His limbs hadn’t been blown off, but that didn’t mean he was in good shape. Still, no one dared approach him. Shouldn’t someone start guiding the person who had expended the most energy first? What if he went on a rampage like that…?
Seo-ha let out a sigh and started to approach him—only to hesitate. Could someone like him, who could barely provide 3% energy, even be of any use to that man?
“What are you doing? If you’re here as an emergency measure, act like it.”
Just then, someone slapped his back and shoved him forward with a mocking tone. It wasn’t Cho Ha-cheol—it must have been one of the others who had been nearby.
He thought his pride had already worn thin, but apparently, even the last shreds of it were being stripped away.
“Fine. I’ll do it, just the way you want.”
Muttering to no one in particular, he approached the Esper.
Facing the Esper, Seo-ha fought back the wave of nausea that surged at the thought of touching his hand. Just the idea of guiding again made the ringing in his ears spike, as if it might split his skull open. He exhaled slowly, inwardly cursing himself for still being trapped by his own trauma.
Caught up in emotion at a time like this—pathetic. Shaking it off, Seo-ha reached out and took the Esper’s hand.
“What are you doing? Get away fro—”
“I’ll begin guiding now.”
The tinnitus drowned out the Esper’s voice. He barely heard him, so instead of responding, Seo-ha just said what he had to and initiated the guiding process.
‘1.’
The Esper’s face flickered with emotion—discomfort, annoyance, irritation… He must’ve recognized who Seo-ha was. It was a common reaction whenever he offered to guide, so it didn’t surprise him anymore.
‘2.’
The furrowed brows eased, and his eyes widened. Was he… surprised? With all the rumors swirling around about Seo-ha, some Espers approached him out of curiosity. Maybe this was like those times.
‘3.’
With a final alert from the watch signaling the guiding session’s end, the energy transmission to the Esper was cut off. Seo-ha smoothly gathered the residual energy coursing through him, but the Esper looked stunned.
Wow. So many emotions in such a short moment.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
Letting go of his hand, Seo-ha stepped back.
He’d done all he could. Now he just had to wait for another Guide to take over. As the tinnitus gradually subsided, the surrounding noise trickled back in.
‘Still only 3%, huh.’
He had dared to hope, just for a second, that their matching rate might be a miraculous improvement—but the unchanging result brought a wave of crushing self-loathing.
***
Han Ju-oh had just gone through something unbelievable.
A hidden gate—another gate nested inside the first one.
The probability of a hidden gate appearing was less than 0.01%.
They had entered expecting an A-rank gate, and with Ju-oh included as a precaution, he’d assumed everything would go smoothly. And at first, it did. They had steadily cleared the dungeon.
At least, until the monsters began spilling out of the hidden gate.
Creatures with deer faces and humanoid bodies came charging on two legs. Screams rang out from every direction as the Espers struggled to contain the monsters. Ju-oh watched as the Espers were overwhelmed by the attacks.
Not even one A-rank Esper could take down a single beast. That meant they’d have to group up to stand a chance—but there were hundreds of those deer-faced creatures at a glance. There was no way Ju-oh could take them all on alone.
Or… could he?
If he was willing to risk going berserk.
As the casualties mounted, Ju-oh eventually released the restraints on his power. If they didn’t clear the hidden gate, the consequences would spread far beyond just this dungeon.
The monsters had to be eliminated before they could break through to the outside world. Ju-oh braced himself to the point of bursting and fully unleashed his ability.
And just as he expected, it happened. Not only the blood vessels inside his body, but even the veins under his skin began to bulge. He was painfully familiar with the sensation.
‘Can I endure this?’
When he was on the verge of losing control, guiding from a Guide no longer worked on him. He’d have to rely on mechanical assistance instead.
It felt like having rebar pressed down on his body—oppressive and agonizing. But without the aid of mechanical guiding, he couldn’t stop the rampage.
The thought of receiving mechanical guiding alone was enough to sour his mood, but even more infuriating was the fact that he couldn’t move a single step. A chunk of flesh had been torn from his thigh by a monster, and he hadn’t received any healing.
Being on the brink of a rampage meant not only that he couldn’t be guided—but also that he couldn’t receive help from a healing Esper either.
Without being able to move on his own, it seemed even the chance at mechanical guiding was slipping away. Just as despair began to sink in, someone approached.
Han Ju-oh looked at the man standing in front of him. He was a little shorter than Han Ju-oh, but still tall.
He could immediately tell the man was a Guide from the clear, refreshing energy radiating off him—and that only made him more irritated. The idea of having to explain his condition to a Guide was exhausting.
This was why he hated working with unfamiliar Guides.
“What are you doing? Back off, now—”
“I will begin guiding.”
