# Chapter 21
A look of realization immediately spread across his face.
They were in their final year. Failing a required general course meant their graduation would be delayed. And it was because of the grade he had given.
But Ko Eungyo was confident that he had given grades fairly.
“Then shouldn’t they have just attended class properly?”
“I heard you marked other students as present even when they skipped class, so why single out just those two? Is it because you want to force them to take your class again next semester?”
…And the Director seemed to think that Ko Eungyo had deliberately and unfairly graded them.
This was completely unjust. Ko Eungyo immediately responded.
“That’s not true.”
The Director clicked his tongue as if he knew everything, but Ko Eungyo couldn’t hide his genuinely bewildered expression. He opened his mouth to present his counterargument.
“Espers Woo Sihyun and Lee Seungwoo were absent on presentation day. They couldn’t present due to an unexcused absence, so I gave them zero points for the assignment. How could I possibly give them attendance points? Unless they attended but simply didn’t present, which wasn’t the case.”
“Ah, so that’s what happened. I had no idea.”
Of course, there was some desire for retribution. But Woo Sihyun and Lee Seungwoo weren’t the only ones who received F’s. He didn’t give any points to students who submitted blank papers for their midterm or final exams either. The Director’s demand to give just those two more points felt extremely unreasonable.
The Director seemed not to be listening to a word he said, though his expression was fabricated to appear sincere. His eyes were filled with weariness, as if dealing with someone who couldn’t understand.
‘…This old man is being ridiculous.’
It was painfully obvious that he was trying to flatter and coax Ko Eungyo, manipulating him to get what he wanted. The Director even seemed quite accustomed to such conversations.
After conversations like this, he probably went around complaining to others about “that corporate bastard child…” and whatnot.
“They’re students too. I heard that the presentation day happened to be during the festival, and those friends had essential roles in the student council for the festival. Couldn’t you be a little more understanding?”
“…”
Students, my ass.
Having recently been threatened by that very student that his ankle would be broken again if he didn’t behave, it would be a miracle if he felt any sympathy.
He tried to manage his increasingly defiant expression and remained silent. The longer the silence stretched, the more displeased the Director’s expression became. Judging by the “ahem” and forced cough, it seemed he wanted to pressure Ko Eungyo… Sorry, but Ko Eungyo knew the Director just wanted to get rid of him quickly so he could watch baseball.
The Director spoke in a grave voice.
“I’ve specifically assigned the two Espers, Woo Sihyun and Lee Seungwoo, to you as requested. Yet you still disappoint me like this?”
“Me, to you, Director?”
When he asked with skepticism, the Director replied.
“No. What I’m saying is not that you’re disappointing me, but rather, are you going to let the Espers under your charge feel let down?”
Feel let down. Such words wouldn’t move him in the slightest. Ko Eungyo had to try hard not to snort.
“If students Woo Sihyun and Lee Seungwoo had any intention of graduating, they would have presented properly to earn their assignment points.”
“Didn’t they have a legitimate reason?”
“That’s for me, as their professor, to decide.”
“Well…”
The Director looked at Ko Eungyo as if he were a stubborn mule. Ko Eungyo didn’t back down either, meeting the Director’s gaze directly. A brief silence fell over the Director’s office.
Unexpectedly, the Director stared at him intently. It seemed he was preparing for round two.
Indeed, giving up now would mean not seeing the two S-class Espers in the first half of next year. The efficiency-minded Director had surely scheduled major gates for the first half of the year, taking these S-class Espers into account.
The Director opened his mouth once more.
“The achievements of the Espers under your charge are no different from your own achievements. Behaving this way is only cutting into your own flesh.”
Nonsense. He responded very calmly.
“How can the students’ achievements become my achievements?”
“If you let this slide just this once, Esper Woo Sihyun… no, right. Student Woo Sihyun might be touched by your sincerity and perform better for you, don’t you think?”
Ko Eungyo looked at the Director as if he were dumbfounded.
“And that would be my achievement?”
“Is there something more you want?”
