At first, he had felt a twinge of regret. It would have been better if the Rank had been a little higher. Of course, that thought hadn’t lasted long. If Lim Haeyul’s Rank had been even a little higher, the Association would never have sent him to Cha Jae-woo in the first place. Any shortcomings could be remedied simply by finding another Guide.
It would have been a bit troublesome, but hardly difficult. Yet Lim Haeyul had made even that unnecessary. He had succeeded in Guiding with a method Cha Jae-woo had never heard of before.
At first, he had wondered if this kind of Guiding was something anyone could do, or if it was unique to Lim Haeyul. But soon he concluded that it didn’t matter either way. It was Lim Haeyul who had achieved Guiding beyond what his Rank would suggest, and nothing was more important than the fact that he was now by Cha Jae-woo’s side. Along with that came the realization that no Guide could ever be more perfect for him than Lim Haeyul.
He no longer needed any other Guides. Cha Jae-woo no longer needed to search for others, nor did he need to hide him anymore. And because of that, the situation became rather amusing.
Cha Jae-woo first instructed Lim Haeyul to keep his method of Guiding a secret. Then, he deliberately created distance between himself and the Association, while beginning to venture into Gates. As if there were no issues at all. He exerted his powers needlessly, going out to Gates two, three times if necessary, whenever summoned. Letting the Association grow suspicious and confused on their own. They would never believe that someone like Cha Jae-woo could have recovered with the Guiding of a mere D-Rank Guide. It was inevitable that they would suspect something else at play.
Yet no matter how much they searched and pried, they would find nothing. Gradually, anxiety began to creep in. They started to feel fear as they witnessed Cha Jae-woo’s steady recovery.
The reason for their fear was obvious. To them, Cha Jae-woo’s existence itself was a threat. They didn’t even realize that he had regained his memories; they were simply terrified he might someday threaten their positions.
The ones who had secured seats of power within the Ability Association were, in reality, low-ranked and possessed little actual strength. Their only means of consolidating the Espers under their control had been the fact that they had Cha Jae-woo in their grasp. In other words, if Cha Jae-woo turned his back on them, their entire structure would collapse.
They had believed they kept him beneath them. That even though he was an S-Rank Esper on the surface, they had neutralized him, preventing him from freely using his powers, and thus controlled him.
However, after Lim Haeyul entered Cha Jae-woo’s home, his condition began improving noticeably in a short time, throwing them into confusion. No matter how high the compatibility, a D-Rank Guide could not perfectly pacify an S-Rank Esper. There had to be something else—but there was nothing.
Cha Jae-woo knew they were growing increasingly nervous. And yet it was hilarious that not one of them suspected Lim Haeyul as the cause. Even though he was openly hiding Lim Haeyul, they still thought he was using Haeyul to cover up something else. If anything, it was almost impressive how deeply they deluded themselves.
“I like Cha Jae-woo-ssi! That’s why I worry about him, and why I get so jealous I can’t stand the thought of him being Guided by anyone else! I’m Cha Jae-woo’s Guide, so why should anyone else be allowed to Guide him?!”
Perhaps it was because Lim Haeyul was just a little strange.
Cha Jae-woo let out a soft, incredulous chuckle at the sudden memory. Come to think of it, even back then, he might have smiled just a little. He had told Lim Haeyul to keep things secret, and instead, the man had gone around practically announcing it to the world—it had been absurd beyond belief.
Well, fine. In hindsight, it was understandable that the Association would jump to the conclusion that Lim Haeyul didn’t possess any special abilities. How could they possibly suspect that someone who looked so simple and foolish could be hiding something important?
But mistaking a fool’s mask for true foolishness could be fatal. Lim Haeyul could perform Guiding more perfectly than any S-Rank Guide. This was the problem with judging based on appearances alone.
Cha Jae-woo smiled faintly. Just thinking about Lim Haeyul brought a helpless kind of laughter.
He, too, thought that Lim Haeyul could be foolish and frustrating. Yet he didn’t find it detestable. Perhaps it was natural. Even if it was because of the side effects of Guiding, Lim Haeyul was blindly devoted to him.
Cha Jae-woo had grown accustomed to that now. Sometimes, he even found himself wishing he could deepen those side effects through hypnosis or other means.
He knew how abnormal such thoughts were. And yet, he didn’t dislike it—the unconditional devotion, the ever-worried demeanor, the face that lit up brightly whenever their eyes met.
Of course, there were certainly times when he was so embarrassed by Lim Haeyul’s antics that he wanted to cover his face. But on the other hand, it was amusing too. And fascinating. Even considering the side effects, how could someone throw themselves forward so recklessly and without hesitation?
When Lim Haeyul thought something was right or necessary, he didn’t waver at all. Perhaps that was why Cha Jae-woo found him so wondrous. Because he himself had never been able to act so purely. Instead, he had wasted 18 long years, losing sight of his purpose through endless hesitation.
