PARADOX 15

It was unpleasant, but I endured it. There were CCTV cameras everywhere, after all. If I were caught using my abilities on Park Jintae, things were bound to get tedious.

‘Getting caught as an Esper isn’t just a simple headache.’

The EGI test conducted by the Korea Ability Management Center—the Esper-Guide Aptitude Test—was mandatory for all citizens.

Every citizen had to take this test, and those who failed to do so or manipulated the results faced severe punishment.

Naturally, the list of test subjects included the Heuk-yeong-dong Gate missing persons who had just returned to the world.

[Korea Ability Management Center]

Yeo Hanseo-nim, you are a ‘Subject for EGI Testing.’ In accordance with relevant laws, please ensure you complete the test according to the schedule below.

When I received that text, my heart didn’t exactly sink.

This was because I already knew a way to avoid getting caught as an Esper in this test.

To be precise, I knew it through an incident that everyone would find out about a few years into the future.

‘Controversy is rising as it has been revealed that Neuropasol, a component used in painkillers, temporarily suppresses Esper energy. This fact came to light when an Esper, who had taken a large quantity of painkillers containing Neuropasol, became temporarily unable to use their abilities. The medical community explains that the Neuropasol component affects neurotransmitters, causing a temporary sharp drop in Esper energy…’

In short, consuming a large amount of Neuropasol-based painkillers could suppress Esper energy.

Once this fact was revealed, all pharmaceutical products containing Neuropasol were pulled from production and sales, but in this timeline, that was an event that wouldn’t happen for several years.

‘Fortunately, for now, it’s just an ordinary painkiller you can get without a prescription.’

And so, before the test, I took eight pills of Neuropasol-based medicine purchased at a pharmacy all at once, and I received the desired result.

Esper Aptitude Determination: Unsuitable Guide Aptitude Determination: Suitable (B-Class)

It was a result worth the side effects of vomiting, headaches, and slight difficulty breathing. I hate being in pain, so I wouldn’t want to do it again, though.

In any case, I couldn’t allow the result I had worked so hard to manufacture to go to waste just to deal with a guy like this.

‘Still, this is as far as my patience goes.’

Hiding my dangerously glinting gaze, I got into the elevator heading down to the underground parking lot with Park Jintae.

“Hanseo-ssi, I’m serious about what I said earlier. If you become my exclusive Guide, I can do whatever you want. I’m a man with more than enough power to do that.”

“Ahhh, yes. I see.”

Since, unfortunately, no one else was boarding, I was left fully exposed to Park Jintae’s nonsense. I responded half-heartedly with hollow eyes.

There was a reason why Park Jintae could be this confident.

As soon as the guiding practice ended, I went home and looked him up; he could be described in a single sentence:

A third-generation chaebol, A-class Esper.

Since A-class Espers are rare, most of their faces were well-known. Among them, Park Jintae seemed to have a bit of a craving for attention, as he showed his face quite often here and there.

The internet reaction showed many comments saying he was handsome, and perhaps because of that, he even had a fan club just like Gu Jeyi.

‘Though Gu Jeyi’s member count was much higher. That’s a given, though.’

Park Jintae’s face was passable, but to me, it felt too greasy.

I tuned out Park Jintae’s continuous self-boasting and began to sketch the face of my ideal type in my mind.

‘First of all, the ratio of his eyes, nose, and mouth is all wrong. And really, for eyes, having a monolid and being horizontally long is what’s cool. A more masculine, sharp jawline is better, too. His lips are too thin. The cupid’s bow should be a bit more…’

“Esper Gu Jeyi?”

This surprised exclamation came not from me, but from Park Jintae.

I also wore a bewildered expression.

The moment we stepped out of the elevator, the doors of the elevator right next to us opened, and Gu Jeyi stepped out.

“…”

The man with slightly wavy black hair turned his head nonchalantly.

I thought Park Jintae was quite tall, but standing next to Gu Jeyi, he looked relatively small.

After staring down at Park Jintae, Gu Jeyi spoke a moment later.

“Esper… Park Jintae. It’s been a while.”

‘You definitely just forgot his name for a second.’

My eyes, which had narrowed with suspicion, turned round the moment Gu Jeyi’s gaze shifted toward me.

“Mister Yeo Hanseo, you were here as well.”

“Ah, yes.”

I was a bit surprised. I didn’t expect Gu Jeyi to act like he knew me. Wasn’t that day’s event supposed to be a secret?

As I stared at Gu Jeyi in a daze, Park Jintae asked in a somewhat displeased tone.

“Do you two know each other?”

I thought Gu Jeyi would give a vague answer. However, the words that followed were different from my expectation.

“Yes, we are acquaintances.”

“…Acquaintances?”

Park Jintae’s face contorted. He looked like he couldn’t believe it. The look in his eyes directed at Gu Jeyi was full of wariness and hostility toward an opponent trying to steal his Guide.

However, I didn’t notice that side of Park Jintae. From the moment Gu Jeyi appeared, all my attention was focused on him. Gu Jeyi even went so far as to throw a random question at me.

“Mister Yeo Hanseo, is the dinner promise we made last time still valid?”

