#8

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Period 1

“Who could have predicted the Blue Wolves’ performance last season?”

A pleasant voice echoed through the speakers. Shin Ho-jae looked up toward the podium.

“Others call it a miracle, but we know it is the result of sweat and effort, not a miracle. The Blue Wolves are a strong team. And we are even stronger in the face of a crisis.”

In the luxurious banquet hall of the MJ Hotel, the greeting of Kwon Jung-hyun, who had been elected as the CEO of MJ Sports, was underway. After today’s inauguration ceremony, the Blue Wolves would bear a new name: the ‘MJ Blue Wolves.’

“Let’s defeat the HI Tigers this year and bring home the championship trophy.”

A thunderous round of applause erupted from the players and coaching staff gathered below the podium. Shin Ho-jae joined the applause a beat late.

The pose of lightly gripping the edge of the podium, the confident tone, the self-assured expression. Kwon Jung-hyun’s appearance on stage looked disgustingly perfect.

No one would ever imagine that this was a man who made sponsorship offers to players behind their backs and didn’t hesitate to put his hands on a man’s crotch.

As the applause died down, Kwon Jung-hyun, with a soft curl of his lips, brought his face closer to the microphone again.

“Although this is a conditional acquisition, as long as the Myeong-jeong Group is the main sponsor, I promise to provide the players and coaching staff with the best treatment in the industry.”

This time, an even louder roar of applause and cheers broke out. For the players who had been receiving poor support without even a decent dormitory, these were likely the words they had been waiting for most.

With that final comment, Kwon Jung-hyun stepped down from the podium and shook hands with the head coach and the coaching staff one by one. Standing right beside him, Coach Park Nam-woong’s eyes were already moist.

“Player Shin Ho-jae. I’m looking forward to your performance this season too, okay?”

“Ah… Reporter Kim.”

“I’m glad I didn’t go through with that comment request from last time. Right?”

A small, thin man reminiscent of a weasel abruptly reached out his hand toward Shin Ho-jae. It was Reporter Kim In-jung from Daily One, who had tried to get a comment from Ho-jae regarding the dissolution of the Blue Wolves a while ago.

Shin Ho-jae took the hand of the man, who was shorter than his own chest height, and shook it. Personally, he found the man a bit rude, but it was true that he was someone to be grateful for from the perspective of the club or the sport.

For unpopular sports like ice hockey, most media outlets do not assign a dedicated reporter. Yet, this man always followed them to the field and showed interest.

“I asked Captain Choi Yong-su earlier what he wanted from the new owner, and he said as long as they take care of the food and hockey equipment, he has nothing else to wish for. Good grief, the new owner is none other than the Myeong-jeong Group, and they’re that lacking in ambition? Don’t you think?”

A bitter smile escaped Ho-jae. Back when Daeyang Shipbuilding was the parent company, equipment support had been so poor during the final year that the players had to pay out of pocket to have protective gear shipped from overseas. Considering that time, Captain Choi Yong-su’s statement was likely sincere.

“That’s why Player Shin, as the top scorer of the previous season, should speak up clearly. If the comment is good, I’ll make it a lead story. Is there anything you want from the new owner, Player Shin Ho-jae?”

A small recorder with a microphone attached was suddenly thrust in front of his face.

Something he wanted? Well, he hoped that during the upcoming ‘private time,’ the man wouldn’t demand or do anything unreasonable.

“…I will do my best so that the formal acquisition can take place in one year.”

“Ehey. Player Shin, your comments should be as interesting as your face, but that’s always a bit disappointing. You should say something like, ‘Please provide a private jet for the team!’ Come on, cheese! I’ll take a photo!”

Kim In-jung took several photos of Shin Ho-jae with the camera hanging around his neck. Then, before Ho-jae could say anything, he noisily hurried off toward someone else, shouting, “Oh, Coach Yoo! You must be able to breathe a sigh of relief now!”

Shin Ho-jae watched the man disappear before turning his head. Players dressed in suits were busy taking photos against the backdrop of the luxury banquet hall or filling their plates with catering food.

The players’ expressions were very bright. Although a difficult condition—winning the league—was set for the formal acquisition, they were likely relieved for now by the luxurious inauguration ceremony and the sense of stability provided by the name Myeong-jeong Group.

“I can’t believe Myeong-jeong actually bought our team.”

Except for one person.

“Ho-jae, Ho-jae, is there something you haven’t updated us on?”

Yuk Du-min, with his pink hair slicked back, stuck close behind Shin Ho-jae. He was holding a plate piled high with Hanwoo steak in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other.

“Did our Ho-jae, Ho-jae perhaps lose his virginity…? Did he offer his backside to that bratty chaebol?”

“Thanks, Ho Jae-shin. Thanks to you, I finally get to eat king crab at a hotel.”

“…….”

Maintaining a policy of ‘no comment,’ Shin Ho-jae followed the others and put some freshly steamed king crab on his plate.

“But doesn’t he look way too decent? I thought he’d be some guy with a rotten face, like our coach from middle school.”

“Shit! Cheol, do you really have to blabber about that bastard in front of the sacred king crab? I lost my appetite for about 0.1 seconds.”

