Chapter 1497 Connected (2)

Gong Hyeok-Jun wasn’t the only one stunned by this latest development. Every seated Martial Assembly member staggered to their feet, as well.

If this had been the Assembly and not a cafe, they would have stood up at attention much, much more swiftly, but the presence of ordinary people meant they weren’t sure of what to do in this situation.

Kang Jin-Ho glanced at them in silence, his eyes signaling them to sit down. That prompted the martial artists to park their butts quickly again. Gong Hyeok-Jun, too, did the same and clamped his mouth shut.

“Hmm~? It’s not bad inside,” said Choi Yeon-Ha while scanning the interior.

She already knew the overall concept of the cafe’s interior from the place she filmed the ad for, but whether each cafe had faithfully recreated said concept or not was a separate matter.

“I guess it’s passable.”

Judging from this example, though, it seemed other stores had done a fairly good job.

Miss Lee Hyeon-Ju was in charge, after all. I’m sure she has done a meticulous job.

Choi Yeon-Ha believed in Lee Hyeon-Ju, although that belief had more to do with the latter’s fastidiousness, not her humanity, so to speak. Because she seemed like the type who would perfectly finish any task assigned to her, even if that meant she’d have to stay up the whole night.

Choi Yeon-Ha scanned the cafe, before her gazes lingered near the tables near the windows. She then whispered something to Kang Jin-Ho. He looked a bit troubled just then, but her continued urging eventually forced him to head toward one of the tables, a lengthy groan leaving his lips.

What the hell? Why are you coming over here, sir?!

Gong Hyeok-Jun inwardly freaked out when Kang Jin-Ho approached his table.

N-no, please, God! No!

Of course, it wasn’t as if he detested Kang Jin-Ho’s guts or anything like that.

Almost no one in the Martial Assembly hated him. Even those people, whose personalities just didn’t gel all that well with him, unquestioningly followed him as their Assembly Master.

That was all thanks to everything Kang Jin-Ho had demonstrated up to now.

However, that and facing Kang Jin-Ho in a random cafe were two different issues. It was the same sort of thing as loyal peasants not wanting to come face to face with their king cosplaying as an undercover royal inspector!

Kang Jin-Ho finally reached Gong Hyeok-Jun’s table.

“Sorry about this, but I have a favor to ask you.”

“S-sir? Y-yes, of course. Ask me anything, Assem... Uh, mm... eh?”

An awkward smile formed on Kang Jin-Ho’s face. “Do you mind yielding that table to us?”

“O-oh! You can have it, sir!”

Gong Hyeok-Jun had no complaints whatsoever. As a matter of fact, he wouldn’t have minded running at full speed to the Assembly HQ right now if Kang Jin-Ho told him to go and fetch his phone he had forgotten in his office. Even though the round trip was around two hundred kilometers in total!

So, he had no reason to refuse a simple request like vacating a table. He hurriedly got up and pointed to his chair.

“H-here, sir! Please sit!”

He then turned toward his still-sitting little sister.

“What are you doing! Get up already, you fool!”

“E-eh...?”

She also stood up, although she was still clearly stuck in a daze. In any other situation, she would have begun her barrage of complaints with, “Why the hell should we move?!” by now, but not this time. The look on her face said she was completely entranced by something.

In fact, her eyes were completely glued to Kang Jin-Ho’s face.

When Kang Jin-Ho looked a little uncomfortable with all the attention, Gong Hyeok-Jun hurriedly yelled out in alarm at his sister.

“Oiii, you! Stop staring, will you?! Or you’re gonna burn a hole through his face!”

“...”

“Get out of the way! Hurry up!”

“G-got it.”

When Gong Hyeok-Jun and his little sister moved to another table along with their drinks, the slightly sheepish-looking Kang Jin-Ho and Choi Yeon-Ha took up their original spots.

Kang Jin-Ho groaned. “This doesn’t feel right...”

“It can’t be helped, though. We didn’t come here to have fun, after all,” said Choi Yeon-Ha.

She, too, wasn’t so morally bankrupt that she’d use her position to force other people to give up their seats. But she had to do that this time because she, along with Kang Jin-Ho, hadn’t come here for a simple inspection.

This cafe was a branch located in Seoul’s Gangnam. Simply put, not only did this place see the highest foot traffic, but it was also the most visible of all the branches. Knowing this, her plan was to spread the word around by being seen in this cafe. Along with Kang Jin-Ho, of course.

People snapping photos on their phones and posting them on various social media sites should have as much impact as a TV commercial, after all.

A subtle grin floated up on her face while taking another look at Kang Jin-Ho, currently looking rather presentable.

This is so much better than nothing, isn’t it?

