PARADOX 33

The cause was Pyo Myeongho.

Pyo Myeongho had issued an ultimatum to Gu Jeyi, stating that he would ‘block permission for Gate raids until his wavelength fell below 50%,’ and he had actually followed through with it.

Hanseo was surprised by Pyo Myeongho’s decisiveness. He had thought the man was just talking, but to think he actually pulled it off—he was a person with more backbone than he appeared.

Then again, Pyo Myeongho, who had watched over him since childhood, was the one who knew Gu Jeyi best. Since he would be aware of his nephew’s “problem,” he must have guessed that Gu Jeyi wouldn’t submissively accept guiding unless such measures were taken.

‘So he used such an extreme method.’

Still, to stop Gu Jeyi from raiding Gates. The backlash from both above and below must have been considerable, yet he managed it. He likely cited Gu Jeyi’s overly frequent deployments and the resulting fatigue as the reason. The fact that it had only been a week since the wedding would have served as a plausible excuse as well.

In any case, it was a situation where heavenly luck was on Hanseo’s side. Although he was a bit dazed by the fact that things were working out so well despite him doing nothing.

Regardless, whether it was part of his plan or not, he couldn’t miss this golden opportunity.

“Then, shall we start by holding hands?”

Gu Jeyi’s face contorted. For a moment, Hanseo was confused as to whether he had asked to hold hands or told him to eat food waste. The amusing thing was that by openly showing his distaste, Gu Jeyi finally looked his actual age.

It was strange. The first time Hanseo had met Gu Jeyi in his past life, he was also 21 like he was now, but back then, Hanseo had never once thought of him as young. It was because of an attitude that made his age difficult to gauge.

‘Was it because I was young back then too?’

Hanseo stared intently at Gu Jeyi, feeling a sense of wonder.

Actually, his appearance wasn’t much different from his memory, but thinking of the man before him as a 21-year-old made him feel surprisingly young.

In the sense that their 20s were their prime, Espers and athletes had something in common. Conversely, the biggest difference between the two was their average lifespan. Being an Esper was a profession with a high mortality rate. He had heard that even veterans who survived the Gates often retired due to mental health issues. There was no way a person’s mind could stay sound when they risked their life every time fighting against monsters.

Even so, 23 was far too young an age to die. Hanseo thought as he took Gu Jeyi’s hand, which was extended with great difficulty like a child forced to swallow a carrot.

“Then, I’ll begin the guiding.”

Using his uninjured hand, he lightly grasped only Gu Jeyi’s fingertips and let the guiding energy flow. Perhaps relieved that Hanseo hadn’t grabbed him recklessly, he felt the stiffly frozen body relax slightly. It seemed Gu Jeyi had expected Hanseo to commit some sort of molestation now that he had the chance.

No matter how crazy he might be, he wasn’t insane enough to molest an S-rank Esper. Snorting inwardly, Hanseo concentrated on the guiding. It certainly felt easier than radiation guiding. It wasn’t just a feeling, either; the figures on the watch Gu Jeyi wore were gradually decreasing.

Oh, it’s working. Hanseo’s face brightened. He had never once thought guiding was fun, but perhaps because Gu Jeyi was such a difficult opponent, it gave him a strange sense of gratification.

However, Hanseo’s joy did not last long. 70, 69, 68, 68, 68… No matter how much Hanseo groaned and exerted himself, the figure would not drop further than 68%.

At this rate, it seemed difficult to even drop below 60, let alone reach 50.

The only silver lining was that after making contact, he understood the problem. The fact that the figure wouldn’t drop further wasn’t simply a matter of the guiding itself.

He could tell by taking a detailed approach. Gu Jeyi’s wavelength was subtly pushing the guiding away.

It was an experience so bizarre it was absurd. He wondered if this was how it felt to see a castaway refusing food even when on the verge of starvation, or an emergency patient trying to tear off an oxygen mask.

“Hyung.”

Since he kept calling him hyung, he no longer felt any particular reluctance to utter the word. As expected, one gets used to anything eventually. Hanseo slowly let go of the hand he was holding and asked.

“Hyung, is touching other people uncomfortable for you?”

