Please Cooperate In The Execution Of S-Class Official Duties - Chapter 51

On his way home, Seheon added a word.

“In any case, I’m very reassured that you’ll protect my life.”

“That… Yes…”

Hara scratched her cheek bashfully. It must have made a deep impression on him, seeing as how he’d laughed aloud.

“I hope Yuri-ssi won’t be too upset…”

“She can afford to be a little upset.”

Seheon spoke firmly.

That doesn’t seem to be the case, though? For some reason, Hara wanted to respond, but she thought that it would appear rather strange if she took Yuri’s side, so she pondered for a moment before saying.

“But, well, it’s not like we’re really seeing each other…”

“Mm.”

The driving Seheon fell silent for a moment before opening his mouth.

“Wouldn’t the constellation dislike it if you say something like that?”

“Actually, he’s quite dissatisfied about it, even now.”

Hara replied while lightly tapping her fingers in the air. Although it wasn’t visible to the driving Seheon, the constellation was protesting against Hara.

[Do your best to fulfil the contract!]

“But if you think about it differently, the excuse is quite plausible, so it should be alright.”

“What?”

Hara, who was busy clearing away the system messages that were floating in midair, looked over belatedly.

The green lights along the streets at night blinked past. Seheon explained with a faint smile on the corners of his lips.

“If we consider not only today’s dungeon for the event, but also the dungeons that Kang Hara will be deployed to in the future, we’ll have to enter the dungeon together, even if we used the excuse of dating. After all, I’m a civilian, so I can’t enter dungeons thoughtlessly.”

“Uh……”

Hara’s eyes widened.

“Are you still willing to help me even after the two-man team dungeon quest is over?”

“You can only use your skills properly when I’m present, right?”

“But what about your work?”

His job as the main anchor for a public broadcasting station isn’t that easy. He has to host the main news program. That means that he has to go to the broadcasting station at the same time each day for work.

But dungeons wouldn’t occur in such a timely manner. Wouldn’t this be too much of a burden for him? Before she knew it, Hara became restless. It sounded simple when she asked for his cooperation to carry out public official duties.

“Anyways, I’m still considered injured for the time being. In addition.”

Seheon shrugged.

“Just with Team K’s name, I don’t even have to be in the office. It’s incredible, S-class.”

“……I’m sorry……”

“It’s quite comical to ask now, but you’d purposely recruited me for the documentary, right?”

“I’m sorry……”

Hara just couldn’t raise her face.

Seheon, who was already convinced but asked her for confirmation once again, snorted. In other words, those people that are fettered by television ratings will pay as much as they can to become the main anchor, as long as they become connected to an S-class hunter.

“As for work, if I can cover Team K, my schedule will be cleared as though nothing happened. However, the Hunter Agency will be a problem—”

“Ah.”

“Civilians are originally prohibited from entering dungeons, but it seems that your superiors are already aware of the penalty Kang Hara-ssi will face.”

It was evident just by looking at Chief Jung’s actions. Hara’s shoulders curled inwards.

“I can fully infer why Kang Hara-ssi’s quest is being kept confidential. If our relationship is an S-class quest, it would become too much of a hot topic. Even if I’m unwilling to, I’d be pushed into the dungeon by the entire nation.”

Unlike Kang Hara, Seheon, who was already a celebrity, was more familiar with the media ecology. He imagined the entire nation was pressuring the two to date, which made him want to stick his tongue out at them.

In retrospect, the current situation was a million times better.

“But right now, it’s a little different. A scenario where the fact that we’re dating becomes a reality will be more interesting, but the amount of attention given would decrease.”

“Really?”

“The word ‘S-class’ is missing.”

Ah. Hara’s jaw dropped. Seheon continued.

“There is a need for a scenario that’ll convince those aside from the superiors that are in the know about everything. I’d fallen for the woman that’d saved my life in the dungeon, and decided to date her, but in any case, I can’t just watch my lover enter such a dangerous place all by herself.”

“…Are you being serious?”

“I heard that these days, the public likes those sorts of things.”

Hara was flustered. It was because of Seheon’s sudden change in attitude.

In fact, up till this afternoon, although Seheon was quite cooperative, he expressed dissatisfaction with the constellation’s behaviour, so she couldn’t understand why he’d suddenly changed to become so zealous.

Hara was unaware that over the course of today, she’d unintentionally gained a lot of Seheon’s goodwill.

As such, Hara carefully asked after much consideration.

“Erm, what about Yoon Seheon-ssi’s image……?”

“What about my image?”

Was he asking what she meant… Hara tried to keep a rein on her slightly hazy mind and opened her mouth calmly.

“The No. 1 journalist in terms of public confidence……?”

