Chapter 78: Kidnapped

Tae-woo said he’d take him home as soon as he returned from the Gate.

They would visit the places So-won often went, stop by his favorite shops, and even walk past the high school near his old neighborhood.

There were already mountains of things he wanted to do together with Tae-woo.

So-won stepped outside, humming lightly as he twirled the car keys in his hand.

A black car sat quietly in the yard, looking almost unused, as though it had been waiting patiently just for him.

He brushed a hand over the softly gleaming surface and muttered to himself,

“Come to think of it… I’ve barely driven this thing at all.”

It had been a gift from Tae-woo, but aside from the day he first received it, he had hardly ever driven it.

They always rode together in Tae-woo’s car to and from the Association, and So-won rarely went anywhere on his own.

Smiling to himself, he decided that when they went home together next time, he would be the one driving.

“What are you doing there?”

A voice drifted down from above.

So-won startled and snapped his head upward.

Instead of clouds, a person was floating in the sky.

“Choi Si-hyeok… Esper-nim?”

His eyes widened as Si-hyeok slowly descended, as though gravity had only just remembered him.

His face looked unusually worn, as if he hadn’t rested at all in the past day.

How did he even find this place?

Panic prickled through So-won.

Tae-woo’s residence was information known only to a handful of Association personnel.

Si-hyeok wasn’t close enough to Tae-woo for him to have shared something like that…

Si-hyeok landed a short distance away and glanced around curiously before looking up at the house in admiration, clearly seeing it for the first time.

So-won, tense and wary, finally spoke.

“Tae-woo isn’t home right now.

If you’re looking for him, you should come back later—”

“I know.”

Si-hyeok cut him off.

“He went to the Gate, right?

Off the coast of Busan, was it?

I heard from the Association that the Gate’s disgustingly huge, so it’ll take days before anyone comes out.”

“How do you—”

“It was originally a request made to me.

I’d know.”

He clicked his tongue irritably.

“Honestly, sending him in without a Guide…”

So-won silently assessed the situation.

From the moment he saw Si-hyeok, a nameless unease had begun to creep up his spine.

Should I call Tae-woo?

But it had already been a while since he left.

Turning back now would take too long…

As So-won hesitated, Si-hyeok noticed the car keys in his hand and tilted his head.

“Going out somewhere?

Where to?”

“M-My parents’ place…”

“Hm.”

Si-hyeok didn’t continue.

So-won swallowed hard.

Something felt wrong.

Whether from the cold or from sheer tension, his body had gone stiff.

“Not there,” Si-hyeok said quietly.

“You’ll have to come with me instead.”

The smile vanished from his face, his voice dropping low.

This is dangerous.

Realizing the situation had turned, So-won hurriedly reached into his pocket to call Tae-woo, but before the screen could even light up, a violent wave of dizziness crashed over him.

The world lurched.

Strength drained from his body, and just before his consciousness slipped away, So-won thought he saw Si-hyeok’s eyes glowing an eerie blue.

***

So-won stood alone in darkness.

No matter where he looked, there was nothing but endless black.

Cold air brushed against his ankles, sending a chill through him.

Fear surged up without warning.

The first person that came to mind was Tae-woo.

“T-Tae-woo…?”

“Are you there?”

He called out softly, but no answer came from beyond the darkness.

Glancing around anxiously, So-won took a hesitant step back.

Splash.

The sound of liquid echoed beneath his feet.

Looking down, he saw a pool of dark red blood spreading across the ground.

“Ugh—!”

He slipped and fell, blood splattering everywhere as hot, sticky liquid soaked his body.

His palm burned as he pushed himself up.

When he lifted his hand, it was stained a vivid crimson.

The stench of blood flooded his nose.

And then he saw it.

Tae-woo’s corpse lay right in front of him.

“—!”

So-won gasped and shot upright.

A white ceiling filled his vision.

Panting harshly, he looked around in confusion.

It was an unfamiliar room, bright sunlight streaming in through the window.

At least it wasn’t night.

“…It was just a dream.”

Thank god.

He covered his eyes with his arm, trembling uncontrollably.

The pillow beneath his head was damp with cold sweat and tears.

It had been a long time since he’d had such a vivid nightmare, and even after waking, his breathing refused to steady.

But… where am I?

“Ugh…”

When he tried to sit up, a brutal pain tore through his head, forcing him to collapse back onto the bed.

He clutched his skull, a strangled groan escaping him as a headache slammed into him like an axe.

Nausea surged, and he curled up, covering his mouth.

Only after a long while did he manage to lift his head and examine his surroundings.

Bright interior.

White walls.

Neatly arranged furniture.

It was a bedroom—small and cozy—but So-won was certain he had never been here before.

The last thing he remembered before losing consciousness surfaced in his mind.

Choi Si-hyeok.

“…Don’t tell me.”

Was I kidnapped?

Stories he’d heard while in Canada resurfaced—Guides being abducted by Espers was disturbingly common overseas.

Korea wasn’t entirely free of such cases either, though kidnappings were rare thanks to omnipresent surveillance.

So-won shook his head.

No matter how desperate Si-hyeok was for guiding, he didn’t want to believe he’d lose his reason to that extent.

But no matter how he thought about it…
this really does look like a kidnapping.

He checked his condition.

His clothes were intact, his body unharmed aside from the pounding headache.

No phone.

No car keys.

Even his shoes were gone, leaving only socks on his feet.

Moving as quietly as possible, So-won got out of bed.

Si-hyeok wasn’t in the room.

If I can get out now…

He approached the window and carefully pulled back the curtain.

Nothing but a massive tree blocked his view.

Opening the window silently, he leaned out.

The ground was far below.

“…Second floor.”

The grass beneath looked soft, but—

“Jumping from here would still be risky…”

With no safe escape route, he closed the window and stepped into the hallway.

“…No one here?”

The house was eerily quiet.

The hallway looked ordinary, yet devoid of any warmth, much like Tae-woo’s place before So-won had moved in.

At the end of the hall was a staircase.

Holding his breath, So-won crept down to the first floor.

The moment he reached the bottom, his face brightened.

The front door.

Relief flooded him as he rushed forward and grabbed the doorknob—

“Awake already?”

The calm, familiar voice made his blood run cold.

Recognizing Si-hyeok instantly, So-won flung the door open without thinking.

“You really shouldn’t go out.”

What greeted him was—

“This terrain’s pretty rough.”

Towering mountains surrounded the house, steep slopes and dense trees hemming him in on all sides.

Cold, damp air wrapped around his body, and from the view alone, it was clear—

They were near the summit of a mountain, deep enough that no human presence could be felt anywhere nearby.

“…..”

“Now that you understand the situation, close the door and come back inside.

I hate bugs.”

Si-hyeok didn’t even bother coming out to stop him.

He spoke lazily from within the house.

So-won stared out at the landscape in silence.

There was no escaping from a place like this, and Si-hyeok knew it.

Barefoot in socks, running through the forest would only leave him injured.

At last, So-won closed the door and walked back toward Si-hyeok’s voice.

“Good.

At least you’re quick to assess things,” Si-hyeok said, slumped on the sofa with an arm draped over his eyes.

“Moving an entire house took a lot out of me.

I didn’t feel like chasing you.”

His voice was low and exhausted, and he didn’t move at all.

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