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Editors: Spade & Asterope
“Heon-ah, quit your job as a hunter and become a chef. I’ll even buy you a hotel.”
Since Thursday was just a half-work day, they had managed to leave early. Juwon had spoken while eating the pasta aglio e olio Inheon had prepared.
Inheon shook his head while pouring some orange juice into Juwon’s cup. “When I do quit, I just plan on playing around with you, honey.”
“That sounds like an even better idea, doesn’t it?”
Laughter filled the dining table. Despite leaving work early, the day had quickly begun to darken after their dinner together.
“It’s cold today, but do you still want to go for a walk?”
Perhaps due to the fuss the weather report had made about it being the coldest day of the year, there were very few people strolling in the residential area. To everyone else, it was a day where they had to stay shut indoors, but to the two of them, it was a good day to go to the park; they wouldn’t feel out of place wearing long padded jackets or hats, and there’d be no one to recognise them.
Christmas decorations sparkled in various parts of the park, marking the end of the year. The bulbs hanging from the branches emitted bright lights. Hand in hand, they strolled along the tranquil path lined with trees, casting subtle shadows.
Turning the curved path, they heard a distant thumping sound. Some high school students, seemingly unfazed by the cold, were engrossed in a game of basketball on the court at one end of the park. Juwon remarked in admiration, “Wow, don’t they feel cold?”
“Maybe it’s because they’re still young.”
The student, his sleeves rolled up despite the chilly weather, struggled to score against his opponent in a one-on-one match and haphazardly launched the ball towards the hoop. Miraculously, the ball bounced off the rim and rolled to Inheon’s feet.
As Inheon was picking up the orange ball, the student hurriedly ran towards them. However, his steps gradually began to slow down in hesitation.
He hadn’t noticed earlier because Inheon was wearing a long padded jacket and standing in a dimly lit area at a distance, but upon closer inspection, Inheon’s towering height and broad shoulders made the high school student uneasy, causing him to gulp.
When Inheon handed the ball over, the student quickly accepted it and bowed down.
“T-thank you…”
Watching the student’s back as he hurriedly ran towards the hoop again, Juwon said, “I used to play a bit of basketball when I was younger too.”
“Yeah. Back then, you really seemed like Michael Jordan.”
“Nah, I’ll be Mitsui Hisashi.”
“Yeah, alright.”
“Then who will you be?”
“Coach Anzai…?”
They made their way to the park’s entrance, bantering with each other.
“Today’s Thursday, isn’t it?”
“There must be fish cake soup being sold today.”
Thinking of the fish cake soup sold by the truck that came around every Thursday, Juwon’s steps became noticeably lighter. The joy of this season was standing inside a plastic cover that did little to shield them from the cold breeze, and enjoying warm soup.
“Hello, Boss.”
As they opened the tent and entered, the fairy lights hanging haphazardly from the ceiling flickered in shades of red, yellow, and green one after another. The boss, who had been skewering fish cakes on wooden sticks, looked up and greeted them.
“Aigoo, welcome.”
“It’s a cold day, isn’t it?”
The elderly boss, with his grey hair tied back, responded as he switched on the heater, “sure is. It’s so cold that I’ve had no customers.”
“What a shame, Heon-ah. We should help him make some sales.”
Soup was boiling in a large stainless steel pot. White steam billowed into the air, which was much warmer than the outdoors. The fish cakes that had been added to the light brown soup, which had green onions and onions floating around in it, were firm and chewy.
“What do you sell in the summer?”
“We’ve got corn in the summer and fish cake soup in the winter. Maybe it’s because I’ve aged, but I can’t manage anything too complicated now.”
The eyes of Juwon and the fish cake restaurant’s boss, who’d been chatting together, slowly widened. Clearly, Inheon had been eating in a relaxed manner, but the number of empty skewered dishes beside him began to pile up like a mountain, slowly but surely.
Juwon knew that Inheon had a high metabolism, making him quite the hearty eater. But even though it seemed like he was taking his time with his meal, drinking up the soup while keeping a hand in his pocket, he had managed to devour all the fish cakes from the restaurant in an instant.
“Gosh, it looks like I’ll be able to close up early today, thanks to a certain tall and handsome customer. It’s such a cold day too, so thank you.”
The boss couldn’t hide his big smile and began preparing for closing. All that remained were the fresh fish cakes he had just skewered, so even if he wanted to do more business, he couldn’t.
On their way home, Juwon slipped his hand into Inheon’s padded jacket and rubbed his stomach, but it was still rock hard.
