* * *
He can’t use his ability? What was that supposed to mean?
Raon had seen it with his own eyes—Hamin using his powers to defeat a monster, flying through the air and reaching the top of the Tower.
That was the only reason Raon had survived the fall in the first place.
“That doesn’t make sense, Hamin. Try again.”
“Ugh…”
But Hamin seemed serious.
The way he struggled, straining with all his might, made that clear.
“…Damn.”
So Hamin hadn’t really reawakened as an Esper?
Even Raon felt momentarily shaken.
“Honestly, it’s hard to trust anything the guide team says they experienced in the Tower.”
“That part is true!”
Raon shot back at Dojin.
But without Hamin being able to demonstrate his power, his words held little weight.
“I’m sorry, Team Leader… I ruined everything…”
“No, don’t worry about it.”
Inho and Yoonchae couldn’t back him up anymore, and in the end, Raon returned with Hamin to rejoin the guide team.
He began assisting the combat team by guiding.
Hamin looked completely deflated, obviously blaming himself for what had happened.
But Raon had no intention of blaming him.
Nor did he plan to deny what he had experienced.
Hamin had reawakened as an Esper—Raon was sure of it.
‘Maybe he just doesn’t know how to use his powers yet?’
Still, the fact that he couldn’t use them at all bothered Raon.
There’s a big difference between not being skilled and not being able to activate them in the first place.
‘Is it because of Seo Dojin…?’
That was the only explanation left. Hamin had spent a long time walking on eggshells around Dojin.
As a B-rank guide with no special guiding talent, the only reason he was even tolerated at the center was his high compatibility rate with Dojin, an S-rank Esper.
Maybe that was why Hamin always shrank in front of Dojin.
Normally, Espers were the ones clinging to guides for guidance, but with those two, it had always been the opposite.
It wasn’t until the end of the novel that Dojin finally came to his senses and started reflecting on his behavior.
Maybe the pressure was so intense that Hamin just couldn’t use his power.
Maybe staying a guide in front of Dojin felt safer to him than risking the uncertainty of being an unknown-grade Esper.
“…Hmm. What do I do now?”
Raon muttered to himself quietly.
Without Hamin’s power, there was no way to get that many people down the cliff safely.
He had to find a way to get Hamin to use his ability again.
“Hyung, what are you thinking about?”
“Ah, sorry.”
Siwoo had been clinging to Raon like a shadow since they returned from the Tower.
Even now, Raon was guiding him.
“Hmm…”
But why weren’t his levels going up?
Raon glanced anxiously at the watch.
With other Espers, even light guiding usually raised the numbers immediately, but Siwoo’s hadn’t budged since earlier.
Was just holding hands not enough anymore?
He wasn’t seriously injured, so did Raon need to offer stronger guiding?
Just as Raon was getting more anxious, a low voice tickled his ear.
“Back at the Tower… I wasn’t seeing things, was I? You really fell?”
“Huh? Yeah, I did.”
“…Ha.”
Siwoo let out a long sigh and covered his eyes with one hand.
His large palm nearly swallowed up half his face.
“I… I really thought you were gone. If you’d died, I was going to die too.”
“…What? Hey—what are you talking about? Why would you die?”
Raon raised his voice, stunned.
He reached out with his free hand to pull Siwoo’s hand away from his face.
“What the hell are you saying…? Wait, are you crying?”
“…If I have to go back to the way things were… I’d rather die.”
“God…”
When Raon finally saw his face, he sighed.
Siwoo’s eyes were brimming with tears.
That’s how much the thought of Raon dying had shaken him.
After awakening as an Esper, Siwoo had never received proper guidance.
For an S-rank Esper, finding a compatible guide was almost impossible.
If the guide was lower-ranked and had poor compatibility, it could cause more harm than good.
So when Raon turned away from him, Siwoo didn’t look for someone else—he just relied on medication to get by.
Now he was saying he’d rather die than go back to those days.
Raon was hit with a wave of shock.
‘I just assumed things would go back to normal once the system reset itself…’
But now that they’d tasted sweetness, there was no going back. Raon had overlooked that.
“Siwoo, look at me.”
