Minra was good at her job.
She wasn’t a salesperson.
She wasn’t a negotiator.
She was a graphic designer.
Her job was simple.
She created the visuals. Reyne handled the clients.
She had no reason to speak.
That was the plan.
Until, of course, Reyne was given the floor.
Because the second the negotiation started, he opened his mouth and ruined everything.
.
"Let’s cut to the chase, guys."
That was Reyne’s opening line.
To a room full of corporate clients.
Minra froze.
The executives across the table blinked, confused.
Even Eunhe, who had come purely to supervise Reyne, looked like she was questioning all her life decisions.
"Our company is great, and so are these designs," Reyne continued. "You should totally sign with us."
Silence.
Minra struggled to maintain her composure.
"What my colleague means—" she jumped in, forcing a smile, "—is that our team has worked closely to create a tailored solution for your brand. We’ve analyzed your market needs and—"
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"Yeah, yeah," Reyne cut in, waving a hand. "Basically, we’re awesome. You’d be dumb not to say yes."
Minra wanted to die.
One of the executives, an older man with sharp glasses, adjusted his tie.
"Excuse me?"
Minra snapped into crisis mode.
"Apologies." she said quickly, elbowing Reyne under the table.
"What he means is that we strongly believe in the success of this partnership. Our data-driven approach—"
"And gut feeling," Reyne added.
"—will ensure satisfactory results for both party." she finished through clenched teeth.
The executives did not look convinced.
And now?
Now, it was all up to Reyne to fix it.
So, naturally—
He made it worse.
.
"Look," Reyne leaned forward, smirking.
"We’re not here to waste your time. You know this deal is solid. So let’s just sign some papers and get this done, yeah?"
Silence.
Minra almost choked.
"Excuse me," one of the executives said, voice out abruptly. "We take our partnerships very seriously. We don’t make decisions lightly."
Minra was already apologizing in her head.
"Of course, sir," she said, quickly. "We understand the weight of this decision, and we’re more than happy to provide additional data—"
"But do you need it?" Reyne interrupted. "Or are we just playing the ‘I need time to think’ game?"
Dead.
Minra was actually dead inside.
Across from them, Eunhe visibly paled.
"Reyne," she called out under her breath. "Shut. Up."
Reyne, completely unfazed, smirked.
"Relax, Noona. I got this."
No, he did not.
Minra knew it.
Eunhe knew it.
The entire room knew it.
Which was why she had no choice but to step in.
.
She took a deep breath.
"I deeply apologize for my colleague’s… informal approach.” she said smoothly.
Reyne snorted.
Minra kicked him under the table.
"We truly value this partnership," she continued, forcing a professional smile. "To show our commitment, we’d love to provide a full prototype, free of charge, so you can see the impact firsthand."
The executives quickly regained energy.
Eunhe nodded approvingly.
Reyne?
Looked absolutely betrayed.
"Wait, wait, wait—" he frowned. "We’re giving them a freebie?"
Minra stomped on his foot.
"YES."
Reyne flinched.
But, at least, he finally shut up.
.
The moment the meeting ended, Eunhe grabbed Reyne by the collar and dragged him out.
Minra followed, still furious.
As soon as they reached the hallway—
"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Eunhe yelled, spinning him around.
"A successful discussion?" Reyne grinned.
"A DISASTER!!"
"We got them interested, didn’t we?"
Minra groaned.
"Reyne, I spent the entire meeting apologizing for you."
"And you did a great job." he winked. "See? Teamwork."
Eunhe looked like she was about to strangle him.
"Do you WANT to get fired?!"
"Not particularly."
"THEN STOP TESTING MY PATIENCE!!"
Minra sighed, rubbing her temples.
She didn’t have the energy for this.
Especially because—from the corner of her eye, she noticed Shuun standing nearby.
Watching them.
Minra stiffened.
And then?
He looked directly at her.
"Miss Seo.” he said, tone unreadable.
She swallowed.
"Yes, sir?"
"A word."
Reyne smirked. "Oops— someone's in trouble."
Minra kicked him one last time before following Shuun.
.
Chapter 04: "The Menace Gets Serious"