* * *
Since they were in a rush, Haeyoung just splashed some water on his face, brushed his teeth quickly, and stepped out.
With the door now open, he could see the room more clearly.
It was bigger than it seemed in the dark.
A clothes rack stood in one corner, holding identical sets of clothing.
The tops looked like uniforms, while the bottoms seemed more like training gear.
Remembering the man’s outfit, Haeyoung figured he probably needed to wear the uniform.
He pulled one of the identical sets from the rack.
As expected, it had the name “Kang Haeyoung” stitched into it.
A strange feeling welled up inside him.
As ridiculous as it sounded, it felt like he had somehow become that supporting character—the key to the world’s destruction—from the novel he’d read.
The real problem was, he couldn’t quite tell if this was a dream or reality.
Changing into the uniform in the middle of this surreal mess, Haeyoung stepped out the door, feeling awkward.
Unlike the pitch-black room, the world outside was bright.
It felt like he had entered an entirely different world.
He wondered if Kang Haeyoung, the one who originally lived here, felt this disoriented every day.
It might all be a dream, but he caught himself getting way too into it.
“Hey! You planning to let everyone die before you show up?”
“Seriously, what’s wrong with you today?”
Walking down the hall, Haeyoung entered a large living room.
A man sitting on the sofa jumped up and shouted at him.
Judging by the voice and tone, this must have been the one who banged on the door earlier.
Minjoon—no, Yoon Minjoon—was one of the characters from the novel, just like Kang Haeyoung.
He was one of the people who pushed the broken protagonist guide to the brink…
Then, that sly-looking guy with the ever-smiling eyes must be Choi Juhoon, and the one glaring at Haeyoung with a face full of irritation was probably Lee Seungmin.
These three, along with Kang Haeyoung, were part of the same team.
Field Team 1 of Seoul’s Esper Center—made up of three S-Class espers and one A-Class esper.
‘This dream is disturbingly realistic,’ Haeyoung thought, peeking out from under his bangs to watch the others closely.
“What, are you deaf now too? Hell, not like words ever worked on you. If you could understand plain speech, we wouldn’t be here. Let’s go, hyung. Seungmin, move it.”
“Yessir, yessir. Moving.”
The reply sounded more like “nyeh” than “yes,” but no one pointed it out.
The three men turned their attention away from the still-standing Haeyoung and walked down the hall in the opposite direction.
Haeyoung sighed and followed them, albeit reluctantly.
Normally, he wouldn’t let anyone treat him like this, even if they were bigger and stronger than him.
But right now, figuring out what was going on took priority.
He kept telling himself this was a dream, but it gnawed at him—he wasn’t the type to dream much, and he’d never had a lucid dream in all his 22 years.
And yet, this felt too real.
“Ah…”
As he stepped out the front door, the blazing sunlight hit him.
It made everything feel even more real.
‘Can you even feel the sun like this in dreams?’
He tilted his head.
“Hey! Why are you spacing out again? Are you seriously messed up today? Hyung, don’t you think he belongs in a psych ward instead of a gate today?”
“Minjoon, don’t say that about your teammate… Especially not in front of others, got it?”
“Tch, where else would a lunatic go if not a psych ward? Look at that blank face. Tch.”
As Choi Juhoon gently scolded him, Yoon Minjoon scratched his head in frustration.
‘They can’t even see my expression clearly with these bangs…’
Haeyoung thought, walking closer to them.
Lee Seungmin just shook his head in exasperation.
“We’re about to move, so close your eyes.”
Seungmin glanced at him with mild blame in his gaze before speaking.
Haeyoung realized—this must be Seungmin’s ability: teleportation.
He immediately shut his eyes tight.
The novel had mentioned how people would get terrible motion sickness if they didn’t close their eyes during Seungmin’s teleportation.
Even in a dream, he didn’t want to go through that.
And if this wasn’t a dream, even less so.
How much time had passed?
Unlike the quiet front yard, a murmur of noise filled the air now.
Haeyoung cautiously opened his tightly shut eyes.
What greeted him was a massive black hole hanging in the sky.
There was no better way to describe it—it was a black hole, large enough to swallow skyscrapers whole.
Sparks crackled occasionally along its edges.
Around it, enormous barricades had been set up.
People wearing the same uniforms stood guard behind the first barricade, and beyond that, there was another perimeter—lined with what looked like police officers.
It was to keep anyone from approaching the black hole-like gate boldly standing in the middle of the city.
Seeing a scene like this—something he’d only ever read about in novels—playing out in front of him felt surreal.
If this was a dream, Haeyoung had an incredibly vivid imagination.
If it wasn’t… he didn’t know.
“Team Leader Choi Juhoon! Over here!”
“Alright, let’s go, team.”
Someone in front of the inner barricade raised a hand upon spotting Choi Juhoon.
Responding to the voice, Juhoon led his team past the barricade.
The police officer checking their IDs let them through, though he didn’t forget to cast a sideways glance at the person at the very end—Haeyoung.
Haeyoung ignored the look and kept closely on Lee Seungmin’s heels.
Seungmin, seemingly irritated by Haeyoung’s presence, quickened his pace as if to widen the distance.
“Hello?”
“Good morning. I’ll give a quick rundown of the situation.”
It was a cheerful greeting, considering they were standing in front of a gate crackling with harsh sparks—crackle, snap—but no one pointed it out.
The woman who had raised her hand earlier began explaining in a calm voice.
The gate was rated Yellow, and they estimated five missing persons.
Since it had opened in the middle of the city, right on a public street, the numbers weren’t exact.
It had been about an hour since the gate appeared, so she asked them to focus on locating the missing people first.
When she mentioned “an hour,” her brow furrowed.
And naturally, Seungmin’s eyes shifted toward Haeyoung.
As if the delay—the whole uncertainty of whether the missing people were even alive—was somehow Haeyoung’s fault.
But Haeyoung felt wrongly accused.
He had no idea if Juhoon had really woken him up just ten minutes before they needed to leave, like he claimed.
Honestly, he suspected the guy hadn’t even tried.
“Hey, get in front.”
“…Me?”
“Dropping honorifics now? Getting real cocky just because I’ve been letting things slide.”
Yoon Minjoon, now standing in front of Haeyoung, kicked the toe of his shoe.
Black sneakers—definitely out of place with the uniform.
But no one seemed to care.
No one except Haeyoung, that is.
He’d only worn them because there was nothing else at the door.
Now that he looked down, they were clearly old and worn out.
‘Don’t espers make a lot of money?’ he wondered bitterly.
“Minjoon.”
Just as Minjoon looked like he was about to hit him, Juhoon spoke in a low voice.
The slight motion of his eyes suggested: ‘Not here. Don’t cause a scene.’
* * *
