Kwon Jae-jin stood beside Seo Eui-woo, facing off against Captain Choi.
“……No, if he intended to sound the alert, he would have done so already.”
If an attack was the goal, an ambush would have been the first choice. Captain Choi had deliberately revealed himself through a hologram and engaged in conversation with Seo Eui-woo and Kwon Jae-jin. He had even introduced himself formally.
Was he underestimating them?
No.
It meant he had something else in mind.
“That’s right, young men. I have no intention of engaging in a bloodbath. Especially not when all the generals are being held hostage.”
“…….”
“As insufferable as they may be, there’s still some use to squeeze out of them. Like a tube of toothpaste—bamboo salt, if you will. Can’t have them crossing the river to the afterlife before they’ve been used up properly, now, can we……?”
Supreme Commander Choi let out a hearty laugh, waving his hand dismissively. His laughter echoed through the conference room via the speakers. Strangely, the tension in the air only grew thicker. While Supreme Commander Choi joked and laughed as if everything was casual, it was precisely that level of experience and composure that triggered a heightened sense of caution.
“You young folks are too stiff. Fine, if you want to talk seriously…… Just now, Brigadier Oh finished his report. He said Captain Seo broke through the encirclement single-handedly and subdued the special forces unit in an instant. I assume it was also Captain Seo who wiped out the terrain of the northwestern canyon, and the one who tore down the northern perimeter wall.”
“Jae-jin.”
“When I first heard the report, I thought it was absurd. But looking at the current situation, it seems entirely plausible. If Captain Seo were to go all out, about a quarter, maybe even a fifth, of the available personnel inside the center would be wiped out. We should both avoid the worst-case scenario.”
If they sounded the alert and launched a full-scale battle, the center would have the advantage in the long run. But expending their formally awakened combatants and military resources just to capture a single S-rank Esper and an S-rank mutant Guide was too costly. Of course, if they mobilized bombers and missiles, even Seo Eui-woo wouldn’t survive. The problem was that the responsibility for such an action would fall squarely on Supreme Commander Choi’s shoulders.
“Because of you two, my neck is on the line right now.”
The northern perimeter wall had already collapsed. If all the captured generals were to die and the center itself fell, there would be no turning back.
For Choi Yul, this would leave an irreversible stain on his career, ultimately leading to his forced resignation. If this turned into an all-out brawl, both sides would end up screwed.
“So, what? Are you suggesting a negotiation?”
“Yes, a negotiation.”
“…….”
“You look surprised. Didn’t you know? This is how politics works.”
Politics?
Politics, he says…?
Kwon Jae-jin let out a bitter smirk. Supreme Commander Choi, as if granting them a generous favor, was the first to present a negotiation offer to the two young men.
“I propose that all of Captain Seo’s past criminal acts be overlooked. And as for Kwon Jae-jin, despite being a mutant, we’ll acknowledge your status as the first S-rank Guide as a special case and grant you a full pardon.”
“…….”
“According to reports, an S-rank Guide’s guiding ability exponentially enhances an Esper’s powers. Seeing Captain Seo’s abilities in action, it seems undeniable. What do you think?”
…Enhancement of abilities?
What nonsense.
Seo Eui-woo had merely been suppressing his innate abilities all this time without using them. It wasn’t Kwon Jae-jin’s guiding that had enhanced him. The center had completely misunderstood and misinterpreted the situation.
But in the end, how special or exceptional Kwon Jae-jin’s guiding was wasn’t the key issue right now.
“Join the center as a formally recognized Awakened. If you do, we will provide full support. You’ll be able to take an official ranking test and receive the same basic training as other Awakened at our education and training facilities.”
“…….”
“That said, since your status as a mutant could create discord and unsettle other Awakened, you will be required to sign a confidentiality agreement. You must never speak of what you experienced in regular society.”
Seo Eui-woo, who had been emanating a dangerous aura of power, spoke in a low, chilling voice.
“Don’t listen. There’s no need to accept that kind of negotiation.”
His voice rumbled like that of a menacing predator.
“They might act accommodating now, but the moment they find an opening, who knows what they’ll do to Jae-jin? And of course, the same goes for me.”
“……Yes, I agree.”
Kwon Jae-jin thought the same.
They could lull them into a false sense of security and then suddenly kill them. Or they could keep them alive for dissection. Perhaps erase their memories to make them easier to control… The possibilities were endless.
“Come now, there’s no need for such distrust. This is merely a negotiation to prevent us from pointing knives at each other. It’s about not cutting off our own limbs. As long as you cooperate with the nation, there’s no reason for us to cast you aside. In truth, it would be a waste to dispose of an S-rank Esper and an S-rank Guide with such remarkable potential…”
“A waste…?”
