INV 38

‘That was the trigger.’

The sunbae lightly laughed as she finished her reminiscence and returned to the present.

That single, casual remark he threw out had turned her into a professional player.

It was a moment where the words she had uttered to instill basic common sense into a novice who had just joined the tennis club came back to save her.

At least, that was what the sunbae thought.

However, Kwon Yihyeon did not think so. Even if one credited him for fixing her bad habit of collapsing mentally in the latter half of matches, she became a professional athlete because she was fundamentally a talented person. Because she had a past where she swept the youth leagues; because she didn’t stop even after giving up on going pro; because she continued to play tennis even if it meant creating an unofficial club when the existing tennis club became excessively exclusive toward beginners and tried to seek financial gain.

He believed she achieved that result because she was that kind of person.

Kwon Yihyeon sincerely thought so.

And because Kwon Yihyeon was that kind of person, the sunbae worries about him even now.

Even if no one else knew, the sunbae, who had played matches with the freshman Kwon Yihyeon—who was relatively immature compared to now—had caught a glimpse of his true nature through a strange bond.

Despite that, her worry did not subside. I know he hides nine tails within that inner heart of his, but he’s a guy with a lot of lingering affection. When she heard that the guy who hadn’t shown a single sign of breaking down throughout his entire university life had collapsed to the point of being unreachable, she was so worried she felt like reaching for a drink she had quit. Was it love? Give me a break. Do you think becoming a pro is a piece of cake? If I’m going to talk about something like love, I’ll do it to my heart’s content after I retire. That partner is definitely not Kwon Yihyeon. It’s not that…

‘Benefactor.’

Yes. If I had to say, he’s a benefactor.

In the end, the sunbae hoped for Kwon Yihyeon to be happy.

That was enough.

‘You’re doing well, right? You’re okay, right?’

I can feel relieved, right?

Even though she hadn’t been caught in a psychological war, she couldn’t steady her heart.

⋆˙⟡

Meanwhile, Kwon Yihyeon, who had absolutely no idea that the connections he made at Korea University worried about him to that extent, was resenting his past self while standing under the hot water.

…It was, quite literally, post-coital clarity…

‘You lust-crazed bastard. You mindless fool. You bastard who thinks with his cock.’

After spilling that much yesterday.

‘You’re doing it again?’

Kwon Yihyeon, who walked out of the bathroom with a sluggish gait after towel-drying his hair and putting on neat homewear, went beyond hating himself and wanted to reach enlightenment.

He was so appalled that he even uttered a question like this with total sincerity.

“Your vaginal fluid… does it have an aphrodisiac or something? Does it have that kind of effect?”

Chacha reached out his hand as if looking at something extremely pitiful.

“What?”

“Hand over your phone. I’m going to turn on the minor protection mode.”

Kwon Yihyeon asked back stupidly.

“Why?”

“I’ve decided I need to manage the content you consume. How about healthily watching Pororo? I heard kids these days watch that.”

“You might be surprised to know I’m in my mid-to-late twenties. I’ve even been to the military.”

“A kid these days.”

“…”

It wasn’t a lie. Compared to Chacha, anyone would be a kid these days. But that wasn’t what Kwon Yihyeon wanted to say.

“That’s not it. I’m saying my sexual desire is boiling over too much lately.”

“Mhm. It certainly seemed so…”

“I’m saying this because I think it’s because of you, so won’t you listen seriously?”

“What more should I do with a husband who says he’s going crazy with arousal just by looking at me? You’ll get hard even without anything special.”

“…”

Kwon Yihyeon no longer wanted to deal with this person.

Still, he continued his questioning.

With academic passion to dig up the truth—with only that one thing.

“…You are a monster, and I am a human. So I’m asking if it’s possible that some unknown reaction occurs during lovemaking. No, because if it’s not something like that, then how can it be like this…!”

“Like this?”

“It shouldn’t be common sense to get hard at every turn!”

“…”

“…”

Kwon Yihyeon, who had shouted with a determined voice while clenching his fists, realized the embarrassment of his own question too late and squeezed his eyes shut. If I just crossed over to the afterlife right now, could I escape? But if it were Chacha, he felt like the man would dry up the Samdo River, kidnap Kwon Yihyeon, and return leisurely.

However, after a long silence, when he opened his eyes slightly to check his surroundings, he saw Chacha—whom he thought would tease him mercilessly—looking strangely serious as he chose his words.

Could it be that Kwon Yihyeon’s deduction was the truth? That there really was an aphrodisiac effect or something…!

“I’m sorry, but there’s no such thing.”

“No, then, then…”

Just as he was about to protest why he had hesitated so much…

Chacha nodded solemnly.

“Yes. You were the pervert.”

…

Kwon Yihyeon decided to go through one last verification process.

“This… you’re teasing me, right?”

“You’re asking because you don’t know?”

The face asking back was already starting to suppress a laugh.

Kwon Yihyeon, whose face turned bright red, threw a pillow at Chacha with all his might, but Chacha didn’t let himself get hit even once. Rather, he laughed loudly and fervently stimulated Kwon Yihyeon’s sense of shame.

“It’s okay. Isn’t it possible because you’re young. Yes, because you’re young, you can’t distinguish between reality and porn and get confused… Pfft!”

