Then I’ll be going now.
Yoo Ji-ho took that as a polite way of saying, I’ll stop being a nuisance and get the hell out of here.
But Baek Hye-seong had simply laid back down on the living room floor—and fallen asleep.
“Hey.”
The word slipped out before he realized. It looked like the Guide had gone back to sleep. Ji-ho’s eyes twitched violently.
What the fuck. What the hell is this? Why is he sleeping again?
Eyes wide with disbelief, Ji-ho couldn’t take it anymore and, instead of using his hand, tapped Hye-seong’s cheek with the empty glass.
He kept his mouth shut, just in case something worse came flying out of it.
But Hye-seong didn’t open his eyes. On the contrary, he seemed to enjoy the chill of the glass, lightly rubbing his cheek against it.
That was it.
Ji-ho slammed the cup down on the floor and grabbed Hye-seong by the collar, yanking him upright.
“Ugh…”
Jolted into a sitting position, Hye-seong squinted in the sunlight suddenly hitting his face, as if it was too bright to handle.
Ji-ho shook him gently, saying everything with his eyes.
Get out. Get up and get out, now.
But Hye-seong’s eyes barely cracked open—then promptly shut again.
Ji-ho scowled and stopped shaking him. The living room fell into a strange tension, a mock peace where only Ji-ho felt on edge.
Even when he was being shaken, Hye-seong didn’t resist. He just swayed limply like a sheet of paper. And now, with the motion stopped, his head lolled forward as he dozed off again.
Like a kid doped up on cold medicine. Or a sick baby chick.
“……”
“……”
Ji-ho stared in surprise, loosening the grip on Hye-seong’s collar. The moment he did, Hye-seong’s body drooped and crumpled to the floor like paper.
His closed eyes didn’t even twitch.
“…What the hell?”
It slipped out, too stunned to hold back. Ji-ho quickly covered his mouth with a clenched fist.
Something was definitely wrong with the Guide’s condition.
***
Ji-ho’s usually quiet, secluded villa had an unusual influx of people that day.
An inspector was in his bedroom, meticulously checking Hye-seong’s pupils, while Dr. Na Hye-yoon, who had accompanied him, quickly gave his diagnosis.
“Overguiding side effect.”
“Yeah, looks that way.”
The inspector nodded, agreeing with his assessment. Dr. Na glanced over at Ji-ho.
As expected, Ji-ho was leaning against the doorframe, glaring at them with visible irritation. The perfect image of an S-rank Esper—if you ignored his attitude.
“……”
His eyes practically said, And? So what is it? When’s this all gonna be over? Dr. Na frowned slightly in thought.
He hadn’t expected to see Ji-ho back on his feet so quickly after how wrecked he’d looked yesterday. Shaking his head, he turned to the bed where Hye-seong was now resting.
Yoo Ji-ho had no way of knowing the kinds of issues a Guide could suffer. He’d never been the type to involve himself in Guiding matters. But even so…
Whatever was going on, Dr. Na had come here to personally assess Ji-ho’s condition.
“How are you feeling? Honestly, even without the data, you look great.”
“……”
“Feels like you’re back to normal, right? Must’ve had a good Guide this time.”
Ji-ho, towering over him, narrowed his eyes.
“…What did you say?”
“Strange, huh? Beginner’s passion? Freshman guts, maybe?”
Ji-ho turned to look at Hye-seong, speechless.
What the hell did he do to me?
Granted, he felt lighter. Twelve hours ago, he thought he was going to die. But now he could go about his day as if nothing happened. No—he felt even better than usual.
He’d chalked it up to rest and the barrage of drugs he’d been pumped with yesterday.
The mental fog he’d woken up with was clearly from the meds. Now that it had finally cleared, he was starting to piece last night together. And what Baek Hye-seong had done…
“So you’re saying… this is my fault? That he’s like this because of me?”
“Yeah.”
Na Hye-yoon’s reply was flat and unbothered.
Overguiding could happen when a Guide pumped out energy for too long on their own—but it happened even more when an Esper forcibly pulled energy from them. Dr. Na glanced at the inspector quietly taking notes.
“They’re still in their Pair Guide adjustment period, so I guess they’re hitting a few bumps. I mean, the rank difference is huge.”
“No kidding. Honestly, I was worried this was serious, but thank god. Ha…”
“Finding the right rhythm takes trial and error.”