“That would disappear when the news team made a single mistaken report.”

“……The man that everyone wants to marry……?”

“That’s something that I don’t want to hear again.”

Seheon clicked his tongue.

Ah. I guess he doesn’t like it.

“Well, would they stop saying things like that if I’m in such an extreme relationship that I’d follow you into a dungeon?”

Ah, that’s true… It’s probably turned into something like, he has such a neat image, and yet he wouldn’t let her go alone wherever she goes. However, he may find such chatter unpleasant.

Only then did she seem to understand a little bit. What it means by it’s tiring to be too perfect.

“But wouldn’t our relationship get in the way if there’s someone that you really liked?”

Before Seheon could do so, the constellation blew his whistle.

[The constellation, ‘Cupid’ dislikes this conversation]

Hara pushed the message away immediately. In fact, it was a topic that she thought she had to tell Seheon once.

She felt sorry for entangling Seheon into her affairs, and she’d also witnessed his hard work on Bamseom Island today.

Hara still remembered what he’d said when he first decided to go along with the contract relationship with her.

“So what would I stand to gain?”

Yes, he gained nothing from this relationship with Hara. Now that he said that he’d help Hara, even if he had to abandon his image and career, Hara felt extremely uncomfortable and embarrassed.

At the same time, such a thought occurred to her again. Yoon Seheon is such a good person…

As such, Hara made her decision. It would interfere with Yoon Seheon’s future, but at least she wouldn’t block his final path.

Hara continued with clenched fists.

“You might find someone that you’d like.”

“……Let’s think about that when that happens.”

“I—In that case, Anchor Yoon, you must let me know.”

“What do you mean?”

In the meantime, the traffic lights turned red. The car stopped at Gongdeok Five-way Intersection, a complex and wide 10-lane road. Even though it was late, there was still a dense group of cars. The brake lights of the car in front of the stopped sedan shone a vibrant red colour.

Kang Hara spoke to Seheon clearly as the red light shone on her cheek.

“Didn’t I promise not to lie? So Anchor Yoon, please do let me know if there’s someone you like.”

“…….”

“Even if the constellation behaves like that, if you have someone that you like, I’ll never become a hindrance to you, Anchor Yoon.”

Someone that you like… It felt strange. Before he even realised that he was feeling unpleasant, Seheon quickly asked.

“Even if Kang Hara-ssi will remain as a half an S-class for eternity?”

“……Well, given my life experiences, it wouldn’t be all that bad, being a half.”

“Ay,” Hara mumbled and shook her head, before speaking again convincingly.

“It’s okay. Anchor Yoon is a really good person. Even if I can’t do anything to help you, I can’t become a hindrance to Anchor Yoon’s love life.”

Yoon Seheon gripped the steering wheel as he looked at Kang Hara quietly. It was only a moment in time as Kang Hara was saying that.

Oddly, however, the Kang Hara of that moment remained within Seheon’s eyes. Although her face was still covered in a layer of dust, that strangely resolute expression. Was it due to the red light, or something else?

As such, Seheon’s response was slightly belated. The moment he barely managed to come to his senses and open his mouth, the sound of a Beep! came from behind.

When he looked forward hurriedly, he discovered that the traffic lights had already changed. Seheon stepped on the accelerator slowly.

Afterwards, Seheon’s mouth didn’t open. It wasn’t till he exchanged greetings with Kang Hara, who thanked him and went into her home.

Kang Hara disappeared into the alley, and the iron gate closed with a ka-rang. Now, only Seheon’s car was left in the alley.

A residential area full of parked cars.

Despite knowing that he should drive off quickly, Seheon still stepped on the brakes for a while before turning off the car’s engine.

Why did he feel so unpleasant?

But he, who’d stopped his large sedan in a one-way street at the residential area, was jolted back to his senses once again by another car honk. Seheon clicked his tongue and turned the car around.

He also knew that Kang Hara didn’t hold any self-interest in him.

‘But why am I feeling this annoyed?’

He couldn’t believe that it was hammered in like this. Even after parking at the apartment building in Yeouido where he lived in, the thought of returning to his house didn’t occur to him.

It was a chaotic day. As he walked out of the parking lot with the intention to mull over it while washing up, he was flustered to see a warning message suddenly pop up in front of him.

[Quest Reminder: Please take care of the giant eagle’s egg! The egg will gradually become colder if your distance to the egg goes over 5m]

[Distance to eggs: 4.8m]

His eyes widened, before returning back to the car and opening the passenger’s door. And upon discovering an ostrich egg-like item that was sitting in the passenger’s seat, which he hadn’t managed to spot with all his attention focused on his mulling, he soon realised something.

The fact that his chaotic day was far from over.

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