# Chapter 15
When he said “Are you planning to wait until the seed germinates?” it was merely an expression of impatience.
But as if his words had truly become seeds, something finally happened. An Esper suddenly died.
What’s worse, it was a B-class Esper who died in a dungeon that was barely D-class.
‘It absolutely… wasn’t a dungeon of a level where an Esper should have died.’
Two Espers of the same rank had entered the dungeon, and one explained that they had split up to cover different areas for a faster clear, asserting the statement above.
Since the unusual dungeon had been kept strictly confidential, the Esper was extremely confused about the death of his companion. A precious life had been lost due to careless handling.
‘According to the autopsy results, the cause of death is identical. The wavelength rapidly destabilized and eventually went out of control, resulting in death.’
The researcher in charge of the autopsy explained dispassionately. Though he only participated in the meeting with his voice and without showing his face, no one failed to notice the underlying reproach questioning why proper measures hadn’t been taken earlier.
‘Sigh… To think this would happen in a D-class dungeon…’
‘I didn’t expect something like this to occur so soon…’
The frustrating part was that these executives couldn’t get their act together even after an incident had occurred. Unable to decide what to do or what opinions to offer, they still subtly indicated their desire to keep everything hidden, which was infuriating to see.
It seemed things had progressed this far only because the researchers had spoken up. These officials were too busy trying to hide everything for fear of public criticism, rather than taking proactive measures about what had already happened.
‘I don’t understand what you’re saying. Please explain properly from the beginning.’
It was none other than Suhyun who put an end to the meaningless, time-wasting conversation.
There was value in bringing Suhyun to the meeting that had been convened immediately after the Esper’s death and autopsy.
Even if a meeting was held, it seemed unlikely that any meaningful decisions would be made. Jiwon couldn’t help but feel anxious. At this rate, Suhyun might also suddenly die someday.
Suhyun needed to know.
So Jiwon brought Suhyun to the meeting without getting anyone’s consent. That was the surest way to inform him of the situation.
‘Well…’
The association executives seemed a bit flustered by the unexpected appearance. Accusatory glances were directed at Jiwon.
‘Yenin, an S-class Esper from Russia, has died. Many other Espers are dying as well. Though the cause isn’t certain, we currently suspect there are dungeons that affect the stability of Espers’ wavelengths.’
Jiwon reacted as if to say “what are you going to do about it?” and the researcher did the same. As if he had been waiting for this moment, he methodically explained the situation.
And when his explanation was finished.
‘Why haven’t you told the ability users until now?’
Suhyun asked with an angry face. Jiwon was certainly included among the targets of his anger.
But that’s fair.
Though he’d been blaming others all along, Jiwon had been just as complacent. He shouldn’t have waited for the association’s decision but should have taken more initiative. Everyone who knew this fact was responsible for the Esper’s death.
“Haah…”
He should have done something despite the confusion.
Though he knew it was pointless to regret what had already happened, his mind was noisy with thoughts. The heavy guilt of letting an Esper die tormented Jiwon.
Jiwon lay on the bed, placing the back of his hand over his eyes and closing them.
‘This needs to be disclosed completely and explained without omission. If the association won’t do it, I will.’
Should he have been the one to do this when he first learned about it?
Jiwon chuckled. Forcing Suhyun to act like an S-class Esper? That was unnecessary meddling.
Suhyun knew perfectly well how to use his position when needed.
If anything, it was Jiwon who had been more immature and foolish.
Knock knock.
“Let’s talk.”
The same applies to the current situation. Suhyun, who rarely initiated conversation except during Guiding, was now seeking him out.
He must certainly be disappointed and even more reluctant to face Jiwon than before, but he was taking the initiative because it had to be done. Meanwhile, Jiwon had barely seen Suhyun’s face for days after the meeting. It was difficult for him to endure those eyes that seemed to blame him.
“Guide Moon Jiwon.”
“…I’ll come out.”
