Chapter 20: Don’t Insult My Guide

Eunho bit his lip. He had almost burst out laughing.

Watching Chaewon carry out his duties steadily and without wavering even in the face of grueling tests and Jin Su-ha’s coldness, Eunho had already thought this man was no ordinary person, but even so, he had exceeded expectations.

Feeling inexplicably proud, despite it not really being his place to, Eunho straightened his back and glanced around. That was when he noticed Su-ha’s gaze fixed on them from a table some distance away. Su-ha had even set down the spoon he’d been holding.

So he does care a little, being the paired guide and all.

Just as that thought crossed Eunho’s mind, a small scraping sound rang out as Giyoon pushed back his chair and stood up.

“Team Leader Joo Giyoon.”

Eunho reflexively rose halfway from his seat as he called out Giyoon’s name. A sharp, dangerous pressure began to emanate from Giyoon as he strode straight toward Chaewon.

His teammates also called after him, “Team Leader”, but Giyoon didn’t withdraw his gaze, fixed firmly on Chaewon as he approached.

Chaewon turned his body slightly toward the person coming at him and fell into brief contemplation. Should he stand or not? It was hard to decide in an instant.

He knew now that the man was an esper because Eunho had called him Joo Giyoon, but even without that, Chaewon could instinctively tell from the pressure brushing against his skin. A very strong one.

Judging by the sudden shift in the surrounding atmosphere, it didn’t seem like Giyoon was approaching with good intentions. Strangely, though, Chaewon didn’t feel a strong sense of threat.

He shook his head toward Eunho, who was moving toward him. If that esper truly was angry with him, Eunho stepping in on his behalf would only make things worse.

Chaewon had felt this before, but Eunho seemed to think it was his responsibility to look after him. Honestly, Chaewon didn’t dislike that. Still, this was something he could handle on his own.

More than anything, Chaewon didn’t want Eunho getting dragged into trouble because of him.

Letting out a small breath, Chaewon quietly looked up at Giyoon, who had already stopped right in front of him.

The expression on his face, one that conveyed I have no desire to clash with you, and if you want, I’m willing to apologize or bow my head, was one Chaewon was most confident in wearing.

“What is it?”

At that moment, a voice rang out, one even Chaewon hadn’t anticipated. Slipping between the two without anyone noticing when he’d approached was Chaewon’s guide, Jin Su-ha.

For the first time, Chaewon’s expression wavered noticeably.

****

To be honest, Su-ha didn’t want to concern himself with Chaewon’s affairs beyond what was absolutely necessary for guiding. In any case, he was someone Su-ha would part ways with when the time came. Whatever it was, Su-ha had no desire to share personal feelings with him.

Although it was common for matched espers and guides to develop close feelings for one another, espers tended to fall faster and deeper than guides. Guiding itself was a far more desperate act for espers than for guides.

A guide could live a perfectly normal life without guiding anyone in particular. Not guiding didn’t put strain on their body, nor did it lead to rampages that would destroy their lives.

For espers, however, guiding was essential. Some espers even described receiving guidance as feeling like being saved from a swamp of death, and in reality, that description wasn’t far off.

An esper rampaging due to lack of guidance was a fear just as real as being killed by monsters in a dungeon. It was only natural that espers became more attached to the relationship than guides.

For that very reason, Su-ha kept as much distance from Chaewon as possible. Chaewon was S-rank, and considering the weight his name carried and the speed at which he was growing, if he ever decided to bind Su-ha to himself as his guide, it would pose a very real problem for Su-ha.

Between Min Ihyeon, who didn’t want a paired guide, and Lee Chaewon, who wanted Jin Su-ha as his guide, it was obvious whose side the higher-ups would take.

So Su-ha deliberately treated Chaewon more coldly, hoping Chaewon would grow tired of him. He provided only the bare minimum of guidance, giving no room for misunderstanding, so that Chaewon would want to meet another guide as soon as possible.

That was how it had been, until now.