He wasn’t as intensely dolled up as during the ad shoot, but even these normal-ish clothes were still good enough to make him glow brightly.

How wonderful would it be if he could dress like this every day!

Then again, doing so might attract all sorts of unsavory insects, so maybe not!

It wasn’t as if Kang Jin-Ho’s shabby appearance had kept the womenfolk away, of course. He didn’t have to deal with various unwanted advances simply because he had no point of contact with women so far.

Kang Jin-Ho’s life consisted entirely of commuting between his home, MK, and to the Martial Assembly. Since he didn’t have hobbies or businesses to take care of outside, like most people did, he never had much of a reason to interact with other women. Which also meant no one had approached him, either.

However, if that notion was flipped around, the more Kang Jin-Ho appeared in public, the higher the number of women trying their luck with him would get!

I mean, look! Look!

One of the people that yielded the table was a woman. And she couldn’t even take her eyes off Kang Jin-Ho.

Choi Yeon-Ha felt this subtle joy and also a hint of annoyance at that woman’s gaze, only to realize her cheeks had reddened up. She hurriedly turned her head to look outside the window in an attempt to cool her head.

Geez! I’m just as incorrigible, aren’t I!

By now, she should have gotten over such reactions from strangers, but to think she’d still get irritated like this! Then again, when she thought about it, her reactions didn’t seem all that out of place.

I mean... He is my first boyfriend, after all!

How could she get over something when this was her first experience? The best she could do was pretend to be cool in front of other people. Even someone as famous as Choi Yeon-Ha had lots of romance-related worries to get through, too!

Kang Jin-Ho glanced at the counter. “We should order something to drink.”

“Ah! Let me do it.”

Unexpectedly, Choi Yeon-Ha volunteered to take care of ordering stuff today. Of course, it wasn’t as if she had suddenly turned over a new leaf. No, it was because they were here to “work”, not to have a day off!

Choi Yeon-Ha smartly got up and headed to the counter.

The salesperson behind the counter, who just so happened to be the franchisee, nervously asked, “G-good day, what would you like to order?”

“Mm... What’s good in this store?”

While asking that, Choi Yeon-Ha’s sharp perception picked up on all the gazes landing on her back. Quite a lot of ordinary people, not just the Assembly members, were in the cafe right now. Despite their attempts to whisper to each other, their voices still registered in her hearing.

“Wow, it really is Choi Yeon-Ha.”

“I didn’t expect this at all! It’s my first time seeing the real deal!”

“Geez! Do you see how small and cute her face is? It’s like watching an actual doll walking around.”

Choi Yeon-Ha had to work extra hard to suppress the twitching corners of her lips from curling up into a triumphant smirk. What was that about getting used to compliments the more one heard them?

That’s dogsh*t nonsense, I tell you!

Any celebrity who dared to say that deserved to get their mouth confiscated. As far as Choi Yeon-Ha was concerned, compliments about her looks and her figure would never, ever make her feel fed up. Of course, she pretended to be awkward and grateful whenever people complimented her looks.

Regardless of what others said, she would never deny something that made her happy.

Hah! Take a good look, okay? That man is my...

“That’s weird. She didn’t look all that pretty while sitting next to that dude, though?”

That b*tch?! Choi Yeon-Ha almost reflexively spun around on her heels. That’s not my fault, okay! It’s him who’s the extra weird one!

All things in this world were relative; no matter how brilliant a gemstone was, it’d look comparatively dull if a bright LED bulb was emitting bright light right next to it. Using that logic, even someone like Choi Yeon-Ha would get demoted to an “average” good-looking person when standing next to a man who had figurative LED lights installed all over his face.

The franchisee, oblivious to Choi Yeon-Ha’s internal monologue, continued his sales pitch. “We’re confident of all the refreshments on offer, ma’am. But our sto... I mean our cafe uses some of the finest coffee beans available anywhere, so I recommend something from our coffee menu.”

“Really? Then... Yes, give me Americano. Make it warm, please.”

“Just one cup, ma’am?”

“No, please add one Iced Americano, too.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The franchisee quickly processed the payment, then cautiously sneaked a glance toward a certain table by the window.

Rumble, guooooh...!

Hiiiiieeek!

Why! Why did Kang Jin-Ho have to come to this cafe and stare intensely like that?!

The franchisee had practiced brewing coffee countless times already. All the coffee he had brewed as practice could even fill a large water tank, and then some. That meant he had used up quite a lot of beans, too.

All in all, he might not be on the same level as the top-tier baristas, but could still proudly say his place now offered the highest-quality coffee among all the countless cafes in the area.

Wasn’t it obvious that the combination of quality coffee beans and great skills would produce excellent coffee?

