“That look in their eyes… it’s not normal.”
Ian let out a low whistle, his gaze fixed not on the monster, but on the Espers. The moment they were separated from their Guides, the Espers’ stares turned blatantly intense. They circled Han Ju-oh like a pack of hyenas around prey, their desire to take something from him practically radiating.
“Don’t they have some kind of unspoken rule here about not messing with someone’s partner?”
“They do.”
Despite being the target of those wary stares, Han Ju-oh remained unbothered.
“Then why are they acting like that?”
“They’ve lost it.”
Han Ju-oh’s calm tone carried a trace of mockery. He dismissed their greed without a second thought.
“They never even glanced his way before, and now suddenly they’re acting like this? It’s laughable.”
“Hmm. Seems like there’s more tangled up in this than I thought.”
Ian scratched his jaw, sensing there was something going on that he wasn’t privy to. With his other hand, he grabbed a lunging monster by the scruff of its neck and electrocuted it.
“Still, I just don’t get it. It’s not like there’s a shortage of A-rank Guides, and some even have better matching rates. So why Baek Seo-ha? I mean, not to say Guide Baek is bad or anything.”
Ian quickly added the clarification. What confused him was why anyone would become so aggressive toward Han Ju-oh over a single Guide.
“He takes good care of you, sure, but beyond that? I don’t really see it.”
Ian tilted his head, genuinely puzzled. It was just like him—the only one here who wasn’t lusting after Seo-ha.
“I’d at least understand if they were after Moon Roi.”
Han Ju-oh, who had been yanking mole-like monsters out of the ground one by one, glanced at Ian. Ian shrugged.
“Guide Moon Roi is seriously talented. And reliable. Not to mention easy on the eyes.”
Ian grinned, a breezy smile far removed from the fierce expression he wore when taking down monsters.
“That’s why I don’t get it. Sure, Guide Baek is good-looking, but he looks fragile.”
Han Ju-oh’s eyebrows lifted sharply.
“All Guides seem like they’d snap if you touched them wrong. Guide Baek’s sturdier than most, but not by much.”
Compared to Ian’s massive build, Seo-ha naturally looked smaller. And since Ian claimed Moon Roi was the more suitable option, Han Ju-oh didn’t argue further. To meet Ian’s standards, Seo-ha would have to magically grow taller and bulkier—what could be more pointless?
As Ian picked out Espers hiding among the monsters, he muttered,
“Whatever the situation, those looks they’re giving you are disrespectful. It’s like they’re hoping you’ll get hurt.”
Because then they’d have a reason to void the contract and swoop in.
“What the hell is so charming about Guide Baek anyway? What’s the reason?!”
***
“There are plenty of reasons.”
Seo-ha shifted his weapon between his hands, repeatedly gripping and releasing it. If he stayed still, his body would stiffen.
“For starters, I’ve been through matching tests with nearly all of them at least once.”
Most of the Espers in this dungeon had familiar faces.
“There’s not an Esper here who doesn’t know who I am. Well, except the ones from foreign guilds.”
They were all well aware of his compatibility stats, and when he became Han Ju-oh’s partner, you could bet each of them had something to say about it.
“Let’s be honest, I’m not bad-looking, and I’ve got great instincts too, right?”
As Seo-ha praised himself, Moon Roi looked down at his own fist. Should he punch him?
“There was a time I’d get casual confessions asking me to be their partner on a regular basis, you know.”
Of course, once they saw his matching rate was rock-bottom, they all drifted away one by one.
“So are you saying you’d take them back if they came crawling back?”
“Of course not.”
Seo-ha let out a crisp, refreshing laugh.
“I’ve got my wonderfully lovable Ju-oh. I don’t need any other Espers.”
“Oh, please.”
Even as Moon Roi gave him a thoroughly unimpressed look, Seo-ha puffed up his chest with pride—though his expression quickly turned sour.
“But that’s not enough.”
“What’s not enough? What do you mean?”
“Isn’t it unsettling that they want me so badly?”
“You said it was because you’re overflowing with charm.”
“Still, coveting a Guide who already has a partner? Isn’t that weird?”
Moon Roi, who’d secretly been thinking along the same lines, grew serious as well.
“What the hell is really going on?”
***
“The boss isn’t showing up.”
Ian tapped the ground lightly with the tip of his foot. It seemed like the creature hiding underground had to surface for them to clear this dungeon, but there wasn’t the slightest movement.
As things settled into a lull, Han Ju-oh pulled out a water bottle and took a sip. While he was wetting his lips, someone approached.
