Shin Haesu’s fist slammed into the wooden frame of the sliding door, right next to the man’s face. Still in that position, Haesu turned his head and looked at the woman.

“Ma’am, please wait outside for a bit. The police will be here soon.”

“Y-Yes...”

“D-Don’t go!!”

The man instinctively begged for his life, but the woman didn’t even acknowledge him and walked out.

Haesu dragged the man deeper inside, out of sight from the front door, and raised his fist again.

“Are you scared of getting hit?”

“Y-Yes, please don’t kill me. Please...”

Haesu let out a cold, mocking laugh. The man’s eyes widened, recognizing the meaning behind it. In his pupils, Haesu’s large fist reflected.

“Doctor.”

Thwack!

“Sir.”

Wham!

“I’m sorry.”

Thud!

“Sir!!”

Crack!

The man let out a shriek and collapsed flat on the floor.

His nose had completely caved in, flattening his face. His jaw was crushed, teeth twisted. His face was more disfigured than when Haesu first saw him assaulting the woman.

“Ughhh...”

The man groaned faintly, unconscious. Haesu grabbed him by the hair and dragged him outside.

Outside, the police had arrived just in time and were protecting the woman.

The officers, not recognizing Haesu, were startled and quickly pulled out their batons.

Haesu shoved the man with the mangled face toward them and said,

“If you have cuffs, put them on. He’s a suspect caught in the act of attempted murder.”

“O-Oh, are you a detective?”

“I’m Sergeant Shin Haesu from the Violent Crimes Special Investigation Unit.”

Upon hearing that, the officers immediately straightened up and saluted.

“Chung! Our apologies! Thank you for your work!”

Haesu returned the salute.

“Yes, thank you for working so late. Ma’am, it’s all right now.”

“Yes... Thank you, Detective.”

The woman’s hand, as she held Haesu’s, trembled faintly. Even if she wasn’t physically hurt again, she had just faced a life-threatening situation. It must’ve been the most terrifying moment of her life.

The man was taken directly to the emergency room. The woman sat quietly at the police station for a long while before returning home.

Haesu escorted her home and finally began his commute back. The clock pointed to 4 a.m. He’d stayed up all night, but thankfully, tomorrow was his day off.

Beep—Clack.

Haesu quietly stepped into his home, only to be startled by a woman with long hair standing in front of him.

“Hrk!”

He barely swallowed his scream and reached out to push the hair aside, revealing Haru’s half-lidded eyes.

“Why are you standing here like this?”

“I heard the elevator.”

Haru rubbed her eyes and let out a yawn, hastily covering her mouth.

“Were you waiting for me?”

“I have good hearing.”

“Right, now go get some sleep.”

“Yes.”

Haru bowed her head and trudged back to her room.

In a well-soundproofed house, she heard the elevator and came to meet him. It was strange, but not unpleasant.

The next morning, Haesu woke up at 8 a.m., ate an apple, and headed to the workout room.

Sleeping in when tired only disrupts your rhythm and makes you more exhausted the next day. The best way to recover is to push through fatigue and maintain routine.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Upon entering, he saw Haru already up and running. She’d been working out diligently lately to prepare for the body test required of security guards.

Wearing a sports bra and leggings, her body was almost embarrassingly well-defined. She had gained muscle and looked much firmer than before.

Smiling in satisfaction, Haesu quietly turned on the treadmill next to her.

“You’re awake?”

“Running on an empty stomach isn’t good.”

“Drank a health juice. Made yours, too.”

Haru spoke in short bursts while running.

“Yeah? Didn’t notice. When’s your interview?”

“Today.”

Haesu furrowed his brow slightly. As far as he knew, Haru didn’t have proper clothes for an interview.

After they finished working out, showered, and ate breakfast, Haesu called Haru over.

“What are you planning to wear?”

“This.”

She wore a tight sky-blue skirt and a white short-sleeve round-neck tee. A very college-student vibe.

“That?”

“Ahn Seo-eun said my legs are pretty, so short skirts suit me. Does it look strange?”

It did suit her, but maybe because of her height or long legs, she stood out a lot.

With a serious face, Haesu shook his head.

“What time’s the interview?”

“11 a.m.”

“Let’s go.”

In that outfit, Haru accompanied Haesu to a clothing store. As usual, but especially today, people’s eyes were constantly drawn to Haru—probably because of her outfit.

However, like clockwork, the men’s gazes went from Haru to Haesu, then quickly dropped to the floor.

“This one looks decent. What do you think?”

“Looks great.”

Haesu picked out a white shirt and black suit. Haru went into the fitting room and came out quickly.

The clerk’s jaw dropped when she saw Haru.

“Wow! You look amazing! Just like a model!”

“Mm...”

At the compliment, the corners of Haru’s lips trembled slightly.

The tailored suit pants fit perfectly, and with her hair tied neatly back, she already looked the part of a professional bodyguard.

“We’ll take this.”

Haesu carried Haru’s original clothes, now just a small bundle.

Daeseong Guard used the Daeseong Entertainment building, which employed the most security personnel.

In front of Daeseong Entertainment, Haesu and Haru stood face to face.

“Whatever they ask, keep your shoulders straight and answer confidently. Just be confident in everything.”

“Understood.”

Haru showed her small clenched fist to Haesu, then turned and walked away. Watching her walk off, she really did look like a model, just like the store clerk had said.

As she entered the third floor where Daeseong Guard was located, the other applicants waiting in the hallway immediately turned their eyes toward her.

They were stunned first by her face, with her hair tied neatly back revealing her forehead, and again by the strong aura radiating from her.

‘Is she a senior guard?’

‘She’s crazy pretty.’

‘Do I need to greet her?’

