Chapter 17
The man who rushed over thanked us and then took Ji Yeohoon in his arms.
Although he was still small, a sixth-grade elementary student wasn’t exactly light.
But I couldn’t ask Yoon Cheong to carry him either—though they competed in games and forced themselves to talk, I suspected Yoon Cheong would just throw him away entirely, so I quietly followed behind the man.
“Are we going straight to the guild?”
“Yes. Would Cheong and Soo-young come along too?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll go.”
Yoon Cheong, whose phone was broken, seemed more interested in observing the newly manifested Ji Yeohoon than worrying about his phone, and followed behind.
Throughout the car ride, Ji Yeohoon never left the man’s arms. Yoon Cheong sat in the passenger seat, while I sat in the back with the man.
Yoon Cheong had once told me:
‘It was scary.’
‘What was?’
‘The thought that when I use my ability, you and Ji Yeohoon might just… die because of my power.’
‘Can you feel that? How much power you have?’
‘Of course.’
It was less about concern for Ji Yeohoon and more about the worry of being an Esper who had manifested first.
At school, Espers were taught to suppress their powers as much as possible and use them carefully. Of course, in Gate training, they learned how to enhance and efficiently use their abilities, but ultimately, for Espers to live in society, it was important to know how to regulate their power within standard limits.
Before my regression, I’d only heard vague statements about how Espers were educated from childhood not to use their powers on people, but I didn’t know to what extent this was emphasized. After transferring to the 3rd school and learning what classes Espers attended, even I couldn’t help but be somewhat shocked.
When a child awakens as an Esper and is still giddy about having supernatural powers, they’re presented with a mannequin.
The child, without thinking much, strikes the mannequin with what they consider a light amount of force, in front of their would-be homeroom teacher and parents. Unless they’re a healer-type or buffer-type, the mannequin usually explodes.
‘This mannequin has the same durability as your mom and dad’s physical strength. If you hit ordinary people with that force, they’ll end up exactly like this mannequin.’
They learn through shock just how much of their power would kill an ordinary person or the Guide friend beside them.
It was shocking for me too.
Both that student Espers who had just manifested and hadn’t yet stabilized to their peak—relatively weak at this point—possessed such power, and that such direct, almost cruel explanations were given to such young children.
Perhaps that’s why Espers and Guides were so distant with each other.
Espers, for whom parents, teachers, and friends are their entire world, consequently learn to avoid stepping forward among people.
It’s not that there aren’t Espers who want to wield their power to lord over ordinary people and Guides.
When people have power, they tend to behave that way, don’t they?
Still, when isolated from society from childhood, and constantly reminded by the few adults they can interact with that “you are a dangerous being,” they become half-brainwashed about their own dangerousness and learn to be cautious.
Sadly, Espers, who stand stronger and more economically advantaged than anyone else, become the people who are most careful and most afraid of themselves.
Of course, Ji Yeohoon, who would become a buffer-type Esper who strengthens others, wouldn’t hear such content, but regardless, he would learn before anyone else that his power could hurt or harm others, as all Espers do.
Perhaps I thought this school system dedicated to ability users wasn’t for their benefit, but rather a means to isolate and control them within society.
As Guides kept their distance, many Espers didn’t know how to interact with Guides later in society. This led many Espers to become warped, seeing Guides not as people but merely as beings who provide guiding.
What was meant to encourage caution had the opposite effect.
I didn’t want these two, or the student Espers at the 3rd school, to end up that way.
“We’re here. Yeohoon? Can our son walk?”
“…Yes.”
Ji Yeohoon was being careful.
It was the standard advice given to pre-Espers who had been identified as future Espers during manifestation tests.
To remember that they couldn’t know what their abilities might cause, so they should try not to use them as much as possible, and to notify the Association, a guild, or their parents as quickly as possible.
Even though his guardian had arrived, Ji Yeohoon kept exhaling as if trying to follow those instructions. I grabbed his hand on the side opposite from where the man was holding him.
“Yoon Cheong, you come too.”
I gave my other hand to Yoon Cheong, and the four of us walked together.
Since Ji Yeohoon and I were relatively shorter, I felt like I was being looked after too, but stabilizing Ji Yeohoon was the priority.
“Has Chan-seok’s little one awakened too?”
“His readings were concerning recently, so we reduced his Gate entries a bit. That’s why I brought him right away. Could you check him?”
“Yes, don’t worry. Now, Yeohoon~ We’ll do just like we’ve done before, so come sit in that chair.”
The guild researchers tended not to treat Yoon Cheong and me like children.
But Ji Yeohoon, being the son of a guild-affiliated Esper and Guide, seemed to be naturally treated like a child, perhaps because they’d seen him often.
Ji Yeohoon didn’t seem to mind either, walking to the chair and sitting down while the researcher approached and attached devices to his head and arms.
As the researcher expected, and just like before my regression, Ji Yeohoon manifested as a buffer-type who strengthens others.
“Basically, he’s long-range. When he uses his ability on an Esper, that Esper’s ability temporarily increases. Let’s experiment…”
“When he manifested earlier, I was using my ability, and it came out stronger than I intended. I was trying to slightly lift a phone, but it hit the ceiling.”
