Weird Defender Joo Ji-Tae

151 – The Real Appearance

151

Hankiju stared blankly at his phone.

There was nothing to see.

There was nothing to do, and the waiting was so boring.

When he checked the time, there were still 20 minutes left until the appointed time.

Helplessly, Hankiju’s attention turned to the interior of the cafe.

“They’re not pretty. They’ve had too much plastic surgery. The makeup doesn’t suit them at all.”

As the marketing team leader of Korea’s largest eyeglass company, which accounted for 40% of the domestic lens market, Hankiju’s sharp eyes analyzed the beauty of the cafe women.

In reality, it was not the sharp eyes he had developed as a marketing team leader, but rather the discerning eyes he had inherited as the third-generation heir of a wealthy family.

His grandfather, the founder of the company, was over 90 years old and had practically retired as an honorary chairman, and his father, the current chairman, was already looking forward to his 70th birthday party.

As the third-generation heir, Hankiju had no competitors, and having graduated from a good university and built a career in the company over the past 10 years, he was already 38 years old, not too young to take over the company.

The problem was—

“That guy’s marriage is real.”

As the third-generation heir, the pressure from his family elders to produce an heir was growing stronger.

It wasn’t that Hankiju’s s*xual orientation was unusual or that he had a problem with his s*xual function.

Thanks to his diligent body management, he was still a vigorous man in his 20s, and women would go crazy for him.

Right now, he was waiting for his girlfriend—rather, his sponsor—when his father’s pressure came to mind, making him feel uncomfortable.

As Hankiju sat in his chair, feeling annoyed and restless, he crossed his arms and leaned back.

With their unique, high-pitched chatter, the five girls entered the café.

“Are they high school students?”

Although they wore casual clothes, they couldn’t hide their youthful aura.

Where did they learn to dress like adults, even if they’re not wearing school uniforms? …Of course, there are some who can pull it off, but at least these high school girls in front of me looked like they were trying too hard.

As the third-generation heir of a wealthy family, Han Gi-ju had seen his fair share of beautiful women, but these girls were still quite impressive.

Han Gi-ju instinctively analyzed the girls.

“They’re well-dressed, but… they’re still just high school level. Not quite up to par with the entertainment or fashion industries.”

These days, even ordinary people dress well, so it’s hard to be certain, but that’s usually the case with older people. A 10-year-old girl, no matter how hard she tries, can’t match the skills of a professional.

In that sense, the five high school girls were well-dressed, but only to a high school level. They lacked the professional touch of the entertainment or fashion industries, and their style was still immature.

“That coat is… Charlotte, I think. And the shoes… are they Nike?”

They wore a high-end European brand coat that wasn’t well-known in Korea, but the rest of their outfits were similar to those of their peers.

“That coat… must be around 10 million won. It’s too flashy for an ordinary person, and… it doesn’t quite suit them. Not sponsored, but…”

It was clear they didn’t know men.

Han Gi-ju, who had been with many women, could tell at a glance.

“With a bit more makeup, they’d be stunning.”

Compared to celebrities or professional models, they might be lacking, but that’s a comparison between those who have been fully made up and those who haven’t been made up at all.

Are celebrities born beautiful? Of course, some people are naturally beautiful. But even they look different when compared to their school days’ photos.

In other words, with makeup and styling, anyone can change.

But these girls were still unpolished, and comparing them to fully made-up women was unfair. If they were properly made up, how would they shine?

Han Gi-ju felt a thrill.

On the other hand, he also felt a sense of disappointment.

“If they were properly made up, they’d be visually stunning. But… it’s a shame. They’re too unknown.”

If he were to debut them as celebrities, they might become the next-generation beauty representatives of Korea, but Han Gi-ju wasn’t an industry insider, and what’s the point of that? What he needed now was not the “future” but the “present”.

He needed a model for his company’s advertisement.

No matter how beautiful they were, if they had no recognition, they were useless. Maybe they could be used as sub-models for magazine or online ads.

“What a shame, what a shame. If they were just aspiring celebrities, I’d give them a shot.”

Han Gi-ju sighed in disappointment.

Of course, this wasn’t about his rational judgment as a man. Han Gi-ju was attracted to women, but there was a limit. These girls were too young and innocent.

They were born with good looks and had taken care of themselves, making them look 4-5 years younger than their peers, but they were still just high school girls.

They might be cute, but Han Gi-ju wasn’t some old man who would fall for them. They were too pure, too innocent, and too lacking in experience.

And most importantly, no matter how beautiful they were, Han Gi-ju wasn’t the type to fall for high school girls.

His taste was in mature women.

So, Han Gi-ju’s disappointment was not as a man but as the marketing team leader and businessman.

