The first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was Park Se-yul’s terrifying face. Expressionless as always, but the air around him was icy, like he could kill someone at any moment.
I should just play dead.
Sensing the murderous aura, Eun-jo quietly shut his eyes again.
“How long are you planning to sleep?”
At the low voice, Eun-jo cautiously cracked his eyes open.
“You saw me?”
“Of course I did. I’ve been sitting here, staring at you the whole time. Didn’t notice?”
Then why the hell are you just sitting there watching me?
He kept that thought to himself, lips sealed. Park Se-yul raised an eyebrow, then threw back a crooked retort.
“What? Wasn’t I the one you were waiting for?”
“…I said I was waiting for the Team Leader.”
“Yeah, but you never said which Team Leader. Team A? Team B? Who knows.”
What’s with him today?
His tone was unusually sharp, even for him. Eun-jo tilted his head, puzzled. He must’ve been brooding over Eun-jo’s last words this whole time.
“You’re the only one who would’ve come to save me…”
As Eun-jo’s quiet words slipped out, Park Se-yul visibly tensed. Not missing his chance, Eun-jo pushed further.
“Or should I start calling you ‘Park Se-yul-ssi’ from now on?”
“…Forget it.”
“What about Se-yul hyung?”
A cold glare hit him like a slap. That look said: Don’t push your luck. Eun-jo lowered his gaze, reading the signal loud and clear, and tried to sit up.
“Ahk…!”
But his body wouldn’t budge. It felt like his entire frame had been shattered. Just a twitch made it feel like his bones might splinter apart.
Then the memories came rushing back.
Shit.
Just thinking about it made his head spin. Those tendrils that had bound his body, the weapons stabbing in and out of him—he could still feel them vividly. And then, the last image—Jung Tae-seok, shirt soaked with cum, lunging at him in that soaked school uniform.
Frozen stiff, Eun-jo couldn’t move. Park Se-yul stepped in and gently supported him—an uncharacteristically careful touch.
Thanks to him, Eun-jo managed to prop himself up against the bed and looked around.
“Is this… a hospital?”
“Recovery Room. Guide Center.”
Se-yul pulled the fallen blanket up to cover him and added quietly.
“You’re off Guiding duty for now. I reported it as medical leave.”
“What about the Gate? Is everything okay?”
“Take a wild guess. You think we’d be standing here if it wasn’t?”
“……”
“Pull a stunt like that again, and I swear—”
Just thinking about how Eun-jo had thrown himself at Jung Tae-seok without a second of hesitation made Park Se-yul’s mood tank. Even back when he was cut off from Lee Sang-heon, trapped in that twisted mental space, all he could think about was one person—Yeo Eun-jo.
At first, he was furious. Then, once he had Eun-jo in his arms, it was something else. Irritation, maybe. That this tiny, fragile thing could rattle him like this.
What the hell is he, even?
Just a Guide. Assigned to the team. A replaceable asset they could reassign at any moment.
“If you’re gonna do whatever the hell you want, then leave the team.”
Se-yul’s gaze locked on Eun-jo’s trembling eyes.
“I don’t need a Guide who thinks it’s his job to throw himself in front of danger.”
“…I’m sorry. I won’t… I won’t do it again…”
Eun-jo lowered his head, biting his lip. The way his swollen, chapped lips pressed together made Se-yul frown.
“But even if it were you, Team Leader… I still would’ve done it.”
“You seriously don’t know what an Esper is, do you?”
“……”
“They can take a bullet, break every bone, and still keep going. They don’t just drop like some fragile little thing.”
“……”
“So who the hell do you think you’re saving? Know your place!”
His voice echoed through the recovery room, sharp enough to cut. The air turned icy, but his eyes never moved. They stayed fixed—on one place.
Eun-jo followed his gaze. His own lips.
The ones Jung Tae-seok had sucked, bitten, and violated. The ones still raw and ruined.
I’ll push him a little more.
Eun-jo slowly bit down, teasing. The dried lips turned redder, bloodier.
In the next moment, a large hand gripped his chin and tilted it up.
“Ugh…”
“Can’t keep your mouth still for a damn second?”
Se-yul’s face closed in. Close enough that a single twitch would make their lips touch. His eyes darkened behind silver-rimmed glasses, intense and unwavering.
Eun-jo’s eyes widened. In response, Se-yul pressed down hard on his lower lip with his thumb.
“Don’t get the wrong idea.”
