Chapter 69: A Date with Destiny

After dinner, I sat on the sofa, contemplating whether to call Sehyun.
I was curious about how he was doing, and I also felt like I should return the key card I had received.

I figured he would be home around this time, so after some thought, I made the call.
As I had expected, he must have been resting, as he answered the phone right away.

• [For Shinui-ssi to call me first, it must be my lucky day.]

A smile appeared as soon as I heard his voice.
Since my social circle was small, a call with him was always something I looked forward to and an enjoyable moment.

“I was just wondering how you’ve been, so I called.”

• [Gureum and I are doing well. How about you, Shinui-ssi?]

“I’m the same as usual. Guiding training and guiding.”

• [Aren’t you feeling stuffy?]

At his words, I thought about it and realized that I hadn’t been out recently.

“I do feel a little stuffy.”

• [Then do you want to go on a date with me?]

“A date?”

The word ‘date’ felt cheesy, but since it was said in a joking tone, I let it slide.

• [Yes.]

Meeting with him was always enjoyable, so I gladly said yes.
I thought it would be good to meet him this time, catch up after a long time, and also return the key card.

“Okay. Then when shall we have our date?”

• [How about lunch tomorrow? It’s the weekend, and I found a place you’ll like.]

“Sounds good. I’m looking forward to it, now that you mention it.”

• [Then I will come to pick you up in front of your house tomorrow.]

After quickly setting up the appointment with him, I got ready to go out on time the next day.
Wonjae, who was watching me, came closer.

“Hyung, where are you going?”

“Yeah. I have a lunch appointment.”

“With whom?”

He also knew that I didn’t have anyone I was particularly close with, so he asked.
I debated whether to say it was him.
From what I saw last time, he didn’t seem to like me contacting him.

“Are you perhaps meeting that government Esper again?”

This time too, he guessed that I was meeting him before I even said anything.
It might have been because I had hesitated.

“Yeah. He’s not a bad person.”

“I think you trust people too easily, hyung.”

He was right.
For example, I had been deceived by Hyun Taewoon’s kindness and died.

“I’ll be back soon.”

He also knew that he couldn’t control my schedule, so he didn’t stop me.

“Please contact me immediately if anything happens.”

“Yeah. You too, contact me immediately if anything happens.”

I was anxious, thinking that Sung Yohan might appear while I was gone.
But knowing that the only person he was interested in was me, I pushed away the ominous thoughts and put on my shoes.

“Okay. Have a good time.”

After being seen off by him, I came outside, and his car was parked on the side of the road, waiting for me.

I hurried to his car with a happy heart.
At the sight of me, he also got out of the car and greeted me.

“Shinui-ssi, you’re here?”

“Yes. Have you been waiting long?”

“No. I just arrived.”

He moved to the passenger side with me and opened the door for me.
I always felt good because every one of his actions showed his consideration for me.

“Thank you.”

At my words, he smiled slightly and moved to the driver’s seat.

“Where are we going today?”

Before and after the regression, I had always shuttled between the Center and home, so just coming out like this made me feel excited.

“I found a delicious Korean restaurant in the suburbs.”

All the places I had gone with him had been to my liking, so I hoped we would arrive quickly.
And when we arrived, I was slightly impressed.
It was a specialty restaurant that reinterpreted traditional aristocratic food influenced by the royal cuisine of the Joseon Dynasty.
We had a conversation while eating the seasonal limited course.

“How have you been, Sehyun-ssi? Actually, I was worried because I hadn’t heard from you lately.”

“A terrorist group illegally entered the country this time, so I was busy with that problem.”

“Is the matter resolved?”

“Not yet. It’s a long way to go, but it will be resolved well.”

And so we finished our meal while talking about the terrorist group and what had happened at our workplaces for a while.
Just talking with him was so enjoyable that I had completely forgotten that I had to return the key card.

“It’s a shame to part like this. Shall we take a walk for a bit? They say the cherry blossoms are in full bloom at the nearby lake.”

“As it happens, I haven’t seen the cherry blossoms this year.”

It was already the season when the cherry blossoms bloomed.
The area around the lake we arrived at was filled with the scent of flowers, and the pink cherry blossoms, combined with the surrounding scenery, created a scene like a painting.

As he and I were slowly walking along the waterside deck, a few people acknowledged me.

“You seem like a celebrity, Shinui-ssi.”

“Not at all…”

After the US gate, I had been living the life of a celebrity against my will.
Since I didn’t like being the center of attention, I hoped that people would quickly lose interest in me.

“Actually, I saw the photo shoot that came out this time.”

“You saw it?”

I had been embarrassed because I had heard that this photo shoot was so popular that it had sold the most copies since its first issue, and I was even more embarrassed to hear that even he had seen it.

“Yes. I was even jealous of Espers Hyun Taewoon and Sung Yohan.”