“Esper Han Ju-oh.”
A male A-rank Esper, nimble on his feet, adept at weaving through monsters.
“I have a question.”
He stopped there, licking his lips nervously and glancing around.
“Has Guide Baek’s matching rate really gone up?”
When Han Ju-oh didn’t answer and only stared at him, the man looked back. A group of Espers behind him were gesturing at him to ask—it looked like he’d been picked to take the lead.
“I heard he guided Esper Baek Jong-hoon. So if Guide Baek’s matching rate isn’t locked like it used to be, then…”
“Does it matter?”
Han Ju-oh cut him off curtly.
“His matching rate shouldn’t matter either way.”
“Of course it matters.”
Matching rates for partner contracts typically needed to be over 70%, and that’s what the Esper was clearly thinking.
“He’s pretty well-known, so there are a lot of people who are curious.”
“Must be nice having that much free time.”
Han Ju-oh didn’t bother hiding his irritation, and the man’s face twisted at the sarcasm.
“Is it that hard to answer?”
“And if I do, what are you going to do with that information?”
“Uh, well…”
“You’ll try to take him, won’t you?”
It wasn’t the man who answered this time. Another Esper cut in—Davis, who had been operating on the combat team rather than the defense team, strolled over with his hands in his pockets.
“Looks like the contract was made under special circumstances, but it’s not necessary anymore, is it?”
At Davis’ mocking tone, the first Esper, who’d been frustrated at getting cut off, quickly perked up with curiosity.
“If his matching rate really has gone up, then he could just sign a contract with another Esper, right? Unless…”
Davis’s smile deepened.
“Maybe the ‘special case’ wasn’t about the Guide, but about the Esper.”
As Davis’s loaded suggestion hung in the air, the man who had initiated the conversation started acting startled, then slipped away to the back. He was probably going to report the conversation to the others.
Left alone with Davis, Han Ju-oh didn’t bother hiding his annoyance.
“Whatever the reason, a contract is a private matter between the two parties. Outsiders don’t get a say.”
“That’s true.”
Davis chuckled. He seemed genuinely delighted that Han Ju-oh had stepped into the trap he’d set.
“The young Esper who nearly went out of control…”
Just as Davis’s voice dropped, the ground split open like an earthquake had struck, and a monster burst forth. Its roar drowned out Davis’s words, but not to Han Ju-oh.
The words, like a lightning bolt, struck deep into his ears and twisted in his gut.
“Ju-oh!”
Ian’s shout rang out from a distance, and Han Ju-oh didn’t spare Davis a single glance as he launched into action. Clearing the dungeon came first.
It was a worm-type monster; the tentacles attached to its body lashed out in every direction. One Esper who was hit flew back and crashed into another, instantly incapacitating them both. The creature attacked with wild precision, its tentacles lashing out violently.
Compared to the flying boss they had fought earlier, this one was more cunning and calculated.
Ian severed a tentacle with his blade and tried sending a jolt of electricity into the wound, but clicked his tongue— All it did was cauterize the cut and stop the bleeding.
Attacks weren’t effective on the tentacles. What they needed was to get closer to the body—but that was far easier said than done.
Hundreds of black tentacles moved unpredictably, lunging like ambushes and piercing Espers without warning.
“Aagh!”
“Ugh!”
Screams rang out as Espers were stabbed through by the tentacles. One was struck straight through the heart, his eyes dimming in silence. He didn’t even have the chance to scream. Still impaled, his body was flung through the air, and terror spread across the faces of those who saw it.
They were realizing—painfully—that this would be a completely different kind of battle from the one against the flying monster before.
“Huh?”
The Esper who had asked Han Ju-oh about Guide Baek’s matching rate stood frozen, a sharp tentacle speeding toward his face. His mind blanked in sheer terror; he couldn’t move. Just as the attack was about to skewer him, Han Ju-oh yanked him back.
The tentacle sliced close past his face, and the man was so frightened he broke out in a cold sweat.
“Stay far back.”
Han Ju-oh’s cool command came right before he launched the man backward. He rolled when he hit the ground, but at least he wasn’t dead.
Starting with him, Han Ju-oh calmly moved through the chaos, helping Espers in danger while steadily analyzing the monster’s weakness.
Watching how the monster strained to keep Espers away from its torso—almost in a panic—it struck Han Ju-oh as oddly familiar.
Just like himself. When on the verge of losing control, he, too, tried to keep everyone away.
