Chapter 27
“You’re really not coming?”
Looking up at Chahun, who claimed he would escort him but refused to let go of his training uniform, Yeonwoo nodded briefly. Chahun’s blatant display of disappointment was incredibly awkward.
If you could train wherever you wanted by moving freely between zones, why would the Center divide them by rank in the first place? Chahun traveling here and there to train was the exception, not the rule. Yeonwoo had no intention of leaving his designated zone to train in the A-zone.
“Then who’s going to supervise my training?”
The A-zone training instructor…?
Come to think of it, it had been a while since he’d seen the training instructor who initially took Chahun around. Yeonwoo didn’t know whether the instructor had abandoned Chahun or Chahun had rejected the instructor, but one thing was certain: there was a limit to how much Yeonwoo could help him.
Even within the same Auxiliary division, training methods varied depending on what ability you handled, and even within the same Spatial division, training methods differed based on how you used mana. Yeonwoo could somehow teach the basics, but anything beyond that was outside his expertise.
“C-zone is filthy dirty, you have to admit that, right? You even have OCD—how can you practice there? Since you’ll be training on your own anyway, wouldn’t it be better to do it together here?”
OCD? He just preferred things organized. Yeonwoo frowned and checked the time.
“I don’t practice in the C-zone anymore. And with a new Esper joining, I don’t know what the training schedule will be like—”
“A new Esper?”
At Chahun’s voice, which rose sharply at the end, Yeonwoo steadied his swaying body. Even when Yeonwoo suggested they talk after letting go, Chahun refused to loosen his grip.
“Yes. Remember? The blue ice.”
“That person? That’s the new Esper who joined?”
Yeonwoo nodded at Chahun’s frowning expression and thought of the N-pole of a magnet. Yeonwoo himself often felt uncomfortable when another Spatial division Esper was nearby, as it made his mana flow turbulent. Was Chahun feeling the same discomfort because they shared the same Ice division?
With a sullen expression, Chahun clutched Yeonwoo’s training uniform.
“You’re really not coming?”
“No.”
He felt like he’d already answered this at least ten times. Despite having slept and eaten well, Yeonwoo still felt tired. He finally drew a pattern one step away. As a result, Chahun ended up clutching thin air. After watching Yeonwoo’s lateral movement, Chahun kicked the ground.
“I took that test because you told me not to come to C-zone. I thought if I got my own training hall, we could practice together…”
Watching Chahun repeatedly kick the ground while glancing in his direction, Yeonwoo bit the tip of his tongue.
“If you’re upset about how the guard treated you yesterday, I can talk to them in advance. Can’t we practice together?”
‘I’ll tell them in advance, so can’t oppa come pick me up?’
Though they looked nothing alike, he couldn’t understand why Yeonhwa’s image kept overlapping with Chahun. Touching his forehead, childhood memories of Yeonhwa flashed through Yeonwoo’s mind—a spacious classroom where Yeonhwa had huddled alone, unable to interact with anyone. Recalling this, Yeonwoo finally nodded.
* * *
“Is she like this because she’s A-rank, or because she’s Esper Bae Jaeyoung?”
To Choi Dongwon’s question as he collapsed from a mild seizure, Yeonwoo weakly moved his head. Even as Park Seohyun sat down gasping for breath, Bae Jaeyoung showed no change in expression as she waved her hand, drawing pictures of ice in the air.
“I can’t do it anymore!”
At the sharp voice, Yeonwoo merely blinked. He didn’t even have the strength to check the situation. It was exactly the same as yesterday, so there was no need to verify. Since yesterday, Jo Heeseo had been refusing to do any Guiding.
Forced to roll over by Choi Dongwon’s gesture, Yeonwoo looked up at the arrows floating in the air. Ice arrows extending from Bae Jaeyoung’s hand were pointing at Park Seohyun, Choi Dongwon, and Yeonwoo.
“I’m not some magical fountain of mana. I just finished Guiding—how can I do it again?”
Jo Heeseo, hiding her hands behind her back, glared at Choi Dongwon with raised eyebrows. Though Bae Jaeyoung was the one pushing for Guiding, they were the ones receiving all the blame. Letting out a hollow laugh, Choi Dongwon laid Yeonwoo back down.
“I don’t know about the others, but Esper Choi Dongwon seems like he really needs it. His mana is too unstable.”
At Bae Jaeyoung’s words, Jo Heeseo, who had been breathing heavily, stomped over with her displeasure evident in each step. “He seems fine to me,” she grumbled, briefly grasping Choi Dongwon’s wrist before releasing it. Just that much restored color to his face, and he breathed out languidly.
In contrast, Jo Heeseo turned pale and shook her hands as if she’d touched something filthy. Afraid Yeonwoo might ask her for Guiding too, she preemptively fled.
It was laughable that her escape route led straight to Bae Jaeyoung’s side. Some people only got Guiding after having seizures, while others got it every break time. Weakly laughing, Yeonwoo felt his mana core stabilize and stood up.
“Would you like one?”
Was I staring too much?
Bae Jaeyoung, who had been creating fluffy ice formations in the air, gestured, and a delicate, fluttering ice flower fell onto Yeonwoo’s hand. Except for its blue color, it was identical to a real rose. Yeonwoo gently cupped the flower, quietly admiring the detail that had even reproduced the rose’s thorns.
“What’s this?”
