Chapter 1: The VIP's Arrival

Through Spectate, my exclusive Captain skill, I examined Seolbin's status window.

The stats that made up her status window were mostly categories related to services a cruise crew member could provide to guests.

"Hospitality," which referred to the attitude of welcoming guests.

"Cooking," "Barista," and "Bartender," which seemed necessary for working in the ship's restaurants, cafes, and bar lounges.

However, there were a few categories that made no sense to me.

"Night Service."

What puzzled me was that Seolbin's Night Service stat was displayed as 1.

It was natural for her Barista or Bartender stats to be 0. Seolbin had never worked in a cafe or a bar before.

As for Cooking, she had probably thrown together a few clumsy meals at home, which explained why she had at least a 1...

Wait.

A sudden thought flashed through my mind.

If "Night Service" actually means sex...

Is it at 1 because she had her very first sexual experience with me today...?

But even if that were the case, why on earth did a stat like "Night Service" exist for a crew member?

A dark, insidious thought began to creep up.

It was an idea that only a male could conceive, even before being Seolbin's boyfriend.

The strange nuances of the words chosen by the Cruise System.

VIP. Entertainment. Massage. Night Service.

And on top of that, a status window that detailed everything from her body shape to her body odor, as if grading her physical form.

No.

It couldn't be.

Even if that was what this damn cruise ship intended, I would just have to satisfy the VIP in some other way.

As my mind swirled with these complicated thoughts, Seolbin spoke to me.

She, too, seemed to be examining her own status window.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Her expression looked as though she had made up her mind.

"Siwoo. I think I need to learn how to make cocktails!"

We were given four days before the VIP's arrival.

Immediately after confirming ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the mission, Seolbin took action.

It was to learn what she could provide to guests as a crew member.

The crew status window she could view made this process much easier.

Though some categories had ambiguous meanings, at least a few of them were crystal clear.

Searching through the internet, various videos, and books, she worked tirelessly to raise her crew stats.

She focused on categories like Barista and Bartender. She also put immense effort into mastering basic hospitality etiquette.

While her stats didn't rise in real-time, they updated every midnight to reflect her hard work for the day.

At the same time, a report detailing the daily stat changes of the crew members would appear on my status window as the Captain at midnight.

I checked Seolbin's achievements for the day through the report.

The stats that had increased were:

Hospitality, the basic attitude for treating the visiting VIP.

Barista, the ability to serve coffee and various beverages to the VIP in the cafe.

Bartender, the ability to serve various alcoholic drinks like cocktails in the bar lounge.

And finally, Night Service.

Yes.

Night Service.

Aside from preparing for the VIP entertainment mission, I simply couldn't resist having sex with Seolbin.

Honestly, what man could have Seolbin right in front of him and still go to sleep alone in his bedroom night after night?

It was fundamentally impossible.

Despite handling a busy schedule every day, I had sex with Seolbin every single night.

Through this, I learned a couple of things.

First, Seolbin couldn't see her own Night Service stat or the status window related to her body type. So, I didn't bother revealing their existence to her.

It would only add to her anxiety...

Second, I discovered that the Night Service stat was proportional to sexual experience.

However, the rate of increase wasn't very high.

The reason for that...

Was probably due to my small penis ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠size and premature ejaculation...

Honestly, the more sex I had with Seolbin, the more a sense of self-loathing began to set in.

I knew my penis was small, but I hadn't realized my premature ejaculation was this severe.

I thought I lasted pretty long when masturbating, but was the real thing completely different...?

By the way, Seolbin's younger sister, Sodam, was also working hard.

Right now, she was staying on the cruise ship, taking charge of cooking and cleaning. It was only possible because her academy was currently on break.

Of course, I gave her a roundabout explanation for why we were hosting a VIP.

I told her it was just a little hobby to stave off boredom after retiring as a hunter.

Hearing my story, Sodam was thrilled, saying she could be of even more help in that case.

She really was a sweet girl.

I didn't want to burden her with the heavy truth that my very life depended on this mission to satisfy the VIP.

The cruise ship docked at the harbor via its auto-navigation system.

A figure emerged, walking up the gangway connected to the pier.

Even from a distance, the silhouette was instantly recognizable.

No matter how I looked at it, this was terribly wrong.

Owen stared at the invitation on his status window, unable to believe his eyes.

Lee Siwoo was once the core strength of the Baeksang Guild, which Owen led. No, calling him just the "core" was an understatement—Lee Siwoo was Baeksang.

However, he had never gotten along with Owen, the Guild Leader.

They clashed over every little thing, and Siwoo would often reject Owen's orders to act independently.

The only reason Owen tolerated him was his sheer strength. Even among S-class hunters like Owen himself, Siwoo was in a league of his own.

Then, one day, Lee Siwoo suddenly announced his retirement. Because he was still incredibly young, no one had anticipated it.

While it was true that Owen had never liked him, Siwoo was still the backbone of the Baeksang Guild.

His sudden retirement dealt a massive blow to the guild.

