# Chapter 81
## 24. Things That Don’t Change
In the past, Haeil’s concerns would have been correct, but now Jaeyoon couldn’t give a clear answer.
He couldn’t talk about Joo Dojoon’s wrongdoings that were now gone, as they had little to do with the current situation. His brother simply couldn’t accept that someone else would be the first to guide another Esper officially in front of others.
A few days ago, he knew his hyung had guided him when he was about to go out of control. Of course, at that time, he was too preoccupied to care who was guiding him and just clung to the guiding he was receiving.
The sensation of terrible pain washing down from his head raised his consciousness that had sunk to the bottom. Even though he wasn’t fully aware, he recognized that the guiding pushing away the pain was coming through the lips touching him.
His body realized first that more contact would make him feel better. Willing to make contact first, he moved and felt a soft touch as guiding poured in. When he sensed the guiding was about to stop, he instinctively reached out and pulled it back to survive. He even remembered gently biting to prevent it from leaving.
If asked what that sensation was like, it was simply salvation. He was grateful and surprised that it led him back to life, but his mind wasn’t working enough for normal thoughts. Only his instinct told him not to let go of this feeling, to hold onto the other person with his whole body.
“Haa… this is really driving me crazy.”
All this time, Jaeyoon had wanted to keep several Espers by his hyung’s side who would treat him properly and protect him. But suddenly, things he had taken for granted became unbearable.
It was the possessiveness that Espers typically feel toward their guides. It was a desire that a younger brother shouldn’t have for his older brother.
Misunderstanding Jaeyoon’s reddened reaction, Haeil comforted him.
“Seo Jaeyoon, I know how much you care for Jaeha. I wish I had arrived sooner… You held up well.”
Haeil was wrong. The current Jaeyoon would have pushed Haeil aside and stood next to his hyung even if Haeil had arrived on time.
Seeing Jaeyoon unable to lift his head despite the comfort and encouragement, Haeil took a step back.
“I’ll go to the gate. Please rest, Seo Jaeyoon.”
“…I’ll rest a bit and then go.”
“Don’t push yourself. I’ll go ahead.”
After Haeil left the room, Jaeyoon, who had been leaning against the wall, slid down to a sitting position.
Until now, he had avoided his hyung’s guiding because of his aversion to it. The pain and sacrifice his hyung showed in the video kept coming to mind, making it impossible to receive guiding. The traumatic memory made him avoid contact with his hyung after awakening.
“What is this…?”
Before the regression, Jaeyoon had always received guiding from his hyung while unconscious. Because of this, he had vaguely assumed it would feel similar to receiving guiding from other guides. Relaxing the body and sometimes stimulating guiding brought convenient and easy pleasure.
Other guides also tended to become sluggish or cling to Espers while guiding. As guiding drained their strength and energy, they easily became disheveled and got swept up in the Esper’s desires, becoming attached.
He was anxious about demonstrating such behavior in front of others. Jaeha seemed unaware of these sensations, but the Esper side was nervous. Jaeyoon had prepared himself to hide any strange feelings that might arise, using his familiarity with enduring pain. But the actual experience of guiding with his hyung was different from what he expected.
“It’s completely different.”
His hyung was entirely different from other guides.
He buried his reddened face in his knees and tried to shake off the feeling, but when he closed his eyes, he vividly recalled the gentle guiding that rapidly seeped in from the palms that had touched him.
“Hyung really is different, isn’t he?”
He knew his hyung showed different reactions than typical guides, having observed this. Though sometimes he would fall asleep like he had fainted after excessive guiding, he never had a flushed, excited face or clung to Espers.
But even though his hyung performed guiding casually, Jaeyoon could see the possessiveness that Espers showed toward him, even when they tried to hide it. Especially Kyun Jiho, who had no self-restraint in his actions, openly displayed his desires by leaving his hyung’s neck in a terrible state.
He didn’t want to imagine himself being ruled by carnal desires. He didn’t want to torment his hyung. But the guiding he received from his hyung while fully conscious was completely different.
It was warm and gentle. The waves that flowed unhindered from his fingertips washed away the impurities in his body and embraced him. It was kind, like being reassured with a gentle caress. The strong sensation that seemed to promise not to leave him in pain alone was quick yet never lost its gentleness from beginning to end.
The guiding seemed to represent the person himself.
“This is just hyung. How can I give this up?”
Jaeyoon kept recalling the sensation that remained on his hand, not wanting to lose it.
He’d never known that guiding could be this warm. The guiding that contained the exact same kindness as his hyung Jaeha—who had always taken care of him and looked after him even while grumbling on the outside—was Jaeha himself, his only family for the past few years.
* * *
On an uninhabited island hidden by sea winds and fog, the villain hideout was bustling.
Everyone was excited about Lee Youngwoo’s shocking act of simultaneously opening undeveloped gates in the middle of downtown.
