Kwon Ho-eun’s words left Kang Him-chan looking utterly baffled.
“Didn’t you hear what I just said? It might be pure coincidence!”
“It’s not because she’s a suspected Esper.”
Cutting Kang Him-chan off mid-sentence, Ho-eun furrowed his brow, looking pained.
“It’s because I suspect child abuse.”
Kang Him-chan was taken aback by the unexpected statement. In the past four weeks of monitoring the CCTV footage around Han Yeo-ul, there hadn’t been any indication of such a thing. He was about to argue back in his usual blunt way when Paul stepped in to stop him.
“Han Yeo-ul receives more support at home than most kids her age. We’ve been keeping a close eye on her just in case, but she’s never shown up with any visible injuries. Do you have any proof?”
“There’s no concrete evidence, but…”
The stains on her sleeves could easily be food she got on herself while eating. Her worn-out shoes might just mean she liked those sneakers and wore them often.
Ho-eun knew what he had seen wasn’t enough to count as evidence of abuse.
“Still, I want to talk to her directly.”
“Hmph. Then you’re not getting this pill.”
Kang Him-chan tucked the pill bottle into his jacket as if to say he had no intention of helping. That’s when Do In-ho, who had stayed quiet until now, finally spoke.
“I’ll find another way that doesn’t involve the pill. Would that be acceptable?”
With even Do In-ho stepping in, Kang Him-chan had no choice but to shut up.
“It doesn’t violate any field protocols, so of course that’s fine,” Paul added.
Ho-eun let out a breath of relief at Paul’s words. Once the conversation wrapped up, the four of them began preparing the field report. Their task ended with documenting that Han Yeo-ul had been accepting money to share test answers, and that her parents were currently unemployed. The rest of the observation would be handled from the office, monitoring her via CCTV.
“If anything else comes up with this case, I’ll let you know tomorrow.”
Paul closed his laptop and stretched his stiff neck.
“Where’d you park your car?”
“Out front, near the café.”
Paul hopped into the car that Ho-eun and Do In-ho had arrived in, then used teleportation to drop the two off at the Incheon branch. After they stepped out, Paul and Kang Him-chan waved goodbye and vanished.
“Why’d you back me up earlier?”
As soon as they disappeared, Ho-eun asked the question he’d been holding back.
When he said he wanted to speak with Han Yeo-ul directly, he hadn’t been sure how to voice his opinion.
This wasn’t a case he could handle just by throwing a tantrum.
He’d need a disguise like Do In-ho had, and a way to naturally enter Han Yeo-ul’s environment, like the HR Department had.
But Ho-eun had no idea how to go about any of that.
Should he buy disguise supplies online? Try talking to Han Yeo-ul when she’s on her way home?
With no field experience and his first time doing observation work, every part of this was daunting.
So when Do In-ho took his side and said he’d find a way, Ho-eun felt both supported and puzzled.
Why would someone who normally avoided anything too complicated go out of his way like that?
“Because I trust you.”
“Huh?”
“The Kwon Ho-eun I’ve seen always knows when someone needs help.”
“……”
It wasn’t the kind of answer he was expecting.
He thought Do In-ho was just backing him blindly, but that wasn’t it.
“That’s why I trust your judgment.”
Ho-eun bit his lower lip. If he didn’t, he felt like his face was going to screw itself up into something ugly.
He slowly inhaled and exhaled, forcing himself to swallow past the tightness in his throat.
“Thanks.”
There were probably cooler ways to say it, but that was all Ho-eun could manage.
“Should we head back to the meeting room?”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
Cosmos flowers that hadn’t been there in the morning now lined the garden.
Their colorful petals swayed in the breeze, dancing like they were alive.
Ho-eun quietly reached out and took Do In-ho’s hand.
***
The PR Department had agreed to regroup in the meeting room after the fieldwork.
Nam Woon-soo and Bae Yeon-woo had arrived first, and it looked like they’d already started a discussion—the desk was covered in documents.
“You’re back.”
Bae Yeon-woo’s voice sounded half-dead as he waved a limp hand without lifting his head.
Taking a seat in an empty chair, Ho-eun began tidying up the papers on the table one by one.
“How’d it go on your end? Find anything?”
Almost like he’d been waiting for the question, Ho-eun answered immediately.
“There was a rumor that Han Yeo-ul could predict the future, but it turns out she was just selling answers to test questions.”
“She’s ten, right?”
“And she was charging for it.”
“Whether she’s a suspected Esper or not, that’s still pretty interesting.”
Bae Yeon-woo looked up from his notebook after scribbling something down, then suddenly burst out laughing like someone who choked on a sip of water.
“Pfft—Hahaha! What is that?!”
“Sorry?”
“That disguise! Hahaha, get over here. Let’s take a picture.”
Looking confused, Ho-eun walked over to Bae Yeon-woo’s side.
Forced into making a peace sign in front of the phone, he looked at the selfie screen—on one side was a completely normal Bae Yeon-woo, and next to him, Ho-eun with eyes barely the size of beans.
“A-Amazing disguise work…”
Nam Woon-soo quietly gave him a thumbs up.
Only after they snapped several photos did Bae Yeon-woo finally seem satisfied. He snatched Ho-eun’s glasses, tried them on himself, and took another selfie.
“Man, today’s been a crap day, but you gave me something to laugh about. Good job, Kwon Ho-eun.”
“Feels weird getting praised for being ugly…”
Ho-eun took out the backup bag he’d left under the meeting room table and carefully packed away the wig and glasses Bae Yeon-woo returned to him.
“Things didn’t go well on your end, sir?”
