NOVEL NEXT Chapter 80
Chapter 80: Induction Ceremony
“I really passed….”
“Hehe.”
Yoo Ji-han and Kim Si-hu couldn’t hide the sly smiles creeping onto their faces.
Just a few minutes ago, they had received the notification from Cheongyeongsa that they had been accepted.
Looking down at his mobile phone, Kim Si-hu said, “My friend’s party got rejected.”
“That means it was that difficult.”
There were several posts online about people failing the Cheongyeongsa interview.
There must have been many strong parties applying to enter Cheongyeongsa this time.
The fact that Yoo Ji-han’s party had won that competition meant they had received considerable recognition as a third party unrelated to the Sweet Fun Guild.
‘Guess I don’t have to worry about the office anymore.’
After hearing the news of their acceptance, Yoo Ji-han stopped searching for office spaces.
Since they passed Cheongyeongsa, he intended to rent an office there.
“Yu-ri! We got accepted into Cheongyeongsa!”
—Wow, that’s great!
Yoo Ji-han called Min Yu-ri to share the news of their acceptance into Cheongyeongsa.
She responded with genuine joy.
“Do you remember the building we went to? It wouldn’t be a problem for Chilla to go there.”
—That’s a relief.
“This is all thanks to you, Yu-ri.”
—I didn’t do anything.
Min Yu-ri, with a uniquely notable background that even the Hero Department took notice of, joining them was a significant help for Yoo Ji-han’s party.
“Oh, and I have something to tell you.”
—What is it?
“To celebrate our acceptance into Cheongyeongsa and your joining us, I’m planning a small congratulatory party.”
—A party?
“Nothing too extravagant though.”
Yoo Ji-han was planning a party with the guild members.
Even if it was just renting a suitable place and having some food…
He thought an event was needed since joyful things had been happening consecutively in the guild.
—I’ve never been invited to such a party……!
“Just because we’re heroes doesn’t mean we can only work all the time. I’ll rent a barbecue place soon, so please bring Chilla too.”
—I understand!
The mention of a party seemed to secretly excite Min Yu-ri.
Thanks to that, Yoo Ji-han, who just planned to grill some meat, began to ponder.
‘It’d be bad if I got my hopes up too high…’
He thought he should at least get some champagne or wine to make it feel complete.
*
A few days later, the day of the Cheongyeongsa induction ceremony arrived.
Before the induction ceremony, the Cheongyeongsa headquarters conveyed the dress code and rules to the new students.
Dark-colored suits were a must.
Without a suit, it seemed one wouldn’t even be permitted to enter.
‘It’s been a while since I wore a suit.’
Yoo Ji-han took out a black suit from his closet according to the dress code provided.
He wasn’t a common office worker, and wearing a suit after a long time felt rather awkward.
However, looking at his reflection in the mirror, his appearance wasn’t all that bad.
“How do you even tie this?”
The one thing that bothered him was the tie.
The tie felt uncomfortable no matter how he tied it.
He managed to get it to look somewhat presentable, but it was too tight around his neck, which didn’t feel pleasant at all.
‘Let’s just go.’
Yoo Ji-han decided to stuff the tie into his pocket without tying it.
A little while later, he exited his home and hailed a taxi.
The taxi driver, who frequently met with Yoo Ji-han, glanced at his outfit as he got into the taxi.
“Going somewhere important today?”
“Yeah. I have a somewhat important event to attend.”
“That suit looks great on you.”
“Oh really?”
“Your physique really pulls it off.”
Yoo Ji-han smiled slightly.
The driver’s compliment wasn’t too bad.
Thus, as the taxi drove down the road, they arrived at the large hotel where the induction ceremony was taking place.
The hotel belonged to the Red Hole and wasn’t accepting general guests for the day, only for the Cheongyeongsa induction ceremony.
“Hmm…”
Yoo Ji-han looked around as he got out of the taxi.
