Chapter 10
A detailed examination…
Seoyul shook his head, saying it was ridiculous, but the two were adamant. So he had no choice but to move to the central building and undergo various tests all day long.
Unlike a simple grade test, this examination, which checked everything about an ability user, would take a whole week for results to come out.
Because of this, he had to endure Dowoon’s intense stare for a week.
‘Sigh… finally today. After today, we’ll return to our peaceful daily life, right?’
It had been like sitting on pins and needles for a week. Since Seoyul had been a C-grade his entire life, he never thought his grade could be wrong.
If it had been wrong, the organization members would have noticed it.
“Finally, my grievance will be cleared.”
“…I really am C-grade. You’ve been checking for a week now, Esper-nim.”
“…”
Dowoon gently ignored Seoyul’s words. Since Guiding had continued throughout, he couldn’t refute that.
‘But it was definitely different then.’
Could grades fluctuate like this normally? Or was it truly just an illusion?
Dowoon absolutely refused to believe it was an illusion, but he was confused by the energy that no longer felt the same.
BANG!
“Are the results out?”
Dowoon burst through the door and entered, too impatient to wait. Seoyul followed behind with a sigh, and Sunjeong blurted out:
“The door’s going to break. Take it easy. Showing off your strength?”
“The results?”
“…”
It seemed he couldn’t hear anything else right now. Sunjeong shook her head and displayed the test results she had received that morning on the screen. As expected, it was filled with various technical terms.
“How am I supposed to understand by just looking at this?”
Dowoon frowned intensely and shouted. Despite being able to read the contents if he focused, he seemed quite anxious.
Sunjeong smiled at his reaction and opened her mouth.
“Seoyul is…”
Finally hearing her speak, both Dowoon and Seoyul focused their attention on Sunjeong. Dowoon especially looked extremely tense.
Well, if the grade changed, he wouldn’t have to suffer because of Guiding anymore.
But…
“C-grade.”
“What?!”
Dowoon shouted in disbelief at Sunjeong’s words. But Seoyul, showing no sign of disappointment, let out a small sigh and said:
“See… I told you I was C-grade…”
“That’s impossible! I definitely felt it! That was not the energy a C-grade would have!”
Dowoon made a fuss, claiming the test results must be wrong. But the results were accurate. All test results indicated that Seoyul was a C-grade Guide.
The only additional confirmation was that he had wide compatibility, meaning that if he developed further, he could Guide many people more efficiently than an average C-grade.
“Are you sure it’s accurate? He’s really C-grade?”
“That’s what I said. If you don’t believe it, you can look for yourself.”
Sunjeong brought him in front of the screen, and he began to read the data, focusing so intently it was as if he might be sucked into the monitor.
After a few minutes, he murmured in a dejected voice:
“…It’s true…”
As Dowoon seemed to accept it, Seoyul felt a small sense of liberation. But he was startled to discover a feeling of disappointment settling in a corner of his heart.
‘Could it be… I…’
Had he been expecting something else?
Though he had kept thinking it wasn’t true, it seemed he had been secretly hoping. Seoyul blushed, thinking he had been too greedy.
However, Sunjeong brought up an unexpected point.
“But Dowoon, your results are also true.”
“My results?”
Come to think of it, Dowoon had also undergone a detailed examination. Wondering if something else had been discovered, Seoyul raised his head and perked up his ears again.
“You showed values that absolutely could not occur without receiving Guiding from a high-grade Guide.”
Sunjeong explained while displaying Dowoon’s test results on another part of the screen.
“Based on your account, if it was just a very brief Guiding, it would have to be at least A-grade or higher.”
“A-grade?!”
Dowoon shouted in surprise at the impressive grade. After all, the highest grade of Guide in South Korea was A-grade.
And just now, she had said ‘at least.’
“Yes. Your values indicate at least A-grade. And they’re values that couldn’t appear without an S-grade Guide.”
“…S-grade?!”
This time it was Seoyul who widened his eyes in shock. S-grade? It seemed too unreal.
‘But just now she clearly said C-grade…’
What was going on? Seoyul’s mind became increasingly confused.
“So the center has defined it this way.”
Gulp.
Seeing Sunjeong’s serious face, both Dowoon and Seoyul swallowed hard. Their hearts pounded with tension.
And finally, Sunjeong spoke.
“Could it be… a Hidden Guide? That’s what they think.”
Hidden Guide.
This term referred to a Guide whose grade increased only under specific conditions.
Until now, only two people worldwide had been discovered, so related information was scarce. Moreover, due to information control by the discovery countries, it was extremely difficult to obtain even small clues.
And now this veiled term, Hidden Guide, had come out of Sunjeong’s mouth. Furthermore…
“If it’s Hidden…”
“Yes. The theory is that Hidden Guides are highly likely to be S-grade.”
“What?!”
Seoyul cried out, utterly shocked at those words. He had never even heard that Hidden Guides existed, and now to hear they were likely S-grade? Putting it all together…
“Y-you’re saying I’m S-grade?”
