YS 71

Jongno during rush hour was as crowded as ever.

Having successfully completed the launch ceremony for the Department of Grievance Resolution, the members of Team 1 decided to have their first celebratory dinner to mark the occasion. The venue was a meat restaurant located in Jongno 1-ga, a place they had visited once before. It was the same restaurant where they had all gathered for an after-party after Jae-gyeom finished the Face-to-Face Rite when he first joined the Department of Spirit Suppression.

“Welcome!”

Hearing the employee’s booming greeting, Jae-gyeom followed the team members inside. The restaurant was packed with office workers who had just clocked out. With meat sizzling on the grills, thick clouds of smoke, and the boisterous sound of conversations fueled by alcohol, the atmosphere inside was incredibly lively.

Since there were eight people in total, they had to push two tables together to sit.

Once the seats were arranged, Yoon Tae-hee was the first to take the innermost seat. Just as Jae-gyeom followed behind, intending to sit next to Yoon Tae-hee, Im Hyo-mun subtly grabbed Jae-gyeom’s wrist and pulled him away.

“Chil-chil, come over here.”

The place Im Hyo-mun pulled Jae-gyeom to sit was opposite Yoon Tae-hee, flanked by Im Hyo-mun and Kang Yi-bin. Having been separated from Yoon Tae-hee in the confusion, Jae-gyeom looked at Im Hyo-mun with a bewildered expression.

When their eyes met, Im Hyo-mun gave him a quick wink.

……What was that?

Jae-gyeom didn’t know the reason, but since it felt awkward to ask outright, he decided to just go along with it for now. Now sitting next to Im Hyo-mun, Jae-gyeom unconsciously checked Yoon Tae-hee’s reaction. Without any significant change in expression, Yoon Tae-hee simply quirked one eyebrow before letting it drop back into place, saying nothing.

Right then, Kang Yi-bin raised his hand high and shouted in a booming voice.

“CEO-nim! Give us eight servings of fresh pork belly for starters, and three bottles each of soju and beer!”

At the bold order—which was just as spirited as it had always been—Pyo Ji-ho exclaimed in horror.

“Three bottles of soju right from the start? Who’s going to drink all that!”

“Why? There are eight of us, why can’t we?”

“Young-woo and Jae-gyeom are high schoolers, so have some conscience and subtract two people.”

“Ah, right! I need to order Fanta for the kids. Young-woo, Jae-gyeom, Fanta is okay, right?”

Jae-gyeom nodded. On paper, he was twenty and no longer a minor, but the team members—excluding Im Hyo-mun—were still unaware of that fact. He felt that correcting them in this situation would only lead to unnecessary questioning, so he decided to let it slide for today. Fortunately, Im Hyo-mun didn’t seem to mind.

Before long, the ordered menu arrived. The excited team members competed to place the meat on the grill and poured alcohol and drinks generously into their glasses. After confirming the glasses were filled, Kang Yi-bin clapped his hands twice.

“Alright, alright, focus, focus! The Chief is going to say a few words!”

Yoon Tae-hee, who had been quietly sipping his beer, looked puzzled. He pointed to his own chest with his index finger and asked, “Me?” This caused the team members to burst into laughter.

“Chief, this isn’t the first or second time Yi-bin has done this.”

“That’s right. You should have prepared a speech at home.”

Yoon Tae-hee, who had been looking down and stroking his eyebrow with a troubled smile, eventually let out a small sigh and stood up. In response, the excited team members cheered and applauded. As always, Yoon Tae-hee’s strength lay in the fact that he didn’t shrink away more than necessary, even in sudden situations like this.

Loosening his tie as he stood, Yoon Tae-hee began with a gentle smile.

“Everyone worked hard at the launch ceremony today. And I know you’ve all had a difficult time because of me until now, but despite that, I’m truly grateful that you’ve all willingly and readily gathered here together. Let’s help each [visit our site]style="position:relative;display:inline;">unauthorized copystyle="position:absolute;left:-9999px;font-size:0;">[Read on Read BL Novels]other out when things get difficult or hard, and let’s get along well and have fun.”

As Yoon Tae-hee made eye contact with each team member, his expression turned slightly serious.

“And, it’s likely that people around us will harass us quite a bit for the time being…”

After trailing off for a moment, Yoon Tae-hee quirked one eyebrow mischievously and spoke.

“If anyone bothers you, tell me.”

At those words, which were playful yet warm, the team members let out a collective “Wow” of admiration.

“Then, for our success.”

With a bright smile, Yoon Tae-hee held his glass aloft for the toast.

“Cheers!”