Kwon Jae-jin furrowed his brow, unable to hold back any longer.
Given the volatile situation, the rational choice would have been to remain silent. But after hearing such words, there was no way he could just stand there quietly.
“Then, does that mean the military has been disposing of mutants all this time based on such a flimsy logic?”
Four years of pent-up resentment finally spilled from his lips.
Kwon Jae-jin had expected his voice to tremble, his head burning with anger. Yet, when he spoke, his tone was as cold as ice. It was piercing, infinitely composed, unwavering, and crystal clear.
“You killed them all because they caused unease and were deemed useless…?”
Deep down, Kwon Jae-jin had wondered if there was some unavoidable reason behind it.
Maybe there was a secret dilemma that made killing mutants a necessity. Perhaps even the higher-ups had no choice but to maintain such a brutal system.
But that wasn’t the case.
Not at all.
Negotiations, politics, weighing their worth like it was some trivial calculation…
A mutant’s life was nothing more than a problem to be decided by such factors.
The reason Kwon Jae-jin had been treated as something that deserved to die, why he had spent four years locked away without once stepping freely under the sun, had been dictated by something as utterly meaningless as this.
“Unbelievable. So because an S-rank mutant Guide like me is too valuable to kill, you’ll let me live—what about the others? Are you going to keep slaughtering every mutant that emerges, just like you’ve always done? And you want me to turn a blind eye to that? That’s what this negotiation is about?”
Supreme Commander Choi Yul spoke as if he were offering Kwon Jae-jin a reasonable proposal, but his words were nothing short of shameless.
They would kill all the other mutants, yet spare Kwon Jae-jin alone because he was useful.
When Kwon Jae-jin pointed out this blatant hypocrisy, Supreme Commander Choi simply raised an eyebrow and smirked in amusement.
“Don’t be so quick to judge. You’ve guided before—you should understand, shouldn’t you? How do you think mutants, who were once ordinary civilians, feel about Esper-style guiding? They’d find it horrifying. They’d reject it. You’ve experienced it firsthand, haven’t you?”
“Yes, I have. And that’s exactly why I know it’s a problem.”
Of course.
He had endured the kind of guiding that prioritized efficiency above all else. He had suffered through it, horribly.
“You don’t need to execute mutants. You just need to change the way you guide. Guiding doesn’t require direct mucosal contact. Skin contact is enough. Even holding hands would suffice—”
“The efficiency is different.”
Supreme Commander Choi dismissed him without hesitation, as if it wasn’t even worth considering.
“The battlefield is a matter of life and death. We can’t afford weak and inefficient methods. If you officially become an Awakened, you’ll come to understand that.”
“I am already an Awakened. Just one that isn’t under your control.”
“…….”
A fire blazed in Kwon Jae-jin’s resolute black eyes. He was burning, like a flame refusing to be snuffed out.
For the first time, the smirk on Supreme Commander Choi Yul’s lips slowly faded.
He inhaled deeply, his shoulders rising and falling, before letting out a long sigh.
“Huuh… Kwon Jae-jin. I understand your unfortunate circumstances, truly. But we are not pleasure-seeking murderers. Nor are we ignorant, arrogant rulers drunk on power.”
His blue holographic projection flickered and distorted.
“We simply made the best possible decision. We’ve spent our lives devoted to our mission, protecting the nation and its people.”
“What……?”
“Have you ever seen the corpse of a child? Do you think newborns and infants can survive without an Awakened to protect them? What about their education? When children, defenseless in the face of war, grow into adults—do you really believe they can seamlessly integrate into modern society?”
“…….”
“If you come from a general residential district, you should know this already. The only reason you were able to receive higher education, get a job, and live as a peaceful member of society is because Awakened, strictly controlled and managed, have been fighting the creatures beyond those walls. Your so-called idealistic humanity—it’s something that only exists under our protection.”
“…….”
“You may want to brand us as cruel, but tell me—if someone hadn’t carried out these brutal decisions, what do you think would have happened to society? If the Awakened had never been controlled and managed, would they have become weapons that protect humanity? Or would they have become a source of terror, a threat to humankind? Establishing strict regulations and eliminating those who fall outside those standards… it’s all done to protect the vast majority of humanity.”
The survival of humanity. The peace of humanity. The future of humanity.
This ruthless system had been built solely for that purpose.
And to maintain it, the lives of mutants were deemed insignificant.
“We are merely constructing strong, secure walls. Walls meant to protect. And they must be upheld—to the very end.”
