* * *
Haebom had his suspicions about why Na Hyunjoon had lost control—even if he didn’t want to admit it to himself.
It wasn’t something he wanted to know.
“Well, they’ll figure it out… I hope. Haebom, your esper—Wonho—isn’t in the center, right? If he was, he wouldn’t have let the building get wrecked like that.”
Taeyoung rubbed at his furrowed brow.
His own pair had entered a gate earlier that morning, so he knew there weren’t any A-rank espers left at the center.
At this rate, Hyunjoon might just bring the whole place down.
Not that Taeyoung particularly cared.
A building could be rebuilt, and the nature-type espers could restore it pretty quickly.
It’d just take a lot of energy.
But that wasn’t the real problem.
If Hyunjoon still couldn’t be stopped after leveling the center… that was what worried him.
That’s why Taeyoung had immediately started looking for Haebom after getting to the shelter.
But seeing that Haebom had arrived last, he figured it out—Wonho wasn’t in the center.
If he had been, there’s no way he would’ve let Haebom stay up there in danger.
“Ah… actually, Wonho is up there.”
“Oh yeah? Then this’ll be over soon. I mean, yeah, they’re both S-rank, but everyone knows Wonho’s stronger.”
Haebom blinked in surprise.
He hadn’t even considered that.
Even though he’d tried to let go of the idea that Hyunjoon was the “Male Protagonist,” deep down, he’d assumed Hyunjoon had to be stronger than someone like Wonho—the “Sub Male Protagonist.”
But it seemed he was wrong.
“You didn’t know? They had a match once during training last year. Hyunjoon got his ass handed to him.”
Taeyoung chuckled.
Someone nearby mumbled, “It wasn’t that bad.”
The three of them turned to the voice.
Choi Yoonseo was glaring at Taeyoung, her face flushed with embarrassment.
Understandable—no one liked hearing people talk smack about their partner.
Taeyoung just shrugged.
“…Haebom! There you are! Are you okay? Wait—what happened to your knee?!”
While Haebom was still looking at Yoonseo, Jin Seyoung suddenly appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his shoulders.
He anxiously scanned Haebom from head to toe and spotted his bloodied, scraped knee.
Haebom had nearly forgotten about it until then, but now that it was pointed out, the pain came rushing back.
Still… that wasn’t the important part right now.
“Team Leader! Are you okay? You weren’t in the shelter—I was really worried…”
“What do you mean? I came straight down. Didn’t I tell you to go to the shelter immediately? Hyunjoon’s targeting you—what if you went back up there?!”
Jin Seyoung was still checking him for injuries when Haebom looked away guiltily.
He had been told to come straight here.
He was definitely going to get scolded.
But even if the same thing happened again… he’d still go back to save Jin Seyoung.
Even if it meant risking his life.
Jin Seyoung launched into a lecture about the dangers of rampaging espers, citing past incidents where guides had died trying to guide them without fully understanding the risks.
Haebom hadn’t come to guide Na Hyunjoon, but he silently endured Jin Seyoung’s nagging, thinking he couldn’t really do anything if she let him escape and tried to guide him anyway.
Thankfully, Taeyoung, who had been listening beside him, stepped in, saying Hyunjun probably got the point by now, which cut her off midway.
“But why is Esper Na Hyunjoon looking for Guide Haebom instead of his own pair, Choi Yoonseo?”
At that moment, Haebom could feel all eyes in the shelter turn toward him.
Even before that, it had been obvious that people were paying close attention to those around him while pretending otherwise.
With both Haebom and Choi Yoonseo present, it was no surprise.
Not just guides, but even Center staff were inside the shelter, drawing even more attention.
“Ah…”
Only then did Jin Seyoung snap out of it and realize her mistake.
Matching rates between Espers and Guides weren’t exactly confidential, but they weren’t something you wanted to gossip about either—especially when it came to Na Hyunjoon and Haebom.
Haebom had never taken an official compatibility test with anyone except Wonho.
But based on the database, an estimated match rate could be calculated.
So while the number between him and Na Hyunjoon wasn’t exact, it had to be close to 91%, which was what the system had estimated—give or take a small margin of error.
If Na Hyunjoon hadn’t had a pair guide, the Center probably would’ve persuaded Haebom to take responsibility for guiding him.
But since he was stable and matched well with his current partner, there was no reason to stir things up.
The problem, though, was that Na Hyunjoon had fixated on Haebom.
[Attention. This is a public announcement. The situation has been resolved. The Esper who went berserk is currently being transported to the isolation room. Esper ‘Na Hyunjoon’s’ pair guide, ‘Choi Yoonseo,’ please proceed to the isolation room immediately upon hearing this broadcast. Also, Esper ‘Wonho’s’ pair guide, ‘Yoon Haebom,’ please report to the private guidance office as soon as possible. Repeating the announcement…]
The heavy silence that had settled after Jin Seyoung’s sigh was shattered by the broadcast that rang throughout the shelter.
As soon as he heard it, Haebom turned around and began running toward the door he’d entered through—or tried to, anyway.
If someone hadn’t grabbed him.
Annoyed at the delay in such a critical moment, he whipped around to see who it was.
The force of his turn made the person holding onto him stumble.
But Haebom didn’t care.
“…Please.”
Despite nearly losing her balance, Choi Yoonseo didn’t let go of Haebom’s sleeve.
Her hand, gripping it tightly, had turned ghostly pale with desperation.
If it weren’t for her pleading voice, Haebom would’ve shaken her off without a second thought.
“What did you say?”
“Please… go to Hyunjun oppa. I’ll go to Wonho instead. You know how high your match rate is with Hyunjun oppa. A berserk Esper needs a guide with a high compatibility. I’m not enough for him. But I’m a better match with Wonho, so it makes more sense for me to go.”
Choi Yoonseo looked like she was about to burst into tears—or maybe she already was. Not that Haebom cared.
But what she said was nonsense.
First off, Haebom didn’t even know his match rate with Na Hyunjoon, nor did he want to.
Second, it was him that Wonho needed—not her.
Even if Wonho was in better shape than Na Hyunjoon, Haebom had no intention of going to Na Hyunjoon.
Honestly, he couldn’t help but wonder if Na Hyunjoon had gone berserk on purpose, thinking that would force the Center to assign him a high-match guide like Haebom.
It sounded like overconfidence, sure, but if that wasn’t the case, why else wouldn’t he accept guidance from his actual pair?
“What are you even saying, Guide Choi Yoonseo? You’re his official pair. Why would Guide Haebom go to your Esper? Get a hold of yourself.”
Taeyoung stepped between them and pried Yoonseo’s hand off Haebom.
Yoonseo glared at him, her brows furrowed with a fury that was hard to believe considering how desperate she’d just looked.
“This doesn’t concern you. Get out of the way. We don’t have time for this…!”
“Exactly, which is why you shouldn’t be wasting time dragging in someone who has nothing to do with this. Haebom, go. Wonho’s waiting.”
“Ah, yes…! I’ll head over right away.”
Her voice snapped Haebom back to reality, and he nodded immediately.
“Wait—! Move! I need to—!”
As Yoonseo ground her teeth and shouted, Jin Seyoung quickly cut her off.
“If it’s really that urgent, then Guide Choi Yoonseo, go do your job. Isn’t Na Hyunjoon’s outburst today partly your fault for failing to manage him properly?.. As for you Haebom, get it together and take responsibility.”
Yoonseo’s ridiculous actions had gone beyond frustrating—they were outright absurd.
But that wasn’t the point right now.
He needed to go to Wonho as soon as possible.
* * *
