“If he ever tries to harm my family, that would mean even his convictions have crumbled. At that point… he deserves to die.”
“Mm, yeah. If it comes to that, I’ll kill Supreme Commander Choi myself. No matter what.”
Seo Eui-woo buried his face into the nape of Kwon Jae-jin’s neck, pressing his lips against the pulsing vein there. He panted slightly against the skin.
“I won’t let him die easily. I’ll cut off his arms and legs, use the healing factor to reattach them, then cut them off again. I’ll repeat it—over and over—until he dies in the most excruciating way possible.”
…That’s definitely not what the healing factor is meant for.
But Kwon Jae-jin didn’t feel the need to stop Seo Eui-woo. In the first place, brutal efficiency was exactly what inhumane guiding was all about. If Choi Yul experienced the cycle of injury and forced recovery firsthand, he might start seeing things differently.
“Understood. If it comes to that, I won’t stop you. Do as you wish.”
“Okay. Just trust me.”
“Well, for the record, I’ve never once doubted you when it comes to things like this. If anything, you’re almost too reliable….”
Jae-jin let out a small chuckle and leaned into Seo Eui-woo. The hot water streaming down from above flowed ceaselessly over his cheeks and jaw. The dampness around his eyes must have been from the shower.
He exhaled a long, languid sigh.
Snuggling in a bit closer, he murmured evenly,
“Still… it’s not a bad outcome. For us.”
They hadn’t managed to take control of the military’s leadership in one swift stroke by manipulating the minds of the high-ranking officers as planned.
But in the end, the pursuit squads had been disbanded, Seo Eui-woo had been granted amnesty, and Kwon Jae-jin would officially become a recognized Awakener under special circumstances.
“At least we don’t have to live in hiding anymore. I’ll officially be your Guide. Ah, and now we can go to that canyon together without worry.”
“The canyon…?”
“Yes. I told you I’d be pissed if we couldn’t go on a date there. Luckily, there’s no reason to be pissed now. It all worked out.”
“…….”
“I’m not sure how much of his word Choi Yul will actually keep, but after seeing your abilities firsthand, he won’t make any reckless moves. So, I suppose… hmm, I might as well take this opportunity to experience what it’s like to live as a fully recognized Awakener.”
As Jae-jin listed off each advantage of their current situation, one by one, Seo Eui-woo’s gaze grew terrifyingly cold.
The darkened bathroom, its lights switched off, was shrouded in deep shadows. Even with his soaked hair hanging down in damp strands, partially veiling his long, sharp eyes, Seo Eui-woo’s gaze pierced through the pitch-black darkness like a blade. It felt as if every place his eyes landed was being drilled through by an invisible spike.
Seo Eui-woo was seething, his fury rising to the very top of his head. A cold, controlled rage shook him to his core.
“…But Jae-jin, you’re still not free.”
Despite the continuous stream of hot water cascading down over them, the chill in his voice did not fade. With each word he spoke, it felt like a cold breath was being exhaled into the air.
“You still can’t truly feel at ease.”
“That’s…”
“You set out to overthrow the military, but in the end, you ended up becoming part of it.”
His arms tightened around Kwon Jae-jin, far too much force in his grip. Whether from anger or something else, Seo Eui-woo was failing to control his strength. Jae-jin’s ribs ached under the crushing pressure, his body screaming in protest, but he showed no sign of discomfort. Instead, he simply wrapped his arms around Seo Eui-woo’s back in return.
“…Yes, that’s true.”
Slowly, he ran his fingertips over the protruding scapulae of Seo Eui-woo’s broad back. The wet skin beneath his touch was smooth.
“From now on, I suppose I’ll have to answer every time I’m summoned, follow orders according to rank and protocol… how annoying.”
“Jae-jin.”
“Oh, right. You’re a captain, aren’t you? That puts you quite a few ranks above me. Does that mean I’ll have to salute you every time we meet?”
“Ha, cut it out. Stop acting like everything’s fine.”
“…Alright. But I meant it when I said it’s not a bad outcome.”
Kwon Jae-jin lifted the corners of his lips, raising his head deliberately so Seo Eui-woo could see his smile. His voice, quiet yet steady, echoed through the vast bathroom.
“To be honest, I was curious too. Just like you.”
“Like me? About what?”
“The Sixth Residential District. You said you were curious about it.”
<"Now that I think about it, I was really looking forward to visiting the Sixth Residential District.">
<"I wanted to see where you grew up, how you lived. I wanted to help you remember the family you forgot.">
<"I even wondered if the sky would look different there, if the air would be clearer… I kept hoping spring would come quickly so I could see it sooner.">
“Because that’s where you spent your life—the Center. I want to see what it was like for myself. Hearing about it and witnessing it with my own eyes are two very different things. And if I think about it, this might be the only chance I ever get.”
