Chapter 95
But when the barracks door opened, his eyebrow twitched again. There wasn’t just Yoon Team Leader beyond the open door. The team leader’s pair Guide was there too, and for some inexplicable reason, so was Ham Seo-ryul, Song Tae-hyeok’s pair Guide.
As soon as he saw his face, a murderous look flashed in his eyes.
“Why is that person here?”
He directed the question at the team leader, but the answer came from elsewhere. Ham Seo-ryul, with hands respectfully clasped together, spoke in a calm voice.
“I asked to be brought here.”
Song Ji-hyeok’s jaw muscle bulged as he clenched his teeth. Yoon Hyun-tae tried to restrain him, telling him to calm down, as his demeanor suggested he might pounce at any moment, but Song Ji-hyeok’s glare didn’t easily subside.
“Did that bastard Song Tae-hyeok send you?”
Eventually, Yoon Hyun-tae physically blocked him and hurriedly explained.
“Calm down, Ji-hyeok. Calm down and listen to me. This is about guiding.”
He momentarily hesitated at the mention of guiding. Seizing this opportunity, Ham Seo-ryul spoke again.
“Aren’t you lacking in guiding?”
“That’s none of your—”
“I can help you.”
The impertinent interruption reached Song Ji-hyeok’s ears. The articulate voice was clear enough to understand, but he couldn’t immediately comprehend the meaning. Song Ji-hyeok stared at him with a thoroughly distorted face before grinding out his words.
“Help me? Are you saying you’ll guide me?”
“That’s right.”
Song Ji-hyeok’s expression grew even fiercer at this straightforward affirmation.
In emergencies like this, one could provide or receive guiding regardless of affiliation, but exceptions still existed. Ham Seo-ryul was an A-grade Guide from Moonlight Guild, which had a long-standing competitive relationship with Sunrise Guild. That alone was reason enough to avoid each other, but he was also Song Tae-hyeok’s pair Guide.
To put it bluntly, these were people who would applaud with joy if he went berserk, yet this guy came on his own to offer guiding? It was an obvious ploy.
But Song Ji-hyeok wasn’t the only one caught in intense anger. This time, Jung Hee-seon stepped in to prevent him from baring his teeth again.
“Song Ji-hyeok, Esper.”
A gentle but forceful voice called out to Song Ji-hyeok. She was also a figure Lee Su-hyeon greatly respected, and for the same reason, Song Ji-hyeok restrained his temper around her. This woman now pinpointed the crux of the matter with a sharp gaze.
“Your guiding efficiency is decreasing with time, isn’t it?”
This was a problem that affected almost all Espers and Guides in prolonged battles. Jung Hee-seon was distributing her energy more skillfully than anyone and diligently taking supplements, but she was still feeling that her guiding was becoming less effective over time.
For Song Ji-hyeok, this was his first experience in such a long battle, and his pair Guide wasn’t by his side. It would have been better if he’d never had a pair Guide or had come to the battlefield alone from the start, but after having someone by his side for days and suddenly being left alone, his psychological sense of loss must have been beyond words.
Because of this, while she had been continuously worried about Song Ji-hyeok, an unexpected figure visited the barracks. It was Ham Seo-ryul, who was here now.
The reason he had sought out Song Ji-hyeok’s direct superior, Yoon Hyun-tae, was conveyed again through Ham Seo-ryul’s own mouth. This time, however, his target was Song Ji-hyeok.
“I know you’ve been at the forefront of every battle. By now, you must have accumulated a lot of residual energy… I’m among the A-grade Guides with a large amount of guiding energy, so I thought I might be able to help you.”
Jung Hee-seon added a comment from the side.
“It’s true. Guide Ham Seo-ryul is known for having one of the largest energy reserves among A-grade Guides and exceptional recovery ability. We wouldn’t have brought him to you otherwise.”
Jung Hee-seon had also heard rumors that the relationship between the two brothers was worse than that of strangers. So when Ham Seo-ryul visited the barracks, she too was on guard.
But as she listened to what he had to say, her heart gradually changed. There was no need to mention how significant Song Ji-hyeok’s contribution was to the battlefield here, and his strength would be absolutely necessary for the final battle as well.
