* * *
But Raon barely managed to suppress the twitch at the corners of his mouth.
If he provoked Mikhail any further, it might backfire.
“Think of it as conserving your energy. We won’t be underwater forever.”
“Damn it.”
At Raon’s not-so-comforting words, Mikhail scowled and turned his head sharply, eyeing the Espers still engaged in combat with an unimpressed expression.
It seemed like they were finally adjusting to underwater combat—everyone was moving more smoothly than before.
In particular, Siwoo and Hamin, who had been agile in the water from the start, were gliding around like birds in flight.
“Korea’s S-Class Espers weren’t this impressive before.”
Mikhail muttered under his breath, his tone still grumbling but tinged with a hint of curiosity.
He’d clearly expected things to fall apart without Dojin, but now that he saw how well the team was handling themselves in unfamiliar conditions, he seemed genuinely surprised.
“Well, two Espers reawakened as S-Class. Plus, generational turnover tends to be fast with Espers.”
“A little too fast, if you ask me.”
Mikhail clicked his tongue. Raon just smiled calmly beside him.
Espers usually didn’t stay active long.
They often died during Gate suppression or terror incidents.
And high-level Espers had trouble finding proper Guides, so their contamination levels rose quickly, leading to early retirement.
Most of the first-generation high-level Espers—those who awakened early—had died in Gates.
Aside from the Association President and a few military officials, hardly any survived.
The Espers who awakened later—especially Dojin and others who had taken down the Red Gate—were considered the second generation.
So in a way, Mikhail wasn’t wrong that calling it a generational shift felt premature.
“Irregular Gates—ones that don’t exist in the Union or any other country—keep popping up in Korea. If you want to survive, you’ve got to adapt.”
“Hmm.”
Mikhail seemed to accept Raon’s reasoning, staying silent.
And maybe being benched didn’t bother him anymore—he crossed his arms and calmly watched the battle unfold.
“Captain, should we go Guiding after this battle ends?”
“Let’s do that.”
At Juwon’s question, Raon nodded.
After defeating the current wave of monsters, a fairly strong one would appear.
Not as dangerous as the one guarding the core, but enough that their Espers—already worn out—might need some recovery.
A brief reset seemed like a smart move.
However, there was one thing Raon had overlooked.
Irregular Gates always came with unexpected variables.
And ever since his regression, he had a knack for attracting monsters’ attention—becoming their target without fail.
“……!”
The moment the team’s guard relaxed, Raon locked eyes with a massive manta ray-like creature.
Not the fake eyes on its underside—the real, jet-black pupils.
A chill ran down his spine before he even realized it.
Shiiick!
“What the hell is up with that thing?”
“……”
Mikhail muttered in confusion as the monster suddenly charged.
Raon subtly ducked behind him.
“Uh-oh, the monsters are heading this way!”
“Well, can’t be helped.”
Since monsters rarely followed predictable patterns, the Guiding team didn’t think much of it.
To them, nothing seemed off. Only Raon felt that strange sense of unease again.
Yeojoon and Mikhail stepped up to protect the Guides, fending off the incoming monsters.
Yeojoon was using the bare minimum of his powers.
Crackle!
“Watch out over there!”
“Ah—sorry!”
Underwater, Yeojoon’s body was surrounded by bright white electricity, making him look like a giant electric eel.
When Mikhail accidentally brushed against the current and winced in pain, Yeojoon hurriedly apologized.
At that point, it still seemed like everything was under control.
“Aaagh!”
“Ugh!”
But then the currents shifted violently.
Whirlpools began to form around the Guiding team.
They were too far from the combat team—Siwoo and Hamin couldn’t have caused this.
“Captain!”
“……!”
Everyone, including Raon, panicked—but underwater, there was little they could do.
Siwoo, with his water abilities, was too far away to help.
The Guide team was helplessly pulled into the swirling vortex.
Instinctively, Raon grabbed onto the nearest person.
And then he was dragged downward—farther and farther—with no end in sight.
“Urgh, khhh—!”
Raon coughed out the water that had filled his lungs, clear droplets trickling from his lips.
He pounded his chest and throat with his fist.
“Haah… haah…”
After coughing so hard that the inside of his mouth and nose felt raw, he finally caught his breath and looked up.
He was surrounded by pitch-black darkness, with a soft, moon-like glow streaming down from above.
Thanks to that light, he could see the area around him fairly clearly.
