# Chapter 35
## 12. Awakening
“Guild Master Hyung, I saw you on TV. You looked really cool.”
Haeil was surprised by Jaeha’s sudden cheerful greeting, but quickly responded with a smile.
“I’m glad you’re safe, Jaeha.”
Haeil’s warm smile, filled with relief, was so gentle it made onlookers feel awkward. The guards who had never seen this side of Haeil were confused. Kwon Haeil normally only showed professional smiles when necessary, not revealing personal connections. The guards were puzzled by Haeil’s obvious fondness for Jaeha, who wasn’t even a high-ranking Esper but an ordinary person.
Jaeha could see Team Leader Kim making a sour face. He had noticed how Kim Byungtae discriminated against him for being an ordinary person while trying to impress Dojoon. Jaeha thought Kim would probably be annoyed if he showed closeness with Haeil, who seemed important here. With a mix of mischief and genuine happiness at seeing Haeil, Jaeha’s playful side emerged.
“I missed you so much after not seeing you for days.”
“Is that so? I’m sorry for making you wait.”
Of course, they were talking about a game, but listeners would assume they met frequently. Jaeha exaggerated their closeness by suddenly hugging Haeil.
“Meeting you suddenly makes me even happier, Guild Master Hyung.”
Although Jaeha had hugged him playfully, Haeil felt his body, which had been heavy all day, lighten from the natural guiding that followed. With his tension released, Haeil let out a soft sigh and embraced Jaeha warmly.
“Huh? Guild Master Hyung?”
“I missed you too, Jaeha.”
‘This… this isn’t what I meant!’
While Jaeha was flustered, Dojoon was regretting lowering his defensive barrier.
Kwon Haeil becoming the guild master of the Esper guild established by Daesung Group wasn’t yet public knowledge. It was an open secret only within the center, but Jaeha calling Haeil “Guild Master Hyung” caught everyone’s attention.
The guards were puzzled by Jaeha’s presence, as they couldn’t sense any mana flow from him that would indicate he was an Esper. The staff wondered if he might be an unregistered Esper. Either way, the gazes directed at Jaeha grew more curious and friendly.
“Guild Master Hyung, um, this is kind of embarrassing.”
“I was worried because of everything that happened today. Seeing you safe puts my mind at ease.”
“Haha, I’m fine. Nothing happened thanks to Dojoon.”
When Jaeha mentioned Dojoon and slightly turned to step away from Haeil, their arms naturally separated. Haeil gave Dojoon, who had been watching with a stern face, his usual reliable smile.
“Thank you, Joo Dojoon. It must have been difficult handling your power after your sudden awakening. You’ve worked hard.”
“No, I was just protecting my friend and family. It’s nothing to be thanked for by someone else.”
Dojoon and Haeil exchanged brief smiles and conversation, but Jaeha, standing between them, felt an uncomfortable stinging sensation. Dojoon approached the awkwardly standing Jaeha and put his arm around his back.
“I don’t know how you know, but today has been really hard. We’ll be going now.”
“Ah, if Jaeha is staying here, I can show him around.”
“Oh, no. You must be busy, Guild Master Hyung. No need to bother.”
When Jaeha declined, Haeil made an offer that was hard to refuse.
“If it’s the room next to mine, Jaeha can stay comfortably. That room has no CCTV.”
At Haeil’s words, Jaeha stopped as he was walking away with Dojoon. While Jaeha was interested in a room without CCTV, Dojoon showed his wariness about why it had to be next to Haeil’s room.
“Aren’t those devices for safety?”
“Yes. In the early stages of awakening, Espers have unstable mana flow that needs constant monitoring. But since Jaeha is an ordinary person, he doesn’t need to be watched.”
“Even for protection? You know what happened to Jaeha today, and you’re offering him such an insecure room?”
“There’s no need to worry about that. The accommodations are equipped with facilities that neutralize mana manifestation.”
Listening to Dojoon and Haeil’s politely fierce exchange, Jaeha raised his hand to ask a question.
“Excuse me, are these neutralizing facilities only in the accommodations?”
“Mana controllers are installed throughout the resort. If an Esper used their power in the lobby, ordinary staff could get hurt.”
When Haeil answered smoothly, Jaeha pointed at Dojoon.
“But Dojoon has been using his power continuously?”
“What? That’s impossible…”
Dojoon’s arm around Jaeha’s back pulled him close, and without warning, a defensive barrier appeared. Haeil immediately understood what was happening, while Dojoon deliberately expanded his barrier’s range for everyone to see.
“What, what’s going on?”
“Using power in the center?”
Haeil and the nearby guards were pushed back by the invisible barrier.
Haeil was the first to regain his composure and quickly waved his hand, causing a long flame to rise in the air. Only then did Haeil grasp the seriousness of the situation, and for the first time in front of Jaeha, his face contorted.
“The controllers aren’t working. Check the control room first, and contact the management team immediately to assess the situation and report back.”
“Yes, I’ll take care of it right away.”
As the staff began to move quickly, Haeil bowed to Dojoon and Jaeha with an embarrassed face.