He was supposed to meet Kim Si-hu and Min Yu-ri right here.
‘They said they’d wait around here.’
In front of the hotel’s main entrance, people in suits were looking down at their phones.
The people around were in similar situations as Yoo Ji-han.
“Hyung!”
A familiar voice came from behind.
It was Kim Si-hu, raising one hand up high.
“You got here first.”
“Yeah.”
Kim Si-hu was wearing a cute-looking red bow tie with a neat black suit.
The only thing that hadn’t changed was the beanie he had on his head.
“Has Yu-ri arrived?”
“That must be her, right?”
Buuuu—
At that moment, Min Yu-ri’s truck approached the hotel.
She got out from the driver’s seat and entrusted the valet parking to the hotel staff.
Then Chilla came out from the back seat.
“…?!”
To Yoo Ji-han’s surprise, Chilla was dressed in an outfit similar to a suit.
There shouldn’t be a rule that a tamer’s pet had to follow the dress code.
“Yu-ri!”
“Ah.”
Min Yu-ri and Chilla approached him upon spotting Yoo Ji-han.
He said to her as she drew near, “Chilla is dressed up!”
“It’s a costume I made for fun earlier.”
A custom-made suit that fits the large, chubby chinchilla.
It felt like a character straight out of a game changing outfits.
Yoo Ji-han examined Chilla, who was looking at him.
The still expressionless critter didn’t seem to feel uncomfortable wearing the outfit at all.
‘Can it wear armor?’
Chilla would soon take on the role of the tanker for Yoo Ji-han’s party.
Thus, he wondered if it could also wear armor on its body.
If it didn’t mind wearing a suit-like outfit, then it was certainly possible.
‘I’ll bring it up soon.’
Yoo Ji-han knew Chilla’s skin was quite tough and firm.
But if he could put some sturdy medium armor on that giant body…
And if it could show the same agility as before while in armor……
It wouldn’t be outdone by other tankers who used skills.
“By the way, Yu-ri, that suit really suits you.”
“Thank you.”
Min Yu-ri, dressed in a white shirt, black jacket, and perfectly fitted suit pants, looked stunning even in modest heels, showcasing her long legs beautifully.
‘Even in rough gear, she wouldn’t look out of place.’
To Yoo Ji-han’s eyes, she could even be featured in a fashion shoot without any issues.
“Ahem.”
“Cough, cough….”
The glares of the waiting men around scanned the large Chilla before turning entirely toward Min Yu-ri.
Yoo Ji-han could slightly understand their sentiments.
Even without considering her impressive abilities, she was a sufficiently attractive person.
He felt nothing but gratitude for such an admirable person joining the Sweet Fun Guild.
“By the way, Ji-han, where’s your tie?”
Min Yu-ri pointed at Yoo Ji-han’s bare neck.
Yoo Ji-han scratched his head and said, “I didn’t know how to tie it, so I just brought it along.”
“Let me see it for a moment.”
“Uh?”
Min Yu-ri extended her hand forward.
After hesitating for a moment, Yoo Ji-han placed the tie he had carelessly shoved into his pocket on her outstretched hand.
“It seems like a nice tie. It’d be a shame not to wear it.”
Min Yu-ri untangled the mess of the tie and stepped closer to Yoo Ji-han.
She draped the long tie around his neck.
As they got too close together, Yoo Ji-han, slightly flustered, said, “Um… can you tie it?”
“I often watched my mom tie it for my dad when I was little, so I picked it up.”
Yoo Ji-han looked at her as she lifted his chin to make it easier for her to tie.
She was completely focused on the task of tying the tie.
‘Is that a floral scent?’
Min Yu-ri, now closer, emanated a light floral fragrance.
It seemed she had sprayed some perfume on.
Yoo Ji-han wasn’t particularly fond of strong perfumes.
But for some reason, the scent he caught right now didn’t feel uncomfortable; rather, it made him feel at ease.
