Chapter 29: One More Secret to Keep

Keeping a monster whose intentions and purpose were unknown – at Eun-ru’s hesitation over Jin-yeop’s hard-to-understand actions, the Shamar, which had been looking at Jin-yeop with its big, round eyes, suddenly dropped the spoon it had been chewing on, apparently sleepy.

At that, both of their gazes simultaneously turned to the Shamar.

Unable to resist its heavy, drooping eyelids, the Shamar leaned its head against Jin-yeop’s chest and, at the same moment, began to fade.

“…Shamar?”

Jin-yeop wrapped his arms around the Shamar’s shoulders with a startled look, but the sensation in his palms grew fainter and fainter, until it transformed into a small halo of light.

“This is…”

The light, resembling a cluster of tiny fireflies, headed straight for Jin-yeop’s wrist.

Then it was sucked into the World Tree watch.

“Wh-what is that watch?”

At Eun-ru’s question, Jin-yeop stared at the watch and answered.

“It’s a watch item made from a branch of the World Tree.

I purchased it from Tifone.”

“And it’s not an artifact?”

Of course, it wasn’t something easily understood as an artifact, but a monster residing in a human-processed item seemed less believable than an artifact having such a skill.

“No.

This is truly a processed item.”

“Then perhaps it came out from inside that watch when you left the dungeon?

It was outside the dungeon waiting for you the whole time, and I was with you during the transport, but I didn’t see anything.”

“I already suspected it came out from inside the watch.

Because when I asked how it got out, it pointed at the watch…”

“…”

“Of course, I didn’t expect it to go back inside.”

Jin-yeop carefully stroked the watch on his wrist.

The warm, soft texture of the wood.

The watch seemed to glow strangely.

And at that moment, a single scene flashed through Jin-yeop’s mind.

[Is the Fairy King safe and sound?]

It was Alice.

The words Alice had spoken to him came back vividly.

After that, fragmented memories began to replay.

It was of Alice repeatedly asking about the Fairy King’s fate.

Jin-yeop raised his head and looked at Eun-ru.

“One more thing you need to keep secret has been added.”

“…”

“This watch as well.”

“…”

“A little bit of my memory has returned.

No matter how I think about it, I absolutely need to remember what happened inside the dungeon.

To do that, neither this watch nor the monster can be discovered.”

“…”

“Lee Eun-ru-ssi?”

Jin-yeop called out to Eun-ru, urging him with a slightly anxious feeling.

Eun-ru met Jin-yeop’s gaze with a strange expression.

“There’s a condition.”

“…A condition?”

He had a bad feeling about this, but Jin-yeop reluctantly nodded.

“Go ahead.”

“Let me guide you regularly.”

“…What?”

“Starting now.”

Jin-yeop narrowed his brow at Eun-ru’s words.

Regular guiding was out of the question.

Jin-yeop averted his gaze from Eun-ru’s eyes, which were looking straight at him.

“I refuse.”

“…”

“I don’t need guiding.

If an unavoidable situation arises, I’ll use the Center.”

“Then can I tell the Management Department everything about this?”

“Are you threatening me?”

Jin-yeop asked coldly, but Eun-ru seemed calm.

“Even a child knows how to threaten.

And this isn’t a threat, it’s called worrying.”

“Do you think I’ll get hurt because of one tiny monster like this?”

“Maybe, because it looks like a small child.”

“…”

“You’re weak with kids, after all.”

At Eun-ru’s words, Jin-yeop instinctively opened his mouth to say no, then clamped it shut again.

He couldn’t deny it, given how he had just been acting.

And in truth, Jin-yeop was weak with children.

“You said you can’t trust your judgment of people anymore.

To be clear, that kid isn’t human, but still…”

“…”

“I can’t just turn a blind eye to everything when we don’t know when, how, or what might happen.”

Having no particular rebuttal, Jin-yeop remained silent.

Seeing Jin-yeop like this, Eun-ru let out a small sigh.

“Either way, you need a Guide.

You’re A-class, Senior, and guiding at the Center is inefficient.”

“As you said, I’m A-class, so I can request a high match rate Guide to be assigned.”

“Will there be one with a match rate over 98%?”

“…”

“Do you think a Guide with an A-class match rate of 98% exists at the Guide Center?”

Eun-ru left Jin-yeop speechless multiple times.

He only repeated valid points, so no matter what Jin-yeop said now, it would just be stubbornness.

“Guide Lee Eun-ru.

