Jeong Seong-gon was beaten so savagely he thought he might actually die. As an S-rank Esper, he tried to fight back with his fire abilities, but nothing worked against Hyun Tae-oh.
Half-mad already, Tae-oh looked like he was deliberately keeping Seong-gon’s breath hanging by a thread.
Overcome with terror, Seong-gon poured every ounce of power he had left into raising a Defensive Barrier. That finally bought him a brief opening when one of Tae-oh’s attacks bounced off. But the moment his attack was blocked, Tae-oh conjured even larger ice spikes in both hands, pressing the threat further. Seong-gon’s panic spiked.
“If—if I die, you’ll be a murderer!”
At that, Tae-oh’s lips curled in a chilling smirk.
His expression alone said, Do you really think it would be hard to kill you and bury the truth?
The coldness in his eyes made Seong-gon’s spine crawl.
He knew Tae-oh could crush the barrier in an instant if he chose, so he desperately tried to reason with him.
“You’re an SS-rank Esper—someone who should be a role model to all Ability Users! If you break the law, w-what happens then?!”
“Fuck, what kind of idiot logic is that? So it’s okay if an S-rank does it?”
That icy glare made it perfectly clear: What you did was a crime too. Sweat poured down Seong-gon’s back.
“I-I’m sorry! I just… I really like Guide Min Yu-hyun. I’m a huge fan, I lost control for a moment. Please, I beg you!”
Realizing Tae-oh wasn’t going to let him off, Seong-gon flattened himself against the ground. His pride as an S-rank Esper had long since shattered.
He couldn’t withstand the assault of an SS-rank, let alone counter it. He had thought Tae-oh would be conserving strength after the Black Gate, but he was wrong. The power gap was so vast that even without holding back, Tae-oh could have erased him instantly. The might of an SS-rank—only three in the world—was on another level entirely.
“P-please, just let me live! I swear I’ll never do it again! And—and I’ll make sure no Esper ever lays a hand on that B-rank Guide. I’ll stop them myself!”
At his desperate plea, the raging water column in Tae-oh’s hand began to recede.
His hair, which had been flaring upward, fell into a tousled mess that made him look younger—strikingly natural and sharp.
Even now, Seong-gon couldn’t help but notice how much he looked like the perfect match for the flawless beauty Min Yu-hyun. But there was no time for foolish admiration.
Sensing that Tae-oh’s rage had eased slightly, Seong-gon pressed on.
“Please, trust me! I’ll protect him myself. And if anyone dares touch that B-rank Guide, then you can come kill me. I won’t resist!”
Tae-oh’s eyes fixed on him, still cold enough to freeze him in place. But at least he no longer seemed ready to skewer him with ice. The moment he realized his life wasn’t hanging quite so thinly, greed crept in.
“C-could you also maybe… not send me to disciplinary review?”
Humans were always like this: once they gained one thing, they immediately wanted another. At that, Tae-oh’s brow arched.
“Right. You’re S-rank. Must be humiliating to get caught doing shit like this.”
“……”
“You wouldn’t be able to show your face. And if Guides start refusing to Guide you, you’d have no one to blame but yourself.”
That wasn’t entirely true. Most Espers who acted as Antis boasted about it openly. But disciplinary hearings brought restrictions—they were better avoided if possible.
“A-are you… are you really going to report me?” Seong-gon stammered.
“No.”
The word came instantly, and Seong-gon let out a shaky sigh of relief.
“Thank you—”
“Just die.”
“What? Aghhh!”
Before he could even finish, Tae-oh teleported right in front of him and unleashed a brutal storm of fists and kicks.
He didn’t even use his abilities—just raw fists and feet. The humiliation stung almost as much as the pain. But worse than humiliation was the agony. It was sharper than any ability-driven attack.
There was no time to raise another barrier, and even if he did, Tae-oh would break through it easily.
“AAAGH! Y-you said you’d spare me! Arghhh!”
The sound of blows mixed with his frantic screams.
Tae-oh didn’t stop, his voice as cold as ice.
“I changed my mind.”
“AAAGH! Please, I beg you!”
His pride as an S-rank had already been ground into dust.
Every time he tried to conjure fire, ice spikes came flying at him with ghostly precision. In truth, not using his powers was safer—because even with them, he didn’t stand a chance.
Tae-oh truly meant to kill him—but then, he paused.
“I won’t kill you.”
Even as he said it, his boots kept slamming into Seong-gon.
“You hate the shame of disciplinary review. And I’d rather kill you than see you get off with a slap on the wrist.”
“Arghhh!”
“But if I kill you and it screws things up for me, Chi-yu will cry. And that, I really can’t stand.”
Thud.
“Ughhh!!”
“So you’ll just take a beating until you’re half-dead.”
Tae-oh ground his heel into Seong-gon’s waist. Panicked, Seong-gon tried to bind his foot with fire.
“P-please! Don’t kill me!”
But after exhausting his energy on barriers, the bindings were weak and unstable—any stronger and he’d risk Rampage.
Tae-oh casually shattered the flames, then conjured two sharp ice lances. He drove one into Seong-gon’s left arm and the other into his left leg.
“UAAAAHHHHH!!”
“Try that shit again, and I’ll snap them off.”
“……!”
Seong-gon froze in horror, staring at the ice buried in his flesh. Then, humiliated and broken, he wet himself.
That night, deep in the dark alley, the sound of fists and groans dragged on until dawn.
***
“…What are you all doing here?”
