IMPRINT 9

Since I was the only person he met, Kang Juha’s dependency grew with each passing day. After counting the hours until the time I usually arrived, he eventually asked if I could give him a watch as a gift. He said he knew how to read time and wanted to wait for me while looking at it.

I told him he didn’t need to wait, but he was stubborn. In the end, I fastened a wristwatch onto him.

“He’s been like that all day. He hasn’t even eaten.”

The problem was that ever since then, Kang Juha did nothing but alternate between staring at the watch on his wrist and the door. I knew the oppressive environment of the special treatment room restricted his actions, but seeing a person sitting as still as a doll like that was surely…

“It feels like I’m torturing him.”

Kang Juha was not a criminal, and even though the iron bars that used to confine him were all gone now, he still looked as if he were trapped in a prison.

Juyoung nodded as if agreeing with my mutterings.

“He is ostensibly the Center’s best S-class Esper, so the treatment really doesn’t make sense. But they say he can’t be moved to a VIP hospital room either.”

“Because of the risk of rampaging?”

“Yes.”

Kang Juha’s guiding levels had stabilized significantly. Compared to when he first arrived here, it could be called a miracle.

At first, he had looked scared upon seeing the needle. Now, perhaps because he truly believed the injections I gave were special and didn’t hurt, he rolled up his own sleeve the moment he saw my face.

The problem was that his supernatural power wavelength was not returning.

Since the supernatural power wavelength is not something that recovers naturally, but a part that one must consciously control, there was no way the current Kang Juha, who remained stuck in the memories of a seven-year-old, could do such a thing.

“Come to think of it, when did they say Esper Kang Juha first manifested?”

“Uh… I think I heard it was extremely early. Was it eight years old?”

“Eight? That’s incredibly young. He probably didn’t know anything.”

That meant it was exactly one year after the current state of Kang Juha. I began to think that there might be a significant reason why Kang Juha chose his seven-year-old self.

༘⋆

“What is all this that you’ve ordered so many packages? You’re not even someone with a lot of material greed.”

Juyoung appeared with a puzzled face, carrying an armful of packages that had arrived at my office.

“Ha, why is it so hard to receive a single item in this Center? Just getting permission took forever.”

“You should have asked me. There’s a specific knack for filling out order forms for external supplies. I can make it pass immediately if I submit it.”

“…What? There’s such a thing?”

“Yes. Most secretaries know.”

“This is ridiculous.”

“So, what is all this then?”

“Tools for the patient’s psychological therapy.”

“It says ’30 Selected Fairy Tale Books for Children to Read Before Sleeping’ on it, though.”

“That’s why.”

I never knew I would end up playing the role of a kindergarten teacher, something I was never destined for, but seeing Kang Juha through the CCTV alternating between the watch and the door made me so concerned that I couldn’t help it.

“Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen you like this, Team Leader.”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen myself like this too. Can you put all the packages in front of the special treatment room? I need to get permission to bring them in too.”

“I’ll put in the request for bringing them in.”

“Ah, thanks.”

“Yes, sir.”

Watching Juyoung disappear with the cardboard boxes, I checked Kang Juha’s personal information documents again. I had requested additional documents a few days ago, and among them was a family relationship certificate.

“Both of them have passed away.”

Next to the names of Kang Juha’s parents, there was a mark indicating ‘(Deceased)’. And on the next page, there were adoption papers, and an unexpected person was listed in the guardian column.

“…The Center Director?”

༘⋆

“Why are you late today? You said you’d come at three o’clock.”

Kang Juha said while pouting his lips. I really can’t get used to it whenever he does that with that face. Swallowing a sigh inwardly, I first introduced myself.

“I am Seong Yihyeon, Information Team Leader of the Information Security Department at the National Security Bureau of the Center.”

“Teacher, come quickly.”

Then Kang Juha urged me, and I gave an awkward smile while taking out a chocolate bar I had kept in my pocket.

“Do you want to eat this?”

“Don’t try to subtly move past this with chocolate.”

