“I said you should try enduring more than 50% when Esper Jung Jae-heon was around. If gates start opening up like crazy later, you might not be able to get Guiding right away. So you should try while you can—learn how to manage it now.”
“Yeah.”
“At least you’re good at answering.”
He really was good at giving answers. Tae-rim lost count of how many times he’d said this already.
“Tae-rim, you seriously sound like someone who learned about Espers from a textbook. That totally sounded like something a mom would say.”
“But it’s true, isn’t it? It’s better to know your limits—how much you can actually handle. Don’t you think so, Esper?”
“Yes, ma’am~”
“Esper Seon Juho’s really cheerful, huh? Totally different from those Espers who are just trying to look cool.”
“Does striking a pose make you an adult now? I’m seriously struggling—Hyung keeps treating me like a kid.”
“Oh, come on. It’s fine, totally fine. That contrast is actually what makes it better. When you’re usually bright and playful, and then suddenly—bam!—you show your manly side? Tae-rim won’t know what hit him.”
“Really?”
“Ye-rin noona….”
“Of course! I’ve seen plenty of people fall hard for that charm. Especially when younger guys suddenly make ‘Hyung’ sound… different. That’s it. Game over.”
“Ooooh!”
“Noona….”
Lee Jae-hwa just stood there watching with a smile while Tae-rim, clearly flustered, called out to Yoon Ye-rin for help. Seon Juho, excited by her words, started yelling ‘Sudden burst of manliness!’ like it was his life motto. Tae-rim felt like he was going to lose it.
“Tae-rim, don’t let your guard down. I’m serious. You’ll think of him as just a kid… and then bam! Your heart’s going to drop out of your chest one day.”
Tae-rim rubbed his forehead. Seon Juho’s eyes sparkled with anticipation, and that hopeful gaze was starting to weigh on him. But Yoon Ye-rin, clearly not caring about how Tae-rim felt, kept hyping Seon Juho up the entire time he was Guiding. Tae-rim, already on the verge of a headache, just kept holding his head.
Not that Ye-rin was totally wrong—sure, anything could happen someday. But come on. Seon Juho had already ruined his chances with that first impression. The image of a crouched, trembling kid begging for help had been burned into Tae-rim’s brain from the start. Sure, he wasn’t small, but still…
“Strike when the guard’s down! Masculinity!”
“Masculinity!”
Even after the Guiding session ended, Seon Juho clung to Tae-rim, rubbing up against him while chanting nonsense slogans with Yoon Ye-rin before heading back out to the hunt. Tae-rim let out a long sigh.
“Why do you keep filling his head with crap…?”
“Crap? Please. That could totally happen.”
“Sigh…”
“And if you’re not into it, then that’s the end of it, right? So why are you so worked up?”
“Tae-rim’s just not confident. I mean, come on—have you seen how good-looking he is?”
“Hyung!”
Even Lee Jae-hwa, who had been watching silently this whole time, decided to join in. Tae-rim looked like he was ready to die on the spot. Seriously though—how was he supposed to see that chick-like kid as a man?
And if Tae-rim didn’t fall for him? Well, Espers were the type to keep pushing until you did. Especially with a Matching Rate of 90%—unless a better Guide appeared, Seon Juho was going to stay laser-focused on Tae-rim.
Tae-rim suddenly burst into laughter. Just thinking of the word single-minded brought to mind a little chick sprinting straight ahead, and he couldn’t hold it in. Right on cue, Lee Jae-hwa and Yoon Ye-rin gave him sly little smiles and started teasing.
“If you’re laughing like that, then you don’t totally hate the idea.”
“Exactly. Guides are suckers for a pretty face. It’s fate.”
“Well… that’s true. But still, Juho’s way too young.”
“That’s how it gets you. It’s the cute ones you need to watch out for. They’re all sweet and clingy, calling you ‘Hyung’ all the time, and then bam!—they hit you with some unexpected masculinity and it’s over. You’re toast.”
“You really think that’s gonna happen…?”
Tae-rim answered skeptically, but Yoon Ye-rin shook her head with conviction. Yeah… letting your guard down really was the most dangerous thing.
Still, the idea of Seon Juho being “manly” was impossible to picture. What would that even look like? Him trying to act all serious, dropping a cool “Hyung”? Nope. Didn’t sound like “Hyung” at all—it just sounded like chirp.
“Anyway, you really lucked out getting assigned to District 1. My friend ended up in District 3, and she says it’s a complete warzone. There’s a reason they have twice as many S-rank Espers and Guides over there.”
“Is it really that intense?”
“Huh? Are you interested?”
“…Honestly? Yeah.”
“Ugh, are you seriously thinking of transferring there? Leaving this peaceful little haven?”
“Getting judged for something I don’t even remember… it just sucks. I figured it might be better to throw myself into work somewhere chaotic instead.”