This Esper was increasingly lacking in guiding, and a bona fide special A-grade Guide had come forward offering to guide him. Setting aside inter-guild relations and personal relationships, looking at the situation alone, it was something to welcome with open arms.
She earnestly tried to persuade Song Ji-hyeok with practical logic. Song Ji-hyeok continued to listen to her words with a distorted face before shifting his gaze to Ham Seo-ryul and opening his mouth.
“Does Song Tae-hyeok know you’re here?”
“…No, he doesn’t.”
A cold smile spread across his lips at the expected answer. There was a gleam in his pupils as if he had heard something very amusing.
“So you’ve abandoned your pair to try guiding an S-grade Esper, is that it?”
“That’s not it. In a place where people are dying and growing increasingly exhausted, I wanted to do my best to—”
“Spare me the excuses. The conclusion is that you’ll guide me, right?”
“…That’s right.”
“Fine. Let’s call it mutual exploitation then.”
The quick change in attitude altered the expressions of all three people, including Team Leader Yoon, to bewilderment. In contrast, ridicule arose in Song Ji-hyeok’s eyes.
No matter how nicely Ham Seo-ryul packaged reality, his intentions were all too obvious. If the compatibility was good, he would somehow try to make an impression and secure the position of pair Guide; if it was worse than expected, he would never show his face again—Song Ji-hyeok would bet his neck on it.
Looking at Ham Seo-ryul, who was slightly lowering his gaze in pretended innocence, Song Ji-hyeok smiled coldly again. They say a quiet cat is the first to climb onto the stove—he hadn’t expected him to try to seize an opportunity like this. Additionally, someone’s face happily came to mind.
‘I wonder if that bastard Song Tae-hyeok even knows his pair Guide is here making a fool of himself?’
He couldn’t help but smile imagining how his face would contort when he found out the truth later.
Anyway, there was no reason to kick away an opportunity that had rolled in of its own accord. If the compatibility was bad, he could just spit once and chase him away; if it happened to be useful, it would be perfect to drain him to the bone while here.
“Are you available right now?”
“Huh? Oh, yes.”
Song Ji-hyeok then asked the team leader’s pair to leave.
“Please vacate the place.”
“Will you be okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Don’t be like that…”
As she tried to add a worried comment, Jung Hee-seon stepped in. The water was already spilled, and it was too late to turn back now. Instead, she did warn Song Ji-hyeok.
“You absolutely must not touch Guide Ham Seo-ryul for any purpose other than guiding.”
“Are you afraid I’ll kill him?”
“…”
“Don’t worry. I dislike unnecessary controversy too.”
“…Alright. I’ll trust you.”
Eventually, the two left, leaving only Song Ji-hyeok and Ham Seo-ryul in the barracks. Song Ji-hyeok then pointed to the cot with a chin gesture.
“Sit.”
Then he moved first and sat at the edge of the cot. Ham Seo-ryul also approached tactfully and sat beside him.
“I’ll hold your hand first.”
At those words, Song Ji-hyeok scowled intensely.
“Don’t even dream of going beyond that.”
The fact that the person before him was Song Tae-hyeok’s pair Guide still remained in his mind. This implied that he had gone all the way with Song Tae-hyeok, and the mere thought of physical contact with such a person made him nauseous. At least he seemed to have some sense, as his careful words were heard from the side.
“I’ll begin now.”
A wave of disgust surged just from the contact between their hands. But before he could express it, he felt a massive guiding energy flooding in.
—
Flash.
My eyes flew open involuntarily. After a moment of blankness, I noticed the ceiling pattern, which I had thought was just white lines, gradually becoming clearer on my retina.
Almost simultaneously, a loud noise came from somewhere. Looking down, I saw Doctor Oh Hye-yeon hurriedly approaching.
“Are you conscious?”
“Yes…”
As I answered and tried to raise my upper body, my vision suddenly spun. The doctor hastily restrained me.
“Don’t move recklessly.”
I closed my eyes for a moment and only opened them slowly after the dizziness subsided. The doctor, who had been looking at me with a worried expression, said let’s start with basic tests and gave instructions to the nurses behind her.
Meanwhile, I just blinked slowly. Judging by the medical staff in front of me and the patient gown I was wearing, this was definitely the inpatient ward within the Guild.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
damn, pls don’t let their pair contract break off 😭😭😭😭