“…”

Gu Jeyi didn’t answer, but the silence carried the weight of an affirmation.

“Since when has it been like that?”

“Why do you ask that?”

Who do you think you are? Hanseo felt like he could hear the unspoken words. The eyes looking at him were cold, without a hint of warmth. However, Hanseo did not back down.

“I’m asking as your Guide. Please answer me.”

Gu Jeyi seemed a bit surprised by the firm reply. He must have expected Hanseo to retreat with his tail between his legs if he acted coldly again. But there were points where Hanseo could not back down, either. Not as long as his own future depended on Gu Jeyi’s life.

And Gu Jeyi was no fool who didn’t know what a Guide’s role was.

A Guide plays a role similar to a doctor. Naturally, the Guide training manual included education on first aid, injury management, and even psychological counseling. So to speak, a Guide is an Esper’s dedicated doctor and rescue worker, while simultaneously being the oxygen mask itself.

Checking the condition of the assigned Esper was a Guide’s duty, and just as Gu Jeyi was not negligent in his own duties, he respected the duties of others. It was just that he hadn’t expected a Guide with no career like Hanseo to know that and assert it in this manner.

Gu Jeyi opened his mouth as if reluctantly.

“It’s not something like mysophobia. Do you know that I grew up in the Center?”

“Yes, I’ve heard. That you awakened at age 5 and entered the Center.”

Technically, he’d seen it on the internet. Gu Jeyi’s upbringing was so famous that everyone seemed to know it unless they had grown up locked in a laboratory for 25 years.

A characteristic of high-rank Espers who awakened at a young age was that they couldn’t control their abilities well. Especially since Gu Jeyi had awakened at only 5 years old and his ability was so threatening, he was entrusted to the Center under the judgment that he was not safe for civilians.

Gu Jeyi brought up a story that hadn’t appeared on the internet.

“At the time, the Center didn’t think of Espers as fellow humans. To a civilian, we were beings no different from monsters. The only thing that made us different from the monsters in the Gates was that we could be controlled, so they tried to control young Espers through various methods.”

He didn’t go into detail, but those “methods” certainly wouldn’t have been anything like giving a child candy.

“The symptoms appeared suddenly around the time I graduated. I don’t know if the events at the Center are truly the cause, but if I follow the doctor’s words, that would be it. Since it was a fatal problem for an Esper, I tried to fix it, but it didn’t go well. I quickly developed immunity to psychiatric medication as well. Is that enough?”

It was a story he hadn’t known in his past life. Back then, even if he asked for a reason, the only answer he’d get was something like ‘What do you care.’ The fact that Gu Jeyi was candidly revealing his story now was because Hanseo was his Guide.

Truly strangely, the moment he realized that fact, an emotion he was feeling for the first time arose. So, this is probably…

“Thank you for telling me.”

A sense of responsibility… perhaps?

“The reason I asked is because you are subconsciously rejecting the guiding. As you know, guiding isn’t something that happens just by being in contact with each other. I learned that… especially if a high-rank Esper rejects it and guiding is forced, the wavelengths could get tangled and both parties could be put in danger.”

He added the last part late, wondering if he had acted too much like a know-it-all despite being a novice Guide with no experience. Gu Jeyi looked like he understood. Since he had even reached the point of rampaging recently due to the intrusion of a certain Guide, there was no way he wouldn’t know.

Hanseo pointed to Gu Jeyi’s watch.

“This is as far as we can drop it with this level of contact guiding. But if we proceed with a higher stage of guiding right now, the rejection response will only worsen, so…”

Hanseo realized as he spoke. I was lucky. When Gu Jeyi rampaged, Hanseo had even performed oral contact guiding. If Gu Jeyi had shown a rejection response then like he did now, Hanseo would have ended up in the exact same state as the Guide who was foaming at the mouth next to the guiding room.

“I think we need to solve the cause of the problem first. In my opinion, the rejection you feel toward me seems to be the biggest cause. So, how about we try fixing that part first?”

Gu Jeyi seemed to absolutely loathe this situation where he was being swept along. However, since there was no other option, he eventually let out a dissatisfied sigh and asked.

“In what way?”