No matter how uncomfortable I was, the team handled the monsters on schedule.
Kiaaaak!
When Ha Tae-heon cut down the crawling spider monster, Kim Soo-hwan, who was next to me, cried out as if he couldn't stand it.
"Wow~ that's so cool!"
"..."
Fortunately, Kim Soo-hwan quickly brushed off his gloomy heart, unlike my worries. He seemed satisfied with the fact that he had a conversation with Ha Tae-heon.
"Did you just see it? Ha Yi-gyeol-ssi? That clean and neat move!"
"Haha… yes."
I killed the spider that rushed back roughly. I wanted to stop paying attention to Ha Tae-heon for a moment, but even that it was not easy because Kim Soo-hwan kept making a fuss to looking at him.
"That's why. Our Deputy Master is so popular, right? Last time, the female employee…"
"Kim Soo-hwan-ssi."
During the break after dealing with all the monsters, I cut off Kim Soo-hwan's words and asked.
"I heard that Deputy Master also has a fan cafe. Is it real?"
Anyway, if I'm going to have a conversation with Ha Tae-heon, I'll have to ask anything I'm curious about. Kim Soo-hwan smiled brightly at my question and grabbed my shoulder strongly.
"Of course, it is! Are you interested, Yi-gyeol-ssi?"
"Yeaah…"
I nodded my head, avoiding his burdensomely twinkling eyes.
"As expected! I thought Yi-gyeol-ssi would recognize the charm of our Deputy Master!"
"..."
"When we get out of the gate, I will send you an invitation. Once you receive it, you can sign up immediately. It is difficult to find publicly because it is a cafe where only real people gather."
"I see."
I nodded in surprise. It was a recommendation system where you could only join if you had an invitation. I'm glad I brought it up.
More than that, the invitation…
How are you going to send it?
'I've seen something similar before.'
I remembered that a man who had been in and out of the management bar offered a black invitation card. Then he told me to come to play golf.
Is it the same way here? Surely… It's the place where Ha Tae-heon's fans gather, so it doesn't seem like it's going to be an ordinary place.
"If you send it, I will be grateful. I've been interested in it ever since."
"Haha, that's good. I can't believe Yi-gyeol-ssi will become the same Haning (허닝이, it seems that Tae-heon's fans called themselves as Haning, "Ha" from Tae-heon's surname "하", the detail's here)!"
Haning? Before I even asked what it was, Kim Soo-hwan put his arms around my shoulders and exclaimed the rules of the cafe. This time, there were a lot of words I couldn't understand.
"Just because the Deputy Master said that he was going to take a pictorial next month, we decided to pay tribute together. Yi-gyeol-ssi can also participate."
"A tribute?"
What is it?
As I was confused, Kim Soo-hwan nodded his head with an understanding face.
"Yi-gyeol-ssi, is this your first time? When I was just starting out being a fanatic, there were a lot of things I didn't know."
What else is being a fanatic?
"The tribute is, um, all members prepare and give gifts to the Deputy Master. You can think of it something like that."
Oh. They gave him gifts too. Very interesting.
"You know, the Deputy Master is very kind, unlike what he looks like, right? He always said thank you. That's why it's so much better to prepare."
"What do you usually give as a gift?"
"Every time it's different, it's like a luxury item or a lunch box… They even send him a food truck during the photoshoot."
I don't know anything else, but I know if it's a luxury item. In other words, you have to give him something expensive.
'It's like sending a gift to someone in a business relationship. The price will be sincere.'
It was convenient to have someone next to me to tell me everything. For the first time since I became Han Yi-gyeol, I became curious about the other person's contact information.
"Kim Soo-hwan-ssi, can you give me your number when we leave the gate later?"
"That's what I'm saying! Of course, I'll let you know. Now we're going to be the same Haning!"
"...?"
Are you going to tell me anyway? I smiled contentedly. It wasn't bad if it was Kim Soo-hwan as the first friend of Han Yi-gyeol's life.
* * *
By the second day after entering the gate, the number of rooms processed was over 10.
In the meantime, I also got to know some other guild members.
I didn't really do anything, but Kim Soo-hwan dragged me everywhere he went, so I naturally greeted and talked to them.
When this happened, another problem arose. Whether he was dissatisfied with me getting close to the Roheon guild members, Ha Tae-heon kept staring at me with a cold look.
"Hey, Yi-gyeol-ssi."
As I lowered my gaze at the hesitant call, I was given the soup bowl he was holding.
"This is the soup I just made. Would you like some?"
"Ah, thank you."
This person's name is Baek Da-yeon (백다연). As a talented member of the long-distance team, he used to be around me and take care of things since I became a member.
When I received the soup bowl, Baek Da-yeon smiled with a slightly relieved expression. It was awkward for me too, but I smiled at him.
'Here again.'
The gaze I felt behind my back from the moment I received the soup bowl became even more intense when Baek Da-yeon and I smiled at each other. I looked back because I wanted to get my back pierced.
"..."
"..."
Even though he was caught staring at me, Ha Tae-heon didn't shyly avert his gaze. That's absurd. No matter how unreliable I may be, what is it that he hated me being so close to guild members?
I don't think he was that petty in the novel. I sighed, turned away from Ha Tae-heon, and ate the soup. It's my fate.
After a quick meal, Ha Tae-heon divided the guild members into team 1 and team 2 to handle the remaining rooms. Again, I was the first team led by Ha Tae-heon.
