Davis’s forehead twisted in a scowl. The way he was openly showing his displeasure—Seo-ha felt he was the one being wronged.
“Is that really something you should be saying to your partner after fighting side by side?”
“Just because we’re on the same team doesn’t mean we’re in sync.”
Even in this situation, Davis clearly understood the nuance.
“Then what was all that we’ve done together supposed to be?”
“Reinforcement.”
He dismissed the reason for Davis being assigned to the team with a single curt word. And that made it all the more obvious—he had no emotional investment in the team.
“So that’s why you felt comfortable telling me to come with you, huh?”
Seo-ha forced himself to hold back the urge to scream and drop the formalities. Han Ju-oh hadn’t shown up yet. Until he knew what had happened to him, he needed to keep a close eye on the situation so he could respond more clearly to Davis.
Well, it wasn’t like this was the first time something like this had happened.
‘There were always a few who just came at me without knowing a damn thing about our compatibility score.’
‘Be my Guide.’
‘Be my partner.’
‘Have my child…’
‘Okay, that one’s just insane.’
Seo-ha quickly regained his composure, remembering the Espers who’d impulsively thrown themselves at him just because they liked him.
“Anyway, first things first—we need to get out of here.”
It was a tactful way of saying that he had no intention of answering either of Davis’s suggestions.
“Let me know if you change your mind.”
Davis turned away after leaving the door open with that cocky grin on his face. Watching him walk off, Seo-ha muttered.
“Dealing with someone like that after so long is enough to make you question everything.”
He rubbed his forehead and let out a deep sigh.
“Still, you held it together well.”
Moon Roi tapped Seo-ha’s arm a couple of times.
“I’m selective about who I deal with.”
He shook his head, not wanting it to sound like he only acted strong with weak people and cowered in front of the strong.
“Someone like him? Yelling or swearing won’t work. You saw it, right? His eyes—there was something off about them.”
Seo-ha pointed to his own eyes, almost as if poking them, emphasizing that Davis’s gaze wasn’t normal. Moon Roi looked at him and let out a disbelieving laugh.
“So you’re saying you didn’t curse him out because he seemed unhinged?”
As if he’d almost cursed him out—but then held back because of those eyes.
“What if he’s the kind of guy who enjoys being cursed at? He already seems to be into me.”
Seo-ha scratched his cheek as he replayed Davis’s words in his mind.
“He just came out and asked if I needed a new partner. I mean, what the hell does he think he knows about me? We’ve barely spent a few days together.”
“You’ve dealt with Espers like that before, though.”
“Have I? Then why does this feel so off?”
‘Why does it feel like there’s more to it than that?’
As Seo-ha tilted his head in confusion, he spotted Han Ju-oh, who was being supported by Ian, walking toward them. His face stiffened. Davis had shown up looking completely fine, so he’d assumed Han Ju-oh would be okay too… but that hope quickly crumbled.
Seo-ha rushed toward Han Ju-oh, while Moon Roi approached his own temporary partner.
“Han Ju-oh!”
Seo-ha gently cupped Han Ju-oh’s lowered face with both hands and carefully lifted it. His face was covered in blood and some unidentifiable fluid, making it impossible to read his expression, so Seo-ha wiped his cheek barehanded. He hadn’t thought to grab the disinfectant wipes from his pocket.
When he confirmed there were no wounds on Han Ju-oh’s face, Seo-ha let out a sigh of relief and looked into his half-open eyes.
“What the hell happened to you…?”
‘You look like a wreck.’
“Don’t touch me. I’m filthy.”
Han Ju-oh shook his head and tried to pull away, but Seo-ha grabbed him by the nape, not letting him retreat.
“You can wash off the filth. What matters is checking that you’re okay.”
“I’m fine.”
“If you can’t say that while standing on your own two feet, then don’t say it at all.”
He could barely manage to stay upright, even while leaning against Ian. Han Ju-oh gave a faint smile, the corners of his lips twitching upward. His voice rasped, as if something had scraped against it, and Seo-ha instinctively touched his neck—only to grab his hand instead.
When Han Ju-oh flinched, Seo-ha quickly released him. That’s when he noticed the injury on Han Ju-oh’s palm. From the back of the hand, it looked fine, but he’d missed it completely.
“You’re a mess. An absolute mess.”
Seo-ha clucked his tongue and brought his hand back to Han Ju-oh’s face.
“And after touching everything else, you’re going back to touching my face again…?”
Han Ju-oh instinctively tried to pull his head back at the feeling of the filthy liquid smeared on Seo-ha’s hand—but it was no use.
