??-Rank Seong Ye-han
Tra-la-la~ tra-la-la~ tra-la-la~ ding! Thud-clap-clap, thud-clap-clap, tra-li-la-li...
With the famous classic alarm echoing like the climax of an old masterpiece film, Seong Ye-han opened his eyes. Even though he'd just woken up, his eyelids still felt heavy—he wanted nothing more than to keep lying there. Of course, if he traced the cause, it was because he'd gone to bed in the late hours of dawn, and until then, he hadn't just been sitting idle; he'd been pouring massive amounts of energy into someone without rest. But that wasn't all.
"Mm..."
The pleasant weight on his right arm, the warm breath tickling his neck. A soft, delightful warmth filled one side of his body. Thanks to the faint morning sunlight illuminating the room, Seong Ye-han could clearly see her face. Not the vicious expression from the news, nor the aroused bitch-in-heat face from their intense sex. Just a peaceful, serene, beautiful visage.
Pretty crazy bitch.
Thinking back to the mess of luggage filling the room, the broken door lock, and her plopped squarely in his space made it all utterly absurd, but at this point, he'd decided to just accept it as his fate.
Careful not to wake her, Seong Ye-han gently stroked her before slipping his right arm out from under her head and sitting up. Unlike Shin Ye-hwa, who'd stormed out of her guild and was temporarily unemployed, he still had a job—his resignation was planned, but he was very much the cog in the corporate machine for now.
Seong Ye-han moved with that uniquely male efficiency to wash up quickly and head to work, but his eyes caught on the hopelessly tiny table. The breakfast that would normally snag his attention.
"Maybe make something simple..."
All he had were eggs, chunks of synthetic-meat ham, kimchi, and pickled onions. Still, he tied on an apron and set a frying pan on the induction stove. The sizzle of eggs and ham in oil, the aroma of cooking meat wafting through the air. To Shin Ye-hwa—who'd awakened as an A-rank right away and hit S-rank by academy graduation—this meal might seem not just insufficient but outright insulting. But what could he do? This was all he had at the moment.
A ridiculously modest four-dish spread.
"Hope she can make do with this."
He wrapped the side dishes in plastic wrap, left a small note, and finished his preparations to head out. Slipping into his usual sneakers, he glanced back at the room one last time before leaving. The bulging blanket still hinted at the person tucked inside. He chuckled softly and turned to step out the door.
Screech—clank.
The sound of the man leaving home made the woman—who'd been holding her breath—snap her eyes open. In truth, Shin Ye-hwa had woken the moment that bizarre alarm rang. For some reason, though, she'd pretended to sleep without realizing it.
This was only the second morning, but after that beastly, intense sex, she still didn't know what face to show him.
Even after clinging to him all night and baring every lewd expression, this moment right after waking felt even more embarrassing.
"Fucking trash..."
She remembered the warmth of Seong Ye-han's hand caressing her hair and cheek. A tenderness she'd perhaps never felt in her life before. At night, he'd ignore her pleas and do whatever he wanted... even though he'd fucked her senseless while she was blackout drunk...
In just a few days, he'd carved such a deep mark on her.
"Haa..."
Shin Ye-hwa ignored the creeping heat where his hand had touched, forcing herself to sit up. Her eyes landed on the breakfast laid out on the table. And the apron hanging on one side.
"He's insane..."
Through her barely open eyes, she'd glimpsed his firm, chiseled body as he cooked. Just in underwear and apron, his back view was seared into her mind like a brand—vivid as if it were right there.
"Really insane..."
She cupped her flushing cheeks with both hands, desperately calming herself. She shook her head to dispel the weird fantasies filling her mind and sat down at the breakfast spread he'd prepared.
A note scribbled on a small yellow piece of paper.
Eat breakfast. Order delivery for lunch or something. I'll contact you about dinner depending on the situation.
[Don't forget your contraceptive pill.]
"Nngh..."
Shin Ye-hwa read the last line and covered her face with both hands. If she lifted them now, her face would probably be tomato-red.
She did have contraceptive pills. After taking loads of his baby batter in her womb all weekend, the first thing she'd done—before even going to the guild to submit her resignation—was grab them. After realizing her powers had returned at the guild and resolving to be with him.
She'd anticipated they'd overlap bodies countless times ahead and had slyly packed some contraceptive patches. But when it mattered, they'd bickered over some petty victory and hadn't used them. After that first time, it was raw pounding, swallowing, pounding again—like beasts driven by instinct. No wonder he'd left this note.
A spoonful as self-reflection on her beastly self from last night. As she chewed mechanically, Shin Ye-hwa honestly didn't think it was her fault. It was his cock that felt too damn good.
After calming herself a bit, her eyes fell back on the simple spread. Something so basic that the her from just a week ago would've spat curses and chucked it straight in the trash. Especially the canned synthetic-meat ham—the absolute worst.
"Tastes awful..."
Other than being fresh and warm, it had zero merits. Flavor, texture—everything sucked.
But for some reason...
Clink—
As Shin Ye-hwa finished eating and stood, the table held only spotlessly empty dishes, faintly reminding her that they'd contained something moments ago.
The first thing Seong Ye-han did upon arriving at the company was apply for annual leave. His team lead was probably cursing up a storm inside, but what could he do? His circumstances had drastically changed.
"No, Ye-han. This isn't right..."