Cha Jae-woo suddenly thought: If it had been Lim Haeyul, he wouldn’t have wasted time the way he did. No matter the outcome, Haeyul would have made a decision much earlier—and if he had decided to charge forward, he would have done so without hesitation.
“Ah… Cha, Jae-woo-ssi…”
“What… what did you just do?”
Even now, there were moments that sent a chill down his spine just thinking about them. The moment when Lim Haeyul had calmed the rampaging Esper’s waves at the cost of utterly wrecking himself.
Lim Haeyul had known exactly what could happen if things went wrong. And yet, he had still thrown himself in. Because he had decided it was the right thing to do.
From the beginning, Guiding a berserk Esper was considered impossible. No matter how high the matching rate, no matter how high the Rank, it simply couldn’t be done. And yet, Lim Haeyul had managed it.
Absurdly enough, Cha Jae-woo’s first emotion had not been amazement—but anger. Because Haeyul hadn’t even bothered to properly hide his Guiding ability? No—that had never mattered in the first place. Even if it had been exposed, it wouldn’t have been a serious issue.
What had truly enraged him was the fear of almost losing his Guide.
Lim Haeyul should have cherished himself more. Especially when it came to Guiding. His abilities were to be used for Cha Jae-woo alone. Lim Haeyul should have understood that better than anyone.
For him, Cha Jae-woo was willing to act out any kind of play. Pretending to be kind, acting pitiable—anything. If it meant binding Lim Haeyul to him through sympathy, then it was a cheap price to pay.
You have to stay by my side. I’m the one you must protect. So, comfort me.
For someone as absurdly kind as Lim Haeyul, words like that worked far better. Cha Jae-woo knew this. Because Lim Haeyul was foolish. Because he always put others before himself.
“Do you… prefer that kind of Guiding, Cha Jae-woo-ssi?”
“…What?”
“Uh… I mean, do you like… the more, um, erotic methods? Are you… wanting to do those kinds of dirty things with me… to receive Guiding?”
Because of that, Lim Haeyul was blindly devoted to a frustrating degree. For the sake of a pitiful Cha Jae-woo, he would do anything.
Even after drinking Feleil’s blood just the night before, and being roughly manhandled because of it, he had already practically forgotten about it. And now, just because Cha Jae-woo hinted at it, Haeyul was asking if he should try such things without hesitation.
Cha Jae-woo let out another small laugh. How could someone be this easy to deceive? …Ah, come to think of it, what had Lim Haeyul said was the reason he decided to become his Guide? Wasn’t it because he believed that otherwise, Cha Jae-woo would be killed? What did he even think he was? The fact that he truly believed that possibility—it was so typical of Lim Haeyul.
“……”
As he thought of Lim Haeyul, the faint smile on Cha Jae-woo’s lips gradually faded. His face grew cold—so chilling that it was hard to believe he had been smiling moments ago. Cha Jae-woo stepped out of the front door without hesitation.
Now, he intended to get rid of the old tiger first. While Lim Haeyul’s friends had been staying at his house, Cha Jae-woo had kidnapped Cha Seong-ju.
He hadn’t even bothered to create a scene that would arouse suspicion. But having an alibi wouldn’t hurt, so it wasn’t a bad idea to have one, just in case.
“Lim Haeyul. Where’s your room? Don’t fall asleep here—go to bed.”
“Mmm… Geon-ung, room… yeah, room.”
“You’re out of it. Where’s your room? I’ll take you there.”
“Room? Room, ah! My room is, um…”
“Yeah, where—”
“Leave him.”
“…Huh?”
“…?”
“I’ll take him. Just leave him alone.”
Of course, it hadn’t exactly been a pleasant memory either.
Cha Jae-woo pushed aside the unnecessary memories and quickened his pace. Because it was still early, the surroundings were dark. But soon, the sun would rise.
Cha Jae-woo had a lot to do today. It wasn’t enough to simply eliminate Cha Seong-ju. He needed to thoroughly take everything that belonged to him as well.
It wasn’t a difficult task. Cha Seong-ju would disappear from this world easily enough.
So he would finish quickly and return. Cha Jae-woo found himself thinking—a thought he usually didn’t indulge in. No, lately, every time he had to go out, he seemed to have similar thoughts.
“Hoo…”
Taking a deep breath, Cha Jae-woo’s chest expanded and deflated.
Until just a moment ago, he had entertained the silly idea of crawling back into bed, cradling that soft, warm body in his arms.
Would Lim Haeyul cry again after this? If he bowed his head, pretending to be sad, if he feigned hardship, Haeyul might, without knowing anything, try to comfort him—try to embrace him.
Cha Jae-woo chuckled softly. Even though he knew absolutely nothing, somehow, Lim Haeyul always acted exactly as he predicted.
