#49
“If they’re not a Guide, how will you handle Guiding?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It might not matter to you, but it’ll matter a lot to them.”
Oh-yul didn’t bother mentioning that Ho-woo was already his imprinted pair and a much better Guide-like figure than Kim Seon-young.
“Well, Guiding isn’t the problem now, is it? The problem is how to get rid of that annoying minister. Can’t we just fry him up?”
“That would be troublesome.”
Oh-yul dismissed it briefly. It wasn’t worth reconsidering. While it might be fine for him, it wouldn’t be good for Ho-woo, who he’d be involved with in the future. His world revolved around Ho-woo and operated for his sake.
“Have you asked everything you wanted to?”
“How far have you gotten?”
Oh-yul was about to say there was no value in answering such a mischievous question when he closed his mouth, sensing an unfamiliar presence approaching from the end of the corridor.
Joo Si-yeo must have felt it too, as her relaxed, playful expression hardened.
“How annoying.”
The obvious presence of a non-manifested person, not Ha Eun-chan who had gone to buy alcohol, stopped in front of the office and soon there was a regular knocking sound on the door.
“Come in.”
At Oh-yul’s permission, the man who opened the door and entered was one of the minister’s bodyguards. Dressed in a black suit with an earpiece, he bowed slightly to Oh-yul and Joo Si-yeo.
Despite his face turning pale with fear from the intimidating aura emitted by the two S-class Espers, he stood firm. It was an amazing sight of a salaried man overcoming his instinctive fear, pressed by money and power.
“What is it?”
“…I was sent as a bodyguard because I heard the three of you were gathering.”
The bodyguard, assigned to probably the safest space in this world, seemed embarrassed by his own words. He cleared his throat and stood close to the wall near the entrance. It was as good as saying he was there to openly monitor them.
Oh-yul lightly shook his head at Joo Si-yeo and leaned back comfortably in his chair. Joo Si-yeo, at this relaxed attitude, made an apologetic expression to Oh-yul from an angle the bodyguard couldn’t see, and grumbled about Ha Eun-chan who hadn’t returned yet.
“Did he go to build a convenience store or what?”
About thirty minutes after the bodyguard had entered, breaking through the silence and boredom, a familiar presence shot down the corridor. The culprit who flung open the door without knocking had bags hanging from both hands and arms, and wore a very happy expression.
“For our awesome gathering, I… Oh.”
Ha Eun-chan, who was putting down the bags on the table with an excited face, belatedly noticed the man standing at the entrance. His expression turned puzzled, then displeased as if he had guessed something from the man’s attire.
“How can you just increase the number of people as you like?”
“He says he came to protect us, so be nice. We should be protected once in a while too.”
Joo Si-yeo, who had seriously uttered the most ridiculous joke in the world, smiled brightly at the man whose shoulders were twitching.
It was the smile of an Esper, and more specifically, of the most dangerous and beautifully formed viper among them.
“Well… if you say so. Here, this is the beer Oh-yul hyung asked for. I also bought some chicken and snacks, so help yourself to whatever you like.”
Oh-yul accepted the can with a grapefruit design handed to him. It still had a faint coolness left. Since it wasn’t as cold as if it had just been taken out of the refrigerator, he lightly frosted the top of the can by channeling cold energy through his hand.
“Gasp! Can you do that for me too?!”
At Ha Eun-chan’s request, he willingly frosted all the beer cans to an appropriate coolness. Ha Eun-chan, feeling the subtle chill in the office, took off his long uniform coat and hung it on the sofa, then opened a beer can that had become cold enough to sting his hands.
“I wonder if our uniforms shouldn’t be divided by season. We’re definitely allocated taxes, but where does all that money go?”
Ha Eun-chan grumbled as he wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Whether winter or summer, the Esper uniform was always the same. It was a long trench-style coat that covered the thighs and came down to the knees, with a slightly raised collar, and underneath was another stiff black jacket.
Still, in summer they could at least take off the outer coat, which was a small mercy.
“But you must be fine, hyung.”
Ha Eun-chan grinned good-naturedly.
“That’s right, aren’t you called the walking air conditioner in summer on the anonymous board?”
“……”
“Oh! I saw that too! Did you see what was posted on the internet? Oh-yul hyung, you’re called the home appliance Esper, right?”
Ha Eun-chan took a sip of beer and gauged Oh-yul’s mood. Oh-yul’s expression remained calm. With a face that showed no particular discomfort, he opened his share of beer, took a sip, and placed it on the table.
“Wouldn’t that suit Esper Joo Si-yeo better?”