“I’m sorry. It seems there were system changes when the lobby structure was modified today. However, the accommodation area is managed separately, so there should be no problems there.”
“Ah, please raise your head. This isn’t something Guild Master Hyung needs to apologize for.”
“I can see things are chaotic. Anyway, it seems safer for Jaeha to stay with me.”
Dojoon stated calmly, and Jaeha, who would normally have pushed away the arm gripping his waist, didn’t do so. Having learned that the supposedly safe place wasn’t actually secure, he couldn’t easily shake off his anxiety. In this situation, it was natural not to want to leave Dojoon’s side where safety was guaranteed.
Haeil also agreed with Jaeha and Dojoon’s thinking. However, he was concerned that Jaeyoon strongly disliked seeing the two of them together. He had awkwardly tried to separate Jaeha, but the center’s mistake only increased anxiety.
All Haeil could do was bow his head.
“Joo Dojoon, I’ll entrust him to you.”
“Guild Master Hyung, please stop bowing. You’re giving us a room, so we should be grateful.”
“That’s right. As I’ve been saying all along, there’s no reason for me to be entrusted with anything.”
“Augh, Dojoon, why do you keep being so prickly? Stop acting like a bratty little brother.”
As Jaeha was tapping Dojoon’s arm, he suddenly remembered something and turned to Haeil.
“Guild Master Hyung, what about Jaeyoon?”
“He’ll probably come this way once he hears that you’re here. If you rest in the accommodation, he’ll find you when his work is finished.”
“Ah, okay.”
With this final exchange, Haeil hurriedly headed inside.
After Haeil left, the already busy atmosphere became more chaotic. In the midst of this, Koo Kicheol, who paid more attention to Dojoon than Haeil, approached.
“Then I’ll show you to your accommodations now.”
“From now on, I should take over as team leader.”
Kim Byungtae’s craftiness in jumping in at the first opportunity made Koo Kicheol frown.
“No, shouldn’t you change your clothes first?”
“Tsk, the marks of fierce battle are honorable.”
While Koo Kicheol and Kim Byungtae were engaged in their power struggle over who would guide them, Dojoon slipped away with Jaeha. To Dojoon, they looked more like beasts fighting for dominance than guards. Fortunately, they easily found the accommodations by asking a staff member.
“Oh, it’s similar to the previous room. That’s good.”
The assigned accommodation was similar to the room where Jaeha had stayed for a day last time. He had been surprised then that hotel rooms had separate rooms, and now it looked even better as a place to stay.
After laying Dorim down in the innermost bedroom, which seemed safest, Dojoon approached Jaeha, who was rolling around on another bed as if it were his own room.
“Hey, being an Esper is really nice. They just let you use rooms like this.”
“Yeah. You can use this room.”
“Won’t they prepare a separate place for me to stay?”
“Just stay here together. There are multiple rooms.”
“Ah, it might be uncomfortable if we actually stay together.”
Despite saying this, Jaeha had already become one with the bed, hugging a pillow. Rolling around, Jaeha noticed a CCTV in the corner and grumbled.
“That thing really is there.”
“Yeah. And it’s hard to use my power.”
“Really? Then it should be fine even if other Espers come.”
Unlike Jaeha, who was relieved, Dojoon kept trying to create a defensive barrier. The feeling of his mana evaporating whenever he tried to use his power was unpleasant. Jaeha was also amazed to see that the power Dojoon had been using as easily as breathing couldn’t be manifested.
“It doesn’t work? I guess the controller or whatever really is working.”
“Hmm… I think I can do a little if I try hard.”
“Huh? Aren’t you supposed to not be able to use it at all?”
As Dojoon concentrated, Jaeha stared intently at one spot.
“Phew, I did it.”
“Really?”
When Jaeha reached out his hand, he felt a solid sensation as if a layer of barrier had been placed over Dojoon’s hand. It seemed difficult to maintain anything more, as it quickly dissolved, but Dojoon had easily used his power despite being told he couldn’t.
“I should ask Guild Master Hyung if he can do it too.”
“He probably can’t. That person is weaker than me.”
“Wow, such arrogant words coming from Joo Dojoon’s mouth.”
Despite the playful criticism, Dojoon remained calm. Jaeha, tired and lying face down on the bed, gave a thumbs up.
“Man, such charisma. So cool.”
“You’re still the same, Jaeha.”
The world had changed and Dojoon had gained special powers, but Jaeha’s attitude hadn’t changed. That was because in Jaeha’s eyes, his friend hadn’t changed much. Besides, Dojoon’s ability was enough to ease Jaeha’s anxiety.
“Yawn… I’m going to sleep a bit. I’m dying of sleepiness now that the tension is gone. I’ll borrow the bed.”
“Okay. Sleep safely. I’ll protect you.”
“Oh, yawn… you… sleep too.”
At Dojoon’s usual gentle voice, Jaeha buried his face in the pillow without hesitation.
He knew he should wash up and then sleep, but he was now too exhausted to move. So exhausted that he couldn’t even tell Dojoon to stop the creepy back patting.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