Maybe he didn’t hear what Han Ju-oh had said, because the Guide suddenly reached out and grabbed his hand. Not that it would work—guiding didn’t affect him. This stupid bastard…
He was about to pull his hand away—but froze.
He looked at the man holding his hand. His face was as composed as his calm voice. From the straight eyebrows to the sharp bridge of his nose, the man’s features were more angular than curved. And yet, strangely, there was a softness to his aura.
But the strangest thing wasn’t his looks.
The man was guiding him. He had effortlessly breached the wall that no other Guide had ever been able to cross.
Who was he?
‘Who are you?’
“Thank you for your hard work.”
The guiding—which had felt like it lasted far longer than it actually did—ended in a blink, and the man let go of his hand without the slightest hesitation and stepped back. Han Ju-oh’s fingers twitched, as if instinctively trying to grab him again, but the man was already looking directly at him.
You should finish the guiding before you leave.
He was growing anxious. The man’s guiding had soothed the raging storm inside Han Ju-oh to a shocking degree, and he found himself desperately hoping the man would reach out again. But the Guide didn’t touch him. Even though he clearly saw that Han Ju-oh needed more—he ignored it.
Earlier, he’d been annoyed because the guy had grabbed his hand without warning. Now he was pissed because he let go without a word. He was furious that he didn’t keep holding on.
Giving him just a sliver of guiding and then turning away—what kind of bullshit “kindness” was that, like telling someone to walk to the emergency center by themselves?
Still on the verge of going berserk, Han Ju-oh ground his teeth as he watched the man walk away.
***
Han Ju-oh barged into the room without knocking, and Kim Mi-yeon looked up at him with a scowl.
“Why did I even bring you in? Should’ve just let you wander around like a stray.”
Kim Mi-yeon was an Esper who had worked overseas. When she returned to Korea and founded a guild, Han Ju-oh had been the first one she’d reached out to. Every time something like this happened, she regretted it.
She may have been the leader of the guild, but Han Ju-oh owned significant amount of shares—so unfortunately, she couldn’t just kick him out.
Despite her reaction, Han Ju-oh collapsed onto the sofa like a corpse. Still wearing his shoes, he propped his feet up on the armrest, making Mi-yeon click her tongue in irritation. She handed her tablet off to her assistant and walked over to him.
The damp patches staining his black combat suit were clearly blood. He was smearing that blood all over her barely-month-old couch. This inconsiderate bastard. The sharp metallic scent made her wrinkle her nose, but she quickly exhaled and pushed past her frustration.
It wasn’t hard to guess why he was in such a foul mood. No one would enjoy suppressing a rampage with mechanical guiding.
“You think just suppressing the rampage is enough? Get to the guiding room, now.”
She could understand if he’d had no choice but to rely on mechanical guiding—but the guiding clearly wasn’t finished. She nudged his leg with her foot, urging him to get up.
“Don’t need it.”
Han Ju-oh turned his back to her, curling into the couch.
“You don’t need it? Your veins are still bulging.”
Mi-yeon muttered as she looked at his forehead and the backs of his hands. This guy probably thought the danger only came when he was on death’s door. But the symptoms of overusing his abilities—his body breaking down—started well before that.
Han Ju-oh barely paid her complaints any mind, staring at the ceiling.
“I was definitely on the verge of going berserk.”
He replayed the memory of what had just happened.
The watch on his wrist had clearly shown red—his status dangerous. In that condition, only mechanical guiding should have worked. And yet, a Guide had approached him.
The moment he recalled the Guide’s face, Han Ju-oh abruptly sat up.
“There was a Guide in the dungeon who guided me.”
Mi-yeon nodded absentmindedly at his casual tone, then processed what he’d just said and jolted in shock. She quickly sat across from him. Looking at the blood-stained sofa only made her more irritated, so she forced herself to meet his eyes.
“What are you saying? Someone guided you? What was the risk rate?”
“92%.”
“You’re fucking kidding me. You used that much power? Are you out of your mind?”
Mi-yeon practically screamed, but Han Ju-oh barely reacted.
“If I hadn’t, I would’ve died.”
Mi-yeon bit her tongue. She wanted to say, you’re practically dying right now, but stopped herself. He had a point—he hadn’t died. She sighed deeply and decided to let it go.
“Well, you’re not the type to overdo it without a reason. But still—at that level, only mechanical guiding should’ve been possible. Tell me everything.”
“I don’t know.”
Han Ju-oh couldn’t explain it either. As he peeled off his black gloves, a sticky sound followed as congealed blood stretched like syrup. He tossed the gloves aside without a second thought and ran a hand through his hair.
When she saw the blood matted in his hair, Mi-yeon grimaced.
“We’ve scoured every corner trying to find a Guide compatible with you. And now one just appears after everyone gives up?”
