‘What is this situation?’
As soon as Lim Haeyul regained consciousness, he felt a mix of confusion and a slight sense of fear. The last thing he remembered was being forcibly knocked unconscious by someone, so his reaction was understandable.
To make matters worse, the place where he found himself was eerie. He was in a room where every surface was covered in what appeared to be steel. Only one wall, directly in front of him, was made of glass.
“What is this…?”
Lim Haeyul walked towards the transparent glass as if in a trance. Although it was called glass, it looked incredibly sturdy, far beyond anything he could break to escape. He moved closer because he could see people on the other side of the glass.
Outside, there were three men, all strangers to him. One of them was the person who had spoken to him and brought him to this place. Another wore a lab coat, looking like he could be either a doctor or a researcher from the Guide Association. The third man, standing in the center, was unfamiliar, but Lim Haeyul sensed that he was the one who had ordered him to be brought here.
‘I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before.’
Lim Haeyul frowned, feeling a strange sense of familiarity. A faint memory of the man’s face flashed through his mind. He had definitely seen him before, perhaps on TV.
“Greetings, Guide Lim Haeyul. I apologize for the delayed introduction.”
While Lim Haeyul was lost in thought, the man in the center spoke. His greeting was oddly casual, given the bizarre circumstances. Naturally, Lim Haeyul did not respond.
“I am Jo Gyeong-hoon, President of the Esper Association.”
The man continued his introduction, unfazed by Lim Haeyul’s silence. A kidnapper introducing himself—it was absurd. Yet, Lim Haeyul couldn’t laugh. The man’s demeanor was too confident, as if he had nothing to hide.
‘The President of the Esper Association…’
No wonder he looked familiar. Jo Gyeong-hoon was much more visible in the media than Jang Gijun, the President of the Ability Association. Even before becoming a Guide, Lim Haeyul had known Jo Gyeong-hoon’s name. Despite the existence of the Ability Association, many people believed that Jo Gyeong-hoon was the true leader of all ability users.
“First, I must apologize for bringing you here in such a rude manner. The situation did not allow for courtesy.”
Rude manner? More like kidnapping. They must have knocked him out quickly to avoid detection by his bodyguard, who was nearby. It was clearly an abduction.
“Why did you kidnap me?”
Lim Haeyul asked bluntly, maintaining a calm exterior despite his fear. He knew his bodyguard would have noticed his absence by now, and Cha Jae-woo would soon be alerted. He was confident that Cha Jae-woo would come to his rescue.
Unless… could they have planned for Cha Jae-woo to come here? Would that put him in danger?
‘No way.’
Lim Haeyul quickly dismissed the thought. Cha Jae-woo was more than capable of handling any human threat, having cleared gates solo before. But why had they brought him here?
Despite the lingering questions, Lim Haeyul felt no tension, only curiosity about Jo Gyeong-hoon’s motives.
“We simply needed to verify something. Please do not think of it as a kidnapping.”
“You knocked me out and brought me here. If that’s not kidnapping, what is it? You could have just asked me to come with you.”
“That would have been impossible.”
Jo Gyeong-hoon chuckled briefly. Lim Haeyul couldn’t understand why Jo Gyeong-hoon was so confident that it would have been impossible. When Jang Gijun had come to find him for the matching rate test, Cha Jae-woo hadn’t stopped him. Although Jang Gijun had come directly, he hadn’t seemed particularly urgent.
“Because I am different from Jang Gijun.”
However, the following words made Lim Haeyul tense. Was this a dangerous situation? Would his guiding method be exposed this time? Surely not…
“What are you curious about?”
Lim Haeyul asked, trying to hide his growing concern. Jo Gyeong-hoon smiled and shrugged. He seemed both amused and annoyed, a strange mix that felt artificial.
“What could be curious about a Guide?”
Lim Haeyul didn’t respond to the vague statement. He had a feeling it was better not to say too much to Jo Gyeong-hoon. Something about him seemed off, reminding Lim Haeyul of the impression he had from seeing him on TV before—he had thought Jo Gyeong-hoon looked unpleasant.
“I am curious about Lim Haeyul’s guiding ability.”
The casual mention brought back a faded memory. As soon as Jo Gyeong-hoon stated his purpose, Lim Haeyul realized there was only one way to test a Guide’s ability: another guide test. He felt a pang of anxiety but quickly dismissed it. After all, a test wouldn’t reveal his true guiding method. Lee Ju-yeon had said they knew he was different and wanted to confirm it, but they had chosen the wrong method.
“Are you saying you want to do the guide test again?”
Lim Haeyul responded confidently, knowing that no test could expose his guiding method. He had done this before, so there was nothing to fear. But did Jo Gyeong-hoon know this? Or did he not trust Jang Gijun? Either way, Jo Gyeong-hoon seemed determined to confirm his suspicions.
