* * *
Amused by the chaos, I watched discreetly from Heesung’s arms.
Jihyuk seemed on the verge of exploding too, and I couldn’t help but look forward to it.
Maybe this place would finally be wrecked beyond repair.
Not that it was bad here, but the mansion above ground—where I’d stayed when faking injury—was incomparably better.
BAM! CRASH!
When Taewon fully lost it and lunged, Heesung set me down briefly before charging back.
The two clashed, and the surroundings quickly turned into a warzone.
I smirked, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle—until a shadow fell over me.
Glancing up, I saw Jihyuk standing there.
He scooped me up, glared at the two, then activated his ability.
No—before he could, an ice spear slammed down between them.
CRACK!
“Did I leave for five minutes and you brats immediately start acting up? Control yourselves.”
Lee Dohoon appeared, scanning the scene with a curled lip.
His usual smile was there, but like the others, his mood was far from pleasant.
“Shut the hell up, you bastard. Don’t run your mouth when you don’t know shit—just fuck off!”
“Yeah. Get lost.”
As Taewon and Heesung spoke in unison, Dohoon let out a disbelieving laugh.
The absurdity seemed to genuinely stump him.
Realizing words were useless, Dohoon turned to Jihyuk.
“Jihyuk, you should’ve stopped this before it got out of hand. Or is Yeonwoo the only thing on your mind?”
Jihyuk didn’t even dignify that with a response.
The blatant disregard made Dohoon frown before his gaze landed on me in Jihyuk’s arms.
Clearly, my presence bothered him.
I stifled a laugh at his obliviousness—this whole situation was endlessly entertaining to me.
Taewon and Heesung, still mid-fight, kept glaring at Dohoon as ice chunks rained down.
“Stop interfering and leave.”
“Yeah. Mind your own business.”
“Seriously… What are you two even fighting about?”
Dohoon sighed when neither showed any intention of stopping.
Heesung answered first.
“Yeonwoo won’t eat. And Taewon keeps pissing me off by getting in the way.”
“Bullshit. You’re the one shoving your fingers down his throat and force-feeding him!”
“Hmm, so our Yeonwoo refused to eat, and that’s how this mess started?”
“You figured it out yourself, dumbass.”
At Taewon’s cursing, Dohoon’s attention snapped to me.
“Yeonwoo. Why are you refusing food and causing all this trouble?”
His tone was gentle, but the reprimand was clear.
I bit my lip and glared from Jihyuk’s hold.
“Answer me, Yeonwoo.”
“……”
“Should I tear you open to get a response?”
“……”
“Yeonwoo, why won’t you eat what Heesung gives you? Keep your mouth shut, and I’ll shove my fist up your ass. Sounds fun, right?”
Dohoon tapped my cheek threateningly.
When I flinched, he tapped again, urging me to speak.
Reluctantly, I parted my lips.
“…I’m sick of it.”
“Hm?”
“I don’t want to eat porridge anymore! I’m tired of it! It makes me want to puke!”
I exploded, shouting as if I couldn’t take it anymore.
Dohoon’s eyes widened in rare surprise before he turned to Heesung.
“Heesung. Have you been feeding him nothing but porridge?”
“Yeah.”
Heesung nodded casually. Dohoon exhaled in disbelief.
“And why’s that?”
Before Dohoon could answer, Taewon grabbed Heesung by the collar.
“You insane bastard! Who the hell only feeds someone porridge? No wonder this brat’s throwing a fit!”
“He’s weak. Porridge is best for him.”
“No, it’s fucking not!”
“Heesung. Get a grip.”
At Dohoon’s calm interjection, Heesung blinked slowly before looking at Jihyuk.
“Hah.”
A single sigh, but this time, Heesung seemed to grasp the meaning.
His violet eyes finally settled on me.
“…Yeonwoo. Tired of porridge?”
“I’d rather vomit than eat another bite.”