“Siyeon noona is the electronic device explosion Esper.”
“That’s too much. It’s not like I want to blow things up.”
Although she grumbled, Joo Si-yeo somewhat understood why she had such a nickname. It wasn’t just once or twice that transmission towers or transformers affected by her electric abilities had exploded when she was hunting monsters.
That’s also why she was living hugging a transformer in the power plant.
She pouted her lips and glanced at the bodyguard who was still standing firmly.
“Have you seen what’s circulating on the internet about the household chores Oh-yul hyung can do with his abilities?”
Ha Eun-chan excitedly took out his phone, searched for something enthusiastically, and then thrust the phone in front of Oh-yul’s face.
At this movement, the watching bodyguard flinched. At this gesture, Oh-yul calmly scanned the phone screen.
※ The Best Wedding Gift: S-class Esper Oh-yul ※
The post, emphasized in large, bold font, was written like a shopping mall advertisement.
“The best washing and drying course. The ultimate wedding gift that doesn’t need a washing machine. Solve interior decoration with a handsome face all at once.”
Oh-yul, who read the calmly written text, recalled Ho-woo’s words on a rainy day and smiled faintly.
‘It’s no big deal. Isn’t it completely fluffy during the rainy season?!’
The way he spoke with sparkling eyes at that time was so cute that he almost hugged him right there. Seeing Oh-yul’s smile, Ha Eun-chan became more excited and started chattering.
“Water-based abilities are so versatile, you know. And since you can handle cold too, the synergy is good, so everyone imagines you can do all these things.”
Ha Eun-chan, who was reciting the list of possibilities including dishwasher, washing machine, house cleaning, and even being a refrigerator, subtly asked, “Is it really possible?” to satisfy his curiosity.
“It would be possible, I suppose. In fact, the use of abilities is a matter of application range. By that logic, Esper Joo Si-yeo could also be a household generator.”
“I’ll pass on that.”
Joo Si-yeo, who politely declined being a household generator, subtly glanced at Oh-yul. It was a silent question asking when he would deal with the annoying bodyguard.
Not yet.
Oh-yul glanced at the bodyguard who hadn’t let his guard down, then rolled his beer can under his fingers after taking a sip. It was still too early, and there were many Espers around who would detect the energy wave if he used his power.
Not yet, it’s not time.
A cool chill settled on the can following his fingertips, creating a faint mist.
***
By the time the alcohol and snacks Ha Eun-chan had bought were running out, it was late into the early morning. The S-class Espers didn’t feel tired just from staying up one night. Mostly Ha Eun-chan and Joo Si-yeo had been chattering about trivial things, while Oh-yul quietly drank his share.
The beer he had even asked Ha Eun-chan to buy at first was sitting on the table with only one sip taken.
Oh-yul checked the time on the pager on his wrist and observed the complexion of the bodyguard who looked visibly tired. Still, as a trained professional bodyguard, he showed no signs of falling asleep. However, his eyelids seemed heavy as he blinked slowly, repeatedly fighting to keep his eyes open.
The surroundings, settled in the deep darkness of dawn, were quiet without a single sign of life, and he knew it was gradually time.
Oh-yul smiled languidly. With his smile, the energy wave flowing from his body made Ha Eun-chan, who had been chattering about the difficulties of his assigned area, close his mouth.
“Hyung?”
Ha Eun-chan called him, puzzled by the sudden situation. Joo Si-yeo calmly leaned back on the sofa, munching on snacks and taking in everything with her eyes.
“…!!”
The water that quickly clumped around the bodyguard’s head choked off his breathing. The bodyguard struggled to escape, scratching at the water, but his fingers only dug in without dispersing it. Ha Eun-chan, startled by the sudden situation, awkwardly got up and hesitated between Oh-yul and the bodyguard.
Despite Ha Eun-chan’s panic, Joo Si-yeo calmly watched the struggling bodyguard while chewing on snacks. She even let out a mocking laugh as he desperately tried to escape by banging his head against the wall.
Only after the bodyguard had been suffocating for just under a minute and collapsed on the floor having a seizure did Oh-yul withdraw his power and remove the water blocking the airway.
“How are you going to clean this up later? He’s bound to report to the minister. There’s no point in waiting until this hour on purpose.”
“I’ll take care of it, so don’t worry about this side.”
“Are you planning to kill him?”
“Who knows.”
Since he was planning to completely turn everything upside down later anyway, Oh-yul vaguely avoided answering, checked that the bodyguard was breathing, and abruptly extended his hand to Joo Si-yeo.