“Won’t your stomach explode?”
“Why would my stomach explode from eating that?”
“No, well, I did tell you to help boost his sales, but I didn’t tell you to eat everything, did I?”
“Honey, you’re the one who implemented shorter work days on Thursdays. The boss should also get a shorter work day.”
“What’s up with that…”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Inheon laughed, and Juwon reached for his hand. Their interlocked fingers swung like the movement of a pendulum. Their clasped hands felt warm.
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“…Now that I think about it, it was supposed to air today.”
It was only then that Juwon remembered what Team Leader Han had reported on. Watching his own appearance on screen still felt somewhat awkward, so the content of the report had completely slipped his mind. Juwon asked as he rubbed his forehead, “Should we watch it…?”
Inheon chuckled softly and tilted his head.
“Just do as you wish.”
Juwon let out a small sigh, retrieved some beer from the fridge, placed it on the table, and settled back on the sofa. Inheon laughed while glancing at Juwon, who didn’t seem up for it at all.
As Inheon sat next to him, Juwon leaned against his shoulder and took a sip of his beer. He pondered whether it was really necessary to watch the first broadcast, since Team Leader Han would have already handled things on her own and checked things over. Nevertheless, since it was already airing, he felt the need to monitor it.
As the commercial break concluded, the screen lit up with noise.
TCNC X DECEMBER
Year End Special!
Yessa and Yesa!
Pretty CEO
Pretty Romantic!
He has returned!
Juwon furrowed his brows right from the beginning.
“They really used such a terrible title?”
Nonetheless, the following scene was somewhat acceptable. The clip showcased the achievements and results of December, which the PR team had put their heart and soul into summarising, and it continued for a while before transitioning to a scene with Juwon sitting against a white background.
<Hello, it’s been a while. I am December’s CEO, Lee Juwon.>
Subtitles appeared beneath the Juwon on the TV screen.
– Has there been any changes since your last appearance?
<Um… Before, whenever I appeared in articles or on thumbnails, the words ‘CEO Lee Juwon’ would be written, but now they just write ‘Inhunter’s ♥’.>
Watching the TV screen, Juwon chuckled.
“Team Leader Han told me to start with sales or whatever, but isn’t that the biggest change of them all?”
Inheon let out a low chuckle and gently planted a kiss on Juwon’s ear.
The broadcast continued in a peaceful atmosphere. The previous filming had emphasised December’s organisation and working conditions, while this one leaned more toward its personal and comfortable ambiance.
They had filmed a suitable balance between official and unofficial aspects, beginning with the scene of the light surprise party that had been thrown for Juwon’s birthday, the scene of him eating together with the other employees in the cafeteria, and many others.
As soon as Team Leader Song from the strategy team relayed his report on the newly discovered monster, the atmosphere in the conference room shifted to one of focus.
<It’s known to be a seven-headed dragon, and the impact caused by a single one of its grazes alone can create a crater with a diameter of about three metres. Its kin aren’t easy to deal with either.>
This was the reason why team Lyon, that had been sent into the dungeon which occurred in Hwaseon, hadn’t been able to announce the closure of the dungeon. Lyon had been neither proactive in publicising information related to dungeons and monsters, nor did they have much data themselves. Seeing as how they were incapable of successfully clearing it, it was probably the result of them taking a much more careful approach. While going through the data, Juwon said,
<Seeing how they failed to dispose of it despite Lyon’s Lee Baekcheon having injected water-type pulse into the trident, there’s a big possibility that it’s related to something other than the Book of Revelation. Since the calamity of the snake with many heads can also symbolise a flooding river… In such cases, water-type pulses may not be compatible.>
The team leaders nodded their heads.
<Lyon must’ve made a miscalculation upon seeing that it was a red dragon.>
<It seems like it’ll be our turn now.>
Listening to the commentaries from the team leaders, Juwon gently tapped his fingers on the desk.
<Among the items we obtained in Gangrim two years ago, there should be a dark red scarf called ‘Cheondo’.>
Team Leader Song looked elsewhere and took a moment to search his memory after hearing Juwon’s words, then connected to the data system. Tapping on the keyboard, Team Leader Song said with surprise on his face,
<Ah, yes, we do have it. It’s a B-Class item that we obtained in September of last year.>
<Since it’s a piece of cloth with the energy of the earth imbued in it, it should have some effect. A more detailed discussion will…>
Juwon glanced at the clock. Before he knew it, more than an hour had passed since the beginning of the meeting. It was about time for everyone’s concentration to start waning, so a little ventilation was needed.