“I heard he only picks Alphas to eat, so I thought he’d be a guy with an inferiority complex toward Alphas, like that coach.”

“Cheol. Look at that face and wealth. Our owner was born without any need to have an inferiority complex toward Alphas.”

“Oho? Caught you. ‘Our’ owner?”

“Ah, then what else do you call our owner besides our owner?”

Listening to the two of them bicker, Shin Ho-jae returned to the table first. It was a round banquet table covered with a white tablecloth. He set down his plate, which he had barely put any food on, and as he pulled out his chair, he inadvertently looked toward where Kwon Jung-hyun was.

Director Kwon—no, the owner—was still moving around the tables, clinking champagne glasses with the coaching staff. Then, suddenly, his eyes met with Kwon Jung-hyun’s.

“…….”

As Ho-jae froze with his hand still on the chair, the other man naturally looked away first.

It would have been troublesome if he tried to act friendly for no reason, so fortunately, he didn’t seem to have any such intention.

Then again. Unless he was a fool, he wouldn’t act as if he favored a single player. It’s not like he’s advertising the fact that he’s sponsoring him.

Soon, the two who had piled their plates high with food returned to the table. Du-min and Min-chul began eating aggressively. They didn’t forget to sprinkle in praises in between.

“There’s a reason they call it Myeong-jeong. The food tastes like a conglomerate.”

“I’m going to get more king crab.”

“Me too.”

Having finished their first plates in an instant, Yuk Du-min and Ji Min-chul stood up with determined expressions. After waiting for them to move away from the seat, Shin Ho-jae quietly put down his fork.

He had no intention of telling Yuk Du-min and Ji Min-chul about the matter with Kwon Jung-hyun.

It felt awkward to have a secret from friends who knew every detail of each other’s family histories, but he didn’t want to give unnecessary worries to friends who had just breathed a sigh of relief now that the team had been acquired.

Eventually, Yuk Du-min returned with both hands full of king crab and widened his eyes upon seeing Shin Ho-jae’s plate.

“What? Ho-jae, Ho-jae, are you sick? Why are you leaving food?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Ho Jae-shin… did you perhaps eat before coming…?”

“Sigh, he’s such a fake genius. If he saw that the inauguration was at the MJ Hotel banquet hall, he should have fasted since the day before! Like me!”

“As expected of the Gourmet Doctor.”

“The Munching Doctor should strive a bit more.”

Shin Ho-jae simply shrugged and drank only plain water. It wasn’t that he had eaten; he just had no appetite.

Because today was the first day of the contract fulfillment he had promised Kwon Jung-hyun. There was no way food would go down when he didn’t know what would happen to him after the event ended.

Buzz. The phone Shin Ho-jae had placed face down on the table vibrated. Shin Ho-jae quickly tilted the screen toward himself to check the content.

010-xxxx-xxxx

MJ Hotel Room 1402

The concisely written text came from an unsaved eleven-digit number. After memorizing the room number, Shin Ho-jae immediately deleted the message.

“Who is it that you’re hiding your phone to look at?”

Startled, he looked up to find Ji Min-chul staring intently at him. As he froze in momentary panic, an answer came from Yuk Du-min sitting next to him.

“He just got a DM and checked it. What do you mean hiding? Don’t overreact, Cheol.”

“What DM?”

“Ah, I posted the inauguration on my story, and my Dumings are curious.”

‘Duming’ was the nickname for the subscribers of Yuk Du-min’s YouTube channel. Shin Ho-jae secretly swallowed a sigh and drank water, pretending everything was normal.

A hotel room.

Since no specific time was designated, it probably meant to come up as soon as the event ended.

Did he have to be in a room alone with that man again, like last time? A feeling of unpleasantness washed over him, but the fact that there was a time limit was a blessing in disguise.

2 hours. He just had to endure for 2 hours.

“Oh. They say the event ends after we take a group photo. We’re in Seoul for once, want to hang out more before leaving?”

It was after the order of events had completely finished that Ji Min-chul asked. Ho-jae lightly shook his head.

“I’ll pass.”

“Okay. I didn’t expect much from Ho Jae-shin anyway. Dumin-ssi?”

“Ah… Cheol. I’m in the same boat.”

“What?”

“Sorry, Cheol. The life of a superstar is busy. Well then, see you at the fitness test next week! Adios!”

Leaving those words behind, Yuk Du-min hurriedly packed his things and left the banquet hall. Watching his retreating figure, Min-chul muttered that he was suspicious too.

After sending Ji Min-chul off first, Shin Ho-jae headed for the emergency exit. Since the main elevators were already crowded with players and staff, he intended to use the stairs.

Climbing to the 14th floor wasn’t particularly difficult. The problem would be what happened next. Ho-jae let out a heavy sigh in front of Room 1402.

After taking a deep breath, he pressed the doorbell. Small footsteps were heard from inside, and soon the door swung open. Shin Ho-jae’s eyes widened slightly.

He had naturally expected CEO Kwon Jung-hyun to come out, but the person who emerged from the room was a short man with an unfamiliar face. The man greeted Ho-jae with a friendly smile.

“You are Shin Ho-jae, right? I am the person who will be assisting you with the pheromone extraction today.”

“……Pheromone extraction?”

9 – Puck Drop