* * *
Neither looked well—while not as far gone as Taewon, their overload levels were clearly at dangerous thresholds too.
“Report your levels.”
Jihyuk glanced at them, prompting both to check their devices.
“Eighty-nine percent.”
“…About the same. Eighty-seven.”
Jihyuk checked his own wrist device.
Eighty-five.
Still the lowest of the group.
He made his decision quickly.
Using a noise-canceling device, he gave them a quiet order.
“Take Kang Taewon and head into the gate.”
“What about you?”
Lee Dohoon asked, but Jihyuk didn’t respond—just gave him a look.
That was enough.
Dohoon understood what he was planning immediately.
“You think you can pull it off? That kind of restriction isn’t light.”
Dohoon narrowed his eyes.
He looked composed, but he was clearly struggling just as much as Taewon.
He just didn’t show it.
He was enduring severe side effects, too.
“I’m the only one who can still move right now. And with team leader privileges, I can override it.”
“But even if you bring him back, there’s a problem. What if someone sees Go Yeonwoo?”
“So you think you can take a rampaging Kang Taewon to the mansion? You know the Center’s already been alerted. If his level spikes any higher, a kill order will come.”
“If our levels suddenly drop, they’ll get suspicious too. It’s risky.”
“So what’s your plan? You think we can just waltz back to Seoul while the Center’s watching?”
Crack!
Amidst the rising tension between Han Jihyuk and Lee Dohoon, Shin Heesung suddenly activated his ability.
A bolt of lightning struck the ground, cleaving the space between them, and both their gazes snapped toward Shin Heesung.
“…If all of us go berserk together and blow up, I bet the Director will be thrilled. Right? Hmm?”
Shin Heesung’s violet eyes gleamed dangerously.
In truth, Shin Heesung was barely holding on, just like Lee Dohoon.
Electricity visibly crackled over his body, and his aura was sharp enough to be threatening to anyone watching.
The first to react was Lee Dohoon.
Exhaling a heavy breath, he used his ability to lift Kang Taewon’s still-struggling body.
Now incapable of making any sound but beastly growls, Kang Taewon’s body erupted in large, flickering flames.
Like a wild animal baring its fangs, the blazing mass tried to melt Lee Dohoon’s ice with a threatening hiss.
Strengthening the ice even further, Lee Dohoon pressed his fingers to his brow, fighting off the brain-splitting pain, and signaled to Han Jihyuk with his eyes.
“Get him here—without being noticed. Got it, Jihyuk?”
Lee Dohoon’s voice, soft and low, might’ve sounded gentle, but it was anything but.
His glassy, glinting gray eyes bore into Han Jihyuk with dangerous intensity.
Han Jihyuk didn’t respond.
He simply turned away from them.
A manager dispatched from the Center was watching him carefully.
As the manager stepped forward, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
The pressure radiating off Han Jihyuk was overwhelming.
Any closer, and he felt like his body might collapse under the weight.
“Han Jihyuk Esp—if you act on your own right now…”
Han Jihyuk didn’t reply.
He simply pulled out a badge carried only by team leaders—proof of his authority to act independently in a crisis without prior approval.
“Move. Unless you’re looking to get blown to pieces.”
His voice was chilling—so cold it made the manager flinch backward.
There was no way to take what he said as a joke.
“Th-then at least report where you’re going—kgh…!”
“Do I need to explain every single thing to you?”
Han Jihyuk’s frosty gaze locked onto the man.
The pressure, even heavier than before, made it hard for the manager to breathe.
He gasped for air.
“Hkk—ca…can’t…breathe…”
“Then go bring me a spare guide instead of wasting time. Don’t be stupid.”
“There’s no one on standby suitable for Team 1 r-right now—ack…!”
“Exactly why I’m going. No guide would be useful anyway.”
“If… if it’s about retrieving guiding drugs, we can send someone from our side—!”
“Too late.”
Han Jihyuk spat the words. His gleaming eyes looked as though he might devour the man on the spot.
The manager, completely frozen in place, shut his mouth tight.
“I can’t move at the speed of bottom-feeding insects like you.”
Casting a glacial stare downward, Han Jihyuk stepped past the man without hesitation.
With a blank expression, Han Jihyuk stepped onto the makeshift teleportation portal.
A moment later, light flared beneath him, and his body was swallowed whole.
As he entered the mansion, a wave of dizziness hit Han Jihyuk so hard that he had to catch himself on the wall.
It was a rare sight, even for a high-ranking esper far beyond the realm of ordinary humans.
That alone showed how close to the edge he was.
His vision, darkening at the edges, flickered before he closed and reopened his eyes.
His berserk threshold had risen another 5% compared to before.
Even though he’d used his power only briefly while teleporting, the number had spiked unnaturally fast.
It had been a while since he’d felt this sensation—something he’d nearly forgotten after Woo Jiyoo appeared.
The return of that familiar dread dragged his mood to rock bottom.
His damn body kept betraying his will, trying to move on its own.
It felt like a beast that had long crouched in the shadows, biding its time, was finally revealing itself.
A monster, jaws wide open, eyes gleaming, ready to consume him at the first sign of weakness—its presence kept trying to take hold in his mind.
If he let down his guard even slightly, it felt like he would lose complete control of his body.
“…Hah.”
Exhaling sharply, Han Jihyuk’s gaze turned toward the hidden underground entrance deep within the mansion.
Like a parched animal chasing water, he frantically deactivated the security system and descended.
Arriving at the underground level, Han Jihyuk stood before a massive steel door and deactivated another set of security locks.
For once, the numerous safety measures grated on his nerves more than ever.
Boom!
As soon as the final lock disengaged, he flung open the bomb shelter door.
His unhesitating steps carried him straight toward the innermost chamber.
“Fuck…”
Standing before yet another heavily secured door, this one sealed with dozens of locks, Han Jihyuk cursed under his breath.
On the other side, he could feel the guiding energy pulsing—so close, it was maddening.
Just knowing that something was blocking him from reaching it made his fury boil over.
His mind, which had been hanging on desperately to avoid surrendering to the beast, was finally starting to crumble.
Just beyond this door was the sweet prey he’d been starving for.
Just like Kang Taewon had, Han Jihyuk let out a guttural growl as his eyes turned feral.
He began violently smashing the security system apart.
His rational mind was already sinking into the abyss.
Crash. Crack.
At last, after breaking the final lock, Han Jihyuk threw open the door.
It slammed against the wall so hard it sounded like it might break.
He stepped into the room.
Collapsed on a metal restraint frame, Go Yeonwoo lay limply bound.
Just before the Red Gate had erupted, Han Jihyuk and Shin Heesung had been tangled up in bed with him.
Even though Go Yeonwoo had already been guided to the brink of overflow, the two of them had still devoured his body relentlessly, like men dying of thirst.
They’d shoved their cocks into him front and back, moving in rhythm, when the alert had come about the Red Gate.
They’d rushed out, but not before binding Go Yeonwoo securely to the frame.
Normally, at least one of them would’ve stayed behind to monitor him in the shelter, but in a Red Gate emergency, that wasn’t an option.
So as a precaution, they had restrained Go Yeonwoo so thoroughly he couldn’t budge an inch.
Just a few hours ago, they’d finally managed to pull themselves away and leave the room…
“Go Yeonwoo…”
Han Jihyuk murmured under his breath as he approached.
His hand reached out before even his feet had closed the distance, grabbing desperately.
* * *