Jiwon pressed his temples as he got up from the bed.
Considering how Espers were uniformly refusing to enter dungeons after this incident, it was right to have been cautious before making this public. But they had kept it hidden for too long.
The outside world was now in chaos. Hardly any Espers were willing to enter dungeons and risk death. They feared taking on an unpredictable danger.
But if dungeons were left unattended because no one would enter them, monsters would eventually come out into the world. It was an unimaginably terrible situation.
Well, currently Espers were arguing the reverse. That they should deal with monsters as they emerged. They were suggesting changing the dungeon suppression method to control the surroundings and catch monsters from outside.
But…
“Need Guiding?”
Jiwon asked casually as he opened the door and came out. The one fortunate thing was that Suhyun hadn’t refused Jiwon’s Guiding during this time.
Like other Espers, Suhyun hadn’t entered dungeons for a while. He just kept watch over dungeons, on alert for monsters that might emerge at any time.
The time it takes for monsters to come out varies from dungeon to dungeon, and this time it was taking longer than usual. But it seemed like not much time was left.
In any case, civilians living in areas where dungeons had appeared were all evacuating here and there. It was a disaster situation in every sense.
This wasn’t a way to resolve the situation. The confusion would only worsen as time passed.
“I heard something from the association.”
Jiwon, who had been momentarily lost in thought, looked at Suhyun. His face was rigid.
“I heard that you’ll be entering dungeons together from now on. Is that true?”
So he’s heard.
Jiwon blinked and then nodded.
He needed to enter a dungeon as soon as possible. He had to verify the dungeon firsthand and make the researchers eliminate the cause. That was the most certain method.
“Yes, I’ll be going in soon…”
In fact, things were already in progress. The dungeon Jiwon would enter had already been decided, and they were selecting which Espers would go with him.
Jiwon intended to tell Suhyun about this.
“Are you insane?”
But Jiwon couldn’t finish his sentence. Suhyun had shouted angrily.
“How can a Guide enter a dungeon?”
Having never seen him raise his voice like this before, a startled Jiwon blankly opened his mouth and then answered slowly.
“Just… go in, can’t I?”
“That’s now…”
“Of course I won’t go in alone. I’ll go with other Espers. Then if we encounter a problematic dungeon, I’ll Guide the Espers to prevent them from going out of control, clear the dungeon, and then investigate the place.”
“Don’t you think that’s too unreasonable?”
“…I think it’s the best option.”
There was no other way. But Suhyun didn’t seem to think so.
“No. We can wait for the monsters to come out of the dungeon on their own, like now.”
“But…”
“Dungeons are too dangerous for Guides to enter.”
Jiwon, who was about to object, paused.
‘Is he… worrying about me right now?’
Surprisingly, the moment he realized this, his mood that had been low seemed to improve.
“Hmm… I understand what you’re saying.”
Ignoring his own bewildering emotional shift for now, Jiwon spoke calmly.
“But don’t you think that kind of dungeon suppression would be even harder? I think you would understand too. What if even one monster that came out of the dungeon got away? What if civilians haven’t properly evacuated?”
In sparsely populated areas or places where civilian control is easy, the situation might be better.
But what if a dungeon appeared in the middle of downtown?
Let’s say evacuating civilians is manageable. But what about the damage from battles between monsters and Espers? The city would be devastated. Dungeons would continue to appear, but would there be time to rebuild?
And above all, it was dangerous. Even missing just one monster would inevitably result in casualties.
“Wouldn’t it be easier to protect one Guide inside a dungeon?”
No matter how he calculated it, Jiwon venturing into the dungeon was much safer. Even if people’s lives were spared, if they lost their homes, that wasn’t complete protection.
“I think there are far fewer variables that way.”
Jiwon thought Suhyun would naturally accept this logic.
“…Why does the Guide have to go in?”
“…Pardon?”
But Suhyun, with a reluctant face, asked an odd question.
