Bang!
Startled by the sudden noise, Han-gyeom flinched and instinctively curled up. Applause quickly followed.
Ah, I guess it’s starting.
His heart pounded from the repeated loud sounds. His breathing grew slightly ragged.
Even though he was out in the lobby, the sounds echoing from the main hall were louder than he’d expected. After listening to this for hours, he really might end up having a seizure.
Will I be okay until it ends?
Han-gyeom wrapped one arm around himself and slipped the other hand into the pocket of his jacket. The luxurious coat—something he’d never imagined wearing in his life—had a sleek vial tucked inside the pocket. Feeling the smooth surface of the medicine helped settle his nerves.
If he felt a seizure coming on, it was probably best to inhale it immediately, even if it meant being a bit hasty. The only problem was that the meds would run out that much faster, so hopefully, he wouldn’t need to use it.
Just as his fingers gripped the vial resting against the edge of his pocket—
“Are you okay?”
He jumped slightly at the voice that came without warning and lifted his head.
Standing there was a tall man whose beaming smile seemed made for him. He looked to be around thirty, give or take. The smile faded, replaced by a look of concern.
“You don’t look so good. Want to go to the hospital? I can take you.”
“I’m fine,” Han-gyeom replied quickly, shaking his head.
Was he really in that bad a shape? Bad enough that a complete stranger passing by would stop to check on him?
“You sure? You’re sweating cold bullets right now…”
The man reached out toward Han-gyeom’s face.
Just then, a breeze brushed past, and a hand shot out from the side, grabbing the man’s wrist in one swift motion.
“He’s with me.”
The one who caught the man’s wrist was none other than Jung Ah-young.
Unlike the gentle expression she usually had with Han-gyeom, her face now held a chilling sharpness that didn’t suit her age.
“And you are?”
The man whose wrist she’d grabbed didn’t seem startled. Instead, his gaze flicked between her face and the distant cafeteria counter behind her.
“Hmm…”
He let out a soft breath as if assessing something, then smiled faintly.
“Your friend looks unwell. Maybe you should take him outside? A bit of fresh air might help.”
“Thanks for your concern, but we’ll handle it,” Ah-young replied, her voice still icy cold—so much so that even Han-gyeom found himself taken aback.
Despite what could’ve been an uncomfortable situation, the man withdrew his hand with a placid smile, showing no signs of displeasure. The hand that had almost touched Han-gyeom slipped casually into the pocket of his beige coat.
Then he bent slightly to bring himself to eye level with Han-gyeom, who was still seated. On closer look, although his lips were curled in a smile, his eyes told a different story.
The eyes fixed on Han-gyeom held something else entirely.
His eyes, sharp as if dissecting something, finally curved into a smile.
“Take care of yourself.”
He offered the words kindly to Han-gyeom, then turned away. Without so much as a backward glance, he walked straight through the lobby and into the main hall.
Ah-young continued watching his back for some time. Only after his figure had fully disappeared from view did she turn back to Han-gyeom, her expression bright again as if nothing had happened.
“He sure was… a very concerned person, wasn’t he?”
“…Yeah, I guess so.”
Han-gyeom knew something about her reaction was off, but he chalked it up to her being overly cautious.
Since she had stopped to deal with the sudden appearance of that man, Ah-young had missed her chance to grab their coffee. She hurried back to the counter, where the freshly prepared takeout drinks awaited her as if they had been timed perfectly.
While she was at the counter, Han-gyeom couldn’t tear his eyes away from the direction the man had disappeared to.
When the man had reached out his hand earlier, something had definitely felt wrong. He couldn’t put a name to the sensation, but the uneasy, ominous weight of it was undeniable.
Still, there was nothing Han-gyeom could do about it right now.
He could only hope that his instincts were off for once.
But his instincts were never wrong.
Drrrrreeeeeeeee—!
A ghastly, chalkboard-scraping sound shrieked through the entire building.
“…!”
Han-gyeom shot to his feet. The sudden motion made the table wobble, knocking over the coffee cup, but no one paid any attention to the liquid spilling out.
“KYAAAA!”
“Ugh, AAGH!”
Screams erupted from all directions. People groaned in agony, clutching their ears, curling into themselves, or collapsing to the floor.
What was strange was how many people looked even more confused—like they couldn’t hear a thing at all.
“Han-gyeom-ssi, what… what’s going on all of a sudden?!”
