Regression Guidelines For the Supporting Character

“Oh, welcome.”
As soon as they opened the door and stepped into the Association President’s office, the President greeted the two as if he had been waiting for them.
“I was just reading the report from the research team. Team Leader Park Minhyuk, I heard you even assisted with the tests? You’ve gone through a lot.”
“It’s nothing, sir.”
The President, clearly pleased, shifted his gaze to Cha Seohu, who bowed calmly.
“Hunter Cha Seohu. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”
The President extended his hand first.
Cha Seohu, wearing an indifferent expression, looked down at the offered hand.
Watching that, Park Minhyuk swallowed dryly.
It was similar to the situation with Kim Yeongeun, but the tension in the room /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ was on another level entirely.
He nervously hoped that Cha Seohu would be as socially capable as when he had accepted Kim Yeongeun’s handshake without issue.
“……”
After staring at the President with an unreadable expression, Cha Seohu eventually lifted his hand and accepted the handshake.
There was no friendly greeting like he had given to Kim Yeongeun, but instead, he offered a faint smile.
Even that small smile, thanks to his striking features, instantly brightened the atmosphere. The President, clearly satisfied, led them into the sitting area inside his office.
“You must be tired from the tests. I apologize for calling you in. But after reading the results, I couldn’t wait any longer. Haha! Come, sit down.”
Without any visible discontent, Cha Seohu calmly sat on the sofa.
At that point, Park Minhyuk started to feel a little awkward himself.
‘Maybe I was being overly sensitive.’
No matter how rude someone was, it wasn’t easy to act out in front of someone as high up as the Association President.
Cha Seohu might be unpleasant, hot-tempered, self-centered, and immature—but at the very least, he had basic common sense and manners.
There were even surprising moments where he cared about his injuries.
‘If I can manage things well from the middle, there shouldn’t be any big problems.’
Only then did he feel reassured.
Park Minhyuk sat beside Cha Seohu with a noticeably more relaxed mind.
Once the President had taken his seat across from them, an attendant came in and served warm tea.
“Meeting you in person, Hunter Cha Seohu, you’re even more handsome than in the photos! I imagine you must be quite popular with the ladies.”
With that light compliment, the President folded his hands on the table and gave his signature gentle smile.
“I’d like to hear how your day at the Association has been so far. I left instructions with Team Leader Park Minhyuk to make sure you’d be comfortable, but things must still feel a bit awkward, no?”
Awkward…?
‘I didn’t feel awkward, though.’
Park Minhyuk glanced sidelong at Cha Seohu as the President spoke.
He remained calmly focused on the teacup in front of him.
“But you’ll get used to that awkwardness after a few more days here. What do you think? If you’re okay with it, you’re welcome to stay at the Association as long as you’d like.”
The offer flowed smoothly and sounded warm and caring, likely due to the President’s tone.
It was a calculated move—meant to lower Seohu’s guard and make him feel safe and welcome within the Association.
‘If he were young or a fresh recruit, he might fall for it.’

Park Minhyuk caught himself mid-thought.
‘No, wait. He’s twenty-seven. That’s not young.’
Definitely not young enough to be swayed by kindness with no strings attached. And he wasn’t a rookie, either.
‘The records say he ran a guild. It was brief and lacked members, so it was likely just a placeholder guild for dungeon entry.’
Even that was abruptly shut down when he claimed he needed to make repairs and ceased activity.
Park Minhyuk knew what happened afterward. Seohu had entered the Great Dungeon, met him there, and ended up at the Association.
In any case, for Cha Seohu, the Association was still unfamiliar territory.
And the President knew that too. Instead of pushing him to join outright, he was gently encouraging him to stay a while, buying time.
At the same time, it was a shrewd tactic—cutting off all his external ties while he stayed, making it harder to leave and easier to reel him in.
“Don’t feel burdened by any of this. For someone like you, Hunter Cha Seohu, it’s completely fine.”
Finishing off with a line meant to relieve pressure.
It made it hard for Cha Seohu to give a firm refusal.
‘Looks like he’s been thoroughly baited.’
Even someone as unpredictable as Cha Seohu couldn’t easily handle someone as slippery as the President.
Still, Park Minhyuk didn’t intervene.
He didn’t want Cha Seohu to leave the country either.
To be honest, he agreed with the President’s message from the day before.
If they didn’t want Cha Seohu to start looking overseas, keeping him affiliated with the nation was the safest route.
The Association would provide him with a place to stay and anything he needed. If he wanted, he could even live with his family.
In a world as chaotic and dangerous as this, being a Hunter affiliated with the Association was a fairly stable profession.