I understand what you’re saying, but…”

“Just the Guide.”

“…”

“I’m not asking for anything else.

Just, just the guiding.”

“…”

“Something dangerous might happen, or maybe your abilities could develop problems while you’re staying with the monster.

You need someone to keep checking your waves and stabilizing them.”

This was actually a slightly ridiculous situation.

With a match rate this high and a Guide of such high grade, it should be the Esper begging for guiding.

But it was completely the opposite.

In fact, guiding tires and strains the Guide, yet here he was pleading for Jin-yeop to receive guiding.

But Eun-ru’s words weren’t wrong, and it wasn’t even much of a condition.

He was not only keeping a secret but also worrying about Jin-yeop’s safety.

“Senior.”

Eun-ru called out to Jin-yeop pleadingly.

Jin-yeop pressed his lips tightly shut and said nothing.

But Eun-ru quickly noticed the small changes in Jin-yeop’s expression as his eyes darted around.

He was wavering.

That was enough.

But as the silence grew longer, it was Eun-ru who grew more anxious.

Finally, Eun-ru added, looking at Jin-yeop.

“Fine, I won’t do mucous membrane guiding.”

“What did you say?”

He didn’t know when his memories would fully return.

What would people think if he went around with Lee Eun-ru in tow while also keeping the Shamar?

If Kang Jung-hoon latched onto this as a weakness or added absurd rumors…

Lost in such thoughts, Jin-yeop flinched at the words ‘mucous membrane guiding’ and looked at Eun-ru.

Jin-yeop’s face instantly filled with shock.

He immediately forgot what he had been worrying about just moments ago.

“Isn’t that obvious?

Were you actually planning on doing mucous membrane guiding?”

“If you became my dedicated Guide, of course…”

“No, no.”

Jin-yeop felt dizzy because of Eun-ru, who blinked innocently and casually uttered something shocking.

“Not all dedicated Guides do mucous membrane guiding.

What are you…”

Mucous membrane guiding was a kind of emergency measure.

Unless it was a life-or-death situation, or unless the couple were lovers who were perfectly fine with it.

Demanding mucous membrane guiding just for being a dedicated Guide would make you out to be a madman either way.

Jin-yeop sighed, pressing his throbbing forehead.

Did they not teach this kind of thing in basic training these days?

“It’s true that Espers and Guides have a special relationship.

Especially becoming a dedicated Guide means sharing life and death, making the bond stronger than a normal relationship.”

“…”

“But that doesn’t mean all skinship is permitted.”

“Do you consider mucous membrane guiding to be skinship?”

Eun-ru asked, blinking with an innocent expression.

Jin-yeop was dumbfounded.

He had thought he was pure and kind, but now he was starting to think maybe a black-hearted serpent resided within him.

“Are you asking because you don’t know, or are you pretending not to know?”

“I’m asking because I don’t know.”

For a moment, Jin-yeop thought the world was going to the dogs.

Not because Eun-ru was particularly corrupted, but because he thought that might be natural for a generation familiar with Espers and Guides.

He had lived in a world without Awakeners, so he considered kissing outright in a contractual relationship unacceptable, but new Awakeners might not feel the same.

‘Because all sorts of scenes have been broadcast due to broadcasting rights…’

The fact that Guides stabilize an Esper’s waves through physical contact to prevent runaway was no longer just information existing in text.

Emergency guiding situations, with on-site Guides accompanying Espers, had also been broadcast.

Some incidents in certain dungeons remained as romantic anecdotes.

Like the people of the past who went wild watching dating shows.

But after being repeated several times, it no longer generated the same buzz.

Because situations requiring immediate mucous membrane guiding inside a dungeon were usually emergencies.

As Jin-yeop said, it was first aid after all.

Of course, even if Jin-yeop tried to understand it that way, he couldn’t.

Maybe the existence of Espers and Guides was corrupting society…

Jin-yeop pressed his temples with his fingertips and groaned.

“Anyway, mucous membrane guiding is out of the question.”

“Then other things are allowed, right?”

Eun-ru grinned, then snatched Jin-yeop’s hand, which was clutching his head, and pulled it towards himself.

“Guide Lee Eun-ru!”

As Eun-ru naturally pressed their palms together and laced his fingers through Jin-yeop’s, Jin-yeop shouted his name in surprise.

He tried to say, ‘Let go of my hand first, then talk,’ but then the gentle, warm energy enveloping him made him unknowingly release the tension in his body.

“How about it?

Your head doesn’t hurt now, does it?”