Even Today, the Ranker Dreams of Retirement

“Take me to the 50th floor.”

Immediately after Chae Jiseok’s request, Habin gradually changed her expression.

Raised eyebrows, a surprised look, and an exaggerated voice as if it were unbelievable.

Finally, she blurted out:

“……Whaaaat?”

The fiftieth floor?

“How could I send Chae-ssi to such a scary place?”

“Hey, what kind of act are you putting on this time…….”

Ignoring Jiseok’s bewildered reaction, Habin stepped back with a disappointed expression.

“I’m just an innocent, powerless trainee……! It’s too much to make such an unreasonable request. You’re taking this joke too far, Chae-ssi!”

“…….”

“This is abuse of power, abuse!”

As she spoke, Habin glanced towards the window visible between the curtains.

‘Hmm.’

The items Chae Jiseok used were meant to block sound and communication.

Though the items would prevent sound from escaping, what if, just what if, someone was using a telescope or camera, or some other means to read lip movements, or using some other method?

‘……Kim Jaljal, use a constellation message to tell Chae-ssi. I don’t know about anything else, but let’s talk somewhere safe first.’

[……Understood.]

The fact that Habin is the Guardian of Deception would only be newsworthy to top rankers even if it were revealed.

After all, only the highest-ranking hunters received the quest to eliminate the Guardian of Deception.

The fact that she’s hiding her power wouldn’t be a big deal either, as there are plenty of power-hiders in this world (though none compare to Hyun Habin’s level……), and she was confident she could get away with it anyway.

However, being able to freely access the 50th floor and above of Kill Screen-

‘That’s even more of a wide-area aggro that would attract global attention than the previous facts.’

It felt a bit uncomfortable to discuss such crucial information here.

Though she had no idea how Chae Jiseok found out about it.

‘I guess Kim Jaljal’s slip-up last time was the root of the problem.’

During the previous visit to the Chae siblings’ house, Ahezar had blurted out, “Actually, Hyun Habin is fifty……!”

Habin glared at Ahezar.

‘Sigh, Kim Jaljal. I’ve never seen you keep your mouth shut properly. That’s five Mariana Trenches accumulated already.’

[How did it become five?!]

‘We have to calculate with interest. Anyway, did you deliver the message?’

[Of course!]

“…….”

Habin turned to look at Chae Jiseok. As if confirming he had received the message from Ahezar, he slowly nodded after a moment of silence.

“Right, I was too hasty. Let’s continue this conversation outside.”

As soon as she heard those words, Habin promptly stood up. She walked towards the door even faster than Chae Jiseok.

“Alright, then lead the way quickly. Let’s go, let’s go!”

“……Since when are you so eager to move?”

“Finally, escape from the training institute!”

Habin glanced at the seagull pattern on the training institute’s ceiling with a refreshed expression.

“I don’t want to stay here for even one more second. Goodbye, troublesome ant tears, goodbye, tasteless braised pollack!”

Chae Jiseok, who had been wearing a serious expression, couldn’t help but chuckle at her behavior.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but it seems you’ve had a tough time at the training institute.”

“Of course! No more to the cafeteria food that keeps serving the same side dishes over and over. No more secretly watching my phone in hiding! Tonight’s dinner will definitely be from a delivery restaurant.”

Hyun Habin boldly headed towards the door. Watching her back, Jiseok stood up from his seat. His expression seemed more relaxed than when he arrived, brightening up to his usual self.

“Hey, then should we order that chicken we had last time for dinner? Or Korean food? Chinese?”

Chae Jiseok called out as he followed her.

◆◇◆◇◆

They headed to the Solaris headquarters building. It was a famous place known for its beautiful glass buildings constructed on a spacious plot and the surrounding grass gardens.

In the sunlit garden, there were people gathered under the street trees engaged in discussions, and others enjoying snacks or lunch as if on a picnic.

Habin looked around at the scene reminiscent of a university campus.

“Come to think of it, you’ve been to our house, but this is your first time at Solaris, right?”

