# Chapter 19
Lee Suyeon was in the most excited state of her life. Well, anyone who witnessed an S-class Esper’s rampage index plummeting to zero in an instant would have reacted the same way.
“This is truly amazing! The word ‘amazing’ doesn’t even do it justice!”
“I see.”
“So this is the power of an S-class Guide. It’s incomparable to an A-class! Even among Espers, the difference between A-class and S-class isn’t this dramatic!”
‘I suppose so. Mine showed up as immeasurable after all.’
Unable to tell the truth, Hajin simply nodded mechanically. To think the woman he thought was just an education supervisor was actually a department head from the research lab.
Now her excitement made sense.
‘She’s just like that Dr. Song. Are they teacher and student?’
Hajin was quite accustomed to dealing with people who got excited or only talked about what they wanted to talk about.
He didn’t have to look far—his superiors would do the same at company dinners when drunk. Repeating themselves or going on long-winded stories that had nothing to do with Hajin.
Comparing Suyeon to them might be unfair to her, but Hajin had already experienced someone like Dr. Song once, so he couldn’t bring himself to respond enthusiastically to everything she said.
“Hajin hyung seems tired. Can we go now?”
“What? But I still have so many questions…”
When Baek Jaan cleverly noticed Hajin’s boredom and tried to take him away, Suyeon couldn’t hide her disappointment and tried to keep him there somehow.
“You can ask someone else. Ask that old man Dr. Song.”
Unfortunately, her attempt was thwarted by Lee Doyoon, who still seemed to harbor resentment from earlier. Where had the cheerful young man gone? In his place was a cold, aloof youth.
“You’ve guided many Espers before, as I understand. Do you still have questions left to ask?”
With Cha Jinwoo adding his comment, Suyeon had no choice but to let Hajin go.
“Then I’ll see you at the next class. It will be in three days.”
“Yes, I’ll see you then.”
“Alright. Guide Lee Hajin, good work today.”
As soon as the farewell was over, Han Seungho and Lee Doyoon clung to Hajin and led him out of the building.
Though Kim Suhyuk would surely be sleeping deeply like the others had been, they wanted to prevent him from following and causing trouble.
Hajin, who was quickly ushered into the car even after leaving the building, felt bewildered by the sudden turn of events.
“What kind of education involves bringing Espers along? Are they crazy?”
“Captain, can’t we just have Hajin hyung’s training come to us? The Beta Team captain making that kind of scene—rumors will spread instantly.”
Han Seungho and Lee Doyoon grumbled while Baek Jaan stuck close to Hajin’s side. Though he didn’t say anything, he seemed to agree with them.
Of course, why wouldn’t Cha Jinwoo feel the same way?
He didn’t want to see any more Espers gathering around Hajin either. However…
“That won’t work. I don’t particularly want to stand out with special treatment.”
‘All eyes are already on you and you’re saying that?’
That’s what he would have said if it were anyone but Hajin. But Hajin remained firm.
“So please don’t make such requests.”
Hajin, who rarely interfered in others’ business, firmly put his foot down. In truth, did Hajin not understand the situation? Couldn’t he tell just from Suyeon’s reaction?
And now he also knew why the Espers were acting this way.
Through Suyeon’s class, he learned that Espers who received guiding tended to develop deep affection and obsession toward their Guides, stronger with higher compatibility rates.
They probably didn’t want to increase their competition.
So where should Hajin be? Should he stay confined in his quarters because he was afraid of attracting attention or because more Espers might gather around him?
He had already given up his life once, feeling pushed into a corner. If he ended up with even less freedom now, there would be no reason to have chosen this path.
“Ugh…”
The Alpha Team eventually nodded in agreement. What could they do? As much as they hated the idea of more competing Espers, they couldn’t go against Hajin’s words.
* * *
“This is truly a remarkable discovery! Why didn’t Dr. Song tell me about this? He put an S-class Esper to sleep in one go! Without even conducting a compatibility test!”
“Shh! Shh! Department Head, please keep it down…!”
Deputy Manager Park Hyunjun, who had guided Hajin, looked around nervously as he covered her mouth.
Only then did she realize she had been speaking too loudly, but after closing her mouth briefly, she opened it again as if she couldn’t hold it in. At least her voice was quieter than before.
“But it really is amazing. So that’s what S-class is. It’s on a completely different level.”
Deputy Manager Park Hyunjun couldn’t deny that and nodded.