“Sure, absolutely.”
Dr. Na smiled politely at the inspector. He wasn’t working with his usual assistant today, but with someone from a different department.
But if Ji-ho had deliberately drained energy from Hye-seong, the kid wouldn’t be in this good a shape. And there was no way Ji-ho knew how to control a partial drain to avoid killing a Guide—not in that kind of mental state.
Or maybe that’s why it worked. Because he wasn’t in his right mind, the energy absorption went smoother without resistance?
Either way, it was clear once again that Contact Guiding worked for Ji-ho.
Dr. Na pulled him aside, out of earshot of the inspector.
“To be honest, I hadn’t even considered this being a problem. I’ll talk to Hye-seong separately later, but…”
“But what.”
“Ji-ho, regardless of how good you’re feeling, don’t suck too hard next time. It can turn into full-blown energy theft—and your Guide could die from it. A Guide isn’t just a power source. They’re a person.”
Ji-ho looked taken aback. That sounded off.
“I didn’t do that.”
“…What?”
“I wasn’t feeling good, so don’t even go there.”
Dr. Na bit his lip to keep a straight face. This guy’s really saying he didn’t even feel good after getting fully Guided?
“Sure. It might feel that way at first, when you’re not used to it.”
“I said I didn’t steal anything either. I don’t even know how that works, what are you on about?”
“I know. If you had, Hye-seong wouldn’t be in such a light condition.”
Energy theft was something only desperate Espers pulled off—those who were starving for Guiding. And Yoo Ji-ho? The man couldn’t stand even touching a Guide.
He’d never caused this kind of problem.
Dr. Na started checking through various things on his tablet. Truthfully, he was more excited than he was letting on.
“Wow, I can’t believe this. Your wave pattern improved again. It’s a new personal record.”
“……”
“I had zero expectations, but how did you pull this off? No one even asked you to. Where’d that courage come from, huh?”
What he was paying attention to now was something else. While Ji-ho’s optimal wave pattern wasn’t on par with the national Esper average, this was a record high—for Ji-ho alone. Dr. Na leaned in, serious.
“You didn’t do… mucosal contact, right?”
“What kind of fucked up question is that?”
Ji-ho scowled like he was being accused of something vile.
Ah. Dr. Na looked openly disappointed. But thinking again, it was actually good news for him—and his entire lab.
This result came from just skin contact—over clothes, and extended time? That’s even more promising.
“I was trying not to get my hopes up, but… I think we need to push this further. Hye-seong’s doing great. This is actually working?”
“This isn’t just because of that. It’s the drugs I took yesterday. We’re talking about a B-rank and an S-rank here.”
“No, the meds were just a stopgap. Everything after that? That was all Hye-seong. Remember how you had side effects for days last time?”
Guiding medication was notorious for its side effects and strictly regulated. With how much he’d been pumped with yesterday, Ji-ho should’ve been forced into a cooldown period of non-contact Guiding. But now? He was back to peak condition.
Their compatibility seemed much better than expected. And if they kept pairing consistently, who knew how far it could go?
Dr. Na’s eyes lit up.
“So if Hye-seong gets through this adaptation stage, and we keep progressing the contact level, then this could really…”
He didn’t realize it—but he’d just said something he absolutely shouldn’t have.
That’d be the endgame, right?
The long project the Center had been pouring into: Please, just let Yoo Ji-ho get Guided. That whole endeavor might finally have a conclusion. A dream years in the making. Now, there was hope.
Dr. Na’s eyes sparkled with a rare fire, his voice rising with excitement.
“Let’s aim one step higher next time. I’ll talk to Hye-seong tomorrow!”
“…What? What the fuck did you just say? Are you people out of your goddamn minds?”
“……”
Ji-ho couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
What the hell do you think I’m gonna do with him?!
His eyes widened. Slowly, fury began to surge.
“You’re saying I should fucking swap spit with a Guide now? You’re saying that to my face?!”
“……”
“You’re seriously trying to make me do that revolting shit? I can’t even stand brushing hands with someone and now you want me to swap saliva?!”
Na Hye-yoon had touched a nerve that should never have been touched. He sighed and closed his eyes. Meanwhile, Ji-ho kept going—raging against a world he couldn’t understand.
“Fucking hell. Why do people even do that disgusting shit in the first place?!”
