Eun-jo brushed past the Esper with a light shove and stood in front of Kim Min-jae, who stared at them, dumbfounded.
“Listen carefully, Guide Kim Min-jae.”
He grabbed Kim Min-jae by the collar in one swift motion and pulled him close. Then, in the lowest voice he’d ever used, Eun-jo growled rapidly through clenched teeth.
“If you’d done your job right, none of this fucking mess would’ve happened.”
“……”
“You think you deserve gratitude just because you guided? After you shoved Tae-seok, half-dead, into a machine for some half-assed automated guiding?”
“……”
“Is a human life just a joke to you?”
He could still vividly remember Jung Tae-seok writhing in agony—and the researchers, along with Kim Min-jae, just standing there watching like it was no big deal. As Eun-jo’s grip on his collar tightened, Kim Min-jae let out a pained grunt.
“You’re already hurting from this? Then can you even begin to imagine how much Tae-seok must’ve suffered?”
Noticing the unease spreading among the surrounding Espers, Kim Min-jae scrambled to fire back.
“Who the hell are you to act like you’ve got the right to judge me!”
His voice rang out, sharp and defensive. Eun-jo, looking down at him coolly, let out a short, mocking laugh.
That one’s beyond saving.
Deciding he’d seen enough, Eun-jo grabbed a nearby Esper. The guy pretended to resist but clearly wanted to know what Eun-jo’s guiding aura felt like—he came along without much fuss.
“How about we find out if I really don’t have the qualifications?”
“Like hell we will!”
“Pretty sure we’ll get the answer if we ask everyone here.”
Fucking lunatic! Kim Min-jae’s voice rang out behind him, but Eun-jo ignored it. Just as he cupped the Esper’s face with both hands, a strong grip yanked him backward by the nape.
“Ugh…!”
He tilted his head up—and saw Park Se-yul. The man’s expression was nothing like before; it was cold and terrifying.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
The entire area fell deathly silent, like someone had dumped ice water on the crowd. Every Esper present—including Kim Min-jae—went pale.
Eun-jo included.
Shit. I’m screwed.
He was about to blurt out an excuse, but Park Se-yul was faster. He calmly removed Eun-jo’s hands from the Esper’s cheeks and stepped in front of him, shielding him from view.
Park Se-yul looked pristine and composed, like he’d just walked out of a promo shoot for the Center. That cool image carried an overwhelming pressure. Unable to take it, a few Espers started to speak hesitantly.
“We were just, you know…”
“We just happened to walk by…”
Kim Min-jae cut them off and stepped forward.
“Guide Yeo Eun-jo initiated guiding without any permission.”
The hostile glares immediately shifted to Eun-jo.
“He’s always like this—acting like he’s doing something when he’s not.”
“Guide Kim Min-jae.”
At the sound of that low voice, Kim Min-jae instinctively looked up. He flinched as his eyes met Park Se-yul’s chilling gaze from behind rimmed glasses. It was obvious—Park Se-yul had been watching the whole thing unfold from the start.
But he couldn’t look away now. Even the sound of breathing felt dangerous—like anything might provoke him.
“If I still call you a Guide, take the hint and back off.”
“……”
“You already know—I’m not exactly known for my patience.”
Still staring him down, Park Se-yul beckoned to Eun-jo. Taking the hint, Eun-jo hurried to his side and clung to his hand like a loyal pup.
The scene gave off an easy intimacy that made Kim Min-jae’s blood boil.
“You knew everything.”
The quiet murmur made Park Se-yul stop in his tracks. Emboldened, Kim Min-jae continued.
“You knew it was me in the training rooms, and out on the field. You knew—and let it slide. Isn’t that the same as giving me permission?”
Park Se-yul turned, his grip tightening around Eun-jo’s hand. But his gaze had changed completely—now utterly devoid of interest. He looked at Kim Min-jae like he was something filthy.
Kim Min-jae’s heart dropped with a heavy thud.
“All I authorized was a stand-in.”
Ice began to creep outward from the tip of Park Se-yul’s shoe, spreading in a thin sheet across the ground.
“And that was under the assumption that Yeo Eun-jo was overwhelmed.”
“……”
“But that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.”
He reached out and pinched Eun-jo’s cheek lightly, as if to confirm it for himself. With the frost stopper still plugged into him below, the faint heat in Eun-jo’s flushed face made him look all the more delicate.
“Eun-jo. Is it too much for you?”
The way he asked it carried a layered tone. It could’ve meant Is the guiding too much? But it just as easily could have meant Is that plug in your front entrance too much?
Flustered, Eun-jo dropped his eyes to the ground.
“…I’m okay.”
“Then we won’t be needing him.”
Se-yul released Eun-jo’s cheeks, satisfied with the answer.
“Team A has one Guide. That hasn’t changed. And it never will.”