Ah-young’s voice trembled with panic as she scanned their surroundings like she’d seen a ghost. She stood protectively in front of Han-gyeom, her expression betraying that she had no idea what was happening.
Just as I thought…
Han-gyeom recognized this piercing, mind-scraping sound.
“Ah-young-ssi, help the people who’ve collapsed—get them outside.”
“Huh? What do you mean…?”
“Please. Hurry!”
Han-gyeom shouted anxiously to Ah-young, then bolted without a second thought. Even as she called after him from behind, he didn’t stop—he kept running.
He passed through the lobby and entered the corridor leading to the main hall. The irritating sound grew even stronger, and people were now flooding out of the hall in a panic. Among them were some who had completely lost control, thrashing about wildly in response to the auditory assault.
This is dangerous.
It was a sound he had heard many times back at the Fourth Ability Analysis Research Facility.
It was primarily used as a stimulant to forcibly heighten the powers of Espers. Depending on the frequency, its intensity varied. Sometimes it was used like a temporary doping agent to briefly enhance abilities, but more often, it served a purpose of control—or punishment.
Who the hell is using something like this, and how?!
His body broke into a cold sweat as memories from the past triggered a full-body chill.
For Guides like him, it was nothing more than an unbearable noise. Compared to regular civilians who couldn’t hear a thing, Guides were still susceptible to the same grotesque auditory sensations, but it was tolerable—barely.
At least it wasn’t as torturous as what the Espers were going through right now, having their ESPs driven into a frenzy by the sound.
Han-gyeom felt sweat trickling down his spine.
This sound was dangerous.
Especially for Seo Won.
Not yet. Not now…!
With grim determination, Han-gyeom plunged into the oncoming wave of people. As he pushed against the flow of those desperately trying to escape, he nearly got swept away, but he managed to force his way into the main hall.
“AAAGH—!”
“Someone shut that noise up! GHHH!”
Several people who hadn’t made it out in time were writhing on the floor in agony.
And no wonder.
This was where the sound was loudest—at the very heart of the main hall.
Scanning the hall quickly, Han-gyeom pressed forward. Near the seating area, a few foreign Espers were groaning with their heads in their hands, and beside them stood their Guides, channeling stabilizing waves tinged with red. It looked like the high-ranking officials from various Esper Associations had indeed each brought along their personal Guides.
Espers exposed to this sound couldn’t stabilize their ESPs on their own. Their abilities would spiral, tearing through mental pathways in chaotic bursts. Only a Guide could smooth them out again—only a Guide could mend the frayed edges and ease the storm.
Which also meant: if an Esper didn’t have a Guide at their side, the ESP would continue to rage.
That’s what made Seo Won’s situation so dangerous.
If he kept being exposed to this sound without receiving Guiding, even a stable Esper could suffer a Black Vein manifestation.
And Seo Won was already in a critical state—his entire body overrun with the black tendrils. This sound could be fatal to him. The tendrils might have already spread up into his brain.
No—no! Don’t think like that!
Shaking off the dark thoughts, Han-gyeom pushed closer toward the podium at the front of the hall.
No one had lost full control yet. The sound still rang out, tormenting the Espers, but the massive energy wave that came with a complete rampage—that hadn’t erupted yet.
Seo Won was likely at the very front of the hall. Since he was the one hosting the demonstration, it only made sense.
As Han-gyeom had guessed, Seo Won was on the large platform. He was slumped in a corner with his back against the wall, clutching his head with both hands.
Around him, the Espers assigned for security had collapsed, writhing and screaming in agony. The only one still upright was Lim Du-hyuk, the sole non-Espers among them, who was holding onto Seo Won in a half-embrace, checking on his condition with a tense expression.
“Seo Won!”
Calling his name, Han-gyeom sprinted up onto the platform. Du-hyuk looked up in shock.
“Han-gyeom-ssi? Weren’t you with Ah-young? No—more importantly, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. This sound only affects Espers.”
“Huh? Sound…?”
Of course Du-hyuk would react that way—he couldn’t hear anything. To him, it must have looked like everyone around him suddenly started seizing all at once, for no apparent reason.
Han-gyeom dropped to one knee beside him, wanting to check Seo Won’s condition. He gently lifted the face that was buried in Seo Won’s hands, supported by Du-hyuk’s arms.
“Ah…!”
Han-gyeom’s face darkened in an instant.