“A cave…?”
He seemed to be inside a dark underwater cave.
It looked like he’d been swept here by the whirlpool.
“I didn’t expect to find a space with breathable air…”
Still disoriented, he cautiously took a breath.
He wasn’t sure how it worked, but somehow, they could breathe in here.
Who would’ve thought such a place existed?
He stood up slowly, still unsettled.
Even with all the Irregular Gates he’d entered since his regression, he’d never been to a place like this.
That unfamiliarity made him anxious.
Just as he finally got to his feet, he heard a faint groan nearby.
“Urgh…”
“……”
Turning his head, Raon spotted someone.
Soaking wet silver-blond hair—it was Mikhail.
Raon suddenly remembered grabbing someone in the chaos.
Apparently, that someone had been Mikhail.
‘Well, not the worst outcome.’
Being separated from the team was bad enough, but at least he wasn’t alone.
With Mikhail around, he didn’t have to worry about being killed by a monster anytime soon.
And since they weren’t completely underwater, breathing wasn’t an issue.
This environment was perfect for Mikhail to use his abilities.
“Are you alright?”
“You’re…”
Raon approached, his voice calm.
Mikhail’s blue eyes widened slightly upon seeing him, then quickly scanned the surroundings.
“Where are we?”
“I’m not exactly sure myself.”
The water reached about halfway up their bodies, but there was a larger open space above.
A faint light illuminated the secluded underwater cavern, completely cut off from the outside world.
‘Is it because of that…?’
Raon walked up to the wall and touched the smooth stones.
Maybe the water had risen while they weren’t paying attention—stones that were previously submerged were now slick with moisture.
A few embedded in the wall were faintly glowing.
The higher up he looked, the brighter the light became—perhaps the stones in the ceiling were emitting it.
After glancing around the area, Raon turned to Mikhail.
“I think we need to go up.”
“What?”
“That’s the only way I can see for us to get out.”
“Hm.”
At Raon’s words, Mikhail looked up.
His elegant brows furrowed slightly as he gazed at the light seeping through the ceiling.
Raon watched him, a little nervous.
He had considered himself lucky to be with Mikhail—but the truth was, being on bad terms with him still bothered him.
They were alone in an isolated place that no one knew about.
If Mikhail happened to have any ill intentions, there would be no one to stop him—and no witnesses either.
A cold shiver ran down his spine.
“All right, come here.”
“…What?”
But Mikhail simply nodded and held out his hand.
Raon stared at his large palm in surprise.
Mikhail’s expression twisted further, as if annoyed.
“What do you mean, ‘What’? You said we need to go up.”
“Well, yes, but—”
“Even I don’t want to fight with you in a situation like this.”
Mikhail muttered, turning his gaze away.
Seemed he wasn’t the only one feeling uneasy about being separated from the rest of the team.
“…Understood.”
Relieved by that, Raon reached out and took Mikhail’s hand.
Mikhail gave it a light tug and wrapped his other arm around Raon’s waist.
“…!”
And just like that, their bodies began to float upward.
The ground rapidly fell away beneath them.
Watching it grow distant, Raon asked with curiosity,
“What’s the principle behind this?”
“I just cut off the gravity up to the ceiling.”
“So this is… zero gravity?”
“More or less.”
Mikhail answered offhandedly, still avoiding Raon’s gaze.
He didn’t seem particularly eager to talk, but the fact that he was still replying didn’t feel bad at all.
And the idea that one could fly using gravity powers was honestly fascinating.
Raon had assumed that sort of thing was only possible with Dojin or Hamin’s abilities.
He mentally added another skill to Mikhail’s list as he looked up.
“This place is…”
After passing through a narrow tunnel, a massive chamber greeted them.
The walls were sealed on all sides, but embedded stones sparkled with light.
Having grown used to the darkness, Raon squinted as sudden brightness pierced his eyes like needles.
“What the—? It’s all blocked off.”
Mikhail, quick to regain his vision like a true Esper, clicked his tongue as he looked around the chamber, then let out a sharp sigh of frustration.
Raon slipped from his hold and started scanning the surroundings.
There had to be a way out of here.
Judging by the lack of monsters, it was probably some kind of puzzle or mechanism.
They’d need to find it.
“Hey, over here…”
“…?”
Mikhail called out as if he’d found something.
Raon turned his head to look.
* * *
