* * *
A question surfaced in his mind.
The voice he had heard earlier echoed again.
And along with it, a memory surfaced—of a small-framed man curled up in his arms in a hospital room.
If that man was a guide…
Everything made sense.
Ironically, just when Wonho had decided to throw everything away and turn the Gate into his grave, someone had saved him.
And now, he was certain—that someone was him.
But there was no joy in the realization.
Only rage.
His plan had been ruined.
Bzzzt—
Swallowing down his rising anger, he picked up his phone.
[Jin Seyoung, Team Leader]
Of course, it was her.
Wonho pressed the call button.
— HEY, YOU LITTLE SHIT!
He had expected her to be mad, but hearing her voice made his ears ache.
“Espers have heightened senses. If you yell like that—”
— Cut the crap! You think I can keep my voice down?! Do you have ANY idea what you’ve put me through?! You bastard! Haa… You really thought you could just go off and die for Choi Yoonseo’s love, huh?! And I’m supposed to just let that slide?!
“I didn’t go there to die for her love. I was losing control—ugh. Never mind. Why did you call?”
Explaining was pointless.
Dying for Choi Yoonseo’s love?
That was ridiculous. Wonho had never supported her love, nor did he care.
He had only let things be because she had cried.
If he had truly cared, he would have fought harder to be guided by her.
The only reason he had willingly entered the Gate to self-destruct was because, as an S-Class Esper, he had no idea just how much damage his rampage could cause the world.
And because he wanted to leave behind a regret that would linger.
Not that any of that mattered now.
If he told her, she would only scold him more.
— Yeah, yeah, we’ll talk about that later. First, get your ass to the Center. Now. If you don’t come willingly, I’ll drag you.
“…Tomorrow.”
He knew he had to go.
The Center was the only place that could assess his abnormal condition.
But he didn’t want to go.
If he did, he’d have to see that man.
And if he saw him, he had no idea what would happen to him next.
— No ‘tomorrow.’ NOW.
Click.
The call cut off.
Jin Seyoung rarely got this angry.
But he knew why she was.
Still, he couldn’t bring himself to move.
In the end, Jin Seyoung stormed into his home and dragged him to the Center.
The moment he arrived, they ran a series of tests on him.
She didn’t even look surprised at his black hair.
Wonho had no idea, but Jin Seyoung had already seen the change when Haebom had carried him back.
“This is weird.”
“What is?”
Slumped on a couch after the tests, Wonho frowned as he muttered to himself.
Jin Seyoung, who had been clicking away at her mouse, compiling the test results, turned to glance at him.
Why does he look so damn serious?
With his already sharp features, frowning like that would make people too scared to even approach him.
“I should be out of control right now,” he said. “I should have gone berserk. I was already mid-rampage.”
Hearing the frustration in his voice, Jin Seyoung couldn’t help but chuckle.
She had already scolded him enough about valuing his own life.
Unlike Wonho, she felt completely at peace.
They hadn’t done a full examination yet, but she had already decided on one thing.
That mysterious man was going to be Wonho’s pair.
Whether Wonho wanted it or not.
No way the Center would let an S-Class Esper who had once attempted suicide roam free.
An S-Class Esper was worth more than ten low-ranked espers combined in terms of destructive power.
And when the Center later found out about his plan to self-destruct inside the Gate, they had gone on high alert.
Now that he had miraculously stabilized, they weren’t going to let him slip away.
They moved exactly as Jin Seyoung had predicted.
They called in a psychic Esper and handed Wonho a Guiding Contract.
The man’s rank was still unknown.
But one thing was certain.
He was a guide.
And he was Wonho’s guide.
“The man who carried you out of the Gate is your guide. That’s why you didn’t lose control. Looks like you did a mucous membrane guide bond. Can’t say for sure, but for your numbers to drop this much, it had to be one. You really don’t remember?”
“…What… What did I do?”
“Mucous membrane guiding. You know what that is, right, Wonho? You also know that doing it without a guide’s consent is a crime. You got off this time because you were rampaging, but if you do it again, you won’t avoid disciplinary action. So be careful. No matter how much you like him—”
“FUCK!”
Wonho’s shout tore through the room.
Jin Seyoung winced, quickly clamping her hands over her ears.
But it was too late—the sound had already hit.
Goddamn, his lungs were strong.
Her ears were ringing.
What the hell was wrong with him now?
With her fingers still pressing against her ears, she scowled at him.
Wonho, the culprit who had screamed, buried his face in his hands, his upper body hunched over.
He didn’t even need to see his reflection to know—his face must be bright red.
He didn’t want Jin Seyoung to see him like this.
He’d definitely be teased for it.
Guiding through the mucous membrane?
That wasn’t something he remembered at all.
As he thought back to when he’d heard that voice, an image flashed through his mind—a pale face, slightly swollen lips.
Damn it, he should’ve just died right then and there!
Wonho ground his teeth furiously.
“The examination is over for now. Go home. I’ll call you back tomorrow, so come again.”
“…Why?”
Still curled up, Wonho refused to move.
Jin Seyoung shook his head, exasperated.
‘Was Wonho going through puberty at twenty-one?’
She had no idea why he was acting like this.
“To check the compatibility rate. If you don’t show up, I’ll come find you myself.”
At the mention of the compatibility test, Wonho immediately straightened up.
Jin Seyoung barely held back her laughter at the sight of Wonho’s blotchy red face.
If the twenty-one-year-old, seemingly-in-the-throes-of-puberty Wonho decided to rebel and not show up tomorrow, it would be a huge problem.
If he ended up making a contract with some unknown man, rumors would spread like wildfire within the center.
And then, just like what happened with Choi Yoonseo, there would be no guarantee that others wouldn’t come after this guide as well.
It was just a gut feeling, but Wonho had a hunch—he wasn’t the only one with a high compatibility rate with that man.
The words “I refuse” were right on the tip of his tongue.
But when Jin Seyoung gestured toward the gear, subtly reminding him that he could be tracked down anytime, anywhere, he clamped his mouth shut.
Wonho had already tried ditching his gear once.
He knew what would happen if he tried again—it wouldn’t just end with a warning.
The gear was a device that monitored an esper’s location, runaway potential, and physical condition.
The center strictly forbade espers from removing their gear.
After all, they were like ticking time bombs, never knowing when or where they might lose control.
There were also gears designed for guides.
If a guide was caught wandering around without their gear, it would be replaced with an implanted chip.
Wonho never wanted that.
It made him feel like something other than human—in the worst way possible.
“…I’ll go.”
* * *
