"Wow! Oppa, the reporters are still there."
Jin-Ah peered down from the window and said. It was late, yet reporters who hadn't yet left had gathered around the apartment entrance like a swarm.
"Over there!"
The reporters spotted a figure and, thinking it was Jin-Woo, frantically clicked their shutters. Click, click, click! Flashes burst out from every direction, and Jin-Ah flinched and pulled the curtain shut. Zzzzip— She turned around and let out a small breath like a frightened animal.
"Hah—."
Jin-Woo's face tightened slightly. He'd been hoping to finally rest at home after visiting Hunter Auction.
"Should I go down and say something?"
Having his rest interrupted was fine. But he was worried it might affect his sister's studying. Jin-Ah was a high-school senior preparing for college entrance exams. Weren't there kids at that age who got irritated and neurotic over the mere sound of footsteps outside their room?
'Jin-Ah isn't the type to throw a tantrum, but...'
Still, with this much noise around, how could anyone focus? Just as Jin-Woo was about to step out—
"Don't, don't."
Jin-Ah waved her hand dismissively.
"Bad enough you're getting flamed on the internet right now. If you chase the reporters away too, who knows what they'll say about you."
"Flamed?"
When had he ever done something worth getting flamed for? Jin-Ah held out an internet article to the puzzled Jin-Woo. He took her phone.
'...'
On the screen was a photo of him standing in front of the Association building, surrounded by reporters, calmly talking on the phone. Being shot by a professional, even a candid shot turned out rather impressive, so he was reasonably pleased. But when he scrolled down to the comments—
'What an attitude.' 'Already treating reporters like they don't even exist.' 'Total cool guy.'
Comments like those lined up one after another, and the most upvoted one read: "Mom, I passed the S-rank exam!" The photo and the comment matched so perfectly that Jin-Woo couldn't help but crack a grin. Jin-Ah looked at him, exasperated.
"You think this is funny?" "It's funny." "..."
When Jin-Woo showed her the top comment, Jin-Ah nearly burst out laughing too but barely held it back. Maybe from that effort—
"No, that's not the point right now!"
Jin-Ah raised her voice, her face slightly flushed.
"Why did you take a call right there? With all those reporters around? Now my name's all over the place too."
Jin-Woo said calmly, as if it were no big deal.
"So I have to worry about reporters even when I'm answering my sister's phone call?" "Ugh!"
Jin-Ah was at a loss for words. No matter how she thought about it, he was right, and there was no angle to argue back.
'...I can't beat him in a war of words.'
Jin-Woo handed the phone back.
"Here."
Jin-Ah took her phone back with a slightly sullen expression and said.
"Anyway, I'm fine. Don't worry about the reporters either." "Okay."
Jin-Woo nodded. If this situation were going to continue indefinitely, that'd be one thing, but the Association had contacted him saying a restraining order against reporters would be issued in a day or two.
'I can deal with that much.'
Besides, Jin-Ah didn't want things to escalate any further either.
"But what's this all about?"
Jin-Ah looked at Jin-Woo with a sense of wonder.
"You becoming an S-rank Hunter, reporters swarming the house..."
An S-rank Hunter — something most people would never encounter in their entire lifetime — was standing right in front of her, and he was her brother. Like anyone would be, Jin-Ah's voice carried a tone of disbelief. But soon enough, Jin-Ah would adapt to this new reality too.
'Just like I did.'
Jin-Woo smiled. And, as if to console his sister whose heart still hadn't settled from the shock, he gave her cheek a gentle pinch. Jin-Ah responded instantly with a kick, as usual.
"Ow!"
But it ended up being her own foot that she clutched, hopping around in every direction.
"Oww."
Jin-Ah glared at him with a look that said "how could you," and Jin-Woo shrugged. It seemed she'd need quite a bit more time to come to terms with the fact that her brother was an S-rank awakener.
"You're going to be busy from now on, aren't you, oppa?"
Jin-Ah asked cautiously.
"Mm."
Jin-Woo nodded. There were many things he wanted to do and many things he needed to do, but first on the list was clearing the Demonic Castle. He'd even acquired fire-attribute defensive artifacts for pushing through the upper floors. The money he had on hand fell far short, which had been alarming, but fortunately he'd been able to take out a loan from Hunter Auction using his store-bought A-rank items as collateral.
'Becoming an S-rank Hunter and immediately going into debt...'
Somehow, the thought made him laugh. If the store-bought items fetched high prices at auction, the debt would be cleared in no time.
"So I guess it'll be even harder to see you now."
At the news that he'd be busier going forward, Jin-Ah's face took on a slightly wistful look. She'd be lonely living alone. Jin-Woo silently placed his hand on top of Jin-Ah's head. In a few more days — once he cleared the Demonic Castle — there would be no more need for his sister to guard the house by herself.
'I'll make sure of it.'
That was when Jin-Woo's eyes narrowed. His gaze shifted toward the door.
'Someone's coming this way.'
Jin-Ah noticed her brother's change too. She asked with an anxious look.
"Oppa?" "Stay inside." "What's going on?"
Someone who had stepped out of the elevator was heading straight this way.
'A Hunter...?'
The approaching presence carried a faint amount of mana. Jin-Woo didn't sense any hostility from it, but an uninvited guest was still unwelcome. Was this someone sent by a guild? Or a reporter who, overconfident in an awakener's power, had made a bold move? Either way, he wasn't generous enough to greet with a smile someone trying to visit unannounced at past ten at night. Jin-Woo stood in front of the door.
'This should be enough...'