<Let’s take a short break.>
The team leaders, who had been paying close attention to Juwon, visibly relaxed upon hearing this. They had been so engrossed in the meeting that they hadn’t even realised how much time had passed. Now, the urge to grab a drink and take a restroom break fully hit them. Some team leaders took sips of their drinks on the table, while others excused themselves and left their seats to go to the bathroom.
Amidst the bustling atmosphere, Juwon turned his gaze towards Inheon. Inheon had quietly entered the conference room just as the meeting was about to end and had been reading through the meeting materials. Sensing Juwon’s gaze, he raised his head.
When Inheon appeared on the screen, the panellists in the studio couldn’t help but let out a bunch of exclamations. Despite not having appeared in many of the shots due to his busy schedule at the time of the shoot, his presence stood out whenever he made a rare appearance in the VCR.
Inheon, dressed in a denim jacket and black jeans, looked at Juwon. They were seated at the edges of the opposite ends of the table, and their gazes met at a diagonal line.
<By the way, Hunter Kang-nim…?>
Rubbing Inheon’s shoulders, which appeared wide enough to almost burst the seams of the denim jacket he was wearing, Juwon continued,
<You seem prettier. Is it because I saw you outside?>
Inheon calmly replied,
<Then I’ll make sure to dress even prettier from now on.>
He spoke in an ordinary tone, as if he were reviewing the meeting materials during the short break. However, the panellists watching the VCR screen erupted into shouts.
[Woahhhh?]
[What…did I just hear?]
[Do Lamborghini’s not have any blinkers?]
[Not cool, but pretty?]
[I’ll make sure to dress even prettier from now on, what does that even mean? He totally sounded like a new employee promising to work even harder, didn’t he?]
[Now that I think about it, Inhunter-nim’s clothes look like those of a new hire!]
[Who force-fed me vitamins just now?]
Watching the commotion caused by the panellists on the screen, Juwon rubbed the back of his neck and said, “Since when have I ever said those kinds of things?”
“You say it every day.”
“Really…?” Juwon tapped Inheon’s arm and whispered, “So that’s why you’ve been dressing so pretty every day?”
“Huh? I’ve been dressing pretty since the day of the interview.” Inheon took a sip of his canned beer and added, “Of course, as for Lee Juwon-ssi…your face was all you cared about…”
“Ahem, ahem…”
Juwon cleared his throat and shifted his gaze back to the TV. If it was about his fashion sense at that time, he didn’t have much more to say.
Inheon smiled with his eyes as he observed Juwon’s profile. His efforts to avoid repeating the clothes, watches, and shoes that had caught Juwon’s attention, even if it was just once, were finally paying off. Of course, Juwon remained unaware of this.
Seemingly disinterested in the TV now, Juwon watched half-heartedly as he faintly said, “Come to think of it, it was pretty back then…”
“What was?”
“My husband on the day of the interview. You were wearing a light grey overcoat and faded jeans, weren’t you? Your sneakers were so white that they were blinding.”
“…You remember that?”
Juwon nodded as if it were obvious.
“How could I forget? I remember all the outfits you wore, regardless of the month or day. It’s easy to remember since you always switch it up.”
Inheon attempted to quiz Juwon about the clothes he had worn a few years ago, but seeing how Juwon got the right answer to every one of them, Inheon couldn’t help but pull him into a long kiss.
Before they realised it, the broadcast had reached its final stage. Subtitles appeared below the scene of the team leaders gathering and sitting in two lines.
-TCNC’s official question! What kind of leader is CEO Lee Juwon?
Team Leader Jung was the first to speak.
<Um, first of all, he’s handsome, and he’s also handsome, as well as handsome…>
A round of laughter came from the team leaders. The others chimed in one after the other,
<However, what’s surprising is that his skills are even more outstanding than his face.>
<In the trendy VS question, people were made to choose between a co-worker who has a bad personality but a good work ethic and a co-worker who has a good personality but a bad work ethic. However, unexpectedly, many people chose the former option. Since companies are for work after all.>
<Agh, are you saying the CEO is the former…?>
<The CEO… has turned into a unicorn! He has both a good personality and a good work ethic!>
<Plus, isn’t his face nice too?>
The scene changed with a cross-edit. The PD displayed the recorded footage of the team leaders’ conversation to Juwon. Looking at the tablet screen, Juwon felt somewhat awkward.