He had discovered a gem, but he had no way to use it.

As he was about to leave, the five high school girls each took out a different type of cake and drink, and Han Gi-ju’s gem suddenly took out an iPad and placed it on the table.

The surrounding girls looked at each other in dismay.

“Ah, crazy. He’s started again.”

“Ah, seriously! Can you tone it down a bit? I’m getting tired of this.”

Hanki’s gaze was fixed on the unusual reaction.

What’s going on? She thought, watching as Wonseok played a video.

[Barcelona’s momentum is scary, right?]

[Especially Joo Jitae’s performance is impressive. Juventus scored the first goal, but Barcelona is dominating the game.]

It turned out to be a soccer video.

“Suddenly, what’s with the soccer?”

Was she a rare female soccer fan?

“Right now, right now, look at this! Did you see that? The pass from that angle? It’s really amazing. And this too! The way the ball curves, it’s like… Did you see that?!”

“Stop, seriously, I’m getting tired of this.”

“Yeah, your boyfriend is amazing. Alright, alright.”

“Hehe.”

Hanki felt strange seeing her friends’ reactions, boasting about the player’s skills in the video.

It seemed to be a Champions League game, and that player was definitely not her boyfriend… Was she a hardcore fan, claiming to be his girlfriend?

“What’s wrong with you? Are you already married?”

“Who gets married these days? It’s extreme devotion. Extreme.”

“It’s not extreme devotion, it’s extreme hate. Ugh, you’re disgusting.”

Even amidst her friends’ teasing, Wonseok spoke with a proud expression.

“What’s wrong with being a fan? It’s normal to support my husband.”

Hanki’s jaw dropped, along with her friends.

“This is severe. Is she a fan from childhood?”

Hanki was shocked, and so were her friends.

“Wow… crazy. I got goosebumps. Look at her talking nonsense. She’s completely crazy.”

“Girl, please, don’t do this anywhere. I’m too embarrassed.”

“But honestly, if I had a boyfriend like Jitae oppa, I’d want to boast about it too.”

“Ah, crazy, Ga Minhee is talking nonsense again.”

“Yeah, but what I said is true, right?”

“Yeah. If my boyfriend earned tens of billions and was a national representative with a face like that, I’d boast about it every day. Thinking about it is annoying. What is wrong with her? What did she do in her past life to get a boyfriend like Jitae? I’ll take him away from her.”

Hanki’s jaw dropped again as she listened to the girls’ chatter.

“This is crazy. Jitae? That Jitae??”

Even someone who didn’t particularly like soccer knew that player.

No, it was impossible for a Korean not to know that name.

And—

“Was she the childhood friend girlfriend of that Jitae??”

It was a well-known fact that Jitae had a childhood friend girlfriend.

“But can you do this here? Jitae oppa has a lot of fans, and foreign fans are crazy about him, right?”

“Yeah! They’re crazy, and they’ll do anything for him! There are a lot of scandals like that, aren’t there? Don’t you worry about it?”

“Yeah, I don’t worry about it.”

“Why?”

“Because I believe it.”

“…What the heck.”

“Seriously, this is crazy.”

“You’re a goddess, you know. You’re sick, literally sick.”

Han Ki-joo had inserted himself into the girls’ talk.

“Excuse me. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I ended up hearing it. Ah, I’m not a weird person, I’m just a person like this.”

Five heads turned rapidly, following the business card.

“Shinsegye glasses? Ah! I know them! They advertise with Bibi Girls!”

“What? Aren’t they super famous? They’re everywhere in the neighborhood.”

“Marketing team leader? Isn’t that a high position?”

The high school girls who had been chatting all turned to stare at Han Ki-joo.

With a mix of curiosity and suspicion in their gazes, Han Ki-joo smiled amiably.

“It’s not that I’m special, but I heard this student is the girlfriend of athlete Joo Ji-tae. Excuse me, but isn’t she the one who attended the Ballon d’Or award ceremony with him?”

“That’s right! It’s her!”

With her friends’ agreement, Han Ki-joo let out a hearty laugh.

“So, do you have any plans to model?”

“Modeling?”

“Yes. Our company isn’t just an eyeglass store; we also manufacture lenses… Ah, yes. Our company’s lenses take up 49% of the global market share. We’re a global corporation. So, like this—”

Han Ki-joo, who had been boasting about being a global corporation, froze, having accessed the SNS of a friendly soccer player.

In the SNS photo, which was only visible to friends, Joo Ji-tae was surrounded by half-naked women, laughing brightly with the athletes.

“Uh… Joo Ji-tae oppa…”

“…Goddess, are you okay?”