“What do you mean, ‘chance’—?!”
“And if I’m part of the Center now, that means I’ll get a salary. An S-rank pay grade should be a significant amount, don’t you think? I’m looking forward to that, too.”
“If it’s money, I can give you as much as you want. No—just take everything. You can spend it however you like, I already told you that!”
Seo Eui-woo growled.
Kwon Jae-jin didn’t even know how to spend money properly. Seo Eui-woo was well aware that he wasn’t the type to be greedy or indulgent. Just a short while ago, the two of them had been planning to throw everything away and flee with nothing but the clothes on their backs. So what was the point of pretending to be excited over a high salary now?
“Then tell me, Seo Eui-woo—are you not even a little happy? Now that I’m officially an Awakener, I can publicly and legitimately be matched as your Guide.”
“I am happy.”
Seo Eui-woo responded without hesitation, inhaling sharply as he fixed his gaze on Kwon Jae-jin. Even in the dim light, his features were strikingly clear.
“To be honest, I am happy. If this were the old me, I’d probably be so excited right now I’d be gasping for breath.”
There was a time when Seo Eui-woo resented fate for making Kwon Jae-jin a mutation. He had longed for something different.
<"Why couldn’t you have just been born a normal Guide…? If you had, you could’ve completed the standard training like the others, officially been assigned to me, and that would’ve been the end of it. I wouldn’t have had to deal with this fucking mess of emotions… I wouldn’t have even known what this kind of misery felt like.">
<"Ha… If we had both been Awakeners, none of this would have happened. An S-rank Esper and an S-rank Guide, perfectly matched, completely untouchable by anyone else. No one would’ve dared to interfere.">
“As long as I can be with you, I’ll take anything. But still… No, never mind. You already taught me this, Jae-jin.”
This wasn’t the best outcome.
If anything, this was the normal ending. Not the true ending.
“I can’t be satisfied with this anymore.”
Seo Eui-woo could no longer hold back his frustration, and his pale, delicate features twisted with raw emotion.
“We’re going to live properly.”
“…….”
“Properly. Freely. I won’t stop until we make that happen—perfectly.”
Seo Eui-woo lowered his gaze and pressed his lips against Jae-jin’s cheek. The sensation of touching water-slicked skin was different from dry skin—it stirred a distinct kind of thrill and pull within him.
Moments like these, when he touched Jae-jin in a way that had nothing to do with guiding, reminded him that what he felt was not just an Esper’s instinct. It was his emotions—his alone.
No matter how many times he tested it, the result was always the same.
Not that it would ever happen, but even if Kwon Jae-jin somehow lost his guiding abilities and became an ordinary civilian, it wouldn’t change a damn thing.
Even then, this overwhelming, all-consuming devotion wouldn’t waver in the slightest.
Seo Eui-woo knew that now.
“I admit it. This time, I was careless. I should have confirmed that Supreme Commander Choi wasn’t present before making a move—because of that one mistake, everything fell apart. Next time, I’ll be thorough. As soon as the Creature Wave is over…”
Seo Eui-woo kissed Jae-jin’s cheek again, then moved to the corner of his eye, his lips trailing upward to press against his forehead and damp hair.
“Manipulating the generals’ minds… you agree with that, right? Actually, I’ve already done one of them.”
“Y-you… what?”
He’s already done it?
“Wait, you mean… in that short amount of time—?”
Kwon Jae-jin’s eyes widened. Before he could react, Seo Eui-woo ran his tongue over his lips, savoring the wet, flushed surface with deliberate slowness.
“Brigadier General Oh. He was the first one I tampered with.”
Brigadier General Oh Sung-hwa, the Army Operations Commander.
He was the very officer Seo Eui-woo had used his psychic abilities on earlier. Jae-jin had assumed that when Supreme Commander Choi’s hologram appeared, Eui-woo had cut off his ability mid-way, dispersing the influence before it could take hold. But in reality, the manipulation had already been completed.
That was… astonishing.
“We’ll keep an eye on things through General Oh. We’ll see just how well Supreme Commander Choi sticks to his end of the deal. Whether he tries anything against you. And the moment I notice anything suspicious—fuck the Creature Wave, I’ll flip the entire table over. No hesitation.”
Seo Eui-woo’s eyes flashed with an icy sharpness as he curved his lips into a chilling smile. He latched onto Jae-jin’s lower lip, sucking at it with a hunger that made his intent unmistakable.
Jae-jin hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to respond. But in the end, he simply chose to return the kiss.
His limbs were heavy with exhaustion, his body burdened by the accumulated fatigue. His head was hot and dizzy, as if a fever were creeping in.
Once they finished washing up, he needed to get at least a little sleep.
