Chapter 60: The Sound of a Gunshot

Click—

I gripped the pistol in one hand.

After putting on protective shooting glasses and slowly closing my right eye, I extended my arm straight ahead.

The small handgun loaded with six bullets looked fragile due to its compact barrel, but its actual destructive power was terrifying.

Compared to ordinary firearms, the barrel was narrower and longer, dramatically increasing both propulsion and accuracy.

Not only that, but the bullets themselves — barely two millimeters wide and difficult to see with the naked eye — were powerful enough to shatter even bulletproof glass after only two shots.

Most weapons distributed by the center weren’t designed for civilians or ordinary criminals.

They were meant for the monsters that occasionally attacked cities.

Naturally, handling them required extreme caution.

But after enduring countless training sessions over the past three years, I had long since adapted, and my accuracy was fairly decent.

Beep—

Bang!

The deafening roar ripped through the air hard enough to numb my ears.

The bullet struck the target squarely in the torso before colliding with the firing range wall — constructed from special minerals — and disappearing without a trace.

As powdered fragments scattered across the floor, nearby sensors immediately detected the debris and began automated cleanup.

Beep—

Bang!

The second bullet once again struck the torso.

But compared to the previous shot, the accuracy had noticeably worsened.

The time I spent outside the center had clearly dulled my training.

I had only fired a few rounds, yet my shoulder and the hand gripping the gun were already under severe strain.

At this rate, I wasn’t even sure I could finish all six bullets.

Soon, the red sensor flashed again, signaling for the third shot.

I straightened my posture once more.

Beep—

“Hah… hah…”

Whenever my thoughts became too tangled or something troublesome happened, I often came to the firing range under the excuse of field support training.

The moment I focused entirely on the target, all unnecessary worries disappeared.

And the explosive sound of bullets tearing through the air felt like it forcefully cleared the blockage inside my chest.

Honestly, there was no better way to calm a restless mind.

“This is your third round. Would you like to end training here?”

“Yes. Please. I’ll return the remaining bullets.”

My dying body finally screamed that it could no longer withstand the strain.

Thinking this was enough, I removed all the protective gear and handed it back to the staff waiting at the front of the range.

At some point, my entire body had become drenched in sweat.

My shirt clung tightly to my skin, outlining the sharpness of my thin frame.

It looked awful.

Shhhhhh—

After changing magazines three times in succession while staying tense the entire time, my whole body felt unbearably heavy.

I returned directly to my quarters, grabbed fresh clothes and underwear, then headed to the bathroom.

The moment I adjusted the faucet temperature, hot water poured out in clouds of steam.

As my stiff muscles loosened, a sharp tingling sensation ran down the back of my neck.

Drip. Drip.

“…Huh?”

How long had I been standing there with my eyes closed, lost in thought?

When I wiped my face with my hand, blackened blood stained my palm.

Startled, I looked up at the mirror.

Blood covered my cheeks, jaw, and nearly every part of my face.

In a hurry, I shut off the water and grabbed tissues to plug my nose.

Not realizing blood had already been running down my face, I had smeared it everywhere with my hands.

The result looked straight out of a horror movie.

Thud—

Halfway through cleaning up, I slammed my forehead against the bathroom wall.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Like a madman.

When Kim Kyungwoon first explained my illness to me, I thought dying would be simple.

I vaguely imagined myself slowly wasting away in bed.

But the human body didn’t break as easily as people thought.

The disease was cruel.

Over a long period of time, it carefully destroyed my body from the inside out, making sure I suffered for as long as possible.

This body had begun collapsing because of my own mistakes.

And yet, I had never hated it more than I did today.

“Hah…”

Thankfully, the nosebleed stopped sooner than expected.

I washed the blood from my face completely clean.

But every breath I exhaled still carried the disgusting metallic scent of blood.

Even blood had seeped between my teeth, forcing me to brush them carefully and repeatedly.

Rustle—

After showering, I collapsed onto the bed without even drying my hair properly.

From the handful of medicine packets in my grasp, I pulled out two painkillers and swallowed them with water.

As always, a strange sensation spread through my hands and feet, as though they no longer belonged to me.

