While Kwon Taehyuk was busy tapping away on his phone, Song Jiwoon, who had been watching Cha Seohu with a look of concern, cautiously spoke.
"Actually, not long after we came out of the Great Dungeon, the Association contacted me. They asked if I knew anything about the Hunter who used shadow skills to fight the boss. Seems like they got pretty detailed information."
"They probably did. It wasn’t just one or two people who saw him. Plus, there were Association-affiliated Hunters in the team back then, so the information must’ve spread even more easily."
If everyone’s attention hadn’t been focused on Cha Seohu—who willingly followed the Association—then the Association would’ve been much more aggressive about tracking down Cha Sahyeon by now.
Cha Seohu had become the first SS-rank Supporter, was kidnapped right after, returned safely, and caused a scandal with the Association President. They simply didn’t have the capacity to pursue anything else at the time.
‘I didn’t exactly plan it that way, but...’
Cha Seohu scratched his cheek. Well, it worked in our favor anyway.
The current Association President would be ousted soon. The next one would likely be the Vice President, Choi Gyeonghui.
Cha Seohu figured he could look into whether the new Association President, Choi Gyeonghui, would continue chasing after Cha Sahyeon later.
‘Still, I’m surprised everyone’s agreeing to keep it a secret so easily.’
He had put some trust in them, but the fact that they responded so easily was a relief.
‘If Park Minhyuk had been here right now...’
He’d be like, No way, absolutely not, and go on about how he couldn’t take part in such lies, or accuse him of distrusting the Association too much.
Just imagining it made Cha Seohu feel the mental fatigue already. He’d probably need hours just to convince him.
Thinking about that inflexible civil servant made him even more grateful for the people who had so readily agreed to help. With a satisfied smile, Cha Seohu turned to Cha Sahyeon.
"Cha Sahyeon. Say thank you to the hyungs. They said they’ll keep your secret."
At that moment, everyone but Cha Seohu noticed the sudden and violent twist in Cha Sahyeon’s expression.
"..."
Up until now, he hadn’t reacted no matter what was said about him—he just sat there quietly, letting Seohu rest his hand on his head.
But this demand was a bombshell.
An odd silence fell over the office. In it, Cha Sahyeon’s gaze locked with those of the S-ranks.
In his vivid green eyes, the sentiment You want me to thank these pathetic bastards? was clearly written.
He really didn’t want to do it, but he couldn’t bring himself to refuse Cha Seohu’s words. After a brief pause, Cha Sahyeon reluctantly opened his mouth.
"Th... thank you..."
"R-Right."
Kwon Taehyuk and Ryu Sunghyun quickly averted their gazes, and only Song Jiwoon nodded awkwardly.
Fortunately, the awkward mood didn’t last long.
"By the way, Mountain Keeper. Is it true that you’re officially becoming the guildmaster tomorrow?"
"It is, actually."
The answer didn’t come from Song Jiwoon—it came from the side.
Naturally joining the conversation, Song Jiwon leaned his chin on his hand and smiled.
"Now that we’ve finished recruiting new members, it’s time to change guildmasters too. Jiwoon’s adjusted to the guild well enough."
"...!"
At the news that Song Jiwoon was finally becoming the guildmaster, Cha Seohu’s eyes lit up.
"Congratulations. I guess I shouldn’t call you ‘Mountain Keeper’ anymore."
Blushing at Cha Seohu’s congratulations, Song Jiwoon hesitated before speaking softly.
"If it’s just you, Hunter Cha Seohu... I don’t mind if you call me that when we’re alone."
That comment, clearly flirtatious no matter how you looked at it, caused the brows of Kwon Taehyuk, Ryu Sunghyun, and Cha Sahyeon to furrow.
"Ah, but now that you’re the official Circle Guildmaster, I shouldn’t! Haha, I’ll make sure to call you ‘Guildmaster’ from now on!"
"..."
The tension in their brows eased. Eun Woojeong looked at them all with thinly veiled disgust.
"And there’s a big event coming up soon. It wouldn’t make sense for someone stepping down like me to attend, so it’s better for Jiwoon to become the guildmaster quickly and attend with pride."
"A big event?"
"She must be talking about the charity gala," Kwon Taehyuk added, following Song Jiwon’s comment.
"It’s a fundraising event for areas damaged by dungeon breaks or rifts. Usually, people from politics, business, and high-ranking Hunters are invited."
"Ah."
That finally jogged Cha Seohu’s memory—Ryu Sunghyun used to get invited to those all the time before the regression.
‘It was a pretty big-scale charity gala held at a hotel ballroom.’
Back then, Circle Guild had been much smaller and overlooked, but Ryu Sunghyun, being S-rank, was always invited.