“It’s a sincere favor, so couldn’t you just let yourself get hit once?”

Chacha smiled brightly.

“Nope, no.”

Kwon Yihyeon fell into despair.

And he was frustrated once again when he saw the clock Chacha pointed at with his tail, confirming that there were only thirty minutes left until his time to leave for work.

For Kwon Yihyeon, whose temperament suited preparing with plenty of time and leaving leisurely, this was too much. To violate his schedule because he was arguing about a ridiculous pornographic idea since the morning. How stupid! Kwon Yihyeon let out a groan while clutching his head before scurrying into the dressing room.

Chacha watched Kwon Yihyeon’s retreating back and laughed out loud.

He didn’t know about the past, but the current Kwon Yihyeon was by his side. He loved that like crazy.

⋆˙⟡

Kwon Yihyeon’s commute, having not received a horse-token, was unfortunately opened by Gwak Deukcheon who came by.

Still, he heard that today’s shift would be replaced by training, as befitting an intern.

Kwon Yihyeon was inwardly happy. It was a chance to learn in detail about this world, about the occult that he had believed to be superstition until now. To have an expert—and a field worker at that—personally explain an unknown territory he didn’t know well. He had to absorb it well when it was being told. With that thought, Kwon Yihyeon, who carefully adjusted his grip on his writing utensil, could not control his jaw from dropping the next moment. Of course, that was only for about a second, and Kwon Yihyeon immediately returned to his proper intern persona.

In contrast to him, the ‘person in charge of training’ was being consistently bizarre to the point that Kwon Yihyeon was momentarily shaken.

First off, those wide-spread legs—I’ll forgive them since he’s sitting in a single seat. It’s incredibly unpleasant to look at, but I can’t exactly kick my superior for that reason alone. I can also handle those lazy, fish-like eyes that show no motivation to teach. Looking at the dark circles that are as black as a panda’s, I suppose it’s sleep deprivation. Given the smell of alcohol wafting from his jacket, it seems less like insomnia and more like the aftermath of all-night drinking. I’ve encountered executive drinkers in my social life who run coolly toward a hangover without a thought for the next day’s work, so I can even handle the sight of him sitting there sucking on a hangover cure with a bamboo straw.

However, there is exactly one thing I cannot handle. That is…

“Ugh. Having to teach someone at this point is making my stomach turn.”

I hate… no, that’s a slip of the tongue… the person named Gwak Deukcheon who is in charge of training itself. I knew Gwak Deukcheon was that kind of guy from our first meeting. I know it’s not a territory where handling it is possible.

So, the thing Kwon Yihyeon cannot handle is…

“This thing. I’m doing Assistant Manager Woon’s work for him, so you owe me a debt later? Yeah?”

The fact that the ‘originally’ assigned training officer was not Gwak Deukcheon!

‘To take over someone else’s lectern so willfully and then tell me to repay a debt? If you’re going to be like that, why are you being so bothersome!’

If you’ve taken the job, do it properly!

The fundamentally diligent Kwon Yihyeon could not understand Gwak Deukcheon at all. And it seemed that even if her name was Myo Woon, he couldn’t understand her team leader.

“…I will do it after all. It looks a bit odd for a Team Leader to handle intern training when there’s a mentor below.”

“That kid you call a mentor ran into that guy over there yesterday.”

“…”

“How can I trust her after that, geez.”

But hearing it, this was also a valid point.

Myo Woon had a precious experience yesterday, one so rare it was a miracle she didn’t die. Hurling verbal abuse at the groom while Jae Angshin is sitting right there in the next room. It’s a remarkably hard route to run while sober without a single drop of alcohol.

Was that why? Even though she could have just ignored the nagging poured out by such a team leader, Assistant Manager Woon’s complexion only grew darker.

‘…You were the one who dragged Assistant Manager Woon out for a coffee time suddenly.’

Kwon Yihyeon was ‘certain’ that some kind of scheme had intervened in Myo Woon’s sudden outburst. However, Intern Kwon Yihyeon cannot interfere in a conversation between a department-head-level figure and his mentor.

‘So, did I do nothing?’

No, I shot a look filled with a bit of reproach.

It was only that, but Gwak Deukcheon’s senses were so good that he immediately turned to look at Kwon Yihyeon.

And Kwon Yihyeon was very quick-witted. In a word, he knew all too well when he had to shut his mouth.

And how he should leak the fact that ‘I’ know your secret.

“…This brat is sitting there smiling in a way that gets on my nerves again.”

As Gwak Deukcheon grumbled while scrunching his face, Manager Kang Taerim restrained him, telling him not to pick on the intern for no reason. However, since he was the one who provoked this time, Kwon Yihyeon replied virtuously that he was okay, and Manager Kang somehow got a look that said, ‘It’s even admirable how pitiful he is…’

“Hey, intern. Hey. Don’t do that. Don’t seduce my kids. Do you take me for a sucker? Do you think I don’t know what you’re up to? Hey, Kwon Yihyeon! Don’t look at me with those eyes! Kid! Can’t you hear me?!”

The identity of the secret Kwon Yihyeon had leaked by smiling wistfully and implying he knew was simple.

‘Adding fuel to an already burning house and fanning the flames…’

As a result, the one who incited Assistant Manager Myo Woon.

Is Gwak Deukcheon.