69.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as Ryu Ho-yeon hoped, and Choi Jae-won didn’t fall right into a deep sleep. This was because of the siren that began blaring loudly just a few minutes after he hung up the phone. The alarm sound—eeeeng, eeeeeng—was even louder and more clamorous than the one that sounded when an instant dungeon appeared.
Ryu Ho-yeon, as if he’d expected something like this, just snorted lightly and walked past Choi Jae-won, who was sitting down, and went straight to open the window. Or rather, he tried to open it.
“What? Why won’t it open?”
Although they clearly looked like ordinary windows, the glass panes and frames were just convincing in appearance. No matter how many times he clicked the lock or pulled the handle, they remained immovable. They showed no sign of budging. When Ryu Ho-yeon reflexively turned to look at Choi Jae-won, Choi Jae-won finally let out a low exclamation, a beat late.
“Oh, right. There are no doors or anything that open to the outside here. It would be faster to just materialize a new one.”
Ryu Ho-yeon had no time to show any reaction. Meanwhile, the commotion outside intensified. What was presumably a police officer’s stern voice, likely mobilized by the Research Director, began flowing through a microphone.
– Guide Choi Jae-won, please come out of the building immediately with Esper Ryu Ho-yeon whom you forcibly took. If you don’t come out within 5 minutes, you will be considered in flagrante delicto for kidnapping an Esper and will be forcibly arrested.
“What…? For-forcibly took? Kidnapping?”
Ryu Ho-yeon unconsciously muttered in disbelief. It wasn’t a case of a crazed Esper kidnapping a Guide, but a Guide kidnapping a perfectly fine Esper? Forcibly, no less? Even a three-year-old with a runny nose would know how nonsensical this sounded.
Perhaps because of this, even the police officer’s low voice coming through the microphone seemed tinged with doubt.
In his urgency, he materialized a hammer and smashed the window that wouldn’t open, then poked his head out.
“Oh my, son. Were you there? Come down quickly!”
“…Mom.”
Several police cars with flashing sirens, along with several black sedans that seemed to have been dispatched from the prosecution or other government agencies. Amidst the busy-looking officials, the Research Director stood leisurely smiling and even waving her hand. Then she received a thick folder of documents from a woman in a black suit waiting beside her.
“Can you hear mom’s voice well? It would be embarrassing to spread rumors all over the neighborhood if I used a microphone too.”
As if doing him a great favor, she used her clear voice without a microphone to list all possible charges—not only Esper kidnapping but also arranging illicit employment for civil servants and improper solicitation (likely referring to Dr. An’s assistants and disciples who were still maintaining research positions within the center), illegal building alterations in violation of construction law, biological experiments in violation of the special law for ability users, and so on. Of course, all these charges were directed at Choi Jae-won.
“So. That’s everything I’ve prepared.”
“…”
“Ho-yeon, is Jae-won there too? If he is, deliver mom’s message clearly. Tell him he can choose whether to come down on his own or be dragged down as a criminal caught in the act by the police officers who have kindly come out here.”
That’s what happens when you hang up on an adult while they’re talking—yet the Research Director never once raised her voice. From an observer’s perspective, that made her even more intimidating.
Ryu Ho-yeon felt a bit unfamiliar with the situation. It had been like that since the phone call earlier. He wondered if this was the ruthless side of the Research Director that others whispered about and pointed fingers at—someone who would stop at nothing to achieve her goals.
While he was blinking his eyes, unable to find words to respond, two long arms extended from behind, naturally wrapping around his shoulders and waist, pulling Ryu Ho-yeon back inside from the window.
“What are you doing? You could get cut by the glass. It’s dangerous.”
He’s worrying about others when he’s the one in real danger. Ryu Ho-yeon almost exploded with frustration and nearly hit Choi Jae-won on the head. If he hadn’t been holding an iron hammer in his hand, he certainly would have.
“Jae-won. Perhaps you haven’t slept for so long that this feels like a dream? Are you completely unaware of the situation?”
“Pfft… no, it’s not like that. Don’t worry.”
Oblivious to Ryu Ho-yeon’s growing agitation, Choi Jae-won still appeared leisurely relaxed. He manually closed Ryu Ho-yeon’s gaping jaw while talking nonsense about how he would have to take a nap a little later.
“I thought she might mobilize the media too, but I guess that was too much? It paid off to move first. Hmm… It was difficult to do anything about the government agencies because the Director has them firmly in her grip. Ho-yeon hyung, shall we go down together first?”
“Go, go down? It seems like mom wants to lock you up right away?”
“It might be troublesome, but it’s not like we can’t get out of it, so there’s no need to create unnecessary conflict. Time is precious.”
