Lee Tae-rim ended up sharing a meal with Seon Juho and witnessed something he’d only ever seen in comics—a mountain of meat being grilled right at the table. But that wasn’t unique to their table. It was the same everywhere. Seon Juho casually placed the meat onto the grill even before the side dishes had arrived. In this place, it was just a given: meat came out first.
“Don’t you think you’ve been eating more lately?”
Espers grilled meat like pros. Maybe it was inevitable—they had so much practice from constantly feeding themselves. Seon Juho was no exception. He was now piling the most perfectly grilled pieces of meat high on Tae-rim’s plate.
“I always feel hungrier after using that power.”
“Aww, poor Juho, working so hard on your training.”
“Hehe. If I let my guard down in the field, I might end up erasing the other Espers too, y’know.”
He said such terrifying words with such an innocent smile. Tae-rim could sense the Espers at nearby tables inching their chairs away in alarm.
That was why Seon Juho had initially tried to stick to just using telekinesis when fighting monsters. But the damn Center Director had ordered him to practice his Darkness ability. Probably just so he could show off to other district Centers. His intentions were so transparent, it made Tae-rim furious.
Ever since he lost his major achievement, the Center Director had clearly been feeling empty inside. It seemed like the only way he could fill that void was by provoking the other district directors. Honestly, it had been the perfect opportunity for him to become the Bureau Chief. Sure, from a moral standpoint, sending it to Central was the right call, but still, it had been a painful loss for the Center Director.
Tae-rim, who had seen more than enough career-obsessed bosses in his past life working in corporate, had thought at least he wouldn’t have to deal with that nonsense here… and yet. Anyway, the Center Director was a complete pain in the ass to him.
Tae-rim wrapped up a lettuce wrap and held it out to Seon Juho, who opened his mouth like a baby bird and eagerly took it. Tae-rim found him unbearably adorable.
Even after Tae-rim had put down his chopsticks with a full belly, Seon Juho kept eating for a long while. No exaggeration—he looked like he could devour an entire cow. And it wasn’t just him. The other Espers were the same.
Tae-rim glanced around at the other tables. Beef, pork—you name it, there were massive heaps of meat piled on every single one. Suddenly, a question popped into his head: Where the hell did all this meat come from every single day? It was a total mystery.
After the meal, they went out for dessert. Even at the café, the Espers’ eating spree continued. That line—“We’ll take everything from here to here, please”—was something everyone wanted to say at least once, and the Espers actually meant it when they said it.
Tae-rim looked at Seon Juho, who had bought a slice of every type of cake and was happily eating them all.
So cute. My little puppy is the best. Tae-rim felt utterly healed just watching him.
People around them were cringing at the sight, but Tae-rim didn’t notice a thing. Maybe it was because he only had eyes for Seon Juho. He really didn’t seem to realize. Even though everyone else thought the two were being ridiculously lovey-dovey, they also secretly envied them.
Damn it! I wanna date someone too!
If Jung Jae-heon had seen them, he probably would’ve burst into tears and run out. The two were practically the Center’s unofficial couple now—becoming a sort of infamous landmark in their own right.
As the master of brutal honesty once said, the only one who didn’t realize they were dating was Tae-rim himself. The two of them had been like this for ages. It was just that recently, Tae-rim had finally accepted his own feelings and things had gotten a bit more openly flirtatious. Still, they were just as insufferable as ever.
“You guided him again?”
“Yeah.”
“Didn’t that guy get assigned someone else? What gives?”
“I know, right.”
“Ugh, so annoying. Hyung is mine.”
The Espers nearby looked like they were about to lose their appetites from Seon Juho’s cutesy tone. For Espers—who rarely lost their appetite—to feel that way meant it was really getting on their nerves.
To top it off, Tae-rim actually called Seon Juho his “little puppy.” Every time the Espers heard that, they had to suppress a visible shudder. Little puppy? Not a demon king or a reaper, but… a puppy?
They desperately wanted to scream the truth at Tae-rim, but when he looked down at his phone to check a message, Seon Juho’s expression went completely blank. As he scanned the surroundings with a deadpan stare, the Espers instinctively held their breath.
Yeah. No matter how you looked at it, Tae-rim hadn’t picked up a puppy—he’d picked up the freakin’ Demon King. The Espers avoided him not because he was gross, but because he was terrifying. No one wanted to get stealth-killed by that newly awakened Darkness ability.
That power that had just manifested really did suit him perfectly. Jet-black Darkness poured from his hands, devouring everything in its path. He was the literal embodiment of a Demon King.
“Yo, Tae-rim.”
Just then, Kim Hye-min walked into the café. Even though Seon Juho was glaring at her with a look that could kill, she casually sat at their table without a care in the world.
