Chapter 97: After the Long Tunnel

No matter how comfortably Ye-seon told him to speak his mind, as long as he was the Head of the Management Team, Chaewon would inevitably feel an unspoken pressure standing before him.

“Yes. I’ll do that.”

At Su-ha’s reply, Ye-seon nodded.

“Good. Talk it over carefully, the two of you… it’s not urgent, so let me know once you’ve decided. And tell Chaewon that it’s probably time he starts field simulation training as well.”

“Understood.”

“Alright. You can go.”

“Yes.”

Without further delay, Su-ha rose from his seat and gave Ye-seon a brief bow.

As he turned to leave the office, his steps suddenly halted.

A memory surfaced, his firm declaration here last time, as if nothing would ever change.

Meeting Ye-seon’s questioning gaze head-on, Su-ha spoke.

“You asked me before. Whether I still wanted to become Team Leader Min I-hyeon’s guide.”

Ye-seon lifted one corner of his mouth.

“I did. That’s right.”

Then he looked at the silent Su-ha and asked again,

“So, Su-ha. How about now? Do you still want to be Team Leader Min’s guide?”

Truthfully, Ye-seon already knew the answer.

But some words, once declared grandly, transformed into even fiercer resolve.

So he crossed his legs and waited.

At last, Su-ha answered.

“I know better than anyone that I am still lacking.”

“…”

“But even so, I want to remain Lee Chaewon’s guide.”

Though Su-ha had long been certain of his heart, at this very moment, when faced with an offer that in the past he would have considered the greatest opportunity, he realized he had crossed a vast river he could never return from.

Even the name Min I-hyeon, once the lifelong goal that shaped him, no longer stirred that same burning resolve within him.

He knew better than anyone that the dream he once held toward I-hyeon had never been light.

It wasn’t that his former feelings had been trivial.

It was simply that his feelings for Chaewon had grown so intense, so absolute, that they had shattered even that desperate ambition in a single stroke.

“Thank you for your consideration all this time, and for the efforts you’ve made for me, Team Leader Woo. But you don’t need to concern yourself with that matter anymore.”

“…Alright. I won’t.”

“Then I’ll be going.”

Su-ha bowed once more to Ye-seon, who looked oddly relieved, and left the office.

Though the matter of the dungeon raid left his heart somewhat tangled, he also felt as though he had emerged from a long, dark tunnel.

Naturally, he wanted to see Chaewon.

Su-ha quickened his pace toward the training room.

****

“Team Leader Min?”

Chaewon, sweating as he worked the exercise machine under Se-jin’s guidance, froze at the unexpected name that slipped from Se-jin’s mouth.

He turned his head, and there stood I-hyeon, smiling brightly as he greeted,

“Se-jin, hello.”

I-hyeon then waved lightly at Chaewon, who was staring at him with wide, blinking eyes.

“Chaewon, hello. Have you been well?”

“Huh? Ah! Team Leader, hello!”

Snapping back to his senses, Chaewon hurried off the machine and bowed stiffly.

I-hyeon laughed softly at the overly rigid greeting.

“Why so formal between us? That’s hurtful.”

“Between us?”

Se-jin echoed the words with amusement.

I-hyeon winked playfully at him.

“Guess you didn’t know, Se-jin. Chaewon and I are pretty close.”

“Our Chaewon? I thought he was only specially close with me. Looks like I’ve got more than one rival already.”

“Sorry, but I lined up first.”

Caught between them, Chaewon’s face flushed red as he muttered weakly,

“Please stop teasing me…”

“I’m not teasing. I mean it, Chaewon.”

“Yeees…”

Though I-hyeon immediately protested, Chaewon’s expression made it clear he didn’t quite believe him.

I-hyeon only found that more amusing, smiling endlessly, until Se-jin spoke again.

“Anyway, what brings you here, Team Leader Min?”

Chaewon once again marveled inwardly at Se-jin’s easy familiarity, even using casual speech with I-hyeon.

Taking a small step back, he assumed I-hyeon had come to speak with Se-jin.

But I-hyeon’s gaze remained fixed on Chaewon.

“I came because I had something to tell Chaewon. When I asked where he was, they said he’d be here.”

“Me?”

Chaewon’s eyes widened again.

“Yes. You.”

I-hyeon enunciated playfully.

“Why Chaewon?”

This time Se-jin’s tone shifted, subtly protective.

He knew better than most the feelings Su-ha held toward I-hyeon.

For a fleeting moment, he worried Chaewon might get hurt without fault, caught between their long history.

Chaewon seemed the type to swallow pain quietly rather than lash out.

Se-jin didn’t want that for him.

Whatever remained unresolved between I-hyeon and Su-ha was their issue, not Chaewon’s.

I-hyeon sensed the change in Se-jin’s demeanor but paid it no mind, answering calmly while still looking at Chaewon.

“Why else? I came to set up a dinner appointment with him.”

“Dinner?”

“Dinner?”

Se-jin and Chaewon spoke at the same time.

I-hyeon nodded easily.

“You didn’t forget, did you? Last time, you said you’d make time to have dinner with me.”

“Ah, that…”

Chaewon stammered, visibly flustered.

He quickly tried to recall that holiday phone call.

“We’ve both been busy and never set a date.”

As far as Chaewon remembered, Su-ha had been beside him during that call, and he had vaguely avoided giving a firm answer.

Yet I-hyeon spoke as if it had been a clear promise.

Chaewon’s gaze flicked instinctively toward the training room entrance.

For a split second, he felt tense at the thought of Su-ha arriving.

“Are you free tonight or tomorrow evening?”

Despite Chaewon’s hesitation, I-hyeon pressed forward without pause.

A cold sweat seemed to run down Chaewon’s back, and he rubbed his palms against his thighs.

If he thought of Su-ha, it felt wrong to casually agree to a one-on-one dinner.

But rejecting I-hyeon outright, after all the help he had given, wasn’t easy either.

If they had been alone, perhaps he could have found a way to decline gently.

But Se-jin stood right there, and the entire training room was discreetly paying attention to the sudden appearance of the formidable Min I-hyeon.

He didn’t want to embarrass him.

After a brief but fierce internal struggle, Chaewon spoke cautiously.

“Um… would it be alright if I contact you later to set a specific time?”

“Ah, sure. I did show up rather suddenly.”

Fortunately, I-hyeon showed no sign of displeasure.

As Chaewon quietly exhaled in relief, I-hyeon leaned slightly closer and murmured,

“I was just eager to have dinner with you.”

Se-jin reacted immediately.

“What’s this, Team Leader Min? Are you flirting with Chaewon in front of me?”

“Flirting? I’m just expressing that I’d like to be closer.”

“Not in front of me. And you do realize you’re interrupting my training session, right?”

“Ah… I was too focused on myself and didn’t notice. Sorry, Se-jin.”

Though Se-jin spoke half in jest, I-hyeon apologized sincerely.

Even that small gesture made it clear why he was so respected throughout the Center.

I-hyeon turned back to Chaewon.

“Then check your schedule after training and call me. You have my number, right?”

“Yes. …I’ll contact you.”

“I’ll be waiting. Train safely. Se-jin, see you next time.”

With that, I-hyeon stepped back gracefully, greeting them both.

He waved once more before exiting the training room.

The moment he disappeared, quiet exhalations sounded from all around.

Even those who hadn’t exchanged a glance with him had been tense simply by his presence.

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