First, for him to return to active duty, Siwoo’s disciplinary action would have to be lifted.
But even if the disciplinary action was lifted, returning to the Special Team where Dojin had command would likely not lead to anything good.
On the other hand, he couldn’t simply avoid entering the next Irregular Gate, so that was also a worry.
“For now, I need time for Siwoo’s Gauge to recover like before, so I plan to just rest completely for a while.”
“Ah, I see.”
Hamin glanced up at Siwoo, who was standing next to him.
Their gazes fiercely clashed in the air.
“Anyway, we have an errand to run, so we’ll be leaving now. Train hard, Esper Hamin.”
“Ah, yes. Understood, Team Leader.”
Hamin quickly snapped to attention at Raon’s words and bowed deeply in greeting.
Raon waved his hand casually towards him.
“Was the Support Office this way?”
“Yes.”
“…?”
The answering voice was a little curt. Raon belatedly turned back to look at Siwoo.
‘It looks like his lips are slightly protruding?’
Raon hadn’t been carelessly by Siwoo’s side all this time.
He now knew that even that expressionless face changed slightly depending on his mood.
It was a subtle change that others would never notice.
Others wouldn’t notice it, but right now, Siwoo’s lips were protruding forward about 0.1mm.
He usually did this when he was displeased.
While he wasn’t significantly different from others, his habit when his feelings were hurt was the same as anyone else’s.
‘Is he perhaps jealous of Hamin?’
Raon swore he had never considered Hamin romantically.
Of course, his type wasn’t a large man like Siwoo but a pretty boy type like Hamin, but that was only in his previous life.
After transmigrating, perhaps because he was forced to chase Dojin and pretend to like him, he just wanted to give up on ideal types and everything else and live peacefully.
Moreover, although Siwoo was taller and bigger than others, his appearance was very handsome.
If judged purely on looks, he was closer to Raon’s ideal type than anyone else.
‘I’m only being kind to Hamin out of apology.’
Anyway, his particular concern for Hamin wasn’t because of his preference.
It was simply because he felt guilty for the bad things he had involuntarily done and the torment he had caused due to the System’s urging before the regression.
Above all, having read the original novel, he couldn’t help but feel sympathy for the puppet-like Hamin.
He felt that Hamin’s suffering, due to his duty as a Guide and Dojin’s control-freak obsession, was similar to his own predicament under the influence of the System.
It would be a disaster if Siwoo misunderstood that as romantic interest.
Raon involuntarily swallowed hard, feeling the seriousness of the situation.
“It’s about Esper Hamin. He’s the type that’s a little unstable when left alone, you know.”
“And so?”
“So I’m just a little worried about him, that’s all.”
“A little?”
“Hmm.”
However, the more he tried to fix it, the more sullen Siwoo’s voice became.
He had a bad feeling about this.
Siwoo wasn’t usually like this.
He generally agreed with Raon’s words. Perhaps because he was particularly weak to Guides, or because he was older, Raon didn’t know.
Either way, he was usually calm, without being prickly or argumentative unless it was something unusual.
But there was one thing Siwoo was particularly sensitive about.
That was when Raon carelessly gave Guiding to other Espers or received something similar to flirting.
Every time that happened, Siwoo would react with unusual sharpness, unlike his usual self.
And it was the same now.
“Alright, I’ll try not to worry about Esper Hamin.”
“Really?”
“Still, since he’s a teammate, just sometimes…”
“…”
“Ah, I said I wouldn’t. Seriously. Okay?”
Siwoo’s face subtly hardened again.
It seemed he had said the wrong thing again.
Raon sweated profusely, standing next to the now cold Siwoo.
Was he receiving this karma because he had never dated normally?
He had dated a few people before transmigrating, but they were only fleeting, casual relationships.
Furthermore, they were partners he had started dating out of spite towards the Chairman, so there was neither affection nor severe obsession.
Due to Raon’s attitude, his partners only got angry at first, but later, perhaps disappointed, they didn’t grumble or bother him.
For them, the material things they received from Raon were more important than emotional connection.
In a word, it was a clear ‘give and take’ relationship.
‘But Siwoo is different from those people.’
He was aware of his feelings, but he didn’t know how to handle situations like this outside of their physical relationship.
Furthermore, Raon still couldn’t be sure of Siwoo’s feelings.