The team members clinked their glasses as if they had been waiting for the signal. This time, Jae-gyeom didn’t miss his timing and reached out to join the toast. The clear sound of the glass clinking was quite pleasant. [stolen Read on Read BL Novelscontent]In the past, he had felt [Read on Read BL Novels]only unfamiliarity and discomfort in such atmospheres because he kept a distance from his teammates, but now, for some reason, he felt as if he were floating. A sense of belonging. It was a tight, warm sensation, as if his heart were being embraced.

“Nice to meet you all!”

“Great job on the launch ceremony!”

“Hyo-mun, Young-woo, welcome. I look forward to working with you.”

And so, the dinner party began in earnest amidst the boisterous atmosphere.

Thanks to his naturally sociable personality, Im Hyo-mun blended into the team so naturally that it was hard to believe he had just joined. On the other hand, Jo Young-woo, who was shy and timid, sat quietly with his head down, eating meat. Occasionally, when the team members threw a comment his way, he would open his mouth haltingly, his cheeks flushing red. The team members found Jo Young-woo’s reaction cute and were having fun asking him various questions.

“I heard you went to the same high school as Jae-gyeom last year? What was it like?”

“So you’re nineteen now, right?”

“Do you have any plans for college?”

Jae-gyeom took advantage of the focus being on Jo Young-woo to eat meat aggressively. Occasionally, his eyes met Yoon Tae-hee’s, but he immediately Read on Read BL Novelsunauthorized copylooked away, fearing he might lose control of his facial expression. As Jae-gyeom continued to avoid his gaze, the mischievous Yoon Tae-hee occasionally nudged Jae-gyeom’s foot with the toe of his shoe.

Then, at some point, a topic caught the ear of Jae-gyeom, who had been absorbed in his meal.

“Oh, right, Senior Pyo! I heard you had your formal family meeting recently. How did it go?”

A formal family meeting? Jae-gyeom unconsciously pricked up his ears and looked at Pyo Ji-ho. Pyo Ji-ho had been discussing marriage with a partner he had dated for a long time. With everyone’s attention focused on him, Pyo Ji-ho spoke bashfully.

“Huh? Ah, yeah. It went well. I think the invitations will be out within the year.”

It was good news. The team members responded in unison with exclamations of surprise.

“No way! That’s amazing!”

“Congratulations, Senior!”

As the team members rejoiced as if it were their own news, Pyo Ji-ho scratched the bridge of his nose awkwardly. Thus, the conversation naturally shifted toward dating and marriage.

“Alright, let’s see, [unauthorized [stolen content]copy]so Senior Pyo is taken… what about Assistant Manager Kang? Any good news?”

At Go Jun-hyung’s words, Kang Yi-bin shook his head and downed a shot of soju in one gulp.

“Nothing. Nothing. There’s no one for me to meet. Actually, I had a blind date last month, but it was a total disaster. They asked for a second date, but I just couldn’t do it, so I turned them down. Why are there no decent people these days!”

It was then. Im Hyo-mun, who had been munching on meat, widened his eyes and let out a surprised voice, “Eh? A blind date?” At Im Hyo-mun’s strange reaction, the team members all turned their gaze toward him.

“What’s wrong?”

With the attention focused on him, Im Hyo-mun looked flustered, glancing back and forth between Jae-gyeom and Kang Yi-bin. Why is he acting like that? Just as Jae-gyeom wore a bewildered expression, Im Hyo-mun touched his earlobe and checked Jae-gyeom’s reaction.

“You two… weren’t you dating?”

In that instant, a silence like a bucket of cold water fell over the table.

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

Kang Yi-bin, who had been holding his glass, belatedly dropped his jaw and screamed.

“Whaaaaaat?”

Pyo Ji-ho almost spat out the drink he was sipping, and Go Jun-hyung, who had just stuffed a large wrap into his mouth, froze completely. It was truly an unexpected blunder.

“Hyo-mun, what on earth are you talking about!”

“Are you drunk?”

“Yi-bin and Jae-gyeom are dating?”

Amidst the violent reactions, Yoon Tae-hee remained frozen with his glass in hand. Only then did Im Hyo-mun realize he had been mistaken, his face turning bright red. Jae-gyeom was so speechless from unauthorized copystyle="position:absolute;left:-9999px;font-size:0;">[visit our site]the absurdity that he couldn’t find words. Was that why he had told them to switch seats? It seemed he had done it thinking he was being considerate.

Then, Kang Yi-bin asked in disbelief.

“What on earth did you see that made you think that?”

“Ah, well… I mean… can I… can I say this…?”

As Im Hyo-mun fidgeted and checked Jae-gyeom’s expression, Jae-gyeom sent desperate signals with his eyes, telling him not to say it. He had a feeling that things were about to get awkward.

“Tell us. Why did you think that?”

At that moment, Yoon Tae-hee intervened with a look of genuine interest.