No need to summon a weapon. Jin-Woo loosened his body lightly. When he rolled his neck from side to side, it cracked. Just as expected. Knock, knock. Someone knocked on the door twice, and his startled sister dashed into her room. Jin-Woo calmly opened the door. Creak. Through the slowly widening gap, the face of a familiar young man appeared. The man spoke.
"Hyung-nim..."
Sniffling. It was Yoo Jin-Ho, standing at the door with a red nose, sniffling.
"..."
Yoo Jin-Ho was wearing a backpack almost as big as himself and had his hands full of belongings on both sides.
"...Weren't you living on your own already?" "Well..."
Sniffle.
"The apartment I was living in was under my father's name too, so he took it back. And all my bank accounts have been frozen."
A father freezing every one of his son's bank accounts. It sounded like something out of a movie, but for the man referred to as the head of Korea's business world, it was entirely plausible. But what on earth had this kid done to earn such deep enmity from his father? While Jin-Woo stared at him with a questioning look, Yoo Jin-Ho's voice trembled.
"So, um, hyung-nim. Would it be all right if I stayed with you for a while?"
Squeak— creak. Jin-Woo calmly closed the door and locked it. Click. As he turned away, Jin-Ah, who had been watching the situation with concern, scurried over and asked.
"Oppa, who was that? Someone you know?"
Jin-Woo shook his head.
"No. Never seen him before." "You don't know him? Then why did he come to our house?" "Don't worry about it. He must've come to the wrong place." "...Really?"
It didn't seem like it. Jin-Woo ushered the skeptical Jin-Ah back into her room, and from behind his back came Yoo Jin-Ho's pitiful voice. Knock, knock!
"Hyung-niiiim! Hyung-niim!"
***
"Dear, weren't you a bit too harsh on Jin-Ho today?" "Hmph."
Yoo Myung-Han roughly loosened his tie. The nerve of that kid. He'd offered to hand over the Yoo Jin Guild, which would become one of Yoo Jin Construction's core businesses, and that was the response he got?
"I'm going to hyung-nim's guild."
What? Follow his hyung-nim?
"He can go crawl back to his hyung-nim for all I care."
Yoo Myung-Han snorted. If the boy wanted independence, he'd have to stand entirely on his own two feet. He intended to let him learn firsthand that every decision carried responsibility and consequences. Perhaps it was because he was agitated — his tie seemed even more stubborn than usual tonight. When his clumsy fingers finally got the tie tangled up, Yoo Jin's lady of the house reached out.
"Let me do it."
The tie was soon undone smoothly. Yoo Myung-Han quietly yielded to his wife's hands. But then. His wife, holding the untied tie, giggled.
"What is it, dear?"
Yoo Myung-Han was puzzled. It was the same tie she'd been tying and untying for him her whole life. Surely an old tangled tie wouldn't strike her as funny now.
"You're really angry, aren't you?" "Hm...?"
Had this woman eaten something wrong? What kind of nonsensical question was that? Yoo Myung-Han tilted his head and looked at his reflection in the mirror.
'No...'
He startled himself. He'd been grumbling just moments ago, so why did he look like he was in such good spirits? Flustered, Yoo Myung-Han touched his cheek and chin.
"Today was the first time, wasn't it?" "The first time for what?" "Jin-Ho talking back to you." "..."
Yes. That was why he was angry. A corporation couldn't sustain its enormous body unless orders flowed downward like water. He'd believed the same of a household. That was why he'd always maintained the same attitude at home as at work, tolerating no pushback on his decisions. And yet. Why was it that, even though he was angry, he didn't actually feel that bad about it?
'Angry but feeling fine?'
Even to himself, the contradiction made no sense. His wife, as if she could read his innermost thoughts, spoke gently as though soothing a child.
"Jin-Ho is trying to do something he's found he wants to do for the first time. Instead of getting too angry, why don't you support him?" "..."
Yoo Myung-Han pressed his lips shut. He himself couldn't fully sort out what he was feeling.
"I'll... keep watching for a bit." "You should."
His wife smiled kindly and took the shirt he was removing. But then. Yoo Myung-Han stared intently at his wife's face.
"That's strange." "What's strange, dear?" "Your face looks like two." "What?"
When his wife's eyes went wide, Yoo Myung-Han lost his balance and stumbled.
"Dear?"
His alarmed wife quickly braced him. Yoo Myung-Han shook his head repeatedly and let out a ragged breath.
"Hah, hah."
His wife's eyes went even wider.
'Why is he sweating like that?!'
Yoo Myung-Han tried to fight off the sudden wave of drowsiness by forcing his eyes open, but in the end, he lost consciousness.
***
Yoo Myung-Han came to in a VIP room at the nation's top university hospital. The attending physician, who had been taking turns with others around the clock to keep watch over his room, approached and examined his complexion.
"Are you awake, sir?" "..."
Yoo Myung-Han glanced around briefly and quickly grasped the situation.
"How long have I been here?" "You've been asleep for two full days."
Two days? Yoo Myung-Han was the very embodiment of diligence. No matter how exhausted he was, he never slept more than five hours.
"..."
With his lips pressed tight, Yoo Myung-Han soon said casually.
"I must have been more tired than I thought."
He had been swamped with various matters recently. The sudden dizziness and irresistible drowsiness were likely the aftereffects. But the attending physician couldn't hide his grave expression. Yoo Myung-Han was the owner of one of the nation's foremost corporations, with hundreds of thousands of employees under him. He was a master at reading people's faces. Seeing the doctor's stiffening expression, Yoo Myung-Han asked.
"Has... something abnormal been found in my body?"