Chapter 13: The Only Guide

Private Ian remained standing rigidly in place, refusing to move to the chair or do as Lee Juju instructed. He had come only because it was an order from above to receive something called guiding, but his face openly declared how uncomfortable he felt around Juju.

Watching his fellow soldiers, whether peers or superiors, undergo guiding and then completely change in attitude, as if they had all become fanatical devotees of Lee Juju, didn’t just feel unpleasant. It provoked outright aversion.

How much help could it really be, anyway?

Watching Ian in that state, Juju couldn’t hide his weariness. This was the third time he’d gone through the same ordeal.

The officer who’d gone first had cooperated readily, having already experienced Radiant Guiding. But the two NCOs hadn’t been in the colonel’s office, nor had they ever encountered Juju inside the Gate.

In the end, Juju had been forced to use Radiant Guiding on those who adamantly refused, softening them until he could proceed with contact guiding.

Just as a sergeant was leaving with an awkward expression, he’d mentioned that there were still around ten soldiers left who had never experienced guiding before.

Meaning Juju would have to repeat this whole process ten more times.

“Please, sit.”

“…”

Without even trying to hide his displeasure, Private Ian slowly walked over and perched himself on the chair. Juju looked at the fourth esper in line and spoke clearly.

“Your hand. Take off your glove.”

“What kind of witchcraft did you use?” Ian demanded. “You.”

Trying to explain at length only heightened suspicion when the speaker was an outsider, that much had already been proven. Colonel Shan had been right.

He’d said that making them experience it was better than explaining it, and Juju had doubted him. They were people, after all, surely a proper explanation would get through to them. He should have trusted the man in charge.

Once the single-minded nature of espers combined with the mindset of soldiers, Juju realized just how deeply ingrained their collectivism was.

He didn’t say a word, merely crooked a finger at the esper glaring at him with pitch-black eyes. If this dragged on any longer, he was prepared to use Radiant Guiding again.

Fortunately, after staring Juju down for a long while, the esper finally removed his glove and extended his hand.

The moment Juju took it, the esper sitting across from him sucked in a sharp breath and froze completely.

Outside of Radiant Guiding, guiding without physical contact was impossible. In other words, unless a guide deliberately blocked it, contact between guide and esper naturally triggered guiding.

Keeping his expression calm, Juju waited for the black haze in the esper’s eyes, now slick with cold sweat, to thin even slightly.

About ten minutes passed.

Juju could finally guess that the fourth esper’s original eye color was gray.

“What’s your name?” he asked gently, as if chatting with a neighbor encountered on a walk.

“I-I’m Private Ian.”

“Alright, Ian. I’ll begin guiding now.”

“…What?”

Ian’s eyes widened.

“You mean what you’ve been doing just now wasn’t guiding-”

Before he could finish, Juju began proper guiding.

The degree of mental contamination and the turbulence in Ian’s blood flow were severe. The obsessive urgency to guide him as quickly as possible accelerated Juju’s pace.

The reason Juju hadn’t started full guiding the moment he took Ian’s hand was because of a precious lesson learned when he’d once attempted contact guiding on Colonel Shan without understanding what he was doing, and nearly retched as a result.

As guiding flowed beneath Ian’s skin and began correcting the violently churning blood, the private let out a broken groan and collapsed forward. The desk caught him, sparing him from hitting the floor. Even so, Ian clutched Juju’s hand tightly, as if it were a lifeline.

Juju watched with bored eyes as Ian trembled, his face buried against the desk.

“Alright. Time’s up.”

When the guiding stopped, so did the trembling. Juju looked at Ian, who remained motionless with his head down, then spoke kindly.

“Ian.”

He’d seen this type of esper more than once, those who pretended to pass out just to buy time and receive even a little more guiding.

“Let go of my hand.”

At the gentle voice, Ian hesitated, sneaking glances at Juju. He hadn’t received guiding in a long time; his entire body was starving for it. Of course he wanted to cling to the guide’s hand for as long as possible.

Juju understood, but Ian’s turn would come again next week or the one after. And today, others were still waiting.

“The next person’s waiting.”

Ian let out a deep sigh and finally lifted his head.

“I-I can’t feel the strength in my hand…”

Oh, please.

For someone claiming that, he was gripping Juju’s hand just fine. Juju chuckled softly and propped his chin on his free hand.

Earlier, Ian had looked ready to tear someone apart with his glare; now he drooped pitifully, trying to evoke sympathy, exactly what espers looked like when they’d finally found a guide.

“Then would you like to receive more guiding before you go?”

“…That’s allowed?”

Ian looked up at Juju with hopeful eyes.

“Yes. Colonel Shan will gladly wait.”

The moment Juju finished speaking, Ian shot to his feet.

“I’ll see you again next time!”

Rank really did rule everything.

Juju already knew Ian was perfectly fine. If anything, guiding had improved his condition. With an indifferent expression, Juju watched the door Ian had hastily fled through.

Next up was finally Colonel Shan.

Guiding five espers back-to-back would exhaust anyone, even an S-class guide like Juju, once the pride of headquarters.

And these hadn’t been ordinary espers: all of them had eyes blackened to the brink of rampage. Clearing even a fraction of that darkness was the best Juju could do today.

Watching them leave with eyes full of desperate longing, like abandoned puppies, stirred guilt in his chest.

He should have guided them completely.

But Juju was the only guide here, and he had to pace himself. If he collapsed and guiding stopped altogether, what would happen to the espers who were only just beginning to receive it?

It felt like watching a flock of squeaking chicks.

‘So does that make me the mother hen?’

He squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.

Colonel Shan was sitting in the chair, watching him with a blank expression.

‘I didn’t even hear him come in-how did he-’

The thought got cut off midway.

‘Right. Spatial control.’

A truly absurd ability, one only S-class espers could possess. The colonel had already used it to appear behind Juju two days ago. Silence settled between them.

“Are you alright?”

He was always cold, so asking that at times like this was unfair. Juju stared at the colonel, who somehow looked even more handsome now, lips twitching as if unsure what to say.

Colonel Shan Pei was dazzling as ever. His black eyes, glossy as if they’d just been guided, carried a faint blue shimmer, so deep they seemed to hold the entire world.

Truly, when someone was handsome, even the smallest details became striking.

Juju blinked a few times. His eyes stung, as if tears might fall. Then he opened his arms and flung himself around the colonel’s neck.

“I’m not okay. I’m really exhausted.”

He felt the colonel’s body stiffen but pretended not to notice. If anything, this was the colonel’s fault, for making him want to cling like this.

“At least let go of this first-”

“…”

Juju deliberately ignored him and held on tighter.

The colonel froze in an awkward stance, unable to push him away yet unable to simply allow it. Juju, meanwhile, rubbed his face against the colonel’s chest without restraint. After calling him everything from “hey” to “you there,” the colonel finally sighed softly.

“…Juju.”

“Yes?”

Juju looked up at him as if he’d been waiting for it. The colonel sighed once more.

‘At this point, even a stone-hearted esper should’ve swept me up and carried me to bed.’

Perhaps Colonel Shan Pei’s instincts had been erased, ground down by extreme survival conditioning. Clicking his tongue, Juju straightened.

The colonel stared at him, utterly baffled. Juju calmly extended his right hand.

“Your hand. We need to do guiding.”

“You’ve already done enough guiding. Go back to your room and rest.”

Each time he spoke, those well-shaped lips parted and closed. Juju blinked, realizing he’d been staring.

“That’s true, but there’s still one person left.”

The colonel hesitated, as if weighing something.

But no hand took his.

Juju narrowed his eyes, still holding his hand out, waiting.