“You might usually be overflowing with strength, but right now, you can’t even slip out of my grip.”
Seo-ha, as if scoffing at the idea, held Han Ju-oh by the nape and not only turned his face back but gently leaned him against his shoulder. Ian, who had been silently watching until now, yielded Han Ju-oh without resistance.
“Thank you.”
“Of course. He’s my friend.”
Ian seemed like he had more to say, but when Moon Roi motioned for him to come over, he followed quietly.
Now alone, Seo-ha lifted Han Ju-oh’s wrist. He needed to check the overload risk level.
“You really fought like hell, huh?”
Overload Risk Level: 94%.
The tremble he felt from their touching bodies carried Han Ju-oh’s faint laughter straight into him.
“The other Espers seemed fine—why are you the only one…?”
Seo-ha muttered, thinking of Davis with a frown, but trailed off as he saw the other Espers arriving belatedly. Some leaned on others for support, like Ian and Han Ju-oh, while a few were being carried on backs. Their faces were etched with exhaustion and grief—it reminded him of a band of broken soldiers.
Not everyone made it through unscathed. If anything, considering the number of casualties, it was a small miracle that Han Ju-oh was only this badly hurt.
“I misspoke.”
Seo-ha corrected himself at once and placed a hand on Han Ju-oh’s neck, channeling guiding energy into him. This was urgent, so he started with immediate stabilizing.
From a distance, he could feel Davis’s gaze. The curious stare carried a faint, amused smile. That mischievous, impish look—Seo-ha found it easier on his mind to just look away. He focused instead on watching Han Ju-oh’s danger level drop as the guiding took effect.
“First stop—hospital.”
He carefully wiped around Han Ju-oh’s wounded palm using the disinfectant wipes he had tucked in his pocket. The gash stretched clear across the palm as if slashed with something sharp.
“You won’t be able to use this hand for a while.”
Even with help from a healing Esper, it’d be hard to use like normal for some time. Seo-ha wanted to check for other injuries, too, but the combat suit covering him made that frustratingly impossible.
“You being here made me feel secure.”
“Hm?”
At Han Ju-oh’s sudden comment, Seo-ha tilted his head, prompting him to elaborate. Han Ju-oh murmured in a drained voice.
“It made me feel better, knowing you’d be there to calm me down if I started to lose control.”
“Jeez… Why say something like that as if you’re confessing or something?”
Seo-ha rubbed at his flushed ears. Guiding Han Ju-oh was part of his job—it was only natural. And yet, Han Ju-oh said he was glad for it.
“I mean, I’m the only one who can keep your overload in check… and we’re partners, after all.”
Feeling embarrassed, Seo-ha began babbling just to fill the space. This wasn’t the time for this kind of conversation. They should be getting out of the gate and into treatment—but his heart wouldn’t stop pounding.
“…I liked you too.”
Seo-ha mumbled the words like they slipped out of him.
As Han Ju-oh gazed at him, Seo-ha let out a sharp exhale and suddenly blurted out:
“Thanks for raising my match rate. I keep wondering what my life would’ve been like if I hadn’t met you. And yeah! I like you too.”
Seriously—why does he always make me say it twice?
Feeling awkward, Seo-ha scratched at his itchy throat and looked away.
“…Huh?”
The surrounding Espers, who’d been within earshot, stared at him with wide eyes.
“Crap, that wasn’t supposed to happen.”
Caught up in Han Ju-oh, he’d completely forgotten where they were. As Han Ju-oh started chuckling, Seo-ha brushed his hand across him roughly—though it was really a gentle, careful touch.
“Let’s get out of here. This isn’t the place.”
“Still got another confession left in you?”
“Zip it.”
Seo-ha gripped Han Ju-oh’s side firmly. When Moon Roi came over to carry some of their things, Ian stepped in to help, taking them one by one.
They were ready to leave the gate. Seo-ha matched his pace to Han Ju-oh’s slow steps as they walked out together.
“Hey. By the way…”
Something occurred to him, and he turned to look at Han Ju-oh.
“Can’t you walk by yourself now?”
He’d just remembered how Han Ju-oh came in leaning against Ian. Out of habit, he’d continued supporting him without thinking—he wasn’t even on the verge of overloading anymore.
“Heheh.”
Han Ju-oh, still leaning against him, shook with laughter.
“Wow.”
‘Got played.’
Seo-ha gave him a betrayed glare—then cracked a smile.
Just the fact that Han Ju-oh was alive and they could share this moment—it made everything feel worth it. They’d cleared an S-Class gate. They could finally relax.
…Or so he thought.