Almost like he’d been waiting for that, Bae Yeon-woo sighed deep enough to cave the floor in.
“I couldn’t observe him properly. Total bust.”
“Excuse me?”
“The guy suddenly walked into some weird shop, so I followed him in, but it’s apparently members-only or something. You can only get in if you know someone.”
Only then did Ho-eun skim through the report.
It contained summaries of suspected drug activity and a list of people Park Ki-hyun was known to associate with.
“So he’s doing drugs?”
“We’re still speculating. It’s hard to tell if it’s Ability-related or actual narcotics.
So one of us will probably have to go in as a customer—I’m working on a route for that.”
Hearing they’d need to walk into a den of thugs to get to Park Ki-hyun, Ho-eun glanced sideways at Nam Woon-soo.
If anyone were to pass as a drug buyer… he might actually fit.
“Well, anyway…
The anti-government group probably won’t move on Park Ki-hyun just yet. What about Han Yeo-ul?”
“Nothing anti-government here either.”
Do In-ho paused briefly before continuing.
“We’re planning to make direct contact with Han Yeo-ul.”
Bae Yeon-woo raised his eyebrows and looked at Do In-ho.
He seemed to understand that their presence wasn’t needed for this case.
A simple disguise should suffice—no need for direct contact.
Why go that far?
If Ho-eun had said that, he would’ve gotten an earful. But since it was Do In-ho, Bae Yeon-woo decided to listen.
“Why?”
“To verify a suspicion of child abuse.”
“I know whose idea that is.”
Bae Yeon-woo’s gaze shifted straight to Ho-eun.
“Haha… It just didn’t sit right with me. Selling test answers for money—that’s weird, right?”
“You found a way to approach her? She’s in elementary school. Where’re you planning to make contact?”
“Actually, HR is already using an Ability Product to pose as students at her academy. But it’s really expensive… So I’m trying to find a way we can observe her even in adult form.”
“What? Expensive?”
Bae Yeon-woo’s narrowed eyes suddenly went wide.
“Yeah, it’s a pill. I think they said it was like 65 million won per capsule…”
“You’ve got to be kidding me. We get budget allocations too! They think they can show off with money to the PR Department?! I’ll get you something even better. What’s that Ability Product called?”
Bae Yeon-woo’s eyes burned like molten lava as he practically lunged across the table.
Worried he’d said too much, Ho-eun gently nudged him back into his seat.
“All field-related expenses can be covered by the budget. Just submit receipts or message logs for approval. Don’t hold back.”
“Okay…”
Seeing Bae Yeon-woo fly off the handle the moment HR was mentioned, Ho-eun wiped the sweat from his brow.
“Wait a minute. Money… Of course! There’s a super easy way to see Han Yeo-ul. Don’t worry, Ho-eun. I’ll make sure you meet her tomorrow.”
Bae Yeon-woo, who had been about to rant again, vanished somewhere with a wicked grin, muttering about putting HR in their place as he dialed a number.
“What’s he planning now…”
Ho-eun muttered nervously. Nam Woon-soo gave him a reassuring smile.
“S-since it’s an elementary school, maybe he’s arranging a scholarship program or a school event or something…”
Turned out Nam Woon-soo’s guess was spot-on.
When Bae Yeon-woo returned from his call, he announced:
“I told them we’d like to sponsor a few counseling sessions in exchange for donating to a children’s psychological support center. That should get us a face-to-face with Han Yeo-ul.”
“Yes! Thank you so much!”
Do In-ho gently patted the back of the overjoyed Ho-eun’s head.
The meeting circled back to its original topic, with everyone checking if there had been any notable developments at the Han Yeo-ul or Park Ki-hyun sites, or any new anti-government issues. It only seemed to wrap up after that.
“We’ll call it here. Kwon Ho-eun, you wanna get some training in before you go?”
“Yes, sir!”
It was nearly dinnertime, and Ho-eun was starving—but since Bae Yeon-woo had gone out of his way for him, refusing wasn’t an option.
“In-ho, are you heading out to work on that Ability Product again?”
“Yeah, should be back in about two hours.”
With Do In-ho heading off to infuse the Ability into the tool, Ho-eun followed Bae Yeon-woo to the training hall.
“What kind of Ability Product is he making for you?”
“I haven’t asked him yet.”
“You should. That way, we can practice with the closest weapon type.”
Bae Yeon-woo handed him a wooden sword.
“Fire-type Espers usually make flame-infused swords. Let’s practice swordsmanship for now.”
“Sounds good.”
After warming up, Ho-eun raised the sword and brought it down in a basic strike.
Even the simple move left him winded.
Swordsmanship required precision.
If you didn’t focus on how you applied force or the subtle flick of your wrist, gaps would form, and you’d be taken down easily.
Using a long stick, Bae Yeon-woo poked Ho-eun repeatedly as he gave instructions.
“You’re really distracted today.”
Looking down at the wooden sword he’d just dropped, sweat beaded along Ho-eun’s jaw.
“No… no thoughts at all.”
He licked his lips constantly as they dried, stealing glances at Bae Yeon-woo.
Truthfully, he’d been dying to ask if something had happened at the Park Ki-hyun site ever since they’d walked into the meeting room.
“Really? I thought you were gonna ask what’s going on between me and HR.”
“Can I ask…?”
Ho-eun bit too quickly at the bait Bae Yeon-woo tossed, immediately regretting it.
“Didn’t you say you weren’t thinking about anything?”
“I’m n-not, but… I am curious…”
“Geez. I guess I’ve made it pretty obvious, huh.”
Bae Yeon-woo turned to look out the training hall window.
Night had fallen, blanketing everything in darkness.
