Although he’d clearly lost any semblance of objectivity, from Park Seon-jun’s perspective, it really was a bad deal. Unfair enough to justify storming into the Center unannounced, demanding to see Lee Han-seo.
Just because he’d moved abroad didn’t mean his dim-witted brain had suddenly flipped a switch. He wasn’t even good at English. After moving to Canada, he’d spent two or three full years holed up in language schools. Naturally, getting into a good university was out of the question.
After an unplanned return to Korea, all Park Seon-jun had to show for himself was a barely-earned diploma from a mediocre college and just-passable English skills—his only real asset.
Had he at least buckled down and thrown himself into job-hunting from there, things might’ve turned out differently. But no—having lived his entire life wrapped in his parents’ suffocating protection, Park Seon-jun had zero interest in what he called the “pathetic grind” of résumé building or networking.
Ironically, the turning point came thanks to the very younger brother he’d always looked down on. By pure luck, he landed an interview at a mid-sized company with a surprisingly stable financial structure. They managed subcontractors for a major conglomerate.
At first, the interviewer barely looked at him. It was obvious they already had someone in mind. But the moment they learned Park Seon-jun was Park Woo-jun’s older brother, their attitude flipped completely. After all, the conglomerate keeping that company afloat was run by none other than Lee Han-seo’s maternal grandfather.
Everyone in Korea knew Lee Han-seo was completely under his Esper’s thumb—and that Chairman Choi adored his grandson more than life itself.
Normally, this company bent over backward trying to meet every deadline to the second. But maybe—just maybe—if they had someone like Park Woo-jun’s older brother as a go-between, they could afford to relax the schedule by a day or two. That calculation landed Park Seon-jun the job without issue.
Of course, even landing the interview in the first place was thanks to Lee Han-seo’s influence. But the man himself? He still believed he’d made it entirely on his own skill and luck.
What was unfortunate was that Han-seo’s involvement ended there. Completely. The team that had initially held out hope—thinking maybe this rookie will shape up—quickly watched their optimism crumble. All he did was demand things without delivering. Any goodwill dried up fast, like a sandcastle before a wave.
Boasting that everyone should trust him, Park Seon-jun strutted into meetings full of confidence—only to crash and burn so hard that even the building’s janitor heard the gossip. The moment he met with the client, he puffed himself up, exaggerated everything, said he was Park Woo-jun’s brother and oh-so-close with Lee Han-seo.
All he got in return was a wall of ice.
“So what? What do you expect me to do with that?”
The manager cut him off coldly, openly sneering at his inability to separate personal ties from professional ones. He even scolded the assistant who’d come with him and finished with a line that echoed through the company halls:
“Next time, don’t bring that rookie.”
From that moment, Park Seon-jun’s standing plummeted. Not that he had much to begin with—he was just a new hire. It didn’t take long for a new hire to become a pariah.
Later, he heard through a senior executive that Lee Han-seo had made a very clear request right after the hire was confirmed: “If Park Seon-jun tries to name-drop me, ignore him. I don’t care what he says—just pretend he doesn’t exist.”
Park Seon-jun, who had never once been on the receiving end of such blunt rejection, ground his teeth in silence. And the moment he heard that? He exploded like someone had lit a fuse.
He’d never liked Han-seo’s arrogant attitude. The way he bossed people around like servants. And don’t even get him started on how that nothing-special Park Woo-jun got treated like gold. And now this? A knife to the back?
Fuming, Park Seon-jun stormed at Chief Seo—Han-seo’s only known contact—but got nothing. No response, no explanation. Radio silence.
So today, he’d taken leave and barged into the Center. If Han-seo had sabotaged his career, then he damn well needed to fix it. That was only fair.
To anyone else, the logic would’ve sounded laughably childish. But this was a man in his late twenties who’d coasted through life on his parents’ allowance, whose biggest hardship was getting caught skipping tutoring. Mentally, he hadn’t grown past high school.
He’d even been exempt from military service, thanks to a family member being conscripted as an Esper. An overgrown man-child rotting in his own shallow bubble, enjoying a life far too comfortable for his own good.
“You’re always with him, huh? Guess that was all BS too. Just like last time. I’ve never once seen the two of you together.”
Completely unaware that Park Woo-jun’s face was hardening by the second, Park Seon-jun just kept shouting. He was the type who, once he found a punching bag, wouldn’t stop until he tore it to shreds.
And unfortunately, his favorite punching bag was—and always had been—his too-gentle younger brother. Passive, docile, and never once talking back.
“Typical. What would a top-tier Guide ever see in someone like you, huh? He’s got nothing to gain. There’s no way he actually liked you. You two were just a Bonded Pair, right? All that dating talk—it was fake, wasn’t it? If that was how it was from the start, you should’ve just said so. I made a damn fool of myself thinking it was real. You gonna take responsibility for that? Huh?!”
