“Then what am I supposed to do? I’m the only high-rank available for the mission.”
The person talking to Leo collapsed into his arms, voice thick with tears. The two embraced like characters in a melodramatic soap opera, whispering absurd things like “Let’s just run away.”
Kwon Ho-eun stayed hidden behind a tree, waiting for their weeping to subside. But it didn’t look like it would end anytime soon. The time was already 1:55 a.m. The other person finally stirred and tried to wriggle out of Leo’s arms, saying they had to go.
Ho-eun, as if he couldn’t wait any longer, stepped out of the darkness and approached the pair.
“Excuse me… Sorry, but we’re really short on time.”
Startled by his sudden appearance, both of them yelped. As the clouds moved away from the moon, the shapes cloaked in darkness gradually came into view under the moonlight. When Ho-eun’s face became visible, Leo muttered, “Do In-ho’s guide…?”
Ho-eun had planned to throw a fit at the lab—channeling the spirit of a bratty five-year-old from My Kid Has Changed—rolling around on the floor if he had to, just to get included in the mission. But thanks to this melodramatic scene in front of him, the channel was changing.
“Would it be okay if I took your place on the mission as Leo’s guide?”
“What kind of nonsense is that?!”
Leo’s guide scowled, but Leo’s expression was different. He looked conflicted. Glancing at the combat suit in his guide’s hands, Leo murmured,
“All the guides wear this during missions, right?”
“What? Oh… yeah.”
The black combat suit, reminiscent of special forces gear, was designed to withstand ability-based attacks. With the addition of a helmet, Leo figured there was a good chance Ho-eun wouldn’t be recognized.
Ignoring his guide’s hesitant objections, Leo snatched the suit from him and handed it to Ho-eun.
“I’ll repay you for this. Seriously… thank you, from the bottom of my heart.”
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”
“Please! Don’t be selfish! Think of the baby, too, sweetheart…”
“…Hrk.”
At Leo’s last words, the guide finally burst into tears again, clutching her stomach.
Ho-eun ducked back behind the tree to change clothes, using their sobs as cover.
He always thought only Espers would want a guide.
Guides were meant to assist Espers—to be their heroes. That’s why he understood the power dynamics. But those two… they were just human. Equals in every way. A couple deeply in love. A family.
After putting on the suit, Ho-eun donned the helmet and stood before them. Both of their eyes were red with tears as they thanked him. Leo’s guide handed him a pill.
“Take this. It’s for the mission. It’ll alter your guiding frequency so they probably won’t be able to identify you through your guiding.”
Ho-eun opened the front of his helmet, swallowed the pill, then sealed it shut.
“When you get there, you’ll receive an Ability Tool. I submitted mine—it’s an umbrella. It should be able to extinguish Do In-ho’s flames.”
At Leo’s words, Ho-eun gave a heavy nod under the helmet. He gave them a quick bow and, squeezing his feet into the ill-fitting combat boots, trudged toward the lab.
Nine people in combat gear were already lined up. Though everyone wore the exact same outfit from head to toe, Ho-eun casually slipped in beside someone. The man next to him turned his head at the familiar presence.
Didn’t he say it’d be hard to identify me through guiding?
That gaze made Ho-eun’s heart skip. Pressing down on the helmet, he reached out and made a fist in front of the man.
“Fighting.”
He whispered it just under his breath, barely audible, while taking position. The man hesitated, then turned back to face forward. Ho-eun smirked under the helmet.
The combat shirt looked ready to burst at the chest, the pants rode high enough to show his ankles, and the boots only fit because he kept his toes curled. Dressed in someone else’s clothes, he looked utterly ridiculous.
Hosoo frowned as soon as he saw the man who was obviously Ho-eun. His expression screamed disbelief—but a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
He’s even throwing up a fighting pose like he owns the place.
Walking up behind him, Hosoo handed Ho-eun a shopping bag.
“Go change.”
Ho-eun glanced at the bag, then at Hosoo. With a slight nod, he took the clothes and went to change, returning moments later.
He looked far better now.
Standing at the front, Hosoo handed out code names for the mission.
“S1, A1, A2, B1, B2, B3, C1, C2, C3, C4. From now on, address each other by these designations. The mission objective is hostage rescue. We won’t use abilities unless absolutely necessary, but if needed, they’re authorized.”
Everyone re-formed lines based on their assigned letters. Ho-eun was A2. Do In-ho was C4. They were each handed their Ability Tools in order.
Ho-eun received a black long umbrella, the typical kind. It was stored in a cloth sleeve with a shoulder strap. Relieved to get Leo’s Ability Product, he was suddenly reminded of the umbrella he never returned to Do In-ho.
“We’ll split into three teams. Team A will negotiate with Tiger. Teams B and C will handle hostage rescue. If the anti-government faction requests guiding, Team C will take the lead.”
—Team A: S1 (Guide), C4 (Esper)
—Team B: A1 (Guide), C1, C2, C3 (Espers)
—Team C: A2, B1, B2, B3 (Guides)
They boarded a large van provided by the Esper Corporation. While Hosoo explained the strategy using a digital operations board, no one asked any questions. The bus was saturated with tense silence.