“All done.”
“Oh….”
Min Yu-ri tightened the knot, and the completed tie looked very neat without a single flaw.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Yoo Ji-han expressed his gratitude to Min Yu-ri.
And then.
‘That envious guy.’
‘Lucky!’
‘If only I had a girlfriend like her!’
The men around him were staring at him with very intense gazes.
Whether he knew it or not……
Yoo Ji-han was merely chatting and laughing with his party members.
*
At the headquarters of the Keroes Guild.
Lee Mi-a walked briskly toward the office after arriving at the top floor of the building via the elevator.
‘This was supposed to be my day off….’
Today was the rest day that Mi-a had decided on for herself.
But she, suddenly summoned by Guild Master Park Joong-seob, wore quite a sullen expression.
Knock, knock.
After two knocks, she opened the office door without waiting for a reply.
There was Park Joong-seob sitting as usual, engrossed in work.
“Mi-a, you’re here?”
“Why did you call me?”
Her voice came out rather curt.
Having her rest interrupted, Mi-a wasn’t friendly with her expression, let alone her tone.
However, Park Joong-seob spoke as if he had expected her reaction and wasn’t fazed at all.
“Sit for a moment.”
“No. I’ll finish this quickly and go back to my break.”
“You’re really impatient…”
“If you wanted to talk leisurely, you shouldn’t have called me on my day off.”
Park Joong-seob stopped typing on his laptop keyboard.
Then he looked at Mi-a.
“I’ve received something strange recently.”
“What is it?”
After observing Mi-a for a moment, Park Joong-seob grabbed a brown envelope placed on the desk.
He opened the already torn envelope and pulled out something like photographs.
“Take a look yourself.”
Park Joong-seob handed some sheets of paper to Mi-a.
She stepped forward and took the paper.
“……?”
The very smooth paper contained photos of something.
Mi-a flipped through the photos, and upon reaching the fifth one, she furrowed her brow.
“This is….”
It was a photo capturing a scene of a man and a woman conversing in front of a building.
The woman in the photo was Mi-a herself.
And the man was Yoo Ji-han, who had recently left Keroes.
It seemed someone nearby had taken the photo when the intruder appeared.
“What is this?”
“It’s a photo sent by a journalist who specializes in gossip about heroes.”
“And?”
“If my eyes aren’t deceiving me, that guy in the photo is Yoo Ji-han, right?”
“Yeah.”
Mi-a didn’t make any attempts to hide the fact that she had met Yoo Ji-han.
Even if he had left Keroes, meeting with him was still Mi-a’s personal freedom.
Park Joong-seob leaned slightly forward as he spoke.
“Are you dating Ji-han?”
“No, I’m not.”
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her statement.
“I don’t think Yoo Ji-han is the type. Consider this my advice as a senior in life, so take it to heart.”
“I’m not dating him.”
“I always respect your choices. But I’m not too pleased if you’re dating a guy like him.”
“It was just a chance encounter on the street.”
“Then why did you go to karaoke?”
This time, Mi-a frowned.
“You even know I went to karaoke?”
“That’s not what’s important. Why did you go to karaoke?”
“There was nowhere else we could talk. I was worried we’d get photographed like this.”
“…….”
Park Joong-seob fell silent at her response.
It made sense to some degree.
He turned his attention back to his laptop and said, “Kim Hyun-tae’s party is our guild’s best party. So be careful, hanging around a low-level hero might tarnish our party’s image.”
“……Is that all you wanted to say?”
“Yeah. I’ll prevent an article from coming out, so you can go back to resting now.”
Was it really to say such a thing that he interrupted her rest?
Feeling a burst of annoyance, Mi-a nodded her head in acknowledgment and turned around.
Just before exiting the door, she slightly turned her head to the side and said, “Guild Master, who sent that photo?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“Please let them know that if they take pictures of others carelessly next time, I’ll smash their camera.”