Chapter 25: A Detour to Chungbuk

So-won clamped his mouth shut, feeling guilty.

He had overslept for two days straight.

He’d set countless alarms the night before, swearing he’d wake up early, but once they rang, he ignored every single one and kept sleeping.

As a result, the only one who suffered was Tae-woo, tormented from early morning by the blaring alarms.

Originally, So-won had planned to commute together with Tae-woo to his private room, give him guiding there, and then head to his lecture in time.

But somehow, every morning ended up being so rushed that there was no time for guiding at all—he barely even made it to the guide training.

On the first day especially, traffic had been completely jammed, causing both Tae-woo and So-won to be terribly late.

Knowing that, So-won wasn’t shameless enough to ask him for the reason.

“I was suddenly assigned to a gate dispatch.”

“Ah…”

So it wasn’t because of his oversleeping—thank goodness.

So-won let out a brief sigh of relief, then asked with a puzzled look.

“Didn’t you just come back from a gate not too long ago?”

“I apologize.”

“No, it’s okay.

It can’t be helped.”

It had been just over a week since Tae-woo last returned from a gate.

Setting aside the fact that his dispatch cycle was faster than the usual two-week interval, his physical condition hadn’t even fully recovered yet.

With insufficient guiding, going into a gate now would almost certainly end the same way as before—with his condition worsening again.

So-won looked at Tae-woo with concern.

The memory of Tae-woo writhing in pain, his blood vessels swollen across his entire body after the last gate, was still vivid.

Despite enduring such horrific suffering, Tae-woo looked completely unfazed, as if it didn’t frighten him at all.

Compared to his calm reaction, it felt like So-won—who wouldn’t even be entering the gate—was the one making a fuss.

“A sudden dispatch… It must be a pretty dangerous gate.”

If they were urgently calling in Tae-woo despite his condition, it had to be at least an A-rank gate.

Feeling the sharp pulse flowing beneath his palm, So-won wondered whether he should give Tae-woo a strong guiding session before he entered the gate.

“It’s not a high-rank gate.

They were short on manpower, so I went.”

The answer was completely unexpected.

Calling in an S-rank Esper who’d been dispatched not long ago—for a gate that wasn’t even high-rank?

And as a substitute, no less.

So-won frowned slightly, unable to understand.

“Is it a clear?”

“Yes.”

There were three stages to gate exploration.

The first sweep cleared the entrance.

The second patrolled through the midsection.

And finally, clear—the stage where all monsters inside the gate were completely eradicated.

Unless it was a dangerous gate constantly spilling monsters outside, operations usually progressed through all three stages in order.

So-won had heard that Espers disliked clear dispatches.

The deeper one went into a gate, the stronger the monsters became, and the toxic concentration in the depths was several times higher than at the entrance.

Wounds sustained during a clear were difficult to treat, and if the injuries were severe, even Espers—with their high regeneration—could suffer lasting aftereffects.

Clear operations also had the highest Esper fatality rate.

Still, it wasn’t as if they were so short-staffed that they needed to call in Tae-woo, who should’ve been resting.

So-won couldn’t shake his doubts, but seeing Tae-woo willing to go, he forced himself to accept that there must be a reason.

“You’re probably still short on guiding… Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“I’ll be fine.”

Even after hearing his answer, So-won couldn’t let go of his worry.

No matter the rank, a clear was still a clear.

As a physical-enhancement-type Esper, Tae-woo had no choice but to engage in close combat in the depths of the gate, which put immense strain on his body.

The last gate had been a relatively difficult B-rank, yet he’d returned in such terrible condition—thinking about him coming back like that again made So-won uneasy.

“Then… can I come with you?”

Guide training was little more than picking up lecture materials and leaving, so skipping a day wouldn’t be a big loss.

Rather than attending lectures he barely listened to, following Tae-woo and giving him guiding felt like the better choice.

Since guiding was possible even without physical contact, it wouldn’t interfere with his driving either.

“We’ll have to go to another region.

It would be better if you stayed home and rested—”

“I’m fine.”

So-won cut him off before he could finish.

