Come to think of it, that did happen. That was what started it all.
‘It’s impressive that you’d think to receive an apology for something so trivial.’
I know my actions were rude to the other person. But considering that person was Joo Seolhyeon, it could be seen as quite gentlemanly behavior.
“We’ll talk about that in the evening.”
I didn’t feel the need to correct his misunderstanding, so I just said that and walked past him into the room. I suddenly realized how much I’d changed from a month ago. To think there would come a day when I could be this firm with Joo Seolhyeon, cutting him off like slicing through radish.
‘But it doesn’t feel as satisfying as I thought it would.’
I sat down on the sofa by the window, practically lying on it.
Why don’t I feel relieved? My feelings are sorted out, and our only connection—the temporary Guide contract—will be terminated, allowing us to part ways forever.
‘Is it because Joo Seolhyeon doesn’t hate me? No, he does hate me. But not as much as before…’
Once I recognized what “before” meant, I could immediately find the reason.
‘The current Joo Seolhyeon isn’t the one from after the regression.’
The person I’m dealing with now is the 24-year-old Joo Seolhyeon, not the 29-year-old one.
The 24-year-old might find me disagreeable, but he doesn’t hate me yet. He hasn’t hurled all sorts of verbal abuse and violence at me. And most importantly, he hasn’t driven me to my death with malicious intent.
‘Of course, his personality is still garbage. But I can’t hold him responsible for things that haven’t happened yet, so naturally I can’t feel satisfied.’
It occurred to me that my actions up until now might not make sense from the current Joo Seolhyeon’s perspective.
But that’s all. His essence hasn’t changed, and I shouldn’t keep him by my side.
‘Getting rid of Joo Seolhyeon doesn’t guarantee happiness, but it might bring me closer to it.’
After sorting out even the slightest feelings I had for Joo Seolhyeon, my heavy head felt much lighter.
I was even a bit excited thinking about successfully completing the examination and cutting off this persistent bad relationship with Joo Seolhyeon.
However, just when I thought everything was going smoothly, a problem arose from a completely unexpected place.
[Jo Hail]
While eating dinner at home after the examination, I received a call from Jo Hail. There were only two reasons he would contact me: either about the matching rate I had requested or about terminating the temporary Guide contract.
Neither topic was appropriate to discuss in front of the Guides, so I excused myself and got up from my seat.
“Hello.”
—Hello, Mr. Woo Jeongjae. Could I speak with you for a moment?
“Is it urgent? I’m in the middle of dinner.”
—Then I’ll keep it brief.
It was unexpected that he didn’t offer to call back later when I mentioned I was eating. Thinking it must be urgent, I agreed, and after Jo Hail quickly thanked me, he got straight to the point.
—To get right to the conclusion, the matching rates for three out of your four temporary Guides have changed.
I had only intended to check the matching rates, but I didn’t expect all of them to change like this.
‘The one that didn’t change must be Joo Seolhyeon?’
I received Guiding every day for a month but not from Joo Seolhyeon. Since matching rates change when Guiding an Esper, it was reasonable to assume Joo Seolhyeon wasn’t affected.
“How much did they change? Did they decrease?”
This was what worried me most. The matching rates weren’t that high at the time of the contract, and it would be problematic if they decreased further. Now that we know each other and have developed feelings, it would be difficult to change Guides because of matching rates.
—No. All the matching rates have increased. One Guide’s rate even increased by 30%.
“Can they increase that much?”
—Since emotional exchange with an Esper significantly affects matching rates, it’s certainly possible. Of course, it’s unusual for temporary Guides to experience this.
So I wasn’t the only one who opened my heart during this month.
While the increasing matching rates was definitely good news, what made me happier was the fact that I had become significant enough to influence their matching rates.
—To return to the main point, temporary Guides are assigned on the premise of low matching rates. But now, all four Guides have matching rates high enough to serve as dedicated Guides without any issues. Honestly, I’m not sure if I should be telling you this, but since you requested contract termination papers, it might be better to terminate all temporary Guide contracts and form a dedicated Guide contract with just one of them…
I was perfectly content with my current living situation, but when I asked Jo Hail to prepare contract termination papers, he probably thought there was a problem between me and the Guides. Since I had no intention of getting a dedicated Guide immediately, I spoke up before he could continue.