The largest building in the center had Solaris’ English logo emblazoned in gold. Before entering, Chae Jiseok handed Habin an ID card.

“Here, I made this temporarily in a hurry. It should give you access to most areas. Be careful not to lose it.”

As they swiped the ID card at the entrance, the door smoothly opened.

“Hello, Vice Guild Master-nim!”

“Are you heading out somewhere?”

“Secretary Lee was looking for you earlier!”

As soon as they entered the building, passing guild members threw brief greetings at Chae Jiseok.

The interior of the building had quite unique decor, with areas full of trees like a glass greenhouse, spaces furnished with toy-like furniture, and sections decorated in medieval style.

“……Some of the interiors were inspired by dungeons we’ve experienced, and some parts were designed just for creative inspiration. They’re quite popular as photo zones.”

Chae Jiseok finally led them to a room on the middle floor, in the middle of the building.

A large door on both sides.

“This is the Solaris Guild Master’s office. The place nuna used to use…….”

Just as Chae Jiseok was explaining and opening the door,

“Ah! Vice Guild Master-nim, you’re finally here? Please stamp these documents!”

As soon as the door opened, a pile of documents rushed towards Chae Jiseok.

◆◇◆◇◆

Swish-

Documents flying towards them.

Habin soon discovered that all those documents were fluttering about following the gestures of a man with deep purple hair.

Chae Jiseok, who caught the file of documents in one smooth motion as if used to it, pointed at the man.

“This is our Secretary Lee Junhwi. He also doubles as the head of Solaris’ Gangbuk branch, but he volunteered to be a secretary…….”

“Haha, why did I do that? Welcome. Since you’re here, choose a drink from coffee, Hot Seven, or recovery potion……. By the way, Vice Guild Master-nim, is this person a new recruit?”

Despite his neat suit, Lee Junhwi was wearing slippers with ‘DOBBY IS FREE’ written in large letters.

On his desk were coffee cups he hadn’t had time to clear away, a calendar with ‘RESIGN RESIGN. I want to resign’ written on it, and a subtle smile on his face that reeked of capitalism, devoid of any trace of a soul.

Habin tilted her head. What kind of work environment allows someone to openly protest about wanting to quit to their boss?

‘I can’t tell if this is a good work environment or a bad one.’

Chae Jiseok spoke up.

“No, this is the ‘Hyun Habin’.”

“……!”

As soon as he heard Habin’s name, the smile vanished from Lee Junhwi’s face. The documents floating around the room fluttered to the ground.

“Then, this is the talent you two were desperately trying to recruit……!”

Lee Junhwi glanced at Chae Jiseok, then quietly whispered to Habin.

“……Hyun Habin-nim, let me give you some advice as a senior in life. Never decide to join Solaris Guild out of fan admiration for Guild Master Chae Jise. I was captivated by Chae Jise-nim’s cause and have been working here since the guild’s founding…….”

Chae Jiseok frantically tried to stop him.

Hyun Habin was already adamant about not joining, and now she might run away before even considering it!

“What are you saying, Secretary-nim! You’re the one who took on the most work, even doubling up on roles, when we tried to stop you! We comply with all labor laws and give plenty of vacation days, but you voluntarily gave them up, saying ‘They should be used to save even one more person’……!”

“Well, that’s true, but.”

“Honestly, you’re just teasing us by singing about resigning every day!”

“Sometimes I’m serious.”

He looked at the pile of documents beside him with a sad expression. They were all related to Solaris’ welfare projects.

“……Sigh, I heard countless homes were destroyed again by monsters in Jongno-gu and Yeongdeungpo-gu. When can we allocate the budget and provide support? Here I am, unable to take care of my own welfare while working on regional welfare projects. What should I do?”

“If, if you have any more desired benefits, please discuss them at the next salary negotiation, and we’ll reflect them. We’ll increase staff soon too. Anyway, that’s not important right now.”

“I’d appreciate it if you could summarize what you just said in writing and give it to me, so I don’t forget!”