Before Yeonwoo could answer, the ice flower shattered in Chahun’s hand. Yeonwoo swallowed a sigh as he witnessed the destruction of the flower he’d been carefully holding all this time, the moment he handed it to Chahun.
“She was practicing external forms… I thought it might be helpful to see and copy it. That’s why I brought it.”
He thought it would be better to observe and imitate another person’s ability to see how the mana flowed, rather than simply copying a rose. If he had known it would be so pointlessly destroyed, he wouldn’t have brought it.
Chahun’s mouth corners drooped at the explanation that Yeonwoo had brought it for him. But that was that, and this was this. Chahun brushed off the sticky mana lingering on his fingertips and stomped on the shattered ice flower, reducing it to powder.
Watching the ice flower vanish without a trace, Yeonwoo blankly stared at the cookie cutters Chahun was holding. Right. If he struggles with such simple shapes like circles and squares, it would be overwhelming to suddenly ask him to make flowers.
No, even so, shouldn’t he show some appreciation? How could he destroy it right in front of the person who gave it to him…?
No matter how hard he tried to understand, he couldn’t. Biting his lip, Yeonwoo opened his bag. Inside were not just the rose but other ice models he’d requested from Bae Jaeyoung to give to Chahun. Turning the bag upside down and shaking it, Yeonwoo crushed the fallen ice models with his foot.
As the sticky mana that had been clinging to Yeonwoo disappeared, Chahun, who had been on edge, laughed with relief. Watching him, Yeonwoo turned away and settled in a corner of the training hall.
His expression was the same as usual, but the way he thrust pins was vicious. Chahun, clutching the cookie cutters and watching nervously, carefully took a seat next to him.
“Um… hyung. Remember that jewel snake I mentioned?”
“Yes.”
“I told the training instructor, and they said no magic beast had escaped from the laboratory, but they searched the room just in case. They didn’t find anything. So don’t worry about the jewel snake and stay overnight.”
“No. Today I’m going back before curfew.”
He hadn’t expected praise for reporting the snake. But he had hoped for at least some concern, like asking if he’d been scared… Seeing Yeonwoo’s emotionless eyes, Chahun turned away dejectedly and glared at the cookie cutters.
I should just practice following hyung’s example.
“By the way, was that person who made the ice earlier the new Esper you mentioned?”
His resolution didn’t last long. As Chahun leaned in to ask, Yeonwoo, unlike his usual self, just stared at him blankly.
“Esper.”
“What?”
“Not ‘that person,’ but Esper.”
At those words, Chahun blinked and nodded slightly.
“No wonder the mana felt the same. Does other people’s mana always feel like that? Like sticky mud, kind of disgusting?”
At that, Yeonwoo’s tense eyes softened. Come to think of it, even Yeonwoo feels discomfort around other Espers, so Chahun wouldn’t be any different. Since they’re both in the Ice division, he probably feels even more aversion.
Getting angry at him won’t benefit anyone. Calming his anger, Yeonwoo nodded.
“Espers instinctively feel aversion to mana created by other Espers. It’s normal to feel that way. Guides’ mana is different, so that’s an exception.”
Chahun tilted his head at those words.
“Your mana doesn’t feel that way to me, though.”
“That’s because we’ve been training with mana balls together. Mana that you’ve become adapted to doesn’t cause aversion.”
Chahun nodded with a skeptical face at the answer and focused on the cookie cutters. Watching the ice rise before Chahun, Yeonwoo stretched the corners of his mouth. Though Chahun had quickly learned how to handle mana, his skill with his ability was still clumsy. Even trying to be generous, the ice that emerged looked no different from cookie dough.
At this rate, when will he master his ability?
Once they officially entered virtual dungeon training, deployment would come quickly. Yeonwoo understood why Chahun followed him around like an imprinted duckling after being taught how to handle mana balls. But Chahun was S-rank and Yeonwoo was C-rank. They couldn’t practice together like this forever.
He hoped Chahun would master his ability to some extent before deployment. That way, he wouldn’t be disrespected by Lee Sangwon or ostracized in A-zone. That way, later…
“Ugh.”
A high-pitched ringing in his ears made Yeonwoo clutch his head. His vision flashed, making it impossible to focus. Gasping, Yeonwoo grabbed Chahun’s arm visible through his flickering sight.
“Hyung?”
Taking deep breaths, Yeonwoo blinked to find his focus.
“Are you hurt? Uncomfortable? What’s wrong?”
“No. Just… I think I overdid it with practice today.”
Checking his feet with blurry vision, Yeonwoo took another deep breath to regulate his breathing. He thought he had rested enough, but apparently his mana core didn’t agree. He needed to get back to the lounge and sleep. As Yeonwoo removed the pins and tidied up, Chahun followed behind him with a disappointed face and grabbed Yeonwoo’s training uniform as he tried to leave.
“What if the jewel snake appears while I’m sleeping? I don’t even have a weapon.”
“Didn’t you just say it wouldn’t appear?”
“Still, you never know what might happen.”
At that, Yeonwoo made a “hmm” sound and folded his arms. Chahun smiled inwardly while outwardly putting on a sad face. Though Yeonwoo seemed resolute, he had a soft spot somewhere—he would refuse at first but eventually nod in agreement. I’m glad I cleaned the bed earlier. Chahun, smiling faintly, looked down at his hand grasping at air.
“If it appears, freeze it. I don’t need an escort, so continue practicing. See you tomorrow.”
Huh?
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
