* * *

“What? Am I wrong? We all know how predictable that pig is. Remember how his eyes practically popped out of his head when he found out Woo Jiyoo was an A-rank? And Go Yeonwoo’s likely higher than that. Do you think he’d just leave him alone?”

“Taewon’s right. If they realize Yeonwoo is S-rank or higher, they’ll never let us keep him, no matter how good the compatibility rate is with our team,” Dohoon added.

Han Jihyuk listened in silence, then turned to Shin Heesung.

“What about you, Heesung?”

After a moment, Heesung answered slowly.

“…I agree with them. Let’s just say we killed him. The Center Director can’t do much to us anyway.”

“Let the pig suspect us all he wants. What’s he going to do about it? We can just claim we acted out of anger,” Taewon said with a sneer.

“And if he keeps digging, we can create a fake corpse,” Dohoon suggested.

Heesung tilted his head slightly.

“…Is that possible?”

“There’s an Esper in the U.S. with cloning abilities. We’re not exactly close, but if we pay a hefty sum, they’ll take the job. They’ll accept any request if the price is right.”

“If the Director keeps pushing, we can toss him a fake body or something. But either way, I’m against letting Go Yeonwoo undergo a rank evaluation. If the Center takes him, that bastard Director will have our lives in his hands,” Taewon growled, his gaze challenging Jihyuk.

He looked ready to attack if Jihyuk insisted on the evaluation.

Jihyuk’s icy blue eyes landed on Go Yeonwoo again.

Even in his limp and pitiful state, a deep possessiveness surged within him.

The mere thought of losing Go Yeonwoo to the Center made his vision burn red.

If it came to that, he might kill the Director without hesitation.

The irony that the man who killed Woo Jiyoo had become someone Jihyuk couldn’t live without was both absurd and undeniable.

“I have no intention of letting the Center take him. I never planned to, from the start.”

Jihyuk’s frigid blue eyes swept over the three men.

The possessiveness in his gaze silenced them; none dared to mock or argue.

They all viewed Go Yeonwoo as theirs, just as much as he did.

All four sets of eyes now focused on Go Yeonwoo, their gaze dark and ravenous, as if ready to devour him whole.

The air grew thick and oppressive with their unspoken desires, suffocating in its intensity.

Then, an unwelcome sound broke the silence.

Jihyuk pulled a communicator from his pocket and checked the message.

His blank expression gave way to a faint scowl.

“What is it? That pig again?” Taewon asked, his face a mix of annoyance and disbelief.

Jihyuk nodded.

“Yeah.”

While Taewon cursed under his breath, his face twisting in frustration, Dohoon leaned over to glance at the communicator.

“He’s calling all of us in?”

“…Why now, of all times?”

Shin Heesung, still probing into Go Yeonwoo’s back entrance and pulling out his semen, blinked and asked.

“They said there’s going to be a detailed report and emergency meeting about the Red Gate we cleared earlier, and the entire team is expected to attend.”

“A meeting, my ass. That pig is just using any excuse he can to dig into Go Yeonwoo’s whereabouts.”

Kang Taewon’s expression remained twisted in displeasure.

Just thinking about the brutish director, so bulky it seemed like his brain was replaced with muscle, made him feel sick to his stomach.

“Well, Jiyoo was an incredibly rare Guide. It’s not strange for the director to be this persistent.”

“Hey, Lee Dohoon. Did you forget how that bastard constantly harassed Woo Jiyoo and acted like a complete scumbag? Just remembering how Jiyoo used to cower before him, ugh…”

“Jiyoo was from an orphanage, wasn’t he? And the director just happened to be one of the benefactors supporting that orphanage. There wasn’t much he could do.”

Lee Dohoon shrugged with a smooth smile.

Although his face appeared as composed as ever, he seemed just as annoyed as Kang Taewon.

“Do we really have to go right now? It’s such a hassle…”

Shin Heesung, who had been withdrawing his fingers from Go Yeonwoo’s hole, now dripping with semen, looked up at Han Jihyuk.

“If we delay, it’ll only get more annoying.”

Han Jihyuk replied flatly, his gaze fixed on Go Yeonwoo, who lay unconscious on the bed.

“Of course, before anything else, we’ll need to move him to the basement.”

At Han Jihyuk’s added comment, the other three turned their attention back to Go Yeonwoo.

The place they currently resided in was a unique standalone house located in the heart of the capital.

It was a reinforced residence made from rare minerals excavated inside Gates, nearly impenetrable and with top-notch security.

Originally, the team had stayed at accommodations provided by the Center.

However, after Woo Jiyoo became their dedicated Guide, they moved here.

It was a natural choice, considering their frequent absences on missions.

This way, they could ensure their Guide’s safety.

Although Jiyoo’s presence no longer mattered now, the house had found a new purpose.

They intended to keep living here, especially since it was the perfect place to confine someone like Go Yeonwoo after faking his death and erasing his existence.

The house even had a basement shelter, a so-called bomb shelter, though in truth, it was more like a prison—a completely isolated, lightless chamber.

They planned to lock Go Yeonwoo in that underground cell and turn him into their personal plaything.

It wasn’t as if he deserved to breathe freely above ground, anyway.

“The equipment we set up in the shelter—is it still functioning properly?” Shin Heesung asked, directing his slow question at Lee Dohoon.

“Of course. It’s in perfect working order, enough for our Yeonwoo to enjoy himself thoroughly. No need to worry.”

The “equipment” Shin Heesung referred to was a set of s*x toys installed in the shelter, initially meant for Woo Jiyoo.

As high-ranking Espers, they were prone to irrational behavior, often forcing their Guides into submission if met with any resistance.

They enjoyed breaking their Guides down s*xually, making them obedient like slaves.

These S-class Espers were no exception. In fact, they were worse than most.

After Jiyoo became their Guide, the first thing they did was purchase this mansion and modify the underground shelter.

It was intended to punish Jiyoo should he ever resist them.

However, Jiyoo, while overwhelmed by them, had never refused.

As a result, he never even knew the shelter existed.

They had almost considered the modification a waste—until now.

Now, it would finally serve its purpose, though not for Jiyoo, but for Go Yeonwoo, who had killed him.

Of course, Go Yeonwoo wasn’t just a replacement for Jiyoo.

He was also to be their plaything.

As a Guide, Go Yeonwoo’s presence alone triggered intense destructive and sadistic urges in them.

His guiding energy, overwhelmingly potent, acted as an aphrodisiac for Espers like them, whose matching rates with him were exceptionally high.

Just being near him felt like inhaling a concentrated dose of a potent dr*g.

“Who’s going to move him?”

“I will—I’ll do it.”

Before Kang Taewon could fully finish speaking, Shin Heesung responded eagerly, lifting the semen-smeared Go Yeonwoo in his arms.

Yeonwoo’s limp arms dangled mid-air.

“We’ll head out first. Make sure to tie him up properly before you come, got it?”

Shin Heesung brushed past Kang Taewon, Han Jihyuk, and Lee Dohoon, leaving the room.

Plop. Drip.

Even as they were about to fully leave the room, drops of their spilled seed continued to drip from Go Yeonwoo’s rear, forming a trail on the floor.

Thud.

Even after the door closed, they stood there for a moment, gazing down at the raw, explicit traces Go Yeonwoo had left behind with predatory, gleaming eyes.

* * *