Nabin’s eyes flew wide at the sound of his mother’s voice. Even back when his father was alive, she had been too shy to express affection. Hearing her say “I love you” was so rare that he was lucky to hear it once a year.
And even then, it only happened because his father had urged, coaxed, and practically begged her into saying it.
With her ears burning red, she had held young Nabin in her arms and confessed in a stiff, awkward voice that she loved him. That moment had stayed etched in his memory.
The only reason he had endured such a thorn-strewn life was because he wanted to hear that shy confession one more time. Emotion welled up from deep within his chest, twisting his lips as he fought to hold it back.
When she finished those words of love, it was as though her strength had given out. She closed her eyes weakly, and Nabin clutched her frail hand in panic.
The monitor showed a steady heartbeat. Her even breathing told him she had only drifted back into deep sleep. Relieved, Nabin tried to calm his racing heart.
“…I love you too, Mom.”
Tears slipped down onto their joined hands as he whispered. She was already unconscious, yet in that moment, the fingers wrapped in his gave a faint, almost imperceptible twitch.
It felt like an answer. And because of that, Nabin couldn’t stop crying.
“You’ll be staying at the mansion from now on. Guide Kim Nabin, you can visit her whenever you want.”
“Th… thank you…”
Unable to contain his emotion, Nabin bowed low at Lee Hayan’s feet. The gesture was so reverent it looked like a slave kneeling to his master. Startled, Hayan knelt down with him and gently patted his trembling back.
Nabin’s swollen eyes streamed endlessly, grief pouring out of him as if his whole body were made of tears.
“H-how… hic… how could I ever repay this grace…”
In his previous life, it had been the Artifact Hayan gave him that kept him alive for years. Without it, his mind would have collapsed long ago—he would have gone mad. Only through that gift had he managed to cling to his sanity.
And now, in this new life, Hayan was unchanged. Though they had only met twice, he treated Nabin like someone precious he had known for years—offering his home, arranging care for his mother.
The medical equipment in the room was high-grade, the kind Nabin could never have hoped to acquire. Though he had now been evaluated not as D-rank but as an Immeasurable Guide, he still had no idea what that rank meant.
From the Center Director’s words and attitude, he could only guess his treatment would be better than before.
But Hayan’s kindness wasn’t because of any rank. Unlike those who had exploited him, Hayan didn’t care what ability Nabin had. His kindness wasn’t directed at Nabin’s power, but at Nabin himself.
Even when he’d had nothing, Hayan had given him precious things. And now, he wasn’t demanding Guiding either. A kindness with no strings attached—no matter how often Nabin experienced it, it still felt foreign.
“Just stay with me. That’s enough.”
Hayan didn’t realize what those words meant to Nabin. All he worried about were Nabin’s knees pressed against the hard floor.
He raised the hand that had been patting Nabin’s back and brushed through his hair, coaxing him to lift his head. Perhaps that gentle touch reached him—Nabin slowly raised his gaze and met Hayan’s eyes.
Nabin’s skin was flushed red, still damp from the tears he had shed upon entering the room. With soft fingers, Hayan wiped away the wetness lingering at Nabin’s eyes, careful not to startle him.
“A caretaker will be arriving soon to help your mother. Once they come, greet them, then come out with me. Will you do that?”
How could Nabin refuse? Hayan wasn’t trying to harm him. Anyone could see the offer was for his sake.
“I’ll have the pendant repaired too. Even if its protective ability is gone, the broken edge can be restored. Or I can have it remade into a necklace. You’re the owner, Guide Kim Nabin, so decide however you like.”
The pendant rested inside Nabin’s jumper. He was still dressed the same as when Kim Minsu had dragged him to the Center.
Every action Hayan took toward Nabin was cautious, deliberate. Remembering how Nabin had reacted to Ryu Soh-an, he knew the boy recoiled violently from touch.
Though his clothes looked uncomfortable, Hayan hadn’t dared to change him, afraid it would send him into a panic upon waking. And the mansion had nothing in his size. With their stark difference in build, Hayan’s clothes would have swallowed him whole.
At Hayan’s words, Nabin pulled out the pendant, fingering it carefully. Wrapped in a handkerchief, it spared his hands from the sharp edges.
Still, Hayan kept his eyes on Nabin’s thin fingers, worried he might cut himself. He would need the pendant anyway if he was to send it for repair. With care, he voiced his request.
“Could you entrust the pendant to me for a little while?”
Though it had once been his, Hayan now believed Nabin was its true owner. Watching him stroke it with such tenderness made even asking to hold it feel intrusive.
“H-here…”
Nabin’s hand trembled faintly as he passed it over, reluctant to part with something he had always kept close. Seeing that, Hayan quickly thought of the fastest way to have the Artifact reforged. He would need to leave it for repair while they were out today.
“While we’re out, let’s pick some furniture for the mansion—and buy you some clothes, Guide Kim Nabin.”
“I-I don’t have money…”
Nabin wasn’t used to receiving from others. Kim Minsu had always demanded something greater in return. The S-rank Espers had only provided necessities like Healing Potions because they needed his Guiding.
He didn’t want to keep burdening Hayan, yet he kept receiving. Now that his Guiding had manifested, he could work—but the thought of doing it for those people again made his skin crawl.
It was like hundreds of insects gnawing at his brain.
The switch flipped suddenly. His mind spun out of control. Even as reason whispered not in this life, the memories surged back, and in an instant, they consumed him.
Where he was, who he was with—it all blurred. All he saw were hands reaching for him. He clamped his ears shut and curled up, trembling.
At least this time, unlike before, he managed to voice his refusal.
“I-I can’t…”
“Guide Kim Nabin?”
Hayan realized immediately that something he had said had triggered him. Seeing his dilated pupils, his body shaking so hard it convulsed—anyone would have noticed.
What had he endured, to break down like this over ordinary words? Rage boiled up inside Hayan, hot enough to turn his vision red. He wanted to hunt down every last one of those men who had done this to Nabin and pay them back tenfold.
But he forced it down and spoke gently.
“It’s all right. From now on, you’ll never have to do anything you don’t want to. I’ll make sure of it.”
Even so, once Nabin slipped into panic, it was nearly impossible for him to come back. He curled in on himself tighter, muttering broken words now, barely intelligible.
His desperation was like someone begging to erase their existence from the world. Hayan clenched his jaw.
“No, no more… I don’t want to… I can’t… I was wrong… Please, don’t kill me…”
Hayan struggled to think of how to calm him. Maybe if his mother woke again, Nabin would settle—but unlike before, she lay completely still. That hope was gone.
If he touched him now, he might only push him away. At last, Hayan resolved: he would wrap Nabin in a blanket and hold him close.