He seemed intent on keeping his promise to resume the experiment after just a few hours, despite the situation having come to this. It was a tenacious obsession.
“The sample test won’t be officially recognized, so it doesn’t matter. I’ll handle this quickly and come back, but you absolutely must not take a matching rate test directly with Lexy. Understand? Absolutely, absolutely not.”
“…”
“You have to answer, hyung?”
“I got it. I’ll do that.”
Ryu Ho-yeon nodded, and Choi Jae-won let out a low laugh, seemingly satisfied. Choi Jae-won’s lips, which met Ryu Ho-yeon’s cheek with an affectionate warmth, were rough and cracked. The moment those lips touched his skin, familiar guiding energy flowed gently.
That energy was still too feeble to even attempt to compete with Lexy’s radiated guiding. Until now, he had never thought it was feeble, but it was inevitable that dewdrops would appear weaker after witnessing a powerful waterfall.
* * *
“What exactly is the problem here?”
This was the first thing Ryu Ho-yeon heard after being led by his mother’s hand into a car, without even having time to see off Choi Jae-won as he was taken away.
She had used the absurd pretext of a Guide kidnapping an Esper to separate him from Choi Jae-won, but she well knew that such a thing was impossible.
For the Research Director, it was completely incomprehensible and unwanted to see her son actively supporting Choi Jae-won’s struggles. She asked Ryu Ho-yeon again with an expression of genuine incomprehension, as if wondering why he was being so obtuse.
“Do you know what matching rate came up in the sample test? 99 percent, 99 percent!”
99 percent. Ryu Ho-yeon involuntarily took a sharp breath at the overwhelmingly high number. S-class, and 99 percent. Is that what it takes to deliver such powerful guiding with just radiation?
The Research Director repeatedly pushed the detailed results of the sample test toward Ryu Ho-yeon. There was nowhere to escape in the confined space of the car. He received the results with a shallow sigh.
Matching rate 99.99%
It was an incredible figure that had only existed in theory until now, a rate that no Pair in South Korea or the entire world had ever achieved. With such a high rate, there would be almost no point in even performing an imprint.
The previous world record for matching rate was 97 percent, shown by the Lee Han-seo and Park Woo-jun Pair. The world had been astonished by their record, saying it wouldn’t be broken for at least several decades, but now here was 99 percent, even if it was just a sample test. It was truly overwhelming. There were no other words to describe it.
“Break off your Pair with Jae-won immediately and take the test with Lexy.”
The Research Director spoke as if issuing a threat. However, Ryu Ho-yeon had never been the type to blindly say “yes, yes” to his parents, so he immediately responded.
“No.”
“Why?”
“…”
“Don’t tell me it’s because of that trivial little romance with Jae-won?”
Trivial little romance. Ryu Ho-yeon mentally repeated this scathing expression a couple of times. If the reason for insisting on a B-class, almost A-class Guide who had struggled to reach even 80 percent matching rate, instead of an S-class Guide with a 99 percent matching rate, was a trivial little romance… then yes. Ryu Ho-yeon was willing to throw away efficiency for that trivial little romance.
“…If that’s the case?”
“Romance? Go ahead! I won’t stop you!”
However, the Research Director’s answer once again defied Ryu Ho-yeon’s expectations.
“Make him your boyfriend, cause a scene by holding a ceremony like Team Leader Kim, do whatever you want! Who said you can’t date Jae-won? I’m just saying make Lexy your dedicated Guide instead of Jae-won.”
If the relationship between a Pair Esper and a dedicated Guide had remained a businesslike one like that between a doctor and nurse who work well together, or an athlete and coach, he would have done so without a second thought.
However, Espers and Guides had to constantly exchange ‘guiding’ for the Esper’s survival and combat deployment, and the form of this official method had to be conducted in a very personal and intimate manner.
If he had Lexy as his Pair, with his 99 percent matching rate and remarkable guiding through radiation alone, perhaps all guiding could be done through radiation. But there was a more important premise before that. For Ryu Ho-yeon to have a new Guide meant that Choi Jae-won would also need to have another Esper.
The idea of Choi Jae-won holding hands with, embracing, and even kissing without hesitation in urgent moments, some unknown Esper—Ryu Ho-yeon hated it. He didn’t want to just overlook such a sight.
“Think about it, Ho-yeon. It’s not such a bad thing. If you become Pairs with Lexy, Jae-won won’t need to be so obsessed with his experiments anymore, right? The two of you can just sweetly enjoy this romance you’re so fond of. Hmm?”
The Research Director, with her serpent’s tongue, didn’t hesitate to showcase her talent even with her son. With intimate whispers, she passed a tablet displaying prepared documents to Ryu Ho-yeon.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