Unfortunately for the franchisee, though, that man sitting over there was not the type to hand out passing grades for mere “excellent” coffee.

When it came to food, Kang Jin-Ho had no problem hoovering up the Assembly cafeteria food, which was infamous for being as bland and unappetizing as army rations. Such was its infamy that the Assembly’s executives always, always, had their meals elsewhere. Yet Kang Jin-Ho remained firm about eating the Assembly cafeteria food.

There was a reason why the Assembly members viewed Kang Jin-Ho as the biggest enemy of the reformation of the Assembly’s feeding scheme. Who would dare complain about the cafeteria food and try to improve the quality when the Assembly Master himself had absolutely no problem enjoying it?

Wait! I got sidetracked! The franchisee briefly shook his head.

In any case! Kang Jin-Ho was someone like that, yet his taste regarding coffee was almost on the level of a professional food critic. Him setting up a cafe on the Assembly HQ main building’s first floor, and then personally “training” said cafe’s owner with coffee beans airlifted straight from his father’s place until the coffee’s taste matched his exacting standards had already become a stuff of legends within the organization.

When the realization of such a man drinking his coffee set in, the franchisee’s hands and knees began shaking almost uncontrollably.

H-hang on a minute. He’s, uh, he’s not gonna hang me upside down just because the coffee doesn’t taste good, right?

Wasn’t this the case of “Man proposes, God disposes?” Since the franchisee had done his best up to now, all he could do was let the heavens decide his fate.

“Here’s your vibration bell, ma’am. Once your drinks are ready, the bell will ring to let you know. Then, please return to the counter to get your drinks.”

“Thank you!”

Choi Yeon-Ha returned to her table, giving the franchisee a chance to focus on brewing the coffee, his hands still trembling in nervousness.

Nah... He surely won’t kill me over a cup of coffee, right?

The franchisee had no choice but to pray that Kang Jin-Ho had at least some modicum of common sense. Although, judging from the intimidating aura still oozing from the Assembly Master, the thing the franchisee should worry about wasn’t dying but getting skinned alive!

“Huph!”

The franchisee did his absolute best to brew the coffee—even though all he did was his absolute best to glare at the coffee machine—then expertly created a hot cup of Americano and another cup of Iced Americano. Once done, he carefully placed the cups on a tray.

Dang it. I’ve done everything I can now.

After activating Choi Yeon-Ha’s vibration bell, the franchisee squeezed his eyes shut. Shortly afterward, she came to the counter to return the bell and get her drinks.

While pretending everything was alright with him, the franchisee relied on his side-eye to observe Kang Jin-Ho’s reaction.

“Mm...?”

Kang Jin-Ho picked up the cup, brought it closer to his lips, then leisurely savored the aroma while closing his eyes. But then, he began furrowing his brow a little.

The franchisee grew a little paler just then. Gee whiz! This is like torture!

Kang Jin-Ho took a sip, silently savored the taste before swallowing the liquid.

“Mm...”

Choi Yeon-Ha wordlessly stared at him before cocking an eyebrow. “Excuse me, since when did you become a caffelier?”

“...”

“We’re in a franchise cafe, you know? No need to inspect the craftsmanship like that. As long as it tastes okay, it should be all good, don’t you agree?”

Kuu-hhhh! Director Choi! Thank you! Thank you for that super-major refreshing counterattack! From now on, I swear my loyalty to you!

A hint of tears pooled near the franchisee’s eyes just then.

To think that someone in this world could land such a solid blow to the one and only Assembly Master! Such a thing would’ve been unimaginable back in the Assembly. Even Lee Hyeon-Su had to beat around the bush all the time when pointing out the Assembly Master’s faults in order to avoid a beating, didn’t he!

The franchisee silently celebrated this feeling of all his worries being washed away. Unfortunately, this feeling didn’t last. He had to sneakily un-clench his fists under the counter when Kang Jin-Ho’s sharp gaze briefly locked on him.

“Kuh-hum!” Kang Jin-Ho fake-coughed. “Well, this isn’t so bad, I suppose.”

It wasn’t up to his standards, yes, but Kang Jin-Ho thought he could still drink this. Even though he couldn’t stomach the coffee served by most cafes these days!

“As long as you don’t mind drinking it, it’s all good, isn’t it?” Choi Yeon-Ha grinned subtly. “Besides, you can be so picky about weird things.”

The franchisee was about to clench his fists again. Kuh-uh~! That felt so great... Sir, why are you looking at me already? I haven’t even begun celebrating yet, you know?

The gravest threat had been negotiated for now, but that didn’t mean the franchisee was out of the woods just yet.