“I am sorry.”

“Promise you won’t do it again.”

“I won’t do it again…”

As I spoke, a deep sense of skepticism rushed over me. What on earth was I doing?

However, it was a bit unexpected. Even if Kang Juha had a side that was a bit bothersome and persistent, he didn’t seem to have a problem forming relationships with others…

I didn’t major in child psychology, but in the current situation, it was actually a natural thing for him to form an emotional bond with me, who could be called the only adult and interaction partner.

The puzzling point was that the current Kang Juha was consistently acting and speaking in a way that was far from violent. The behaviors like throwing tantrums or crying, which children around this age might do, were not seen at all.

When I stopped speaking mid-sentence, he looked at me blankly with pitiful eyes, and that face strangely messed with a person’s heart for no reason.

“…I won’t do it again.”

As I muttered quietly, only then did a faint smile appear on Kang Juha’s face.

“But Teacher, when do I get discharged?”

“When you’re all better.”

I knew it was an irresponsible answer, but there was nothing more I could say.

I carried in the large cardboard box placed outside the door before Kang Juha could ask another difficult question. A ‘Permission to Bring In’ sticker that Juyoung had obtained was attached to the top of the box.

“What is all that?”

At the appearance of unfamiliar objects, Kang Juha also seemed to have curiosity. At that moment, facing the face of such a robust adult male, I felt awkward thinking it might be a bit much, but since it was a method for his psychological stability, I decided to just push through.

“Fairy tale books.”

“I know that too.”

“It’s boring when you’re alone. If you’re reading books, you’ll be a bit less bored.”

“Instead of this, you can just stay with me the whole time, Teacher.”

This brat is quite smart.

“I have too much work and I’m busy…”

I glossed over it roughly. Because even if I explained that I’m actually not a teacher but just an Information Team Leader belonging to the Information Security Department, and that I ended up being in charge of him by chance because I was urgently deployed to a task that wasn’t even my original job, he wouldn’t be able to understand it anyway.

And even if he did understand, it would only shatter the rapport we had managed to build. Since it was much easier to reduce psychological resistance to access the brain, I had to play along with Kang Juha’s tune as much as possible for now.

“Are you busy meeting other kids besides me?”

“Hmm?”

“Is that why you can’t come to me? Because you have to go to other kids besides me?”

Oh, this was an idea I hadn’t thought of.

“I’ve never met other kids.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Normally I should have, but because I was currently focusing on Kang Juha, I had hardly had any contact with other people. As I nodded my head to convey the meaning of my innocence, Kang Juha narrowed his eyes and spoke chillingly.

“Liar.”

“…”

“Then who is it that you talk to outside the door every time?”

Wow, holy shit. Wait. This isn’t right.

He can hear that? He heard everything I talked about with Park Juyoung beyond that fierce-looking special alloy door that seemed like it couldn’t be penetrated by anything?

Just how far the physical abilities of the human named Kang Juha originally developed, I couldn’t even get a sense of it.

“…Since when did you hear? No, was it audible?”

“It hasn’t been long. Since a few days ago.”

It was clear that his physical abilities were now 100 percent recovered. Even when he had a regular check-up a few days ago, he showed such a shocking recovery rate that the people from the Medical Bureau were all tongue-tied, but to think he had already surpassed even that.

“Then, what comes to mind? How old are you now? Are you still seven?”

At the pouring questions, Kang Juha closed his mouth and stared intently at me. I felt awkward, thinking I might have gotten too excited by that persistent gaze.

Did the fact that I wanted to finish this quickly and wash my hands of it show too obviously?

“Yes? I’m not seven years old.”

“You’re not? Then how old are you now?”

I looked at him with eyes full of expectation, and Kang Juha looked at me and said as if I were pathetic.

“I am thirty-forty-five years old.”

“Ah.”

“I think you have a bad memory, Teacher.”

And what about you, saying that when you’re seven? The urge to argue back was like a chimney, but I barely held it in.

“…I will read you a fairy tale book.”