Chapter 4: 100.0%

So-won showered as quickly as he could and opened his closet to pick out clothes, only to collapse onto the floor in defeat.

He resented his past self for having worn nothing but cheap clothes before becoming a Guide.

Designs straight out of trends from eight years ago and childish outfits greeted him.

By the time he managed to find something halfway decent to wear, far too much time had already passed.

Eight years ago, today had been a blazing summer day.

The moment he stepped outside, sweat poured down his body.

Damn it.

So-won let out a small sigh.

He had put so much effort into his appearance for a good first impression, and now it all seemed pointless.

***

When the Esper Association building came into view, So-won unconsciously quickened his pace.

The massive, state-of-the-art structure—larger than most government facilities—loomed bigger with every step.

Kang Tae-woo.

Mr. Tae-woo.

So-won murmured Tae-woo’s name softly.

Tae-woo wouldn’t remember him.

That was precisely why he had to button the first step correctly.

Cool air greeted him inside the Esper Association.

Before he realized it, So-won was panting.

The soaring ceiling that felt like it could burst his chest open and the ornate architecture stole his breath away.

He took a few rough breaths as he approached the information desk, and once he had steadied himself, the staff member addressed him.

“What brings you here?”

“I’m Lee So-won.”

“I’m here for the guiding test with Kang Tae-woo.”

“Ah… please go to the guiding examination room on the 7th floor.”

After finishing his breathless reply, So-won bowed and hurried into the elevator.

His breathing had finally calmed down somewhat.

First floor, second floor…

The numbers climbed rapidly.

Suddenly, So-won wondered how Tae-woo had reacted when he heard the matching result.

Had he been happy?

Or perhaps he’d been indifferent, his emotions dulled by the side effects of going without guiding.

So-won’s heart pounded.

Guilt over having caused Tae-woo’s death, fear of facing the man he had once been terrified of, and a faint anticipation at the thought of seeing Tae-woo in a normal state all tangled together.

Clunk.

Seventh floor.

The elevator stopped, and the doors slid open slowly.

So-won scanned the wide corridor, searching for the guiding examination room.

Eight years ago, he had been matched immediately without undergoing a guiding test.

It seemed the past had changed because he had applied for designated matching.

After this guiding test, So-won thought, the compatibility rate would probably drop back down to its original 65%.

“Ah, found it.”

Guiding Examination Room.

Because it was so quiet inside, So-won worried he might have come to the wrong place and knocked.

Fortunately, a researcher inside opened the door right away and greeted him.

Three researchers were waiting for So-won inside the examination room.

The moment he stepped in, So-won rolled his eyes around, searching for Tae-woo.

Thankfully—or perhaps disappointingly—Tae-woo didn’t seem to have arrived yet.

Beyond a glass wall, there was another room.

Inside were a large, complicated-looking machine and a pair of chairs, likely where the test would be conducted.

While So-won was still looking around, heavy footsteps from outside stopped right in front of the door.

At the sound, So-won flinched.

Instinctively, he knew Tae-woo was on the other side.

So-won’s body stiffened.

It felt like he could already sense Tae-woo’s sharp wave-pattern.

Without so much as a knock, click, the door opened.

Caught unprepared, So-won’s body trembled pitifully.

Despite having resolved not to shake, his body refused to listen.

***

Tae-woo had just returned from a gate.

Late at night, he lay alone in his private room at the Esper Association, three guiding machines attached across his entire body.

He let out ragged breaths, writhing in agony as though his body were being carved apart.

It was always like this after a gate.

His body felt ready to burst, yet never did—only heating up unbearably, steeped in pain.

He had long since forgotten any reason to live.

Always hurting, always suffering, he merely followed orders.

He felt suffocated.

Endless thirst made it feel as though his body would crack apart and turn to dust.

The guiding machines could only drip tiny amounts of guiding into Tae-woo’s parched body.

And that only made the thirst worse, sending him thrashing in torment.

Guiding.

Tae-woo’s instincts screamed for a Guide.

He wanted to touch one, to erase this unbearable pain.

But he had no Guide.

Instead of guiding, the only thing he could do was drown himself in strong alcohol, numbing his mind for a short while.

Several empty bottles of high-proof whiskey lay scattered beside him, and his private room was thick with an alcoholic stench strong enough to make one drunk just by breathing.

Bzzzt.

Then, the phone lying beside the bed vibrated.

It was a call from the Esper Association.

An emergency summons?