The air turned heavy, oppressive. Eun-jo felt like he couldn’t breathe, his face trapped in Se-yul’s hand.
Like he wasn’t allowed to move without permission.
“As long as you’re this team’s Guide… your body doesn’t belong to you.”
Se-yul’s fingers traced along his lips. And when his thumb slipped between them, Eun-jo’s eyes fluttered.
It didn’t feel like a recovery room anymore. It felt like Se-yul’s office. Like he was on his knees, completely under this man’s control.
Just like Pavlov’s dog salivating at the sound of a bell, a heavy ache bloomed low in his gut.
“Yeo Eun-jo. Answer me.”
“Y-Yeah… ngh…”
The moment he nodded, something shifted in Se-yul’s eyes.
“You…!”
He grabbed Eun-jo’s cheeks with both hands, tight enough to sting.
“Your Guiding aura… it changed.”
Eun-jo’s heart dropped.
Someone had Imprinted him.
Held in Se-yul’s grip, Eun-jo blinked fast, struggling to think. A change in aura meant he’d drawn even closer to S-Rank.
Who the hell was it?
Who Imprinted him? All he’d done yesterday was fire some pathetic shots, run around, and get used so thoroughly he thought he’d die.
And on top of that— His urethra violated. Forced to cum again and again. Screaming until his throat gave out…
Ah.
As the filthy images surged back, Eun-jo’s face flushed crimson.
“Yeo Eun-jo. I said—answer me.”
Noticing Eun-jo was lost in thought, Park Se-yul’s grip tightened.
“I asked why your Guiding aura changed.”
“……”
There were too many red flags to just say someone Imprinted me. He’d have to explain how he even knew—and that opened a door he wasn’t ready to walk through.
There was really only one answer he could give. Eun-jo’s eyes flitted nervously, then he turned his head, avoiding Se-yul’s gaze.
“I… I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“My memory’s… fuzzy.”
Like the memory of what happened in the Gate was too much to face, Eun-jo clutched the blanket tightly and squeezed his eyes shut.
“I remember… up to the second orgasm. After that… I couldn’t hold on anymore….I’m sorry. Next time, I won’t lose consciousness.”
“That’s not the damn point.”
Even as he trembled, Eun-jo still talked like he was trying to do better next time. Park Se-yul stared down at him, then ran a hand through his hair with a frustrated sigh.
“Haa…”
His chest was burning.
He’d already felt like something was stuck in his throat when he saw Eun-jo lying there unconscious. But now, it was worse—like something was bubbling up inside, something raw and angry.
His gaze dropped to Eun-jo’s hands, clenched tight around the blanket like it was a lifeline. Before he even realized it, Se-yul’s fingers twitched—like he wanted to reach out and hold them.
“This… isn’t happening again.”
“…What?”
Eun-jo looked up, confusion and fear creeping into his eyes. Just as Se-yul opened his mouth to continue—
Knock knock.
There was a knock at the door. Before anyone could say “Come in,” the door slid open and in walked a familiar face.
Guide Center Director, Jung Young-soo.
“Aigoo.”
The moment he saw Eun-jo in a patient gown, his face twisted into a dramatic frown. He breezed past Park Se-yul and strode straight to the bed.
“Our poor Guide’s been turned into a complete wreck…”
“Director.”
Eun-jo tried to get out of bed, but Jung Young-soo waved his arms dramatically.
“No, no, no. Stay down.”
“But you’re standing, sir…”
Eun-jo had always been the picture of perfect manners. Even the supervisors praised him constantly—That kid’s just a genuinely good person. He knew exactly how to handle authority.
Just the act of starting to rise brought a pleased smile to Jung Young-soo’s face.
“Don’t make me out to be some heartless boss. Just sit tight.”
Polite, too, this one.
Chuckling warmly, he even patted the blanket down for him. Then he dropped into the seat next to the bed—the same one Park Se-yul had just vacated.
Park Se-yul, who’d been watching everything with thinly veiled irritation, scowled.
“What brings you here today?”
“Well, when one of my Guides gets seriously hurt, it’d be weirder if I didn’t visit, don’t you think?”
“It’s not something you usually do.”
“Sure, but today felt like one of those exceptional days.”
Jung Young-soo cleared his throat awkwardly, then leaned toward Eun-jo again. Even after Se-yul’s jab, his expression quickly relaxed into that familiar, easygoing grin.