Giyoon’s crooked gaze settled on Su-ha. Though Giyoon wasn’t particularly kind, he didn’t usually behave unpleasantly toward people he knew to some extent. There was, however, exactly one person he reacted to with particular sensitivity: Min Ihyeon.

For Giyoon, who was always treated as inferior to Min Ihyeon despite being the same S-rank, that was only natural. And Jin Su-ha had once rejected Giyoon’s offer to pair in order to become Min Ihyeon’s guide. There was no way things would be good after that.

“Oh, right. Come to think of it, our Guide Jin Su-ha said he was in charge of this one, didn’t he?”

Giyoon spoke with a smile, as if he’d just heard some entertaining news. But the voice that followed was anything but light.

“You were so busy chasing after Min Ihyeon’s coattails, how’d you end up matched with such a lacking esper?”

“Watch your words.”

“The one who should watch his words isn’t me, Guide Jin. I was just happy to see a new esper and thought I’d say hello. Why are you being so hostile?”

Giyoon’s gaze shifted back to Chaewon. Chaewon, who had been darting his eyes between the two with visible unease, carefully rose from his seat.

****

The moment Chaewon stood, Su-ha’s body tensed reflexively. Those who knew that relations between Giyoon and Su-ha were far from smooth also held their breath, tension spreading.

More startled than anyone by Su-ha’s action of blocking Giyoon from Chaewon was Jin Su-ha himself. It wasn’t something he’d thought through. The moment Giyoon moved toward Chaewon, his body had acted on its own.

From the time Giyoon had started talking about how Chaewon didn’t look like an S-rank, about side effects, even boasting about the fact that he’d been terminally ill, Su-ha’s mood had already soured badly.

If he was being honest, Su-ha knew that what Giyoon was saying wasn’t all that different from how Su-ha himself had been treating Chaewon.

Perhaps that was why it irritated him even more, it made him realize just how unfair his own behavior toward Chaewon had been.

But that alone wasn’t enough to explain why he was standing here now, blocking Joo Giyoon’s path. Just the assumption that Giyoon might threaten or harm Chaewon was enough to ignite a blaze inside him in an instant.

A doubt crossed his mind, wasn’t this exactly the feeling he’d been wary of all along? But the moment his body moved, none of that mattered.

Staring straight at Giyoon, Su-ha stepped half a pace forward, fully shielding Chaewon. Just as he was about to open his mouth to warn Giyoon to back off once more, Chaewon spoke first.

“Then say hello to me.”

It was a plain voice, completely mismatched with the atmosphere that felt ready to explode. Neither aggressive nor defensive, that sense of dissonance drew Giyoon’s attention away from Su-ha, who he’d been glaring at intently.

Giyoon wasn’t the only one startled. Su-ha, too, turned to Chaewon with a shocked expression.

Su-ha wanted to tell him not to engage, but the steady gaze with which Chaewon faced Giyoon stopped the words in his throat. Ready to step back in at any moment, Su-ha remained tense, while Chaewon, oblivious or unconcerned, continued.

“If you really wanted to greet me, then greet me. And if you don’t like me, I’d prefer you tell me that directly.”

“What are you saying right now…?”

“No matter how inadequate of an esper I may be, you shouldn’t insult my guide in front of me.”

Shock, beyond mere disbelief, spread across Giyoon’s face. And he wasn’t the only one. Yet no one present was as stunned as Jin Su-ha. By now, Su-ha was almost turned away from Giyoon entirely, staring at Chaewon.

Chaewon’s expression seemed to exist in a place detached from everyone else’s emotions. He didn’t look angry, but neither was he intimidated.

Even in a place filled with the most renowned awakened individuals, it would be hard to find someone who could remain this composed in the face of Joo Giyoon’s open displeasure.

But for Chaewon, this was only natural. He had lived his life at the very bottom of society, always keeping his head down, acting as though he couldn’t feel humiliation or injustice.

At the same time, Chaewon was someone who would never retreat when there was someone weaker standing behind him.