# Chapter 45
“I wonder who did it with Sunbae Jaeha…”
It was a chilling voice that didn’t match his bright appearance. When the researcher showed no reaction, Jiho spoke in a bright and kind voice as if nothing had happened.
“When will the examination be over? I have a lunch date with my girlfriend.”
“Ah, yes. It should be done before lunch, but since your levels were dangerous yesterday, we’d like you to stay at the center today.”
“Then will Sunbae Jaeha come to do guiding again?”
Jiho looked so cheerful that he didn’t show any creepiness at all. Since he had mentioned his lunch date with his girlfriend, it seemed like a simple question.
“That would need permission, I think.”
“Permission? Even though it’s Sunbae Jaeha doing it, permission is needed?”
Jiho’s words were reasonable, and his tone was kind, unlike an Esper who nearly died last night. So the researcher shared information that wasn’t confidential. The whole time, Jiho nodded lightly and smiled in agreement.
“So it’s not mandatory. Then there’s nothing to worry about.”
Jiho’s dimples made his bright smile even more noticeable.
It was such a dazzling smile that no one noticed a new feeling blooming in Jiho’s heart, which had never experienced obsession before.
* * *
Early morning.
Haeil and Jaeyoon came out of the guiding room, which was decorated with items that amplified mana stabilization effects, with different expressions.
Haeil’s face looked lighter, but Jaeyoon was frowning about the insufficient guiding.
“I feel much better when I sleep in the guiding room and wake up.”
Even using items here overnight was less than half as effective as real guiding. Jaeyoon was unsatisfied, but Haeil always admired that he could relieve his discomfort this way. Considering the fatigue Haeil had experienced for years, it was understandable.
‘If only the items were smaller, it would be good to wear them all the time.’
Since they needed to match with dungeon stones, they couldn’t be used outside.
The guiding room, created by combining his future knowledge with Daesung’s items, was inefficient but the only alternative until the existence of guides was revealed. He had planned to hide his brother and rely on him for a while, but his brother’s existence was already being shared within the research institute with Dojoon’s cooperation. It was impossible to silence one person, let alone stop it from spreading unofficially even if not publicly announced.
When the two came out, the guard/secretary who had been waiting quickly recited today’s schedule.
“Mr. Kwon Haeil, I’ve prepared reports for you to check in the car on your way to the demonstration site. The lunch request was declined due to gate participation, but the Association Chairman would like you to attend if possible.”
“I see. I will try to adjust my schedule.”
Unlike Haeil who nodded, Jaeyoon wasn’t fully alert.
The remnants of mana that hadn’t been properly relieved made Jaeyoon uncomfortable. His arm, which had changed color after using great power before, hadn’t returned to its original color. That’s why he wore a uniform and gloves even though the weather was getting warmer.
“Mr. Seo Jaeyoon, how about staying a bit longer?”
Unlike when they first met, since sharing the future and appearing in the media together, Haeil had been speaking formally to Jaeyoon. If it were Jaeha or someone else, they might have found it burdensome, but Jaeyoon accepted it naturally and continued the conversation.
“No, since my brother’s existence seems likely to be revealed faster than expected, there’s no time to rest.”
There wasn’t enough time to make the public perceive Espers positively. The plan to reveal the existence of guides when people were ready to accept Espers had been disrupted.
He had believed Dojoon would hide his brother due to an Esper’s obsession with guides. But Dojoon, who hadn’t experienced a lack of guiding, only clung to his brother without becoming obsessed. Without much resistance, he revealed his brother’s existence to the research institute at the researcher’s request.
‘Really, nothing goes as planned.’
The problem started with the Day of Great Change happening earlier than expected.
Things progressed quickly before preparations were complete. Due to his position being established later than expected, things didn’t go according to plan. He thought things would go well after making Haeil his ally, but even Haeil’s status would only rise several years later.
“I’ll check the reports. Mr. Seo Jaeyoon, please get some rest.”
“Haah… I’m tired.”
In the car, he didn’t even reach for the reports he usually read. Rubbing his stiff eyes and thinking about what needed to be done, he could only sigh.
From the beginning, all he wanted was to protect his brother, but his brother’s existence, which he tried to hide, kept surfacing. The good news was that since the research institute was on a different floor and researchers were closed off by nature, it probably hadn’t spread among Espers yet.
“Um… Mr. Seo Jaeyoon, I should tell you in advance that it’s already over, so moving now would be meaningless.”