‘What dinner promise?’

Unless my memory was failing me, I had never made such a promise with Gu Jeyi.

‘Is this guy in his right mind? His level right now is… 75%? It went up again.’

I thought his complexion looked even worse than last time, and it seems I wasn’t mistaken. How long has it been since he received guiding, yet he’s back in that state already? As if sensing my gaze, Gu Jeyi shifted slightly to hide his watch.

“If it’s not too late, I’d like to treat you to dinner now.”

“…Now?”

“Yes.”

“I’d love to!”

I answered without hesitation.

I didn’t even have the luxury to care about the fact that it hadn’t even been ten minutes since I rejected Park Jintae’s dinner invitation.

A meal bought by Gu Jeyi? There was no reason to refuse.

I was also curious as to why Gu Jeyi was acting this way.

“Let’s go. My car is over there.”

I followed closely behind Gu Jeyi as he walked ahead.

Without knowing what kind of face Park Jintae was making as he watched me.

After confirming Yeo Hanseo had climbed into the passenger seat, Gu Jeyi turned his head. Toward the source that had been grating on his nerves for a while now.

“…!”

When their eyes met, Park Jintae flinched. His contorted face was filled with anger, as if his Guide had been snatched away. But that was only for a moment; soon enough, Park Jintae bowed his head like a dog with its tail between its legs and hurried away.

Watching that scene without interest, Gu Jeyi opened the driver’s side door. As soon as he sat down and closed the door, a bright voice was heard.

“Have you been doing well?”

There was only one answer to give to that question, and Gu Jeyi was not the type to beat around the bush.

“I have not been doing well.”

“…”

As soon as he came out of the Gate, he had done his best to devise a way to avoid the unwanted marriage. He had tried receiving guiding from guides with decent matching rates and had taken larger amounts of stabilizers than usual.

The results were horrific. Just as Pyo Myeongho had said, perhaps because he had already reached his limit, or perhaps because his body had changed somehow after receiving Yeo Hanseo’s guiding, no matter what he did, his wavelength would not stabilize.

Feeling like he was grasping at the final straw, he had received guiding at the Center, and upon receiving the result that his level hadn’t even dropped by 0.1%, he had been on his way back when he spotted Yeo Hanseo.

He wanted to ignore him if he could, but because the guy stuck to his side happened to be a man famous for being trash, he couldn’t do that.

Gu Jeyi got straight to the point.

“Mister Yeo Hanseo.”

“Yes?”

“Stay away from Esper Park Jintae. I called you because I wanted to say this.”

Perhaps because it sounded so sudden, Yeo Hanseo just blinked with a bewildered face. Then, he started spouting nonsense.

“Esper Park Jintae was being nice to me. He’s a good person…”

Of course he was nice to you. Because you’re a Guide.

The greedy look in Park Jintae’s eyes as he looked at Yeo Hanseo came to mind.

An Esper’s obsession with a Guide was now accepted as a natural instinct. For Gu Jeyi, it was an emotion he had never experienced and found difficult to understand, but since everyone else said it was so, he figured that was how it was for others.

However, even so, there was a line one had to maintain as a human being. Even if he couldn’t instantly recall the name Park Jintae, he remembered the man’s behavior clearly. No matter how you looked at him, that man was a scoundrel far from being a “good person.” To the point that even Gu Jeyi, who was slow with rumors, knew about it.

“Esper Park Jintae has a history of stalking a Guide. He received disciplinary action because the nature of the crime was serious. If the victim hadn’t been a Guide but a civilian, he would still be in prison.”

In this country, Awakened individuals hold a special status. They are the only ones capable of handling the mysterious disasters called Gates, yet from the outside, the Awakened are also treated as disasters themselves.

The government tried to soothe public fear of the Awakened by strictly punishing crimes they committed against civilians. Conversely, for crimes that occurred among the Awakened themselves, they often let things slide without punishment unless it was severe. This was to avoid reducing their combat power by sending Awakened individuals to prison if possible.

If this were ten-odd years ago before the Guide Protection Act existed, Park Jintae, armed with money and backing, wouldn’t have even faced disciplinary action.

“So, keep your distance from Esper Park Jintae. You have to protect your own body, don’t you?”

Yeo Hanseo had lost his family in a tragic accident and was all alone. Because he was weak and lonely, he would subconsciously be looking for someone to lean on. In the midst of that, it was natural for him to easily open his heart to Park Jintae, who had been kind to him. Park Jintae probably sensed that fact instinctively and acted even more tenderly. Because Yeo Hanseo, who didn’t know the ways of the world, wouldn’t be able to distinguish between the fake and the real.

Quite apart from his desire not to marry Yeo Hanseo, he hoped that a man who had already suffered a terrible tragedy and was left alone would not experience another unfortunate accident. Because Yeo Hanseo was also a citizen whom Gu Jeyi had to protect.

And since the aforementioned ‘Yeo Hanseo who didn’t know the ways of the world’ also knew that upright heart…

‘As I thought, pretending to be pitiful is the right answer.’

I was currently struggling to hold back the corners of my mouth that wanted to curl upward.