“I know. Honestly, with Guide Lee Hajin alone, we might be able to manage all the teams composed solely of S-class Espers.”
“It’s not just a possibility—it’s definitely possible! Even after guiding six Espers, starting from the lowest ranks, he was perfectly fine. And Kim Suhyuk’s readings were high, so he must have required a lot of guiding.”
Not far from where they were chatting, behind a corridor, someone was trembling.
Han Jiwoo, who happened to be passing by, froze in his tracks at the mention of Hajin’s name and eavesdropped on their entire conversation.
‘All the S-class Espers are going to be his?’
Though they were merely discussing possibilities, it was enough of a threat to Han Jiwoo.
It was true that Hajin’s existence had significantly narrowed Han Jiwoo’s position.
But he had thought that no matter how exceptional an S-class Hajin might be, it would be impossible for one person to handle all the S-class Espers in the Association.
So he believed he still had a chance.
Now he was on the verge of losing the opportunity he thought he had firmly grasped. Han Jiwoo quietly turned his back on the two people who were now just exchanging worthless gossip.
His hurried footsteps and tightly clenched, whitened fists revealed just how angry he was.
‘This can’t, this can’t be happening. After everything I’ve done to get here!’
Han Jiwoo was one of the few A-class Guides, and the most skilled at guiding among them. He was the only one who could guide S-class Espers that other A-class Guides couldn’t even approach.
The Association had placed such high expectations on him.
When he first succeeded in guiding an S-class, the Chairman of the Association personally commended his hard work. No one in the Association could disrespect Han Jiwoo.
‘But that bastard ruined everything.’
When he first heard rumors about him, he didn’t believe them. But when he learned the information came from the Association itself, Han Jiwoo was so upset that he ended up vomiting.
S-class Guide. No one would understand the despair that term brought to him.
Han Jiwoo, who had been walking aimlessly, suddenly stopped. Panting with rage that surged like fire in his chest, he finally screamed like a madman.
“Aaaaargh! Fuck! Because of that bastard! Aaaah!”
News of today’s events would quickly reach the Chairman. When that happened, Han Jiwoo’s position would grow increasingly precarious.
The Chairman had already been giving him the cold shoulder because of Lee Hajin. After hearing this news, his attitude would only worsen, never improve.
And the S-class Espers would no longer seek his guiding.
Before Hajin appeared, they had sought Han Jiwoo’s guiding, inadequate as it was, because they had no choice—without it, they couldn’t escape the danger of rampage even with medication.
Now that a replacement—no, a proper solution—had appeared in Hajin, Han Jiwoo was like a kite with a broken string.
“No, this can’t be happening…! Damn it!”
Unable to contain his anger, Han Jiwoo swung his fist at the wall.
Just before his hand made contact, another hand intercepted it.
“Easy there, friend. What good will it do for a Guide to punch walls? You’ll only hurt your hand.”
Han Jiwoo jumped back in shock at the presence that had appeared in what he thought was an empty space.
“You…”
“Hmm? We’ve never met, but you know me?”
“Seo Juan…”
It was a face anyone associated with the Association would recognize. As a precaution, all members of the Association were required to memorize detailed information about key figures from other factions.
“You crazy bastard, what are you doing wandering around here? Are you interested in the S-class Guide too?”
Han Jiwoo ground his teeth as he mentioned the S-class Guide. However, despite the hostile glare, Seo Juan seemed unfazed and even nodded.
“Of course. If the Association’s S-class Espers are struggling with guiding, you think we’re any better off? We have lower-ranked ones with no Guides at all, causing chaos.”
‘We need to work harder.’ Han Jiwoo frowned at Juan’s relaxed tone, considering he was in the middle of enemy territory, and turned his head away.
“This one, that one…”
After dealing with so much, now even an anti-government thug was looking for Hajin—he had no energy left to be angry. Han Jiwoo naturally turned his back. He didn’t want to hear more about Hajin, and besides, he was a Guide.
In this situation, with no visible help nearby, there was nothing to gain from a confrontation with Seo Juan.
‘Just walk away naturally…’
But Seo Juan wasn’t about to let him go so easily.
“Huh? Where are you going?”
His relaxed attitude was even more frightening. After all, an Esper could kill someone like Han Jiwoo with just a finger.
Of course, no Esper in their right mind would kill a Guide with their own hands, but it was still unsettling.
‘Damn it, why doesn’t he go after that Lee Hajin bastard instead?’
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
