Chapter 41: A Price on Blood That Isn’t Blood

I almost punched the face in front of me.

If I hadn’t been so stunned by the ridiculous words I’d just heard, I would’ve swung first.

“Oh, of course the offer isn’t only for Student Jaeyul.
If you check, you’ll see your name as well, Mr. Jin Se-hyeon.”

…What is this, a bundle sale?

The documents they handed over had both our names side by side.

The fact they brought prepared paperwork made it even more chilling.

It meant they were certain that Jaeyul and I had awakened.

Their intel really was impressive.

“Well, you’re not interested in me anyway.
So I’ll refuse in advance.”

“…Strange.
Most people call joining the Academy and entering the Center afterward the ‘success route,’ so why do you seem to have such strong aversion to it?”

“……”

“Team leader, I think he’s just flustered.
Let’s give him some time to think.”

A sharp-eyed woman trying to read my thoughts.

A smoother, calmer man trying to ease the tension.

Should I tell them how I truly feel?

That it’s pathetic watching government dogs recruit more ability users for slaughter?

That eventually, sooner or later, they’ll all become disposable shields and be thrown away?

I wanted to ask them if they understood.

That used to be me.

Believing the organization’s power was my own, clueless about how I’d end up.

“No.
There’s nothing to think about.
Don’t come back again.”

I ended it and walked inside.

As expected, Jaeyul stood by the entrance, having heard every word.

There was confusion in his eyes — naturally.

I rejected the Academy with no explanation whatsoever.

“Jaeyul.”

“It’s okay.
I didn’t want to go to the Academy anyway.”

“…Really okay?
Sorry.
I should’ve explained, but everything happened so suddenly…”

“If hyung doesn’t want it, then I don’t either.
There must be a reason.”

When did he grow this much?

Today he looked even bigger than usual.

To have someone who understands my heart like this…

He no longer felt like a child.

Well — he’d always been like this.

Never complained, never caused trouble.

Truly… admirable.

“According to the investigation, the massive explosion in Seoul was caused by a gas accident…”

The Agency did their job properly.

Well, more accurately, they handled it quickly because they wanted to win us over.

As long as they still believed they could bring Jaeyul into the Academy, they wanted to leave the best possible impression.

“So… does that mean I can go to school now?”

“Huh? Oh!
Yeah, you can start going today.
And this weekend we’ll go register your awakening.”

Is it really over?

That’s what I told him, but my instincts said otherwise.

This was only the beginning.

They’d tighten the noose around us even worse now — far worse than that Six-Point Star trash ever could.

“You’re okay, right?
If anything is bothering you, don’t hide it.
Tell me, okay?”

“Of course I’m fine!
Nothing to worry about anymore.”

I put on the brightest face I could, shared breakfast with him, and sent him to school.

All the way out the door, I nagged him — don’t answer strangers, give them my number instead, call immediately if anything happens.

Honestly, I wanted to keep him home until things settled down, but that would only make him anxious.

“Ppoppi, you stay home too.
If anyone gets suspicious, we’re in trouble.”

“Kkiiing…”

“No.
I’ll be right back, so wait quietly.”

Even clingy Ppoppi had to stay behind.

If his identity got exposed, we’d never recover.

A monster that understands human speech and lives in a human house?

He’d be hauled off to a research lab instantly.

I had no choice but to be extra careful.

I was frustrated, but I still had to earn a living.

“Feels like I haven’t been here in forever.”

My guiding office felt strangely foreign.

Too many things had happened — the Six-Point Star, awakened Jaeyul, and now the damn Support Agency.

My mind kept wandering, so I blasted music and started cleaning.

Once my body heated up from scrubbing and sweeping, my thoughts finally calmed.

Right.

Worrying about things that haven’t happened won’t help.

There’s nothing I can prepare in advance.

I’ll deal with problems when they come.

I can’t fall apart — too many mouths depend on me.

“Hoo… hot.”

It was nice how physical work simplified thoughts.

I grabbed a water bottle from the mini-fridge… and suddenly felt uneasy.