“Ah…”
Only then did realization dawn on Heesung.
He glanced at Taewon.
“Why didn’t you tell me? Idiot.”
“What the hell are you—ugh, goddammit!”
Taewon smacked his own chest in frustration while Dohoon and Jihyuk sighed again.
‘Ah, this is better than popcorn.’
Watching the absolute chaos unfold, I relaxed in contentment.
A quiet airport.
A brown-haired man and a dark navy-haired man passed through immigration swiftly and headed straight for the exit.
Once outside, they got into a waiting car.
As it started moving, the brown-haired man—Park Jaerim—glanced at Seok Kiwoo, who sat beside him with arms crossed.
“Don’t keep sneaking glances. If you’ve got something to say, just say it.”
“Can’t I even look at you?”
“Nope. My face is expensive.”
“Mind if I curse?”
“Nope.”
The two kept bickering casually, while subtly watching the driver up front.
They were well aware the man was a monitor from the Center.
Park Jaerim continued making offhand remarks while discreetly moving his fingers, careful not to be noticed by their observer.
Jaerim, one of the rare S-rank espers who had been stationed overseas for a long time under Koo Hyukjun’s orders, possessed multiple abilities—an anomaly in itself.
Using one of those abilities—telepathy—he tried to initiate a silent conversation with Kiwoo.
Unlike other espers, Jaerim’s telepathy wasn’t one-way.
It was bi-directional, allowing for full conversation between connected minds.
[Hey, Seok Kiwoo. Why isn’t that bastard here to greet us?]
[Who?]
[Who do you think? That damn flunky of Koo Hyukjun. Normally, Secretary Park is the one picking us up from the airport.]
[I don’t know. Maybe he’s busy.]
[Can you try using that thing in your skull called a brain? I’m already pissed off that Koo Hyukjun suddenly ordered us back to Korea out of nowhere.]
[Join the club.]
The telepathic exchange paused for a moment as Jaerim fell silent, seemingly deep in thought. Then he spoke again.
[…But are you seriously telling me Goo Seojin isn’t coming? Even though we flew all the way back just because of his damn uncle?]
[I tried convincing him multiple times. He said he’s not coming. Said it’s too much of a hassle.]
[Unbelievable. Who does he think he is, royalty or something?]
Jaerim’s lips curled into a sneer.
On the outside, he kept up the light banter, but he was clearly irritated.
Seok Kiwoo might’ve looked indifferent, but he was just as annoyed.
Their frustration wasn’t without reason.
Though officially Korean espers, both Jaerim and Kiwoo had barely set foot on their own country’s soil.
They’d been sent abroad repeatedly, forced to serve under Koo Hyukjun with their guide practically held hostage.
Calling it “dispatch duty” was generous.
The reality was more like being dragged through one dirty, high-risk mission after another.
And to top it off, their so-called guide had never been cooperative—always doing whatever the hell he wanted and making things worse.
That guide, Koo Seojin, was Koo Hyukjun’s nephew.
Despite being only a C-rank guide, he had the highest compatibility with the two, which gave him an inflated sense of entitlement.
Once, both Jaerim and Kiwoo had their overload levels spike to 90% due to a high-risk mission.
It was urgent—life or death.
But Seojin had gone off shopping and showed up hours late.
Even Seok Kiwoo—usually the calm one—had exploded in fury that day.
And what did Seojin do?
He got snippy in return, gave them a half-hearted guiding session, and stormed off again.
That had only been a few days ago.
The two had tolerated Seojin’s antics for a long time, but now they were at their breaking point.
Their relationship with him had become a ticking time bomb, ready to go off any second.
[God. Think there’s any chance a new guide just drops out of the sky?]
[Keep dreaming. Best just accept our fate.]
[Still, it pisses me off. Every time that bastard acts like a brat, I wanna smash his smug face.]
With an irritable sigh, Jaerim leaned back in his seat.
* * *