‘Damn, I really gotta get hired.’

When Haru received a name tag sticker from the interview assistant and attached it to the left side of her chest, only then did the other male applicants realize she was one of them and approached to speak to her.

“Hello. Are you here for the interview too? Same here.”

“How about a cup of coffee after the interview?”

“Where do you live? I’ll give you a ride after…”

The few women present frowned at the sight.

Despite appearances, Haru was nervous and kept her lips tightly shut, unable to respond to them individually.

However, the aura and energy emanating from her cold expression made them back off on their own.

“Applicant number 21, please come in.”

“Yes.”

There were three interviewers. In the center sat a woman with sharp eyes wearing red horn-rimmed glasses, flanked on both sides by muscular men.

The woman with the glasses adjusted them and asked,

“Hm, your resume is unusual. You’ve studied various martial arts, but since you didn’t obtain any certificates, they weren’t included in your record? What does that mean?”

The resume had been prepared by Ahn Seo-eun’s team. Although Haru had been shown it, she didn’t realize anything was wrong with it.

Haru straightened her shoulders confidently and answered loudly,

“It means I’m good at beating up bad guys!”

“Pfft.”

“Hah.”

“Ah…”

Haru’s interview strategy was to answer confidently without lying and say whatever came to mind.

The interviewers had varied reactions—some amused, others bewildered or dumbfounded.

One of the muscular interviewers, seemingly entertained, commented,

“You have a slender build, but I like the spirit. We’ll see how that pans out later.”

“Some people misunderstand and think female bodyguards are hired for their looks, but that’s absolutely wrong. A bodyguard must have the skill to protect their employer safely. Understood?”

Despite the sharp gaze from the female interviewer, Haru didn’t flinch.

“Understood!”

“R-right… Now, if the employer asks you to go buy some food from the car, and you’re the only bodyguard available, what would you do?”

This time, Haru’s face brightened slightly as if she knew the answer well.

“I’d tell them to go buy it themselves!”

“Huh… haha…”

After Haru left, the interviewers chuckled as they began discussing her.

“Absolutely disqualified. She’s just relying on her face with nothing to back it up.”

“Come on, Team Leader Yang, you always say that when they’re pretty. She’s full of grit and confidence—I thought she was great.”

“I also thought she seemed pure, unlike most youngsters these days. She says she’s good at beating up bad guys, so let’s observe and then decide.”

“Men, I swear… Fine, then let’s hold off the decision until after the physical test.”

“Agreed.”

Bang—

A “Pending” stamp was marked on Haru’s resume.

The day of the physical test approached.

Once someone passes the resume and interview rounds, they’re essentially in. Unless there’s something seriously wrong, physical ability can always be improved with effort.

Daeseong Guard’s training room.

Ten new recruits stood facing five current guards. Among the current guards, the team leader explained the process.

“…If you meet this standard, you’re accepted. Any questions?”

A fairly muscular man among the applicants raised his hand.

“Considering how important physical ability is for bodyguards, isn’t the standard too low?”

“True. However, this is the minimum requirement. Based on the results, grades will be assigned. And salaries differ by grade. There’s a 10 million won gap between F grade and A grade.”

“Whoa!”

“No way… ten million…”

The team leader smirked as he clapped his hands in response to the surprised new recruits.

“Now, let’s zip it and do your best on the test.”

“Yes, sir!”

Among the ten new recruits, only two were women—one of whom clearly looked athletic, and the other was Haru.

Not only the other rookies but even the senior guards had their eyes on Haru.

“Thought she was just a pretty face, but she’s a real fighter.”

“Exactly. She’s perfect.”

“Perfect my ass. At best, she’ll land a B grade. That’d be impressive.”

“No, I mean perfect as my girlfriend.”

“You lunatic. Stop messing with the rookies. We’re already short on female guards. If she quits because of you, I’ll make sure you’re fired too.”

“Oh, so the team leader’s a rival now.”

“Why you…”

So far, Haru had barely made the cut for a B grade in the physical test. Since the criteria were the same for both men and women, even B grade was a stellar result.

“Alright, everyone did well. But we’re not done yet. The most heavily weighted test is left—sparring.”

“Sparring?”

“Sparring…”

“You’ll be randomly matched with one of the senior guards and do a 1:1 sparring match for three minutes. This test is to assess your practical abilities in detail. Show us everything you’ve got.”

“Yes, sir!”

The rookies, drenched in sweat, shouted in unison. They had already exhausted themselves in the earlier tests.

During one of the sparring sessions, a muscular rookie threw punches like he wanted to kill the senior guard.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh smack—thud—crack—

The senior calmly dodged his punches, countered, and twisted his arm in one swift motion.

“Argh! O-okay! I give up!”

“Alright, good effort. Next.”

Only the two female rookies remained. As Haru stepped forward, the senior who had been watching her closely quickly jumped in.

“No eye gouging, no groin kicks, no elbows. Everything else is fair game. Ready?”

Haru and the senior nodded. The team leader raised his hand between them and shouted,

“Alright, fight!”

As soon as his hand dropped, Haru stood still like a statue.

The senior smirked as he stared at her. Her pupils were trembling, and her shoulders were tense—she was nervous.

‘Look at her, all tense. So cute. I’ll go easy on her.’

Usually, seniors would go on the defensive and finish the match at the right time. But intending to play around a little, he lightly extended a punch.

That’s when something flashed.

Thud—

Before he even realized it, her fist had slammed into his armpit.

Smack—!

Before the pain could even register, her elbow had already struck his throat.

“Gugh!”

Thud!

The senior bodyguard toppled backward.

Haru looked down at him with the same calm eyes and opened her mouth.

“Next.”