“Not just S-grade, but Hidden.”
“H-Hidden…?”
It was hard to believe. It sounded completely unreal. This was especially true for Seoyul, who had zero knowledge about Hidden Guides.
“They’re Guides who change to S-grade only under specific conditions. It’s such a rare case that there’s no information on what conditions cause them to change to S-grade.”
After saying this, Sunjeong searched for and displayed two Guides on the screen.
“This person is the first Hidden Guide. And this is the second Hidden Guide. Both are currently alive, but not much has been revealed. However, it is certain that their activation conditions are different.”
Seoyul stared blankly at the screen. Only two people in this vast world. And if Sunjeong’s words were true, he would be the third.
“T-this can’t be… me…”
Yes, it was absurd. A Hidden Guide? And S-grade? After living his entire life as a C-grade until death, what was this sudden news?
“Wow. This is insane. A Hidden Guide? Hidden? S-grade Hidden?!!”
But Dowoon seemed to firmly believe these words, his voice growing increasingly louder.
“I knew something was off! This is crazy. Hidden? Wow. F*ck. What should I do? What do we do now?”
He expressed his joy with his whole body, even mixing in curses in his excitement. Never having seen him this excited and happy before, Seoyul felt both troubled and dazed.
“Don’t get too excited. This is just a hypothesis, so we need to check carefully.”
Sunjeong calmed Dowoon down and explained to the two:
“Now you two have just one task. Find the activation condition and confirm if he’s a Hidden Guide.”
Activation condition…
Seoyul sank into thought upon hearing those words.
She had said a Hidden Guide was one who became S-grade only under specific conditions. Conversely, this meant that if the activation conditions couldn’t be found, he would be no different from an ordinary Guide.
“For now, Dowoon, you’re excluded from all missions. From now on, find out with Seoyul what the activation condition might be. This is something we can’t help with, so you two need to find it.”
“It appeared once already, so there won’t be a problem. I’ll find it right away!”
Dowoon shouted with strong conviction. But seemingly not finding him very reliable, Sunjeong turned to Seoyul and spoke again.
“What do you think, Seoyul? Do you think you can do it? Don’t feel too pressured. It’s fine to just continue Guiding as you have been and see if anything changes.”
Sunjeong said this, but telling him not to feel pressured was truly an absurd statement. Weren’t all these words just hypothetical after all?
Seoyul was anxious. What if he got his hopes up only to find out it wasn’t true? He already thought his current situation was more than he deserved, and he feared that being too greedy might ruin everything.
But Sunjeong seemed to read his thoughts and gently comforted him.
“There’s no need for that expression. I’m really proud of the current Seoyul too, you know? That won’t change in the future.”
The hand placed on his head felt warm. Seoyul closed and opened his eyes tightly, calming his fluttering heart at that warmth.
Dowoon was an unchanging benefactor in his life, and Sunjeong was the most dependable adult he had ever met. He wanted to be of help to both of them. No matter what result came later, he wanted to at least show his effort.
So, steeling his soft heart, he resolved:
“I-I’ll do it. I’ll try hard to find it.”
Seeing him clench his fists firmly and open his eyes wide, Sunjeong’s heart swelled. She felt proud, wondering when he had become capable of making such a mature face.
“Good. Just don’t push yourself too hard. And don’t listen to any strange requests from Dowoon. Got it?”
Sunjeong winked, adding a joke. Surprised at these words, Seoyul asked:
“S-strange requests?”
“What would I do? She doesn’t need to worry, we’ll handle it well! Hey! Let’s go.”
Fearing that Sunjeong might spout nonsense, Dowoon quickly snatched Seoyul away. Using the newly found Guide as an excuse, Sunjeong always wanted to tease Dowoon.
Thinking this time was no different, he moved quickly. It was not a place worth staying at for long.
“E-Esper-niiim!”
Ah…
Dowoon realized that he had again dragged him along forcefully and stopped walking. Looking back, he saw Seoyul panting with a flushed face, trying to keep up with his pace.
The hot, huffing sound of his breath somehow tickled his ears. The disheveled clothes also seemed particularly bothersome.
So he frowned even more and nagged:
“Why don’t you speak up sooner when it’s hard for you? You always say it too late. From now on, speak up quickly.”
“I’m… sorry.”
Even as he scolded, his hands carefully straightened Seoyul’s disheveled clothes. Seeing his words and actions move separately, Seoyul, who had been feeling gloomy, felt his mood rise again.
“Here. Take it. Your legs are short, so you might fall.”
If Dowoon just didn’t walk so fast, there would be no worry of falling. After all, he wasn’t a three-year-old child. But the outstretched hand looked so reassuring that he carefully took it.
“Let’s go.”
Dowoon held Seoyul’s hand and walked slowly. He also walked side by side, as if being considerate.
The presence felt from the side rather than from the front was still enormous and made him feel a bit intimidated, but it was still nice.
‘Esper-nim is really…’
Kind.
Seoyul smiled brightly, resolving to work hard for this gentle Esper.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