"Something urgent came up suddenly. Sorry, Team Lead!"
After slamming in the same-day leave request, he swiftly apologized to the team lead who tried to complain and left the byproducts management office. He ignored the bewildered voice behind him.
Han Dong-uk asked midway if something was up, but he brushed it off vaguely and immediately called Lee Yun. He'd gotten the contact from her secretary lady yesterday when picking her up.
Ring-ring-ring—
After a brief connecting tone.
"You've reached us. This is Lee Yun's line."
A stiff, emotionless voice somewhere. Lee Yun came off as an intellectual, aloof flower at the company, but not this robotic. Announcing it was Lee Yun's phone suggested it was that secretary.
"This is Seong Ye-han. I have business with Ms. Lee Yun..."
"The young lady is in the middle of an experiment."
A sharp interruption, without a hint of hesitation. It even made him wonder if he should call back later himself.
Just as Seong Ye-han was about to tell her to have Lee Yun call when she had time.
"However, the young lady instructed me to relay any contact from you to her immediately..."
"Oh, then?"
"If you're at the lab now, come to Conference Room 3."
"Ah, thank you."
"No need. Just doing my job..."
With that, the call ended.
Even without seeing her, he could picture the picture-perfect secretary in her black suit, standing by Lee Yun's side. Last time, she'd struck him as slender overall but paradoxically wide-hipped—a striking beauty.
Lost in those thoughts, Seong Ye-han soon reached the conference room.
An ordinary space. A large window filling one wall, bright sunlight pouring in. Desk and chairs for about ten in a meeting. Sitting by the window, the warmth of the sun and room heating made his eyes droop.
Click—
"Tch!"
Before he fully dozed off, the door opened, and two women entered. Lee Yun and the secretary.
Lee Yun was the epitome of flawless, intellectual beauty—opposite of yesterday's disheveled state. The secretary looked much the same as before.
Lee Yun sauntered over and took a sunny seat like his, where winter light streamed in best.
"The sunlight's great here, right?"
She smiled brightly as she spoke. Did she not remember last night's mess? Or was she pretending? He felt like teasing her, but the secretary's piercing gaze from the side made him hold back.
"You said you had something to say?"
"Yes."
"Well... I was thinking we should draw up a proper contract anyway."
No sooner had Lee Yun finished than the secretary handed over a few sheets. Seong Ye-han waved it off, rejecting it for now, and continued.
"Before that, I'd like to state my conditions first."
"Hm~?"
Lee Yun's eyes sparkled with interest, as if to say go on. When she said nothing more, Seong Ye-han pressed on.
"Accommodations for one full hunting team to stay safely, and full hunter gear for them. I'd like two A-rank sets first."
A single hunting team was the minimum unit for monster hunts: six members standard. Ideally, three melee awakeners, one healer, two ranged—total six. Ratios varied without rare healers or due to practicalities, but that was the ideal most parties aimed for.
A-rank gear averaged at least 10 billion per person, so his demand roughly equaled tens of billions upfront for a bare start.
Chump change for conglomerates, but he was an E-rank nobody. Would anyone throw that at low-odds gamble? Was Lee Yun really that person?
Seong Ye-han himself didn't expect acceptance. He just wanted to gauge her wealth as an individual, not a corporation—and how much value she placed on him. Depending on her reaction, he'd even mention Shin Ye-hwa. He watched her calmly.
"Hmm... testing me, are you?"
Seong Ye-han was already surprised she hadn't called him crazy, accused him of seeing her as a sucker, and stormed out. Truth be told, even for him, biting at sponsorship from a mere acquaintance with zero trust felt iffy, good terms or not. It was a slight overplay.
He had confidence to climb without her backing, but starting from zero beat having solid support. Her reaction was hugely positive.
"I trust my eyes. But I don't want to look like a total sucker."
Lee Yun finally spoke.
"You know those conditions are unreasonable, right?"
"They are."
"So, for minimum trust, I'll add a condition."
She pressed her index finger to her lips and smiled.
"Hit A-rank in this ability evaluation, and I'll meet all your terms. Hell, anything you want within my power."
A guy stuck at E-rank for four years jumping straight to A? From a normal view, even a fresh awakener starting at A seemed more plausible.
"And if I don't hit A-rank?"
Would the sponsorship vanish? But Lee Yun was bolder than he thought.
"I'll keep sponsoring. Just at a more reasonable level. Zero risk for you! Total steal, right?"
"Sounds great. Puts my mind at ease."
She didn't want to seem like a sucker, but this was proper sucker territory. She must have ironclad faith. He didn't know the basis yet, but it didn't matter now. Nothing bad for him.
"Hmm... kinda deflating. Maybe cancel if you don't hit A-rank."
Sensing his attitude, Lee Yun pouted sulkily. But now, it just seemed cute.
"You won't."
"Why?"
"You're already trusting me, aren't you?"
"Nope~?"
"More precisely, you trust yourself... your own eyes that saw me, your judgment."
Her eyes widened, words caught. The brief silence broke with clear laughter.
"Ahaha! Exactly. I told you—I judge ability perfectly."
"Honestly, even if you cut sponsorship for failing A-rank, it'd be fine."
"Why? Motivation? Or faith you'll succeed sponsorship or not?"
To her amused question, Seong Ye-han replied.
"Just... don't think I'll fail A-rank."