He hadn’t expected it to be anywhere near Seoul in the first place.

If anything, the farther it was, the more guiding he could do—giving him even more reason to follow.

“You’ll be waiting for a long time.”

“I can wait at a nearby Association or center.”

If a gate’s rank was similar to the Esper’s, the guide was required to wait nearby under the guide obligation system.

For that purpose, Associations and centers had dedicated waiting rooms.

So-won had visited one once during the Incheon gate and remembered being surprised by how well-equipped it was.

And as the guide of S-rank Esper Kang Tae-woo, he’d even be able to use a private waiting room instead of a shared one.

It might be boring, but it certainly wouldn’t be uncomfortable.

“…..”

Tae-woo fell silent, unable to decide.

When he didn’t answer for a long time, So-won asked again.

“I can go with you, right?”

“…Alright.”

Tae-woo nodded reluctantly.

Satisfied with the answer, So-won smiled and refocused on his guiding.

***

The day started off well.

He woke up on time, and even his hair turned out neatly.

So-won got into the car feeling as if he were heading out on a picnic.

He knew it wasn’t the case, but traveling to another region made it feel like a belated vacation.

“Come to think of it, where are we going?”

“Chungbuk.”

The faint hope So-won had harbored for the seaside deflated a little.

Chungbuk… what was even there?

Nothing came to mind, and his excitement dimmed further.

Still, the weather was nice.

Since he’d be staying inside the waiting room anyway, the region hardly mattered.

Gazing at the passing scenery, So-won savored a peaceful moment he hadn’t felt in a long time.

The clear sky and blazing sunlight made it feel like they were simply out on a drive.

Even Tae-woo’s faintly crackling pulse felt pleasant for once.

No conversation passed between them as they crossed roads and mountains.

The long silence didn’t feel uncomfortable.

So-won took the opportunity to message his parents, letting them know he was heading to Chungbuk.

When no reply came right away—just like with Tae-woo—he waited a bit, then put his phone away.

After an hour of sitting idly, the excitement faded, leaving only boredom.

The same mountains and roads stretching endlessly outside the window grew dull.

Having lost interest, So-won turned his gaze away from the scenery.

He hadn’t meant to look at Tae-woo, but when he turned his head, he saw him focused on driving.

As always, Tae-woo wore a black T-shirt with sleeves reaching down to his wrists, and dark red veins still bulged on the back of his hands.

He’d given him plenty of guiding yesterday, but seeing those raised veins made So-won feel like he should guide him again.

Even now, guiding was probably happening—but unlike Tae-woo, So-won couldn’t feel it without physical contact, making it hard to trust that fact.

While stealing glances at Tae-woo, So-won recalled something he’d vaguely heard during guide training.

He didn’t remember it perfectly, but guiding performed just before entering a gate helped calm an Esper’s tense mind and allowed them to maintain a stable condition inside the gate for longer—making it highly beneficial.

That memory turned his vague thought into certainty.

If he didn’t guide Tae-woo before he left, it would bother him the entire time Tae-woo was inside the gate.

He wanted to at least hold his hand, but seeing how focused Tae-woo was on driving, he couldn’t bring himself to ask for one hand.

I should’ve thought of this earlier.

So-won frowned in regret.

There wasn’t much time left.

The car had already exited the highway and was weaving between buildings, and in the distance, the guide center—So-won’s destination—came into view.

Only after arriving did So-won cautiously speak up.

“Are you heading straight to the gate now?”

“Yes.”

“I want to guide you… Could you wait just a little before you go?”

Seeing So-won trail off nervously, Tae-woo checked the time.

“About ten minutes should be fine.”

Tae-woo didn’t refuse.

There was still some leeway, and if the request was for guiding, there was no reason to decline.

If anything, he felt that he should be the one grateful.

Yet it was So-won who thanked him, extending his hand.

When Tae-woo reached out as usual to offer the back of his hand, So-won gently caught it instead.

White fingers wrapped around Tae-woo’s hand.

Only after confirming their palms were pressed together without a single gap did So-won lower their joined hands into the empty space near the gear shift.