Ha Tae-heon, standing at the entrance of the 14th room, pressed the jewel and the door opened. Standing at the far end and following my teammates into the room, I noticed a jewel embedded in the door flashing red.
'What?'
Obviously, it was blue until Ha Tae-heon opened the door.
"Yi-gyeol-ssi, what are you doing?"
"…no. I'm coming."
At Kim Soo-hwan's call, I entered the room before the door closed.
'Why did it turn red all of a sudden?'
I'm afraid this… I should report it to Ha Tae-heon. There might be problems.
I looked around looking for Ha Tae-heon, but the guild members said in a confused voice.
"Why can't I see the monster?"
"What was the monster in this room?"
"It's a poison-tooth worm (독이빨 벌레요). It should be on the wall…"
The interior, which filled with white light more than any other room, was empty. The guild members, who suddenly had nothing to do, lowered their weapons and murmured.
"Then how do we get out?"
"The door won't open now, will it?"
"Oh, my God."
As expected, was that red jewel some kind of device?
I walked passing them and hurried to Ha Tae-heon, who was standing in the deepest part.
"Deputy Master."
As I approached, Ha Tae-heon raised an eyebrow. Then he opened his mouth in a hard voice.
"What?"
"..."
This guy. I want to keep ignoring him. I can't help but report.
I forcefully raised the corners of my mouth and said with a smile.
"I have something to tell you. The jewel in the door…"
Kkigigik.
I paused for a moment. What did I hear just now?
I looked around, but nothing had changed. When I interrupted my speech, Ha Tae-heon urged me.
"What about the jewels? I'll tell you in advance, but you can't take it."
"…I know. Why would I take such a thing?"
Jewels that blocked the room where monsters come out, it's very uncomfortable. The specifications were here.
"I'm not saying that I'm going to take the jewel, it's because the condition seems to have changed."
"Condition?"
"Yes. The colour of the jewel has changed. Red…"
Kugugung! Rattle!
I couldn't finish the conversation. As soon as an ominous sound was heard from the floor, the floor on which Ha Tae-heon was standing disappeared in an instant. Ha Tae-heon, who was looking at me, fell into a black hole that suddenly appeared.
"—Ha Tae-heon!"
"Kyaaa!"
"Wh, what!"
"Deputy Master!"
I hurriedly stretched out my arm, but I was unable to catch him with a spur of the moment.
Damn it! Without hesitation, I threw myself into the hole. The screams and shouts of the guild members resounded.
"Ha Tae-heon!"
With my back against the light pouring from above, I reached out as hard as I could to catch Ha Tae-heon, who was being eaten into the darkness.
"HOLD!"
Ha Tae-heon, with a frown on his forehead, barely caught me. Even in the midst of an emergency, I felt a sense of relief in his hand holding me.
'Ability…!'
Hwiiiing!
I tried to stop the falling body by pulling up the wind, but it didn't work like I wanted it to. It felt like something was pulling us down. I couldn't stop the fall with my own strength.
I clenched my teeth and raised my ability to the max. The bracelet trembled as an enormous amount of energy was used.
"Uugh, a little…! Bit!"
Even the wind that supported the body swayed unstable. Ha Tae-heon also tried to make a foothold using dust like me but failed repeatedly. My wind and Ha Tae-heon's black dust barely maintained their shape and enveloped us.
Kuung!
"Ugh!"
"Keuk!"
As soon as the ability succeeded, my body hit the floor. Had it been a little late, I would have died instantly or was seriously injured. A cold sweat broke out.
"Uh, are you all right?"
It was not easy to check Ha Tae-heon's condition because he was in the dark without a single light. I stuttered my hand on the floor, but somehow it was warm and soft.
"…move away."
"Pardon?"
The voice sounded pretty close, but nothing was visible. I frowned and brought my face closer to the direction the voice came from.
Ha Tae-heon, who had much better eyesight than the general public, said as if threatening in a much lower voice than before whether he could see what was ahead unlike me.
"Move."
"No, even if you say 'move', you have to be able to see…"
I touched the floor as carefully as possible. I felt a round curve. There is something between the legs that are spread apart. What the hell? When I moved my legs to lift up my body, the floor trembled.
"Haa…"
Ha Tae-heon took a deep breath and used his ability. The dust that flew from somewhere in the sky began to shine white. Then the dark eyes in front of my eyes brightened a little.
"..."
"..."
I realized then. My body was crouching with Ha Tae-heon's face, close enough to feel the sound of breathing. I thought it was a strange-looking floor, but it was, so that…
"…move away."
"Yep."
I pulled off my hands from Ha Tae-heon's chest, which I had rubbed to my heart's content because I thought it was the floor, and raised my upper body hurriedly. It was Ha Tae-heon's lower body when I saw what was in between the legs.
As soon as I got up and took a step backwards, Ha Tae-heon also scrambled to get up. Both of us received the shock of falling, so it seemed uncomfortable even for an SS-rank body.
"Great, so."
I coughed in the awkward air and opened my mouth first.
"Where shall we go?"
"I don't know."
Well. If I had known, I wouldn't have been hurt.
"The jewel stuck in the door has turned red. I think it has something to do with this situation."
We must have fallen deep enough, and even I looked up, I couldn't see the entrance. The only thing that could light up the surroundings was Ha Tae-heon's sparkling dust.
I stretched my arms out wide. Fortunately, I could feel the wall on both sides. Is it a hallway?
"Let's move on. If we were to stay here the whole time…"
"Why did you follow me?"
Ha Tae-heon interrupted me and asked.