“If Cheong says so, it’s certainly reliable, but we still need to document it. Yeohoon, would you go in there and use your ability on the guy standing opposite you?”
The man inside the laboratory created water above his hand.
When Ji Yeohoon extended his hand, the water instantly grew larger. Simultaneously, the graph on the screen moved around.
I couldn’t tell how they determined he was a buffer-type just from what appeared on the graph, but the researchers had been doing this job exclusively, so they wouldn’t say otherwise.
“We’ll need to prepare for dormitory entry right away… Dad’s going to miss you so much, what should I do?”
Ji Yeohoon pressed his lips together at the man’s words.
He had been singing about wanting to transfer schools quickly, but now that the time to part had come, he seemed sad and tightly grabbed the man’s hand as soon as the equipment was removed from his body.
“Even though your awakening was on a weekend, you’ll need to go to school, so Ji Yeohoon will have to go alone.”
“…Aren’t you going, Hyung?”
“No, I came out after a long time, so I want to enjoy my freedom outside.”
Ji Yeohoon looked even more disappointed.
Though I said that, I had originally gone to the specialized school because of these two. When my parents heard that Ji Yeohoon had manifested, they immediately told me to go to school.
When I said I understood and would go with him, Ji Yeohoon smiled brightly. On the other hand, I felt bitter.
My heart was already heavy for not speaking up when I was young, and now it hurt even more knowing I wouldn’t see my parents before going back.
“I’m really an ungrateful child…”
“Why, Hyung?”
“As soon as I came out, I went to your house, and now I’m going straight back without seeing Mom and Dad…”
“Didn’t they say they’d come visit you at the school dormitory next time?”
“That’s not the same…”
Guardians could enter the school on the first day to visit the faculty office, but after that, they could access the dormitory through a counseling request concept. So parents usually combined teacher meetings with checking on their children.
That’s how Yoon Cheong’s parents did it, and how my parents did it too.
Of course, I heard that Ji Yeohoon’s parents could visit relatively often.
Being Espers and Guides affiliated with Korea’s number one guild, they could visit as special lecturers and even pre-cast notable students.
Usually, when Calling recommended someone, most students transferred from their temporarily assigned guilds, which other guilds didn’t appreciate.
Ji Yeohoon’s luggage was light, just as it had been for Yoon Cheong and me.
Since the school provided everything needed for comfortable living, like underwear and casual uniforms, he only needed to bring electronic devices like phones and chargers, and any other items he wanted to take.
Of course, since it was difficult to go out in school casual uniforms, he could bring extra clothes if he wanted.
“The problem is Yoon Cheong’s phone…”
“The ones provided by the school are slow and not great.”
“For now, we’ll have to at least swap the SIM card into that.”
Ji Yeohoon scratched his head while looking at Yoon Cheong’s phone with its broken screen.
“Dad, please buy him a phone…”
“Hm? Son, it hasn’t been long since you got yours… Oh, for Cheong?”
“Yes.”
He must have felt guilty.
Of course, though it wasn’t a situation he created intentionally, it happened because his ability suddenly manifested, so he was taking responsibility.
Yoon Cheong didn’t seem to care, suggesting he could use a standard phone issued by the school, but Ji Yeohoon was insisting to his father that Yoon Cheong should get a good one.
“I’m really fine.”
“No, Uncle will buy it for you.”
With Yoon Cheong’s phone quickly replaced, we arrived at the school.
Ji Yeohoon’s mother couldn’t come because she was inside a Gate, but she planned to visit separately tomorrow, which made me feel somewhat envious.
“I’ll see you at the dormitory. Let me know if you need anything. You can text me.”
“Okay, I understand. See you later, Hyung.”
“Sure.”
I had Yoon Cheong from the same affiliation, in the same grade with the same teacher, so he could guide me to the dormitory, but Ji Yeohoon, being one grade lower, couldn’t easily come with us.
Moreover, we were in the middle school division, so our range of movement was different.
The large main gate of the 3rd school was the same, but the elementary, middle, and high school buildings and dormitories were different.
Additionally, while the middle and high school divisions were close, the elementary division with its six grades was located completely opposite.
Fortunately, being in the middle school division didn’t mean we couldn’t go to the elementary buildings at all, and Ji Yeohoon being in elementary didn’t mean he couldn’t visit the middle school division.
“It’s like that time.”
“What time?”
“When we were in 1st grade, after class, while the teacher was having the closing meeting and we were writing in our planners, Ji Yeohoon finished his attached kindergarten class and came up to our classroom, peeking his head through the back door, and all the kids turned to look.”
Though they weren’t in the same building, being in similar locations somehow reminded me.
I smiled, thinking it would be fun, but Yoon Cheong sighed instead.
“…It’s going to be more troublesome.”
“Try to get along with him, okay? It’s been how many years already?”
“…Okay.”
I patted Yoon Cheong’s back, who had a reluctant expression, and we returned to the dormitory.
This is definitely going to be more troublesome from now on.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