‘Of course, hyung never went even once.’
He took good care of those who were inside his circle, but he wasn’t exactly a sociable type.
There was no way he’d attend a crowded party full of strangers alone.
Suddenly curious, Cha Seohu asked,
"Are all three of you invited?"
"Yes. I go every year."
"Hmm, I got one too."
Kwon Taehyuk nodded calmly, and ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Song Jiwoon smiled sheepishly.
Ryu Sunghyun stared directly at Cha Seohu and said,
"I never went even when I was invited before... but I plan to attend this time."
That look made Cha Seohu a little confused at first, but then he understood what he meant.
‘Ah, because Song Jiwoon is going too now that he’s an S-rank. If they go together, it’ll be good publicity for the guild.’
Since it was being held at a hotel, the dress code would be strict.
While imagining how sharp Ryu Sunghyun and Song Jiwoon would look in suits, Cha Seohu smiled in anticipation. Then Ryu Sunghyun called out to him with a complicated expression.
"Uh, Hunter Cha Seohu?"
"Yes?"
"You didn’t get invited?"
He had just assumed he would, so why was he acting like it had nothing to do with him?
He was the world’s first SS-rank Supporter. There’s no way the event organizers wouldn’t have sent him an invitation.
"Me?"
With wide eyes that seemed to say, Why would I get invited to that? Cha Seohu only realized it a beat later.
‘Oh right, I’m SS-rank now.’
So it was strange. Why hadn’t he been invited?
"Ahem."
Just then, Kwon Taehyuk cleared his throat and calmly explained.
"Hunter Cha Seohu was invited. Since you’re currently staying at our guild, the invitation came bundled with mine."
"Aha."
"I wasn’t trying to hide it. I was actually planning to tell you once we got back to the guild today."
"That’s fine. It’s not like I particularly wanted to go."
Unlike the others who were attending as guild representatives, Cha Seohu had nothing to promote or represent.
The fact that he was an SS-rank Supporter was already all over the news. Attending would just be a hassle. And leaving Cha Sahyeon behind made him uneasy.
Though he was momentarily surprised by the invitation, Cha Seohu quickly lost interest and grew indifferent.
"I know events like this make you uncomfortable, but you should still attend if possible."
"...Maybe it’s a dumb question, but is this the kind of invitation you can’t really refuse?"
"It’s not exactly mandatory, but refusing won’t do you any favors. Events like these are often seen as a matter of social responsibility. And the Association is watching, too."
Meaning, after all the effort Cha Seohu put into building a kind and delicate public image as an SS-rank Supporter, declining would be tricky.
‘If I skip it, the Association President will jump at the chance to raise hell everywhere.’
So this is the kind of crap that comes with a higher rank. Cha Seohu sighed.
"Can I bring my brother with me?"
"We’d have to check to be sure... but most likely not."
Upon hearing that, both Cha Seohu and Cha Sahyeon visibly drooped.
If it really came to it, he could bring Sahyeon’s shadow along. And since this was a gathering of top S-rank Hunters, the chance of anything dangerous happening was low.
‘What the hell was hyung thinking when he ignored this kind of event before the regression?’
He had just assumed it was some stuffy gathering where a bunch of famous people mingled and nibbled on fancy food.
Which made sense, considering pre-regression Ryu Sunghyun used to tear those invitations up with a casual smile, like it was nothing.
Of course, he’d assumed the same.
"...Anyway, the thing is."
Kwon Taehyuk cleared his throat again and looked at Cha Seohu with a strangely desperate expression.
"If you’re going to attend the party, you’ll need a suit."
"Yeah, that makes sense."
"Would it be alright if I got one tailored for you?"
"I’d appreciate that."
Cha Seohu, unfamiliar with the word no, accepted the offer without hesitation.
Rich friends are the best! This is why you befriend rich people!
"I don’t really know much about suits anyway. Just nothing too expensive, something reasonable, please."
Honestly, living in the district, all he ever saw were Director Seo’s suits—and those were far too expensive and custom-fitted to be of any reference.
"Any preferred style?"
"No. I’ll leave that to you too, Guildmaster."
Cha Seohu chuckled and casually dumped the hassle onto Kwon Taehyuk.
Kwon’s eyes widened slightly as he clenched the fist resting on his knee. His heart thumped with anticipation.
‘A suit for Hunter Cha Seohu... picked by me...?’
Unable to hold back, he pulled out the phone he had tucked away earlier and began furiously typing.
At that moment, at the Yesung Guild headquarters, Secretary Kim—who had just been giving instructions to staff about guest room preparations—screamed and clutched her head as a flood of new orders came in.

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