PARADOX 4

‘I almost got fucked.’

Clutching the bundle of pamphlets and documents given to him by the investigator, Baekgu escaped the building as if fleeing.

‘To think an item for discerning genuineness would come out there.’

It was a relief that only the investigator had been there. If there had been many people, he would have been reluctant to use his ability.

Gurgle.

Right on cue, his stomach growled. The problem with using his ability was that he got hungry immediately afterward.

Baekgu entered a snack shop as far away from the investigator’s building as possible.

“Welcome.”

The shop owner glanced at Baekgu as he stared intently at the menu.

‘Why is he doing that? Ah, is it because I look like I have no money?’

For the record, the clothes Baekgu was wearing were stolen from a researcher’s locker at the laboratory. They were clean, but they didn’t look great because they were a bit oversized.

Thinking he should buy clothes right after eating, Baekgu read the menu thoroughly and placed his order.

“One tuna kimbap, one kimchi stew, and please give me a pork cutlet too.”

“Are you alone, student?”

“I’m not a student. But I am alone.”

The shop owner, looking bewildered by Baekgu’s answer, asked again.

“Our portions are large; will you be alright?”

“Yes, I have money, so don’t worry.”

He added that because it seemed like the owner was worried he couldn’t pay, but the owner only made an even stranger expression.

‘It’s happening again.’

Baekgu clicked his tongue inwardly. Even when he was speaking well, there were times like this when the conversation went awry. Even after returning to the past, he still didn’t quite know the reason why.

And that’s despite the fact that he’d watched many dramas to try and fix this point.

‘Did he think I was lying?’

To ease the concern, he took out a card from his pocket and placed it on the table ostentatiously. It was the welfare support card he’d received from the investigator.

He was told that Gate disaster victims receive monthly support for housing and living expenses from the state until they find a job. Of course, he couldn’t receive it forever; he had to get a job within a year.

They said they would help with various things like aptitude tests and technical training, but for now, he didn’t think he’d need an aptitude test.

‘Because I’ve already thought about what work I’ll do from now on.’

While he was checking his plan in his head, the ordered food arrived.

“Side dishes are self-service, so if you’re short, go get more and eat.”

“Yes, thank you.”

The shop owner returned to his seat without even glancing at the card Baekgu had set out.

“…”

Baekgu put the card back in his pocket and picked up a spoon. He took a bite of the kimchi stew bubbling in the earthenware pot first. The taste of sour yet spicy kimchi and savory pork spread throughout his mouth.

‘It’s delicious.’

When he lived as the cult leader’s slave, he had eaten many foods more expensive than this, but he had never thought of them as delicious.

Before the lingering savoriness could fade, he picked up a piece of tuna kimbap. The harmony of tuna tossed in mayonnaise, crunchy pickled radish, and white rice stimulated his tongue.

Finally, as he bit into the pork cutlet with its crispy breading, his lost energy was revived.

As expected, being alive is a good thing.

Since he was eating ravenously, the shop owner gave him a cola as a service, saying he ate well.

While he ate, news flowed from the TV inside the shop. He listened closely, wondering if there would be stories about the cult leader or the laboratory.

Most of it was ordinary incidents and accidents, but there was something he needed to remember.

—News has come in that Barunmun Pharmaceutical, a domestic pharmaceutical company, has succeeded in developing a new drug. This new drug was developed with the goal of replacing guiding. Barunmun Pharmaceutical stated through an official announcement this morning that the drug has successfully completed clinical trials and is currently awaiting final approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety…

‘So it was around this time.’

The speed of Baekgu’s chopsticks became even faster.

Once the news about the development of the guiding drug ended, news about Gu Jeyi came out as well. It seemed he had entered a Gate this time too.

‘That guy doesn’t even rest.’

Get some rest. If you work like that and die early, wouldn’t it be so unfair?

Clicking his tongue, Baekgu put down his chopsticks, gathered his things, and went to the counter.

“Oh my, you really ate it all. You look like an idol, so I thought you wouldn’t be able to finish.”

The shop owner, seeing the cleanly emptied dishes, looked at Baekgu with a surprised face.

‘Is that such a surprising thing?’

He wondered for a moment and then soon realized the reason.

‘Right, this person doesn’t know I’m an Esper.’

Espers basically tended to eat a lot. He didn’t know the exact reason, but he figured it was probably because their energy consumption was higher than others.

Before returning to the past, everyone around him knew he was an Esper, so they weren’t surprised by things like this.

Anyway, he would have to get used to these reactions as well.

‘From now on, I’ll only eat enough to not arouse suspicion.’

In this life, he intended to let no one know he was an Esper.

“I’ll pay.”

The words coming out of his own mouth felt awkward. Because until then, he had never paid money legitimately to buy and eat a meal.

After even paying with the card, his heart fluttered with the feeling that he had somehow become an ordinary person.

Leaving the shop, Baekgu immediately moved according to plan. He bought clothes at a nearby large mart and purchased items necessary for daily life along with them.

Finally, he stopped by a pharmacy.

“Hello. By any chance, do you have painkillers containing Neurofarsol?”