There was no need to worry. The suspicion had already begun, and there was nothing Lim Haeyul could do about it. He just had to trust Cha Jae-woo. But the thought of being kidnapped still bothered him.
“You kidnapped me and put me in this place just for that?”
His tone grew sharper as he thought about it. The room felt like a lab, and he felt like a test subject. The people outside the glass seemed ready to observe his reactions.
‘But what reactions?’
Suddenly, a question popped into his mind. If they were going to test him, there should be a machine or something. But there was nothing. So, what were they planning to use?
“If you were just going to do the same guide test, you wouldn’t have brought me here like this. Isn’t that obvious?”
“Then…”
“We knew you wouldn’t cooperate, so we brought you here.”
A chill ran down his spine as he realized the danger. Jo Gyeong-hoon’s face looked particularly sinister. Unlike Jang Gijun, who wore his ambitions openly, Jo Gyeong-hoon was unreadable—cold and calculating, capable of anything.
“Do you really need to waste time on something Jang Gijun has already tried?”
“…Well, you should know. The results haven’t changed.”
Jo Gyeong-hoon smiled, his voice sending a shiver down Lim Haeyul’s spine.
“Didn’t I tell you? I am curious about Lim Haeyul’s ability.”
Jo Gyeong-hoon was not just guessing; he was certain that Lim Haeyul had a different ability. This meant he had prepared something to confirm it.
‘Whatever it is, I can handle it without getting caught.’
Before he could think further, a loud clanking sound startled him as one of the walls began to rise, revealing a hidden room. Suddenly, he felt an intense, sharp sensation—a brutal psychic wave that made him flinch.
In the corner of the newly revealed room, he saw someone writhing in pain. It was a young man, barely looking like a high school student.
“Let me introduce you. This young man is similar to Cha Jae-woo. He has never had a Guide.”
The young man looked miserable, but Jo Gyeong-hoon’s tone remained indifferent. Lim Haeyul stared at the young man, his body twitching with the urge to help. But he knew that reacting would only play into Jo Gyeong-hoon’s hands.
“But unfortunately, he is a C-Rank Esper, so no one cared. Eventually, this happened. He is paying the price for using his ability without a Guide. Because he has no Guide, he can’t help it.”
No, this is a lie.
The man’s condition was indeed poor, and it seemed true that he had not received guiding. However, it was impossible that no Guide was available for him. Even with a low matching rate, someone could have guided a C-Rank Esper.
“So, please guide him.”
However, Jo Gyeong-hoon demanded that Lim Haeyul guide the man. This was part of his process to confirm his suspicions.
“I… I can’t. He’s on the verge of rampaging, and my mana isn’t enough. Cha Jae-woo had a high matching rate, but…”
Lim Haeyul’s voice wavered, his gaze fixed on the man. He couldn’t just rush in; he had to wait for the man to hold on until another Guide arrived.
“I can’t do it. It would be meaningless.”
At least until Cha Jae-woo arrived. Lim Haeyul glanced at the door beyond the glass wall, inadvertently meeting Jo Gyeong-hoon’s gaze. He smirked.
“You can do it. You must. I believe Lim Haeyul can handle it, so I didn’t call anyone else.”
“I can’t—!”
“If you can’t, then there’s nothing we can do. You’ll both die here.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you can’t stop the rampage, there’s no other way. Oh, don’t worry about me. This building is designed to contain rampaging Espers, so I’ll be safe. Of course, preventing it from happening at all would be best.”
What is he saying? Is he serious? Is this a bluff? I shouldn’t intervene, right?
Confusion overwhelmed Lim Haeyul. Jo Gyeong-hoon nodded, and the two men with him walked towards the door.
“Ah, but watching from here is dangerous, so I’ll step out. Please, don’t create a dangerous situation.”
“Hey! Where are you going? What are you doing? Hey! You crazy bastard!”
Lim Haeyul shouted, but they ignored him, leaving only Lim Haeyul and the suffering man in the room.
Do I really have to do this? Will we die if I don’t? Is Jo Gyeong-hoon telling the truth?
“Ugh, ahh…!”
Fear gripped Lim Haeyul. Should he act or not? The man’s suffering made him want to help, but that would play right into Jo Gyeong-hoon’s hands.
The sharp psychic waves suggested urgency, but Lim Haeyul couldn’t be sure if the man was truly on the verge of rampaging. It could all be a test to expose his ability.
“It hurts. It hurts so much…”
Even if this was real, Cha Jae-woo would come. He would handle the situation. Lim Haeyul just had to wait. That was the only way to keep both himself and the man safe.
Lim Haeyul closed his eyes tightly, his lips dry and body trembling. He felt utterly helpless, hoping Cha Jae-woo would find him soon or that Jo Gyeong-hoon would end this cruel game.
