Chapter 70
The noise around me is loud.
But what annoys me more is the man standing in front of Kang Hye-rim.
I casually glanced at his book.
‘Rank 5. He’s in the middle of the intermediate collectors, but still, he’s an intermediate. Is this it?’
The light flowing from the book was a faint silver.
And the cover of the book was very similar to the aura of the book.
This alone meant that he had reached his limit.
It was commendable that he didn’t have a big gap between the cover and the light of the book, considering how ordinary people would think.
But what irritated me was his behavior and traits.
Traits: [Soul of an Artist] [Red Shirt Revolutionary] [Casanova]
He was an intermediate collector, but he had three traits, which matched the number of the advanced collectors.
It was surprising that he was an intermediate with such traits, but I had to realize it when I saw the state of his traits.
‘Forget about the Soul of an Artist, but Casanova? How did he get such a trait?’
He had the same number of traits as Kang Hye-rim, but the contents of the traits were worlds apart.
More than anything, I doubted if Casanova was a proper trait at all.
And what I didn’t like more than that was the look he gave to Kang Hye-rim.
He took off his sunglasses and looked at her with a buttery gaze.
He was blatantly shooting it at Kang Hye-rim, and it made me feel nauseous as I watched from the side.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Ju Kyung-soo. I’m a collector known as Artist in the world.”
Ju Kyung-soo said that exaggeratedly, like an actor in a play.
They say that collectors who have their own stories start to show their personalities after they pass the intermediate level, but I didn’t expect him to act like this so confidently.
But unlike me, the reactions of the people around me were different.
Even if some men felt a subtle awkwardness, the women screamed at his actions.
“Kyaa! Artist! Look at me!”
“Oh my god, Artist came here! Please give me your autograph!”
It seemed like his every word and action touched their hearts.
Some even tried to approach him.
Of course, they were stopped by the guards, but when I looked closely, all the guards were women too.
“Hmph. His popularity is something else.”
Ju Kyung-soo closed his eyes and shook his head as if he was used to this.
Just by doing that, screams erupted from everywhere.
[…Hey. What is he?]
‘Do you know?’
Artist was a collector I had heard of before. 𝗻𝗼𝘷𝑒𝘭𝗯𝓲𝒏.𝓃𝑒𝒕
But I didn’t care much about him.
I didn’t know all the collectors anyway.
If I didn’t remember him, it meant he wasn’t that great, but being an intermediate collector still bothered me.
I wondered if there was anything I knew about him, so I quietly asked Baek Seoryeon next to me.
‘Seoryeon-ssi. Seoryeon-ssi.’
“…”
“Seoryeon-ssi?”
“Yes?! Oh, yes!”
She came to her senses belatedly after being absent-minded.
I felt a strange sense of incongruity at her appearance.
“Did you fall for him too, Seoryeon-ssi?”
“Yes, yes? No, no. It’s not that… It’s just that my eyes were fixed strangely. It’s amazing to see someone like a celebrity in real life. Oh, anyway, it’s definitely not love!”
She rambled on and on without any coherence and desperately explained to me.
I don’t know what she was explaining, but anyway, it was good.
“Do you know anything about that Ju Kyung-soo guy?”
“I don’t know much either. I just know that he’s one of the most active collectors in the entertainment industry. I heard he’s more popular than most advanced collectors.”
She added with a glance at the women around her.
“Mainly among women.”
“I see.”
I think I finally understood why Baek Seoryeon lost her mind for a moment when she saw Ju Kyung-soo, and why the people around him reacted like that.
[What is it? What does he have?]
‘It’s because of his trait.’
[His trait?]
‘He has a trait called Casanova.’
Casanova is a word that means a womanizer, but it’s actually a person’s name.
Giacomo Casanova.
A notorious scoundrel, con artist, and womanizer from Italy.
[What is that?]
But Baekryeon, who still lacked a lot of knowledge and information about the history and culture of Earth, didn’t understand what I meant.
‘Just think of it as someone who inherited the story of a man who was so lewd that he was famous in history. He can’t resist a pretty woman, and he wraps up his actions as pursuing freedom without being oppressed by anyone.’
There are quite a few romanticized images of Casanova.
Some people think of him as a romanticist who enjoyed freedom without being swept away by the times.
But if you look at his reality in detail, there is no one as filthy and lewd as him.
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He was a person who had no ability but only a mouth, and more than anything, he was a criminal.
‘He has such a trait, how can he be a decent person?’
[That’s true.]
Ju Kyung-soo was handsome.
He knew that and used his appearance actively, and the people who were fascinated by him were crazy about him.
But there was something strangely mad about his enthusiasm.
It was almost as if he was possessed by it.
I thought it was the power of his trait.
If I had to analyze his ability, it would be the power to charm the opposite sex.
That’s probably why Seoryeon was momentarily captivated by him.
She had more mental strength than others, so she didn’t fall for him like those fans over there.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, Miss Geomhu. That’s why I came here, hoping to meet you. But I never expected this. You are much more beautiful than I imagined. You look like a white lotus blooming on a calm lake.”
Ju Kyung-soo praised her appearance with admiration, repeatedly complimenting her.
He had no shame in saying such flattering words.
More than that, he was under the influence of his own trait.