This time too, it was a joking tone.
I smiled lightly and looked at the calm waves of the lake, sparkling with cherry blossom petals and sunlight.
The air was also filled with the gentle scent of cherry blossoms, which made me feel good.

However, this peaceful atmosphere also came to an end due to the Guiding Watch that suddenly started to ring.
It was an A-Class gate alert.

“Did a gate open?”

When I checked the gate location, it was about a 20-minute drive from here.

“Yes. It seems to be nearby.”

“I’ll take you there.”

“Will that be okay?”

“Yes, let’s go to the car.”

In the end, I couldn’t even enjoy the cherry blossoms properly and moved back to his car.
In the car, I sent a message to the shelter manager that I would go directly to the gate.

Feeling like my rest had been disturbed by the gate, I was frowning, and he also said in a worried voice.

“The government can’t get involved in gates, so I get anxious every time one opens.”

“The government deals with anti-Awakened groups and terrorist crimes, right?”

Gates were tough, but it seemed the government’s side was also tough.
Unlike us, they had to confront humans.

“Yes. Still, government Espers can help if they are near a gate. Both the government and the Association prioritize the safety of the citizens.”

As he said, both the Association and the government prioritize the safety of the citizens the most.
But perhaps because the relationship between the Association and the government was not good, I had never seen a government Awakened get involved in a gate.

Before long, the guiding shelter came into view.
He stopped the car near the shelter.
Since a barrier was installed up to 100m around the shelter, it was safe.

“Sehyun-ssi, thank you for the ride.”

“Let’s go together.”

“What? Are you coming with me?”

“I’ve come this far, so of course I should help.”

It was a high-level A-Class gate.
If he helped, it would close easily.
But I was worried because he was a government Esper.
He might receive a disciplinary action from the government later.

“Are you really sure it’s okay?”

He nodded as if to tell me not to worry.
In the end, as I entered the shelter with him, the inside buzzed.
It was understandable that they would be surprised at the sudden appearance of a government Esper.

“S-Class Esper from the government. Please approve my entry as a guest.”

“Ah, ah! Yes!”

The shelter manager hurriedly checked his Esper ID card and handed him an earpiece.

“If I get hurt, you have to guide me.”

“Of course. Don’t get hurt and be careful.”

As soon as he left, his figure was shown on the monitor.

It was the first time I had seen him use his abilities, and I was both surprised and worried that he might get hurt while floating in the air like that.
He must have arrived too, as his figure was also caught on the monitor.

I was looking at the monitor for a while when I heard Wonjae’s voice.

“Hyung!”

“Wonjae.”

“Did a government Esper come with you?”

“Yeah. We were near the gate together, so we decided to cooperate.”

He frowned, as if he didn’t like my words.

He and I didn’t go into the team’s exclusive room and observed the situation from the central waiting room.

Everyone in the shelter was looking at his figure.
It was the first time I had seen a government official intervene in a gate since I had become a guide.

As the gate began to open, monsters began to come out along with the boss monster.
The Association Espers seemed to be wary of him, but they soon focused on killing the boss monster.

He didn’t seem to care about the gazes of the other Espers from the beginning.
As if his only purpose was to eliminate the monsters, he mercilessly poured electric-attribute attacks on them.
The monsters that were hit by his ability convulsed and turned to ash.

It was the first time I had seen his ability.
His surroundings were surrounded by electricity, and the monsters were electrocuted and annihilated just by coming near.

I was worried because this gate was a high-level A-Class gate, but it seemed I didn’t have to worry.

I followed his movements with my eyes as I watched the monsters quickly turn to ash and disappear.
Then I noticed that Sung Yohan was not there.
When I checked, his status was ‘absent’.
He would sometimes disappear at important moments like this.

“Do you think the government also does separate gate simulation training? He’s surprisingly skilled.”

“Until 7 years ago, government Espers also participated in gates.”

I listened to the stories of the guides next to me and looked at the situation on the monitor again.

“If it weren’t for the factional strife, they would have been together at the gate.”

“Factional strife?”

I found myself asking out of curiosity.
The guide next to me explained.

“The head of the government and the president of the Association are cousins.”

The head of the government was an S-Class guide, and the president of the Association was an S-Class Esper.
This was widely known information.

“They said they had to be an exclusive pair because their matching rate was so high.”

“Really? Can relatives be an exclusive pair?”

“That’s why it’s awkward. It’s a relief that they’re both men; it would have been a big problem if they had been a man and a woman.”

Only then did I understand.
Since they were cousins and had to do contact guiding, the process must have been difficult.
There must have been conflicts between them as well.

“This is a real secret.”

Suddenly, the guide who was talking lowered his voice.

“They say the president of the Association forcibly imprinted on the head of the government.”

I was surprised at those words.
Imprinting between cousins.
Even I would have had no choice but to cut ties in that situation.

With this, I could understand why the relationship between the Association and the government was not good.
But since stories tend to get distorted, I didn’t believe everything.