Considering how many dealers had their eyes on Cha Seohu, working for the Association with people like Park Minhyuk was far better than chasing profit through guilds.
‘Even if I don’t like the President, this is one issue I can’t fight him on.’
Having made up his mind, Park Minhyuk opened his mouth to voice support—
“I don’t want to.”
—when a flat reply suddenly dropped into the previously warm atmosphere of the reception room.
“……?!”
Park Minhyuk instinctively whipped his head toward Seohu, eyes wide in disbelief.
The President’s face was also frozen in shock.
“Wh-what did you just say…?”
“I said I don’t want to.”
Cha Seohu, now lazily crossing his legs, stared at the President.
“All this ‘stay a few more days’ and ‘don’t feel pressured’ nonsense—your intentions are so obvious. You might as well just ask me to join the Association outright. At least then it would’ve been mildly entertaining.”
“Wh-what—are you speaking informally to me right now…?!”
“You started speaking informally first, so I’m just following your lead.”
Cha Seohu raised an eyebrow as if to ask, Is there a problem?
“H-hah…!”
The President, clearly never having been treated like this before, couldn’t even find the words to respond and could only suck in sharp breaths.
Park Minhyuk, too, was struck speechless by the blatant insubordination.
Just a moment ago, he had thought everything would be fine if he managed things well—but that had been a delusion.
Cha Seohu was insane. At least ten times worse than he had anticipated.
“What was the question again? Oh, right. Was it awkward? Sure, it was awkward. And uncomfortable. I’d feel just as uncomfortable even if I stayed a few more days, so I’m leaving today. I’ve already finished the tests, so there’s no reason for me to be here anymore.”
“Wh-what…!”
“Did that answer your question? If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way.”
Speaking casually, like to a friend, Cha Seohu stood up without hesitation.
Park Minhyuk, completely thrown off by the sudden move, barely snapped back to his senses.
“W-wait… Hunter Cha Seohu!”
“Thank you for everything, Team Leader Park Minhyuk.”
“N-no, that’s not—”
Seohu gave a polite bow to Park Minhyuk, making sure the Association President saw it.
With a half-risen body and a flustered heart, Park Minhyuk glanced nervously at the President.
The President, face flushed with rage, clenched his fist tightly.
That impudent little bastard…
Grinding his teeth, he cursed internally.
He wanted nothing more than to tell Seohu to get the hell out—but unfortunately, the man before him was the first-ever SS-rank Hunter.
A talent they absolutely could not afford to lose.
If I can just get him under my thumb…
Recalling all the benefits he could gain, the President barely managed to suppress his fury.
“Ahem! I let my excitement get the better of me and acted rudely. I sincerely apologize. Please, let’s talk a little more. There’s still a lot to negotiate, don’t you think?”
Cha Seohu looked down at the President with cold indifference, then slowly sat back down—clearly giving him one last chance.
Beneath the table, the President’s clenched fist trembled.
Haa…
Park Minhyuk, for his part, felt like dying.
Pale as if motion-sick, he followed Seohu back to the sofa and let out a sigh.
Having stunned both men with sheer audacity, Cha Seohu opened his mouth again, looking just as bored as ever.
“Well, I don’t really have anything I want to negotiate with you, Mr. President.”
“Haha, don’t be so quick to say that.”
The President, now parched, sipped his cold tea before continuing.
“Breaking news will go out soon based on the test results. Hunter Cha Seohu, the fact that you are the world’s first Triple Awakener with SS-rank classification will spread like wildfire.”
“……”
“Before, you could just set up a guild and work alone. But that won’t be possible anymore. Not only in Korea—overseas interests will come flooding in. Some may approach you with manners, but there’s no guarantee they all will. Can you really manage that chaos as a Supporter?”
Apparently changing tactics, the President began trying to scare him while pretending to persuade.
His intentions were obvious, and Seohu smirked.
“What does any of that have to do with you, Mr. President? I’ll handle my own affairs.”
The President’s thick eyebrows twitched.
“Pride won’t protect you. Do you have any idea how often people get kidnapped overseas in today’s world where items are everywhere? If it’s a law-abiding country, fine—but what if it’s one in the middle of a war? Then it’s no longer just your personal problem.”
Clicking his tongue, the President’s face hardened further.
He was clearly viewing Seohu as some immature kid throwing a tantrum.
Seohu noticed it—but didn’t bother correcting the image. He didn’t care if the President saw him that way.
“Well, if something like that does happen, I’ll come crying to you, Mr. President. You treasure me enough to offer a VIP suite at the Association, right? I’m sure you’d help.”
“……”
The already cold atmosphere turned glacial.