“Some of you guides were assigned this mission even though you’re not normally deployed on-site. Some of you are probably pissed. But just remember—being this prepared for a field op is a rare luxury.”
With that, Hosoo exited the bus. As soon as he stepped out, S1 swore.
“Fuck. Is this a joke? This is basically a suicide mission.”
Soon, voices of agreement and muffled sobs filled the air—every single one coming from the guides. The C-grade Espers, by contrast, sat quietly. Probably used to field work.
As Ho-eun looked around, thinking the bus might get swallowed by despair, the man beside him—C1—spoke up.
“You holding up okay?”
“Huh? Oh… yeah.”
“Right. When I looked at the profiles, except for A2, the rest of the guides are all first-timers. Based on experience, A2 should’ve been made S1. Not sure if he’s up for it…”
“Oh… I see.”
“You sound a little sick. Got a cold?”
“Ahem. Just a scratchy throat—it’s early morning~”
Ho-eun raised his voice a pitch, belatedly remembering to disguise it. No one here knew A2 was actually Kwon Ho-eun. He was just filling in for Leo’s guide.
Wait—aside from me, all the other guides are newbies?
Do they normally throw rookies into missions this dangerous?
As Ho-eun got lost in thought, the bus suddenly jolted and the scenery outside the window changed with a loud thud.
The driver must have been an Esper—the bus now glided smoothly along a road with the Han River in sight, heading from the Incheon branch.
Tall buildings passed by the window, and Ho-eun’s lips went dry. Do In-ho was on Team A, the negotiation team. Only S1 had been briefed on the full details.
Though the mission’s top priority was supposedly hostage rescue, the real keyword likely lay in concluding the negotiations safely.
Ho-eun glanced down at the leather briefcase holding the contract. S1 wouldn’t shut up, but he was cradling that briefcase like his life depended on it—probably because he knew it did.
Before long, the bus stopped in front of a building labeled 63 Square. Ten armed employees filed out in a line. The eerie quiet of dawn in Seoul felt especially heavy today. After testing their radios and earpieces, the team finally approached the open front door.
The dark interior lit up one section at a time, as if welcoming them. Thanks to their black helmets, the sudden brightness wasn’t blinding.
All ten moved cautiously, scanning the area as they headed toward the elevator. Under normal circumstances, they’d have taken the stairs, but expecting the guides to climb 60 floors was unreasonable.
—Two Espers detected on the 60th floor. Three on the 59th. Hostages confirmed on the 59th.
“Team A to the 60th. Teams B and C to the 59th.”
Taking orders from the control room, C1 gave a quick command.
They got into the elevator and pressed the button for the 55th floor. Since they might run into Tiger if they went directly to their assigned floors, the plan was to exit early and use the emergency stairs.
The elevator buttons were pressed from 50 through 59, one by one. Everyone fell silent, lost in thought.
Ho-eun’s fingers trembled slightly. He knew better than anyone—he was the least prepared person here. The worry about Do In-ho and the fear that he’d mess this up made it impossible to think straight. Taking slow, deep breaths, he muttered,
“Focus. Pull it together, Kwon Ho-eun.”
Clenching both fists, he pictured all of them walking out of this alive and in one piece.
Ding. 55th floor. The doors opened, and the group moved out as silently as possible. When C1 opened the emergency exit and motioned them in, C2 and C3 covered the rear until everyone was inside.
Ho-eun stuck to the middle as they climbed the stairs quickly, constantly on edge, straining to hear if there were any footsteps other than their own.
At the 59th floor, S1 and C4 stopped and faced the group.
“Radio in as soon as the contract’s signed.”
C1 patted S1’s shoulder and sent Team A up the stairs while the remaining eight caught their breath.
On C1’s signal, the door burst open. Under cover from B Team’s Espers, they stormed into the 59th floor.
Inside what looked like a restaurant, hostages were tied up in a group. At first glance, they seemed calmly obedient, but on closer inspection, something was wrong. Their expressions were blank, like they were hollowed out. No light in their eyes, skin pale and drained.
“Mmph. It’s broadcast guiding!”
A silver door—probably the kitchen—swung open, and a child’s voice rang out. The smallest person in the video footage. A Tiger member, skipping in with excited, rhythmic steps, still wearing that creepy traditional mask.
Suddenly, the child thrust a hand forward, making B1 instinctively step back.
“Come play with me!”
What he first thought was just a short adult turned out to be a child, both in tone and behavior. Before anyone realized, the kid had already grabbed B1’s hand and started pulling him toward a cafe table with a large sofa.
B1 glanced back, probably waiting for a signal from C1. But the Tiger member acted faster than C1 could respond.
“I SAID COME PLAY WITH ME!! WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?!”
The kid yanked B1’s hand with surprising force—clearly an Esper despite his childlike appearance. B1 staggered under the pressure, bending his knees and tightening his core for balance. But the movement knocked off his helmet.
And as if he’d been waiting for that moment, the kid ripped off his traditional mask.
The moment his brown eyes turned purple, someone shouted—
“PUT YOUR HELMET ON—NOW!!”