“Hmmm…”
Lee Jae-hwa and Yoon Ye-rin stared at Tae-rim, dead serious. Ye-rin even rested her chin on her hand, analyzing him like he was a puzzle to solve.
“Nope. Not happening. No matter how I look at it, it’s just impossible.”
“Huh? Why?”
“District 1’s close to Central. That’s why it’s packed with S-rank Espers. I heard Esper Seon Juho’s pretty strong—stronger than Esper Kwon Hae-beom, even?”
“Dr. Han seemed to think so.”
“Then it’s definitely a no. Do you know how obsessed the old guys at the top are with their own safety? Rumor has it Kwon Hae-beom’s stuck here against his will.”
“Really…?”
“Yeah. Supposedly—this is ancient gossip—he tried to file a transfer request once because you kept bothering Guide Choi Jiwoon. Just a rumor, but apparently the higher-ups shot it down immediately. Kwon Hae-beom’s one of the top five Espers in the country. You think they’d let someone like that leave peaceful little District 1? Even with the Centers in Districts 3 and 4 screaming for help, they won’t budge. They’re dead set on keeping six S-ranks here. If anything, they’d reassign someone else before letting go of Seon Juho—especially since he volunteered to be here.”
“But aren’t there S-rank Espers stationed in Central? Why are they so fixated on District 1?”
“Nope. None. What, did you sleep through your Guide training? Central’s surrounded by the other districts, so only A-rank and lower Espers are allowed there. That’s why District 1 is so crucial—if it falls, Central goes with it.”
Now that she mentioned it, Tae-rim vaguely recalled hearing something like that. Honestly, the lectures had been painfully boring.
“They’re even capped on A-rank Espers—less than ten allowed, tops.”
“Exactly. That’s why they’re pulling rank and scrambling behind the scenes. Honestly, District 1 would probably be fine with just one S-rank Esper.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. The worst gates that have ever opened near District 1’s outer wall have only been A-rank. And even those are rare.”
Wait a second.
Something stirred in Tae-rim’s memory. There was a part in the novel where District 1 turned out to be not so safe after all. A sudden cluster of S-rank gates had opened one after another, and every S-rank Esper had to be deployed. Kwon Hae-beom ended up severely injured.
At the time, Choi Jiwoon had done everything he could to save him—even resorting to emergency insertion Guiding. But all he managed to do was barely calm the guy down before his rampage. The wounds couldn’t even be treated properly.
With no other choice, Jiwoon had to beg Tae-rim for help.
And Tae-rim? Of course he gloated. Told Jiwoon, “What did I say? Like someone like you couldn’t have done anything.” Then he confidently performed a kiss Guiding on Kwon Hae-beom—instantly stabilizing his condition and completely healing his injuries, all while driving a nail straight into Jiwoon’s heart.
Jiwoon had been devastated watching the person he loved kiss someone else—but even more than that, he was crushed by guilt. He hadn’t been able to save him. That’s where his emotional spiral began.
Anyway, back to the present.
“…Why do you look so serious all of a sudden?”
“Oh… it’s nothing. I was just wondering how one even applies for a transfer.”
“Even if a Guide showed up with a higher Matching Rate than you, they wouldn’t reassign Seon Juho. At most, they’d be A-rank, right? And with how few S-rank Guides there are, it’d be nearly impossible to reassign another one to District 1. You’ve got a 90% Match with Seon Juho. And even with Kwon Hae-beom, it’s 70%. There’s no way they’d let you go unless both Espers Imprinted with someone else.”
“Exactly. And Imprints are rare enough already. It’s not like the higher-ups are banking on that happening. I doubt they even want S-ranks Imprinting at all.”
But then… that’s exactly what happened. Ta-da~ Because, well, this was a novel.
In the end, Kwon Hae-beom and Choi Jiwoon do Imprint. That was the official ending. Tae-rim had transmigrated before the side stories were released, so he never got to read them, but he could guess. It’d probably be all fluff and romance—just the two of them constantly kissing, cuddling, and living in wedded bliss. Nothing dramatic.
Anyway, what really mattered now was figuring out when that dangerous gate was going to open. The problem? Most authors didn’t bother writing specific dates. This one had just said, “during the peak of summer.”
It was early July. Definitely the peak. Which meant… it was close.
But probably not today. That gate had opened after Kwon Hae-beom was already on site.
And almost like fate was mocking him—Kwon Hae-beom and Choi Jiwoon showed up the very next day, along with another S-rank Esper, Jeon Jun-pyo.
The timing made sense. The baton was being passed.
Seon Juho had been out in the field for nearly ten days now under the guise of training, but the higher-ups weren’t about to let S-rank Espers just lounge around. It was time to rotate out. Juho would go back, and the next team would take over.
But wait.
Hadn’t Kwon Hae-beom already been here before Seon Juho? Why was he back again? Was there a reason?
…No way. It couldn’t be. The gate wasn’t going to open now, was it?
Sure, if we’re sticking to cliché, this would be the perfect time. But… did it have to go by the book?
