The "Ginseng Soul-Soup" joint was tucked away in a quiet corner of the Gangnam district.
It was known as a place where players usually went to soothe their frayed nerves and replenish their mana exhaustion after a long day in the Abyssal Tower.
Park Woonhee sat in a small wooden booth, nursing a bowl of steaming broth.
Her phone was propped up against a napkin holder.
The screen still glowing with the analytics of her last stream.
She looked exhausted.
Her hair was slightly messy, but there was a faint, triumphant smile on her lips.
Suddenly, the bell above the door chimed.
Two people entered
A man in a sharp, tailored suit that screamed corporate authority and a woman with her hair pulled back into a tight, professional bun.
They scanned the room with practiced precision before their eyes locked onto Woonhee.
They walked toward her booth.
"Excuse me."
"Are you the streamer known as Pink_hee?
Or should we address you as Park Woonhee-ssi?"
Woonhee blinked.
She tilted her head, giving them a cutesy, slightly confused look.
"Eh? Pink_hee? Who's that? Am I being recognized?
Oh my, is this because of my tutorial clear?"
She let out a small, embarrassed giggle, clasping her hands together.
"Why are you asking me such things?"
The woman didn't smile.
She pulled out a sleek, holographic tablet and tapped the screen.
A digital ID for the 「Iron Aegis Guild」 flickered into existence.
"We are officials from the External Recruitment Department of Iron Aegis."
"We've been trying to locate the player 'Singularity.'
Since there's not much info on him, we've been unable to find his physical residence or real-name registration."
The man leaned in slightly.
"However, you had a collab stream with him.
And unlike him, your information... was quite easy to retrieve."
The cutesy mask on Woonhee's face didn't slip, but her eyes went cold.
"So..."
Woonhee interrupted, her voice losing its high-pitched lilt.
"...You decided to look into my private information and chase after me?"
The man shrugged, as if it were a minor inconvenience.
"We are simply doing our due diligence.
A player of Singularity's caliber is a national asset.
We believe Iron Aegis can provide him with the resources he deserves."
"How did you even know where I was?"
Woonhee asked.
"I didn't check in here.
This place is supposed to be a neutral zone for players."
"Iron Aegis has eyes everywhere, Woonhee-ssi."
"Now, if you would just provide us with a contact method for Singularity, we can make this worth your while.
A finder's fee, perhaps?
Or a transfer to our guild with a much higher salary than what White Stars is giving you?"
'Greedy snakes.'
She thought, her teeth grinding together.
'Kang Min literally just debuted.
He hasn't even been on Floor 2...and these vultures are already circling.
They don't care about his talent...rather they want the fame.
Bastards probably want to stick the Iron Aegis logo on his mask so they can drive up their stock prices.'
She thought about Kang Min.
'If there is one thing even I know about Kang Min.'
She realized.
'...is that he hates people like this.
He hates the ones who suck the life out of others for their own gain.
Those who treat people like items in a shop.'
She, of course would know this better than anyone.
The more she looked at the two officials, the more she saw the faces of the loan sharks who used to haunt her apartment.
They had the same hunger.
Woonhee set her spoon down with a sharp clink.
The "cutesy" Pink_hee was gone.
In her place sat a woman who had survived the gutters of the player community.
"You people really are something else."
Woonhee said.
"Do you even realize what you've done today?
You've broken at least five major protocols of the International Walker's Covenant."
The man's expression shifted from boredom to slight amusement.
"Oh? Enlighten us."
"One."
Woonhee said, ticking it off on her finger.
"Unauthorized access to a player's private geo-location.
Two...Stalking a registered player outside of a designated Abyssal Tower zone.
Three...attempted corporate espionage by interfering with a player signed under another guild's contract.
Four...using the name of a High-Tier Guild to intimidate a rookie."
She leaned forward.
"And five...
...you're being really, really annoying."
The woman official scoffed.
"Woonhee-ssi, let's be realistic.
You're a low-tier player.
You're lucky we're even speaking to you.
Singularity doesn't belong with a bottom-feeder like you.
He belongs with a pack like Iron Aegis."
"A pack?"
Woonhee laughed, a cold, sharp sound.
"You're not a pack.
More like disgusting hyenas...is what I would say.
Even if I did know Singularity personally...
...there is no way in hell he would ever sign with people like you.
He has a nose for rot, and let me tell you, you two smell like a garbage heap."
She thought about the incident with the loan sharks.
She had been selfish then, too.
She had tried to use the situation, but Kang Min had seen right through her.
He had let her live, but he had also taught her the value of a clean slate.
'There is no way I would ever sell him out.'
'Not after he made my life better and a reason to live...'
'He's finally settling down as a streamer, and he's too good at it.
Telling him about these vultures will only add to his worry.
Is it okay to let him know and him having to deal with the politics of snakes while he's trying to climb?'
Woonhee stood up, her chair scraping loudly against the floor.
The other players in the restaurant were now staring.
"We're done here!"
Woonhee said firmly.
"If Iron Aegis ever follows me again, or if I see so much as a shadow of your scouts near my apartment or any other place I'm at, I won't just report it to my guild."
She leaned in close to the man, her smile returning.
"I'll report it directly to the Walkers Organization as a case of 'Predatory Harassment.'
And I wonder... how do you think White Stars will react if they learn that another guild is attempting to 'scout' a player who is already signed under their name?"
Woonhee's smile widened.
Also... if you touch him, I will make sure every news outlet on Bnet hears that Iron Aegis is trying to 'steal' a signed athlete.
I'll frame it as a breach of national player ethics.
I'll make it so messy that your Guild Master will have to go on a public apology tour just to keep your stock from tanking."
The woman official looked taken aback.
"You... you wouldn't dare."
"Try me!"
"I'm a streamer...and one thing we do best to spin a story.
I'll have fifteen thousand people watching a True Crime documentary about Iron Aegis's stalking habits before you even get back to your car."
She grabbed her coat and her phone, leaving the two officials standing in the booth, stunned by the sheer audacity of the girl they had labeled a bottom-feeder.
Woonhee walked out of the soup joint, the cool night air hitting her face.
Her heart was hammering against her ribs, but she felt an incredible rush of adrenaline.
'That felt good.'
"I won't tell him about this yet."
She decided.