, so ambiguous days continued.

In another month and a half, I too could become an official guild member of Cheonrang. I would be the first non-awakened guild member in Cheonrang.

Maybe I should look for a house to move into. I should have accepted when they offered me a place in the guild building. Belated regret washed over me, but it was a regret I could afford because it had already passed.

Just when I thought tomorrow would continue uneventfully like this…

“I’m really sorry! We just don’t have anyone else…… I promise it won’t be anything major. Just for one day, please. Hm? If you handle today’s work well, there might even be a special bonus……”

I became Cheon Shin Woo’s one-day secretary.

It wasn’t something I could refuse from the start. I was the only spare hand available, and I couldn’t reject work when I was about to transition to an official guild member.

Until I arrived at the site after receiving the request, I had thoughts like ‘What if I run into Cheon Shin Woo? What should I say if we meet?’ However, the person who appeared before me was a completely different face.

“So, Park Ha Young from the settlement team? Nice to meet you. I’m Min Yu Shin.”

My job was to assist Cheon Shin Woo’s secretary. Like a manager’s manager. Looking at him, who held a position far above mine, I put on a sociable smile.

The work was both trivial and demanding. Trying to run around after intending to just handle office-related tasks, I lacked the stamina.

“Ugh, that crazy guild leader……”

While I was running around like a daily staff member at a filming site rather than a secretary or manager, following various instructions, suddenly Cheon Shin Woo’s secretary grabbed the back of his neck. The staff at the filming site murmured ominously.

“What’s going on? What happened?”

“Yeah, what’s the matter?”

But it seemed they didn’t have the courage to ask directly. I was cautiously observing them when I approached Min Yu Shin.

“Excuse me……”

“Is he really thinking or not? I told him not to cause trouble today…… Huh?”

“I’m Park Ha Young, assisting for the day! Did something happen?”

“Ah…… It’s nothing much. The filming is about to start, but the guild leader has disappeared. We can’t reach him, and we can’t track his location……”

“Oh no, is that a big problem?”

“He’s not the type to act without thinking, no… He’ll probably return just before, though there won’t be time for makeup or preparations.”

The neat and handsome man wearing glasses frowned and let out a long sigh. His middle finger stood out prominently as he pushed up his glasses.

“It’s not something to worry too much about, so go tell them it’s fine, okay? Oh, and this is my card. Go buy some coffee. Enough for the staff too…… Don’t worry about the price, get whatever you want.”

“Yes!”

He didn’t look fine at all, but the card was nice. I quickly took the card, informed the staff about the current situation, and headed to the cafe. Only after leaving did I realize I would have to return with over 30 coffees.

What should I do? How many trips will I need to make?

Just as I was facing this crisis before even ordering…

“I’ll have a Java Chip Frappuccino with extra hazelnut syrup, condensed milk, and Java chips.”

“Okay, a Java Chip Frappuccino with… Huh?”

“Give me the card. It’s easier to put them in your inventory than carry them.”

“Uh, what?”

Cheon Shin Woo calmly took the card from my hand.

“I thought you’d contact me.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m disappointed. Ignoring a person’s goodwill like this.”

“What?”

Cheon Shin Woo, who was said to have disappeared from the filming site, stood before me with a nonchalant expression, arms crossed. Before I could react, he quickly finished placing the order. One complicated Java Chip Frappuccino, one Mint Chocolate, and thirty Americanos. The Mint Chocolate was placed in my hand.

“I have a lot I want to say, but…… This isn’t the place to talk in front of others, so shall we go for now?”

“Yes, yes……”

I couldn’t think of anything to say other than ‘yes’. I felt I should say something, but overwhelmed by his unique atmosphere, any sound that tried to escape my throat immediately shrank.

When we returned to the filming site, Min Yu Shin quickly came towards me.

“You’re back quickly. Where’s the coffee?”

“Well, about that……”

“You have hands and feet too, why don’t you go buy coffee yourself?”

Cheon Shin Woo answered instead of me, placing coffee on top of Min Yu Shin’s head. The precariously balanced coffee looked like it would spill if Min Yu Shin moved even slightly.

“What? Why are you here?”

“Give me your hand.”

“Why?”

“If you’d prefer your neck to be cut off instead of your hand, I understand your intention, but……”

“I’ll give it, I’ll give it!”

They conversed quite familiarly. It seemed more like a conversation between friends of equal status than between a superior and subordinate. Hmm. Seeing the threats, maybe not.