“…”
“I didn’t die. I’m right here, alive, okay?”
Raon spoke softly, like he was coaxing a frightened animal.
Siwoo looked away, his eyes still red.
How was he supposed to comfort him?
Raon bit his lip anxiously.
“Do you really have to do everything yourself, hyung? Can’t you just stay somewhere safe for once?”
“No…”
Raon was at a loss for words.
Truthfully, he didn’t regret falling from the tower while trying to save Dasom.
Even if he went back in time, he would have done the exact same thing.
But he couldn’t say that out loud.
If Siwoo heard, he’d only cause more of a fuss.
So Raon forced a smile and held back what he really wanted to say.
“Alright, I won’t do that again. So don’t worry, okay?”
“…I’m sorry. That was childish of me.”
Inside a Gate, nothing is too strange to happen.
Everyone who enters stakes their life on it.
Siwoo, having been through countless high-grade Gates, knew that better than anyone.
But now that he’d seen his newly assigned Guide in danger with his own eyes, he was understandably shaken.
Raon pulled Siwoo into a side-hug and gently patted his back.
“I’ll be more careful from now on.”
“Okay…”
Thankfully, Siwoo quickly regained his composure.
As Raon comforted him, he thought of Hamin, who had been shrinking back nervously.
‘If Hamin felt less pressure, he might be able to use his abilities too.’
Perhaps because Siwoo had calmed down, his sync stats had begun to rise again, little by little.
Watching it on his watch, Raon thought silently:
‘Maybe Hamin could use his powers again if he finds emotional stability.’
With that thought settled, Raon turned to Siwoo.
“Sorry, Siwoo. I’m going to check on Guide Hamin real quick.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“Hmm, sure.”
At the moment, the Guides were scattered around, supporting different Espers.
Raon looked around for Hamin, and Siwoo pointed in a direction.
“He’s over there.”
“Oh, thanks.”
Thanks to Siwoo, Raon found Hamin quickly.
For some reason, Hamin wasn’t with Dojin but was guiding other Espers.
“Guide Hamin.”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
It hadn’t been long, yet Hamin’s face had noticeably thinned.
He must’ve been under a lot of stress.
Raon looked at him with sympathy and asked:
“Do you want to try receiving a guiding session?”
“…Huh?”
Hamin’s eyes widened in surprise, clearly not expecting that.
He stuttered.
“W-what do you mean…?”
“Just try it. You never know, it might help.”
“Uhh…”
Raon reached out his hand toward Hamin.
Hamin looked down at it, his eyes wavering.
Technically, multi-Guides didn’t need to be guided after reawakening as Espers.
They could self-guide, after all.
Of course, since Hamin’s guiding rank was B, it might not align well with higher Esper grades.
But when self-guiding, match rates were nearly 100%, so grade mismatches weren’t a big issue.
Still, the reason Raon was offering guiding now was solely to help stabilize the newly reawakened Hamin.
He smiled gently, trying to seem as harmless as possible, and wiggled his fingers.
“I don’t think what happened at the tower was a hallucination. You think so too, right, Guide Hamin?”
“…Yes.”
Hamin nodded timidly after a brief hesitation.
Then he glanced at something—or someone.
‘Was he looking at Dojin?’
Raon frowned unconsciously at Hamin’s anxious glance.
Maybe he shouldn’t interfere with the story’s original course so much… but he was angry.
Seeing Hamin trapped under Dojin’s control reminded him too much of his past self, shackled by the system before his regression.
“Go ahead and take it, Guide Hamin.”
“I…”
“You want to live differently now, don’t you?”
“…”
Hamin flinched at Raon’s words.
His watery, light brown eyes trembled, and he opened his pale lips slightly.
“…Yes.”
Hamin slowly nodded, as if making up his mind.
He raised his hand.
“Ah…”
Hamin’s eyes widened even more as he touched Raon’s hand.
A tear welled up in his already wet eyes and rolled down his cheek.
“Guide Hamin?”
“Uh…”
“G-Guide Hamin!”
Then, Hamin’s feet lifted off the ground.
Raon, still holding his hand, looked up in shock as Hamin floated into the air.
* * *
