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After that, Kang Juha’s condition remained the same. To put it simply, he was completely out of it. Like a drunk person, his eyes were half-closed and dreamy, his reactions were strangely a beat slow, and he was grinning happily no matter what was happening; it was enough to make me worry if it was okay to take him around like this.

It was so bad that the next day, Juyoung let out a scream upon seeing Kang Juha smiling vacantly. Juyoung said he thought he had seen a ghost. I jeered, asking if it was really something to overreact about, but to anyone’s eyes, Kang Juha’s state was indeed not good.

“The kid’s lost his marbles.”

Director Shin delivered a clear and biting one-line review.

“But… was the distance between you two originally… like that?”

Her question carried many implications.

I subtly lifted my hips from the sofa and moved a few centimeters to the side, but to no avail—Kang Juha immediately pressed close again, resulting in his arm and mine being completely stuck together. I looked up at Director Shin and shrugged with a “See?” expression.

“He’s been like this all day.”

I didn’t know the reason either. It was just that Kang Juha had been hovering around me all day as if he were a ghost who had died from a lack of physical contact.

Normally, when I was working, he would sit on the sofa looking at picture books or folding things like frogs while looking at the origami book I bought him.

But today, for some reason, he kept pacing around the desk like a restless puppy, begging me to stay by his side, so I had no choice but to work while stuck to the sofa like this.

Fortunately, the things I had to process today were fine for Kang Juha to know about, and just in case, I had tossed him a sheet of green origami paper and told him to try folding a Brachiosaurus instead of a frog.

While he complained that the pictures and explanations in the book were unkind, watching him fold the paper with his large frame hunched over was quite a sight. Honestly, it was a bit… cute.

A moment ago, when I muttered to myself in passing that he was cute, Juyoung picked at his own ear until it almost bled.

No, really, isn’t he, like, a little cute?

“…Well, if you’re on good terms, I guess that’s fine.”

Director Shin also seemed to give up on thinking deeper and brushed it off vaguely.

“You know why I’m here, right?”

“To play Old Maid?”

I knew her business, of course, but I threw out a joke and made a show of looking for playing cards; Kang Juha then used his ability to find the deck of cards I had tucked away in the drawer and placed them on the table.

Director Shin let out a hollow laugh.

“As if I’d come for that. I came to tell you that the date for the disciplinary committee has been set. Since he’s part of the Medical Bureau, the procedure was a bit complicated. It’s lucky the opponent is Kang Juha; if it had been an ordinary Esper, it would have been buried without a trace.”

“Ah…”

Come to think of it, Kim Kunwoo’s punishment was still pending. To think that because of someone, Kang Juha is still being disciplined, while that someone hasn’t even been referred to the disciplinary committee yet.

“Still, once it goes over to the disciplinary committee, the punishment will be properly enforced, so don’t worry. It’s at least confinement in the stockade.”

“That is at least some good news.”

“I’ve handed over all the materials, so both of you go and testify well. In this case, the qualification to attend didn’t pass down to me.”

Since Kang Juha belonged to the Field Operations Department and Kim Kunwoo belonged to the Medical Bureau, it would have been difficult for Director Shin, who belonged to the National Security Bureau, to have a seat on the committee.

Except for the disciplinary chairperson appointed by the Center Director, the committee is composed flexibly depending on the matter, but usually, it was a method where the direct superior of the person being disciplined and employees of the Center’s Personnel Management Department were assigned.

If it’s Kim Kunwoo’s superior, it would probably be… the lab director or a senior researcher below him. Although the possibility was slim, I prayed that Kim Kunwoo would be the only familiar face there.

“By the way, looks like you’ve hired another secretary.”

“He turned out to be quite useful. Mr. Kang Juha, could you make us a cup of coffee each?”

“Yes.”

Despite answering that he would, Kang Juha did not stand up from his seat and only stared at the origami book as if he were going to pierce a hole through it. His hands were busy trying to make the front legs of the Brachio.

“What are you doing now…”

Before Director Shin could even express her doubt, the office door opened and two cups of coffee were placed on the table. The coffee inside the gently lowered cups rippled, almost overflowing.

“Wow… whoa. What on earth, wow…”

At Director Shin’s admiration, I felt proud for no reason and squared my shoulders.

Look, this is the power of a combat-type Esper.

Actually, the classification of “combat-type” Esper was an artificial name attached by the Center; within it, there were various lineages. For instance, types like physical or natural systems. Thus, the integrated title of “combat-type” is used, but if you look closely, the abilities each can operate were all different.

Kang Juha was a physical-type Esper. Starting from telekinesis, which people commonly think of, he could utilize his abilities in areas where the laws of physics apply.