Already in terrible condition, Tae-woo frowned and answered.

He didn’t speak.

But from the other end, he could hear trembling breaths, as though the caller was already terrified.

–Ah, hello, Esper Kang Tae-woo.

When Tae-woo didn’t respond, the man on the line continued.

–A Guide named Lee So-won is asking for you at the university hospital emergency room.

–Could this possibly be your Guide—

Crunch.

The smartphone in Tae-woo’s hand shattered instantly.

A Guide?

Such a thing had never existed for Tae-woo, who had lived his entire life as a monster, alone.

Before he could even get angry, pain surged through his body, shaking him violently.

Barely clinging to consciousness, Tae-woo’s grip tightened as though his hand might burst.

After suffering through the night, Tae-woo finally stabilized by the next morning.

Unfortunate—or perhaps fortunate—this time, he hadn’t gone berserk.

He cleared his constricted throat.

Instead of rough skin, his fingers brushed against smooth metal.

The black, thick ring encircling his neck was a bomb.

Unstable without a Guide, yet docile for an S-rank Esper—easy to exploit.

That had been the government’s conclusion.

If Tae-woo ever went berserk, the bomb around his neck would detonate without hesitation.

Whether it could truly damage his resilient body, Tae-woo couldn’t say.

But if that day ever came, he hoped it would finally free him from this pain.

Though his body had calmed somewhat, he was still far from well.

Surrounded by machines, Tae-woo lay completely still.

The only time he moved was when a visitor arrived that afternoon.

“Esper Kang Tae-woo?”

A young researcher cautiously tried to enter Tae-woo’s private room, but the moment their eyes met, he began to tremble violently.

Faced with the horrifying sight of guiding machines clinging to Tae-woo’s body like tentacles and his twisted, unwell gaze, the researcher felt like he might faint.

“A designated matching… request… has come in…”

“Do as you see fit.”

The researcher couldn’t even step inside.

Shaking uncontrollably, he fled without finishing his sentence.

Designated matching.

Tae-woo’s mood sank again.

Out of all the compatibility tests he’d undergone, none had ever exceeded 5%.

Since yesterday, things related to Guides kept cropping up, as if mocking him.

Tae-woo had no doubt that he would continue entering gates without a Guide, eventually go berserk, and meet a miserable death.

Even if a Guide did appear, they would surely flee in terror at his grotesque appearance.

And even if that happened, Tae-woo wouldn’t care.

He knew all too well that everyone feared the monster he was.

The next day, another visitor arrived early in the morning.

This time, it was someone Tae-woo knew well—his attending physician.

Unlike his usual professional demeanor, the doctor looked wildly excited, making Tae-woo frown.

People rarely visited his private room even once a year, so this constant intrusion was hardly welcome.

“Esper Kang Tae-woo!

Hah—look at this, take a look!”

Without knocking, the doctor burst into the room, approached Tae-woo without trembling for once, and thrust a thick stack of papers at him.

As Tae-woo accepted them, the machines hanging from his arms collided, clatter clatter, making noise.

The papers were matching result reports.

“A Guide with a 100% compatibility rate has appeared!”

“A 100% compatibility Guide!”

The doctor shouted, excited like a child who couldn’t contain himself.

Normally, Tae-woo would have scowled and chased him out, but caught off guard, he could only stare down at the papers.

He appeared calm.

The doctor had expected shock or joy, and the unexpected reaction slowly cooled his excitement.

“W-Well… we couldn’t believe it either, so we tested it several times, but it really is 100%.”

“Just in case, we’ve asked another institution to run the test again, but the result will likely be the same.”

Now composed, the doctor spoke carefully, watching Tae-woo’s expression.

100.0%.

Every page the doctor had handed him was a matching test report.

The same number was printed on all of them.

The more Tae-woo looked at it, the colder his heart became.

Not a single Guide had ever exceeded a 5% compatibility rate with him.

And now, suddenly, 100%?

From the start, 100 was an impossible number between an Esper and a Guide.

And 100% with him, of all people?

The test had to be wrong.

Tae-woo glared at the words on the paper.

If the page had a heart, it might have burst.

Seeing Tae-woo’s icy expression, the doctor swallowed nervously.

As Tae-woo narrowed his eyes, a familiar name caught his attention.

Guide, Lee So-won.

It was a name he recognized, but Tae-woo didn’t dwell on it.

He handed the papers back.

The doctor, trembling, grabbed them and fled the room as if running for his life.