Chi-yu woke in the night to find Tae-oh gone. When he wandered into the living room, he found Yoon Do-jae, Beom Do-il, and Lee Jun-hyung clustered on the sofa. His eyes widened.
“Oh, you’re up?”
Jun-hyung, who had been playing a game on his phone, shot up the moment he saw him.
Do-jae also rose abruptly, though he stayed where he was.
“Yeah. Where’s Tae-oh?”
“He stepped out for a bit. Are you okay?”
Jun-hyung’s eyes flicked to the bandage on Chi-yu’s wrist.
“Oh, it’s nothing. Tae-oh just overreacted. But… Esper Yoon Do-jae, why are you here?”
Chi-yu’s gaze moved to Do-jae. Knowing Tae-oh, if he came home to find Do-jae here, he’d explode.
“Esper Hyun Tae-oh asked me to.”
Reading his concern, Do-jae reassured him with a calm look.
“Ah…”
For a moment, Chi-yu wondered why—but then it clicked.
Tae-oh must have called them over so he wouldn’t be left alone after that sudden incident. And calling Yoon Do-jae too meant Tae-oh judged that Beom Do-il alone might not be enough if the Fire-attribute Esper returned.
Worry tugged at Chi-yu’s expression. Tae-oh’s unstable powers always left him in pain when he used them.
“Did you… see his face?” Do-il asked.
Chi-yu sat down beside Jun-hyung and shook his head.
“Just flames.”
“I knew it. We should’ve taken you straight to my place.”
Jun-hyung sighed, guilt shadowing his face. Chi-yu shook his head.
“No. He would’ve threatened me eventually anyway.”
“That psycho,” Jun-hyung muttered, tongue clicking.
Chi-yu forced a smile.
“I didn’t have any fans before A Pair is Born, and now I’ve got an Anti too. Guess I’m kind of famous, huh? Haha.”
But no one laughed. Feeling awkward, Chi-yu scratched his cheek. Still, he couldn’t help but worry—where had Tae-oh gone?
“But Tae-oh…”
Before he could finish, Hyun Tae-oh appeared at his side.
His body carried the cool scent of wind—he must have stripped away the cigarette smell with his wind abilities before coming inside.
“Tae-oh!”
Chi-yu jumped up, but Tae-oh pulled him easily into his arms.
“Why are you up? I told you to sleep.”
Then he turned a frosty gaze on the others.
“Were these bastards making noise?”
“…Wow. Just wow.”
Do-il threw up his hands, incredulous.
“You wake us up to stand guard, then accuse us of disturbing him? Unbelievable.”
“Any other traces?” Tae-oh ignored him, directing the question to Do-jae instead.
Do-jae shook his head.
Before leaving to deal with Jeong Seong-gon, Tae-oh had warned him to be ready—not just for Seong-gon, but for other possible attackers. He had never once assumed there was only one Anti. Most of the cast were A-rank and S-rank Espers, making a B-rank like Chi-yu an easy target.
Easy to bully. Easy to mock. Easy to wound. Low-ranked Espers and Guides always became prey.
“How did it go?” Do-jae asked.
Tae-oh gave him a brief nod, then turned to Chi-yu.
“Let’s talk.”
“Why? Isn’t this about the Esper who attacked me? Shouldn’t I hear it?”
“It’s not that. Something else.”
“Ah.” Chi-yu nodded.
At Tae-oh’s signal, Do-jae and Do-il teleported to the rooftop, where Tae-oh was already waiting.
“Why me?” Do-il asked.
“Because you’re around Chi-yu the most.”
Do-il scratched his head.
“Did you catch him?” Do-jae asked. Do-il leaned forward, curious.
“Yeah. Took care of it.”
“What—you killed him?!” Do-il shouted.
“Who was it?” Do-jae asked instead.
“Fire-attribute Esper, First Division. Don’t know his name. Didn’t kill him, so relax.”
Tae-oh shot a look at Do-il.
Do-il let out a shaky sigh of relief.
Knowing Tae-oh since Academy days, he wouldn’t have been surprised if he had killed the man without hesitation. Hearing otherwise eased him.
After all, the thought of a friend becoming a murderer was unbearable—and worse, if one of their cast members committed murder, the show would be finished.
But more than that, the idea of Chi-yu grieving over it made his chest ache.
“From the way he’s handling it himself, it’s clear there’s more than one Esper targeting Chi-yu.”
“What??” Do-il’s eyes went wide.
He had suspected there might be more than one Anti, but hearing confirmation froze him in place. And the more he thought about it, the more he realized—it wasn’t just Chi-yu at risk. If one of them went after Lee Jun-hyung instead, that would be catastrophic.
Now that he thought about it, hadn’t he heard rumors about something like this before?
Do-il tilted his head, trying to recall.
“I don’t know the details, but apparently there’s a group. They move together, harassing Guides and Espers they don’t like.”
“What…?” Yoon Do-jae’s eyes widened.
Then Do-il clapped his hands suddenly.
“Right! I remember! They mostly target low-ranked Espers and Guides. But they’re clever—they never cross the disciplinary line. Even when they do, the victims keep quiet, too ashamed to admit they were beaten by another Ability User.”
At that, Do-jae let out a heavy sigh.
Organized Antis. A problem he had never even considered.
The fact that Kang Chi-yu had been targeted was bad enough. But worse was realizing that many others had been suffering in silence.
Do-jae resolved then and there to report it to the Central Bureau’s PN division, responsible for Ability User’s protection.