In terms of scale, the natural system might seem larger, but fine control is difficult and the Guiding consumption range is large; therefore, based on the same S-class standard, the physical system tended to have better impact and efficiency.

Perhaps that’s why high-grade natural-type Espers often left for other public institutions rather than the Center. Since the Center treats the physical system higher, it was a natural logic for them to leave for places with better treatment.

Anyway, Kang Juha was top-tier among top-tier personnel, renowned for having a large innate energy wave and delicate control even among physical types.

Seeing Kang Juha in this hazy state, I wondered if it was because he had far exceeded his usual Guiding levels, so I had been making him use his abilities for simple tasks like moving coffee cups.

There was no need to even mention how amazing this was.

For physical-type Espers, pulling a tree out by its roots would be a piece of cake, but plucking one specific leaf from a tree was a high-difficulty task that the majority would fail.

Originally, it is harder to operate an ability in detail than to pour it out ignorantly. It was also a task that required much more Guiding consumption.

It means that if you asked 100 people to pluck just one leaf, only about one person would succeed.

And the one person who succeeds is Kang Juha. Not only could Kang Juha pluck a leaf, he was skilled enough to carve calligraphy onto that leaf.

“He’s good, right?”

Although it wasn’t my ability, I bragged, and Director Shin shook her head with a cold, dead look in her eyes.

“Setting aside how good he is. I’m having a cognitive dissonance right now. Kang Juha made my coffee and presented it here, in front of me? And with the ability called the top in South Korea?”

What are you really going to do later? Director Shin’s expression was saying exactly that.

Of course, I hadn’t ignored the repercussions of when Kang Juha’s mental state returned to normal. But well… isn’t that something I can think about when the time comes?

“To be precise, he just operated the machine.”

“That machine is outside the office!”

“Yes. Isn’t it amazing?”

Control is hard even when looking, so being able to operate the machine without looking was truly surprising.

Honestly, even I didn’t know Kang Juha’s ability stats would be this good. I had wondered why he was mainly tasked with missions like assassination even though he was called the Alpha of South Korea, but there was definitely a reason for it all.

“Give me your wrist for a moment.”

At my words, Kang Juha set down the Brachio, whose legs looked painful from being folded so much, and obediently placed his wrist on my palm. When I turned on the watch screen to check the Guiding level, it had dropped to 77%.

When clearing a single training scenario, Guiding is consumed by about 15% to 20% based on an S-class Esper. But since it had dropped by 5% just from a few errands, it seemed that delicate control indeed ate up a lot of Guiding.

“…Is this why robots that do housework instead of us still haven’t come out?”

While it was lamentable that there were washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, and robot vacuums but no robot that operated them all on its own, this made it understandable.

Honestly, while they say the washing machine does all the laundry, sorting the laundry, putting in detergent, operating it, and then taking out the laundry, drying it, and folding it was still the human’s role. And I bet I’m not the only one who find that to be the most annoying thing in the world.

“Housework… I’m good at it.”

“Yes. It seems so. You use your abilities well.”

“No. I’m good at it even without using my abilities. I do everything if I’m told to.”

What’s this? Is this a marriage proposal? It’s a bit tempting.

As for both of us being Espers, well, I heard that in the past, people would point fingers saying that dating between the same sex was not common. Like them, we could overcome the trait of being the same type of Esper…

What am I saying.

I was appalled at myself for being tempted by Kang Juha’s single remark about being good at housework. I gripped my sanity, which had briefly stepped out and then returned, and asked.

“I guess you usually do it all yourself?”

If I had an ability like Kang Juha’s, I wouldn’t have moved a muscle, lying in bed all day.

“Yes.”

“Why? It seems like it would be comfortable if you used your power.”

Isn’t a physical-type ability what all humans yearn for? Even more so when you’re born with the control; there’s no reason not to use it.

“Because I’m afraid of Guiding being consumed in uncontrolled situations. Except for when there’s training or a mission, I hardly ever used my ability.”

“Oh…”

It was an unexpected answer. Before Operation Sonora, there were hardly any records related to Kang Juha’s rampages, so I had judged that there wouldn’t be a Guiding problem. It seemed my judgment was wrong.

Well, since he didn’t even have a matched Guide, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to think that way. If he rampages, there’s no one to stop him.

While I was just biting my lower lip in the suddenly solemn atmosphere, I felt Juyoung looking at me as if I were trash.

Yes, that last part was a slip of the tongue. I admit it.

As a mature adult, I decided to fully understand Kang Juha’s pain and do my best to solve his problem.

“I guess it would be best to find a Guide as soon as possible.”

Therefore, for now, we have to find a Guide first.