“What? What do you mean…”
“Jaeha is safe. He walked back to his dormitory on his own and is resting now.”
When his brother was mentioned, Jaeyoon’s relaxed expression immediately hardened. The report Haeil was looking at was held in a direction where Jaeyoon couldn’t see it. Suppressing the urge to grab it, Jaeyoon also swallowed his emotions.
“Whatever is written there, I understand my brother is safe, so either show me or tell me. Before I flip everything over.”
Instead of speaking, Haeil handed over the report. The report given to him had important content marked for the busy executives.
[Kyun Jiho, B+ grade, <Stabilization by guiding>]
Behind the thicker-than-usual report was the research institute’s test results on guiding and a proposal to test all awakened individuals.
Even after quickly reviewing just those parts, Jaeyoon’s head was spinning. The person who would stand out even if he did nothing had gone to an Esper in danger of going berserk and revealed his abilities.
“What on earth are you doing, brother?”
The mana he had settled down overnight surged, making his energy rough. As the wave patterns became so rough that the guard driving had to struggle not to lose control of the steering wheel, Haeil shared all the information he knew.
“As you can see from the report, the Esper Jaeha saved is Kyun Jiho. Isn’t he someone you had in mind for protecting Jaeha?”
Haeil’s words, meant to calm him down, had their effect. Getting angry about something already over wouldn’t change anything.
The Esper his brother saved was Kyun Jiho, whom he had initially marked. It was strange that he had misused his power to the point of going berserk, but looking closely, the grade was higher than expected.
It seemed that as Espers began to be viewed positively by the public, they had assigned a higher grade to highlight Jiho’s appearance and his visible ability of spatial movement. Since it was a useful ability in everyday life, there was a long list of places he had been called to in a short period.
“He was even called to visit relatives of members of the National Assembly?”
When Jaeyoon was shocked at the traces of private use of the spatial movement ability, Haeil bowed his head.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Seo Jaeyoon. I should have paid attention.”
“No, both you and I were busy enough to die, so this is… the Association Chairman who’s gone crazy.”
Despite knowing what happens when Espers use their power outside of dungeons, the Chairman used Esper abilities for selfish interests. However, the rapid progression to isolation room due to risk of going berserk and area closure was due to a grade error. It was a case of greed leading to disaster.
“Haah… nothing is going smoothly.”
While focusing only on changing the future for his brother’s sake, things had gone terribly wrong. Kyun Jiho, who should have been carefully approached about his abilities, was being called here and there like a taxi, and Lee Youngwoo had disappeared after becoming a bomb murderer.
As for Lee Youngwoo, tracking confirmed the involvement of a villain organization as expected. However, the trail was cut off in the middle, and he disappeared. Jaeyoon could find him with his memories, but there were more urgent matters at hand.
Everything was going wrong and progressing quickly beyond his reach.
Moreover, even Cheonoh, whom he had expected to awaken soon, was disappointing him. Cheonoh, whom he had assigned as his brother’s guard expecting him to awaken after the Great Change, was still an ordinary person. But even as an ordinary person, not being able to stop his brother from going to a closed area was unacceptable. He should have at least reported it.
When Jaeyoon realized this, he quickly looked for his phone but remembered it had broken during yesterday’s demonstration. He was shocked that he only realized this now.
It was absurd that he had come back to protect his brother but was the last to know about his brother’s well-being.
“This is really driving me crazy.”
As Jaeyoon gritted his teeth in frustration, Haeil suggested first.
“Mr. Seo Jaeyoon, go see Jaeha today. I’ll take care of the afternoon schedule.”
It was a very tempting offer, but Jaeyoon knew this was the time to hurry.
“No, we need to release information about guides starting today. If the treatment of guides is decided while we hesitate, it will be a big problem.”
* * *
Before the day was over, Jaeyoon implemented his plan.
After demonstrating his abilities as requested by citizens and politicians who wanted continuous verification, he began announcing the existence of guides through arranged interviews.
The content mentioned by Jaeyoon and Haeil was simple.
“Espers need guides.”
“Esper powers are not unlimited. When using power outside of gates, it depletes more quickly and limitations occur. However, guides can remove these limitations.”
“Guides can see cracks. Espers feel comfortable when they are with guides. If you or someone around you might be a guide, please contact us.”
“Guides are affected by their emotional state during guiding. Efficiency increases with the level of intimacy with the guiding subject.”
The last statement was a lie that Jaeyoon had prepared from the beginning.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
