Chapter 100: The Weight of Truth

Only after my guiding level reached the calm zone did Sung Yohan leave, promising to come again tomorrow.
Only after he was gone could I begin to sort through my thoughts, one by one.

Everyone at the Center, including me, knew that Hyun Taewoon had been disappointed in me after I was judged as a C-Class and had acted cruelly for a while.
But as I spent more time with him, I gradually felt his sharp attitude soften.

I had been a constant support by his side, waiting for his heart to open.
Sometimes the waiting was hard, and I would confess my feelings only to be rejected, but I had a firm conviction within me that he would change.

But with Wonjae’s appearance, all that waiting had crumbled.
And until the moment I died, I had rejected and hated him for turning his back on me and going to Wonjae.

If he had opened his heart to me even a little and given me his trust, we could have had a happy relationship, just as I had been sure we would.

Perhaps that’s why the situation, where the heart I had steadfastly protected was torn to shreds and twisted by a misunderstanding on a single day—my birthday—felt so pitiful and tragic.

My spirits fell, and as I hung my head low, tears dripped onto my pants.
Only then did I realize I was crying.

I couldn’t understand the meaning of my tears.
Was it because my hatred for him still remained?
Or was it because of the regret for a past where I could have been happy with him?
I just couldn’t tell.

Since I was currently isolated from Siyun, I was contemplating how to ask Sung Yohan to release the suggestion he had placed on him.

If I volunteered to guide Siyun, Dr. Yoon would surely be suspicious.
Sung Yohan was supposed to come tomorrow, but I kept thinking about how I could meet Siyun before then.

However, my worries were quickly resolved as I was able to meet Siyun the next day.

Not long after lunch, Dr. Yoon’s assistant came to find me.
He said that Siyun’s guiding level had dropped abnormally and that my guiding was needed.

Perhaps Siyun had also deliberately lowered his guiding level because he was worried about me.

When I hurried to the guiding room, he was already there, waiting for me as usual.
But when I actually faced him, I couldn’t look him in the face properly, so I lowered my head and apologized.

「Siyun-gun, I’m sorry. I failed to escape.」

「Why are you sorry, Guide-nim? I’m fine.」

「Still, I was able to get out thanks to you… It’s because I missed the opportunity.」

After being caught and brought back to the research lab, I thought about whether I could really escape from the Association even after escaping.
Now that my face was known and I was an S-Class guide, I had come to the conclusion that I could not return to my former ordinary life.
No matter how well I ran, I was a guide without abilities, and the Association’s Espers would eventually find me.

In the past, I had also thought about the method of running away overseas.
However, although it was good to leave the country and escape from him and the Association, what was important was whether I could be happy there.
I hated him and wanted to avoid him, but more than that, I wanted to cherish my own life.

「Still, I think we can get out.」

If he kept his promise, it would be easy to get out of here.
However, I was worried because that promise was related to him.
But since I knew that he also wanted to escape from the secret research lab, he would accept his proposal.

「Siyun-gun, can you also undo an ability that has already been used?」

「It’s possible. Why?」

「Can you also undo the ability of the person I met yesterday? This person was subjected to a suggestion by you, and he said he could let me out if I undo it.」

「Is he a trustworthy person?」

I couldn’t say he was a trustworthy person, but still, the only person who could get us out of here safely was him.

「…For now, I think I have to trust him.」

「Okay. I want to know who it is.」

「Can you read my memory like last time?」

I remembered him reading my memory last time.
If he could read my memory like then, he would be able to know his face.

「Yes. But I have to make contact with your body.」

「Siyun-gun, you can lower your guiding level, right? I think it would be better to lower the level and go with first-level guiding.」

「Just a moment. I’ll lower my guiding level right now.」

Soon, the guiding level began to decrease.
I acted with a troubled face and said to Dr. Yoon’s assistant.

“The guiding isn’t working well. Can I switch to first-level contact guiding?”

• [I understand. But I have to be by your side.]

It seemed he was trying to watch me because I was a person of interest.
After all, if I were close to him, I could subdue him and threaten him.

Before long, the guiding room door opened, and the assistant came in.
He stood behind me and him.
He seemed to be quite afraid of my unpredictable actions.

“Will you give me your hand?”

I moved my chair right next to him and said, holding out my hand.
He, still with an expressionless face, placed his hand on mine.
He, who took my hand, was silent for a while, as if reading my memory.

I watched him and waited for him to speak again.
Before long, he, who had read my memory, spoke to me.

「He’s an Esper I’ve seen often here. He’s under a suggestion to obey Dr. Yoon’s words.」

At his words, I was able to find the answer to why he was participating in his project and why he wanted to kill him.

「I can’t say he’s a good person, but he’ll keep his promise to let me out.」

「It’s not difficult to undo the ability. But… I’m hesitant.」

「Why? Is there something that’s bothering you?」

「When I saw that Esper’s memory, it was all darkness. That’s why I remember.」

Since I also knew the darkness I had felt when I guided him, he was unsettling to me.
But since I needed his help now, I was in a situation where I had no choice but to undo his ability.

「I’m also unsettled. Still, since we can get out of here, let’s trust him.」

「Okay…. I want to meet my brother soon too, so I’ll undo the ability.」

「Thank you. Esper Sung Yohan will come to find me today. You can undo the ability then.」

「Yes. I hope things go well this time.」

As he had said, I hoped that everything would go smoothly and that I could safely escape from this tedious research lab.

When I got out, I planned to leave the Association for good this time.
I had dragged things on for too long, worrying about my colleagues.

As I thought about leaving the Association, he naturally came to mind again.
And also the fact that I had felt his wavelength here.
I thought that he might have come this far to find me, who had gone missing.
But since I had never seen him, I had erased the expectation that he would help.

「Guide-nim! I also saw the person you were just thinking of.」

「What?」

「The Esper named Hyun Taewoon.」

I was surprised at his words that he had also seen him.
It seemed he had approached him to erase the debt he owed him.

「He came with Dr. Yoon a month ago, but the ability didn’t work, so I haven’t seen him since.」

「Did he also come to participate in the project?」

At my words, he answered that it seemed so.
It seemed he had participated in the project to get into the research lab, just like me.

But his purpose would have been to kill him, but now, he was not dead and was in front of me.
I hurriedly changed my thoughts, in case he might read them.

「I see….」

Before long, the stable zone alert rang.
Perhaps because it was first-level contact, the level rose much faster than with remote guiding, and it quickly settled in the stable zone.

“Guiding is over.”

At the assistant’s words, he finally let go of my hand.
As his hand fell, I was relieved.
As expected, it was not a pleasant experience to have one’s memories read.

「Siyun-gun, I hope our next meeting will be outside.」

「Me too. I’ll undo the ability as soon as Esper Sung Yohan comes.」

After a final goodbye with him, I left the guiding room and returned to my room.
And I waited for him, but he didn’t show up no matter how long I waited.
And the next day was the same.

I could feel anxiety and unease hovering around me.
Perhaps Sung Yohan had been caught in contact with me and could no longer enter the research lab.
Or his intention to help might have changed.

If Sung Yohan couldn’t help, I would have to try to escape with Siyun again, but I didn’t know if it was possible.
Since I had escaped once, the research lab’s security must have become even stricter.
I had to have his help to surely escape from this place.
I sincerely hoped that he would appear tomorrow.