People who would normally be sprawled out, making excuses about building up strength at their own positions, were now gathered in small groups talking about this incident.
“Man, I knew from the start that this new guy was going to be big.”
“Didn’t you say he was arrogant last time?”
“Hey, I meant he was bold and cool! This guy just doesn’t get it.”
Even though Lee Youngwoo wasn’t present, people were careful about speaking ill of him, showing how significant this incident was.
Gates had opened in the city center, and monsters poured out. Citizens fell into chaos, and buildings collapsed. They even felt joy at the appearance of giant monsters that couldn’t be stopped by missiles fired from fighter jets filling the sky.
While some expressed concerns about Youngwoo’s abilities and boldness, most found it satisfying.
Even those who usually only complained about the Esper Association members’ activities now sat in front of the TV praising Youngwoo and getting excited about the elevated status of Espers. Especially the scene where a huge golden turtle appeared as the last gate opened was being replayed several times a day. Along with it, footage of Jaeyoon using abilities while wearing items was also broadcast.
“What kind of item is that to be so powerful? Wasn’t he B-rank?”
“Yeah, he was. I don’t like how they act so clean, but everyone needs to know how strong Espers are.”
“Wow, that Golden Turtle or whatever it is still looks scary no matter how many times I see it. I can’t believe someone with that ability joined our organization.”
“Can’t you tell from how he opened gates in the center of Seoul? He’s one of us. That crazy bastard.”
While the Esper Association was in chaos due to the gate manifestation in the city center, there were some gains as well.
Unconscious A-rank Esper Yumaro and three guides who were with him for guiding. Especially kidnapping the guides was very useful.
Usually, villains received help from their organization’s mother-like mental plane Esper when they were about to go on a rampage. Unlike guiding, it was through mental stability to calm mana waves, so it wasn’t very efficient and required long rest periods. But the situation changed when they forced guiding through the kidnapped guides.
Espers who always had to conserve their power now had power overflowing, and as previously postponed plans became feasible, some were already celebrating in advance. In reality, this recovery was possible because of the mediocre mana, but the arrogance of these inexperienced people who had never actually faced Association Espers reached the sky.
“Ah, I want to get guiding. I wonder when my turn will come around.”
“Use your common sense and go when no one’s around. Some guys finish quickly.”
“Well, it’s not like we’re going to return these hostages anyway, so we can use them roughly.”
The suffering of the exploited guides meant nothing to them. If Jaeyoon hadn’t worked hard, similar things would have happened at the Esper Association too.
Lee Youngwoo’s face frowned upon hearing this vulgar conversation. Those who were happily chatting among themselves spotted him passing by and greeted him cheerfully.
“Oh, Youngwoo! Life’s been good thanks to you.”
“Are you going to see sleeping beauty again today?”
“Take it easy. Get some guiding while you’re at it.”
Youngwoo didn’t even look back at the calls from people whose names he couldn’t remember. His mood was poor because he had lost Jaeha, whom he wanted to capture most.
Despite the trouble, he had contacted guards in advance and even tampered with the communication control device to find the lodging where Jaeha was staying, but it was empty.
Thinking they might have taken Jaeha to the dangerous gate site, he moved quickly, but the portal he had set up in the city was closed after Woo Yanghee, a portal ability user, scattered fake dummy bombs. Having acted according to the pre-arranged plan, he couldn’t do anything about it despite his disappointment.
Since he couldn’t take Jaeha, he looked for other opportunities and spotted familiar faces. Following Jaeha’s friend and a somewhat familiar curly-haired person, he discovered an unconscious Esper and a guide with a pleasant wave.
The isolation room only contained the guide and the unconscious Esper, so even light threats worked. It was an easy kidnapping, with enough time to set up the portal that normally took time.
The disappointing part was that because of his widespread activities, mana wave measuring devices capable of detecting undeveloped gates and portals were installed everywhere. Though it was still limited in rural areas, what Youngwoo wanted was Jaeha. He had no interest in other regions.
The only thing that interested him was the sleeping Yumaro. No matter how much pain he inflicted or antidotes he gave, Yumaro wouldn’t wake up. His body was functioning, but he simply wouldn’t open his eyes.
“What’s keeping you asleep?”
As soon as he brought him in, he used his x-ray vision and penetration ability to check directly, but couldn’t find anything besides gastric juices. Afterward, he took some blood and flesh samples for various tests, but again, nothing special came up.
Whatever was used, it would be hard to find after several days. Youngwoo’s interest now turned to the chaotic mana flow that looked tangled.
“It’s amazing you haven’t exploded yet despite being in this state. I wonder if it’s related to your sleep?”
While speaking to the unresponsive Yumaro, Youngwoo rolled up his sleeve.
“I wonder if tracing the mana flow directly will tell me something…”
Today again, Youngwoo observed and experimented on Yumaro using his x-ray vision and penetration abilities to alleviate the boredom of Jaeha’s absence.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