He couldn’t hide his disappointment. The Director must be completely out of touch. To think he would obediently follow the Director’s words after hearing that “Woo Sihyun might perform better.”
He gazed blankly at the Director. The Director didn’t back down either, staring straight into his eyes.
“Director, I’m disappointed.”
“…What did you say?”
“I will not change my mind. Please tell students Woo Sihyun and Lee Seungwoo to attend class properly next year. Now if you’ll excuse me.”
“Guide Ko Eungyo!”
As he rose from his seat, the Director roared.
“This won’t do! If you keep this up, I might change the dedicated Guides for those two. Don’t think I won’t do it!”
That was actually exactly what he wanted. Ko Eungyo quickly responded to the Director’s words.
“If you put it that way, then I have no choice.”
“Yes, so…”
“Please reassign those two to another Guide’s charge.”
“What did you say?”
“I’m asking you to remove those two from my ‘my’ list. Ah, when I checked recently, there weren’t any Guides whose wavelengths matched those two… Still, if they combine with machine Guiding, they should be able to find a somewhat suitable Guide.”
“…”
The Director looked at him with an expression of disbelief. It might be quite unfortunate for the real Ko Eungyo when he returned, but he had no intention of reversing his decision.
Honestly, at this point, he wasn’t even sure if the real Ko Eungyo would return to this body, and the biggest reason was that he didn’t want to take care of those damn bastards while calling them “my Espers.”
The Director couldn’t bring himself to ask “You’re joking, right?” but he leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms, exuding an atmosphere of distrust toward Ko Eungyo’s words.
Swallowing hard, the Director opened his mouth.
“…You’re right. Unless it’s some of the higher-level Guides capable of ‘rhythm gaming,’ it’s nearly impossible to provide Guiding to them.”
“…”
‘Rhythm gaming’… refers to when a Guide forcibly performs Guiding on an Esper whose wavelength doesn’t match. The reason Guides call this act ‘rhythm gaming’ is because forcibly fitting one’s wavelength into an Esper’s wavelength is similar to a rhythm game, nothing more.
It’s known to be a Guiding technique possible only for top-tier Guides, as it requires either an enormous amount of Guiding energy or particularly pure energy. In fact, even D-class Guides could do it if they knew the method, though with significantly reduced effectiveness.
“So under the current policy, it’s true that there’s no substitute except for Guide Ko Eungyo, who matches their wavelength to some extent. Wasn’t that why you put Esper Woo Sihyun and Esper Lee Seungwoo in your ‘my’?”
It was awkward to deny it. He also thought that ‘Ko Eungyo’ had aimed for exactly that when putting two high-level Espers in his ‘my’.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
When he answered straightforwardly, the Director smirked.
“You surprise me, Guide Ko Eungyo. Were you always this honest?”
“…Did you want me to lie?”
“No, not at all. I rather like this better.”
The Director picked up his cup and drank the cold tea. A brief silence fell between them. Ko Eungyo decided not to say anything more, wondering if he had revealed too much of himself.
It was about a minute later when the Director spoke again.
“It seems Sihyun has grown tired of you.”
Such a familiar tone. It seemed like everyone in this world knew that Ko Eungyo followed Woo Sihyun around.
“No. I tried my best, but Esper Woo Sihyun doesn’t particularly like me, so I’m thinking of giving up.”
He said this while looking directly into the Director’s eyes. Even without intending to, his tone was sharp. Of course, the Director wasn’t the type to be intimidated by this. With a composed face, the Director fiddled with his wristwatch and counterattacked.
“Ah. So while giving up, you’re also splashing some dirt on their innocent lives?”
“…”
“The Guide Ko Eungyo I knew didn’t hide his demands like this. Be honest like you were before. Tell me what you want. We’re both busy people, aren’t we? Let’s not tire each other out. Ah, is Sihyun constantly refusing your Guiding calls? From what I know, that’s been going on for quite some time. Yes, perhaps it’s time to exercise mandatory authority?”
“Excuse me?”
Mandatory authority? What authority? Surely he’s not referring to that garbage legislation that allows Guides to forcibly perform Guiding when an Esper is in emergency code?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