“Jeez, you scary bastard. Quit glaring like that, your eyes are gonna split.”
“Ajumma, don’t you have anything better to do?”
“Kim Hye-min sunbae.”
“……S’nbae, don’t you have anything better to do?”
“Pffft! This is why I keep coming back to see you guys!”
“If you’re here, hurry up and stuff your face.”
“Tsk.”
“…Eat your food and get lost already.”
“Ahahahaha!”
Teasing Seon Juho was one of Kim Hye-min’s favorite pastimes. She only did it because she knew he wouldn’t dare lift a finger in front of Lee Tae-rim, but to the other Espers watching, it looked like she had a death wish.
“Aww, our little kitten. You only remember your manners when Tae-rim hyung’s around.”
“Juho…”
“……”
Seon Juho stubbornly clamped his mouth shut. Honestly, the Espers thought there had to be something off with Kim Hye-min too, calling him a little kitten.
“Juho, how many times do I have to tell you? That’s not okay.”
“But…”
“Uh-uh.”
“……”
Watching this play out, it was clear just how oblivious Tae-rim could be. Seon Juho talked back to his elders like it was nothing, and Tae-rim only lightly scolded him for it. Then again, considering Juho usually ignored people entirely, the fact that he even responded was… something?
“You call Esper Jung Jae-heon ‘sunbae,’ don’t you? So you should call the other Espers that too.”
Jung Jae-heon… sunbae—Juho always inserted a tiny pause between the words, but still, in front of Tae-rim, he made a point to call him sunbae. Not that Jung Jae-heon seemed to care what anyone called him.
“I’m sorry, Esper Kim Hye-min. He’s still young, so he doesn’t really know any better.”
“Pfft! R-right. Heheh… hic!”
Kim Hye-min burst into that laugh-crying noise of hers again. The surrounding Espers were completely dumbfounded. Young and clueless, my ass!
Everyone wanted to shout it in unison, but the moment Tae-rim’s gaze shifted, Seon Juho’s face went utterly blank, and all the Espers had to shut their mouths tight.
When Tae-rim looked at him, Juho really did seem like the adorable little puppy he claimed to be. But the second Tae-rim looked away, all expression drained from his face. That alone was enough to turn him into an entirely different person.
The Espers, once again, hopelessly wished for the impossible—that Tae-rim would finally catch on to Seon Juho’s real personality.
And so, another peaceful day passed at District 1’s Center.
***
Guide Lee Hae-il seemed like the kind of person who couldn’t rest unless he did his job thoroughly. So when Kwon Hae-beom came to receive Guiding from Lee Tae-rim again, Lee Hae-il, upon hearing the news, rushed over and got into an argument with him.
Lee Hae-il told Kwon Hae-beom to stop being so uncooperative, and Kwon Hae-beom shot back that who he got Guiding from was his own damn business.
And Tae-rim, stuck in the middle, had to endure the stifling awkwardness in the air.
Just as Tae-rim had predicted, Kwon Hae-beom kept coming back to him for Guiding. Even though Lee Hae-il had completed his Guide training and was fully capable of providing professional Guiding to other Espers, Hae-beom never once sought him out.
Lee Hae-il really was the model student—always number one in his class, and his personality was just as intense as his reputation. No matter how coldly Kwon Hae-beom glared down at him, Lee Hae-il never backed off.
The two of them were caught in a never-ending hamster wheel. Whenever Kwon Hae-beom came to Tae-rim for Guiding, a pissed-off Lee Hae-il would come storming in, demanding that Hae-beom cooperate so he could fulfill his responsibilities.
Then Kwon Hae-beom, with his usual icy face, would point out that he was doing just fine without him, thank you very much. In response, Lee Hae-il would remind him they had a formal exclusive contract. And Hae-beom, again, would flatly retort that he never agreed to any of that in the first place.
And on and on it went.
Maybe Lee Hae-il had a high tolerance for frustration, because even when Kwon Hae-beom acted like a passive-aggressive brat, he never raised his voice. Kwon Hae-beom, for his part, didn’t show much emotion to begin with, so he responded with his usual deadpan indifference.
But honestly, who cared about their personalities? Could they not, for once, consider the poor guy stuck in the middle? Tae-rim was starting to lose his patience with Kwon Hae-beom, who continued to be a total nuisance. Anyone could see he was being immature as hell.
“He came again today?”
“Yeah.”
“So that’s why you’re upset.”
“……”
As Tae-rim sat silently watching the drama on TV, lost in thought, Seon Juho snuggled up even closer.
“Want me to go say something to that guy?”
Yea lm sure u will only talk to him 🌚🌝