Lee Junhwi nodded quickly, as if he had achieved his goal. Regaining his subtle capitalist smile, Junhwi turned to Habin.

“So, Hyun Habin-nim. Will you have coffee, Hot Seven, or a recovery potion?”

“Is the recovery potion tasty?”

“It tastes awful.”

“Isn’t there anything that tastes good?”

As Habin frowned, Lee Junhwi replied with his ever-present subtle smile.

“Actually, if we raid the Guild Master’s fridge, we might find more options. Shall we steal some together?”

Chae Jiseok’s eyes widened.

“Nuna’s fridge is here? You didn’t mention that when we were pulling an all-nighter the other day! I was crashing from low blood sugar then.”

“I forgot because we were so busy. Haha, Vice Guild Master-nim, we’ve been awake for about 140 hours straight now. Hahaha.”

“Not sleeping for 140 hours, is that even possible?”

To Habin’s question, Lee Junhwi answered with a serious expression:

“……Are you curious? I wasn’t curious at all, but I was forced to find out.”

He opened his mouth again with his subtle smile.

“But, we discovered that with expensive fatigue recovery potions, it’s possible without physical penalties!”

Lee Junhwi hummed the first line of the famous metal song ‘Lacenka, Save Me’ as he tapped a few books on the bookshelf.

Suddenly, the huge bookshelf smoothly rotated, releasing a cool mist that looked like it could come from dry ice.

“Ta-da.”

Lee Junhwi pointed inside with a soulless exclamation.

Beyond the bookshelf were a freezer, refrigerator, and snack shelves. Shelves packed with cup noodles and snacks, a refrigerator stacked with carbonated drinks, fruit syrups, yogurt, and juices, and a freezer storing ice cream and ice.

It was truly a snack paradise.

“Take your pick.”

Chae Jiseok wore an incredulous expression.

“Wait, this was here? No wonder the space seemed a bit off. Maybe I should have used my skill.”

“To think you’d use your special skill ‘Penetrating Eyes’ to find snacks, your constellation will be weeping, Vice Guild Master-nim.”

Lee Junhwi handed an ice cream to Habin with a natural motion.

“Wow! Awesome. It’s Häagen-Dazs!”

This is the one I could only look at longingly when I worked at the convenience store because it was so expensive.

Habin sat on the sofa, unwrapping the ice cream with admiration. The perfect harmony of chocolate, peanuts, and vanilla melting gently!

In the briefly relaxed atmosphere, Habin finally spoke up.

“Right, speaking of constellations, what’s going on, Chae-ssi?”

[That’s right! I’ve been very curious about this too. Where has the star called ‘Nearest Light’ that was with you gone?!]

Ahezar, also curious, shouted so that only Chae Jiseok could hear.

They had clearly confirmed in the institute director’s office that the ‘Nearest Light’ that had been with Chae Jiseok was absent.

Jiseok sighed.

“First, since Secretary-nim knows about this too, I’ll explain it here. As you know, nuna and I share a contracted constellation. Right now, it’s with nuna.”

“Isn’t it usually with both of you?”

“That’s right. Originally, it can watch over up to two people simultaneously…… but focusing on one side is naturally more efficient. Just in case, I asked it to focus only on nuna. This was something all three of us—nuna, me, and the constellation—agreed on.”

Jiseok drew a small golden effect with his finger. Just because the constellation is temporarily elsewhere doesn’t mean the abilities disappear. It could return at any time.

“However, I asked it not to return until something truly significant happens to nuna.”

We don’t know what might happen on the 50th floor. They judged it better to have the constellation with Jise in Kill Screen rather than with Jiseok handling work on Earth.

“Then, nothing major has happened yet, right?”

Habin pointed out.

The ‘Nearest Light’ is still with Chae Jise.

This means that Jise isn’t dead or in grave danger.

“That’s why I was reassured until yesterday. No, I was trying to be reassured.”

Chae Jiseok wore a bitter smile. He added with difficulty:

“……Until I discovered the letter nuna left behind.”