The neighborhood was way too quiet.

Now that I thought about it, no shops were open on the way here.

I didn’t see a single person.

Even the alley outside was completely empty.

“…Still hiding, huh…”

Understandable.

Most of the shops here were illegal offices.

With investigators and reporters swarming yesterday, everyone was laying low.

Most of my clients were unregistered ability users or criminal Espers.

Meaning — I probably wouldn’t have customers today.

Ding-a-ling.

Ah!

Maybe luck was on my side — the door chime rang.

A customer?

“Welcome—”

Nope.

Of course not.

As if luck would ever visit me.

Several men pushed the door wide open and marched inside.

One, two, three… eight.

And behind them — a familiar woman.

“Oh my! Mr. Jin Se-hyeon? What are you doing here?”

“…What do you think you’re doing?”

It was the same agent who barged into my house yesterday.

Her fake surprise was terrible — she clearly already knew this was my workplace.

“We’re searching illegal guiding offices.
Someone said crime runs rampant because of the government’s poor management.
So we’re here to fix that.”

Unbelievable.

That cheerful tone made it even more infuriating.

“This isn’t that kind of place.”

“We’ll find out after searching.
Confiscate everything.
Don’t leave a single scrap of paper or speck of dust.”

I couldn’t tell them to stop.

I couldn’t tell them to get out.

The eight Espers were clearly well-trained.

And above them all, that woman held overwhelming power.

In fact, she looked like she wanted me to resist.

“Go ahead and search.
I’ll cooperate.”

I wouldn’t fall for her bait.

But the situation was bad.

I couldn’t enter Gates due to surveillance, and if the office shut down, I’d lose all income.

And if something went wrong, even bigger problems could arise.

I tried to stay calm, but my mind raced again.

I planned to worry only when trouble arrived — but it had arrived far too soon.

One by one, the few belongings I owned were carried out.

Five years of effort disappearing in front of me.

It stung more than I thought.

“You’ll need to come with us to give a statement, Mr. Jin.”

They grabbed my arms on both sides.

I wanted to knock them out — but I held back.

Not yet.

“I thought this was a simple witness interview.
When can I go home?”

“Hmm?
Plenty of people get arrested during witness questioning and go straight to detention.”

God, I hated her.

I didn’t know how much she already knew.

Her casual threats made my skin crawl.

“You still haven’t taken Student Seon Jaeyul to get his awakening test…
When were you planning on doing that?
There’s a massive fine if you’re late!”

“Ha.
We’re going this weekend.
And since when do you manage the schedules of individual ability users?”

“…‘Individual ability user,’ huh?
Mr. Jin, you’ve never dated, right?”

“…What random— No. That’s nonsense.”

Why stab me in the one place it hurts, huh?

What does dating have to do with anything right now?!

“Your standards must be insanely high.
How can you call Student Jaeyul an ‘individual ability user’ after seeing that power?
The test is just formality.
Rank will be at least A… possibly even S.”

“Why are you bringing that up?
Aren’t I here because of illegal guiding suspicions?”

“They’re all connected.”

She stood, clasped her hands behind her back, and began circling the desk like she was floating.

“From what I’ve seen, you’re living a pretty hard life.
Picking up junk from cleared Gates, guiding three or four people a day to survive…
And on top of that, you’re taking care of Student Seon Jaeyul — who isn’t even blood related.”

She had finished digging up everything about me.

Of course she had.

In a place full of ability users, gathering information about someone like me was nothing — especially when the target was an Esper with potential S-rank power.

“So we’d like to ease that burden for you.
You didn’t have to take care of him — he’s not family.
But since you did the government’s job for them, we’ll offer appropriate compensation.”

“…Offer… what?”

My shoulders flinched.

She had appeared behind me without a sound, placing a document on the desk.

A consent form.

Agreeing to let Jaeyul enter the Academy.

And renouncing all guardian rights.

A waiver of responsibility.

“Five hundred million won in cash.
That should be enough compensation for raising him for five years, don’t you think?”

Ah…

How can people like this be so consistently disgusting?