Red-faced and screaming like a lunatic, Park Seon-jun looked utterly pathetic. Park Woo-jun calmly tapped the table with his fingertip—tap, tap—watching silently.
So that’s what this is about. The pieces finally clicked into place. After all this time apart, it was almost impressive how little his brother had changed.
Just like back in school, when a girl Park Seon-jun liked turned out to have feelings for him instead. His brother had used it as an excuse to lash out, tried to manipulate the situation, and when it didn’t work, he’d exploded.
“…Hyung. I—”
He was about to say Why should I take responsibility? But before the words even left his mouth, the door to the visitation room slammed open with a bang.
“I’ve heard enough—I seriously can’t take this anymore. Is this asshole out of his goddamn mind?”
It was Lee Han-seo.
The very person Park Seon-jun had been so desperately trying to find.
***
Lately, Lee Han-seo had been in pretty decent spirits. His body was tired from the constant training, sure—but the more he trained, the easier it became to adjust inside dungeons. By now, A-Class dungeons didn’t even faze him. He could enter them with ease.
Now that he had an Imprinted partner by his side, all the injuries and amplifier side effects that used to cling to Park Woo-jun had practically vanished. Their clear times were incomparable to when Woo-jun had gone in alone.
Sure, it meant Woo-jun had to handle more paperwork, but that was a minor inconvenience. Compared to the days when Han-seo could only sit and wait, anxious and helpless until Woo-jun returned, the sheer energy running through his body now felt like a blessing.
Chief Seo had mentioned a few times, offhandedly, that Woo-jun’s brother was grumbling about work. But Han-seo hadn’t paid it much attention. After all, Woo-jun’s family never visited. Not even a phone call to check in.
Which only made Han-seo more determined to fill that empty space himself.
If there was no mom to stay by his side when he was sick, no dad to worry and ask, “What’s wrong, baby?” when his expression faltered—even if he’d never experienced those things himself—then Han-seo would be all of that. And more.
If there were siblings out there who shared secrets and leaned on each other like best friends, then Han-seo would be that too.
Maybe Woo-jun had picked up on that resolve, because now and then, he’d blurt out a soft, awkward “Thanks.” The sight of him smiling, lips gently curling with that innocent expression, made Han-seo’s heart swell every time.
Today, training had ended unusually early due to a routine simulator inspection. Even though it was a program he’d chosen for himself, the unexpected break still filled him with a quiet thrill.
He was heading back to Woo-jun’s office with a light spring in his step when a message popped up from him.
[Just stopping by the visitation room real quick.]
“Visitation room? Who’d come visit Woo-jun…?”
Frowning, Han-seo turned toward the main gate. At the guard station, he checked the log—and sure enough, there it was.
Park Seon-jun.
If it had been their cold, indifferent parents, he might’ve actually been relieved. But that name—rife with bad first impressions and complaints—immediately triggered a sinking feeling in his gut.
After giving a polite nod to security, Han-seo hurried upstairs.
“Hey! Go get Lee Han-seo already!!”
No need to guess which room. The second he stepped into the hallway, that grating voice echoed straight through the corridor.
Pressing his ear to the door, he caught every word clearly—and each one made his blood simmer hotter.
He’d heard enough.
Han-seo slammed the door open.
“I’ve been trying to ignore it, but this is seriously too much. Are you out of your damn mind?”
“Han-seo? You’re already done with training?”
Caught off guard, Park Woo-jun turned around from where he’d been standing with his back to the door, looking visibly conflicted.
Of course. He probably just stood there looking pitiful, ready to cry like always, Han-seo thought, completely convinced by his own false assumptions. Without hesitation, he stepped forward and grabbed his Esper’s wrist, yanking him behind like he was shielding something fragile. Woo-jun, who seemed light as a paper doll, was pulled along with ease.
“You stay out of this, Woo-jun. I want to hear what this jackass’s problem is.”
“Han-seo, wait…”
Trust me, Han-seo said with his eyes alone, then turned his focus straight to the now-frozen Park Seon-jun.
“Mr. Park Seon-jun,” he began coldly, voice like ice.
“Go ahead. Tell me. What’s got you so pissed off and hard done by that you were dying to see me? Let’s hear it.”
“I-I mean… it’s just…”
“It better be something good. Because if it’s not, you’re the one who’ll be answering for this mess. ‘You’? I tried to cut you some slack because you were Woo-jun’s brother—but you really have no clue where you stand, do you?”
This was the same man who hadn’t so much as flinched in front of Han-seo when he had his parents flanking him. But now, stripped of that backup, he shrank immediately—a textbook coward who bowed to the strong and bullied the weak.
Which only made him more repulsive.
Han-seo’s glare turned razor-sharp.
