The Esper Association, located in the heart of the city.
The elevator stopped on the floor that housed the offices of the four association heads. A secretary employed by the Association stepped out into a hallway heavy with tension.
With Busan and Yongin simultaneously hit by monster air raids, the Association was in a state of complete disarray. The secretary had been handed a task by the chief secretary, who was rushing about in a frenzy. It was a report-related duty—one that had originally been scheduled, entirely unrelated to the air raids.
The staffer stepped into the corridor, nerves etched across his face.
Shim Tae-seong’s room—the one he’d left for the southern region right after hearing that the monster subjugation in Busan was facing delays.
Cha Eun-hyuk’s room—currently on leave.
Joo Cheong-gyeong’s room—he hadn’t clocked in yet.
Passing by the three empty offices, the staffer finally arrived at the door to Jang Hee-gang’s office—who had just returned after being away for several days. Cautiously raising a clenched fist, he knocked softly on the door.
“Chairman Jang Hee-gang, I have something to report.”
“Come in.”
A brief response came from within.
The staffer turned the doorknob. As he stepped inside, he involuntarily flinched. Jang Hee-gang was staring straight at him—his complexion clearly better than before, but his mood seemed far worse. The staffer’s throat instantly went dry.
It felt like he wasn’t even worthy of being glared at—as if he were too pitiful a prey.
“Your business,” came the deep, commanding voice.
With a faintly trembling hand, the staffer placed a single document on the desk.
“There are suspicions arising regarding the fact that the association heads are taking turns going on vacation.”
“The greatest concern is whether your health has severely deteriorated due to a lack of guiding… There’s been a flood of petitions requesting that physical examination results be shared with the government.”
“Based on this, the government is requesting that you, Chairman Jang Hee-gang—who returned first—show clear proof that you are in good condition.”
“Me?”
Jang Hee-gang scoffed. The staffer clamped his mouth shut.
“…So they want me to go in person, bow my head, and say I’m perfectly fine?”
Jang Hee-gang muttered as if he actually found it amusing, eyes drifting to the air as though recalling a memory.
The staffer, growing more anxious by the second, tried to read his expression.
Espers were a critical military resource on a national level. Naturally, the Esper Association—where those espers gathered—was originally under government jurisdiction. That was before four S-Class espers broke away and made the Association independent.
Some espers chose to remain with the government, but the majority had transferred their allegiance to the newly independent Association. There were two main reasons this was even possible: the espers who followed the S-Class elites…
Thanks to the sponsorship of Cha Eun-hyuk’s family conglomerate, Chahwa.
Even after the Association broke away, the government continued its efforts to bring it back under its jurisdiction. At first, they attempted persuasion, but when the association heads consistently ignored them, their approach shifted—becoming more like surveillance and containment.
Anyone with a certain level of authority in the Association knew that the government was desperate to uncover their weaknesses.
“They said they’ve arranged a meeting space on their end… b-but I’ll decline.”
Jang Hee-gang silently flipped through the document before closing it. The staffer hesitated for a moment, wondering if he might change his mind, then quietly turned around.
Just as he approached the door, it swung open abruptly—and he found himself face-to-face with someone.
A pale, strikingly handsome man with a vaguely unpleasant aura.
“G-Good afternoon, Chairman Joo…”
His words trailed off the moment those reddish eyes swept over him. A chill ran down his spine.
If Jang Hee-gang looked visibly healthier—as though his time off had done him good—then the man in front of him, Joo Cheong-gyeong, looked the opposite. Maybe it was the pallor of his skin, but his condition seemed noticeably worse today. Though, to be fair, he always looked that way—it just felt even more pronounced now.
Joo Cheong-gyeong passed by the frozen staffer with an expressionless face.
“You look well.”
Anyone could hear the sarcasm dripping from his voice. The staffer’s pupils trembled at the sight of him baiting Jang Hee-gang. His instincts screamed at him to get out before a fight broke out.
He quickly exited, shut the door behind him, and made for the elevator.
***
Strangely enough, I didn’t force myself awake after losing consciousness. Maybe I’d burned through too much stamina clinging to my brother with everything I had.
There was no way of knowing what he might’ve done to my sleeping body, and that—if anything—was the real shame.
I lifted my eyelids.
Dawn light spilled into the room through the window. My entire body was stiff—probably from lying down for several days straight.
I was in bed, my body freshly cleaned and all traces of our intense struggle gone, lying in my brother’s firm embrace.
The surprising part was that he was asleep.
It was the first time I’d seen him like this since we’d both become adults. I stared at him, captivated.