‘It might be just an obsession with the Guide, not love.’
When Raon read the novel, he didn’t think the feelings of the Espers who liked Hamin were genuine.
Not just Dojin, but also the other Sub-Mains Espers.
They were beings who would explode and die if they didn’t receive Guiding from a Guide.
Raon only thought they were confusing love with obsession, intoxicated by that desperation and the comfort that Guiding provided.
Of course, Siwoo was pure and cute, unlike those guys, but that didn’t mean Raon could be sure that the feelings Siwoo had for him were different from theirs. Sadly.
“Team Leader Han Raon, what brings you here?”
“Ah.”
While lost in thought, he had already arrived at the Support Office.
Raon snapped back to reality at the staff member’s kind voice and gave his usual smile.
“I came because I lost the equipment I received from the Center.”
“I see. Just a moment.”
The staff member looked at the computer screen and tapped the keyboard.
After scanning something with their eyes, they looked back at Raon.
“The higher-ups have already sent word about the change in your equipment, Team Leader. We will process it within a few days and send it to your residence.”
“I see.”
Come to think of it, he had mentioned losing his watch and terminal when he explained his kidnapping to Seokhyeon and the Intelligence Division.
Seokhyeon must have quickly ordered the equipment to be issued.
Raon sighed in relief.
“Understood. Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Yes, please take care.”
The staff member smiled at Raon.
Raon nodded and left the Support Office.
“Phew, it’s a relief that they’ll issue it right away.”
“…”
“What’s wrong?”
Raon asked, looking at Siwoo, whose expression seemed particularly dark.
Was he still upset about Hamin?
He had no idea how to cheer him up, so Raon was clicking like a machine again.
Before he could properly speak, flustered, Siwoo asked in a serious tone.
“The equipment that was taken by Apophis, do you think it’ll be okay?”
“Huh? What do you mean, okay?”
Raon cocked his head at that.
Siwoo should know better than anyone that the equipment had strict security measures.
“It won’t even open without my fingerprint. It won’t open even if they force it.”
“That’s true, but…”
“…?”
Nevertheless, Siwoo’s face didn’t brighten.
When Raon looked at him curiously, Siwoo spoke again.
“I heard something before. There were quite a few Espers in the Intelligence Division who went missing while chasing Apophis.”
“Really?”
Raon listened to Siwoo’s story with interest.
In the original novel, the details of the extras were not featured, and as a Guide who was treated as an idiot in the past, he had no chance to hear such stories.
Raon looked at Siwoo with fascination.
“An Esper who was resting due to serious injuries after barely returning then, his superior received a call from that Esper’s device. The superior replied without thinking much of it.”
“And?”
Even if the Esper was resting, couldn’t they still communicate with their superior through the device?
What was the big deal about that?
While thinking that, Raon was surprised by what Siwoo added.
“But it turned out that the injured Esper’s device had been lost. That’s why the military and the Center were thrown into chaos back then. Because it meant someone had managed to bypass the security of the lost device.”
“Is that true?”
“Yes.”
South Korea’s security was superior to any other country in the world.
That was true even before the Gate incidents occurred.
But in this world, one should not use the word ‘never’ lightly.
Especially in a world that had been turned upside down multiple times by Gates, nothing was strange.
“Then you think that was Apophis’s doing?”
“That’s the most likely possibility.”
“Hmm.”
Raon also felt that the story had some credibility.
If Apophis truly was a group of Transmigrators who had repeated regression multiple times, they would have much more information than others.
And it wouldn’t be unreasonable for them to bypass the security of the devices with that information.
‘Then they might do something suspicious with my device.’
When Siwoo came to rescue him, K retreated suspiciously easily.
Moreover, he showed a relaxed attitude, as if they would meet again soon.
Raon was belatedly bothered by that point.
“Well, it’s a story I heard from another Esper, so it might not be entirely accurate.”
“Even so, if it’s enough to worry you, the person wasn’t the type to lie, right?”
“…That’s true.”
Siwoo nodded heavily, as if the source was quite reliable.
Raon’s mind became even more complicated.
“But we still don’t know for sure. Don’t worry too much yet.”
“Hmm, alright.”
After all, he couldn’t just rush into Apophis right now to retrieve the devices.
In the end, Raon also sighed and nodded.