Soon, several coffees were placed on Min Yu Shin’s hand. He expressed surprise at being able to hold numerous coffees in one hand without dropping them.

“You carried all this?”

“We’re outside, aren’t you concerned about attention?”

“The guild leader brought this himself?!”

“……”

“You, directly? Why?”

“The filming is starting. Distribute the coffee yourself or whatever. ……Don’t bother asking others.”

“Huh? Wait, guild leader!”

Cheon Shin Woo disappeared quickly with an obviously annoyed expression. Min Yu Shin, who had been looking puzzled, immediately brightened up when he saw me. He looked ready to greet me again, even though we had just said hello.

“So you met him on the way!”

“Yes.”

“Wait here for a moment. I’ll hand out the coffee and be right back. I have something I want to ask, so really, just wait here for a bit.”

With that, he quickly went to where the staff were gathered. I watched him while sipping my Mint Chocolate. He roughly handed over about thirty Americanos to one person and then came back towards me.

“Ha Young, do you know Cheon Shin Woo?”

“What?”

“I’m asking if you two know each other!”

Min Yu Shin grabbed my shoulders and shouted, looking quite excited. I feel like I’m sensing a chill from somewhere, but is it just my imagination? I don’t know how many times I’ve heard this same question. I rolled my eyes and then shook my head.

“No.”

“No? There’s no way that guy would be so compliant……”

“Ye…… ah. Haha. It is strange……”

“Ah, um. I apologize for being rude. Shall we talk in a corner while they’re filming?”

“Yes.”

He gently led me to a corner of the filming site after removing his hand from my shoulder. Several gazes stuck to us for a moment before quickly looking away.

“First, here’s my business card.”

“Ah, yes.”

Min Yu Shin, maintaining a business-like smile, fixed his gaze on me without losing the smile on his face. Even without this card, I knew well who he was.

“So what’s your relationship with Cheon Shin Woo?”

Min Yu Shin, a quasi-S-rank A-rank hunter and Cheon Shin Woo’s direct secretary known as Shadow, asked me seriously.

“Well, there’s nothing that could be called a relationship. I was also caught up in the Irregular incident, and since I didn’t have a guardian, the guild leader volunteered to be my guardian……”

“What? Really?”

Upon hearing this, Min Yu Shin made a shocked expression and then whispered to me in a secretive voice.

“Our guild leader isn’t the type to be affectionate towards anyone. He’s really not the type to volunteer as someone’s guardian, so… There were rumors that you might be a hidden lover or something.”

“What?! That can’t be!”

“Even accepting a non-awakened person as a guild member is unprecedented for our guild… You’re not being blackmailed or anything, are you?”

“Blackmailed?”

“By Cheon Shin Woo. Is he making some kind of strange threats?”

“He hasn’t made any threats……”

As I conversed with him, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu. It felt somewhat nostalgic and familiar.

‘Stop bullying your little sister so much. Every time I see you, you’re picking on your sister.’

It was an odd feeling. As if in a trance, I asked.

“By the way, have we met somewhere before?”

“Huh? Haha, this kind of approach is embarrassing… I prefer older partners rather than younger ones……”

What’s with this person? Putting aside his good social skills, his thoughts are strange. As my expression became dubious, Min Yu Shin quickly waved his hands.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that… Ahem. It does feel familiar, actually. Your face does seem like one I’ve seen a lot somewhere.”

Min Yu Shin made a rectangle with his index finger and thumb and examined me from various angles. At that moment, the sound of something bursting and breaking came from somewhere, and the temperature on the set suddenly dropped.

“Kyaaaa!”

“Di, Director!”

“Lee Se Han!”

Wondering what had happened, I looked over to see a shattered camera emitting smoke, a pale-faced host, and several panicked staff members.

“Oh no, wait here for a moment. Don’t move!”

Min Yu Shin ran off in a hurry. The scene seemed to unfold in slow motion.

In the center of it all stood Cheon Shin Woo with an expressionless face. With a look that suggested everything was boring and uninteresting, he was looking down at the host who had been called Lee Se Han.

“Guild leader! What’s going on?”

“……”

Cheon Shin Woo ignored his secretary. Meanwhile, the host was prostrating himself and begging. Cheon Shin Woo still maintained his unimpressed expression.

“Please calm down! No matter what, if you harm a civilian……”

“That won’t do. But breaking an arm or a leg would be fine, wouldn’t it?”