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Join the ServerChapter 20
Yoon Geon-woo’s expression remained as impassive as ever. Still, as he leaned in to whisper, as though sharing a clandestine secret, a peculiar tickle resonated in my ear.
“Thank you…”
I offered my heartfelt thanks to him for his ready compliance. His blue gaze, meeting mine directly, was unmistakably tinged with discomfort. Yoon Geon-woo pressed his lips into a firm line, then abruptly averted his head.
Before an uncomfortable silence could fully settle, I quickly began to articulate the various questions that had been brewing in my mind.
“Oh, about the training protective gear we’re wearing. Did you know it’s utterly useless against the new, real-world tasers?”
“I’d imagine so. It’s calibrated for training, after all.”
“Even if we concede that point about the tasers, why go to the trouble of issuing separate training gear? If it’s truly for the students’ safety, they could just hand out the combat-grade equipment.”
My question seemed to ignite a similar spark of doubt in him. Yoon Geon-woo furrowed his brow for a brief moment, then gave a curt nod, signaling for me to proceed.
“The tasers we’re carrying aren’t actually practice weapons. They’re simply combat-grade weapons with their power output deliberately reduced.”
“Then…”
“What if someone knew how to boost the taser’s output?”
“The training protective gear would be easily penetrated.”
“Precisely. Guides would be utterly defenseless, and even Espers, equipped with their ability control devices, would find it impossible to block a taser adjusted to combat specifications.”
As he absorbed my words, Yoon Geon-woo’s expression steadily grew rigid, as though he were grasping the full extent of the sinister implications. I had a strong suspicion that he, too, was sensing the same grim reality.
“Yoon Geon-woo, can you perhaps disarm the ability control device?”
The ability control devices affixed to the Espers participating in this death game were calibrated for A-rank individuals. Globally, S-ranks are exceedingly rare, and no one would ever conceive of shackling such precious and potent beings with a trivial control device.
He appeared to grasp the crux of my question instantly, confirming it with a decisive nod.
“It’s possible. Though, it might be a bit painful to remove.”
Yoon Geon-woo responded as if such a minor inconvenience were beneath his notice. Nevertheless, the most significant impediment to him fully utilizing his abilities persisted.
[Contamination Level 77%]
It was, of course, his contamination level, which still registered at a perilously high figure. After a moment of intense deliberation, I realized I had no choice but to make a difficult request before we ventured across the boundary.
“Yoon Geon-woo… Before we proceed, would you allow me to guide you?”
I posed the question cautiously, yet, just as anticipated, a sharp retort was his immediate reply. I wasn’t particularly surprised, having already braced myself for his characteristically prickly words.
“It’s simply that I have a strong premonition that once we venture deeper inside, you’ll inevitably need to employ your abilities.”
I pleaded earnestly once more. Yoon Geon-woo, perhaps sensing that my persistence was not born of mere stubbornness, irritably ran a hand through his hair, disheveling it.
Isolated as we were, with no Helper Killer at hand to administer, he was undoubtedly agonizing over the dilemma. After a moment of solitary struggle, pulling at his own hair, Yoon Geon-woo finally extended a hand, as if granting permission with the utmost reluctance.
“Hah… resolve it with this.”
“Really?”
“Keep it as brief as possible.”
I couldn’t quite conceal the surge of emotion in my voice as I asked again. The situation was undeniably urgent, yet wasn’t this a truly monumental occasion—Yoon Geon-woo’s very first time consenting to guiding?
Yoon Geon-woo had offered merely one hand, but desiring the widest possible contact, I took it in both of mine. As if I had been anticipating this very moment, I immediately intertwined my fingers with his, feeling a distinct flinch ripple through him.
However, the ‘as brief as possible’ he desired wouldn’t be achievable with mere intertwined fingers…
“Um… just one more thing. Would you allow it?”
“What now?”
Yoon Geon-woo seemed utterly displeased by the mere fact that our hands were clasped together. But what choice did I have? What I was about to suggest would be several times more audacious than this.
[Matching Rate 94%]
As I channeled my ability through our clasped hands, an astonishing figure unfurled before me once more, remarkable every time I saw it.
On the day I received the matching chart, the Vice Principal had informed me that I was the sole individual to achieve a matching rate exceeding 90% with Yoon Geon-woo.
At such a level, even accounting for the difference of more than one rank, it was entirely comprehensible why they had designated me, a B-rank, as his temporary pair. After all, the higher the matching rate, the more an Esper receiving guiding feels their every cell awaken.
It was akin to fitting the perfect spectacles onto eyes with poor vision, or perhaps, like providing an oxygen mask in a world choked by swirling sand and dust.
Under the SAA’s discerning judgment, I, boasting such an astonishing matching rate with him, was undoubtedly the ideal candidate. To ensure Yoon Geon-woo would not only accept guiding but also fully unleash his inherent abilities, they would surely entice him with the sweet, intoxicating taste of it.
“Yoon Geon-woo, just a moment.”
Given this opportunity he had so reluctantly afforded me, it would surely be better to demonstrate through action rather than a hundred mere words.