‘Why did he suddenly show up here? Don’t tell me he’s after Hye-rim.’
[Don’t tell me he heard rumors about how pretty Hye-rim is and came looking for her?]
‘That’s the only explanation for this timing and his blatant approach.’
Come to think of it, there was a story that came to my mind late.
It was before the end of the world, but there was a very decadent collector who got into trouble for messing with a politician’s daughter.
It wasn’t widely covered by the media because of the politician’s influence, but I clearly remembered it.
It proved indirectly that even a great collector couldn’t mess with a politician in this modern world.
Wait a minute, does that mean he’s the one who did it?
And he’s after Hye-rim, who has a history of causing trouble with women?
I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I stepped in.
“Please stop. Can’t you see that she’s uncomfortable?”
“Hmm? Who are you?”
“I’m her manager, okay?”
I stood in front of Hye-rim, shielding her from him.
She seemed quite flustered too, and she leaned slightly on my back.
Ju Kyung-soo glanced at me with his languid eyes, scanning me from head to toe.
“Sorry, but can you not interfere? I’ve just met my soulmate. I don’t want anyone to disturb this precious time.”
“Soulmate or not, it doesn’t look very nice to approach someone without their consent, does it? If you really want to talk to her, why don’t you come to Baekhwa Management and do it properly?”
Ju Kyung-soo and I exchanged words in a low voice, so that no one around us could hear.
I didn’t know much about anything else, but I couldn’t let him get close to Hye-rim.
No matter how good she was at fighting and how useless she was at everything else, no matter how easily she loosened up and acted spoiled.
She was still my innocent person.
I couldn’t let that filthy guy touch her.
“Hah. Are you just a manager trying to block me? That’s ridiculous.”
He seemed annoyed that I stopped him from hitting on her.
He acted as if he had done nothing wrong, as if he was entitled to do whatever he wanted.
I frowned naturally at his attitude.
“Don’t you know me? I’m Ju Kyung-soo. Artist Ju Kyung-soo. A nationally famous collector.”
“It doesn’t matter who you are or how famous you are. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t approach our collector without permission. She doesn’t like it either.”
“Ha! There’s no woman in the world who dislikes me.”
“That’s, wow. You’re really shameless.”
“They just don’t know me yet. But in that case, I can kindly introduce myself to them.”
As he said that, Ju Kyung-soo’s gaze went over my shoulder to Hye-rim.
What was in his eyes was an undeniable sticky lust.
Hye-rim hid behind me even more, as if she hated his look.
She was usually confident, but this was her first time in this situation, so she seemed a bit flustered.
“Huh. It seems like she’s shy.”
“…Are you blind? How is that shyness? Anyone can see that she hates it.”
“That’s what you want to believe, I guess.”
This is crazy. He doesn’t listen to reason.
[In this case, just throw a brick at him!]
‘That would cause trouble for us.’
He might be unlucky, but we can’t be the first ones to attack.
‘Geez. For the first time in my life, I miss the post-apocalyptic days.’
At least in the apocalypse, where the law was completely gone, people who were rude or unlucky would lose their heads right away.
So people were careful not to mess with each other or be polite when they met.
But Ju Kyung-soo was different.
He thought he could get away with anything, so he was out of his mind.
“You’re a hopeless person. You’re trying to sexually harass our collector without her consent. I’m going to file a formal complaint to your clan about this.”
“…You’ve been noisy since earlier, acting like a manager. Just get lost. I have something to say to that lady over there.”
“Hey, I told you no.”
As I stubbornly blocked his way, Ju Kyung-soo’s smiling face turned cold in an instant.
He glared at me with a murderous look in his eyes.
I snorted inwardly at his expression.
Oh, so you think you can intimidate me because I’m a normal person? Is that it?
“Try it if you can.”
As I smiled sarcastically, he widened his eyes.
He didn’t expect his pressure to not work on me.
“Who are you?”
“That’s not important right now, is it? You’re not thinking of starting a fight in front of everyone, are you?”
“…”
He narrowed his eyes and glared at me, and I glared back at him.
Our eyes crossed in the air, and the atmosphere between us became tense.
In the end, Hye-rim had to step in.
“Stop it. This is causing trouble for everyone here.”
As Hye-rim finally came forward, Ju Kyung-soo relaxed his face and sent her a sleazy look.
“Haha. If our beautiful lady says so, I have to listen. But how about having a cup of tea with me later?”
“I’m sorry, but I’ll decline your offer. I don’t have time for that.”
“Haha. You don’t have to refuse, you know? You don’t have to be shy. Is there anything bothering you as a collector? I can give you some advice as a senior.”
“No, there isn’t.”
Hye-rim answered sharply, and I wanted to cheer her on from behind.
I was worried that she might fall for his appearance, but she was nicely rejecting his proposal.
‘He should give up by now.’
I thought for a moment.
But I regretted judging Ju Kyung-soo too lightly.
“Hoo. I really tried to be nice and polite, but it seems like it won’t work.”
He muttered that and then took out a white glove from his pocket and threw it at Hye-rim.
“Geomhu. I challenge you to a duel.”
That was clearly the way medieval nobles used to challenge someone who offended them to a duel.
I couldn’t help but open my eyes wide at Ju Kyung-soo’s absurd action.
Is he crazier than I thought?