“I appreciate your concern, but I’m not considering a dedicated Guide at the moment.”
—I see. There’s one more concern I’d like to mention, if I may?
“Yes, that’s fine.”
Jo Hail immediately accepted my firm answer. But he had his reasons.
—Higher matching rates mean maximized Guiding efficiency. You receive Guiding as usual, but the increased efficiency can unintentionally lead to excessive Guiding. Both the Esper and Guide find it difficult to recognize this situation. If this continues, the Esper develops a Guiding addiction—that is, increased dependency on Guiding. This can lead to unconsciously imprinting on a Guide.
“Imprinting can’t happen that easily.”
—That’s why I mentioned it—unconsciously.
Imprinting is generally known as an action performed by Espers on Guides, but there aren’t many actual cases. This is because there’s no clear understanding of how imprinting works. Nevertheless, looking at the few existing cases, all involved matching rates that rose above 90%. However, when these Guides worked with Espers other than the ones they imprinted on, their matching rates fell below 10%. Besides matching rates, other supernatural phenomena occurred, such as reading the other’s emotions or sharing memories, but these varied from person to person, making the criteria ambiguous.
—While contracts with civil servants come with certification, as you know, I also have a duty to protect Guides, who are relatively vulnerable. Since I facilitated these contracts, I feel responsible for the temporary Guides. So, while it might not be my place, please consider my advice.
For a country, securing as many Espers as possible is advantageous, given that dungeons can appear anywhere, anytime. However, international law prevents deploying Espers without Guides, necessitating active Guide contracting, which sometimes favors Espers in contract terms.
Civil servants were brought in to protect Guides from the abuses of some Espers who exploited these terms. Typically, they certify contracts and sometimes help Guides voice their concerns during contract negotiations.
‘So basically, if I imprint on the temporary Guides, they won’t be able to Guide other Espers, so I should settle with one person before causing such trouble?’
If I’m not going to take responsibility for temporary Guides for life, they need to contract with other Espers. If I happen to imprint on them, their matching rates with others would drop to 10%, making them unable to present themselves as Guides elsewhere. For those who make their living as Guides, this would mean losing their livelihood because of me.
‘This isn’t something to take lightly.’
After hearing Jo Hail’s explanation, I seriously considered getting a dedicated Guide. I’m willing to take full responsibility if I unknowingly imprint on them, but the imprinted parties might feel differently.
“I think I should discuss this with the Guides too. Thank you for letting me know.”
Noticing my softened response compared to earlier, Jo Hail seemed somewhat relieved. He said he was even more grateful and asked me to contact him anytime regarding contract matters before ending the call.
As soon as I finished the call and sat back down to resume eating, everyone’s phones rang simultaneously.
“Looks like the results are out.”
The ability re-examination results, which are sent out collectively at 7 PM, had arrived. No one seemed particularly curious as they didn’t check their phones, and I felt awkward looking at examination results with matching rates in front of them, so I just kept eating silently.
“Thank you for the meal.”
Although I should have been the last to finish since I disappeared in the middle, I couldn’t wait any longer because I was so curious about the matching rates. After finishing my meal the fastest, I practically ran to my room on the second floor. They probably thought my behavior was strange, but I decided to check the matching rates first and worry about that later.
Below the familiar annual examination results table, the matching rates were added separately for this time only.
Yang Garam (S)—68%
Joo Seolhyeon (S)—65%
Do Wonjin (A)—70%
Jeong Seyeon (B)—74%
Looking at the names, grades, and matching rates of the four temporary Guides, I tilted my head in confusion.
‘He said only three had changes, so why are all four different?’
As I was about to call Jo Hail again and opened my call history, a scene flashed through my mind.
‘What’s the matching rate?’
‘65%.’
‘Change it to 85%.’
The matching rate that the Center Director had manipulated, and the one person who supposedly didn’t change—there was one person who fit perfectly into all these pieces.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