“Neurofarsol. Just a moment.”

Having purchased the necessary medicine, Baekgu came to a motel with his hands full of shopping bags.

“Ugh, shopping is hard.”

He organized his purchases well and then collapsed onto the bed.

“Hmm?”

He saw something bothersome in his pants pocket; it was the card.

Baekgu gazed quietly at the name written on the back of the card.

It was the name Baekgu would use from now on.

“To think my past foolishness would be of help…”

The reason Baekgu was so well-acquainted with the Heukyeong-dong Gate incident was that he had investigated it for that long.

In the past, he wanted to know about himself before he became a test subject at the laboratory. To be precise, he was curious about where his family might be.

Since everyone has a mom and dad, wouldn’t he have them too? So, he thought that perhaps his family might be waiting for him somewhere.

Then, he happened to see a special feature on a broadcasting station covering the Heukyeong-dong Gate incident.

At first, he didn’t have much interest.

That is, until the photo of the missing child appeared.

‘Baekgu, isn’t that you?’

The child in the photo resembled Baekgu enough that even the cult leader said so.

From that day on, Baekgu became obsessed with digging into the Heukyeong-dong Gate incident.

Thanks to using any means necessary, he found out everything about Yeo Hanseo and his family, as well as incident logs that an ordinary person couldn’t know.

And in the year that Gu Jeyi died, the Heukyeong-dong Gate reappeared in the world.

The Espers who cleared the Heukyeong-dong Gate towed out three corpses. The corpses, holding each other tightly, had not decayed in the slightest, so their identities were easily recognizable.

Naturally, the identities were Yeo Hanseo and his parents.

Why he was so shocked by that back then, Baekgu had spent a while wandering around in a daze before coming to his senses only after being beaten nearly to death by the cult leader.

What was so great about such a family? Thinking back, he felt he really had been young.

Baekgu shook his head to erase the sentiments of the past.

There were about 2 years left until the Heukyeong-dong Gate reappeared.

Two years is a time that is neither short nor long. He didn’t particularly intend to be idle, but he felt he should move a bit faster.

Baekgu—no, the man who would now live as Yeo Hanseo—put the card with his name written on it into his pocket.

How resentful would the real Yeo Hanseo be of the thief who stole his name? Perhaps he had become a ghost and was cursing him.

But since it was a matter of saving the world, he shamelessly thought it would be nice if he were forgiven just this once.

And one month later.

Yeo Hanseo safely and successfully got a job at the place he wanted.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Shoot—”

A man in a suit threw the takeout cup he was holding.

Thud!

The plastic cup, flying in a parabola, hit the opening of the trash can and fell to the floor.

The man let out a long sigh.

“Ah, so close!”

A woman watching that scene with an appalled expression from the side couldn’t hold back and spat out a scolding.

“Mister Hyeong-woo, what are you doing? It fell on the floor. Hurry up and clean it up.”

“Eh, the elevator is coming soon. If I miss this, I’ll have to wait again, so please give me a break.”

“It’s not a matter of me giving you a break or not. I said, clean it up quickly.”

“No, really… Ah! There’s a cleaner over there. Hey, you!”

The man shouted in a loud voice.

“Hey, you?”

“…”

“What, is he deaf? Hey! Finally looking. Clean that up over there.”

“Yes.”

A young man in a janitor’s uniform approached, pushing a cart filled with cleaning tools.

Perhaps there was a bit of drink left in the cup, as brown liquid had splashed onto the wall and floor in several places.

The janitor picked up the plastic cup rolling on the floor, put it in the trash can, and began mopping.

The woman found herself staring blankly at the janitor’s face without realizing it. It was partly because he had an unusually pretty appearance, but that wasn’t the only reason.

‘I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere.’

While she was glancing at the strangely familiar features, the man next to her began to sneer.

“Yejin-ssi, are you the type who likes men just by looking at their faces?”

“Pardon?”

“No, I’m just saying be careful because there are many guys who look decent but can’t do their part properly.”

The woman looked with an incredulous face at the man who glanced at the janitor while saying that. Without noticing the woman’s mood, the man continued his ridiculous sermon.

“I’m advising you for your sake, Yejin-ssi. If you only look at faces, you’ll really regret it later. People who are truly the real deal don’t show it on the outside. They don’t act like they’re all that, they just quietly work hard at their jobs…”

However, the man’s words could not continue further.

Ding.

The elevator doors opened.

“Gasp.”

Someone who saw the man getting off the elevator inhaled sharply. They were surprised to suddenly encounter a celebrity without any mental preparation.

“Ah, hello! Esper Gu Jeyi!”

“Wow! Hello. You’re visiting the center today!”

“Esper Gu Jeyi, I’m always watching your activities!”

As soon as one person started greeting, everyone began talking to the person who had stepped off the elevator.

“…”

Only the man who had been blabbing his mouth shut it tight and got into the empty elevator.

He wouldn’t have dared to say the words about the “real deal” not showing on the outside in front of Gu Jeyi.

The woman secretly swallowed a satisfying laugh. Having completely forgotten about the identity of the janitor.