Leveraging this chance as a stepping stone, I might even sway his resolve, thus, I could not afford a single misstep. Should I approach him as impetuously as before, he might, this time, flee from me forever.
As I cautiously continued guiding him, our fingers still intertwined, a peculiar sensation at my fingertips suddenly sparked a flicker of doubt within me.
‘Why is his hand trembling?’
Yoon Geon-woo’s hand, clasped within mine, was trembling faintly. Though he attempted to maintain an impassive facade, feigning indifference, every tremor betrayed him.
His already fair complexion had drained to an even more ashen pallor. Whether it was nervousness from receiving guiding with a clear mind, or perhaps fear, his state hardly appeared favorable.
“It’s alright. I’ll proceed slowly. It won’t hurt in the slightest.”
“Who… who do you imagine worries about such a thing?”
“I simply wish to show you what guiding truly entails. You haven’t genuinely experienced it yet, have you?”
“What do you mean, ‘haven’t’?”
“Perhaps, what we did together?”
At my probing question, Yoon Geon-woo’s lips snapped shut like a clam. Although he furrowed his brow deeply and wore a fierce scowl, the tell-tale flush spreading across his ears confirmed I had indeed struck a nerve.
‘This guy… could he truly be so inexperienced? Not even once?’
Geon-woo, Yoon Geon-woo. Even so, what transpired between us that day shouldn’t possibly count. That was merely artificial respiration, a desperate measure to save your life.
“Geon-woo, guiding, you see, isn’t actually performed the way it was that day.”
“Damn it, I told you not to call me that…”
“Right, Yoon Geon-woo.”
Before Yoon Geon-woo could unleash another torrent of sharp words, I swiftly cut him off. Then, seizing the opportune moment while his attention was fully fixed on me, I immediately initiated the guiding. He wore a dumbfounded expression, likely startled by the sudden influx of sensations at such an unforeseen moment.
I apologize, but it seemed I had already endured my quota of curses for the day, and thus, I could not retreat any further.
“Alright, let’s focus. Today, we’re going to do this properly.”
I offered him a soft smile, then tightened my grip on our intertwined hands. Perhaps owing to our high matching rate, guiding Yoon Geon-woo, who made no move to push me away, proved less challenging than I had anticipated.
A cool, refreshing energy, like a nascent breeze, forged a clear path into the warm depths of his body. This was the first formal guiding session since we had been designated as a temporary pair.
Perhaps owing to the mere, light contact through our hands, a yearning light began to flicker in Yoon Geon-woo’s expression as he received the guiding. He must have felt a profound hunger, akin to having bitten into a forbidden fruit whose existence he would have remained ignorant of had he never tasted it.
Was the flickering, almost fiery intensity in his blue gaze, meeting mine, truly just a figment of my imagination?
Watching him moisten his parched lips with his tongue, as though consumed by a desperate impatience, it became clear that Yoon Geon-woo’s instincts, having savored the sweet, intoxicating taste of guiding, were now overtly craving more, even as his mind might still resist.
In response to his unspoken longing, I meticulously poured forth guiding energy. While the restricted area of contact prevented any truly substantial effects, I nevertheless gave my utmost.
[Contamination Level 74%]
Yet, the effect proved negligible in comparison to the effort expended. This, precisely, was the inherent challenge of a pair with a significant rank disparity. Indeed, when dealing with an Esper of the exceedingly rare S-rank, bridging that gap proved an even more formidable reality.
After reducing his contamination level by what felt like a mere tear of an ant, and as a peculiar silence descended upon us, I finally spoke, addressing the still-dazed Yoon Geon-woo.
“How do you feel?”
“What about?”
“I was asking about your current state, your feelings.”
Though it had been a mere few minutes, I felt it imperative to ascertain his impressions of receiving proper guiding, regardless of the extent of its effect. Moreover, if there was some particular reason why Yoon Geon-woo had always refused a Guide’s approach or guiding, I hoped to uncover it someday.
“Why would you even ask such a thing?”
“Hmm… just, to see if I’m doing well.”
Although I had questioned him, his relaxed expression alone suggested that the situation was not unfolding poorly. I had only asked because he was such a finicky person, and I thought it best to address it once. However, he abruptly turned his head away, as if discontented by something.
“Why? Does something feel strange?”
“Just finish it, and quickly. Wasn’t this an emergency?”
Yoon Geon-woo let out a loud click of his tongue, as if urging me to simply conclude the guiding. But if I were to end the guiding as quickly as he wished, this method would be insufficient even after a hundred hours.
“Yes, time is of the essence. But didn’t you just feel it too?”
“Feel what?”
“That at this rate, we won’t be able to lower your contamination level in time.”
As I laid the groundwork, Yoon Geon-woo’s expression crumpled in unease. But in a situation like this, I had no choice but to present the best possible option. As Yoon Geon-woo himself had said, this was an emergency.
“Let’s try a higher-level guiding. There are two methods. One is the contact guiding through the mouth, which we did last time, and…”
“The next one.”
“…Huh?”
“Are your ears blocked? You said there were two, so hurry and proceed with the other one. I have no intention of rubbing mouths with you in a place like this.”
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