Gripping the bedsheets tightly, I slowly steadied my breathing while suppressing the dizziness rising through my body.

Fortunately, the side effects only lasted for about thirty minutes after the medication took effect.

Afterward, daily life became manageable again.

Even though winter was almost over, my hands and feet remained freezing cold.

I raised the heating temperature slightly.

Beep beep—

“Ah… it’s already time.”

After returning to the center, I was required to visit Kwon Yiyul’s quarters three times a week to Guide him.

When we discussed the renewed contract, this was one of the conditions he emphasized most heavily.

Unlike me — who constantly worried about even breathing the same air as him — Kwon Yiyul seemed increasingly calm each time physical contact occurred during Guiding sessions.

Almost as if he were holding some beloved doll close to himself.

No.

To be more accurate, perhaps it was possessiveness.

Honestly, I suspected he viewed me as some sort of human aromatherapy device.

Keeping me nearby calmed him.

Stabilized him.

In that sense, there wasn’t much difference.

Knock knock—

“…Kwon Yiyul-ssi. It’s me. Are you inside?”

Kwon Yiyul’s quarters were located on the eighty-seventh floor of the east wing — the same building as mine.

The place was enormous.

Not only did he occupy an entire penthouse, but he had apparently merged two separate units into one massive space.

Lavish furniture I had never once considered necessary filled every corner of the room.

Dedicated attendants waited nearby like hotel concierges, prepared to provide anything immediately upon request.

And because Kwon Yiyul had a strong interest in collecting artwork, the residence displayed countless rare pieces difficult to find even in museums.

Whoosh—

“…Ngh.”

The moment I stepped inside, Kwon Yiyul grabbed me and pulled me directly into his arms.

The small scratches and injuries I sustained while fleeing the raiders still hadn’t fully healed.

Every time his cold fingertips brushed against my skin, dull pain flared sharply.

Kwon Yiyul’s skin was as cold as the impression given by his eyes.

If he possessed some ability to transform into another creature, anyone who knew him would probably imagine him becoming an albino snake.

“W-wait…”

Even when I begged weakly, Kwon Yiyul didn’t stop.

Instead, he pushed his hand deeper beneath my sweater.

Using two fingers, he slowly traced the groove along my spine from the base of my neck down toward my lower back.

The sensation was unbearable enough to make me twist instinctively.

A faint moan escaped me in spite of myself.

He called this Guiding.

But honestly, Kwon Yiyul’s brainwave levels barely exceeded average and rarely required any real treatment.

Even so, he constantly clung to me excessively, as though reassuring himself that I physically existed in front of him.

Crunch—

Sharp teeth suddenly sank into the back of my neck.

My thin hair slid softly across my sharply angled shoulders.

After lazily licking at the faintly bleeding wound, Kwon Yiyul buried his face against my shoulder and inhaled deeply.

That was finally enough.

I shoved his face away with all my strength and shouted for him to stop.

“…Enough already, Kwon Yiyul-ssi. Demanding unnecessary Guiding is one thing, but all this excessive physical contact is disgusting.”

“What a hurtful thing to say, Yoon-ah. What do Guides exist for in the first place? To help Espers calm down and prevent rampages.”

“So you’re claiming this behavior directly stabilizes your mental state?”

“If it didn’t, why would I bother doing this with you?”

He answered calmly, as though I’d asked the most obvious question in the world.

And just like that, I had nothing left to say.

It was true that as a Guide, my role was to stabilize him.

And when we negotiated the renewed contract, I had indeed agreed — verbally and officially — to conduct Guiding sessions three times a week whenever he requested it.

So in the end, I simply fell silent.

The moment I stopped resisting and relaxed, the sound of his heartbeat thundered beneath his broad chest against my ear.

“…You’ve definitely gotten thinner.”

“…What?”

“I mean you, Yoon-ah. You’re a lot thinner than before. I specifically told the attendants to make sure you ate properly after everything you went through, but I guess they haven’t been doing their jobs.”

“N-no, that’s not true. They take excellent care of me. Every meal feels excessive, honestly.”

“Really? Then why aren’t you gaining any weight?”

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