<I guess I’ll have to increase everyone’s performance bonuses…>
The scene then returned to the recording of all the team leaders gathered together, and another subtitle appeared on the lower half of the screen.
-Is there something you want from the CEO?
Team Leader Han said with a serious expression,
<There’s been a certain situation these days where the CEO abuses his power…>
The other team leaders, having guessed what she was about to say, said in reply,
<We want him to give us the right to choose the pizza we get as snacks! It’s every team leader’s complaint!>
<We have seven different choices of menu in the cafeteria, but how could it be that the k-pizza is the only standardised one?>
There was another round of cross-editing, and Juwon reappeared on the screen. The PD delivered him the proposal made by the team leaders, but Juwon shook his head.
<No, if I give them the right to choose, then no one would want to eat Hawaiian pizza…>
The panellists followed the conversation and spoke energetically,
[Is this some new form of dictatorship?]
[I’m expecting a great aftermath after this broadcast…]
[If they’re going to standardise one, at least make it pepperoni pizza!]
[At this point, doesn’t it seem like the bigger picture he has in mind is to shoot a pizza ad?]
There was a roar of laughter. Finally, the employees waved their hands in front of December’s main building. The panellists’ warm appreciation followed right after.
Up to this point, the program’s development had gone according to what Juwon already had a rough idea of.
“It’s finally ending… I’m seriously not going to do any more of these.”
Juwon lightly crushed the finished beer can and left it on the table. Since the show was rather popular and both the PR team and the broadcasting station were nagging him about it, he decided to make one last shoot, which he deemed to be enough now.
Juwon thought the program would come to an end like this, but the screen suddenly changed. It displayed the sight of Inheon seated against a white background.
Juwon looked over to him, surprised by the unexpected scene.
“You shot some scenes too?”
“Just one.”
Even though he was sitting on a tall chair where most would sit with their legs dangling, Inheon had his legs bent and his feet leisurely touching the ground. With a faint smile on his face, the Inheon inside the screen said in a low voice,
<I’m Kang Inheon, a hunter belonging to December.>
Bold-faced subtitles appeared next to him.
– How do you feel about being chosen as the top groom candidate once again this quarter?
Inheon, who fell silent for a moment, rubbed his eyebrows with the tip of his finger.
<I understand that everyone’s just voting for this as a joke, similar to what they did with the green onion-flavoured cereal, but I’d appreciate it if people could refrain from doing so in the future. Considering I’m married and all… I’d be grateful if you could remove me from the voting list.>
– Then, let’s return to TCNC’s official question, what kind of leader is Lee Juwon?
Inheon calmly spoke with an honest look in his eyes,
<The CEO is an ally you can trust to have your back. With the support his wealth of knowledge and innovative strategies provide, the hunters of December are capable of achieving great results. On a personal level, he believed in my capabilities as a hunter and supported me. If I’ve been able to contribute even the slightest bit to the world, it’s all thanks to the CEO.>
– Let’s switch the question up a little, what kind of person is Lee Juwon to Kang Inheon?
Inheon, who briefly cast his gaze downward in deep thought, then looked directly at the camera. Juwon felt as if they locked eyes.
<…A beautiful and kind person, one who is sincere and gives his best in any situation, and one who is down-to-earth.>
Juwon, who had been staring a hole through the screen, shifted his gaze towards Inheon. The man in front of him echoed the words spoken on TV with his own voice.
“So, he’s the one I couldn’t help but love for a very, very long time, and the one who gave me a reason to live.”
As Inheon’s final words were spoken, the program came to an end, and the introduction for the next episode appeared. The pleasant voices of the panellists introduced the CEO of some pharmaceutical company, but all Juwon could hear was Inheon’s voice. Inheon quietly laughed and said, “I wanted to tell everyone that I love you.”
orcinus comments:
the fact that juwon has such a good memory but his high school and middle school days were so horrible with him losing his parents and everything that he doesn’t remember anything from it
THANK YOU FOR THE CHAPTER > < /♡♡♡
KEKEKEKKEKEKEKE THAT WAS SO CUTE😍
I’m actually still waiting for their first meeting to be cleared up? Juwon still believes it was just an illusion created by the dungeon while Inheon still thinks Juwon forgot abt it ryr?
Juwon knows it is isn’t an illusion (mentioned in extra 9) but in classic yess & yes fashion they’ll talk… eventually 😭
Wow. Thank you for the chapter
Istg inheon is the kind of mental ill person I want to be
Loved that cute chapter. Thank you for translating!
Awwww that was so sweet