He must’ve been under immense mental strain to be sleeping this deeply.
I ran my fingers lightly over his smooth forehead, down the bridge of his nose, lips, and sharp jawline. He’d visibly lost weight—clear signs of emotional turmoil. It was pitiful, yet somehow… not unpleasant.
Suddenly, I found myself pondering the position of the S-Class espers.
They’d lived without any memories of me, and then—without warning—the world changed. Their pasts changed too. Enemies became allies, and in that same moment, they recovered every memory related to me.
There must have been no greater chaos than that.
Even amidst that bizarre phenomenon, they found me with impossible speed. It was undeniable proof of just who occupied the majority of their thoughts. Their chilling abilities—and that obsessive tenacity—sent a rush of euphoria through me.
They were already unhinged, but now they were going even further, even talking about sharing me between them?
Clink.
The chain slipped from my wrist with a metallic jingle.
I thought I’d been more than compliant—when exactly were they planning to take this off? Or were they going to just leave it on me forever?
I stared quietly down at my wrist.
Then a large hand wrapped around mine. I flinched.
My brother was awake, gazing down at me.
“When did you wake up?”
His voice was low and mellow—pleasant to the ear. His black eyes, softened with drowsiness, brimmed with affection he didn’t bother hiding.
“Just now,” I replied, my voice hoarse and spent.
He pressed a kiss into my palm. Then, without letting go, he pulled me even closer into his arms. His bare chest, exposed beneath his open shirt, met my cheek. I could faintly hear the steady beat of his heart.
His warmth seeped into me, making my whole body feel like it was slowly melting. I moved my arms and wrapped them around his broad back.
Apparently satisfied, he let out a deep breath. It tickled my shoulder.
“Your throat must hurt. Let’s get you some water first.”
As if he hadn’t been ready to devour me just hours ago, his voice was now honey-sweet.
…He really must’ve enjoyed himself.
He sat up and turned his back to me. Pouring water into a glass he’d prepared in advance, he then wrapped an arm around my waist and gently lifted me up. My body, drained of all strength, sagged against him.
He brought the cup to my lips himself and tilted it carefully. I accepted the water quietly, already used to this kind of care.
He stroked my back with his warm hand, as though helping my digestion.
He felt like the affectionate brother I used to know. Even knowing his emotions had twisted into something unrecognizably warped, I nearly let myself be fooled.
No—fooled wasn’t the right word. Whether he was rough or gentle, nothing he showed me was ever fake.
Everything was real.
“Cha Eun-soo.”
He called my name in a low murmur. The black eyes beneath his thick brows shimmered with a faint blue light.
I met his gaze.
“Yeah.”
“I can’t live without you.”
For a moment, I couldn’t speak. What the hell was that?
“You’re still my little brother. My Guide. Even if you saved someone else, that fact doesn’t change.”
He was finally putting into words what he’d always only shown through glances and gestures. It was as if he’d decided it was time—and that even if I didn’t like it, he didn’t care anymore.
Like he no longer gave a damn whether or not I was shocked by his obsession.
“Even if you run away again…”
His hand deliberately brushed over the chain as it rose, then gripped my wrist tight.
A chilling confession.
…Fuck, why is that kind of hot.
“Hyung…”
I shook my head, eyes welling with tears.
“How could I do that again…? If anything… right now, for me…”
The words came out broken and strained.
“You’re everything to me too.”
“I’m happy that you still need me.”
To hear that I was still someone important to the person who once saved me—of course that brought me comfort.
It was only natural.
From his perspective, I was someone he had rescued from Jang Hee-gang. That’s the version of events I was letting him believe.
…So yeah, I had to pretend I’d fallen for the setup.
And I hadn’t forgotten what kind of thoughts might have been going through his head when he mentioned our family right before the guiding.
He wasn’t just trying to wound me. No—it was likely he wanted to make sure I understood that he was the only one in the family who still remembered me. That he alone hadn’t let go.
But then what’s he going to do when he hands me over to another S-Class later?
It’s inevitable—I’ll eventually realize that it wasn’t really him who saved me.
Is he expecting that even when that moment of betrayal comes and I’m shattered by it, I’ll still come crawling back to him in the end?
My heart thudded as I tried to read the darkness buried inside him.
“…I’m sorry. I’m being too selfish, aren’t I?”
I lowered my head like I couldn’t bear to meet his eyes. But then his hand rose beneath my chin, gently lifting it.
There was the faintest curve on his lips.
As if this was exactly what he’d been waiting for me to say.