Only after freezing the ground beneath Kim Min-jae and the other Espers solid—thick as a winter lake—did he finally look away. They wouldn’t be moving anytime soon.
“Let’s be crystal clear. I never gave you permission.”
“……”
“If you want to keep your position, don’t ever show yourself in front of me again, Guide Kim Min-jae.”
Still holding the hand of his one and only Guide, he turned and walked away from the park. The warmth of guiding energy pulsed softly through their joined palms.
The sweeter and warmer Eun-jo’s aura felt, the tighter Park Se-yul clenched his jaw. Like a scolded dog, Eun-jo trailed quietly behind him. I’m so screwed. He nervously licked his dry lips.
Eun-jo had never realized a person’s back could express emotion. But the chill radiating off Park Se-yul’s shoulders was enough to make him not even want to see the expression on his face.
“Team Leader…”
Even as Se-yul dragged him along by the wrist, Eun-jo called out timidly. But the freezing aura clinging to him showed no sign of thawing.
“Team Leader, people are staring…”
His voice barely rose above a whisper as he glanced around anxiously. They already drew attention just for being from Team A, but now that he was literally being dragged off by Park Se-yul, every pair of eyes was fixed on them.
One of those pairs belonged to Kim Dan-seop, who happened to be passing by. The moment he saw Eun-jo’s helpless expression, his eyes flew wide open.
Should I help you?
It’s already too late.
If they’d been closer, Eun-jo would’ve mouthed I’m fucked. But even without words, his face must’ve said it all—because Kim Dan-seop clicked his tongue in sympathy.
The moment they reached their dorm, the front door flew open. Like getting sucked into a vortex, Eun-jo was yanked inside.
“Ugh—!”
Still holding him by the scruff, Park Se-yul didn’t stop until they reached the bedroom. Then, he tossed Eun-jo onto the wide bed without hesitation.
“I’m pretty sure I told you to behave yourself.”
He climbed onto the bed, looming over him, and with an irritated breath, unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt like it was suffocating him.
“So you had no intention of listening, huh?”
“I-I did! I was being good, I swear…”
“Rubbing your lips counts as being good?”
“……”
Eun-jo clamped his mouth shut. Se-yul raked a hand through his hair in frustration.
The morning had been perfect. Peaceful, even. And objectively speaking, Eun-jo had done nothing wrong. He hadn’t resorted to violence, and the way he warned Kim Min-jae had been level-headed—something any team leader should be proud of. The kind of mindset a proper Guide should have.
So why did it piss him off this much?
As he struggled to swallow the simmering anger, Eun-jo whispered softly:
“That was guiding, wasn’t it?”
In that moment, a forgotten truth flickered through Park Se-yul’s mind. Guiding. For Yeo Eun-jo, it meant everything—being held, kissed, even having a plug inserted below. All of it fell under the umbrella of guiding.
Just like kissing some stranger. Just another routine session. Nothing special. Something he could do with anyone—anyone but him.
“Ha…”
A dry, hollow laugh slipped from his lips. He knew Eun-jo was scared. He saw it in his eyes. But the laughter wouldn’t stop. Because the second he realized that all of this was just “guiding” to Eun-jo… he also realized something else.
He was the only one who wanted more.
“Yeah… right…”
“……”
“This is guiding too, isn’t it? You lying here like this.”
With a twisted smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, Se-yul reached beneath the desk and rummaged for something. A faint click echoed from under Eun-jo’s neck.
Looking down, Eun-jo’s breath caught. A leather collar—tight, unbreakable—was now snugly fastened around his throat. Panic spread across his face as he reached up to fumble at it.
“T-Team Leader…?”
“If you’re going to guide, then do it properly. Guide Yeo Eun-jo.”
His arms were suddenly yanked forward. Before he could react, leather restraints wrapped around his wrists, locking them together above his head. Park Se-yul leaned in, pressing their bodies close.
“If it’s all the same to you, if guiding’s just guiding…”
His fingers traced the edge of Eun-jo’s jaw, slow and deliberate.
“Then you should at least match your Esper’s preferences.”
And just like that, his fingers slipped into Eun-jo’s mouth. Not forcefully—but slowly, purposefully, exploring every part of it as though he were claiming it.
“Mmph…”
Every time his fingers moved, lewd, wet sounds spilled from Eun-jo’s lips. Saliva coated them quickly, dribbling down to soak his chin. Looking down at the wrecked expression on his face, Park Se-yul let out a cold smile.
“This is what I like.”
“Nn—mmph…!”
The once-gentle touch abruptly drove deeper, plunging straight into his throat. Fingers pressed against his uvula, triggering a sharp gag. Eun-jo’s whole body twitched, throat constricting around the intrusion.
His vision blurred. His breath caught. And still, he couldn’t look away.