To make matters worse, Lee Siwoo took another core member with him when he left: Han Seolbin.

The Ice Empress, Han Seolbin.

She was the strongest hunter in the Baeksang Guild after Lee Siwoo.

Not only was she exceptionally skilled, but her stunning looks also made her the perfect face for the guild's public relations.

And Siwoo had taken her away too.

Back when she was still the clumsy "Ice Witch," Owen had protected her by keeping her out of active combat.

Yet, she had fallen for Lee Siwoo, retired as a hunter, and left the Baeksang Guild.

As a result, Owen was now the only S-class hunter left in the Baeksang Guild.

Lee Siwoo had ruined everything.

Even the dark, lustful desires Owen had been secretly harboring.

Han Seolbin, who was now Lee Siwoo's girlfriend. Owen recalled her haughty, beautiful face and snarled inwardly.

"If it weren't for that bastard Lee Siwoo, I could have fucked her by now..."

In truth, it was only natural for Owen to have such thoughts.

For a man to feel aroused upon seeing a beauty of her caliber was a law of nature, an instinct for species preservation engraved in his very DNA.

Just seeing Han Seolbin every day set his chest ablaze, and Owen had drawn up all kinds of schemes.

"If that bitch Seolbin had given me just one chance... I would have broken her somehow and let my subordinates have some fun with her too..."

"Then our guild would have been so much stronger... I pampered her so much just because she was pretty..."

Owen stared down at his throbbing erection and swallowed his regret.

It was water under the bridge.

Ultimately, it was something he failed to achieve because he wasn't stronger than Lee Siwoo.

The world ran on the logic of power.

Though Owen hated Lee Siwoo for being stronger than him, he acknowledged his power.

His self-assessment was remarkably objective, and his values were deeply rooted.

"Power is what moves the world."

By avoiding foolish misjudgments, he had built the Baeksang Guild into a top-tier organization...

But with the departure of his two core powerhouses, Baeksang was now a fading sun.

Yet, as if to mock him, Lee Siwoo—the very architect of his guild's decline—had sent him an invitation.

Inviting him to the cruise ship where he served as Captain.

He had heard rumors.

That once Siwoo retired, he would buy a cruise ship and spend the rest of his life enjoying it.

But did that plan also include a scheme to humiliate Owen?

The muscle beneath Owen's eye twitched.

He was furious, but he had no choice but to decline.

After all, it was an undeniable fact that Lee Siwoo was stronger than him.

If Siwoo set his mind to mocking him, Owen wouldn't be able to resist.

Just as he was about to press the decline button on the invitation, however...

A new message froze his finger in place.

He couldn't begin to fathom the intention behind such a message.

However, Owen picked up on the subtle nuance hidden within those words.

The sharp intuition he had honed while leading a giant guild urged him forward.

"I have to go."

After intuition came calculation.

In truth, from the moment Lee Siwoo left the guild with Han Seolbin, Owen had already lost.

So, even if he crawled onto that cruise ship and suffered humiliation once more, what did he have to lose?

Nothing.

Of course, his pride would take a hit, and in the worst-case scenario, rumors might spread, making him a laughingstock in society.

But everyone in the world already knew that Lee Siwoo was stronger than him anyway.

So there was no real loss.

Owen accepted the invitation.

Some dismissed Owen as a brainless, muscle-bound hunter who relied solely on brute force.

But in reality, Owen was psychologically resilient, possessing excellent metacognition and a sharp mind for risk-reward calculations.

The figure who appeared in the reception room was incredibly familiar.

In fact, I had been anxious from the moment I spotted the silhouette walking toward us from afar.

Men of that massive size were rare.

The man I had grown sick of seeing during my hunter days wore a highly polished, practiced smile.

It was a socially refined expression, born from his frequent dealings with various external organizations as a giant guild's leader.

It was a corporate, white-collar expression that didn't match his hulking, muscular frame at all.

To be honest, I had always detested that about him.

Because it was obvious the bastard was dirty behind the scenes.

He was the first to speak.

"It's been a while, Lee Siwoo."

When I left the guild, I had promised myself one thing: if I ever ran into him on the outside, I wouldn't bother using any respectful titles.

But right now...

I couldn't bring myself to do that.

Suppressing my boiling emotions with everything I had, I replied.

"Guild Leader. Have you been well?"

"Thanks to you, I've been doing great."

A chill ran down my spine at his loaded words.

And his next words made it even worse.

"But Hunter Lee Siwoo—or should I call you Captain now? Captain Lee Siwoo. I came because you invited me as a VIP, but isn't your crew going to greet me?"

I could snap his neck right this instant.

But if I harmed the VIP, I would die too.

Biting ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my lip, I forced out an answer.

"As the leader of this cruise ship, I wanted to personally welcome you first, Guild Leader."

It was a calculated excuse, but I probably failed to control my facial expression.

Unfortunately, Owen, sitting right in front of me, didn't miss it.

The Cruise System's message flashed like a warning. I used my Spectate skill to peer into Owen's VIP status window.